Warriors of Gujarat

[Simple_Guy]

During World War II, about 1000 Polish children found refuge in Nawanagar, Gujarat. The benefactor was Jam Saheb Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja, the Maharaja of Jamnagar, an erstwhile princely state in the Kathiawad peninsula of Gujarat. 'Little Poland in India' is a 52 minute documentary, directed and scripted by Anu Radha.The film is co-produced by Governments of India and Poland with the participation of Government of Gujarat, Doordarshan and Polish TV organizations. The success led the director, Anu Radha being awarded Bene Merito by the Polish Government.

The Jam Saheb took personal risks to make arrangements for homeless orphan Polish children when the world was at war and India was struggling for its independence. He built a camp for them in Balachadi beside his summer palace, 25 kms from Jamnagar. The children were made to feel at home.

At Balachadi camp, now stands Sainik Schoo, Balachadi. Jamsaheb used to say, 'Do not consider yourself orphans any more, you are now Nawanagaris and I am Bapu, father of all the people of Nawanagar, so also yours.' Due to these reasons The Good Maharaja Square, 'Dobrego Haharadzy' to nourish Jam Saheb's memory. There is also a Jam Saheb School running in Warsaw.

When Poland came to India - Free Press Journal

 

[Simple_Guy]

Air Force honours brave Kutch women for 1971 war - The Times of India

When the residents of Madhapar village heard about the IAF's requirement, over 300 of them, mostly women came forward as a glittering example of patriotism and selflessness. The villagers worked relentlessly, despite continued attacks on the runway by Pakistan aircraft and helped make it operational for the IAF to undertake offensive operations against the enemy, an official release said.

 

[Simple_Guy]

Gujarat through stamps - The Times of India

out of 366 princely states of Gujarat, seven - Idar, Jasdan, Morvi, Nawanagar (Jamnagar), Rajpipla, Sorath (Junagadh) and Wadhwan - had issued postal stamps between 1864 and 1948. Likewise, four states - Morvi, Rajkot, Rajpipla and Sorath - issued postal stationary such as covers and post cards.

Soon after independence, the state saw formation of United States of Saurashtra. The short-lived entity is known as a curious case in philately as even after independence in 1947, the postal system of the state continued functioning till March 30, 1950 with own stamps and stationary due to handover issues.

Asiatic Lion, Great Indian Bustard, two Gujarati cow breeds - Kankreji and Gir, Kathiawari Horse, Black Buck, Kite Festival, Rathwa painting, Shatrunjay temples, Somnath temple, Harappan seal, Patola from Patan, bronze artifact from Baroda Museum, embroidery from Kutch and an elephant statue from Kutch museum have also found place on the postal stamps.

 

[Simple_Guy]

The Hindu Chieftain of Sodha Rajputs in Sindh, late Rana Chandra Singhji, was honored by Kutch District Rajput Samaj in Chandranagar village of Nakhatrana taluka of Kutch district in Gujarat. The village is named as Chandranagar to mark respect to late Rana Chandra Singhji if Amarkot(Umerkot now). A statue of Chandra Singhji and a village gate of Chandranagar named after him were inaugurated by his successor son Rana Hameer Singhji.

In 1990 he left PPP and formed formed his own political party, the Pakistan Hindu Party. He himself designed for his party a saffron flag bearing two ancient logos – Om and Trishool. He served as Minister for Agriculture and Revenue, and was the Chairman of National Commission of Minorities. He won elections as an Independent candidate for a continuous 53 years – a considerable achievement for a minority Hindu.

Late Rana Chandra Singhji's wife is Rani Sahiba Subhdra, daughter of Rawat Tej Singh of Rawatsar in Bikaner.

Gujarat's Kutch district has good amount of population of Sodha Rajput refugees who came from Pakistan's Sindh area and settled in India's Gujarat after 1971 war. Sodha Rajputs have given name to their village in Nakhatrana taluka as 'Chandranagar' after Rana Chandra Singhji.

Rana Hameer Singhji said there are only Sodha Rajputs left in Pakistan now in Rajput branch of Hinduism, and therefore wedding in Rajputs is becoming difficult day by day. "There should be therefore easier visa process between the two countries, so that Indian Rajputs can mix up easily with Pakistan based Sodha Rajputs socially," he added.

Pakistan’s late Hindu Chieftain’s statue unveiled in Kutch | DeshGujarat

 

[Tamil Soldier]

The Rajputs put up a stiff resistance to the initial hordes of Islamic expansionism for 500 years, props to them. It's a shame how they eventually succumbed to the domination of the Mughals and provided the base of their military power....

 

[Simple_Guy]

In Patel's theatre of command | The Asian Age

Later I got to know what had transpired between Patel and Cariappa that afternoon. The Army Chief had advised him not to open a second front in Hyderabad as the Army was fully engaged in Kashmir. The Nizam had 40,000 well-trained troops. A professionally competent Turkish major-general, Syed Ahmed El Edroos, was the Chief of the Hyderabad Army. Besides, there was a ragtag Razakar militia of over 50,000 armed with an assortment of rifles, shotguns, swords and spears. Syed Qasim Razvi was the leader of this militia and had openly declared that he would have the Nizam's green Asaf Jahi flag fluttering over Red Fort in Delhi.

Military operations in Hyderabad could drag on for long. Foreign major powers, including Islamic states, may politically or otherwise intervene in operations in Hyderabad was another factor. Perhaps the Sardar felt that the military advice being given to him was tainted and more in British than Indian interests. At that time General Sir Francis Robert Roy Bucher was the Chief of the Indian Army. Lord Mountbatten was the Governor-General and Lt. Gen. Sir Archibald Edward Nye was the British high commissioner at Delhi. He had been vice-chief of the British Imperial General Staff during the Second World War and was known to be a confidant of Winston Churchill.

The Sardar wanted military advice from Indian generals. The Southern Army Commander, Lt. Gen. Rajendrasinhji Jadeja, assured him that with the resources available to him he could defeat the Hyderabad Army in a short and swift military operation. Western Army Commander Lt. Gen. Cariappa assured him that in case Pakistan invaded Kashmir, Punjab and Northern Rajasthan, he would beat back Pakistan with the resources available to him without asking for any reinforcement.

 

[Simple_Guy]

Jadeja Rajputs have been prominent among the Rajputs of Gujarat.

Bharatiya Sanskriti: Jam Satta I - The Hero of Medieval Gujarat by Sujay Chatterjee

He was called " Paschim Bharat No Badshah" ( Emperor of Western Bharat ) by local Gujarati people and poets of Nawanagar, because he defeated Mughal Emperor Akbar several times. This was the Hindu king of Medieval Gujarat named Jam Satta who belonged to the ruling Jadeja Rajput family of Nawanagar. The best indigenous sources for his history are the books Yadu-vansh Prakash by Kavi Mavdanji Ratnu, 'Sarashtra no itihas' by Sambhu Prasad Desai, Jadeja Vansh ane vasundhara. by Abhesang Barot.
After the celebrated king Jam Raval, Jam Bibhaji became king of Nawanagar, and after him, Satta I ascended the throne. Satta was a great warrior and military strategist. He harassed the Mughal Army so much that Akbar had to write in Akbarnama- " Satta was very powerful and notorious. He had a army of 30,000"..Indeed, it was the two rebellious regions in opposite directions touching seashores, Bengal and Gujarat, that gave stiff resistance to Akbar. The Baro Bhuyans of Bengal and the Rajput kings of Gujarat never accepted the Mughal suzerainty. The Mughal Army could not defeat them totally until the time of Jahangir.

However. below are the major battles , fought between Jam Satta and the Mughal Army--

(1) In the battle of Junagadh, near 'Majevadi' village ground in Vikram Sambat 1633, Jam Sattaji defeated Akbar's army and chased Muzaffar shah III who was also defeated in a battle with the Mughal Army. In this battle, about 3,335 horses and 52 elephants of Moghul Army were captured by Jam Satta's Commander in Chief. Bhanji Dal. After this famous battle, Jam Satta I was given the title of " Paschim Bharat No Badshah" by local people and local poets.

(2) After this defeat, Akbar attacked Jam Satta in V.S. 1640 again near 'Tamachan' village, ( At present near Und irrigation dam) and again Akbar's army was badly defeated..The furious Akbar dismssed the Subedar of Ahmedabad.

(3) Third time Nawanagar was attacked by a huge Mughal Army of 90,000 soldiers. In this famous battle 'Bhucharmori',near Dhrol, Jam Satta was defeated for the first time. But Akbar had to compromise with this famous king Jam Satta I just one and half year later and again Jam Satta became the king of Nawanagar.

Even in later times the Jadeja Rajputs battled the Mughals. Nawanagar was attacked in 1635 by Shah Jahan's subahdar Azam Khan, but the Rajputs defeated the Mughals. Again in 1662 the Mughals invaded and captured Nawanagar, this time renaming it Islam-nagar. However the Jadeja Rajputs, with aid from their kinsmen of Kutch, fought a guerrilla war for five years harassing and bleeding the Mughals till they surrendered Nawanagar in 1667.

 

[Libertarian]

Martial Dances of Gujarat

Rajputs used to perform special prayers to the family deity (kul devi) before leaving for the battlefield. Jadejas of Kutch used to perform a type of sword dance where the charan sings of bravery and glory of the ancestors and motivates the warriors as the brahmin blesses the battlefield-bound youth.

Porbandar's Maher (Mer) community also does a very famous sword dance. Mers are a virile backward community which migrated to Saurashtra with Jethwa Rajputs.

The Dubla tribals also perform martial dances.

Talwar Raas:

 

[Simple_Guy]

Chavada Rajputs of Saurashtra and Gurjara

It is interesting to note that the oldest inscriptions found in the small Gurjara region (southwest Rajasthan) covering Jalor, Bhinmal, and Mt. Abu, do not belong to the Pratihara Rajputs. An inscription of 625 CE states that Rajilla and his father Vajrabhata Satyasraya were rulers of Vasantgarh, and they paid tribute to the monarch Varmlata who reigned over Bhinmal, Chandravati and Mount Abu. Varmlata belonged to the proto-Rajput Chapotkata clan, Chapa for short, whose descendants are the Chavada Rajputs found in Gujarat.

The Jain text Nisithachurni, dated to 676 CE, states that the ruler of Bhinmal at that time was well known by the epithet Vyaghmurkh, with a mouth like a roaring tiger (sanskrit vyaghra). The Brahma Sapta Siddhanta, written in 628 CE also mentions king Vyaghramukha as reigning over Bhinmal, and states that he belonged to the Chapavamsa. Whether the Chavada Rajputs originated in Gurjara or in neighboring Kutch and Saurashtra is not clear, but some of their clan branches were linked as feudatories of the Maitrakas of Vallabhi and the Guhilputras of Mewar.

 

[Virendra]

Between BrahmaGupta and Nisithachurni - Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsang visited Bhinmal in 641 A. D. and said "The king is of the Kshatriya caste. He is just twenty years old, He is distinguished for wisdom and he is courageous. He is a deep believer in the law of Buddha and highly honours men of distinguished ability." He named this kingdom ku-che-lo (i.e. Gurjara), with its capital at pi-lo-mo (i.e. Bhinmal).

Per the chronology shown in Jodhpur inscription vis a vis Gwalior inscription (both 10th century A.D.), few facts are known about Pratiharas:
1. That Mandor line of Pratiharas was genealogically senior to all other lines (Gwalior etc).
2. Pratiharas' progenitor was named Harichandra and was called a brahmin. Harichandra conquered Mandor fort in 6th century. He married two women, one brahmin, other kshatriya.
3. Brahmin wife's progeny were Pratihara brahmins. The Kshatriya wife named Bhadra was made the queen. Her sons became 'drinkers of wine' and this section later became Pratihara Kings i.e. Pratihara rajputs.

My opinion is that Pratiharas may have started expansion from Mandor and later displaced Chapavamsis from core Gurjaratra (Jalor, Bhinmal, and Mt. Abu) somewhere in the 7th century as later in 8th century we have Pratiharas roaming (everywhere around core Gurjaratra) between Mandor, Gwalior, Navasari and, Kannauj

Regards,
Virendra

 

[Simple_Guy]

My opinion is that Pratiharas may have started expansion from Mandor and later displaced Chapavamsis from core Gurjaratra (Jalor, Bhinmal, and Mt. Abu) somewhere in the 7th century as later in 8th century we have Pratiharas roaming (everywhere around core Gurjaratra) between Mandor, Gwalior, Navasari and, Kannauj.

Another interesting factoid is that both the Chavada and Pratihara Rajputs have the same kuldevi: Chamunda Mata.

The oldest temple to her in that region is Sundha Mata Temple. Unfortunately the earliest inscription in that dates back to the Chahamans who came later.

 

[Simple_Guy]

Nothing can be learned from the temples of the Mandor Pratiharas, since this city was conquered by the Muslim invaders and the temples destroyed.

Then the Rathores liberated Mandore. In 1460 Rao Jodha carried the murti of Chamunda Mata from Mandore to his new capital Jodhpur (terragalleria photo):

The Chamunda Mataji Temple in Jodhpur, Rajasthan is situated in the southern end of the Mehrangarh Fort. Thus the kuldevi of the Pratihara Rajputs became the isht devi of the Rathore Rajputs.

 

[Simple_Guy]

This intricately carved gate and crumbling wall is all that remains of the ancient fort of Jhinjhwada, built by the Solanki Rajput rulers at the entrance to the Rann of Kutch. Beyond this lies the 5,000 square kilometres of flat terrain under blue skies.

Rann Riders

 

[Simple_Guy]

Rath yatra or chariot festival is celebrated by Hindus on the second day of Sukla Paksha (waxing cycle of moon) in the month of Ashadh. The origins of this festival are traced to events in the life of Bhagwaan Sri Krishna (Jagannath).

The largest Jagannath Rath Yatra is the one held at Puri in Orissa.

Gujarat celebrates the second largest Jagannath Rath Yatra

Rajasthan holds the third largest Jagannath Rath Yatra at Udaipur

 

[Simple_Guy]

Marine trade in Saurashtra from ancient times

Madhukar Keshav Dhavalikar, a veteran archaeologist, aid there are 16,000 sites of Indus valley civilization in India and 400 in Pakistan. There's debate going on that instead of Indus valley civilization, it should be actually called Saraswati civilization.

He said the areas of Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Sindh where this civilization was located are even today known for their acumen in trade and commerce (same is mentioned about Gujarat-Rajasthan in Kuvalayamala Kaha). Same was the scenario in the past during Indus valley civilization days. And Gujarat in particular was into export of luxury items to Mesopotamia including shells, beads and ivory. Kautilya had said that best ivory was found in Saurashtra. Dwarka was known for shells. Saurashtra was known as Kunti Saurashtra. There were industrial estates on this land. Nageshwar in Saurasthra was into shell cutting. There were only two seal manufacturing units at that time and one of them was in Lothal. Prosperity of Indus valley civilization was largely due to marine trade in Saurashtra region.

Dr Dhavlikar showed a inscription of crows in a boat discovered from Mohenjo Daro. He said there's a Jataka story that when people go from one country to other country across sea, they keep crow with them, that's because crow has tendency to fly back to its place of origin when released. Thus, the sailors on their return journey used to free the crow when they wanted to inquire about the right direction to native place. The sailors would follow the direction of crow flight.

Some people abroad said that the discovered structure at Lothal was not a dock yard but a tank for watering vegetable garden. It is only we Indians who tolerate such absurd claims. 800 ft long, 150 ft wide bricks structure was actually a dockyard, and we should proudly say that. Why don't we openly say that yes it was a dockyard — the world's oldest dockyard discovered.

 

[Sykox]

They are not gujarati... those were brave Kachhi warriors

 

[Chimaji Appa]

Read the political history of South India from c.1350-1550. There was near-constant warfare between Vijayanagar (another Kannadiga empire) and the Muslim states in the Deccan, along with all their consorted allies. Most of these wars were won by Vijayanagar.

It is a myth that South India was somehow "saved" because North India bore the brunt of the warfare. South India was saved because, under Vijayanagar and even under the preceding dynasties, it was much more militarized and capable of conducting war. Vijayanagar is often called an "Indian war-state" for a reason; its political, economic, and social systems were all geared towards one aim, namely the conduct of war.

In the end, it would be another Deccani power, the Marathas, who would supplant Muslim power in North India.

1. The Marathas did not "supplant Muslim power in North". They did nothing of this sort. It were various Rajput rulers in Rajputana, Bundelkhand, Garhwal and the Jaats of Haryana who would do this. Peshwas even allied with the Mughal subedars at one point to launch raids into Rajasthan.
2. Mewar also flourished while Vijayanagar did, and its achievements are certainly much more than that of Vijaynagar. Mewar was surrounded by 4 great sultanates. Gujarat and Malwa are no less than the Bahmanids. This is evident from the Gujarat Sultanate could easily annex Thane in Maharstra or Mahmud Khalji II of Malwa could nearly threaten the very existence of the Bahmanids. The same armies of these Sultanates were being defeated on a routinely basis by Mewar, who fought with 4 different enemies at one point (Nagaur, Marwar, Gujarat, and Malwa). Under Sanga, Mewar would successfully end muslim rule in Malwa following the Battle of Gagron, annexing Chanderi. He would go on to rout numerically superior armies in Dholpur and Khatoli. Vijayangar, on the other hand, failed to kick muslim rule out of Upper Deccan but instead got destroyed by them.
3. Agreed that the north did not save muslim invasions from the south.

 

[Jay99]

Not many people know that Gujarat had the highest number of Erstwhile princely states in India. Mostly Rajputs & Kathi's . Common Rajput Clans across Gujarat are

Jhala
Parmar(sodha)
jadeja
Chudasama
Gohil
Sarvaiya
Vala

If anyone is interested in further research here's the webiste

http://www.indianrajputs.com/princelystates.php

 

[BangaliBabu]

Not many people know that Gujarat had the highest number of Erstwhile princely states in India. Mostly Rajputs & Kathi's . Common Rajput Clans across Gujarat are

Jhala
Parmar(sodha)
jadeja
Chudasama
Gohil
Sarvaiya
Vala

If anyone is interested in further research here's the webiste

http://www.indianrajputs.com/princelystates.php

Nowadays it's typical baniyas there. Wonder how so much did the Jain Dharma eat up their brains that they resorted to unbelievable levels of non-violence for decades (if not centuries) to come??!!! For eg., Gandhi.

 

[MIDKNIGHT FENERIR-00]

The Hindu Chieftain of Sodha Rajputs in Sindh, late Rana Chandra Singhji, was honored by Kutch District Rajput Samaj in Chandranagar village of Nakhatrana taluka of Kutch district in Gujarat. The village is named as Chandranagar to mark respect to late Rana Chandra Singhji if Amarkot(Umerkot now). A statue of Chandra Singhji and a village gate of Chandranagar named after him were inaugurated by his successor son Rana Hameer Singhji.

In 1990 he left PPP and formed formed his own political party, the Pakistan Hindu Party. He himself designed for his party a saffron flag bearing two ancient logos – Om and Trishool. He served as Minister for Agriculture and Revenue, and was the Chairman of National Commission of Minorities. He won elections as an Independent candidate for a continuous 53 years – a considerable achievement for a minority Hindu.

Late Rana Chandra Singhji's wife is Rani Sahiba Subhdra, daughter of Rawat Tej Singh of Rawatsar in Bikaner.

Gujarat's Kutch district has good amount of population of Sodha Rajput refugees who came from Pakistan's Sindh area and settled in India's Gujarat after 1971 war. Sodha Rajputs have given name to their village in Nakhatrana taluka as 'Chandranagar' after Rana Chandra Singhji.

Rana Hameer Singhji said there are only Sodha Rajputs left in Pakistan now in Rajput branch of Hinduism, and therefore wedding in Rajputs is becoming difficult day by day. "There should be therefore easier visa process between the two countries, so that Indian Rajputs can mix up easily with Pakistan based Sodha Rajputs socially," he added.

Pakistan’s late Hindu Chieftain’s statue unveiled in Kutch | DeshGujarat

He is part of the Hindu Prince’s Family that sold Hindu Majority Amarkot and Tharparkar District in Sindh to the Pakis during partition?