BIOGRAPHY of Mir DAST & Mir MAST

 

Mir Dast and Mir Mast was born in the family of Muhammad Ameer Afridi. They had 8 siblings. The elder brother Mir Dast was born in December 1874 and the younger Mir Mast was born in march, 1876. They were born at village Kharkay located in Tirah valley Maidan. They both got their earlier education from Botan Shareef Seminary, where Maulana Muhammad Ilyas taught them as head teacher. Mir Dast joined the British Indian army in 23rd December, 1894 and Mir Mast joined the British Indian army in 1898. Mir Dast was serving in the 55th coke’s rifles at that moment during the Indian army reorganization of 1903. Mir Dast saw action on the north west frontier during the great tribal rising of 1897-8 and in Waziristan 1901-2. He was awarded the Indian order of merit, third class for displaying conspicuous gallantry during the 1908 Mohamand expedition; and he was promoted jamadar the most junior Indian commissioned rank. 




Shortly after the outbreak of the first world war in 1914 two infantry divisions of the Indian army (3rd Lahore and 7th Meerut) were dispatched to help stem the German invasion of Belgium and France. The Indians arrived in France at the end of September were soon fed into the heavy fighting at the first battle of Ypres. The two divisions were eventually organized into an Indian corps a mixed formation of British and Indian units. The Indian’s losses had been very heavy, and the men had to be drawn from regiments in India to fill the depleted ranks of those in France. Mir Dast was one of those cross posted from his home unit to a regiment serving in France in his case from the cake's to the 57th wild’s rifles (frontier force) in the 7th (Ferozepur) brigade of the Lahore division.




Mir Dast arrived in France in march 1915, in time to play a minor role at the battle of Neuve Chapelle. The action that won him the greatest renown, however, took place in Belgium a few weeks later. On 22 April the Germans tried to break the allied line at the second battle of Ypres by releasing a large cloud of deadly chlorine gas during a favorable. The gas causes mayhem in the unprepared allied lines, creating the danger that Ypres might fall to a determined German follow up assault. The situation was critical, and several divisions, Lahore among them was ordered to Ypres to cover the gap. On 24-5 April the Lahore division made grueling forced march north from positions around Neuve Chapelle, along rutted and cracked roads and over cobbles made slippery by rain. Mir Dast despite severe pain and injuries, and despite a wave of chlorine attacks, went on to fight. At the evening, Mir Dast, after receding attacks, tool lead and start marching with remaining soldiers and won huge commendation to rescue eight Indian and British soldiers and officers for a safer place despite injuries. He was awarded Victoria cross(VC). He insisted that he would receive the Victoria Cross personally from the King and the King awarded him his VC in person. British empire gave him the title of “Khan Bahadur” and promoted him to the rank of subedar.

Before World War I, Indians serving in the military were given only Indian order of Merit. In 1909, Mir Dast was also decorated with Indian order of merit, in momand expedition. Mir Dast is believed to have died on 19 January 1945 at the village of Shagi Landi Kyan, Tehsil district, Peshawar, and was buried in the Warsak Road Cemetery, Shagi Landi Kyan. His posthumous reputation has reflected that of the pre-1947 Indian army more generally. Although celebrated and commemorated in Britain and India before 1947, The loyalty of India’s soldiers to the British king-emperor during the two world wars did not fit easily into the prevailing anti-imperial political ethos of independent Pakistan and India. Mir Mast was sent to France in World War I, to fight for 58 Vaughan’s Rifles. He fought at the war front of Neuve Chapelle against Germans. He fought bravely but as turn of event may happen, during one wintery and chilling night on 4th march, 1915, British commander came to know that 23 soldiers, from the Afridi Qamberkhel tribe have abandoned their army and joined Germans. These soldiers were led by Mir Mast Afridi which shocked British Commander.

“Mir Mast said that he couldn’t bear the fact that he had to fight against Turks and thus joined German ranks. These renegade soldiers later were transported to another city Lilli away from the war front”.



On 24 April, 1915 German Kaiser decorated Mir Mast for Iron Cross that is highest German gallantry award. He was sent to Turkey where he met the chief religious scholar and was awarded the title of “Mujahid-e-Millat” and Islamic flag as an emblem. Mir Mast was later dispatched to Afghanistan as a Turkish envoy in order to persuade Afghans to join fight against the Allied forces. This mission to Afghanistan doesn’t accomplish its goals. Before departing from Kabul, Mir Mast got assurance from the Afghan military chief and prince Nasrullah khan for financing military expeditions from Tirah valley in May 1915.

In June 1916, the two Turkish emissaries arrived in Tirah who were welcomed by Mir Mast Khan Afridi and a prominent mullah of kambar khel. One of the Turkish agent was kharid bay, a staff colonel of the Turkish army and Mohammad Abid (alias Abidin) an Arab, a former employee of the Turks as a drill instructor at Kabul. Mir Mast khan had already prepared the ground for the mission. They unfurled a flag, which was by the Turkish Caliph and arms. Ammunition and money and were called upon to assist the emissaries who declared that they were serving the Afghan government.


By July 1916, the total number of the Afridi recruits was reported to have reached about four hundred. They were posted in three different Kambar Khel villages and drilled every day by Mir Mast Khan under the supervision of Kharid Bay, the Turkish Colonel. The Turks also wrote letters to the neighboring tribes, and in the month of August some Turkish emissaries visited the Mohmand areas where Hajji Sahib Turangazai was busy in waging war against the British. As a result of the growing popularity of the Sultan's army in Tirah, Sir George Roos-Keppel, then Chief Commissioner NWFP, found the tribes being virtually divided into two camps: anti-British and pro-British. The former consisted of deserters and discharged soldiers from the Indian army and other pro-Afghan elements, while the latter was composed mainly of Malik’s and elders who were in favor of maintaining friendly relations government. Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum Khan successfully played upon the mutual jealousy of the Afridi Mullahs, and kept some of them attached to the government. Starting a military front against British got an early reaction from Commissioner Peshawar Ross Keppel, who along tribal leaders burnt Mir Mast and his companion houses. He died due to epidemic Spanish flu in 1917.