India
Battle of Samugarh 1658: How Aurangzeb Defeated Dara Shikoh and Won the Mughal Throne
On 29 May 1658 Aurangzeb defeated his elder brother Dara Shikoh at Samugarh near Agra, the decisive battle of the Mughal war…
India
Battle of Pratapgad 1659: Shivaji, Afzal Khan and the Rise of the Marathas
On 10 November 1659 Shivaji killed the Bijapur general Afzal Khan at a meeting below Pratapgad fort and his troops destroyed the…
India
Battle of Haldighati 1576: Maharana Pratap vs Akbar’s Army Under Man Singh
On 18 June 1576 Maharana Pratap of Mewar fought a Mughal army led by Man Singh of Amber at Haldighati. The Mughals…
India
Battle of Talikota 1565: The Defeat That Destroyed the Vijayanagara Empire
In January 1565 the combined armies of the Deccan sultanates defeated Vijayanagara at Talikota and sacked its capital, Hampi, ending the greatest…
India
Second Battle of Panipat 1556: Akbar, Bairam Khan and the Defeat of Hemu
On 5 November 1556 the forces of the thirteen-year-old Akbar defeated Hemu at Panipat after an arrow struck Hemu in the eye,…
India
Battles of Chausa and Kannauj: How Sher Shah Suri Drove Humayun Out of India
In 1539 and 1540 the Afghan leader Sher Shah Suri defeated the Mughal emperor Humayun at Chausa and Kannauj and drove him…
India
Battle of Khanwa 1527: Babur vs Rana Sanga and the Rajput Confederacy
In March 1527 Babur defeated Rana Sanga of Mewar and his Rajput and Afghan allies at Khanwa, the battle that made the…
India
First Battle of Panipat 1526: How Babur Defeated Ibrahim Lodi and Founded the Mughal Empire
On 21 April 1526 Babur's small army, using cannon and field fortifications, destroyed the forces of Sultan Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat and…
India
Battles of Tarain 1191 and 1192: Prithviraj Chauhan vs Muhammad of Ghor
Prithviraj Chauhan beat Muhammad of Ghor at Tarain in 1191 and was defeated there a year later. The second battle opened the…
India
Rajendra Chola’s Naval Expedition of 1025: How the Cholas Struck Srivijaya Across the Sea
In 1025 the Chola king Rajendra I sent a fleet across the Bay of Bengal to attack the Srivijaya kingdom in Sumatra…
India
Kalinga War: The Battle That Changed Emperor Ashoka
Around 261 BCE the Mauryan emperor Ashoka conquered Kalinga. By his own account 100,000 people were killed, and the slaughter turned him…
India
Harsha vs Pulakeshin II: The Battle on the Narmada That Divided North and South
In the early seventh century the Chalukya king Pulakeshin II stopped the northern emperor Harsha on the Narmada, fixing the river as…