Battle of Umberkhind

01The trap in the forest

Kartalab Khan’s force came down the Umberkhind with heavy baggage, in the heat, through dense forest and with no proper guides. Shivaji’s men, hidden on the slopes, blocked the way ahead and behind and opened fire from cover. The Mughal soldiers could not see their enemy, could not deploy and soon had no water. Within a few hours the column was helpless.

02Rai Bagan’s counsel

With the column was Rai Bagan, a woman commander from a Deccani Maratha family in Mughal service. The Shivabharat says it was she who told Kartalab Khan that resistance was useless and advised him to ask Shivaji for terms. The Khan sent envoys; Shivaji let the force go after it gave up its arms, baggage and a ransom. Not a single Maratha fort had been touched.

Person · 1630–1680 CE; crowned 1674Chhatrapati Shivaji MaharajBorn at Shivneri on 19 February 1630, Shivaji built a free Maratha state from a handful of hill forts around Pune, outfought Bijapur and the Mughals, escaped from Aurangzeb’s court, and was crowned Chhatrapati at Raigad on 6 June 1674.Read →