Chitral Bodyguard or informally the Mehtar's Bodyguard, was a military force under the direct command of the Mehtar of the

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, subject to ...

Chitral Chitral ( khw, , lit=field, translit=ćhitrār; ur, , translit=ćitrāl) is situated on the Chitral River in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Chitral District and before that as the capital of Chitral ...

History

Upon

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

occupation of Chitral following the

Chitral Expedition The Chitral Expedition (Urdu:چترال فوجی مہم) was a military expedition in 1895 sent by the British authorities to relieve the fort at Chitral, which was under siege after a local coup following the death of the old ruler. An interven ...

of 1895, the British took a keen interest in reorganizing the state's military capabilities. In 1903 the

Chitral Scouts The Chitral Scouts (''CS'') ( ur, چترال سکاوٹس), also known as Chitral Levies, originally raised in 1903 as the militia of the princely state of Chitral, is now part of the Frontier Corps Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (North) of Pakistan. They are ...

, a force under direct British command, was raised. The Mehtar (native ruler) was also entitled to a personal military bodyguard. The Mehtar's Bodyguard was raised by Mehtar

Shuja ul-Mulk His Highness Sir Shuja ul-Mulk KCIE (1 January 1881 – 13 October 1936) was the Mehtar (from fa, ) of the princely state of Chitral, and reigned it for 41 years until his death in 1936. He belonged to the royal Katur dynasty, which ruled ...

in the early 1900s and consisted of a professional standing army which had been raised by his father

Aman ul-Mulk Aman ul-Mulk (; 1 January 1821 – 30 August 1892) was the Mehtar of Chitral, Ghizer, Yasen and Ishkoman and Suzerain of Kafiristan. He ruled the State of Chitral from 1857 to 1892. His rule saw Chitral reach its territorial peak, extending from ...

in the 1880s and by

conscripts Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day und ...

from the Yuft

caste Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultural ...

of Chitral, who were exempted from taxes but served the Mehtar in times of war. The officers were selected from amongst the Katur and related clans. The Bodyguard first saw active combat during the

Third Anglo-Afghan War The Third Anglo-Afghan War; fa, جنگ سوم افغان-انگلیس), also known as the Third Afghan War, the British-Afghan War of 1919, or in Afghanistan as the War of Independence, began on 6 May 1919 when the Emirate of Afghanistan inv ...

in 1919. The Bodyguard, under the command of Nasir ul-Mulk, captured Birkot in the

Kunar Province Kunar (Pashto: ; Dari: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northeastern part of the country. Its capital is Asadabad. Its population is estimated to be 508,224. Kunar's major political groups include Wahhabis or Ahl-e- Ha ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bord ...

, carrying away much booty from Kunar as well as taking many prisoners. Another arm of the Bodyguard went north to defend the Dorah and

Broghol Broghil, also spelled Broghol, elevation , is a high mountain pass along the Durand Line border that crosses the Hindu Kush mountain range and connects Wakhan District of Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan with Chitral District of Khyber Pakhtunkh ...

passes with

Badakhshan Badakhshan is a historical region comprising parts of modern-day north-eastern Afghanistan, eastern Tajikistan, and Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County in China. Badakhshan Province is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. Much of historic ...

. Yet another company of the Bodyguard, led by

Khan Bahadur Khan Bahadur – a compound of khan ('leader') and bahadur ('brave') – was a formal title of respect and honor, which was conferred exclusively on Muslim and other non-Hindu natives of British India. It was one degree higher than the title of ...

Dilaram Khan, captured Barge Matal in

Nuristan Nuristan, also spelled as Nurestan or Nooristan (Dari: ; Kamkata-vari: ), is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It is divided into seven districts and is Afghanistan's least populous province, w ...

after some light hearted resistance by Afghan troops. The locals supported Chitral and reaffirmed their age-old allegiance to the Mehtar's rule. The Chitral Bodyguards most noteworthy accomplishments were during the Kashmir War of 1947-48. Under the terms of instrument of accession, signed by Mehtar Muzaffar ul-Mulk, Chitral State would continue to maintain an armed force, thus Chitral was in a position to take the

Gilgit Agency The Gilgit Agency ( ur, ) was an agency of the British Indian Empire consisting of the subsidiary states of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir at its northern periphery, mainly with the objective of strengthening these territories against ...

away from Kashmir. Following the revolt of the

Gilgit Scouts The Gilgit Scouts constituted a paramilitary force of the Gilgit Agency in northern Jammu and Kashmir (princely state), Jammu and Kashmir. They were raised by the government of British India in 1913, on behalf of the princely state of Jammu and Ka ...

, the Mehtar sent his Bodyguard, under the command of Burhan-ud-Din, to secure

Gilgit Gilgit (; Shina: ; ur, ) is the capital city of Gilgit–Baltistan, Pakistan. The city is located in a broad valley near the confluence of the Gilgit River and the Hunza River. It is a major tourist destination in Pakistan, serving as ...

town and reinforce the Gilgit Scouts in the Astore Sector. In August 1948, the Gilgit Scouts had been conducting the Siege of Skardu for several months but had been unable to take the

Dogra The Dogras or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group in India and Pakistan consisting of the Dogri language speakers. They live predominantly in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, and in adjoining areas of Punjab, Himac ...

Garrison within the fortress of Kharpoche (Skardu Fort), because they lacked

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieg ...

. In August a 400 strong force of the Chitral Bodyguard, under Mata ul-Mulk, arrived in Skardu, backed by four light

Mountain Guns Mountain guns are artillery pieces designed for use in mountain warfare and areas where usual wheeled transport is not possible. They are generally capable of being taken apart to make smaller loads for transport by horses, humans, mules, tractor ...

. The

left Skardu and pushed on into

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu a ...

, while the Bodyguard, with the help of artillery, took the Kharpoche Fort within weeks. Following the death of Mehtar Muzaffar ul-Mulk and the constitutional crisis which subsequently erupted in Chitral State, the powers of the Bodyguard were curtailed. After 1954, the Bodyguard was reduced to a company of 100 men whose duty would be to serve as the Mehtar's personal security force. The Chitral Bodyguard was finally disbanded in 1969, when Chitral State was

annexed Annexation (Latin ''ad'', to, and ''nexus'', joining), in international law, is the forcible acquisition of one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. It is generally held to be an illegal act ...

by the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the four provinces, two autonomous territorie ...

Equipment and organization

The Headquarters of the Bodyguard was a portion of the Chitral Fort called ''Bodyguard-o-Sharaan'' where one company of Bodyguards was always stationed. Other companies of the Bodyguard would serve throughout the State. The total size of the Mehtar's Bodyguard in 1940 was 4000 men. Upon its formation the Bodyguard used

jezail The jezail or ''jezzail'' ( ps, جزائل, ultimately from the plural form ar, جزایل, "long arrels) is a simple, cost-efficient and often handmade long arm commonly used in South Asia and parts of the Middle East in the past. It was popula ...

s of Badakhshani manufacture including the Siyah Kamaan and Kotha Kamaan together with the British .577

Snider–Enfield The British .577 Snider–Enfield was a breech-loading rifle. The American Jacob Snider invented this firearm action, and the Snider–Enfield was one of the most widely used of the Snider varieties. The British Army adopted it in 1866 as a con ...

and .577

Martini–Henry The Martini–Henry is a breech-loading single-shot rifle with a lever action that was used by the British Army. It first entered service in 1871, eventually replacing the Snider–Enfield, a muzzle-loader converted to the cartridge syste ...

. After 1920 these weapons were replaced by the

Lee–Enfield The Lee–Enfield or Enfield is a bolt-action, magazine-fed repeating rifle that served as the main firearm of the military forces of the British Empire and Commonwealth during the first half of the 20th century, and was the British Army's s ...

.303. Swords were used for close combat up to and including the 1947-48 Kashmir War. The Bodyguard also had a

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

PM M1910 The Pulemyot Maxima PM1910 (PM M1910) (Russian: Пулемёт Максима образца 1910 года, ''Pulemyot Maxima obraztsa 1910 goda'' – "Maxim's machine gun Model 1910") is a Heavy machine gun that was used by the Imperial Russian A ...

machine gun which had been donated by a

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former ...

n refugee prince fleeing the

Bolshevik Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mome ...

. The Bodyguard's artillery included several Afghan-made cannons (including four seized from Birkot in 1919) and six 3.7-inch mountain howitzers. The Chitral Bodyguard followed the ancient Chitrali tradition of going into battle with the accompaniment of musicians playing war tunes IUCN Pakistan (2004). Chitral: A Study in Statecraft (1320–1969). IUCN Pakistan, Karachi, Pakistan or ''Jhang Waar''. These tunes were played on the surnay accompanied by drums. During the capture of Birkot, the Afghans were surprised when they heard the ''Jhang Waar'' playing at dawn, as they did not have a tradition of martial music.

References

Military units and formations of the princely states of India History of Chitral

History

Equipment and organization

See also

References