The Second Anglo-Sikh War 1847-1848



A.) The Situation Preceding the War

The conditions of the Peace of Lahore had been both humiliating and a heavy burden on the Sikh Kingdom of Punjab. In fact the Sikh Kingdom was indirectly ruled by the EIC; the Maharaja enthroned as an EIC condition after the TREATY OF LAHORE was a minor and it was the EIC Resident at Lahore, Henru Lawrence, who called the shots.
. The Second Sikh War was triggered by a revolt of the Sikh Army in Multan in April 1848, a revolt directed against this indirect EIC rule.


B.) The Cource of Events

Multan, the center of the rebellion, had been under siege from August 1848 and had fallen in January 1849. A night battle fought at Chillanwala on Jan. 13th 1849 was indecisive; the decisive battle was fought at Gujrat. The remainder of the Sikh Army surrendered at Rawalpindi on March 14th.


C.) Legacy

The Sikh Kingdom was annexed by the EIC. The rebellion had given the EIC an excuse to annex the wealthy kingdom and round up their ambitious program of placing much of northern India under British rule.


EXTERNAL
FILES 		Causes of the Second Anglo-Sikh War 1848/49, from Itihaas.com; patriotic
The Second Sikh War 1845-1846, from British Forces.com
Second Anglo-Sikh War, A Saga of Sacrifice & Struggle, from Punjabilok
Sikh Wars 1845-1849, from regiments.org
Second Anglo-Sikh War 1848-1849, from Encyclopedia of Sikhism
Armed Conflict Events Data : Sikh, 1800-1999, from OnWar.com
DOCUMENTS List of EIC officers killed in the Second Sikh War (Siege of Multan), from Redcoat : Officers Killed by Stephen Lewis
From British Military Medals : Punjab Campaign Medal, 1848-1849



This page is part of World History at KMLA
First posted in 2001, last revised on November 19th 2004

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