Khattaknamah Akorkhel Khattak
Peshawar Valley: Historical Background
The North-West Frontier Province of British India has always held a significant status in greater imperial history. Recently the importance of the region has further increased due to its strategic proximity with China. In the period of recorded history, one finds that the Afghans (inhabitants of Afghanistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan) witnessed the forces of Persians, Greeks, Mauryans, Huns, Mongols, Mughuls, British, Soviets, and most recently Americans.The region had not been a highway to the Indian subcontinent and provides routes from Indian subcontinent to Central Asia.3 The Peshawar Valley remained part of the “Subah-i-Kabul wa Peshawar” of Mughul India till its occupation by Nadir Shah Afshar of Persia in 1738.Ahmad Shah Abdali was the first Pashtun/Pukhtun ruler who organized the fragmented Afghan people and established a confederation of tribes in form of loosely termed ‘State’ of Afghanistan in 1747.After the death of Timur Shah, the political scene changed and the descendants began to fight among themselves for the throne. In 1799, Zaman Shah appointed Ranjit Singh as governor of the Punjab.By dent of his abilities he proved himself as a powerful ruler of the Punjab in the nineteenth century.From 1793 to 1818, Saddozai brothers were fighting for hegemony in the empire and as a result, the throne of Kabul was taken over by Barakzai brothers.On the other side, the treaty of Amritsar in 1809 recognized the river Sutlej as a permanent boundary between the Khalsa Sarkar and the British; that had pushed Ranjit Singh to the north of river Sutlej. Due to this incidence Sardar Phula Singh wanted to discard the treaty, although Ranjit Singh convinced him to first subdue the whole of Punjab and then later they could confront the British.Although he himself remained a collaborator of the Imperial power till his death in 1839. Ranjit Singh expanded his dominion to the western of Sutlej that rose as a strong kingdom by 1813. There are people who were of the opinion that the English made Punjab a buffer state to avoid direct contact with Afghans. Afghani remarked that “British also wanted to support establishment of a strong power in Punjab that would prevent Pukhtun coming to Indian territories for the help of Indians as they were afraid of Afghanistan and Pukhtun people who always used to wage “holy” war against “infidels”.However, such statement may not be accepted without a valid logical argument and historical evidences. The English were right to assume that Ranjit Singh was the better ally who could unify Punjab so that the Company could deal with one ruler instead of multiple chiefs. The English were well aware that no successor to Ranjit Singh could manage Punjab and they would be able to manage the affairs the way they wanted.
Ranjit Singh’s Temporary Control of Peshawar Valley
Ranjit Singh benefitted from the civil war (1819-26) between the Saddozais and Barakzais. He occupied Hazro in 1818 and sent a mission under the command of his trusted representative Bawa Phaddi. Khattak tribal chiefs Feroz Khan Khattak, Najeebullah Khan and Elahi Bakhsh Khan killed the Sikhs, an act that infuriated Ranjit Singh. The Sikh army retaliated, pushed the Khattaks; and took hold of Attock, Khairabad and Jahangira in 1818. Ranjit Singh’s commander Sham Singh reported there was no organized army in Peshawar this intelligence facilitated him. Ranjit Singh advanced and annexed Peshawar to Punjab. The Governor of Peshawar Yar Muhammad Khan escaped to Ashnaghar before the arrival of the Sikh army. Sikh troops destroyed the fort of Bala Hisar and burnt nearby villages, including Chamkani (locally called Sokano). Sham Singh seized fourteen cannons from Yar Muhammad Khan and twenty-five thousands rupees as tribute from Peshawar Arbabs. After three days stay in Peshawar, Ranjit Singh left for Lahore and appointed Jahandad Khan, ex-Faujdar of Attock, as administrator of Peshawar, while Sham Singh was deployed as his subordinate officer. Ranjit Singh also left a small garrison in a newly constructed fort at Khairabad (Nowshera). He also granted Jagir to Barakzai brothers. During the next one year, Ranjit Singh was able to take control of Kashmir. Yar Muhammad Khan recaptured Peshawar with the help of Afghan tribesmen after a short interval but he sent Hafiz Rohullah as his ambassador to Lahore and paid one lakh rupees as a token of acceptance as a tributary of the Sikh Durbar.
Durrani’s rejoinder and call for Jihad
The brothers of Yar Muhammad Khan and other Afghan tribal chiefs were distraught at the Sikh ascendency. Muhammad Azeem Khan condemned Yar Muhammad Khan for paying tribute to the Sikhs. He took back Peshawar in 1822 and made a call for Jihad against the Sikhs then rushed to Nowshera. He sent his elder brother Abdul Samad Khan to seek cooperation of Yusafzai and Khattaks. He assured the tribesmen that he would bear all expenses of the war and ammunition but all his promises were in vain. Muhammad Zaman Khan, nephew of Azeem Khan destroyed the bridge at Attock, to effectively trap Sikh garrison to west of the Indus. Ranjit Singh was aware of the strategical importance of North West Frontier for defending his territories and had already reinforced his troops in Nowshera. There are conflicting narratives about the numbers of troops. Sikh official sources record forty-five thousands Khattak and Yusufzai volunteers under the command of Sayed Akbar Shah and Abdul Samad Khan Twenty five thousands Sikh troops were led by General Ventura. However, most sources assert that there were twenty thousand Pukhtuns and twenty five thousands Sikh troops. One can safely estimate that troops that encountered each other in the field were approximately between twenty and twenty-five thousand each.
Role of the tribal chiefs and the religious leaders
The ‘Ulama and common people were encouraged by Muhammad Azeem Khan and Sayed Akbar Shah, one of the descendants of Pir Baba, to join Jihad against Sikhs.34 Pukhtuns under their spiritual leadership had planned a mass movement against the Sikhs before the start of Sayed Ahmad Barelvi’s Jihad movement (1826). Majority of the people, particularly the ‘Ulama were unhappy with Jagirdars of Peshawar as they didn’t want to work under the administration of the “infidels”. Muhammad Azeem Khan’s declaration of Jihad and Sayed Akbar Shah attempts culminated in the battle of Pir Sabaq, Nowshera in March 1823. Azeem Khan had declared jihad against Sikhs and circulated a message in Kabul for the Holy war by announcing that “whoever wants to give his life for the sake of God should join our forces for Jihad”. Ranjit Singh was with his army on the eastern side of Indus, while on the opposite bank a Lashkar of 20,000 was being led by Sayed Akbar Shah. Most of the Pukhtun writers believed that the lashkar was composed of only the Yusufzai. They have ignored the presence of Khattaks and religious leadership. No doubt the number of Yusufzai and Mandar tribal chiefs was prominent as compared to other Pukhtun tribes. For instance, among them were Ismail Khan and Ibrahim Khan of Ismaila, Sarwar Khan Amazai, Anand Khan and Shikar Khan of Shewa, Muqarab Khan38 and Fatih Khan of Zaida, Mansoor Khan of Galyarha, Dalil Khan of Toru, Ibrahim Khan of Kalabat, Amir Khan of Hund, Ashraf Khan 85 of Zaida, Muhammad Khan and Ahmad Khan of Hoti, Tawus Khan of Jamal Gharay, Hamza Khan of Rustam, Faqir Khanand Ghazi Khan of Totalay were leading their respective clans. The desire for jihad can be imagined by the passion with which a lot of teenagers joined the war with merely a knife or dagger in hands. The presence of religious elite and tribes men other than Yusafzai and Mandar can be better assessed from their tombs in Nowshera Kalan who motivated local people for a “holy” war. Almost all religious elites, ‘Ulama and tribal leaders gathered with the spirit of religious passion, as they were informed that previously Sikhs had destroyed mosques in Kashmir in 1818. No doubt, tribal fervor cannot be ignored as Sikhs had killed some Khattaks during their attack on Attock and Jahangira.40 Hindi has written that on 25th March 1824/3 Cheet 188041 (bikrami) Maharaja’s troops moved from Attock fort and reached Koh Teri near the bank of River Kabul, one kos from Nowshera. Ranjit Singh achieved a defensive surprise by making a cavalry charge upon the ‘Ghazis’ before their preparation was complete. But this strategy did not achieve the results as the tribesmen were on the peak of the Pir Sabaq hill, from where they could make a very active use of firing and stone throwing.The khalsa army had planned to capture the areas at the bank of the river and continue to progress on the riverside of Kabul seizing all the plane area of Doaba and Ashnaghar. Ranjit Singh had employed several well-trained foreign officers in his military including General Allard and General Ventura. Following suggestion of General Ventura, he decided to begin the war against the tribesmen at once, because they feared the possibility of attack by Azeem Khan’s troops who had already crossed the Khyber Pass. He had organized an army of several thousand tribesmen and weapons of all kinds. Though most of the Sikhs commanders were hesitant to begin war at once, but had to follow orders by Ranjit Singh. The perfidious General of Sikh Army, Sardar Ji Attary Wala who previously opposed Ranjit Singh and accompanied Azeem Khan, returned back to support the Sikhs. He requested pardon from Ranjit Singh because the war had adopted a religious flavor as he had been listening to anti-Sikhs religious slogans by Azeem Khan troops. In the afternoon one section of the troops was organized at the right side of Tarakai hillock. General Ventura and General Allard were ordered to reach directly at Nowshera and thwart Muhammad Azeem Khan’s thrust from the Nowshera Chahan side. Both the Generals reached at once with eight platoons and two guns. Ranjit Singh ordered Sahaye Singh, the commanding officer of the Khalsa army, to climb the mountain. Sahaye Singh along with Mahan Singh moved to the mountainside. When one fourth of the troops had climbed the mountain, the Pukhtun attacked them and a huge firing was carried out. Although the Akalis were fighting actively, they were unable to repulse lakhkar who later succeeded to the peak. Hindi50 remarks that “The Afghan troops immediately fired so many stones that an uncountable number of soldiers were killed.” During the war, the one of the Afghans’ soldiers killed Satgor Sahaye Singh by head shot. Mahan Singh was stabbed by another fighter. Seeing this situation, the khalsa army retreated. In the first phase of the war, the Sikh army retreated and many were killed while Afghans came down the mountain to ground-in their backup. On the other side, Sardar Phula Singh was standing ready for a counter attack. He attacked Afghans and intense fighting continued for half an hour. During this fighting many Sikhs commanders like Phula Singh, Gurba Singh Manas, Karam Sing Chahal and Balab Dhar Singh were killed by Pukhtuns along with two hundred men. Therefore, the surviving troops began to run away. The situation was worrisome for Ranjit Singh and he ordered his commanders to stop the fleeing troops and shoot if they did not accept their order. Ranjit Singh personally started commanding and ordered all the four platoons, infantry battalion and reserve troops to attack collectively. At this stage, the lakhkar (lashkar) was caught between the Sikhs from two sides and firing killed many of them. Afghans faced the Sikh artillery with swords but soon they started to break up when they realized their inability to stand against the huge Sikh army. The Khalsa army picked the lakhkarian one by one from the mountains and killed them. It is said that the Pukhtuns ran from the attackers saying: “Toba Toba Khuda Khud Khalsa Shud” (God forbid! it’s as if God Himself has become a Khalsa). Such statement needs confirmation from other independent sources. Mr. Moorcroft commented on the battle of Nowshera that the Pukhtuns would have won the day, had not the disciplined regiments of the Sikhs stood firm. Capt. Wade, the English resident of Ludhiana has stated that two thousand Sikhs and three thousand Pukhtuns were killed. The remarkable highlight of the battle was the fight between the two famous religious personalities of both the religions : Sikhism and Islam; Akali Baba Phula Singh, who had memorized the Guru Garanth, and the Muslim spiritual figure Shaikh Muhammad Shoaib popularly known as Todery Baba. Phula Singh was killed in the battle field and Muhammad Shoaib was fatally wounded and died of those wounds on 27 March 1823. Now, shrines have been built on tombs of both the leaders. Shaikh Muhammad Shoaib shrine is located in Tordher village Swabi and the Akali Baba Pula Singh tomb is situated at Pir Sabaq, Nowshera. Sons and followers of Shaikh Muhammad Shoaib like Akhund Abdul Ghafoor (1794-1877) popularly known as Saidu Baba had also participated in the battle. One of the poets of that time named Moeze, a participant of the war has given the details of the battle in a long epic, which became very popular in Pukhtun literature. He praised the gallant and courageous role of different Pukhtuns tribes and clans like Akozai, Salarzai, Khudu Khel, Ghadaizai, Norezai, Ashezai, Ismailzai, Akhund Khel and Yusafzai. Sir Olaf Caroe suggests that tribal losses can be estimated by anyone visiting the vast graveyard in south of Tarakai hillocks near Nowshera. One can find ample evidences of the tribal sacrifice that is still remembered. The losses of Khattak tribe, who lived near the war zone, lost their chiefs like Feroz Khan Khattak and Noroz Khan Khattak along with other numerous people of his tribe. The graves of killed people situated near the river Kabul and both sides of G.T road reveal the extent of this battle. Most of them are visited by people until this day to pay respect to their great honor. These include five brothers i.e. Faiz Talab, Altaf Khan, Sherdad, Muhibullah and Pir Khan sons of Sarwar Khan, are commonly known as pinzapiran—five pirs. In this war, three thousand Muslims and two thousand five hundred troops of Ranjit Singh including Sikhs, Muslim and Hindus were killed at the marble rock of Nowshera. The enthusiastic participation and sacrifices are evidence of the spirit of Jihad, there are a lot of tombs recorded by historians like Afzal Raza who in Akhora Khattak in which those are belong to this battle whose tombs are near to the bank of river Kabul. Moreover, in Nowshera Kalan there are a lot of tombs known as ‘chihalghazi’. It is a Persian word meaning forty meter long, so it is the tombs of those martyrs who were not known at that time and people buried them collectively in a single tomb.
Role of Durrani Sardars during the Battle
The local people and the Afghan lakhkar were waiting for Azeem Khan’s troops to come to their assistance. Azeem Khan sent five boats for their help but those were hit by General Ventura and were drowned in the river. Azeem Khan, for unknown reasons did not cross the Kabul River to link up with the tribesmen. Olaf Caroe remarked on the role of Azim Khan: “In the meantime Azim Khan on the other bank had been inactive. He did not seek to cross the river or even to neutralize the effect of the Sikh Artillery, operated from the southern bank, where his Army stood. That evening he retreated. He had scarcely even been engaged in the battle, and no valid excuse has been offered for his behavior. Nine years later, Alexander Burnes heard in Peshawar that he feared for his treasure, or alternatively that his men were overcome by the shouts of the Akalis on the northern bank. Their exclamations were attributed to the arrival of fresh reinforcements”. According to some sources, Ranjit Singh spread the rumor that the Sikhs had captured the harem and treasury of Azeem Khan at Mechani, therefore, the former was shocked and wanted to reach there immediately .Ranjit Singh realizing the situation concentrated his artillery and infantry on the lakhkar and left a small detachment under General Ventura to prevent any crossing by Azeem Khan. Finally, after the fourth attack led personally by Ranjit Singh and his personal bodyguards in the evening, the lakhkar realized that Azeem Khan had withdrawn from the battle and abandoned his allies. This, coupled with the withering attacks by the Sikh artillery broke the lakhkar’s resolve to rally again under their Pir Sayed Akbar Shah. They dispersed in disarray, the Sikh victory was complete. The battle went on for two days and one night. The main reason for failure of lakhkarian was the lack of training against the well-trained Sikh troops. Afghani has commented on Azeem Khan’s role that he could have reached the field on the second day of the fight, had he adopted the way from Pir Pai and crossed the river Kabul by Momen Khan Dheray. That way, he could have never been blocked by the Sikh army and could have assisted the lakhkar. One may suggest that this option was possible before Azeem Khan’s arrival in Nowshera since during battle it would have been impossible to leave and come back to the war spot in one day. However, it should be understood that adopting it could be better option as compared to the wait and see defeat of Pukthuns. Azeem Khan’s withdrawal from the battlefield has never been explained fully: some say he believed his brother had returned to recapture Peshawar at the behest of the Sikhs, others attribute his retreat to cowardice or fear of being cut off by the ferocious Sikh attack. It seems that despite his call for Jihad against the Sikhs he was neither prepared nor had planned any strategy for the upcoming battle. Azeem Khan died shortly after the battle of Nowshera. Das writes that he could not face the ‘Ulama and masses and committed suicide by poison in Kabul. However Qazi Ataullah Khan remarked that he was very stressed due to his role in the war and died at Lata Band village on the way to Kabul due to excessive drinking. His cowardice resulted in an untrustworthy outcome on the tribal culture of the frontier and none would believe in Muhammadzai Durranis as a leader, as Sir Olaf Caroe remarked, “No Yusafzai, Afridi, or Khattak is anxious to rely in the word of a Muhammadzai Sardar for it is doubtful if he will be there on the day”.However, Azeem Khan was not the only cause of such untrustworthy outlook, his brothers were equally responsible because they were opposed to the call of Jihad and had refused to help him in the campaign. Moreover, lakhkarian were enthusiastic enough but lacked training, resources to continue a long war and above all visionary leadership. Furthermore, Ranjit Singh success was possible by creating differences among the Barakzai brothers. He had made good relations with Yar Muhammad Khan and Sultan Muhammad Khan before the war of Nowshera and Yar Muhammad Khan had accepted his over-lordship. This led to differences among the Barakzai brothers which resulted in the Pukhtun’s failure After the victory of Sikhs, the four Barakzai brothers who acknowledged the over-lordship of Ranjit Singh, i.e. Yar Muhammad Khan, Sultan Muhammad Khan, Pir Muhammad Khan and Said Muhammad Khan paid him an annual tribute. The Sikh became the ruler of frontier and their rule lasted until 1849, of course with an interval during the presence of Sayyid Ahmad Barelvi during 1826-1831.
Consequences of the Sikh Victory
After securing Nowshera, Ranjit Singh’s forces captured Peshawar and adjoining areas including Jamrud. The Khattaks and the Yusafzai suffered enormous casualties due to the Sikh artillery and the seeming betrayal by the Muhammadzai Sardaran leading to a lack of trust in the Durrani’s word from then onwards. Sikh troops captured ammunition from recently acquired area including 14 large and 18 small guns that added to their cavalry. Ranjit Singh’s victory was to mark the high point of his campaigns. His empire now stretched from the Khyber Pass in the west, to Kashmir in the north and to Multan in the south. With this victory, he planned to eventually push further west and take the Afghan capital of Kabul itself. The war had a brutal impact on the remains of Durrani power. They reduced Peshawar to ruins and secured the Khyber Pass, so no Durrani reinforcements could threaten them again. In the subsequent years, Ranjit Singh’s troops crushed the local small scale resistance and destroyed Nowshera Kalan, Pabbi, and Jalozai. The Sikh troops reduced to rubble all buildings and Gardens of Mughuls and Pukhtun memorials including Qilla Bala Hisar. One of the major reasons for non-existence of the Mughul and Pukhtun buildings in Peshawar is the defeat of Pukhtun tribes in this battle in 1823.
Conclusion
This battle made it clear to the frontier Pukhtuns that the Khalsa troops of Lahore Darbar were more organized and trained. The troops having had the artillery and associated with an organized government of the Lahore Darbar was difficult to contest on the traditional weaponries and strategies, as were used by Pukhtuns. The battle was a decisive victory for the Sikhs and led to their occupation of the Peshawar valley that sealed the further prospects of Durranis and other Pukhtun tribes. The inhabitants of the Trans-Indus region are one of the most emotionally religious communities in Asia. Those who fought with religious zest always conquered this land. The Muslim versus Sikh equation caused both communities to fight with religious passion. Although the Muslim spiritual leaders were “not inferior in performing the principles of Islam”, the fact remained that the Pukhtun leaders and Durranis were not of the level of Sikh trained and experienced leadership. The conquest of frontier was the first attempt from Trans-Jhelum after 800 years since Raja Jay Pala and Ananda Pal. On one side this success united major part of the Punjab and on the other side divided the Pukhtun territories. The division was further strengthened by the British Colonial authorities in second half of 19th century. This victory also shatters self or Colonially constructed Martial Race theory about Pukhtuns, which were later on adopted by Pukhtun ‘nationalists’. Furthermore, it also indicates that more research remains to look into the image of Pukhtun as a nation or ‘lar aw bar yao Afghan the Afghans in high ups and plain are one. At least, the battle of Pir Sabaq and subsequent history of the area during the 19th century do not provide trust-worthy historical evidence to support such claims.
