1 Conquest of the Punjab. 107
2 the troops assembled at the capital in honour of
3 the royal nuptials were at once sent off to the
4 frontier, led by the bridegroom himself and General
5 Ventura. Once more Peshawar was saved by the
6 arrival, in the nick of time, of a relieving force. A
7 desperate encounter had taken place at Jamrud, in
8 which the brave Hari Singh fell mortally wounded.
9 The Sikhs, bereft of their leader at the most critical
10 moment of the fight, had been forced back on
11 Peshawar, where they were immediately besieged.
12 But the Afghans had hardly commenced their attack
13 before the prince and Ventura were upon them.
14 There was no fight to speak of. Backed by the
15 whole might of the Khalsa, the Sikh leaders had
16 little difficulty in convincing Muhammad Akbar that
17 it was time to decamp, and in a short time he and
18 his whole force were in full retreat towards Jalalabad.