Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

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Paul
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Paul »

Khiljis were considered to be the first tribe who moved en masse to settle down in India.

As such they were looked down by other Turkics who did not consider them to be pure Turkic.
Lalmohan
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Lalmohan »

sorry ramana, not something i've read about. its an interesting hypothesis.

incidentally just reviewing the alexander stories on the last page, increasingly think that the alexander victories activities in asia had to be bigged-up to back the aryan invasion theory, not just of india, but also of greece (dorians) and deny any asiatic/african roots for the mediterranean cultures

alexander and the greeks probably had egyptian origins and fascinations that had to be denied by the victorian anglo-germanic nazis
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Post by Atri »

peter wrote:Atri/All,
Would you know the history of Sahu who as a child was captured by Aurangjebe? Was the young Sahu converted?
No.. Shaahu was not converted. Aurangzeb's daughter personally took care that he receives all education (including dharmik) as per all the traditions. He was the maratha emperor which Aurangzeb wished to install so that he would remain friendly to mughals. He did become the maratha emperor but Bhat family took over the reigns as prime-ministers and did the needful. Except not allowing Bajirao-1 to finish off Aurangzeb's dynasty in Delhi, he did not interfere much in the polity, much against the designs of Aurangzeb.
Yagnasri
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Yagnasri »

Where can we read these details about Sahu Maharaj up bringing etc. sir?

Can any guru let me know what book to read on Khilji and Tuglak military tactics?

Can anyone help me here. I am trying to find with google chacha etc and could not.
Last edited by Yagnasri on 19 Jan 2016 09:38, edited 1 time in total.
Singha
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Singha »

the khaljis, lodhis and tughlaqs have been roundly ignored and downsized in history by congi historians to benefit the mughals.
not even muslims seem to care about them much as opposed to mughals.

another one roundly downsized and banished to obscurity is sher shah suri of the suri afghan tribe in bihar.
Lalmohan
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Lalmohan »

what little i've read about the turko-afghan dynasties does praise them but also points out their green intolerance and propensity for deviance and idolatry - sorry meant iconoclasm
Last edited by Lalmohan on 19 Jan 2016 01:03, edited 1 time in total.
ramana
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by ramana »

^Atri, I also read that Aurangzeb green lighted Tarabai to crown her son Rajaram, Shivaji's other son and this led to divisions among the Marathas. In fact Balaji Vishwanath changed sides and supported Shahu to become the Chatrapati at Satara, and was made the Peshwa.
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Singha »

weaker the sultanat the more tolerant the sultan ;)
with the angle the lodhis were tolerant vs the rest and left us the lovely lodhi gardens for our elites to walk in.
Paul
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Paul »

Sikandar Lodhi was a son of a Hindu mother from a Goldsmith clan. His pogroms against Hindus have been well recorded.
RajD
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by RajD »

ramana wrote:^Atri, I also read that Aurangzeb green lighted Tarabai to crown her son Rajaram, Shivaji's other son and this led to divisions among the Marathas. In fact Balaji Vishwanath changed sides and supported Shahu to become the Chatrapati at Satara, and was made the Peshwa.
Sirji,
Rajaram was younger prince of Chhatrapati Shivaji and Queen Soyrabai was his mother. Tarabai was his wife and daughter of the indomitable general of the Maratha army Hambir Rao Mohite who was also a brother of Soyrabai.
After the death of Shivaji Maharaj Soyrabai and her coterie planned to crown Rajaram. At that time Sambhaji was imprisoned at fort Panhala on the orders of Chhatrapati Shivaji himself but he foiled the plot with the help of Hambir Rao and executed Annaji Datto, Balaji Awji and and imprisoned Soyrabai.
After his capture and brutal execution in the ensuing 27 year war by Aurangzeb, Rajaram was unanimously crowned as Chhatrapati and all maratha sardars unitedly fought under his sovereign with the mughals. Upon his untimely death in 1700A.D. Tarabai ably lead from the front and ultimately marathas repelled the mughals and won the bloodiest and the most protracted war in Indian history in 1707A.D. It ended with ignominious withdrawl of Aurangzeb himself to Burhanpur and later, his death in a desolate condition. His grave is located near Aurangabad. Later Tarabai annointed her son Shivaji II to the throne.
Sambhaji's wife and young son Shahu had been taken prisoners by Aurangzeb after the fall of Raigad Fort after Sambhaji's death. After the end to the hostilities Shahu was released by mughal prince Muhammad Azam Shah on advice of his general Zulpiquar Khan and Nusrat Jang but kept his mother in custody as a hostage so that he would only support Mughals in future.
After his release Shahu had to deal with a competing claim by his aunt, Tarabai, and her son, Raja Shivaji II.
Balaji Bhat, a Chitpawan Brahmin was from Konkan region. He was a commoner and had fled to deccan Marathi rajya to escape constant persecution from Siddi of Janjira and of course to earn a living. He worked in the revenue dept. of marathas. and later in personal services of Maratha Commander in Chief Dhanaji Jadhav.
When Tarabai sent Dhanaji Jadhav to take care of Shahu he secretly sent Balaji to meet Shahu and check is bona fides. When convinced of it Balaji in turn convinced Dhanaji himself to support Shahu. He agreed and met Shahu at Khed. There upon Shahu was coronated at Satara in 1708A.D. This changed the fortunes of Balaji. He was elevated as a Deputy to Amatya Amburao Hanmante and thus he came into constant contact with Chhatrapati Shahu in his court.
But the most important missions that he accomplished which were essential for the existence of Shahu’s fledgeling kingdom were as ffollows.The first was that he plotted downfall of Tarabai in Kolahapur durbar. When Shahu's generals Chandrasen Jadhav and Nimbalkar defected to Kolhapur durbar Balaji was elevated to post of Senakarte or Caretaker of the army with all wherewithal to raise a new army for Shahu. He did it successfully and hatched a conspiracy and toppled not only Tarabai but also her son Shivaji II from the throne. Also, he installed Rajas Bai, a second widow of Rajaram and her son Sambhaji II on the throne. Thus, managed to bring Kolahpur durbar under Shahu's protection. And the second one was the most important. The wily and diplomatic Balaji won over Sarkhel( Admiral) Kanhoji Angre who had become so powerful that he had started calling himself king of Konkan. Also, he had accepted sovereignity of Kolhapur Durbar and not only disregarded Shahu's authority but also wanted to topple him( Ref. ' Kanhoji Angre’ by Manohar Malgaonkar). Shahu on his part reconized these herculean accomplishments of Balaji by making him The peshwa of his kingdom in 1713.
Later, Balaji accomplished the task of negotiating a treaty with mughals for Chauth and sardeshmukhi from Malwa, Gujarat and Deccan with Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan which the emperor refused to ratify. Balaji along with Husasain Ali Khan marched to Delhi with 16000 maratha cavalry led by Sardar Parsoji Bhosle and defeated emperor's army. Ali khan dethroned the emperor made him blind and imprisoned him. A puppet emperor was installed in his place. The treaty with marathas was not only ratified but Shahu and his successors' position as a rightful heir of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was also accepted.
Balaji topped it all with securing release of Queen mother Yesubai and wife of half brother of Shahu from mughal custody and brought them back unscathed to Satara in 1719.
He saught retirement from Shahu thereafter and breathed his last in 1720 at Saswad near Pune.
ramana
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by ramana »

Thanks a lot. Am sure many will benefit from your post.

I bought Kanhoji Angre by MAnohar Malgoankar in the mid 80s and will dust it off.
- Baji Rao as a youngster accompanied his father to Mughal Durbar which helped him develop his views of the Mughals.
- Tell me more about Nimbalkar!
He is also called Rao Raja Nimbalkar and later went over to the Nizam?
Yagnasri
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Yagnasri »

Nimbalkar is a Yajurvedi Brahmin. Right? It is the same family from whom the family was converted to Islam and became Nizamshahi family. Shivaji's father in law (Lakhoji Jhadav) served them and they have killed him. His widow cursed the Nizamshahi about the end of their family. Nizamshahi ended like that.
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Singha »

>>Siddi of Janjira

I have read of them . for a small african emigrant community they seemed to have been a PITA for everyone for a long long time - there are refs to them in portugali, vijayanagar, maratha, sultanat histories.

a hardy and warlike tribe of people for sure.
RajD
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by RajD »

Sirji,
Nimbalkars are one of the oldest and the most prominent maratha clans and they also claim Parmar rajput ancestry.
They basically served mughals and recieved a grant in the 14th century from them. They were based in Faltan. Nimbaraj Naik Nimbalkar was the founder of this branch.
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's first wife Saibai, mother of Sambhaji was from this clan and her brother Bajaji Nimbalkar always served either mughals or Adilshah.
At the same time Sidhoji rao Nimbalkar served Shiavaji Maharaj. He was succeded by Khanderao Naik Nimbalkar who served peshvas and participated in expedition that saw Marathas pushed frontiers to Attok. He also fought valiantly in the Battle of Panipat and is credited for saving the dead body of Sardar Mehendale from th Afghans. Some of them served Shindes of Gwalher also.
Sardar Sultanji HaibatraoNimbalkar founded the Kharda branch and served Nizam. He made it his capital and came to be known as Kardekar Naik Nimbalkar. This branch was closely associated with Kolhapur durbar and also, had marital relationship with them.
Presently, the most prominent among them from Faltan is Ramraje Nimbalkar who is MLC of the NCP and served as a minister in the previous govt.
Yagnasri
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Yagnasri »

Then I am confused with the name. But from what I have read, Nizamshahi people were brahmin converts.
Paul
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Paul »

There was a Lt Gen Nimbalkar commanding Srinagar based 15th corps a few years ago. Military service appears to be a family tradition for them.
RajD
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by RajD »

Yagnasri wrote:Nimbalkar is a Yajurvedi Brahmin. Right? It is the same family from whom the family was converted to Islam and became Nizamshahi family. Shivaji's father in law (Lakhoji Jhadav) served them and they have killed him. His widow cursed the Nizamshahi about the end of their family. Nizamshahi ended like that.
Sirji,
The one who had converted to Islam was the brother in law of Shivaji Maharaj, Bajaji Naik Nimbalkar and that too was at the insistence of Adil Shah.
Shivaji Maharaj, on his request got conducted shuddhi ceremony and brought him back to Hindu fold. And as an example married his own daughter to Bajaji''s son to establish his prominence in the society again.
Consequently, this became a bone of contention between dharma sabha and Shivaji Maharaj because according to them only a coronated king had the right to interfere in dharmik matters.
This in turn led to more vigorous efforts to convince Shivaji Maharaj to get himself coronated in accordance with the scriptures and give dharmik legitimacy to the fledgeling hindavi swarajya.
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Post by peter »

Atri wrote:
peter wrote:Atri/All,
Would you know the history of Sahu who as a child was captured by Aurangjebe? Was the young Sahu converted?
No.. Shaahu was not converted. Aurangzeb's daughter personally took care that he receives all education (including dharmik) as per all the traditions. He was the maratha emperor which Aurangzeb wished to install so that he would remain friendly to mughals. He did become the maratha emperor but Bhat family took over the reigns as prime-ministers and did the needful. Except not allowing Bajirao-1 to finish off Aurangzeb's dynasty in Delhi, he did not interfere much in the polity, much against the designs of Aurangzeb.
Mawsir-ai-alamgiri mentions that Sahu's sister , who was also in mughal captivity (captured at the same time as was Sahu), was married to Muijudddin, Sikander Bijapuri's son. So she was converted. Same page in this book mentions that Sahu was married to a daughter of Bahadurji. It does not elaborate who the Bahadurji was.

Any probable reason why the sister would be converted and not the brother?
peter
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by peter »

RajD wrote:
ramana wrote:^Atri, I also read that Aurangzeb green lighted Tarabai to crown her son Rajaram, Shivaji's other son and this led to divisions among the Marathas. In fact Balaji Vishwanath changed sides and supported Shahu to become the Chatrapati at Satara, and was made the Peshwa.
Sirji,
Rajaram was younger prince of Chhatrapati Shivaji and Queen Soyrabai was his mother. Tarabai was his wife and daughter of the indomitable general of the Maratha army Hambir Rao Mohite who was also a brother of Soyrabai.
After the death of Shivaji Maharaj Soyrabai and her coterie planned to crown Rajaram. At that time Sambhaji was imprisoned at fort Panhala on the orders of Chhatrapati Shivaji himself but he foiled the plot with the help of Hambir Rao and executed Annaji Datto, Balaji Awji and and imprisoned Soyrabai.
After his capture and brutal execution in the ensuing 27 year war by Aurangzeb, Rajaram was unanimously crowned as Chhatrapati and all maratha sardars unitedly fought under his sovereign with the mughals. Upon his untimely death in 1700A.D. Tarabai ably lead from the front and ultimately marathas repelled the mughals and won the bloodiest and the most protracted war in Indian history in 1707A.D. It ended with ignominious withdrawl of Aurangzeb himself to Burhanpur and later, his death in a desolate condition. His grave is located near Aurangabad. Later Tarabai annointed her son Shivaji II to the throne.
Sambhaji's wife and young son Shahu had been taken prisoners by Aurangzeb after the fall of Raigad Fort after Sambhaji's death. After the end to the hostilities Shahu was released by mughal prince Muhammad Azam Shah on advice of his general Zulpiquar Khan and Nusrat Jang but kept his mother in custody as a hostage so that he would only support Mughals in future.
After his release Shahu had to deal with a competing claim by his aunt, Tarabai, and her son, Raja Shivaji II.
Balaji Bhat, a Chitpawan Brahmin was from Konkan region. He was a commoner and had fled to deccan Marathi rajya to escape constant persecution from Siddi of Janjira and of course to earn a living. He worked in the revenue dept. of marathas. and later in personal services of Maratha Commander in Chief Dhanaji Jadhav.
When Tarabai sent Dhanaji Jadhav to take care of Shahu he secretly sent Balaji to meet Shahu and check is bona fides. When convinced of it Balaji in turn convinced Dhanaji himself to support Shahu. He agreed and met Shahu at Khed. There upon Shahu was coronated at Satara in 1708A.D. This changed the fortunes of Balaji. He was elevated as a Deputy to Amatya Amburao Hanmante and thus he came into constant contact with Chhatrapati Shahu in his court.
But the most important missions that he accomplished which were essential for the existence of Shahu’s fledgeling kingdom were as ffollows.The first was that he plotted downfall of Tarabai in Kolahapur durbar. When Shahu's generals Chandrasen Jadhav and Nimbalkar defected to Kolhapur durbar Balaji was elevated to post of Senakarte or Caretaker of the army with all wherewithal to raise a new army for Shahu. He did it successfully and hatched a conspiracy and toppled not only Tarabai but also her son Shivaji II from the throne. Also, he installed Rajas Bai, a second widow of Rajaram and her son Sambhaji II on the throne. Thus, managed to bring Kolahpur durbar under Shahu's protection. And the second one was the most important. The wily and diplomatic Balaji won over Sarkhel( Admiral) Kanhoji Angre who had become so powerful that he had started calling himself king of Konkan. Also, he had accepted sovereignity of Kolhapur Durbar and not only disregarded Shahu's authority but also wanted to topple him( Ref. ' Kanhoji Angre’ by Manohar Malgaonkar). Shahu on his part reconized these herculean accomplishments of Balaji by making him The peshwa of his kingdom in 1713.
Later, Balaji accomplished the task of negotiating a treaty with mughals for Chauth and sardeshmukhi from Malwa, Gujarat and Deccan with Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan which the emperor refused to ratify. Balaji along with Husasain Ali Khan marched to Delhi with 16000 maratha cavalry led by Sardar Parsoji Bhosle and defeated emperor's army. Ali khan dethroned the emperor made him blind and imprisoned him. A puppet emperor was installed in his place. The treaty with marathas was not only ratified but Shahu and his successors' position as a rightful heir of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was also accepted.
Balaji topped it all with securing release of Queen mother Yesubai and wife of half brother of Shahu from mughal custody and brought them back unscathed to Satara in 1719.
He saught retirement from Shahu thereafter and breathed his last in 1720 at Saswad near Pune.
So you are suggesting that Hambir Rao sided against his own sister and thus had an indirect role in her execution? Are we absolutely sure on this? Are their works of Shambhuji's time which bring this out?
ramana
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by ramana »

Peter,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soyarabai
After Shivaji's death[edit]

After Shivaji's death in 1680, Soyarabai did want her own son Rajaram, and not Sambhaji, to have an upper hand in the political structure of the Maratha empire. Her only other child was a daughter, Balibai, who was older than Rajaram.

When Sambhaji became king, Soyarabai tried every means to dethrone him, but he overcame these attempts with the help of her brother Hambirrao Mohite, leader of their forces. He put Soyarabai and her son Rajaram into prison, and formally became the king on 20 July 1680.[2] Soyarabai's henchmen tried to poison Sambhaji to death in August 1681, but he survived. When he learned about the plot, he had Soyarabai poisoned to death. Around two dozen suspects including Soyarabai's relatives of the Mohite family were also slaughtered or trampled by the elephants.[2]
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by shravanp »

Yagnasri wrote:Where can we read these details about Sahu Maharaj up bringing etc. sir?

Can any guru let me know what book to read on Khilji and Tuglak military tactics?

Can anyone help me here. I am trying to find with google chacha etc and could not.

There's a whole lot of archives in following repository: http://persian.packhum.org/persian//main
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Lilo »

Raja Suheldev: The Forgotten Battle of Bahraich, 1033 CE

Abhinav Prakash ,May 19 2015

The Indian history of the last millennium is the history of the heroic resistance to foreign invasions & rule. From 8th century CE, India came under the sustained assault by the forces of Islamic imperialism beginning with the Arab invasion of the Sindh. But the Islamic expansion was halted by the Rajput confederacy in the Battle of Rajasthan in early 8th century CE. Decisive defeat of Arabs in the battle of Rajasthan and by Emperor Lalitāditya Muktapīḍa (724 CE–760 CE) of Kashmir put an end to the Arab dream of conquest of India. Thus, the first phase of the Islamic Imperialism ended in the East. And by the 719 CE, Nārāyaṇa (Southern Tajikistan), Ghourek (Samarkand) and the Indianized Turk Tuṣārapati (Bukhara) blocked the Arab advance in central Asia. With this ended the first chapter of the Islamic assault on central Asia.

But the Islamic invasions were revived three centuries later with the conversion of Turks to Islam. This inaugurated the second phase of Islamic invasions of India with the armies of Mahumd Ghaznavi smashing through the Indian defense lines in the Afghanistan and northwest India. During his sack of Somnath temple in 1026 CE, his 11-year-old nephew Saiyyad Salar Masud accompanied him. He was the son of Ghazi Salar Sahu, a descendent of Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, son of Hazrat Ali and Sitr-i-Mu’alla, sister of Mahmud Ghaznavi. He was born at Ajmer in 1015 CE. After the death of Mahmud Ghaznavi, Masud invaded India in May 1031 CE with a 100,000 strong army[1]. He had imbibed the military skill and religious zeal of his uncle and even at the young age he was a proven military commander.

His first military conflict was with Raja Mahipal Tomar of Delhi, which he was able to surmount only with the help of timely re-enforcements from Ghazni. From here he marched into the upper Doab towards Meerut whose ruler Raja Hari Dutt surrendered and accepted Islam. From here Masud marched unto the Kannauj via Bulandshahr& Badaun. Kannnauj, by then was a far cry from the glory days of Gurjar-Pratihar. The local ruler along with his son accepted Islam and surrendered vast amount of wealth to the Masud along with allowing Kannauj to be used as a military base for the further Islamic conquest in the Awadh and Purvanchal.

Around this time, Pasi kings ruled the Awadh and the surrounding regions. Pasi is a schedule caste with the population of 80-90 lakhs, which is found in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab and Orissa with its highest concentration in the Uttar Pradesh, where it forms the second largest Dalit community. They are among the original inhabitants of the Awadh region and have been an important player in the history of the region. Narrative relating to the origin of Pasis claim descent from the sage Bhrigu (a Saptarshi & preceptor of Dhanurveda, an upveda of science of war) or from Parashuram of the clan of Bhrigu. It is narrated that Parashuram created five sword wielding warriors from five blades of grass and Pasi is derived for the word ‘asi’ meaning sword i.e. who hold sword.

Essentially a fiercely independent & rebellious community it was described by Major-general Sir William Henry Sleeman in 1830s as well armed with bow and arrows and formidable at night battles. Also, according to the colonial anthropologists Rose (1919) and Ibbetson (1916) the name Pasi is derived from the use of ‘Pasa’, meaning noose, to climb trees or ‘Pasha’ used in battles to entrap enemies. Some traditions also hold that Pasis belong to the Nagvansha and are descendants of the Nagas who settled in the Terai region of the Himalaya near modern day Balrampur, Shravasti & Bahraich in UP to escape from the ‘Nag Yagna’ of Janmejay during the Mahabharata era.

William Crooke[2] recorded that Pasis have very strong tradition that they were rulers of the doab region. Sir C. Elliott stated in his Chronicles of Unao that after the close of the heroic age, when ‘Ajodhya’ was held by the Surajvansi Rajputs under the great Rama, we find after an interval that Ajodhya has been destroyed, the Surajvansis utterly banished, and rule passed to Cheros in the far east, Bhars and Pasis in the centre and west respectively. Other colonial Gazetteers like Awadh gazetteer and District gazetteer, Khiri point to the rule by Pasis and other ‘aboriginal’ castes during the 9th century CE.

Several Pasi kings ruled the region, most notable among them are Maharaja Bijlee Pasi, founder of Bijnor and contemporary of Prithvi Raj Chauhan, Maharaja Satan Pasi of Ramkot, Maharaja Lakhan Pasi, credited with the founding of Lucknow, Maharaja Daldeo etc remains of whose forts still dot the landscape. They were replaced by Rajputs as the rulers in several areas but it was the Islamic invasions that perpetrated their downfall and they suffered heavy persecution under the Muslim rule. By 18th century CE, more fortunate among Pasis were reduced to being militiamen of local Jagirdars. They were then slammed under the Criminal Tribes Act under the colonial British India due to their rebellious streak and massive participation in the war of independence, 1857 and several agrarian unrests. At present, Pasis in the Awadh and neighboring areas are mostly small farmers, although middle and some large farmers can also be found. They are also the traditional village watchmen while in the Purvanchal and Bihar they engage in toddy tapping as well.

Pasi Kings often had a confrontational relation with the Rajput rulers of Kannauj but with the beginning of the Islamic invasions the entire dynamics changed. During this period Kingdom of Shravasti was ruled by the Raja Suheldev[3] who is also known by various names like Sakardev, Suhirdadhwaj, Sukhdev etc. He was the son of Mangal Dhwaj and disciple of Balak Rishi whose Ashram was located in Bahraich[4]. In the popular culture and memory, he is known as one among the Pasi kings but is claimed by several other castes as well, most notably by the Bhars. He is also claimed to be a Kshatriya of the Nagvanshi lineage or a Bais/Vais Kshatriya by some. This is not surprising due to the obvious difficulty of projecting the modern day caste identities in the history and also due to the division & assimilation of castes and formation of new castes over the period.

According to R.V Russell[5], Pasi is an occupational off-shoot of Bhars and in Kheri, the Pasis always claim kindred with the Bhars, and in Mirzapur the local Pasis represent the Bhars as merely a subcaste, though this is denied by the Bhars themselves! On the other hand, one of the Pasi sub-caste-Rajpasi, claims decent from the Bais rajputs. In fact, according to H.N Singh[6], Pasi like other major castes is a mixed community absorbing various peoples over time and also spawning new castes as the sub-castes drift away from the parent caste. Among the various sub-castes, Kaithwas are said to share origin with Kayastha while Gujar Pasis are possibly related to Gurjar-Pratiharas. The surnames used by Pasis also point to the diverse origins of the community. They range from Saroj, Raahi, Chaudhary, Singh, Gautam, Rawat, Varma, Kol, Bharti, Pal etc. The six widely accepted Pasi sub-castes are Raj pasi, Kaithwas Pasi, Pasmangta Pasi, Gujar Pasi, Arakh Pasi and Baurasi Pasi.

During the invasion by Salar Masud, regions of Lakhimpur, Sitapur, Lucknow, Barabanki, Unnao, Faizabad, Bahraich, Sravasti, Gonda etc were ruled by a confederacy of 21 Pasi chieftains under Raja Suheldev[7]. They were 1) Rai Saheb 2) Arjun 3) Bhaggan 4) Rai Raib 5) Gang 6) Makran 7) Shankar 8 ) Karan 9) Birbal 10) Jaipal 11) Shripal 12) Harpal 13) Harkaran 14) Harkhu 15) Narhar 16) Bhaalar 17) Judhari 18) Narayana 19) Dal 20) Narsingh 21) Kalyana.

After a triumphant march though Meerut, Kannuaj & Malihabad, Masud arrived in Satrikh, a town in the Barabanki district. Starikh was an important Hindu place for pilgrimage where Guru Vashisht had taught the young Ram and Lakshman. Using Satrikh as his base, Masud sent his armies to conquer the neighboring areas. Miyya Rajab and Salar Saifuddin took Bahraich. Amir Hasan Arab took Mahona, Malik Fazal took Varanasi. Sayad Sahu took Karra and Manikpur. Syad Aziz-ud-din was sent against Hardoi, but fell in the battle at Gopamau. While at Satrikh, Masud got the distress call from Dost Mohammed at the fort of Dhundgarh near Rewari. Masud was forced to send his religious teacher, Saiyad Ibrahim Mashhadi Barah Hazari to relieve the siege. As per Ain-e-Masudi, Saiyad Ibrahim was an utterly fanatic commander and on whichever route he traversed, no non-Muslim could escape his sword unless he converted to Islam. But he was slain at the battle of the Dhundgarh along with several other commanders. His tomb is located at Kot Qasim, 20 km away from Tijara, a town in Alwar district near Rewari.

Meanwhile, Salar Saifuddin was besieged at Bahraich and Salar Masud had to halt his march towards Ayodhya at the outskirts of the Saket near a town now known as Salarpur. He had to turn north to re-enforce Salar Saifuddin at Bahraich and thus setting the stage for the final showdown. The chieftains of Bahraich had assembled near the river Bhakla, a tributary to river Rapti. The first skirmish, a night raid, went in favour of the Salar Masud while second skirmish was a stalemate.

It was with the arrival of the Suheldev with his brother Baherdev, the real battle ensued on 13th June 1033 near Chittaura Lake near the present day Bahraich city.

Image of Suheldev statue in Lucknow
Image of Suheldev statue in Lucknow
Right wing of the Islamic army collapsed with the death of its commander Mir Nasrullah. The tomb of Mir Nasrullah is located at the village of Dikoli Khurd, 12 Km north of Bahraich. Soon Salar Miyya Rajab was slain. He was a close relative of Salar Masud and was known for his temperament and adamant nature. His tomb is located at Shahpur Jot Yusuf village, 3 km east of Bahraich and he is known as ‘Hathila Pir’. Following the ensuing chaos in the Muslim army, a large contingent of the Suheldev’s army under Raja Karan, penetrated the center of the Muslim army and thus giving it a bodily blow. Salar Masud was either beheaded by the Raja Suheldev or died due to an arrow piercing his throat[8]. He died under a Mahua tree near the sacred Suryakund. It is claimed that after his death, a loyalist Salar Ibrahim organised a counter attack and killed Raja Suheldev in the next day of battle. However, it also seems that Suheldev survived the battle and constructed several water tanks in and around the Shravasti to commemorate his victory. The Chandradeo of Kannauj later subverted him as the defeat of the Muslim army re-ignited the old rivalries.

But by 13th century CE they were both ­replaced by the new wave of Islamic invasions with the establishment of Delhi Sultanate. The field of battle of Bahraich acquired a religious hallow for Muslims who had began to venerate the ‘Ghazi Baba’ and countless ‘Shaheeds’ of Islam. Later, Sultan Firuz Shah Tughlaq, built his tomb at the place of the Ashram of Balak Rishi and the attached Sun temple & Suryakund. The Suryakund was said to have miraculous healing powers for skin diseases and leprosy (most likely the water was treated with various Ayurvedic herbs).

What is notable about this battle is the vast Muslim army was defeated not by any powerful Indian empire but by a small confederacy of Kings of Bahraich which inflicted a crushing defeat on the invaders. The entire invading army was simply annihilated as no quarters were given. It become even more significant when we consider the fact that it was the same Muslim army which was used by Mahmud of Ghazni during his depredations in the North India and which, by historians, is considered to be too ‘advance’ for the contemporary Indian armies. It is a pity that not much work has been on this historical event, which halted the victorious march of the Islamic imperialism for decades soon after the raids of Mahmud of Ghazni.

Instead what has happened is that the place has become the place of pilgrimage during the Urs of ‘Bale Miyan’ or ‘Ghazi Miyan’ towards the end of May in Jyeshtha month. It is the process of acculturation which has Islamised the Hindu folk tradition. The place has retained its reputation as the place of healing for the suffering from leprosy and other skin diseases and also as a fertility shrine. They are no doubt continuing with the sacred tradition of Sun worship, which pre-existed the cult of this Muslim ‘Sun of Martyrdom’ (Aftab-i Shahadat), who was buried under a Mahua tree beside a sun-temple so much so that his head is still supposed to rest on the image of the sun[9]. The Suryakund has been renamed as Hoz Shamshi, Persian for SuryaKund. The story of Salar Masud has been re-casted as a tragic youth who was cursed to die as an unmarried or that of a liberator who fought again the oppression of the ‘evil’ King Suheldev. Even today when a strong wind blows, the gates of the Dargah are closed and an iron chain, said to be of magical powers, is tied at its front so that the “evil spirit” of Suheldev can’t entre the tomb to torment the Ghazi Miyan and his followers.

But the memory of the great King has persisted in the popular local imagination and caste memories. As early as 1950, movement started to reclaim the memory of Raja Suheldev by organising a fair in Chittora but the permission was denied by the district administrator who imposed Section 144. It was only after a long struggle and political mobilisation that Section 144 was repealed due to the intervention of local congressmen. A local Raja of Prayagpur donated 500 bighas of land and Chittora Lake to the ‘Suheldev Smarak Samiti’ where a statue of Raja Suheldev was installed. Later on, a temple was constructed to honour the great hero and the celebration of Vijayotsav was started in the form of havan and public procession. The tradition of weapon worship during Dussehra was also revived. On the day of Basant Panchami, Rajyabhishek of Raja Suheldev is celebrated with great fanfare. Form 60s onwards, name of Raja Suheldev began to be openly used in the political campaigning by various candidates to appeal to the Pasi community. Today, all major political parties from BSP, BJP to SP to smaller local parties like Bharat Kranti Raksha Party (BKRP) invoke the name of Raja Suheldev to garner the Pasi votes. When BSP came to power in UP, several statues of Raja Suheldev were installed across the state under the greater BSP project of ‘re-instating’ the Dalit leaders and heroes in the public discourse. The movement was revived again in 2001 with the formation of ‘Maharaja Suheldev Sewa Samiti’. Today several drama companies in the region stage the story of Suheldev and his famous victory during various occasions to wild applause from the audience. But even today, a large number of Indians are ignorant about Raja Suheldev and this significant historic event.
An excellent background on Raja Suheldev and Battle of Bahraich.
member_22539
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by member_22539 »

^Note how armies that annihilated the malsi hordes were undone by infighting the moment later.

Also, note how the Dalits in this story are far from the oppressed helpless impoverished wretches we are told they always were. When did they really become such wretches? It sure as hell was not when Hindus were in power.
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Lalmohan »

we have the british to thank for that to a large extent
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by parikh »

Alexander's victory over Porus is a greek version of history , there are alternative accounts as per which the battle was inconclusive and Alexander sued for peace and was allowed safe passage by Porus to the sea via Indus.
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Post by arshyam »

Doesn't that by itself raise doubts? Why is there no mention of this chap?
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Yagnasri »

Dodge wrote it. Some Russian general - Zhukov? I am not sure also made some noise about it.
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Karthik S »

Thought this is the right dhaga for this:
Makarand R Paranjape‏ @MakrandParanspe
Visited Aurangzeb's grave in Khuldabad: amazed to find a tulsi plant growing out of it. Bharat reclaims all, even bigots and tyrants?
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Murugan »

Chakra is not a mythical weapon

Watch till the end:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hCfrW3tF7w
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Murugan »

Yagnasri wrote:Dodge wrote it. Some Russian general - Zhukov? I am not sure also made some noise about it.
https://in.rbth.com/blogs/2013/05/27/ma ... sion_25383
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Murugan »

Another local reference to Alexander's defeat comes from Patanjali

"Though the Greek writers tell us that when the stronghold fell, the infuriated macedoniean soldiers massacred all the inhabitants, sparing neither women nor children, and thus completely crushed and annihilated the Kshudraka-Malava confederation, yet Patanjali gives the Indian version of the event and says that "the Kshudrakas alone had been victorious (Ekakibhih Kshudrakairjitam).
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Karthik S »

Did you know: Martanda Varma of Kerala defeated the Dutch – the most powerful navy of the time
https://indictales.com/2017/01/23/marta ... d-history/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Colachel
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Murugan »

How Gujarat Sultanate came to an end.
Asylum seeker sultan Muzaffar III protected by Jadejas of Nawanagar. Jadejas' fought mughals.

A gripping account of bravery, perfidy and striking back.

The Battle of Bhuchar Mori (The Panipat of Gujarat)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Bhuchar_Mori
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Post by Karthik S »

Murugan
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Murugan »

A brief info about the parakrams of Yaudheyas

Thrashing of Kushans and Chinese rulers

https://manasataramgini.wordpress.com/2 ... -conflict/
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by BajKhedawal »

For past few weeks I have watched http://www.history.ca/forged-in-fire/ on HIstory channel in khanland, I was not surprised to note that 65% of historical blades the contestants were asked to forge are of Bharatiya origin. Of course the nincompoops term it as "South Asian" in origin. I also found that each one of that 65% was very versatile in design as opposed to the unwieldy european ones.
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by NRao »

Not battle, but certainly a re-write of dates.

Stone Tools from India Fan Debate over Origins of Cultural Complexity
Image
Levallois core from Attirampakkam, India, is the product of a stone tool-making strategy for obtaining thin, broad flakes from a chunk of rock. Credit: Sharma Centre for Heritage Education, India

Sometime around 400,000 years ago human ancestors went on an innovation bender. No longer content to make do with only the large hand axes and other hefty cutting tools that they and their predecessors had manufactured for more than a million years, they began fashioning sophisticated new kinds of stone tools. The novel tool types made more efficient use of raw material and were smaller, more portable, among other desirable traits. The shift was, by most accounts, a major technological advance, one that may have helped its makers push into previously impenetrable lands.

For decades experts have debated which human species invented this new tool-making tradition—during what is called the Middle Stone Age in Africa and the Middle Paleolithic in Eurasia—and how it came to replace the preceding Acheulean tradition at locales across the globe. One theory holds that our own species, Homo sapiens, masterminded this technological revolution in its birthplace, Africa. From there, our forebears carried this new culture into the rest of the Old World when they began dispersing out of Africa, introducing it to the archaic species they encountered in Eurasia, including the Neandertals. A second theory posits the last common ancestor of Neandertals and H. sapiens came up with the technology and passed the know-how down to its descendant species. Or maybe, some scholars have argued, different human groups independently developed this novel way of making stone tools.

New findings from India add an intriguing data point to the picture. In a paper published in the February 1 Nature, Kumar Akhilesh and Shanti Pappu of the Sharma Center for Heritage Education, India, and their colleagues report on the recovery of stone tools from Attirampakkam, a site on India’s southeast coast, that span the time between around 385,000 and 172,000 years ago. According to the team, the artifact assemblages show signature elements of the Middle Paleolithic, including tools manufactured using the so-called Levallois strategy for obtaining thin, broad flakes from a stone core. The researchers determined the age of the tools using a technique known as luminescence dating. If they are correct in their assessment, the Attirampakkam tools are by far the oldest Middle Paleolithic tools in India, besting the previous record holders by more than 200,000 years.

Image
Stone tools from Attirampakkam document the presence of Middle Paleolithic technology in India as early as 385,000 years ago. Credit: Sharma Centre for Heritage Education, India

According to the discovery team, the Middle Paleolithic tools at Attirampakkam are markedly different from the older Acheulean technology at the site. Previously some researchers have argued the emergence of Middle Paleolithic technology in India was linked to dispersals of H. sapiens from Africa after around 125,000 years ago. But if people were making Middle Paleolithic stone tools as early as 385,000 years ago in India and other sites in Eurasia, and somewhat earlier in Africa, then the possibility of a far earlier dispersal of technologically advanced humans—perhaps H. sapiens—into India warrants consideration.

Recent discoveries might make such an early dispersal of our species seem more plausible than it once did. In 2017 a team working at the site of Jebel Irhoud in Morocco announced it had unearthed fossils of H. sapiens and accompanying Middle Stone Age tools dating to more than 300,000 years ago. And just last week a different team unveiled a fossil from Misliya Cave in Israel that pushes back the earliest known evidence of H. sapiens outside of Africa to around 185,000 years ago. The Misliya fossil turned up in association with Middle Paleolithic artifacts, including Levallois tools.

But other archaeologists are not so sure about the Attirampakkam team’s interpretation. Michael Petraglia of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany, an authority on the Paleolithic record of India, says that although he is satisfied with the dating of the new finds, he disagrees with their classification as Middle Paleolithic. “At best, I see them as transitional between the Acheulean and the Middle Paleolithic, he says. “They could even be classified as Late Acheulean.” Petraglia notes Late Acheulean stone tool kits from India and elsewhere have many of the same tool types seen at Attirampakkam.

Rather than signaling an early dispersal of a new human group into India, Petraglia thinks the Attirampakkam remains reflect reflects regional continuity between the Acheulean and the Middle Paleolithic. “These stone tool kits were likely made by archaic humans that were already present in India,” he suggests. Human fossils from India are exceedingly rare. But Petraglia observes that an enigmatic skullcap from the Narmada River Valley, 1,000 kilometers north of Attirampakkam, shows large-brained early humans were living in India at around this time.

A similar view comes from Harvard University archaeologist Christian Tryon, an expert on the Middle Stone Age of Africa who was not involved in the new work. He says there is no reason to link the new finds to Africa. He does not see a sharp divide between the Acheulean and Middle Paleolithic artifacts at the site, which one would expect to see if a new group of humans swept into India with new technology. “It’s safest to assume it’s a local phenomenon,” he says of the cultural transition at Attirampakkam.

The hallmark of the Middle Paleolithic—the Levallois style of tool-making—“is not that complicated,” Tryon says. “It’s not outside the realm of possibility that people could arrive at it independently.” The question, then, is why they seem to have done so at roughly the same time around the world. Tryon notes climate may have played a role. If conditions became drier, for example, human groups throughout the Old World may have had to range farther to to obtain food and water, in which case it would make sense to shift to a portable technology like Levallois.

“In my view, it was only later in time that Homo sapiens made their entry into India, using Middle Paleolithic tool kits,” Petraglia says. If so, they may have met up with archaic human species there that possessed very similar technology. What happened to these early populations? “It’s a mystery,” Petraglia says, but many of them must have gone extinct. Genetic evidence links contemporary Indians to later waves of humans that spread across the subcontinent only after 60,000 years ago.
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Akshay Kapoor »

This is a very important thread. I would like to find a way to integrate the lessons into current tactics, regt histories and strategic thought. Lessons are crucial - as a civilisation we have fought and won many battles but have made strategic blunders. Its a complex topic but very important topic and I welcome ideas. For a start I will try to take some tactics I am familiar with and which are taught in Indian Army - Shivaji's tactics. We should also explore our big naval victories under various admirlas like Kahnoji Angre and the Marakkars.

Any thoughts if this is useful ? Murugan, Ramana Sir, Kartik and others ?
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by Akshay Kapoor »

Its a real shame we don't teach enough of this in schools.
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Re: Historical Battles in Ancient & Medieval Bharat

Post by ks_sachin »

Sir
I was wondering when you would wander here.
I will drop you a mail with some historical research on an important battle in South India which lead to the demise of an important empire from Karnataka.
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