Whose narrative wins?

The Indian subcontinent had witnessed the rise and fall of various dynasties. Right from Raja Purus to MaharanaPratap many indigenous rulers raised against atrocious foreign rule. Those whose narratives were strong, political organization was full proofed and army was iron hard sustained the thunderous attacks. Following the same glorious tradition ShivajiMaharaj challenged Mughal supremacy.

He remained eye sore for Aurangzeb. After his death( 3 April, 1680 ) Alamgir waged a campaign to annihilate Marathas. His joy was short lived, SambhajiMaharaj lead the political machinery and military campaigns from front. The death of SambhajiMaharaj( 11 March, 1689 ) would end Maratha resurrection remained a sweet dream. Marathas again rose from ashes under the leadership of RajaramMaharaj. Now, the sudden demise of RajaramMaharaj( 2 March, 1700 ) gave the same old sense of relief to Alamgir. But every instance which could take Marathas to the lowest ebb, proved to be the very force behind their vociferous upsurge. After RajaramMaharaj ,Tararani (his spouse) a woman of iron power was at the helms of affairs. 

Fall of Vishalgad :

Ever since November 1699, Aurangzeb had undertaken expeditious campaign. By March 1701 he captured important forts such as Vasantgad, SataraDurg, Sajjangad, Panhala. All the eyes were now locked on Vishalgad. Because after the fall of SataraDurg, Vishalgad was the capital fort. Aurangzeb headed towards Vishalgad on 7th November, 1701. Surpassing Rahmatpur, Karhad he reached Malkapur (22 km from Vishalgad ) on 26th November, 1701. Meanwhile Mughal forces were supplemented byBedarbakht’s troops. They did not only increase the man power but also boost the morale by capturing Samangad and Bhudargad. At the age of 85 years, Aurangzeb was highly spirited and he was consistently encouraging his forces to embark on the mission to capture the Capital. But at times law of nature becomes very powerful and then it destroys all vigour. During winter season, heavy rains washed away castles in the air. Continuous rains made their moments extremely difficult. It became strenuous even to visit tents in the encampment area to establish proper coordination. But Aurangzeb was one such perseverant warrior king that even thundering rains could not deterred him from mission. For easy mobility and better synchronisation he ordered Fatehullakhan to build roads from Malkapur to Ambaghat(near Vishalgad). Aurangzeb’s clarion call ignited this senile veteran officer. Project of almost one month was completed within one week. Fateullakhan mobilised the military organization by enabling moment of 100 horseman at once through the road. Alamgir and Fatehullakhan proved to be fathers of this victory. 

While Aurangzeb was travelling from Malkapur to Vishalgad his envoy was attacked from rear. RanojiGhorpade was successfully carrying forward the legacy of his father, SantajiGhorpade. Ranoji cut all the supply lines converging at Aurangzeb’s camp from the nearby area across 100km. Inflation took place in his cantonment area. Army runs on its stomach and wars are fought on money. Aurangzeb lacked both but yet he was full with enthusiasm and hope. Tararani decided to move to Sinhagad considering the Mughal threat. Asadkhan, Fatehullahkhan, Hamiduddinkhan, Munimkhan were deployed to besiege Vishalgad. Aurangzeb was monitoring the situation from Pavankhinda. Maratha attacked besiegers. But this time attack was retaliated with double power. Fatehullakhan at the age of 85 showed extraordinary gallantry and killed many Maratha soldiers. But losses were equal on both the sides. To strategically avoid threat from Marathas in the fort, Fatehullakhan built an underground tunnel. He received accolades for his skills and agile actions. 

Aurangzeb thought his presence on the battle field would encourage the troops. So he decided to shift from Pandharpani to Gonimuth (3 km from Vishalgad). Aurangzeb took 10 days to cover mere distance of 10km. Marathas launched attacks on Mughals back to back. Somehow with god’s grace Alamgir reached Vishala at the cost of many lives. Fatehullakhan was developing a wooden machinery to carry heavy ammunitions on top of the bastion. Suddenly Marathas started pelting heavy stones on them. Fatehullahkhan could not withstand this assault. He got seriously injured. His absence on the field was more soothing to Mughals than Marathas. Because of his efficient delivery other Mughal officers had to follow Alamgir’s order sincerely. After series of failures Mughals Captured strategically located bastion under the leadership of ShehjadaBedarbakht and SawaiJaisingh ( 26th April, 1702 ). This bastion acted like a protection cover of main entrance. Mughals were literally at door step yet Killedar did not surrender. He fought for one month. This protracted war seemed to end up at unavoidable deadlock. Marathas were cunning. They deviced a strategy according to which Killedars fought their level best till Monsoon. They knew, that Mughals would not be able to sustain stormy monsoon in the hilly areas. So they would offer any sum of money for the possession of fort. Thus, Marathas very conveniently set the price of their choice knowing Mughals would pay it for sure. After monsoon Marathas used to recapture the same fort. Very systematically they ensured flow of money in national treasury and left Mughal devoid of permanent territorial gains. But Mughals lacked vision to analyse these under currents. Hence, Rahullakhan tried the weapon of treason. Killedar was ready to surrender the fort at the cost of some predefined amount. Although it was Fateullahkhan who worked day and night, Rahullakhan ate the cherry. Vishalgad was captured on 4th June, 1702. 

Fall of Sinhagad :

After Vishalgad, Alamgir ordered his forces to march towards Sinhagad. Vishalgad located near Kolhapur was at the periphery of the Swarajya, but Pune was the very heart of Swarajya. Now Alamgir decided to hit the bull’s eye. Thus Sinhagad was targeted. Mughals spent almost 6 month to reach Sinhagad. Because now enemy attacks were double folded. Monsoon was playing his due role in favour of Marathas. Heavy downpour made it extremely difficult to penetrate through thick dense forest and cross the roaring rivers. On 27th December Aurangzeb reached Sinhagad. Battle for Sinhagad was a real test of Mughal’s military expertise and technical skills. Heavy cannons were fired at various bastions. These ammunitions would do little to destruct meticulously constructed Sinhagad. This fire did not burn the spirit of nationalism rather ignited many warriors to fight for their existence. BalajiVishvanath Bhat who later emerged as discerning diplomat and DhanajiJadhav left no stone unturned to defeat Mughals. 

Tarbiyatkhan tried every operational strategy to capture this fort but nothing could bring plausible effect. Three and the half months Mughals besieged the fort but could not attain victory. When all their weapons failed to establish strong hold, the Brahmastra fetched the result. As in previous expeditions, bribery played a magic. Sinhagad was surrendered at the cost of 50,000 rupees. 8th April 1703 Mughals got the possession of Sinhagad. 

Rajgad bows down :

Every victory irrespective of methodology adopted boosted Alamgir’s confidence to aim even greater. On 10th November, 1703 he charged the forces to crack down on Rajgad. But Aurangzeb forgot that this time he was battling against General Sahyadri! Path towards Rajgad was full of dark forest and wilder beasts. Alamgir and his northern soldiers who had no warfare techniques in rocky territory, took 2 months to cover the distance of 36 km from Sinhagad to Rajgad. Rajgad was impossible to besiege considering its vast peripheral spread. Tarbiyatkhan and Hamiduddinkhan started heavy firing at Suvelamachi. To achieve more destructive impact Mughals started artillery actions from the surrounding hill tops. But skilled Maratha warriors retaliated all the offensives. Despite of two months of regular shelling there was no change in the status quo. On 4th February, 1703 Mughal captured entrance to the fort and hence, soldiers had no option but to take shelter in the citadel. Despite of Mughal dominance on the fort Marathas did not surrender the fort easily. They fought another 12 days.Truly Marathas fought for every inch of the fort and literally till the last drop of the blood remained. Willpower had overpowered manpower till date, but pragmatically this equation could not sustain for long. Marathas had to make some settlements with Mughals and surrendered the fort. Rajgad was the first capital fort and its fall was milestone event in the Mughal expedition. But no one was ready to further administer this mighty fort. Aurangzeb was so energised to capture rest of the forts that he paid little attention to further enforce administrative structure to look after the fort. Iradatkhan was made incharge of Rajgad andtriumphant forces headed towards Torana. 

Torana was captured, what’s next?

Torana was one of the most difficult fort in Maharashtra. Its geographical features have made it almost invincible. 4600 feet altitude and widely spanned flanks i.e. ZunjarMachi ,BudhalaMachi make this fort geographically superior than others. While ascending the fort, death is just a step away. Any wrong step and the death is ensured. Thus Mughals were worried about how to formulate a plan to attack. Ammanullahkhan was a witty warrior. He lured few Maratha soldiers and with their help ascended almost impossible fort. Marathas on the fort were absolutely unaware of quick Mughal actions. Fierce Mughal attack was a big jolt and Marathas could not even withstand it. Without much fight fort was captured. For the first time, Mughal shown an element of bravery and Marathas lost because of lethargy. 15th March, 1704 Aurangzeb’s 89th birthday, Ammanullahkhan gifted Torana! Grand was the celebration! 

Torana was the last fort, where in Aurangzeb personally supervised the operation. ShivajiMaharaj laid the foundation stone of Swarajya with the very capture of Torana. Alamgir terminated his pursuit of dominancy after the capture of Torana. After 1704, political dynamics changed rapidly. Then Alamgir could not afford to dedicate all the time to military operations. Mughal soldiers were completely wearied of camp life. Far away from their motherland they spent 22 years of their life just for the over ambitions of Alamgir. Hence, there was a consistent notion amongst soldiers about peace agreement. ShahjadaKambaksha took the initiative and sent his diplomat to Dhanaji. But, Marathas were used to this rough life and anyways in a broader sense they were at the command of situation. So Dhanaji procrastinated the agreement talks. Ultimately this initiative proved null and void. During the same time, in north Karnataka, local people of Wakinkheda joined hands with Marathas. These people were born warriors. Hence their strength got manifold when Marathas assisted them. To counter this emerging threat to BijapurAlamgir left Maharashtra. 

What should we conclude from these episodes? Should we hail Marathas for an exemplary gallantry or should we blame those snakes in the grass for falling a trap of treason ? Should we appreciate Alamgir for his restless pursuit of Mughal Supremacy or should we petty his forces for taking the heat of Maratha assault? Ostensibly, streak of accomplishments of Mughal forces tilted the power sphere in the favour of Alamgir. But this is a war of perception, it's a battle of ideological narrative! From 1682 to 1704 in the span of 22 years Mughal captured many forts but failed to establish their stronghold. In the short period of time Maratha army recaptured them. Alamgir's zealous conduct of the campaign could not inspire his forces in the cause of islam. Rather he rendered them in battle hardships and poverty. On the other hand, wave of nationalism prevailed in swarajya. ShivajiMaharaj was one such transformational leader who embodied an idea of sovereignty and change the fortune of nation. His successors made this struggle a people's moment. Hence, the narrative of Swarajya emerged triumphant! Power resides with those whose narrative wins! In the span of next 50 to 60 years Marathas proved it! 

Dates so mentioned above are according to Julian calendar. 

Aditi Kajrekar

Reference :MarathyancheSwatantryasamar – G.S.Puranik