Today marks the 126th anniversary of the Battle of Saragarhi, a heroic battle in 1897 in which 21 brave Sikh soldiers fought against over 10,000 Afridis and Orakzais. This event has inspired movies, books, and countless people.
Here are five facts about the Battle of Saragarhi.
The Battle of Saragarhi took place on September 12, 1897, in which 21 Sikh soldiers of the 36th Sikh Regiment of the British Indian Army lost their lives defending the Saragarhi outpost in Waziristan. Saragarhi served as a communications relay station between Fort Lockhart and Fort Gulistan.
On the morning of September 12, the Saragarhi outpost was besieged by over 10,000 Pathans, who took up positions and opened fire. At that time, there were only 21 Sikhs inside Saragarhi Fort.
One of the Sikh soldiers, Sepoy Gurmukh Singh, sent a message to his commander, Colonel Norton, to fight back. Despite being outnumbered, the brave soldiers did not abandon their post and vowed to defend it.
The Battle of Saragarhi involved a fierce gunfight between Pathans and soldiers that lasted about seven hours. The soldiers ran out of ammunition and asked their commander for more supplies. However, no ammunition arrived and the Sikh soldiers continued to fight until their last breath.
The fight was the inspiration for the 2019 Bollywood film Kesari starring Akshay Kumar and Parineeti Chopra.