History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v2.c26: Chapter XX. Battle of Deorai (Ajmir), 12th—14th March, 1659.
History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v2.c26
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Chapter XX. Battle of Deorai (Ajmir), 12th—14th March, 1659.
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We have seen how Dara had been pursued all the way from Lahore to Tatta in Lower Sindh and finally dislodged from that town. Leaving it on 18th November, 1658, he had struck inland to Badin, 55 miles eastwards, and then marched for three days along the northern shore of the salt lagoon or Rann, suffering unspeakable hardship through lack of water. That year the rainfall had been scanty, and the tanks on this route were all dry, while the few wells contained only a small supply of muddy water. Many of his transport animals perished of thirst and his soldiers were brought almost to death's door. The lagoon was eighty miles broad with many quicksands, and no drinking water at all. But everything must bow to necessity. Dara had no choice but to enter the Rann (27th November)
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with his tender wives and daughters in order to reach Guzerat.*
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Crossing the Greater or Western Rann he reached the village of Luna, at the north-western end of the island of Cutch. Then, making his way through the desert and along the sea-coast by a difficult and untrodden path, under the guidance of some local zamindars, he arrived at the capital of the island. The Rajah hospitably received him, and overcome by the personal charm of Dara and the hope of matching with the Imperial house of Delhi, he betrothed his daughter to Sipihr Shukoh† and gave every help to Dara to make his progress easy. The fugitive, replenishing his power in the dominion of his new friend, crossed to Kathiawar. Here the leading chief, the Jam of Nawanagar, offered him presents and the necessary provisions and conveyances. Growing stronger as he advanced, he entered Guzerat. The local officers and jagirdars on the way were forced to follow him.
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∗ A. N. 282-283. Badin, 55 miles east of Tatta. Dara probably crossed the Rann at Rahimki Bazar, 30 miles S. E. of Badin. Jai Singh afterwards reached the northern shore of the Rann at "the village of Rahman" (Paris MS. 103a), which I take to be another name of the same place.
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† The Rao of Cutch, "when he appears in public, alternately worships God in a Hindoo pagoda and a Mahommedan mosque....The royal family of Cutch have never objected to form matrimonial alliances with Mahommedans when the match was suitable, or when a political object was to be gained....The Jharejahs employ Mussalman cooks, and eat from their hands." (Burnes's Visit to Court of Sinde & History of Cutch, ed. 1839, p. xiv.)
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On his arrival before Ahmadabad with 3,000 men, Fortune smiled on him unexpectedly. Shah Nawaz Khan, the newly arrived Governor of the province, cherished resentment against Aurangzib for having imprisoned him at Burhanpur on his refusal to join that Prince in the rebellion against Shah Jahan. True, Aurangzib had married the Khan’s daughter, but that lady was dead, and Shah Nawaz Khan felt no natural attachment to his persecuting son-in-law. Besides, he had taken charge of Guzerat so recently that officers and troops serving in that province had not been yet brought under his control. His military force was small and too divided by mutual jealousy to offer an effective opposition to the invader.
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Whether inspired by revenge or cowardice, Shah Nawaz Khan submitted at the very outset. With his chief officers he advanced to Sarganj, four miles from the capital, to welcome Dara, admitted him into the fort (9th January, 1659), and opened to him the Treasury containing ten lakhs of rupees belonging to Murad. Dara spent one month and seven days in Guzerat, and by lavishly spending money soon raised his army to 22,000 men in that "land bristling with soldiers". One of his officers took peaceful possession of Surat from Aurangzib's Governor, seized the Imperial revenue, extorted contributions from the citizens, and brought away 30 or 40 pieces of artillery to his master. In the Ahmadabad palace Dara held Court, occupying a lower seat than the Emperor's, out of respect for his father. But Shah Nawaz Khan's importunity led him to appear at the window where the Emperors had been wont to show their faces to the public.[*]
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His conflicting plans. Having gathered military strength, and secured a good park of artillery, material, and money, Dara cast about for a plan of operations. Which way should he turn? The Deccan tempted him most. He had long held friendly correspondence with Adil Shah and Qutb Shah; he had opposed Aurangzib's invasions of their territory, and at the end of these invasions he had interceded with his father and secured lenient terms for them. Aurangzib was as much their mortal foe as his, and he might count on their assistance from vindictiveness if not from gratitude. Dara, therefore, at first wished to march into the South and set up his authority there, and then, by joining forces with Golkonda and Bijapur, take revenge on the common enemy of the three. The report that such a movement was contemplated by him reached Prince Muazzam, the Governor of Aurangabad, and he set about enlisting troops to be better able to bar the path of his uncle. But a new hope drew Dara off from this enterprise.
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∗ For Dara's journey from Sindh to Ahmadabad and his doings there,—*A. N.* 296-299; Khafi Khan, ii. 62-63; Masum, 136b-137a; Aqil Khan, 80-81; Isardas, 43a (meagre). The Persian accounts speak of a chief named Bahàrà or Rao Bahara in this quarter. From Jai Singh's despatches (Paris MS. 109a and 96a) he can be identified with the Rao of Cutch. I think that the Mughals called him so from Bharmal (or Bahara Mal), the Rao who lived in Akbar's time and fought with the Imperial government. (*Imp. Gaz.* xi. 78). Once or twice Jai Singh speaks of 'the zamindar of Cutch' without using the title Bahara or Rao, but this need not mean that the latter was a different person.
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The news reached Guzerat that Shuja was rapidly advancing from the east, while Aurangzib was absent in the Panjab. Now was the time for Dara to make a dash on Agra from the west and release Shah Jahan. Soon rumour brought the flattering news that Aurangzib’s army had been routed in a battle with Shuja near Allahabad and that Jaswant Singh had returned home loaded with the spoils of the vanquished Imperial camp. The golden opportunity had come. Dara hesitated no longer. On 14th February he started for Ajmir, leaving one of his officers behind as Governor of Guzerat, and carrying away with himself the servants, children and wives of Murad, as well as several local officers like Shah Nawaz Khan. Three marches afterwards he learnt the truth that Aurangzib had triumphed over Shuja; but this disappointment was made up for by a stroke of unexpected good fortune. Maharajah Jaswant Singh sent one of his high officers to Dara with a letter professing his devotion to Shah Jahan and asking Dara to reach Ajmir quickly, where the Rathors and other Rajputs were ready to join a leader who would take them to the rescue of their captive sovereign. With Jaswant's promised help a vast Rajput army could be easily raised.
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Ajmir is the very heart of Rajasthan, "the centre round which the homes of the Rajput clans cluster." East of it lie Kishangarh and Jaipur, in the south Mewar, in the S. E. Kotah and Bundi, in the west Marwar, and in the north-west, beyond Marwar, are Shekhwati and Bikanir. Therefore the Mughals, and following them the English, have held the isolated district of Ajmir as a means of planting their feet on the breast of Rajputana and dominating all the Rajput clans with ease. With Jaswant as his right hand man, Dara would find Ajmir a most convenient place for raising a vast Rajput army in a short time. On the way he received more friendly letters from Jaswant, till he reached Mairta, three marches from Jodhpur, full of high hopes.*
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These hopes were soon dashed to the ground; for, in the meanwhile Aurangzib had succeeded in securing Jaswant. After the battle of Khajwah, the Emperor, justly angry with Jaswant for his treachery on that day, wanted to make an example of him. He despatched an army of 10,000 men and guns under Muhammad Amin Khan to invade Marwar, expel Jaswant, and place on the throne Rai Singh Rathor. For a time Jaswant meditated resistance, gathered troops, and offered an alliance to Dara. But he soon realised his own impotence. "As Agra and Delhi had fallen in a twinkle into Aurangzib's hands, how long could the fort of Jodhpur hold out against his power?" After waiting with all his troops for some days in uncertainty at Mandur, his old capital, and then learning that the army of his chastiser and his rival had reached Lálnuth, ravaging the country, he lost heart and fled to the hill-fort of Siwanah. Meantime, Aurangzib had realised the wisdom of not driving Jaswant into his enemy's arms.
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Aurangzib invades Marwar, In the impending conflict with Dara, Jaswant was the decisive factor. His adhesion would mean an addition of 20,000 of the hardiest warriors of India to the ranks of his ally, as well as unrivalled local influence in Rajputana. So, Aurangzib made Jai Singh write a friendly letter to Jaswant, professing true friendship for him and a natural reluctance to see such a great Hindu prince meet with utter ruin. As a friend, Jai Singh pointed out the folly of defying Aurangzib and the certainty of utter destruction as its result. He therefore tendered his good offices as a mediator with the Emperor, to secure for Jaswant a full pardon and restoration to his title and mansab, as well as a high post under the Crown, if he gave up Dara and returned to the path of loyalty. This letter reached the Rathor chief at a critical time, when the future looked darkest ro him. He at once closed with the offer, decided to side with Aurangzib, and began a retreat to Jodhpur.
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∗ A. N. 229-300, 311; Aqil Khan, 81-82. Mairta, 37 miles N. W. of Ajmir and 68 miles N. E. of Jodhpur (Ind. At. 33 S. W.).
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Hence it was that Dara on reaching Mairta saw no sign of Jaswant's coming. Alarmed and shaken in his mind, he halted and sent a trusty Hindu named Dubinchand to urge the Maharajah to keep his promise. Jaswant gave the lying reply that he was waiting in expectation of raising more men and organising his force, but urged Dara to advance to Ajmir where he would join him with his Rajputs.
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From Ajmir Dara again sent Dubinchand to bring Jaswant. But the embassy was fruitless; Jaswant had clearly given up all intention of going to Ajmir. The unhappy Dara made a third attempt. Stooping from his dignity under the force of necessity, he sent his son Sipihr Shukoh to Jodhpur to entreat the Maharajah to come to Ajmir, by appealing to his sense of honour and the sacredness of promises. Jaswant received the Prince with courtesy, but did not move from his purpose. After wasting three days in vain expectation and being put off with smooth words, Sipihr Shukoh at last returned to his father in disappointment. A Rajput of the highest rank and fame had turned false to his word. Of all the actors in the drama of the War of Succession, Jaswant emerges from it with the worst reputation: he had run away from a fight where he commanded in chief, he had treacherously attacked an unsuspecting friend, and now he abandoned an ally whom he had plighted his word to support and whom he had lured into danger by his promises. Unhappy was the man who put faith in Maharajah Jaswant Singh, lord of Marwar and chieftain of the Rathor clan.[*]
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But there was no escape for Dara. By this time Aurangzib had arrived near Ajmir and a battle could not be avoided. Dara, plunged into despair by Jaswant's faithlessness and the defection of other Rajputs who were influenced by his example, had to prepare for battle, whether he wished for it or not.
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Conscious of the smallness of his own force and the overwhelming strength of the enemy, Dara wisely changed his plan. Instead of fighting a pitched battle in an open plain, he decided to hold the pass of Deorai, four miles south of Ajmir,[†] in the narrow breadth of which a small host can keep a superior force of assailants back. His two flanks were protected by the hills of Bithli and Gokla; while behind him lay the rich city of Ajmir, where his officers had deposited their property and families and whence he could easily draw his supplies. He ran a low wall south of
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† Deorai is given as Dorai in Indian Atlas, (Sheet 34 N. E.), 4½ miles south of Ajmir, a little to the east of the Rajputana Malwa Railway line.
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Dara entrenches a pass near Ajmir.
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∗ For Jaswant's dealings with Dara,—A. N. 300, 309—312; Khafi Khan, ii. 65-66; Bernier, 85-86; Isardas, 43a; Kambu, 21a (meagre); Aqil Khan, 81—84. The Mughal invasion of Marwar after Khajwah is fully described in Isardas, 41b—43a, and briefly mentioned in A. N. 288, 305.
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his position, from hill to hill across the valley, with trenches in front and redoubts at different points. The entire line was divided into four sections, each under a different commander with artillery and musketeers. On the right, at the south-western corner of the position, close to the hill of Bithli, lay the trenches of Syed Ibrahim (surnamed Mustafa Khan) and Jani Beg (Dara's Chief of Artillery) with a thousand barqandazes besides other soldiers. Next came the trenches of Firuz Miwati, and beyond them, on a hillock overlooking the pass, were mounted some big guns. Here, at the centre of the lines stood Dara with his staff. On his left the line was continued by the third section of the trenches (held by Shah Nawaz Khan and Muhammad Sharif Qalich Khan, the chief officer of Dara), and the fourth section under Sipihr Shukoh at the south-eastern corner adjoining the hill of Gokla.[*]
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The position was admirably chosen, and its natural strength was greatly increased by art. Two hill ranges running beyond Ajmir, rendered its flanks absolutely secure, as they could be turned only by making a very wide detour and threading the way through another defile. In front, the enemy toiling up the slope from the plain below and crowded together within the narrow pass, would suffer terribly from Dara's artillery ranged on an elevation and his musketeers standing safe behind their earthworks.
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∗ For Dara's dispositions,—A. N. 313-314; Khafi Khan, ii. 67; Aqil Khan, 84; Isardas, 43b.
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In this position Dara waited for the enemy. Marching from the Ramsar lake Aurangzib entered the valley from the south-east and halted one mile from Deorai (11th March). About two miles in front of him Dara's trenches barred his path and four miles further north lay the city of Ajmir.
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That very night a gallant Imperial officer named Purdil Khan with 150 men climbed a mound a little north of Deorai and midway between the two armies, and passed the night there. The dawn revealed the party to the enemy who sent skirmishers to dislodge them. But the Imperial army pushed forward a body of 2000 men to assist in holding this advanced post, while Dara supported his skirmishers with an equally strong force.∗ The contest raged for more than four hours; but the enterprise and tenacity of Purdil Khan had borne fruit: the Imperial artillery had been safely dragged to this position of vantage under cover of his resistance, and the post firmly secured. Dara’s advanced troops retired baffled behind their lines. The whole Imperial army now moved forward. The Van and the Right Wing took post opposite the eastern trenches, close to the Gokla hill, and the Left Wing faced the trenches near Bithli. It was impossible for Aurangzib’s army to be fully deployed; the other divisions were held back from the fighting line and surrounded Aurangzib’s tent which was now pitched 1½ miles from the enemy’s position. That day (12th March) his guns were carried half a cannon-shot forward and disposed before the enemy’s guns in the centre of the line.
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∗ Battle, first day: skirmish and cannonade. For the battle our authorities are *A. N.* 314-326; Aqil Khan, 84-87; Khafi Khan, ii. 68-71; Kambu, 21b-22a (very brief); Isardas, 43b-44b (brief); Masum, 137b-138a (bare mention). For the bazar gossip about the course of the fight, *Storia*, i. 342-343; Beriner 87-88 (a still more incredible tale.)
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∗ A. N. 315; Aqil Khan, 85.
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It was evening before this general movement, shifting of camp, and disposition of the artillery and the attacking divisions could be completed. Then the battle began in right earnest. First, as usual in Mughal warfare, there was an artillery duel. From the sunset of the 12th to the dawn of the 13th, there was incessant firing from both sides. “Earth and heaven shook with the noise.” “Clouds of gunpowder smoke covered the field.”*
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The 13th passed in the same manner. From morning to 3 o' clock in the afternoon, the artillery duel continued. The Imperialists were busily engaged in digging trenches to cover their front; but bands of brave men made sorties from Dara's lines, fell on these trenches, and after killing men and horses returned to the shelter of the hills. In the afternoon, from the right and left of Dara's army 2,000 steel-clad cavalry swarmed over the wall and entered the field, brandishing their swords and spears. The Imperial army accepted the challenge, and a hot hand-to-hand combat raged in mid-field till the sun went down.
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Dara's artillery and muskets from their high position showered death on Aurangzib's gunners and troops. But the cannon-balls of the Imperialists fell on the stone-walls of the enemy or on the hill-side, doing no harm. All the night of the 13th also the guns continued booming, but evidently as a precaution against a surprise or night-attack.
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The Imperial generals recognised the strength of the enemy's trenches as impregnable. "As the lines were strongly fortified and ensconced in inaccessible hills, the efforts of the Imperialists to capture them did not succeed."¹ Shaikh Mir and Dilir Khan realised that an attempt to storm the enemy's trenches by a cavalry charge would lead to a fruitless loss of life. So an assault was forbidden. The night was spent in a council of war. Next morning (14th)* Aurangzib assembled his generals, rebuked them for their delay in achieving success, and urged them to do their utmost to capture the enemy's lines.
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¹ Khafi Khan, ii. 68.
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A new plan of attack was also adopted. The conventional method of each division engaging the one opposed to it and the artillery opposing the enemy's artillery and trying to breach the earth-works, was abandoned as having proved itself useless after a waste of two days' time and much ammunition.
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Aurangzib's generals decided to make a concentrated attack in overwhelming strength on Shah Nawaz Khan's trenches, at the enemy's left,† while the Imperial Left Wing was to keep the enemy's Right Wing in play. The success of the scheme, however, was to depend not on the attack in front but on a secret movement to turn the enemy's left. On Dara's right the high and steep hill of Bithli, running for a length of several miles forbade any attempt to climb it. But the Gokla hill on his left was much shorter in length, and lower in height, with gentler slopes and throwing off spurs on its eastern face, which was close to the assailants but hidden from Dara's position by the summit. Rajah Rajrup of the Jammu hills was serving under Aurangzib with a body of his Rajput clansmen expert in mountaineering. His followers had discovered a path by which the back of the Gokla hill could be scaled. Aurangzib ordered the ascent to be made and lent a party of musketeers from his own army to support the attempt.
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∗ Both the *Alamgirnamah* (319) and Aqil Khan (88) declare the 29th Jamadi-us-sani as the date of the victory. This date corresponds to 14th March, 1659 A.D. Both the *Alamgirnamah* and Jai Singh speak of the day as a Sunday, but 14th March was a Monday. From *A. N.* (330) it is clear that Jamadi-us-sani that year had a thirtieth day. In the history of the pursuit given in the next chapter the first few dates may be inaccurate by one day as the result of the above irreconcilable difference.
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† Kambu (21b) says that this attack was made at a treacherous hint from Shah Nawaz Khan. Bernier, 87, also. Masum (138a) states, "Dara ascribed his defeat to the treachery of Shah Nawaz Khan, and on this *false suspicion*
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Dara's left rear turned by escalade.
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Towards evening when the gunners on both sides were tired with the day's firing, Rajrup sent his infantry up the back of the Gokla hill, while he appeared with his cavalry in front of it
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slew him." But there is no more reason for believing in Shah Nawaz Khan's treachery here than in that of Khalil-ullah at Samugarh or of Alawardi at Khajwah. Indeed, Khafi Khan (ii. 70-71) holds that Shah Nawaz courted a hero's death to avoid the disgrace of looking Aurangzib in the face.
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to divert the enemy's attention. A body of one thousand troopers sallied out of Shah Nawaz Khan's trenches and encountered Rajrup. The other Imperial generals had been smarting under the Emperor's reprimand in the morning, and now the sight of the enemy within easy reach of their weapons roused their martial ardour. Dilir Khan with his Afghans galloped into the fray from the right side of the Artillery; Shaikh Mir from behind the guns turned to the right and came up to the front line alongside of Dilir Khan. Shaista Khan with the Right Wing, the artillery men from the middle, and Jai Singh with the Van, all flocked to this point to support the fighters. The Left Wing also made a forward movement against Dara's extreme right.
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Concentrated attack on Shah Nawaz Khan's trenches.
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The fight now became general. The bulk of the Imperial army was massed in front of the enemy's left, where the assault was delivered. Shaikh Mir and Dilir Khan together advanced on Shah Nawaz Khan's trenches in reckless valour. The Imperial artillery reopened fire with great rapidity and prevented the other divisions of the enemy from leaving their trenches and marching across the front to aid their hard-pressed friends in the plain on their left, who got supports only from the trenches immediately behind them. The hardest fight raged in this part of the field. Dara’s men obstinately defended their lines, and the rival generals freely exposed themselves to encourage their men. From Dara’s second and third trenches cannon-balls and bullets were showered upon the assailants. Hill and plain were enveloped in a thick pall of smoke.
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According to one account Dara’s artillerymen were corrupted by Aurangzib and fired blank charges. But his musketeers at all events fought valiantly, and the slaughter in Aurangizib’s ranks was heavy at this point. The vigour of the onset, however, did not abate. The blood of the Imperialists was fired by the fierce passion or combat; their horsemen dashed on towards the trenches in the face of a hail of bullets; the wounded who fell were trampled under the horses’ hoofs beyond recognition, but fresh troops from behind pressed forward to take their places.∗ The attack was persisted in for over an hour with undiminished vigour. Wave after wave of Imperialists swarmed up to the charge; and at last they pushed all the enemy out of the field and won the ground to the edge of the trenches. Now, if ever, Dara's lines were to be entered, or all this loss of life would be vain.
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∗ Khafi Khan, ii. 70.
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∗ Khafi Khan, ii. 71.
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By this time Rajrup's men had toiled up the back of the Gokla hill, while the enemy were absorbed in the severe contest in their front. They planted their banners on the top and raised a shout. The Imperialists were filled with joy and the assurance of success, and Dara's Left Wing was seized with despair at its rear being turned. An attack from this quarter had not been expected at all, and it had been left unguarded.
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The exultant Imperialists redoubled their efforts to enter the trenches. But many of Dara's men still resisted with the courage of despair. To overcome the last opposition, Shaikh Mir drove his elephant forward. A bullet struck him in the breast and he felt that his end had come. But this faithful servant's last thoughts were still about his master. He told his kinsman Syed Hashim, who was sitting behind him in the same *hawda*, "I am done for. Clasp me round the waist and prop my head up, so that my followers may not know of my death and give up the fight in despair. I see clear signs of a victory to our arms, and very soon the Imperial band will strike up the music of triumph."*
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Shaikh Mir slain.
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The struggle in Shah Nawaz Khan's trenches was most terrible; "the firing was severe, the enemy resisted to the utmost. Shaikh Mir was slain and Dilir Khan received an arrow in his right hand." But the fight continued. The devotion of Shaikh Mir and the valour of Dilir Khan's Afghans carried the day. The Imperial banners were planted in the trenches. Jai Singh entered with the Van and brought fresh strength to the assailants. "The enemy totally lost heart and firmness."*
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Shah Nawaz Khan's trenches stormed.
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The resistance in the third section of the lines was at last overpowered. Then a heavy slaughter of the vanquished began. Shah Nawaz Khan, standing on a height, was encouraging his men by voice and gesture when his body was blown away by a cannon-ball. Muhammad Sharif (Dara's Paymaster) was shot through the stomach with an arrow; two others of his generals, Muhammad Kheshgi and Abu Baqr, were put to the sword. Shah Nawaz's son, Siadat Khan, got three or four wounds. The rank and file broke and fled under cover of the darkness.
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For, in the meantime the shades of night had closed on the scene, and made any general advance of the troops or direction of the battle impossible. Shaikh Mir’s followers, too, at the death of their chief, got out of hand and dispersed for plunder, instead of continuing the fight. The sun set on a scene of wild confusion and tumult. “In the darkness swords played; friends could not be known from foes; the warriors of the two armies fell down fighting side by side.”* But gradually as the night advanced, the truth became known that the battle had been already decided.
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Dara’s position rendered untenable. True, only one of the four entrenchments had been captured; but it was enough. Dara’s lines were fatally pierced. The redoubt on his extreme left, commanded by Sipihr Shukoh had been rendered untenable by the Jammu hillmen seizing its back and the Imperial troops who had entered Shah Nawaz’s position turning its right. Thus Dara’s Left Wing was entirely gone. His Right remained intact. Askar Khan still held the redoubt on his extreme right and kept the Imperialists back. Firuz Miwati’s post, the second redoubt, was also uncaptured, and there were still about 6,000 men to uphold Dara’s cause; but their chief was gone.
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From his high position at the back of the Centre, Dara had been watching every phase of the battle. He had been steadily sending up supports to his hard pressed third division by the path in its rear. He had also ordered Shah Nawaz Khan, who was with him at the time of the attack, to hasten back to his redoubt and guide the defence. Up to sunset Dara had striven hard to maintain the fight; he had constantly put heart into his men and urged them to make a firm stand. But the capture of Shah Nawaz Khan's redoubt and the turning of the Gokla hill shattered all his hopes. It became clear to his men that further resistance was vain. Dara's comrades in these circumstances refused to throw away their lives and prepared for flight. Pleading with them was useless. Safety lay only in a hurried escape, for which the darkness of the night and the dispersion and disorder of the victors presented a golden opportunity.[*]
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∗ Kambu, 22a.
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Fearing such a reverse, Dara had placed his harem and treasure on elephants, camels and mules, and kept them on the bank of the Anasagar lake, five miles behind the scene of battle, with an escort of troops in charge of his faithful eunuch Khwajah Maqul. He had intended to take them with himself in his flight.
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∗ Kambu, 21b—22a.
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But when Shah Nawaz Khan's redoubt was carried and the victors pressed on towards Dara's position, the luckless Prince had not a moment to lose. Accompanied by his son Sipihr Shukoh and his general Firuz Miwati and followed by only ten or twelve of his men, he fled in headlong haste towards Guzerat by the first road he could reach. Terror and bewilderment urged him on, without leaving him the power to turn aside for his family at the appointed place or to send them orders to save themselves.[*]
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Meantime the condition of the ladies was most pitiable. Ever since midday they had been kept in the saddle on the tiptoe of suspense for the terrible news of a disaster in the field and the order to escape. All the forenoon the cannon had boomed in the near battle-field; then there was a lull; but about two hours before sunset it broke out with redoubled vigour; the horizon was filled with smoke, and the horrid din of
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[*] A. N. 325, 409. The slaughter was estimated by Isardas at 5000 men on Aurangzib's side and ten thousand on Dara's, —the last figure being too high for a force which numbered less than 22,000 men and held an almost impregnable line of which three-fourths were untouched by the enemy. One hundred and fifteen elephants were killed on the two sides taken together (44a.) Kambu says that a heavy slaughter took place in Shah Nawaz Khan's trenches after the Imperialists had forced them.
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battle, louder than the last two days’, reached their ears. Something terrible was happening. Their suspense became acute; but no news reached them. About sunset the first signs of the dispersion of a great army were seen: soldiers began to run away in groups from the field; the fugitives approached the city; then the Camp of Dara’s army became a scene of wild confusion and noise, as it began to be plundered. Parties of victors were seen advancing to the city, slaying and looting. They approached the lake; and yet no news of Dara, no messenger, no order from him reached the agonised women and the anxious eunuch. But these signs told their own tale beyond the chance of mistake: Dara had been ruined and put to flight. The faithful servant by hard exertion removed the ladies with 12 elephants and some mules and camels, from this place of danger and fled by the path between the skirt of the hill and the valley. All but a few of the guards deserted their charge.*
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For, the country round Ajmir had become a wild scene of plunder. In addition to the camp-followers of both the armies, whose trade it was to engage in plunder whichever side might win, thousands of Rajputs had assembled in the neighbourhood of Ajmir at the call of Dara, but had held back from the fight at the defection of Jaswant, and were hovering round like vultures soaring over their expected prey. This night and the next day they got their chance. Most of Dara’s property and transport animals were looted. His mules laden with bags of gold coins were driven away by the very Rajputs of Ajmir district whom he had appointed as his treasure-escort! All his camp and base were swept bare by the plunderers from the victorious army, the camp-followers, and adventurers who profit by tumult and confusion. The stores of various departments and most of the money were carried off by the Rajputs and the aboriginal Mairs. “Booty beyond calculation was seized by the troops.” “Dara took away nothing beyond the jewels he wore on his person and some gold coins placed in the *hawdas* of his women.” “Wounded soldiers who had fled from the field were stripped of their all, and wandered crying in the hills.”*
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∗ A. N. 325, 409-410.
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∗ A. N. 325-326, 329, 410; Khafi Khan, ii. 73; Aqil Khan, 88.
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When night dropped the curtain on the terrible scene of the day's slaughter, and Dara fled away, none of his officers (except Firuz Miwati) accompanied him, as their property and families were in Ajmir. Next day they submitted to the victor and entered his service. Askar Khan, Syed Ibrahim, Jani Beg and other officers who occupied Dara's extreme right, had held their positions till about 9 p. m. Then the news of Dara's flight reached them, and towards the end of the night they came to Saf Shikan Khan begging for quarter. The wounded Muhammad Sharif accompanied them, but, in spite of medical treatment by his chivalrous enemy, he died.*
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The details of the situation and the full extent of his success became known to Aurangzib next morning (15th March). He mourned the death of Shaikh Mir, greatly rewarded that faithful servant's clansmen, especially Syed Hashim, and ordered him to be buried with full honours in the hallowed enclosure of Saint Muinuddin Chishti's tomb. Here, too, was buried Shah Nawaz Khan, who had fought against him and, if we can believe Khafi Khan, had courted death to escape the shame of looking his hostile and victorious son-in-law in the face. In the consecrated soil of the *Dargah* of Ajmir, the two chief victims of the rival hosts are united in death. Aurangzib himself visited the holy shrine the day after the victory, did homage to the saint's mortal remains, and presented Rs. 5,000 to the attendants as a thanks-offering for the victory. A strong force under Jai Singh and Bahadur Khan was detached in pursuit of Dara.∗
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∗ A. N. 325-326; Aqil Khan, 87-88; Kambu, 22a; Khafi Khan, ii. 73-74.
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∗ *A. N.* 330—332 ; Khafi Khan, ii. 72, 74 ; *Storia*, i. 342.
Linked texts (2)
- ʿAmal-i Ṣāliḥ — Muḥammad Ṣāliḥ Kambōh 1659, Persian
- Tārīkh-i Shāh Shujāʿī — Muḥammad Maʿṣūm 1659, Persian