Chittorgarh: The Final Seige

I must mention here that to see everything I mentioned in detail and feel all of it you can either:

1. reach Chittorgarh by evening (around 5) watch the Light and Sound show first, then the next morning from 9am you can take a 4-5-hour fort tour or

2. Reach Chittorgarh by early morning and return to Udaipur at night after the 6PM light and sound show. Many prefer not to stay the night in Chittorgarh, though I wanted to spend a night in the Historical town.

On 18th October 1567, Akbar was marching to Agra from a win in Gujrat. He decided it was time he laid seize on every fort, every state and every king, who did not support his alliance. He wanted to establish Mughal Supremacy. By 23rd October he had marched to his strongest enemy resistance Mewar. Mewar was independent under Rana Udai Singh, who had just built his new city at lake Pichola at that time. Akbar camped outside the fort walls of Chittorgarh, Mewar's pride and capital. He first attacked in vain in October only when Mewar's army under then Senapati crown prince Pratap Singh successfully resisted his attack. But Akbar was determined to get Chittorgarh. It was the symbol of Rajput Pride and Independence. And if he managed to get Mewar many would accept his supremacy. He prepared for a siege and set up camp at the foothills for four months. He paid soldiers Mohurs to build an artificial hill now called Mohor Magri.

The Grounds where the Mughals Camped

The chiefs were called upon and help was asked from major states who refused to accept Mughal supremacy. Most refused aid. The main chiefs and alliance kings of Udai Singh involved Jaimal Rathore of Badnore, Rawat Chundawat and Patta (Fateh Pratap Sisodia) who advised the royal family to retreat to the new city at Lake Pichola. Udai Singh agreed and left behind 8000 soldiers under Patta and Jaimal's leadership. Kunwar Pratap Singh refused an escape and was led out by a secret tunnel to the River Gambhiri as per the folktales go. Akbar had started occasional attacks with cannons breaking the fort walls at times.

The siege was forcing the Mewaris to shut all major doors leading to the Fort and hence their food supply was cut short in a matter of four months. Seeing no other option, the brave Rajputs decided to march out for a war that was impossible to win as 8000 soldiers met 70000. Saffron attires of Saka were worn as "Har har Mahadev" filled the air. Another call seemed more haunting. " Jai Bhavani." The women jumped into the Jauhar Kund they lit up at Patta and Jaimal's house. It is said that there was a lack of wood and other materials so they were forced to use Gunpowder which exploded, resulting in the condition of the house like we see today. On 23rd February 1568, Akbar won Chittorgarh but in vain as he couldn't have Mewar without defeating Udai Singh. In a fit of rage against the royals, he destroyed temples, houses and monuments, and killed 35000 innocent citizens who refused to bow down and accept him as their king. The siege was the most devastating one in Akbar's career.

Inside Patta's House locally called Senapati Ka Ghar

View of Jaimal Patta's Palace

If we visit Chittorgarh by auto or car, they refuse to actually give us a tour of Jaimal and Patta's house but you have to insist. Yes, it feels strange to even today, the black soot on the walls, the broken windows. Everything around it speaks bravery and honour. 17-year-old Patta's 13-year-old newlywed bravely led the women of Chittor against the Mughal men at war. Akbar was speechless at the valour.

Walls were broken by Mughals

The Suraj Pol beside the Kirti Stambh is the original old road of Chittorgarh, taken by the horses of kings. If we go down this road we will witness the portion of walls broken down by bombardments by Akbar. The huge battleground and the Martyr's Memorials give us a reminder of the glorious past of those who refused to bow down. Surajpol has the memorials of brave Patta and Chundawatji. They fell here defending their motherland. The Mohor Magri is hardly visible but you can make out what it looked like.

The Suraj Pol

The old roads that were used by Kings. Notice the broken wall due to Cannon attacks by the Mughals

The Battlegrounds of Chittorgarh with Gambhiri in the centre.

The Horse Road is now broken

Walls of the Mighty Fort

Rawat Chundawat's Memorial

Patta Sisodia fell here

The hills and walls of the fort are now broken at the Burj

The Fateh Prakash Palace which is now a government museum has paintings of Mewar's greats, and also stone structures. It also has the Mewar school of paintings, weaponry and basic things of a Mewari life 500 years back. Many also don't know that Rajasthan is a rich heritage of Indus Valley artefacts and some are found here from the nearby sites as well. With a heavy heart, I left Chittorgarh, now knowing what made a man sacrifice his everything for this place. Two days and it won my heart, and he was born there, lived there. He must have felt terrible. Off To Udaipur Next!

The Queen of Mewar

There have been many versions, folktales and local stories in Rajputana on their Kings and Queens. None of these versions is, however, historical as history only mentions her as wife to Maharana Pratap, his consort and Queen Mother to Amar Singh. She was busy making a garland when Ratnawati rushed inside, hardly able to breathe. Concerned, the elder sister stopped her work and looked at her panting young sibling. " What is it? What's wrong?" "Jija maa sa is not letting me go to the haat mela alone. Please come with me, I need to buy some bangles." The spoiled younger one pleaded. " Wait, let me do my aarti first, then we can go." The reluctant Ratnawati sat down impatiently. In another room, their mother was helping their father get ready for the day. He was the Samant of Bijolia, the representative of the Rana of Mewar. Throughout the day he had to deal with administrative problems in Bijolia and give people justice, but today he had something...

Jauhar: All You Need to Know

“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 out of evidence. It is in vain to try and determine the first and last of something. For the past few months owing to some media hype on Jauhar, many of you had 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 23 rd of February 1568, the world saw the last “Jauhar” of Chittorgarh, recorded in the medieval history of India. Akbar had invaded Mewar and the siege of four months ended in the Saka. There was no better day for...

The Queen Mother of Mewar

Let me start by saying, this is a representation of history and folklore in my own words, trying to show how great a soul this lady was. And let me start with a line here. “Naari Ki Balidaano Ko Sadev Bhulta Aya hai Itihas.” Yes, most women lay forgotten in the pages of history, only alive through the folklore and local tales that fail to reach the pages of books due to a lack of historical evidence. Their names don’t remain, but their haunting hand prints on the fort walls before Jauhar, their names on inscriptions as daughter, wife and mother, often make us wonder, who were they, how were they and how were their lives! Historically, the only thing we know about Maharani Jaivanta Bai Songara, princess of Jallore and queen of Mewar is that she was the first queen of Rana Udai Singh II, the mother of most probably her only son Maharana Pratap and daughter of ally of Rana Sanga, Akshay Raj of Jallore. Apart from that her entire life has no historical existence and is spun on ...

The Warrior Bride

Kelwa/Kailwa is a small village situated around two hours away from Chittorgarh and an hour from Lake Pichola. It was mainly inhabited by the Rathores and ruled by the Chundawat clan, who were once the rulers of Mewar. One chief of Kelwa, was Rawat Sihaji Singh Chundawat. He was a very close ally of Rana Sanga. His son Jaga Singhji too died fighting for Rana Udai Singhji in one war with the Afghans in 1555 AD. Kelwa’s heir was the minor child of Jaga Singhji and his widow Sajjan Bai Songara Chauhan. Being from the clan of the Chauhan Rajputs, she was a warrior at heart. From the early age of about four, her only son was brought up under his uncle Naga Singhji, to fight for his motherland and serve it like all other Mewaris. Fatta (Patta), as fondly called by everyone was a deft warrior even before he reached his teens. His name and bravery spread across the land, to Rana Udai Singh’s ears in Chittorgarh. He was also the nephew to Ranaji’s close aide Rawat Chundawatji. Upon the order of...

Teeja Saka Chittor Ra

23rd February 1568. The sun rose on the eastern horizon, not with the hope of a new day. But, with the horror of what was to follow. The first rays of the Sun God were met by the chants of “Jai Bhavani!” that echoed in the air of Chittorgarh. The Mewaris knew it was time. Four months back, when the Mughals camped at the base of the fort, a helpless Chittorgarh had watched. Rana Udai Singh had left with his closest aides to make the new city westwards, his capital. If rumours were to be believed, he had left behind a cavalry of 8000 soldiers, under Rao Jaimal of Merta and Rawat Patta of Kelwa to look over the fort. He had also left behind some of his lesser queens and infant princes, as an assurance to the people that Chittorgarh was invincible. Their safety and hope had lived in Kunwar Pratap. Truth be said, they had already taken the crown Prince as their King. Ever since Ranisa had left with him till he became the Senapati, he had time and again proved to be a better lead...

The Princess of Marwar

Historically we know nothing about Phool Bai Rathore except that she was the daughter of Ram Singh Rathore, granddaughter of Raja Maldeo Rathore and fifth wife of Maharana Pratap. There is no historical evidence of Akbar's alliance with her in particular however Maldeo did give his granddaughters in a marriage alliance with Mughals and other major dynasties. Phool Kanwar's cousin Maanwati Bai (Better known as Jodha Bai or Jagat Gossain) married Salim, Akbar's son and later emperor Jahangir. The Princess was in her chambers. The Mehrgarh Fort was in a quiet dark state and everyone feared what lay ahead. The men of the Rathore clan had gone to ally with the Mughal emperor Akbar. Rao Maldeo had decided that it was the only way to save Marwar's future. His second son Udai and youngest one Chandrasen supported his decision to save the country. But his heir and firstborn Ram Singh Rathore was a rebel. He was not going to bow down before the Mughals and lose his dignity. A...

Maharana Pratap: The Sun of Mewar

Many of you have read my fan fiction as well as historical representations of the life and times of Maharana Pratap Singh of Mewar. I provided small details of his life in many articles. But never have I ever made a separate historical post on him. It is very difficult to put together his life without the help of folklore because historical evidence is scarce. This one was requested and hence here it goes. Needless to say, this one is very special. This is a blend of history and folklore. Leave your love. ❤️ Background and Birth: The year was 1540. Mewar was under a cloud of uncertainty. Banbir, their ruler for four years now, was a very incompetent ruler who always spent his time in luxury, drinking and dancing with girls. The crown prince Udai Singh was rumoured to be killed by him. Chittorgarh was in darkness. Around March 1540, Mewar once again saw hope as some trusted generals along Mewar with Kunwar Udai Singh attacked Chittorgarh taking Banbir by surprise. He was soon to re...

Charumati's Love

T his is written based on folklore. This is a representative work of fiction and not claiming any historical happening in the conversations. This is to show the spirit of the women of Rajputana. The year 1657. Shah Jahan had taken ill and was rumoured to be dying in Agra Fort. He was about eighty and the pressure of having an empire had taken a toll on his body. The seat of power was slowly shifting from Agra to Delhi since the prominence of the Laal Quila had increased and if the news spread was to be believed his sons were in a battle for the throne already. It was time each king chose sides once again. Dara Sikhoh was the eldest and the righteous Heir to the throne. He was believed to be a man who held high morals and was hence respected by the enemies and alliances as well. Aurangzeb was his sibling and the youngest of the brothers. Short tempered and cunning he was always dreaded by the court. As Shah Jahan took ill, Aurangzeb took this as a golden opportunity to wage ...

Kalbhoj: The Legend of Bappa Rawal

The Historical fiction is woven mainly from folklore from James Todd's semi-historical book. However, a very vague historical presence is found in Bhojraj the first king of Mewar. The year was 713AD. The Maurya decedents, Moris ruled over the Chitrakut area of west Rajasthan. The areas around Chitrakoot were ruled by many small Chieftains. One of them was Rawal Mahendra II a Guhilot descendent. (The decendent of Guha and Nagaditya) As most power struggles suggest, one of his ministers betrayed and killed him and made himself Rawal. Once, Kalbhoj was in the forests near Nagda close to the borders of the Solanki ruler, looking after his herds. The youngest Solankhini princess was out in the forest playing with her Sakhis. They were making failed attempts to make a Jhula on a banyan tree. Kalbhoj was watching them try when one of the Sakhis spotted him. Witty and charming he always grabbed everyone's attention. Mahendra II had two wives, his first being a Paramara princess from Mt...

The Navroz Incident

This popular folklore has been recreated from Col, James Todd's Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan. Names I have added, from my own historical research. This one is especially for Garima to thank her for the books and love! Yet another Veer Gatha from the dessert! Ps. This is folklore with no evidence of history, please remember that Bikaner, lying in the western part of the Thar, was a small yet independent state ruled by a clan of Marwari Rathores until Raja Kalyanmal surrendered to Akbar's Rajput Policies in 1571. His fourth son Prithviraj Rathore, being a great warrior and poet was respected as one of the "Nine Gems" in Emperor Akbar's court. Prithviraj, was the son of Kalyanmal's first wife and queen Rani Songaribai Rainawati, a cousin of Maharani Jaiwanta Bai of Mewar. Hence he was cousin to the valiant Pratap Singh of Mewar. He was also married to one of Rana Udai Singh of Mewar's daughters from his other wives, sister to Kunwar Pratap, Baisa Ja...

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