Siege of Aligarh

The siege of Aligarh also known as the Battle of Aligarh was fought between the Maratha Confederacy and the British East India Company during the Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803–1805) at Aligarh, India.

Aligarh Fort, one of the strongest forts in India, was fortified and commanded by a French mercenary officer Pierre Perron. It was laid under siege on 1 September 1803, by the British 76th Regiment, now known as the Yorkshire Regiment, under General Lord Gerard Lake. It was captured from the Marathas and French on 4 September 1803. During the assault, fourteen ditches were lined with sword-blades and poisoned chevaux-de-frise around the fort by the French soldiers. The then Duke of Wellington declared the capture as "One of the most extraordinary feats of the British conquest of Northern India".