Second Herat War

Second Herat War
View of Herat from the Citadel (1863) by Illustrated London News
Date Late March 1856–26 October 1856 (7 months) Location Herat, Afghanistan Result Persian Victory Persian occupation of Herat
Belligerents
Emirate of Herat Supported by:  British Empire Emirate of Afghanistan	Sublime State of Persia
Commanders and leaders
Mohammad Yusuf Sadozai 'Isa Khan Bardurrani Sardar Majid Khan	Naser al-Din Shah Mirza Aqa Khan Nuri Hesam o-Saltaneh
Strength
Unknown	20,000 total troops 16 Infantry Regiments Artillery Units Regular and Irregular Cavalry
Casualties and losses
1,500	1,500

The Second Herat War (late March 1856–26 October 1856) was the invasion of the surrounding realm of Herat and the successful siege of its citadel by the Qajar army led by Hesam o-Saltaneh, Morad Mirza.^[1] The 1856 siege was part of the concerted Qajar effort to compensate the recent territorial losses in the Russo-Persian Wars of 1804–1813 and 1826–1828 by reconquering western Afghanistan, which had historically been a part of Persia's domain.^[1] The conflict was also a part of the broader Great Game between the British Empire and the Russian Empire.^[1]

The Persian expedition into Herat was contrary to an agreement with the United Kingdom signed by Naser al-Din Shah in January 1853.^[2] According to this agreement, the Persian Government would refrain from sending troops to or interfering in the internal affairs of Herat. The siege was a major point of contention in the breakdown of Anglo-Persian relations and eventually became the catalyst for the Anglo-Persian War. After successfully capturing Herat, British agents were either expelled from Persia or left on their own accord. Despite dispatching Farrokh Khan Ghaffari to negotiate a diplomatic solution, the British were already preparing military action against Persia by July 1856.^[2] The British would inevitably issue a declaration of war on Persia from Calcutta on 1 November 1856. The Persian army would continue to occupy Herat and would only leave in compliance with the Treaty of Paris that ended the Anglo-Persian War. However, the Persian government managed to install Sultan Ahmad Khan as the puppet ruler of Herat prior to the ratification of the peace treaty with Britain.^[1]