Two errors in the video - I mistakenly said Bhutan was part of China, obviously I meant Tibet, and I mislabelled the Afghan embassy in Berlin as 'Kabul'. Apologies!
I was in Afghanistan from 2010-2011. I met a 73 year old man who had a picture on him from his time in service of the Royal Afghan Army. We spent about 30 minutes discussing his time in the service and mine. It was very interesting and inciteful, he was very proud of that time.
I am Afghan and I want to personally thank your Mr. Felton for this video. I have lived in Afghanistan for most of my life and most of my family lived under the king. The people in my village and entourage always spoke very nostalgically of him, as if speaking of a benevolent god. He was revered and dearly loved. We all wept like kids when he died. Allah negoa conna Pacha Zahir Shah.
I read in a book simply titled “The History of Afghanistan” that the reason the monarchy was not reinstated was because none of the Anti-Taliban politicians and warlords at the Bonn Agreement wanted to reinstate the monarchy. They felt the king was out of touch of the experience of the Afghan people due to his 40 year exile. Additionally they wanted a new weak government so their local power could be retained. The deal for a new government nearly collapsed but ultimately Karzai was chosen. He was chosen purely because he had no armed support on the ground and would not pose a threat to the power of the warlords. The current heir to the Afghan throne currently writes poetry in Alexandria, Virginia.
a couple of older friends who must be in their 70s now went on the hippy trail and hung out in Afghanistan ..they made money buying a selling hand made guns! between Pakistan, and on one occasion their motorbike broke down and the crown prince in some fancy Merc , stopped and gave them a lift [having one of his entourage transport the motor bike].. He was apparently very social and they have a photo of themselves grinning with the prince. One has since been the subject of book 'Hero of our Time'.
My dad remarked on the german helmets the afghans wore. He was a warrant officer in the Royal Ordnance Corps attached to the Indian army based at Landikhotal. After Indian independence he was sent to Iraq, after embarking to Egypt and travelling through Palestine (now Israel) and Jordan. Quite an adventure for a young man from rural Essex!
@@MarkFeltonProductions hey mark just wanted to ask whether he fought in south or north waziristan. I am from south waziristan myself. I have plenty of photos of the British indian troops that were stationed there. We still have a few laws in effect that were created by the British "chota" ( not the urdu one which means small ). Feels good to know that a great historian like you knows about our place.
You have 1.43 million subscribers at the time of writing, and deserve every single one of them. Specifically because you produce unique content and tell unique historical stories that can't be heard anywhere else!
@@Hongobogologomo We already lost so many but those unfortunate 13 servicemen and women we lost plus the billions in weaponry and equipment we left behind... unforgivable. All for nothing.
I brought back two German helmets from my 1st trip to Afghanistan in 2004. I never knew how they got there. My thoughts were the Soviets had supplied them from captured German equipment left over from WW2. I was also able to bring back several "pass" rifles mentioned in this video: a Lee-Enfield, a Martini-Henry, and also a Martini-Enfield.
@@barryirlandi4217 still was if you think about it, sure the cities had it good unlike the rural countryside but at least the countryside was somewhat stable and free to do whatever they wanted unlike nowadays
No body talks about the times of Kings because it's inconvenient to the current mainstream understanding. Zaher Shah was betrayed and overthrown by the communists backed by the Soviets who then were defeated by the Islamists backed by the US. Zaher Shah in Afghanistan and Pahlavi in Iran our last attempt to survive as a civilization. We were defeated facing unbeatable odds. Thank you for sharing some truth about my dying civilization. You can never find such unbiased perspective on UA-cam except here.
Afghanistan, Iran, etc didnt deserve to be used as geopolitical fodder that impacted and cause the suffering of millions of people. Just carry in your heart the legacy of your culture, people, and history, and it'll never die. I pray for you and your country. Monarchies are basically synonymous with "tyranny" and other buzzwords in the West, but now that real tyranny is upon these areas through disgusting geopolitics, let those people who did your country wrong feel the shame and disgrace they deserve to feel. Monarchies may not be perfect, but they held people together with a sense of shared tradition, culture, and history. "This is OUR king, who rules OUR country, who is apart of OUR history". Democracy is not some utopian ideal that should be thrust upon every area of the world just because. I am truly sorry for your country and peoples situation.
I am an Australian and the debate we had of monarchy v republic touched on this matter of stability. Republics tend to be very unstable whereas monarchies have traditions and customs that bind the people together. I live in Thailand and the same thing is going on here. Burma, Laos, Cambodia all got rid of their kings and have turned into shitholes. Thailand and Malaysia retained their kingdoms and have done well. McArthur was very wise not to get rid of the royal system in Japan in my opinion.
Survive as a civilization? That Western/NATO/Christian ideal left on the last C-17 flying out of Kabul airport. We should bomb that civilization back to a sandbox filled with pork bellies.
@@nickhanlon9331 I agree with you. If Doug Mc Arthur placed a restaurant owner in charge of some made up republic in Japan like they did in Afghanistan, Japan would be a completely different country today. I envy you for her Majesty Elizabeth II. She really carried all of the common wealth through 100 crisis. Long live to her.
I knew OF Afganistan after 1979 (soviet invasion). Before that, the country was occasionally referred to in Donald Duck stories as 'the remotest place on earth"...
I am glad you cover these small events. Hundreds of big battles' videos are uploaded every day but there are almost no videos about such small events and this is what makes your channel unique.
Well they kept the tribe most Taliban came from happy along with the other tribes. And yes the corrupt Afgan Army the US put in along with corrupt government as the US cannot bring it self to control it's puppet governments and it has doomed the US over and over. In part because the defense contractors and arms manufactures along with contractors in US love the corruption that they get a piece too. This has happened in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and many other countries the US propped up. This the Neo Con dream under Bush they talk democracy so they try to set up these western style government but because they always working corrupt deals in business and weapons for US they always import that corruption to the countries the US sports and tolerate the home grown corruption there. Neo Cons on that side of Republican Party little power not but they were big with Bush. US should have gave it to the King or what ever the council of tribes wanted and pulled out we had done the punitive expedition already. And the Arab League offered to occupy Iraq, we could have supported the Kurds who welcome our forces and let the Arab League take the rest and leave. Why stay.
@@RedRocket4000 Well at least when the Soviets left Afganistan, the Top Russian General wiped out over 25 thousand Mujahideen and Taliban in a final ruse, before slamming the door shut and personally driving the last Tank out
Agreed as the Afghan recruits recentley now defeated most of them where always stoned of there heads and a lot of them didnt get paid by corrupt officials.
@Gallentean Does it occur to you at the very least that Afghans do not like been ruled (through a puppet) by a foreign power, do not like been bombed, killed or maimed (women and children included) without any accountability? You must realise the same Talibans (and Al Queda) were once Mujahideens backed by the US. There is a geopolitical term called blow back. The rapid collapse and complete failure of the US-installed Ghani government shows how unpopular this government. Nobody fought for this government. Wake up to reality.
They are fighting ISIS K. Trump, Pompeo and now Biden have betrayed them and did a deal with the Taliban or have you forgotten this? It only happened in the last few years.
@@mackabeats the Taliban have been winning for a few years now. Trump negotiated a temporary peace to allow the US to withdraw. Biden threw that out the window and moved the withdrawal date further back, causing the Taliban to renege on the deal and led to the chaos we saw the past few weeks.
Thank you for this Dr. Felton. My father served in the Royal Afghan Army before emigrating to the US. This is enlightening, saddening, and maddening considering the events of the past month, let alone 40 years!
I was thinking of the line from Kipling’s “The Young British Soldier”: “When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains, and the women come out to cut up what remains, just roll to your rifle and blow out your brains, and go to your God like a soldier. Go, go, go like a soldier… a soldier of the Queen.” This stuff has been going on forever - I wonder who’ll be next to invade Afghanistan, in about 2055, saying ‘This time we’ll win!” I’ve got a degree in history and consider myself a WWll buff, but I’ve never watched a Felton video and not learned something new. Excellent as always, Mark.
@@Makaveli2000 Yep. Kipling "Arithmetic on the frontier" The NW Frontier. Some more .... "Strike hard who cares - shoot straight who can - The odds are on the cheaper man." It seemed apposite when we went into Afgh and that's how it turned out.
I always love the fact that Mark covers things that everyone else tends to either forget or ignore, this is why Mark is a true historian unlike the clowns running history classes in the public schools. Mark is my favorite historian no doubt, keep making the awesome content
Thats it! Up until a few minutes ago, I really thought that I had a solid understanding of Afghanistan and its history during the last 100 years. Now, thanks to Mark , I have been educated!
I live in NY and hurricane IDA came through and ruined a bunch! I saw that my favorite professor posted a new History lesson which turned my night around! You sir are one of a kind!
Reminds me of the time when Japan just opened up in the late 1800s and went on a world tour and everyone tried to butter up to them for trade, and when they went to Germany Bismarck said “Trust no one, become strong yourself.”
@@bertroost1675 were they though? It got his country in two World Wars, one of which left it in Ruins. The one time Germany truly became the european Hegemon was by not following that advice by joining the proto-EU
I' m a former officer of the french army and an historian too. It is always a pleasure to look at Mark Felton's videos because he always works as a true historian never hiding the truth (for example Hitler during ww1 ) keep on Marck you do a great job.
That was really interesting. That picture showing a bunch of Afghans marching down down the street wearing German helmets but carrying Russian rifles was something else to see. 😳
I hope your dream comes true. Unfortunately there are people nowadays who would rather revision history for the sake of making their ideology a fake reality through confirmation bias. They don't understand that history isn't supposed to be always easy to swallow and never offend anyone, because if it did it would ruin the point learning from it. Don't let those people ruin your dream!
The Martini-Henry Rifles had Royal Irish Constabulary markings as well as the Smith and Wesson .455 caliber pistols used in the 1919-1923 Irish Conflict
Thanks for doing this wonderful piece on afghan army. I want to add that there is a german cemetery in north Waziristan. The germans tried to get into contact with faqir of ipi, a famous guerilla resistance fighter. Prof. Syed waqar ali Shah of Heidelberg university has done very good work on german afghan relations
Another awesome video that we've come to appreciate. Was surprised the Afghanistan of the earlier 20th century was so active on the world stage. Kudos to u for presenting least known facts about Afghanistan few people realize. Looking forward to ur next one.
.... yet another interesting and educational history lesson... as usual - thanks for the work you put into those investigations! Greetings from Austria!
@ArnH that Persian monarchy, or rather dynasty, was created through a military coup of the father of the late Shah in the 1920, helped by oil money, so not a real long tradition
this channel goes to show you don't need fancy editing or CGI animations to be a great channel. Just simply pictures with a voice over, but with immense and original work.
@@wayneantoniazzi2706 Thanks for mentioning this story. From a quick online search, it looks as though one was taken to the Warsaw Military Museum in Poland, another was restored in Fort Knox but is now displayed in Fort Benning GA, and a third is still being restored at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds MD.
@@sophrapsune You're welcome, and thanks for the input! Can you imagine the looks on the soldiers faces when they found those FT-17's and especially if they knew what they were? That I would have loved to see!
@@Patop2002 if german soldiers sucked I dont know where you live Germany rekt France , Poland , Norway , Yugoslavia etc .... And German Army and Their Soldiers ALMOST managed to capitulate Soviet Union .... And German Soldiers managed to hold of 3 Global Powers Until may 1945 So I think German people got VERY strong and brave fking Soldiers
>Anyone looks good in German uniforms >That's why the German uniforms suck what the actual fuck lol, everyone he showed wearing the uniform *was* a soldier @Patricio
@@lolofblitz6468 German soldiers wherent more than a bunch of meth addicted conscripts who barely scratched russian land and immediately yielded at American might. All nations they conquered where weak minors except for France and the soviet-held Ukraine and Belarus. 1000 years empire they said, couldn't last 3 years against the American backed Russian war-machine alone.
You have my subscription! Every time I turn around listen to everyone of your history videos it’s so rich in knowledge and I never can’t get enough. History has so much around us where ever we go.
All the professionals died off. The only part of the afghan army that was good were the afghan commandos, about 20k of them, and they fought 70-80% of the offensive fights, and some still are fighting.
i have never seen a video of yours that wasn't full of facts, wasn't packed with interested things most never consider... your work is the main reason i come to u tube..
Aligning with Germany makes total sense when you are stuck between both British and Russian/Soviet interferences at the same time. Makes you wonder what if the Afghan monarchy was restored in the aftermath of the 2001 Invasion of Afghanistan, instead of... well, what we had.
Makes you wonder if the US kept Supporting Mossoud. After the Russians pulled out. The one guy the Taliban and Al queda both hated. Bill Clinton’s state department advised him he should just turn himself into the Taliban!
The recent Afghan leaders stopped the current Afghan royal family from returning, as they were a competitor to their power bases. How much support did the royal family have after being away for so long? Possibly couldn't have done any worse though.
From what I can remember at the time he was seen as too westernized having lived in exile and in luxury for too long. He'd never have been accepted as a unifying figure.
@Rob With One B One of the Afghan leaders the US was backing didn't want the King back (he would be competition), & put pressure on the US. As usual, all about politics & power, with the US wanting to control whoever was in, they just didn't understand how politics worked in Afghanistan, & were played over & over again by the local politicians. As others have said, the Americans don't see the benefits of a 'Constitutional Monarchy', possibly due to them seeing any King as an unelected overlord, & their own history?
makes you wonder why people keep self-masturb***ing about re-establishing monarchies and dictators who were TOPPLED by their own people...have you ever WONDERED why they were detroned??
As a long time fan of the channel I have to say thank you so much for covering this topic and showing our beautiful history. I'm half Afghan and this really means a lot that you did this!
It's a shame the US refused to restore the monarchy. Even a cursory look at Afghan history shows that country was far more stable under monarchy, especially under king Zahir and had been in everlasting chaos ever since they made it a republic, but they decided to establish a republic anyway.
Do you think the various warlords and local authorities would have accepted that? My understanding is that the initial success of the U.S. invasion was due to warlords etc... actively or passively supporting it and they didnt want a strong central government after the invasion taking away their power.
@@scottabc72 In any case, the US not supporting the initiative and shutting it down didn't help. Even considering your points, a weak central government with a legitimate king would have been better for the country. The King would've been practically a figurehead, as Zahir Shah was not really into politics and when he did interfere he started to reform the system into a constitutional one, limiting his own power. Not to mention he was 86 years old at the time of the invasion. So essentially, the strength of the government won't change much as everything is the same, just a symbolic king is at the top, however in the long run I think the nation may be more stable.For example, when they wanted to elect the second president, it tuned into an ethnic conflict between Pashtun Ghani and Tajik Abdullah. Pashtuns want the highest office for themselves as they have been the rulers of Afghanistan under its monarchy since 1700s. this would be somewhat satisfied by Pashtun king, they can even make it semi-constitutional as it was before 1973 and give king some powers. This could help avoid a lot of political crisis, might weaken the support of Taliban among Pashtuns (as Taliban are in their core, a Pashtun group) and help a lot with Taliban making peace with the government. Also I doubt this government would have collapsed in 11 days like the real one.
@@scottabc72 They are impossible but you can still use analogues. A tribal rural country is barely ready for a republic unless you force people to urbanize and establish a tyranny, this is what Reza Shah and Ataturk did in Iran and Turkey respectively which is again very hard in Afghanistan's hellish geography.
Thank you for explaining the tax incentive-based recruitment for the Royal Afghan Army. It was quite a contrast from the unmotivated recruits which resulted from the subsequent Soviet-style draft, or by the US-influenced volunteer system (where Afghan soldiers signed up for a paycheck, more than anything else).
@@aasphaltmueller5178 After the Soviets left, the Afghan Army disintegrated to such a degree that Najibullah came to rely more on various pro-government militias. When the Uzbek militia of Rashid Dostum defected to the mujaheddin, Najibullah's regime was done for.
Fantastic content as always, one of the best channels about modern history for sure, watch Mark Felton instead of crappy television and history channel
Two errors in the video - I mistakenly said Bhutan was part of China, obviously I meant Tibet, and I mislabelled the Afghan embassy in Berlin as 'Kabul'. Apologies!
tibet aint a part of china tho
Forgiven
@@jorenprins5947 it is?
@@moruxuss8313 The Tibetans say it isn't and I am with them.
Even the 'perfect' err . . .
I was in Afghanistan from 2010-2011. I met a 73 year old man who had a picture on him from his time in service of the Royal Afghan Army. We spent about 30 minutes discussing his time in the service and mine.
It was very interesting and inciteful, he was very proud of that time.
Amazing!
Could he do jumping jacks ?
Imagine participating in that era, just to see it all fall down around you.. Thank you for sharing!
Interesting misspelling of "insightful". Inciteful sounds very aggressive!
@U Toob Doesn't like the Truth. They didnt during the 53 years before the NATO went in
I am Afghan and I want to personally thank your Mr. Felton for this video. I have lived in Afghanistan for most of my life and most of my family lived under the king. The people in my village and entourage always spoke very nostalgically of him, as if speaking of a benevolent god. He was revered and dearly loved. We all wept like kids when he died. Allah negoa conna Pacha Zahir Shah.
Hope you and your relatives are doing well in these times!
This man Deserves a ❤
Fight afghan
Dude rip
@Martin Parvanov 🇧🇬 Hey Saddam I knew you were ok
I read in a book simply titled “The History of Afghanistan” that the reason the monarchy was not reinstated was because none of the Anti-Taliban politicians and warlords at the Bonn Agreement wanted to reinstate the monarchy. They felt the king was out of touch of the experience of the Afghan people due to his 40 year exile. Additionally they wanted a new weak government so their local power could be retained. The deal for a new government nearly collapsed but ultimately Karzai was chosen. He was chosen purely because he had no armed support on the ground and would not pose a threat to the power of the warlords. The current heir to the Afghan throne currently writes poetry in Alexandria, Virginia.
How did that turned out for them?
The us was the reason too
a couple of older friends who must be in their 70s now went on the hippy trail and hung out in Afghanistan ..they made money buying a selling hand made guns! between Pakistan, and on one occasion their motorbike broke down and the crown prince in some fancy Merc , stopped and gave them a lift [having one of his entourage transport the motor bike].. He was apparently very social and they have a photo of themselves grinning with the prince. One has since been the subject of book 'Hero of our Time'.
The heir to the Afghangistan throne is in Alexandria Virginia?
@@MrJohnnyDistortion Not surprised. The heir to the Italian throne is selling pasta from a truck in LA...
I'm a military history graduate, yet there isn't a single day I can't learn something new. Mr. Felton, thank you for teaching us about those events!
Before you invade a country, watch Mark Felton Productions. ^_^
My dad served on the Khyber Pass in 1946 - 47 and recalled seeing Afghan soldiers at the frontier
My grandfather fought in Waziristan in 1936-37, which I believe borders Afghanistan.
@@MarkFeltonProductions my grandad lost his leg fighting in Italy had to play dead and hide under bodies till the Americans found him and saved him.
My dad remarked on the german helmets the afghans wore. He was a warrant officer in the Royal Ordnance Corps attached to the Indian army based at Landikhotal. After Indian independence he was sent to Iraq, after embarking to Egypt and travelling through Palestine (now Israel) and Jordan. Quite an adventure for a young man from rural Essex!
@@MarkFeltonProductions yes you are absolutely right
@@MarkFeltonProductions hey mark just wanted to ask whether he fought in south or north waziristan. I am from south waziristan myself. I have plenty of photos of the British indian troops that were stationed there. We still have a few laws in effect that were created by the British "chota" ( not the urdu one which means small ). Feels good to know that a great historian like you knows about our place.
Afghan soldiers with german helmets, english rifles and french tanks!
This was already globalization!
They must've struggled to master all those reverse gears in the French tanks.
@@scockery Boy you really need to watch more Mark Felton videos to stop you looking so stupid. 😂
@@scockery why does the French tanks have Rear-view mirrors
So they can see the battle field
they surrendered like French
@@palastofhistory4026 that's offensive!
I'm French.
“The history channel” should let Mark take over
They could have plenty of historians. Reality shows are cheaper.
They already have!
Theres only so much tiger tank content though thats the problem.
There is no more History Channel.
Yeah dude, the History Channel is kaput. Let it go and enjoy the new frontier.
This is just a superior history channel with spot on narration
Felton does it again - he produces a brilliant little documentary which nobody else has ever even thought of doing! Keep 'em coming Mark!
Yes thats a real "Felton". Most of the times you end one of his videos with a deep " i didn´t know anything of that".
@@dustinhoffmann6241 Dustin! The most underrated actor in Hollywood. 84 and still going strong.
Annie award 2009 for the Voice of Kung Fu Panda.
Like when I found out about the Chilean Purssian Army, I will never look at Afganistan the same way again
I know right? So much potential wasted
Colombia aswell
So, the Chileans could be referred to as the Prussians of the South? They've certainly kept the Prussian influence until now.
As far as I know Germans were called Prussians of Europe.
@@simontemplar.8668 germans were called the afghans of europe I heard.
Mr Felton has gifted us yet another rare historical insight which is the existence of Afghan's Prussian-style Royal Army. Bravo!
Thats DR MR Felton to you ,sir.
Just in case it wasn't obvious, im just kidding with the comment.
SPOILERS!!! lol
BUTKISSING
@@omarelyaakabi7748 theres 100 comments like this one on every video he does, mark could fart into the mic and theyd be like oh wowwwww
As an Afghan American who was born in America thank you for sharing the history of the country
I read and viewed a lot about Afghanistan in the past 30 years, but this aspect was completely new to me. Thanks Dr. Felton!
You have 1.43 million subscribers at the time of writing, and deserve every single one of them. Specifically because you produce unique content and tell unique historical stories that can't be heard anywhere else!
As always, a fascinating tale of an unknown aspect of history and its profound influence on current events. Well done Mark!
The current situation is gut wrenching to behold but I appreciate the history lesson as always.
I sure feel helpless when living history is taking place, such as afghanistan
@@Hongobogologomo We already lost so many but those unfortunate 13 servicemen and women we lost plus the billions in weaponry and equipment we left behind... unforgivable. All for nothing.
@@1977Yakko
Not totally for nothing. They still got to blame it on trump.
@@1977Yakko Yeah.....it is a shame such a bad situation was left due to the prior administration.
@@Dozz70 omg
"And we all know the outcome of that particular adventure."
a victory!
It wasn't an "adventure" for us who were there.
@@timothykissinger4883 how many trillions did the us gain though, that is the real question 🤔
@@timothykissinger4883 2 Trillion
@@radarmike6713 I’m sure the remark was aimed at the politicians, not the soldiers.
Mike LaVelle
I clicked on UA-cam to watch something else...but when I see Mark Felton Video ... I can't stop myself.
12:24 Imagine if the King was restored instead of the hesitant Karzai. History could have been so much different and peaceful in a comparative sense.
@WaR ZoneZZZ Do you mean the "democratically" installed US puppet government?
No difference. Taliban would overthrow the king. LMAO. It's the Muhajideen territory. Half the population in the countryside supporting them.
I never knew this and it's very interesting. Wow Its so fascinating.
I brought back two German helmets from my 1st trip to Afghanistan in 2004. I never knew how they got there. My thoughts were the Soviets had supplied them from captured German equipment left over from WW2. I was also able to bring back several "pass" rifles mentioned in this video: a Lee-Enfield, a Martini-Henry, and also a Martini-Enfield.
Khyber pass?
Wow that’s amazing.
You found good loot
Nice you're a thief
The Kingdom was the golden age of Afghanistan.
Not really... Just for the people in the cities..
@@barryirlandi4217 And after that, not even for the people in the cities. So your point being?
Actually they had their golden age until they made the fatal mistake and killed some mongol envoys.
@@ktheterkuceder6825 Correct! A lot has happened under the sun
@@barryirlandi4217 still was if you think about it, sure the cities had it good unlike the rural countryside but at least the countryside was somewhat stable and free to do whatever they wanted unlike nowadays
Another Dr. Felton's classic. This story must be digged outta grave.
Thanks!
I’ve finally caught up with almost all the videos fron the past year, this channel is so good
No body talks about the times of Kings because it's inconvenient to the current mainstream understanding. Zaher Shah was betrayed and overthrown by the communists backed by the Soviets who then were defeated by the Islamists backed by the US. Zaher Shah in Afghanistan and Pahlavi in Iran our last attempt to survive as a civilization. We were defeated facing unbeatable odds. Thank you for sharing some truth about my dying civilization. You can never find such unbiased perspective on UA-cam except here.
Afghanistan, Iran, etc didnt deserve to be used as geopolitical fodder that impacted and cause the suffering of millions of people. Just carry in your heart the legacy of your culture, people, and history, and it'll never die. I pray for you and your country. Monarchies are basically synonymous with "tyranny" and other buzzwords in the West, but now that real tyranny is upon these areas through disgusting geopolitics, let those people who did your country wrong feel the shame and disgrace they deserve to feel. Monarchies may not be perfect, but they held people together with a sense of shared tradition, culture, and history. "This is OUR king, who rules OUR country, who is apart of OUR history". Democracy is not some utopian ideal that should be thrust upon every area of the world just because. I am truly sorry for your country and peoples situation.
I am an Australian and the debate we had of monarchy v republic touched on this matter of stability. Republics tend to be very unstable whereas monarchies have traditions and customs that bind the people together. I live in Thailand and the same thing is going on here. Burma, Laos, Cambodia all got rid of their kings and have turned into shitholes. Thailand and Malaysia retained their kingdoms and have done well. McArthur was very wise not to get rid of the royal system in Japan in my opinion.
Survive as a civilization? That Western/NATO/Christian ideal left on the last C-17 flying out of Kabul airport. We should bomb that civilization back to a sandbox filled with pork bellies.
Well he was overthrown by his cousin technically. Daoud Kahn wasn’t a communist, just a garden variety prick.
@@nickhanlon9331 I agree with you. If Doug Mc Arthur placed a restaurant owner in charge of some made up republic in Japan like they did in Afghanistan, Japan would be a completely different country today. I envy you for her Majesty Elizabeth II. She really carried all of the common wealth through 100 crisis. Long live to her.
Now when's the video about the "current" Afghan army coming out?
What army xD
The Afghan National Army - The ARVN of the Middle East
Instead of getting shitfaced the ANA are chillin across the border
Clearly there is nothing wrong with the return to diversity. Afghanistan has a lot less white people now so its much more diverse!
Too soon?
Never knew any of this, absolutely brilliant research as always.
I knew OF Afganistan after 1979 (soviet invasion). Before that, the country was occasionally referred to in Donald Duck stories as 'the remotest place on earth"...
I am glad you cover these small events. Hundreds of big battles' videos are uploaded every day but there are almost no videos about such small events and this is what makes your channel unique.
An FT-17 perfectly preserved was found by french forces in Afghanistan, bought and brought back to Saumur Museum in 2007.
One FT-17 - formerly serving in the Polish army - was brought back to Poland by the Polish troops deployed in Afghanistan in 2000's. .
@@WK-ez1kg Here's video ua-cam.com/video/e_OW6KVcAm0/v-deo.html
soundsz like it was 'liberated'
They stole it
They probably could have stood a better chance against the Taliban.
Well they kept the tribe most Taliban came from happy along with the other tribes. And yes the corrupt Afgan Army the US put in along with corrupt government as the US cannot bring it self to control it's puppet governments and it has doomed the US over and over. In part because the defense contractors and arms manufactures along with contractors in US love the corruption that they get a piece too. This has happened in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and many other countries the US propped up.
This the Neo Con dream under Bush they talk democracy so they try to set up these western style government but because they always working corrupt deals in business and weapons for US they always import that corruption to the countries the US sports and tolerate the home grown corruption there. Neo Cons on that side of Republican Party little power not but they were big with Bush.
US should have gave it to the King or what ever the council of tribes wanted and pulled out we had done the punitive expedition already.
And the Arab League offered to occupy Iraq, we could have supported the Kurds who welcome our forces and let the Arab League take the rest and leave. Why stay.
They probably would’ve joined the Taliban.
Better than that Alzheimer's ridden, International Weakling and Laughingstock fake President, cut and stumble, bumble, fumble, tumble and mumble Joe
@@RedRocket4000 Well at least when the Soviets left Afganistan, the Top Russian General wiped out over 25 thousand Mujahideen and Taliban in a final ruse, before slamming the door shut and personally driving the last Tank out
@@AutomatedPersonnelUnit_3947 Still 10 times better than Trump
I love how he always conects real time events with history
Thank you Dr Felton. I learn a lot from all your videos but this was entirely new and very interesting to me.
Well done as always Mark. Sparking curiosity and assisting with facts as we navigate the slippery shale of Afghanistan.
How do you keep coming up with this stuff? Another fascinating and timely topic, well done as always!
I recall an issue of Guns and Ammo describing the Mujahideen as freedom fighting heroes. Circa 19eighty something. The Rus couldn’t beat em.
Coming up? Is in history books and online sources, he isn't coming up with such?
I bet these soldiers would have held out against the Taliban these days.
They'd fight side by side with their Taliban brothers.
Agreed as the Afghan recruits recentley now defeated most of them where always stoned of there heads and a lot of them didnt get paid by corrupt officials.
You don’t get it bro, todays Taliban are the sons of the Prussians of the Orient
@@yakub3962 like hell
The Taliban Are traitors and serve Arab overlords
@@jonathanwilliams1065 lol. You don't know us Pathans. No wonder you lost.
A very informative Video!Thank you Doctor Mark!
Great video Mark, as always
Never looking at Afghanistan the same again, amazing video!
As usual very interesting, bringing the past up to date.
These days getting in before a thousand is considered early on the Mark Felton channel
They don’t have to worry about using enfields or AKs anymore.
@Gallentean He's referring to all the U.S. arms left there by President "Xo," as someone I know refers to him.
@Gallentean oh dear. I never thought Mark's video would attract people such as yourself. I didn't think you watched anything other than fox news
@Gallentean Does it occur to you at the very least that Afghans do not like been ruled (through a puppet) by a foreign power, do not like been bombed, killed or maimed (women and children included) without any accountability? You must realise the same Talibans (and Al Queda) were once Mujahideens backed by the US. There is a geopolitical term called blow back. The rapid collapse and complete failure of the US-installed Ghani government shows how unpopular this government. Nobody fought for this government. Wake up to reality.
@@victorkmlee No, he wakes up to Fox morning news.
True, the US army has nicely equipped them now
Too bad the Afghan army wasn’t like this a few weeks ago
Yep.
They are fighting ISIS K. Trump, Pompeo and now Biden have betrayed them and did a deal with the Taliban or have you forgotten this? It only happened in the last few years.
@@mackabeats the Taliban have been winning for a few years now. Trump negotiated a temporary peace to allow the US to withdraw. Biden threw that out the window and moved the withdrawal date further back, causing the Taliban to renege on the deal and led to the chaos we saw the past few weeks.
The Taliban are the Afghan army. The puppet rulers during the globalist occupation were traitors.
Back in the day the Taliban were there, just not formally
Thank you so much for captioning your videos! It helps immensely with understanding your videos at pace.
Thank you for this Dr. Felton. My father served in the Royal Afghan Army before emigrating to the US. This is enlightening, saddening, and maddening considering the events of the past month, let alone 40 years!
I was thinking of the line from Kipling’s “The Young British Soldier”: “When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains, and the women come out to cut up what remains, just roll to your rifle and blow out your brains, and go to your God like a soldier. Go, go, go like a soldier… a soldier of the Queen.” This stuff has been going on forever - I wonder who’ll be next to invade Afghanistan, in about 2055, saying ‘This time we’ll win!”
I’ve got a degree in history and consider myself a WWll buff, but I’ve never watched a Felton video and not learned something new. Excellent as always, Mark.
I don't think I know this Feldon fellow.
My bet's on China trying next. Though maybe they'll be smarter and just conquer it with debt.
decision makers just finally understood, that it is useless to try to civilize them... it is not a military defeat
maybe aliens
@@karlmarka
Aliens: "We are here to conquer you."
Us: "Okay, but that means you will have to invade Afghanistan too."
Aliens: **Get in UFO and leave**
After noticing a limp caused by a Jazail bullet, Sherlock Holmes first words to Dr. Watson were "You have been in Afghanistan I perceive".
_A Study In Scarlet,_ I think that was the one where Holmes first met Watson?
"Two thousand pounds of education, drops to a ten-rupee jezail "
Arithmetic on the frontier.
@@tubbytown6545 Kipling?
@@Makaveli2000 Yep. Kipling "Arithmetic on the frontier"
The NW Frontier. Some more ....
"Strike hard who cares - shoot straight who can -
The odds are on the cheaper man."
It seemed apposite when we went into Afgh and that's how it turned out.
I always love the fact that Mark covers things that everyone else tends to either forget or ignore, this is why Mark is a true historian unlike the clowns running history classes in the public schools. Mark is my favorite historian no doubt, keep making the awesome content
Thats it! Up until a few minutes ago, I really thought that I had a solid understanding of Afghanistan and its history during the last 100 years. Now, thanks to Mark , I have been educated!
Best channel to get home to, after a long day at work!
I live in NY and hurricane IDA came through and ruined a bunch! I saw that my favorite professor posted a new History lesson which turned my night around! You sir are one of a kind!
Reminds me of the time when Japan just opened up in the late 1800s and went on a world tour and everyone tried to butter up to them for trade, and when they went to Germany Bismarck said “Trust no one, become strong yourself.”
wise wise words
@@bertroost1675 were they though? It got his country in two World Wars, one of which left it in Ruins. The one time Germany truly became the european Hegemon was by not following that advice by joining the proto-EU
@@elseggs6504 He didn't tell them to invade someone.
@@elseggs6504 you misunderstood what he said.
They were "opened up" under the guns of American warships. you call that "buttering them up"?
Imagine the Afghan tanker's reaction when they replaced the WW1 era Renaults with T34-85's
I' m a former officer of the french army and an historian too. It is always a pleasure to look at Mark Felton's videos because he always works as a true historian never hiding the truth (for example Hitler during ww1 ) keep on Marck you do a great job.
Thank you for your videos, 40 plus years of studying WW2 and you constantly improve my knowledge.
Excellent video covering an interesting subject as usual!
Fascinating video. You never cease to amaze me Mark Felton with your intriguing knowledge on history.
I have learned a lot more WW2 history on Mark’s page than my expensive undergraduate history courses. Thank you Mark!
I can believe that, think how much Mark and UA-cam could have saved you. Hope you're not in too much debit anyway.
That was really interesting. That picture showing a bunch of Afghans marching down down the street wearing German helmets but carrying Russian rifles was something else to see. 😳
I thought their uniform was soviet.
Great effort Mark, very clear dialogue...
Another gem from Dr. Felton!
"We all know the outcome of that particular adventure." Classic!
The Afghan Aryans always admired Hitler
I wanna be Mark Felton when I grow up. Just a Sorcerer of History, conjuring up knowledge for the masses
:)
I hope your dream comes true. Unfortunately there are people nowadays who would rather revision history for the sake of making their ideology a fake reality through confirmation bias. They don't understand that history isn't supposed to be always easy to swallow and never offend anyone, because if it did it would ruin the point learning from it. Don't let those people ruin your dream!
Just be yourself is always the best advice
You can't do both!! :-)
To top it off I recommend you call yourself Tim, Tim the Enchanter has a certain ring to it.
As always, an excellent well researched video. Thank you. A lot of Afghanistan history simply and clearly explained. A real gem of production.
great video, your narration is supreme
Dr.Felton, your timing is impeccable.
As ALLWAYS
How do you do it!
Thank you
The Martini-Henry Rifles had Royal Irish Constabulary markings as well as the Smith and Wesson .455 caliber pistols used in the 1919-1923 Irish Conflict
Thanks for that Mark another moment of history I just learned about thanks to you
Thanks for doing this wonderful piece on afghan army. I want to add that there is a german cemetery in north Waziristan. The germans tried to get into contact with faqir of ipi, a famous guerilla resistance fighter. Prof. Syed waqar ali Shah of Heidelberg university has done very good work on german afghan relations
Another Amazing Documentary 👏 You are what the History and A&E Channel was in the 90's but way better
Another awesome video that we've come to appreciate. Was surprised the Afghanistan of the earlier 20th century was so active on the world stage. Kudos to u for
presenting least known facts about Afghanistan few people realize. Looking forward to ur next one.
Tough week. Glad to see this. Afghan history and culture really interesting. Wish I learned about before I read Afghan papers.
I hope the Afghani people find peace soon. They deserve so much better than what the past few decades have thrown at them.
Hope so too.nobody likes a tourist.
They were kings in throwing things at themselves. Look at them.
They are about to get anything BUT peace! 😢
Far longer than that afghan has seen no peace.
They deserve to remain the backward medieval religious zealots living in poverty they chose to be through cowardice and corruption.
.... yet another interesting and educational history lesson... as usual - thanks for the work you put into those investigations! Greetings from Austria!
What I respect most about your videos Mark? You report what happened, with no bias for or against the facts.
I love your stuff man! Keep it up!!
a swedish dev: "interesting idea for a 10 BUCK DLC"
I thought that too though. Afghanistan and Iran etc to revive the old empires. I mean they did it to turkey.
Make it $20 and still leave out a ton of content
The US went with "democracy" over monarchy in a tribal, fundamentalist nation...good call
The democracy not is for everybody!
@@luga718 nope. Especially when groups of people have hated each other for hundreds of years
The US went with monarchy in Iran and guess what that led to. People don't like puppet regime, no matter what kind.
@ArnH that Persian monarchy, or rather dynasty, was created through a military coup of the father of the late Shah in the 1920, helped by oil money, so not a real long tradition
cant leave well enough alone
Fascinating masterpiece Mark, especially for me as a German! So many things I have never heard about before... Thank you very much!
this channel goes to show you don't need fancy editing or CGI animations to be a great channel. Just simply pictures with a voice over, but with immense and original work.
I have a hard and stressful life as a carer. Mark Feltons video's bring me a lot of joy.
Wow, Germany itself gave them this appellation.
Didn't know that, this is absolutely fascinating. Cheers!
Afghanistan sounds as though it once would have been a fantastic place to find & purchase serviceable items for war museums.
I've heard the US Army found some Renault FT-17's in Afghanistan and brought them home for restoration and display. Anyone know if it's true?
@@wayneantoniazzi2706
Thanks for mentioning this story.
From a quick online search, it looks as though one was taken to the Warsaw Military Museum in Poland, another was restored in Fort Knox but is now displayed in Fort Benning GA, and a third is still being restored at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds MD.
@@sophrapsune You're welcome, and thanks for the input!
Can you imagine the looks on the soldiers faces when they found those FT-17's and especially if they knew what they were? That I would have loved to see!
Goes to show that ANYONE can look good in a German-inspired uniform
Yeah, that's why German uniforms suck. If you want to look good in a soldier uniform, be a f*cking soldier.
@@Patop2002 if german soldiers sucked I dont know where you live
Germany rekt France , Poland , Norway , Yugoslavia etc ....
And German Army and Their Soldiers ALMOST managed to capitulate Soviet Union ....
And German Soldiers managed to hold of 3 Global Powers Until may 1945
So I think German people got VERY strong and brave fking Soldiers
>Anyone looks good in German uniforms
>That's why the German uniforms suck
what the actual fuck lol, everyone he showed wearing the uniform *was* a soldier @Patricio
@@lolofblitz6468 Thats what I would also think, but: "...thats why German UNIFORMS suck..."
@@lolofblitz6468 German soldiers wherent more than a bunch of meth addicted conscripts who barely scratched russian land and immediately yielded at American might. All nations they conquered where weak minors except for France and the soviet-held Ukraine and Belarus. 1000 years empire they said, couldn't last 3 years against the American backed Russian war-machine alone.
You have my subscription! Every time I turn around listen to everyone of your history videos it’s so rich in knowledge and I never can’t get enough. History has so much around us where ever we go.
Love some timely content from my favorite historian.
Give this guy an Oscar. Never disappoints!
Looks like Afghanistan was like the little brother getting gifts from older siblings to side them in siblings wars!
Afghan Army 1940: "You come close, we skewer you."
Afghan Army 2021: "What is a jumping jack?"
🤣🤣🤣
All the professionals died off. The only part of the afghan army that was good were the afghan commandos, about 20k of them, and they fought 70-80% of the offensive fights, and some still are fighting.
Not any more
All a failure it seems
informative as always Mark .Great history lesson
i have never seen a video of yours that wasn't full of facts, wasn't packed with interested things most never consider... your work is the main reason i come to u tube..
Aligning with Germany makes total sense when you are stuck between both British and Russian/Soviet interferences at the same time.
Makes you wonder what if the Afghan monarchy was restored in the aftermath of the 2001 Invasion of Afghanistan, instead of... well, what we had.
Makes you wonder if the US kept Supporting Mossoud. After the Russians pulled out. The one guy the Taliban and Al queda both hated. Bill Clinton’s state department advised him he should just turn himself into the Taliban!
The recent Afghan leaders stopped the current Afghan royal family from returning, as they were a competitor to their power bases.
How much support did the royal family have after being away for so long?
Possibly couldn't have done any worse though.
From what I can remember at the time he was seen as too westernized having lived in exile and in luxury for too long. He'd never have been accepted as a unifying figure.
@Rob With One B One of the Afghan leaders the US was backing didn't want the King back (he would be competition), & put pressure on the US.
As usual, all about politics & power, with the US wanting to control whoever was in, they just didn't understand how politics worked in Afghanistan, & were played over & over again by the local politicians.
As others have said, the Americans don't see the benefits of a 'Constitutional Monarchy', possibly due to them seeing any King as an unelected overlord, & their own history?
makes you wonder why people keep self-masturb***ing about re-establishing monarchies and dictators who were TOPPLED by their own people...have you ever WONDERED why they were detroned??
As a long time fan of the channel I have to say thank you so much for covering this topic and showing our beautiful history. I'm half Afghan and this really means a lot that you did this!
Hello fellow half afghan, I rarely find any others
It's a shame the US refused to restore the monarchy. Even a cursory look at Afghan history shows that country was far more stable under monarchy, especially under king Zahir and had been in everlasting chaos ever since they made it a republic, but they decided to establish a republic anyway.
Do you think the various warlords and local authorities would have accepted that? My understanding is that the initial success of the U.S. invasion was due to warlords etc... actively or passively supporting it and they didnt want a strong central government after the invasion taking away their power.
@@scottabc72 In any case, the US not supporting the initiative and shutting it down didn't help. Even considering your points, a weak central government with a legitimate king would have been better for the country. The King would've been practically a figurehead, as Zahir Shah was not really into politics and when he did interfere he started to reform the system into a constitutional one, limiting his own power. Not to mention he was 86 years old at the time of the invasion. So essentially, the strength of the government won't change much as everything is the same, just a symbolic king is at the top, however in the long run I think the nation may be more stable.For example, when they wanted to elect the second president, it tuned into an ethnic conflict between Pashtun Ghani and Tajik Abdullah. Pashtuns want the highest office for themselves as they have been the rulers of Afghanistan under its monarchy since 1700s. this would be somewhat satisfied by Pashtun king, they can even make it semi-constitutional as it was before 1973 and give king some powers.
This could help avoid a lot of political crisis, might weaken the support of Taliban among Pashtuns (as Taliban are in their core, a Pashtun group) and help a lot with Taliban making peace with the government. Also I doubt this government would have collapsed in 11 days like the real one.
@@Ali-bu6lo Could-of-beens are impossible to prove but I agree you could be right
@@scottabc72 They are impossible but you can still use analogues. A tribal rural country is barely ready for a republic unless you force people to urbanize and establish a tyranny, this is what Reza Shah and Ataturk did in Iran and Turkey respectively which is again very hard in Afghanistan's hellish geography.
Thank you for another fascinating lecture Professor Felton.
This is all new to me. Thanks for the upload!
Thank you for explaining the tax incentive-based recruitment for the Royal Afghan Army.
It was quite a contrast from the unmotivated recruits which resulted from the subsequent Soviet-style draft, or by the US-influenced volunteer system (where Afghan soldiers signed up for a paycheck, more than anything else).
those unmotivated recruits held out 3 years
@@aasphaltmueller5178 After the Soviets left, the Afghan Army disintegrated to such a degree that Najibullah came to rely more on various pro-government militias. When the Uzbek militia of Rashid Dostum defected to the mujaheddin, Najibullah's regime was done for.
Monarchs provide stability, Exactly what Afghanistan needs most...
short term stability, monarchs are not a long term solution in recent times
@@engineergaming8695 neither are republics
@@engineergaming8695 so what are the british royals still doing in buckingham then?
@@tavish4699 they are just more or less there. They don't really have much political power compared to the PM or Parliment
@@tavish4699 what Dawson Fradin said, they're more figureheads than anything. PM and the parliament are the ones with the real power
Love the choice of topic; keeping a finger on the pulse 👌🏼😉
No one does snap shots of history better than Mark Felton. Always exceptional content!
Fantastic content as always, one of the best channels about modern history for sure, watch Mark Felton instead of crappy television and history channel