Battle of Ratanpur (Pandhar)

VictorArmy of Nizam-ul-MulkNizam-ul-Mulk (Asaf Jah I)

1720vs

Army of the Sayyid brothersDilawar Ali Khan

Nizam-ul-Mulk, governor of Malwa, broke with the Sayyid brothers and marched for the Deccan. The Sayyids sent Dilawar Ali Khan after him, and the Nizam turned and destroyed his army.

Date: June 1720Where: Near Khandwa, on the road from Malwa to Burhanpur, Madhya PradeshType: Battle

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Cite

MLA

“Battle of Ratanpur (Pandhar).” Hindu History, 2026, https://www.hinduhistory.in/battles/battle-of-ratanpur-1720/. Accessed .

APA

Hindu History. (2026). Battle of Ratanpur (Pandhar). Retrieved , from https://www.hinduhistory.in/battles/battle-of-ratanpur-1720/

Result

Dilawar Ali Khan was killed and his army destroyed; the Nizam went on into the Deccan.

01The Nizam breaks away

Mir Qamar-ud-din, titled Nizam-ul-Mulk, was the ablest general of the old Aurangzeb school. The Sayyid brothers, who had deposed and killed Farrukhsiyar in 1719, feared him and ordered him to leave Malwa. Instead he crossed the Narmada in 1720, took Asirgarh and Burhanpur, and made for the Deccan, where the Sayyids’ nephew Alam Ali Khan was deputy governor. Sayyid Husain Ali Khan sent Dilawar Ali Khan with an army from the north to catch him.

02Dilawar Ali’s defeat

In June 1720 the Nizam turned back to meet Dilawar Ali Khan near Khandwa, between the Narmada and the Tapti, at the place the chronicles call Ratanpur or Pandhar. Dilawar Ali attacked with his Barha troops and Rajput allies, among them the Raja of Kota, Bhim Singh. The Nizam’s artillery and cavalry broke them. Dilawar Ali and Bhim Singh were both killed. The Nizam then turned south to settle with Alam Ali Khan at Balapur.

Why it matters

Ratanpur was the first of the Nizam’s victories over the Sayyids that, with Balapur and Shakarkheda, made him master of the Deccan.