List of battles of Rajasthan

Several significant battles are recorded to have taken place in what is now known as Rajasthan. Rajputs were victorious in the majority of battles.

Against the Arabs
  • Arab Invasion of Rajasthan (740) - An Arab invasion from the Umayyad Caliphite defeated several Indian Rajas and conquered modern day Rajasthan up to Chittor, ending the Mori dynasty. Bappa Rawal later defeated the Arabs near Chittor and forced them to retreat to Sindh.[1]
  • Presence of a nationwide grand alliance between Indian kings is very rare. There was absolutely no break of conflicts among different powers. Rising power of Kanauj had already become a strong rival of Kashmir kingom at North. Legendary Rajputs were yet to be united then. Chalukyas from the South were expanding their influence very fast through joining hands with smaller kingdoms. This policy of Chalukyas was posing a threat to other powerhouse of central India - the Gurjaras. Among all such chaos, the news came like a storm - that the defense of Sindh has fallen against arabic invasion. Magically, all battles and conflicts between all military powers of north and western India stopped. Once sworn enemies joined hands with each other overnight. Lalitaditya of Kashmir stood side by side with Yashovarman of Kanauj. Vikramaditya II, along with all his allies, immediately put an end with Nagabhatt I of Gurjaras. Warring tribes of Rajputs started to become united under Bappa Rawal. And most importantly, all these kingdoms decided to unleash their offensive power simultaneously in all fronts. This stubborn resistance proved to be too fatal for arabs. Post this war, Arab Caliphate had never been able to recover.[Source]

Against the Ghurids

During the Sultanates of Delhi,Gujarat and Malwa
  • Siege of Ranthambore (1226) - Iltutmish captured the fort in 1226 CE.[5]
  • Siege of Ranthambore (1236) - Vagbhata Chauhan recaptured Ranthambore during the reign of the Delhi ruler Razia.[5]
  • Siege of Ranthambore (1248) - Vagabhata Chauhan successfully defended the fort against Nasiruddin Mahmud.[5]
  • Siege of Ranthambore (1253) - Vagbhata Chauhan repelled another invasion from the Mamluks.[5]
  • Siege of Ranthambore (1259) -Nasiruddin Mahmud captured Ranthambore from Jaitrasingh Chauhan.
  • Siege of Ranthambore (1283) -Shakti Dev Chauhan recaptured Ranthambore from the Mamluks.
  • Battle of Ranthambore (1290) - Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji attacked Hammir deo because of his rising power. Jalaludin's forces were defeated by Hammir.
  • Siege of Jaisalmer (1294-1295) - Alauddin Khalji commanded the Khilji army under Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji and plundered Jaisalmer after a siege that lasted for a year. For some years afterwards Jaisalmer remained abandoned before the surviving Bhatis reoccupied it.[6]
  • Siege of Ranthombore (1301) – Hammiradeva defeated Alauddin Khalji's generals Ulugh Khan and Nusrat Khan; later, Alauddin defeated Hammiradeva.
  • Siege of Chittor (1303) – Alauddin Khalji defeated Rawal Ratan Singh.
  • Siege of Siwana (1308) – Malik Kamaluddin a general of Alauddin Khalji defeated Sheetal deo.
  • Battle of Jalore (1310–11) – Alauddin Khalji defeated Kanhad deo after a long and bloody war.[7]
  • Battle of Chittor (1321) - Rana Hammir Singh defeated Maldev Songara, a vassal of the Tughlaq dynasty and recovered Mewar.[8]
  • Battle of Singoli (1336) – Rana Hammir Singh defeated An Army led by one of Muhammad bin Tughluq General and annexed Ajmer, Ranthambhore, Nagor and Shivapuri.[9][10]
  • Battle of Sirohi (1434) - Rana Kumbha defeated Rao Sahasmal Deora and captured Basaritgarh, Bhula and areas of Abu.[11]
  • Siege of Mandalgarh (1435-6) - Rana Kumbha captured Mandalgarh fort from Rao Bairisal Hada.[12]
  • Battle of Mandalgarh and Banas (1442-1446) - A series of battles that took place between Mahmud Khalji of Malwa and Rana Kumbha of Mewar. bloodied by these engagements the Sultan did not attack Mewar for another ten years.[13][14]
  • Siege of Gagron (February 1444) - Sultan Mahmud besieged Gagron which belonged to Palhan Singh Khichi. Rana Kumbha had sent reinforcements under his commander Dahir, but Dahir died in battle and Palhan was killed by bhils while fleeing from the fort.[15]
  • Siege of Mandore (1454) - Rao Jodha recaptured Mandore from Rana Kumbha.[16]
  • Battle of Abu (1455) - Qutbuddin sent Imadul Mulk to invade Mewar through Abu, but Imadul suffered heavy losses against the Mewari soldiers posted on the hills and was immediately called back.[17]
  • Battle of Nagaur (1456) - Rana Kumbha defeated the combined armies of Shams Khan (sultan of Nagaur) and Qutbuddin (Sultan of Gujarat) and captured Nagaur, Kasili, Khandela and shakambhari.[18]
  • Battle of Mandalgarh (1456) - Sultan Mahmud attacked Mandalgarh, he sent 7 detachments to attack the Rana from multiple directions. The Malwa forces under Taj Khan and Ali Khan suffered heavy losses in battle against Rana Kumbha after which Mahmud retreated the next morning.[19]
  • Siege of Mandalgarh (December 1456-October 1457) - In December Rana Kumbha was forced to move north to confront the sultan of Gujarat, Sultan Mahmud once again attacked Mandalgarh and captured it after a siege.[20]
  • Siege of Kumbalgarh (1458-9) - Sultan Mahmud besieged Kumbalgarh but finding the fort too strong he retreated back to Mandu.[21]
  • Battle of Mandalgarh (1467) - Sultan Mahmud invaded Mewar and fought a battle with Rana Kumbha, but retreated after taking heavy losses. This was the last battle fought between the two rivals.[22]
  • Battle of Peepar (1492) - Rao Satal defeated Gudhla Khan, an Afghan general and rescued 140 maidens that had been captured. Rao Satal himself died that night of the wounds received in the battle.[23]
  • Battle of Khatoli (1518) – Rana Sanga defeated Ibrahim Lodhi.
  • Battle of Dholpur (1519) - Rana Sanga defeated Ibrahim Lodhi.
  • Battle of Gagron (1519) – Rana Sanga defeated Mahmud Khalji of Malwa.
  • Siege of Mandsaur (1520) - Sultan Muzaffar Shah II sent an army under Malik Ayaz but failed and retreated to Gujarat.[24]
  • Battle of Bayana (1527) - Babur sent an army to capture Bayana but the Mughals were defeated by Rana Sanga. The Mughals however plundered a temple built by Rana Sanga in the memory of his mother.[25]
  • Battle of Khanwa (1527) - Rana Sanga led the Rajput armies against Babur of Ferghana, but was defeated due to treachery by Silhadi of Raisen.
  • Battle of Sohaba (1542) – Rao Maldev killed Rao Jaitsi in battle and captured Bikaner.[26]
  • Battle of Sammel (1544) – Sher Shah Suri's costly victory against the army of Jaita and Kumpa.[27]
  • Battle of Jodhpur (July 1545) - Rao Maldev defeated the Afghan garrison in Marwar and reoccupied his lost territories.[28]
  • Battle of Harmada (1557) - Maldeo Rathore defeated Udai Singh II and captured Merta.[29][30]

During the Mughal Empire
  • Battle of Ajmer (1559) - Akbar's general Qasim Khan annexed Ajmer from Maldeo Rathore.[31]
  • Battle of Merta (1562) - Akbar with the help of Rajas from Bikaner and Amer defeated Rao Chandra Sen and captured Merta.
  • First Mughal Invasion of Marwar (1562-1583) - Akbar invaded Marwar and occupied Jodhpur. The ruler Rao Chandra Sen continued his struggle until his death in 1581 after which Marwar submitted to Mughal rule in 1583.[32]
  • Siege of Chittorgarh (1567) – Emperor Akbar defeated Rao Jaimal and Patta (Udai Singh II escaped with his family to Udaipur)
  • Siege of Ranthambore (1568) - A successful siege by Mughal Emperor Akbar causes the Rajput leader Rao Surjan Hada to surrender Ranthambore Fort.
  • Siege of Siwana (1572) - In 1572 the powerful fort of Siwana which served as Rao Chandrasens capital was captured by the Mughals after a siege of 8 months.[33]
  • Battle of Haldighati (1576) – Man Singh (the commander of Akbar) defeated Maharana Pratap.
  • Battle of Dewair (1582) - Maharana Pratap defeated the Mughals and was able to recover most of his kingdom.[34][35][36]
  • Battle of Dewar (1606) - Fought in a valley 40 km from Kumbalgarh. Rana Amar Singh defeated and killed Sultan Khan, the Mughal prince Muhammad Parviz fled from the battlefield with his commander Asaf Khan.[37][38]
  • Second Mughal Invasion of Marwar (1679-1707) - Auranzeb took Marwar under his direct control after the death of Maharaja Jaswant Singh. The Rathore army under Durgadas Rathore carried out a relentless struggle against the occupying forces. In 1707 after the death of Aurangzeb, Durgadas defeated the local Mughal force and reoccupied Jodhpur and their lost territories.[39]
  • Battle of Udaipur (1680) - Aurangzeb attacked Mewar and plundered Udaipur, the citizens were safely escorted to the aravalli hills by Rana Raj Singh but 63 temples in and around Udaipur were plundered and many villages were burned down by Aurangzebs general Taj Khan. The Mughal army was eventually starved out of Mewar because of the scorched earth techniques and guerrilla warfare used by the Rana. Aurangzeb after a failed campaign left Mewar to his son Akbar and retreated to Ajmer.[40]
  • Battle of Aravalli hills (1680) - In the second half of 1680, after several months of such setbacks, Aurangzeb decided on an all-out offensive. Niccolao Manucci, an Italian gunner in the Mughal army, says: "for this campaign, Aurangzeb put in pledge the whole of his kingdom." Three separate armies, under Aurangzeb's sons Akbar, Azam and Muazzam, penetrated the Aravalli hills from different directions. However, their artillery lost its effectiveness while being dragged around the rugged hills and both Azam and Muazzam were defeated by the Rajputs under Durgadas Rathore and Rana Raj Singh.[41]
  • Battle of Jodhpur (1707) - Durgadas Rathore took advantage of the disturbances following the death of Aurangzeb in 1707 to seize Jodhpur and eventually evict the occupying Mughal force out of Marwar.[42]
  • Annexation of Amer (January 1708) - Bahadur Shah I marched with a large army and annexed Amer without a war. Raja Jai Singh was forced to retreat with his army. Amber was named Mominabad by the Mughal emperor.[43]
  • Battle of Merta (February 1708) - Bahadur Shah I's general Mihrab Khan defeated Ajit Singh of Marwar. The Mughal emperor was advised to stay in Ajmer as the Mughals were wary of the guerrilla tactics of Durgadas. Ajit Singh however went against the advice of Durgadas Rathore and directly confronted the large Mughal army. The Mughals bombarded the Rathor horsemen with cannons and rockets and forced them to retreat after heavy losses. Jodhpur was once again occupied by the Mughals. Ajit Singh received "special robes of honour" and a jewelled scarf from the Emperor for his bravery shown in battle.[44]
  • Rajput Rebellion (September 1708-10) - The three Rajput Raja's of Amber, Udaipur and Jodhpur made a joint resistance to the Mughals. The Rajputs first expelled the commandants of Jodhpur and Bayana and recovered Amer by a night attack. They next killed Sayyid Hussain Khan Barha in the battle of Sambhar (1709). Raja Ajit Singh also attacked Ajmer and forced its governor to pay tribute. Sayyid Hidayatullah, the governor of Ranthambore was also defeated, bringing a danger to the Mughal capital itself. Bahadur Shah I, then in the Deccan was forced to patch up a truce with the Rajput Rajas (1710).[45]
  • Battle of Kama (October 4–7, 1708) - Ajit Singh Kachwaha, the Rajput zamindar of Kama defeated the combined armies of Mughals and Jats. The Mughal-Jat army numbered 18,000 while the Kachwahas had 10,000 horsemen. After a bitter fight the Mughal faujdar Raza Bahadur was killed and the Jat leader Churaman was forced to flee to Thun.[46][47][48]
  • Jai Singh II's campaign against the Jats (1718-1722) - The Jats under Churaman had been actively looting and plundering in the Agra district due to which the Mughals had to close the roads to Delhi and Agra for the safety of the traders. In 1718 Sawai Jai Singh II was appointed by the Mughal emperor to destroy the Jat stronghold of Thun. Jai Singh surrounded the fort and was about to breach it when the Sayyid brothers, who were rivals of the Jaipur raja, made a separate peace with the Jats on behalf of the emperor. Jai Singh was forced to withdraw in disgust. Two years later Churaman died and his son Mokham Singh succeeded him. Mokhams first step as a ruler was to imprison his cousin Badan Singh. Badan asked for help from Sawai Jai Singh II. Jai Singh readily set upon Thun and captured it after a six-month siege. Mokham was forced to flee and Badan Singh was made the Raja of Deeg on the condition that he pays tribute.[49]

Post Mughal rule
  • Battle of Gangwana (1741) - 1,000 Rathor cavaliers of Bhakt Singh fought a combined army of a 100,000 men consisting of Mughals, Kachwahas, Chauhans, Jadauns, Sisodias and Jats. In this battle Bhakt Singh was defeated but his cavalry charge killed and injured thousands of his foes. Sir Jadunath Sarkar quotes that - "the battle front was like tigers upon a flock of sheep". According to Harcharandas more than 12,000 men were slain in the battlefield.[50][51][52]
  • Battle of Rajmahal (1747) - Ishvari Singh of Jaipur defeated a coalition of armies led by Jagat Singh of Mewar.[53]
  • Battle of Bagru (1748) - Madho Singh I defeated Ishvari Singh[54]
  • Battle of Raona (1750) - The Mughal Empire invaded Marwar but were repelled by the armies of Raja Ram singh Rathore and Ishwari Singh Kachwaha.[55]
  • Battle of Luniawas (1750)- Bhakt Singh challenged his nephew Ram Singh for the throne of Marwar. Ram Singh hired a large contingent of Afghan and Baloch Musketeers from Sindh to defeat his uncle, he further formed a powerful army in Jodhpur and appointed Sher Singh Rathor, a veteran general of Marwar to defeat the usurper. At first Ram Singhs general Sher Singh Rathor pushed Bhakt Singh 4 miles back and almost forced him to retreat, 2000 Rathors of Bhakt Singh fell in the battle with 9 Rathor nobles and Bhakt Singh was severely injured by spear and bullet wounds, but Bhakt Singh made a fierce counterattack which killed Sher Singh and most of Ram Singhs commanders making the battle a costly victory for Bhakt Singh.[56][57]
  • Battle of Mangrol (1761) - Madho Singh of Jaipur fought Malhar Rao Holkar. The Jaipur army had 10,000 men while the Holkar army had 6,000 men from Indore and 3,000 men supplied by the Rao of Kota. After a 2-day battle the Jaipur army was completely destroyed. However Malhar Rao was not able to plunder Dhundhar for long as he was recalled to Bundelkhand because of rebellions and threats of invasion by Shuja-Ud-Daula of Awadh.[58]
  • Battle of Maonda and Mandholi (1767) - Jaipur forces defeat the forces of Bharatpur.[59]
  • Battle of Kama (1768) - Madho Singh I invaded Bharatpur at the head of 16,000 men where he defeated jat leader Jawahar Singh again on 29 February 1768.[60][61]
  • Battle of Tunga or Battle of Lalsot (1787) - Combined forces of Jaipur and Jodhpur Vs Maratha forces of Mahadaji Shinde.Maratha forces were defeated in a bloody three-day battle at Tunga .[62]
  • Battle of Patan (1790) - The Battle of Patan was fought on 20 June 1790 between the Scindia's of Gwalior and the Kachwahas of Jaipur, and resulted in a decisive Scindia victory.
  • Battle of Merta (1790) - Mahadaji Scindia defeated Maharaja Vijay Singh.
  • Battle of Malpura (1800) - Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh was defeated by Daulat Rao Sindhia[63]
  • Siege of Mehrangarh (1806) - Man Singh of Marwar defeated the invading armies of Jaipur, Mewar and Bikaner so comprehensively that Jagat Singh of Jaipur had to pay a sum of Rs. 2,00,000 to secure his safe passage. In honour of Man Singhs victory over Jaipur the Jai Pol, or victory gate was built in the fort in 1808.
  • Battle of Auwa (8 September 1857) - Kushal singh Rathore, a noble of Jodhpur joined the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the British Empire, around 5,000 Rajputs of Pali joined him. The British asked raja Takht Singh to deal with him, however most of the Rathore nobles refused to fight with a fellow clansmen for foreigners. Kushal Singh thus defeated a force of local levies raised by Raja Takht Singh of Jodhpur.[64]
  • Siege of Auwa (1857-1858) - Kushal Singh killed captain Mason and hung his head on his fort gate for insulting him, he then defeated a British army of 2,000 men under brigadier Lawrence. Another army of 30,000 men under colonel Holmes forced Kushal Singh to retreat to his fort in Auwa. Holmes besieged the Auwa fort and breached it after 6 months of siege. Kushal Singh was able to escape to Udaipur. Auwa was then confiscated by the British until the death of Kushal Singh in 1864.[65]

References
  1. R. C. Majumdar 1977, p. 298-299.
  2. Asoke Kumar Majumdar 1956, pp. 131-132.
  3. Dasharatha Sharma 1959, p. 138.
  4. R. B. Singh 1964, p. 259.
  5. Sen 1999, p. 336.
  6. Beny & Matheson, p. 149.
  7. Maheshwari, Hiralal (1980). History of Rajasthani Literature. Sahitya Akademi. p. 17.
  8. Sen, Sailendra (2013). A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. pp. 116–117. ISBN 978-9-38060-734-4.
  9. R. C. Majumdar, ed. (1960). The History and Culture of the Indian People: The Delhi Sultante (2nd ed.). Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 70.
  10. "Rajput Victories in Indian History".
  11. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 36.
  12. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 5.
  13. A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books.
  14. Har Bilas Sarda "Maharana Kumbha: sovereign, soldier, scholar" pg 47
  15. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 4.
  16. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 30.
  17. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 18.
  18. A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. pp. 116–117
  19. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 9.
  20. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 11.
  21. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 12.
  22. Rajasthan through the ages vol 5, pg 12.
  23. Indian States a biographical, sustainable and administrative survey by jw solomon
  24. The Hindupat, the Last Great Leader of the Rajput Race. 1918. Reprint. London pg 84-86
  25. Satish Chandra 2006 p=33
  26. Rajasthan pg.70 by Dharmpal
  27. Tarikh -i Daudi Farid bin Hasan Sur entitled Shir Shah fol 114
  28. Mahajan, V.D. (1991, reprint 2007). History of Medieval India, Part II, New Delhi: S. Chand, ISBN 81-219-0364-5, p.43
  29. Akbarnama II pg 72
  30. Jodhpur Khyat pg 76
  31. Akbarnama II pg 46
  32. Studies in Mughal History pg 91 by Ashwini Agrawal
  33. Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals Part - II pg-120, by Satish Chandra
  34. Maharana Pratap Singh
  35. Maharana Pratap: Embodiment of courage and bravery
  36. http://haldighati.com/maharana-pratap
  37. Rajsamand (2001), District Gazetteers, Rajasthan, p. 35, The battle of Dewar was fought in a valley of Arvali about 40 km north -east of Kumbhalgarh. ... Prince Amar Singh fought valiantly and pierced through Sultan Khan and the horse he was riding.
  38. A military history of medieval India, 2003, p. 530, Prince Pravez and Asaf Khan led an army of 20,000 horse which fought a battle against Rana Amar Singh at Dewar
  39. The Cambridge History of India pg 248-304
  40. Maharana Raj Singh and His Times By Ram Sharma
  41. Storia do Mogor By Niccolao Manucci
  42. Cambridge history of India pg. 304
  43. Irvine, p. 47.
  44. Irvine, p. 48.
  45. The Cambridge History of India, Volume 3 pg 322
  46. AKhbarat, Kartik Sudi 5, Samvat, 1765 (7 October 1708) quoted by U.N. Sharma, Itihas, I, 215, 212-215
  47. Kamwar, II, 315
  48. Dwivedi 2003, p. 61
  49. https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/gazetteer/text.html?objectid=DS405.1.I34_V08_081.gif
  50. A History of Jaipur pg-200 by Jadunath Sarkar
  51. Fall of the Mughal Empire pg-139-140 by Jadunath Sarkar
  52. Harcharandas in Chahar Gulzar 377b-379b
  53. Rajasthan Through the Ages pg 182
  54. Rajasthan through the Ages vol 4 pg.188
  55. Rajasthan through the Ages vol 4 pg.189
  56. Rajasthan through the Ages vol 4 pg.196
  57. Fall Of The Mughal Empire- Vol. I (4Th Edn.), Volume 1, By Jadunath Sarkar pg.159
  58. Rajasthan Through the Ages By R.K. Gupta, S.R. Bakshi pg.202-204
  59. History of Jaipur by Jadunath Sarkar pg. 256
  60. The Rajputana gazetteers - 1880
  61. History of Jaipur by Jadunath Sarkar pg. 256
  62. Jacques, Tony. Dictionary of Battles and Sieges. "Supported by the Rajput rulers of Jodhpur and Udaipur, Partab Singh of Jaipur took a massive force southeast against Marathas under Mahadji Sindhia. When his Mughal cavalry under Mohammad Beg and his nephew Ismail Beg Hamadani defected, Sindhia was defeated in a bloody three-day battle at Tunga, near Lalsot.". Greenwood Press. p. 565. ISBN 978-0-313-33536-5. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
  63. A history of Jaipur pg 310 by Jadunath Sarkar
  64. The Central India Campaign. "Khushial Singh the Thakur of Awah who was in rebellion against the British. On 8 September the Legion defeated a force of Jodhpur's loyal Raja's local levies."
  65. Political Awakening and Indian Freedom Movement with Special Reference to Rajasthan pg 28-35
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