The Battle of Anandpur was fought at Anandpur, between the armies of the

Sikh Guru The Sikh gurus ( Punjabi: ਸਿੱਖ ਗੁਰੂ) are the spiritual masters of Sikhism, who established this religion over the course of about two and a half centuries, beginning in 1469. The year 1469 marks the birth of Guru Nanak, the found ...

Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sing ...

and the Mughal forces aided by the Nawab of Bahawalpur state,

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested f ...

s of the

Sivalik Hills The Sivalik Hills, also known as the Shivalik Hills and Churia Hills, are a mountain range of the outer Himalayas that stretches over about from the Indus River eastwards close to the Brahmaputra River, spanning the northern parts of the India ...

Cause

The increasing power of Guru Gobind Singh, and his establishment of a military order (

Khalsa Khalsa ( pa, ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ, , ) refers to both a community that considers Sikhism as its faith,Kha ...

) alarmed the Rajas of the Sivalik hills. The hill Rajas were concerned about

's rising power and influence in their region and following the defeat of Alim Chand and Balia Chand that unnerved the hill Rajas. After some failed attempts to check the Guru's power, the Rajas teamed with the

Mughal Emperor The Mughal emperors ( fa, , Pādishāhān) were the supreme heads of state of the Mughal Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Mughal rulers styled t ...

Aurangzeb and his Mughal General Wazir Khan to help them against the Guru. The Mughal viceroy of Delhi sent his generals Din Beg and Painda Khan, each with an army of five thousand men, to subdue the Guru. The Mughal forces were joined by the armies of the hill chiefs at

Rupar Rupnagar (; formerly known as Ropar is a city and a municipal council in Rupnagar district in the Indian state of Punjab. Rupnagar is a newly created fifth Divisional Headquarters of Punjab comprising Rupnagar, Mohali, and its adjoining dist ...

. The Guru appointed the ''

Panj Piare Panj Pyare ( pa, ਪੰਜ ਪਿਆਰੇ, ', the five beloved ones) is the collective name given to five men − Daya Singh, Dharam Singh, Himmat Singh, Mohkam Singh and Sahib Singh – by the tenth Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh during the hist ...

'', his five beloved Sikhs, as the generals of his army.

Battle

According to the Sikh chronicles, Guru Gobind Singh refused to play the role of an aggressor, as he had vowed never to strike except in

self-defence Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in ...

. In the course of along action near Anandpur, northeast of Ludhiana, Painda Khan was killed—reputedly in single combat by Guru Gobind Singh. After Painde Khan's death, Din Beg assumed the command of his troops. However, he failed to overpower the Guru's forces. The hill Rajas fled from the battlefield, and Din Beg was forced to retreat after being wounded. He was pursued by the Guru's army as far as

Aftermath

After the Mughal generals failed to drive off the Guru from Anandpur, the hill Rajas formed an alliance and attacked Anandpur, leading to the Battle of Anandpur (1701).

In popular culture

* The Battle of Anandpur is depicted in the movie Chaar Sahibzaade.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:First Battle Of Anandpur Anandpur Anandpur, First Battle of 1701 in India Anandpur