Battles involving the Sikh Empire

This is a list of the battles fought by the Sikh Empire (1799 - 1849) established by Maharaja Ranjit Singh against various adversaries like the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan and the British East India Company. The Sikhs very commonly fought battles in which they had much less force than their foes. However, they had a pretty amazing success rate.

Background

The Sikhs first raised their weapons against the oppressive Mughal Empire under Guru Hargobind. The tenth and the last Guru, Guru Gobind Singh organized Sikhs into a military sect called Khalsa (means "pure"), in 1699, against the atrocities of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. Before his death in 1708, he sent Banda Bahadur to lead the Sikhs of Punjab. Banda Bahadur through his outstanding leadership skills weakened the Mughal grasp over the eastern Punjab. But he was later captured and beheaded in Delhi in 1716, during the reign of Farrukhsiyar.

Thereafter, Sikhs became leaderless and were divided into Misls. Although their martial skills were enormous, their political disunity made them vulnerable to foreign attacks. In 1738, Nadir Shah of Iran, attacked India , looted Delhi and Mughals were never able to recover their power in Punjab. Later, Punjab was subject to constant invasions of Ahmad Shah Durrani of Afghanistan. During every invasion of Abdali, Sikhs were persecuted ruthlessly. The holy shrine of Harmandir Sahib was also razed to the ground.

Abdali tried many times to recover Lahore but ultimately failed. After his final invasion of Punjab in 1767, he abandoned Lahore to be captured by the Sikhs. For more than three decades, Sikhs consolidated their power in the region. The period was relatively peaceful. But the decisive moment came in 1790, when Ranjit Singh of Sukerchakia misl became misldar. He started uniting misls and finally took Lahore in 1799. His coronation on 12 April, 1801 marked the beginning of the Sikh Empire, which went on to conquer the whole Punjab, Kashmir, Kangra and Peshawar.

Early Afghan-Sikh Battles

1}. Battle of Gohalwar (Amritsar,1757) 2}. Battle of Lahore (1759) 3}. Battle of Sialkot (1761) 4}. Battle of Gujranwala (1761) 5}. Battle of Sialkot (1763) 6}. Battle of Amritsar (1797) 7}. Battle of Gujrat (1797) 8}. Battle of Amritsar (1798)

Gurkha-Sikh War

The Gurkha-Sikh War was fought between the forces of the Sikh Empire and the Nepalese Army.

Sikh-Katoch War

Sikh-Katoch War was fought between the Sikh Empire and the Katoch Dynasty

Afghan-Sikh Wars

Afghan-Sikh Wars were fought between the Sikh Empire and the Durrani Empire .

Battle of Attock

The battle took place on 13 July 1813, in which Sikhs decisively defeated the Durranis . It was the first major victory of Sikhs against the Afghan adversary .

Battle of Multan

Battle of Multan started in March, 1818 and ended three months later on 2 June 1818 . Sikhs decisively defeated Durranis and captured Multan. The Afghan governor Muzaffar Khan Sadozai was killed. As a result, the Afghan power collapsed in Punjab and the regions to the east of Indus virtually came under Sikh influence.^[1]

Battle of Shopian

The battle took place on 3 July 1819 during the Sikh expedition to Kashmir. The decisive victory of the Sikhs led to the end the five centuries old Muslim rule in Kashmir. The Afghan governor Jabbar Khan fled and Kashmir became a province of the Sikh Empire.^[2]

Battle of Nowshera

The battle was fought on 14 March 1823 in which Sikhs decisively defeated Afghans and occupied the Peshawar valley.

Battle of Peshawar

The battle was fought on 6 May 1834. Under the command of Hari Singh Nalwa, Sikhs finally captured Peshawar ending the eight hundred years of Muslim rule.

Battle of Jamrud

The battle was fought on 30 April 1837. Although the Afghans were defeated and repulsed, the Sikhs lost Hari Singh Nalwa halting the westward expansion of the Sikh Empire.^[3]

Sino-Sikh War

Sikhs invaded and captured Ladakh in 1834. In 1841, they overran some parts of the western Tibet but were defeated by the Qing Empire of China and in retaliation, the Chinese army besieged Leh. At Leh, the Qing army successfully captured Leh and then successfully captured Ladakh from the Sikhs.^[4] A Sino-Sikh treaty in 1842 ensured the status quo ante bellum.^[5]

First Anglo-Sikh War

Battle of Mudki

The battle was fought on 18 December 1845 during night. The British won with heavy casualties on the higher ranks.^[6]

Battle of Ferozeshah

The battle was fought on 21–22 December 1845, in which the British forces under Sir Hugh Gough won a Pyrrhic victory over the Sikh army under Lal Singh.

Battle of Aliwal

The battle was fought on 18 January 1846, in which the company troops decisively defeated the Sikh army. It proved as the turning point in the war.^[7]

Battle of Sobraon

The decisive Sikh defeat by the East India Company at the battle of Sobraon fought on 10 February 1846 ended the war.^[8]

Second Anglo-Sikh War

Battle of Ramnagar

In the battle of Ramnagar fought on 22 November 1848, Sikhs under Sher Singh Attariwalla defeated the company forces under Sir Hugh Gough ^[9]

Battle of Chillianwala

In the battle on 13 January 1849, the Sikh army under Sher Singh Attariwalla defeated the British army under Sir Hugh Gough. ^[10]

Siege of Multan

The prolonged siege of Multan by the British army lasted from 19 April 1848 till 22 January 1849, when the fort was breached and Dewan Mulraj surrendered.

Battle of Gujrat

This was the last battle of the war and the Anglo-Sikh battle. Sir Hugh Gough's army decisively defeated the Sikh army, finally. Sher Singh Attariwalla surrendered and soon afterwards, the Sikh Empire was officially ended. The young emperor Duleep Singh was dethroned and Punjab was annexed as a province of the British Indian Empire.^[11]

References