CleanupBot at 08:23, 11 December 2022

2022-12-11T08:23:57Z

New page

{{Infobox Military Conflict
| conflict = Battle of Nowshera
| partof = [[Afghan-Sikh wars]]
| image =
| caption = [[Ranjit Singh|Maharaja Ranjit Singh]], [[Hari Singh Nalwa]] and [[Sham Singh Attariwala]] and [[Sikh Khalsa Army|Sikh Cavalry]] at Nowshera.
| date = 14 March 1823
| place = [[Nowshera, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa|Nowshera]], [[Emirate of Afghanistan]] (in present-day [[Khyber Pakhtunkhwa]], [[Pakistan]])
| casus = Sikh capture of Peshawar
| territory = [[Peshawar Valley]] annexed by the Sikh Empire
| result = [[Sikh Empire]] victory
| combatant1 = [[File:Sikh Empire flag.jpg|50px]] [[Sikh Empire]]
| combatant2 = [[File:Flag of Afghanistan (1919–1921).svg|50px]] [[Emirate of Afghanistan]]
| commander1 = [[Ranjit Singh|Maharaja Ranjit Singh]] [[Hari Singh Nalwa]] [[Akali Phula Singh]] {{KIA}} Desa Singh Majithia [[Kharak Singh]] Fateh Singh Ahluwalia [[Jean-Baptiste Ventura]] [[Jean-Francois Allard]]
| commander2 = [[Azim Khan]] [[Barakzai]]{{WIA}} Muhammad Ashraf Khan Sakhi Arsallah Khan Syed Akbar Shah Rahmat Khan
| strength1 = 16,000 [[Fauj-i-Khas]] and [[Fauj-i-Ain]] regulars 3,000 [[Nihang|Sikh Akali Nihang Singh]] 4,000 [[Sikh Khalsa Army|Ghorcharas]]
| strength2 = 20,000-30,000 [[Afghan]] Tribesmen 10,000 [[Afghan]] cavalry
| casualties1 = 1800 killed and 2000 wounded <ref name=" Campbell">[[Alexander Gardner (soldier)|Gardner, Alexander]] (1898) ''Soldier and Traveller; memoirs of Alexander Gardner, Colonel of Artillery in the service of Maharaja Ranjit Singh''; ed. Hugh Pearse. Edinburgh: William Blackwood, 1898. (Reissued by BiblioBazaar, LLC {{ISBN|978-1-113-21691-5}})</ref>
| casualties2 = Estimated 10,000 killed <ref name="source">M' Gregor, W.L. (1846). History of the Sikhs. London. p. 193.</ref>
}}

{{Campaignbox Afghan-Sikh Wars}}

The '''Battle of Nowshera''' ({{lang-ps|د نوښار جګړه}}) ({{lang-pa| ਨੌਸ਼ਹਿਰ ਦੀ ਲੜਾਈ}}) was fought in [[Nowshera, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa|Nowshera]] in March 1823 between the forces of [[Pashtuns|Pashtun tribesmen]] with support from [[Azim Khan]] [[Barakzai]], [[Durrani]] governor against the [[Sikh Khalsa Army]] of Maharaja [[Ranjit Singh]].<ref name=" Singh">Ganda Singh (1986) ''Maharaja Ranjit Singh: First Death Centenary Memorial''. Nirmal Publishers</ref> Azim Khan was a half-brother of [[Dost Mohammad Khan]], founder of the [[Barakzai dynasty]]. The battle was a decisive victory for the Sikhs against [[Emirate of Afghanistan|Afghanistan]] and led to their occupation of the [[Peshawar Valley]].<ref name="Greenwood">[[Joseph Greenwood]] (1844) ''Narrative of the late Victorious Campaigns in Afghanistan: under General Pollock; with recollections of seven years' service in India''. London: H. Colburn.</ref>

Following their victory, the Sikhs destroyed the Afghan royal court and the fort of [[Bala Hissar, Peshawar]].<ref>[[William Moorcroft (explorer)|Moorcroft, W.]] and [[George Trebeck|G. Trebeck]]. (1841). ''Travels in India''. ed. [[Horace Hayman Wilson]], rpt, Delhi: Low Price Publication, 2000, v 2, p 337.</ref> However, [[Hari Singh Nalwa]] soon commenced the reconstruction of the fort.<ref>Nalwa, V. (2009), Hari Singh Nalwa - Champion of the Khalsaji, New Delhi: Manohar, p. 228, {{ISBN|81-7304-785-5}}.</ref>

== Background ==
In 1818, Ranjit Singh made an aggressive push against the Durranis, defeating the Kabul [[Vizier]] and Muhammad Azem Khan [[Barakzai]] he pushed as far as [[Peshawar]], which under the Durrani Governor (and Azem Khan's brother) [[Yar Muhammad Khan]] accepted his rule and paid tribute as a [[vassal]]. With this victory Ranjit Singh withdrew from the Peshawar Valley leaving a small garrison in a newly constructed fort at [[Khairabad, Pakistan|Khairabad]], modern day Nowshera. This was in turn followed by Ranjit Singh's capture of [[Kashmir]] in 1819 from Azem Khan's other brother Jabbar Khan.

Angered by his defeats, Azem Khan recaptured Peshawar in 1822, he made a call for [[jihad]] against the Sikhs and hurried to Nowshera where Muhammad Zaman Khan successfully destroyed the bridge at Attock, effectively trapping the Sikh garrisons west of the Indus. However Ranjit Singh had already reinforced his forces in Nowshera including general [[Hari Singh Nalwa]] with backing from Pashtun tribes loyal to [[Shuja Shah Durrani|Shah Shuja]]. These forces successfully repulsed attacks by Pashtun [[ghazis]] and Durrani troops at [[Jahangira]] and withdrew to Nowshera hoping to link up with Ranjit Singh.<ref name="Greenwood"/>

== Battle ==
Ranjit Singh by this point had brought up his army to the east of [[Hund, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa|Hund]], on the opposite bank, a lashkar of thousands of fighters led by Syed Ahmad Shah of Buner had started forming. Despite the odds, Ranjit Singh's forces crossed the Indus under fierce attacks. The lashkar then withdrew to Pir Sabak hill where they concentrated their forces and hoped to gain support from the Durrani troops and their artillery under Azim Khan.<ref name=" Campbell"/>

Azem Khan for unknown reasons, did not cross the [[Kabul River]] straight away to link up with the tribesmen. Ranjit Singh realising the situation concentrated his artillery and infantry on the lashkar and left a small detachment under [[Jean-Baptiste Ventura|General Ventura]] to forestall any crossing by Azim Khan.<ref name=" Campbell"/> What proceeded was ferocious hand-to-hand fights between the Tribal lashkar and the [[Sikh Khalsa Army]]. Finally after the fourth attack, led personally by Ranjit Singh and his personal bodyguard themselves the hill was carried. By the late evening the lashkar realised that Azim Khan had withdrawn from the battle and abandoned his allies. This coupled with the withering attacks by the Sikh artillery, broke the lashkar's resolve and thought willing to rally again under their [[Pir (Sufism)|Pir]] Ahmad Shah they dispersed in disarray, the Sikh victory was complete.

== Aftermath ==
Swiftly securing Nowshera, Ranjit Singh's forces captured Peshawar and reached [[Jamrud]] itself. Destroying the remains of Durrani power, they reduced Peshawar to ruins and secured the [[Khyber Pass]] so no Durrani reinforcements could threaten them again.<ref name=" Campbell"/>

The tribesman of [[Khattaks]] and [[Yousafzai]]s suffered enormous casualties due to the Sikh artillery and the seeming betrayal by the Muhammadzai Sardars led to a lack of trust in the Durranis' word from then onwards.

Azim Khan's retreat has never been explained fully, some say he believed his brother had returned to recapture Peshawar at the behest of the [[Sikhs]], others attribute his retreat to cowardice or fear of being cut off by the ferocious Sikh attack. He did not recover from the shock of the defeat and died shortly after the battle.<ref name=" Campbell"/>

Ranjit Singh's victory was to mark the highpoint of his campaigns, his empire now stretched from the Khyber Pass to the west, to the north Kashmir and to the south [[Multan]].<ref name=" Campbell"/><ref>{{Cite book|last=M' Gregor|first=W.L.|title=History of the Sikhs|year=1846|location=London|pages=193}}</ref><ref name="lafont">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YrG_aJTgnw0C|title=Maharaja Ranjit Singh|author=Lafont, Jean Marie|publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Distri|year=2002}}</ref>
<ref name="singh">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fg4CBAAAQBAJ|title=Empire of the Sikhs|author=Singh, Patwant|publisher=Peter Owen Publishers|isbn=9780720613711|year=2008}}</ref>

== See also ==
*[[Hari Singh Nalwa]]
* [[Battle of Jamrud]]
* [[Paolo Avitabile]]
*[[Syed Ahmad Barelvi]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Sikh Empire}}
{{Pashtun nationalism}}

{{coord missing|Khyber Pakhtunkhwa}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nowshera}}
[[Category:Battles involving Afghanistan|Nowshera]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Sikhs]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1823]]
[[Category:1823 in Asia]]
[[Category:March 1823 events]]

Battle of Nowshera - Revision history

CleanupBot at 08:23, 11 December 2022