Indian Antiquary Vol 40

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 84

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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[MARCH, 1911.
Durga Das, fled to the Dakhin and sought shelter with Sambhaji, the son and successor of Shivaji. Akbar, a declared pretender to the throne, could not, as was obvious, be left at large in such dangerous company; an additional inducement for transferring the scene of action to the Dakhin was afforded by the recent change of rulers in the Mahrattah country, and the consequent possibility of effectively dealing with the turbulent plunderers who inhabited it. Shivaji bad died on April 5th 1680, at the age of fifty-three.
IV.-Years 25 to 50 of the Reign, 1881-1707.
Aurangzeb left Ajmer on the 2nd Ramazan 1092 H. (Sept. 15th, 1681), after having been there over two years. He arrived at Burhanpur in the Dakhín on the 12th Zü,l Qa'dah 1092 H. (Nov. 23rd, 1681), Aurangabad on the 23rd Rabi 'I, 1093 H. (April 3rd, 1682), Ahmadnagar, 12th Zü,l Qa'dah 1094 H. (Nov. 2nd, 1683), and Sholapur, 1st Rajab 1096 H. (June 4th, 1685). These years were occupied in attempts to clear the country generally of the Mahrattah hordes and to effect the capture of prince Akbar. Two expiditions were sent out, one to the north and the other to the south. The former, under prince A'zam, recovered Salher fort, but much progress was not made, and Ghazi-ud-din Khan, a leading general, was sent to complete the campaign. In the other direction more was done, but with no permanent effect. Sambhaji had quarrelled with the Portuguese at Goa, had defeated the governor in a battle at Pondah, Nov. 10th, 1683, and was further successful in making a temporary lodgment in one of the islands there, Nov. 24th, 1683. Aurangzeb proposed to the Portuguese that they should take joint action and obtained their leave to land the supplies he was sending by sea for Mu'aggam's army, which after entering the low country had burnt and harried everywhere, with the result of destroying its own means of subsistence. Few of the Mughal transports reached the Gos rivers, most of them having been cut off by Sambhaji's fleet. Prince Mu'azzam began a retreat to the higher country by a difficult pass, in which man and beast suffered terribly. During these years, the Mahrattahs were actively plundering in many directions, as was their habit, their most conspicuous successes being the sack of Burhanpur and of Bharoch, October 1685.
Aurangzeb now devoted his attention to what had been from the first his fixed purpose, the conquest of the two Mahomedan kingdoms of Bijapur and Gulkandah. Both states were in decay and grounds of quarrel were easy to find. The Gulkandah minister had been since 1674 a Brahman, a fact most offensive to Aurangzeb, and be sent an agent to the Qutb Shahi capital with the deliberated intention of picking a quarrel.
The first campaign against Gulkandah (Haidarabad) was entrusted to prince Mu'azzam, 6th Sha'ban 1096 H. (July 9th, 1685). His views were divergent from those of his father, and he was opposed to the entire suppression of these Mahomedan kingdoms. At Malkher on the Gulkandah frontier, eighty-six miles from Haidarabad, the Mughals encountered the Qutb Shahi army under the command of Muhammad Ibrahim. This man turned traitor and made a very feeble opposition to the Mughal advance. The battle which took place ended favourably for the Mughals, and Abu,l Hasan, Qutb Shah, shat himself up in the fortress of Gulkandah. Soon after the city had been occupied, 30th Zu,l Qa'dah, 1096 H. (October 29th, 1685), the king sued for terms and sacrificed his Brahman minister, whom he put to death, 1st Jamada I, 1097 H. (March 26th, 1686). The eity had not been plundered, but a large sum in money was paid by the king, supplemented by jewels, elephants, and war materials. Ma'aggam returned to the court near Sholapur on the 25th Rajab 1097 H. (June 27th, 1686).
Meanwhile a campaign against Bijapur had been begun under the command of prince A'zam Shah. Owing to the tactics adopted by the Bijapur generals, prince A'zam Shah was soon reduced to great straits and would have been forced to retire, had not Ghazi-ud-din Khan most gallantly and successfully convoyed twenty thousand ballock loads of grain to his camp. Aurangzeb now