The Battle of Peshawar (1001)

Sultan Mahmud, who took the throne of Ghazni in 998, had vowed to campaign in India every year. His eastern neighbour was the Hindu Shahi kingdom, stretching from Kabul to the Punjab. In September 1001 Mahmud arrived near Peshawar with picked cavalry.

The Hindu Shahi king Jayapala came against him with cavalry, infantry and some three hundred war elephants. According to the Ghaznavid historian al-Utbi, Jayapala waited for reinforcements, while Mahmud attacked without waiting. On 27 November 1001 the battle went on until noon and ended in defeat for the Hindu army.

Jayapala was captured with fifteen of his sons and grandsons and later released for a ransom. According to the sources, unable to bear the defeat, he handed power to his son and burned himself on a pyre. Peshawar opened Mahmud's road into India.