The Sikhs raided Delhi 14 times between 1766 and 1788. Sikhs were very scornful towards Delhi due to the following reasons. * Mughal Emperor

Jahangir Nur-ud-Din Muhammad Salim (30 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was the fourth Mughal Emperor, who ruled from 1605 until he died in 1627. He was named after the Indian Sufi saint, Salim Chishti. Ea ...

tortured

Guru Arjan Dev Guru Arjan (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਅਰਜਨ, pronunciation: ; 15 April 1563 – 30 May 1606) was the first of the two Gurus martyred in the Sikh faith and the fifth of the ten total Sikh Gurus. He compiled the first official edition of th ...

to death. * Guru HarGobind was imprisoned in the fort of Gwalior by Jahangir. *

Guru Tegh Bahadur Guru Tegh Bahadur (Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ ਤੇਗ਼ ਬਹਾਦਰ (Gurmukhi); ; 1 April 1621 – 11 November 1675) was the ninth of ten Gurus who founded the Sikh religion and the leader of Sikhs from 1665 until his beheading in 167 ...

was executed on the orders of

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

at Chandi Chowk. *

Guru 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 ...

suffered a lot at the hands of Delhi. He lost his four sons, two in the

Battle of Chamkaur The Battle of Chamkaur, also known as Battle of Chamkaur Sahib, was a battle fought between the Khalsa, led by Guru Gobind Singh, and the coalition forces of the Mughals led by Wazir Khan and of Hindu hill chief. Guru Gobind Singh makes a ...

and two were bricked alive by

Wazir Khan (Sirhind) Mirza Askari (; 1635 — 12 May 1710), better known by his title Wazir Khan (), was the Mughal governor of Sirhind in the present state of Punjab. He administered the territory of the Mughal Empire that laid between the Sutlej and Yamuna rivers. ...

. *

Banda Singh Bahadur Banda Singh Bahadur (born Lachman Dev) (27 October 1670 – 9 June 1716), was a Sikh warrior and a commander of Khalsa army. At age 15, he left home to become an ascetic, and was given the name Madho Das Bairagi. He established a monastery a ...

was executed on the orders of Farruksiyar in Delhi. * Sikhs suffered massacres like Chota Ghalughara and other persecutions in Punjab under the Mughal rulers.

Prelude

In 1764, Sikhs helped Jats of Bharatpur to capture Delhi after the

Battle of Delhi (1764) The Battle of Delhi (1764) was fought between the Jat ruler of Bharatpur and the Mughal rulers of Mughal Empire. Maharaja Jawahar Singh of Bharatpur invaded Delhi and lay siege to stronghold of Red Fort. Military conflict between Jats and Mugh ...

First Raid

After defeating Mughals in the

Battle of Sirhind (1764) The battle of Sirhind was fought between Durrani Empire and Sikh Misls on 14 January 1764. Battle Ahmad Shah Durrani returned to Afghanistan after appointing Zain Khan Sirhindi as the Governor of Sirhind. Zain Khan Sirhindi, the Afghan Governor ...

Sikhs plundered Jagir of

Najib-ud-daula Najib ad-Dawlah ( ps, نجيب الدوله), also known as Najib Khan Yousafzai ( ps, نجيب خان), was a Rohilla Yousafzai Afghan who earlier served as a Mughal serviceman but later deserted the cause of the Mughals and joined Ahmed S ...

. Najib appointed Afzal Khan to take care of Delhi. Sikhs raided the Paharganj region of the city.

Second Raid

Sikhs raided Delhi in 1770. They sacked Panipat and entered the territories of

and attacked Delhi.

Zabita Khan Zabita Khan Rohilla (died 21 January 1785) was a Rohilla chieftain in the time of the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. Biography Zabita Khan was the eldest son of Najib-ud-Daula, a leader of the Afghan Rohilla and founder of the city of Najibaba ...

was sent to stop Sikhs The Sikhs demanded a large amount of money for friendship but declined by Zabita.

Third Raid

In 1770,

passed away and Zabita Khan took the chief of Rohilla. The Sikhs again came to Delhi and attacks Zabita Khan's territory. Details of Sikh invasion have been noted by French Missionary, Father Peere.

Sikhs Defeated Mughals

Nasir ul Mulk was the third son of

Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah I Mir Qamar-ud-din Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi (11 August 16711 June 1748) also known as Chin Qilich qamaruddin Khan, Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah and Nizam I, was the 1st Nizam of Hyderabad. He was married to the daughter of a Syed nobleman of Gulbarga. H ...

of Hyderabad state was disappointed by his brother's so he came to Delhi. In 1772, he was appointed as the Governor of Sirhind. He had an army of 19,000 soldiers of Mughals, Afghans and Marathas. At the Battle of Kunjpura (1772), he was attacked by Sikh sardars Sahib Singh, Dyal Singh and Laja Singh with 6,000 soldiers. 500 men lost on both sides. Nasir ul Mulk along with Daler Khan went to the fort but Sikhs besieged fort for 13 days. On 14th day, the Mughals were defeated.

Fourth Raid

On January 18 1774, the Sikhs invaded Delhi for the fourth time. They plundered Shahdara and the Mughal nobility.

Fifth Raid

In October of 1774 the Sikhs raided and ravaged

Old Delhi Old Delhi or Purani Dilli is an area in the Central Delhi district of Delhi, India. It was founded as a walled city named Shahjahanabad in 1648, when Shah Jahan (the Mughal emperor at the time) decided to shift the Mughal capital from Agra. ...

Sixth Raid

One 15 of July 1775, the Sikhs raided

Paharganj Paharganj (literally 'hilly neighbourhood') is a neighbourhood of Central Delhi, located just west of the New Delhi Railway Station. Known as ''Shahganj'' or King's ganj or market place during Mughal era, it is one of the three administrative ...

and Jaisinghpur. The Mughals failed to stop the Sikh advances.

Seventh Raid

The seventh raid happened in November of 1776. The Prime Minister of the Mughal empire, Najaf Khan, was taken by surprise.

Eighth Raid

The eighth raid happened in September of 1778. Sahib Singh encamped near the Shalimar garden. The Mughals invited the Sikhs to a feast.

Ninth Raid

On October 1 of 1778 , which was

Dushera Vijayadashami ( sa, विजयदशमी, Vijayadaśamī, translit-std=IAST), also known as Dussehra, Dasara or Dashain, is a major Hindu festival celebrated at the end of Navaratri every year. It is observed on the tenth day in the Hindu ...

day the Sikh attacked Delhi and all the way to Rakabganj. They destroyed a

Mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a Place of worship, place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers (sujud) ...

which was created on the site of a previously destroyed Gurdwara. The Sikh remainded in Delhi for one month after capture.

Tenth Raid

In 1783, a body of 40,000 Sikhs camped at Delhi. Prince Mirza Shikoh was defeated and fled. The Sikh soldiers were divided into 3 groups. Two groups of 5,000 Sikhs each deployed at Majnu-ka-Tilla and

Ajmeri Gate The Gates of Delhi were city gates in Delhi, India, built under dynastic rulers in the period that could be dated from the 8th century to the 20th century. They are the gates in: * the ancient city of Qila Rai Pithora or Lal Kot, also called the ...

whereas 30,000 Sikhs under

Baghel Singh Baba Baghel Singh (c. 1730 – c. 1802) was a military general in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. He rose to prominence in the area around Sutlej and Yamuna. Singh joined the Singh K ...

camped at a place known as

Tees Hazari Tis Hazari is a neighbourhood in Old Delhi, India just south of the Northern Ridge. It is the location of the Tis Hazari Courts Complex which was inaugurated on 19 March 1958 by Chief Justice Mr. A. N. Bhandari of the then Punjab High Court. I ...

before attacking Red Fort. The Sikhs defeated the Mughals in the

Battle of Delhi (1783) The Battle of Delhi was fought between Khalsa Sikhs and the Mughal Empire in 1783. Background and battle The Sikhs under Baghel Singh, leader of the Karorsinghia Misl, began raiding and plundering the outskirts of Delhi in 1764. In April 1782, ...

and captured Delhi.

Jassa Singh Ahluwalia Sultan-ul-Qaum Sardar Jassa Singh Ahluwalia (3 May 1718 – 23 October 1783) was a Sikh leader during the period of the Sikh Confederacy, being the Supreme Leader of the Dal Khalsa. He was also Misldar of the Ahluwalia Misl. This period wa ...

was placed on the takht of Delhi as Badshah Singh of Delhi but

Jassa Singh Ramgarhia Jassa Singh Ramgarhia (1723–1803) was a prominent Sikh leader during the period of the Sikh Confederacy. He was the founder of the Ramgarhia Misl, Early life Jassa Singh Ramgarhia was born into a Sikh family with surname Bhambra in 1723 ...

objected that without Dal Khalsa meeting no one can be placed on the throne. Mughals agreed to construct 7 Sikh Gurudwaras in Delhi for Sikh Gurus.

Gurudwaras

* Gurdwara Mata Sundri *

Gurdwara Bangla Sahib Gurudwara Bangla Sahib () is one of the most prominent Sikh gurdwaras, or Sikh house of worship, in Delhi, India, and known for its association with the eighth Sikh Guru, Guru Har Krishan, as well as the holy pond inside its complex, known a ...

* Gurdwara Rakab Ganj * Gurdwara Sis Ganj * Gurdwara

Majnu Ka Tilla Majnu-ka-tilla (MT) is a colony in Delhi, India that was established around 1950. Majnu-ka-tilla is officially called New Aruna Nagar Colony, Chungtown, and Samyeling. It is part of North Delhi district and is located at the bank of the Yam ...

Photo of Mughal Slab

Mughal slab from Delhi was roped with horse and brought to Amritsar in Punjab Image: Historic stone slab of Mughal throne.jpg, Slab of Mughal throne placed in Bunga

Eleventh Raid

Twelfth raid

The twelfth raid happened in August of 1787. The Sikh once more attacked Shahdara. The Sukh fought with the imperial guards and defeated them. Martha General Madho Rao Phalke. In the fight many men drowned in the river with a large number being killed or wounded. Shah Nizum-ud-Din and Deshmukh watched the violence and decided to join in. They attacked the Sikh with mnay bullets but retreated later on. Phalke surrendered while the rest of the generals fled.

Thirteen raid

Fourteenth raid

References

{{Reflist History of Sikhism History of Delhi