The Second Battle of Anandpur (1704) (''anadapura dī dūjī laṛā'ī sāla satārāṁ sau cāra''), also known as the Siege of Anandpur (''anadapura dī ghērābadī''), was fought at Anandpur, between

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...

and the Mughal generals Wazir Khan and Zaberdast Khan aided by the vassal

Raja ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested f ...

s of the

Sivalik Hills The Sivalik Hills, also known as the Shivalik Hills and Churia Hills, are a mountain range of the outer Himalayas that stretches over about from the Indus River eastwards close to the Brahmaputra River, spanning the northern parts of the Indi ...

in May 1704.

Background

The hill Rajas were concerned about

Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sing ...

's rising power and influence in their region along with dislike for the Sikh movement. In addition, the hill Rajas were frustrated by the raids on their villages by the Sikhs from Anandpur who sought to acquire supplies, provisions and cash. Earlier in 1704, the Mughal troops were repulsed in northern Punjab at Basoli and Anandpur. Consequently, the Rajas of several hill states (including

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...

Nurpur Nurpur may refer to: * Nurpur, Fenchuganj, a village in Sylhet, Bangladesh * Nurpur, Comilla, village in Comilla Bangladesh * Nurpur, Himachal Pradesh, a city and municipal council in the state of Himachal Pradesh, India * Nurpur, Jalandhar, a v ...

Mandi Mandi may refer to: Places * Mandı, Azerbaijan India * Mandi, Jammu and Kashmir, a town on the Mandi River in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir * Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, a city in Himachal Pradesh ** Mandi State, former princely sta ...

Kullu Kullu is a municipal council town that serves as the administrative headquarters of the Kullu district of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is located on the banks of the Beas River in the Kullu Valley about north of the airport at Bh ...

, Guler,

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, Dadhwal, and

Hindur Nalagarh is a city and a municipal committee, near the city of Solan in Solan district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Geography Nalagarh is a gateway to Himachal Pradesh in North India, from Shimla, from Delhi and from Chandigar ...

) assembled at Bilaspur to discuss the situation. The son of Bhim Chand, Raja Ajmer Chand of Kahlur, suggested forming an alliance to curb the Gobind Singh's rising power. Accordingly, the Rajas formed an alliance with the Mughals, and marched towards Anandpur. They sent a letter to Gobind Singh, asking him to pay the

arrears Arrears (or arrearage) is a legal term for the part of a debt that is overdue after missing one or more required payments. The amount of the arrears is the amount accrued from the date on which the first missed payment was due. The term is usually ...

of rent for Anandpur (which lied in Ajmer Chand's territory), and leave the city to which Gobind Singh insisted that the land was bought by his father, and is therefore, his own property.

Siege

In May 1704, Generals Wazir Khan and Zaberdast Khan, sent by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, joined by the Hill Rajas, besieged Anandpur in an attempt to remove Guru and his followers. The army of the Guru kept the Mughals and hillmen at bay but being surrounded by heavy odds, took refuge in Anandpur fort, where they were besieged for many months, with all supplies and communications cut off. Emperor Aurangzeb sent a written assurance by promising on the

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...

, whereas Hill Rajas swore by their gods, with the safety of all Sikhs if the Guru decided to evacuate the fort, and after a long drawn out siege, Gobind Singh and his followers, facing starvation, capitulated in return for safe passage, but the Sikhs were treacherously attacked at the Sarsa, with all assurances and solemn oaths betrayed by the Mughals and Hill Rajas.

Notes

References

Sources

* * {{coord missing, Punjab (India) Anandpur, Second Battle of