Skip to main content

Battle of Haldighati

Image
By

There have been a lot of talks going on regarding who won the Battle of Haldighati. While some want to change what we read and say that the Maharana won it, many oppose the point with a Mughal victory. Here, I compile every account I found of the Battle and its Aftermath and make my unbiased conclusion on the topic.

PS. The dates vary from book to book; I gave the ones I found in most sources.


The Background: Relation with Mughals

Mewar was one of Rajputana's strongest individual kingdoms, along with the likes of Marwar and Kacchawar (Jaipur). Long before the Mughals under Akbar, Mewar under Rana Sangram Singh had successfully managed to keep the "Turk Invaders" under Babar at bay, fighting 17 wars, big and small. The relationship was further questioned when, during the invasion from Saurashtra, Sanga's widow, Rani Karnavati, had written to Mughal Emperor Humayun for help, sending him a rakhi. Contrary to popular belief, Humayun had rested on his way from Gaur (Bengal) to Chittorgarh, which forced the Rani to commit Jauhar. Humayun, however, won back the fort later and gave the fort to Rana Vikramaditya, forcing him to accept Mughal supremacy. Things changed in Agra for Humayun after that. Chittor too fell shortly to Banbir, Vikramaditya's uncle, who assassinated him.  Jalaluddin Mohammad, Humayun's son, came to the throne in 1556 when Mewar was again a stronghold under Rana Udai Singh II. Akbar had invaded and won Mewar's glorious fort of Chittorgarh in 1568. He had taken over other Rajput provinces either by war or by alliance. His Rajput Policy was working wonders. During this time, with a few lesser-known provinces, the Rana of Mewar, Udai Singh II, had refused Mughal supremacy or alliance. The results were very bad for Mewar. From 1568 to Udai Singh's death, the Mughals occupied half of Mewar through their encampments. The Siege of Chittorgarh saw many Mewari Bravehearts doing Saka or Jauhar, while 30,000 civilians were brutally killed in a massacre. In 1572, Udai Singh died, leaving the throne and struggling with his heir, Rana Pratap Singh.

The Rana's Early Reign:

After shifting his capital from Udaipur (Gogunda) to Kumbhalgarh (Kelwara), Rana Pratap Singh extended his hand of friendship to the Princes of Gwalior, which had fallen to the Mughals in 1567, and to Sirohi, which also fell to Mughal dominance in 1572. On his accession, he had been in a war with Marwar in 1573. While most accounts suggest the war was led by Rao Maldeo Rathore's fifth son, Rao Udai Singh II, also known as Mota Raja, some suggest this war was fought by Rao Maldeo himself. Mewar won this war, and Marwar surrendered to Mewar's terms that in case of a third-party war (Mughals in this case), Marwar will not help Mewar's enemy states. This was the first success attributed by historians to Rana Pratap officially. Even though he was the commander of an army that had successfully driven the Mughals out of Kumbhalgarh during the Chittor Siege, these were officially attributed to his father's reign.

The Battle of Haldighati:

Man Singh of Amer had been posted at Salumber, which was a Mewar province, before the Chittorgarh siege after his expedition to Dungarpur. He was ordered by the Mughal Emperor Akbar to march to Udaipur ( or Gogunda) to meet the Rana in person and offer him a peace treaty with the Mughals. He arrived at Gogunda on June 1573, most probably to know that the capital and the royal family had shifted to Kumbhalgarh. His father, Raja Bhagwan Das, was sent to Rana's court in October 1573 to talk peace with Rana Pratap Singh and offer him the Mughal Alliance. Rana Pratap Singh had received the Rajput king with great hospitality and eventually rejected his treaty with dignity. The next peace attempt had arrived around December same year or early in 1574, and this time it was Raja Toran Mal who went back impressed, even praising the Rana for his Rajput values. A disappointed Akbar now decided to send Maan Singh again. Around the middle of 1574, Maan Singh arrived at the Udai Sagar Lake district near Udaipur, and the Rana sent his son Kunwar Amar Singh, a mere 16 years old, to his attendance. Disappointed with this, Raja Maan Singh had a word exchange with the young prince, who ended up questioning his pedigree. This led Maan Singh to challenge Mewar to war and leave them humiliated.

Man Singh, however, had to wait for the war as Akbar had sent his troops on an expedition to Gaur (Bengal). Meanwhile, Mewar was preparing for war. On 29th October 1574, 300 horses and soldiers were stationed at Dhol Village in the Kumbhalgarh district by the Rana. This village was near the Haldighati Pass. The Rana also ordered the evacuation of villagers and townsmen from Kumbhalgarh, Kelwara, Dhol, Lohsingh, Khamour, Molela and adjacent villages. The evacuation went on till the end of 1575.

Meanwhile, after settling the troubles with Jodhpur in 1575, Akbar reluctantly sent his army to Man Singh, who was now stationed at Ajmer. On the 3rd of April, 1576, Maan Singh with Salim, later Jehangir, left Ajmer with the notable chiefs namely, Asaf Khan, Mehtar Khan, Sayyid Ahmed, Sayyid Haseem Berha, Badayoni, Raja Jagannath Kachawara (uncle to Maan Singh), and Rai Loh Karan ( who was assumed to be Mewar's prince and brother to the Rana). They had arrived at the Mandalgarh border and camped there for two months. It was during these two months that Rawat Shakta Singh Chundawat joined Maan Singh. The Mughal army settled at Mandalgarh, hoping the Rana would come down from the hills and declare war. But the Rana remained intact in the hills, forcing the Mughal Army to move in further.


The Mewari army had camped at Lohsingh village, about 8miles8 miles from Haldighati. Maan Singh was forced to move to Khamor and encamp at Modela, on the other side of the Banas River. There was now a distance of 10 miles between the two camps. 


The Mewar Army consisted of about 5000 men, including 3000 horses and riders, 2000 footmen and 100 pick men. The notable names of Mewari Soldiers were Commander Hakim Khan Suri, who was nephew to Sher Shah Suri, Krishna Das Chundawat of Salumber ( His father Sai Das Chundawat did Saka at Chittor) Bhim Singh of Sardargarh ( A childhood friend to Rana) Rawat Sanga of Deogarh, Ram Das Rathore of Badnore (son of Jaimal) Ram Shah Tanwar of Gwalior and his three sons, Maan Singh Jhalla of Bari Sadri, Maan Singh Songara ( Son of Akhai Raj if Jhallore, maternal uncle to the Rana) Rana Punja Bhil, Purohit Gopinath, Purohit Jagannath, Ratan Chand, the Charans of Soniyana, Keshwa and Jaiso, Bhama Shah and his brother Tarachand, and the heir Kunwar Amar Singh.

Man Singh and his Mughal troops moved from Molela to Badshah Bagh in June 1576, with 4000 men. But with the attacking troops of Rana's men, Ghazi Khan, Asaf Khan and Man Singh were forced to flee 12 miles away to another encampment. The war was later successfully led by the Sayyids of Barha under Mihtah Khan. 
I made this formation chart based on L.P. Mathur's book.


On 21st June 1576, the armies again met at Khun ki Talai, or Rakht Talai, the plains below the forests of the pass of Haldighati. The Mughal army killed Maan Singh Jhalla, wearing Rana Pratap's turban, assuming him to be the Rana, as Pratap managed to survive, but his horse Chetak died around 5km from the Banas River. The Mughals, on the 23rd of June, marched to Gogunda and occupied it. Later, Man Singh led a siege of Kumbhalgarh and stayed there from September to December 1576 before marching back to Agra. Thinking the Rana dead, the Mughals now concentrated on Deccan, while the Rana used this opportunity to win back major parts of the lost Mewar by guerrilla tactics. The rumours of his being alive spread like wildfire, and soon Akbar sent Shahbaz Khan to Kumbhalgarh to reattack the fort on 3rd April 1578. However, Shahbaz Khan could not find the Rana, who was staying in the forests and had moved to Dholan on 16th June 1580 after a successful war with the uprising of the Rathores of Chappan. By now, the Mughal stronghold at 17 major encampments was removed by the Rana, with no news arriving at Agra for the same. If it was for Mughal negligence or Rana's spies at Akbar's service, no one knows.

The Battle of Dewair:

The Dussera of 1581 marked a very important phase for the reign of Pratap as the freedom fighter for Mewar. He led an army against Shahbaz Khan at Dewair, 45 km from Kumbhalgarh near the previous battlefield of Haldighati. The battle was led by Bahlol Khan and Shahbaz Khan against Mewar. The Mughals, who were still unsure of whether it was Pratap or his son Amar Singh leading the battle, had clearly underestimated the Mewar troops. This battle is also sometimes referred to as the Second Battle of Haldighati, but it was fought at Dewair. A memorial for the Mewari soldiers who had lost their lives still stands in the small province of Rajsamand. This is the very famous war where Rana Pratap Singh cut the Mughal Commander Bahlol Khan in half. No evidence of this battle had been found in major book sources from both the Mughals as well as Rajputs, and this battle was often dismissed as folklore by Historians previously. Recently, proof of such a war has been found ( resources are unknown to me), and it is confirmed that the Mewaris won this battle against the Mughals. Maan Singh, who was then stationed at Achalgarh (Mt. Abu), refused to take part in any battle at Mewar anymore. In the following year, 1582, the Rana had won back Kumbhalgarh and restored it to its former glory, forcing the Mughals to leave their 36 encampments in the state of Mewar. This war was won by the Mewaris against all odds. 

The Conclusion:

The battle of Haldighati is often described as " No loss so glorious and no victory so shameful". Man Singh and his 20,000 men had struggled against the Rana's mere 5000 with a clear lack of leadership and planning that the Rana had executed brilliantly. Outnumbered by the Mughals, this war ended in a loss, but I will call this a victory of no use to the Mughals, whose aim was to gain Mewar by killing the Rana. They thought they had killed him without even confirming the same, and found no traces of him or his family while he struggled in the jungles for the next 5 years. Glorifying this battle as a Mewari win will not glorify Maharana Pratap and his struggles and leadership. It was after this war that he used his little resources, sacrificed all luxury, starved his family and stayed in hardship in the forests with the Bhils to free his Mewar. His war of independence that had inspired many like Shivaji and Bose would become meaningless if people argue towards a Mewar victory at Haldighati. However, sadly, the Battle of Dewair, finding no mention in any textbook, is a shame and an ill attempt to glorify the Mughals. Because this war was Mewar's success at independence and also a major turning point in Pratap's journey from a Rana to a Maharana. Another common misconception is that it was a Hindu king fighting Muslim dominance. No. Maharana Pratap Singh and Mewar's army had as many Muslim soldiers as the Mughals had Hindus. It was not a religious war. Both the rulers were secular in nature, with the Maharana's army being led by Hakim Khan Suri, while the Mughal army was led by Maan Singh. Also, a majority of Mewaris were Jains, including Bhama Shah, who donated all his wealth to the Rana for preparing an army for the Battle of Dewair. Such misconceptions arrive due to the lack of focus of our textbooks on the actual war that Mewar did win over the Mughals, the second battle of Haldighati/Dewair and not the first.  

I, as an admirer of Maharana Pratap, find his struggles between 1576 to 1581 the best part of his reign that shows his great leadership, skilful tactics, his magnificent character and the true growth of Mewar towards freedom. 

However, a few incompetent descendants after the great king, and a few unsuccessful treaties had made the Ranas of Mewar weak once again to Mughal dominance until Rana Raj Singh won against the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb with his tripartite alliance with Jodhpur and Jaipur. 






Bibliography:

  • Maharana Pratap by B.S.Rana
  • Maharana Pratap by Rima Hooja
  • War Strategy of Maharana Pratap by Dr. L.P. Mathur
  • Mewar and the Mughals
  • Annals of Mewar as translated from James Todd by R.Nath
  • Akbarnama
  • Mughal Empire by R.C. Majumder
  • Rana Protap: A Play by D.L.Ray
  • Jahangirnama
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Bharat Ka Veer Putra Maharana Pratap on Sony: Review

By
  This is a tribute to Contiloe Entertainment’s Bharat Ka Veer Putra Maharana Pratap… which has no connection to history whatsoever! Everything that Begins comes to an End... But Memories Remain Forever...  A Serial, yes. Just a serial? No.  It’s much more than that.  It celebrates the life of India’s first freedom fighter. The man who stood against the odds and became immortal in history. It made us fall in love with the young, emotional. Strong and determined Kunwar Pratap. It made our hearts go  Na Na Na Na Na Chan Chan Chan Chan  every time his eyes met Ajabde’s. It made us believe in eternal love. It made our eyes moist with  Jauhar Phir se hai aya  and our hearts proud at  Veer tu Prachand du . His wars became ours, his pains and happiness our truths. His undying love and forgiving nature towards his family, and the respect he showed his parents. The love he had for the country and his horse. Everything we loved. Was it all love and no ...
Read more

Jauhar: All You Need To Know

By
 We have no Knowledge of the beginning and end of the world, the first and last of this ancient book has fallen out ~  Abu Talib Karim. Rightly said by the poet laureate of Emperor Shah Jahan above, we do not actually know the beginning and end of anything in the universe, be it the traditions, culture or human race, or the world. What we know are fragments of the past we extract from evidence. It is in vain to try to determine the first and last of something. For the past few months, owing to some media hype on Jauhar, many of you have asked me questions. I tried to answer most of them. However, a lot remained unsaid and unwritten. Mostly because some things are impossible to put into words. But here I try my best. Today is a very significant day in history. On the 23rd of February 1568, the world saw the last “Jauhar” of Chittorgarh, recorded in the medieval history of India. Akbar had invaded Mewar, and the four-month siege of four months ended in the Saka. There was no bet...
Read more

One Bullet? Not Enough!

By
  “NOTHING COMES WITHOUT SELF SACRIFICE... NEVER GIVE UP, EVEN IF WE FACE OUR OWN END...” ~ Matangini Hazra The year was 1869. For most of India, it is famous as the year when Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born to change the face of India's struggle for freedom. But in a corner of Undivided Bengal, the villagers of Hogla in Tamluk, the district capital of Medinipur, witnessed the birth of a girl child to Thakurdas Maity and his wife Bhagabati Devi. One can only imagine the birth of a girl child to a loan-ridden poor peasant in a village back then, perhaps meant no celebration. It meant the burden of having no heir, providing for this child and of course arranging for her dowry.    She was named Matangini, literally meaning “The Female Elephant”, but a name attributed to the consort of Lord Shiva, Adi Shakti.  The birthplace of Matangini is now renovated into this building. Courtesy: Midnapore. in The official records show her date of birth as the 17th of November 18...
Read more

Symphony of Love

By
  A week was enough for the master to be pleased enough with the new student to tell the Sultan that she was ready for her first performance. The Sultan was extremely pleased and rewarded him with a gold chain. As the master bowed to leave, the guards announced the arrival of the chief queen. Sultan Baz Bahadur sat upright. She was his first bride, a childhood alliance his father had forced upon him when he did not even know what marriage implied. Now he only saw her face when she had complaints about the inner palace and its inhabitants. Honestly, he expected her to be there since Roopmati arrived. His queen did not like changes, especially if those changes were threatening to her position. The Chief Queen arrived with her maids, dismissed them at the threshold and came up to her husband to bow and greet him. “What brings you here?” Baz Bahadur asked, with a lingering smile on his lips. The queen could hear the hint of taunt in his voice. She forced a smile. Her marriage to this r...
Read more

Maha Shiva Ratri

By
Mahashivratri: The Night of Shiva. It's Story, Significance & Spiritual Meaning: Har Har Mahadev! This powerful chant means Mahadev resides in all of us. On Mahashivratri, this eternal truth is celebrated by millions across the world, as the cosmos itself feels the blessings of Shiva. The Sacred Night: Legend of Mahashivratri On the 14th night before the new moon of the Phalgun month, a transformative event occurred in the ancient lore of Hindu Dharma: Lord Shiva married the Daughter of the Mountain, Parvati. This night became known as Mahashivratri , the great night of Shiva. This was the night when the ascetic, the great yogi who cared for none, embraced the life of a householder for the second time, showing that both renunciation and worldly responsibilities are valid paths for spiritual growth. The celestial wedding of Shiva and Parvati brought together all beings of the universe. Devas, Asuras, Ganas, Yakshas, and Nagas , beings from all realms and walks of life, ce...
Read more

The Atheist and The Lord

By
  This is more of a personal account of one of our family stories, and the reason we are ardent devotees of Lord Shiva. We mythologically trace our roots to the age of Ramayana, as descendants of Sage Vasistha's lineage from Sage Saktri, while historically we have records of our immediate family as early as the time of Babur and that of our ancestors from Kanauj. Family Origins: This was Gaur Banga or Bengal. My forefathers lived in the Jessore district of present-day Bangladesh. They were descendants of Shaktri, the son of Ved Vyas, whose family lived in Kanauj, U.P., and we are direct descendants of Sage Vasistha, who taught Rama the Vedas. The Shaktri clan travelled from the Vasistha Ashram near the River Beas to Kanauj in UP ( Present Uttarakhand) to teach and practice medicines there. They were Vedic-age Vaidyas. They were learned people of the Brahmin class trained to cure difficult diseases. Pandit Saktridhar Sen and his family were invited to King Adhisur's court in Ben...
Read more

The Groom Abductor

By
  She was sitting inside the Palace at Dwarka. Her brothers were busy attending to guests. The Prince of Hastinapur had arrived that day with a proposal for her elder brothers. Being aloof from political scenarios, the young princess, the only sister to her two brothers, was not bothered. She hated the sight of the prince who troubled her aunt and cousins back in Hastinapur. But he was her brother's student and hence a favourite at Dwarka. A maid came in a hurry and informed,  " There is good news, Rajkumari. Your wedding has been fixed to the Prince of Hastinapur, Suyodhan, by your eldest brother" Shocked, she could not speak. Her brother did not bother to ask for her opinion. Her childish anger overcame her as she rushed to her other brother, the one who always had the way. Crying, she reached his chambers, where his wife Rukmini was present. Seeing his dearest sister cry, Rukmini got up worried from her seat. "What is wrong, sister? Why are you crying?" ...
Read more

Sisodiya Family History

By
Many of you have requested a historical and chronological account of Chittorgarh since Rana Sanga. Let me start by telling you this is just an outline of the events as per history. The family name was originally Guhilot from Guha, a Rana of Mewar. But after one of the kings bravely killed a Sisod, a wild boar, the family name came to be Sisodiya. The Maharana of Mewar,  Sangram Singh , was father to Maharaj Kumar Bhoj Raj, his heir apparent and prince who was married to Saint Poetess Meera Bai , the princess of Merta. While Bhoj Raj died in the battle of Khanua, Rana Sanga died of wounds that did not heal from his battle with Babur and the invading Mughal army. He had fought 17 wars against Babar. When both Bhoj Raj and Sanga died, Rani Karvawati, the favourite queen of Rana Sanga, asked Meera Bai to leave the fort of Chittorgarh. It is believed that luck left Chittorgarh with Meera. The year was  1528 AD . Ratan Singh, the brother of Bhoj Raj, had been coronated when he suspe...
Read more

The Lady Sultan

By
Indian History, or subcontinental History, is incomplete without speaking of the women who left a mark in their own significant ways. The first woman who comes to mind is perhaps the only woman Sultan to rule Delhi, Raziya (Razia). It’s been over a year since I had been trying to read and understand the mystery of  Raziya Bint Iltutmish . Attributed as the only Woman Muslim Monarch of India, she is a name of many assumptions, imagination and speculations. The few books that have been written on her or the historical accounts of the Slave Dynasty mentioning her have always been about the turbulence of the government and the various rebels and uprisings that took place among the prominent chiefs of Iltutmish, who wanted to rise in power. No documentation or portrayal is found about her look, character or early days from her contemporary times. The only relevant historical book I found solely on her was by Dr Karunapada Dutta, while she finds a chapter in Heroines by Ira Mukhoty or Th...
Read more

Sisodiya: Kings, Queens and Princes (1538 - 1597)

By
I am back with another History post, this time it is on the wives and sons of Rana Udai Singh II of Mewar, his son and heir Maharana Pratap and Rana Amar Singh. This is a continuation of the Sisodia Family History I posted some time back. The information has been taken from Annals of Mewar by James Todd, Maharana Pratap by B.N. Rana, and Maharana Pratap by Rima Hooja.  Udai Singh II  was the son of Ranisa Karnawati and Rana Sangram Singh. He was born on 4th August 1 522, at Chittorgarh and died on 28th February 1 572 at Gogunda . He was the Ruler of the Sisodia Dynasty. He is believed to have  56 sons and 2 5 wives, apart from the many insignificant queens in his Rani Mahal. Here is a list of his main queens and their sons. Maharani Jaivanta Bai Songara of Jalore  was his chief queen and consort. Her son is Maharana Pratap. He was married to her before he went to war with Banbir, as her father, Akshayraj Rao, was a friend and ally of his father, Rana Sanga.  Saj...
Read more