106-625: Rohilkhand (today Bareilly , Moradabad , Badaun and Rampur ) is a region in the northwestern part of Uttar Pradesh , India , that is centered on the Bareilly and Moradabad divisions. It is part of the upper Ganges Plain , and is named after the Rohilla . The region was called Madhyadesh and Panchala in the Sanskrit epics Mahabharata and Ramayana . During the colonial era in India,
212-468: A Roman Catholic Diocese of Bareilly . Languages of Bareilly district (2011) At the time of the 2011 Census of India , 90.76% of the population in the district spoke Hindi , 8.48% Urdu and 0.47% Punjabi as their first language. The Bareilly district has six tehsils namely, Aonla , Baheri , Bareilly (Sadar), Faridpur , Meerganj and Nawabganj . Bareilly is a category "A" district i.e. having socio-economic and basic amenities parameters below
318-489: A common enemy. Some of them did not support the idea of a pitched battle and wanted to fight using guerrilla tactics instead of charging the enemy head-on. The Marathas were fighting alone at a place which was 1000 miles away from their capital Pune . Raghunathrao was supposed to go north to reinforce the army. Raghunathrao asked for large amount of wealth and troops, which was denied by Sadashivrao Bhau, his cousin and Diwan of Peshwa, so he declined to go. Sadashivrao Bhau
424-523: A distance... Vast numbers of elephants, flags of all descriptions, the finest horses, magnificently caparisoned ... seemed to be collected from every quarter ... it was an imitation of the more becoming and tasteful array of the Mughuls in the zenith of their glory. The Marathas had gained control of a considerable part of India in the intervening period (1712–1757). In 1758 they nominally occupied Delhi , captured Lahore and drove out Timur Shah Durrani ,
530-526: A few broken troops... So Ahmad Shah Durrani has returned to Kandahar with some 12–14 thousand broken troops.. Thus all have risen against Ahmad who has lost control over the region. We have decided to extend our rule up to Kandahar. This brought the Marathas into direct confrontation with the Durrani empire of Ahmad Shah Abdali (also known as Ahmad Shah Durrani). In 1759, he raised an army the core of which
636-450: A figure of 40,000 prisoners as executed by Afghans. Qutb Shah 's son slaughtered 4,000 fugitives near Sonepat and Abdus Samad Khan's son killed 5,000 near Bahadurgad, to avenge their fathers deaths. Some 22,000 women and children were driven off as slaves. All of the prisoners were transported on bullock carts , camels and elephants in bamboo cages. Siyar-ut-Mutakhirin says: The unhappy prisoners were paraded in long lines, given
742-519: A force of 2500 Pashtuns , attacked and took control of Kunjpura, where there was a Maratha garrison of 700–800 soldiers. At that time Atai Khan Baluch, son of the Shah Wali Khan, the Wazir of Abdali, came from Afghanistan with 10,000 cavalry and cut off the supplies to the Marathas. The Marathas at Panipat were surrounded by Abdali in the south, Pashtun tribes ( Yousufzai , Afridi , Khattak ) in
848-461: A little parched grain and a drink of water, and beheaded... and the women and children who survived were driven off as slaves – twenty-two thousand, many of them of the highest rank in the land. The bodies of Vishwasrao and Bhau were recovered by the Marathas and were cremated according to their custom. Bhau's wife Parvatibai was saved by Holkar, per the directions of Bhau, and eventually returned to Pune . Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao , uninformed about
954-513: A little to the north of Kala Amb . They had thus blocked the northward path of Abdali's troops and at the same time were blocked from heading south—in the direction of Delhi, where they could get badly needed supplies—by those same troops. Bhau, with the Peshwa's son and the royal guard (Huzurat), was in the centre. The left wing consisted of the Gardis under Ibrahim Khan . Holkar and Sindhia were on
1060-552: A small Maratha army led by Dattaji Shinde at Burari Ghat. Dattaji camped at the Buradi Fort, south of Panipat, deciding to only engage with Abdali with the aid of Malharao Holkar. He was beheaded and killed in an attack by Qutb Khan . Before Battle of Panipat a war council was formed by Maratha commander-in-chief Sadashiv Rao Bhau in which Maharaja Suraj Mal was invited to give advice for war strategy against Abdali. Jat chief Surajmal provided following advice : Many of
1166-399: Is a level terrain, watered by many streams, the general slope being towards the south. The soil is fertile and highly cultivated, groves of noble trees abound, and the villages have a neat, prosperous look. A tract of forest jungle called the tarai stretches along the extreme north of the district and teems with large game such as tigers, bears, deer and wild pigs. The river Sarda or Gogra forms
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#17327732084201272-442: Is burdened with a crowd of lazy, profligate, self-called sawars (cavaliers), who, though many of them are not worth a rupee, conceive it derogatory to their gentility and Pathan blood to apply themselves to any honest industry, and obtain for the most part a precarious livelihood by sponging on the industrious tradesmen and farmers, on whom they levy a sort of blackmail, or as hangers-on to the wealthy and noble families yet remaining in
1378-746: Is said to be the birthplace of Draupadi , who was also referred to as 'Panchali'. The last two Panchala clans, the Somakas and the Srinjayas are mentioned in the Mahabharata and the Puranas . King Drupada , whose daughter Draupadi was married to the Pandavas belonged to the Somaka clan. However, the Mahabharata and the Puranas consider the ruling clan of the northern Panchala as an offshoot of
1484-571: The Bharata clan. Divodasa, Sudas, Srinjaya, Somaka and Drupada (also called Yajnasena) were the most notable rulers of this clan. During 176 – 166 BC, Panchala coins were minted at Bareilly and the surrounding areas. It was the Kushan and Gupta kings who established mints here. The city's continued status as a mint town since the beginning of the Christian era was helped by the fact that Bareilly
1590-644: The Ganges in numbers, to start a guerrilla war; or emigrated. A Rohilla state under British protection was set up in Rampur . Faizullah Khan managed to become the nawab of the newly created Rampur State . The whole of Rohilkhand (including Pilibhit and Shahjanpur ) was surrendered by Saadat Ali Khan II to the East India Company by the treaty of 10 November 1801. Bareilly district The Bareilly district pronunciation belongs to
1696-462: The Katehr region in the then northern India by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb Alamgir (ruled 1658–1707) to suppress Rajput uprisings, which had afflicted this region. Originally, some 20,000 soldiers from various Pashtun Tribes ( Yusafzais , Ghoris, Lodis , Ghilzai , Barech, Marwat , Durrani , Tanoli , Tarin , Kakar , Khattak , Afridi and Baqarzai) were hired by Mughals to provide soldiers to
1802-680: The Maratha Confederacy and the invading army of the Durrani Empire . The battle took place in and around the city of Panipat , approximately 97 kilometres (60 mi) north of Delhi . The Afghans were supported by three key allies in India : Najib ad-Dawlah who persuaded the support of the Rohilla chiefs, elements of the declining Mughal Empire , and most prized the Oudh State under Shuja-ud-Daula . The Maratha army
1908-670: The Maratha Empire to the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb . However, after his death in 1707, this process reversed following the Mughal succession war between the sons of Aurangzeb. By 1712, Marathas quickly started retaking their lost lands. Under Peshwa Baji Rao , Gujarat , Malwa and Rajputana came under Maratha control. Finally, in 1737, Baji Rao defeated the Mughals on the outskirts of Delhi and brought much of
2014-763: The Third Battle of Panipat , thousands of Pashtun and Baloch soldiers settled in northern India. These diverse ethnic, cultural, and linguistic groups merged over time to form the Urdu-speaking Muslims of South Asia. During the Capture of Delhi (1771) , Marathas defeated Rohilla chieftain Zabita Khan . After taking control of Delhi, the Marathas sent a large army in 1772 to punish Afghan Rohillas for their involvement in Panipat. They desecrated
2120-483: The north-west frontier with Afghanistan and southeast beyond Delhi. There was a widespread popular revolt in many areas such as Awadh, Bundelkhand and Rohilkhand. The rebellion was therefore more than just a military rebellion, and it spanned more than one region. The communal hatred led to ugly communal riots in many parts of U.P. The green flag was hoisted and Muslims in Bareilly, Bijnor, Moradabad and other places
2226-487: The Afghan force's center. Despite Bhau's success and the ferocity of the charge, the attack did not attain complete success as many of the half-starved Maratha mounts were exhausted. Also, there were no heavy armoured cavalry units for the Marathas to maintain these openings. In order to turn about the deserting Afghan troopers, Abdali deployed his Nascibchi musketeers to gun down the deserters who finally stopped and returned to
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#17327732084202332-513: The Afghan horses being able to outmaneuver the Marathas in battle. Abdali was in no position to maintain his field army in India indefinitely due to external threats. After the defeat the Marathas fled in all directions, and the Afghans, Mughals, Rohillas and Awadh troops fell upon them and were busy in plundering and slaying soldiers and civilians. Afghan officers who had lost their kin in battle were permitted to carry out massacres of Marathas
2438-511: The Afghan soldiers who had been captured by the Marathas earlier during the Siege of Kunjpura revolted. The prisoners unwrapped their green belts and wore them as turbans to impersonate the troops of the Durrani Empire and began attacking from within. This brought confusion and great consternation to the Maratha soldiers, who thought that the enemy had attacked from the rear. Some Maratha troops in
2544-832: The Afghan tribes, had reached Lahore as well as Delhi and defeated the smaller enemy garrisons, and was joined by the Muslims of Northern India, the Rohillas , and Shuja-ud-Daula . Ahmed Shah, at this point, withdrew his army to Anupshahr , on the frontier of the Rohilla country, where he successfully convinced the Nawab of Oudh Shuja-ud-Daula to join his alliance against the Marathas. The Marathas had earlier helped Safdarjung (father of Shuja) in defeating Rohillas in Farrukhabad . The Marathas under Sadashivrao Bhau responded to
2650-443: The Afghans broken, he would move camp in a defensive formation towards Delhi, where they were assured supplies. With the Maratha chiefs pressurizing Sadashivrao Bhau, to go to battle rather than perish by starvation, on 13 January, the Marathas left their camp before dawn and marched south towards the Afghan camp in a desperate attempt to break the siege. The two armies came face-to-face around 8:00 a.m. The Maratha lines began
2756-486: The Afghans. Seeing that the battle was on, Ahmad Shah positioned his 60 smooth-bore cannon and opened fire. The initial attack was led by the Maratha left flank under Ibrahim Khan, who advanced his infantry in formation against the Rohillas and Shah Pasand Khan. The first salvos from the Maratha artillery went over the Afghans' heads and did very little damage. Nevertheless, the first Afghan attack by Najib Khan's Rohillas
2862-579: The British East India Company 's army, against perceived race based injustices and inequities, on 10 May 1857, in the town of Meerut , and soon erupted into other mutinies and civilian rebellions which were mainly centred on north central India along the several major river valleys draining the south face of the Himalayas [See red annotated locations on Map at right] but with local episodes extending both northwest to Peshawar on
2968-517: The Chauhan, Rathore, Gehlot, Sisodia, Nikumbh, and Pundir. Originally, some 20,000 soldiers from various Pashtun tribes ( Yusafzai , Ghori, Osmani, Ghilzai , Barech, Marwat , Tareen , Kakar , Naghar , Afridi and Khattak ) were hired as soldiers by the Mughals. Aurangzeb was impressed with their performance and an additional force of 25,000 Pashtuns was recruited from modern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Afghanistan and were given respected positions in
3074-564: The Gardis and outflank the Maratha centre while Shah Wali pressed on attacking the front. Thus the Gardis were left defenseless and started falling one by one. Vishwasrao had already been killed by a shot to the head. Bhau and the Huzurati royal forces fought till the end, the Maratha leader having three horses shot out from under him. At this stage, the Holkar and Scindia contingents, realising
3180-412: The Gardis. However, after seeing the Gardis having no clearing for directing their cannon fire at the enemy troops, they lost their patience and decided to fight the Rohillas themselves. Thus, they broke their position and went all out on the Rohillas. The Rohilla riflemen started accurately firing at the Maratha cavalry, which was equipped only with swords. This gave the Rohillas the opportunity to encircle
3286-537: The Kunjpura garrison, within sight of the Durrani camp, exasperated Abdali to such an extent that he ordered crossing of the river at all costs. Ahmed Shah and his allies on 17 October 1760, broke up from Shahdara , marching south. Taking a calculated risk, Abdali plunged into the river, followed by his bodyguards and troops. Between 23 and 25 October they were able to cross at Baghpat (a small town about 24 miles up
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3392-466: The Maratha camp. Bhau ordered the sacking of the already depopulated city. He is said to have planned to place his nephew and the Peshwa's son, Vishwasrao, on the Delhi throne. The Jats withdrew their support from the Marathas. Their withdrawal from the ensuing battle was to play a crucial role in its result. The first blood was drawn when the leader of the Rohillas, an Indian Muslim named Qutb Khan, attacked
3498-408: The Maratha camp. Initially the Marathas had moved in almost 150 pieces of modern long-range, French-made artillery. With a range of several kilometres, these guns were some of the best of the time. The Marathas' plan was to lure the Afghan army to confront them while they had close artillery support. During the next two months of the siege , constant skirmishes and duels took place between units from
3604-400: The Maratha cavalry. The Maratha cavalry was unable to withstand the muskets and camel-mounted swivel cannons of the Afghans. They could be fired without the rider having to dismount and were especially effective against fast-moving cavalry. Abdali therefore, sent 500 of his own bodyguards with orders to raise all able-bodied men out of camp and send them to the front. He sent 1,500 more to punish
3710-433: The Maratha generals found it good strategy as they themselves prefer guerrilla warfare but Sadashiv Rao Bhau found it dishonourable for a king and took this as result of Maratha general's old age and Suraj Mal's foolishness. With both sides poised for battle, maneuvering followed, with skirmishes between the two armies fought around Karnal and Kunjpura . Abdus Samad Khan, the faujdar of Sirhind , had come to Kunjpura, on
3816-513: The Mogul Army. Most Pashtuns settled in the Katehar region and brought their families from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Afghanistan . During Nadir Shah 's invasion of northern India in 1739, led by the general Ahmed Shah Abdali, a new wave of Pashtuns increased the population to over 1,000,000. Due to the large settlement of Rohilla Afghans, the Katehar region became known as Rohilkhand. Bareilly
3922-507: The Mughal armies and this was appreciated by Aurangzeb Alamgir, an additional force of 25,000 men was given respected positions in Mughal army. However most of them settled in the Katehar region during Nadir Shah 's invasion of northern India in 1739 increasing their population up to 100,0000. Due to the large settlement of Rohilla Afghans , the Katehar region gained fame as Rohilkhand. Meanwhile, Ali Mohammed Khan (1737–1749), captured
4028-502: The Muslims shouted for the revival of Muslim kingdom. The main conflict occurred largely in the upper Gangetic plain and central India , with the major hostilities confined to present-day Uttar Pradesh , Bihar, northern Madhya Pradesh , and the Delhi region. The rebellion posed a considerable threat to British East Indian Company power in that region, and it was contained only with the fall of Gwalior on 20 June 1858. Some regard
4134-606: The Nawab and the British, pleading his inability to pay due to internal strife and discontent among his dependent chiefs. This led to the First Rohilla War . Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula’s troops, supported by British troops, invaded Rohilkhand. Hafiz Rahmat Khan was killed in the ensuing Battle of Miranpur Katra in 1774 Rohilkhand fell to Awadh, and was plundered and occupied. The majority of the Rohillas left. They fled across
4240-588: The Pashtun mountains tribes of Loralai , Zhob and Waziristan regions. The Rohillas and are men of a taller stature and a fairer complexion than the general inhabitants of the district. The Muslims in the area are chiefly the descendants of Yousafzai Afghans tribe of Pashtuns, called the Rohilla Pathans of the Mandanh sub-section, (but other Pashtuns also became part of the community), who settled in
4346-569: The Rohilla chiefs imprisoned by the Marathas were also released, through the intervention of the Nawab. In 1773, the Marathas once again crossed the Ganges at Ramghat in Badaun , and advanced towards Rohilkhand. The Nawab of Awadh with his British allies came to the aid of the Rohillas and the Marathas were forced to retreat. The Nawab of Awadh now demanded the payment that had been promised for his help. But Hafiz Rahmat Khan refused by sending letters to
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4452-451: The Rohillas knew North India very well. He was also diplomatic, striking agreements with Hindu leaders, especially the Jats and Rajputs , and former rivals like the Nawab of Awadh, appealing to him in the name of religion. Moreover, the senior Maratha chiefs constantly bickered with one another. Each had ambitions of carving out their independent states and had no interest in fighting against
4558-473: The Rohillas led by Abdali and Najib ad-Dawlah . The battle is considered to have been one of the largest and most eventful fought in the 18th century, and it had perhaps the largest number of fatalities in a single day reported in a classic formation battle between two armies. The battle lasted for several days and involved over 125,000 troops; protracted skirmishes occurred, with losses and gains on both sides. The Afghan army ultimately emerged victorious from
4664-465: The Vizier in close order and at full gallop. Whenever they charged the enemy in front, the chief of the staff and Najib were directed to fall upon either flank. With their own men in the firing line, the Maratha artillery could not respond to the shathurnals and the cavalry charge. Some 7,000 Maratha cavalry and infantry were killed before the hand-to-hand fighting began at around 14:00 hrs. By 16:00 hrs,
4770-502: The banks of the Yamuna river 60 miles to the north of Delhi with a force of more than ten thousand and supplies for the Afghan force. Kunjpura was stormed by the Marathas who was running short of supplies. Aided by the musketeers under Ibrahim Gardi, the Marathas achieved a rather easy victory at Kunjpura against an army of around 15,000 Afghans posted there. Some of Abdali's best generals like Najabat Khan were killed. Abdus Samad Khan
4876-460: The battle after successfully destroying several Maratha flanks. The extent of the losses on both sides is heavily disputed by historians, but it is believed that between 60,000 and 70,000 troops were killed in the fighting, while the numbers of injured and prisoners taken vary considerably. According to the single-best eyewitness chronicle—the bakhar by Shuja-ud-Daula's Diwan Kashi Raja —about 40,000 Maratha prisoners were collectively slaughtered on
4982-472: The battle was lost, merged their forces with one contingent breaking from the Maratha right flank and escaped from the opening in the Durrani lines southwards as Jankoji Rao Scindia lead the other contingent to reinforce the thinning lines of Marathas. The Maratha front lines remained largely intact, with some of their artillery units fighting until sunset. Choosing not to launch a night attack, many Maratha troops escaped that night. Bhau's wife Parvatibai , who
5088-443: The battle. In this order the army of Ahmed Shah moved forward, leaving him at his preferred post in the centre, which was now in the rear of the line, from where he could watch and direct the battle. Before dawn on 14 January 1761, the Maratha troops broke their fast with sugared water in the camp and prepared for combat. They emerged from the trenches, pushing the artillery into position on their prearranged lines, some 2 km from
5194-429: The battlefield, the Maratha defeat would have been delayed but not averted. Ahmad Shah's superiority in pitched battle could've been averted by guerrilla warfare, as advised by Malharrao Holkar and Suraj Mal . However it is described as impossible to implement due to the camp followers of Bhau's army, and the general quality of his men. It is also believed that the Afghans would not be susceptible to such tactics, due to
5300-673: The city of Bareilly and made it his capital, later uniting the Rohillas to form the state of 'Rohilkhand', between 1707 and 1720, making Bareilly his capital. According to 1901 census of India, the total Pathan population in Bareilly District was 40,779, out of a total population of 1,090,117. Their principal clans were the Yusafzais , Ghoris, Lodis , Ghilzai, Barech, Marwat , Durrani , Tanoli , Tarin , Kakar , Khattak , Afridi and Baqarzai. Other important cities were Rampur , Shahjahanpur , Badaun , and others. Ali Muhammad
5406-506: The city was under the rule of local rulers. According to British historian Matthew Atmore Sherring the district of Bareilly was formerly a dense jungle inhabited by a race of Ahirs and was called Tappa Ahiran. In 1623 two Afghan brothers of the Barech tribe, Shah Alam and Husain Khan, settled in the region, bringing with them many other Pashtun settlers. The Rohilla Daud Khan was awarded
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#17327732084205512-422: The civilians. Many were ordinary men, women and children on their pilgrimage to Hindu holy places and shrines. Behind the civilians was yet another protective infantry line, of young, inexperienced soldiers. On the other side the Afghans formed a somewhat similar line, a few metres to the south of today's Sanauli Road. Their left was being formed by Najib and their right by two brigades of troops. Their left centre
5618-571: The confederacy of British troops with the Nawab of Oudh's army, which formed a charge against Warren Hastings. Their territory was in that year annexed to Oudh. In 1801 the Nawab of Oudh ceded it to the Company in commutation of the subsidy money. Bareilly ( Rohilkhand ) was a major centre during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 (also known as India's First War of Independence). It began as a mutiny of native soldiers ( sepoys ) employed by
5724-881: The country about the year 1720. Rohilla's Sardar like Daud Khan, Ali Muhammad Khan, and the legendary Hafiz Rahmat Khan Barech were from the renowned Afghan tribe the Barech , who were originally from the Kandahar Province of Afghanistan. In Uttar Pradesh , it was used for all Pashtuns, except for the Shia Bangashes who settled in the Rohilkhand region, or men serving under Rohilla chiefs. Rohillas were distinguished by their separate language and culture. They spoke Pashto among each other but gradually lost their language over time and now converse in Urdu . Bishop Heber described them as follows – "The country
5830-491: The day after the battle. British historian Grant Duff includes an interview of a survivor of these massacres in his History of the Marathas and generally corroborates this number. Shejwalkar, whose monograph Panipat 1761 is often regarded as the single-best secondary source on the battle, says that "not less than 100,000 Marathas (soldiers and non-combatants) perished during and after the battle". The 27-year Mughal-Maratha war (1680–1707) led to rapid territorial loss of
5936-401: The east, Shuja, Atai Khan and others in the north and other Pashtun tribes ( Gandapur , Marwat , Durranis and Kakars ) in the west. Unable to continue without supplies or wait for reinforcements from Pune any longer, Bhau decided to break the siege. His plan was to pulverise the enemy formations with cannon fire and not to employ his cavalry until the Afghans were thoroughly softened up. With
6042-531: The eastern boundary of the district and is the principal stream. Next in importance is the Ramganga , which receives as its tributaries most of the hill torrents of the Kumaon mountains. The Deoha is another great drainage artery and receives many minor streams. The Gomati or Gumti also passes through the district. According to the 2011 census Bareilly district has a population of 4,448,359, roughly equal to
6148-435: The extreme right. The Maratha line was formed up some 12 km across, with the artillery in front, protected by infantry, pikemen, musketeers and bowmen. The cavalry was instructed to wait behind the artillery and bayonet-wielding musketeers, ready to be thrown in when control of the battlefield had been fully established. Behind this line was another ring of 30,000 young Maratha soldiers who were not battle-tested, and then
6254-471: The faujdar of Sirhind was also killed during the battle. Qutab shah who was responsible for beheading Dattaji Shinde at the battle of Barari ghat was executed by the Marathas after their capture of Kunjpura. Ahmad Shah was encamped on the left bank of the Yamuna River, which was swollen by rains, and was powerless to aid the garrison. The whole Afghan garrison was killed or enslaved. The massacre of
6360-413: The field. The Marathas, under Scindia, attacked Najib. Najib successfully fought a defensive action, however, keeping Scindia's forces at bay. By noon it looked as though Bhau would clinch victory for the Marathas once again. The Afghan left flank still held its own, but the centre was cut in two and the right was almost destroyed. Ahmad Shah had watched the fortunes of the battle from his tent, guarded by
6466-595: The former Mughal territories in the south of Agra under Maratha control. Baji Rao's son Balaji Baji Rao further increased the territory under Maratha control by invading Punjab in 1758. Raghunathrao's letter to the Peshwa, 4 May 1758. Lahore, Multan and other subahs on eastern side of Attock are under our rule for the most part, and places which have not come under our rule we shall soon bring under us. Ahmad Shah Durrani's son Timur Shah Durrani and Jahan Khan have been pursued by our troops, and their troops completely looted. Both of them have now reached Peshawar with
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#17327732084206572-491: The front-line troops who attempted to flee the battle and kill without mercy any soldier who would not return to the fight. These extra troops, along with 4,000 of his reserve troops, went to support the broken ranks of the Rohillas on the right. The remainder of the reserve, 10,000 strong, were sent to the aid of Shah Wali, still labouring unequally against the Bhau in the centre of the field. These mailed warriors were to charge with
6678-454: The grave of Rohilla chieftan Najib ad-Dawla and captured Najibabad . With the fleeing of the Rohillas, the rest of the country was burnt, with the exception of the city of Amroha, which was defended by some thousands of Amrohi Sayyid tribes. The Rohillas who could offer no resistance fled to the Terai region . Though the Marathas left Rohilkhand hastily due to the arrival of the monsoon, which
6784-452: The nation of Croatia or the US state of Louisiana . This gives it a ranking of 39th in India (out of a total of 640 ). The district has a population density of 1,084 inhabitants per square kilometre (2,810/sq mi). Its population growth rate over the decade 2001–2011 was 23.4%. Bareilly has a sex ratio of 883 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 60.52%. 35.26% of
6890-413: The national average. Rohilkhand University in Bareilly was established in 1975. In August 1997, it was renamed as Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Rohilkhand University. Presently, 80 colleges are affiliated to it. 28°25′N 79°23′E / 28.417°N 79.383°E / 28.417; 79.383 Third Battle of Panipat The Third Battle of Panipat took place on 14 January 1761 between
6996-616: The news of the Afghans' return to North India by raising an army, and they marched North. Bhau's force was bolstered by some Maratha forces under Holkar , Scindia , Gaikwad and Govind Pant Bundele . Suraj Mal (the Jat ruler of Bharatpur ) also had joined Bhausaheb initially. This combined army captured the Mughal capital, Delhi, from an Afghan garrison in December 1759. Delhi had been reduced to ashes many times due to previous invasions, and in addition there being acute shortage of supplies in
7102-536: The next day also, in Panipat and the surrounding area. They arranged victory mounds of severed heads outside their camps. According to the single best eyewitness chronicle – the bakhar by Shuja-ud-Daula 's Diwan Casi Raja(Kashi Raja) – about 40,000 Maratha prisoners were slaughtered in cold blood the day after the battle. According to Hamilton, a reporter of the Bombay Gazette , about half a million Marathi people were present there in Panipat town and he gives
7208-436: The north to Sibi in the south, and from Hasan Abdal ( Attock ) in the east to Kabul and Kandahar in the west. A majority of the Rohillas migrated from Pashtunistan to North India between the 17th and 18th centuries. Rohilkhand lies on the upper Ganges alluvial plain and has an area of about 25,000 square kilometres (9,700 sq mi) (in and around the Bareilly and Moradabad divisions). The Ganges Doab to
7314-505: The numismatist is concerned. The population in 1901 was 1,090,117. Bareilly, also, was the headquarters of a brigade in the 7th division of the eastern army corps in British period. Bareilly is located at 28°10′N, 78°23′E, and lies in northern India . It borders Pilibhit and Shahjahanpur on East and Rampur on west, Udham Singh Nagar ( Uttarakhand ) in North and Badaun in South. It
7420-517: The population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes make up 12.52% of the population. Hindus form 63.6% of population. Islam is a significant minority. Bareilly is the seat of one of the most important modern Islamic revival movements in India, the Barelvis . The Barelvi madrassas mobilised Islamic scholars across the country to issue a joint Fatwa against the Islamic State . There is
7526-504: The province. These men have no visible means of maintenance, and no visible occupation except that of lounging up and down with their swords and shields, like the ancient Highlanders, whom in many respects they much resemble." Rohilkhand (under Hafiz Rahmat Khan Barech) was on the winning side at the Third Battle of Panipat of 1761 and successfully blocked the expansion of the Maratha Empire into north India. In 1772 Rohilkhand
7632-582: The rebellion as the first of several movements over ninety years to achieve independence, which was finally achieved in 1947. During the Mutiny of 1857 the Rohillas took a very active part against the English, but since then they had been disarmed. During the First War of Indian Independence in 1857, Khan Bhadur Khan issued silver coins from Bareilly as an independent ruler. These coins are a novelty as far as
7738-538: The region was governed by the Royal House of Rampur . Rohilkhand means "the land of the Rohilla ". The term Rohilla first became common in the 17th century, with Rohilla used to refer to the people coming from the land of Roh which is a corruption of Koh meaning mountains (i.e. Kohistan in Persian ), which was originally a geographical term that corresponded with the territory from Swat and Bajaur in
7844-408: The river), unopposed by the Marathas who were still preoccupied with the sacking of Kunjpura and visit to nearby Kurukshetra ; an important Hindu pilgrimage destination. After the Marathas failed to prevent Abdali's forces from crossing the Yamuna River, they set up defensive works in the ground near Panipat , thereby blocking his access back to Afghanistan, just as Abdali's forces blocked theirs to
7950-594: The ruler of Afghanistan , to halt the threat. The Marathas attempted to turn over the support of the Gujarati Muslim Babis, the Indian Rohillas, Nizam brothers of the Deccan, and Shuja-ud-Dawlah. Ahmad Shah Durrani ( Ahmad Shah Abdali ), angered by the news from his son and his allies, was unwilling to allow the Marathas' spread go unchecked. By the end of 1759 Abdali with his Qizilbash and
8056-515: The second phase, Bhau himself led the charge against the left-of-center Afghan forces, under the Afghan Vizier Shah Wali Khan. The sheer force of the attack nearly broke the Afghan lines, and the Afghan soldiers started to desert their positions in the confusion. Desperately trying to rally his forces, Shah Wali appealed to Shuja ud Daulah for assistance. However, the Nawab did not break from his position, effectively splitting
8162-529: The situation. Raghunathrao asked for large number of an army soldiers, which was denied by Sadashivrao Bhau , his cousin and Diwan of Peshwa. Therefore, he declined to go. Sadashivrao Bhau was instead made commander in chief of the Maratha Army, under whom the Battle of Panipat was fought. The Marathas, under the command of Sadashivrao Bhau, responded by gathering an army of between 45,000 and 60,000, which
8268-690: The son and viceroy of the Afghan ruler, Ahmad Shah Abdali . This was the high-water mark of Maratha expansion, where the boundaries of their empire extended north of the Sindhu river all the way down south to northern Kerala . This territory was ruled through the Peshwa , who talked of placing his son Vishwasrao on the Mughal throne. However, Delhi still remained under the control of Mughals , key Muslim intellectuals including Shah Waliullah and other Muslim clergies in India were frightened at these developments. In desperation they appealed to Ahmad Shah Abdali ,
8374-614: The south and west, Kumaon to the north, Nepal to the east, and the Awadh region to the southeast mark its borders. The Rohilla Afghan leader Daud Khan led the settlement in the Katehar region in northern India under orders of the Mogul emperor Aurangzeb (ruled 1658–1707) to suppress the Katheria Rajput uprisings. Rajput's first king was Raja Ram Singh Katheria. These katheriya Rajputs contained 18 clans of Rajput Vansh, including
8480-527: The south. However, on the afternoon of 26 October, Ahmad Shah's advance guard reached Samalkha , about halfway between Sonepat and Panipat, where they encountered the vanguard of the Marathas. A fierce skirmish ensued, in which the Afghans lost 1000 men but drove the Marathas back to their main body, which kept retreating slowly for several days. This led to the partial encirclement of the Maratha army. In skirmishes that followed, Govind Pant Bundele , with 10,000 light cavalry who weren't formally trained soldiers,
8586-512: The state Uttar Pradesh in northern India . Its capital is Bareilly city and it is divided in six administrative division or tehsils : Aonla , Baheri , Bareilly city, Faridpur , Mirganj , and Nawabganj . The Bareilly district is a part of the Bareilly Division and occupies an area of 4120 km with a population of 4,448,359 people (previously it was 3,618,589) according to the census of 2011. The modern City of Bareilly
8692-474: The state of his army, was crossing the Narmada with a relief force and supplies when he heard of the defeat. He returned to Pune and never recovered from the shock of the debacle at Panipat. According to Kashi Raja Pundit, "It was Balaji Bajirao's love of pleasure which was responsible for Panipat. He delayed at Paithan celebrating his second marriage until December 27, when it was too late." Jankoji Scindia
8798-411: The still unbroken forces on his left. He sent his bodyguards to call up his 15,000 reserve troops from his camp and arranged them as a column in front of his cavalry of musketeers ( Qizilbash ) and 2,000 swivel-mounted shutarnaals or Ushtranaal—cannons—on the backs of camels. The shutarnaals, because of their positioning on camels, could fire an extensive salvo over the heads of their own infantry, at
8904-537: The time of Shah Alam II, Bareilly was the headquarters of Rohilla Sardar Hafiz Rehmat Khan and many more coins were issued. After that, the city was in possession of Awadh Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah. The coins that he issued had Bareilly , Bareilly Aasfabad , and Bareilly kite and fish as identification marks. After that, the minting of coins passed on to the East India Company. The Rohillas, after fifty years' precarious independence, were subjugated in 1774 by
9010-417: The tired Maratha infantry began to succumb to the onslaught of attacks from fresh Afghan reserves, protected by armoured leather jackets. Sadashiv Rao Bhau who had not kept any reserves, seeing his forward lines dwindling, civilians behind and upon seeing Vishwasrao disappear in the midst of the fighting, felt he had no choice but to come down from his elephant and lead the battle. Taking advantage of this,
9116-464: The two sides. In one of these Najib lost 3,000 of his Rohillas and was nearly killed himself. Facing a potential stalemate, Abdali decided to seek terms, which Bhau was willing to consider. However, Najib Khan delayed any chance of an agreement with an appeal on religious grounds and sowed doubt about whether the Marathas would honour any agreement. After the Marathas moved from Kunjpura to Panipat, Diler Khan Marwat, with his father Alam Khan Marwat and
9222-410: The vanguard, seeing that their general had disappeared from his elephant and the chaos ensuing in the rear, panicked and scattered in disarray towards the rear. Abdali had given a part of his army the task of surrounding and killing the Gardis, who were at the leftmost part of the Maratha army. Bhausaheb had ordered Vitthal Vinchurkar (with 1500 cavalry) and Damaji Gaikwad (with 2500 cavalry) to protect
9328-481: Was accompanied by roughly 200,000 non-combatants, a number of whom were pilgrims desirous of making pilgrimages to Hindu holy sites in northern India. The Marathas started their northward journey from Patdur on 14 March 1760. Both sides tried to get the Nawab of Awadh , Shuja-ud-Daulah , into their camp. By late July Shuja-ud-Daulah made the decision to join the Afghan-Rohilla coalition, preferring to join what
9434-412: Was assisting in the administration of the Maratha camp, escaped to Pune with her bodyguard, Janu Bhintada along with Nana Fadnavis under the protection of Malhar Rao Holkar's contingent. Some 15,000 soldiers managed to reach Gwalior . Durrani had both numeric as well as qualitative superiority over Marathas. The combined Afghan army was much larger than that of Marathas. Though the infantry of Marathas
9540-440: Was broken by Maratha bowmen and pikemen, along with a unit of the famed Gardi musketeers stationed close to the artillery positions. The second and subsequent salvos were fired at point-blank range into the Afghan ranks. The resulting carnage sent the Rohillas reeling back to their lines, leaving the battlefield in the hands of Ibrahim for the next three hours, during which the 8,000 Gardi musketeers killed about 12,000 Rohillas. In
9646-562: Was difficult for their armies, their threat forced the Rohillas to seek an alliance with the Nawabs of Awadh. In the presence of Robert Barker , the commander of the British East India company troops at Awadh, a treaty was signed between Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula and Hafiz Rahmat Khan on 15th June 1772, which ensured the safety of Rohilkhand by Awadh and its British allies from the Marathas in exchange for Rs 40 lakh. The families of
9752-500: Was divided into Uttara-Panchala and Dakshina-Panchala. The northern Panchala had its capital at Ahichatra (also known as Adhichhatra and Chhatravati, near present-day Aonla ) tehsil of Bareilly district, while southern Panchala had it capital at Kampilya or Kampil in Farrukhabad district . The famous city of Kannauj or Kanyakubja was situated in the kingdom of Panchala. According to the epic Mahābhārata , Bareilly region ( Panchala , in present - day Uttar Pradesh and nearby regions)
9858-478: Was founded by Mukrand Rai in 1657. Later it became the capital of the Rohilkhand region before getting handed over to Nawab Vazir of Awadh and then to the East India Company , becoming an integral part of India . Historically, the region was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Panchala . The Panchalas occupied the country to the east of the Kurus , between the upper Himalayas and the river Ganges . The country
9964-585: Was from the Qizilbash , and recruited other troops such as the Pashtun tribes, Kurds, and Uzbeks. and made several gains against the smaller Maratha garrisons in Punjab. He then joined his Indian allies—the Rohillas of the Gangetic Doab, the Muslims of Northern India, and Shuja-ud-Daula —forming a broad coalition against the Marathas. To counter this, Raghunathrao was supposed to go north to handle
10070-543: Was invaded by the Marathas ; however the Nawabs of Awadh came to the aid of the Rohillas in repulsing the invasion. After the war Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula demanded payment for their help from the Rohilla chief, Hafiz Rahmat Khan Barech. When the demand was refused the Nawab joined with the British under Governor Warren Hastings and his Commander-in-Chief , Alexander Champion , to invade Rohilkhand. Hafiz Rahmat Khan Barech
10176-425: Was killed in the ensuing battle at Miranpur Katra in 1774. Nawab Saadat Ali Khan surrendered Rohilkhand to the East India Company by the treaty of 10 November 1801. During this period too, Bareilly retained its status as a mint. Emperor Akbar and his descendants minted gold and silver coins at mints in Bareilly. The Afghan conqueror Ahmed Shah Durani too minted gold and silver coins at the Bareilly mint. During
10282-600: Was led by Sadashivrao Bhau , who was third-highest authority of the Maratha Confederacy after the Chhatrapati and the Peshwa . The bulk of the Maratha army was stationed in the Deccan Plateau with the Peshwa . Militarily, the battle pitted the artillery, musketry, and cavalry of the Marathas against the heavy cavalry, musketry ( jezail ) and mounted artillery ( zamburak ) of the Afghans and
10388-452: Was led by two Viziers, Shuja-ud-daulah with 3,000 soldiers and 50–60 cannons and Ahmad Shah's Vizier Shah Wali with a choice body of 19,000 mailed Afghan horsemen. The right centre consisted of 15,000 Rohillas under Hafiz Rahmat and other chiefs of the Rohilla Pathans. Pasand Khan covered the left wing with 5,000 cavalry, Barkurdar Khan and Amir Beg covered the right with 3,000 Rohilla cavalry. Long-range musketeers were also present during
10494-643: Was made the capital of the Rohilkhand state and it became Pashtun majority city with Gali Nawaban as the main royal street. Other important cities were Moradabad , Rampur , Shahjahanpur , and Badaun . In 1752, the Maratha were asked by Safdarjung , the Nawab of Oudh , to help him defeat Pashtun Rohilla. The Maratha forces and Awadh forces besieged the Rohillas, who had sought refuge in Kumaon , but had to retreat when Ahmad Shah Abdali invaded India. After
10600-667: Was never a disturbed area (except at the time of the Indian Independence Struggle). Found at Ganga Ghati in abundance were the Adi Vigraha and Shree Vigraha coins of the Pratihara Kings that were minted here between the 4th to the 9th centuries. Dating to this period are also the silver coins – similar to those of Firoz Second – known as Indo-Sasanian. After the fall of the Kingdom of Panchala,
10706-439: Was on a foraging mission with about 500 men. They were surprised by an Afghan force near Meerut , and in the ensuing fight, Bundele was killed. This was followed by the loss of a contingent of 2,000 Maratha soldiers who had left Delhi to deliver money and rations to Panipat . This completed the encirclement, as Ahmad Shah had cut off the Maratha army's supply lines. With supplies and stores dwindling, tensions started rising in
10812-409: Was organized along European lines and their army had some of the best French-made guns of the time, their artillery was static and lacked mobility against the fast-moving Afghan forces. The heavy mounted artillery of Afghans proved much better in the battlefield than the light artillery of Marathas. None of the other Hindu kings joined forces to fight Abdali. Allies of Abdali, namely, Najib, Shuja and
10918-549: Was perceived as the "army of Islam ". This was strategically a major loss for the Marathas, since Shuja provided much-needed finances for the long Afghan stay in North India . It is doubtful whether the Afghan-Rohilla coalition would have the means to continue their conflict with the Marathas without Shuja's support. Grant Duff, describing the Maratha army: The lofty and spacious tents, lined with silks and broadcloths, were surmounted by large gilded ornaments, conspicuous at
11024-654: Was succeeded by Hafiz Rahmat Khan Barech (1749–1774), whom he appointed as the regent of Rohilkhand on his deathbed. Hafiz Rahmat Khan Barech extended the power of Rohilkhand from Almora in the North to Etawah in the South-West. The term Rohilla is derived from the Pashtu Roh , meaning mountain , and literally means a mountain air , and was used by the Baluch and Jats of the Derajat region to refer to
11130-548: Was taken prisoner and executed at the instigation of Najib. Ibrahim Khan Gardi was tortured and executed by enraged Afghan soldiers. The Marathas never fully recovered from the loss at Panipat, but they remained the largest empire in the Indian subcontinent and managed to retake Delhi ten years later. However, their claim over all of India ended with the three Anglo-Maratha Wars , in the early 19th century. The Jats under Suraj Mal benefited significantly from not participating in
11236-541: Was there upon made commander in chief of the Maratha Army, under whom the Battle of Panipat was fought. Some historians have opined, that Peshwa's decision to appoint Sadashivrao Bhau as the Supreme Commander instead of Malharrao Holkar or Raghunathrao proved to be an unfortunate one, as Sadashivrao was totally ignorant of the political and military situation in North India. If Holkar had remained in
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