Chronology and causes of the Third Battle of Panipat

In the year 1757, the Mughal Emperor Alamgir II had successfully achieved peace between the Durrani Emirate and the Mughal Empire. Alamgir II even secured a matrimonial alliance when Timur Shah Durrani married Gauhar Afroz Begam the daughter of the Mughal Emperor Alamgir II in Fubruary 1757 and Ahmad Shah Durrani married Hazrat Begum the daughter of the former Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah in the year 1757. Ahmad Shah Durrani's forces also drove Imad-ul-Mulk out of Delhi and appointed Najib-ul-Daula as the ''Mir Bakshi'' (Pay Master) of the Mughal Army in Delhi.

Maratha Confederacy's inability to accept peace

These peaceful terms were opposed by the Marathas, who waged an armed campaign against the the administration of the Mughal Emperor Alamgir II. This culminated in major hostilities during the Battle of Delhi (1757) during which, the Marathas overran the Mughal loyalist forces of Najib-ul-Daula and occupied the Mughal capitol at Delhi. They then coerced Alamgir II to reappoint Imad-ul-Mulk as the Grand Vizier.

Meanwhile, Ahmad Shah Durrani however was unable to respond to these hostilities which, were instigated by the Maratha and their allies against the sovereignty of the Mughal Emperor, because he was leading a campaign against Afsharid Persians near Herat.

Maratha Confederacy's war against the Durrani Emirate

But hostilities continued, in 1758 the Marathas led by Raghunathrao extracted an extortion of Mughal imperial wealth from the treacherous Imad-ul-Mulk. The Marathas thereafter advanced their forces from occupied Delhi and annexed Lahore they punitively presented a challenge to Ahmad Shah Durrani by driving out Timur Shah Durrani to the Khyber Pass.

Meanwhile in the Mughal heartlands, Prince Ali Gauhar (Later Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II) united loyalist factions in Delhi and sought to assist Timur Shah Durrani against the Marathas, he was faced with the persecution of the authoritarian Grand Vizier Imad-ul-Mulk resulting in tensions between the two figures.

In the year 1759, as Ahmad Shah Durrani began to initiate his response campaign against the Marathas, coincidentally Prince Ali Gauhar learned of a plot to overthrow the imperial family and fled from Delhi, urgently gaining refuge and tutelage from the loyalist Nawab of Awadh, Shuja-ud-Daula.

Assassination of the Mughal Empror Alamgir II

 Delhi was now in unchallenged control of the Marathas led by Sadashivrao Bhau and Imad-ul-Mulk, both of them jointly plotted and carried out the assassinated Mughal Emperor Alamgir II in the year 1759. The Marathas then planned to crown one of their own chieftains Vishwasrao as emperor.

However, Imad-ul-Mulk persuaded them to place Shah Jahan III on the imperial throne and the latters commitment was agreed upon.

Maratha Confederacy loots the hallmarks of the Mughal capitol 

Angered by their failure the Marathas looted and plundered the Jewels and ornaments of the Mughal imperial court, they also defaced mosques, tombs and shrines that the Mughals had built in Agra and Delhi, Sadashivrao Bhau then desecrated the imperial Moti Masjid Mosque and looted its exquisite jeweled decorations into booty for the Marathas. Stricken by fear a leading Muslim cleric named Shah Waliullah wrote desperate letters urging Ahmad Shah Durrani to intervene in favor of the Mughal Empire.

Ahmad Shah Durrani the expected savior of Shah Alam II

The bigotry committed by the Maratha Confederacy in Delhi and Agra was one of the greatest destructive acts ever executed in South Asia and signaled the almost complete annihilation of the Mughal Empire.

The Muslim community in South Asia now looked up to Ahmad Shah Durrani a former Afghan political rival as their savior and the only hope for Shah Alam II.

 Ahmad Shah Durrani prepared himself well and extended his reach towards the primarily Muslim subjects of the Mughal Empire and launched a massive campaign gathering more troops than ever before with the purpose of inflicting a military defeat upon the Maratha Confederacy.

Meanwhile, Shah Alam II declared Shuja-ud-Daula his Grand Vizier of the Mughal Empire and Najib-ud-Daula as his honorary ''Mukhtar Khas'' (Chief Representative of the Mughal Empire) together these two subjects gathered and joined forces in order to support Ahmad Shah Durrani during his forthcoming campaign to defeat the Maratha Confederacy.

These developments eventually culminated into rise of religious and political loyalties that eventually clashed at the Third Battle of Panipat in the year 1761.

Fifth Campaign of Ahmad Shah Durrani

Mughal loyalist challenge the Maratha Confederacy                                      

Najib-ud-Daula a leading Mughal loyalist initiated a campaign against Maratha Confederacy's forces in the vicinity of Delhi led by Dattaji Sindhia. But his forces were encircled and were strictly embattled  during the Siege of Shukartarand. During the siege Najib-ud-Daula distinguished himself by by killing Sayyid Saif-ud-Din a close aide of Imad-ul-Mulk, who dauntingly supported the Marathas. The forces of the Maratha Confederacy soon fled after the arrival of Mughal reinforcements consisting mostly of Rohilla tribesmen.

Ahmad Shah Durrani advances into Lahore

Soon after Ahmad Shah Durrani mobilized his forces from Kabul and defeated of the Maratha Confederacy at Battle of Barari Ghat in Punjab, among the casualties were the Maratha leader Dattaji Sindhia. With the help of local forces Ahmad Shah Durrani then defeated Sikh occupiers in the Battle of Lahore (1757) and his lieutenant Jahan Khan was wounded in the confrontation.

Mughal subjects support Shah Alam II

Shuja-ud-Daula the Nawab of Awadh had given refuge to Shah Alam II, who was widely perceived as the rightful heir of the Mughal throne and vowed to eliminate Shah Jahan III. Shuja-ud-Daula was later assigned with the position of Grand Vizier of the Mughal Empire and began to challenge the hold of Sadashivrao Bhau.

Nizam Ali Khan and particularly Salabat Jung, who were grieved by the assassination of the Mughal Emperor Alamgir II and in response wanted to take back lost territories in Deccan from the Marathas. Both of them had sworn loyalties to Alamgir II's heir Shah Alam II and waged war against Sadashivrao Bhau but their forces were defeated during the Battle of Udgir.

Response of the Maratha Confederacy

Very soon however after the Battle of Sikandarabad (1760) the defeated Marathas regrouped under the command of Sadashivrao Bhau and initiated the Siege of Kunjpura and inflicted 10,000 casualties upon Mughal loyalists led by Abusamad Khan and Ghazi Qutb Shah and their servicemen were executed.

Usurper Shah Jahan III deposed

Najib-ud-Daula sent his apprentice Prince Mirza Jawan  Bakht and what remained of the Mughal Army to gather outside Delhi and thus Sadashivrao Bhau imprisoned his supposed ally Shah Jahan III and allowed Prince Mirza Jawan  Bakht to claim Delhi for his father Shah Alam II. Meanwhile, Imad-ul-Mulk fled and took refuge with the Jat freebooter Suraj Mal both of them refused to assist Sadashivrao Bhau against the armies of Ahmad Shah Durrani and his allies.

Initialization of the Third Battle of Panipat

Ahmad Shah Durrani had amassed a massive army of nearly 40,000 Durranis and Persians. Ahmad Shah Durrani's coalition was also consisted of numerous contingents of Mughal loyalist forces which included 13,000 Sowars, 30,000 Sepoys with 70 pieces of artillery borrowed mostly from Shah Alam II's Mughal loyalist allies.

Ahmad Shah Durrani continued to challenge the Maratha Confederacy, contingents of Mughal loyalist troopers endorsing Shah Alam II supported Ahmad Shah Durrani by cutting off the key supply lines of the Marathas and lured Sadashivrao Bhau and nearly 200,000 Marathas into Panipat. Where Ahmad Shah Durrani inflicted the 18th century's most decisive military defeat against the Maratha Confederacy, causing a crippling effect upon endorsers of violent "Hindutiva" in South Asia.

After the Third Battle of Panipat, Ahmad Shah Durrani restored the Mughal Empire to Shah Alam II.

Aftermath

Immediately after the Third Battle of Panipat: Mirza Najaf Khan, Mir Noori Naseer Khan Baloch, Hyder Ali, Nizam Ali Khan, Muhammed Ali Khan Wallajah and Mian Ghulam Shah Kalhoro, began to attack the Marathas and drove them back to the regions around Puna.

The Muslim community of South Asia had become almost completely autonomous of the rule f the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II, but however maintained high regards of respect, correspondence and honor for the throne in Delhi and continued to mint coins in the name of their rightful emperor.

Eventually stern Marathas such as Mahadji Shinde entered the service of the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II, he served the cause of the Mughal Emperor along with Begum Samru and Asaf-ud-Daula.

Current reiteration of the Third Battle of Panipat

Today unfortunately, Shivaji a rouge Hindu warlord who created a Confederacy that decided to secede from the Mughal Empire and enact violence in the name of Hinduism is hailed by nationalists in modern India. 

By the 18th century Maratha Confederacy eventually managed to assassinate Alamgir II; loot Delhi and Agra of its heritage; and even attempt to place one of their own on the upon the Mughal imperial throne.

These actions were unacceptable to the Muslim community of south Asia causing an Afghan intervention by Ahmad Shah Durrani.

Conclusion

This grand clash shaped the mentality of the people even two centuries later when Pakistan and India became independent states in the year 1947.

Uneasy relations and mistrust still cause much misunderstanding between the Hindu and the Muslim communities in South Asia to such an extent that an arms race was the condition between the two neighbors India and Pakistan.