December 17 in Military History — On This Day

The Sack of Delhi

Timur invaded India ostensibly to punish the Muslim sultans of Delhi for tolerating Hindu idolatry. Before the battle, he ordered the execution of approximately 100,000 Hindu prisoners — captives taken during his march through northern India — to prevent them from rising against his rear. He then routed the Delhi Sultanate's army, whose war elephants panicked under a barrage of flaming camels and naphtha. The sack of Delhi lasted for days, leaving the city a smoking ruin that took over a century to recover.

The sack of Delhi was among the most devastating single events in Indian history. The Tughluq dynasty never recovered, and the Delhi Sultanate fragmented into weak successor states. Timur's invasion depopulated vast stretches of northern India and shattered the region's political order, though his own grandson Babur would later return to found the Mughal Empire.

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⚔️📍 Malmedy, Belgium1944

Malmedy Massacre — SS Murders American POWs

Waffen-SS troops under Joachim Peiper shot 84 captured American soldiers at the Baugnez crossroads near Malmedy during the Battle of the Bulge offensive. The prisoners had their hands raised when the shooting began.

News of the massacre spread rapidly through the American army, stiffening resistance to the German Ardennes offensive and contributing to the denial of quarter to SS prisoners.

Outcome

84 American POWs murdered; SS troops executed after war