History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v3.c36.s6: §10. Mughal conquest of Palamau.
History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v3.c36.s6
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§10. Mughal conquest of Palamau.
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Aurangzib decided on chastisement. When Daud Khan returned to his viceroyalty of Bihar, about the middle of 1660, orders arrived from the Court urging him to conquer Palamau, and commanding the provincial faujdars, fief-holders, zamindars and other allies to hasten with their followers and co-operate with the governor in the expedition. (A. N. 649—660.)
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Three forts guarded the kingdom on its northern frontier, *viz.*, Kuthi, 40 miles north of the city of Palamau, Kunda 16 miles south south-east and Deogan, 22 miles west of Kuthi. On 23rd March, 1661, Daud Khan left Patna, accompanied by Mirza Khan the faujdar of Darbhanga, Tahawwur Khan the jagirdar of Chainpur, Rajah Bahroz of Mungir and others. The fort of Kuthi was found evacuated and the Mughals occupied it on 24th April.
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The next point of attack was Kunda, an extremely strong hill-fort, with a large and well equipped garrison. By great exertions the Mughals cut a way through the dense bamboo jungle which covered the sixteen miles that lay between Kuthi and Kunda, and arrived near the latter fort only to find it deserted. On 23rd May, Daud Khan entered Kunda, but soon afterwards dismantled its fortifications, as he considered it impolitic to hold such an out-of-the-way position.
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The rainy season having set in, the invaders went into cantonments. Mud forts were built every six miles between Kuthi and Kunda, each garrisoned by a hundred horsemen and some foot musketeers, besides zamindars' levies. Thus communication with the base was kept up and provisions arrived in the camp in safety. Meanwhile, agents had been sent by the Rajah to beg forgiveness and promise obedience and tribute, but their mission failed to turn the Khan from his purpose.
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At the end of the rainy season, the advance on Palamau was resumed on 15th October, 1661. Mirza Khan with 300 cavalry and 200 foot musketeers formed the Van. The Right Wing was composed of 700 horse and 300 foot under Tahawwur Khan and the Left Wing was placed under Daud Khan's nephew Shaikh Tatar with 500 troopers of his own contingent and Rajah Bahroz with 400 cavalry and 1500 infantry. In the Centre was Daud Khan himself with 2000 cavalry, while 500 troopers formed the Rear. The invaders numbered 6,400 strong. A large party of wood-cutters had been sent ahead under escort of imperial and local officers, to clear the jungle and make a level road to Palamau. Outposts were established at suitable places on the way. Every evening when the halt was made, entrenchments had to be thrown up round the camp to guard against surprise. The advance was necessarily very slow; in nine days only 20 miles were covered.
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On 23rd October the camp was pitched at Loharsi, 22 miles north-east of Palamau. At the near approach of the invaders, terror seized the Rajah's heart anew, and he sent his chief minister Surat Singh to the Khan, offering submission and a tribute of one lakh to the Emperor and a present of half a lakh to the Khan. The viceroy reported these terms to the Emperor and waited some time for the reply.
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But one day the news reached him that a party of the enemy had plundered a convoy of grain coming to his army, 14 miles from his camp. The Rajah sent agents to disavow all knowledge of this violation of the truce, ascribing it to his subjects, making apologies for it, and paying Rs. 50,000 out of his promised tribute. But Daud Khan refused to listen to him.∗
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∗ The printed Persian text of A. N. (653) has Narsi, corrected in the index as Tarhasi. Blochmann takes it to be Tarhasi-Mangarh (J. A. S. B. Vol. XL., Pt. I. 1871), names which I have not been able
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The march was resumed on 21st November and the Mughals arrived within two miles of Palamau on the 29th. The enemy issued from the fort, entrenched one mile in front of the invaders and boldly prepared for resistance. Just then the Emperor's reply arrived, telling Daud Khan to destroy the Rajah unless he turned Muslim, in which case his State would be spared for a tribute. The Khan sent these terms to the Rajah and waited for an answer. But the Mughal army was impatient for fight. Before the Rajah could reply, Tahawwur Khan Birlas forced on a battle without Daud Khan's knowledge. On 7th December he fell on the enemy's trenches with his own division (the Right) only. Daud Khan hastened to his aid and began to entrench at musket-shot from the enemy's lines. From 9 A.M. to sunset, a severe fire was kept up, the losses in Tahawwur Khan's division being 16 killed and 50 wounded. At night the enemy brought two large pieces of cannon out of the fort, mounted them on their battlements and completely dominated the Mughal position, which was on a lower ground.
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But next morning Daud Khan seized a hillock
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to trace on the map. I read Loharsi. (Ind. At., Sh. 104), which is 12½ miles s. s. w. of Koonda. Kuthi is given in Rennell's Atlas, sheet 8, as Kooty. In the Indian Atlas, 104, the position corresponds to that of Fort 6 m. south of Imamganj, at the junction of the Chotki and Morhur rivers, 24·23 N. 84·35 E. Koonda is 24·13 N. 84·45 E.
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which commanded the enemy's trenches and all the other elevations in the neighbourhood. Dragging guns up to its top, he silenced the enemy's fire. Their courage was shaken and they fled (10th December).
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Retiring closer to the fort, the Cheros entrenched the bank of the Auranga river. A dense jungle separated this spot from the Mughal position, and it took Daud Khan two or three days to cut a way through it. On the 13th, the road being sufficiently wide, he advanced upon the enemy. His two nephews, Shaikh Tatar and Shaikh Ahmad, with his own contingent, the imperial mansabdars, Rajah Bahroz's followers under the Rajah's son, and a detachment of Mirza Khan's men were posted on the left and ordered to assault the enemy after advancing through the passes. Shaikh Safi commanded the Right; and Daud Khan with Mirza Khan, Tahawwur Khan, and Rajah Bahroz commanded the Centre. In this formation he fell on the enemy from three sides. After a stubborn fight of six hours, "the breeze of victory blew on the yak cows' tails hanging from the standards of Islam." The enemy fled to the city walls, leaving many dead on the field. The wounded hid themselves in the surrounding hills and woods.
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Daud Khan's plan was to halt on the capture of the entrenchments, and to set out against the fort of Palamau after consolidating his gains and guarding his flanks. But his troops, flushed with victory, could not be held in hand. They galloped in pursuit, forded the river in groups, and kept touch with the enemy's Rear. Then they stormed the walled city; the enemy fled from it, and with great difficulty retired to the two forts, old and new, at Palamau. Pratap Rai, sending out his family and most valuable property into the jungle, stood a siege. The Mughals massacred the people of the city and, advancing, attacked the fort gate. A hot fire was kept up by the garrison till 9 P.M. But an hour and a half afterwards, the Rajah escaped by the postern gate into the jungle. The imperialists now seized both the forts. They had lost 61 killed and 177 wounded. Soon afterwards Deogan fort was also recovered from the enemy.
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After the conquest, Daud Khan returned to Patna, leaving Palamau in charge of a Muhammadan *faujdar*. The latter was removed in 1666, and Palamau was then placed under the direct control of the viceroy of Bihar. In the wild rocky country south of Palamau fort, the Chero chiefs retained their independence over a very poor and greatly reduced territory, but the northern portion of the district was administered under the authority of Delhi, by Hindu or Muhammadan nobles such as the Rajahs of Sonpura, and the Nawabs of Husainabad (or Jalpa).[^ *]
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[^ *]: O' Malley's Gaz., 24; A. N. 972.
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§11. Minor rebellions.
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Early in 1662 a disputed succession called in the intervention of the Mughal suzerain in Halar, the north-western district of KATHIAWAD. Here the young Rajah Chhatra Sal, Jam of Nawanagar, had been deposed and imprisoned by his uncle Rai Singh, who had usurped the throne and expelled the Mughal officers deputed to collect the tribute and administer the port near the capital which was also a mint-town and a seat of pearl-fishery. The dispossessed prince appealed to the Emperor, who sent an army under Qutb-ud-din Khan Kheshgi, the faujdar of Junagarh, to restore him to the throne (December). The opposing forces wasted two months, facing each other in trenches and exchanging artillery fire, at a place eight miles from the chief town, till 13th February, 1663, when Qutb-ud-din Khan, learning that a body of 7,000 Rajputs were coming from the Rajah of Kachh to assist Rai Singh, forced an engagement. After a long and desperate fight Rai Singh and other Rajput nobles, as was their wont when victory appeared hopeless, dismounted and flung themselves on the enemy's ranks. The imperialists lost 177 slain and 434 wounded. In the rebel ranks 1,000 common soldiers and 600 notables fell, including Rai Singh himself, one of his sons and his paternal uncle. The reinforcements coming from Kachh returned home when they found that they had arrived too late.
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Then the victors marched to Nawanagar and put Chhatra Sal in possession. Qutb-ud-din spent a month or two there to settle the new Government. The city was named *Islam-nagar* by order of the pious Emperor. Timaji, a son of Rai Singh, headed a new rising in Halar, but was defeated by a Mughal detachment and driven off to Kachh. In July 1666, we read of Bakhtaji, the zamindar of Islam-nagar having rebelled; but he fled from the city on the approach of the Mughal faujdar of Sorath (S. Kathiawad). In April next fresh disturbances by Timaji were reported at Court. Evidently the peninsula was long unsettled.*
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In 1664 two forces were sent from Darbhanga and Gorakhpur to co-operate in chastising the rebel Rajah of Morang (a hill country west of Kuch Bihar and north of the Purnea district). The campaign took time but ended in success. On 20th Dec. Alawardi Khan the faujdar of Gorakhpur presented to the Emperor some precious things and 14 elephants exacted from Morang. Early in 1676 we read of Morang being conquered anew, by Shaista Khan, the governor of Bengal.
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A punitive expedition visited the Kumaun hills, the dominion of Rajah Bahadur Chand, in 1665.
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∗ Nawanagar revolt, *A. N.* 768-775; *Akh.* 9/2, 9/25, 10/9; *Mirat-i-Ahmadi*, 268 (useless).
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The low country was soon occupied and imperial administration set up there (October). But it was no easy task to occupy the hills. In May next, one lakh of Rupees and 200 stone-cutters were sent to strengthen the expeditionary force. The Srinagar Rajah co-operated with the Mughals, but his nephew, who had married into the Kumaun royal family, fought on the other side. The official history silently passes over these operations and does not mention the reason of Bahadur Chand having fallen under imperial displeasure after receiving rewards for loyalty as late as June 1664. A letter written by the Rajah to Alawardi Khan makes the point clear. It runs thus, "I am an old slave of the Emperor, having been brought up by Shah Jahan. My land is the Emperor's. Why then are you ravaging it? I have been falsely accused by the Rajah of Srinagar [of having vast hoards of treasure]. So much gold cannot be collected in our entire hill country by any amount of search. Let him prove his words true. Secondly, as for my going to Srinagar without permission, I am willing to pay a fine to the Emperor." In October 1673, the Rajah received his pardon and sent his son to visit the imperial Court.∗
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∗ Morang. A. N. 850, 875; M. A. 150. Kumaun, Akh. 9/10, 14/10, 18/10, 3/11 : M. A. 128; A. N. 441, 595, 765, 861 (Rajah loyal).