Darul Aman Palace ( ps, د دارالامان ماڼۍ; prs, قصر دارالامان; 'Abode of Peace' or, in a double meaning, 'Abode of Aman llah) is a three-story-tall

palace A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

located in

Darulaman Darulaman ( fa, دارالامان) is a locality in the south-western fringes of Kabul, Afghanistan, forming part of District 6. The suburb was a planned city built in the 1920s under King Amanullah Khan. Amanullah Khan sought to turn Darulaman i ...

, which about south-west of the centre of

Kabul Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

. Surrounding the palace are the following buildings: the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

, the

National Museum of Afghanistan The National Museum of Afghanistan (Dari: موزیم ملی افغانستان, ''Mūzīyam-e mellī-ye Afghānestān''; ps, د افغانستان ملی موزیم, ''Də Afghānistān Millī Mūzīyəm''), also known as the Kabul Museum, is a ...

and the Afghan International University. The 150 room Darul Aman Palace was originally built in the 1920s, during the reign of

Amanullah Khan Ghazi Amanullah Khan (Pashto and Dari: ; 1 June 1892 – 25 April 1960) was the sovereign of Afghanistan from 1919, first as Emir and after 1926 as King, until his abdication in 1929. After the end of the Third Anglo-Afghan War in August 1919, ...

. Restored national treasure a bright spot for Afghans as they celebrate independence day holiday ('' Stars and Stripes'', 21 August 2020). https://www.stripes.com/theaters/middle_east/restored-national-treasure-a-bright-spot-for-afghans-as-they-celebrate-independence-day-holiday-1.642045 He reigned as

Emir of Afghanistan This article lists the Head of state, heads of state of Afghanistan since the foundation of the first modern Afghan (ethnonym), Afghan state, the Hotak dynasty, Hotak Empire, in 1709. History The Hotak Empire was formed after a successful upr ...

between February 1919 and June 1926, and as

King of Afghanistan This article lists the heads of state of Afghanistan since the foundation of the first modern Afghan state, the Hotak Empire, in 1709. History The Hotak Empire was formed after a successful uprising led by Mirwais Hotak and other Afghan triba ...

between June 1926 and January 1929. The palace was severely damaged during the 1990s

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. However, between 2016 and 2020, the palace was renovated and completely restored to its former glory, work being largely completed for the 100th anniversary of Afghan Independence, which was on 19 August 2019.

History

Construction of the Darul Aman Palace began in the early 1920s as part of the endeavours of

Emir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...

to modernise Afghanistan. In June 1926, Amanullah proclaimed himself as

. The palace was to be part of the new capital city called

, connected to Kabul by a

narrow gauge railway A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structur ...

. Amanullah Khan invited 22 architects from Germany and France to build the palace. The palace is considered to be a testimony of the Afghan-German ties, as it was designed by German engineer Walter Harten and his team of engineers. The palace is an imposing neoclassical building on a hilltop overlooking a flat, dusty valley in the western part of the Afghan capital. Designed by French architects A. Godard and M. Godard, as well as German architects, it was one of the first buildings in the country to get central heating and running water. The Swedish memoir writer

Rora Asim Khan Aurora Nilsson, also known as ''Rora Asim Khan'' (1 January 1894 – 1972), was a Swedish writer who became known for her autobiographical depiction, ''Flykten från harem'' ("Escape from Harem"), about her experiences in Afghanistan during he ...

, who lived in Afghanistan with her Afghan husband in 1926-27, describe in her memoirs how she was invited to the palace by Queen Soraya to describe Western lifestyle and customs to the Queen and the King's motherRora Asim Khan (Aurora Nilsson): Anders Forsberg and Peter Hjukström: ''Flykten från harem'', Nykopia, Stockholm 1998. . Intended as the seat of a future parliament, the building remained unused and partially complete for many years after religious conservatives under

Habibullah Kalakani Habibullah also spelled Habib Ullah, Habibollah, Habeeb-Allah etc. ( ar, حَبِيْبَُ ٱلله), is a male Muslim given name meaning in ''Beloved of God'', stemming from the male form of the name Habib. It may refer to: People *Raja Sir C ...

forced King Amanullah from power in 1929, and halted his reforms. In later years it served as the medical school for

Kabul University Kabul University (KU; prs, دانشگاه کابل, translit= Dāneshgāh-e-Kābul; ps, د کابل پوهنتون, translit=Da Kābul Pohantūn) is one of the major and oldest institutions of higher education in Afghanistan. It is in the 3rd ...

, as well a warehouse, and the seat of several smaller ministries. The building was gutted by fire on 14 December 1968, and was afterwards restored to house the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

during the 1970s and 1980s. In the Communist coup of 1978, the building was once more set on fire. Much of the building was damaged by tank fire during

Shahnawaz Tanai Lieutenant General Shahnawaz Tanai ( Russian: Шахнаваз Танай, 1950 – 7 March 2022) was an Afghan politician and general officer who served as the Chief of General Staff of the Afghan National Army until his defection to neighbo ...

's failed coup attempt on 6 March 1990. It was once again severely damaged during the 1990s Afghan Civil War, as rival

Mujahideen ''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' ( ar, مُجَاهِدِين, mujāhidīn), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' ( ar, مجاهد, mujāhid, strugglers or strivers or justice, right conduct, Godly rule, etc. doers of jihād), an Arabic term th ...

factions fought for control of Kabul. Heavy shelling by the Mujahideen left the palace a gutted ruin, including the garage containing the vehicles of the former King which were removed and used as target practice, all ultimately being destroyed. It was mostly used as a refugee settlement and a nomad camp until the early 2000s, when it became a battalion headquarters for the

Afghan National Army Afghan may refer to: *Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia * Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity **Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...

(ANA).

Die 7 km lange Eisenbahn zwischen Kabul und Darul-Aman war stark überfüllt CR

In 2005, a plan was unveiled to refurbish the palace for use as the seat of Afghanistan's future parliament. It was to be funded primarily by private donations from foreigners and wealthy Afghans. The palace was one of several targets in a series of attacks launched on 15 April 2012, for which the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

claimed responsibility. Eventually it was decided to develop a new building opposite the palace to house the

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

under a grant, provided by India. Construction was completed in 2015. In early 2016, work began on a 16 to 20 million

dollar Dollar is the name of more than 20 currencies. They include the Australian dollar, Brunei dollar, Canadian dollar, Hong Kong dollar, Jamaican dollar, Liberian dollar, Namibian dollar, New Taiwan dollar, New Zealand dollar, Singapore dollar, U ...

restoration project, intended to renovate the palace in time for the centenary of Afghanistan's full independence in 1919. Nearly 600 tons of debris was initially removed from the 150-room building and by the spring of 2017, workers were taking down plaster and concrete from the inner walls. Over 80 engineers and architects were involved in the project, of which 25 percent were female. By July 2019, most of the major reconstruction work on the palace was completed. On 18 April 2020, an opening ceremony was held as the palace was used as a temporary COVID-19 isolation and treatment center with 200 beds during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan The COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have spread to Afghanistan when its index case, in ...

Architecture

The palace is a U-shaped brick building, built in a European neoclassical style. It has 3 floors with 150 rooms, including a semi-circular main hall. Its highest point is around above ground level. There are four domed towers on the roof. The galleries on the third floor of the southern facade are decorated with a number of

Corinthian columns The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order w ...

. Each floor is connected by

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

spiral staircase Stairs are a structure designed to bridge a large vertical distance between lower and higher levels by dividing it into smaller vertical distances. This is achieved as a diagonal series of horizontal platforms called steps which enable passage ...

In pop culture

In the 2015 game '' Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain'' (which is set in Kabul), there's a location called Lamar Khaate Palace that is clearly inspired by Darul Aman palace.

Gallery: Darul Aman Palace before renovation

Вадим Чуприна-Кабул VADIM CHUPRINA © Kabul 09.jpg, The palace in 1982, with Soviet Army trucks visible Afgan1986Kabul 40ArmyShtab.jpg, The Palace in 1986 File:Darul-Aman Palace in 2002.jpg, 2002: The southern facade File:In-dural-2002.JPG, 2002: US Commandos patrolling a heavily bombed out room File:View-from-dural-2002.JPG, 2002: Two US Special Forces soldiers view Kabul looking north File:Destroyed Darulaman palace.jpg, 2005 File:Darul_aman_palace_kabul_2006-01.JPG, 2006: Northern elevation showing shelling damage inflicted during mujahideen fighting for Kabul after Soviet withdrawal File:Darul_aman_palace_kabul_2006-02.JPG, 2006: Western elevation File:Darul Aman Place.png, 2007: After heavy snowfall File:Darul-Aman Palace 001.jpg, 2008: Facade File:Inside Darul amman 2010.jpg, July 2010: The interior was in very bad shape File:Parl-front.png, December 2015: View from the

Building with the palace under preliminary reconstruction

References

External links

*, Sept. 30, 2022 (a special tour of the inside building) *, Sep. 12, 2016

PBS NewsHour ''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virg ...