On 21 December 1704, Guru Sahib, Panj piaras and 40 Singhs camped in an open space in Chamkaur. In the evening Guru with his sikhs took control of Kachi Garhi a Mud fortress on a small hill. Kachi Garhi was owned by two brothers Chaudhari Roop Chand and Jagat Singh. They offered their services to Guru. Guru Sahib had visited Chamkaur in 1702 while returning from Kurekshetra. Guru Sahib and 40 Singhs moved into the house of Chaudhari Roop Chand and Jagat Singh situated on a hill. The Haveli with its high paraimeter mud brick wall now became the fort of Guru Sahib.
At the commencement of Amritvela (early hours of the day before sunrise) Guru Sahib woke up Bhai Sangat Singh.
“Wake up Sangat Singh, its time for Asa di Var. Let’s do Kirtan,” Guru ji said.
What an amazing warrior-saint Guru was! An army of around 1 Million was pursuing Guru Sahib and planning to attack the place where they were staying, and yet Guru Sahib was still blissfully continuing his daily discipline of meditation, Nitnem and Kirtan, with his Singhs.
Mugal generals, yelled over the wall, “Gobind Singh! If you and your Sikhs come out now, you will be spared!” Guru Sahib replied to this with a rain of arrows. There was silence now in the cold morning. Clouds filled the sky followed by thunder and lightening. Guru and the Singhs became ready for the battle.
Preparing for Battle
In the chilly hours before sunrise a Mughal messenger came to negotiate with the Sikhs. However, Guru Sahib told the messenger to go away or face death. Inside the four walls of the mud-house Guru Sahib declared war.
First one Singh came out and when he was about to become Shaheed (martyr), he roared the Jaikara (slogan) of “Sat Sri Akal!” As soon as the sound of “Sat Siri Akal” echoed throughout the battlefield, the next Singh came out to fight in the battleground. The Nawab was astonished at what these Singhs were made of. He remembered the sayings of the Sikhs that “One Sikh equalled Sava Lakh (125,000)” – the bravery of one Sikh is equal to that of 125,000 ordinary men.
After the day’s fighting, by the night, writer Dalip Singh in Life of Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji tells us that the following 11 Sikhs remained alive:
During the night of 22/23 December 1704, Bhai Daya Singh and Bhai Dharam Singh (two of the original Panj Piarey) along with Bhai Maan Singh and other Singhs remained in the fort of Chamkaur Sahib. There were a total of 11 Singhs left on the night of December 22-23,1704. Fighting paused at nightfall while the Mughals regrouped but this also gave valuable time to the few remaining Sikhs to hatch a plan.
The 11 Singhs left included Bhai Daya Singh and Bhai Dharam Singh (the two remaining panj piaare) and Bhai Mann Singh, Bhai Sangat Singh, Bhai Sant Singh and 6 others. These 5 Singh begged Guru Ji to escape, they said “At Kesgarh Sahib we watched you beseeching the five beloved ones to initiate you with Amrit.
You had said then, I am of the Khalsa, and the Khalsa is mine. Today we ask in the capacity of the Khalsa to beseech you to leave Chamkaur and escape to a safer place.” Guru Sahib had no choice but to accept their demands. It was decided that Guru Ji, Mann Singh and the two panj piaare would leave the fort and that they would dress up Sangat Singh to look like Guru Ji because he had an uncanny resemblance to Guru Sahib.
Guru Ji killed the few soldiers that were on watch. Then he left in the pitch dark and started to shout “Sat Sri Akal”. The Mughals who couldn’t see where anyone was ended killing several of their own while Guru Ji and the three Sikhs who accompanied him escaped.
They had previously agreed if they had split up to meet on the outskirts of Machhiwara, twenty seven kilometres away. Sant Singh, Sangat Singh and the other Singhs left at the fort inflicted great losses to the enemy at night by causing distraction and confusion.
The end of the Battle
As day broke, the Mughals launched an all out attack on the fortress. There was stiff resistance. They finally entered the fort, after hours of battering the fort, but Bhai Sangat Singh, Bhai Sant Singh and the remaining Sikhs charged out on horseback. They engaged the enemy and killed scores of the enemy before attaining martyrdom. The Mughals thought they had killed Guru Ji but the Guru had already escaped. The Khalsa lived to fight another day.
Guru Sahib had not left quietly. On leaving, Guru Sahib blew his horn and stood on high ground and clapped his hands three times saying “Peer-e-Hind rwad” (“The “Peer” of India is leaving”).
“Blessed is that land, blessed is that father, blessed is the great mother. Whose son has shown the way to live, for centuries to come.”