Battle of Darbar Sahib (1764)

Battle of Darbar Sahib
Part of Indian Campaign of Ahmad Shah Durrani and Afghan-Sikh Wars
Date 1 December 1764 Location Golden Temple, Amritsar Result Afghan Victory
Belligerents
Shaheedan Misl	Durrani Empire Khanate of Kalat
Commanders and leaders
Baba Gurbaksh Singh   † Nihal Singh  † Man Singh  † Basant Singh  † (26 other unidentified Sikhs)	Ahmad Shah Abdali Mir Nasir Khan I
Strength
30	Unknown
Casualties and losses
30	Unknown

This article is about the Battle of Amritsar, a conflict that took place in the year 1764. For other Battles of Amritsar, see Battle of Amritsar (disambiguation).

The Battle of Darbar Sahib was fought in 1764, during the Afghan-Sikh Wars, between the Shaheedan Misl of the Sikhs and the Durrani Empire of Ahmad Shah Abdali aided by the Khanate of Kalat.

Battle

See also: Battle of Qarawal

During the year 1764, the Sikh Misls greatly expanded their territory over the region of Punjab, and other North Indian subcontinent regions. ^{[1] [2]} This greatly weakened Durrani rule over Punjab which forced Ahmad Shah Abdali to launch a 7th invasion into India. ^[3]

Ahmad Shah Abdali and his army reached Eminabad where his Baloch ally Mir Nasir Khan I joined him. The Afghans had a force of 18,000 and the Baloch had a force of 12,000, having a total force of 30,000. ^[2] Soon they got into a skirmish against Charat Singh's Sukerchakia Misl. ^[2]

The Sikhs later marched to Amritsar. When Ahmad heard about this action, he immediately advanced towards Amritsar. When Baba Gurbaksh Singh was informed about Durrani's presence near Amritsar, he, along with Man Singh, Basant Singh, Nihal Singh along and 26 other Sikhs, decided to defend the holy city of Amritsar. ^[4]

They 30 Sikhs fought to their deaths against the Durranis at Harmandir (also known as Darbar Sahib or the Golden Temple), the holiest site of Sikhism. ^[5]

References

1. Singh, Ganda (1990). Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia. Publication Bureau Punjabi University,Patiala. pp. 143–146.
2. Gupta, Hari (2007). History of the Sikhs Volume II. Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. pp. 215–216. ISBN   81-215-0248-9.
3. Gandhi, Surjit (1999). Sikhs In The Eighteenth Century. Singh Bros. pp. 290–291. ISBN   81-7205-217-0.
4. Muhammad, Noor (2020). Singh, Ganda (ed.). Jangnamah (2nd ed.). Khalsa College Amritsar. p. 46.
5. Singh, Harbans (2011). The Encyclopedia of Sikhism Volume II E-L (3rd ed.). Punjabi University,Patiala. pp. 131–132. ISBN   81-7380-204-1.

See also

• Nihang
• Martyrdom and Sikhism