Both the 1845-46 and 1848-49 wars, waged by the East India Company (EIC), ended in Sikh defeat and partial subjugation followed by full annexation of Sikh territory. In the aftermath of the second conflict, it also brought the British into contact with the Pashtun tribes of the North West Frontier, which the British were to contend with for the next century.
During the early 19th century the Sikh Empire, under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, had maintained