Muhammad Ali Madali was an ishan

Ishan

Ishan is an Indian Hindu masculine given name of Sanskrit origin. Its female form is Ishana. In Sanskrit the word Ishan refers to "The Lord Vishnu; The creator of the universe and all other Gods" and the north east direction . Ishaan has its roots in the word "Ish" which means the invisible power...

 of the Naqshbandi

Naqshbandi

Naqshbandi is one of the major Sufi spiritual orders of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order.The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today...

 Sufi order, who lead an 1898 revolt against Russian domination, centred in the town of Andijan

Andijan

Andijan or Andizhan is the fourth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and the capital of the Andijan Province. It is located in the east of the country, at , in the Fergana Valley, near the border with Kyrgyzstan on the Andijan-Say River...

 (in modern Uzbekistan). Madali, seeking to rid the area of the Russians and restore the khanate of Khokand, called for "holy war", and led 2,000 men against the Russians. However, his force was blocked outside the city on Andijan by the Russian 20th Line Battalion and defeated. Of those 2,000, 546 were put on trial, and Madali and five of his lieutenants hanged.

Outcome and interpretations

• The Czar recalled the regional governor, General Vrevskii and replaced him with General S. M. Dukhovskii. The rebellion was attributed to two major factors: stirring of Islamic feeling (allegedly encouraged by the Ottoman sultan), and a failure of the Russian government to take note of the situation.

• Later Soviet commentators declined to recognise the event as a popular movement, noting however that not only the disenfranchised elite, but also the working classes had been drawn to Madali's cause.