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Durgadas Rathore (13 August 1638 – 22 November 1718) was the
Rathore The Rathore is a Rajput clan found in Northern India. Subclans Jodhana, Vadhel, Jaitawat, Kumpawat, Champawat, Meratiya, Udawat, Karamsot etc. are the branches or subclans of Rathore Rajputs. Coverage This article discusses the "Kanauji ...
Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...
General of Kingdom of Marwar. He is credited with having preserved the rule of the
Rathore dynasty The Rathore or Rathor is an Indian Rajput dynasty belonging to the clan that has historically ruled over parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Subclans Jodhana, Vadhel, Jaitawat, Kumpawat, Champawat, Meratiya, Uda ...
over
Marwar Marwar (also called Jodhpur region) is a region of western Rajasthan state in North Western India. It lies partly in the Thar Desert. The word 'maru' is Sanskrit for desert. In Rajasthani languages, "wad" means a particular area. English tra ...
, India, following the death of Maharaja
Jaswant Singh Major Jaswant Singh (; 3 January 193827 September 2020) was an officer of the Indian Army and an Indian Cabinet Minister. He was one of the founding members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and was one of India's longest serving parliamen ...
in the 17th century. In doing so he had to defy
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 ...
, a Mughal emperor. He commanded the Rathore forces during the
Rajput War (1679–1707) Described variously as the Rajput war by Jadunath Sarkar, Rathore war of independence by V. S. Bhargava and Rathore rebellion by M. Athar Ali, the conflict between Rajputs of Marwar and the Mughals started after the death of Jaswant Singh of ...
and played a major role in the
Rajput Rebellion (1708–1710) The Rajput rebellion began in 1708, due to the harsh treatment of the Rajput Rajas by the Mughal emperor. It erupted into a two-year rebellion that forced the Mughal emperor to sue for peace, give them gifts, and restore the Rajput holdings wh ...
which became one of the main reason of decline of
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 ...
. He was elected as the leader of the revolt along with Raja
Jai Singh II Jai Singh II (3 November 1681 – 21 September 1743) popularly known as Sawai Jai Singh was the 29th Kachwaha Rajput ruler of the Jaipur State, Kingdom of Amber, who later founded the fortified city of Jaipur and made it his capital. He was born ...
of Jaipur. He won a number of victories against the Mughals and forced many Mughal officers to pay tribute to him in the form of
chauth Chauth (from Sanskrit, meaning ''one fourth'') was a regular tax or tribute imposed from the early 18th century by the Maratha Empire in the Indian subcontinent. It was an annual tax nominally levied at 25% on revenue or produce, hence the name, ...
.


Early life

Durgadas was the son of Askaran Rathore, a
Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...
minister of
Jaswant Singh Major Jaswant Singh (; 3 January 193827 September 2020) was an officer of the Indian Army and an Indian Cabinet Minister. He was one of the founding members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and was one of India's longest serving parliamen ...
, the ruler of
Marwar Marwar (also called Jodhpur region) is a region of western Rajasthan state in North Western India. It lies partly in the Thar Desert. The word 'maru' is Sanskrit for desert. In Rajasthani languages, "wad" means a particular area. English tra ...
. He was a distant relative of the royal family, being a descendant of Karana, a son of Rao
Ranmal Rao Ranmal (1392 – October 1438), also called Ran Mal or Ridmal, was the Rathore ruler of Marwar (1428 to 1438). A notable expansionist and skilled warrior, Ranmal is also noteworthy for having twice served as regent of the kingdom of Mewar u ...
.


Support for Ajit Singh

Jaswant Singh was campaigning in Afghanistan when he died in December 1678, leaving no heir. Aurangzeb took the opportunity to intervene by imposing Muslim rule over Marwar. Soon after Jaswant Singh's death two of his ranis (queens) each gave birth to male children. One of these sons died soon after his birth, leaving the other – Ajit Singh – as sole heir. This news reached Aurangzeb by February 1679 but he chose not to recognise the child as the legitimate heir. He imposed jizya, a tax on non-Muslims, and soon after sold the kingdom to another chieftain, Indra Singh. Aurangzeb had moved his base from
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
to
Ajmer Ajmer is one of the major and oldest cities in the Indian state of Rajasthan and the centre of the eponymous Ajmer District. It is located at the centre of Rajasthan. It is also known as heart of Rajasthan. The city was established as "''Aj ...
to oversee the subjugation but in April 1679 returned to his capital, leaving administrative and military support in Marwar for the unpopular new ruler. Prominent grandees of Marwar, including Durgadas& Rajguru Akheraj Singh, went to Delhi to plead the recognition of Ajit Singh as heir. Aurangzeb refused their request, although he did offer to bestow a title and a grant when the child attained the age of majority. Aurangzeb required that the child be raised in the imperial
harem Harem (Persian: حرمسرا ''haramsarā'', ar, حَرِيمٌ ''ḥarīm'', "a sacred inviolable place; harem; female members of the family") refers to domestic spaces that are reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A hare ...
and that the ranis live there also. According to one contemporary source, Aurangzeb also offered to give Ajit Singh the throne of Jodhpur in the future if it was agreed that the child was raised in the Muslim faith. The attitude of Aurangzeb was not acceptable to the Rathore delegation, who resolved upon rescuing Ajit Singh and the ranis from Delhi. They were aware that many of them were likely to die in the process and this proved to be the case: as they retreated from the city on 25 June 1679 they were pursued by Mughal guards and fought several desperate and deadly rearguard actions in order to protect Durgadas, who had the ranis and child with him. The pursuit continued till the evening, when the Mughals finally tired. The infant Ajit Singh was taken to safety in Balunda, where the wife of one of the delegation kept the child for almost a year. Later, he was moved to the safety of the
Aravalli Hills The Aravalli Range (also spelled ''Aravali'') is a mountain range in Northern-Western India, running approximately in a south-west direction, starting near Delhi, passing through southern Haryana, Rajasthan, and ending in Ahmedabad Gujarat. ...
near Abu Sirohi, a remote town on the southern fringes of Marwar. There Ajit Singh grew up in anonymity.


Opposition to the Mughals

Aurangzeb reacted to these events by deposing the incompetent puppet ruler of Marwar, Indra Singh, and placing it under direct Mughal rule. His forces moved in to occupy the region and "anarchy and slaughter were let loose on the doomed state; all the great towns in the plain were pillaged; the temples were thrown down." He also substituted the son of a milkman for Ajit Singh, raised the child as if he was the rightful heir to Jaswant Singh and denounced the real heir as an imposter. During the period that followed, when the Mughals controlled Marwar, Durgadas and Akheraj were among those who carried out a relentless struggle against the occupying forces. The capabilities of the Mughal forces were over-extended when Aurangzeb decided to attempt the over-running of
Mewar Mewar or Mewad is a region in the south-central part of Rajasthan state of India. It includes the present-day districts of Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Pratapgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Pirawa Tehsil of Jhalawar District of Rajasthan, Neemuch and Man ...
also, and this provided opportunities for Rajputs of various communities, including the Rathores and the Sisodias, to use guerrilla tactics. The Rajput successes were, however, limited in Marwar: the campaign in Mewar was abandoned by the Mughals but Marwar remained in a state of war for nearly three decades. The cause of the Mughal withdrawal from Mewar had been a rebellion by a son of Aurangzeb,
Akbar Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...
, who had proved to be incompetent when placed in charge of various forces in Mewar and Marwar. He eventually rebelled against his father and allied himself with the Rajputs. In June 1681 Durgadas assisted Akbar as the rebellion collapsed in disarray, aiding his flight to the court of the recently installed
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 ...
king
Sambhaji Sambhaji Bhosale (14 May 1657 – 11 March 1689) was the second Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire, ruling from 1681 to 1689. He was the eldest son of Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Empire. Sambhaji's rule was largely shaped by the ongoing ...
. The rebellion diverted resources and Aurangzeb was forced to make peace in Mewar when on the cusp of winning his campaign. Durgadas was absent from Marwar during the period 1681–1687, during which time he was in the
Deccan The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by the ...
. He returned to join with the young Ajit Singh, who now came out of hiding, in taking command of Rathore forces opposing Aurangzeb. There was a change from the earlier guerrilla tactics to a more direct opposition but still they were unable to wrest control of Marwar from the Mughals, although they caused much disruption. Akbar, who was to die in exile in 1704, had left his children in the custody of the Rathores following his failed rebellion. Aurangzeb had become anxious to have them with him and negotiated with Durgadas to this end. He gained custody of his granddaughter in 1694 and of his grandson in 1698. Aurangzeb was particularly grateful to find that Durgadas had arranged for his granddaughter to be schooled in the Muslim faith but he did not restore Marwar to Rathore rule; the agreement was limited to him pardoning and giving the lesser title of
jagir A jagir ( fa, , translit=Jāgir), also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar (Zamindar) system. It developed during the Islamic rule era of the Indian subcontinent, start ...
to Ajit Singh and appointing Durgadas as a commandant in charge of an imperial force of 3000 men in
Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
. Despite the outcome of the negotiations, the relationship between Aurangzeb on the one hand and Ajit Singh and Durgadas on the other remained tense. They viewed each other with mutual suspicion and, in 1702, Aurangzeb ordered the governor of Gujarat to neutralise Durgadas by either arrest or murder. Durgadas became aware of this and fled to Marwar, where he tried to raise a rebel group once more. Despite his reputation and the veneration in which he was held by his countrymen, he was not particularly successful in doing so: they were tired and poorly funded after so many years of war, and the now-adult Ajit Singh had become independent of mind and jealous of the reputation and influence possessed by Durgadas. Durgadas took advantage of the disturbances following the death of Aurangzeb in 1707 to seize Jodhpur and eventually evict the occupying Mughal force. Ajit Singh was proclaimed Maharaja of Jodhpur and went on to rebuild all the temples that had been desecrated by the occupying Muslims.


Death

Durgadas after completing his duties successfully and fulfilled the promise which he had given to Jaswant Singh, left Jodhpur and live in Sadri,
Udaipur Udaipur () (ISO 15919: ''Udayapura''), historically named as Udayapura, is a city and municipal corporation in Udaipur district of the state of Rajasthan, India. It is the administrative headquarter of Udaipur district. It is the historic capit ...
, Rampura, Bhanpura for some time and then left to worship
Mahakaal ''Mahakaal'' (also known as ''Mahakaal: The Monster'') is a 1994 Indian horror film directed by Shyam Ramsay and Tulsi Ramsay. It was loosely plagiarised off of the American horror film ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'' (1984) and was also the last ...
at Ujjain. On 22 November 1718, on the banks of the
Shipra The Shipra, also known as the Kshipra, is a river in Madhya Pradesh state of central India. The river rises in the North of Dhar district, and flows north across the Malwa Plateau to join the Chambal River at the MP-Rajasthan boundary in ...
at
Ujjain Ujjain (, Hindustani pronunciation: d͡ːʒɛːn is a city in Ujjain district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Pradesh by population and is the administrative centre of Ujjain district and Ujjain ...
, Durgadas died at the age of 81 years, his canopy in red stone is still at the Chakratirtha, Ujjain, which is pilgrimage for all freedom fighters and Rajputs.


Recognition

* Historian
Jadunath Sarkar Sir Jadunath Sarkar (10 December 1870 – 19 May 1958) was a prominent Indian historian and a specialist on the Mughal dynasty. Academic career Sarkar was born in Karachmaria village in Natore, Bengal to Rajkumar Sarkar, the local Zamindar ...
sums up his legacy by commenting:
'' A soul of honour, he kept the deserted daughter of Akbar free from every stain and provided her with every facility for Islamic religious training in the wilderness of Marwar. Fighting against terrible odds and a host of enemies on every side, with distrust and wavering among his own country-men, he kept the cause of his chieftain triumphant. Mughal gold could not seduce, Mughal arms could not daunt that constant heart. Almost alone among the Rathors he displayed the rare combination of the dash and reckless valour of a Rajput soldier with the tact, diplomacy and organizing power of a Mughal minister of State. No wonder that the Rathor bard should pray that every Rajput mother should have a son like Durgadas.
* The government of India released a stamp (in 1988) and various coins (on 25 August 2003) in his honour. *The government of India also introduced commemorative coins in 2003 in the name of Durgadas Rathore.


In popular culture

* Paintings of Durgadas by painter Archibald Herman Müller (1893) at Mehrangarh Museum, Jodhpur and the
Government Museum, Bikaner A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, Executive (government), e ...
. * '' Durgadas'' is a
children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...
novel written by Premchand based on his struggle. * A play depicting the life of Durgadas was conducted in Jodhpur in October 2017. *Indian films based on his life include the silent feature ''Veer Durgadas'' (1924) by Bhagwati Prasad Mishra and the 1960 biographical film '' Veer Durgadas'' by Ramchandra Thakur, starring
Paidi Jairaj Paidi or Páidí may refer to the following: People * Paidi () is an Indian surname. People with the surnames or family names of Paidi or Pydi are found in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. People with Paidi surname are Kalinga's ...
in the titular role.


See also

* List of Rajputs *
Maharana Pratap Pratap Singh I, popularly known as Maharana Pratap (c. 9 May 1540 – 19 January 1597), was a king of Mewar from the Sisodia dynasty. Pratap became a folk hero for his military resistance against the expansionism of the Mughal Empire under A ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rathore, Durgadas 1638 births 1718 deaths History of Rajasthan People from Jodhpur Indian military personnel Indian warriors 17th-century Indian people 18th-century Indian people