1.
#Thread on Durgadas Rathore, the Marwar loyalist who became a catalyst for the end of Aurangzeb.
This thread forms the 1st part of our series on the 27-Year-War epic saga, which proved to be death sentence for the Mughal Empire.
#Mughals #Marathas #Rajput #Hindutva #History
2.
1678, Dec 10: The story of Durgadas Rathore begins with the death of Maharaj Jaswant Singh of Marwar.
Aurangzeb wished to annex Marwar on this opportunity; however Durgadas Rathore wanted the infant son of Jaswant Singh, Ajit Singh to be the successor.
3.
Aurangzeb agreed to make him successor only if he was raised in Mughal harem, & converts to Islam.
On this occasion arose the unsung hero, Durgadas Rathore, who was quick to grasp Aurangzeb's long-term plot. He asked Aurangzeb to let Ajit Singh be presented to Mughal court...
4.
.. only after he comes of age. Not agreeing, Aurangzeb tried to imprison Durgadas Rathore alongwith infant Ajit Singh & the 2 queens of Jaswant Singh.
1679, Jul 15: Durgadas rescues the Marwar royals and escapes from Delhi towards Jodhpur. He defeated the pursuing Mughals..
5.
.. & conducted Ajit Singh safely to Marwar. Aurangzeb himself descended into Rajputana & made Ajmer his base of operations.
1679, Aug: Mairtia Rathores fight Mughals to de@th to guard the Varaha Mandir, Pushkar.
6.
1680: Mewar won battle at Chittorgarh vs Mughals. They also raided Malwa & Gujarat. In response to the wanton temple-breaking by Mughals, 32 mosques were broken in Gujarat,esp Karnavati.
Maharana Raj Singh died in Oct, & his successor Jai Singh peaced out Mughals in Jun 1681.
7.
Meanwhile, Durgadas Rathore weakened the Mughal offence by making Prince Akbar rebel against Aurangzeb in Jul-Aug 1680. This was a turning point!
Since asylum with Mewar wasn't available, Durgadas Rathore made a daring escape to the Maratha court.
8.
Akbar & Durgadas were received warmly by Maratha agents, with Chh.Sambhaji meeting them in Nov 1681. Aurangzeb diverted almost all the imperial resources for subjugating Deccan.
1686: Chh.Sambhaji planned for Akbar making dash towards North, but were repulsed at Ahmadnagar.
9.
1687: Durgadas Rathore returns to Marwar after sending off Akbar to Persia. During 1681-87, Marwaris waged guerilla war vs Mughals.
1687-90: Rathores harassed Mughal posts in Marwar, as well as raided Mewat area at the heart of Mughal Empire, & returned to Marwar via Sirhind.
10.
1690: Battle of Ajmer-Durgadas Rathore defeats Mughals under Safi Khan.
As the Maratha pressure on Mughals increased drastically after 1691 under Chh.Rajaram, Mughal offence in Marwar softened. Durgadas was engaged in Mewar at the same time to fight internal rebels as well.
11.
When Durgadas had left for Deccan, he had left Akbar's children in Marwar. Aurangzeb opened negotiations to get them back in 1692. But they soon fell off, and Marwar resumed the guerilla war.
1696: Akbar's daughter was returned. Aurangzeb tried luring Durgadas but in vain.
12.
1698: After about 2 decades of incessant Mughal war, Marwar had become desolate land prone to famines & drought. Ajit Singh peaced out Mughals and returned Akbar's son as well. Ajit Singh became mansabdar & Durgadas faujdar in Gujarat.
13.
1701: However, Durgadas came back to Marwar again when Mughal Governor of Gujarat schemed to k1ll Durgadas. The freedom struggle started once again, but famines & devastation temporarily halted the struggle.
Durgadas was restored to Gujarat mansab in 1705.
14.
1706, Mar 4: Battle of Ratanpur (near Rajpipla,Gujarat) between Marathas & Mughals. Marathas crushed Mughals in this battle, inspiring rebellion of Ajit Singh again. Durgadas Rathore left Mughals too!
15.
1707: Amidst the Marwar struggle, news of Aurangzeb's death arrived. Durgadas & Ajit Singh expelled Mughal officers from Marwar more vigorously, & Ajit Singh was finally crowned as Jodhpur Maharaja.
16.
After it, Durgadas took up service at Mewar’s employ. He passed away on 22 Nov, 1718 after having fulfilled his duties towards Rajputana to the fullest extent.
Durgadas Rathore's memorial at the banks of Kshipra river, Ujjain, serves to remind us of his dedicated struggle.
17.
During this long struggle with Mughals, Durgadas Rathore exemplified the unparalleled loyalty, courage, & willingness to face hardships to get desired objective.
Naman to Veer Durgadas Rathore, the hitherto unsung #HinduHero 🙏🚩
#Hindutva
18.
The thread-series on the 27-Year-War continued 👇
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.