Afghanistan is a country that has been the sphere of interest of the most important players in world politics for more than 200 years. Its name is firmly entrenched in the list of the most dangerous hot spots on our planet. However, only a few people know the history of Afghanistan, which is briefly described in this article. In addition, over several millennia, its people have created a rich culture similar to the Persian one, which is currently in decline due to constant political and economic instability, as well as terrorist activities of radical Islamist organizations.

History of Afghanistan since ancient times

The first people appeared on the territory of this country about 5000 years ago. Most researchers even believe that it was there that the world's first settled rural communities arose. In addition, it is assumed that Zoroastrianism appeared on the modern territory of Afghanistan between 1800 and 800 BC, and the founder of the religion, which is one of the oldest, spent the last years of his life and died in Balkh.

In the middle of the 6th century BC. e. The Achaemenids included these lands. However, after 330 BC. e. it was captured by the army of Alexander the Great. Afghanistan was part of his state until its collapse, and then became part of the Seleucid empire, which introduced Buddhism there. The region then fell under the rule of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom. By the end of the 2nd century AD. e. The Indo-Greeks were defeated by the Scythians, and in the first century AD. e. Afghanistan was conquered by the Parthian Empire.

Middle Ages

In the 6th century, the territory of the country became part of and later the Samanids. Then Afghanistan, whose history practically did not know long periods of peace, experienced an Arab invasion that ended at the end of the 8th century.

Over the next 9 centuries, the country changed hands frequently until it became part of the Timurid Empire in the 14th century. During this period, Herat became the second center of this state. After 2 centuries, the last representative of the Timurid dynasty, Babur, founded an empire centered in Kabul and began to make campaigns in India. Soon he moved to India, and the territory of Afghanistan became part of the Safavid country.

The decline of this state in the 18th century led to the formation of feudal khanates and a revolt against Iran. During the same period, the Gilzean principality was formed with its capital in the city of Kandahar, which was defeated in 1737 by the Persian army of Nadir Shah.

Durrani Power

Oddly enough, Afghanistan (you already know the history of the country in ancient times) acquired independent statehood only in 1747, when Ahmad Shah Durrani founded a kingdom with its capital in Kandahar. Under his son Timur Shah, Kabul was proclaimed the main city of the state, and by the beginning of the 19th century, Shah Mahmud began to rule the country.

British colonial expansion

The history of Afghanistan from ancient times to the beginning of the 19th century is fraught with many mysteries, since many of its pages have been studied relatively poorly. The same cannot be said about the period after the invasion of its territory by Anglo-Indian troops. The “new masters” of Afghanistan loved order and carefully documented all events. In particular, from surviving documents, as well as from letters from British soldiers and officers to their families, details are known not only of battles and uprisings of the local population, but also of their life and traditions.

So, the history of the war in Afghanistan, which began in 1838. A few months later, a 12,000-strong British group stormed Kandahar, and a little later Kabul. The emir avoided a collision with a superior enemy and went into the mountains. However, its representatives constantly visited the capital, and in 1841 unrest began among the local population in Kabul. The British command decided to retreat to India, but on the way the army was killed by Afghan partisans. The response was a brutal punitive raid.

First Anglo-Afghan War

The reason for the outbreak of hostilities on the part of the British Empire was the dispatch of Lieutenant Vitkevich to Kabul by the Russian government in 1837. There he was supposed to be a resident under Dost Mohammed, who seized power in the Afghan capital. The latter at that time had already been fighting for more than 10 years with his closest relative Shuja Shah, who was supported by London. The British regarded Vitkevich's mission as Russia's intention to gain a foothold in Afghanistan in order to penetrate India in the future.

In January 1839, a British army of 12,000 troops and 38,000 servants, supported by 30,000 camels, crossed the Bolan Pass. On April 25, she managed to take Kandahar without a fight and launch an attack on Kabul.

Only the Ghazni fortress offered serious resistance to the British, but it too was forced to surrender. The route to Kabul was opened, and the city fell on August 7, 1839. With the support of the British, Emir Shuja Shah reigned on the throne, and Emir Dost Mohammed fled to the mountains with a small group of fighters.

The rule of the British protege did not last long, as local feudal lords organized unrest and began to attack the invaders in all regions of the country.

At the beginning of 1842, the British and Indians agreed with them to open a corridor through which they could retreat to India. However, at Jalalabad, the Afghans attacked the British, and out of 16,000 fighters, only one escaped.

In response, punitive expeditions followed, and after the suppression of the uprising, the British entered into negotiations with Dost Mohammed, persuading him to abandon rapprochement with Russia. Later a peace treaty was signed.

Second Anglo-Afghan War

The situation in the country remained relatively stable until the Russian-Turkish War began in 1877. Afghanistan, whose history is a long list of armed conflicts, has once again found itself between two fires. The fact is that when London expressed dissatisfaction with the success of the Russian troops, which were quickly moving towards Istanbul, St. Petersburg decided to play the Indian card. For this purpose, a mission was sent to Kabul, which was received with honors by Emir Sher Ali Khan. On the advice of Russian diplomats, the latter refused to allow the British embassy into the country. This was the reason for the entry of British troops into Afghanistan. They occupied the capital and forced the new emir Yakub Khan to sign an agreement according to which his state had no right to conduct foreign policy without the mediation of the British government.

In 1880, Abdurrahman Khan became emir. He attempted to enter into an armed conflict with Russian troops in Turkestan, but was defeated in March 1885 in the Kushka region. As a result, London and St. Petersburg jointly determined the boundaries within which Afghanistan (the history of the 20th century is presented below) exists to this day.

Independence from the British Empire

In 1919, as a result of the assassination of Emir Habibullah Khan and a coup d'etat, Amanullah Khan came to the throne, proclaiming the country's independence from Great Britain and declaring jihad against it. He carried out mobilization, and a 12,000-strong army of regular fighters, supported by a 100,000-strong army of nomadic partisans, moved towards India.

The history of the war in Afghanistan, unleashed by the British in order to maintain their influence, also contains mention of the first massive air raid in the history of this country. Kabul was attacked by the British Air Force. As a result of the panic that arose among the residents of the capital, and after several lost battles, Amanullah Khan asked for peace.

In August 1919, a peace treaty was signed. According to this document, the country received the right to foreign relations, but lost the annual British subsidy of 60,000 pounds sterling, which until 1919 accounted for about half of Afghanistan's budget revenues.

Kingdom

In 1929, Amanullah Khan, who after a trip to Europe and the USSR was going to begin radical reforms, was overthrown as a result of the uprising of Habibullah Kalakani, nicknamed Bachai Sakao (Son of the Water Carrier). An attempt to return the former emir to the throne, supported by Soviet troops, was unsuccessful. The British took advantage of this and overthrew Bachai Sakao and placed Nadir Khan on the throne. With his accession, modern Afghan history began. The monarchy in Afghanistan began to be called royal, and the emirate was abolished.

In 1933, Nadir Khan, who was killed by a cadet during a parade in Kabul, was succeeded on the throne by his son Zahir Shah. He was a reformer and was considered one of the most enlightened and progressive Asian monarchs of his time.

In 1964, Zahir Shah issued a new constitution that aimed to democratize Afghanistan and eliminate discrimination against women. As a result, radically minded clergy began to express dissatisfaction and actively engage in destabilizing the situation in the country.

Dictatorship of Daoud

As the history of Afghanistan says, the 20th century (the period from 1933 to 1973) was truly golden for the state, as industry appeared in the country, good roads, the education system was modernized, a university was founded, hospitals were built, etc. However, in the 40th year after After his accession to the throne, Zahir Shah was overthrown by his cousin, Prince Mohammed Daoud, who proclaimed Afghanistan a republic. After this, the country became an arena of confrontation between various factions that expressed the interests of Pashtuns, Uzbeks, Tajiks and Hazaras, as well as other ethnic communities. In addition, radical Islamic forces entered into confrontation. In 1975, they launched an uprising that spread to the provinces of Paktia, Badakhshan and Nangarhar. However, the government of dictator Daoud managed to suppress it with difficulty.

At the same time, representatives of the country's People's Democratic Party (PDPA) also sought to destabilize the situation. At the same time, it had significant support in the Afghan Armed Forces.

DRA

The history of Afghanistan (20th century) experienced another turning point in 1978. On April 27, a revolution took place there. After Noor Mohammad Taraki came to power, Muhammad Daoud and all his family members were killed. Babrak Karmal also found himself in senior leadership positions.

Background to the entry of a limited contingent of Soviet troops into Afghanistan

The policy of the new authorities to eliminate the country's backlog met with resistance from the Islamists, which escalated into a civil war. Unable to cope with the current situation on its own, the Afghan government repeatedly appealed to the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee with a request to provide military assistance. However, the Soviet authorities refrained, as they foresaw the negative consequences of such a step. At the same time, they strengthened the security of the state border in the Afghan sector and increased the number of military advisers in the neighboring country. At the same time, the KGB constantly received intelligence information that the United States was actively financing anti-government forces.

Murder of Taraki

The history of Afghanistan (20th century) contains information about several political assassinations to seize power. One of these events took place in September 1979, when, on the orders of Hafizullah Amin, PDPA leader Taraki was arrested and executed. Under the new dictator, terror unfolded in the country, which also affected the army, in which mutinies and desertion became commonplace. Since the VTs were the main support of the PDPA, the Soviet government saw in the current situation a threat of its overthrow and the coming to power of forces hostile to the USSR. In addition, it became known that Amin had secret contacts with American emissaries.

As a result, it was decided to develop an operation to overthrow him and replace him with a leader more loyal to the USSR. The main candidate for this role was Babrak Karmal.

History of the war in Afghanistan (1979-1989): preparation

Preparations for a coup in the neighboring state began in December 1979, when a specially created “Muslim battalion” was transferred to Afghanistan. The history of this unit still remains a mystery to many. It is only known that it was staffed by GRU officers from the Central Asian republics, who were well aware of the traditions of the peoples living in Afghanistan, their language and way of life.

The decision to send troops was made in mid-December 1979 at a Politburo meeting. Only A. Kosygin did not support him, which is why he had a serious conflict with Brezhnev.

The operation began on December 25, 1979, when the 781st separate reconnaissance battalion of the 108th MRD entered the territory of the DRA. Then the transfer of other Soviet military formations began. By mid-afternoon on December 27, they were in complete control of Kabul, and in the evening they began storming Amin’s palace. It lasted only 40 minutes, and after its completion it became known that most of those who were there, including the leader of the country, were killed.

Brief chronology of events from 1980 to 1989

Real stories about the war in Afghanistan are stories about the heroism of soldiers and officers who did not always understand for whom and what they were forced to risk their lives. Briefly the chronology is as follows:

• March 1980 - April 1985. Conducting combat operations, including large-scale ones, as well as work on the reorganization of the DRA Armed Forces.
• April 1985 - January 1987. Support for the Afghan troops with air force aviation, engineer units and artillery, as well as an active fight to suppress the supply of weapons from abroad.
• January 1987 - February 1989. Participation in events to implement a policy of national reconciliation.

By the beginning of 1988, it became clear that the presence of the Soviet armed contingent on the territory of the DRA was inappropriate. It can be considered that the history of the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan began on February 8, 1988, when at a meeting of the Politburo the question of choosing a date for this operation was raised.

It became May 15th. However, the last SA unit left Kabul on February 4, 1989, and the withdrawal of troops ended on February 15 with the crossing of the state border by Lieutenant General B. Gromov.

In the 90s

Afghanistan, whose history and prospects for peaceful development in the future are quite vague, plunged into the abyss of a brutal civil war in the last decade of the 20th century.

At the end of February 1989, in Peshawar, the Afghan opposition elected the leader of the Alliance of Seven, S. Mojaddedi, as the head of the “Transitional Government of the Mujahideen” and began military operations against the pro-Soviet regime.

In April 1992, opposition forces captured Kabul, and the next day its leader, in the presence of foreign diplomats, was proclaimed president of the Islamic State of Afghanistan. The history of the country after this “inaguration” took a sharp turn towards radicalism. One of the first decrees signed by S. Mojaddedi declared all laws that contradicted Islam to be invalid.

In the same year, he transferred power to Burhanuddin Rabbani's group. This decision caused ethnic strife, during which warlords destroyed each other. Soon, Rabbani's authority weakened so much that his government ceased to carry out any activities in the country.

At the end of September 1996, the Taliban captured Kabul, captured the ousted President Najibullah and his brother, who were hiding in the UN mission building, and publicly executed them by hanging in one of the squares of the Afghan capital.

A few days later, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan was proclaimed, and the creation of a Provisional Ruling Council consisting of 6 members, headed by Mullah Omar, was announced. Having come to power, the Taliban stabilized the situation in the country to some extent. However, they had many opponents.

On October 9, 1996, a meeting between one of the main oppositionists, Dostum, and Rabbani took place in the vicinity of the city of Mazar-i-Sharif. They were joined by Ahmad Shah Massoud and Karim Khalili. As a result, the Supreme Council was established and efforts were united for a common fight against the Taliban. The group was called the Northern Alliance. She managed to form an independent organization in northern Afghanistan during 1996-2001. state.

After the invasion of international forces

The history of modern Afghanistan received new development after the famous terrorist attack of September 11, 2001. The United States used it as a pretext to invade this country, declaring its main goal to overthrow the Taliban regime, which sheltered Osama bin Laden. On October 7, the territory of Afghanistan was subjected to massive air strikes, weakening the Taliban forces. In December, a council of Afghan tribal elders was convened, headed by the future (since 2004) president

At the same time, NATO completed the occupation of Afghanistan, and the Taliban moved on. From that time to this day, terrorist attacks in the country have not stopped. In addition, every day it turns into a huge opium poppy plantation. Suffice it to say that, according to the most conservative estimates, about 1 million people in this country are drug addicts.

At the same time, the unknown stories of Afghanistan, presented without retouching, were a shock to Europeans or Americans, including due to cases of aggression shown by NATO soldiers against civilians. Perhaps this circumstance is due to the fact that everyone is already quite tired of the war. These words are confirmed by Barack Obama's decision to withdraw troops. However, it has not yet been implemented, and now Afghans hope that the new US president will not change plans, and foreign military personnel will finally leave the country.

Now you know the ancient and modern history of Afghanistan. Today this country is going through hard times, and one can only hope that peace will finally come to its land.

Introduction.

The Great October Revolution had a huge influence on the development of the national liberation movement in the countries of the East. The Leninist principles of the foreign policy of the young Soviet state, proclaimed by the Decree on Peace, became the determining factor in Soviet policy in relation to Afghanistan. The appeal of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR “To all working Muslims of Russia and the East”, which confirmed the right of all Muslim peoples to become masters of their own destiny, received great resonance here. Essentially this meant recognition of Afghanistan as a sovereign and independent state. This position of the Soviet government was legally enshrined in the Brest-Litovsk Treaty, signed in the spring of 1918, article 7 of which stated that “Persia and Afghanistan are free and independent states.”

The Soviet government, taking into account the fact that the establishment of diplomatic relations with Afghanistan would contribute to assisting the liberation struggle of the Afghan people, in July 1918 proposed to establish its representative office in Afghanistan. However, Emir Habibullah Khan, under pressure from the British, rejected this proposal. At the end of 1918, a second attempt was made from the Soviet side, which again encountered opposition from the emir.

Meanwhile, in Afghanistan itself there was growing widespread dissatisfaction with the policies of Habibullah Khan. Taxes and taxes increased in the country, recruitment became more frequent, and complete lawlessness of the authorities in relation to the population reigned. In fact, power ended up in the hands of a temporary worker, Minister of Finance Muhammad Hussein, a representative of the nascent comprador circles, who was essentially an agent of British capital and in every possible way contributed to the strengthening of British influence in the country. The emir led an idle life, ignoring the conditions of the rapidly changing situation. His persistent reluctance to establish contacts with the Soviet Republic, that is, to take advantage of favorable opportunities for Afghanistan to achieve independence, contributed to the approach of a crisis in domestic politics and, accordingly, determined the outcome of his reign.

In the summer of 1918, British troops invaded Soviet Turkestan, capturing Kushka, thus surrounding Afghanistan on three sides (by this time they enjoyed undivided influence in Persia). Foreign policy isolation, imposed by the British colonialists and actually preserved by the policies of the Habibullah Khan regime, turned into territorial isolation, reinforced by the direct presence of British troops on the northern and southern borders of Afghanistan. Energetic and radical measures were required to get out of the difficult situation that had arisen.

In the difficult conditions of the domestic and international situation in the country, the activity of the opposition has sharply intensified. In the summer of 1918 there was an attempt on the emir's life.

Mass repressions began, which, along with the difficult economic situation, caused an aggravation of general discontent with the regime. On the night of February 20-21, 1919, Emir Habibbula Khan was killed near Jalalabad. For several days, dual power reigned in the country. The emir's brother Nasrulan Khan, who was in Jalalabad at that time, proclaimed himself emir. At this time, the third son of Habibullah Khan, Prince Amanullah Khan (who remained governor in Kabul in his father’s absence), relying on parts of the Kabul garrison and townspeople, also declared himself emir. He put forward as his immediate goal the liberation of the country from British dependence. The political sympathies of the population were on the side of the young prince. Soon Nasrullah Khan and some of his supporters were arrested. Temporary worker Muhammad Hussein was hanged. Amanullah Khan became the new emir. The attempt of conservative circles to seize supreme power ended in failure.

After the British colonial authorities refused to recognize Afghanistan as independent, hostilities began between the Afghan army and British troops in May 1919. Despite the numerical superiority of the British and the better technical equipment of their army, the Afghans put up stubborn resistance. Afghanistan's struggle for independence contributed to the defeat of the British interventionists in the Caspian Sea, as well as the outbreak of an armed uprising of Pashtun tribes in the North-West Border Province. Great Britain was forced to make peace with Afghanistan. On August 8, 1919, a preliminary peace treaty was signed in Rawalpindi, according to which the British officially recognized the complete independence of Afghanistan. Thus ended the long period of semi-colonial dependence of this country on British imperialism.

The Soviet state provided great support to the struggle of the Afghan people, being the first to recognize the independence of Afghanistan in March 1919. V.I. Lenin, in his letter to Emir Amanullah Khan, welcomed the independent Afghan people, confirming the desire of the Land of Soviets to establish friendly relations between the two states. On February 28, 1921, the Soviet-Afghan Friendship Treaty was concluded, which laid the foundations for friendly relations for many years and was an important factor in strengthening the national sovereignty of Afghanistan.

Afghanistan from 1920 to 1939.

Having achieved independence, the new government of Afghanistan began to implement a whole set of reforms aimed at eliminating economic backwardness and achieving social progress.

One of the most important transformations of this period was the adoption in 1923 of the first constitution in the history of Afghanistan, which confirmed the independence of the country, declared the emir to be the bearer of supreme power, and declared some civil liberties. A State Council-consultative body under the emir, Loya Jirga - an all-Afghan meeting of tribal leaders and Muslim theologians, Durbari Ali - a council of government officials and a government to which executive power was transferred were created.

An important part of the reform program of the government of Amanullah Khan was economic transformation. In 1920, the Land Tax Law was adopted, providing for the transfer of taxes in kind into cash. This accelerated the development of commodity-money relations. In 1923, the Livestock Tax Law was issued, unifying the taxation of all cattle breeders and introducing additional taxes.

However, the most important innovation of these years, which seriously influenced the subsequent evolution of forms of ownership and, accordingly, the structure of social relations in the village, was the provision on the sale of state lands in Afghanistan, adopted in 1924. This act legally secured private ownership of land, which greatly contributed to the growth of landownership. land tenure. Almost all the land was sold to landowners, officials and moneylenders. Other economic measures concerned the resettlement of some nomads to the northern regions of the country, the confiscation and sale of lands belonging to clergy. Customs reform was carried out, and a law was adopted to encourage industry.

The reforms of the Young Afghan regime as a whole were aimed at eliminating the most archaic forms of the feudal system and accelerating the development of elements of a new socio-economic formation. They largely met the interests of the emerging classes - the “new” landowners and the national commercial bourgeoisie, which were few in number and did not yet have sufficient economic weight. At the same time, most of the Young Afghan transformations infringed on the positions of conservative layers of society - the orthodox elite of Muslim theologians, tribal khans, and large feudal landowners. The reforms did not improve the situation of the largest productive class, the peasantry, nor did they save them from feudal exploitation. They only accelerated the process of landlessness among the peasants and contributed to strengthening their independence from moneylenders and landowners.

Dissatisfaction with the reforms resulted in an anti-government rebellion among the tribes in Khost, which broke out in the spring of 1924 and was led by mullahs. The rebels demanded the repeal of new legislation, the restoration of free trade with British India, and the refusal to carry out reforms (mainly social and domestic), which the mullahs declared to be contrary to Islam. The rebellious tribes received support from the British colonialists, who sought to weaken the Young Afghan regime. The British even tried to put their protege Abdul Karim, the son of the former emir Yakub Khan, at the head of the movement.

The government, unable to suppress the uprising of the southern tribes, made a compromise: at the Loya Jirga held in the summer of 1924, it had to abandon some reforms. The process of reforming the country's socio-economic structure has slowed down significantly.

The formatting of the new political and economic structure of Afghanistan required the expansion of its external relations. After the restoration of national independence and the elimination of foreign political isolation, the government of Amanullah Khan took energetic steps to establish relations with many countries. By 1924 Afghanistan already maintained connections with the RSFSR, England, Italy, France, Germany, Poland, Belgium, Turkey, Egypt, and Iran. In 1926, the Soviet-Afghan Treaty on Neutrality and Mutual Non-Aggression was signed, which was an important milestone in the development of relations between the two countries and legally consolidated Afghanistan's traditional policy of neutrality. In order to further expand Afghanistan's foreign policy relations and strengthen its international authority, at the end of 1927, Emir Amanullah Khan, accompanied by some ministers and advisers, undertook a long foreign tour.

King Amanullah Khan's itinerary covered India, Egypt, Italy, France, Germany, England, the Soviet Union, Turkey and Iran. During his stay in India, the king called on Muslims and Hindus to unite in the struggle for freedom, greatly alarming the British colonial authorities with his anti-colonialist speeches. In Egypt, which was actually under British rule, he took a stand in defense of national independence. Amanullah Khan's stay in Italy was mainly related to issues of purchasing weapons. In France, he inspected large industrial enterprises and also agreed on the supply of French weapons. The visit of the Afghan king to Germany was bound by economic considerations. Amanullah Khan signed preliminary agreements to grant German industrialists a concession to build railways in Afghanistan and invited German engineering and technical personnel to his country.

The British authorities, hosting the Afghan king, tried in every possible way to put pressure on him, demonstrating to him their industrial and military power, intending to persuade him to closer contacts with Great Britain to the detriment of Afghan-Soviet ties. However, Amanullah Khan rejected these attempts.

In May 1928, the king arrived in Moscow, warmly received by the leaders of the Soviet state. During a two-week stay in the Soviet Union, he became acquainted with the achievements of the Soviet people in economic and cultural construction. Documents were also signed on expanding economic and cultural cooperation between the two countries.

Amanullah Khan's visit to Turkey and Iran ended with the signing of friendship treaties with these countries, which strengthened their position in the face of the continued political and economic expansion of Western imperialism.

In general, the trip of the Afghan king turned out to be very fruitful, contributed to the strengthening of Afghanistan’s external relations, and opened up prospects for new important changes in the economic and internal political life of the country.

Returning to his homeland, Amanullah Khan began to develop a new series of reforms aimed at eliminating the outdated feudal foundations. At the end of August 1928, he came up with a draft of new reforms at a meeting of the Loya Jirga in Paghman, according to which large feudal lords and the elite of the tribes were deprived of various privileges. New reforms weakened the political positions of inert Muslim theologians, who undermined the reformist spirit of government policy. Secular courts were established. All mullahs and preachers had to undergo re-certification. The king and his supporters tried to modernize family and marriage relations by fixing the minimum age for marriage. However, in this they failed. In October, at a meeting of durbats, supporters of Amanullah Khan put forward new projects for social and everyday reforms, including joint education in school, sending Afghan youth to study abroad, prohibiting polygamy, removing the veil, etc.

Issues of economic development occupied an important place in the new program of the Young Afghan government. In an effort to limit the economic influence of foreign, Anglo-Indian capital, which monopolized the foreign and partially internal trade of Afghanistan, the government of Amanullah Khan began to pursue a protectionist policy towards the local merchants. In the 1920s, the first trading joint-stock companies (shirkets) appeared in the country, in which representatives of the ruling circles, including the emir, also participated.

The attempt to unite national capital into shirkets received significant development in the late 20s, when the country already had about 20 trading companies with a total capital of 5.5-6 million Afghanis. Shirkets were given monopolies on the procurement and sale of essential goods. As a result, the positions of foreign merchants in Afghanistan were somewhat weakened. By the end of the 1920s, national capital carried out about 40% of all foreign trade transactions. At a meeting of the Loya Jirga in August 1928, Amanullah Khan informed the deputies about his negotiations with industrial circles of Western countries and the signing of concession agreements. He proposed creating a state bank, intending to use merchant capital for state needs. But this project was not supported by the merchants, who were afraid to trust the state with their capital and demanded the creation of a private bank.

The reform program of the Young Afghan government included important measures in the field of military development. Proposing to reorganize the Afghan army along the lines of the European ones, Amanullah Khan insisted on introducing a system of universal conscription to replace the principle of voluntariness, increasing the duration of military service from 2 to 3 years, and prohibiting the replacement of recruits and farming. Since the purchase of weapons abroad required large allocations, Amanullah Khan in the fall of 1928 introduced an additional emergency tax of 5 Afghanis from each subject.

The government paid great attention to the fight against deep-rooted social vices, in particular bureaucracy, bribery, and smuggling. However, things did not go further than calls and neutral plans in this area of ​​state activity: a radical change in the very social structure of the state was required, which was not included in the plans of the Afghans. A proposal was also put forward to reorganize the public administration system. Amanullah Khan proposed creating a National Council - a prototype of the future parliament - to replace the State Council (which, as mentioned above, played the role of nothing more than an advisory body at the court). But even this undertaking in those conditions turned out to be unrealistic due to the growing opposition of various segments of the population to all the reform activities of the Amanullah Khan regime.

Some signs of the tense situation in the country were already evident during the meeting of the Loya Jirga. The heated nature of the discussions around the proposed bills, the open pressure of Amanullah Khan and his entourage on the deputies, the thinly disguised reluctance of the latter to support the reforms - all this testified to the growth of political tension. Within the king’s circle, disagreements were widening over the depth and scale of socio-economic transformations, there was a lack of political unity, and personal rivalry among various leaders was intensifying. The radicalism of Amanullah Khan's reforms increased the number of his opponents. The king's attempt to create the Istiqlal wa Tajaddod (Independence and Renewal) party as a political basis for modernization encountered opposition from a group of influential leaders of the Young Afghan movement who held moderate views. Fearing the emergence of opposition in the highest spheres of power, Amanullah Khan carried out a purge of the state apparatus. At the same time, some major figures, adherents of Young Afghan ideas, lost their posts. For example, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the ideologist of the Young Afghans, Mahmud Beg Tarzi, and one of the king’s closest advisers, the Minister of Defense, Muhammad Wali Khan, who headed the first Afghan diplomatic mission in Moscow in 1919, resigned. Their place was taken by people without political orientation, but who managed to enter in the confidence of the king. Some of them did not hide their hostility to reform. An atmosphere of intrigue, mistrust, enmity, and factionalism reigned in Amanullah Khan's circle.

The alignment of class forces in the country that had emerged by the fall of 1928 indicated the emergence of broad opposition sentiments. The reactionary elite of Muslim theologians, whose discontent was broad and diverse, found themselves in the camp of opponents of the reform policy. She was dissatisfied with many of the government's innovations, primarily with attempts to reduce her social and political role, to secularize many aspects of public life, and to place the activities of clergy under the control of secular authorities. Social and everyday reforms that limited their traditional monopoly in the sphere of family and marriage caused particular indignation among Muslim fundamentalists. It was these transformations that became the main object of their criticism. Amanullah Khan was declared an “atheist”, a “heretic”, trampling on the sacred principles of Islam, following the lead of the “infidels”. The top Muslim theologians - the most ardent opponents of the bourgeois reformation - became the ideologists of the anti-government movement. It was joined by large feudal landowners, tribal khans, dissatisfied with the limitation of their administrative power locally, the deprivation of traditional privileges, and the narrowing of duty-free trade (essentially smuggling) with British India.

The other part of the country’s population did not remain aloof from this movement - peasants, poor cattle breeders, artisans, handicraftsmen. Some social measures of the government of Amanullah Khan, in particular the abolition of all kinds of additional taxes and duties, the elimination of slavery, and the proclamation of religious equality, contributed to the relief of feudal oppression. However, in general, these strata did not receive direct benefits from the reforms. On the contrary, during the initial stage of the country’s transition to the path of bourgeois development, their economic situation deteriorated significantly. The amount of land tax increased, amounting to 45% of the value of the crop by the end of the 20s. Basically, government reforms were carried out at the expense of the peasantry. The expenses for the king's foreign trip and for his purchases of weapons, machinery, and equipment also placed a heavy burden on the peasant masses. And finally, the transfer of taxes into cash and the consolidation of private ownership of land directly affected the position of the peasants, causing important shifts in the subsequent evolution of the peasant economy and social relations in the countryside. Lacking cash to pay the tax, the peasant borrowed money from a moneylender or landowner on the security of a future harvest or his plot of land, thus falling into debt bondage (Expropriation of peasant lands, land dispossession of peasants, taking on an ever-increasing scale, continued until the April Revolution 1978). As a result, the peasantry, dependent on the feudal lords and khans, opposed the reforms that worsened their situation, and accordingly against the Young Afghan regime, constituting the main driving force of the anti-government movement.

The first signs of an impending socio-political crisis emerged in the fall of 1928, when gangs of bandits appeared in some areas north of Kabul, robbing local rich people. This was still a spontaneous form of social protest of peasants, driven to despair by numerous extortions and the arbitrariness of the local administration. One of these armed robber detachments was led by non-commissioned officer Habibbula, nicknamed Bachai Sakao (son of the water-carrier), who deserted from the army. His squad soon began to carry out attacks on representatives of local authorities, and gave part of the loot to the poor. The actions of Bachai Sakao in the northern province, the support provided to him by local peasants, worried the government, which was forced to take measures to suppress his activities, however, without visible success.

During the same period, in November 1928, an uprising broke out among some Pashtun tribes in the Eastern Province, quickly spreading to many districts. The governor of the province announced the gathering of military units and tribal militias, while simultaneously appealing to the rebels to stop the rebellion. The central authorities sent additional troops to the rebel province. At the end of November, major clashes occurred between army units and rebel groups.

The leaders of the uprising, the religious leaders of the Shinwari tribe, Muhammad Alam and Muhammad Afzal, issued a manifesto outlining the goals and objectives of the rebels. The uprising, the document stated, was launched in “an attempt to change the way the country is governed, to eliminate rulers who are susceptible to bribery and corruption and set laws that are contrary to Sharia.” It further declared that the territories occupied by the rebels were governed “according to Sharia law and the ulema are their true rulers.” According to the authors of the document, the causes of the uprising were based on the “pagan forms” of Amanullah Khan. The manifesto contained a call for the overthrow of the king. December 9, 1928

An agreement was reached on a truce between the rebels and the government delegation for a period of 10 days. However, a few days later the uprising resumed. The rebels besieged the provincial center of Jalalabad.

Meanwhile, Bachai Sakao's anti-government activities intensified. His wide popularity among the population of the Northern Province attracted the attention of opposition circles, primarily reactionary theologians, who decided to use Bachai Sakao in the fight against the regime of Amanullah Khan. On December 12, at a meeting of khans in the village of Kalakan (in the homeland of Bachai Sakao), he was proclaimed Emir of Afghanistan under the name of Habibbula Ghazi. On the same day, he attacked the district town of Sarai Khoja and disarmed the local garrison. His comrade-in-arms, the small landowner Seid Hussein, captured the city of Jabal us-Seraj, which he garrisoned without a fight. Bachai Sakao was preparing to capture Kabul.

The king and his entourage found themselves in a difficult situation. There was fear and confusion within the ruling elite itself. Some government officials secretly established connections with Bachai Sakao. The prominent Muslim theologian Hazrat-i-Shur Bazar Mojaddadi, who was exiled by Amanullah Khan, intensified his anti-Amanullah activities. The unrest spread to other provinces of Afghanistan.

General discontent also affected the mood in the army, most of which consisted of representatives of national minorities subjected to national oppression. The majority of officers who did not approve of radical reforms also turned out to be disloyal. Desertion from the army became more frequent and then became widespread. On December 13, a detachment of Bachai Sakao numbering up to 3 thousand people attacked Kabul, which was repelled at the cost of great effort.

On December 29, reactionary theologians, using Bachai Sakao as their protege, entered a fatwa (religious edict) in which they tried to justify the legitimacy of Bachai Sakao's claims to the throne. The fatwa criticized the government's political and social reforms, accused the king of “atheism” and declared himself deposed. Bachai Sakao was nominated for the post of emir, who, according to the authors of the fatwa, will govern the country in accordance with Sharia.

Amannula Khan, having lost the support of the main social forces, turned to his Durrani tribe for help. However, the tribal leaders refused to support him in the fight against the rebellious eastern tribes and called on him to comply with the rules of Sharia. The desperate king sent his relative, the governor of Kabul Ali Ahmad Khan, who secretly harbored opposition sentiments and dreamed of the throne, to Jalalabad to negotiate with the rebels. At the beginning of January 1929, he managed to achieve a truce. On January 5, a Jirga of local tribes was created in Jalalabad, which developed its demands, which included the full restoration of Sharia law, tax reduction, representation of mullahs in the state apparatus, the liquidation of foreign missions, the abolition of the new criminal procedure code, etc.

The growing internal crisis in Afghanistan was accompanied by increased activity of British imperialism in the region. Long before the uprising, the British colonial authorities in India began building fortifications and communication lines on the border with Afghanistan, and large military forces were deployed here. In November 1928, maneuvers of the Anglo-Indian troops began here.

At the same time, the famous British intelligence agent Colonel Lawrence appeared in the border region, carrying out subversive work among the tribes of the border strip. The Afghan government ordered his arrest if he appeared on Afghan territory.

The British decided to openly interfere in the Afghan events. British aircraft have repeatedly violated Afghan airspace. The British envoy in Kabul, Humphreys, had a meeting with Bachai Sakao and assured him of his sympathies. The tense situation in Kabul forced the British to evacuate their diplomatic mission. But their intrigues against the regime of Amanullah Khan did not stop. On December 22, they inspired the escape from the Indian city of Allahabad of the grandson of the former emir Sher Ali Khan, Muhammad Omar, who lived there at the expense of the British authorities. Muhammad Omar tried to penetrate into the zone of tribal uprising and lead their action against Amanullah Khan, who was undesirable to the British.

In an atmosphere of increasing isolation, the Young Afghan regime surrendered: on January 9, 1929, a firman was published with the rejection of a number of important reforms. Social and everyday reforms, universal military conscription were abolished, mullahs were restored to their former rights, a Senate was established with the participation of famous ulemas, sardars, khans and some officials. However, this step could no longer give Amanullah Khan even a gain in time. The regime was doomed. Kabul was virtually besieged by the rebel troops of Bachai Sakao.

On January 14, 1929, Amanullah Khan abdicated the throne in favor of his elder brother Inayatullah Khan and left the capital, heading to Kandahar. Bachai Sakao, who refused to agree to the truce proposed by the new emir, occupied Kabul and on January 19 was proclaimed the emir of Afghanistan. Inayatullah Khan flew to Peshawar on a British plane, subsequently joining Amanullah Khan in Kandahar.

Thus ended one of the important periods of independent development of Afghanistan. The crisis of the reform policy and the fall of the regime of Amanullah Khan were the result of a complex process of class struggle, reflecting the clash of old and new social forces - the feudal reaction and the young national bourgeoisie making its way. The most important component of the class uprisings of the late 20s was the spontaneous movement of the working classes, protesting against the deterioration of their situation. Mass protests by the peasantry and poor herders were used in the fight against the Young Afghan regime by the feudal reaction, supported by British imperialism.

The new government in Kabul, headed by Emir Bachai Sakao, relied on the conservative circles of the largest feudal lords and reactionary theologians, opponents of reforms. Having accused Amannulu Khan of violating Sharia law, the new regime declared the abolition of all reforms that infringed on the interests of the reactionary opposition; the abolition of universal conscription satisfied the interests of separatist-minded tribal khans. At the same time, trying to keep the peasantry on his side, the new emir announced the abolition of arrears of previous years, additional levies and taxes.

Immediately after Bachai came to power, Sakao made attempts to consolidate power against various claimants to the throne. His troops managed to subjugate the north, the Herat province (and in May 1929 even capture Kandahar). However, a number of regions actually maintained an independent position, only nominally recognizing the authority of Kabul.

With the cancellation of the most important reforms of the Young Afghan government, Afghanistan was thrown back in its socio-economic development. Schools were closed and education came under the control of the mullahs, the ministries of education and justice were abolished, justice was given to the power of Sharia courts, women were deprived of even the rudiments of the rights that they received under Amanullah Khan. In the very first days, a legislative body was created - the Islamie Council, consisting of mullahs and major khans.

The country's economy was also seriously damaged. Bachai Sakao resorted to widespread confiscations and plunder of property not only of supporters of Amanullah Khan, but also of a significant part of the merchants. Foreign and domestic trade were paralyzed. Robberies and robberies have become more frequent on the roads. National industry declined. Prices for essential goods have risen sharply. Events of 1928 led to a complete breakdown of public finances. In an effort to replenish the treasury, Bachai Sakao increased tax oppression. Thus, abandoning their declarations. The deceived peasantry gradually moved away from the Kabul ruler. In addition, it was not protected from arbitrariness and oppression by the tax administration, which remained in place after the fall of the government of Amanuly Khan.

In the field of foreign policy, the new regime also failed to achieve success. It has not been officially recognized by any state. Most foreign diplomatic missions left Kabul in January - February 1929. Only Turkish, German and Soviet missions remained in the Afghan capital. The government of Bachai Sakao showed no interest in developing Soviet-Afghan relations, which during this period seriously deteriorated due to the intensification of the anti-Soviet Basmachi movement in Afghanistan. The Emir of Kabul in every possible way encouraged the activities of the Basmachi, whose gangs more than once invaded the territory of the USSR and attacked representatives of the Soviet government and the local population. Despite repeated protests from the Soviet government, the Kabul regime did not take measures to suppress these anti-Soviet activities.

During the entire period of Bachai Sakao's rule in Afghanistan, the struggle for power did not stop. The former governor of Kabul, Ali Ahmad Khan, who was in Jalalabad, taking advantage of the current situation and relying on troops and some rebel tribes, declared himself emir of the Eastern Province on January 20. He canceled all the reforms of Amanullah Khan and announced the cancellation of tax debts. At the same time, needing money. He forced the Indian merchants of Jalalabad to pay debts that they were supposed to return to the government of Amanullah Khan, and began to collect taxes from the population three months in advance. Focusing on the British, Ali Ahmad Khan appealed to them to provide him with financial and military assistance.

Ali Ahmad Khan's attempt to capture Kabul ended in failure due to desertion of soldiers, as well as inter-tribal tensions. Deprived of all support, he fled to Peshawar.

Meanwhile, Amanullah Khan, having arrived in Kandahar and learned of the flight of Inayatullah Khan, took back his renunciation and began to prepare for a campaign against Kabul. The population of the province reluctantly responded to the call to support him in the struggle for the throne. However, he soon managed to gather a small army and on March 26 set out from Kandahar towards Ghazni, to the place of concentration of large forces of Bachai Sakao. By mid-April, the former king's troops reached Ghazni and engaged the army of Bachai Sakao. But failures followed Amanullah Khan here too. His army was poorly supplied, the morale of the soldiers was extremely low, and the Ghilzai tribes (longtime opponents of the Durranis) sided with Bachai Sakao. At the end of April, Amanullah Khan's army began a disorderly retreat. On May 23, the former king announced the end of the fight and left Afghanistan with his family. The defeat of Amanullah Khan was predetermined by the program of his struggle, which was not subject to changes and therefore did not receive widespread support.

In April 1929, the former Afghan ambassador to Moscow Ghulam Nabi Khan gathered a fairly large detachment of Uzbeks and Hazaras and unexpectedly captured Mazar-i-Sharif. He acted as a supporter of Amanullah Khan, without putting forward his own claims to the throne. Soon his power extended to the entire north of Afghanistan. However, after the defeat of Amanullah Khan, Ghulam Nabi Khan's position weakened and he also stopped fighting. Left Afghanistan in early June.

In the spring of 1929, the former minister of war of Amanullah Khan, General Muhammad Nadir Khan, entered the struggle for the throne. For the position of radicalism with which Amanullah Khan carried out his reforms, in 1924 he was removed from the post of minister and sent as ambassador to France.

In 1927 he retired and settled in Nice as a private citizen. After Bachai Sakao came to power, he left with his brothers Shah Wali Khan and Hashim Khan for his homeland, announcing his intention to fight against the Kabul emir, who had illegally usurped power. At the same time, Nadir Khan refused support to Amanullah Khan, seeking to organize an independent movement. He covered up his aspirations to seize power with slogans of the struggle to “end the civil war and bloodshed.”

In March 1929, Nadir Khan arrived in Khost and began to gather a tribal militia. At the first stage of the fight against Bachai Sakao, he was accompanied by failures. Intertribal strife occurred in the tribal zone, and separatist sentiments prevailed. The peasantry still believed Bachai Sakao's promises to ease the tax burden. In addition, Nadir Khan's military-political campaign began during the spring field work, when the peasants were busy in the fields. Nadir Khan also experienced significant financial difficulties.

However, by the end of summer the situation had changed significantly. The policies of Bachai Sakao led the country to economic impasse and political anarchy. The peasantry stopped supporting the regime. The reduction in trade, arbitrariness and repression against merchants brought them into the camp of opponents of the Kabul emir. The country's decentralization has increased; there was a danger of civil war and weakening of sovereignty, which could lead to the loss of state independence. Spontaneous unrest among the working classes did not stop. Under these conditions, various layers of the ruling classes, which initially provided assistance to Bachai Sakao, moved away from him, which created favorable conditions for the implementation of Nadir Khan’s plans. Great Britain also provided him with considerable assistance, with whose representatives he had long maintained close contacts. The activities of Nadir Khan, aimed at suppressing the spontaneous popular movement, uniting the top of the ruling classes and establishing firm power, corresponded to their interests. At the beginning of September 1929, the British colonial authorities contributed to the fact that several thousand people from the Wazir and Mahsud tribes living in British India joined Nadir's army. Later, having already come to power, Nadir Khan received free financial assistance from the British government in the amount of 175 thousand pounds. Art.

By the end of September, Nadir Khan and his supporters took decisive action. On October 8, his army, having inflicted a major defeat on the emir's troops, captured Kabul. Bachai Sakao, unable to offer serious resistance, fled from the capital, but was captured and executed on November 2, 1929, along with his closest henchmen.

On October 15, Nadir Khan entered the capital. At a meeting of his close supporters, he was proclaimed the Padishah of Afghanistan.

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In the camp of Nadir Shah were former opponents of Amanullah Shah, large feudal lords, sardars and tribal khans, inert Orthodox mullahs, and representatives of new layers of liberal landowners, merchant and usurious capital. For some, he was quite conservative, because he opposed the radicalism of the Young Afghans; others considered him a figure who shared the ideas of economic progress and moderate modernization. Many influential supporters of Amanullah Khan spoke against him. Nadir Shah brutally dealt with the Young Afghan opposition. One of the closest associates of the former king, Muhamad Vali Khan, was arrested and executed. In 1932, Ghulam Nabi Khan returned from exile, who was also soon arrested and executed on charges of organizing an anti-Nadir conspiracy among the Khost tribes. Somewhat later, his brother Ghulam Jelani Khan was executed. Many Amunallisites were arrested and some were expelled from Afghanistan.

Protests by peasants, national minorities, and poor herders from Pashtun tribes continued in the country, regardless of the interests of any political group or contender for the throne. Although Nadir the Shah and the ruling elite, frightened by the scale of the spontaneous discontent of the masses, announced “some leniency in the collection of arrears,” the tax system itself remained unchanged, exactions and harassment from officials did not decrease. The peasant economy suffered seriously during the events of 1928–1929.

Already in November 1929, peasant unrest broke out in Kuhdaman, north of Kabul. The rebels, whose number reached 10 thousand people, captured the city of Charikar on November 30 and attacked the city of Jabal us-Seraj. The movement, led by the most conscious peasants, was brutally suppressed.

In June 1930, an uprising broke out again in the area. The rebellious Tajik population was joined by some Pashtun peasants, dissatisfied with the government's tax policy. Regular army units were unable to defeat the rebel forces. In August, 25 thousand militias from various Pashtun tribes gathered in Kabul, to whom he promised to reduce taxes or even exempt them from paying them.

In October 1932, tribal unrest broke out in the Khost region. The rebels opposed the government's tax policy and accused Nadir Shah of breaking promises to reduce taxes. The leader of the uprising was Mullah Levanai, who came from the lower clergy. The uprising lasted more than six months. Nadir Shah appealed to the British authorities in India with a request to prevent the Wazir-Maskhud tribes living in India from participating in this movement. The British colonial authorities supported Nadir Shah. The rebels were defeated.

All these actions were an integral part of the general process of class struggle that unfolded in previous years. Without reaching the scale of social clashes of the previous period, they were filled with new class content and reflected the increased level of socio-political maturity of the peasantry. Therefore, the exploiting classes considered these movements more dangerous than the radicalism of the reformers - the Young Afghans. This encouraged them to rally around the regime of Nadir Shah.

At the same time, in the summer of 1931, the Afghan army eliminated the remnants of the Basmachi detachments, which not only violated the Soviet border, but also engaged in robbery on Afghan territory.

Having formed a government from his relatives and close associates, Nadir Shah issued a declaration on November 16, 1929, which set out the basic principles of his domestic and foreign policy. The main emphasis was placed on the idea of ​​a “class union” as the core of the social structure of the state. The goals of economic activity were declared to be streamlining the tax system and combating embezzlement.

An important place in Nadir Shah's program was given to religion. The rights and privileges of theologians, who were given the opportunity to influence decisions on important government issues through the Ulema Council, created within the structure of the Ministry of Justice, were left unchanged, restored and expanded by the Bachai Sakao regime. All provisions of the civil and criminal codes were brought in accordance with the norms of Sharia law. Women were once again required to wear the veil. Women's schools were closed and polygamy was revived.

The main principles of the Nadir Shah regime, set out in his declaration, received legal formalization in the constitution adopted at the meeting of the Loya Jirga in October 1931. Its main task was to consolidate the power of the ruling classes and protect their interests from the social dangers generated by the popular uprisings of the period 1928-1929. At the same time, the regime could not ignore the growing influence of the bourgeois classes, who were striving to take their place in the system of government. They were primarily interested in national sovereignty and the elimination of the remnants of feudal fragmentation. The Basic Law proclaimed the equality of all subjects before the law, a number of civil liberties, and abolished feudal class restrictions. Freedom of trade, industrial and agricultural activities, as well as the inviolability of private property, were declared.

The content of a significant part of the provisions of the 1931 constitution was determined by the predominance of feudal relations in the country's economy. They legislated the rights and privileges of Muslim theologians. The rights of Afghan citizens, as stated in the constitution, are regulated not only by laws, but also by the provisions of Sharia. Mullahs received great opportunities in the field of education. The teaching of Islamic sciences was declared free. Sharia courts were given autonomy.

The changed social structure of power, imagining representatives of the bourgeois classes, also determined the form of government. The functions of the Loy Jirga in matters of financial, and in particular tax policy, were expanded. At the same time, the constitution stipulated the participation of trade and landowner circles in government bodies. In Afghanistan, a parliament was established, consisting of two chambers - the upper, the Council of Nobility, and the lower, the National Council. The majority of the upper house was appointed by the Shah from among large landowners, tribal khans and the top theologians. The National Council was an elected body to which literate subjects between the ages of 30 and 70 could be elected who had a reputation for being “honest and fair,” which made it possible for the ruling elite to reject candidates they did not like for political reasons. Women, landless peasants who moved around the country in search of work, and small nomadic tribes were deprived of the right to participate in elections. The functions of the National Council included approval of legislative acts, approval of the state budget, provision of benefits and privileges to joint-stock companies, discussion of issues on internal and external loans. Ministers were formally responsible to parliament. The National Council essentially had very limited ability to influence government policy.

A significant part of the constitution was devoted to the prerogatives and privileges of Nadir the Shah and his dynasty. According to the constitution, the Shah had the right to approve the composition of the cabinet of ministers, veto bills, carry out foreign policy, declare war, and make peace. Having secured in the constitution the position of the conservative layers and expanding the political rights of the bourgeois classes, which played a growing role in the country's economy, the regime of Nadir Shah legally formalized the ruling landowner-bourgeois bloc, which largely determined the subsequent evolution of the structure

state power in Afghanistan.

The regime of Nadir Shah had to solve complex problems of economic development. Crisis of 1928 – 1929 led to the depletion of government resources. The treasury was empty. In addition, the resolved global economic crisis had a negative impact on the Afghan economy. Prices for karakul, Afghanistan’s main export product, have decreased on the world market. Due to the fall in silver prices on foreign markets, the exchange rate of the Afghan national currency depreciated. In an effort to replenish the treasury, the regime of Nadir Shah resorted to widespread confiscation of the property of supporters of Bachai Sakao. However, all these funds were used not to restore the ruined agriculture, but to grant grants to the khans of the tribes who participated in the fight against Bachao Sakako for various punitive operations.

The new regime received financial support from the capital's merchants. Wealthy merchants made significant donations to the state treasury and took the initiative for economic reforms. Their program was formulated by one of the largest merchants in Afghanistan, Abdul Majid, who proposed to begin the development of agriculture and industry. Since the ruling circles continued the line of the Nadir Shah regime to unite the scattered national capital into shirkets, the commercial bourgeoisie, having gone through major upheavals during the crisis of 1928-1929, discovered a desire for a closer union in defense of its interests.

Unlike the previous period, merchants generally supported the idea of ​​shirketization of national capital, especially since this gave them very broad opportunities in competition with foreign capital. At the same time, the organization of joint stock companies urgently demanded the creation of a national credit institution and, with its help, control over the country's money and foreign trade markets. In January 1931, the country's first bank, Shirketi Askhami, was opened in Kabul with a capital of more than 5 million Afghanis, with 4.5 million Afghanis belonging to the state and the rest to the national merchants. The bank was tasked with stabilizing the national currency and providing loans to merchants. Later, in 1932, a monopoly on the procurement and export of karakul was introduced and transferred to the Afghan National Bank, which arose on the basis of Shirketi Askhami. Essentially, it was a joint-stock company, which, while regulating money circulation in the country, at the same time was engaged in commercial operations and had a monopoly right to export and import a number of goods.

Having created the bank, the government began organizing shirkets with the direct participation of the Afghan National Bank, which became their shareholder. In the early 1930s, more than three dozen large shirkets were formed in the country, uniting a significant part of the national capital. By exercising a monopoly on the export and import of many goods, the bank and shirkets undermined the trading power of foreign merchants. The Afghan merchants, organized into shirkets, were provided with numerous benefits. The united societies contributed to the growth of domestic savings. In 1936-1937 The total capital of large shirkets exceeded 90 million Afghanis. In the field of foreign policy, a course was announced towards neutrality and the development of equal relations with all countries, which was enshrined in the 1931 constitution.

At the same time, the regime of Nadir Shah adhered to a fairly firm orientation towards Great Britain. England, as noted above, began to support Nadir the Shah from the moment he was included in the struggle for the throne. With his coming to power, his contacts with the British colonial authorities in India became even closer. This found practical expression in his negative attitude towards the national liberation movement in the North-Western Province of India, which resulted in an anti-colonial uprising in Peshawar in 1930. The regime of Nadir Shah prevented the Pashtun tribes in the border zone of Afghanistan from taking part in this uprising and thereby helped suppress it by British colonial troops. Nadir Shah feared that the democratic anti-colonial movement in India could have a dangerous impact on the social situation in Afghanistan. England, for its part, appreciated the services of Nadir Shah and provided him with military and financial assistance.

However, Afghanistan, which went through a difficult internal political crisis, needed support for its national independence, which the Soviet Union invariably advocated for the preservation and strengthening of. On June 24, 1931, at the initiative of the Soviet Union, the Soviet-Afghan Treaty on Neutrality and Mutual Non-Aggression was signed in Kabul for a period of five years with automatic annual renewal. The treaty provided for non-interference of the two countries in each other's internal affairs, mutual neutrality in cases of participation in the war by one of them, and resolution of controversial issues by peaceful means.

The treaty took pride of place in relations between the two countries, being an important international document imbued with the ideas of friendship and good neighborliness. The conclusion of the agreement contributed to the expansion of Soviet-Afghan trade and economic ties. In the context of the global economic crisis, when Afghanistan’s trade with capitalist countries sharply declined, the volume of Soviet-Afghan trade increased significantly. Already in 1932, the USSR took first place in Afghanistan's exports and second in its imports. In addition, trade relations with the Soviet Union had a beneficial effect on the development of the Afghan economy, since the USSR bought Afghan goods at fixed prices, regardless of fluctuations in world market conditions. This helped Afghanistan avoid large losses due to the general deterioration in terms of foreign trade.

Afghanistan's relations with other countries also developed. The regime of Nadir Shah sought to establish especially close contacts with Turkey and Iran, signing friendship treaties with them in 1932. Diplomatic relations were established with Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Attempts were made to strengthen ties with Germany and France and to use their economic opportunities. But they did not receive proper development because Afghanistan refused to grant them concessions. In 1930, a friendship treaty was signed with Japan, which, however, did not lead to any broad contacts between the two countries. An attempt was made to attract US capital to Afghanistan, and an Afghan mission was sent there. But American industrial circles, at that time concerned about the downturn in their own economy, showed no interest in Afghanistan. The period of US economic and political expansion into Afghanistan began later, after the Second World War.

Social and political life in the country has somewhat revived. The administrative management system was reorganized. In 1932, a medical school opened, which was soon transformed into a medical faculty; Kabul University subsequently arose on its basis. Newspapers and magazines began to be published. However, the internal political situation in the country remained unstable. Brutal persecution and reprisals against former comrades-in-arms of Amanullah Khan provoked retaliatory actions from opposition circles. In November 1933, Nadir Shah was assassinated by one of the Ammanulists. The throne passed to his son Muhammad Zahir Shah.

Under the new Shah, the composition of the Cabinet of Ministers remained unchanged, headed by Nadir Shah's brother, Muhammad Hashim Khan; The main directions of the regime's policy have not changed either. The process of concentration and centralization of national capital accelerated. The activities of the Afghan National Bank and the shirkets, whose shareholders were only Afghan citizens, completely undermined the role of foreign merchants in Afghanistan's foreign trade. Foreign businessmen have even lost their role as intermediaries in Afghan foreign trade.

In the 30s, the creation of large shirkets continued not only in Kabul, but also in other cities, in particular in Herat, Kandahar, and Mazar-i-Sharif. With the participation of the Afghan National Bank, a number of shirkets were created, focused on trade with the Soviet Union. By 1936, all the major merchants of the country were basically involved in shirkets. Although they continued their independent activities in parallel. By the end of the 1930s, the role of the Afghan National Bank as a regulator of foreign trade operations increased immeasurably, and, accordingly, the political influence of the top of the national trading capital, whose leader, the president of the bank, merchant Abdul Majid, was appointed Minister of Economy in 1938. The bank gradually moved away from conducting direct trading operations, switching to investing in shirkets and lending them. Through the national Afghan bank and its subsidiary shirkets, whose activities covered a significant part of the trading operations of the domestic market and almost all foreign trade, the process of capital accumulation took place.

At the same time, private capital was reluctant to enter the sphere of production, preferring more profitable commerce. Therefore, in the conditions of the 30s, when public finances were not large and were absorbed mainly by unproductive expenses, industrial construction did not receive noticeable development. The largest allocations from the state budget were allocated to finance road construction and a number of small irrigation facilities. Of the few industrial enterprises that arose during this period, one can note a cotton factory in Kandahar, equipped with equipment purchased by Amankhula Khan in 1928, as well as a textile mill in Puli-Khumri, the creation of which was financed by the government and the Nasaji commercial and industrial shirket ", a number of small power plants.

The Soviet Union provided significant assistance to Afghanistan in creating a national industry in those years. With his help, cotton ginning enterprises were built in the north of the country, including in Kunduz, Mazar-i-Sharif, Imam Sahib and other cities. Soviet-Afghan relations, built on the principles of good neighborliness, mutual respect and non-interference in each other's internal affairs, became increasingly important for Afghanistan. Trade between the two countries grew rapidly. At the same time, the Soviet Union pursued a trade policy favorable to Afghanistan. The USSR also provided significant assistance to Afghanistan in the development of agriculture, especially in the fight against agricultural pests.

Conclusion.

Thus, throughout this period, Afghanistan was in general economic and political instability. There was a general deterioration in the economic situation in the country, which was reflected primarily in the position of the working masses, artisans, and petty bourgeoisie, which thereby caused discontent among various segments of the population, which was spontaneous in those years. In the zone of Pashtun tribes, uprisings of peasants and small herders repeatedly broke out, suppressed by troops. However, light industry gradually developed. The country's constitution was adopted. A parliament and cabinet of ministers were established. Mutually beneficial relations were established with the imperialist powers, which provided economic support to Afghanistan.

Ministry of Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan

School No. 16

Essay

DISCIPLINE: History

TOPIC: Afghanistan

Completed by: Svishchev M.A.

Koshurichev A.I.

Checked by: Taran E.G.

Pavlodar 2003

I. Introduction

II. Afghanistan

1) Domestic policy

2) Economy

3) Foreign policy

III. Conclusion

Bibliography:

1. Prorov R.I. "Afghanistan", Moscow Enlightenment 1996

2. Lenin V.I. “Collected Works”, vol. 43 Publishing House of Political Literature Moscow 1979

Twenty years ago, Soviet troops left Afghanistan

Afghanistan has always been and remains a key country in the Muslim East. The geopolitical location of the state makes it possible to influence the development of events not only in Central, but also in South and Southeast Asia. There has always been global competition for control of this land.

The troops of Alexander the Great, Islamic missionaries - the rulers of the Arab Caliphate, the Tatar-Mongol hordes, expeditionary Anglo-Indian corps, participants in military campaigns of the Russian autocracy and many others visited there. During the Cold War, this region was in fierce confrontation between the United States and its NATO allies, on the one hand, and the USSR and the Warsaw bloc, on the other. Nowadays the USA is in charge there. They are being timidly opposed by the SCO, led by China and Russia, and, perhaps, by Iran.

When, by decision of the Politburo, Soviet troops were sent into Afghanistan, the situation in the Middle East was very difficult.

In February 1979, the pro-American regime of the Pahlavi dynasty was overthrown in Iran, and the Shiite clergy led by Ayatollah Khomeini began governing the state. In April, Iran became an Islamic republic. The Iranian revolution, which was victorious in the immediate vicinity of the Soviet Muslim republics, was enthusiastically received throughout the Islamic East.

At the same time, the military-political bloc CENTO, which had existed since 1955, which included Great Britain, Turkey, Pakistan and Iran, actually collapsed. The bloc functioned under the auspices of the United States and was directed against the USSR. The territorial integrity of Pakistan began to be seriously threatened by “Pashtun separatism”. In the Afghan capital, where representatives of the Khalq (People) party, which was based on ethnic Pashtuns, came to power, they openly talked about the need to reunite the Pashtun territories, once divided by the British between two neighboring countries.

Other smoldering conflicts (Indo-Pakistan, Arab-Israeli), Kurdish, Baloch and other problems have also escalated. In many countries of the Near and Middle East, processes of Islamization of politics and politicization of Islam have begun. The United States sought there, by hook or by crook, to restore its military-political influence and expand its military presence.

One way or another, it was simply necessary to respond to American initiatives and demarches in the Near and Middle East. Apart from the USSR, during the Cold War there was simply no one to do this.

And yet the decision to send troops to Afghanistan should be recognized as erroneous. In those years, the Soviet position in this country was already strong both in the economic and political spheres, and in the military. Our specialists were respected and appreciated. It was enough to intensify work with national personnel, their training in Soviet universities, strengthen information and propaganda influence and expand cooperation in the military-technical field. However, it is customary for us to rush from one extreme to another...

The military operation was ill-conceived from the very beginning. When working with the population, the military practically did not take into account the Islamic character of the country. At the first stage of the Soviet presence, the previous experience of political work in the Muslim East, accumulated by the Russian Army in Turkestan and the Caucasus, and the Red Army during the years of the struggle against the Basmachi, remained unclaimed.

The military-political situation escalated to the limit in the early 80s, when the “irreconcilable armed opposition” became even more active. Behind it stood the United States and its NATO allies, China, leading Muslim countries: Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, etc. In fact, the Soviet Union was opposed in Afghanistan by a broad coalition of the world's largest countries. The opposition was provided with unprecedented financial, material and military assistance. On the territory of Pakistan and Iran, in the camps of Afghan refugees, whose return back to Afghanistan was being prevented in every possible way, centers for special training of armed groups were deployed.

Ideologically, the most powerful forces and means were used against the USSR. Only for the residents of Afghanistan and the Pashtun tribal settlement zone, more than 20 foreign radio stations constantly broadcast.

About 100 titles of newspapers and magazines, a huge number of leaflets in Dari, Pashto, etc. were distributed among Afghans. Purposeful propaganda was also carried out among Soviet military personnel in Russian.

Under these conditions, Moscow was forced not only to increase the number of troops in Afghanistan, but also to send military personnel from the most combat-ready units and formations located in the USSR and Eastern European countries to the 40th Army. Special agitation and propaganda units were deployed, staffed by officers with knowledge of the languages ​​of the peoples of the country, equipped with powerful sound broadcasting stations, operational printing and other technical means.

But even at this stage it was not possible to avoid strategic and tactical mistakes. The combat and political training of the troops left much to be desired. The 40th Army was formed for the most part from conscripts - 18-20 year old, mustacheless, “never smelled gunpowder” boys. The officers also clearly lacked combat experience.

For a military campaign of such magnitude, the period of service (2 years) was insufficient. The servicemen spent a year getting up to speed, and six months before the end of their service they began to prepare for demobilization. But they were fought against by adult Mujahideen, who had incomparably more experience in combat operations, and moreover, at home, in the mountains. The militants received good military training, received new foreign weapons, sufficient material and financial support and, most importantly, the support or sympathy of the population.

During all the years of the war, alas, it was not possible to significantly increase the number of the Limited Contingent of Soviet Forces (LCSV) in Afghanistan, which did not exceed 100 thousand people, together with civilian personnel, who made up about a quarter. Our units often went directly to combat operations against the forces of the armed opposition (which in some periods outnumbered the Soviet contingent and the Afghan army combined) with one company, one battalion, one regiment.

Despite all these difficulties, the military results of the Soviet campaign cannot but be considered generally positive.

By 1986, the territory of Afghanistan was almost completely under the control of Soviet troops and the Afghan armed forces.

Government bodies, party, youth and women's structures operated in all 26 provinces of the country. Only a few small settlements (villages) could be periodically, for a short time, taken under control by the armed opposition. The country has revived the traditional system of representative government bodies (“Great Jirga”) and regional assemblies of elders.

At that time, the intensity of armed clashes between opposition forces and joint Soviet-government forces, as well as the number of planned military operations by OKSV, decreased noticeably. The statistics of combat and other losses began to decline. The Afghan population sympathized with the Kabul authorities and the Soviet military more than with the armed opposition.

Representatives of the latter intimidated and blackmailed civilians in every possible way, robbed and imposed exorbitant taxes on them, and brutally dealt with not only supporters of the Afghan government, but also ordinary citizens. This caused a rapid increase in the number of residents of cities and towns, near which garrisons of Soviet and government troops were stationed. The population of the Afghan capital and many provincial and district centers (for example, Mazar-i-Sharif, Jalalabad, Kunduz and others) has doubled or more. Refugees from Pakistan and Iran have flocked to Afghan cities.

Despite the war and casualties among the people of Afghanistan, their numbers continued to grow. The standard of living in this country during the period of the Soviet military presence was one of the highest in its entire history.

Our troops provided large-scale material and medical assistance to the inhabitants of villages and larger settlements. Military personnel participated in the delivery of goods to the most remote provinces of the country, in ensuring traffic safety on the roads and the uninterrupted operation of pipelines from the USSR, resuming the activities of Afghan enterprises, repairing roads and bridges, and other construction work. Local residents turned to the command of the Soviet troops for help on a daily basis. The command of the Soviet troops took part in the selection of Afghan candidates for training in our country, and children for recreation in pioneer camps and sanatoriums.

Afghan society even began to seriously discuss the topic of the DRA joining the USSR as the sixteenth republic. Representatives of the Afghan elite, trying to “intermix” with the Soviet people, often took wives from the Soviet Union. In 1985, an all-Afghan meeting of women from the USSR took place in Kabul, which posed problems to the Soviet and Afghan governments that required solutions at the highest level.

Negative facts, as they say, also occurred, but the overall picture of a loyal attitude towards the “Shuravi” did not change. Many of the Afghans subsequently linked their lives with the USSR for many years.

The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan was perceived in the local society mainly “without enthusiasm.” The Afghan public and ordinary citizens feared (with good reason) that they would be left without protection and comprehensive assistance.

But since 1987, a “policy of national reconciliation” began to be actively pursued in Afghanistan, which provoked a sharp aggravation of the military-political situation in Afghanistan. The number of armed clashes immediately increased. The increased activity of the Afghan opposition was based on increased military-political, financial-economic and information support from NATO countries, China and many Islamic states.

Today it is already obvious that all these events were links in one chain.

Afghanistan served as the final chord of the Cold War against the USSR.

The essence of the geopolitical plan was simple:

firstly, the Soviet Union was drawn into a protracted global conflict in one of the most vulnerable (from military, ideological and political points of view) regions of the Muslim East;

secondly, the costs of the war should have placed an exorbitant burden on the country’s economy;

thirdly, the Afghan war seriously worsened the international authority of the USSR and complicated Moscow’s relations with the Muslim world, Western European countries and the USA;

fourthly, the limited military contingent in its form was, in principle, unable to achieve complete military victory. And therefore - doomed to unjustified human, material and other losses;

fifthly, international anti-Soviet propaganda, which took advantage of the failures and human losses in Afghanistan, contributed to the growth of dissident sentiments in the USSR itself and the intensification of the struggle for power.

All these goals were achieved by our geopolitical opponents with the active participation of agents of influence, which in the Soviet Union worked at all levels of party and state power. It was her agents' effective actions that predetermined the political defeat of the USSR in the Afghan war. The same cannot be said, however, about the military campaign itself.

The military personnel fulfilled their assigned tasks with honor and dignity in the very “heart” of the Muslim East. The Soviet command managed to contain the escalation of the armed conflict in Afghanistan and successfully solve the problem of withdrawing troops with minimal losses. And this is also an undoubted military success.

But within the country, “Afghan” became one of the main themes of the political and ideological struggle, the outcome of which was the collapse of the USSR.

In Afghanistan itself, even after 1989, well-trained Afghan troops independently controlled the situation in the country for a long time. The pro-Soviet regime of Najibullah in Kabul fell when the USSR no longer existed, and official Moscow, the capital of the Russian state, finally abandoned its ally.

What happened next is a topic for a special conversation.

Sergei Nebrenchin - Doctor of Historical Sciences, reserve colonel, participant in the Afghan war

Based on materials from Literaturnaya Gazeta

There is no country that fought in Afghanistan. She left there in 1989. Now America is fighting there. Opening any encyclopedia, the reader will find many different interpretations about the reasons for military intervention...

There is no country that fought in Afghanistan. She left there in 1989. Now America is fighting there. Opening any encyclopedia, the reader will find many different interpretations about the reasons for military intervention in a neighboring state.

But living people fought there. A huge number of soldiers and officers who went through the crucible of someone else’s war - the Afghan brotherhood. They remember lifeless deserts without a sip of water, Mujahideen behind every dune, Stingers who, unknown how, ended up in Afghanistan.

But the mothers of the boys who did not return from that war, which is still incomprehensible today, are crying. And those who return often hear the phrase: We didn’t send you there. Not everyone was able to find themselves in a peaceful life when Perestroika was already making noise in the vastness of the former USSR.

Some went into outright crime, others joined the ranks of law enforcement agencies. Many went into business. But the memory of that war sometimes brings these guys together. They get to know each other. How? Unclear. And they don’t leave their own people in trouble.

Journalistic roads led the former Afghan to Kandahar. For many years, nothing significant happened in this hot desert. Having found the once famous leader of the Mujahideen, he asked a question

— How is life in Afghanistan today?

-Who is the enemy? Strong?

“Oh,” he waves his hand. “Nowadays men don’t know how to fight.” One hundred missiles - one soldier. One on one, they cannot show themselves. Here was a case... A Russian heard a story that happened to a Shuravi during the war.

One and a half hundred Mujahideen decided to go to the valley. On a high-rise building, by the road, there were shuravis - there were five of them. We walked along the road and were greeted unkindly by the machine gun. We decided to go around, and there was fire. They surrounded the heights and sprayed them with bullets. The battle lasted for six days.

Fifty Mujahideen remained. But the shuravi also ran out of cartridges. When they reached the top, they found five soldiers. No one is even twenty. Hungry, the water ran out two days ago. They can barely stand on their feet. And they look like wolves. “I look at them, I say: pray to your God.”

My fighters wanted to kill them. But these five fighters closed back to back. Men!!! They fed them, gave them water, gave them weapons. "Go." When leaving, no one looked back. Here were the warriors! And these…

And the shuravi said: “Comandon, I was at that height.” The commander stood with his head bowed: “You are a warrior, seasoned in battle. A coward cannot say these words. We are no longer fighting the Shuravi."

Afghanistan

(Islamic State of Afghanistan)

Area – 6520200 sq. km Population – 16,700,000 people Afghanistan is a country of mountains and desert plateaus. The powerful, majestic ridges of the Hindu Kush mountain range, covered with eternal glaciers, stretch across the entire country. Only a few passes in the mountains lead to trails and roads, but in winter even these become impassable due to snow piles. Among the mountains in the river valley is the capital - Kabul.

Afghanistan is very hot in summer and severely frosty in winter. The rivers here are shallow and no ships can navigate them. In summer, almost all of them are lost in the sands or their water is used to irrigate fields. Several power plants have been built on turbulent mountain rivers. There is not enough water in both summer and winter, so people settle in river valleys. And many wander with their herds across mountain pastures. Afghans divert irrigation canals - ditches - from the rivers. Tall poplars and mighty elms grow along the ditches.

Wheat, corn and cotton are grown on irrigated fields. Grain production is the main branch of the country's economy. Apricots, walnuts, almonds, peaches, figs, pomegranates, and grapes grow in the gardens. Many dried fruits and nuts are exported to other countries. There are no railways in Afghanistan, and all cargo is transported by cars or pack animals. Many mountain slopes are almost completely devoid of soil, but the foothills of northern Afghanistan are covered with tall grasses in the spring. There are abundant pastures and hayfields.

Forests occupy only 5% of the country's area, mostly in the mountains in the east. Oak, Himalayan cedar, pine, spruce and fir grow here. Afghans collect sea buckthorn, blackberries, hazel, rose hips, barberries from wild bushes, and prepare walnuts, resin, honey, and wax. The fauna of Afghanistan is quite rich. In the mountains you can still find snow leopards, and wild goats and sheep live here. The largest of the rams, the argali, is decorated with magnificent curled horns. On the inaccessible rocks you can see the marking goat. There are still bears in the forests. Kulans (wild donkeys), goitered gazelles, antelopes, and wild boars graze on the plains. In the foothills and on the plains spotted hyenas, jackals, and wolves, which are especially numerous, hunt. Wolves attack sheep flocks, and therefore shepherds keep large wolfhounds. In the mountains and deserts there are poisonous snakes: cobra, viper, efa. The bites of arachnids: scorpions, tarantulas, phalanges are also dangerous to people. And plagues of locusts sometimes destroy the fields of peasants.

Settled Afghans live in a rectangular house made of adobe or mud or baked brick. The roof is flat or domed. The house is surrounded by a high mud brick fence. The nomads have a quadrangular tent made of woolen fabric. Nomads set up tents in one or two rows at campsites. Usually the village of Afghans coincides with the clan division of the Khel (clan or several clans) and bears its name. Small villages consisting of houses of close relatives are called kiri. The usual food of Afghans is bread (dodai) and tea. The menu also includes sour milk, sheep cheese, fruits and vegetables. Soup is prepared from meat - charva, shorva, various kebabs, seasoning them with vegetable sauces, marinades (achar). Various types of pilaf are very popular. Afghan clothing varies depending on the tribe, area of ​​residence, and social status. Men wear a long (to the knees and below) white or colored shirt, wide trousers, a sleeveless vest made of black, red or green cloth with four pockets on the flaps with a fastener in the front. An indispensable accessory is also a robe made of cotton or silk fabric without fasteners and a juli - a long elongated cotton blanket that replaces outerwear. Headdress - skullcap or felt cap and lungi - turban made of 5-7 m of fabric, usually white. Women's clothing consists of a long, loose-fitting shirt made of colored cotton fabric embroidered at the collar and ankle-length pants. Among the nomads, women wear several wide skirts over their shirts. When going outside, a woman puts on a dark veil. Women also wear various silver jewelry with carnelian and lapis lazuli: earrings, rings, nose jewelry, beads, and coin necklaces. It is typical for Afghans to use antimony (it is believed that antimony eyelids protect against eye diseases).

Afghan handmade carpets are distinguished by their richness of colors, beauty of patterns, and the craftswomen who create these patterns are distinguished by their patience and diligence. Afghanistan is a multinational country, and the customs, traditions, and morals of its inhabitants are also diverse. The Pashtuns, who live in the mountains in the south and southeast of the country, are a warlike people. Men always carry firearms and bladed weapons with them. The main occupation of this people is cattle breeding and agriculture. Pashtun nomadic tribes move annually in the spring with their herds from Pakistan to Afghanistan to mountain pastures, and return back for the winter.

More than 20 nationalities live in the country. Tajiks live in the center, north and northwest, engaged in agriculture and trade. Uzbeks have long settled in the northern provinces and are mainly engaged in agriculture. The Hazaras are considered the descendants of Mongol warriors who once settled in the central regions of Afghanistan and adopted the language, customs and rituals of the local, mainly Tajik, population. Since the entire population of the country professes Islam, in addition to the customs and traditions accepted by each nationality, all Afghans observe the general rituals of the Muslim religion. The national holiday of the New Year - Navruz - is celebrated on the first day of the Muslim calendar (March 20, 21 or 22). For this day, a new dress is sewn, wheat shoots are grown in special vessels and the sweet dish sumanak is prepared from them, and a special drink is infused from seven types of fruits. Religious holidays for all residents of the country - “Go Fitr” (the end of the local fast - Ramadan), “Go Kurban” (the holiday of sacrifice). Rituals that have ancient, pre-Islamic origins have also been preserved in traditions. For example, the flame of a candle is not blown out, but extinguished by hand; The fires are not doused with water, but are left to burn out. Children have fun making and flying paper kites, and in winter they like to play snowballs. Afghans love folklore, especially heroic songs that glorify the people's struggle for independence, as well as folk songs - couplets (landy) of love, military, satirical and other content.

Bibliography

To prepare this work, materials from the site were used http://www.5.km.ru/