Maharana Pratap, who shattered Akbar's pride, who never accepted defeat.
Mebar, in the northern Indian state of Rajasthan, is the epicenter of many historical and dramatic events. And the greatest historical hero of Mebar was the heroic warrior Maharana Pratap Singh. Known as the Lion of Mebar, this Maharana Pratap is another name for liberation struggle and patriotism. He gave birth to a new consciousness for the liberation of the whole of India by repeatedly resisting the Mughals. The history of this great hero has been a source of inspiration for any freedom-loving individual or group throughout the ages.
Pratap Singh was born on 9 May 1540 in Kumbalgarh, Rajasthan to the Sisoria Rajput dynasty. His father Maharana II Uday Singh was the king of Mebar. Its capital was Chittor. And the mother was Maharani Jayant Bai. Pratap Singh was the eldest of Uday Singh's twenty-five sons. So he was nominated as the father's heir. His father had been working hard to protect the kingdom from foreign invaders. So Maharana Pratap Singh took on the burden of a huge responsibility with the king's crown as a legacy.
He was in no way inferior in royal qualities. Pratap learned horse riding, weaponry and warfare from the very beginning of his life. At the same time there was a unique combination of generosity, cruelty and fearlessness. Everyone from the courtiers to the common people were appreciative of him. At the age of 17, Pratap married Azadbe Panwar, a feudal lord of Bijolia. Besides Maharani Azad, he had ten other queens. In his personal life, Pratap Singh was the father of 17 sons and 5 daughters.
In 1567, when Emperor Akbar came to besiege the fort of Chittor with an army of 60,000 troops, Pratap's entire family left the city and set out for Gogundar. The specialty of this fort, it was located on a hill 590 feet high. Its walls were also very wide. Many foreign invaders have failed to capture the fort in the past. However, it fell into the hands of Akbar. Jawahar took place three times in a row in this fort. Jawhar is the practice of a large number of women jumping into a fire and dying voluntarily in order to escape from the hands of the enemy forces. Among Rajput women, suicide was the last resort.
The first jewels in the fort of Chittor took place during the reign of Rani Padmavati, the second during the reign of Rani Karnavati, and the third during the fall of Chittor during the reign of Pratap Singh. In contrast to the 60,000 Mughal troops that day, there were only a few thousand Rajput troops in the fort, who fought hard but failed to save the fort. Forced to save face, 5,000 women jumped into the fire and died. Pratap Singh, 27, was shocked to see this tragic scene with his own eyes. His father Uday Singh's ongoing enmity with Emperor Akbar has since turned into his own enmity. His goal was to liberate the country from Mughal aggression.
Uday Singh left Chittor and established a new capital called Udaipur. Uday Singh migrated to Parpar in 1572. Pratap Singh wears the crown. The death of his father and the fact that he never saw Chittor again in his lifetime would have deeply afflicted him. But he was not alone in suffering, there was one more. Emperor Akbar himself. Akbar occupied Chittor, but he did not have dominion over the whole of Mebar. As long as the people of Mebar were loyal to Maharana Pratap, it was difficult for him to fulfill his hobby of being the sole Jahpana of the whole of Hindustan.
Akbar sent envoys to Pratap several times to make peace. But Pratap was only interested in a deal that would maintain Meber's full sovereignty. Akbar sent delegations to Pratap Singh several times in a row for the purpose of treaty. The last delegation was led by Akbar's trusted general Man Singh. Man Singh himself was a Rajput. Pratap Singh became very angry at Man Singh for taking the side of Akbar who was harassing the Rajputs even though he was a Rajput. Needless to say, this delegation also failed and returned. This failure draws a line between war and peace. Akbar understands that it is not a treaty, he has to go on the path of war.
Meanwhile, Maharana Pratap also understood that Akbar's next language would be the language of arms. In preparation for the inevitable battle, Pratap shifted his capital to his birthplace Kumbalgarh. He instructed the people to take everything and go to the back of Mount Aravalli. His plan was to wage war in the mountainous region of Araballi. The Rajputs were accustomed to fighting in such lands, but the Mughals were quite unaccustomed. Pratap wanted to use this opportunity. One of his forces was always on the lookout for the Haldighati pass. Haldighati was the only way to enter Udaipur from the north.
The famous battle of Haldighati took place on 18 June 1576 (21 June in any description). Akbar sent a large force of 80,000 troops under Man Singh against Maharana Pratap. Pratap's party had only 20,000 Rajput troops against this huge force. Ram Shah Tanwar of Gwalior and his three sons were the main commanders of Pratap's forces. In addition, a contingent of Afghan troops led by Hakim Khan Shur and an archery force from the "Vil" tribe led by Pratap.
The Rajput army defeated the Mughal forces in the first push. Pratap Singh landed two elephants named 'Lona' and 'Ram Prasad' on the battlefield. Ignoring the blows of arrows and shells, they continued to advance, destroying the Mughal forces. Wrapped in a trunk, they picked up one horse and threw it over the corpses of the Mughal soldiers, until their mahouts were killed by the Mughal army. Maharana Pratap built a strong resistance against the enemies. He tore one of Akbar's army chiefs in two with a sword.
Man Singh was sitting on the back of an elephant watching the overall situation of the war. Seeing the soldiers on both the left and right being defeated, he moved forward with the middle group. But seeing him on the battlefield, Maharana Pratap came running. He put an artificial trunk like an elephant on the head of his horse Chetak. Riding this horrible vision horse, he jumped directly on Man Singh's elephant and attacked him. Man Singh narrowly escaped being hit by his spear. Chetak later died in this battle. Maharana Pratap's forces were forced to be defeated in this unequal battle.
After the battle of Haldighat, Akbar tried to capture Mebar many more times. But fail every time. During this time, Pratap also tried to recover Chito. But his forces were weakened by the constant beatings of the Mughal forces. Besides, he lacks the necessary funds to run the army. In such a situation Bhama Shah came forward and gave him a huge amount of money. This money carried Meber's 25,000-strong force for 12 years.
After 1587, Akbar turned his attention to northwestern India and the Punjab. The Maharana took this opportunity to recapture most of the area of Mebar. But he could no longer capture Chittor. However, at the end of his life, he did not give up hope of recovering the lost city, nor did he retreat from the fight.
Maharana Pratap was injured in an accident during a hunting expedition in 1597. This accident is the cause of his death. On January 29, 1597, this lion, a heroic warrior, passed away in one of the dream dreams of independence of India. He did not submit to the enemy of death, he lived, fought for freedom, he left the world with the dream of freedom in his eyes. A Maharana Pratap is a tangible symbol of liberation struggle and relentless efforts for freedom. He will always be the source of eternal inspiration for freedom-loving people.
#Meber's Lion: Maharana Pratap #Rana Pratap Singh #Meber #Haldighat
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