The Somnath Campaign (1025-1026)

Somnath, on India's west coast in Gujarat, was a famous temple dedicated to Shiva and known for its rich offerings. In October 1025 Sultan Mahmud left Ghazni, crossed Multan and the Rajputana desert and reached Gujarat.

In January 1026 the Ghaznavid army reached Somnath. The defenders resisted fiercely, but the town fell. The temple was plundered and its idol broken, and great wealth was carried off to Ghazni. On the way back through the Sind desert the army suffered badly.

Muslim chroniclers wrote of the campaign as Mahmud's greatest triumph, while in India Somnath remained a painful memory for centuries. The temple was rebuilt many times; the present building was raised in 1951. The event shows how differently two sides can remember the same history.