reform and repression, 1901–19Muslim rulers as well as intellectuals and political reformers were members
of the Brotherhood, which they saw as one sign of their modernism and
liberalism. Muhammad Abduh, al-Afghani’s Egyptian counterpart, and
leaders of Turkey’s cpu, as well as Al-Afghani himself and many leading
Arab nationalists, were all Freemasons. One reason for this was that the
Lodge was one of the few places where revolutionaries could share in
complete secrecy – hence the Persian term for the Masonic Lodge – radi-
cal views that would be treasonous or heretical in the world outside. More
than likely, it was Mahmud Tarzi who encouraged the Amir to become a
Freemason, for he would have been well acquainted with the Lodges in
Beirut, Cairo and Damascus, which were hotbeds of revolutionary, anti-
colonial and nationalist activism. 9 The first Lodge in Damascus had opened
a few years before the Tarzi family arrived in Syria and counted among its
membership high-ranking military and civil officials, intellectuals, Arab
and Turkish nationalists and freethinkers. Indeed, it is highly probable
that Tarzi and his brothers and nephews were members of one or other of
the Damascus Lodges.
The discontent created by the Amir’s behaviour among some of his
entourage was such that during his visit to India there were rumours of a
plot to assassinate him. When Habib Allah Khan returned to Kabul he faced
a storm of criticism, for news of his initiation had leaked out and some
religious leaders openly accused the Amir of converting to Christianity.
The Amir eventually publicly admitted he had become a Freemason and so
provided further fuel for his enemies. In an attempt to suppress criticism
from religious elites, the Amir executed four particularly vocal mullahs and
embarked on a countrywide tour in an attempt to win over the population.
During his tour of India, Habib Allah Khan become obsessed with
all things Western and once back in Kabul he began to introduce modern
technology and Western ways in a haphazard, dilettante manner. He
commissioned a royal standard, presented colours to every regiment,
created Afghanistan’s first national flag and had a national anthem
composed based on tunes from Wagner’s Sieg fried, which he had heard
played while in India. Muhammadzais were ‘encouraged’ to adopt Western-
style surnames, civil servants and government officials were ordered to
attend their offices in Western dress, and the Turkish fez and the karakul
fur hat replaced the turban.
The Amir recruited a number of foreign experts to expand manufactur-
ing and oversee the construction of new palaces, ministerial buildings and
dams. An American engineer supervised the construction of Afghanistan’s
first hydroelectric dam at Jabal Saraj, designed to provide electricity for