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In 1917, the British Empire launched a successful punitive expedition against the
Mahsud The Mahsud (), also spelled as Mehsud, Mahsood and others, is a Karlani Pashtun tribe inhabiting mostly the South Waziristan Agency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The Maseeds usually pronounce their name ''Māsīd''. They are divi ...
in
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
's North-West Frontier in order to deter raids and restore prestige.


Background

Following a punitive expedition in 1900-02, the Mahsud had signed a peace agreement with the British authorities, bringing conflict to an end for the time being. However, in November 1913, the Mahsud chieftain, Mulla Powinda, died, and his son, Fazl-Din, disregarded the peace agreement and renewed raids, with encouragement from pro-Turkish and anti-British elements in the Afghan government. Hostilities between the British and the Mahsud began with the "Tank outrage" of April 1914. In this incident, the Mahsud killed Major Dodd, the Political Agent for South Waziristan, in addition to 2 officers and 3 sepoys. Pro-Turkish and Anti-British elements in Kabul would encourage hostilities. From April 1914 to March 1915, the Mahsuds committed 81 raids classed as serious, which do not include numerous cases of cattle lifting, burglary, wire cutting and small offences. In 1916, Viceroy Frederic Thesiger was informed that: In March 1917, the Mahsud began raiding into the British Raj. Mahsud attacks throughout the first half of 1917 on pickets, garrisons and convoys belonging to the British prompted a punitive expedition in June. Having been incurred heavy losses in that year by the Mahsud, the British intended to restore their prestige.

Conflict

British forces commanded by Major-General Benyon advanced into Mahsud tribal territory on the 6th. British forces engaged the Mahsud on the 7th, 12th, 19th, 20th, 21st, 23rd, and 24 June. On the 25th, hostilities ceased as the Mahsud began asking for peace. Part of the terms were that the Mahsuds had to hand rifles they had stolen - some of these came into the hands of British troops while they were still there. British troops began withdrawing on 12 July. The final peace agreement came on 10 August 1917 with a Mahsud ''jirga''. Many details of the conflict are provided in a private letter dating 20 August 1917 by Harry Edward Parker (5 Oct 1895 – 25 Dec 1969). Parker fought as a British soldier in this campaign.


Aftermath

The news of the peace agreement came as a great relief to the
India Office The India Office was a British government department in London established in 1858 to oversee the administration of the Provinces of India, through the British viceroy and other officials. The administered territories comprised most of the mo ...
. "The North-west frontier of India is now hopefully free of trouble." With the Mahsud defeated, resources of India were made available for reinforcing fronts elsewhere. In mid-July, it was arranged that 2 battalions would be sent to aid the allied war effort in east Africa.


See also

*
Mohmand blockade The Mohmand blockade (1916–1917) was a line of blockhouses and barbed wire defences, along the Mohmand border on the North West Frontier by the Indian Army. Background In 1915 the Mohmands declared a holy war or jihad against the British. T ...
*
Operations against the Mohmands, Bunerwals and Swatis in 1915 The Operations against the Mohmands, Bunerwals and Swatis were carried out by the Indian Army. The first operation began at the start of 1915, with a raid by the Mohmands near the Shabkadr Fort in Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and Lis ...
*


References

* {{Uprisings against Entente Powers during WWI 1917 in Asia Conflicts in 1917 Wars involving British India Wars involving the United Kingdom 20th-century military history of the United Kingdom