3 lac cavalry, 4 lac infantry, 60-70 long range heavy canons, 300 small canons entire armoury was prepared. It was a time when Mughal power was at its peak. After the death of Sambhaji Maharaj Aurangzeb planned to launch a final offensive and destroy Swarajya. Alamgir decided to strike when the iron is hot! He deployed his mammoth army on various ambitious expeditions.
1. 60,000 soldiers were deployed to Jinji under the leadership of Zulfikar Khan
2. 12,000 foot soldiers were engaged in the Panhala siege
3. 7000-8000 army men scattered across the wide range of Sahyadri to capture forts
4. With 1 lac infantry ad 60,000 horse men Alamgir encamped near bijapur.
On the backdrop of this military disaster, situation in Maratha office was fragile. There was no government! Considering seriousness of the situation Yesubai ( Sambhaji Mahraj’s wife ) a woman of great wisdom advised Rajaram Maharaj to escape to Jinji and she singlehandedly fought against Mughals to maintain the authority over Raigad. Before departing for Jinji, Rajaram delegated responsibility to maintain law and order in Swarajya to Ramchandra Pant and Shankaraji Narayan. He appointed two capable individuals who had excelled in military practices. These two stars of dazzling brilliancy were Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav. They were held at the helm of military operations.
Dhanaji Jadhav and his early life :
Dhanaji Jadhav belonged to the royal family of Jadhav situated in the Sindakhed. Jijabaisaheb belonged to the same family of warriors. He served as loyal servant right from Shivaji Maharaj’s reign till Shahu Maharaj came to power. He groomed as a military expert under the able guidance of Prataprao Gujar. He had shown his mettle in southern conquest undertaken by Shivaji Maharaj. He further participated in Burhanpur raid under Hambirrao Mohite. He had substantial contribution in the battle of Salher and battle of Vai during Sambhaji Raje’s rule. Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav managed to escape when Mughal forces attacked Sambhaji Raje near Sangameshvar.
Tragic end of Shambhu Raje had thrown Maratha kingdom into complete disarray. But to establish normalcy in Maratha office and avenge the death of their master this pair gave tough fight to elephantine Mughal army. They hearted the drooping spirit of nation. Their guerrilla warfare and surprise raids played a magic. Their tactical astuteness changed the situation upside down. Dual power of santaji and Dhanaji recaptured eminent forts like Pratapgad, Rohida, Rajgad etc. Marhamatkhan, Ranmastakhan, Mukkarrabkhan, Zulfikarkhan all these gems of Mughal court were defeated over and again. Very soon Aurangzeb realised that the war so waged, costed a lot.
Dhanaji and Jinji Siege ( 1690 – 1697 ) :
Amongst the chaos, Maratha king reached safely on the fort of Jinji. Alamgir immediately sent Zulfikarkhan with 15000 cavalry and 10000 skilled Rajput forces. He laid a siege to jinji fort. Marathas incessantly launched raids on Mughal camps and continued to give sleepless nights to their officers. Maratha aggression posed serious challenge to enemy’s supply chains. To strengthen the military base Aurangzeb sent reinforcement. To curb swelling enemy power Dhanaji Jadhav attacked Mughal forces. Ismailkhan could not withstand thundering Maratha forces. Fierce battle took place between both the armies. Dhanaji successfully broke the siege and entered into the fort. This was a serious blow to Mughal power. Very soon Santaji attacked from rear and Dhanaji launched fresh attack from the front. Besiegers themselves were besieged by roaring Maratha forces. The war for Jinji lasted for long seven years. Marathas cut supply lines, looted Mughal camps, weakened their arsenal and more importantly droop their morale. When Mughal started overpowering Marathas in the battle of Jinji, Rajaram decided to leave the fort. By the end of 1697 Dhanaji safely escorted Rajaram Maharaj to Khelna fort. ZulfikarKhan then occupied impregnable Jinji fort. But the fall of Jinji was accompanied with great loss of Mughal forces.
Dhanaji Jadhav and Panhala ( 1692 – 1695 ) :
After 1689, within a period of one year Mughal captured important Maratha forts. Possession of Panhalgad added icing to the cake. Very soon Maratha forces recovered and tide of nationalism became so powerful that patriotism overshadowed all other emotions. In the month of February, 1692 Maratha recaptured Panhala. This was a great set back to Mughal forces. Aurangzeb deployed Lutfullakhan and Muijuddin to besiege panhala and to isolate troops on the fort by disconnecting supply lines. In October 1693, Ramchandra Pant, Shankaraji Narayan and Dhanaji Jadhav tried to lift the siege so laid. Both sides fought with great valour but once again Maratha started getting upper hand over war theatre. Dhanaji basically launched attack to provide sufficient food supply on the fort and strengthen the military base. Further Aurangzeb sent Bedarbakhta with 25000 infantry to achieve decisive victory. This time again officer got changed but situation remained the same. Dhanaji Jadhav fought vehemently and defeated all the Mughal Sardars who came underway. Aurangzeb said ‘ We did not loose Panhala but Bijapur is lost! ’ Such was the significance of each and every Maratha fort.
‘Mughal Supremacy’ became a strident rhetoric, ground reality narrated the different story all together. Santaji and Dhanaji wreaked havoc on Mughal camps. Situation turned out to be so precarious in contrast to what Aurangzeb had imagined.
Battle of Dudderi ( Oct 1695 – Nov 1695 ):
While Dhanaji was busy fighting against Mughals in Maharshtra, Santaji was on his mission to erdicate Mughal existence from various pockets of Maharashtra and Karnataka. This time Aurangzeb sent his veteran leaders like Khanjadkhan, Asalatkhan, Muradkhan and Mirza Hasan. This leonic army was supposed to meet Kasimkhan who was stationed near Dudderi fort in Karnataka. Kasimkhan was one such opportunistic who decided to organise royal lunch for his imperial guests. His personal benefits was the very motto behind this gesture. Santaji was well aware of this plan. Entire camp was in slumber deep sleep and dreaming about delicious food when Santaji launched surprise raid. First division went to plunder advance camps. The moment Kasim khan got to know about the attack he rushed to battle field leaving behind entire royal treasury. Santaji had his second division on their toes to loot Mughal camp. Before other eminent leaders could grab the hold of situation Maratha launched attacks on entire cantonment. Not a single enemy camp was spared. Kasim Khan, Khanjad Khan were fighting voraciously. But there was no point fighting, Marathas had already accomplished their goal. Huge army got trapped between Dudderi fort and Maratha force! There was no access to fort and Marathas cut all the supply lines. Imperial forces were completely isolated and brought to the knees. Every news from Karnatak battle field shocked the senses of Alamgir Badshah. Alamgir decided to send his the most trustworthy sardar Himmatkhan. Himmatkhan arrived with gigantic army. This man of supreme dexterity was difficult to defeat. Before Himmatkhan could formulate his modus operandi Santaji launched an offensive. Himmatkhan was watchful and circumspective. He retaliated this attack and displayed extreme gallantry. Both the leaders of paramount power fighting with great Excellency. Both the forces dug their heels in the soil of Karnataka with their noses almost touching each other. Both sides exchanged lot of fire and fury. In the due course of battle Santaji and Himmatkhan both got injured. But very soon loyal servant of Alamgir Badshah succumbed to his injuries. Santaji stood tall above all Mughal giants!
The unfortunate end:
Santaji is known to history as the one who steeled hearts of Maratha forces after the death of Shambhu Raje. This distinguished warrior and outstanding commander in chief changed the course of Maratha history. But character stands above abilities and hence it decides destiny. Initially when Mughal bleeded the nation by thousand cuts it was Santaji who healed. He sent a loud message to Mughal forces that despite the absence of their master, Marathas cannot bear foreign boots on their soil. For all his die hard efforts he was honoured with the post of Commander in Chief. As the years passed away, Santaji’s determined nature and steely temperament became his drawback rather than a plus point. Although he had gained weight in the political sphere with his streak of accomplishments, he was not in good books with Rajaram Maharaj. His dominating personality at times neglected the hierarchy. At some instances Santaji dissented from the orders issued by his master. He found it difficult to accommodate with his superiors and even with his soldiers. He failed to gain popularity among the forces. In contrast to this, Dhanaji was quite famous among the army men. Santaji’s rigid discipline and strict policies could never won hearts of his people. On the other hand because of composed personality and quiescent nature Dhanaji Jadhav was quite famous amongst soldiers. Personality of leader should be a perfect blend of strictness and tender-heartedness. This is where Santaji fell short.
Both of them were equally capable for military leadership as far as performance was concerned. Both of them belonged to warrior families of Sisodia clan. Patriotism ran in their genes. Santaji launched audacious raid on Alamgir’s camp and defeated mukarrabkhan where as Dhanaji defeated Ranmastakhan back to back four times. Santaji killed Kasimkhan and thrashed Mughal forces and Dhanaji fought with great bravery and did not let Mughal enter into Panhala fort. These officres were equal stake holders for the post of commander in chief. Still in accordance with jaw dropping performance of Santaji during 1690 Rajaram maharaj conferred upon him this post. But later on growing tensions between Santaji and other top officials like Ramchandra Pant , Dhanaji Jadhav made Rajaram to give second thought to his decision. Soon this difference of opinions took violent turn. Dhanaji waged war against Santaji.
It stirred the deepest chord when leaders who gave rebirth to Swarajya, became each other’s foe. Dhanaji defeated Santaji in this battle. Santaji’s troops joined Dhanaji’s forces. Once a man of great military power became a complete loner. Dhanaji was then made Commander of Chief of Maratha forces. One day when Dhanaji was taking bath when his rival Nagoji Mane killed him. It was a month of June, 1697. The great Maratha warrior was killed by his own people. If he were attain martyrdom his life would have become exemplary for others. But this tragic death calmed down the volcano that was erupting for seven years and destroyed enemy forces in his fire.
Whom to blame for this sad episode? Did military leadership overpower kingship? Did stringent policies of Santaji lead to his destruction? History chooses to remain silent about these questions. There is no scope for conclusion. Yet Maratha history will remember these two stars of dazzling brilliancy Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav. Thudding sound of their footsteps struck a terror into enemy’s heart! Chitnis Bakhar says,
“ When Mughal trooper’s horse brought to water and refused to drink the trooper would say ‘ Do you see Santaji and Dhanaji in water? ’.
Aditi Kajrekar
Refrences:
1. Marathyanche Swatantryasamar – Shr.G.S.Puranik
2. Senapati Dhanaji Jadhav – Dr. Sadashiv Shivde
3. New History of The Marathas – G.S.Sardesai
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