First Kashmir War
- Date
- 1947–1948
- Category
- Military & conflict
- Region
- South Asia (India)
- Era
- Contemporary
- Significance
The first India–Pakistan war erupted in October 1947 over the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, weeks after both nations gained independence.
Pakistan-backed tribal militias from Waziristan crossed into Kashmir on 22 October to seize the Muslim-majority state before its Hindu ruler, Maharaja Hari Singh, could decide his allegiance. Facing invasion, he acceded to India on 26 October, and Indian troops were airlifted to Srinagar to halt the advance. The fighting drew in regular forces of both new states. The United Nations Security Council intervened, passing Resolution 47 in April 1948 calling for ceasefire, Pakistani withdrawal, and a plebiscite to determine the state's future. A ceasefire took effect on 1 January 1949, freezing the front along what became the Line of Control, which left Kashmir partitioned between the two countries. The promised plebiscite was never held. This first war set the pattern for one of the world's most intractable territorial disputes, generating further wars in 1965 and 1999 and repeated crises between two states that would both later acquire nuclear weapons. The conflict's unresolved legacy continues to shape South Asian security and the daily lives of Kashmiris on both sides of the line.
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Empires active in 1947–1948
- Soviet Union1922 CE – 1991 CE
- Empire of Japan1868 CE – 1947 CE
- French Colonial Empire (Second)1830 CE – 1962 CE
- British Empire1583 CE – 1997 CE
- Spanish Empire1492 CE – 1976 CE
- Portuguese Empire1415 CE – 1999 CE
Related military & conflict events
- India Detonates Its First Nuclear Device, Smiling Buddha1974
- Creation of Israel and the 1948 Arab–Israeli War14 May 1948 (war May 1948 – July 1949)
- Korean War25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953
- Cuban Missile Crisis16–28 October 1962
- Fall of Saigon and reunification of Vietnam30 April 1975 (reunified 1976)
- Khmer Rouge Seize Cambodia and Declare Year Zero1975
Also relevant
- Berlin Blockade and Airlift24 June 1948 – 12 May 1949
- Operation Crossroads: First US Postwar Nuclear Tests at Bikini AtollJuly–August 1946
Further reading
The wider story
India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy
Magisterial, readable history of the subcontinent since independence.
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