The history of India is shaped by numerous significant conflicts. The important battles in Indian history have played a crucial role in shaping the rise and fall of kingdoms, empires, and colonial powers across the subcontinent. From ancient tribal clashes and imperial conquests to medieval resistance and modern colonial struggles, these events have left a lasting impact on the subcontinent's political and cultural landscape.
This topic of important wars in Indian history is important from the perspective of the UPSC IAS Examination which falls under General Studies Paper 1 (Mains) and General Studies Paper 1 (Preliminary) and particularly in the History section of the UPSC Exam. In this article, we shall discuss the Important battles in History fought on Indian soil between the Vedic era and modern India!
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Indian history is marked by decisive battles that shaped its political and cultural landscape. These can be grouped into three broad historical periods:
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The important battles of India in the ancient period include legendary conflicts like the Battle of the Ten Kings and Kalinga War, which shaped early Indian civilization. These historical battles of India reflect the rise of powerful empires and the beginnings of warfare on the subcontinent among tribes and early kingdoms.
List of Battles in Indian History in the Ancient Period (up to 700 CE)
Name of Battle |
Between |
Location |
Year |
Result |
Battle of the Ten Kings (Dasarajna) |
King of the Bharatas (tribe) and a confederation of ten tribes |
Near the Ravi River (ancient Parushni River), in Punjab. |
14th century BCE |
Trtsu-Bharata victory (Source: 7th Mandala of the Rigveda) |
Alexander the Great and king Porus |
Near the river Jhelum (Hydaspes in Greek), Eastern Punjab, now Pakistan. |
326 BCE |
Greek Army of Alexander won the battle. |
|
Seleucid–Mauryan war |
Chandragupta Maurya and Seleucus I Nicator |
Northwestern India, Indus River Valley. |
305 – 303 BCE |
All of the Macedonian Satrapies in the Indus River Valley was annexed by the Chandragupta. |
Ashoka and Raja Anantha Padmanabha |
Odisha & Andhra Pradesh |
261 BCE |
Kalinga was annexed by Ashoka. Ashoka’s major rock edict XIII describes the Kalinga war. |
|
Battle at Narmada River |
Chalukyas of Vatapi and Vardhana dynasty. |
Narmada River |
618 CE |
Chalukyan victory. Harshavardhana’s South Indian expansion came to a halt. |
Battle of Pullalur |
Chalukya king Pulakesin II and the Pallava king Mahendravarman I |
Pullalur, Tamil Nadu |
618 – 619 CE |
Chalukyan victory. |
Battle of Vatapi |
Chalukyas of Vatapi and Pallava dynasty |
Vatapi, (present-day Badami), Karnataka. |
642 CE |
Pallavas defeated Pulakeshin II decisively. |
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The important wars in Indian history during the medieval period saw fierce power struggles between Rajput kingdoms, Delhi Sultans, and later the Mughals. This era is marked by all battles of Indian history that transformed India's political landscape, such as the Battles of Tarain and Haldighati.
List of Battles in Indian History in the Medieval Period (700 CE – 1700 CE) |
||||
Name of Battle |
Between |
Location |
Year (in CE) |
Result |
Battle of Peshawar |
Mahmud of Ghazni and Jayapala |
Peshawar, (present-day Pakistan) |
1001 |
Mahmud of Ghazni victory |
Prithviraj Chauhan and Mohammed Ghori |
Taraori, Haryana |
1191 |
Prithviraj Chauhan victory |
|
Prithviraj Chauhan and Mohammed Ghori |
Taraori, Haryana |
1192 |
Mohmmed Ghori victory |
|
Muhammad Ghori and Jaichandra |
Chandawar (present-day Chandawal near Firozabad), Agra, UP. |
1194 |
Mohmmed Ghori victory |
|
Mongols of the Chagatai Khanate and Delhi Sultanate |
Delhi |
1299 |
Delhi Sultanate victory |
|
Battle of Delhi |
Timurids and the Tughlaq dynasty |
Delhi |
1398 |
Mongol-Turkish warrior Timur victory |
Battle of Sarangpur |
Rana Kumbha and Sultan Mahmud Khilji |
Sarangpur, Madhya Pradesh |
1437 |
Rajput Victory Mahmud Khilji was imprisoned |
Battle of Nagaur |
Rajputs of Mewar and the Nagaur Sultanate |
Nagpur, Maharashtra |
1455 |
Rajput victory |
Battle of Diu |
Portuguese and joint fleet of the Zamorin of Calicut, Sultan of Gujarat, and the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt with support from the Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Venice. |
Arabian Sea, |
1509 |
Portuguese victory |
Babur and Ibrahim Lodi |
Panipat, Haryana |
1526 |
Babur victory Mughal Empire Establishment |
|
Babur and Rana Sanga |
Khanwa, Rajasthan |
1527 |
Babur victory |
|
Rajputs and Mughals |
– |
1528 |
Babur victory |
|
Babur and the joint forces of Mahmud Lodi (Delhi Sultanate), Nusrat Shah (Bengal Sultanate). |
Ghaghara River, Bihar |
1529 |
Babur victory |
|
Sher Shah and Humayun |
Chausa, Buxar, Bihar |
1539 |
Sher Shah victory |
|
Sher Shah Suri and Humayun |
Kannauj, Uttar Pradesh |
1540 |
Sher Shah victory |
|
Battle of Sirhind |
Mughal Emperor Humayun and Sikandar Shah Suri |
Fatehgarh, Punjab |
1555 |
Humayun victory Restoration of the Mughal Empire |
Akbar and Hemu |
Panipat, Haryana |
1556 |
Akbar victory |
|
Vijaynagar Empire and Deccan Sultanates |
Talikot, Karnataka |
1565 |
Deccan Sultanates victory |
|
Maharana Pratap of Mewar and Akbar’s forces led by Man Singh I |
Haldighati, Rajsamand District, Rajasthan |
1576 |
Mughal victory |
|
Battle of Kartarpur |
Sikh and Mughal Empire |
Kartarpur, Punjab |
1635 |
Sikh victory |
Mughal–Safavid War |
Mughal and Safavid Empires |
Afghanistan |
1649–1653 |
Safavid victory |
Deccan Wars |
Maratha and Mughal Empires |
Deccan |
1681–1707 |
Maratha victory |
The important battles in Indian history in the modern era include colonial conquests and resistance, from the Battle of Plassey to the Anglo-Sikh Wars. These important wars in Indian history paved the way for British dominance and are key to understanding the final phase of historical battles of India.
List of Battles in Indian History in the Modern Period (1700 CE onwards) |
||||
Name of Battle |
Between |
Location |
Year |
Result |
Battle of Vasai |
Maratha Empire and Portuguese |
Vasai, Mumbai |
17 Feb 1739 – 16 May 1739 |
Maratha victory |
Battle of Karnal |
Nadir Shah and Muhammad Shah |
Karnal, Haryana |
24 February 1739 |
Nadir Shah victory |
Kingdom of Travancore and the Dutch East India Company (VOC) |
Colachel, Tamil Nadu |
10 August 1741 |
Travancore victory |
|
East India Company and French forces |
Carnatic region |
1740 – 1748 |
Inconclusive |
|
Nizam of Hyderabad and Nawab of the Carnatic, each supported by the East India Company or the French. |
Carnatic region |
1749 – 1754 |
Muzaffar Jung was appointed Nizam of Hyderabad. Muhammad Ali was appointed Nawab of Carnatic. |
|
East India Company and Nawab of Bengal (Siraj-ud-Daulah) |
Palashi, near Calcutta |
23 June 1757 |
East India Company victory British Rule started in India |
|
East India Company and French |
Carnatic region |
1758 – 1763 |
EIC victory |
|
Battle of Wandiwash (3rd Carnatic war) |
English and French forces |
Vandavasi, Tamil Nadu |
22 January 1760 |
EIC victory |
Maratha Empire and Ahmad Shah Durrani Durrani (Afghanistan) |
Panipat, Haryana |
14 January 1761 |
Afghan victory |
|
East India Company and the Joint forces of Mir Qasim (administrator of Bengal), Shuja-ud-Daulah (Nawab of Oudh) and Shah Alam II (Mughal emperor). |
Buxar, Bihar |
22 – 23 Oct 1764 |
EIC victory Treaty of Allahabad 1765 |
|
East India Company and Kingdom of Mysore (Hyder Ali) |
South India |
1767-1769 |
Mysore victory Treaty of Madras |
|
East India Company and Maratha |
Pune, Maharashtra |
1775 -1782 |
Maratha victory Treaty of Salbai |
|
Second Anglo-Mysore War |
East India Company and Kingdom of Mysore (Hyder Ali) |
South India |
1780 – 1784 |
Status quo ante bellum Treaty of Mangalore |
Maratha-Mysore War |
Maratha Empire and Mysore |
South India |
1785 – 1787 |
Maratha victory Treaty of Gajendragad |
East India Company and Kingdom of Mysore (Tipu Sultan) |
South India |
1790 – 1792 |
East India Company victory Treaty of Seringapatam |
|
Fourth Anglo-Mysore War |
East India Company and Kingdom of Mysore (Tipu Sultan) |
South India |
1798 – 1799 |
East India Company victory Mysore entered into subsidiary alliance |
East India Company and Maratha |
India |
1803 – 1805 |
East India Company victory Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon |
|
Anglo-Nepalese War |
East India Company and Gorkha Kingdom |
Northern India |
1814 – 1816 |
East India Company victory Treaty of Sugauli |
East India Company and Maratha |
Maharashtra |
1817 – 1818 |
East India Company victory The formal end of Maratha Empire |
|
First Anglo-Burmese War |
East India Company and Burmese Empire |
Burma |
1824 – 1826 |
East India Company victory Treaty of Yandabo British rule started in Burma (present-day Myanmar) |
First Anglo-Afghan War |
East India Company and Emirate of Kabul |
Afghanistan |
1839 – 1842 |
Afghan Victory British EIC withdrawal from Afghanistan |
East India Company and the SikhEmpire |
Punjab |
1845 – 1846 |
British victory |
|
East India Company and the Sikh Empire |
Punjab |
1848 – 1849 |
East India Company victory The formal end of Sikh Empire |
|
Second Anglo-Burmese War |
East India Company and Burmese Empire |
Burma |
1852 – 1853 |
East India Company victory |
Second Anglo-Afghan War |
British India and Emirate of Afghanistan |
Afghanistan |
1878 – 1880 |
British India victory Treaty of Gandamak Afghanistan was designated as a British protectorate. |
Third Anglo-Burmese War |
British India and Burma |
Burma |
7 – 29 November 1885 |
British India victory The province of Burma became part of British India. |
Third Anglo-Afghan War |
British India and Emirate of Afghanistan |
Afghanistan |
1919 |
Armistice Treaty of Rawalpindi The Durand Line was reaffirmed. |
British India and Imperial Japan (During World War II) |
Imphal, Manipur |
1944 |
British India victory |
Some of the most important battles of India include the following:
The Battle of Plassey marked the beginning of British colonial rule in India when Robert Clive’s forces defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah, the Nawab of Bengal. This victory gave the British East India Company control over Bengal, a crucial economic and political region.
The First Battle of Panipat saw Babur defeat Ibrahim Lodi, establishing the Mughal Empire in India. It was one of the largest and most decisive battles of its time, changing the course of Indian history.
Fought between Maharana Pratap of Mewar and the Mughal army led by Akbar’s general Man Singh I, the Battle of Haldighati symbolized Rajput resistance against Mughal expansion. Though technically a Mughal victory, Maharana Pratap’s resilience made this battle legendary.
The combined forces of the Deccan Sultanates defeated the Vijayanagar Empire in the Battle of Talikota, leading to the empire’s decline. This battle marked a major shift in power in southern India.
Babur’s victory over Rana Sanga at the Battle of Khanwa consolidated Mughal dominance in northern India after Panipat. It was crucial in preventing the resurgence of Rajput power and strengthening Mughal rule.
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