70 battles and campaigns
Wars & Battles
The Punjab lies across the road from Central Asia to the Ganges, and every power that wanted India had to cross it first. Here are its battles, from the Hydaspes to 1971, in six ages. Each opens its own page.
Each mark is a battle, coloured by age; tap one to jump to it.
Invaders at the gates, 1400 BCE – 1221
Battle of the Ten Kingsc. 14th century BCE (traditional) · LahoreKing Sudas of the Bharatas vs A confederation of ten tribesVictory of Sudas, as told in the Rigveda
Battle of the Hydaspes326 BCE · Hydaspes battlefieldAlexander of Macedon vs King Porus (Paurava)Macedonian victory; Porus kept his kingdom as an ally
Mallian campaign325 BCE · MultanAlexander of Macedon vs The Malli and OxydracaeMacedonian victory; Alexander gravely wounded
Battle of Peshawar27 November 1001 · PeshawarMahmud of Ghazni vs Jayapala of the Hindu ShahisGhaznavid victory
Battle of Chach1008 · AttockMahmud of Ghazni vs Anandapala of the Hindu ShahisGhaznavid victory; the Hindu Shahis broken
First Battle of Tarain1191 · TarainPrithviraj Chauhan and allied Rajputs vs Muhammad of GhorRajput victory; Muhammad of Ghor wounded
Second Battle of Tarain1192 · TarainMuhammad of Ghor vs Prithviraj Chauhan and allied RajputsGhurid victory; Delhi Sultanate follows
Battle of the IndusNovember 1221 · AttockGenghis Khan vs Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu of KhwarazmMongol victory; Jalal ad-Din escapes across the IndusMongol sack of LahoreDecember 1241 · LahoreMongol army vs Garrison and people of LahoreLahore sacked and its people killed or enslaved
Battle of Jaran-ManjurFebruary 1298 · JalandharUlugh Khan for Alauddin Khalji vs Mongols of the Chagatai KhanateDelhi Sultanate victoryMughal Punjab, 1526 – 1705
First Battle of Panipat21 April 1526 · PanipatBabur vs Ibrahim Lodi, Sultan of DelhiMughal victory; Mughal empire founded1555Battle of MachhiwaraMay 1555 · MachhiwaraHumayun's army under Bairam Khan vs Afghan army of the Sur dynastyMughal victory; Humayun regains Hindustan
Second Battle of Panipat5 November 1556 · PanipatAkbar's army under Bairam Khan vs Hemu, ruler at DelhiMughal victory; Akbar's reign secured
Battle of Rohillac. 1621 (date disputed) · Sri HargobindpurGuru Hargobind vs Mughal-backed local forcesSikh victory
Battle of Amritsar1634 · AmritsarGuru Hargobind vs Mughal force sent from LahoreSikh victory
Battle of Lahira (Mehraj)1634 · MehrajGuru Hargobind vs Mughal forces under Lalla Beg and Qamar BegSikh victory
Battle of Kartarpur1635 · KartarpurGuru Hargobind vs Painde Khan and Mughal forcesSikh victoryBattle of Phagwara1635 · JalandharGuru Hargobind vs Mughal pursuit forceSikh rearguard action
Battle of Bhangani18 September 1688 · BhanganiGuru Gobind Singh vs Raja Fateh Shah of Garhwal and allied hill chiefsSikh victory
Battle of Nadaun1691 · NadaunGuru Gobind Singh with hill rajas vs Mughal commander Alif KhanAllied victory
Battle of Guler1696 · Kangra FortSikhs with the Raja of Guler vs Mughal commander Husain KhanAllied victory; Husain Khan killed
Battle of Nirmohgarh1702 · Kiratpur SahibGuru Gobind Singh vs Hill rajas with a Mughal detachmentSikh victory
Sieges of Anandpur1700 – December 1704 · Anandpur SahibGuru Gobind Singh and the Khalsa vs Hill rajas, then the Mughal governors of Sirhind and LahoreFort held; left under a broken promise of safe passage
Battle of ChamkaurDecember 1704 · Chamkaur SahibGuru Gobind Singh and about forty Sikhs vs Mughal army of Wazir Khan and hill alliesThe Guru escaped; his elder sons and most defenders fell
Battle of the SarsaDecember 1704 · Kiratpur SahibGuru Gobind Singh's rearguard vs Mughal and hill forces breaking their oathThe Guru's party scattered at the flooded river
Battle of Muktsar29 December 1705 · Sri Muktsar SahibGuru Gobind Singh, Mai Bhago and the Forty vs Mughal army of Wazir KhanSikh victoryMisls, Mughals and Afghans, 1709 – 1799
Sack of Samana26 November 1709 · SamanaBanda Singh Bahadur vs Mughal garrison of SamanaSikh victory
Capture of SadhauraDecember 1709 · SadhauraBanda Singh Bahadur vs Osman Khan, governor of SadhauraSikh victory
Battle of Chappar Chiri12 May 1710 · Chappar ChiriBanda Singh Bahadur, Baj Singh, Fateh Singh vs Wazir Khan, governor of SirhindSikh victory; Sirhind taken
Siege of LohgarhDecember 1710 · LohgarhBanda Singh Bahadur vs Emperor Bahadur Shah IFort lost; Banda Singh escapes into the hills
Siege of Gurdas NangalApril – December 1715 · Gurdas NangalBanda Singh Bahadur vs Mughal army under Abdus Samad KhanSurrender; Banda Singh captured
Battle of Karnal24 February 1739 · KarnalNadir Shah of Persia vs Mughal emperor Muhammad ShahPersian victory; Delhi sacked1746Chhota GhallugharaMay – June 1746 · Kahnuwan marshesSikh bands vs Diwan Lakhpat Rai and Yahiya Khan of LahoreAbout 7,000 Sikhs killed and 3,000 executed (traditional figures)
Battle of Manupur11 March 1748 · ManupurMughal army under Mir Mannu and Qamar-ud-din (with Sikh bands harrying) vs Ahmad Shah AbdaliMughal victory; Abdali retreats
Battle of Amritsar (Baba Deep Singh)November 1757 · AmritsarBaba Deep Singh and the Shaheed misl vs Afghan forces of Jahan KhanBaba Deep Singh killed; the Afghans withdrew from AmritsarSikh and Maratha capture of LahoreApril 1758 · LahoreMarathas under Raghunath Rao, Sikhs, Adina Beg vs Afghan garrison of Timur ShahAfghans driven out of Punjab for a time
Third Battle of Panipat14 January 1761 · PanipatAhmad Shah Abdali and allies vs The Maratha EmpireAfghan victory; Maratha power in the north broken
Battle of GujranwalaSeptember 1761 · Gujranwala battlefieldCharat Singh Sukerchakia and the Dal Khalsa vs Khwaja Abed Khan, Afghan governor of LahoreSikh victory
Vadda Ghallughara5 February 1762 · Kup RahiraDal Khalsa under Jassa Singh Ahluwalia vs Ahmad Shah AbdaliEstimates range from about 10,000 to 30,000 Sikhs killed, many of them women, children and elderly
Battle of Amritsar (Diwali 1762)October 1762 · AmritsarDal Khalsa vs Ahmad Shah AbdaliInconclusive; Abdali withdrew to Lahore
Battle of SialkotNovember 1763 · SialkotSikh misls vs Afghan general Jahan KhanSikh victory
Conquest of SirhindJanuary 1764 · Fatehgarh SahibDal Khalsa vs Zain Khan, Afghan governor of SirhindSikh victoryLast stand at the Akal TakhtDecember 1764 · AmritsarBaba Gurbakhsh Singh and thirty Sikhs vs Ahmad Shah AbdaliAll the defenders killed
Capture of Delhi11 March 1783 · DelhiBaghel Singh, Jassa Singh Ahluwalia, Jassa Singh Ramgarhia vs Mughal forces of Shah Alam IISikhs enter the Red Fort; agreement with the emperorBattle of Amritsar (1797)January 1797 · AmritsarSikh misls including young Ranjit Singh vs Zaman Shah DurraniAfghans defeated near Amritsar; Zaman Shah withdrawsCampaigns of the Kingdom of Lahore, 1799 – 1842
Battle of Kasur1807 · KasurRanjit Singh vs Qutb-ud-din Khan of KasurKasur annexed
Battle of Attock13 July 1813 · AttockDiwan Mokham Chand, Hari Singh Nalwa vs Durrani Afghans under Wazir Fateh KhanSikh victory
First Kashmir expeditionJuly – August 1814 · ShopianRanjit Singh, Ram Dayal vs Azim Khan, Afghan governor of KashmirSikh withdrawal
Siege of MultanMarch – June 1818 · MultanMisr Diwan Chand, Kharak Singh, Akali Phula Singh vs Nawab Muzaffar KhanMultan taken
Battle of Shopian3 July 1819 · ShopianMisr Diwan Chand, Hari Singh Nalwa vs Afghan governor Jabbar KhanKashmir annexed
Battle of Nowshera14 March 1823 · NowsheraRanjit Singh, Akali Phula Singh, Hari Singh Nalwa vs Azim Khan and Yusufzai tribesmenSikh victory; Akali Phula Singh killed
Battle of Balakot6 May 1831 · BalakotSher Singh vs Syed Ahmad Barelvi's mujahideenSikh victory; Syed Ahmad killed
Annexation of Peshawar6 May 1834 · PeshawarHari Singh Nalwa, Nau Nihal Singh vs Barakzai sardars of PeshawarPeshawar under direct Sikh rule
Battle of Jamrud30 April 1837 · JamrudHari Singh Nalwa, Mahan Singh Mirpuri vs Afghans under Dost Mohammad Khan's sonsFort held; Hari Singh Nalwa killed
Battle of To-yo14 December 1841 · TaklakotZorawar Singh's Dogra-Sikh army vs Tibetan and Qing forcesZorawar Singh killed; army destroyed in the snow
Battle of ChushulAugust 1842 · LehDogra-Sikh reinforcements under Diwan Hari Chand vs Tibetan armyTibetans defeated; treaty signed at Leh in September 1842The British conquest: the Anglo-Sikh Wars
Battle of Mudki18 December 1845 · MudkiSikh Khalsa army under Lal Singh vs British East India Company under Sir Hugh GoughBritish victory
Battle of Ferozeshah21 – 22 December 1845 · FerozeshahLal Singh, Tej Singh vs Gough and Governor-General HardingeBritish victory, at heavy cost
Battle of Aliwal28 January 1846 · AliwalRanjodh Singh Majithia vs Sir Harry SmithBritish victory
Battle of Sobraon10 February 1846 · SobraonSham Singh Attariwala; Tej Singh vs GoughDecisive British victory; Treaty of Lahore
Battle of Ramnagar22 November 1848 · RamnagarSher Singh Attariwala vs GoughSikh tactical success
Siege of MultanApril 1848 – January 1849 · MultanDiwan Mulraj vs British and allied forcesMultan falls after a magazine explosion
Battle of Chillianwala13 January 1849 · ChillianwalaSher Singh Attariwala vs GoughInconclusive, with heavy British losses
Battle of Gujrat21 February 1849 · GujratSher Singh Attariwala, Chattar Singh vs GoughDecisive British victory; Punjab annexed 29 March 1849Colonial and modern wars
Battle of Saragarhi12 September 1897 · Saragarhi21 soldiers of the 36th Sikhs under Havildar Ishar Singh vs Several thousand Orakzai and Afridi tribesmenAll 21 killed; the post fell, but the attack was delayed long enough for relief to reach nearby forts
Battle of Asal Uttar8 – 10 September 1965 · Asal UttarIndian Army vs Pakistan ArmyIndian defensive victory
Battle of DograiSeptember 1965 · DograiIndian Army vs Pakistan ArmyVillage changed hands; ceasefire on 23 SeptemberBattle of Burki10 – 11 September 1965 · LahoreIndian Army vs Pakistan ArmyIndian capture of Burki, short of Lahore
Battle of Chawinda14 – 19 September 1965 · SialkotPakistan Army vs Indian ArmyPakistani defensive victory
Battle of Basantar4 – 16 December 1971 · BasantarIndian Army vs Pakistan ArmyIndian victory in the Shakargarh sector