Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, or the Central and Western Rajput States of India v1.c20.s4.72

v1.c20.s4.72

Adventures of Rāna Partāp Singh.—It is time to return to the Aravalli, and to the patriot prince Partap. Unable to stem the torrent, he had formed a resolution worthy of his character ; he determined to abandon Mewar and the blood-stained Chitor (no longer the stay of his race), and to lead his Sesodias to the Indus, plant the ‘ crimson banner ’ on the insular capital of the Sogdoi, and leave a desert between him and his inexorable foe. With his family, and all that was yet noble in Mewar, his chiefs and vassals, a firm and intrepid band, who preferred exile to degradation, he descended the Aravalli, and had reached the confines of the desert, when an incident occurred which made him change his measures, and still remain a dweller in the land of his forefathers. If the historic annals of Mewar record acts of unexampled severity, they are not without instances of unparalleled devotion. The minister of Partap, whose ancestors had for ages held the office, placed at his prince's disposal their accumulated wealth, which, with other resources, is stated to have been equivalent to the maintenance of twenty-five thousand men for twelve years. The name of Bhama Sah is preserved as the saviour of Mewar. With this splendid proof of gratitude, and the *sirvente* of Prithiraj as incitements, he again “screwed his courage to the sticking-place,” collected his bands, and while his foes imagined that he was endeavouring to effect a retreat through the desert, surprised Shahbaz in his camp at Dawer, whose troops were cut in pieces. The fugitives were pursued to Amet, the garrison of which shared the same fate. Ere they could recover from their consternation, Kumbhalmer was assaulted and taken; Abdulla and his garrison were put to the sword, and thirty-two fortified posts in like manner carried by surprise, the troops being put to death without mercy. To use the words of the annals: “Partap made a desert of Mewar; he made an [347] offering to the sword of whatever dwelt in its plains”: an appalling but indispensable sacrifice. In one short campaign (S. 1586, A.D. 1530), he had recovered all Mewar, except Chitor, Ajmer, and Mandalgarh; and determining to have a slight ovation in return for the triumph Raja Man had enjoyed (who had fulfilled to the letter his threat, that Partap should “live in peril”), he invaded Amber, and sacked its chief mart of commerce, Malpura.