The predecessors to the contemporaryArmy of India were many: thesepoy regiments, native cavalry, irregular horse andIndian sapper and miner companies raised by the threeBritish presidencies. The Army of India was raised under theBritish Raj in the 19th century by taking the erstwhilepresidency armies, merging them, and bringing them under the Crown. TheBritish Indian Army fought in bothWorld Wars.
 |
| History of science and technology in the Indian subcontinent |
|---|
| By subject |
The armed forces succeeded themilitary of British India followingIndia's independence in 1947. AfterWorld War II, many of the wartime troops were discharged and units disbanded. The reduced armed forces were partitioned between India andPakistan. TheIndian Armed Forces foughtin all four wars against Pakistan, and two wars againstPeople's Republic of China in1962 and1967. India also fought in theKargil War with Pakistan in 1999, thehighest altitudemountain warfare in history.[1]
| Indian Armed Forces of the  Government of India |
|---|
 |
| Ministry |
| Executive departments |
| Staff |
| Military departments |
| Military services |
| Paramilitary services |
| Organisations |
| History |
 India portal |
The Indian Armed Forces have participated in several United Nations peacekeeping operations, and are presently the second largest contributor of troops to the peacekeeping force.
.jpg)
.jpg)
Fortified cities have been excavated from theIndus Valley Civilisation with thick and tallwalls.Banawali is among the earliest sites in the world where moats have been discovered. These forts also feature square and round bastion and contain a citadel constructed at an elevated height.[2] Sites such asMohenjo Daro andDholavira exhibit some outstanding examples ofBronze Age Indian fortifications with their thick tall walls, with the walls made of burned bricks at some places solid mud-brick embankment have been discovered which run for twenty five feet (7.5 meters) without reaching the bottom.[3] Sites such asDesalpar, Dholavira's have yielded massive stone fortifications and the acropolis is extensively fortified with tall standing walls and furnished with ramparts and gateways.[4][5]
An Indus seal depicting a soldier firing acomposite bow was unearthed inShortugai,Afghanistan, which indicates that Indus people were already familiar with it long before they were depicted in ancient Indian reliefs. Another copper seal from Mohenjo Daro shows a horned hunter holding a composite bow.[6]
An excavation atSinauli's necropolis has yielded copper swords, helmets and chariots, dating from 2000 to 1800 BC, which suggests the presence of a warriorIndo-Aryan people who followedVedic religion in the region during theCopper-Bronze Age (2000 BC–1200 BC).[7]
TheRigvedic tribes ofIndo-Aryans were led by their kings (raja) and engaged in wars with each other and other tribes. They usedbronze weapons and horse (ashva) -drawn spoke-wheeledchariots (ratha) described prominently in theRigveda. The main share from the booty obtained duringcattle raids and battles went to the chief of the tribe. The warriors belonged to theKshatriyavarna. The earliest of such battles is noted inRigveda as theBattle of the Ten Kings.
TheVedas and other associated texts dating to the post-Rigvedic (Iron Age)Vedic period (ca. 1100–500 BC) contain the earliest written references to armies in India. The earliest known application ofwar elephants dates to this period; the animals are mentioned in severalVedic Sanskrit hymns.[8]
.png)
The two great epics ofHinduism, theRamayana and theMahabharata, center on conflicts between the emergingMahajanapadas and refer to military formations, theories of warfare and esoteric weaponry. They discuss standing armies that used in war chariots, war elephants and even mythical flying machines (vimana). The Ramayana describes in great detail the fortifications ofAyodhya. TheMahabharata describes various military techniques such asChakravyuha used in theKurukshetra War.
 | This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Theexpansionist EmperorBimbisara conqueredAnga in what is nowWest Bengal and strengthened the military ofMagadha's capital,Rajagriha.Ajatashatru built a new fort atPataliputra, Magadha's new capital, to launch an attack onLicchavis across theGanges River.Jain texts tell that he used two new weapons;catapults and a coveredchariot with swingingmace that has been compared[by whom?] to moderntanks.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
TheNanda dynasty originated from the region of Magadha in ancient India during the 4th century BC. At its greatest extent, the empire ruled by the Nanda dynasty extended fromBengal in the east, toPunjab in the west and as far south as theVindhya Range.
In 327 BCAlexander the Great began his foray into Punjab. KingAmbhi, ruler ofTaxila, surrendered the city to Alexander. Alexander fought an epic battle against the Indian king Porus in theBattle of Hydaspes (326). Despite winning, Alexander decided to turn back and end his campaign due to pressure from his generals and troops who were tired and fatigued because of constant battle.
According toMegasthenes, who served as an ambassador from theSeleucid Empire,Chandragupta Maurya built an army consisting of 30,000cavalry, 9,000war elephants, and 600,000infantry. Chandragupta conquered much of the Indian subcontinent, establishing an empire from theArabian Sea to theBay of Bengal. He then defeated the HellenisticSeleucid Empire underSeleucus I Nicator to conquer the regions to the west of theIndus River. He then turned south, taking over much of what is now Central India. His military was administered by six chairs, one for each of the four arms of the army (infantry, cavalry, elephants, and chariots), one chair for the navy, and one for logistics and supply.
Infantry at this time was most commonly armed with alongbow made ofbamboo and a single- or double-handed broadsword probably similar to thekhanda. Other foot soldiers could be armed with a large animal hide tower shield and a spear or javelins. Cavalry carried lances. Elephants were mounted, sometimes allegedly withhowdahs, which may be an Indian invention[10] by archers or javelin throwers, with amahout around the animal's neck. Chariots by this time were in definite decline, but remained in the army due to their prestige.
In 185 BCE, the lastMauryan emperor was assassinated byPushyamitra Shunga, theGeneral of the Mauryan Armed Forces.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
War and conflict characterized the Shunga period. They are known to have warred with the Kalingas, Satavahanas, the Indo-Greeks, and possibly the Panchalas and Mathuras.
Extent of the Shunga Empire's wars with the Indo-Greek Kingdom figure greatly in the history of this period. From around 180 BCE theIndo-Greek rulerDemetrius I of Bactria conquered the Kabul Valley and is theorized to have advanced into the trans-Indus. The Indo-GreekMenander I is credited with either joining or leading a campaign to Pataliputra with other Indian rulers; however, very little is known about the exact nature and success of the campaign. The net result of these wars remains uncertain.
Pushyamitra is recorded to have performed twoAshvamedhaYagnas and Shunga imperial inscriptions have extended as far asJalandhar. Scriptures such as the Divyavadhana note that his rule extended even farther toSialkot, in the Punjab. Moreover, if it was lost,Mathura was regained by the Shungas around 100 BCE (or by other indigenous rulers: the Arjunayanas (area of Mathura) and Yaudheyas mention military victories on their coins ("Victory of the Arjunayanas", "Victory of the Yaudheyas"), and during the 1st century BCE, the Trigartas, Audumbaras and finally the Kunindas also started to mint their own coins). Accounts of battles between the Greeks and the Shunga in Northwestern India are also found in the Mālavikāgnimitram, a play by Kālidāsa which describes a battle between Greek cavalrymen and Vasumitra, the grandson of Pushyamitra, on the Indus river, in which the Indians defeated the Greeks and Pushyamitra successfully completed the Ashvamedha Yagna.
The Indo-Greeks and the Shungas seem to have reconciled and exchanged diplomatic missions around 110 BCE, as indicated by the Heliodorus pillar, which records the dispatch of a Greek ambassador named Heliodorus, from the court of the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas, to the court of the Shunga emperor Bhagabhadra at the site of Vidisha in central India.
Classical Indian texts on archery in particular andmartial arts in general are known asDhanurveda. Several classics of the genre date from this period.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
According to some interpretations of thePuranas, theSatavahana family belonged to the Andhra-jati ("tribe") and was the firstDeccanese dynasty to build an empire in daksinapatha (southern region). The Satavahanas (also called Andhra and Shalivahan) rose to power in modernTelangana, Andhra Pradesh andMaharashtra around 200 BCE and remained in power for about 400 years. Almost the whole of present-dayTelangana, Maharashtra,Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,Odisha, Goa,Karnataka, andAndhra Pradesh came under Satavahana rule. Their first capital wasKoti Lingala, as well asPaithan, then called Pratishthan.
Simuka, the dynasty's founder, conqueredMaharashtra,Malwa and part ofMadhya Pradesh. His successor and brotherKanha (or Krishna) further extended his kingdom to the west and the south. He was succeeded by Satakarni I, who defeated theShunga dynasty of North India. His successor,Gautamiputra Satakarni, defeated the invadingIndo-Scythians,Indo-Parthians andIndo-Greeks. His empire extended up to Banavasi in the south, and included Maharashtra,Konkan,Saurashtra,Malwa, westRajasthan and Vidharbha. Later, Satavahana rulers lost some of these territories. Satavahana power revived briefly underYajna Sri Satakarni but declined after his death.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
TheMahameghavahana dynasty was an ancient ruling dynasty of Kalinga after the decline of the Mauryan Empire. The third ruler of the dynasty,Khārabēḷa, conquered much of India in a series of campaigns at the beginning of the common era. Kaḷingan military might was reinstated by Khārabēḷa. Under Khārabēḷa's generalship, the Kaḷinga state had a formidable maritime reach with trade routes linking it to the then-Simhala (Sri Lanka), Burma (Myanmar), Siam (Thailand), Vietnam, Kamboja (Cambodia), Borneo, Bali, Samudra (Sumatra) and Yawadvipa (Java).
Khārabēḷa led many successful campaigns against states of Magadha, Anga, Satavahanas and the South Indian regions of Pandyan Empire and expanded Kaḷinga as far as the Ganges and the Kaveri. Colonists from Kalinga settled in Sri Lanka, Burma, as well as the Maldives and Maritime Southeast Asia. Even today Indians are referred to as Keling in Malaysia because of this.
The main source of information about Khārabeḷa is his famous seventeen line rock-cut Hātigumphā inscription in a cave in the Udayagiri hills near Bhubaneswar, Odisha. According to the inscription, he attacked Rajagriha in Magadha, thus defeating theIndo-Greek kingDemetrius III Eucaerus retreat to Mathura.
Siva-Dhanur-veda discusses the military of theGupta Empire. The Guptas relied less on armoured war elephants compared to previous Indian empires. The use ofchariots had declined heavily by the time of the Guptas, as they had not proved very useful against theGreeks,Scythians, and other invaders. Guptas used famously used cavalry archers, and it became the prestige arm of the military as evidenced by coinage. Heavycavalry clad in mail armour and equipped withmaces and lances would have used shock action to break the enemy line.
They also employedinfantry similar to previous periods: Archers with a longbow composed of bamboo or metal and fired a long bamboo cane arrow with a metal head; iron shafts were used against armoured elephants. They also sometimes used fire arrows. Archers were frequently protected by infantry equipped with shields, javelins, and longswords. The Guptas also maintained a navy, allowing them to control regional waters.
Samudragupta seized the kingdoms ofAhichchhatra andPadmavati early in his reign. Later, he took the Kota kingdom and attacked the tribes inMalvas, theYaudheyas, theArjunayanas, theMaduras and theAbhiras. He also subjugated the remnants of theKushan Empire. By his death in 380, he had conquered over twenty kingdoms.
4th century CE Sanskrit poet Kalidasa, creditsChandragupta II with having conquered about twenty one kingdoms, both in and outside India. After finishing his campaign in the East and West India, he proceeded northwards, subjugated the Parasikas,[12] then theHunas and theKambojas tribes located in the west and east Oxus valleys respectively.[13] of theIndian subcontinent; the Gupta empire was the most powerful empire in the world during his reign, at a time when the Roman Empire in the west was in decline.
Skandagupta faced with invadingIndo-Hephthalites orWhite Huns, from the northwest. Skandagupta had warred against the Huns during the reign of his father, and was celebrated throughout the empire as a great warrior. He crushed the Huns invasion in 455, and managed to keep them at bay; however, the expense of the wars drained the empire's resources and contributed to its decline
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
EmperorHarsha (606–647) ruled theEmpire of Harsha covering northern India for over forty years. His father, a king ofThaneswar, had gained prominence by successful wars against theHuns. Harsha had plans to conquer the whole of India, and carried on wars for thirty years with considerable success. By 612 he had built up a vast army with which he conquered nearly allNorth India up to theNarmada river. In 620 he invaded theDeccan Plateau but was repelled byPulakeshin II.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
InSouth India, theChalukyas and thePallavas gained prominence. TheChalukya ruler Pulakeshin II's expansionism started with minor campaigns against theAlupas,Gangas and others. He defeated the Pallava kingMahendravarman and conquered theCheras and thePandyas. His greatest military success, the defeat of Harshavardhana (also known as Harsha), depleted his treasury, forcing him to end his expansionist campaigns.
The Pallava kingNarasimhavarman vowed to avenge Mahendravarman's defeat by Pulakeshin II. He invadedVatapi with an army headed by his general Paranjothi. He defeated the Chalukyas, killing Pulakeshin II in 642. Clashes between the Chalukyas and the Pallavas continued for a century, until the Chalukya kingVikramaditya II won a decisive victory against the Pallavas in 740. TheRashtrakutas overthrew the Chalukya empire in 750. During the 970s,Tailapa II overthrew theRashtrakutas and recovered most of theChalukya Empire, except forGujarat. The Chalukyas of this period are known as the Kalyani Chalukyas, asKalyani was their capital. They clashed intermittently with theCholas.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
TheCholas were the first rulers of the Indian subcontinent to maintain a navy and use it to expand their dominion overseas.Vijayalaya Chola defeated the Pallavas and capturedThanjavur. In the early 10th century the Chola kingParantaka I defeated thePandyan kingMaravarman Rajasimha II and invadedSri Lanka. TheRashtrakuta rulerKrishna III defeated and killed Parantaka I's sonRajaditya in about 949.
Uttama Chola reigned 970–85. Inscriptions tell that at least from his time, Chola warriors wore waist coats of armour. Hence, one regiment was calledNiyayam-Uttama-Chola-tterinda-andalakattalar.[what language is this?] Paluvettaraiyar Maravan Kandanar served as a general under Uttama and his predecessor,Sundara.
Rajaraja Chola began his military career with the conquest of the Cheras in theKandalur War. He captured the Pandya ruler Amara Bhujanga, the town ofVizhinjam, and a part of Sri Lanka. In the 14th year of his reign (998–999) he conquered theGangas ofMysore, theNolambas ofBellary and Eastern Mysore, Tadigaipadi,Vengi,Coorg, the Pandyas and the Chalukyas of the Deccan. During the next three years, he subduedQuilon and the northern kingdom ofKalinga with the help of his sonRajendra Chola I. Rajendra later completed the conquest of Sri Lanka, crossed theGanges, and marched acrossKalinga toBengal. He sent outa great naval expedition that occupied parts ofJava,Malaya, andSumatra. The Cholas were brought down by theHoysalas from the west and Pandyas from the south.
The Arab scholar Sulaiman described the emperor of theRashtrakuta dynasty as one of the four great kings of the world in the 9th century.[14] In middle of 9th century, thePalas underDevapala attacked and subjugated theGurjara-Pratiharas. Led byMihir Bhoja, the Pratiharas, and their allies defeatedNarayan Pala after the death of Devapala.
There were many battles between the Gurjar Pratiharas under Bhoj and theRashtrakutas underKrishna II with mixed results. When the Rashtrakuta kingIndra III attackedKanauj,Mahipala I, Mihir Bhoj's successor, fled; he later returned.
Al-Masudi wrote that in 915, during Mahipala's rule, the Pratiharas were at war with the Muslims in the west and the Rashtrakutas in the south, and that the Gurjar Pratiharas had four armies of about 80,000 men each.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
In 712, an Arab general, named Muhammad bin Qasim Al-Thaqafi (Arabic: محمد بن قاسم) (c. 31 December 695 – 18 July 715), attacked and conqueredSindh kingdom which is mainly situated in Indus valley area (after partition, now in modern-dayPakistan); by the timeSindh was ruled byRaja Dahir of theRai dynasty, and this dynasty was at war with Arabs. Though they defeated severalArab invasions before 712 CE, this time being deprived of local Buddhist people's support, Sindh was captured and the first step of Islamic foundation in India was created.Chach Nama (Sindhi:چچ نامو), written by Kàzí Ismáíl briefly discusses the events. However, the South Indian emperorVikramaditya II of theChalukya dynasty and the Pratiharas defeated the Arabs during theCaliphate campaigns in India (738 CE) when they tried to move eastward.
Indian inscriptions confirm this invasion but record the Arab success only against the smaller states inGujarat. They also record the defeat of the Arabs at two places. The southern army moving south into Gujarat was defeated at Navsari by the south Indian EmperorVikramaditya II of theChalukya dynasty who sent his generalPulakeshin to defeat the Arabs. The army that went east, reached Avanti whose rulerNagabhata I ofGurjara Pratihara utterly defeated the invaders. Arab forces failed to make any substantial gains in India and in theCaliphate campaigns in India (730 CE), their army was severely defeated by the Indian kings. As a result, Arabs' territory got restricted toSindh in modernPakistan.
.jpg)
In the early 11th century,Mahmud of Ghazni conquered theRajputHindu Shahi kingdom in the North-west frontier in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and his raids into northern India weakened thePratihara kingdom, which was drastically reduced in size and came under the control of theChandelas. Mahmud sacked some temples across northern India, including the temple at Somnath in Gujarat, but his permanent conquests were limited to the Punjab. The early 11th century also saw the reign of thepolymath kingRaja Bhoj, the Paramara ruler ofMalwa.[15] Ghaznavids were later repulsed by many local Hindu dynasties in whichChauhans underVigraharaja IV are known to have played a crucial role.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(October 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
TheDelhi Sultanate, under theKhalji dynasty, repelledseveral invasions by the Mongol Empire.Zafar Khan, a general servingAlauddin Khalji, defeated the Mongols nearJalandhar in 1297. In 1299, Zafar Khan fought back a Mongol army of 200,000 soldiers but was killed in the process. The Sultanate declined after it facedtwofold resistance one fromMewar dynasty underMaharana Hammir and other fromHarihara andBukka who established theVijayanagara Empire in south. Its lastsultan,Ibrahim Lodi, who was presiding over a crumbling empire due to numerous internal rebellions and rise of powerful Mewari Rajput kingRana Sanga, died fighting the forces ofBabur in thefirst battle of Panipat in 1526, ending the sultanate and paving the way for the foundation of the Mughal Empire.
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(October 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
After Babur's victory over Ibrahim Lodi, theMewar rulerRana Sanga led a combined Rajput army of 20,000 intending to defeatBabur and capture Delhi. The Rajput army defeated the combined armies of Mughals and Afghans inBattle of Bayana. The Mughals had superiorartillery, which prevailed against the Rajputcavalry yet Mughals won only whenTomar general betrayed Rana Sanga, resulting in his defeat by Babur at theBattle of Khanua (16 March 1527). During the reign Rana Sanga's son Rana Udai Singh II, Babur's grandsonAkbar conqueredChittor, the capital ofMewar.[16]
In theBattle of Haldighati (21 June 1576) between Akbar andRana Pratap Singh, the Mughal army of 80,000 was headed by a Rajput,Raja Man Singh, and Akbar's sonSalim. The Rajput army's strength was 20,000. Rana Pratap reluctantly retreated with the help of his estranged brother Shakti Singh. His legendary horseChetak was killed in the battle. Later, Rana Pratap organized a small army ofBhil tribals funded by a Jain businessman called Bhamashah and started aguerrilla war against Akbar and wonBattle of Dewair (1582). He retook large parts of Mewar but could not retake Chittor.[17]
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(October 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Sultan Muzaffar Shah I, the governor ofGujarat, established theMuzaffarid dynasty in 1391. It expanded rapidly and peaked underSultan Mahmud I, who lost theBattle of Diu to the Portuguese in 1509. The dynasty power was greatly reduced byinvasions from Mewar underMaharana Sanga.
Ruled by theZamorin, the smallHinduNair kingdom ofCalicut (Malabar) welcomed thePortuguese in 1498 as traders but then fought several naval wars with Portugal in the 16th century. The office of Muslim naval chief inCalicut was known as theKunjali Marakkar.
The Italian traveler Niccolo de Conti wrote of the Emperor of theVijayanagara Empire as the most powerful ruler of India in the 15th century.[20] In 1509, theBahamani Sultan declared war against theVijayanagara Empire. His large coalition army was defeated byKrishnadevaraya in a battle in which the Sultan was wounded. In 1510, Krishnadevaraya launched a counteroffensive against the Sultan at Kovelaconda; Yusuf Adil Shahi ofBijapur died in the battle. In 1512, Krishnadevaraya capturedRaichur andGulbarga after defeating Barid-i-Mamalik, the titular head of theBahmani Sultanate, who escaped toBidar. Later, Bidar also fell to Krishnadevaraya, who restored the Bahmani Sultan to his throne under the terms of their peace treaty.[21]
Between 1512 and 1514, Krishnadevaraya subjugated the Palaigar ofUmmattur, who had rebelled against his brother. During this campaign, theGajapati ofOdisha attacked Vijayanagara and occupied two northeast provinces:Udayagiri andKondavidu. Krishnadevaraya recaptured these lands between 1513 and 1518.
On 26 January 1565, the neighboring kingdoms ofAhmednagar,Berar,Bidar,Bijapur andGolconda Sultanates came together to treacherously defeat[22] the Vijayanagar decisively in theBattle of Talikota. The surviving Vijaynagar forces fled with a large treasury to re-establish their headquarters atVellore Fort in Tamil Nadu andChandragiri (Andhra Pradesh) nearTirupathi. It would be here that the British would seek a land grant to establish theEnglish East India Company Fort St. George inMadras.
Later, the Vijayanagara's southern Telugu governors, in present-dayTamil Nadu, became independent. They became theGingee Nayaks inGingee Fort, theTanjore Nayaks, and theNayaks of Madurai.[23]
| Ahom kingdom |
|---|
|
Ahom Kingdom (1228–1826) was a kingdom and tribe which rose to prominence in present-dayAssam early in the thirteenth century. They ruled much of Assam from the 13th century until the establishment of British rule in 1838.[24] The Ahoms brought with them a tribal religion and a language of their own, however they later merged with theHindu religion.[25] From thirteenth until seventeenth century, repeated attempts were made by the Muslim rulers of Delhi to invade and subdue Ahoms, however the Ahoms managed to maintain their independence and ruled themselves for nearly 600 years.[26][27]
TheMughal Empire, one of the statesAge of the Islamic Gunpowders began in 1526 with the overthrow of Ibrahim Lodi and encompassed most of South Asia by the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Allied with the local rulers, it extended fromBengal in the east toKabul in the west,Kashmir in the north to theKaveri basin in the south,[28] a territory of over 4 million km2 (1.5 million sq mi) at its height. Its population at that time has been estimated at between 110 and 130 million.[29] In the year 1540, thenMughal EmperorHumayun was defeated bySher Shah Suri, and forced to retreat toKabul. Suris and their adviser, the Hindu emperorHem Chandra Vikramaditya, also called Hemu, ruled North India from 1540 to 1556. Hemu established a 'Hindu' empire briefly from Delhi in 1556.
The "classic period" of the empire started in 1556 with the accession ofAkbar the Great and ended with the death of EmperorAurangzeb in 1707,[30][31] although the dynasty continued for another 150 years. During this period, the empire was marked by centralized administration and active culture. Following 1725 the empire declined rapidly, weakened by wars of succession; famine and local revolts fueled by it; the growth of religious intolerance; the rise of theMaratha Empire; and finallyBritish colonialism. The last Mughal emperor,Bahadur Shah II, whose rule was restricted to the city of Delhi, was imprisoned and exiled by the British after theIndian Rebellion of 1857.
| The Marathas |
|---|
|
In 1674,Shivaji carved an independent Maratha zone aroundPune, Maharashtra, from theBijapur Sultanate and, with that began the emergence of the Marathas as the most important power in India that filled the vacuum created by the decline of the Mughal Empire.[33] Shivaji established an effective civil and military administration. After a lifetime of conquest andguerrilla warfare with the Mughal emperorAurangzeb, Shivaji died in 1680, leaving behind a kingdom of great but ill-defined extent. This was followed by a period of instability ending with Aurangzeb's death.
Shivaji was the second king in Indian history to maintain an active navy.Kanhoji Angre, the first Maratha naval chief under Shivaji's grandsonShahuji, controlled illegal entries into Maratha territory byDutch,English andPortuguese commercial ships on the Western coast of India in the early 18th century. He remained undefeated until his death in 1729.[citation needed]
Although the descendants of Shivaji continued to rule, the office of thePeshwa, or the prime minister, became the focus of Maratha power and patronage. The Peshwas were the effective rulers of the Maratha state and oversaw the period of greatest Maratha expansion, brought to an end by the Maratha's defeat by an Afghan army at theThird Battle of Panipat in 1761. The Marathas recovered their position as the dominant power in India by 1772 until the last Peshwa,Baji Rao II, was defeated by the British in theThird Anglo-Maratha War. With the defeat of theMarathas, no native power represented a threat for the British any longer.[34] The end of the last Anglo-Maratha War marked the era of British paramountcy over India.[35]
The Marathas also developed a potentNavy circa 1660s, which at its peak, dominated the territorial waters of the western coast of India fromMumbai toSavantwadi.[36] It would engage in attacking theBritish,Portuguese,Dutch, andSiddi Naval ships and kept a check on their naval ambitions. TheMaratha Navy dominated until around the 1730s, was in a state of decline by 1770s, and ceased to exist by 1818.[37]
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
TheKingdom of Bharatpur was founded byJats in northern India in 1680 AD. The formation of theKingdom of Bharatpur was a result of revolts by theJats living in the region around Delhi,Agra, andMathura against the imperialMughals.[38]Gokula, a local Jatzamindar of Mathura, lead the first of such revolts in 1669. Even though theJats were defeated and Gokula was executed, the movement was not completely crushed and discontent continued to simmer. UnderMaharaja Suraj Mal, theKingdom of Bharatpur expanded to the present-day districts ofAgra,Aligarh,Bharatpur,Dholpur,Etawa,Gurgaon,Hathras,Mainpuri,Mathura,Mewat,Meerut,Rewari, andRohtak.[39]
KingMarthanda Varma inherited the small feudal state ofVenad in 1723 and built it intoTravancore, one of the most powerful kingdoms in southern India. Marthanda Varma led the Travancore forces during theTravancore-Dutch War of 1739–46, which culminated in theBattle of Colachel. The defeat of the Dutch by Travancore is considered the earliest example of an organised power from Asia overcoming European military technology and tactics.[40] Marthanda Varma went on to conquer most of the petty principalities of the native rulers who had allied with the Dutch against him.
DuringDharma Raja's reign,Tipu Sultan invaded Travancore, but the commander-in-chiefRaja Kesavadas led Travancore to victory despite being outnumbered. This attack resulted in a Travancore-British alliance against Tipu in theThird Anglo-Mysore War.Velu Thampi Dalawa, the Dewan of Travancore,fought against the British Empire but lost. Travancore became a Britishvassal kingdom in 1805 following a treaty between Colonel Charles Macaulay and Dewan Velu Thampi.
The first iron-cased and metal-cylinderrockets were developed by the Mysorean army of the South IndianKingdom of Mysore in the 1780s.[41] The Mysoreans successfully used these iron-cased rockets against the larger forces of theBritish East India Company during theAnglo-Mysore Wars.[41]
![A painting showing the Mysorean army fighting the British forces with Mysorean rockets, which used metal cylinders to contain the combustion powder.[42]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aRocket_warfare.jpg)
| Sikh Empire |
|---|
|
MaharajaRanjit Singh was aSikh king of the sovereign country ofPunjab and theSikh Empire. His fatherMaha Singh ledSukerchakia, amisl within theSikh Confederacy. Born in 1780 inGujranwala, Ranjit Singh succeeded his father at the age of 12. He united the Sikh factions into theSikh Empire and took the title "Maharaja" on 13 April 1801, to coincide withBaisakhi.Lahore was his capital from 1799. In 1802 he conqueredAmritsar, a holy city of the Sikh religion. In 1822 Ranjit Singh hired European mercenaries for the first time to train a part of his troops. He modernized his army, creating a military force whose power delayed the eventual British colonization of Punjab. The result was a powerful and heavily armed state. TheBattle of Jamrud in 1837 was a major setback for Ranjit Singh: his generalHari Singh Nalwa was killed, theKhyber Pass was established as the western limit of the Sikh Empire's influence.
Ranjit Singh died in 1839, and his empire crumbled under internal strife and poor governance by his heirs. On the east of his realmGulab Singh extended Sikh authority in theHimalayas until stopped by theQing Empire in theSino-Sikh war (1841–1842). After theFirst Anglo-Sikh War (1845–46), Punjab effectively ceased to be an independent state. TheBritish Empire annexed the Sikh Empire following theSecond Anglo-Sikh War (1848–49).
TheBritish East India Company raised armies initially to guard its factories.Following the fall of FrenchPondichéry in 1793, this was divided into Presidency armies ofBengal,Madras andBombay in 1795. The Dutch trained theNair Brigade, the military of Travancore.
During theIndian Rebellion of 1857, some units of the Bengal Native Infantry and Cavalry mutinied against the British East India Company. However, the rebels received less support than they had expected from members of the Bombay and Madras Armies. A number of atrocities were perpetrated by the rebels, most infamously at theSiege of Cawnpore. The rebellion ultimately failed because of lack of resources and coordination among the rebels. During their suppression of the rebellion, the British carried out numerous reprisals, and the revolt was largely quashed by 1858.[43]
| This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| British Rule |
|---|
|
Following the Sepoy Mutiny, British rule in India was reorganised under theBritish Raj, made up of areas directly administered by the United Kingdom andprincely states under theparamountcy of theBritish Crown. Under terms of treaties with the Crown, these princely states were allowed some local autonomy in exchange for protection and representation in international affairs by the United Kingdom. The Raj included present-day India, Pakistan, andBangladesh.
After 1857, the Presidency armies were abolished in favour of a reconstituted British Indian Army under the control of theBritish Crown and theViceroy. Many units were disbanded or reorganised, and new units of Sikhs, Gurkhas, and irregular horsemen were introduced. The majority of the Madras Native Infantry and Cavalry had their class compositions changed to North Indian tribes, considered more "martial" than the darker, shorter "thambis" who made up the majority of the Madras Presidency Army. Indian sepoys were banned from serving as officers or in the artillery corps. Recruiting focused more on Sikhs and Gurkhas, whom the British viewed as loyal. New caste-based and religion-based regiments were formed.
The British Indian Army consisted of members of all the major religious groups in India:Hindus,Sikhs, Christians, andMuslims. The number of Sikhs in the army grew steadily with time as British commanders came to believe they were more loyal and martial, an impression reinforced by their conduct during the Sepoy Mutiny. The Sikhs, for their part, aligned with the British to prevent a resurgence of Mughal rule; Sikhs had been persecuted under the Mughal Empire.
TheIndian Air Force was established in 1932.
.jpg)
DuringWorld War I, over 800,000 volunteered for the army, and more than 400,000 volunteered for non-combat roles, compared with the pre-war annual recruitment of about 15,000 men.[44] The Army saw action on theWestern Front within a month of the start of the war, at theFirst Battle of Ypres whereKhudadad Khan became the first Indian to be awarded aVictoria Cross. After a year of front-line duty, sickness and casualties had reduced the Indian Corps to the point where it had to be withdrawn. Nearly 700,000 Indians fought the Turks in the Mesopotamian campaign. Indian formations were also sent to East Africa, Egypt, and Gallipoli.[45]
Indian Army andImperial Service Troops fought during theSinai and Palestine Campaign'sdefence of the Suez Canal in 1915, atRomani in 1916 and toJerusalem in 1917. Indian unitsoccupied the Jordan Valley and after theGerman spring offensive they became the major force in theEgyptian Expeditionary Force during theBattle of Megiddo and in theDesert Mounted Corps' advance toDamascus and on toAleppo. Other divisions remained in India guarding theNorth-West Frontier and fulfilling internal security obligations.
One million Indian troops served abroad during the war. In total, 74,187 died,[46] and another 67,000 were wounded.[47] The roughly 90,000 soldiers who lost their lives fighting in World War I and theAfghan Wars are commemorated by theIndia Gate.
In 1939, the British Indian Army's strength was about 189,000, with about 3,000 British officers and 1,115 Indian officers. The army was expanded greatly to fight inWorld War II: by 1945, the strength of the Army had risen to about 2.5 million, with about 34,500 British officers and 15,740 Indian officers. The Army took part in campaigns in France, East Africa, North Africa,Syria,Tunisia,Malaya,Burma, Greece,Sicily and Italy. Particularly significant contributions came in the campaigns in Abyssinia and North Africa, against the Italians; atEl Alamain and in Italy, against the Germans; and in theBurma Campaign against Japan. The army ultimately suffered 179,935 casualties: 24,338 killed, 64,354 wounded, 11,762 missing, and 79,481 taken [Prisoner of war].
During the war, Indian nationalist expatriates in Southeast Asia and the Japanese Army formed theIndian National Army (INA) to fight for Indian independence from Britain. For manpower, it relied on the approximately 45,000 Indian troops of the Indian Army whom the Japanese captured when Singapore fell in February 1942.Subhas Chandra Bose was parachuted in to lead the INA in 1943, and he greatly expanded the INA to include the mainly Tamil civilian Indian community in Malaya. He also negotiated a combat role for the INA from the reluctant Japanese, who were more inclined to use it intelligence and propaganda work. In 1944, INA units participated in the Japanese Army's offensives against British positions in the Arakan and the Imphal Plain. Not being a military man Bose – or "Netaji" (respected leader) naively believed that Indian soldiers of the Indian Army who deployed against the INA would flock to its standard. But these Indian troops stood fIrm, and actually defeated the INA. Despite this, Bose insisted that the INA be given an independent sector on the Irrawaddy in February 1945. Despite the desperate efforts of some INA troops, their sector was overrun, and desertions became commonplace. Militarily, the INA was finished. After the war, however, it made a political impact, due to the British decision to publicly court-martial three INA commanders. This was a miscalculation, because Indian nationalist politicians, who had previously come out against the INA, now whipped up popular sentiment for the release of the INA accused. Realizing their error, the British acquiesced. In this way, the INA was another sign that the Raj's days were numbered.
At the end of the war in 1945, the Indian Army's officer corps included Indian Medical Service officer Hiraji Cursetji as its sole Indian major-general, one IMS brigadier, three Indian brigadiers in combatant arms and 220 other Indian officers in the temporary or acting ranks of colonel and lieutenant-colonel.[48] From October 1945, the granting of regular commissions in the Indian Armed Forces was restricted to Indians, though provisions were made for the continued secondment of British officers for as long as was deemed necessary.[49] In 1946, sailors of theRoyal Indian Navy mutinied on board ships and in shore establishments, which had an impact across India. By early 1947, all three branches of the Indian Armed Forces had undergone large-scale demobilisation of over 1.25 million service personnel.[50]
With Indian independence now a certainty and with a new Labour government recently elected in the UK, the Indianization of the armed forces continued to progress, though by June 1947, two months before independence, the Indian Army had only 14 Indian officers at the rank of brigadier serving in combatant arms, with no Indian flag, general or air officers in the combat arms of the armed services.[51]
The Republic of India has fought four wars with Pakistan and one border war with China.
This is also called theFirst Kashmir War. The war started in October 1947 when Pakistan feared that theMaharajah of theprincely state ofKashmir and Jammu would accede to India. Following partition, states were left to choose whether to join India or Pakistan or to remain independent. Jammu and Kashmir, the largest of the princely states, had a predominantly Muslim population ruled by the HinduMaharajaHari Singh. Tribal forces with support from the army of Pakistan attacked and occupied parts of the princely state forcing the Maharajah to sign theAgreement to the accession of the princely state to theDominion of India to get Indian military aid. The UN Security Council passed theResolution 47 on 22 April 1948. The fronts solidified gradually along what came to be known as theLine of Control. A formal cease-fire was declared at 23:59 on the night of 1 January 1949.[52]: 379 India gained control of about two-thirds of the state (includingKashmir valley,Jammu andLadakh) whereas Pakistan gained roughly a third ofKashmir (Azad Kashmir andGilgit–Baltistan).[53][54][55][56] Most neutral assessments, agree that India was the victor of thewar as it was able to conquer about two-thirds of the Kashmir includingKashmir valley,Jammu andLadakh.[55][57][58]
After the war with Pakistan, India turned its attention to the independentHyderabad State. India perceived the nearby independent Muslim state and potential Pakistani ally as a threat. In a five-day operation, India reconquered and annexed Hyderabad.
In 1961 tension rose between India and Portugal over the Portuguese-occupied territory ofGoa, which India claimed for itself. After Portuguese police cracked down violently on a peaceful, unarmed demonstration for union with India, the Indian government decided to reconquer. A lopsided air, sea, and ground campaign resulted in the speedy surrender of Portuguese forces.[59] Within 36 hours, 451 years of Portuguese colonial rule was ended, and Goa was annexed by India. Portuguese losses were 34 killed, 57 wounded, and 3,306 captured. Indian losses were 22 killed and 51 wounded.[60]
India fought a month-long border war against China in 1962. Neither nation deployed air or naval resources during a conflict heavy with mountain combat. China ended the war by declaring a unilateral ceasefire and withdrew their forces to the pre-war positions.[61]
The defeat prompted India to make major changes in its military. The Department of Defence Production was established to create an indigenous defence production base, which would be self-reliant and self-sufficient. Since 1962, 16 new ordnance factories have been built under the program.[citation needed]
This war started following Pakistan'sOperation Gibraltar, which was designed to infiltrate forces intoJammu and Kashmir to precipitate an insurgency against rule by India. India retaliated by launching a full-scale military attack onWest Pakistan. The seventeen-day war caused thousands of casualties on both sides and also witnessed the largest tank battle since World War II. The hostilities between the two countries ended after a ceasefire was declared following diplomatic intervention by the Soviet Union and USA and the subsequent issuance of theTashkent Declaration.[62] Though ruled to be militarily inconclusive, both India and Pakistan claimed victory. Most neutral assessments, however, agree that India had theupper hand over Pakistan when the ceasefire was declared.[63][64][65][66][67] As Pakistan lost more territory than it gained during the war and failed to achieve its goal of capturing Kashmir, many impartial observers have viewed the result as a defeat for Pakistan and an Indianstrategic victory.[68][69][70]
The 1967 Sino-Indian clash also known as theSino-Indian War of 1967 (1 – 10 October 1967) was amilitary conflict between India and China in the HimalayanKingdom of Sikkim, then an Indianprotectorate. The ChinesePeople's Liberation Army infiltrated Sikkim[71] on 1 October 1967, but was repulsed by theIndian Army by 10 October. During the Cho La andNathu La incidents, Indian losses were 88 killed in action and 163 wounded,[72] while Chinese casualties were 340 killed in action and 450 wounded.[72][73][74]
The end of the battle saw the Chinese Army forced to leave Sikkim after being defeated by Indian troops.[75][76][77]
This war was unique in the way that it did not involve the issue of Kashmir, but was rather precipitated by the crisis created by the political battle between Sheikh Mujib, Leader of East Pakistan and Yahya-Bhutto, leaders of West Pakistan brewing in erstwhileEast Pakistan culminating in the declaration of Independence of Bangladesh from the state system of Pakistan. FollowingOperation Searchlight and the1971 Bangladesh genocide, about 10 million Bengalis in East Pakistan took refuge in neighbouring India.[79] India intervened in the ongoingBangladesh liberation movement.[80][81] After a large scalepre-emptive strike by Pakistan, full-scale hostilities between the two countries commenced.
Pakistan attacked at several places along India's western border with Pakistan, but theIndian Army successfully held their positions. The Indian Army quickly responded to the Pakistan Army's movements in the west and made some initial gains, including capturing around 5,795 square miles (15,010 km2)[82][83][84] of Pakistan territory (land gained by India in Pakistani Kashmir,Pakistani Punjab andSindh sectors but gifted it back to Pakistan in theSimla Agreement of 1972, as a gesture of goodwill). Within two weeks of intense fighting, Pakistani forces inEast Pakistansurrendered to the joint command of Indian and Bangladeshi forces following which thePeople's Republic of Bangladesh was created.[85] This war saw the highest number of casualties in any of the India-Pakistan conflicts, as well as the largest number ofprisoners of war since the Second World War after the surrender of more than 90,000 Pakistani military and civilians.[86] In the words of one Pakistani author, "Pakistan lost half its navy, a quarter of its air force and a third of its army".[87]
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Pakistan began organising tourist expeditions on theSiachen Glacier, disputed territory with India. Irked by this development, in April 1984 India initiated successfulOperation Meghdoot during which it gained control over all of theSiachen Glacier. India has established control over all of the 70 kilometres (43 mi) long Siachen Glacier and all of its tributary glaciers, as well as the three main passes of theSaltoro Ridge immediately west of the glacier—Sia La,Bilafond La, andGyong La.[88][89] According toTIME magazine, India gained more than 1,000 square miles (3,000 km2) of territory because of its military operations in Siachen.[90] It still maintains a military base there.[91] Pakistan tried in 1987 and in 1989 to re-take the glacier but was unsuccessful. The conflict ended with Indian Victory.[92] Ceasefire since 2003.[citation needed]
Commonly known as the Kargil War, or Operation Vijay in India, this conflict between the two countries was mostly limited. During early 1999, Pakistani troops infiltrated across theLine of Control (LoC) and occupied Indian territory mostly in theKargil district. India responded by launching a major military and diplomatic offensive to drive out the Pakistani infiltrators.[93] Two months into the conflict, Indian troops had slowly retaken most of the ridges that were encroached by the infiltrators.[94][95] According to official count, an estimated 75%–80% of the intruded area and nearly all high ground was back under Indian control.[96]Fearing large-scale escalation in military conflict, the international community, led by the United States, increased diplomatic pressure on Pakistan to withdraw forces from remaining Indian territory.[93][97]Faced with the possibility of international isolation, the already fragilePakistani economy was weakened further.[98][99] The morale of Pakistani forces after the withdrawal declined as many units of theNorthern Light Infantry suffered heavy casualties.[100][101] The government refused to accept the dead bodies of many officers,[102][103] an issue that provoked outrage and protests in the Northern Areas.[104][105] Pakistan initially did not acknowledge many of its casualties, butNawaz Sharif later said that over 4,000 Pakistani troops were killed in the operation and that Pakistan had lost the conflict.[106][107]
By the end of July 1999, organized hostilities in the Kargil district had ceased[97] andKargil War finally came to end with a decisive Indian military and diplomatic victory.[108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115][116][58]
In March 1966,Mizo rebels inAssam declared independence and attacked government offices and military posts. The uprising was suppressed weeks later, and eventuallyMizoram was made a separate state of India.
A Sino-Indian skirmish known today as theChola incident took place in October 1967. ThePeople's Liberation Army made a brief incursion intoSikkim but retreated within 48 hours.
In June 1984, then-Prime MinisterIndira Gandhi ordered an attack on Sikh separatists belonging to theKhalistan movement who had holed up in theGolden Temple in Amritsar. The operation resulted in 500–1,500 civilian deaths and heavy damage to theAkal Takht.
TheIndian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) carried out a mission in northern and easternSri Lanka in 1987–1990 to disarm theTamil Tigers per theIndo-Sri Lanka Accord. It was a difficult battle for the Indian Army, which was not trained for an unconventional war. After losing approximately 1,200 in personnel and several T-72 tanks, India ultimately abandoned the mission in consultation with Sri Lankan government. In what was labeled asOperation Pawan, the Indian Air Force flew about 70,000 sorties to and within Sri Lanka.
In November 1988, theMaldives Government appealed India for military help against a mercenary invasion. On the night of 3 November, the Indian Air Force airlifted the Para Special forces fromAgra and flew them non-stop over 2,000 km to Maldives. The paracommandos landed atHulule, secured the airfield, and restored government rule atMalé within hours and without bloodshed.
Also known as Bangladeshi-India border war, this brief clashes started on 15 April when Bangladeshis captured the disputed village of Pyrdiwah. The clashes lasted for about 5 days when the India and Bangladeshi forces took their original positions and the clashes ended instatus quo ante bellum.
India has well developed[citation needed] missile capabilities with roots in theIndian Space Program. The Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP) was formed in 1983 with the aim of achieving self-sufficiency in missile development and production. Presently it comprises six core missile programs:
Currently theDRDO is developingSurya (missile), an advanced series ofICBM that the government reports would have a range of more than 10,000 km. This would put its range on par with advanced missiles in the United States, Russia, and Israel.[117] India is the fourth country in the world to develop a successful[citation needed] missile defence shield, theIndian Ballistic Missile Defense Program.
In 1974, India tested a nuclear weapon with a yield of up to 15kilotons. The test was codenamedSmiling Buddha. On 11 and 13 May 1998, India conducted a total of five underground nuclear tests and declared itself anuclear state.
The Indian military rankssecond in terms of number of troops after China. The paramilitary unit of the Republic of India is the world's largest paramilitary force at over one million strong. Eager to portray itself as a potential superpower, India began an intense phase of upgrading its armed forces in the late 1990s. India focuses on developing indigenous military equipment rather than relying on other countries for supplies. Most of the Indian naval ships and submarines, military armoured vehicles, missiles, and ammunition are indigenously designed and manufactured.
In 1997, India agreed to participate in the development of Russia's "Prospective Air Complex for Tactical Air Forces" program. One of the primary objectives of the program was to develop a 5th generationfighter aircraft; theSu-47 prototype flew its first successful test flight in 1997. TheBrahMos, asupersonic cruise missile jointly developed with Russia, was successfully test fired in 2001. India is also collaborating with Israel to developUnmanned Aerial Vehicles.
India has focused recently on purchasing the technology behind military equipment rather than equipment itself. Recent examples include purchases ofSukhoi Su-30 MKI multi-role fighter aircraft andT-90 main battle tanks from Russia and diesel-powered Scorpene submarines from France. In 2004, India purchased US$5.7 billion worth of military equipment from other countries, making it the developing world's leading arms purchaser.
On 28 April 2000, ammunition worth₹3.93 billion (US$46 million) was destroyed in a fire at theBharatpur ammunition depot. Another fire at thePathankot sub-depot resulted in loss of ammo worth₹280 million (US$3.3 million). On 24 May 2001, another blaze at the Birdhwal sub-depot destroyed ammunition worth₹3.78 billion (US$45 million).
India's highest awards for military conduct in a time of war are, in descending order, theParam Vir Chakra,Maha Vir Chakra, andVir Chakra. The peacetime equivalents are respectively theAshoka Chakra,Kirti Chakra andShaurya Chakra. The latter two awards were formerly known asAshoka Chakra, Class II andAshoka Chakra, Class III respectively. The peacetime awards have occasionally been bestowed on civilians. For meritorious service, the awards are the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, the Athi Vishisht Seva Medal, and the Vishisht Seva Medal.
Official war histories written by the History Division, Ministry of Defence,Government of India:
| Leadership | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Organisation |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Personnel |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Equipment |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Operations |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Auxiliary forces | |||||||||||||||||||
| Other topics | |||||||||||||||||||
.jpg)
.jpg)
![A depiction of a British naval attack in 1755 against the Maratha Navy at Suvarnadurg.[32]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aFrancis_Holman%2c_Commodore_James_in_the_Protector%2c_with_the_Revenge_and_the_grab_Bombay_in_the_bay_off_the_fort_at_Gheriah%2c_India%2c_April_1755_(18th_century).jpg)
