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History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v5.c76: Chapter LIII.

History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v5.c76

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English

Contents

Chapter LIII.

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THE MUGHAL-MARATHA STRUGGLE IN KONKAN,

§ 1. The Land of Konkan : its features and divisions.

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The Sahyadri range or Western Ghat, running parallel to the western coast of India, cuts off a long narrow strip of country from the Deccan plateau. Moving southwards from Surat along this tract, we have first the Surat Agency States of the present day, covering a wild broken and jungly country, the original home of the predatory Bhil and Koli tribes, —whence its Marathi name of *Kolvan* or the Koli country,—the two chief States here being Ramnagar (modern Dharampur) and Jawhar, the last of which is in the same latitude as Nasik across the Ghats. This Kolvan occupies only the inland or eastern portion of the long narrow strip, while the sea-coast was, in the late 17th century, covered by Portuguese possessions stretching from Daman (almost the same latitude as Chandor) downwards to Bassein (26 miles north of Bombay), and including many places which have now come to the British through the intervening Maratha conquerors.

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South of Kolvan begins Konkan proper, its northern part forming the modern Thana and Kolaba districts, from some distance north of Kalian Junction (opposite Junnar, on the tableland across the Ghats) to Mahad close to the southern frontier of the Kolaba district (near Mahabaleshwar). In other words, North Konkan is the coast tract parallel to the Puna and Nasik districts which lie east of the mountain chain. South Konkan is formed by the Ratnagiri district, which stretches parallel to the Satara and Kolhapur districts of the Deccan plateau, till the coast is broken near about Vingurla by the territory of the ancient Maratha family of Savants of Vadi (or Desais of Kudal, as they were popularly called in the 17th century) and, immediately south of it, the Portuguese province of Goa. Still further south begins Kanara, with the Karwar district along the coast, and the Sunda and Bednur States in the interior, far to the east, leading into the Mysore plateau.

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The strategic bearings of the different points in this coastal region should be carefully remembered if Maratha history is to be intelligently followed. North of Dharampur and east of Surat, the Western Ghats sink near the Khandesh city of Nandurbar*, before they run into the Satpura range stretching west to east at right angles to them. Through this natural gap, the Tapti river rushes down to meet the western ocean near Surat. A Maratha force which had advanced beyond Dharampur, could either sack Surat and Broach (37 miles north of Surat) by going due north; or easily enter northern Khandesh by swerving eastwards and marching through this gap, past the city of Nandurbar, and then make a wide sweep, raiding the whole of Khandesh and Berar and returning home southwards and westwards through the north Golkonda territory.

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∗ Sultanpur-Nandurbar was a most important military charge (faujdari) in the Mughal scheme of the defence of the empire, and was entrusted by Aurangzib only to the ablest officers. They have now lost their wealth and importance. Sultanpur is 30 miles north-east of Nandurbar (sometimes mis-spelt as Nazarbar).

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Again, from the nearest north-eastern corner of the Koli country, another but more difficult route led, through the Babhulna pass and skirting the forts of Salhir and Mulhir (in Baglana, or the broken country immediately east of the Ghats and north of the Chandor range), into West Khandesh, or turning south and crossing the Chandor range into the rich plains of the north Nasik district and further east to the neighbourhood of Aurangabad, the capital of Mughal Deccan, without having to overcome any natural obstacle on the way. Similarly, from Kalian in the heart of the Thana district (30 miles north-east of Bombay), an army can march north-east, cross the western range by the Tal Ghat, and thus enter the Nasik district through its south-western corner, or by marching due east enter the Puna district in its extreme north, near Junnar, by the Nanaghat pass. Southwards the Western Ghats along their entire length are pierced by numberless passes, more or less difficult, which shorten the journey from any part of the Konkan plain to places immediately east of them on the highlands across the mountain barrier.

§ 2. History of Konkan under Shivaji.

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Konkan, both North and South, had been an outlying province of the kingdom of Bijapur. The great Shivaji had conquered the country round Kalian (i.e., the modern Thana district) in 1647 and then worked his way southwards into the Kolaba district down to Mahad. Between 1655 and 1660 he completed his annexation of Konkan by conquering the Ratnagiri district. The Koli country (in the extreme north) was brought under his control between 1670 and 1673. His possession of Konkan* remained unchallenged till his death, in 1680.

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With the accession of Shambhuji the scene changed. The flight of the rebel prince Muhammad Akbar to the Maratha Court forced Aurangzib to march to the Deccan to watch this new danger to his throne and to personally guide the operations of his troops. He arrived at Aurangabad on 22nd March 1682, and soon began a well-planned and vigorous offensive against the Maratha power.

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∗ Excluding the territories (mostly bordering the ocean) of the Siddis of Janjira and the Portuguese of Daman, Bassein, Salsette, Karanja and Chaul.

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§ 3. First Mughal descent into Konkan, 1682.*

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Nasik and Puna were in his hands. From Junnar his general Hassan Ali Khan descended into the Thana district by the Nanaghat pass, early in January 1682 and entered the city of Kalian, the seat of the governor, towards the end of that month. His army was reported to be 20,000 horse and 15,000 foot, and his progress was marked by the burning of all Maratha villages on the way, together with some eight or nine villages in Portuguese territory by mistake. This sudden incursion of the Mughals diverted Shambhuji from the siege of Janjira and he fled to his strong hills (February). Kalian itself was occupied by Ranmast Khan, the lieutenant of the Mughal general. But in May next, Hassan Ali withdrew from the province, to save his horses from the heavy rainfall of the west coast, and Konkan had no Mughal force left in it.

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In April and May the imperial forces immediately east of the Ghats were absorbed in the futile siege of Ramsij, (7 miles north of Nasik), which was finally abandoned in September or October. But late in November Ranmast Khan, now in independent command, again marched down into Konkan through the Mahje pass, [Dil. i. 178], and reoccupied Kalian. Shambhuji had sent Rupa Bhonsle, Kesho T. Pingle and Nilo M. Pingle (his Peshwa) to oppose him, and they fought many battles with heavy slaughter. Ranmast lay in Kalian for some months. Afterwards, Ruhullah Khan, descending through Kolvan, reinforced him (April 1683), and withdrew the Mughal garrison from Konkan, under orders of the Emperor. Evidently he had to cut his way through the Marathas. According to a Marathi chronicle, Rupa Bhonsle opposed the march of the Mughal army near Titvala (7 m. n. e. of Kalian) and captured Padam Singh, a Rajput chief in the imperial service, but "in the stress of the battle Rupaji slew Padam Singh and many other high officers." [Z. S., Dil. i. 172-3 supports.]

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∗ The Mughals had invaded Konkan, burnt Kalian, Titvala &c., and laid the villages waste early in 1675 also. See Fryer's New Account.

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But the Mughal possession of Kalian did not mean the occupation of all North Konkan, nor even of the entire Thana district. The invaders merely held the cities of Kalian and Bhivandi, and a few miles of land round them. The rest of the country, especially the forts, remained in Maratha hands, as the country was very broken, the forts numerous and strong by Nature, and the Mughal army too small to besiege and hold all of them.

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In June 1683, Shihab-ud-din Khan was recalled from Junnar to the Emperor's side. When the campaigning season opened again, early in November, he occupied Puna, and next month crossed the Devghat (Devasthali pass) and looted Nizampur near the centre of the Kolaba district (27 Dec.). Prince Azam was posted to Nasik, in November.

§ 4. Marathas recover Konkan.

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In December a Maratha army reoccupied Kalian, from which they ravaged all the Portuguese country between Bassein and Daman. From this time till six years later, Konkan remained in undisturbed Maratha possession. True, the coast-villages in Maratha territory were subject to depredation by landing parties from the Siddi fleet in alliance with the Mughals. But the inland parts were safe. Here the Marathas, at the end of Shambhuji's war of 1685, came to an understanding with their Portuguese neighbours for mutual aid against the Mughals. Here they repaired and strengthened their numberless old forts, and here most of the leading Marathas placed their families for safe refuge, as their old homeland on the plateau east of the Ghats was ravaged by warfare or occupied by Mughal forces. In this Thana district, Shahji had found his last stronghold when pursued by Shah Jahan's forces in 1636. Here the great Shivaji had built many forts. In Konkan lay Raigarh, the real capital of Shivaji and Shambhuji.

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In January 1685, Shihab-ud-din Khan had made a dash from his post of Puna, crossed the Bhorghat and penetrated to Gargoli, but Kavi-kalas had met and repulsed him there. [Z. S.] Throughout 1684 and the next three years the Mughals had to concentrate their forces in the south and south-east for the conquest of Bijapur and Golkonda, and could spare no troops for the occupation of Kalian.

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The situation changed in the last year of Shambhuji’s reign (1688), when vast Mughal forces were set free by the fall of the last independent Sultanate of the Deccan and the Maratha king was overwhelmed by civil war and sunk most deeply in his own vices.

§ 5. Matabar Khan’s victories in Nasik district.

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Matabar Khan, a Sayyid of the Navaiyat clan of Arabs long settled in Kalian, was at first employed in the subordinate capacity of a thanadar in the Nasik district. Even there his enterprising spirit and far-sightedness had inspired him to enlist about a thousand hill-infantry (Kolis, Bhils, and Mavles) of the Western Ghats and to bring many of the zamindars round Patta and other Maratha forts over to the imperial side by lavish bribes. An influential local Maratha leader, Harji Jakhré, had left Tarbiyat Khan (the Mughal thanadar of Nasik) in anger and was living at Sonamba (a village six miles s. w. of Sinnar and 9 miles n. e. of Patta.) But Matabar Khan gave him a large cash subsidy, a horse and a robe, and sent him at the head of the above-mentioned force to capture Patta, one of the most valued forts of the Marathas, where Shivaji had sought refuge in his last year and which he had renamed Vishram-garh.

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∗ Career of Matabar Khan, based upon the letter-book of his secretary, Jethmal entitled *Karnamah* (I. O. L. MS.)

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At first the enterprise failed through Tarbiyat Khan's jealous opposition. But at the end of 1687, Matabar was placed by the Emperor in charge of the Nasik district, as thanadar, and on the 11th January following he sent a second and more successful expedition against Patta. A force composed of imperial troops and his own retainers scaled the walls of that fort by means of rope-ladders at midnight, 17th January, 1688. This was the first great Mughal success in that quarter. Patta is a large fort with many other enemy forts in its vicinity.

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Matabar had spent Rs. 45,000 of his own to effect its capture; but the Emperor gave him in return Rs. 2,000 only, with a robe of honour, an elephant, and a promotion of 500 in his rank (zat.)

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Matabar next turned against Kulang (9 miles s. e. of Igatpuri railway station), where Shivaji had built lofty palaces for himself, and against the smaller forts in that neighbourhood, such as Bābhar, Tabāka and Ratangarh (9 miles s. of Kulang.) But "Kulang is loftier than Daulatabad fort by some 450 yards, and steeper in its scarped sides, so that it cannot be captured by blockade or escalade." The Mughal general, therefore, found out through his spies that the wives and children of the Kulang garrison were living in concealment in the skirts of the hill crowned by Prabal* fort in Konkan. A detachment of 1,000 infantry captured them by a night attack with heavy slaughter on both sides. Another detachment surprised some of the smaller forts. Then the garrison of Kulang capitulated and also gave up the forts dependent on it. Undha Kāwani, Harish (4 miles s. of Trimbak), Tringalvadi† (12 miles s. of Nasik), Madangarh, and Murdant were next besieged and taken.

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To crown all, the famous hill-fort of Trimbak was invested by a force of 2,000 men, who constantly patrolled round it for six months, so as to cut off its grain supply. But a prolonged siege in that region always involved the risk of Maratha bands raiding the other parts of the district which were denuded of troops. Matabar Khan, therefore, bribed the qiladar with Rs. 80,000 in cash and kind and the offer of high rank in the Emperor's service and induced him to yield the fort (8 January 1689.) Telang, Rao and Shyamraj, the commandant and civil officer of the fort, were high officers of Shambhuji, and had often commanded his field armies independently.

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Trimbak was so important a place that Matabar Khan rightly expected and demanded that the Emperor should reward him and the Maratha qiladar on the same lavish scale that he had adopted when he secured Salhir by bribing its qiladar Asuji (1687). But, though Matabar had spent 1,20,000 out of his own pocket on these enterprises, the Emperor in return granted him only a quarter of this amount, and even then the grant was not actually paid for years afterwards. He, however, received a promotion of 500 in rank.

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∗ Also called Muranjan, three miles west of Matheran. † Tringalvadi fell after the surrender of Trimbak, the garrison of the former holding out in order to see what bribe was paid to the men of Trimbak for its capitulation.

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§ 6. Final Mughal conquest of N. Konkan.

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The triumphant thanadar of Nasik now crossed the Ghats and descended into Konkan. At this time came the cheering news of the capture of Shambhuji, the terror of the Mughals in the Deccan. The north Konkan plain now lay at the invader's mercy, without any defender worth a thought. In this region the most important fort was Mahuli (18 miles n. e. of Kalian), while the cities of Kalian and Bhivandi were the chief seats of government and trade respectively. Further south, Zulfiqar Khan was soon to penetrate with an army and lay siege to Raigarh, the Maratha capital, which actually fell, after a ten months' siege, on 19 October 1689.

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On 11th March 1689, Matabar Khan received the Emperor's order to march against Mahuli. He immediately issued from Nasik, but had to halt for some days outside the city, in order to allow the neighbouring thanadars and other officers appointed to his force sufficient time to join him with their forces,—his own contingent being only 1,000 strong. Resuming his march on 3rd April, by way of the Kashtighat (4 miles n. n. e. of Birvada) and Birvada (4 miles n. e. of Atgaon railway station), he reached Khardi, 9 miles north-east of Mahuli, on the 17th. The country was desolate and lacked water and fodder, while no grain could be had locally. Provisions for the invaders had to be ordered from Surat.

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Between Khardi and Mahuli lies a difficult pass, which a party of Marathas from Mahuli held against the advancing Mughals, but they were put to flight after a three hours' struggle. Matabar's force, however, was too small, as only a few of the officers ordered to reinforce him had actually joined him, and he had not with him artillery munition, gunners, musketeers, rocket-men, farriers, water carriers, sappers and pioneers adequate to the siege of a fort like Mahuli. So, he wrote to the Court for these necessaries and turning away from Mahuli arrived at Kalian on the 27th, and then laid siege to Dugad,[*] 9 miles north of Bhivandi.

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The capture of Mahuli by attack appeared impossible to Matabar Khan, in view of the limited force and time at his disposal and his utter lack of gunners and gun material. As he wrote in his despatches, "Mahuli was the seat of the governor of the Konkan plain under the Ahmadnagar dynasty.

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∗ The Persian MS. reads Dugadi, Dargadi or Dargavi.

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It is well provisioned. Five to six thousand infantry are required for investing it completely, and its siege will cost much money and time." It stands on the top of a hill range with two other strong fortified peaks close to it, namely Palasgarh and Bhandargarh on the north and south. Matabar, therefore, set himself to gain the fort by corruption. Through Narso Mahadik he opened negotiations with Dwarkoji, the *havladar* of Mahuli, and other leading officers of the place, promising them high ranks in the imperial army if they submitted. They asked for an imperial letter formally granting these terms. Such a letter addressed to Dwarkoji reached Kalian on 28th July 1689.

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§ 7. More hill-forts taken by Matabar.

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While the plan for buying Mahuli was maturing, Matabar Khan was not inactive. At midnight, 17th July, in the midst of a severe storm of wind and rain, a party of 900 Kolis and Bhils, sent by him under Raghuji and Kakaji, silently scaled the fort of Prabal.* The Maratha garrison fought till dawn, and then laid down their arms. His next acquisitions were Karnala, Mukut-garh, Malang-garh, Chanderi, Khatuda, Manikgarh, Sankia and Dugad. With the fall of Mahuli all North Konkan, from the Koli country southwards to the latitude of Bombay, passed into the possession of the imperialists, while the capture of Raigarh (October 1689) was followed by the Mughal occupation of much of South Konkan including the ports of Chaul and Rajapur.

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∗ It was a most important fort, and used to have a garrison of 5,000 in Shivaji's time.

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Matabar Khan's achievements brought lustre to the Mughal arms in that quarter. As his Secretary writes in the introduction to his letter-book, "The Khan captured about 50 forts which Shivaji had seized in his lifetime. He cleared the hills from Aurangabad to the sea, especially the Nizam Shahi Konkan plain and the district of Junnar, from the impure dust of the presence of the infidels. The thana of Kalian and other parganas in North Konkan had been ruined by twenty years' unbroken Maratha predominance. These he recovered, strengthened, colonised, and caused to be cultivated again, and beautified with new mansions, gardens, canals etc." [Karnamah, 3-4.]

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After these arduous and successful campaigns extending over more than a year, Matabar Khan returned to Kalian (1690) and gave himself up to repose and pleasure for a few years. He beautified this city by building a governor's mansion, a private residence (haveli), a mosque, a Turkish bath, a garden, a porticoed hall (iwan), and a terrace with a reservoir of water and fountains in the middle. A fort was also built near the village of Barha and a lofty hall of audience for public ceremonies. Here his wife died suddenly at the age of 56, and was buried in a magnificent tomb, built near the tank of Saniala at a cost of a lakh of rupees.

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§ 8. Revival of Maratha activity, 1693.

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But early in 1693, the military position was reversed. The execution of Shambhuji, the capture of his capital with his entire family, and the helpless flight of his successor Rajaram to the Madras coast, in 1689, had for a time stunned the Marathas and effaced all opposition to the Mughal power in Maharashtra. But within two years from this the Marathas recovered from the blow; they organised a large force and sent it to the East Coast, where it raised the siege of Jinji and closely blockaded the Emperor's army and son there (Jan. 1693). This signal success reacted on the military situation in the western theatre. The Mughals lost their dominant position there and were driven to assume the defensive. Roving Maratha bands harried Mughal territory in the Deccan on all sides and began to recover the forts recently acquired by the imperialists but slenderly held.

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Konkan served the Marathas as an excellent base for organising these operations, as the Western Ghats formed a screen in their front, while the possessions of the friendly Portuguese along the western coast afforded a safe refuge to the wives and children of their fighters even when the enemy descended into the eastern belt of Konkan. The Ghats, with their countless forts and intricate pathways, were the most suitable place for launching expeditions from, being equally convenient for surprising the Mughals and evading their strong outposts. Thus the natural strategic value of Konkan was heightened by the present distribution of the rival forces.

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In such a situation Matabar Khan was not the man to rest in idleness. He bade adieu to his hard-earned repose in the newly-built palaces and gardens of Kalian and once more took to campaigning.

§ 9. Matabar Khan's new campaigns.

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Sidhgarh (11 miles s. e. of Murbad and 29 miles s. e. of Mahuli) was the refuge of the Marathas of that quarter. Matabar gave an assurance of imperial favours under the grand wazir's seal to Lomanji [or Gomaji] and other Mavle leaders and incited them to capture this fort. After six months of watching for a suitable opportunity, they gained the fort by escalade on 20th October 1693. On hearing of this loss, Khandoji Kadam and Damaji Narayan, two generals of the Maratha king, issued in force from Rajmachi and blockaded Lomanji in Sidhgarh, by occupying the village (machi) below the fort. Reinforcements hurried up by Matabar under Kakaji and Rawat Mal Jhala, stormed the village and expelled the enemy after a bloody fight.

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But the situation was now complicated by the entrance of a new actor on the scene. The local Portuguese governor was bribed by the Marathas to give them shelter and to supply provisions to their forts and villages. Matabar Khan sums up the offences of the Portuguese Government thus:—"I have been here for four years. In the first, I reassured and conciliated the ryots who had fled to Jawhar and Ramnagar owing to the former Maratha disturbances, and induced them to return to their original homes, thus repeopling 600 villages in Konkan. In the second year, the Portuguese gave shelter to the families of the Maratha officers of Rajaram and helped them in attacking our fort Vaikunthgarh (?). In the third year they surprised fort Karnala from us, and constantly sent supplies and reinforcements to the forts belonging to Rajaram. Hence, all our ryots have fled and taken refuge in Portuguese territory. The recovery of Patta by the Marathas emboldened the Feringis still further, and Tristan de Melo,* their general of Salsette, summoned Shyamji Moro-dev, an officer of Rajaram, from the island of Khanderi and harboured him and his 1,500 infantry in the Portuguese village of Thana, agreeing to co-operate with him in attacking the fort of Mahuli and the village of Bhivandi held by the Mughals."

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∗ Gemelli Careri speaks of him as "General of the North," resident at Bassein, who murdered admiral Antonio Machado de Brito on 30th December 1694. (Churchill's *Voyages*, iv. 199.)

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§ 10. *Mughals attack Portuguese of Bassein.*

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Matabar Khan, as we might have expected from his character, forestalled the enemy and struck the first blow. A strong detachment of his troops invaded Portuguese Konkan, drove the peasants to the Mughal side of the border, and made prisoners of the enemy's families wherever found. The Portuguese offered fight, but were routed after a severe contest. The Mughals chased them up to the fort of Bassein, set fire to their church outside it, and then halted at Bahadurpura,* appearing to the Emperor for some large pieces of artillery and reinforcements to aid them in attacking Bassein and other forts, as "the Feringis were the source of the mischief, and unless they were expelled the idolators (Marathas) could not be entirely rooted out." Siddi Yaqut, the governor of Danda-Rajpuri and Mughal admiral of the Western Ocean, co-operated with him by sea.

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The domestic enemies of the Portuguese took advantage of their distress. The inhabitants of Uran (a small island, due south of Elephanta) betrayed to the Mughal general the existence of three pearl beds there which the Portuguese had jealously guarded by sentries and whose very existence they had carefully kept concealed from the great Muslim kings of the Deccan. "Through many years' abstention from fishing, countless pearls have accumulated in these beds. Only on dark nights some men have stealthily fished some small pearls on this coast."

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∗ Khafi Khan (ii. 402—403) briefly describes the campaign thus: "Matabar Khan made a surprise attack and took two of the small forts of the Feringis. Most of them fled to Daman and Bassein, because they are weak in fighting on the plain and use no weapon except the musket and a short sword looking like a spit, and do not ride chargers. Many Feringis with their women were captured. At this a great terror seized them."

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The defeat of the Portuguese was complete. The viceroy of Goa now sent a most submissive letter to the Emperor with presents for his ministers and servants. He worked so well on the Emperor's feelings, possibly with the assistance of Christian priests and Armenian traders in the imperial camp and Matabar's jealous rivals among the courtiers, that Aurangzib peremptorily ordered the cessation of the war and the restitution of the prisoners and booty carried off from the Portuguese villages, as a quarrel with the Europeans hindered trade and diminished his customs revenue. Matabar tried in vain to explain his conduct and clear his enemies misrepresentations at Court. The captives had to be released*

§ 11. Last years of Matabar Khan.

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We may here complete the life of this able general and administrator and carry the history of North Konkan to the end of Aurangzib's reign.

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The news-letters of Aurangzib's Court contain many examples of Matabar's vigilant care for his charge, his strict maintenance of efficiency by removing negligent or drunken officers and recommending the promotion of his abler subordinates, and his effort to induce the Emperor to post the most useful men under him.

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In May 1695, the powder-magazine in Mahuli fort exploded, destroying Matabar's stores, worth Rs. 18,000, lodged there. In November 1700 the Mughal position in S. Konkan was further improved by Siddi Yaqut's capture of Anjanvel fort, after defeating a relieving army of Marathas sent by Ramchandra. Matabar usually co-operated with the Siddi of Janjira in the military operations for upholding the Mughal power and defeating any Maratha bands that might enter the district. Thus, he rendered valuable service at the Emperor's siege of Khelna (1702) by guarding the route to the north-west of that fort.

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On 13th February 1704, an order was issued to him to raise a thousand infantry for service with the Emperor, for whose equipment and bounty Rs. 8,000 were paid to him. Probably the faithful servant could not carry out this last command of his master, as death overtook him at the end of the month; (the report of the event reached the Emperor at Torna on 9th March.)

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Matabar Khan, though a mere thanadar and without influential relatives at Court, rose by sheer merit to be a commander of 2500 in rank with the same number of troopers (*zat* and *sawar*), and enjoyed this high *mansab* for about ten years before his death. He left no issue of his own, but only an adopted son named Abu Muhammad Khan, and some nephews (sister's sons), to whom the Emperor gave offices.