Trevor51P0492 at 19:59, 5 January 2026

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{{Short description|1757 battle}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| image =
| caption =
| partof = the [[Indian campaign of Ahmad Shah Durrani|Afghan–Maratha conflicts]]
| conflict = Battle of Narela
| date = 16 January 1757
| place = [[Narela]], Outskirts of Delhi
| result = Durrani victory<ref>{{Cite book|last=Barua|first=Pradeep|title=The state at war in South Asia|publisher=University of Nebraska Press|year=2005|isbn=9780803213449|pages=55|language=English}}</ref>
| combatant1 = [[File:Seal of Ahmad Shah Durrani.svg|18px]] [[Durrani Empire]]
| combatant2 = {{flag|Maratha Empire}}
| commander1 = [[Sardar Jahan Khan]]
| commander2 = Antaji Mankeshwar
| strength1 = Unknown
| strength2 = 3,400 cavalry{{sfn|Barua|2005|p=55}}
| casualties1 = Unknown
| casualties2 = 100 men and horses<ref>{{Cite book|last=Singh|first=Ganda|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F_A8AAAAMAAJ|title=Ahmad Shah Durrani: Father of Modern Afghanistan|date=1959|publisher=Asia Publishing House|language=en|page=158}}</ref>
| campaignbox = {{Indian Campaign of Ahmad Shah Durrani}}
}}
The '''Battle of Narela''' took place on 16 January 1757, at [[Narela]], on the outskirts of Delhi, between the [[Maratha Army]] led by Antaji Mankeshwar and an army of [[Ahmad Shah Abdali]].

==Background==
[[Ahmad Shah Durrani]], the emperor of Afghanistan was heading towards Delhi, for yet another invasion. The Marathas had signed a treaty with the [[Mughal emperors|Mughal Emperor]] in 1752 to give him protection from the foreign invader. The [[Peshwa|Maratha Peshwa]] had appointed Antaji Mankeshwar along with 50,000 strong Maratha force to guard the emperor. However, the Maratha troops were called back by the [[Peshwa]] for the [[Deccan]] operations. As a result, most of the Maratha force left Delhi leaving behind some 3,400 troops under [[Antaji Mankeshwar]].<ref name="Barua, p. 55">[[#Ba|Barua, p. 55]]</ref><ref name="ad">[[#Me|Mehta, p. 224]]</ref>

==Battle==
The small garrison of Marathas along with the forces of [[Imad-ul-Mulk]] and [[Najib-ud-daula]] had the responsibility to guard the Mughal capital from Durrani. Antaji was asked to move along with his contingent along the road towards [[Karnal]] to check the progress of the Afghan invader. The Marathas and Afghans collided in a fierce battle in [[Narela]], on the outskirts of Delhi.<ref name="Barua, p. 55"/><ref name="ad"/>

==Aftermath==
Later at night, [[Antaji Mankeshwar|Antaji]] was returning from Narela when his troops were intercepted by a huge army on the outskirts of Delhi in the night of 16–17 January.
The Marathas were completely taken by surprise, but they fought desperately and hurriedly retreated towards [[Faridabad]], 30 km from Delhi with heavy losses. The next day, it became known that the unidentified foe who had treacherously lead a surprise attack on the Marathas, the night before was [[Najib-ud-daula]], a courtier of the Mughal emperor. Najib betrayed the emperor and his [[Vizier|wazir]] at the most critical time and moved out of Delhi with his 20,000 well equipped troops to join the invader's camp. As a result, Abdali entered Delhi with Najib-ud-Daula on 28 January 1757, and taken to the [[Red Fort]] unopposed by the Mughal Emperor in humility. The Mughal Emperor was arrested and Najib was put in charge of the administration of Delhi.<ref name=ad/><ref>[[#Sa|Sarkar, p. 62]]</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}
* {{cite book|title=Advanced study in the history of modern India 1707-1813|author=Jaswant Lal Mehta|publisher=Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd.|year=2005|isbn=1-932705-54-6|page=225|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d1wUgKKzawoC&q=Narela&pg=PA225|ref=Me}}
* Robinson, Howard; James Thomson Shotwell (1922). "Mogul Empire and the Marathas". The Development of the British Empire. Houghton Mifflin. p. 134.
* {{cite book|title=The State at War in South Asia|chapter=Marathas at Panipat|author=Pradeep P. Barua|publisher=U of Nebraska Press|year=2005|isbn=0803213441|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FIIQhuAOGaIC&q=Battle+of+Narela+1757&pg=PA55|ref=Ba}}
* {{cite book|title=Fall of the Mughal Empire, Vol. 2|author=Jadunath Sarkar|author-link=Jadunath Sarkar|publisher=M. C. Sarkar|year=1966|ref=Sa}}

{{MarathaEmpire}}

{{coord missing|Delhi}}

[[Category:18th century in Delhi]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Maratha Empire|Narela]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Durrani Empire|Narela]]
[[Category:1757 in India]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1757|Narela]]
[[Category:1750s in the Durrani Empire]]

Battle of Narela - Revision history

Trevor51P0492 at 19:59, 5 January 2026