Siege of Sayyidpur, 1520

The siege of Sayyidpur of 1520 was the only major military action to take place in Babur's third expedition into India. His first and second expeditions had both taken place in 1519. The first had given him temporary control of the Punjab, while the second had been cut short by problems back in Afghanistan.

In 1520 Babur crossed the Indus for a third time, marched south to Bhera, and then east to Sialkot. So far he had met with no serious resistance, but a town identified in contemporary sources as Sayyidpur decided to try and hold out. This place name does not appear on modern maps, but may be Saidpur, roughly fifteen miles to the north of Sialkot.

Sayyidpur was probably not a particularly strongly fortified place, for Babur decided to take it by assault. The attack succeeded. The male population of the town was massacred, while the women and children were taken into captivity.

This was the last success during this expedition, for soon after capturing Sayyidpur Babur was informed that Shah Beg Arghun, lord of Kandahar, was raiding his Afghan territories. Babur was forced to return to Kabul, and spent most of the next three years besieging Kandahar (1520-6 September 1522).

How to cite this article: Rickard, J (14 May 2010), Siege of Sayyidpur, 1520 , http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/siege_sayyidpur.html

Help - F.A.Q. - Contact Us - Search - Recent - About Us - Privacy