History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v4.c63.s8: § 11. Maratha occupation of the Koli country and demand of chauth from Surat, 1672.
History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v4.c63.s8
- Language
- English
§ 11. Maratha occupation of the Koli country and demand of chauth from Surat, 1672.
v4.c63.s8.1
So greatly was the spirit of the Marathas roused by their victory over Ikhlas Khan, capture of Mulhir, and expulsion of Bahadur and Dilir from Puna, that their activity continued unabated even during the hot weather and the rainy season of this year. On 5th June, a large Maratha army under Moro Trimbak Pinglé captured Jawhar from its Koli Rajah, Vikram Shah, and seized there treasure amounting to 17 lakhs of Rupees. The place is only 100 miles from Surat, and adjoins the Nasik district, from which it is separated by the Western Ghats. Advancing further north, he threatened the other Koli State of Ramnagar which is only sixty miles south of Surat. Heavy rain stopped the activity of the Marathas for a few days. But soon afterwards Moro Pant, with his army raised to 15,000 men, returned to the attack, and took Ramnagar in the first week of July.
v4.c63.s8.2
The old capital, Ramnagar, now called Nagar, is 24 m. s. w. of Dharampur, the new capital, whose name is now borne by this petty State.
v4.c63.s8.3
The annexation of Jawhar and Ramnagar gave the Marathas a short, safe and easy route from Kalian up Northern Konkan to Surat, and laid that port helplessly open to invasion from the south. The city became subject to chronic alarm, whenever any Marathas were heard of even 60 miles off, at Ramnagar.
v4.c63.s8.4
From the neighbourhood of Ramnagar, Moro Trimbak Pinglé sent three successive letters on behalf of his master to the governor and leading traders of Surat demanding four *lakhs* of Rupees as blackmail, and threatening a visit to the city in the event of their refusal. The third of these epistles was very peremptory in tone; in it Shivaji wrote, "I demand for the third time, which I declare shall be the last, the *chauth* or quarter part of the king's revenue under your government. As your Emperor has forced me to keep an army for the defence of my people and country, that army must be paid by his subjects. If you do not send me the money speedily, then make ready a large house for me, for I shall go and sit down there and receive the revenue and custom duties, as there is none now to stop my passage."
v4.c63.s8.5
At the first news of the arrival of the Maratha army in Ramnagar, the governor of Surat summoned all the leading Hindu and Muhammadan merchants and proposed that they should subscribe Rs. 45,000 for engaging 500 horse and 3,000 foot to guard the town for two months. Officers were immediately sent to make a list of all the Hindu houses in the town for assessing this contribution. But no soldiers were enlisted, and the governor pocketed whatever money was actually raised for the defence.
v4.c63.s8.6
On the receipt of the third letter from Shivaji, the helpless citizens were seized with a panic. The rich went to the governor that very night and wanted permission to remove their families to Broach and other towns for safety. He kept them waiting till after midnight, gave them the permission, but retracted it next morning, when he held a second conference with the townsmen, asking them to raise the blackmail demanded,—the merchants paying one lakh and the desais raising two lakhs from the cultivators of the villages around. After a discussion lasting a day and a night, in which he reduced his demand to Rs. 60,000, the people finally refused to pay anything, as they knew too well that he would appropriate the money instead of buying the enemy off with it. Thereafter, every time that there was an alarm of the approach of Shivaji's troops, the citizens of Surat hastened to flee from the town, but the governor shut the gates to keep them in!
v4.c63.s8.7
§ 12. Further Maratha successes in 1672, but raid into Khandesh and Berar, Dec. 1672, defeated.
v4.c63.s8.8
From their base in the Koli country of Jawhar and Ramnagar, a Maratha force under Moro Trimbak easily crossed the Ghats into the Nasik district, in the middle of July 1672, and plundered and occupied it. Jadav Rao Deccani, a great-grandson of Lakhji Jadav (the maternal grandfather of Shivaji) with 4,000 men, was the Mughal thanahdar of Nasik-Trimbak. He was defeated and captured after losing many of his troops in battle. Siddi Halal, the thanahdar of Vani-Dindori (or North Nasik), was also defeated and his charge looted by the Marathas. For this failure, both the officers were sharply reprimanded by Bahadur Khan, and in anger they deserted to the Marathas, with two other officers and all the men of their "four great regiments of horse" (October). Other desertions were apprehended, and Dilir Khan was left in great danger with a weakened army to defend the province of Gujrat against the exultant enemy.
v4.c63.s8.9
On 25th October, a large Maratha army appeared at Ramnagar again, and Surat trembled in alarm, especially as a party of Shivaji's horse advanced to Chickli. But that city was not Shivaji's objective now. He made a lightning raid into a different corner of the Mughal empire.
v4.c63.s8.10
He sent his light cavalry to plunder Berar and Telingana. The viceroy Bahadur Khan, on hearing of it, set out from Ahmadnagar due eastwards, left his heavy baggage at Bir (70 miles to the east) and Qandahar, and arrived as fast as he could near the fort of Ramgir (18.35 N. 79.35 E.) in pursuit of the raiders. But they had been two days beforehand with him, looted the village at the foot of the fort, and carried off the families of most of the inhabitants for ransom. So the baffled Mughal general returned by way of Indur (modern Nizamabad), 95 miles due west. Entering the Qutb-Shahi territory, he ravaged the land at the instigation of Dilir Khan. The Marathas in their retreat divided into two bodies; one escaping south into the Golkonda State and the other turning northwards to Chanda, and thence westwards into Berar proper. Dilir Khan was sent off to pursue the first division, while Bahadur Khan tried to cut off the retreat of the second
v4.c63.s8.11
Sending his heavy baggage back to Aurangabad from the neighbourhood of the village of Khair (?), the viceroy hastened by way of Partur, Shellode and Peedola, and arrived near the pass of Antur (38 miles north of Aurangabad). Here the Marathas turned at bay, and attacked the Mughal Van under Sujan Singh Bundela. But they were repulsed and pursued till evening, many of the horses of traders and other kinds of booty were recovered from the enemy and restored to their owners. Next day the Mughals crossed the pass and encamped at Durgapur, four miles from the fort of Antur.
v4.c63.s8.12
The following day, when they were marching to Aurangabad in rather straggling groups, before the time fixed for the starting of the general, one division of 10,000 imperialists was charged by 750 picked Maratha cavalry on the left of the pass of Bakapur, six miles off. After an obstinate battle, in which the Mughals were reinforced by their general, the Marathas retreated, leaving 400 of their number dead in the field. The credit of this victory belongs to the Bundelas under Subh-Karn, whose gallant son Dalpat Rao was wounded in the fight.
v4.c63.s8.13
The division under Dilir Khan headed the other Maratha band off into Bijapur territory, capturing much booty and rejoining Bahadur Khan. That general cantoned his troops at Pathri, 76 miles s. e. of Aurangabad. This Maratha raid into Khandesh and Berar, unlike their first incursion in December 1670, was completely foiled, and the Mughal troops showed commendable mobility and enterprise. (Nov.-Dec., 1672.)*
v4.c63.s8.14
∗ It is probably this campaign that is referred to in M.A. 128, among Court news of 1673, in the following terms: "Bahadur Khan had defeated Shiva after a forced march of 120 miles, made large
v4.c63.s8.15
To guard against a repetition of these two Maratha penetrations into Khandesh from Balaghat, Bahadur Khan set up gates across the tops of the chief passes and posted troops with artillery at each of them. Bajaji Nayak Nimbalkar, "a great Deccani zamindar" and father of Shivaji's son-in-law Mahadji, with his family, was now won over by the Mughals.
v4.c63.s8.16
§ 13. Desultory fighting in Desh, 1673.
v4.c63.s8.17
Maratha activity, thus shut out of Khandesh and Berar, burst forth in another quarter (Jan. 1673.) They next raided the Puna district. Bahadur Khan left his baggage at Chamargunda, hastened to meet the invaders, and defeated them after a severe battle. Then he encamped at Pedgaon, on the north bank of the Bhima, eight miles due south of Chamargunda. This place became the residence of his army for many years afterwards, and here a fort and town grew up from their cantonment, which the Emperor permitted him to name Bahadur-garh. (Dil. 126).
v4.c63.s8.18
Pedgaon occupies a position of great strategic importance. It stands on the plain just clear of the long mountain spur running eastwards from Puna. From this place the Mughal general could at will move westwards along the north of the range to
v4.c63.s8.19
captures of spoils and sent them with Dalpat to the Emperor, who viewed them on 22 Oct"
v4.c63.s8.20
protect the valleys of the Mula and the Bhima (the North Puna district), or along the south of it to guard the valleys of the Nira and the Baramati (the southern portion of the district). Northwards he could communicate with his great depot of arms and provisions at Ahmadnagar, without having to cross any river (except at the foot of that fort); and southwards he could easily invade Bijapur through the Sholapur district. In short, the cantonment at Pedgaon served as the Mughal advanced base for some years after this time, exactly as Aurangzib’s camp at Brahmapuri, 90 miles s. e. e. of it, did twenty-two years later, when the Mughal empire had extended further south.
v4.c63.s8.21
It was most probably in this year (1673)* that Shivaji met with a sore disappointment. The fort of Shivner, a mile west of Junnar, was no doubt of strategic importance, as it guarded the Mughal frontier in the north of the Puna district and blocked the shortest route by which he could sally out of North Konkan to overrun Mughal Deccan. But what gave it the greatest value in Shivaji’s eyes was that it was his birth-place. The Mughal governor of Shivner was Abdul Aziz Khan, a Brahman convert to Islam and one of the most faithful and valued servants of Aurangzib. Shivaji promised him "mountains of gold" for surrendering the fort into Maratha hands; and he, pretending consent, received the money, appointed a day for the delivery, and asked Shivaji to send 7,000 cavalry to take the fort over. But Abdul Aziz at the same time secretly informed Bahadur Khan of the plot; the Maratha army fell into an ambuscade planned by the Mughals, and retired in disappointment with heavy loss. (Fryer, i. 339-340.)
v4.c63.s8.22
∗ But J. S. asserts that he besieged Junnar (i.e., Shivner) in Sept. 1670.