History of Mediaeval Hindu India (being a History of India from 600 to 1200 A.D.) v3.c39.6

v3.c39.6

The foremost cause which is usually and properly assigned to the fall of the Rajputs is their internecine fighting. The Rajput kingly families always fought amongst themselves not so much for extension of territory as for establishment of superiority, At this very time we find Prithvīrāj attacking his three great neighbouring kings of Gujarat, Bundelkhand and U. P. These fights were always tough fights as between European nations and doughty warriors on both sides always fell in great numbers. The fighting strength of all the four powerful kingdoms, i. e. of the Chauhans, the Rathods, the Chandellas and the Solankhis was thus reduced and each fell when fighting singly and separately against the strong common foe. Internecine warfare has always been the bane of the Rajputs. Though the Rajputs always neglected artillery and were, therefore, always weak in modern times, they could even then have driven out the Moguls, if only they had combined, as Manuchi distinctly states in his memoirs and they could have withstood even the Marathas, though not the English, for the Maratha artillery was in the hands of Europeans. Against Shihabuddin whose ambition was threatening India, of which the Rajputs must have had ample knowledge from informants, the Rajputs should have stayed their quarrels and combined. They did not stop their fights even against the common impending danger and they consequently were all destroyed.