| Revision as of 09:54, 30 March 2015 editGhatus (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users2,561 edits Undid revision 653850284 by Xtremedood (talk) Vandalism← Previous edit |
Revision as of 03:24, 1 April 2015 edit undoXtremedood (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users4,028 edits Undid revision 654157591 by Ghatus (talk)No Vandalism. Clearly violates NPOV. Lack of sources.Next edit → |
| Line 13: |
Line 13: |
|
}} |
|
}} |
|
|
|
|
|
The '''Battle of Sinhagad''' was a night battle that took place on March 15, 1670 in the fort of ], near the city of ], ], ]. It was fought between ], a commander of Maratha ruler ] and Udaybhan Rathod, fortkeeper under ]. Tanaji's army won the war to hand over control of the fort to the ] with casualties 300 from Mughal side and 50 from Marathas as well as around 4000 Mughal troops imprisoned by mere 500 Marathas. |
|
The '''Battle of Sinhagad''' was a night battle that took place on March 15, 1670 in the fort of ], near the city of ], ], ]. It was fought between ], a commander of Maratha ruler ] and Udaybhan Rathod, fortkeeper under ]. |
|
|
|
|
==Backdrop== |
|
|
{{main|Sinhagad}} |
|
|
|
|
|
The fort, which was previously known as Kondhana, was controlled by ], and was strategically located amidst other forts in the region such as ], ] and ]. The Mughals maintained an army of roughly 5000 men led by Udaybhan, a relative of Jai Singh, and the fort itself was defended by cannons at each turret. |
|
|
|
|
|
Only one turret was left unguarded as it was at the top of a steep cliff, which was thought impossible to scale. Tanaji was able to infiltrate the fort and carry out a surveillance. He also discovered that there was a party on the night of the battle, so the Mughal soldiers would be off their guard. Tanaji was assisted by his brother Suryaji along with 300 Mavalas, who were light infantry of ]. |
|
|
|
|
|
==Battle== |
|
|
|
|
|
Legend has it that Tanaji used a ] named Yeshwanti, with a rope tied around its waist for climbing up the steep vertical rock face. After 342 marathas reached on the top with Tanaji Malusare, the rope gave away due to abrasion against the rocks and 60 Marathas who were climbing on the rope fell down and died. Tanaji Malusare then instructed his brother Suryaji to continue the attack with other Marathas from the Kalyan darwaja with the assurance that the ] would help him get through. |
|
|
|
|
|
Once inside, they set upon Udaybhan and his men. A fierce combat took place between Tanaji and Udaybhan. Udaybhan managed to rid Tanaji of his shield, who then continued to fight by tying a cloth over one of his hands and using it to ward off Udaybhan's sword attacks. Tanaji fought fiercely in spite of losing his shield. He managed to acquire another sword and was thus fighting Uday Bhan with two swords while the latter fought with a sword and a shield. At the climax of the battle, each one struck a fatal blow to the other, both collapsing and succumbing to their injuries. The fall of Tanaji created a panic amongst his soldiers who tried to use the ropes as an escape route. Legend states that the ropes were then cut by Tanaji's brother Suryaji forcing the soldiers to either fight or jump down the sheer cliffs to their deaths. This was in line with the ideology of Shivaji, wherein the Marathas were not fighting for a king or a master, but for the freedom of their motherland. A loss of the leader should not deter the morale of the force but instead a new leader should take his place without any delay. |
|
|
Tanaji's surprise attack in the dead of the night caught the defenders offguard and the fort was captured by the Marathas. Shivaji subsequently renamed Kondana fort to Sinhagad (Lion's Fort) in honor of Tanaji, whose nickname was "the Lion". Sri Suravaram Pratapa Reddy, the first Sahitya Akademy Award winner Telugu writer, has immortalized the bravery and sacrifice of Tanaji Malusure in his sketch of him in his much-acclaimed book 'Haindava Dharma Veerulu' and writes how sad Shivaji was of the death of Tanaji Malusure rather than triumphant over the capture of Simhagadh; when questioned by colleagues for that, Shivaji was said to have remarked: "Gadh aalaa, pan Simh gealaa" |
|
|
|
|
|
== Aftermath == |
|
|
|
|
|
Nearly 1500 Mughal infantry fled to ] from ] after the battle taking advantage of darkness of midnight. This battle significantly boosted confidence of Marathas and within two months after this battle Marathas won all nearby forts like ], ] so on. Till beginning of rainy monsoon season, excluding Pune, Indapur and Baramati all regions were won by Marathas. In June 1670, the Mogul army was totally unprepared and ill-equipped as monsoon had arrived. Sensing this as unique opportunity ] ] decided to attack urban area of Pune, Baramati, Supe and Indapur in the rainy season. Within 10–15 days, Marathas captured all these areas from Mughal Empire, this transition happened nearly after 10 years that is in 1660, these cities were captured by Mughal army headed by Shahista Khan. |
|
|
|
|
|
==Legacy== |
|
|
|
|
|
Upon hearing the news of the capture of the fort at the cost of Tanaji's life, Shivaji was greatly aggrieved and is said to have remarked, "Gad aala, pan Sinha gela" - "We won the Fort, but lost the Lion". The legend says that the fort was renamed from Kondhana to Sinhagad, in honor of Tanaji (who ] metaphorically referred to as a Lion). |
|
|
|
|
|
Today, there is a monument with a bust of Tanaji in honor of his valour. |
|
|
The name of the road from Pune City to Fort is known as Tanaji Malusare Road. |
|
|
|
|
|
==See also== |
|
|
* ] |
|
|
|
|
|
==References== |
|
|
* |
|
|
* Grant Duff - ''History of Marathas'', Oxford University Press, ] |
|
|
* S.D.Samant - ''Vedh Mahamanvacha'' |
|
|
|
|
|
|
{{MarathaEmpire}} |
|
{{MarathaEmpire}} |
Maratha Empire.svg){kind=small}
Uday Bhan †