Later Mughals v2.c14.s14: Sec. 39.—Battle of Shakar Khera.
Later Mughals v2.c14.s14
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Sec. 39.—Battle of Shakar Khera.
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There being no other course open to him, Mubariz Khan stored his heavy baggage and impedimenta in Shakar-Khera,* and drew up his force outside that town. For two days he and his men remained separated from their supplies, and having nothing with them but a horse and a riding whip they suffered excessively. At first the two armies were eight miles apart, and as Mubariz Khan would not leave his position Nizam-ul-mulk advanced in fighting array one or two miles a day. Both sides were on the alert to repel any sudden night attacks. The decisive battle began in the afternoon of the 23rd Muharram 1137 A. H. = 11th October, 1724. [M. U. iii. 741, Ahwal, 191a.]
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Nizam-ul-mulk arranged his force in two main divisions, the first under his own immediate command, the other under that of Iwaz Khan. His vanguard he placed under Qadir Dad Khan (son of Qadir Dad Khan Alamgiri). Talib Muhi-ud-din Khan (grandson of Sadullah Khan, Wazir) was given the command of the right wing, while that of the left wing was confided to Ismail Khan and Muzaffar Khan Khweshgi. Kunwar Chand, a son of Chhattarsal Bundela, and a body of Bundelas were placed with Barqandaz Khan, general of artillery, and Atayar Khan, superintendent of the ahsham and the light artillery. These took their place at the head of the vanguard. Iwaz Khan occupied a position to the left of Nizam-ul-mulk. Under him were Sayyid Jamal Khan (his son), Muqarrab Khan Dakhini and Khan Alam Dakhini, Mutahavvar Khan Khweshgi, and Aziz Beg Khan Harisi. He also had the artillery that he had organized when he became deputy governor of the Dakhin. [M. U. iii. 741, K. K. 953.]
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Zahir-ud-daulah Reayat Khan, Nizam-ul-mulk's cousin, and Muhammad Ghiyas Khan were posted between the centre and the left. While Nasir-ud-daulah Abdur-rahim Khan, the Nawab's uncle, was sent to the right wing and with him Sayyid Ghazanfar Khan Burhanpuri, who was Bakhshi to Ghazi-ud-din Khan Firuz Jang (the Nawab's eldest son), also the three hundred men he commanded, some light guns and some wallpieces. To Hirz-ullah Khan (grandson of Sadullah Khan) was assigned a place between the centre and the left, and Bahadur Dil Khan (Lachin Beg) Qalmaq was sent to support him. Hafiz-ud-din Khan and Muhammad Said Khan, grandsons of Sadullah Khan, and therefore near relations of the Nawab, were stationed a furlong from the centre. The yaltamsh [advanced reserve] was placed under Hoshdar Khan (afterwards Iradat Khan). Muhtashim Khan (grandson of Shaikh Mir Khwafi) with several commanders of the centre (tarah) was placed on the right and left [of the centre]. Khwajam Quli Khan Turani with Gopal Singh Gaur, Salim Khan Afghan (deputy of the head huntsman) with his skirmishers, and Rasul Khan Afghan, all three mounted on elephants, were posted in front of the centre as a reserve [yaltamsh.] [K. K. 954-955.]
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∗ Now called Fath-khera, in the southern part of the Baldana district of Berar, some 80 miles from Aurangabad. (Berar Gazetteer, 168.)
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Nizam-ul-mulk himself was in the centre, having with him many nobles such as Khwaja Abdullah Khan, Ihtida Khan, the diwan, Rustam Beg Khan, Nek Nazar Khan (Bakhshi of Nasir Jang, the Nawab's second son), Himmat Yar Khan (maternal uncle of the Nawab's son) and officials such as Abdur-rahman Khan, superintendent of the personal guard. Turktaz Khan, who had often had command among the Mahrattas, was deputed to look after Baji Rao and others and the 7,000 to 8,000 Mahrattas with them.
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On the other side, Mubariz Khan set his men in battle array, but he was notably deficient in heavy artillery. His vanguard was commanded by Ghalib Khan, an officer of Saadat-ullah Khan, faujdar of the Haidarabad Karnatik, and Husain Munavvar Khan (son of Khan Zaman, otherwise Shaikh Nizam Dakhini). Behind them, at the head of the supporting force (yaltamsh) was Muhammad Beg Khan (uncle of Mubariz Khan and an experienced officer). On the right were placed Ibrahim Khan Panni (entitled Bahadur Khan, and brother of the well-known Daud Khan Panni), Abdul Fatah Khan (son of Abdun-nabi Khan Miyana, long famed in the Bijapur Karnatik), and other Afghan commanders with 2,000 Afghan horse. The sons of Diler Khan Miyana of Bankapur, along with Ali Khan (his adopted son) who commanded their troops, and Khwaja Mahmud Khan, Khwaja Asad Khan, Khwaja Masaud Khan and Hamid Khan, the sons of Mubariz, were posted close to the centre. Mubariz Khan himself, accompanied by Khan Zaman, son of Munim Khan (Bahadur-Shahi Wazir), Munavvar Khan, Qizzilbash Khan, Faiq Khan (his diwan), Arab Beg Khan Turani, Mir Yusuf Khan and many others, took up his position at the head of the centre. [K. K. 956.]
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Nizam-ul-mulk, having given orders that there was to be no firing until the critical moment of the attack, chained his big guns together and awaited in position the onset of Mubariz Khan, the distance between the two armies being now a mile or so. Between them was a water-course, the bottom of which consisted of sticky black mud into which men and horses sank up to their chests. At length after midday Mubariz Khan gave the order to advance against Iwaz Khan, whose force was on the left of Nizam-ul-mulk's line. The attacking side was under ten thousand horsemen in number. As they rode on they increased their pace until suddenly they reached the water-course, where they were checked and the line thrown into great disorder. The crush was so great that if a horse reared it was swept on with its legs in the air, or if a man lost his seat he did not reach the ground but was carried on supported by the horses on each side of him. At length the men of the left wing found a pathway. Then, in spite of all the artillery opposed to them on their right hand with its deafening sound and its blinding smoke, they fell like "roaring tigers" on the right and advanced centre of Iwaz Khan and began a hand-to-hand struggle with sword, spear and mace. It is said that some 5,000 of his horsemen dismounted and fought on foot with sword and shield. [Ahwal 191b, K. K. 957, M. U. iii. 741, Kamwar.]
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At this point some of Nizam-ul-mulk's generals arrived to reinforce Iwaz Khan, and did great execution with their swivel-guns and muskets. Soon came the news that Ghalib Khan was killed. Mubariz Khan, without a muscle moving, said, "I too am ready for this unavoidable fate." Then his son Asad Khan's elephant turned and fled. As they passed Mubariz Khan, he shouted "Asad, the runaway!" Asad Khan replied "It is not my fault, the elephant is frightened." The father angrily retorted, "If your elephant turns, throw yourself, and carry out your duty to your sovereign." The elephant driver, by some severe blows of his iron on the animal's head, brought it into line again. For an hour-and-a-half they were rained on by shot and bullet. At last Asad Khan and Masaud Khan were killed. Mubariz Khan, on being told, exclaimed, "Thanks be to the Almighty, from my first youth until now, I have never been defeated; wounds and death are our portion, to die unshrinking on the battlefield is our salvation; Asad and Masaud have gone from this earth; of what longer use is my valour (mubariz)?" So saying, he drove his elephant alongside those of Ibrahim Khan and the sons of Abdun-nabi and Abdur Rauf. He fought on for nearly another hour, and was at last brought up by the impassable ravine full of mud; he had been wounded and his strength began to fail; at times he fainted, but reviving he seized again the bow and arrow. His elephant driver was killed, he took the dead man's place himself and fought on as before. But at an hour before sunset Mubariz Khan and all his chief men had lost their lives. [Ahwal 192, K. K. 958, M. U. iii. 742.]
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The principal men of his side who fell were Bahadur Khan Panni, commanding the right wing, Mukaram Khan, formerly Khan Zaman, commanding the left wing, Ghalib Khan, who was at the head of the vanguard, Abul Fath Khan Miyana, Husaini Khan (son of Ali Mardan Khan Haidarabadi), Amin Khan Dakhini, Jag Deo Rao Jadon, and Faiq Khan Kashmiri (the diwan). The total losses on Mubariz Khan's side are said to have amounted to 3,500 men, of whom between 30 to 40 were leaders and "riders on elephants." Two sons of Mubariz Khan, Mahmud Khan and Hamid-ullah Khan, the latter a mere boy, were among the wounded and were taken prisoners. Dilawar Khan also fell into the Mughals' hands. [Ahwal 193a, Kamwar, K. K. 959, Warid 16.]
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The losses on Nizam-ul-mulk's side were comparatively few. Reayat Khan, a cousin to whom the Nawab's aunt was married, was shot by an arrow in the windpipe and died. Sulaiman Khan Khweshgi also lost his life and Sayyid Ghazanfar Khan died of his wounds after two or three days. [K. K. 959.]
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One of the curious incidents of the battle is that Amin Khan Dakhini and Muqarrab Khan his son fought on different sides. They had always been on bad terms, and a few days before the battle took place Amin Khan left the army of Nizam-ul-mulk and transferred his services to Mubariz Khan, taking with him a number of the commanders from Burhanpur. On the day of battle the father and the son took the field thirsting for each other's blood. Muqarrab Khan fought stoutly with everyone he encountered and showed his prowess abundantly, but never came across his father. Still as Amin Khan was killed in this battle by someone or another on Nizam-ul-mulk's side, the popular legend arose that he was cut down by the sword of his own son. [K. K. 957.]
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Mubariz Khan was buried in the plain outside the town of Shakar-Khera. Shah Nawaz Khan, author of the Masir-ul-umara, thinks that he was to blame for carelessness and want of promptitude. If he had raised at once the siege of Phulchari and marched off to Aurangabad immediately on receipt of the imperial rescript, he would have been successful, for at that time Iwaz Khan had not more than 2,000 men. Nor, in spite of the delay, ought he to have been beaten, if he had only taken measures to collect sufficient men and material. In fact during the campaign some of the Mahratta chiefs had made overtures to him, more especially Kanhu Bhonsla, who had 5,000 men with him and would have been satisfied with a small payment. But Mubariz Khan would not hear of such a thing. All these men, as he said, had felt his claws and suffered from his blows; and for the future as in the past he would enlist men when he wanted them. He would never lower himself by entreaties; but if they came of their own accord without payment there would be no objection. The thorough-going partizans of Nizam-ul-mulk laid all the blame upon Mubariz Khan for having dared to oppose such a man. "What can you expect?" they said, "Is it not true as the proverb says 'You cannot gather grapes from thorns nor apples from plane-trees'?" [M. U. iii. 743, Burhan 169a, Ahwal 196b.]
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The day after the battle was spent in burying the dead and attending to the wounded.* Of these latter the principal were the two sons of Mubariz Khan, Dilawar Khan, his brother-in-law and Muhammad Beg Khan his maternal uncle. The latter died of his wounds a few days afterwards, and this too was the fate of Arab Beg Khan. Among the wounded attended to were Hakim Izzat Talab Khan, Qizzilbash Kh., Mir Abul Fazl Khan, Raza Muhammad Khan (diwan of Qamrnagar or Karnul), Aqa Abul Hasan (news-writer of Machhlibandar). Nizam-ul-mulk provided most of what was necessary in the shape of food and medicine and the things necessary for mourning. But Ihtida Khan (his diwan and lord steward) also largely contributed to their relief. Diyanat Khan, ex-diwan of the Dakhin, too, furnished many of the men who had been stripped of everything, with cash and food. Large amounts of rich clothes and jewels which had been confiscated, belonging to the sons of Mubariz Khan, Dilawar Khan, Kazim Ali Khan (son of Haji Mansur) and others, were restored by the order of Nizam-ul-mulk. [K. K. 959-960.]