in the late 1870s, continuing the contemporary continual British and Russian territorial rivalries, Britain attempted to win influence over Afghanistan. A Russian diplomatic mission was present in Kabul; British demand similar treatment, and are refused; British threaten war; Russians depart from Kabul; British invade with a force of 35,700 on 22 November 1878; British succeed, and enthrone Yakub Khan, who signs peace treaty in January 1879. Mob invades British Residency at Kabul, only few escape; British forces stationed at Khyber Pass march into Kabul, and retake city late-September-early October; Holy War (Jihad) called, with over 100,000 Afghan faithful mustering; British now trapped in Kabul; British escape Kabul, capturing Khandahar on 1 September 1879, the final operation of the war; British suffer heavy casualties, over 2,600 of a force of ca. 40,000, vs. ca 1,500 of a force of 100,000. No peace treaty signed; British finally leave Afghanistan in 1881. British military mails from the second Afghanistan Expeditionary Force is franked with the postage stamps of Afghanistan and India, and is forwarded from the field force post offices in Afghanistan to the military and civilian post offices in India for final processing.
