| Second Battle of Lahore | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Afghan-Sikh Wars | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Dal Khalsa |  Durrani Empire | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Jassa Singh Ahluwalia Charat Singh Jai Singh Kanhaiya Gujjar Singh Bhangi Lehna Singh Bhangi |  Ahmad Shah Abdali [2] | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | 2,000 killed [3] [4] | ||||||
The Second Battle of Lahore was fought in November 1759 by the Sikh forces led by Jassa Singh Ahluwalia and the Afghan forces led by Jahan Khan.
Ahmad Shah Abdali invaded India for the fifth time during 1759 with the main goal to recapture all the territories taken by his enemies. [5] The Maratha Empire had left Punjab without any resistance, leaving the Sikhs alone against the Afghan Empire. [6] The Afghan army marched for Lahore. When the Sikhs got intel, they attacked the army, scaring away the Durranis during the night. [1]
When the Shah learnt about this, he sent a 40,000 strong army towards Lahore in order to teach the Sikhs a lesson. [7] Jassa Singh was already prepared. When the battle began, Jassa Singh and Jai Singh attacked the Afghans from the right while the remaining Sikhs attacked from the left. If the Afghans attacked the Sikhs in the right, they would be attacked by the Sikhs in the left and vice versa. The battle concluded at night with both armies retreating, with the Afghans facing 2,000 slain, and Jahan Khan was wounded. [1] [8] [6]
After this fierce engagement, the Afghans had fought the Marathas in the Battle of Taraori (1759) and defeated them. [9]
The recorded history of Lahore, the second largest city-district of Pakistan, covers thousands of years. Lahore is regarded as the post medieval or modern day capital and largest city of the Punjab region, it has since its creation changed hands from Ghaznavid, Hindu, Buddhist, Greek, Muslim, Mughal, Ghorid, Maratha, Sikh and the British, thereby becoming the cultural capital and the heart of modern-day Pakistan.
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, janeu, idolatry, caste system, ascetism, azan, economic materialism, and gender discrimination.
Jassa Singh Ramgarhia (1723–1803) was a prominent Sikh leader during the period of the Sikh Confederacy. He was the founder of the Ramgarhia Misl.
Sultan-ul-Qaum Sardar 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.
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.
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.
Adina Beg Khan was a Punjabi general and administrator who served as the last governor of the Punjab region of the Mughal Empire, including the provinces of Lahore and of Multan. He defeated Afghans after rising to power and was recognised as the Nawab of Punjab by Mughal emperor Alamgir II, who also gave him title of Jang Bahadur.
Zain-ud-Din Khan known as Zain Khan Sirhindi was the Mughal Faujdar of Sirhind, he was a serviceman of Shah Alam II, 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.
The Afghan-Maratha War was fought between the Afghan Empire under Ahmad Shah Durrani and the Maratha Empire and the Sikh Confederacy between 1758 and 1761. It took place in north-west India, primarily the region around Delhi and Punjab.
Dattaji Rao Shinde, also known as Dattaji Rao Scindia, was the second son of Ranoji Rao Shinde and Maina Bai, alias Nimba Bai. His elder brother was Jayappaji Rao Shinde and his younger brother was Jyotiba.
The Battle of Kup 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. Ahmad Shah Durrani and the Afghan forces reached Malerkotla, west of Sirhind. Different sources give various estimates on how many sikhs were present. According to Tom Landsford, nearly 30,000 Sikh men, women, children, and elderly laid encamped. According to Narendra Sinha, 40,000 Sikhs were present. According to Hari Ram Gupta, 50,000 Sikh soldiers laid encamped at Kup while 5,000 non combatants laid encamped at Pind Garma. 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. With surprise attack, the Sikhs threw a human ring around civilians as protection and fought the battle killing several thousand Afghans. Abdali was able to break the ring and carried out a full scale massacre of the Sikh civilians. 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.
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.
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.
The Battle of Manupur was fought between the Mughal Empire and the Durrani Empire in March 1748 near Sirhind which ended in victory for the Indian coalition.
Ahmad Shah Durrani raided India for the fifth time in 1759, initiating a series of conflicts with the Marathas and Sikhs. The Pashtuns, preparing for armed struggle, quickly advanced into Punjab, capturing a Maratha garrison at Peshawar and later overrunning Attock. General Jahan Khan played a key role in the advance but was met with resistance from the Marathas and their Sikh allies, led by Sabaji Shinde and the armies of the Sukerchakia and Ahluwalia Misls. In a fierce battle, the combined forces of the Marathas and Sikhs defeated the Afghans, killing 2,000 and wounding Jahan Khan. Despite being outnumbered, Sabaji managed to defend Lahore and inflicted a severe defeat on Jahan Khan, who retreated to Peshawar. This defeat angered Ahmad Shah Durrani and prompted him to take action.
The siege of Lahore took place in 1761 when the Sikhs besieged Lahore and captured it after facing no opposition from Durrani forces.
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.
The Battle of Mahilpur was fought between the Sikh Misls and Adina Beg Khan against the Durrani Empire in December 1757.Following the 4th invasion of Ahmad Shah Durrani, he would appoint Timur Shah as the viceroy of Punjab with Jahan Khan as his deputy.The Afghans would appoint Adina Beg Khan as the faujdar of the Jalandhar Doaba and exempted him from attending court at lahore, on the condition that Adina Beg pay revenue to the Afghan government.Soon a dispute regarding the payment of revenue occurred between Adina Beg and the Afghans.This dispute soon escalated which resulted in Jahan Khan sending an Afghan force to arrest Adina Beg.Adina Beg formed a military alliance with the Sikhs under the command of Jassa Singh Ahluwalia and Vadbhag Singh Sodhi.Adina Beg also gained the support of Sadiq Beg Khan, Khwaja Mirza Khan, and Raja Bhup Singh.Adina Beg along with the Sikh forces fought the Afghans at Mahilpur.The battle resulted in a victory for Adina Beg and the Sikhs and resulted in the entire Jalandhar Doaba being occupied and sacked by the Sikh forces.
The Battle of Shujabad took place in February 1780, during the Afghan–Sikh Wars. The Afghans were led by Muzaffar Khan and Timur Shah Durrani, while the Sikhs were led by Jassa Singh Ahluwalia and other Sikh chiefs.
The Battle of Lahore was fought between Afghan forces under Ahmad Shah Durrani and Mughal forces under Shah Nawaz on 11 January 1748. Zakriya Khan, the Mughal Governor of Lahore, died in 1745 and was succeeded by his son, Yahya Khan. Yahya Khan's governorship over Lahore was soon challenged by his brother, Shah Nawaz, who was the governor of Multan. This resulted in a war between the two brothers, lasting from November 1746 to March 1747. The war was won by Shah Nawaz, who soon usurped the governorship of Lahore. Shah Nawaz would go on to appoint Kaura Mal as his diwan and recognized Adina Beg Khan as the Faujdar of the Jalandhar Doaba. Shah Nawaz used his captive brother as a bargaining tool in order to get recognition from the Delhi government. However, following Yahya Khan's escape from captivity, Shah Nawaz sought help from abroad. He turned to Ahmad Shah Durrani, who had just taken the city of Kabul from the Mughals. Ahmad Shah agreed to assist him, and left Peshawar in December 1747. However, Shah Nawaz then changed his allegiance back to the Mughals, and fought a battle against Ahmad Shah near Lahore. The battle was won by the Afghans, who briefly occupied the city of Lahore.