In 1311
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate or the Sultanate of Delhi was a Medieval India, late medieval empire primarily based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for more than three centuries. ruler
Alauddin Khalji
Alauddin Khalji (; ), born Ali Gurshasp, was a ruler from the Khalji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate in the Indian subcontinent. Alauddin instituted a number of significant administrative changes in the Delhi Sultanate, related to revenue ...
dispatched an army to capture the
Jalore Fort in present-day
Rajasthan
Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...
, India. Jalore was ruled by the
Chahamana ruler
Kanhadadeva, whose armies had earlier fought several skirmishes with the Delhi forces, especially since Alauddin's conquest of the neighboring
Siwana fort.
Kanhadadeva's army achieved some initial successes against the invaders, but the Jalore fort ultimately fell to an army led by Alauddin's general
Malik Kamal al-Din. Kanhadadeva and his son
Viramadeva were killed, thus ending the Chahamana dynasty of Jalore.
Background
The kingdom of
Jalore
Jalore () (ISO 15919 : ''Jālora'' ), also known as Granite City, is a city in the western Indian state of Rajasthan. It is the administrative headquarters of Jalore District.
It has a river known as Jawai Nadi. Jalore lies to south of Sukri ...
was ruled by a branch of the
Chahamanas. In 1291-92 Alauddin's predecessor
Jalaluddin Khalji
Jalal-ud-Din Khalji, also known as Firuz al-Din Khalji, Jalaluddin Khilji or Firuz II ( Persian; جلال الدین خلجی c. 1220 – 19 July 1296, ) was the founder and first Sultan of the Khalji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate of ...
invaded Jalore, but was forced to retreat after the
Vaghelas came to the rescue of the Jalore king
Samantasimha.
From at least 1296–1305, Samantasimha's son and successor
Kanhadadeva jointly ran the administration with his father. During this period, in 1299, Alauddin dispatched an army to Gujarat, and
defeated the Vaghelas. During the army's return to Delhi, some of its soldiers staged an unsuccessful mutiny. The 17th-century chronicler
Nainsi states that the Jalore army supported this mutiny, although this is doubtful.
Cause of invasion
The 16th-century chronicler
Firishta
Firishta or Ferešte (), full name Muhammad Qasim Hindu Shah Astarabadi (), was a Persian historian, who later settled in India and served the Deccan Sultans as their court historian. He was born in 1570 and died between 1611 and 1623.
Life
F ...
claims that Kanhadadeva ("Nahar Deo") accepted Alauddin's suzerainty around 1305. Some years later Kanhadadeva heard Alauddin boasting that no Hindu ruler could challenge him. This rekindled Kanhadadeva's sense of pride, and he decided to attack Alauddin, resulting in an invasion of Jalore. This narrative is also repeated by 17th-century historian Hajiuddabir.
According to legends in
Padmanābha's ''
Kanhadade Prabandha
''Kānhaḍade Prabandha'' is a book by Indian poet Padmanābha written in 1455, in a western Apabhramsha dialect. The book tells the story of Raval Kanhadade ( Kanhadadeva), the Chahamana ruler of Jalore.
Textual history
Padmanabha wro ...
'' (15th century) and ''
Nainsi ri Khyat'' (17th century), one of Alauddin's daughters fell in love with Kanhadadeva's son Virama. However, Virama did not want to marry a
Turkic girl, which led to tensions between the two kingdoms, and ultimately resulted in Alauddin's invasion of Jalore.
According to K.S. Lal, these reasons of invasion given by Nainsi, Firishta and Hajiuddabir are not convincing. By 1310 Alauddin had subjugated the kingdoms surrounding Jalore, including
Gujarat
Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, 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 List of states and union territories ...
,
Malwa
Malwa () is a historical region, historical list of regions in India, region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic plateau, volcanic upland north of the ...
,
Chittor,
Ranthambore and
Siwana. It appears that he attacked Jalore simply because he wanted to put an end to Jalore's independent status.
Initial skirmishes
Alauddin's courtier
Amir Khusrau
Abu'l Hasan Yamīn ud-Dīn Khusrau (1253 – 1325 AD), better known as Amīr Khusrau, sometimes spelled as, Amir Khusrow or Amir Khusro, was an Indo-Persian Sufi singer, musician, poet and scholar, who lived during the period of the Delhi Sult ...
states that after conquering Siwana, Alauddin returned to Delhi, ordering his generals to subjugate other parts of the
Marwar
Marwar (also called Jodhpur region) is a region of western Rajasthan state in North Western India. It lies partly in the Thar Desert. 'Maru' is a Sanskrit word for desert. The word 'wad' literally means fence in Rajasthani languages. Engl ...
region. According to Jinaprabha Suri's ''
Vividha Tirtha Kalpa
''Vividha Tirtha Kalpa'', originally named ''Kalpa-pradeepa'', is a widely cited Jain text composed by Jinaprabha Suri in the 14th century CE. It is a compilation of about 60 Kalpas (sections), most of them give the accounts of major Jain Tirth ...
'', the Delhi army desecrated a
Mahavira
Mahavira (Devanagari: महावीर, ), also known as Vardhamana (Devanagari: वर्धमान, ), was the 24th ''Tirthankara'' (Supreme Preacher and Ford Maker) of Jainism. Although the dates and most historical details of his lif ...
temple at Satyapura (modern
Sanchor) in 1310. The 15th-century epic romance ''
Kanhadade Prabandha
''Kānhaḍade Prabandha'' is a book by Indian poet Padmanābha written in 1455, in a western Apabhramsha dialect. The book tells the story of Raval Kanhadade ( Kanhadadeva), the Chahamana ruler of Jalore.
Textual history
Padmanabha wro ...
'', which presents Kanhadadeva as a hero, states that Alauddin's forces also captured and sacked
Barmer and
Bhinmal
Bhinmal (previously Shrimal Nagar) is an ancient town in the Jalore District of Rajasthan, India. It is south of Jalore. Bhinmal was the early capital of Gurjaradesa, comprising modern-day southern Rajasthan and northern Gujarat. The town was ...
. At Bhinmal the invaders took away a large number of Brahmins as captives.
According to ''Kanhadadeva Prabandha'', these disturbances prompted Kanhadadeva to dispatch an army to counter the Delhi forces. This army was led by Devada chiefs Jaita and Mahipa, who were supported by three other generals: Lakhana Sevata (or Sebhata), Salha Sobhita and Ajayasi Molhana. Kanhadadeva's army defeated one of the Delhi contingents left behind by Alauddin and recovered the plunder that the invaders had obtained during their raids of Bhinmal, Satyapura and other places. After this victory, Jaita and Mahipa returned to Jalore with the war spoils. The three other generals remained near the battlefield with a portion of the army, and celebrated the new moon day (''
Amavasya
Amāvásyā () is the lunar phase of the new moon in Sanskrit.
Indian calendars use 30 lunar phases, called tithi in India. The dark moon tithi is when the Moon is within 12 degrees of the angular distance between the Sun and Moon before conj ...
'') by taking their armor off and bathing in a river. During these celebrations they started beating a drum captured from the Delhi army. The drum was heard by Delhi Gen. Malik Naib, who was leading another contingent on a hunting expedition. Assuming that the drum beats were a summon for him, Malik Naib rushed to the battlefield. His army inflicted a crushing defeat upon Kanhadadeva's remaining forces. The ''Kanhadade Prabandha'' states that the defenders lost 4,000 soldiers, including the three generals, in this battle.
Siege of Jalore
After the initial setbacks faced by the Delhi forces, Alauddin sent an army to launch a direct attack on Jalore. According to the ''Kanhadade Prabandha'', the Delhi forces made several attempts to breach the fort during the first seven days of the ensuing siege. However, these attacks were foiled by
sortie
A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warf ...
s led by Kanhadadeva's brother Maladeva and his son
Viramadeva. On the eighth day a severe thunderstorm forced the besiegers to retreat. The Jalore forces launched an eight-pronged attack on one of the retreating detachments at Moklana. The eight Jalore generals who led this attack were Maladeva, Viramadeva, Ananta Sisodia, Jaita Vaghela, Jaita Devada, Lunakarna Malhana, Jayamala and Sahajapala. The detachment's commander Shams Khan was captured along with his
harem
A harem is a domestic space that is reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A harem may house a man's wife or wives, their pre-pubescent male children, unmarried daughters, female domestic Domestic worker, servants, and other un ...
, while the rest of his soldiers fled.
The 16th-century chronicler
Firishta
Firishta or Ferešte (), full name Muhammad Qasim Hindu Shah Astarabadi (), was a Persian historian, who later settled in India and served the Deccan Sultans as their court historian. He was born in 1570 and died between 1611 and 1623.
Life
F ...
claims that the Delhi army was commanded by Alauddin's concubine Gul Bihisht. During the war she died after a short illness. After her death the army was led by her son Shahin, who was killed in a battle soon after his mother's death. Firishta's claim is dubious, as it is not found in any contemporary accounts. Moreover, it seems absurd that Alauddin appointed a concubine as the commander of his army or that his soldiers would accept this appointment. The story of Gul Bihisht appears to be a late invention, designed to cover up the disgraceful retreat of the Delhi army. Firishta also inaccurately dates the invasion of Jalore to 1308 instead of 1311.
Kamal al-Din's attack
Next, Alauddin dispatched a stronger army led by ''Malik''
Kamal al-Din Gurg, one of his best generals. The ''Kanhadade Prabandha'' mentions that Kanhadadeva sent two contingents to check the advance of Kamal al-Din. One of these contingents was commanded by Maladeva and was stationed at Vadi. The other was led by Viramadeva and was stationed at
Bhadrajun. The two contingents engaged the Delhi army on alternate days, leading to heavy losses on both sides. They managed to slow down the Delhi army but were unable to prevent Kamal al-Din's gradual advance towards Jalore. Ultimately, Kanhadadeva decided to recall both his contingents to Jalore for consultation. When Kamal al-Din got close to Jalore, Maladeva was sent to fight him while Viramadeva stayed behind to help his father prepare for the impending siege.
Kamal al-Din besieged the fort and tried to impose a blockade, most likely intending to starve the defenders. According to ''Kanhadade Prabandha'', this strategy was thwarted by timely rains and cooperation from money lenders (''mahajans'') who helped replenish the fort's stores. The text also suggests that Maladeva briefly harassed Kamal al-Din's forces, but an army dispatched by Alauddin forced Maladeva's forces to retreat to Vandara. Another Jalore contingent led by Lunakarna destroyed an enemy outpost at Udalapura, a suburb of Jalore, defeating ''Malik'' Nizamuddin.
The ''Kanhadade Prabandha'' as well as ''
Nainsi ri Khyat'' attribute the fall of Jalore to treachery by a Dahiya Rajput named Bika. After the invaders promised to make Bika the new ruler of Jalore, he led them to an unfrequented and unprotected entrance to the fort. When Bika's wife Hiradevi learned about his betrayal, she killed him and reported the matter to Kanhadadeva. However, by this time the defenders were no longer in a position to achieve a victory. Consequently, the men of the fort prepared for a
last stand
A last stand, or final stand, is a military situation in which a body of troops holds a defensive position in the face of overwhelming and virtually insurmountable odds. Troops may make a last stand due to a sense of duty; because they are d ...
, and Kanhadadeva's son Viramadeva was crowned king. The women decided to die in ''
jauhar
Jauhar, sometimes spelled Jowhar or Juhar, was a Hindu Rajput practice of mass self-immolation by women and girls in the Indian subcontinent to avoid capture, sex slavery, enslavement, and rape when facing certain defeat during a war. Some repo ...
'' (mass suicide by self-immolation). The ''Kanhadade Prabandha'' states that 1584 ''jauhar'' fires were lit in Jalore. Women of all castes died in this fire, including Kanhadadeva's queens Jaitalde, Bhavalde, Umade and Kamalade. The Delhi forces breached the fort, and thousands of Kanhadadeva's soldiers died in the ensuing fighting. Several of his ''
samanta
Samanta was a title and position used in the history of the Indian subcontinent between 4th and 12th centuryThe Journal of the Bihar Research Society, Volumes 69–70, p.77 to denote a vassal, feudal lord or tributary chief. The leader of 100 vil ...
s'' (feudal chiefs) were also killed in the battle, including Kandhala, Kanha Uhcha, Jaita Devada, Lunakarna Malhana, Arjuna, and Jaita Vaghela.
According to the ''Kanhadade Prabandha'', after breaching the fort the invaders took five days to reach the temple of Kanhasvami inside it. When they threatened to destroy the temple, Kanhadadeva and the last 50 of his surviving soldiers died defending it. ''Nainsi ri Khyat'' suggests that many people believed that Kanhadadeva managed to survive and disappeared. His son Viramadeva is said to have died about three days after his coronation.
Aftermath
Alauddin commissioned a mosque on the fort premises to commemorate this victory. Jalore remained under Muslim rule well into the
Tughluq era. It was later captured by the Rathores 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. 'Maru' is a Sanskrit word for desert. The word 'wad' literally means fence in Rajasthani languages. Engl ...
.
References
Bibliography
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{{Alauddin Khalji
Alauddin Khalji
Battles involving the Delhi Sultanate
Battles involving the Rajputs
Chahamanas of Jalor
History of Rajasthan