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PUNJAB WIKIਪੰਜਾਬپنجابKingdoms & Wars
Punjab WikiKingdoms & WarsWars & BattlesMisls, Mughals and Afghans, 1709 – 1799
Battle of Chappar Chiri
Unknown · Wikimedia
Misls, Mughals and Afghans, 1709 – 1799

Battle of Chappar Chiri

The peasant army of Banda Singh routed the Sirhind army and killed Wazir Khan, the man who had executed the Guru's younger sons. Sirhind fell two days later.

SideBanda Singh Bahadur, Baj Singh, Fateh Singh
VS
OpponentWazir Khan, governor of Sirhind

In May 1710 Banda Singh moved against Sirhind, the city where the Guru's young sons had been executed. Its governor, Wazir Khan, raised an army of some twenty thousand, with artillery and elephants, and called for a jihad against the Sikhs.

The armies met on 12 May 1710 at Chappar Chiri, a few miles from Sirhind. The Mughal artillery took a heavy toll, and some of Banda Singh's irregulars fled, but Banda Singh himself joined the fight. Wazir Khan was killed, by tradition by Baj Singh and Fateh Singh, and his army broke.

Two days later the Sikhs took Sirhind. Banda Singh appointed Baj Singh governor and struck coins in the name of the Gurus. The Fateh Burj, the victory tower at Chappar Chiri, is said to be the tallest victory tower in India.

Chappar Chiri, Mohali, Punjab, India

Banda Singh Bahadur's campaigns

1709 – 1716

Same era

Misls, Mughals and Afghans, 1709 – 1799
Sack of Samana
Sack of Samana26 November 1709 · Sikh victory

Banda Singh's first great strike, on a wealthy town that was home to the executioners of Guru Tegh Bahadur and the younger Sahibzade.

Capture of Sadhaura
Capture of SadhauraDecember 1709 · Sikh victory

Banda Singh avenged Pir Budhu Shah, who had been killed by Sadhaura's governor for helping Guru Gobind Singh.

Siege of Lohgarh
Siege of LohgarhDecember 1710 · Fort lost; Banda Singh escapes into the hills

The emperor himself marched against the Sikh capital. A Sikh named Gulab Singh put on Banda Singh's clothes and was captured in his place while Banda slipped away.

Siege of Gurdas Nangal
Siege of Gurdas NangalApril – December 1715 · Surrender; Banda Singh captured

Banda Singh and his followers held out in a walled compound for eight months, eating grass and bark, before surrendering. They were marched to Delhi and executed.

Battle of Karnal
Battle of Karnal24 February 1739 · Persian victory; Delhi sacked

Nadir Shah crushed the Mughal army in a few hours, then sacked Delhi and carried off the Peacock Throne and the Koh-i-Noor.

Chhota GhallugharaMay – June 1746 · About 7,000 Sikhs killed and 3,000 executed (traditional figures)

The 'Lesser Holocaust'. To avenge his brother's death, Lakhpat Rai hunted down Sikhs in the Kahnuwan swamps. Thousands were killed and captives were beheaded in Lahore.

Battle of Manupur
Battle of Manupur11 March 1748 · Mughal victory; Abdali retreats

The only time Abdali was beaten in a pitched battle in India. Sikh bands attacked his retreating columns.

Battle of Amritsar (Baba Deep Singh)
Battle of Amritsar (Baba Deep Singh)November 1757 · Baba Deep Singh killed; the Afghans withdrew from Amritsar

Baba Deep Singh, in his seventies, marched from Damdama to free the desecrated Harmandir Sahib and was killed near its precinct.

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