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did ranjit singh defeat pashtuns?

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balochii View Drop Down
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  Quote balochii Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: did ranjit singh defeat pashtuns?
    Posted: 07-Apr-2010 at 20:39
so did ranjit singh defeat pashtuns? if so, how?
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  Quote ranjithvnambiar Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09-Jul-2010 at 06:01

In 1818, Ranjit Singh made an aggressive push against the Durrani's, defeating the Kabul Vizier and Muhammad Azem Khan Barakzai he pushed as far as Peshawar, which under the Durrani Governor (and Azem Khans brother) Yar Muhammad Khanaccepted his rule and paid tribute as a vassal.

With this victory Ranjit Singh withdrew from the Peshawar valley leaving a small garrison in a newly constructed fort at Khairabad, modern day Nowshera.

This was in turn followed by Ranjit Singh's capture of Kashmir in 1819 from Azem Khan's other brother Jabbar Khan.

Angered by his defeats, Azem Khan recaptured Peshawar in 1822, he made a call for jihad against the Sikhs and hurried to Nowshera where Muhammad Zaman Khan successfully destroyed the bridge at Attock, effectively trapping the Sikh garrisons west of the Indus. However Ranjit Singh had already reinforced his forces in Nowshera including with generals like Hari Singh Nalwa. These forces successfully repulsed attacks by Pashtunghazis and Durrani troops at Jahangira and withdrew to Nowshera hoping to link up with Ranjit Singh.

Ranjit Singh by this point had brought up his army to the east of Hund, on the opposite bank, a lashkar of thousands of fighters led by Syed Ahmad Shah of Buner had started forming. Despite the odds, Ranjit Singh's forces cross the Indus under fierce attacks. The lashkar then withdrew to Pir Sabak hill where they concetrated their forces and hoped to gain support from the Durrani troops and their artillery under Azem Khan.

Azem Khan for unknown reasons, did not cross the Kabul river straight away to link up with the tribesmen. Ranjit Singh realising the situation concentrated his artillery and infantry on the lashkar and left a small detachment under General Ventura to forestall any crossing by Azem Khan. What proceeded was ferocious hand to hand fights between the Tribal lashkar and the Sikh Khalsa. Finally after the fourth attack, led personally by Ranjit Singh and his personal bodyguard themselves the Hill was carried. By the late evening the Lashkar realised that Azem Khan had withdrawn from the battle and abandoned his allies. This coupled with the withering attacks by the Sikh artillery, broke the lashkars resolve and thought willing to rally again under their Pir Ahmad Shah they dispersed in disarray, the Sikh victory was complete.

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