Forgotten Indian Military History

Chimaji Appa

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I am starting this thread to post about forgotten Indian Military History which gets ignored in our textbooks. From Ancient times to Medieval Muslim invasions, lot of clashes between Locals and foreigners get forgotten. Feel free to post about your regions forgotten military history as well.

I will start with some Muslim defeats in Uttarakhand:
Some early Mughal/Muslim Invasions of the Siwalik Hills (Western Nepal and Uttarakhand);

1. In 1419, the governor of Sambhal conquers the fertile Terai region from the kingdom of Kumaon. The king sends his commander, Nilu Kathait, to drive out the invaders. He successfully defeats the governor and routs him out of the terai in open battle. The king ordered an inscription to be set up in his village for the bravery shown in the battle by the commander.

2. Mughals raid some principality. Sultan Mahmud, a nephew of the Mughal commander Pir Muhammad Khan, launches a raid into the Kumaon kingdom or the Doti Kingdom in far western Nepal/Eastern Kumaon. His army gets ambushed by the locals and many soldiers, along with the commander are killed. The chronicler Abdul Qadir Badayuni describes this event his Muntakhab-ut-Tawairkh.

3. The next governor of Oudh launched another invasion into the shivaliks. This raid was initially successful, but on the return from looting, the hill men ambushed and annihilated the expedition, and regained all the loot. Badauyuni describes that "the bravest of his (Hussain Khan-governor of Oudh's) men drank the cup of martyrdom".

4. Badauyuni relates that after this, Hussain Khan launched several more raids, but he could never penetrate into the interior and was repelled every single time by the hill forces. His last raid was successful, but the commander himself returned from the mountain injured with many of forces dead.

5. Shah Jahan sends a 130,000 strong expedition to coerce the Raja of Srinagar/Garhwal (Queen Karnavati). Karnavati lures the Mughal army into the interior of the kingdom by promising to pay tribute to the Mughals, and ambushes them somewhere near Srinagar. Najabat Khan, the Mughal commander, is said to have been the only survivor by the Maasir ul Umara. Nicholas Travernier claims that the survivors had their nose chopped by the queens forces.

6. After the raid of Hussain Khan -Nawab of Oudh-, the then Kumaon king, led by Rudra Chand and his general Purushottam Pant, led an army to expel the Mughal garrison at Terai, which they successfully did. The local tradition claims that the Akbar sent a massive army to coerce the Raja. The Raja, understanding the futility of the situation, is said to have challenged the commander in personal combat, which the Raja won. This tradition makes no sense as the Mughals would never adhere to the Rajas conditions, especially when the Mughals were much more powerful than them. It is possible that Rudra Chand repelled the Mughals, however.
 

Chimaji Appa

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Malwa- Mewar wars (Sultan Mahmoud Khalji vs Maharana Kumbha Sisodia);

Mahmud’s first invasion of Chittorgarh:

Sultan Mahmud Khalji of Malwa enters Mewar and heads to towards Chittorgarh. He attempts to plunder a temple but is held at bay for 7 days by the priests under the Rajput commander Deep Singh. After desecrating the temple, he then attempts to siege Chittor. Kumbha attacks the Malwa forces at night and inflicts heavy losses on them. The Muslims claim to have repulsed this attack, but it was not decisive by any means and Kumbha simply retired into his fort after inflicting damage on the Muslim army. It is also admitted by Shihab Hakim (The Malwa chronicler) that the Muslims simply gained no victory over Mewar.

RESULT: Invasion repelled, Mewar Victory

Mahmud’s 1st invasion of Mandalgarh:
Mahmud’s forces enter Mewar and cross the Banas river, where fighting immediately began between the 2 armies. After 3 days of fighting, negotiations between the commanders of the 2 sides commenced. Shihab Hakim claims that Kumbha offered to pay tribute, but this seems to be an exaggeration as if the Malwa army was close to victory, they would have not stopped the conquest of Mandalgarh. Moreover, the guarded language of the chronicler makes it apparent that Kumbha had the upper hand. Thus, not wanting to risk more losses at the hands of Kumbha, he patched up a treaty and retreated to Malwa.

RESULT: Invasion repulsed, Mewar Victory

Mahmuds second campaign against Mandalgarh:
Another battle occurred between the Rana's forces and Malwa at the Banas river. The Sultan entered Mewar and pitched his tent on the banks of the Banas, where another 2 day long, but indecisive battle was fought. On the third day, the Muslim sources claim that Kumbha was about to be defeated, and henced, paid tribute to the Sultan, but this seems to be a tactic admission that the Muslim sultan failed to conquer Mandalgarh (i.e. his goal). Why was he just satisfied with the money? However, the claims of Rajputana historians are equally exaggerated (that Mahmud was routed) when Kumbha did not chose to attack Malwa or make conquests into Mahmud’s territory.

RESULT: Stalemate/slight Mewar Victory (as Mahmud failed to conquer Mandalgarh).

Mahmud’s third invasion against Mandalgarh:
In 1456, the Sultan entered Mewar to conquer Mandalgarh for a 3rd time. Kumbha divided his army into 3 different divisions and attacked the Malwa army at the Banas river. Both sides seemed to have suffered heavy losses. The Muslims then claim to have retired due to the upcoming rainy season. This is a tactic admission that Mahmud suffered heavy losses the previous day and hence, found Mandalgarh hard to be conquered.

RESULT: Invasion repelled; Mewar Victory

Mahmud’s fourth invasion of Mandalgarh:
In the fall of 1456, Rana Kumbha was occupied against Nagaur (which he annexed), Gujarat (whom he defeated) and Marwar (who he stabilized). Mahmoud Khalji took this time to launch another invasion of Mandalgarh. He entered Mewar on Nov 26 1456 and laid waste to the county. Upon arriving at Mandalgarh, he began surveying the fort and making preparations. During this time, the Mewaris sallied out and engaged with Mahmud’s forces, but achieved no results. The siege continued and neither side could gain any advantage (with the Muslims beginning to lose hope) until Mahmud attacked the water reservoir which forced the Mewaris to surrender. A number of the soldiers fell fighting, while some of them surrendered. He erected a Mosque to commemorate his victory.

RESULT: Malwa Victory, Mandalgarh annexed

Mahmud’s 1467 expediton against Mewar:
Mahmud Khalji entered Mewar for the last time in his reign to battle with Kumbha. He marched towards the Fort of Jawar, where he plundered a temple, and then Khumbner, where he was met by Rana Kumbha, whose forces inflicted heavy losses on the Malwa army. The Muslims then marched towards Chittor, where there defeated and exhausted army chose to return to Malwa.

RESULT: Invasion Repelled, Mewar Victory

FINAL SCORE:

Mewar:
5

Malwa: 1
 

Ayushraj

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[INDIA'S FIRST SURGICAL STRIKE(5 april1663)
shivaji strike force:
400 best soldiers of maratha army more or less special force
Reserve
2000( infantry+cavalry) under netaji palker and moro pant
Shaista khan:
10000 rajput under jaswant singh( not interested in fighting maratha)+1000 mughals
Marathas were banned entering puna . So shivaji and his army dressed as Bridgegroom family entered puna. They had make their way towards palace that nothing but a maze but shivaji and his army knew every inch of palace. Shivaji with 200 soldiers made a hole kitchen of harem of palace. On hearing noise of tools servants reported shaista khan about that noise but he scolded them . Meanwhile hole was that much bigger that 1 person can pass through it. Shivaji with his army has made his way shaista Khan's room. Within 1 stroke of sword he has cut down his 3 fingers. But i matter of time a slave girl has put down light of room and shaista help of his sons and slave made his way out. With speed of thunder maratha continued slaughter inside palace.
Meanwhile 200 soldiers under bapuji killed the main guards of palace after mocking them. This alerted the palace.
Seeing palace to be fully alerted Shivaji galloped his men and regrouped and escaped outside and they managed to leave puna on road. In same road jaswant with 10000 men was present but he took no interest in attacking maratha.
In this attack 6 maratha soldiers died and 48 mughal soldiers died ( including son of shaista khan)
 

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Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh approves policy on archiving, declassification & compilation of war/operations histories

War/operations histories to be compiled within five years

Records to ordinarily be declassified within 25 years


Posted On: 12 JUN 2021 10:05AM by PIB Delhi



Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh has approved the policy on archiving, declassification and compilation/publication of war/operations histories by the Ministry of Defence. The policy envisages that each organisation under the Ministry of Defence such as Services, Integrated Defence Staff, Assam Rifles and Indian Coast Guard, will transfer the records, including war diaries, letters of proceedings & operational record books, etc., to the History Division of Ministry of Defence (MoD) for proper upkeep, archival and writing the histories.


The responsibility for declassification of records rests with the respective organisations as specified in the Public Record Act 1993 and Public Record Rules 1997, as amended from time to time. According to the policy, records should ordinarily be declassified in 25 years. Records older than 25 years should be appraised by archival experts and transferred to the National Archives of India once the war/operations histories have been compiled.


The History Division will be responsible for coordination with various departments while compiling, seeking approval and publishing of war/operations histories. The policy mandates constitution of a committee headed by Joint Secretary, MoD and comprising of representatives of the Services, MEA, MHA and other organisations and prominent military historians (if required), for compilation of war/ operations histories.


The policy also set clear timelines with regard to compilation and publication of war/operations histories. The above-mentioned Committee should be formed within two years of completion of war/operations. Thereafter, collection of records and compilation should be completed in three years and disseminated to all concerned.


The requirement of having war histories written with clear cut policy on declassification of war records was recommended by Kargil Review Committee headed by K Subrahmanyam as well as N N Vohra Committee in order to analyse lessons learnt and prevent future mistakes. Post Kargil War, GoM recommendations on national security also mentioned the desirability of authoritative war history.


Timely publication of war histories would give people accurate account of the events, provide authentic material for academic research and counter the unfounded rumours.
 

Sigmamale101

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In 1543 , Sher Shah Suri of Afghanistan marched against Maldeo Rathore ( Rajput chief of Marwar ) with an army of over 80,000( pashtun ) Heavy cavalry & over 40 cannons.

Maldeo moved against him with 40,000 cavalry of his own
.

Through stratagem Sher Shah Suri convinced Maldeo that two of his chieftains were traitors.

Maldeo Rathore abandoned his chieftains to their fates and retreated back to Jodhpur on 4th January, 1544. The two Rajput chieftains Jaita and Kumpa realised what had happened, and considered it a stain upon their honour & that of their clan & scion.


The two Rajput chiefs decided they would stay back and fight the Afghans.

In the ensuing battle of Sammel.... 5,000 Rathore horsemen would fight 80,000 Pashtuns just to prove their loyalty to Maldeo Rathore.

The non stop cavalry charges of the Rajputs routed more than half of the Afghan army.

many Afghans were crushed or sent flying, killed and pushed into their own Armies. A certain Afghani said to Sher Shah in his native tongue, “Mount! For the infidels are routing your army!”

Sher Shah had already prepared his horse & begun retreating
when news of Jaita and Kumpa being slain was brought to him.

The Rathore chieftains had fought to the last man doing Saka ( fight to death ) attaining veergati.

Stunned by the Rajput resolve to face death valiantly even in the face of impossible odds, Sher Shah Suri is said to have said- “...for a few grains of bajra (millet, which is the main crop of barren Marwar) I almost lost the entire kingdom of Hindustan.”

The Afghans gained a useless, pyrrhic victory that day. His army had suffered heavy casualties and most of Sher Shah’s generals were dead
. Maldeo Rathore would recapture the lost territory in 1545.

Source: Tarikh-i Daudi.

Found something interesting on twitter. He is the 13th Grandchild of Rao Jaita :)

IMG_20211113_023032.jpg


https://mobile.twitter.com/PritamJaitawat/media
 
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Sigmamale101

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Balkh Campaign: An Indian Army ? in Central Asia.

By Ranvijay Singh Hada

Balkh Campaign: An Indian Army in Central Asia


Nestled between the Amu Darya and the Hindu Kush mountains, in the very heart of Asia, lies Balkh. Though now little more than a provincial town in Northern Afghanistan (450 km from Kabul), for over 2,000 years it was among the great cities of Asia.
Formerly called ‘Bactra’, the capital of the territory of Bactria once ruled by the Persians, the Indo-Greeks and the Kushanas, its centrality made it a key artery of the Silk Road. Trade bestowed upon its immense material and cultural wealth, and some considered it to be the mythical Shangri-La.

The city was so prosperous in ancient and mediaeval times that the Arabs called it Umm-Al-Belad—the ‘mother of all cities’.

Such affluence naturally attracted conquerors from all corners of Eurasia: King Darius of the Achaemenids (6th to 5th BCE), Alexander of Macedonia (4th BCE), the Great Khan Genghis (12th to 13th CE) and the feared Amir Timur (14th to 15th CE).

In the 17th century CE, Balkh was coveted and captured by Mughal and Rajput princes. It was the only time, possibly in all of history, that an Indian army was to go on the offensive beyond the Hindu Kush. This was the Balkh-Badakhshan campaign of 1646-1647 CE, which would finally bring to end the Mughal dream of reconquering their homeland in the Ferghana Valley (in present-day Uzbekistan), the region from where Babur (r. 1526-30 CE)—the first Mughal Emperor and founder of the dynasty in India— hailed from.



The Promised Land

In 1646-1647, Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan launched a military expedition to conqueror Balkh
and the neighbouring province of Badakhshan. This campaign was to be the first step in the expansion of Mughal rule into Transoxiana, now Central Asia, where the Ferghana valley lay.

There were many reasons why Shah Jahan undertook such an ambitious campaign. The Khanate of Bukhara—the kingdom holding overlordship over Balkh and Badakhshan—was going through a period of internal strife, which made it an opportune moment to strike.
Moreover, the imperialistic inclinations of the Safavid Dynasty of Iran, which too was eyeing a foothold in Central Asia, made Shah Jahan want to anticipate any incursions from them.

However, behind all the obvious geopolitical manoeuvring, there was sheer sentimentality
. The lush valleys and venerable mountains of Transoxiana were the ancestral homelands of the Mughals. It was in Balkh where their most eminent ancestor, Amir Timur, had declared himself ‘Khan’, and it was from the magnificent citadel of Samarkand (in present-day Uzbekistan) that he governed his empire.

Babur himself was born north of Balkh, in the fertile valley of Ferghana. He spent most of his life wandering the Khanates of Central Asia and Afghanistan, squandering one kingdom only to gain another. While the Mughals were Emperors of Hindustan and had been so for more than a century by Shah Jahan’s time, Transoxiana was still ubiquitous in their imperial imaginings.

The official chronicle of every Mughal Emperor up to Aurangzeb mentioned plans to conquer Central Asia. Thus, in the late 1640s, when the situation in the Deccan had greatly eased with the collapse of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate of the Nizam Shahi, Shah Jahan had the military flexibility to undertake what was to be the only serious attempt at regaining the lost homeland of the Mughals. This mediaeval irredentism was going to cost dearly.

Across the Hindu Kush


As soon as the imperial farman outlining the conquest of Balkh and Badakhshan was issued, the gears of the colossal Mughal war machine began turning. An army of 50,000 horsemen and 10,000 infantry—including artillerymen, musketeers, and sappers—was assembled in Kabul, the last great city at the western limits of the Mughal Empire.

Leading them was Shah Jahan’s youngest son, Mirza Murad Bakhsh. With the sound of war drums bellowing through the city, the Mughal army marched out of Kabul in June 1646. Making its way through the narrow, rocky defiles of the Hindu Kush, the army conquered a number of towns and military garrisons en route, before arriving near Balkh.

The local Uzbek tribes defending the city proved no match for the highly organised and well-equipped army. Nazar Mohammed, the Bukharan Governor, fled even before the army was in sight. The Mughal army entered the imposing Bala Hisar (the citadel) of Balkh virtually unopposed on the 2nd of July.

After nearly 150 years, the House of Timur was making its return.

After making their way this far with relative ease, the generals of the Mughal army began at once feeling restive in this foreign land. Chief among them was Prince Murad Bakhsh himself, who shortly after arriving sent a series of letters to Shah Jahan expressing his desire to return to Kabul.

Apart from the wavering will to fight, the army was also finding it hard to secure supplies from the local populace. The Uzbeks and Hazara tribes were bitter—in some cases even openly hostile— towards the occupying force and refrained from trading their food grains.

Things went from bad to worse when Murad Bakhsh, along with a small retinue, left for Kabul
without prior permission from his father. The sudden and unannounced flight of an imperial Prince was a massive blow to the morale of the Mughal army stationed in Balkh. Upon hearing about the rather ignominious departure of his son, a furious

Shah Jahan immediately stripped him of his mansab or rank.

Worried about the precarious situation of his army, Shah Jahan moved his court from Lahore to Kabul to more closely direct the campaign.
He even sent his Grand Vizier, Sadhullah Khan, to ensure that the Mughal units in Balkh and surrounding areas stayed primed for imminent incursions deeper into Transoxiana.

However, with the early onslaught of winter, all plans of further conquest were put on hold. The winter of 1646-1647 was one of the harshest the region had ever witnessed.

Soldiers are said to have ‘burned themselves’ in an effort to keep warm, and it was impossible to walk outside without contracting life debilitating frostbite.

With the Mughal army cooped up inside fortresses and garrisons in and around Balkh, the Uzbek tribes, naturally accustomed to the region, pillaged the countryside and laid siege to multiple Mughal outposts and garrisons. Any military relief was unable to proceed beyond Kabul, with all passes closed due to snow.

Cold, hungry, and harassed, the Mughal army was barely able to hang onto its foothold in Central Asia through the winter. However, with the eventual arrival of spring in the new year, the Mughal campaign was reinvigorated. The mountain passes had reopened and another army was raised to strengthen and further the Mughal conquest in Transoxiana. This time, it would be led by Aurangzeb, Shah Jahan’s third son and eventual successor to the Mughal throne.

Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained.

With an army of 35,000 soldiers, Aurangzeb marched out of Kabul in early April 1647
.

Compared to his step-brother, Aurangzeb was far more adept in military matters, and the idea of conquering Transoxiana excited him personally.

While numerically inferior to the Mughal contingent from the year before , Aurangzeb’s army had crack Rajput units. Led by Raja Jai Singh of Jaipur and Rao Madho Singh Hada of Kota, the Rajputs formed the integral rear guard and vanguard of the army.

Realising that an army had been sent to relieve the Mughal forces stationed in Balkh and Badakhshan, the Uzbeks assembled a force of 1 lakh light cavalry under Qutuluq Mohammed. They struck the Mughal army near the valley of Derah-i-Gaz. However, their numerical strength was no match for the disciplined musket fire of the Rajput Mughal vanguard.

narrowness of the valley too constrained the massed Uzbek cavalry. The Uzbeks were thwarted but remained undefeated.

The next day, they engaged the Mughal vanguard again, this time directly in an open battlefield. This was to be a grievous error. With the Rajput infantry putting up a stiff resistance, the Uzbek cavalry focused solely on attacking the centre vanguard.

Unbeknownst to them, Aurangzeb had turned the remaining wings of his army on the Uzbek flanks, conducting a clinical pincer movement. Surrounded on three sides, the Uzbeks fled.


A triumphant Aurangzeb entered Balkh on the 25th of May 1647.
After resupplying and reorganising the neighbouring Mughal forces, he handed over Balkh fort to Rao Madho Singh, and continued on beyond the Amu Darya. Throughout the summer months, Aurangzeb fought multiple battles and skirmishes with the local Uzbek tribes as well as the armies sent by the Khan of Bukhara. Although militarily far superior, he was unable to achieve a decisive victory.

The local tribes, having learnt their lesson from earlier misjudgements, did not engage in pitched battles. Lightly equipped, they moved fast and struck the long columns of the Mughal army at random, after which they would quickly retreat. The large, conventional force of the Mughal army was unable to adapt to this irregular warfare.

Supplying such a large army too became an expensive affair. With the region not particularly fertile, Aurangzeb depended heavily on grains arriving from Kabul. Such extended lines were constantly harassed by hostile tribes, and there was a constant threat of being cut off from Kabul. The great difficulties he faced in retaining Balkh itself made the idea of capturing Samarkand seem terribly quixotic.

Compounding all this were some of Aurangzeb’s own generals who did not perceive the prospects of campaigning in Transoxiana as enviable. Far from all the comforts and luxuries of the plains of Hindustan, a land of only hills and deserts was not where they would have liked to spend the better years of their imperial service.

Facing relentless local resistance, reluctant commanders, and an ever-growing burden on the Mughal exchequer, Aurangzeb realised the need to exit what was soon becoming a military quagmire. However, simply retreating from Balkh and Badakhshan after such an expensive military campaign would have made it all seem terribly wasteful.

In an effort to justify the entire military enterprise, Aurangzeb signed a treaty with the former governor of Bukhara, Nazar Mohammed. In return for restoring Balkh and Badakhshan to him, Nazar Mohammed would now swear fealty to Shah Jahan. While essentially a return to status quo ante, the Mughals at least now had Nazar Mohammed’s loyalty to show for such a strenuous and expensive military campaign, regardless of how little it might have meant anyway.

Shah Jahan acquiesced to this face-saving arrangement, having realised as well that the conquest of Transoxiana was far too romantic to be accommodated by military realities. More pressing matters, however, concerned Aurangzeb. With winter fast approaching, he had the unenviable task of transporting an entire army across the Hindu Kush. Already late in the year, the passes would soon be inaccessible. If they closed, the army would be stranded in a foreign land, surrounded by hostile tribes who were ever-ready to have a go at a force laden with imperial wealth.



An Army on Retreat

After handing over Balkh to the grandsons of Nazar Mohammed, the Mughal army marched out on the 3rd of October 1647. Ahead of them lay a 400-km march to Kabul, through the narrow defiles and high mountain passes of the Hindu Kush. The weather had already taken a turn for the worse, and snow now made the previously difficult trails treacherously dangerous.
Adding to their woes were the Uzbek tribesmen, who constantly attacked the Mughal columns for loot. The cumbersome artillery, and vast quantities of money and other miscellaneous supplies stored in mule packs, made the army move at a slow pace making it an easy target for raiders on horseback. The cold killed countless pack animals, and the task of transporting camp baggage fell to the soldiers.

Suffering great privation, the men heaved heavy cannons and treasure caravans across the Gazniyak Pass. While the long columns of soldiers began crossing the pass, Uzbek riders struck the weak and slow stragglers at the rear end of the army. In a remarkable show of discipline, the Rajputs under Raja Jai Singh, Rao Madho Singh and Mughal General Bahadur Khan performed a valiant rear-guard action at the steep approaches to the pass, and kept the Uzbeks at bay.

This was not to be their last engagement.



Throughout the bitterly cold days of October, the Mughal rear-guard was hounded by Uzbek and Hazara tribesmen. Since the baggage train—containing most of the money and other material wealth—moved far slower than the rest of the army, it was considered ripe for the picking by the hostile tribesmen. Nevertheless, the rear-guard, in the most inhospitable of conditions, was able to beat off successive waves of enemy raiders, at the cost of high casualties.

On the 27th of October 1647, Aurangzeb finally reached the safeties of Kabul
. His army was scattered all over due to sudden snowstorms and constant enemy activity, which led to units’ progress in a haphazard fashion. Rag-tag soldiers continued trickling into the walls of the city over the next few days. The rear-guard, bringing with it the final stragglers and the injured, only arrived on the 10th of November. What had once been a mighty imperial army had been reduced—by calamitous climate, treacherous terrain, and attritional warfare—to little more than a long procession of beleaguered men. Thus came the end of the Mughal campaign in Transoxiana, and with it, the hope of reclaiming the lost homeland of the Mughals.

Of Empires and Excess


The failure of the campaign had come at a great expense. In little more than a year, a staggering four crore rupees had been spent from the Mughal treasury (in the tens of thousands of crores today). Over 6,000 soldiers had died, mostly due to the privations of nature. Yet, all they had achieved was the lip service of Nazar Mohammed; there was no increase in territory beyond an inconsequential 80 km or so north of Kabul. Financially speaking, the campaign would never have been sufficient even if permanent territorial gains had been made.

The harsh and arid lands of Balkh and Badakhshan only yielded about ten lakh rupees of revenue a year, a trifle sum compared to the vast sums of money required to sustain stable military control in the region. The Mughal army required more than 20 times the local revenue to do so.

The notion of supplying such a large conventional army, that too beyond the Amu Darya if all had gone according to plan, was fanciful at best. At their imperial zenith, the campaign had partly been a product of the Mughals’ firm belief in their unassailable military capabilities. By undertaking it, they had, rather painfully, found the limits of their might.



But the failure of their campaign had consequences well beyond the immediate loss of their military enterprise and a badly bruised sense of pride. It had a far-reaching effect on the Mughal position in Central and Western Asia. The Safavids of Iran almost at once took advantage of this setback and captured Kandahar in Southern Afghanistan. Considered by Mughal foreign policy to be essential for the defence of India, both Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb mounted numerous attempts to regain Kandahar. All of them were futile. Coupled with their failed campaign for Transoxiana, this marked the beginning of the unravelling of Mughal rule in the western half of the empire. Ninety years later, Iranian ruler and conqueror Nader Shah (r. 1736-47) would lead an army down the Hindu Kush—in the historically conventional direction—and seal the fate of the Empire.

For a military campaign of such limited time and achievement, the Balkh-Badakhshan expedition of 1646-47 carries inordinate resonance through the passage of history. The story of a vastly superior force embroiled in a conflict with boundless objectives, but a finite will to fight, has become near proverbial in these regions. The malaise faced by these forces has been common – irregular warfare, unfamiliar territory, a restricted war chest, and a near-bankruptcy in morale.

Whether the imperial fantasies of the Mughals, the British, the Soviets, or most recently, the Americans, there is a phantasmal similarity in the manner in which all these conflicts have ended for the side on which the ‘Empire’real or imagined—is on. As is often the case, the more things change, the more they remain the same.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.livehistoryindia.com/story/cover-story/balkh-campaign/?amp=1
 

Sigmamale101

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Battle of Gangwana: GREATEST Cavalry charge You probably never heard about.

The Battle of Gangwana was fought between combined forces of Jai Singh kachwaha, Mughals against Bhakt Singh Rathore in 1741.


This Battle witnessed one of the Greatest & insane Cavalry Charge in History of Warfare.

Status Prior to Battle.

Following a century of expansion, in the early 1700s the Mughal Empire entered a period of decline. Nader Shah's invasion of the Mughal Empire and the subsequent sack of Deli in 1739 greatly reduced the prestige of the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah. Maratha raids in south also sapped the ability of the Empire to govern itself. This military and political weakness resulted in more authority being given to the Rajas, whom had previously been considered Mughal vassals. Infighting and open warfare between smaller kingdoms soon erupted within the Mughal territories.




Out of the ashes rose the Rajput states once again. For a long time, they had to work under the Mughals but now was their time to shine.

One by one local Kings carved out their own kingdoms from the old remnants of the Northern states.

One of the most powerful who rose was Rajput Raja Jai Singh Kachwaha ll of Jaipur.

Their alliance with Mughals made them the lord of the entire plains & Kachwaha Rajputs clan one of the most formidable in subcontinent.

Starting in 1721 Jai Singh embarked on a campaign of political and military conquest in northern India. Using his reformed army and political will, he annexed or vassalized to many smaller Rajas.

In 1727 he founded the Kingdom of Jaipur.

In the early 1700s two Rathore brothers named Bhakt Singh and Abhay Singh, were the rulers of the region of Marwar.


These brothers were strong, smart and extremely crafty. And were adept in using their Maratha allies tactically to destroy their opponents.

Needless to say, these actions estranged them from the Mughal government, which was at the time embroiled in a conflict with the Marathas.

Bakht Singh Rathore of Marwar, decided in 1739 to go to battle against Rathores of Bikaner, and called for his brother for help. Who was the then Raja of Marwar and Jodhpur. The Raja of Bikaner appealed to Jai Singh Kachwaha for assistance after the Marwar army besieged his capital.

Jai Singh of Jaipur sent a letter to Abhay requesting leniency for Bikaner, a request Abhay sharply refuted. Jaipur then threatened to invade Marwar unless hostilities were ended. Jai Singh also bribed Bakht Singh to sign a separate peace treaty with Jaipur.

Turning him against his brother.

All this estranged the two brothers and cornered Abhay Singh’s vassals against a large enemy.

Jai Singh then stationed his army close to Jodhpur itself and threatened to burn it to the ground unless the siege was lifted. Abhay was forced to sue for peace, and signed a treaty in which the rules completely shamed the Rathors as it demanded:

The state of Marwar would pay 1,00,000
Rupees in gold, 25,000 in Jewels and give 3 Elephants as Nazarana (Submission) to the Mughal Emperor.

Marwar would pay 20,00,000 Rupees to Jai Singh as war reparations.

The payment would be done in 4 days. Five barons and Raghunath Bhandari were to remain hostages for it.

Marta will be handed over to Bhakt Singh.

Marwar would not obstruct Jai Singh in his possessions of the Ajmer subah.

No prince or baron of Marwar would be allowed to seek private audience with the Mughal emperor without Jai Singh’s permission.

Marwar cannot keep foreign relations with the Maratha without the mediation of the Jaipur Raja.

Abhay Singh’s Councillors must be men selected by the Jaipur court.

The peace treaty angered many of the Rathors, with the Rathod nobility claiming, “Our noses have been cut off by the Kachwaha.”

In 1741 Abhay Singh began to gather his forces at Jodhpur in preparation for revenge against Jaipur.


But his enemy was smart, Jai Singh detected these movements and marshalled his army, allies, vassals, and every nearby Mughal garrison to invade Marwar.

Meanwhile as the Jaipur army advanced, Bakht Singh arrived at Marta, the forward camp for the Rathod and Marwar army. He entered the Raja’s Durbar, where he was chastised by his fellow Rathors for betraying them. Bhakt accepted his wrongdoing, and promised to lead his personal cavalry contingent against the oncoming Jaipur.

Battle of Gangwana
.

Jai Singh and the Jaipur army made camp at Kunchgaon, east of Pushkar Lake. Jai positioned a long line of guns in the direction of the Marwar to defend the encampment. The combined army totalled 50,000-100,000 men from Jaipur and the various states allied with Jai Singh.

gangwana-1024x422.png

The smaller unit’s are the Rathod horsemen. The larger one’s are Jai Singh’s retinue.

Bhakt’s army consisted of 1000 Rathod horsemen under his personal command. Bhakt Singh at first waited for reinforcements. As, however, no reinforcements arrived, Bakht Singh became determined to attack Jai Singh with his small force.

He had his honour at stake, and this time he would not lose it.

Feeling that Bhakt Singh’s army is way too small to overpower them, Jai Singh kept a merry time with less than adequate discipline. They were expecting an assault when the allies of their enemies would meet.

But his assumptions were wrong.

gangwana-2-1024x422.png


Bhakt Singh with less than a thousand Rajput’s charged head on first against whole of 50 to 100K troops for everyone’s shock.

With the speed of demons, the Rajput’s charged with all their might shattering the first line of the enemies. Jai Singh tried to Reorganised is contingent and tried a flanking Manoeuvre but the warriors of Bhakt sing were ready.


gangwana-3-1-1024x422.png


Rathod’s riders attacked them before they could form a straight line and were butchered by the sword.

Jai Singh’s last two contingent were of muskets and archers who in all the hassle fired at their own troops.

gangwana-4-3-1024x422.png


In all the chaos Bhakt Singh was wounded by a bullet and arrows, after seizing the opportunity to steal whatever they could, he ordered a tactical retreat into the woods.

Out of the one thousand Riders, only seventy survived.

Jai Singh Kachwaha being a Rajput himself charged forward to fight in an honourable duel
but his tired men could not catch up to the fast horses of Bhakt Singh
.

gangwana-5-2-1024x422.png


According to the local legend when the Rathod Nobles heard of the challenge, they insulted Bhakt Singh to retreat in a cowardly fashion. But their leader was bleeding profusely and in too a ragged shape to fight any further, hence the King of Shahpur accepted the duel, but lost Against Jai Singh.

Bhakt Singh Realised that there was now no point in further bloodshed, and performed a tactical retreat through the region with safety.

For Jaipur kingdom this was a complete catastrophe. Jai Singh’s army lost several thousands of its soldiers in the battle.

According to Harcharan Das, who was an eye-witness to the battle, claims that 10,000 of Jai Singh’s men were killed in the conflict, and another 14,000 were wounded.

Though modern historians consider this account to be an exaggeration. However, they all do agree that the Jaipur army and their allies suffered heavy losses forcing them to retreat.

After the Battle:

The Jaipur army held the field after the battle at Gangwana, but had been severely demoralized by the attack.
The nobles considered it a victory but deep down they all knew that this was a major setback.

It was a pyrrhic one at best and a humiliating one at worst.

The Rathod’s had fought so well that the poets and bards of Jaipur started to even praise their courage and valour.

Jai Singh had no choice but to retreat. One month later (8 July) both sides exchanged captured war loot with each other. The Maharana of Udaipur mediated a peace between Marwar and Jaipur later that year

Bhakt Singh would be known far and wide by the local bards. After the death of Abhay Singh he would fight against his son and emerge as the ruler of jodhpur by 1751.

He still had a warrior streak as his first duty was to fortify his holdings against the afghans and the Mughals.

Unfortunately, he would die of cholera in 1752, which would lead to a civil war and an ultimate downfall of the Rathod clan.

Meanwhile Gangwana was the last battle fought by Jai Singh, as he could never recover from the shock he received from the outcome of the war and died two years later.


Notes.

  • Jadunath Sarkar (1992). Fall of the Mughal Empire: 1789–1803. Orient Longman.
  • Jadunath Sarkar ((1994). A History of Jaipur 1503–1938. Orient Longman.
  • R.K Gupta, S.R Bakshi (2008). Rajasthan Through the Ages, Vol 4, Jaipur Rulers and Administration. Sarup & Sons.
https://battlesofbharat.com/2020/05...-you-must-read-about-rajasthan-rajput-battle/

https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Battle_of_Gangwana
 
Last edited:

Vivek85

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Thanks for the informative post. It's very difficult to find battles fought by Hindu kings. No serious material, tactics used were never taught as part of Indian history. I found so much material about Roman battles since start of Roman republic, but not so much about Indian battles.
 

tommy

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Battle of Gangwana: GREATEST Cavalry charge You probably never heard about.

The Battle of Gangwana was fought between combined forces of Jai Singh kachwaha, Mughals against Bhakt Singh Rathore in 1741.


This Battle witnessed one of the Greatest & insane Cavalry Charge in History of Warfare.

Status Prior to Battle.

Following a century of expansion, in the early 1700s the Mughal Empire entered a period of decline. Nader Shah's invasion of the Mughal Empire and the subsequent sack of Deli in 1739 greatly reduced the prestige of the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah. Maratha raids in south also sapped the ability of the Empire to govern itself. This military and political weakness resulted in more authority being given to the Rajas, whom had previously been considered Mughal vassals. Infighting and open warfare between smaller kingdoms soon erupted within the Mughal territories.




Out of the ashes rose the Rajput states once again. For a long time, they had to work under the Mughals but now was their time to shine.

One by one local Kings carved out their own kingdoms from the old remnants of the Northern states.

One of the most powerful who rose was Rajput Raja Jai Singh Kachwaha ll of Jaipur.

Their alliance with Mughals made them the lord of the entire plains & Kachwaha Rajputs clan one of the most formidable in subcontinent.

Starting in 1721 Jai Singh embarked on a campaign of political and military conquest in northern India. Using his reformed army and political will, he annexed or vassalized to many smaller Rajas.

In 1727 he founded the Kingdom of Jaipur.

In the early 1700s two Rathore brothers named Bhakt Singh and Abhay Singh, were the rulers of the region of Marwar.


These brothers were strong, smart and extremely crafty. And were adept in using their Maratha allies tactically to destroy their opponents.

Needless to say, these actions estranged them from the Mughal government, which was at the time embroiled in a conflict with the Marathas.

Bakht Singh Rathore of Marwar, decided in 1739 to go to battle against Rathores of Bikaner, and called for his brother for help. Who was the then Raja of Marwar and Jodhpur. The Raja of Bikaner appealed to Jai Singh Kachwaha for assistance after the Marwar army besieged his capital.

Jai Singh of Jaipur sent a letter to Abhay requesting leniency for Bikaner, a request Abhay sharply refuted. Jaipur then threatened to invade Marwar unless hostilities were ended. Jai Singh also bribed Bakht Singh to sign a separate peace treaty with Jaipur.

Turning him against his brother.

All this estranged the two brothers and cornered Abhay Singh’s vassals against a large enemy.

Jai Singh then stationed his army close to Jodhpur itself and threatened to burn it to the ground unless the siege was lifted. Abhay was forced to sue for peace, and signed a treaty in which the rules completely shamed the Rathors as it demanded:

The state of Marwar would pay 1,00,000
Rupees in gold, 25,000 in Jewels and give 3 Elephants as Nazarana (Submission) to the Mughal Emperor.

Marwar would pay 20,00,000 Rupees to Jai Singh as war reparations.

The payment would be done in 4 days. Five barons and Raghunath Bhandari were to remain hostages for it.

Marta will be handed over to Bhakt Singh.

Marwar would not obstruct Jai Singh in his possessions of the Ajmer subah.

No prince or baron of Marwar would be allowed to seek private audience with the Mughal emperor without Jai Singh’s permission.

Marwar cannot keep foreign relations with the Maratha without the mediation of the Jaipur Raja.

Abhay Singh’s Councillors must be men selected by the Jaipur court.

The peace treaty angered many of the Rathors, with the Rathod nobility claiming, “Our noses have been cut off by the Kachwaha.”

In 1741 Abhay Singh began to gather his forces at Jodhpur in preparation for revenge against Jaipur.


But his enemy was smart, Jai Singh detected these movements and marshalled his army, allies, vassals, and every nearby Mughal garrison to invade Marwar.

Meanwhile as the Jaipur army advanced, Bakht Singh arrived at Marta, the forward camp for the Rathod and Marwar army. He entered the Raja’s Durbar, where he was chastised by his fellow Rathors for betraying them. Bhakt accepted his wrongdoing, and promised to lead his personal cavalry contingent against the oncoming Jaipur.

Battle of Gangwana
.

Jai Singh and the Jaipur army made camp at Kunchgaon, east of Pushkar Lake. Jai positioned a long line of guns in the direction of the Marwar to defend the encampment. The combined army totalled 50,000-100,000 men from Jaipur and the various states allied with Jai Singh.

View attachment 127070
The smaller unit’s are the Rathod horsemen. The larger one’s are Jai Singh’s retinue.

Bhakt’s army consisted of 1000 Rathod horsemen under his personal command. Bhakt Singh at first waited for reinforcements. As, however, no reinforcements arrived, Bakht Singh became determined to attack Jai Singh with his small force.

He had his honour at stake, and this time he would not lose it.

Feeling that Bhakt Singh’s army is way too small to overpower them, Jai Singh kept a merry time with less than adequate discipline. They were expecting an assault when the allies of their enemies would meet.

But his assumptions were wrong.

View attachment 127072

Bhakt Singh with less than a thousand Rajput’s charged head on first against whole of 50 to 100K troops for everyone’s shock.

With the speed of demons, the Rajput’s charged with all their might shattering the first line of the enemies. Jai Singh tried to Reorganised is contingent and tried a flanking Manoeuvre but the warriors of Bhakt sing were ready.


View attachment 127075

Rathod’s riders attacked them before they could form a straight line and were butchered by the sword.

Jai Singh’s last two contingent were of muskets and archers who in all the hassle fired at their own troops.

View attachment 127077

In all the chaos Bhakt Singh was wounded by a bullet and arrows, after seizing the opportunity to steal whatever they could, he ordered a tactical retreat into the woods.

Out of the one thousand Riders, only seventy survived.

Jai Singh Kachwaha being a Rajput himself charged forward to fight in an honourable duel
but his tired men could not catch up to the fast horses of Bhakt Singh
.

View attachment 127079

According to the local legend when the Rathod Nobles heard of the challenge, they insulted Bhakt Singh to retreat in a cowardly fashion. But their leader was bleeding profusely and in too a ragged shape to fight any further, hence the King of Shahpur accepted the duel, but lost Against Jai Singh.

Bhakt Singh Realised that there was now no point in further bloodshed, and performed a tactical retreat through the region with safety.

For Jaipur kingdom this was a complete catastrophe. Jai Singh’s army lost several thousands of its soldiers in the battle.

According to Harcharan Das, who was an eye-witness to the battle, claims that 10,000 of Jai Singh’s men were killed in the conflict, and another 14,000 were wounded.

Though modern historians consider this account to be an exaggeration. However, they all do agree that the Jaipur army and their allies suffered heavy losses forcing them to retreat.

After the Battle:

The Jaipur army held the field after the battle at Gangwana, but had been severely demoralized by the attack.
The nobles considered it a victory but deep down they all knew that this was a major setback.

It was a pyrrhic one at best and a humiliating one at worst.

The Rathod’s had fought so well that the poets and bards of Jaipur started to even praise their courage and valour.

Jai Singh had no choice but to retreat. One month later (8 July) both sides exchanged captured war loot with each other. The Maharana of Udaipur mediated a peace between Marwar and Jaipur later that year

Bhakt Singh would be known far and wide by the local bards. After the death of Abhay Singh he would fight against his son and emerge as the ruler of jodhpur by 1751.

He still had a warrior streak as his first duty was to fortify his holdings against the afghans and the Mughals.

Unfortunately, he would die of cholera in 1752, which would lead to a civil war and an ultimate downfall of the Rathod clan.

Meanwhile Gangwana was the last battle fought by Jai Singh, as he could never recover from the shock he received from the outcome of the war and died two years later.


Notes.

  • Jadunath Sarkar (1992). Fall of the Mughal Empire: 1789–1803. Orient Longman.
  • Jadunath Sarkar ((1994). A History of Jaipur 1503–1938. Orient Longman.
  • R.K Gupta, S.R Bakshi (2008). Rajasthan Through the Ages, Vol 4, Jaipur Rulers and Administration. Sarup & Sons.
https://battlesofbharat.com/2020/05...-you-must-read-about-rajasthan-rajput-battle/

https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Battle_of_Gangwana
Very informative but what's with the blue and red formatting. Are they more important or should they be ignored or do you have a medical condition that prevents you from writing normally.
 

Sigmamale101

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Very informative but what's with the blue and red formatting. Are they more important or should they be ignored or do you have a medical condition that prevents you from writing normally.
To help those who do not want to read the whole thing. it also make it easy for no reason triggered chimps to read easily.
 

Angel of War

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Malwa- Mewar wars (Sultan Mahmoud Khalji vs Maharana Kumbha Sisodia);

Mahmud’s first invasion of Chittorgarh:

Sultan Mahmud Khalji of Malwa enters Mewar and heads to towards Chittorgarh. He attempts to plunder a temple but is held at bay for 7 days by the priests under the Rajput commander Deep Singh. After desecrating the temple, he then attempts to siege Chittor. Kumbha attacks the Malwa forces at night and inflicts heavy losses on them. The Muslims claim to have repulsed this attack, but it was not decisive by any means and Kumbha simply retired into his fort after inflicting damage on the Muslim army. It is also admitted by Shihab Hakim (The Malwa chronicler) that the Muslims simply gained no victory over Mewar.

RESULT: Invasion repelled, Mewar Victory

Mahmud’s 1st invasion of Mandalgarh:
Mahmud’s forces enter Mewar and cross the Banas river, where fighting immediately began between the 2 armies. After 3 days of fighting, negotiations between the commanders of the 2 sides commenced. Shihab Hakim claims that Kumbha offered to pay tribute, but this seems to be an exaggeration as if the Malwa army was close to victory, they would have not stopped the conquest of Mandalgarh. Moreover, the guarded language of the chronicler makes it apparent that Kumbha had the upper hand. Thus, not wanting to risk more losses at the hands of Kumbha, he patched up a treaty and retreated to Malwa.

RESULT: Invasion repulsed, Mewar Victory

Mahmuds second campaign against Mandalgarh:
Another battle occurred between the Rana's forces and Malwa at the Banas river. The Sultan entered Mewar and pitched his tent on the banks of the Banas, where another 2 day long, but indecisive battle was fought. On the third day, the Muslim sources claim that Kumbha was about to be defeated, and henced, paid tribute to the Sultan, but this seems to be a tactic admission that the Muslim sultan failed to conquer Mandalgarh (i.e. his goal). Why was he just satisfied with the money? However, the claims of Rajputana historians are equally exaggerated (that Mahmud was routed) when Kumbha did not chose to attack Malwa or make conquests into Mahmud’s territory.

RESULT: Stalemate/slight Mewar Victory (as Mahmud failed to conquer Mandalgarh).

Mahmud’s third invasion against Mandalgarh:
In 1456, the Sultan entered Mewar to conquer Mandalgarh for a 3rd time. Kumbha divided his army into 3 different divisions and attacked the Malwa army at the Banas river. Both sides seemed to have suffered heavy losses. The Muslims then claim to have retired due to the upcoming rainy season. This is a tactic admission that Mahmud suffered heavy losses the previous day and hence, found Mandalgarh hard to be conquered.

RESULT: Invasion repelled; Mewar Victory

Mahmud’s fourth invasion of Mandalgarh:
In the fall of 1456, Rana Kumbha was occupied against Nagaur (which he annexed), Gujarat (whom he defeated) and Marwar (who he stabilized). Mahmoud Khalji took this time to launch another invasion of Mandalgarh. He entered Mewar on Nov 26 1456 and laid waste to the county. Upon arriving at Mandalgarh, he began surveying the fort and making preparations. During this time, the Mewaris sallied out and engaged with Mahmud’s forces, but achieved no results. The siege continued and neither side could gain any advantage (with the Muslims beginning to lose hope) until Mahmud attacked the water reservoir which forced the Mewaris to surrender. A number of the soldiers fell fighting, while some of them surrendered. He erected a Mosque to commemorate his victory.

RESULT: Malwa Victory, Mandalgarh annexed

Mahmud’s 1467 expediton against Mewar:
Mahmud Khalji entered Mewar for the last time in his reign to battle with Kumbha. He marched towards the Fort of Jawar, where he plundered a temple, and then Khumbner, where he was met by Rana Kumbha, whose forces inflicted heavy losses on the Malwa army. The Muslims then marched towards Chittor, where there defeated and exhausted army chose to return to Malwa.

RESULT: Invasion Repelled, Mewar Victory

FINAL SCORE:

Mewar:
5

Malwa: 1
This makes me feel extremely proud to be Rajput 🇮🇳
 

Angel of War

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Thanks for the informative post. It's very difficult to find battles fought by Hindu kings. No serious material, tactics used were never taught as part of Indian history. I found so much material about Roman battles since start of Roman republic, but not so much about Indian battles.
Our own history books have failed to educate our youth about the heroic deeds of all Hindus who fought for Swaraj . Just imagine In class 8 history book They've got a whole chapter on Aurangzeb but not even a single mention of Shivaji or Maharana Pratap anywhere
 

itsme

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Just wondering, in the last 500-1000 yrs, did any military of native Indian kingdoms have technological edge against invading foreign adversaries?

Its sad not much has changed in the 21st century, its the same even now. Incompetent army top brass, babus, politicians, scientists and even the people.
 

Anupu

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Just wondering, in the last 500-1000 yrs, did any military of native Indian kingdoms have technological edge against invading foreign adversaries?

Its sad not much has changed in the 21st century, its the same even now. Incompetent army top brass, babus, politicians, scientists and even the people.
Mughal army peaked under Akbar and Jahangir, Post that there was nothing but technological decline. Marathas tried to modernise their military but they were able to catch up in somethings but the biggest problem they faced was the lack of a sense of nationhood most Indians felt at that time. British described most Indians as having no concept of nationhood and troops were willing to fight for whoever was willing to pay the most.
 

ezsasa

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Just wondering, in the last 500-1000 yrs, did any military of native Indian kingdoms have technological edge against invading foreign adversaries?

Its sad not much has changed in the 21st century, its the same even now. Incompetent army top brass, babus, politicians, scientists and even the people.
even if there was a technological edge/innovation from the subcontinent, it would be very difficult to figure out the origins from the way modern history is written. it would a story similar to Al Berunis numerals, the guy himself says in foreword of his book where his knowledge came from, and yet modern historians paint him as the original inventor.

good time to ponder on your question is may be a decade later, hopefully more research is done on history of sub continent from an Indian point of view.
 
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Ugra Bhairav

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Just wondering, in the last 500-1000 yrs, did any military of native Indian kingdoms have technological edge against invading foreign adversaries?

Its sad not much has changed in the 21st century, its the same even now. Incompetent army top brass, babus, politicians, scientists and even the people.
It is not about the Weapons in history but the "Political System" in India.

The Wars in India between "Native Kings"were fought for "Political Power Grabbing" and not for THREAT of decimation of "National-Political-Ethnic-Identity" hence were immune to total grab of power. Hence Fighting Lot never developed sense of Nationality. For them Raja was a Raja. One day they were fighting One Raja and other Day for Another Raja.

Hence it was case of "Confused Loyalty of State & Nation". Because we forget RITUAL of "ASHWAMEDH YANGNA".

However whenever India Acted like "Civilization State" and cohesive Power we decisively defeated the Attackers.

Examples :

1) Defeat of Greeks headed by Alexander and followed by "Maurya Dynasty".

2) Defeat of Red-Huns under Samudra Gupta - "Gupta Dynasty".

3) Again Defeat of Red-Huns "Alchon MihirKula" under Great Yasodharman of Aulikara Dynasty.

4) Defeat of "Ghznavi General Salar Masud" by CONFEDERATION OF INDIAN KINGS under Great King Suhaldev in 1034 AD who so decisively defeated that no NO MUSLIM attack happened in India for full 140 Years untill Mohammad Ghori in 1175AD.

Hence it was more to do with the confused Identity then technology of the Weapons. And it persisted till British Rule.

And India Needs to be made into a RELIGO-CULTURAL CIVILIZATION-NATION instead of "Chooran" of "Ganga-Jamnai Tahzeeb" or "Sickular State" or "A person living in India is culturally a HINDU" or Chooran of "VASUDHEV KUTUMBAKAM".
 

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