Battle of Gujrat

Overview

The Battle of Gujrat was a decisive battle in the Second Anglo-Sikh War, fought on 21 February 1849, between the forces of the East India Company, and a Sikh army in rebellion against the company's control of the Sikh Empire, represented by the child Maharaja Duleep Singh who was in British custody in Lahore. The Sikh army was defeated by the British regular and Bengal Army forces of the British East India Company. After it capitulated a few days later, the Punjab was annexed to the East India Company's territories and Duleep Singh was deposed.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Gujrat was the decisive engagement of the Second Anglo-Sikh War, ending organized Sikh resistance against East India Company control. With 24,000 Company troops under Hugh Gough facing 20,000 Sikh forces under Sher Singh, the battle inflicted approximately 4,000 Sikh casualties and broke the army's capacity to continue the campaign. The Sikh capitulation that followed within days had immediate and far-reaching consequences: the Punjab was annexed to East India Company territories, and the child Maharaja Duleep Singh — already held in British custody at Lahore — was formally deposed. Gujrat thus ended Sikh sovereignty in the Punjab, completing the British absorption of the last major independent regional power in the Indian subcontinent.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (2)