Battle of Patan
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Patan was fought on 20 June 1790 between the Maratha Confederacy and the Rajputs of Jaipur
and their Mughal
allies.
, imperial ambitions of Marathas had suffered a serious setback. But by 1783, with the conquest of Gwalior, Maratha
chieftain Madhavrao Scindia had managed to reassert Maratha influence over much of Northern India, especially Rajputana
. Many Rajput kingdoms like those of Jaipur
and Malwa were threatened by the Marathas.
After the failure of Lalsot campaign of July 1787, Marathas of Scindia had evacuated the Jaipur territory. In early 1790, hoping to completely rid the Rajputana off Maratha interference.
. On the morning of 10 May, Marathas came upon Ismail Beg at Patan
.
lines. By this time, his Rajput
allies had come to his aid. General de Boigne proceeded to advance to encounter the Mughals with all his force the following morning.
De Boigne's disciplined brigade and artillery guns formed the spearhead of Maratha attack and occupied the central position in the Maratha lines . The Maratha captains Ambaji Ingle and Balaji Ingle commanded the left wing (opposite Ismail Beg) whilst Holkars commanded the right wing. Gopal Bhau commanded the Deccan cavalry which formed the centre.
The armies faced each other in east-west direction along a straight line. Ismail Beg's contingent formed the southern wing of Rajput-Mughal combine. It was followed by Rathore
horsemen and Abdul Mtalab's (Ismail Beg's lieutenant) battalions. Bulk of the Rajput cavalry was concentrated in the centre of wing. The left wing was formed entirely by Jaipur Nagas (fighting monks). The alliance had over 125 artillery pieces at its disposal. They were placed in three rows, one before Ismail Beg, one before Matlab and the remaining one the trenches of Jaipur Nagas.
Maratha artillery under de Boigne's brigade, though smaller in number, was more rapid, accurate and mobile than the one in possession of their adversaries. Battle of Patan began in the form of sporadic skirmishes and evolved into an all out battle only at its end. The command of Rajput-Mughal army was disunited and had no concrete plan of action. It was this lack of organisation that was instrumental in a decisive Maratha victory as the Marathas had the initiative and the element of surprise on their side.
At the onset of the battle, neither side was in haste to come to grips. The Maratha army took up arms at the daybreak and advanced four miles westwards from their camps to the mouth of the pass leading to Patan. But it took their adversaries over a quarter of a day to take up positions on the hill over overlooking the pass. However hostilities didn't break out for six more hours. It was ekadashi, an auspicious day in the Hindu calendar. Hindu soldiers on both sides were observing a religious fast. Exchange of fire during this period occurred only between the Muslim soldiers on both sides.
and Malwa from Rajputs. Although Jaipur
and Jodhpur
remained unconquered. Battle of Patan, effectively ended Rajput hopes for independence from external interference. Sir Jadunath Sarkar notes:
His victory increased Scindia's influence with the Peshwas (Maratha Prime Ministers) in Pune
, the seat of Maratha government. The Battle of Patan along with the subsequent gains helped Marathas regain lost influence and morale, which had been badly shaken by the Panipat debacle
.
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
and their Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
allies.
Background
With the decisive defeat in the Third Battle of PanipatThird battle of Panipat
The Third Battle of Panipat took place on 14 January 1761, at Panipat , about 60 miles north of Delhi between a northern expeditionary force of the Maratha Confederacy and a coalition of the King of Afghanistan, Ahmad Shah Abdali with 2 Indian Muslim allies—the Rohilla Afghans of the Doab, and the...
, imperial ambitions of Marathas had suffered a serious setback. But by 1783, with the conquest of Gwalior, Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
chieftain Madhavrao Scindia had managed to reassert Maratha influence over much of Northern India, especially Rajputana
Rajputana
Rājputāna was the pre-1949 name of the present-day Indian state of Rājasthān, the largest state of the Republic of India in terms of area. George Thomas was the first in 1800 A.D., to term this region as Rajputana...
. Many Rajput kingdoms like those of Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
and Malwa were threatened by the Marathas.
After the failure of Lalsot campaign of July 1787, Marathas of Scindia had evacuated the Jaipur territory. In early 1790, hoping to completely rid the Rajputana off Maratha interference.
The Pursuit
Intending to prevent the junction of Ismail Beg with his Rajput allies, Madhavrao Scindia, dispatched an army under his generals Gopal Rao Bhau and Benoît de BoigneBenoît de Boigne
Benoît Leborgne , better known as Count Benoît de Boigne or General Count de Boigne, was a military adventurer from the Alps of French Savoy, who made his fortune and name in India...
. On the morning of 10 May, Marathas came upon Ismail Beg at Patan
Patan, Rajasthan
Patan is a city in the Indian state of Rajasthan. In the 12th century, it became the centre of a minor state called Tanwarawati or Torawati ruled by the Tomara clan the chief of which the Rao of Patan is considered the direct in descent from Anang Pal Tomar the ruler of Delhi before Prithviraj...
.
Stakeholders
The forces of Rajputs had 12000 Rathore calvalry, 6000 from Jaipur, 5000 Mughals under Ismail Beg, 2000 under Allyghar Beg Khan, 12000 men on foot with 100 Pieces of Artillery, 5000 foot soldiers with Ismail Khan with 21 pieces of artillery, 4000 Rohillas, 5000 Fakirs (religious fighting mendicants) called Attyles and Brakys and Rajput Sybundess (irregular infantary) with 8 pieces of canon and 4000 Meena (hill tribals) soldiers.The battle
For over three weeks, nothing was effected between the two armies. On 19 June, Ismail Beg expressed his intentions of attacking the MarathaMaratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
lines. By this time, his Rajput
Rajput
A Rajput is a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central, northern India and in some parts of Pakistan. Rajputs are descendants of one of the major ruling warrior classes in the Indian subcontinent, particularly North India...
allies had come to his aid. General de Boigne proceeded to advance to encounter the Mughals with all his force the following morning.
De Boigne's disciplined brigade and artillery guns formed the spearhead of Maratha attack and occupied the central position in the Maratha lines . The Maratha captains Ambaji Ingle and Balaji Ingle commanded the left wing (opposite Ismail Beg) whilst Holkars commanded the right wing. Gopal Bhau commanded the Deccan cavalry which formed the centre.
The armies faced each other in east-west direction along a straight line. Ismail Beg's contingent formed the southern wing of Rajput-Mughal combine. It was followed by Rathore
Rathore
The Rathore is a Suryavanshi Rajput clan same caste as Lohana. Their Kuldevi is Nagnechiya Mata and "Karani Mata". Rathores are originally from Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh. Rathores are historically considered the samurais of India...
horsemen and Abdul Mtalab's (Ismail Beg's lieutenant) battalions. Bulk of the Rajput cavalry was concentrated in the centre of wing. The left wing was formed entirely by Jaipur Nagas (fighting monks). The alliance had over 125 artillery pieces at its disposal. They were placed in three rows, one before Ismail Beg, one before Matlab and the remaining one the trenches of Jaipur Nagas.
Maratha artillery under de Boigne's brigade, though smaller in number, was more rapid, accurate and mobile than the one in possession of their adversaries. Battle of Patan began in the form of sporadic skirmishes and evolved into an all out battle only at its end. The command of Rajput-Mughal army was disunited and had no concrete plan of action. It was this lack of organisation that was instrumental in a decisive Maratha victory as the Marathas had the initiative and the element of surprise on their side.
At the onset of the battle, neither side was in haste to come to grips. The Maratha army took up arms at the daybreak and advanced four miles westwards from their camps to the mouth of the pass leading to Patan. But it took their adversaries over a quarter of a day to take up positions on the hill over overlooking the pass. However hostilities didn't break out for six more hours. It was ekadashi, an auspicious day in the Hindu calendar. Hindu soldiers on both sides were observing a religious fast. Exchange of fire during this period occurred only between the Muslim soldiers on both sides.
Ambush by the Maratha's
At dusk, Rajputs and their Muslim allies, retired to their respective camps. The Maratha army however held its positions at the mouth of the pass. The real battle however precipitated in the evening by an unforeseen skirmish. Some Maratha Pindaris from the left wing of Maratha lines, managed to seize animals that were a part of Ismail Beg's contingent. This inevitably led to a small skirmish with Ismail Beg's men. General de Boigne then directed his guns on Ismail Beg's contingent. Caught on unawares, the murderous fire of Maratha guns proved to be deadly. Gopal Bhau and de Boigne, sensing victory, went for the kill. Marathas descended upon enemy camps. Taken aback by the suddenness and the ferocity of the Maratha attack, Rajput resistance capitulated. The Jaipur Nagas held on to their positions before finally being overwhelmed at around 9 pm in the night.The aftermath
Pitted against European armed and trained Marathas, Rajput states capitulated one after the other. Marathas managed to conquer AjmerAjmer
Ajmer , formerly written as Ajmere, is a city in Ajmer District in Rajasthan state in India. Ajmer has a population of around 800,000 , and is located west of the Rajasthan state capital Jaipur, 200 km from Jodhpur, 274 km from Udaipur, 439 km from Jaisalmer, and 391 km from...
and Malwa from Rajputs. Although Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
and Jodhpur
Jodhpur
Jodhpur , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is located west from the state capital, Jaipur and from the city of Ajmer. It was formerly the seat of a princely state of the same name, the capital of the kingdom known as Marwar...
remained unconquered. Battle of Patan, effectively ended Rajput hopes for independence from external interference. Sir Jadunath Sarkar notes:
From the day of Patan (20th June 1790) to the 2nd of April 1818 when Jaipur entered into protective subsidiary allianceSubsidiary allianceA subsidiary alliance is an alliance between a dominant nation and a nation that it dominates.-British policy in India:The doctrine of subsidiary alliance was introduced by Marquess Wellesley, British Governor-General of India from 1798 to 1805...
with the British government, lay the gloomiest period in the history of Jaipur kingdom.
His victory increased Scindia's influence with the Peshwas (Maratha Prime Ministers) in Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
, the seat of Maratha government. The Battle of Patan along with the subsequent gains helped Marathas regain lost influence and morale, which had been badly shaken by the Panipat debacle
Third battle of Panipat
The Third Battle of Panipat took place on 14 January 1761, at Panipat , about 60 miles north of Delhi between a northern expeditionary force of the Maratha Confederacy and a coalition of the King of Afghanistan, Ahmad Shah Abdali with 2 Indian Muslim allies—the Rohilla Afghans of the Doab, and the...
.