1880

'Abd al-Rahman lived in exile in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, for eleven years, until the 1879 death of Shir Ali, who had retired from Kabul when the British armies entered Afghanistan.  The Russian governor-general at Tashkent sent for 'Abd al-Rahman, and pressed him to try his fortunes once more across the Oxus.  In March 1880, a report reached India that 'Abd al-Rahman was in northern Afghanistan and the governor-general, Lord Lytton, opened communications with him to the effect that the British government was prepared to withdraw its troops, and to recognize 'Abd al-Rahman as amir of Afghanistan, with the exception of Kandahar and some districts adjacent to it.  

At the durbar (official court meeting) on July 22, 1880, 'Abd al-Rahman was officially recognized as amir, granted assistance in arms and money, and promised, in case of unprovoked foreign aggression, such further aid as might be necessary to repel it, provided that he align his foreign policy with the British.  The British evacuation of Afghanistan was settled on the terms proposed, and in 1881, the British troops also handed over Kandahar to the new amir.

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As a youth, 'Abdallahi followed his family’s vocation for religion. Around 1880, he became a disciple of Muhammad Ahmad, who announced that he had a divine mission, became known as al-Mahdi, and appointed ʿAbdallahi a caliph (khalifah).