The most fascinating aspect of the Pratapgad battle is not the battle itself, but the strategic turn of events that took place until the battle begun.
It is these events, tactics and moves done by both Shivaji and Afzalkhan, which takes this entire episode to a whole new level. These tactics tested the strengths and exposed the weaknesses of both contenders and it is the way Shivaji handled the chaos, overcame all the dreadful threats, readied himself for all the anticipations and executed his strategy, that made him a winner.
I have been thinking of writing about this phase between Afzalkhan accepting the challenge thrown by Badi begum and him arriving at the Pratapgad, for quite some time now and the best metaphor I have always thought of, for this phase, is that of a 'Game of Chess'.
A real life war game, where two contenders moved each pawn, each rook and knight very carefully, and with each new step, did their best to overcome the strategic advantage of the other.
I think it's high time I shared this metaphor of a Chess game with you all. This write-up looks to be a lengthy one, and I will be splitting it into three chapters - One chapter per stage of the Chess Game. In order to preserve the momentum of reading, I will recommend the readers to go through all these three chapters as one.
As in any game of Chess, the White moves first. Well, as I believe that Shivaji represented the right cause, I also consider his side to be the white side. I know that the obvious question you want to ask now, is that this whole sequence of events got triggered by a challenge thrown by Badi Begum - So is it that the black moved first in this game??
The answer to your question is a NO.
The challenge thrown by badi begum was an eventuality and it had to take place some day or other. It was just the whistle blown to indicate the spectators that game has begun - the fact is this game was laid long back and the White side had done their opening even before anyone could sense it.
WHITE: Securing the Pawns.
This is the step zero by Shivaji. It is the empathy and vision of Shahaji and Shivaji, which helped them win the loyalties of soldiers and warlords in their regions. Their soldiers were not just paid employees, they were driven warriors fighting for the cause of an independent Maratha empire. Not just the common soldiers, but also the various chieftains and warlords in and around Shivaji's territories were infested and infected with the vision of an independent Maratha empire. For these men, fighting against Shivaji was now an act of betrayal to a king and to the Maratha kingdom.
Thus, when Afzalkhan sent in memos for these people to join him on his arrival, he was too late. Shivaji had already secured the allegiance of most of these people.
BLACK: Securing the Pawns.
Badi begum handed an elite force of ten thousand Adilshahi soldiers to Afzalkhan. Many other prominent warlords and commanders from Adilshah's court were ordered to join Afzalkhan with their forces. Afzalkhan himself had big enough cavalry, infantry and artillery unit. Apart from these forces, Afzalkhan also wanted participation of the local warlords in and around Shivaji's territories on his side. Reminding them of their past allegiance to the Adilshah, Afzalkhan sent in memos to all the local warlords and chieftains and informed them about his raid. He ordered all of them to be ready to help the Adilshahi forces and join in the battle for defeating Shivaji. These memos arrived to their destinations in around 2 weeks time.
Although a handful of warlords like the fleed descendants of Chandrarao More and the chieftains of Khopde clan accepted the orders, most of them denied. Some like Kanhoji Jedhe swore their loyalties to Shivaji, while others who were undecided whether to join Shivaji or not, stayed aloof and decided to wait-and-watch.
This move of securing the locals did not go well for Afzalkhan and after a few later developments, he lost all of the locals to Shivaji [we will come to that soon].
WHITE: Early threat to King by deploying a Decoy.
OK. This was not exactly a part of Shivaji's strategy, but it helped his case regardless. And although the decoy did succeed in creating a distraction, it was also a genuine threat posed by the White side. Alright, before someone gets irritated, let me unfold the metaphor.
When badi begum challenged her court to take care of Shivaji, Shahaji was still a commander of Adilshahi forces. Although he was deployed at a war post in the south, he had his ambassadors in the court. It is these representatives, which conveyed the news of Afzalkhan's raid to both Shahaji and Shivaji. And it was done within a day or two.
While Shivaji started to think of the future strategy, Shahaji wanted to take no chances. He had already lost a son and did not wish to lose anyone else. He immediately sent a message to both Afzalkhan and the Adilshah and warned them, if there is any harm caused by Afzalkhan to Shivaji, Shahaji will raid Bijapur, the capital of Adilshah, and destroy the Adilshahi sultanante forever.
He also starting gathering his men.
Both Adilshah and Afzalkhan knew that the threat was real. Shahaji may not be able to destroy the sultanate as he had threatened, but he surely can cause immense damage. Whatever they do, it had to be quick and it had to be swift. These letters would have reached both Adilshah and Afzalkhan in 4-5 days after the court challenge episode.
BLACK: Castling.
Even while Afzalkhan and Adilshah were busy thinking of the way to mitigate the threat from Shahaji and his army, Afzalkhan took off from Bijapur on his mission.
By coincidence, on the day of his departure, a bad omen occurred for him. All the warlords, commanders and generals of those days carried a mark with them during the wars and this mark was generally protected by a small unit of elite soldiers. In Most of the cases, the carrier of this mark was also a fixed pet - either a lucky horse or a lucky elephant [for those who could afford one]. For many soldiers this elephant and the mark together represented the good fortune of their commander. These animals were at all times, protected and pampered, for good omens.
On the day of his departure, the lucky mascot elephant of Afzalkhan was found dead. I am not sure of the cause of this death, but I know for sure that no historians have yet claimed this to be an act by Shivaji's [or Shahaji's] spies in Bijapur. So, lets accept this as a normal death of the elephant.
While this shocked most of the soldiers in Afzalkhan's command, he himself was undeterred and started off on the raid without paying any heed to the elephant's death. In a day or two, he reached his native place, currently known as Afzalpura.
Afzalkhan camped in his village for a week - He wanted to wait till all the other warlords caught up with him and joined his forces and he wanted to seek blessings of a local religious man for the campaign.
And then it happened. Afzalkhan for the first time got to experience the power of Shivaji's intelligence wing. He had already sent memos to the local warlords in and around Pune, Wai, Javali, Konkan; hence there was already a frightful anticipation in minds of all Shivaji's subjects. In order to win this war, Shivaji had to make sure that his subjects put faith in him and see him as a winner. Only when they are confident, they can fight the war better. Even while Afzalkhan was settling down in Afzalpura, Shivaji's spies told him the news that the lucky Elephant is dead. Without wasting a single moment, this news was spread in the entire region - "Gods have delivered a bad omen for Afzalkhan and his cause. They have decided to not support him this time. A win over this most dreaded commander of Adilshah was a possibility."
I am sure that Afzalkhan also had his own spies and they brought him the news of the spreading rumor soon. After the meeting with the religious man, Afzalkhan stayed for a couple of days more in Afzalpura. And then, he did most unexpected of the acts. He ordered killing of his entire Janankhana that was with him in Afzalpura. A total of his 63 wives were killed that day and their tombs still stand in Afzalpura.
While we do not find of any reason in history books, as to why Afzalkhan did this, I have a theory of my own. We all know this as a "fact" that 'Afzalkhan's elephant died', but many historians only mention it as a "rumor" that 'the religious man told Afzalkhan that this is the last battle of his life and he sees a beheaded corpse of Afzalkhan'. I think there is a reason for that.
When Afzalkhan came to know that the rumor of his elephant's death was spreading across deccan and is transforming into an news, he knew where this is going. He is being projected as the man without god's help.
And then, as per my theory, his spies told him that there is also a rumor floating around that when you met the religious man, he predicted your death. This was probably not something which reached Shivaji till then, but was definitely a budding candidate for a rumor.
Usually, when we meet religious people to seek their blessings, we try to be away from our professional circles and take our family along. So, if there was a rumor, true or false, about conversation that Afzalkhan had with the religious man, it had to be emerging from some member of Janaankhana that he took along.
Afzalkhan wanted to eliminate the threat of leaking news and rumors forever and he ordered the killing of all his wives - no mercy, no hearings, no favors. Equal punishment to all.
This helped Afzalkhan to send message across a different cross-section of audiences.
a. This killing was a message to Shahaji that Afzalkhan does not care of what happens to his loved ones - all that he cares about is his mission. If he can kill his wives, he can also bear the grief of Bijapur's defeat, in case that becomes a reality in near future.
b. It was also a message to his accomplices and army that there would be no indiscipline or treachery tolerated.
c. It was a message to Shivaji that he means business. No matter what image gets created of him in and after this battle, he has set out for blood and he will fulfill his destiny.
d. Adilshah was now convinced that there is no other guy more tough than Afzalkhan and that Afzalkhan would do whatever it takes to fulfill his mission.
Adilshah decided to appreciate Afzalkhan's brave gesture of accepting to raid Shivaji by giving his own lucky elephant to the Afzalkhan for this special battle. He also gifted Afzalkhan with the biggest cannon in Adilshahi sultanate. He was sure this move will also boost the confidence of the adilshahi army and restore their faith in the cause of the war.
Thus, Afzalkhan pushed the king [and all the worldly affairs] away from him and his cause, and the Rook got crossed over from the king's side to his side.
Black played Castling !!
It is these events, tactics and moves done by both Shivaji and Afzalkhan, which takes this entire episode to a whole new level. These tactics tested the strengths and exposed the weaknesses of both contenders and it is the way Shivaji handled the chaos, overcame all the dreadful threats, readied himself for all the anticipations and executed his strategy, that made him a winner.
I have been thinking of writing about this phase between Afzalkhan accepting the challenge thrown by Badi begum and him arriving at the Pratapgad, for quite some time now and the best metaphor I have always thought of, for this phase, is that of a 'Game of Chess'.
A real life war game, where two contenders moved each pawn, each rook and knight very carefully, and with each new step, did their best to overcome the strategic advantage of the other.
I think it's high time I shared this metaphor of a Chess game with you all. This write-up looks to be a lengthy one, and I will be splitting it into three chapters - One chapter per stage of the Chess Game. In order to preserve the momentum of reading, I will recommend the readers to go through all these three chapters as one.
As in any game of Chess, the White moves first. Well, as I believe that Shivaji represented the right cause, I also consider his side to be the white side. I know that the obvious question you want to ask now, is that this whole sequence of events got triggered by a challenge thrown by Badi Begum - So is it that the black moved first in this game??
The answer to your question is a NO.
The challenge thrown by badi begum was an eventuality and it had to take place some day or other. It was just the whistle blown to indicate the spectators that game has begun - the fact is this game was laid long back and the White side had done their opening even before anyone could sense it.
WHITE: Securing the Pawns.
This is the step zero by Shivaji. It is the empathy and vision of Shahaji and Shivaji, which helped them win the loyalties of soldiers and warlords in their regions. Their soldiers were not just paid employees, they were driven warriors fighting for the cause of an independent Maratha empire. Not just the common soldiers, but also the various chieftains and warlords in and around Shivaji's territories were infested and infected with the vision of an independent Maratha empire. For these men, fighting against Shivaji was now an act of betrayal to a king and to the Maratha kingdom.
Thus, when Afzalkhan sent in memos for these people to join him on his arrival, he was too late. Shivaji had already secured the allegiance of most of these people.
BLACK: Securing the Pawns.
Badi begum handed an elite force of ten thousand Adilshahi soldiers to Afzalkhan. Many other prominent warlords and commanders from Adilshah's court were ordered to join Afzalkhan with their forces. Afzalkhan himself had big enough cavalry, infantry and artillery unit. Apart from these forces, Afzalkhan also wanted participation of the local warlords in and around Shivaji's territories on his side. Reminding them of their past allegiance to the Adilshah, Afzalkhan sent in memos to all the local warlords and chieftains and informed them about his raid. He ordered all of them to be ready to help the Adilshahi forces and join in the battle for defeating Shivaji. These memos arrived to their destinations in around 2 weeks time.
Although a handful of warlords like the fleed descendants of Chandrarao More and the chieftains of Khopde clan accepted the orders, most of them denied. Some like Kanhoji Jedhe swore their loyalties to Shivaji, while others who were undecided whether to join Shivaji or not, stayed aloof and decided to wait-and-watch.
This move of securing the locals did not go well for Afzalkhan and after a few later developments, he lost all of the locals to Shivaji [we will come to that soon].
WHITE: Early threat to King by deploying a Decoy.
OK. This was not exactly a part of Shivaji's strategy, but it helped his case regardless. And although the decoy did succeed in creating a distraction, it was also a genuine threat posed by the White side. Alright, before someone gets irritated, let me unfold the metaphor.
When badi begum challenged her court to take care of Shivaji, Shahaji was still a commander of Adilshahi forces. Although he was deployed at a war post in the south, he had his ambassadors in the court. It is these representatives, which conveyed the news of Afzalkhan's raid to both Shahaji and Shivaji. And it was done within a day or two.
While Shivaji started to think of the future strategy, Shahaji wanted to take no chances. He had already lost a son and did not wish to lose anyone else. He immediately sent a message to both Afzalkhan and the Adilshah and warned them, if there is any harm caused by Afzalkhan to Shivaji, Shahaji will raid Bijapur, the capital of Adilshah, and destroy the Adilshahi sultanante forever.
He also starting gathering his men.
Both Adilshah and Afzalkhan knew that the threat was real. Shahaji may not be able to destroy the sultanate as he had threatened, but he surely can cause immense damage. Whatever they do, it had to be quick and it had to be swift. These letters would have reached both Adilshah and Afzalkhan in 4-5 days after the court challenge episode.
BLACK: Castling.
Even while Afzalkhan and Adilshah were busy thinking of the way to mitigate the threat from Shahaji and his army, Afzalkhan took off from Bijapur on his mission.
By coincidence, on the day of his departure, a bad omen occurred for him. All the warlords, commanders and generals of those days carried a mark with them during the wars and this mark was generally protected by a small unit of elite soldiers. In Most of the cases, the carrier of this mark was also a fixed pet - either a lucky horse or a lucky elephant [for those who could afford one]. For many soldiers this elephant and the mark together represented the good fortune of their commander. These animals were at all times, protected and pampered, for good omens.
On the day of his departure, the lucky mascot elephant of Afzalkhan was found dead. I am not sure of the cause of this death, but I know for sure that no historians have yet claimed this to be an act by Shivaji's [or Shahaji's] spies in Bijapur. So, lets accept this as a normal death of the elephant.
While this shocked most of the soldiers in Afzalkhan's command, he himself was undeterred and started off on the raid without paying any heed to the elephant's death. In a day or two, he reached his native place, currently known as Afzalpura.
Afzalkhan camped in his village for a week - He wanted to wait till all the other warlords caught up with him and joined his forces and he wanted to seek blessings of a local religious man for the campaign.
And then it happened. Afzalkhan for the first time got to experience the power of Shivaji's intelligence wing. He had already sent memos to the local warlords in and around Pune, Wai, Javali, Konkan; hence there was already a frightful anticipation in minds of all Shivaji's subjects. In order to win this war, Shivaji had to make sure that his subjects put faith in him and see him as a winner. Only when they are confident, they can fight the war better. Even while Afzalkhan was settling down in Afzalpura, Shivaji's spies told him the news that the lucky Elephant is dead. Without wasting a single moment, this news was spread in the entire region - "Gods have delivered a bad omen for Afzalkhan and his cause. They have decided to not support him this time. A win over this most dreaded commander of Adilshah was a possibility."
I am sure that Afzalkhan also had his own spies and they brought him the news of the spreading rumor soon. After the meeting with the religious man, Afzalkhan stayed for a couple of days more in Afzalpura. And then, he did most unexpected of the acts. He ordered killing of his entire Janankhana that was with him in Afzalpura. A total of his 63 wives were killed that day and their tombs still stand in Afzalpura.
While we do not find of any reason in history books, as to why Afzalkhan did this, I have a theory of my own. We all know this as a "fact" that 'Afzalkhan's elephant died', but many historians only mention it as a "rumor" that 'the religious man told Afzalkhan that this is the last battle of his life and he sees a beheaded corpse of Afzalkhan'. I think there is a reason for that.
When Afzalkhan came to know that the rumor of his elephant's death was spreading across deccan and is transforming into an news, he knew where this is going. He is being projected as the man without god's help.
And then, as per my theory, his spies told him that there is also a rumor floating around that when you met the religious man, he predicted your death. This was probably not something which reached Shivaji till then, but was definitely a budding candidate for a rumor.
Usually, when we meet religious people to seek their blessings, we try to be away from our professional circles and take our family along. So, if there was a rumor, true or false, about conversation that Afzalkhan had with the religious man, it had to be emerging from some member of Janaankhana that he took along.
Afzalkhan wanted to eliminate the threat of leaking news and rumors forever and he ordered the killing of all his wives - no mercy, no hearings, no favors. Equal punishment to all.
This helped Afzalkhan to send message across a different cross-section of audiences.
a. This killing was a message to Shahaji that Afzalkhan does not care of what happens to his loved ones - all that he cares about is his mission. If he can kill his wives, he can also bear the grief of Bijapur's defeat, in case that becomes a reality in near future.
b. It was also a message to his accomplices and army that there would be no indiscipline or treachery tolerated.
c. It was a message to Shivaji that he means business. No matter what image gets created of him in and after this battle, he has set out for blood and he will fulfill his destiny.
d. Adilshah was now convinced that there is no other guy more tough than Afzalkhan and that Afzalkhan would do whatever it takes to fulfill his mission.
Adilshah decided to appreciate Afzalkhan's brave gesture of accepting to raid Shivaji by giving his own lucky elephant to the Afzalkhan for this special battle. He also gifted Afzalkhan with the biggest cannon in Adilshahi sultanate. He was sure this move will also boost the confidence of the adilshahi army and restore their faith in the cause of the war.
Thus, Afzalkhan pushed the king [and all the worldly affairs] away from him and his cause, and the Rook got crossed over from the king's side to his side.
Black played Castling !!
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