Battle of Najafgarh

Battle context

The Battle of Najafgarh was a subsidiary engagement of the Siege of Delhi during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. A large Indian force under Bakht Khan sortied from Delhi with the aim of striking the rear of the British besieging force, a maneuver that, if successful, could have seriously disrupted or broken the siege. A British detachment under John Nicholson moved to intercept the sortie before it could reach the main British lines, defeating the Indian force and neutralizing the threat. The action helped preserve the integrity of the siege, which remained the central British effort to retake Delhi and suppress the rebellion's principal stronghold.