| Herati Civil War (1823–1829) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||
| Belligerents | ||||||||
Loyalists HeratPrincipality of Kandahar  Qajar Iran | Opposition Rival factions Aimaq tribesmen Uzbek tribesmen Hazara tribesmen | Rival factions Rebels Herati Army defectors | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | ||||||||
| Kamran Mirza Durrani Husain Khan Mustafa Khan Zori (AWOL)Yar Mohammad Khan Sher Dil Khan Hasan Ali Mirza | Mahmud Shah Durrani # Saleh Khan (POW) Mustafa Khan Zori  Ata Mohammad Khan # Din Mohammad KhanYar Mohammad Khan | Firuz Mirza Durrani Mustafa Khan Zori  | ||||||
TheHerati Civil War[a] was a dynastic conflict within theEmirate of Herat fought betweenMahmud Shah Durrani and his sonKamran Mirza Durrani fought from 1823 to 1829.[1]
Herat underKamran Mirza Durrani has always refused to pay tribute,[2] and actively supported internal revolts inIran, specifically the revolt of Banyad Khan Hazara, theHazara chieftain ofTorbat-e Jam andBakharz.[3][1] On 25 June 1821, an Iranian force of 3,000[3] shattered Banyad Khan's troops, mainly consisting ofJamshidi,Firozkohi,HazaraAimaq troops at the Battle ofKariz, and was pursued into their lands. Iranian forces invadedHerat less than a year later, and besieged the city, aiming to restoreMahmud Shah Durrani's uterine brother Firuz al-Din Mirza Durrani to the throne.[4] In the process, Ibrahim Khan Jamshidi,[5] Khalil Khan Taymani,[6] and Qilij Khan Timuri who was the governor ofKhaf, were all killed during a battle on 22 May 1822.[1][7] Herat then withstood the siege by Iranian forces, despite the provine being ravaged dearly, but did not have an effect on Kamran, who aimed to attackKandahar.
In 1823[5] or 1824, Kamran Mirza attempted to conquerKandahar,[2] and left the administration of Herat in the hands of Husain Khan and Mustafa Khan Zori. En route to Kandahar, Firuz al-Din Mirza was installed into the throne by his own allies.[2] However,Mahmud Shah Durrani ended Firuz al-Din's 18-day rule, through his instigation that resulted in convincing the latter's allies to desert to himself.[2] Firuz al-Din would then flee toTorshiz after being deposed, and would be assassinated at the instigation of Kamran Mirza 8 or 9 years later.[5]
WhenKamran Mirza Durrani returned fromKandahar, his fatherMahmud Shah Durrani refused to let him back in. As a result, Kamran Mirza besiegedHerat with support of thePrincipality of Kandahar.[2] Mahmud Shah then recruited the help of Saleh Khan, who sent Mustafa Khan Zori to break the siege. Despite success, Mustafa Khan turned against his allies, imprisoned Saleh Khan, and forced Mahmud Shah out of the city. Mahmud Shah and Kamran Mirza then united against the rebellious instigator Mustafa Khan, and deposed him within a month, with Mahmud Shah executing him in the winter of 1824 through putting a paper hat on Mustafa Khan's head and pouring lamp oil on top of it.[4][5]
After the death of Mustafa Khan, the two sides ended their temporary truce, and immediately started fighting each other for control. Mahmud Shah fled toKhwajaAbdullah Ansari's tomb atGazurgah, and fled across theMurghab while occupyingBala Murghab lands 6 months later, to seek help from theJamshidi tribe in the war.[5] Kamran Mirza then requested the aid ofQajar Iran, to whichHasan Ali Mirza sent 6,000[6] or 10,000 men[2] with 4 guns to his aid, reaching Herat on 16 July 1826. They then combined 2,000 of Kamran's Herati troops and marched towards the Murghab, but these plans were leaked by Mahmud's spies, who set up an ambush. TheAimaqs andUzbeks then routed the Iranians, and refused to storm thecitadel, despite marching onward to Herat, but camped outside instead, leading to a failure and the dissipation of the victory atBadghis.[6]
Mahmud Shah fled to theHazaras ofQala e Naw, but Kamran sent an army after him. The Herati army starved the Hazaras of supplies, and forced them to hand over Mahmud. However, he fled toLash-Juwayn, rather than being taken prisoner.[6][5] In 1827, Kamran Mirza took a pity on his father, and invited him back to Herat. In 1828 or 1829, Ata Mohammad Khan died, and was succeeded asvizier by his son Din Mohammad Khan, who later gave up the viziership to his 40-year old[4] cousinYar Mohammad Khan, due to courtiers being against the former appointment.[4] Yar Mohammad Khan would later depose Mahmud Shah, who died shortly after,[1] leading to the restoration of Kamran Mirza.