Battle of Pavan Khind
This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
Battle of Päwan Khind | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of Battles involving the Maratha Empire | |||||||
A 20th century depiction by painter M.V. Dhurandhar of Shivaji and Baji Prabhu at Pawan Khind | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
| Bijapur Sultanate | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Baji Prabhu Deshpande † Fulaji Prabhu Deshpande † Rayaji Bandal † Shambu Singh Jadhav † |
Siddi Masud Siddi Jauhar |
The Battle of Pavan Khind (/pɑːvʌnxɪnd/ PAAVANKHIND); was a rearguard last stand that took place on 13 July 1660,[1] at a mountain pass in the vicinity of fort Vishalgad, near the city of Kolhapur by the Maratha warriors Baji Prabhu Deshpande and Shambhu Singh Jadhav against Siddi Masud of the Bijapur Sultanate.[2][3] The engagement ended with the destruction of the Maratha forces, and a tactical victory for the Bijapur Sultanate that failed to achieve a strategic victory.
Battle
This section has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
Baji Prabhu, together with his brother Fulaji Prabhu and sardars such as Shambusing Jadhav, occupied Ghod Khind, blocking the path of the Adilshahi troops. Fulaji Prabhu and Shambusing were killed after a fierce fight. Baji Prabhu was severely wounded but continued fighting at his station. The Adilshahi army tried to break through the pass defences but was repeatedly repulsed. The unequal battle continued for hours, with the defenders maintaining their positions with rapidly depleting numbers. Only several Marathas survived, and around 1,000 soldiers of the Adilshahi army died or were injured in their attempt to take the pass.
Five hours after the battle started, cannon fire announced Shivaji’s safe return to Vishalgad. Slightly fewer than 300 Marathas had been killed. According to a legend, Baji Prabhu was injured but continued engaging the enemy and held the pass, and died once he heard the sound of cannon fire. The few surviving Marathas retreated and disappeared into the forest as planned.
Shivaji and his 300 soldiers broke through the encirclement of Suryarao and Jaswantrao at Vishalgadh. A battle ensued in which Shivaji fought wearing Dandpatta in both hands. Realising the difficulty of the fight, the commander of Vishalgadh fort sent reinforcements to Shivaji, enabling him and his troops to reach the fort safely. Shivaji then fired cannons as a signal for Baji Prabhu to retreat.[4][5][6]
Aftermath
The pass, Ghod Khind (Horse Pass) was renamed Pavan Khind (Sacred Pass) in honour of the sacrifice of 300 Maratha troops which let the rest of Shivaji's army escape.[citation needed]
In popular culture
- The battle was depicted in episodes of Raja Shivchatrapati [7]
- In 2022, a Marathi-language film depicting the battle is titled Pawankhind directed by Digpal Lanjekar starring Chinmay Mandlekar as Shivaji and Ajay Purkar as Baji Prabhu Deshpande released on 21 January.[8]
See also
- Battle of Kolhapur
- Battle of Thermopylae
- Third Battle of Panipat (1761), A massive historic battle between the Maratha empire and the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan at Panipat. Shah of the Durrani empire Ahmad Shah Abdali led the invasion, Sadashivrao Bhau led the Maratha Army.
- List of last stands
References
- ^ Jann Tibbetts, 50 Great Military Leaders of All Time (Vij Books, 2016)
- ^ "Shivaji, Baji Prabhu & the Battle of Pavan Khind". Hindu Perspective. 4 May 2013.
- ^ "International film on Shivaji for global audience". Times of India. 4 April 2012.
- ^ Sawant, Indrajit. Parnalparvat Panhalgad.
- ^ (Tarikh-i-Ali Adil Shah II by Sayyid Nurullah, 82-93; Basitin-i-Salatin by Md. Ibrahim Al Zubairi, 353-357; Factory Records Rajapur, Kolhapur to Surat, at the India Office Manuscripts, dated 5 June. 1660. Chitragupta Bakhar 64; Shiva Digvijay 175-176; Tarikh-i-Shivaji at the India Office Persian manucripts I8b-19a.) Cited by Sir Jadunath Sarkar in Shivaji and His Times
- ^ [Chitragupta Bakhar. 64-65; Shiva Digvijay 182-185; Tarikh-i-Shivaji at the India Office Perisan Manuscripts S. 19a & b; the name of Siddi Aziz is given by Duff (i. 181) only, while T. S. reads Siddi Halal. The Persian works are silent about this retreat. Vishalgarh is 27 miles from Panhala via Malkapur. (Indian Atlas by the Survey of India 40 S. W.)]" Cited by Sir Jadunath Sarkar in Shivaji and His Times
- ^ [1][unreliable source?]
- ^ "THESE character posters of Digpal Lanjekar's 'Pawankhind' will get you all excited for the film". Times of India. 28 December 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2022.