Battle of Amritsar (1634)

The Battle of Amritsar was fought during Mukhlis Khan's campaign against Guru Hargobind and the Sikhs on 14 April 1634.[7][5] The battle took place over two days and was a result of increasing tensions between the Mughal government and Guru Hargobind.

Battle of Amritisar
Part of Early Mughal-Sikh Wars
Date14 April 1634 or 1628[1]
Location
Near Amritsar
Result Sikh victory[2]
Belligerents
Akal Sena (Sikhs) Mughal Empire
Commanders and leaders
Guru Hargobind
Bhai Bidhi Chand
Bhai Kirat Bhatt
Bhai Bhanno †
Bhai Peda Das †[3]
Rao Balllu †[3]
Painda Khan
Bhai Singha †
Bhai Mohna †[4]		 Mukhlis Khan †[5]
Shamas Khan †[5]
Murtaza Khan †[5]
Mustafa Khan †[5]
Anwar Khan †
Sultan Beg †
Sayyad Muhammad Ali †[2]
Strength
700[6]: 96  7,000
Casualties and losses
Unknown 7,000[6]: 92 
This article is about the Battle of Amritsar, a conflict that took place in the year 1634. For other Battles of Amritsar, see Battle of Amritsar (disambiguation).

Background
Detail of Mughal general Mukhlis Khan from a Mughal painting

After persecution from the Mughal government the Sikhs began organizing regular training exercises and became a rallying point for people disaffected by the Mughals.[2] Increasing tensions erupted during a clash between a group of Sikh and Mughal hunting parties. On Vaisakhi day, a hunting party of Sikhs set their hawk upon an imperial hawk and brought it down.[2] When the Mughal hunting party came to retrieve their hawk they used abusive language and the Sikhs then refused to part with it. This altercation led to blows and the Mughals were forced to leave after two Mughals were killed and the leader of the hunting party, Faujdar Ghulam Rasul Khan, was injured.[2] [8] The incident with the hunting parties was used as an excuse to send out 7,000 soldiers with Mukhlis Khan to attack Guru Hargobind. The Sikhs were unprepared to face the Mughal force because of the impending marriage of Guru Hargobind's daughter.[2]

Battle

The battle took place at Amritsar over two days. The day before the Mughals attacked, the Sikhs received information that they would be attacking and evacuated Lohgarh, a small mud fort on the outskirts of the city, except for a small garrison.[2] On the first day, the Mughals attacked garrison at Lohgarh. There were 25 Sikhs in the garrison. The Sikhs used wooden cannons and fought until the end. They killed hundreds of Mughals, but were killed and the Mughals overran Lohgrah. The Mughals did not get much further.[9][10]The Mughal force also attacked the house where Guru Hargobind had been staying but did not find anything because it had been evacuated earlier.[2]

The second day of the battle saw fierce fighting where Khalsa College, Amritsar is located now. Bhai Bhanno was killed in the fighting and Guru Hargobind took up command when he died.[2] The battle ended when Mukhlis Khan's head was "cleft in twain" by a blow from Guru Hargobind.[2]

Aftermath

This was the second conflict between the Mughals and Sikhs and legitimized the affirmation of Guru Hargobind's efforts to militarize his followers.[2] In addition, the Sikh victory destroyed the idea of Mughal invincibility and increased the Guru's support among peasants in Punjab.[2]

References
  1. Gopal Singh (1979). A History of the Sikh People. pp. 224–225.
  2. Gandhi 2007, p. 534-536.
  3. Gandhi 2007, p. 534–537.
  4. Trilochan Singh Dr. (1967). Guru Tegh Bahadur Prophet & Martyr. pp. 46–47.
  5. Jaques 2010, p. 47.
  6. Macauliffe, Max Arthur (1909). The Sikh Religion, its gurus, sacred writings and authors, Vol 4. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Wikisource
  7. Dhillon 1988, p. 122.
  8. Trilochan Singh Dr. (1967). Guru Tegh Bahadur Prophet & Martyr. pp. 46–47.
  9. Sikh religion. Internet Archive. Phoenix, Ariz. : Sikh Missionary Center. 1990. p. 142. ISBN 978-0-9625383-2-2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  10. Gurbilas Patashahi 6 Chapter 10

Sources

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