Hamzat Bek

Hamzat Bek was the imam of Dagestan between 1832 and 1834. He was the second leader of the movement begun by his predecessor Ghazi Muhammad for the implementation of sharia in Dagestan. He fought against local communities and rulers that followed customary law (adat) and against the Russian army. Unlike his predecessor Ghazi Muhammad and his successor Shamil, Hamzat Bek was the son of an Avar nobleman and was not a member of the Naqshbandiyya-Khalidiyya Sufi order. He became one of Ghazi Muhammad's commanders and was immediately proclaimed the imam's successor after his death in battle in October 1832. By early 1834, he had subjugated most of the Avar plateau and captured Khunzakh, the capital of the Avar Khanate, killing its ruling family. After this, Hamzat Bek may have claimed the title of Avar khan, trying to combine the authority of the traditional Avar nobility with the Islamic authority of his movement. In October 1834, he was assassinated by Hajji Uthman, a relative of the Avar ruling family and the brother of Hajji Murad.