Battle of Miani
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Miani was a battle between British
forces under Sir Charles Napier
and the Talpur
Amirs of Sindh
, Pakistan
.
and the British General Charles Napier
's ambitions. The General had held previous position as Governor of the Greek island of Kefalonia with very limited scope for glory and plunder. The Talpur
Baloch
kingdom of Sindh
was inefficiently and loosely governed by the Baloch Amirs and a relatively easy target as opposed to the Sikh kingdom of the Punjab
. Napier moved his army aggressively from the East India Company
's Bombay presidency
area and entered the Sindh border. Negotiations ensued between the Talpur Amir in Hyderabad
and Napier. An agreement was reached after the Amir gave significant concessions. Napier then started to move his army back towards Bombay and the Amir disbanded the Baloch army that had been mobilised. However, Napier was firmly determined in conquering Sindh and plundering Hyderabad. Whilst moving towards Bombay and giving the impression of keeping the agreement that had been reached, he suddenly turned back towards Hyderabad on the pretext of hostile intentions by the Amir and marched with great speed towards the Baloch capital.
were forced to quickly re-mobilise their army but could not do so effectively as the army was mostly raised on a voluntary basis in times of war and most of the Baloch Sardar
s (Lords) had returned home. Nevertheless, an army of around 8,000 - mostly cavalry - was raised and assembled at the battle ground of Miani. Disastrously for the Baloch another 8,000 troops under Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur
(Sher-e-Sindh or "Lion of Sindh
") failed to reach the battle ground in time. Napier had already successfully isolated the Amir of Khairpur (thereafter known as the great traitor by the Baloch of Sindh) by bribery and title. Thus the Baloch army assembled at Miani represented approximately a ⅓ of the Baloch military strength in Sindh. Although the East India Company
later gave its troops numbered in the battle as around 2,800, contemporary Baloch records indicated the armies were approximately equal in numbers (around 8–10 thousand each) with the British having around 2,500 European officers and soldiers and the balance comprising Indian sepoys.
The difference in military technology and tactics was enormous. The East India Company's army was led by professionally trained British officers and troops and the Indian Sepoys were also well trained and disciplined. They were armed with smoothbore percussion or flintlock
musket
s which were accurate to 100–150 yards and supported by modern artillery. In contrast, the Baloch army comprised mostly cavalry armed with muskets, spears and swords and some old artillery pieces acquired from Persia. The tactic was the favoured Baloch cavalry charge. Contemporary records indicate that the Baloch army's morale was very high with the battle slogan being "we will die but not give up Sindh". Indeed the Baloch died in thousands, in 4–5 hours of carnage, the Baloch cavalry charged in wave after wave and was mostly cut down long before it could reach British lines by rifle and artillery fire. It did eventually reach British lines and, according to Napier himself in his book on the battle (Conquest of Sindh), he had to ride amongst his officers and troops to stop them from falling back in disarray in the face of the ferocity of the Baloch who had reached the British lines. Of the Baloch army of 8,000 at Miani, contemporary Baloch and British records show that 5–6 thousand Baloch were killed (62–75%) whilst attacking the British lines. According to Baloch records, the Company's army suffered 3,000 dead (although Napier gives a much lower casualty figure as he does for his total force).
Later, on March 24, 1843, Mir Sher Muhammad Khan Talpur
, reached Hyderabad
with his private army of around 8,000 and tried to liberate Sindh
from the occupation of the British East India Company
forces. He sent Napier a message giving the General 48 hours to vacate the Hyderabad Fort. Napier who was firmly entrenched in Hyderabad Fort and had recently been reinforced from Bombay replied by firing his artillery from the Fort walls. Mir Sher Muhammad Khan Talpur was subsequently defeated in the Battle of Dubba and thereafter conducted a guerrilla war for ten years before he eventually surrendered. The East India Company
gave him amnesty as per agreement.
The amirs of Hyderabad suffered great loss, their fort was plundered, and amirs themselves were exiled to Rangoon, Burma – never to see Sindh
again. Napier's post-conquest occupation of Sindh was absolute. Fifteen years later when the Indian Mutiny or 'War of Independence' in 1857 broke out, no shots were fired in Sindh. His manipulations of the history of his interactions with the Talpur dynasty
and the history of the battle were likewise absolute and designed to glorify his position. However, debates that took place in the British Parliament for the post-conquest show the degree of concern that existed in UK on the action he had taken in Sindh.
The battle honours of "Meeanee" and "Hyderabad" are shared by the 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment and a number of Indian regiments, whereas that of "Scinde" is borne by the Cheshire Regiment alone.
s were killed or wounded while fighting the British. The fallen Amirs of Sindh consisted of Mir Nasir Khan Talpur
, his nephews Mir Shadad Khan Talpur, Mir Hussein Ali Khan Talpur, Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur
, the Subedar
of Hyderabad, Mir Rustam Khan Talpur, Nasir Talpur, Wali Mohammad Khan Talpur of Khairpur. Others such as Mir Ali Murad Khan Talpur was taken aboard the sloop HMS Nimrod
and exiled to Burma.
A British journal said of the captive Sindhi Amirs: "The Amirs as being the prisoners of the state are maintained in strict seclution; they are described as Broken-Hearted and Miserable men, maintaining much of the dignity of fallen greatness, and without any querulous or angry complainngs at this unallivable source of sorrow, refusing to be comforted".
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
forces under Sir Charles Napier
Charles James Napier
General Sir Charles James Napier, GCB , was a general of the British Empire and the British Army's Commander-in-Chief in India, notable for conquering the Sindh Province in what is now Pakistan.- His genealogy :...
and the Talpur
Talpur
Talpur ; is a Baloch tribe settled in Sindh. Talpurs settled in northern Sindh, spoke Sindhi language very soon their descendants and allies formed a confederacy against the Kalhora dynasty. Later, however, they enjoyed good relations with the Kalhoras and were invited by them to help organize...
Amirs of Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
.
Background
The primary causes of the battle were that the British desired to expand their British RajBritish Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
and the British General Charles Napier
Charles James Napier
General Sir Charles James Napier, GCB , was a general of the British Empire and the British Army's Commander-in-Chief in India, notable for conquering the Sindh Province in what is now Pakistan.- His genealogy :...
's ambitions. The General had held previous position as Governor of the Greek island of Kefalonia with very limited scope for glory and plunder. The Talpur
Talpur dynasty
The Talpur dynasty was a dynasty of the Talpur tribe that conquered and ruled Sindh, and other parts of present-day Pakistan, from 1783 to 1843. The Talpur army defeated the Kalhora Dynasty in the Battle of Halani in 1783 to become rulers of Sindh. The Talpur dynasty was defeated by the British...
Baloch
Baloch people
The Baloch or Baluch are an ethnic group that belong to the larger Iranian peoples. Baluch people mainly inhabit the Balochistan region and Sistan and Baluchestan Province in the southeast corner of the Iranian plateau in Western Asia....
kingdom of Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
was inefficiently and loosely governed by the Baloch Amirs and a relatively easy target as opposed to the Sikh kingdom of the Punjab
Punjab region
The Punjab , also spelled Panjab |water]]s"), is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi...
. Napier moved his army aggressively from the East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
's Bombay presidency
Bombay Presidency
The Bombay Presidency was a province of British India. It was established in the 17th century as a trading post for the English East India Company, but later grew to encompass much of western and central India, as well as parts of post-partition Pakistan and the Arabian Peninsula.At its greatest...
area and entered the Sindh border. Negotiations ensued between the Talpur Amir in Hyderabad
Hyderabad, Sindh
is the second largest city in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It is the seventh largest city in the country. The city was founded in 1768 by Mian Ghulam Shah Kalhoro upon the ruins of a Mauryan fishing village along the bank of the Indus known as Neroon Kot...
and Napier. An agreement was reached after the Amir gave significant concessions. Napier then started to move his army back towards Bombay and the Amir disbanded the Baloch army that had been mobilised. However, Napier was firmly determined in conquering Sindh and plundering Hyderabad. Whilst moving towards Bombay and giving the impression of keeping the agreement that had been reached, he suddenly turned back towards Hyderabad on the pretext of hostile intentions by the Amir and marched with great speed towards the Baloch capital.
Battle
The BalochBaloch people
The Baloch or Baluch are an ethnic group that belong to the larger Iranian peoples. Baluch people mainly inhabit the Balochistan region and Sistan and Baluchestan Province in the southeast corner of the Iranian plateau in Western Asia....
were forced to quickly re-mobilise their army but could not do so effectively as the army was mostly raised on a voluntary basis in times of war and most of the Baloch Sardar
Sardar
Sardar is a title of Indo-Aryan origin that was originally used to denote feudal princes, noblemen, and other aristocrats. It was later applied to indicate a Head of State, a Commander-in-chief, and an Army military rank...
s (Lords) had returned home. Nevertheless, an army of around 8,000 - mostly cavalry - was raised and assembled at the battle ground of Miani. Disastrously for the Baloch another 8,000 troops under Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur
Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur
Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur, popularly known as “The Lion of Sindh” , belonged to the Mirpurkhas House of Royal Talpurs. He was the son of Mir Ali Murad Talpur, the founder of Mirpurkhas, and was born in 1810...
(Sher-e-Sindh or "Lion of Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
") failed to reach the battle ground in time. Napier had already successfully isolated the Amir of Khairpur (thereafter known as the great traitor by the Baloch of Sindh) by bribery and title. Thus the Baloch army assembled at Miani represented approximately a ⅓ of the Baloch military strength in Sindh. Although the East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
later gave its troops numbered in the battle as around 2,800, contemporary Baloch records indicated the armies were approximately equal in numbers (around 8–10 thousand each) with the British having around 2,500 European officers and soldiers and the balance comprising Indian sepoys.
Flintlock
Flintlock is the general term for any firearm based on the flintlock mechanism. The term may also apply to the mechanism itself. Introduced at the beginning of the 17th century, the flintlock rapidly replaced earlier firearm-ignition technologies, such as the doglock, matchlock and wheellock...
musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
s which were accurate to 100–150 yards and supported by modern artillery. In contrast, the Baloch army comprised mostly cavalry armed with muskets, spears and swords and some old artillery pieces acquired from Persia. The tactic was the favoured Baloch cavalry charge. Contemporary records indicate that the Baloch army's morale was very high with the battle slogan being "we will die but not give up Sindh". Indeed the Baloch died in thousands, in 4–5 hours of carnage, the Baloch cavalry charged in wave after wave and was mostly cut down long before it could reach British lines by rifle and artillery fire. It did eventually reach British lines and, according to Napier himself in his book on the battle (Conquest of Sindh), he had to ride amongst his officers and troops to stop them from falling back in disarray in the face of the ferocity of the Baloch who had reached the British lines. Of the Baloch army of 8,000 at Miani, contemporary Baloch and British records show that 5–6 thousand Baloch were killed (62–75%) whilst attacking the British lines. According to Baloch records, the Company's army suffered 3,000 dead (although Napier gives a much lower casualty figure as he does for his total force).
Later, on March 24, 1843, Mir Sher Muhammad Khan Talpur
Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur
Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur, popularly known as “The Lion of Sindh” , belonged to the Mirpurkhas House of Royal Talpurs. He was the son of Mir Ali Murad Talpur, the founder of Mirpurkhas, and was born in 1810...
, reached Hyderabad
Hyderabad, Sindh
is the second largest city in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It is the seventh largest city in the country. The city was founded in 1768 by Mian Ghulam Shah Kalhoro upon the ruins of a Mauryan fishing village along the bank of the Indus known as Neroon Kot...
with his private army of around 8,000 and tried to liberate Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
from the occupation of the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
forces. He sent Napier a message giving the General 48 hours to vacate the Hyderabad Fort. Napier who was firmly entrenched in Hyderabad Fort and had recently been reinforced from Bombay replied by firing his artillery from the Fort walls. Mir Sher Muhammad Khan Talpur was subsequently defeated in the Battle of Dubba and thereafter conducted a guerrilla war for ten years before he eventually surrendered. The East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
gave him amnesty as per agreement.
The amirs of Hyderabad suffered great loss, their fort was plundered, and amirs themselves were exiled to Rangoon, Burma – never to see Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
again. Napier's post-conquest occupation of Sindh was absolute. Fifteen years later when the Indian Mutiny or 'War of Independence' in 1857 broke out, no shots were fired in Sindh. His manipulations of the history of his interactions with the Talpur dynasty
Talpur dynasty
The Talpur dynasty was a dynasty of the Talpur tribe that conquered and ruled Sindh, and other parts of present-day Pakistan, from 1783 to 1843. The Talpur army defeated the Kalhora Dynasty in the Battle of Halani in 1783 to become rulers of Sindh. The Talpur dynasty was defeated by the British...
and the history of the battle were likewise absolute and designed to glorify his position. However, debates that took place in the British Parliament for the post-conquest show the degree of concern that existed in UK on the action he had taken in Sindh.
The battle honours of "Meeanee" and "Hyderabad" are shared by the 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment and a number of Indian regiments, whereas that of "Scinde" is borne by the Cheshire Regiment alone.
Casualties
Five thousand SindhiSindhi people
Sindhis are a Sindhi speaking socio-ethnic group of people originating from Sindh, a province Formerly of British India, now in Pakistan. Today Sindhis that live in Pakistan belong to various religious denominations including Islam, Zoroastrianism, Hinduism, Sikhism and Christianity...
s were killed or wounded while fighting the British. The fallen Amirs of Sindh consisted of Mir Nasir Khan Talpur
Mir Nasir Khan Talpur
Mir Nasir Khan Talpur of Hyderabad was among the most active Sindhi administrators after the decline of the Mughal Empire he made Hyderabad the center of culture and defense in Sindh and he constructed two great forts in the city known as the Pakka Qilla and the Kacha Qilla and he also built the...
, his nephews Mir Shadad Khan Talpur, Mir Hussein Ali Khan Talpur, Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur
Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur
Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur, popularly known as “The Lion of Sindh” , belonged to the Mirpurkhas House of Royal Talpurs. He was the son of Mir Ali Murad Talpur, the founder of Mirpurkhas, and was born in 1810...
, the Subedar
Subedar
Subedar is a historical rank in the Indian Army, ranking below British commissioned officers and above non-commissioned officers. The rank was otherwise equivalent to a British lieutenant and was introduced in the East India Company's presidency armies, to make it easier for British officers to...
of Hyderabad, Mir Rustam Khan Talpur, Nasir Talpur, Wali Mohammad Khan Talpur of Khairpur. Others such as Mir Ali Murad Khan Talpur was taken aboard the sloop HMS Nimrod
HMS Nimrod
Six ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Nimrod, after the biblical figure of Nimrod: was an 18-gun sloop, previously the French ship Eole. She was captured in 1799 by HMS Solebay and sold in 1811...
and exiled to Burma.
A British journal said of the captive Sindhi Amirs: "The Amirs as being the prisoners of the state are maintained in strict seclution; they are described as Broken-Hearted and Miserable men, maintaining much of the dignity of fallen greatness, and without any querulous or angry complainngs at this unallivable source of sorrow, refusing to be comforted".