Battle of Umberkhind took place on 3 February 1661 in the mountain range of Sahyadri near the city of
Khopoli
Khopoli (also known as Campoolie) is an industrial city in the Khalapur taluka of Raigad district, in the Indian state of Maharashtra, at the base of the Sahyadri mountains. Patalganga River, which is the tailrace channel of the Tata Hydroel ...
,
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
, India. The battle was fought between the
Maratha
The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...
army under
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adilsh ...
and General Kartalab Khan of the
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
. The Marathas defeated the Mughal forces.
This battle was a great example of guerrilla warfare. On the orders of
Aurangzeb
Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
,
Shahista Khan sent Kartalab Khan and
Rai Bagan to attack
Rajgad Fort
Rajgad (literal meaning ''Ruling Fort'') is a Hill region fort situated in the Pune district of Maharashtra, India. Formerly known as ''Murumdev'', the fort was the first capital of the Maratha Empire under the rule of Chhatrapati Shivaji for ...
.
Shivaji
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...
's men encountered them in a forest in the mountain hills, which was called the Umberkhind.
Battle
After Aurangzeb's accession to the throne in 1659, he sent
Shahista Khan as a viceroy of the Deccan with a large Mughal Army to enforce the treaty, which Mughals had signed with the Adilshahi of Bijapur. However, this territory was also fiercely contested by the Maratha ruler,
Shivaji
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...
who had acquired a huge reputation after his killing of a Adilshahi general,
Afzal Khan, in 1659. In January 1660,
Shahista Khan arrived at
Aurangabad
Aurangabad ( is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a hilly upland terrain in the Deccan Traps, Aurangabad is th ...
and quickly advanced, seizing
Pune
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
area, the centre of Shivaji's realm. He also captured the fort of
Chakan and
Kalyan
Kalyan (Pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, əljaːɳ is a city on the banks of Ulhas River in Thane district of Maharashtra state in Konkan division. It is governed by Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation. Kalyan is a subdivision (Taluka) ...
and north
Konkan
The Konkan ( kok, कोंकण) or Kokan () is a stretch of land by the western coast of India, running from Damaon in the north to Karwar in the south; with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Deccan plateau in the east. The hinterland ...
after heavy fighting with the Marathas. The Marathas were banned from entering into the city of Pune.
Kartalab Khan and
Rai Bagan were told to assist Shahista Khan in his campaign. Shahista Khan sent both Kartalab Khan and
Rai Bagan to capture Rajgad Fort. So they went on their way with 20,000 soldiers for each of them. Shivaji wanted Kartalab Khan and the famous ''Rai Bagan (Royal Tigress),'' the wife of Deshmukh of
Mahur Sarkar of
Berar Subah
The Berar Subah was one of the Subahs (imperial first-level provinces) of the Mughal Empire, the first to be added to the original twelve, in Dakhin (Deccan, central India) from 1596 to 1724. It bordered Golconda, Ahmandagar (both conquered 1 ...
''Raje Udaram'', to enter Umberkhind, so that they become easy prey to his preplanned guerilla technique. When the Mughals entered Umberkhind, a 15 miles passage, Shivaji's men started blowing horns. The whole Mughal army got stunned. Then the Marathas started attacking the Mughal Army with a barrage of arrows. Kartalab Khan and
Rai Bagan along with the other Mughal soldiers tried to retaliate in emergency, but the forest was so dense and the Maratha Army was so quick and prepared, that the Mughals could not even see the enemy. The situation was such that Mughal soldiers were being killed by arrows and swords, without even, seeing where the enemy was, from where the blow is coming and without knowing where to shoot. A large number of the Mughal soldiers died in this way.
''
Rai Bagan'' then advised Kartalab Khan, that he should surrender himself to
Shivaji
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...
and should ask for mercy. She said, "Shivaji is a lion and you have made a huge mistake by putting the whole army into the lion's jaw. You should not have chosen this path to attack Shivaji. Now, to save these dying soldiers, you should surrender yourself to
Shivaji
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...
. Unlike Mughals, Shivaji shows amnesty for those who surrender."
The battle lasted for an hour or two. And then Kartalab Khan on advise of ''
Rai Bagan'', sent the soldiers with a white flag for truce. They shouted “truce, truce!” and within a minute got encircled by Shivaji's men. Then on the condition of paying a large ransom and surrendering all their arms and clothes, Kartalab Khan was allowed to go back to his main Mughal camp.
Shivaji
Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...
then stationed his renowned general
Netaji Palkar
Netaji Palkar (1620–1681) was a ''Sardar Senapati'' or ''Sarnaubat'' ( Commander-in-Chief) under Chhatrapati Shivaji, founder of the Maratha empire.
Family history
Netaji Palkar was born in a small village, called Chouk in Khalapur, Maharash ...
in Umberkhind to keep a check on the Mughals, if they come back.
References
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1661 in India
Umberkhind 1661
Umberkhind
Shivaji