The Sikh Empire (1799 – 1849 CE) was established by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Throughout its history, it fought various adversaries including the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan and the British East India Company.
See also: List of battles between Mughals and Sikhs. The Sikhs first raised their weapons against the Mughal Empire under Guru Hargobind. Shri Guru Hargobind Ji was son of the 5th Shri Guru Arjan Dev Ji who was executed by the Mughal ruler Jahangir. After his father's death, Shri Guru Hargobind Ji added the martial element to Sikhism which was until then a religion mainly focused on Spirituality. But at this point the need for self defence was felt. Hence Shri Guru Hargobind Ji started recruiting an army which he called "Risaldari", after training his men in cavalry and Sikh Martial Arts. He adopted Royal symbols like wearing "kalgidhari turban" and keeping bodyguards. Along with that he asked his followers to gift him horses and weaponry instead of anything else. So the 6th Guru at one point managed to command 700 cavalry and with this might his Risaldari fought several small scale battles in 1620s and 1630s against Shahjahan's forces and some other warlords in Poadh and Majha. The tenth and the last Guru, Guru Gobind Singh organized Sikhs into a military sect called Khalsa (means "pure"), in 1699, against the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. Before his death in 1708, he sent Banda Singh Bahadur to lead the Sikhs of Punjab. Banda Singh Bahadur through his outstanding leadership skills weakened the Mughal grasp over India. But he was later captured and beheaded in Delhi in 1716, during the reign of Farrukhsiyar.
Thereafter, Sikhs were divided into Misls. In 1738, Nadir Shah of the Afsharid dynasty attacked India and looted Delhi. The Mughals were never able to recover their power in the Punjab. Later, the Punjab was subject to constant invasions of Ahmad Shah Durrani of Afghanistan.
The Afghans led numerous campaigns to re-capture Lahore but ultimately had to return to Pashtun territories due to internal strife. After Ahmad Shah's final invasion of the Punjab in 1767, he left Lahore which was re-captured by the Sikhs. For more than three decades, Sikhs consolidated their power in areas of the Punjab, though facing repeated invasion attempts from other Afghan emperors such as Timur Shah Durrani, and Zaman Shah Durrani. The decisive moment came in 1790, when Ranjit Singh of Sukerchakia Misl became Misldar. He started uniting Misls and finally took Lahore in 1799. His coronation on 12 April 1801 marked the beginning of the Sikh Empire, which went on to conquer the whole Punjab, Kangra, parts of Kashmir and briefly, the city of Peshawar.
| Name of conflict (date) | Part of | Belligerents | Opponents | Outcome | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Katoch–Sikh War (1801) | Kangra State | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Kasur (1807) | Durrani Empire | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Jammu (1808) | Sikh Empire | Dogra Rajput | Sikh victory | |||
| Gurkha-Sikh War (1809) | Kingdom of Nepal | Sikh victory | ||||
| Siege of Multan (1810) | Durrani Empire | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Bhimber (1812) | Chibhal | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Anandpur (1812) | Kahlur | Sikh victory | ||||
| Afghan-Sikh Capture of Kashmir (1812–1813) | Sikh Empire Durrani Empire | Kashmir under Ata Muhammad Khan | Sikh-Afghan victory | |||
| Battle of Hasan Abdal (1813) | Sikh Empire | Pashtuns led by Wazir Fateh Khan Barakzai | Afghan victory[1] | |||
| Battle of Attock (1813) | Durrani Empire | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Kashmir (1814) | Sikh Empire | Pashtuns led by Wazir Fateh Khan Barakzai | Afghan victory[2] | |||
| Battle of Multan (1818) | Durrani Empire | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Shopian (1819) | Durrani Empire | Sikh victory | Kashmir is conquered by the Sikhs. | |||
| Battle of Gandgarh (1820) | Sikh Empire | Yousufzai Zamindars | YousufzaiAfghan victory[3] | |||
| Battle of Mangal (1821) | Jaduns and Tanaolis Tribes | Sikh victory | ||||
| Siege of Mankera (1821–1822) | Kingdom of Mankera | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Taragarh (1822) | Afghan tribesmen | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Nowshera (1823) | Coalition of Azim Khan | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Akora Khattak (1826) | Mujahideen | Mujahideen victory | ||||
| Battle of Saidu (1827) | Mujahideen | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Haidru (1828) | Mujahideen | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Balakot (1831) | Mujahideen | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Bannu (1832) | Sikh Empire | Local Pashtuns | Afghan victory | |||
| Expedition of Shuja ul-Mulk (1833-1834) | Emirate of Kabul | Barakzai Afghan victory | Shah Shuja's expedition fails. | |||
| Battle of Peshawar (1834) | Sikh Empire | Peshawar Sardars | Sikh victory | Peshawar Sardars deposed from power. | ||
| Ladakh War (1834–1835) | Sikh Empire | Namgyal Dynasty | Sikh victory | Entirety of Ladakh annexed in Sino-Sikh War | ||
| Battle of Ramkani (1835) | Barakzai Dynasty | Inconclusive | ||||
| Battle of Michni (1836) | Michni Sardars | Sikh victory | ||||
| Emirate of Kabul | Inconclusive | Withdrawal of Dost Mohammad Khan, no battle fought. | ||||
| Battle of Panjtar (1836) | Panjtar Pashtuns | Sikh victory | ||||
| Battle of Jamrud (1837) | Sikh Empire | Emirate of Afghanistan | Disputed[4] | |||
| 1837 Poonch Revolt | Sikh Empire | Sudhans of Poonch | Sikh victory | Rebellion suppressed | ||
| Baltistan Expedition (1840) | Sikh Empire | Maqpon Dynasty | Sikh victory[5] | Baltistan and Skardu annexed to the Sikh Empire | ||
| First Anglo-Afghan War 1 October 1838 – October 1842 | Emirate of Kabul | British coalition defeat | Shah Shuja initially restored to the throne successfully, however is deposed and killed in 1842. | |||
| Battle of Waziristan 1843[6] [7] | Sikh Empire | Tribal Afghans | Afghan victory | |||
| Battle of Waziristan 1844[8] [9] | Sikh Empire | Tribal Afghans | Afghan victory | |||
| Battle of Mudki 18 December 1845 | First Anglo-Sikh war | British Empire | Sikh Empire | British victory | Night battle. The British won with heavy casualties amongst the higher ranks. | |
| Battle of Ferozeshah 21–22 December 1845 | First Anglo-Sikh war | British Empire | Sikh Empire | British victory | British forces under Sir Hugh Gough won a Pyrrhic victory over the Sikh army under Lal Singh. | |
| Battle of Sohana January (?) 1846 | First Anglo-Sikh war | British Empire | Sikh Empire | British victory | ||
| Battle of Baddowal 21 January 1846 | First Anglo-Sikh war | Sikh Empire | British Empire | Sikh victory | Many Sikh soldiers crossed Satluj after being defeated at Mudki and Ferozeshah. When Harry Smith marched to Dharmkot to relieve Ludhiana, their rear was attacked by Sikhs under Ranjodh Singh Majithia.[10] [11] | |
| Battle of Aliwal 28 January 1846 | First Anglo-Sikh war | British Empire | Sikh Empire | British victory | Company troops decisively defeated the Sikh army; turning point in the war. | |
| Battle of Sobraon 10 February 1846 | First Anglo-Sikh war | British Empire | Sikh Empire | British victory | End of the war. | |
| Battle of Ramnagar (1848) 22 November 1848 | Second Anglo-Sikh war | British East Indian Company | Sikh victory | |||
| Battle of Chillianwala (1849) 13 January 1849 | Second Anglo-Sikh war | British East Indian Company | Sikh victory | |||
| Siege of Multan (1848–1849) 19 April 1848 – 22 January 1849 | Second Anglo-Sikh war | British East Indian Company | British victory | Fort was breached and Dewan Mulraj surrendered. | ||
| Battle of Gujrat (1849) | Second Anglo-Sikh war | British East Indian Company | British victory | Decisive defeat of the Sikh Empire. Young emperor Maharaja Dalip Singh was abducted and taken to England; Punjab was annexed as a province of the British Raj. |