Battle of Sirhind (1555)

Battle of Sirhind (1555)
	Part of Delhi
Date	22 June 1555
Location	Sirhind
Result	Mughal victory; Re-establishment of the Mughal Empire;
Belligerents
Mughal Empire	Suri Empire
Commanders and leaders
Humayun; Bayram Khan	Sikandar Shah Suri
Strength
50,000	90,000

The Battle of Sirhind was fought between the Mughal Empire and the Suri Empire in 1555.

Background

Humayun had been in exile for 15 years after being forced to flee by Sher Shah Suri, a Pashtun commander who had taken control of the Mughal territories. During his exile, Humayun spent time in Persia where he was exposed to Persian high culture and military technology. This exposure gave him valuable insight into administration, politics, and warfare, which would later serve him well in his quest to reclaim his empire. After defeating his brothers in Afghanistan and Uzbekistan, Humayun was able to solidify his hold over the region and return to India, where he successfully recaptured Babur's former capital of Delhi and reestablished the Mughal Empire.^[3]

After the death of Islam Shah Suri, the Suri Empire had erupted in a civil war where various contenders to the throne fought each other for supremacy. Sikandar Shah Suri was occupied with his struggle against Ibrahim Shah Suri when Humayun mobilized an army from Kabul. He captured Rohtas Fort and Lahore in February 1555. Another detachment of his forces captured Dipalpur, Gurdaspur and Jalandhar. Their advanced division proceeded towards Sirhind. Sikandar sent a force of 30,000 to intercept them but they were defeated by the Mughal Army in the Battle of Machhiwara and Sirhind was occupied by the Mughals.^[4]

Battle

Sikandar led an army of 90,000 and met the Mughals at Sirhind.^[5] On 22 June 1555 they met in battle. Humayun and Bairam Khan carried out a daring raid in a rainstorm like Sher Shah Suri had done at the Battle of Chausa to defeat Humayun.^[6] Sikander was defeated by the Mughal Army and was compelled to retreat to the Sivalik Hills in northeastern Punjab.^[7] The victorious Mughals marched to Delhi, occupied it and reestablished their empire in India.^[5]

References

^ Begum, Gulbadan (1902). The History of Humāyūn (Humāyūn-nāmah). Royal Asiatic Society. p. 260.
^ Majumdar, R.C. (ed.) (2007). The Mughal Empire, Mumbai: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, ISBN 81-7276-407-3, pp.94–6
^ Sankaran, Sahaj. "22 June, 1555: Humayun Wins the Battle of Sirhind | Today in Indian History from Honesty Is Best". honestyisbest.com. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
^ Majumdar, R.C. (ed.) (2007). The Mughal Empire, Mumbai: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, ISBN 81-7276-407-3, pp.94-6
^ ^a ^b "Battles for India at Sirhind". Times of India Blog. 18 March 2018. Archived from the original on 30 March 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
^ Battle of Sirhind 1555 | Sikandar Shah Suri | Humayun | Mughal⚔️Afghan War, 3 July 2022, archived from the original on 26 October 2022, retrieved 25 October 2022
^ Sarker, Sunil Kumar (1994). Himu, the Hindu "Hero" of medieval India : against the background of Afghan-Mughal conflicts. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers and Distributors. ISBN 81-7156-483-6. OCLC 31010168. Archived from the original on 22 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.