Battles and Wars in India

Battle of Hydaspes—In 326 B.C. when Alexander, the great had to turn back from Hydaspes (Beas) when his troops refused to march into India against the Nanda Empire.

Battle of Kalinga—It was fought in 361 B.C. between Ashoka, the great and the king of Kalinga. The war resulted in considerable loss of life and brought misery and suffering to the people. Its impression on Ashoka was so great that he not only turned a Buddhist, but renounced war and violence.

1st Battle of Tarain (1191 A.D.)—Prithvi Raj defeated Mohd. Gauri.

2nd Battle of Tarain (1192 A.D.)—Mohd. Gauri defeated Prithvi Raj and paved the way for Muslim rule in India.

First Battle of Panipat (1526)—Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi. This laid the foundation of Mughal rule in India.

Second Battle of Panipat (1556)—Akbar defeated Hemu. It ended the Afgan Rule and the way was cleared for Mughal rule.

Battle of Talikota (1565)—The united alliance of Bijapur, Bidar, Ahmednagar and Golkunda under Hussain Nizam Shah defeated Ram Raja of Vijaynagar. It sealed the fate of the Hindu Kingdom of Vijaynagar.

Battle of Haldighati (1576)—Akbar defeated Rana Pratap. The latter had to take refuge in remote fortresses.

Battle of Plassey (1757)—The British under Lord Clive defeated Sirajuddaulah. It laid foundation of the British Rule in India.

Third Battle of Panipat (1761)—Ahmed Shah Abdali defeated the Marahattas. The Marahatta power suffered an irreparable loss.

Battle of Buxer (1764)—The British under Sir Hector Munro defeated the Muslim army under three Mohammadan leaders : Mir Qasim, Shuja-ud-daulha and Shah Alam II. The battle made the British Supreme in India.

The First Sikh War (1845)—The Sikh Army crossed Sutlej in 1845 at which the East India Company declared war. British occupied Lahore and forced the Sikhs to accept humiliating terms of peace.

The Second Sikh War (1849)—A drawn battle was fought between the English and the Sikhs at Chelianwala in which the English appeared to have suffered heavy losses.

Indo-Pak War (1965)—An indecisive war between India and Pakistan. It led to ‘Taskent Pact’ between the two countries.

Indo-Pak War (1971)—Indian forces in joint command with Bangladesh Army accepted the surrender of the Pak Army in Bangladesh. War in the western sector came to an end as a result of cease-fire on Dec. 17. Bangladesh was liberated.

Kargil War (1999)—Indian forces scored grand victory over Pakistani army and Pak supported mercenaries in a conflict in the Kargil sector of Jammu & Kashmir. The operation was named ‘Operation Vijaya.’ The Indian forces cleared Kargil of all Pakistani elements.