Battle of Kup

Last updated

Battle of Kup
Part of Afghan-Sikh Wars, Indian Campaign of Ahmad Shah Durrani and Vadda Ghalughara
Date5 February 1762 [1]
Location
Kup
Result Afghan victory [2] [3]
Belligerents
Abdali flag.png Durrani Empire Kattar Dhal Talwar.jpg Sikh Confederacy
Commanders and leaders
Ahmad Shah Durrani
Jahan Khan [4]
Shah Wali Khan [4]
Zain Khan Sirhindi [4]
Bhikhan Khan [4]
Murtaza Khan Baraich [4]
Qasim Khan Marhal [4]
Lachhmi Narayan [4] 		Jassa Singh Ahluwalia  (WIA)
Charat Singh  (WIA)
Strength

Unknown believed to be larger (According to Khuswant Singh) [5]

Contents

150,000 excluding Local levies (According to Bhagat Lakshman Singh) [6] [7] [lower-alpha 1]

Many Ranghar Villagers [4] [9]

30,000 Soldiers and Non Combatants (According to Tom Landsford) [2]

50,000 Soldiers and 5,000 Non Combatants (According to Hari Ram Gupta) [10]
Casualties and losses
Unknown 5,000 to 30,000 [3] [2] [11] [4] [5] [12] [13]

The Battle of Kup (part of the Vadda Ghalughara , meaning "greater massacre") was fought on 5 February 1762, between the Afghan forces of Ahmad Shah Durrani and the Sikhs, under the command of Jassa Singh Ahluwalia and Charat Singh. [1] [5] [14] [9] Ahmad Shah Durrani and the Afghan forces reached Malerkotla, west of Sirhind. They were met by between 30,000 and 50,000 Sikhs. [9] [2] [15] Abdali's forces outnumbered the Sikhs in hand-to-hand combat and the Sikhs couldn't use their usual tactics of hit and run, but had to engage in battle while protecting the civilians at the same time. [5] The Sikhs created a human ring around civilians as protection and fought the battle as they advanced towards Barnala. [5] Abdali was able to break the ring and carried out a full scale massacre of the Sikh civilians. [3] Ahmad Shah's forces killed several thousand Sikhs, and the surviving Sikhs fled to Barnala. According to various different estimates, as many as 5,000 to 30,000 Sikh men, women, elderly and children were killed in what is known as the second Sikh genocide (Vadda Ghalughara). [2] [4] [3] [5] [12] [13]

Background

In 1758, Sikh Misls, Adina Beg and the Marathas, conquered Lahore and captured Afghan soldiers who were responsible for filling the Amritsar Sarovar with debris a few months earlier. They were brought to Amritsar and made to clean the Sarovar (holy tank). [16] [17] Ahmed Shah Abdali came again in October 1759 to crush the Maratha Empire. The Sikhs gave him a good fight and killed more than 2,000 of his soldiers. Instead of getting involved with the Sikhs, he made a rapid advance to Delhi. The Dal Khalsa decided to collect revenues from Lahore to prove to the people that the Sikhs were the rulers of the state. The Governor of Lahore closed the gates of the city and did not come out to fight against them. The Sikhs laid siege to the city. After a week, the Governor agreed to pay 30,000 rupees to the Sikhs.

Ahmed Shah Abdali returned from Delhi in March 1761 after defeating Marathas in Third Battle of Panipat with much gold and more than 22,000 girls as prisoners who were to be sold to the Afghans in Kabul. When Abdali was crossing the river Beas, the Sikhs swiftly fell upon the withdrawing force. They freed around 2,000 of the women prisoners and escorted them back to their homes. [18] The Sikhs seized Lahore in September 1761, after Abdali returned to Kabul.

The Khalsa minted their coins in the name of Guru Nanak Dev. Sikhs, as rulers of the city, received full cooperation from the people. After becoming the Governor of Lahore, Punjab Jassa Singh Ahluwalia was given the title of Sultan-ul-Kaum (Authority of the Nation). [19]

Battle

When Ahmad Shah Durrani returned for his sixth campaign of conquest (his fifth being in 1759–1761), Sikh fighters were residing in the town of Jandiala, 18 kilometres (11 mi) east of Amritsar. The place was the home of Aqil, the head of the Nirinjania sect, a friend of the Afghans, and an inveterate enemy of the Sikhs. [11]

Aqil sent messengers to Durrani pleading for his help against the Sikhs. The Afghan forces hurried to Jandiala, but by the time they arrived the siege had been lifted and the besiegers were gone. [11]

The Sikh fighters had retreated with the view of taking their families to safety in the Haryana desert east of their location before returning to confront the invader. When the Afghan leader came to know of the whereabouts of the Sikhs he sent word ahead to his allies in Malerkotla and Sirhind to stop their advance. Durrani then in less than 48 hours set about on a rapid march, covering the distance of 240 kilometres (150 mi) and including two river crossings. [11]

In twilight Durrani and his allies surprised the Sikhs who numbered between 30,000 and 50,000. Lansford states that most of them were non combatants, while Gupta states that most were soldiers, and that only 5,000 were non combatants encamped at Pind Garma. [2] [15] With the Durrani forces outnumbering the Sikhs, the Sikh fighters decided that they would form a cordon around the slow-moving baggage train consisting of women, children and old men. Then they would make their way to the desert in the south-west by the town of Barnala, where they expected their ally Ala Singh of Patiala to come to their rescue. [20] Several Durrani fighters were killed by the Sikhs while trying to protect the cordon where Qasim Khan fled the battle with his troops to Malerkotla. [21] Many non-combatants upon reaching the village of Gahal, pleaded for shelter but the villagers in fear of the repercussion from the Durranis, did not open their door and so the non-combatants rushed to the villages of Qutba and Bahmani to seek shelter but the occupants of these villages were the hostile Malerkotla Afghans. [4] On the order of their leader, the Ranghar villagers surrounded and attacked the non-combatants, plundering and massacring them and then moved on to attack the non-combatants outside of their villages but Charat Singh immediately rushed back to protect the remaining non-combatants and drive away the Ranghars. [4]

A secondhand account by the son and nephew of two eyewitnesses describes the Sikhs. "Fighting while moving and moving while fighting, they kept the baggage train marching, covering it as a hen covers its chicks under its wings." [11] More than once, the troops of the invader broke the cordon and mercilessly butchered the women, children and elderly inside, but each time the Sikh warriors regrouped and managed to push back the attackers. [11]

By early afternoon, the fighting cavalcade reached a large pond, the first they had come across since morning. Suddenly the bloodshed ceased as the two forces went to the water to quench their thirst and relax their tired limbs. [11]

Aftermath

From that point on the two forces went their separate ways. The Sikhs suffered great losses where many of them were killed and wounded as they were exhausted having not had any rest in two days. The remainder of the Sikhs proceeded into the semi-desert toward Barnala. From the capital Lahore, Durrani returned to Amritsar and blew up the Harmandir Sahib which since 1757 the Sikhs had rebuilt. As a deliberate act of sacrilege, the pool around it was filled with cow carcasses. [22] It was estimated that 5,000 to 30,000 Sikhs were killed on 5 February 1762. [2] [4] [12] [13] [11]

Notes

  1. ↑ G.S Chhabra states that Bhagat Lakshman Singh's account of the battle should be taken with caution. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Durrani Empire</span> 1747–1823 Afghan empire founded by Ahmad Shah Durrani

The Durrani Empire, or the Afghan Empire, also known as the Sadozai Kingdom, was an Afghan empire founded by the Durrani tribe of Pashtuns under Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747, which spanned parts of Central Asia, the Iranian plateau, and the Indian subcontinent. At its peak, it ruled over present-day Afghanistan, much of Pakistan, parts of northeastern and southeastern Iran, eastern Turkmenistan, and northwestern India. Next to the Ottoman Empire, the Durrani Empire is considered to be among the most significant Islamic empires of the second half of the 18th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sukerchakia Misl</span> Sovereign state of the Sikh Confederacy

The Sukerchakia Misl was one of twelve Sikh misls in Punjab during the 18th century, concentrated in Gujranwala and Hafizabad districts in western Punjab and ruled from (1752–1801). The misl, or grouping with its own guerilla militia, was founded by Charat Singh of Sandhawalia, grandfather of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The last Sukerchakia Misldar was Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Towards the end of the eighteenth century, Maharaja Ranjit Singh united all the misls and established an independent Sikh Empire.

Guru Nanak founded the Sikh religion in the Punjab region of the northern part of the Indian subcontinent in the 15th century and opposed many traditional practices like fasting, Upanayana, idolatry, caste system, ascetism, azan, economic materialism, and gender discrimination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jassa Singh Ahluwalia</span> Sikh leader and founder of Kapurthala State (1718–1783)

Jassa Singh Ahluwalia was a Sikh leader during the period of the Sikh Confederacy, being the supreme leader of the Dal Khalsa. He was also Misldar of the Ahluwalia Misl. This period was an interlude, lasting roughly from the time of the death of Banda Bahadur in 1716 to the founding of the Sikh Empire in 1801. He founded the Kapurthala State in 1772.

Sardar Hari Singh Dhillon was an 18th century Sikh warrior and the chief of Bhangi Misl. During the formation of the Dal Khalsa he was acknowledged as leader of Tarna Dal, and he was made chief of Bhangi Misl following the death of Bhuma Singh Dhillion, who he was an adopted son of, in 1748. Hari Singh made the Bhangi Misl the most powerful of all the Misls. He was described as brave, fearless and a great warrior. Under Hari Singh the Bhang Misl expanded to Jammu, Lahore, Chiniot, Buria, Jagadhari, Firozpur, Kushab, Majha, Malwa, Sandal Bar and Jhang.

<i>Vadda Ghalughara</i> Genocide of Sikhs in 1762

Vadda Ghalughara was the mass murder of unarmed Sikhs by the Afghan forces of the Durrani Empire during the years of Afghan influence in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent owing to the repeated incursions of Ahmad Shah Durrani in February 1762. It is distinguished from the Chhota Ghalughara. Mostly non-combatants were killed in the event, and an estimated that 10,000 to 50,000 Sikhs were killed on 5 February 1762.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charat Singh</span> Sardar

Sardar Charat Singh, also romanised as Charhat Singh, was the founder of Sukerchakia Misl, father of Mahan Singh, and the grandfather of Ranjit Singh, the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire. He distinguished himself at an early age in campaigns against Ahmad Shah Abdali and along with 150 horsemen split from the Singhpuria Misl to establish the Sukerchakia Misl, a separate grouping with its distinct guerilla militia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afghan–Sikh wars</span> 1748–1837 wars between the Afghan and Sikh empires

The Afghan–Sikh wars spanned from 1748 to 1837 in the Indian subcontinent, and saw multiple phases of fighting between the Durrani Empire and the Sikh Empire, mainly in and around Punjab region. The conflict's origins stemmed from the days of the Dal Khalsa, and continued after the Emirate of Kabul succeeded the Durrani Empire.

Zain-ud-Din Khan known as Zain Khan Sirhindi was the Mughal Faujdar of Sirhind,a serviceman of Shah Alam II, and an ally of Najib-ud-Daula and Ahmad Shah Durrani. Zain Khan Sirhindi fought during the Third Battle of Panipat and strengthened Mughal rule in the region.

Sobha Singh Kanhaiya of Niazbeg, his first name is alternatively spelt as Suba or Soba, was one of the triumvirates who ruled over Lahore, alongside sardars Lehna Singh Kahlon and Gujjar Singh of the Bhangi Misl, prior to the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malerkotla State</span> Indian princely state

The State of Malerkotla or Maler Kotla was a princely state in the Punjab region during the era of British India. The last Nawab of Maler Kotla signed the instrument of accession to join the Dominion of India on 20 August 1948. Its rulers belonged to a Sarwani and Lodi Pashtun dynasty from Afghanistan, and its capital was in Malerkotla. The state belonged to the Punjab States Agency.

The Battle of Sialkot took place on 12 November 1763, between the Durrani Empire, led by Jahan Khan, and the Sukerchakia Misl, led by Charat Singh, as part of the Afghan-Sikh wars which concluded with Sikh victory.

The Battle of Gujranwala was fought between the Durrani Empire and the Sikh Confederacy in September 1761.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian campaign of Ahmad Shah Durrani</span> Overview of 18th-century Afghan military conquests in India under Ahmad Shah Durrani

Ahmad Shah Durrani, the founder of the Durrani Empire, invaded Indian subcontinent for eight times between 1748 and 1767, following the collapse of Mughal Empire in the mid-18th century. His objectives were met through the raids and deepened the political crisis in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ala Singh</span> Founder and first ruler of Patiala

Ala Singh (1691–1765) was the founder and first ruler of the princely state of Patiala. Singh was born into the Sikh Phulkian dynasty, which had an ancient lineage, being direct descendants of Rawal Jaisal Singh, the founder and ruler of the Kingdom of Jaisalmer in the 12th century, and further back to Rao Bhatti, a Hindu king in the 3rd century. Rising to power through key battles in his early life, Singh expanded his territory in Punjab.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Amritsar (1757)</span> Battle between the Afghans and Sikhs

The Battle of Amritsar, also known as the Battle of Gohalwar, was fought between the Durrani Empire and Shaheedan Misl of the Dal Khalsa on 11 November 1757. Following the fourth invasion of Ahmad Shah Durrani, his army was attacked by Sikh bands under the command of Ala Singh and Baba Deep Singh. Following the attacks, Ahmad Shah desecrated the Sikh holy site known as the Shri Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar. The news of the desecration reached Baba Deep Singh who vowed to liberate the holy site from the Afghans. This resulted in a pitched battle being fought in the village of Gohalwar, near Amritsar. The battle resulted in Baba Deep Singh being killed and an Afghan victory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baba Gurbaksh Singh</span> 18th century Sikh warrior

Baba Gurbaksh Singh was a Sikh warrior from the 18th century who served under the Shaheedan Misl of the Sikh confederacy. Gurbaksh Singh along with 29 other Sikh warriors led a last stand against the Afghan and Baloch forces on December 1, 1764, at Amritsar. It was in this skirmish that Baba Gurbaksh Singh along with 29 other Sikhs were killed.

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.

The Battle of Qarawal was fought between the Sikhs under the command of Charat Singh against the Afghan forces led by Ahmad Shah Abdali and his Kalat ally Mir Nasir Khan I.The battle resulted in a victory for the Afghan forces and forced the Sikhs to withdraw to Amritsar.

The Battle of Pipli Sahib also known as Battle of Amritsar was fought by the Sikh Misls and the Durrani Empire. This battle is also referred to as Badla Singhan Da, as it was fought after the great Sikh holocaust.

References

  1. 1 2 Bhatia, Sardar Singh. "Vadda Ghallurghara". Encyclopaedia of Sikhism. Punjabi University Patiala. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Lansford, Tom (2017). Afghanistan at War: From the 18th-Century Durrani Dynasty to the 21st Century. ABC-CLIO. p. 21. ISBN   9781598847604.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Gupta, Hari Ram (2001). History of the Sikhs, Volume 1. Munshiram Manoharlal. ISBN   9788121505406.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Singh, Ganda (1959). Ahmad Shah Durrani,father of modern Afghanistan. Asia Publishing House, Bombay. pp. 275–280.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Singh, Khushwant (2004). A History of the Sikhs: 1469-1838. Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780195673081.
  6. ↑ Chhabra, G.S (1960). The Advanced study in the History of Punjab Vol I (Guru and Post Guru period up to Ranjit Singh). Jalandhar: Sharanjit. p. 441.
  7. ↑ Singh, Bhagat Lakshman (1923). Sikh Martyrs. Lahore Book Shop. p. 210.
  8. ↑ Chhabra 1960, p. 441.
  9. 1 2 3 Kalaswalia, Kartar Singh. Teg Khalsa (in Punjabi) (10th ed.). Bazar Mai Sewan, Amritsar: Chatar Singh Jiwan Singh Pustakan Wale. pp. 144–153. ISBN   9788176017831.
  10. ↑ Gupta, Hari (2007). History of the Sikhs Volume II Evolution of the Sikh confederacies (1707-1769). New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. p. 180. ISBN   978-81-215-0248-1.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Sardar Singh Bhatia, "Vadda Ghalughara", The Encyclopedia of Sikhism, Volume IV, Patiala, Punjabi University, 1998, pp. 396.
  12. 1 2 3 Shani, Giorgio (6 December 2007). Sikh Nationalism and Identity in a Global Age. Routledge. ISBN   978-1-134-10188-7.
  13. 1 2 3 Sandhu, Gian Singh (28 March 2023). Who Are the Sikhs?: An Exploration of the Beliefs, Practices, & Traditions of the Sikh People. Archway Publishing. ISBN   978-1-6657-3953-5.
  14. ↑ Singh, Ganda (1959). Ahmed Shah Durrani Father of Modern Afghanistan. Asia Publishing House. p. 279.
  15. 1 2 Gupta, Hari (2007). History of the Sikhs Volume II Evolution of the Sikh confederacies (1707-1769). New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. p. 180. ISBN   978-81-215-0248-1.
  16. ↑ A. H., Bingley (1970). Sikhs. The University of Michigan: Department of Languages, Punjab. p. 27.
  17. ↑ Sobati, Haracaran (1990). The Sikh Psyche: A Study of the Fictional Writings of Bhai Vir Singh. Eastern Book Linkers. p. 64. ISBN   9788185133423.
  18. ↑ Khushwant Singh, A History of the Sikhs, Volume I: 1469–1839, Delhi, Oxford University Press, 1978, p. 151.
  19. ↑ Singh, Patwant (2007). The Sikhs. Random House Digital, Inc. ISBN   9780307429339.
  20. ↑ Syad Muhammad Latif, The History of Punjab from the Remotest Antiquity to the Present Time, New Delhi, Eurasia Publishing House (Pvt.) Ltd., 1964, p. 283; Khushwant Singh, A History of the Sikhs, Volume I: 1469–1839, Delhi, Oxford University Press, 1978, p. 154.
  21. ↑ Singh, Ganda (1959). Ahmad Shah Durrani: Father of Modern Afghanistan. Asia Publishing House and online by Cambridge University Press. pp. 277–280.
  22. ↑ Khushwant Singh, A History of the Sikhs, Volume I: 1469–1839, Delhi, Oxford University Press, 1978, p. 154-55.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.