Siege of Gujranwala (1763)
The Siege of Gujranwala was fought between the Sikh forces led by Charat Singh and the Afghan forces led by Jahan Khan.
| Siege of Gurjanwala | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Afghan-Sikh Wars | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Sukerchakia Misl |
 Durrani Empire | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Charat Singh |
Jahan Khan | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
|
200 later assisted by large amount of Sikhs[1] (800 other Sikh citizens not added to strength) | 30,000+[1] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
Background
In 1763, Jahan Khan attempted to regain some of his lost territory.[2] After Charat Singh previously occupied Gujranwala in 1761, the route to Kabul was blocked. Jahan Khan, the Nawab of Lahore decided to besiege Gujranwala. 30,000 troops surrounded the city on all sides. One thousand men were trapped inside it.[1] This all happened in November 1763.[3]
Siege
The Afghan troops of 30,000 encircled the city by all sides and their strength kept increasing. In the city, 200 soldiers were under Charat Singh. At night, the 200 soldiers attacked the enemy and raged hao among the enemy lines. Jahan Khan managed to escape horseback. As he was escaping to Lahore, the Sikhs rushed after him in hot pursuit. Plenty of treasure landed in Charat's hands and more Sikhs joined him.[1]
Aftermath
Following this victory, the Sikhs sacked Malerkotla and Morinda.[2] Gujranwala was made the Sukerchakia Misl capital after this battle.[4]
References
- Bhangu, Rattan Singh (1914). Panth Prakash Vol.2 English Translation. pp. 593–599.
- Lee, Jonathan L. (2022). Afghanistan A History from 1260 to the Present. p. 129. ISBN 9781789140194.
- Dilagīra, Harajindara Siṅgha (1997). The Sikh Reference Book. p. 336.
- Minhas, Salman (2004). "Gujranwala - its people and tradition of light industry". The South Asian. Retrieved 22 December 2017.