Shah Shujah Durrani

Shuja Shah Durrani
Emir of Afghanistan
An old sketch work showing Shah-Shuja-ul-Mulk
Reign	1803–1809 1839–1842
Coronation	July 13, 1803
Full name	Shuja Shah Durrani
Born	November 4, 1785
Died	April 5, 1842
Predecessor	Mahmud Shah Durrani
Successor	Dost Mohammad Khan
Wives	Daughter of Fath Khan Tokhi Wafa Begum Daughter of Sayyid Amir Haidar Khan Daughter of Khan Bahadur Khan Malikdin Khel Daughter of Sardar Haji Rahmatu'llah Khan Sardozai Sarwar Begum Bibi Mastan
Dynasty	Durrani dynasty
Father	Timur Shah Durrani

History of Afghanistan
Timeline
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Medieval Sasanians 512–651 Kabul Shahi 565–879 Rashidun Caliphate 642–641 Umayyads 661–750 Abbasids 750–821 Tahirids 821–873 Saffarids 863–900 Samanids 875–999 Ghaznavids 963–1187 Ghorids 1149–1215 Khwarezmids 1215–1231 Ilkhanate 1258–1353 Khiljis 1290–1320 Kurts 1245–1381 Timurids 1370–1506 Arghuns 1479–1522 Mughals 1501–1738 Safavids 1510–1709
Modern Hotaki Empire 1709–1738 Afsharid dynasty 1738–1747 Durrani Empire 1747–1826 Emirate of Afghanistan 1826–1919 Kingdom of Afghanistan 1919–1973 Republic of Afghanistan 1973–1978 Democratic Republic of Afghanistan 1978–1992 Islamic State of Afghanistan 1992–2001 Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan 1996–2001 Interim/Transitional Administration 2001–2004 Islamic Republic of Afghanistan since 2004
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Shuja Shah Durrani (also known as Shāh Shujāʻ, Shah Shujah, Shoja Shah, Shujah al-Mulk) (c. November 4, 1785 – April 5, 1842) was ruler of the Durrani Empire from 1803 to 1809. He then ruled from 1839 until his death in 1842. Shuja Shah was of the Sadozai line of the Abdali group of Pashtuns. He became the fifth Emir of Afghanistan.^[1]

Family

Shuja Shah was the son of Timur Shah Durrani of the Durrani Empire. He ousted his brother, Mahmud Shah, from power, and ruled Afghanistan from 1803 to 1809.

Marriages

1. A daughter of Fath Khan Tokhi
2. Wafa Begum
3. A daughter of Sayyid Amir Haidar Khan; Amir of Bokhara
4. A daughter of Khan Bahadur Khan Malikdin Khel
5. A daughter of Sardar Haji Rahmatu'llah Khan Sardozai; Wazir
6. Sarwar Begum
7. Bibi Mastan; of Indian origin

Career

Depositions, imprisonments and alliances

Shuja Shah was the governor of Herat and Peshawar from 1798 to 1801. He proclaimed himself as King of Afghanistan in October 1801 (after the deposition of his brother Zaman Shah), but only properly ascended to the throne on July 13, 1803.

Shuja allied Afghanistan with the United Kingdom in 1809, as a means of defending against a combined invasion of India by Napoleon and Russia.

On May 3, 1809, he was overthrown by his predecessor Mahmud Shah and went into exile in India, where he was captured by Jahandad Khan Bamizai and imprisoned at Attock (1811–2) and then taken to by Atta Muhammad Khan Kashmir (1812–3). When Mahmud Shah's vizier Fateh Khan invaded Kashmir alongside Maharaja Ranjit Singh's army, he chose to leave with the Sikh army. He stayed in Lahore from 1813 to 1814. In return for his freedom, he handed the Koh-i-Nor diamond to Maharaja Ranjit Singh and gained his freedom. He stayed first in Punjab and later in Ludhiana with Shah Zaman. The place where he stayed in Ludhiana is presently occupied by Main Post Office near Mata Rani Chowk and a white marble stone inside the building marking his stay there can be seen.

In 1833 he struck a deal with Maharaja Ranjit Singh of the Punjab: He was allowed to march his troops through Punjab, and in return he would cede Peshawar to the Sikhs if they could manage to take it. In a concerted campaign the following year, Shuja marched on Kandahar while the Sikhs, commanded by General Hari Singh Nalwa attacked Peshawar. In July, Shuja Shah was narrowly defeated at Kandahar by the Afghans under Dost Mohammad Khan and fled. The Sikhs on their part occupied Peshawar.

In 1838 he had gained the support of the British and the Sikh Maharaja Ranjit Singh for wresting power from Dost Mohammad Khan Barakzai. This triggered the First Anglo-Afghan War (1838–1842). Shuja was restored to the throne by the British on August 7, 1839,^[2] almost 30 years after his deposition, but did not remain in power when the British left. He was assassinated by Shuja ud-Daula, on April 5, 1842.^[3]

References

Further reading

• Divan-i-Shuja (1825)
• Memoirs of Shuja ul-Mulk Shah, King of Afghanistan (1826)
• Dalrymple, William (2013). Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1-408-82287-6. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Shuja Shah Durrani.

• Encyclopædia Britannica – Shah Shoja
• The British Library – Shah Shuja