Nanded District Gazetteers

For weapons they used products of the chalcedony blade industry, flat copper axes, and slings with round balls of various sizes. Their tools were made of dolerite and copper. They pounded their grains with plano-covex rubber stones. Besides, they ate beef, mutton, pork, venison and river fish. Hunting and animal grazing formed their main occupations.

They buried their dead either within the house floor or outside. The children were buried in wide-mouthed urns. The dead were provided with bawls, spouted vessels and necklaces of capper and carnelian.

Economically these people were in a pastoral-cum-hunting cum-agricultural stage and lived in small villages on river banks. They still used stone for various purposes, the use of copper being rare. This kind of life continued until it was, changed by a fresh influx .of people who came with a knowledge of iron, agriculture and town-planning in about the fourth century B.C.

Who these people were is not definitely known, but .one plausible conjecture is that they belonged to some of the Aryan tribes. This theory, however, needs confirmation by stranger evidence. "

The above gleanings are from the archaeological excavations at such sites as Nevasa. We shall next see what light is thrown on this period by literary sources. According to literary tradition, when the Aryans, penetrated to the Deccan, the whole region was covered by a thick jungle, which extended southward from Central India. Agastya was the first Aryan who crossed the Vindhya and fixed his residence on the bank of the Godavari. This memorable event is commemorated in the mythological story which represents Vindhya as bending before his guru Agastya when the latter approached him. The sage asked the mountain to remain in that condition until he returned from the south, which he never did. Agastya was followed by several other sages who established their hermitages in different regions of the south. The cluster of hermitages on the bank of the Godavari was called jana-sthana to distinguish it from the surrounding forest country. They were constantly harassed by the original inhabitants of the region who are called Raksasas in the Ramayana. "These shapeless and illlooking monsters testify to their abominal character by various cruel and terrific displays. They implicate the hermits in impure practices and perform greatest outrages. Changing their shapes and hiding in the thickets adjoining the hermitages, these frightful beings delight in terrifying the devotees. They cast away their sacrificial ladles and vessels; they pollute cooked oblations, and utterly defile, the offerings with blood. These faithless creatures inject frightful sounds into the ears of the faithful and austere hermits. At the time of the sacrifice they snatch away the jars, the flowers and the sacred grass of these sober-minded men." (Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts quoted in the previous edition of the Nagpur District Gazetteer.)

In course of time a large kingdom was founded north of the Godavari by Vidarbha, the son of Rsabhadeva. His capital was Kundinapura in the Amravati district of the country since then known by his name Agastya married his daughter Lopãmudrã. Agastya is the seer of same hymns of the Rgveda. His wife Lopamudra is also mentioned in the Rgveda, I, 179, 4. The country became well-known in the age of the Brahmas and Upanisads, in which it is frequently mentioned. The Ramayana in the Uttarakanda states the story of king Danda or Dandaka in whose time Vidarbha was devastated by a violent storm. Danda was a son of Iksvaku and grandson of Manu. He ruled over the country between the Vindhya and saivala mountains from his capital Madhumanta. He led a voluptuous life and once upon a time violated the daughter of the sage Bhargava. The sage then cursed the king that his whole kingdom, would be devastated by a terrible dust-storm. The whole country between the Vindhya and saivala mountains extending over a thousand yojanas was consequently turned into a great forest which since then came to be known as Danda-karanya. It was, in this forest that the Sudra sage Sambuka was practising penance. As this was an irreligious act according to the notions of those days, Rama beheaded him and revived the life of a Brahmana boy who had died prematurely. The place where Sambuka was beheaded is still shown on the hill of Ramtek, about 28 miles from Nagpur.

The central part of the Deccan was divided into several countries known by different names. Thus the region to the north of the Godavari now included in the Aurangabad district was known by the name of Mulaka. This country together with its capital Pratisthana (modern Paithan) is mentioned in Pali literature. To the north of it lay the country of Rsika, now called Khandes. To the east of Rsika was Vidarbha, which has already been described. The district of Nanded was included in Vidarbha, the southern boundary of which extended to the Godavari. The name Nanded is derived from irs Sanskrt form Nandikata, which was so called probably because it comprised the territory on both the sides of the river Nandi. We have similar names derived from the names of rivers such as Varadakata (modern Varhad), Bennakata (comprising the district on the banks of the Vena or Vainganga), Karaha-kata (modern Varhad) etc. Along the southern bank of the Godavari extended the country of Asmaka (Pali, Assaka), which comprised the modern Ahmadnagar and Bid districts. Later, this region came to be included in the country of Kuntala, which extended far to the south. It included what is now known as the Southern Maratha Country as well, North Karnataka and the Simoga and Citaldurga districts of the old Mysore State. In an inscriptional passage the upper valley of the Krsna is said to be included in the country of Kuntala.( Mirashi, Studies in lndology, Vol. I, p. 9.) In the Udayasundarikatha of Soddhala (11th cen. AD.) Pratisthana on the Godavari is said to be the capital of the Kuntala country. In early times Kuntala was probably included in the larger country called Maharastra. The Aihole inscription (7th cen. AD.) speaks of three Maharastras, which probably comprised Vidarbha, Western Maharastra and Kuntala. In later times Kuntala came to denote the predominantly Kanarese country now included in the Mysore State. It is described as, a seven and half lakh province. The Early Calukyas of Badami and the Later Calukyas of Kalyani were known as Kuntalendras or lords of Kuntala. In the earlier days, however, the districts of Kolhapur, Satara, Solapur, Ahmadnagar and Bid, which are now Marathi-speaking, were included in Kuntala. As we shall see later, the Early Rastrakutas, who were ruling over this territory, were known as Kuntalesvaras (or rulers of Kuntala).

Coming to historical times, we find that all this territory was included in the empire of Asoka. No inscription of the great emperor has yet been found in the Nanded district, but one issued by his Dharmamahamantra has been found at Devtek in the Canda district which, like the Nanded district, was comprised in Vidarbha. It was issued in the fourteenth regnal year of Asoka and interdicts, the capture and killing of animals. (Ibid, Vol. I, p. 109 f.) Again, the fifth and thirteenth rock edicts of Asoka mention Ratrika-Petenikas and Bhoja-Petenikas, respectively. Many scholars take Petenikas mentioned in these edicts as referring to the residents of Pratisthahana (modern Paithan in the Aurangabad district), but D. R. Bhandarkar would prefer to take the word to mean 'hereditary'. Be that as it may, the Rastrikas were undoubtedly the rulers of this region; for they came to be known later as Maharathis.

After the overthrow of the Maurya dynasty in circa 184 B.C. the imperial throne in Pataliputra (Patna) was occupied by the Senapati Pusyamitra, the founder of the Sunga dynasty. His son Agnimitra was appointed viceroy of Malva and ruled from Vidisa, modern Besnagar, a small village near Bhilsa. Vidarbha, which had seceded from the Maurya empire during the reign of one of the weak successors of Asoka, was then ruled by Yajnasena. He imprisoned his cousin Madhavasena, who was a rival claimant for the throne. The sister of Madhavasena escaped to Malva and got admission as a hand-maid to the queen under the name of Malavika. Agnimitra, who had espoused the cause of Madhavasena and had sent an army against the king of Vidarbha, fell in love with Malavika and married her. The Malava army defeated the king of Vidarbha and released Madhavasena. Agnimitra then divided the country of Vidarbha between the two cousins, each ruling on one side of the Varada (Wardha). The Nanded district was comprised in Western Vidarbha along with the modern districts of Amravati, Akola, Buldhana, Yeotmal and Parbhani. The story of Malavika forms the plot of the Sanskrt play Malavikagnimitra of Kalidasa.

Kalidasa does not state to what royal family Yajnasena and Madhavasena belonged and these names do not occur anywhere else. Still, it is possible to conjecture that they may have been feudatories of the Satavahanas. From the Hathigunmpha inscription at Udayagiri near BhuvaneSvar, we learn that Kharavela, the king of Kalinga, who was a contemporary of Pusyamitra, sent an army to the western region, not minding Satakarni. The latter evidently belonged to the Satavahana dynasty as the name occurs often in that family. Kharavela's army is said to have penetrated up to the river Kanhabenna and struck terror in the hearts of the people of Rsika. The Kanhabenna is evidently the river Kanhan, which flows, about 10 miles from Nagpur, and not the river Krsna, which flows south-west of Udayagiri, as some scholars suppose. Kharavela's army thus invaded Vidarbha. He knew that as the ruler of Vidarbha was a feudatory of king Satakarni, the latter would rush to his aid. When Vidarbha was thus invaded, the people of Rsika (Khandes), which bordered Vidarbha on the west, were naturally terror-stricken. No actual engagement seems, however, to have taken place and the army returned to Kaliriga perhaps at the approach of the Satavahana forces.

Satakarni belonged to the Satavahana family. It derived its name from king Satavahana (Ibid, Vol. III, p. 1 f.), who rose to power soon after the death of Asoka and had his capital at Pratishana (modern Paithan). It received support from the local rulers called Maharathis, with whom it formed matrimonial alliances. This dynasty is called Andhra in the Puranas, but that it originally hailed from Western Maharastra is indicated by its, earliest inscriptions which are found in the caves at Naneghat near Junnar and at Nasik. Its earliest coins have been found at Aurarigabad and in Vidarbha. In later times it extended its rule to Andhra as shown by its later inscriptions and coins found in that region. The Puranic call it Andhra evidently because it was ruling in that country when the Puranic account was compiled in the early centuries of the Christian era.

Though king Satavahana was the founder of this family, he is not mentioned in the Puranas. The first king of the Andhra (i.e., Satavahana) dynasty mentioned in the Puranas is Simuka (Srimukha), who is also known from a relievo statue of his in a Naneghat cave. We do not know the extent of his kingdom, but it is surmised to have extended at least from Junnar to Pratisthana (Paithan). When he ended his rule, his son Satakarni was a minor and so his brother Krsna ascended the throne. He has left an inscription in a cave which he got excavated for the Buddhist monks at Nasik. The next ruler of the dynasty was Satakatarni I, who is also known from a relievo figure now mutilated in a Naneghat cave. He married Naganika, the daughter of the Maharathi Tranakayira, who also was represented by a relievo statue in the same Naneghat cave. He seems to have extended his rule over the whole of the Deccan and even carried his arms north of the Narmada. King Kharavela of Kalinga, who was his contemporary, is said to have sent an army to the west, not minding Satakarni, who is probably this very ruler. When the army reached Kanhabenna, which, as shown above, is probably Kanhan flowing near Nagpur, it struck terror in the hearts of the people of Rsika (Khandes). There was no actual clash of arms on this occasion, but two years, later, Kharavela probably penetrated further west as he claims to have received submission from the Rathikas and Bhojakas, who were probably ruling in the Deccan as feudatories of the Satavahanas.Though king Satavahana was the founder of this family, he is not mentioned in the Puranas. The first king of the Andhra (i.e., Satavahana) dynasty mentioned in the Puranas is Simuka (Srimukha), who is also known from a relievo statue of his in a Naneghat cave. We do not know the extent of his kingdom, but it is surmised to have extended at least from Junnar to Pratisthana (Paithan). When he ended his rule, his son Satakarni was a minor and so his brother Krsna ascended the throne. He has left an inscription in a cave which he got excavated for the Buddhist monks at Nasik. The next ruler of the dynasty was Satakatarni I, who is also known from a relievo figure now mutilated in a Naneghat cave. He married Naganika, the daughter of the Maharathi Tranakayira, who also was represented by a relievo statue in the same Naneghat cave. He seems to have extended his rule over the whole of the Deccan and even carried his arms north of the Narmada. King Kharavela of Kalinga, who was his contemporary, is said to have sent an army to the west, not minding Satakarni, who is probably this very ruler. When the army reached Kanhabenna, which, as shown above, is probably Kanhan flowing near Nagpur, it struck terror in the hearts of the people of Rsika (Khandes). There was no actual clash of arms on this occasion, but two years, later, Kharavela probably penetrated further west as he claims to have received submission from the Rathikas and Bhojakas, who were probably ruling in the Deccan as feudatories of the Satavahanas.

Satakarni performed the Rajasuya and Asvamedha sacrifices (the latter twice), which probably commemorated important victories, or supremacy in the Deccan and as such, had political significance. He performed several other Srauta sacrifices such as Agnyadheya, Aptoryama, Dasaratra, Trayodasaratra, Angirasattratra, Sataratra, Gavamayana etc., all of which were mark. ed by munificent gifts of horses, elephants, land and karsapanas. They are recorded in a large, but now badly. mutilated, inscription in a cave at Naneghat. The Nanded district was evidently included in the dominion of Satakanrni.I .

Satakarni I left behind two sons, Vedisri and Saktisri, who are mentioned in the aforementioned Naneghat inscription. Vedisri, who succeeded him, is described as a very brave prince whose army was always victorious and who became the lord of Daksinapatha (Deccan). (Ibid., Vol. I, p. 122 f.) He was succeeded by a number of rulers who are named in the Puranic lists, but about whom they furnish little information except their regnal periods which also vary in different Puranas, and even in the manuscripts of the same Puranas. But one name among them is, noteworthy. It is that of king Hala, the reputed author of the Gathasaptsati, a unique collection of seven hundred Prakrt verses descriptive of the social, religious and economic life of the period. Hala flourished in the first century AD.( Ibid., Vol. I, p. 76 f.)

The Saka Ksatrapas

Some years after Hala's reign Maharastra was conquered. by the Saka Ksatrapas. Nahapana, a Saka Ksatrapa probably appointed by the contemporary Kusana emperor, was ruling over Konkan Poona, Nasik and some other districts of Western Maharastra as also some portions of Central India as far north as Ajmer. Vidarbha also was under the rule of another Ksatrapa named Rupiamma as disclosed by a pillar inscription recently discovered in the Bhandara district (Nagpur University Journal, Vol. XVI, p. 1 f.). Nanded, like other districts of Vidarbha, may have been included in his dominion. The Satavahanas were therefore obliged to leave Western Maharastra and Vidarbha and repair to the southern part of their dominion, but Gautamiputra Satakarni soon retrieved the fortunes of his family. He made a daring dash into Vidarhha and occupied Benakata or the Vainganga district. Thereafter, he invaded Western Maharashtra and defeated Nahapana somewhere in the Nasik district. This is shown by his inscription in one of the Nasik caves wherein he is called Benakatakasvami or the lord of Benakata (Vaingantga District). He extended his rule over a large part of the peninsula as his chargers are said to have drunk the water of the three oceans. The following provinces are specifically mentioned as comprised in his dominion-Rsika (Khandes), Asmaka (Ahmadnagar and Bid districts), Mulaka (Aurangabad district), Vidarbha, Akara and Avanti (Eastern and Western Malva), Suratha (Kathiavad) and Aparanta (Konkan). That his empire extended much further is shown by the description that the mountains Setagiri (near Nagarjunikonda), Sristana (Kurnul district) and Mahendra (between the Godavari and the Krishna) were situated in his kingdom.

After defeating Nahapana, Gautamiputra called back the silver coins of the Saka Ksatrapas and restruck them. The Jogaltembhi hoard contained more than 10,000 silver coins so counterstruck.He himself issued a large number of potin coins with the figure of an elephant with uplifted trunk on the obverse and the Ujjain symbol on the reverse (Mirashi, Studies in Indology, Vol. III, p. 38 f.). In the hoard of potin coins found at Tarhala in the Akola district of Vidarbha, out of 1,200 decipherable coins as many as 573 were of Gautamiputra.

Gautamiputra Satakarni was succeeded by Vasisthiputra Pulumavi, who also ruled over an extensive kingdom, but seems to have lost some northern provinces like Akaravanti and Suratra to the Ksatrapas. He was succeeded by his brother Vasithiputra Satakarni0, who married the daughter of the Saka Ksatrapa Rudradaman I. Among his successors the most note worthy is Yajnasri Satakarni, whose inscriptions and coins have been found over a large area. They show that he ruled over an extensive kingdom stretching from Konkan in the west to Andhradesa in the east. He issued among other types the ship type lead coins indicative of his rule over the maritime province of the Coromandel coast (Ibid., Vol. III, p. 17 f.).

Within about fifty years after Yajnasri Satakarni, the rule of the Satavahanas came to an end. The Satavahanas were liberal patrons of learning and religion. As stated above, the early kings of the family performed Vedic sacrifices and lavished gifts on the Brahmanas. Gatamiputra, Pulumavi and Yajnasri like the earlier king Krsna, excavated caves and donated villages to provide for the maintenance, clothing and medicine of the Buddhist monks. As stated before, the Sattasai (or Gathas aptasati), an anthology of 700 Prakrt verses, is, by tradition, ascribed to Hala of this family

About AD. 250 the Satavahanas were supplanted by the a in Vidarbha. This dynasty was founded by a Brahmana named Vindhyasakti I, who is mentioned in the Puranas as well as in an inscription in cave XVI at Ajanta. The Puranas mention him in connection with the ruling family of Vidisa. He or his son ousted Sisuka, the daughter's son of the Naga king of Vidisa, who was ruling at Purika at the foot of the Rksavat. (Satpuda) mountain. Vindhyasakti's son Pravarasena I ruled over an extensive part of the Deccan. He performed several Vedic sacrifices including four Asvamedhas and assumed the title of Samrat (Emperor). According to the Puranas he ruled from the aforementioned city of Purika.( D. K. A., P. 50. Dr. Maraca accepts Jayaswal's reading Purikam Canakan-ca vai in place of Purim Kancanakam-ca vai.Altekar mentions that Purika is connected with Vidarbha (modem Derar) and Asmaka by ancient geographers. The Purika province is mentioned along with Vidarbha and Asmaka in the Markandeya Purana (R. C. Majumdar and A. S. Altekar: The Vakataka-Gupta Age, p. 96). He had four sons among whom his extensive empire was divided after his death. Two of these are known from inscriptions. The eldest son Gautamiputra predeceased him. His son Rudrasena I held the northern parts of Vidarbha and ruled from Nandi vardhana, modern Nandardhan near Ramtek in the Nagpur district.( Nandivardhan is most probably Nagardhan (also spelt as Nandardhan) near Ramtek, about 13 miles north of Nagpur. This City is also identified with Nandpur, 34 miles north of Nagpur (R. C. Majumdar and A. S. Altekar: The Vakataka-Gupta Age, p. 114). He had the powerful support of king Bhavanaga of the Bharasiva family, who ruled at Padmavati near Gwalior and who was, his maternal grandfather. Rudrasena I was a fervent devotee of Mahabhairava. He had no regard for the ahimsa precepts of Asoka. He had, therefore, no scruples in getting some portion of the aforementioned Devtek inscription of Asoka's Dharmamahamatra chiselled off and getting his own record incised in its place.( Ibid., Vol.I,p.114f.) The latter proclaims the construction of his dharmasthana (temple) at Chikkamburi (modern Chikmara near Devtek).

Rudrasena I was followed by his son Prtbivisena I, who ruled for a long time and brought peace and prosperity to his people. During his reign this branch of the Vakatakas became matrimonially connected with the illustrious, Gupta family of North India. Candragupta. II-Vikramaditya married his daughter Prabhavatigupta to Prthvisena I's son Rudrasena II probably after securing the powerful Vakataka king's help in his war with the Western Kshatrapas. Rudrasena II died soon after accession, leaving behind two sons, Divakarasena and Damodarasena alias Pravarasena II. As neither of them had come of age, Prabhavatigupta ruled as regent for the elder son Divakarasena for at least thirteen years(. Mirashi, C. I. I. Vol. VI, pp. 5 f. According to Altekar, she carried on the administration for a period of about twenty years. (R. C. Majumdar and A. S. Altekar, The Vakataka-Gupta Age, p. 112). She seems to have been helped in the administration of the kingdom by military and civil officers sent by her father Candragupta II. One of these was the great Sanskrt poet Kalidasa, who, while residing at the Vakataka capital Nandivar- dhana, must have often visited Ramagiri (modern Ramtek), where the theme of his excellent lyric Meghaduta seems to have suggested itself to him.

Prabhavatigupta has left us two copper-plate inscriptions. The earlier of them, though discovered in distant Poona, originally belonged to Vidarbha. It was issued from the then Vakataka capital Nandivardhana and records the dowager queen's grant of the village Danguna (modern Hinganghat) to a Bhahmana after offering it to the feet of the Bhagavat (i.e., god Ramacandra) on Kartika Sukla Dvadasi, evidently at the time of the parana after observing a fast on the previous day of the Prabodhini Ekadasi. Some of the boundary villages can still be traced in the vicinity of Hinganghat. (Mirashi, Inscriptions of the Vakatakas [Corpus Inscripationum, Indicarum (C.I.I.),Vol.V,p.6f]. )

Divakarasena also seems to have died when quite young. He was succeeded by his brother Damodarasena, who, on accession, assumed the name Pravarasena of his illustrious ancestor. He had a long reign of thirty years and was known for his learning and liberality. More than a dozen grants made by him have come to light. One of them, made at the instance of his mother Prabhavatigupta in the nineteenth regnal year, is noteworthy. The plates, recording it were issued from the feet of Ramagirisvamin, (i.e., god Ramacandra on the hill of Ramagiri, modern Ramtek) and register the grant which the queen-mother made as on the previous occasion after observing a fast on the Prabodhini Ekadasi.( Ibid., Vol. V, p. 34 f.)

Pravarasena II founded a new city which he named Pravarapura and where he shifted his capital some time after his eleventh regnal year. He built there a magnificent temple of Ramacandra evidently at the instance of his mother, who was a devout worshipper of that god. Some of the sculptures used to decorate this temple have recently been discovered at Pavnar on the bank of the Dham, 6 miles from Wardha and have led to the identification of Pravarapura with Pavnar. (Mirashi, Studies in Indalogy, Vol, II, p. 272 f)

Pravarasena II is the reputed author of the Setubandha, a Prakrt kavya in glorification of Ramacandra. This work has been highly praised by Sanskrit poets and rhetoricians. According to a tradition recorded by a commentator of this work, it was composed by Kalidasa, who ascribed it to Pravarasena. Pravarasena is also known from some Prakrt gathas. which were later incorporated in the Gathasaptasati.( Ibid., Vol. I, p. 81 f.)

The Nala Interlude.

Pravarasena II was succeeded by his son Narendrasena, during whose reign Vidarbha was invaded by the Nala king Bhavadatta- varman. The latter penetrated as far as the Nagpur district and even occupied Nandivardhana, the erstwhile Vakataka capital. The Radhapur plateet recard the grant which Bhavadatta had made while on a pilgrimage to Prayaga. The plates were issued from Nandivardhana, which was evidently his capital at the time.( Ep. Ind., Vol. XIX, p. 100 f.) In this emergency the Vakatakas had to shift their capital again. They moved it to Padmapura near Amganv in the Bhandara district.( C. I. I. Vol. V, p. 76 f.) A fragmentary inscription, which was proposed to be issued from Padmapura, has been discovered at the village Mohalla in the adjoining Durg district of Madhya Prades. This Padmapura is probably identical with the birth-place of the great Sanskrt playwright Bhavabhuti, who flourished there in a later age.

The Nalas could not retain their hold over Vidarbha for a long time. They were ousted by Narendrasena's son Prithivisena II, who carried the war into the enemy's territory and burnt and devastated their capital Puskari, which was, situated in the Bastar district of Madhya Prades. Prthivisena, taking advantage of the weakening of Gupta power, carried his arms to the north of the Narmada. Inscriptions of his feudatory Vyaghradeva have been found in the former Ajaigadlh and Jaso States in Central India. (Ibid, Vol. V, p. 89 f.)

The Vakatakas of Vatsagulma

The Vatsagulma branch was founded by Sarvasena, a younger son of Pravarasena I. Its capital was, at Vatsagulma, modern Basim in the Akola district. This branch also produced some brave and learned princes. Sarvasena, the founder of this branch, is Well-known as the author of another Prakrt kavya called Harivijaya, which has, far its theme, the bringing down of the Parijata tree from heaven. This kavya has received unstinted praise from several eminent rhetoricians like Ananda vardhana.( Mirashi, Studies in Indology, Vol. I, p. 99 f.)

Sarvasena was followed, by his son, Vindhyasena, called Vindhyasakti (II) in the Basim plates which he issued in the 37th regional year. (C. I. I. Vol. V, p. 93 f.) These plates record the grant of the village Akasapadda, which was situated near Takalakkhoppaka in the northern marga (sub-division) of Nandikada. Nandikada is evidently Nanded. Takalakkhoppaka and the donated village Akasapadda cannot be definitely identified. But the following identifications can be suggested tentatively. On the road which connects Nanded with Basim, which lies about 75 miles north of it, there are two villages Takalgohan and Takali, about 40 and 45 miles respectively from Nanded. One of these may represent ancient Takalakkhoppaka. About 7 miles west of Takaligohan there is a small village named Asund, which may be identical with ancient Akasapadda.

Vindhyasena pursued a vigorous policy and defeated the lord of Kuntala, who probably belonged to the Early Rastrakuta dynasty as shown below. Vindhyasena, like his father and grandfather, assumed the title of Dharmamaharaja. His afore mentioned Basim plates record the earliest grant of the Vakatakas known so far. The genealogical portion of the grant is written in Sanskrt and the formal portion in Prakrt. This shows how the classical language was gradually asserting itself under the patronage of the Vakatakas. All earlier grants of the Satavahanas, as is well-known, are in Prakrt, while all the later grants of the Vakatakas are in Sanskrt.

Vindhyasena was followed by his son Pravarasena II, about whom little is known. The Ajanta inscription says that he became exalted by his excellent, powerful and liberal rule. He seems to have had a short reign; for when he died, his son was only eight years old. The name of this boy prince is lost in the Ajanta inscription. He was followed by his son Devasena, whose fragmentary copper-plate inscription, found somewhere in South Berar, is now deposited in the India Office, London. ( Ibid., Vol. V, p. 101 f.) Another record of his reign, inscribed on stone, was recently discovered at Basim. It is dated in the Saka year 380 (A.D. 455"56) and records the excavation of a tank named Sudarsana by Svamilladeva, a servant of Devasena.( Dr. Mirashi Felicitation Volume, p. 372 f.)

Devasena had a very righteous and capable minister Hastibhoja. He looked after the affairs of the State and pleased all subjects. Devasena entrusted the government of his kingdom to him and gave himself up to the enjoyment of pleasures.

Devasena was succeeded in circa A.D. 475 by his son Harisena. He carried his arms in all directions. A mutilated verse in the Ajanta inscription states that he conquered Avanti (Malva) in the north, Kosala (Chattisgadh), Kalinga and Andhra in the east, Lata (Central and Southern Gujarat) and Trikuta (Nasik district) in the west and Kuntala (Southern Maratha Country) in the south (C. I. I. Vol. V, 106 f.). He thus became the undisputed suzerain of the entire country extending from Malva in the north to Kuntala in the south and from the Arabian Sea in the west to the Bay of Bengal in the east.

Harisena is the last known Vakataka king. As. we have seen, he had an extensive empire in the Deccan. The causes which led to the sudden disintegration of that mighty empire have not been recorded in history, but the last chapter of the Dasakumaracarita of Dandin, who flourished only about 125 years after the fall of the Vakatakas, seems to have preserved a living tradition about the last period of Vakataka rule. (Mirashi, Studies in Indology, Vol. I, p. 165 f.) It seems that Harisena's son, though intelligent and accomplished in all arts, neglected the study of the science of politics (Dandaniti). He gave himself up to the enjoyment of pleasures and indulged in all sorts of vices, neglecting the affairs of the state. His subjects imitated him and led a vicious and dissolute life. Finding this a suitable opportunity, the crafty ruler of the neighbouring Asmaka country, sent his minister's son to the court of Vidarbha. The latter ingratiated himself with the king and egged him on his dissolute life. He also decimated his forces by various means. Ultimately when the country was thoroughly disorganised, the ruler of Asmaka instigated the ruler of Vanavasi (North Kanara district) to invade Vidarbha. The king of Vidarbha called all feudatories to his aid and decided to give battle to the enemy on the bank of the Varada (modern Wardha). But while he was fighting with the forces, of the invader, he was treacherously attacked in the rear by some of his own feudatories and was killed on the battlefield. Thus ended the Vakataka kingdom after a glorious rule of two hundred and fifty years.

The Vakatakas were patrons of art and literature. In their age the Vaidarbhi riti came to be regarded as, the best style of poetry and several excellent works were then produced in Vidarbha. Some Prakrt kavyas were also composed in this period, which made the Vacchomi (Vatsagulmi) riti famous. Three of the caves at Ajanta viz., the two vihara caves XVI and XVII and the caitya cave XIX were excavated and decorated with paintings in the time of Harisena. Several temples of Hindu gods, and goddesses were also built. The ruins of one of them have come to light at Pavnar (Ibid., Vol. II, p. 272 f.). Others are known from references in copper-plate grants.

Contemporary with the Vakatakas there were some royal families ruling in the different parts of Maharastra. Northern Maharastra was under the Abhiras. The founder of the dynasty was the Abhira Rajan Isvarasena, who has, left an inscription in a cave at Nasik (C. 1. 1. Vol. IV, p. I f.) He started an era commencing in A.D. 250, which later became well-known as the Kalacuri-Cedi era. Judging by the extent of his era, Isvarasena seems to have ruled over a large territory comprising Gujarat, Konkan and Northern Maharastra. He was followed by nine other kings, whose names are unfortunately not known. According to the Puranas they ruled for 167 years. They were supplanted by their feudatories the Traikutakas, in circa AD. 415.

According to the Puranas the Vakataka king Pravarasena I had four sons, all of whom ruled as kings. Two of them are known from inscriptions. The eldest was Gautamiputra, whose son Rudrasena I founded the Nandivardhana branch. The second son was Sarvasena, who, as we have seen above, established himself at Vatsagulma (Basim in the Akola district). Where the remaining two sons were ruling is not known definitely as their records have not yet been discovered. But one of them may have been overthrown by Mananka, the founder of the Early Ratrakuta dynasty. The history of this family has been unfolded during the last few years. From three copper-plate grants which have been discovered in Southern Maharastra, we get the following genealogy (Mirashi, Studies in Indology, Vol. I, p. 178 f.)

Manalika, the progenitor of the family, flourished in circa AD. 350. He founded Manapura, which he made his capital. . He is described in one of the grants as the ruler of the Kuntala country. As stated before, Kuntala was the name of the upper Krsna valley in ancient times. The places mentioned in some of the grants can be identified in the Satara and Kolhapur districts. These Early Rastrakutas were therefore ruling over Kolhapur, Satara and Solapur districts. Their capital Manapura is probably identical with Man, the headquarters of the Man talluka of the Satara district (Ibid., Vol. I, p. 184.).

These Rastrakutas of Manapura sometimes came into conflict with the Vakatakas of Vidarbha. The Pandarangapalli plates of Avidheya state that Mananka harassed the rulers of Asmaka and Vidarbha. On the other hand, an inscription in cave XVI at Ajanta states that the Vakataka king Vindhyasena (i.e., Vindhyasakti II) defeated the king of Kuntala, who was evidently of this Early Rastrakuta family.

From certain passages in the Kuntalesvaradautya, a Sanskrt work ascribed to Kalidasa, which have been cited in the Kavyamimamsa of Rajasekhara, the Srngaraprakasa and the Sarasvatikanthabharana of Bhoja and the Aucityavicaracarca of Ksemendra, we learn that the famous Gupta king Candragupta II- Vikramaditya sent Kalidasa to the court of the king of Kuntala. Kalidasa was not at first well received there, but he gradually gained Kuntalesa's favour and stayed at his court for some time. When he returned, he reported to Vikramaditya that the lord of Kuntala was spending his time in enjoyment, throwing the responsibility of governing his kingdom on him (i.e., on Vikramaditya). This Kuntalesa was probably identical with Devaraja, the son of Manatika (Ibid., Vol. I, p. 10.). Through the influence of Candragupta II the two royal families of the south viz., the Vakatakas and the Early Ratrakutas were reconciled with each other. Later, Harisena the last known Vakataka king, raided Kuntala and exacted a tribute from its king. It is noteworthy that in the eighth ucchvasa of the Dasakumacarita the king of Kuntala is described as a feudatory of the Emperor of Vidarbha.

The Vakatakas and the Traikutakas disappear from the stage of history about A.D. 550, when their place is taken by the Kalacuris of Mahismati, modern Mahesvar in Central India. They also had a large empire extending from Konkan in the west to Vidarbha in the east and from Malva in the North to the Krsna in the south. The founder of this dynasty was Krsnaraja, whose coins have been found in the Amravati district of Vidarbha. He was a devout worshipper of Mahesvara (Siva). That Vidarbha was included in his Empire is shown by the Nagardhan plate (C. I. I. Vol. IV,p. 611 f.) of his feudatory Svamiraja dated in the Kalacuri year 322 (AD. 573). These plates were issued from Nandivardhana, which seems to have maintained its importance even after the downfall of the Vakatakas. Svamiraja probably belonged to the Rastrakuta family.

Krsnaraja was succeeded by his son Sankaragana, whose copper-plate grant has been discovered at Abhona in the Nasik district. It is, dated in the Kalacuri year 347 (A.D. 597). His other inscriptions have been discovered in Gujarat. He was succeeded by his son Buddharaja, who was involved in a fight with the Calukysa king Matigalesa on the southern frontier of his kingdom soon after his accession. Before we describe this engagement we must briefly review the history of the Early Calukyas of Badami.

The Calukyas of Badami

The Calukyas of Badami rose to power in the first half of the sixth century A.D. The Badami stone inscription of Pulakesin I, who is the first independent ruler of this dynasty, is dated in A.D. 543. (Ep. Ind., Vol.. XXVII, p. 4f.) He performed the Asvamedha and several other Srauta sacrifices. He was succeeded by his son Kirtivarman I, who made some conquests in South India and is described as the night of destruction to the Nalas (of the Bastar district), the Mauryas (of Konkan) and the Kadambas (of Vanavasi in North Kanara).

When Kirtivarman I died, his son Pulakesin II was a minar. So his younger brother Mangalesa succeeded him. He defeated Buddharaja, the Kalacuri king, who was ruling in North Maharastra, Konkan, Gujarat, and Malva and also. Svamiraja of the Calukya family who was ruling over Revati-dvipa (madern Redi in the Ratnagiri district).

Pulakesin obtained a resounding victory over Harsa, the lard paramount of North India. Thereafter, he assumed the title of Paramesvara (Emperar). He defeated the rulers, of several countries such as Aparanta (North Konkan), Kosala (Chattisgadh), Kalinga (Orissa), Pistapura (Pistapuram) and Kanci (Canjeevaram). He made the Colas, the Keralas and the Pandyas his allies. He became thus the undisputed lord of South India.

During the reign of Pulakesin II the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsang visited Maharastra. He has left us the following graphic picture of the country and its people.( S. Beal Buddhist Records of the Western World (pub. by gusH Gupta), Vol. IV, p. 448 f.) "The soil is rich and fertile. The climate is hot; the disposition of the people is honest and simple; they are tall of stature and of a stern vindictive character. To their benefactors they are grateful; to their enemies relentless, If they are insulted, they will risk their lives to avenge themselves. If they are asked to help one in distress, they will forget themselves in their haste to render assistance. If they are going to seek revenge, they first give their enemy a warning and then, each being armed, they attack each other with spears. If a general loses a battle, they do not inflict punishment, but present him with women's clothes, and so he is driven to seek death for himself. .. Each time they are about to engage in a conflict, they intoxicate themselves with wine, and then one man with a lance in hand will meet ten thousand and challenge them to fight.

Moreover, they inebriate many hundred heads of elephants, which, rushing forward in mass, trample every thing down so that no enemy can stand before them. The king, in consequence of possessing these men and elephants, treats his neighbours with contempt. He is of the Ksatriya caste and his name is Pulakesi."

Pulakesin was killed in a battle at Badami: in circa AD. 642 by the Pallava king Narasimhavarman, who conquered Vatapi (Badami) and assumed the title of Vatapikonda.

During the reign of Vikramaditya II, a descendant of Pulakesin II, Gujarat was invaded by a formidable force of the Tajikas (Arabs). The Navsari plates of Avanijanasraya Pulakesin, a prince of the Gujarat Calukya family, give a graphic account of this battle. The Arabs had already defeated the Saindhavas, the Cavotakas, the Suragras, the Mauryas and the Gurjaras and were attempting to penetrate into the Daksinaspatha (Deccan), but Avanijanasraya-Pulakesin inflicted a crushing defeat on the invaders. The Calukya emperor then honoured A vanijanasraya with several titles, one of which was Anivartaka nivartayitr (the Repeller of the unrepellable.) (C. I. 1. Vol. IV, p. 138 f.)

Kirtivarman II, the last of these Early Calukyas was defeated by the Ragrakiita prince Dantidurga some time before AD. 754, when he issued his Samangad plates. Kirtivarman continued to rule for a few years more, but he had lost the paramount posi tion in the Deccan.

The Rastrakutas.

Dantidurga was the real founder of the Rastrakuta Imperial power.( Mirashi, Studies in lndology. Vol. II, p. 16 f.) His Ellora cave inscription mentions five ancestors beginning with Dantivarman, but we know nothing about them. The family probably belonged to the Aurangabad district where its, earliest records have been found. The earlier members of the family were probably feudatories of the Early Calukyas. Dantivarman made extensive conquests. The Ellora cave inscription records his victories over the rulers of Kanoi, Kalinga, Srisaila, Malava, Tanka and Lata, but these do not all seem to have resulted in the. acquisition of territory. His war elephants are said to have rent asunder the banks of the Mahanadi, the Mahi and the Reva. Though there is much exaggeration in the description of his conquests, there is no doubt that he conquered Karnataaka, Maharastra, Vidarbha and Gujarat.

Dantidurga was succeeded by his uncle Krsna, who completed the conquests and shattered. the power of the Early Calukyas. He was not only a great conqueror but also a great builder. He got the great Siva temple at Ellora originally called Krsnesvara, but now known as Kailasa cut out of solid rock. It is one of the noblest monuments of India. A contemporary inscription tells us that the great architect who excavated it was himself surprised to see it and despaired of repeating the feat.

In Vidarbha also the Rastrakutas built several magnificent temples. Those at the village Markandi in the Canda district, where the Vainganga takes a northern bend, are specially noteworthy. The most beautiful among these is the Markandeya temple dedicated to Siva. Cunningham has described it as follows (Cunningham, A. S. R. Vol. X, p. 145.) :- “ The general style of the Markand temple is like that of the Khajuraho temples, with three rows of figures all round, two feet and three inches in height. In each of these rows there are 45 human figures, making 135 in the lower part of the temple. Higher up than these there is a row of geese and a row of monkeys and above these there are four more rows of human figures. The whole surface of the temple is, in fact, literally covered with statues and ornaments. Altogether, I counted 409 figures; and there are about half as many lions and elephants forming divisions between the human statues. About one half of the panels are given up to Siva and Parvati in various forms. There are also many subordinate female figures, some dancing, some playing musical instruments, and one holding a mirror, while putting antimony to her eye-lids."

An inscription of Krsna I has been discovered at Bhandak in the Canda district and is dated in the Saka year 694 (A.D. 772). ( Ep.lnd., Vol. XIV, p. 121 f.) It records the grant of the village Nagana to a temple of the sun in Udumbaramanti, modern Rani Amravati in the Yeotmal district.

The Rastrakuta family produced several great conquerors, who boldly invaded North and South India and achieved memorable victories. Dhruva (A.D. 780-793) was the first among them. He defeated both the Gurjara-Pratihiira king Vatsaraja and the Pala king Dharmapala, who were contending for supremacy in North India and pressed as far as the Doab. Since then the two sacred rivers the Ganga and the Yamuna began to appear on the Rastrakuta banner.

Govinda III, the son and successor of Dhruva, proved to be a still greater conqueror. After obtaining an easy victory over the Ganga king Muttarasa ruling in Gangavadi, he led victorious campaigns in Central and Northern India. He first defeated the Gurjara-Pratihara king Nagabhata and his, ally Candragupta in Central India and then routed Dharmapala of Bengal, who had espoused the cause of Cakrayudha of Kanauj. He next marched victoriously to the north until his horses drank and his elephants plunged themselves into the spring waters, of the Himalayas. He then returned to the Narmada and marching along the bank of the river, he conquered the Malava, Kosala, Kalinga, Vanga, Dahala and Odra countries. He then spent the rainy season at Sribhavana (modern Sarbhon in Gujarat) and afterwards marched with his forces to the bank of the Tungabhadra. Using Alampura (or Helapura) on the bank of the river as his base, he led his campaigns against the Keralas, the Colas, the Pandyas and the Pallavas. Even the king of Lanka submitted to him, sending two statues-one of himself and the other of his minister-to his camp at Helapiira. (Ibid., Vol. XXXII, p. 157f.)

Several copper-plate grants of Govinda III, have been found in Vidarbha-at Anjanavati in the Amravati district and Sirso in the Akola district. ( Ibid, Vol. XXIII, p. 8 f.; XXIII, p. 204 f. etc.) Another was recently found at Dharur in the Bid district.( This is under publication in Ep. Ind.) It is dated in the Saka year 728 (A. D. 806) and records the donation of the village Anahe (modern Aneganv) in the visaya (district) of Dharaura (modern Dharur). The boundary villages mentioned in the grant can still be identified in the vicinity of Aneganv.

Govinda III, was succeeded by his son Sarva-Amoghavarsa I, who was a man of peaceful disposition, but whose reign was full of troubles. He had first to fight with the Eastern Calukyas of Vengi, the Gangas of Gangavadi and his own relatives in Gujarat. He loved and encouraged science arid literature and treated all religions with equal reverence. He voluntarily retired from public administration to engage himsdf in religious pursuits. On one occasion he offered a finger of his hand to the Goddess Mahalaksmi of Kolhapur to ward off a public calamity. Such instances are rare in the history of any country.

Another noteworthy king of the Rastrakuta family was Indra III, the great-grandson of Amoghavarsa I. Like his illustrious ancestors Dhruva and Govinda III, Indra also led victorious campaigns in North India. He followed the route of Bhopal, Jhansi and Kalpl in the course of his invasion of Kanauj, the Imperial capital of India for more than three hundred years. At Kalpi his army was encamped in the court yard of the temple of the Sun-god Kalapriyanatha, well-known to Sanskritists, as the place where all the plays of the Sanskrt dramatist Bhavabhuti were staged. ( Mirashi, Studies in Indology, Vol. I, p. 35 f.) His horses crossed the Yamuna at Kalpi and then marched on Kanauj, which he completely devastated. The Gurjara-pratihara king Mahipala fled to Mahoba to seek the help of his Candella feudatory Harsa.. Indra III's northern campaign was a memorable event unparalleled for its brilliance in the history of the Rastrakutas.

Recently a grant of Indra III made on the occasion of his coronation has been found at Jambganv in the Gangapur taluka of the Aurangabad district. It is dated in the Saka year 836 (A.D. 914) and records the donation of the village Khairondi near Pratisthana (modern Kharvandi near Paithan). The boundary villages also can be identified in its vicinity. ( Ep. Ind., Vol. XXXVI, p. 223 f.)

Indra III, was succeeded by his son Amoghavarsa II, but he died within a year and was followed by his younger brother Govinda IV. He was known for his liberality and rightly had the biruda Suvarnavarsa (the gold-rainer). On the occasion of his coronation he donated six hundred agrahara villages and three lakhs of gold coins, to Brahmanas, and eight villages, four lakhs of gold coins and thirty-two lakhs of silver coins (Drammas) to temples. Recently another copper-plate grant of his, dated in the Saka year 851 (A.D. 929), has been discovered at the village Andura in the Akola district of Vidarbha.( Ibid., Vol. XXXVI, p. 257 f.) It records the donation of the village Elauri (modern Erali near the railway station Nandur on the Central Railway). Most of the boundary villages can be identified in its vicinity.

The Rastrakutas of Manyakheta (modern Malkhed) and the Kalacuris of Tripuri (Tewar near Jabalpur) were matrimonially connected and their relations were generally cordial. But in the reign of Govinda IV they became strained. The Kalacuri king Yuvarajadeva I espoused the cause of his son-in-law Baddiga-Amoghavarsa III, the uncle of Govinda IV and sent a large army to invade the Rastrakuta dominion. When the army reached the Payosni (modern Purna), a pitched battle was fought near Acalapura between the Kalacuri and Rastrakuta forces in which the former became victorious, This event is commemorated in the Sanskrt play Viddhasalabhanjika of Rajasekhara, which was staged at Tripuri in jubilation at this victory.( C. 1. 1., Vol. IV, p. lxxviii f.)

The Rastrakuta feudatories who rose in rebellion against Govinda IV deposed him and placed his uncle Baddiga-Amoghavarsa III on the throne. He was a man of quiet nature and spiritual temperament, who left the administration entirely to his ambitious and able son Krsna III. Like some of his illustrious ancestors, Krsna also led an expedition in North India and captured the forts of Kalanjara and Citrakuta. He succeeded his father in A.D. 939. He then led an expedition against the Colas and defeated them in a sanguinary battle at Takkolam in the North Arcot district. He next led his victorious arms to Ramesvaram, where he built two temples. Hearing of his resounding victories, the kings of Kerala, Pandya and Ceylon submitted to him. He also placed his own nominee on the throne of Vengi. He became thus the lord paramount of the whole of South India.

The Ragrakuta power became weak after the death of Krsna III. Within six years his large empire crumbled like a house of cards. Taila II, the founder of the Later Calukya dynasty, who was a Mahasamanta of the Rastrakutas, suddenly came into prominence. He defeated and killed in battle Karka II, the last Rastrakuta king, and captured his capital Manyakheta. He had to fight against the Colas, the Pandyas and the Paramaras. The Paramara king Vakpati-Munja planned to invade the Calukya dominion, but his wise minister Rudraditya advised him not to cross the Godavari, which was the boundary between the Calukya and Paramara dominions. Munja did not heed his advice and was taken captive by Tailapa. He was placed in a prison where he was waited upon by Tailapa's sister Mrnalavati. He fell in love with her and foolishly disclosed to her the plan of his escape. She communicated it to Tailapa, who is said to have made him beg from door to door and then beheaded him.

Among the successors of Tailapa II, the most famous is Vikramaditya VI, the founder of the Calukya-Vikrama Samvat. He ascended the throne in A.D. 1076. He had to fight against the Colas, the Calukyas of Gujarat and the Hoysalas and signally defeated them. He also led an expedition against Vengi. Two inscriptions of his reign have been found in Vidarbha. One of them called the Sitabaldi pillar inscription seems to have originally belonged to the Vindhyasana hill at Bhandak in the Canda district. It is dated in the saka year 1008 (A.D. 1087) and registers the grant of some nivartanas of land for the grazing of cattle made by a dependent of a feudatory called Dhadilbhandaka.( Ep. Ind., Vol. III, p. 304 f.) The other inscription was discovered at Dongarganv in the Yeotmal district. It sheds interesting light on the history of the Paramara dynasty. It shows that Jagaddeva, the youngest son of the Paramara king Udayaditya, the brother of Bhoja, left Malva and sought service with Vikramaditya, who welcomed him and placed him in charge of some portion of Western Vidarbha. ( Ibid., Vol. XXVI, p. 177 f.) The district of Nanded may have been included in his principality. The Dongarganv inscription is dated in the saka year 1034 (A.D. 1112). Another inscription of this Jagaddeva has come to notice at Jainad in the adjoining Adilabad district of Andhra Prades. It records several victories of Jagaddeva in Andhra, Dorasamudra and near the Arbuda mountain, and registers the construction of a temple of Nimbaditya by his minister Lolarka. (Ibid., Vol. XXII, p. 54.)

Vikramaditya's reign is renowned on account of some learned men who flourished at his court. Bilhana, who was patronised by him, wrote the Vikramankadevacarita, which is his poetical biography. Another famous author who flourished at his, court was Vijnandvara, the author of the well-known commentary Mitaksara on the Yajnavalkya Smrti.

The decline of the Calukya power commenced soon after the reign of Vikramaditya VI. Taila III, the last Calukya king, was overthrown by the Kalacuri Bijjala, who was his commander-in chief, in A.D. 1157. The Kalacuri usurpation lasted for about two decades. Bijjala's reign is noted for the rise of the Lingayat sect.

The Yadavas of Devagiri

In the last quarter of the twelfth century A.D. the Yadavas of T Devagiri came into prominence. They had previously been ruling over Seunadesa (Khandes) in an earlier period as feuda tories of the Calukyas, but Bhillama, the son of Mallugi, declared his independence and made himself master of the whole territory north of the Krsna. He then founded the city of Devagiri, which he made his capital. His son Jaitrapala killed Rudradeva of the Kakatiya dynasty on the field of battle and released his nephew whom he had put into prison. Under Jaitrapala's son Singhana the power of the family greatly increased. We get considerable information about his victories from the four stone inscriptions of his general Kholesvara at Ambe Jogoi in the Big district. Kholesvara was a native of Vidarbha, but was residing at Ambe, where he has left his inscriptions. Some more details are furnished by a later copper-plate grant of Ramacandra found at Purusottampuri in the Bid district. (lbid., Yolo XXV, p. 199 f.)

Singhana achieved several victories. He defeated the Hoysala king Vira-Ballala, the Kakatiya king Ganpapati and Laksmidhara, the lord of Bhambhagiri, modern Bhamer in the Pimpalner taluka of the Dhulia district. He confined Bhoja II of the Silahara family on the hill of Pranala i.e., Panhala, a strong fart about 12 miles to the north-west of Kolhapur. Most of these victories were won by his Brahmana general Kholesvara. The latter vanquished also Arjunavarmadeva, king of Malva, and even pressed as far north as Varanasi where he put Ramapala to flight. Kholesvara constructed several temples in Vidarbha and also established agraharas on the banks of the Payosni and the Varada. The former agrahara still exists under the name of the village Kholapur in the Amravati district.

Singhana was succeeded by his grandson Krsna, who obtained victories over the kings of Gurjara, Malava, Cola, and Kosala. The Gurjara king was Visaladeva and the Malava ruler was Jaitugideva. The contemporary Cola king was Rajendra III (1246-1279). The Kosala king was evidently the contemporary ruler of Ratanpur in Chattisgadh, who was probably the successor of Jajalladeva defeated by Singhana, but no records of his reign have yet been discovered. An inscription of the reign of Krsna has been found in the temple of Khandesvara at Nandganv in the Amravati district. It is dated in the Saka year 1177 (A.D. 1254-55) and records the donations. of some gadyanakas for the offerings of flowers in the temple of Khandesvara.( Ibid.. Vol. XXVII. p. 9 f.)

Krsna was succeeded by his brother Mahadeva. From the recently discovered Kaleganv plates (Ibid., Vol. XXXII, p. 31 f.) we know the exact date of his coronation as the 29th August A.D. 1261. The most notable event of his reign was the annexation of North Konkan after defeating Somesvara of the Silahara dynasty. He left the throne to his son Amana, but the latter was won deposed by Krsna’s son Ramacandra, who captured the impregnable fort of Devagiri by means of a coup d'etat.( Ibid., Vol. XXV, p. 205.) He won several victories mentioned in the Purusottampuri plates dated in the Saka year 1232 (A.D. 1310). He is said to have defeated with ease the ruler of Dahala (i.e., the Cedi country), subjugated the ruler of Bhandara (modern Bhandara), and dethroned the king of Vajrakara (modern Vairagadh). He is further credited with a victory over the Muhammedans, whom he drove out from Varanasi. He built there a golden temple dedicated to Sarngapani (Visnu). His minister Purusottama received from him the grant of four villages, which he formed into an agrahara and donated it to several Brahmanas on the holy day of Kapilisathi in the saka year 1232. The agrahara was named Purusottamapuri after the donor. It is still extant under its original name on the southern bank of the Godavari, about 4D miles due west from Parbhani. The villages together with their boundaries can still be identified in the vicinity of Purusottampuri. (Ibid., Vol. XXV, p. 208)

A fragmentary inscription of the time of Ramacandra is built into the front wall of the temple of Laksmana on the hill of Ramtek. In the first half it gives the genealogy of Ramacandra and in the second half it describes the temples, wells and tirthas on and in the vicinity of the hill which it names as Ramagiri. The object of the inscription seems to have been to record the repairs of the temple of Laksmana done by Raghava, a minister of Ramacandra.

In A.D. 1294, Ala-ud-din Khilji invaded the kingdom of Ramacandra and suddenly appeared before the gates of Devagiri Ramacandra was taken unawares and could not hold out long. He had to pay a large ransom to the Muslim conquerar. He continued, however, to rule till A.D. 1310 at least; for the The aforementioned Purusottampuri plates, are dated in that year. He was succeeded by his son Sankaradeva some time in A.D. 1311. He discontinued sending the stipulated tribute to Delhi. He was then defeated and slain by Malik Kafur. Some time thereafter, Harapaladeva, the son-in-law of Ramacandra, raised an insurrection and drove away the Muhammedans, but his success was short-lived. The Hindu kingdom of Devagiri thus came to an end in A.D. 1318.

Like their illustrious predecessors, the Yadavas also extended liberal patronage to art and literature. During their rule a peculiar style of architecture called Hemadaparnti after Hemadri or Hemadpanta, a minister of Mahadeva and Ramacandra, came into vogue. Temples built in this style are found in all the districts, of Maharastra. Several learned scholars flourished at the Yadava court. Of them Hemadri was the foremost. During the reign of Mahadeva he held the post of Srikaranadhipa or Head of the Secretariat. He was appointed Minister and Head of the Elephant Force by Ramacandra. He was as brave as he was learned and liberal. He conquered and annexed to the Yadava kingdom the eastern part of Vidarbha called Jhadimandala. Hemadri is well-known as the author of the Caturvargacintamani, comprising five parts, viz. (1) Vratakhanda, (2) Danakhanda, (3) Tirthakhanda (4) Moksakhanda and (5) Parisesakhanda. Of these, the third and the fourth Khandas have not yet come to light. Hemadri's work is held in great esteem and has been drawn upon by later writers on Dharmasastra. Hemadri wrote on other subjects, as well. He is the author of a commentary on Saunaka's Pranavakalpa and also of a Sraddhakalpa, in which he follows Katyayana. His Ayurvedarasayana a commentary on Vagbhata's Astngahrdava and Kaivalyadipika, a gloss of Bopadeva's Muktaphala are also well known.

Hemadri extended liberal patronage to learned men. Among his protegees the most famous was Bopadeva. He was a native of Vedapada (modern Bedod) on the bank of the Wardha in the Adilabad district .of Andhra Prades. Bopadeva is said to have composed ten works on Sanskrt grammar, nine on medicine, One for the determination of tithis, three on poetics and an equal number for the elucidatian of the Bhagavata doctrine. Only eight of these are now extant. The Mugdhabodha, his work on Sanskrt grammar, is very popular in Bengal.

Marathi literature also flourished in the age of the Yadavas. Cakradhara, who propagated the Mahanubhava cult in that age, used. Marathi as the medium of his religious teaching. Following his example, several of his followers composed literary works in Marathi. They are counted among the first works of , Marathi Literature. Mukundaraja, the author of the Vedancic works Vivekasindhu and Paramamrta, and Jnanesvara, the celebrated author of the Bhavarthadipika, a commentary on the Bhagavadgita, are the most illustrious writers of that age.

Mediaeval Period

The first Turkish invasion of the Deccan took place in 1294 under Alauddln Khilji, the nephew of the reigning emperor Jalaluddin. After his success at Devagiri, Alauddin returned to Delhi, murdered his uncle and ascended the throne in 1296. Subsequently Deccan was again invaded in 1306, 1308 and 1310. but the Yadava power at Devagiri was not finally extinguished till 1318, after which Maharastra began to be ruled by the governors appointed by the Delhi emperors. The district of Nanded thus for the first time passed under the Muhammedan rule. In 1327 the then reigning emperor Muhammad Tughlak transferred the capital from Delhi to Devagiri. In 1341, a revolt broke out in the Deccan, so much so that according to Ferista, Muhammad sah had. no part of the territory of Deccan left in the empire except Daulatabad. In 1345 there was again widespread disorder and the Delhi officers plundered and devastated the country.

In 1346, the Deccan was divided into four provinces and four governors were nominated, upon whom the enforcement of the new regulations regarding revenue collections and the extortions of the uttermost tanqa of the revenue were strictly enjoined. The high handed conduct of the Delhi officers led to the revolt of the Deccan officers in 1347 under the leadership of Hasan Gangu who bore the title of Zafar Khan. They defeated the imperial troops and freed the Deccan from its dependence on the north. Hasan Gangu assumed royal power in the Deccan in 1347 under the title of Alauddin Bahman sah.

Alauddin Bahaman Sah brought under his control a considerable part of the Deccan which was formerly subject to the throne of Delhi. In 1357 Alauddin divided his kingdom into four provinces or carats over each of which he appointed a provincial governor or tarafdar. The district of Nanded. formed part of the province of Bidar or Telangana. It included the towns and districts of Bidar, Kandhar (Nanded district), Indur, Kaulas, Kotgir and Medak. A part of Nanded district north of the river Godavari: and south of Penganga formed part of the province of Berar. Under the new administration Azam-I-Humayiin was appointed to the governorship of Bidar and Safdar Khan Sistani to Berar.

The reorganisation of the Deccan thus completed, the king ordered his military commanders to proceed to their respective provinces and quell the recalcitrant chiefs who had still not laid down their arms against the Bahamani power. The first campaign was led by Husain Gursasp who, on his way to Kotgir heard that the Tughlak garrison at Kandhar had affirmed its loyalty to the new king, while Akraj, the official of the Tughlak had tied. Gursasp proceeded to Kandhar and personally received the homage of the Kandhar garrison on behalf of his master.

The system of provisional administration was further elaborated by Muhammad Sah Bahamani who succeeded his father Bahaman Sah in 1358. During the latter part of the fourteenth century, under the rule of Muhammad Sah the banditti, which for ages had harassed the trade of the Deccan, were broken and scattered and people enjoyed good government. This period of prosperity was followed by the great calamity of the Durga Devi famine when twelve rainless years (1396-1407) are said to have turned the land into a desert. No efforts of any rulers could preserve the order of life through so long a series of fatal years. Whole districts were left without people. Strong places passed into the hands of the local chiefs. Political events of considerable importance were also taking place during this time in the district. In 1398-99 when the army of Berar was away helping the king Firoz Sah Bahamani in his campaign against Harihara II of Vijayanagar, a local Gond chief overran Berar from north to south and established himself in Mahur, probably at the instigation of the king of Malwa. The whole of the northern portion of the district was in the hands of the invaders. Firoz Sah, however, compelled them to submit to him.

In 1422 Firoz Sah was deposed by his brother Ahmad Sah. He decided to prosecute the war with Vijayanagar, which had opened so disastrously for the Bahamanis in the reign of Firoz Sah. Again, the army of Berar, took a leading part in Ahmad Sah's campaigns. The absence of the army was taken advantage of by rebels, and a Hindu chief, either an officer from Canda or a disaffected zamindar, held the fortress of Mahur. Ahmad Sah marched to Mahur in 1426 and laid siege to the place. The besiegers, however, could not succeed in subduing it. Ahmad then returned to the capital. In the following year, 1427, Ahmad Sah again marched to Mahur which was left unsubdued, but even now he could not take it and had to return to the capital. It was his third on slaught against Mahur which was successful. Mahur ultimately was captured. From Mahur Ahmad Sah marched towards the northern frontiers of his kingdom as far as Ellicpur (Acalpur) probably with a view to strengthen his frontiers in that region. He then returned to Gulburga in 1428.

In 1429 the leading Bahamani noble Malik-ut-tujjar toured through the Deccan restoring order. Old villages had disappeared and fresh ones had to be formed generally including lands of two or three of the old villages. Land was given to all who would till it free of rent for the first year and tor a horse bag of grain for the second year. It may be mentioned here that the Gond. Chief of Kherla, Narsingh Dev owed allegiance to the Bahamanis. He was attacked by Hosang Sah of Malya when Ahmad was on his way to his capital. Ahmad ordered the army of Berar under Abdul Kadir to go to the. aid of Narsingh Dev while he himself marched to its support. Hosang Sah was defeated and fled towards Mandu. Narsing Dev accompanied Ahmad Sah on his return march and parted from him at Mahur whence he was dismissed with many rich presents. Before he died Ahmad Sah gave charge of different provinces to his sons making prince Mahmud, Governor of Mahur, Kallam and Ramgir with a part of Berar, and Prince Davud, Governor of Telangana. (Kalam and Mahur were at that time the most important forts in the northeastern corner of Berar.)

Ahmad Sah died in 1436 and was succeeded by his eldest son Alauddin Ahmad II. In 1455 Jalal Khan who had married Alauddin Ahmad's sister, rebelled in Telangana and proclaimed himself king. Alauddin Ahmad Sah assembled his forces and Jalal Khan sent Sikandar Khan to Mahur in order to create a diversion there. Sikandar Khan occupied Mahur and sent a message to Mahmud Sah Khilji of Malva that the Bahamani Sultan was dead and if he took the field, Berar and Telangana would fall into his hands. Believing in these reports Mahmud Sah invaded Berar in 1456 and reaching Mahur encamped in the plains about the fortress. On hearing of the aggression of Mahmud Khilji, Alauddin Ahmad Sah changed his plans. He left Khvaja Mahmud Gavan to march against Jalal Khan in Telangana, detailed the army of Berar to watch Adil Khan of Khandes so as, to prevent him from co-operating with Mahmud Sah, the Malva ruler and ordered Karim Beg Safsikankhan, governor of Daulatabad to march to Mahur. He himself along with his household troops and the army from the province of Bijapur, marched towards the same fortress. Mahmud Khilji of Malva, was now convinced of his inability to face the Bahamani army. He ordered a retreat to Mandu leaving behind him a contingent with an officer with instructions to prevent Sikandar Khan from returning to his former allegiance and to send him as a captive to Mandu. Sikandar Khan discovered that he was virtually in custody and contrived to elude his jailor and to escape from Mahur with two thousand troops. He fled to Nalgonda in Telangana where Khvaja Mahmud Gavan was besieging his father. Both the father and the son submitted and were pardoned. Fakhr-ul-Mulk, the Turk, who had been governor of Mahur before he was ejected by Sikandar Khan was reinstated by Alauddin Ahmad Sah.

Nizam Sah, the twelfth king of the Bahamani dynasty, ascended the throne in 1461, at Bidar where the capital had been removed by Ahmad Sah I, in 1429. Mahmud Khilji of Malva, taking advantage of the young age of the king who was hardly eight years old, again invaded the Bahamani dominions by way of western Berar. The Bahamani nobles marched to meet the invader with the armies of the provinces, of Bijapur, Daulatabad and Berar taking the king along with them. The two armies met near Kandhar in Nanded district. The Bahamanis suffered a reverse and had to fall back upon Bidar. Mahmud Khilji besieged Bidar and the Bahamani court was removed to Firozabad near Gulburga. At this juncture the Queen Mother and Mahmud Gavan appealed to the Sultan of Gujarat to help the young king. The Sultan of Gujarat with 80,000 troops, appeared on the frontiers of Malva, while Mahmud Gavan who had rallied a sizeable cavalry, cut off the supplies of the besiegers. The Malva troops were reduced to great distress. Mahmud Khilji was forced to raise the siege. After suffering heavily in his retreat he returned to Mandu.

The district suffered with the rest of the Deccan from the terrible two years of famine in 1473 and 1474 and most of those who escaped death from starvation fled to Malva and Gujarat. In the following year rains fell but prosperity was slow to return, for few were left to till the soil and it was by slow degrees that the wanderers found their way to their ancestral homes.

The power and turbulence of the provincial governors was a source of weakness and danger to the Bahamani rule. At this time the subordinate governor of south-eastern Berar which included the northern part of Nanded district with the Godavari" as its boundary was Khudavand Khan, the African who had his headquarters at Mahur now in Nanded district. In 1480 Muhammad III, the Bahamani ruler, on the advice of his minister Mahmud Gavan divided the four original provinces of the Bahamani kingdom into eight smaller provinces. Berar was divided into two provinces of Gavil and Mahur. To the new province of Mahur, Fatehullah Imad-ul-Mulk was appointed as governor. The whole of Nanded district was included in the Mahur province. Mahmud Gavan himself had spent many days of his life in Nanded and Kandhar. Wazirabad, a prominent suburb of the Nanded town was founded by Mahmud Gavan.

In each province only one fort was left in the governor's hands, the rest being entrusted to captains and garrisons appointed and paid from the capital. The pay of the captains was greately raised and they were forced to keep their garrisons at full strength. This scheme was resented by the old tarafdars, who, in 1481 by false charges of treason, succeeded in procuring the death of the wazir, Mahmud Gavan. The day of his execution was the day from which the decline and fall of the Bahamani kingdom may be dated. Fateullah Imad-ul-Mulk, the governor of northern Berar and Khudavand Khan openly condemned this execution, withdrew with their troops from the royal camp and returned to their respective provinces. A year after they were recalled by Muhammad Sah to accompany him on an expedition to Goa. They obeyed the summons but maintained a safe distance between themselves and the royal camp and returned to Cavil and Mahur even before the completion of the expedition. In 1482, Muhammad Sah Bahamani died and was succeeded by his son Mahmud Sah, a boy of twelve. All power in the capital passed into the hands of Kasim Barid, the local officer at Bidar. The tarafdars knowing that the royal orders were really those of Kasim Barid rarely paid any heed to them. In 1490 Yusuf Adil of Bijapur, Ahmad Nizam of Ahmadnagar and Imad-ul-Mulk of Gavil declared independence. The province of Mahur remained under Khudavand Khan of Mahur for some years though he seems never to have committed himself to a formal declaration of independence.

Last days of Bahamani Kingdom

Kasim Barid held Kandhar (in Nanded district) and Ausa (in Osmanabad district) as his jagir. He did not remain quiet at the capital viewing with equanimity the usurpation of power by provincial governors. Troops were sent against Ahmad Nizam Sah but he could not be subdued. On the contrary he advanced up to Mahur, Bid and Sivaganv and the Sultan's army under Azamat-ul-mulk patched up a truce with him at Bid.

The Sultan confirmed on Kasim Barid, Kandhar, Ausa, Udgir and Kalyani as his fiefs. But not being content he proceeded to subdue other forts in the kingdom. The Sultan sent Dilavar Khan against him but Dilavar Khan was slain. Kasim Barid reduced the Sultan to such a strait that some writers date the establishment of Barid Sahi dynasty from that year (1490).

In 1504 both Fateullah Imad-ul-Mulk and Khudavand Khan received appeals from Mahmud Sah for assistance in punishing Yusuf Adil Sah of Bijapur. On their refusal Mahmud Sah and Ahmad Nizam Sah marched against them and received their, submission at Kallam.

In 1514 Mahmud Sah made an abortive attempt to escape from the clutches of Amir Barid. It failed owing to his own slothfulness. Its failure seems to have exasperated Khudavand Khan of Mahur who occupied himself in raiding and ravaging Amir Barid's territory in the direction of Kandhar and UdgiIr. As a result, in 1517 Amir Barid taking Mahmud Sah with him marched against Mahur and captured it. He killed Khudavand Khan and his eldest son Sarza Khan. Mahmud Khan another son of Khudavand Khan was appointed to the command of Mahur as the servant of Alauddin Imad Sah of Berar, probably a concession intended to hinder the Sultan of Berar from interfering in the affairs of Bidar.

Nizamsahi, Baridsahi and Imadsahi Kingdoms

Alauddin Imad Sah of Berar became involved in a quarrel with Burhan Nizam Sah of Ahmadnagar regarding the town of Pathri, a border town between Berar and the Ahmadnagar kingdoms. Burhan demanded Pathri which was a place of his ancestors in exchange for some other territory which Imad Sah refused. War ensued and Burhan captured Pathri in 1520. In 1527, Imad Sah recaptured Pathri with the help of Kuli Kutb Sah. Burhan now allied himself with Amir Barid and captured the place. But considering this punishment to Imad Sah as insufficient, he marched on Mahur and captured it from Mahmud Khan, the son of Khudavand Khan. He then annexed the whole province of Mahur and advancing further annexed the whole of Berar. Imad sah now appealed to Bahadur Sah of Gujarat who immediately responded to the appeal. He entered Berar but gave unmistakable indications of his intention to annex Berar as, well as Ahmadnagar to his kingdom. Imad Sah now repented of his action and patched up a truce with Burhan Nizam Sah. Both of them succeeded in securing the return of Bahadur Sah on the most humiliating terms of vassalage and fealty. The return of Pithri and Mahur was stipulated in the treaty between Imad and Burhan. The latter, however, never implemented it.

Amir Barid tried to tamper with the loyalty of the Bijapur troops sent to the help of Burhan. Ismail thereupon marched on Bidar and made Amir Barid, who was, now an old man, a prisoner. Bidar surrendered. Alauddin who had come to the assistance of Amir Barid had to agree to Ismail's proposal for a joint expedition for the capture of Raicur doab. In return Ismail promised to recover for him Pathri and Mahur. The Raicur doab was reduced but on hearing of the intended invasion of Bahadur Sah of Gujarat, the plan for the capture of Pathri and Mahur Was postponed. Alauddin returned to Berar. Ismail restored Bidar to Amir Barid on condition of the cession of Kalyani and Kandhar by the latter, a condition which was never fulfilled. Due to this non-fulfilment of the condition Ismail Adil Sah prepared to capture these places by force of arms. Burhan, on behalf of Amir Barid wrote to Ismail asking him to desist from such an adventure. Ismail reminded Burhan Nizam sah of his failure to cede Mahur and Pathri to Imad Sah. The hot exchange ultimately resulted in the recourse to arms by the two sides in which the combined forces of Burhan Nizam Sah and Barid were defeated. Meanwhile Darya Imad Sah had succeeded Alauddin Imad Sah in the government of Berar. His reign was uneventful. In 1561 he was followed by Burhan Imiid Sah. At Ahmadnagar Murtaza Nizam Sah had succeeded his father on 15th July 1565. Burhan Imad Sah was shortly after his accession imprisoned by his minister Tufal Khan, who thus became the real ruler of Berar. Murtaza Nizam Sah invaded Berar in 1572 nominally for the purpose of relieving Burhan Imad Sah from confinement but really with the object of annexing Berar to Ahmadnagar. Nanded district became a scene of clashes between the armies of Tufal Khan and Ahmadnagar. After the capture of Pathri, news was, brought that Tufal Khan had set out with a view to invade the Kandhar region. The Ahmadnagar forces marched in that direction, forcing Tufal Khan to abandon his expedition. Tufal Khan next moved towards Mahur. On hearing of this news, the Ahmadnagar troops hastened in pursuit, and, engaged the army of Tufal Khan. The battle continued. At nightfall Tufal Khan left the field. The pursuit was followed and in its wake all the fortresses and districts of Berar were occupied by the Ahmadnagar forces. When the Ahmadnagar troops were engaged in the siege of Narnala, Ibrahim Kutb Sah of Golconda had invaded the territory of Ahmadnagar on the borders of Kandhar district and defeated the garrison stationed there. Murtaza Nizam Sah ordered that the army left to besiege Mahur should proceed to reinforce the defeated garrison and check the advance of Ibrahim Kutb Sah. Murtaza recalled Haidar Sultan who commanded the army at Kandhar and appointed Mirza Yadgar in his place. On hearing of the reinforcement received by the garrison in Kandhar, Ibrahim Sah's troops headed towards Kaulas. There they received orders from Ibrahim Sah to join them for another expedition, leaving a small detachment at Kaulas. The Nizam Sahi army of Kandhar quickly marched forward, reached Kaulas, wasted the surrounding territory and returned to Kandhar. Tufal Khan had taken shelter in the fort of Narnala which was under the siege of Ahmadnagar troops. In the end Narnala capitulated and Tufal Khan and Burhan Imad Sah became prisoners. The occupation of Berar was now completed and Berar including the province of Mahur became a part of the Ahmadnagar kingdom (1574).

The northward expansion of Ahmadnagar kingdom was viewed with alarm by Miran Muhammad Sah of Khandes who entered Berar and laid siege to the fortress of Narnala. The officers of Nizam Sah fled to his camp at Mahur. Murtaza thereupon attacked the Khandes territory by way of Rohankheda pass and wasted the country to such an extent that Miran Muhammad was forced to purchase the retreat of Ahmadnagar troops.

Murtaza Nizam Sah had now become infatuated with Sahib Khan a person of ignoble character. He brought about a massacre of foreigners and even insulted the amirs of the court. Salabat Khan, the prime minister, intervened and Sahib Khan was forced to run away from the court. Murtaza Nizam Sah followed Sahib Khan to Udgir and thence towards Kandhar. He agreed to displace Salabat Khan and conquer for Sahib Khan the city of Bidar which he now besieged and persuaded him to return. However, Burhan, the king's brother escaping from prison raised an insurrection which forced Murtaza to return. Salabat Khan was recalled and Burhan, the king's brother was defeated.

In 1584, Murtaza Sabzavari, governor of Berar, marched on Ahmadnagar but was defeated near the capital and pursued by Salabat Khan, the prime minister. Later the peace of the district was affected during the hurried raids at Khan-i-Azam, the governor of Malva, on Berar. In 1596. Berar was ceded by Candbibi, the queen regent of Ahmadnagar to the Moghals and the province, along with that part of Nanded district which formed part of the province of Berar, became, once more, after a lapse of three centuries and a half, an appanage of the crown of Delhi. It was raided and occupied more than once subsequently by Ahmadnagar troops but the Nizam Sahi kings never succeeded in permanently ousting the Moghals.

The account of Berar in the Ain-i-Akbari was added to that work in 1596-97. It seems that the administrative divisions enumerated therein were a legacy from the days of the Bahamanis as Akbar's officers can hardly have had any leisure to reorganise the province. Berar was divided into 16 sarkars which contained 142 parganas. The sarkar of Pathri contained 18 parganas and was assessd at 80,805,954 dams in money and at 11,580,954 dams in assignments, for the pay of troops. Ardhapur, Pathri, Parbhani, Panchalganv, Balhor,Basmath Baar, Tankli, Janter, Jahri, Sevli Kossi, Luhganv, Makat Madhkher, Matarganv, Nanded, Vasa and Hata are mentioned against revenue receipts. Mahur and Kallam are also mentioned as sarkars or revenue districts.

In 1600, the city of Ahmadnagar fell to the Moghals. The officers of Ahmadnagar, Malik Ambar and Mian Raja refused to admit the loss of independence as a result of the capture of Ahmadnagar by the Moghals. They carried on a heroic struggle for more than 20 years and maintained loyalty to Murtaza Nizam Sah whom they kept at Ausa (in Osmanabad district), in spite of the fact that both were bitter rivals of each other. Khan Khanan, the Moghal governor of Ahmadnagar, sent a party from Berar to take a small district belonging to Malik Ambar on the borders of Telangana. Malik Ambar sent his forces, defeated the Moghals and recaptured the lost territory. Khan Khanan sent his son Mirza Airij with 5,000 picked troops. A severe battle was, fought at Nanded where many were slain from both the sides. The Deccanis were defeated and Malik Ambar had to be carried away from the field, wounded. The battle took place in 1602. He recovered soon after, collected troops and prepared for hostilities. Khan Khanan now made overtures for peace and a treaty was concluded under which Malik Ambar was confirmed in the possession of his territory.

In 1605, Akbar died and was succeeded by his eldest son Salim (Jahangir). It is not necessary to follow in detail the progress of warfare between his generals and Malik Ambar except in so far as it immediately affected the district. In 1609 Parviz, Jahangir's second son was appointed viceroy of Khandes and Deccan. Expecting an invasion, Ibrahim Adil Sah asked that a resident envoy from the emperor might be accredited to his court, Malik Ambar also sought alliance with Ibrahim Adil Sah and obtained from him the fortress of Kandhar as a base of operations. In 1610 Parviz made a determined attack on Ahmadnagar but was defeated and forced to retreat. Similar operations were again undertaken in 1612 against Malik Ambar when a combined attack on him was envisaged, one from Gujarat and the other from Berar. This campaign was wrecked due to lack of cooperation between the Gujarat and Berar troops. Berar once again came into the hands of the Deccanis. In 1617 Sultan Khurram (Sah Jahan) was appointed to Berar when he drove the Deccanis out of their strongholds in the province.

In 1622, Sah Jahan rebelled against his father. He was, however, forced to flee to Burhanpur, where the remnant of his army was dispersed by his brother Parviz. Sah Jahan then fled to Mahur (Nanded district), pursued by his brother. At Mahur he left his elephants and heavy baggage under the charge of Uday Ram and Yadav Rav (Jadhav Rav} while he himself fled towards Golconda. In 1624 these two officers removed his elephants from Mahur to Burhanpur where they presented them to Parviz.

In 1626, Malik Ambar died in his 80th year and his son Fath Khan succeeded to his position in the Nizam Sahi kingdom. Late in 1626 Khan-i-Jahan, the Moghal Governor, sold Ahmadnagar and the whole of the Balaghat to Hamid Khan, the agent of Murtaza Nizaw Sah. The military commanders excepting the commander of the fort of Ahmadnagar under orders from Khani-Jahan surrendered their posts to the Deccani officers and retired to Payinghat.

Jahangir died in November 1627. The affairs of the Deccan had fallen into great disorder. Sah Jahan succeeded to the throne and immediately ordered the withdrawal of Nizam Sahi troops from Balaghat The order was obeyed, but the rebel Khan-i.-Jahan refused to obey the summons from the court and took shelter in the Ahmadnagar territory. Sah Jahan descended with a large army in the Deccan and the scene of campaign which was first in western Berar shifted to Ahmadnagar territory. Khan-i-Jahan had to retire from the country, was defeated and pursued. A force was sent under the command of Nasir Khan against Kandhar. He invested the fort which was defended by Sarfaraz Khan. Mukarrab Khan, Bahlol Khan and Randulla Khan were sent to its relief largely reinforced by a contingent from Bijapur but were defeated by the Moghal troops which were reinforced by Azam Khan, the Governor of Berar. Kandhar was captured by the Moghals in 1631 after a siege lasting for 19 days. In the midst of these wars the Deccan was visited by a severe famine in 1629-30 when rains failed and the district suffered with the rest of the Deccan.

Sah Jahan returned to the north in 1632. The district slowly recovered from the terrible famine and the until Daulatabad fell in 1632 and the last remnants of the sovereignty of the Nizam Sahi dynasty were completely removed.

Organisation of the Moghal Deccan

The Moghal Deccan now consisted of 4 provinces, viz., Khandes, Berar, Telangana and Daulatabad. The province of Daulatabad included Ahmadnagar and other dependencies. The province was bounded on the north by the Ajanta hills and the Vainganga river. Its, eastern frontier as now defined was an imaginary line drawn about 77°-15' East longitude along the Manjra river from Nanded to Kandhar and Udgir. From the Udgir fort the line took a sharp turn due west to Ausa and then bent north-west wards by the northern limit of the Solapur district and the forts of Visapiir, Parner and Junnar, till it struck the western ghats. At this part the Ghod river was the southern limit. Beyond Junnar, the boundary ran along the ghats, till it met the south-west frontier of Khandes at the angle where the Cander hills branch off eastwards.

Nizam Sahi Institutions.

Under the Ahmadnagar kings the country was divided into districts or sarkars. The district or sarkar was further subdivided into sub-divisions known as pargana, karyat, sammat, mahal and taluka and sometimes by their Hindu names, of prant and des. Except in the hilly west the officers were all Muslims. The farmers generally collected the revenue, the farms sometimes including only one village. The farmers were under a government agent or amil who in addition to his revenue duties managed the police and settled civil suits. There was a considerable number of Hindus in the employ of the State. Generally the hill forts except those of strategic importance were garrisoned by Marathas, Kolis and Dhangars and instances of open country being left to the management of Maratha and Brahmin officers were not infrequent. Estates were granted on military tenure, the value of the grant being in proportion to the number of troops which the grant holder maintained. Among the Maratha chiefs under Ahmadnagar could be mentioned Lakhuji jadhav Rav, Maloji Bhosle and many others of lesser note.

Malik Ambar reformed the land administration of the kingdom and is best known by his excellent land system. He stopped land farming and under Musalman supervision entrusted the collection of revenue to Brahmin agents. He renewed the broken village system and when experiments enabled him to ascertain the average yield of a field, he fixed the land revenue at two fifths of the outturn in kind and later commuted the grain payment to a cash payment representing about one-third of the yield. The arrangement of Malik Ambar was not in the nature of a permanent settlement but variable according to the conditions of the harvest.

When the Moghals took over the Ahmadnagar territory, sah Tahan introduced the revenue system of Akbar's great financier Todar Mal, under which lands were first assessed according to their fertility in a proportion varying from one-half to one seventh of the gross produce according to the cost of tillage and the kind of crop grown. The government share was then commuted for a money payment and at the time when the land was measured, classed and registered, the assessment was fixed at a fourth of the yearly produce of each field. The system was introduced in the districts north of the Bhima and Mursid Kuli Khan was appointed to work out the system. The system introduced a settlement which was more or less permanent in comparison to Malik Ambar's flexible settlement. The Moghals also introduced the Fasli or the harvest year which coincided with the mrga or opening of the south-west monsoon early in June. No attempt was made to reconcile the Fasli or Solar Musa1man year with their Lunar year and hence the Fasli differed from the regular Lunar Musalman year more than three years in a century. The classification of lands, and the land revenue settlement proved distasteful to the rayats of Ahmadnagar kingdom.

In 1637, the Khan-i-Dauran with Sipahdar Khan and the army of Berar undertook an expedition to the kingdom of Golconda where they collected Cauth. In 1642 Sah Beg Khan, a commander of 4,000 horse, was appointed subhedar of Berar in place of the Khan-i-Dauran. It will be of interest to note here that Sahaji Bhosle, a nobleman of the Nizam sahi court had rendered excellent service to the cause of Ahmadnagar kingdom during the times of its declining fortunes. After the murder of Murtaza Nizam Sah in 1631 and submission of Fath Khan, he proclaimed another prince as the lawful heir of the Nizam Sah. (Opinions differ regarding the date of this event. According to Radhe Sham. The Kingdom of Ahmednagar p. 313) Murtaza Nizam Shah was murdered in 1632, according to Cambridge History of India (Vol. IV, p. 264) in 1630, and According to Sardesai (New History of the Marathas, Vol. I, p. 65) in 1631.) The Moghals reduced sahaji. The Adil Sah of Bijapur, after a struggle, agreed to pay 20 1akhs pagodas to the Moghals and received in return the south and south-east portion of Ahmadnagar kingdom. Sahaji then entered the service of Bijapur Government with the consent of Sah Jahan. In the year 1653 Aurangzeb was again appointed Viceroy of the Deccan. He spent several years in perfecting the revenue settlement. In 1658 on receiving the news of his father's illness, AuraIigzeb marched to Agra, deposed his father and ascended the imperial throne. The subsequent years saw the growth of the power of the Marathas under the brilliant leadership of Sivaji (1630-1680) and their ravages in the Moghal territory in the Deccan During the Moghal-Maratha conflict the district of Nanded was traversed many a time by the opposing forces. Sayasta Khan was sent by Aurangzeb to punish the Mararhas. But Sivaji, by a daring raid on his camp at Poona, wrecked the Moghal plan of subjugating the Marathas. In 1662 Netaji Palkar ravaged the Moghal districts and swept the country close to Aurangabad. Berar was looted early in December 1670 by Sivaji's general Prataprav. In 1671, Marathas parties again appeared in the Ahmadnagar districts. Bahadur Khan was sent from Ahmadnagar in pursuit of the Marathas. He deposited his heavy baggage at Bid, Pathri and Kandhar and reached Ramgir in Karimnagar district (October 1672). Here he came to know that the Marathas had already left Ramgir after looting it. Bahadur Khan returned to Ahmadnagar. On June 6, 1674 Sivaji was crowned as king at the fort of Rayagad. With more daring he ravaged the Moghal territory in the Deccan. In October of the same year Sivaji himself led an expedition through Baglan, Khandes and Berar. In 1677 he visited Golconda and entered into an agreement with Kutb Sah envisaging joint expedition into the Tamil Nad. Sivaji died in 1680 and was succeeded by his son Sambhaji.

The death of Sivaji did not dampen the Maratha spirit, of resistance. On the contrary they resumed their attack upon the Moghal territory with renewed vigour. To defeat the Marathas and subjugate the Deccan, Aurangzeb himself marched, to the Deccan.. Arriving at Burhanpur on 13th November 1681, he reached Aurangabad on 22nd March 1682. The Marathas had spread in all parts of the Deccan and had ravaged the Moghal possessions. News- was received that Marathas had intruded into Nanded district and the territory round about. In 1683 the emperor Aurangzeb dispatched prince Muijuddin, the son of prince Muazzam against the Marathas. Bahadur Khan was ordered to accompany the prince. Bahadur Khan called for equipment from his station at Nasik and joined the prince at Ramai on the banks of the Godavari about 32 miles from Aurangabad. They proceeded towards Nanded. The prince halted at Nanded for a few days. Rasid Khan alias Illahmullan Khan, the faujdar of Nanded paid his respects to the prince and accompanied him up to Bidar. In the mean. while it was reported that the Marathas had captured the royal elephants stationed at Pathri. Bahadur Khan who had left the prince on hearing of the Maratha attack was at Lahasuna in Nanded district. He left his heavy baggage with Rasid Khan for onward transmission to Nanded and attacking the Marathas recaptured some of the elephants. He handed them over to Rasid Khan and started upon the pursuit of the Maratha, He contacted the Marathas on the borders of Golconda kingdom and succeeded in wrestling from them the rest of the elephants. He then camped near the Kamthana tank near Bidar and asked for the dispatch of the heavy baggage he had left at Nanded. It will be interesting to note that Bhimsen Saxena, the author of the Persian work, Tarikhe Dilkusa stayed at the army camp at Nanded. He says that the campaign proved to be of great strain to the Moghal troops. Even Bahadur Khan, the commander had to go without his tents. Food was scarce. In their long march many troopers were left behind and after many days of hard travel they returned to the base camp at Nanded. The Marathas continued their pressure on Khandes and Berar. In 1686 Bijapur fell to the Moghals. In 1687 Golconda surrendered. During the Bijapur and Golconda campaigns, the emperor had not lost sight of Maratha depredations in the subhas of Telatigana and Berar. He was transferring old officers and appointing new ones to different places. Hamiduddin Khan, the faujdar of Paithan was appointed the killedar of Kandhar (Nanded district) in March .1686.

With the fall of Bijapur and Golconda Aurangzeb turned all his resources towards the destruction of Sambhaji. Sambhajl put up a heroic fight, but was ultimatdy captured and put to death in 1689. Rayagad, the .Maratha capital fell and Sambhaji's son, Sahu, Yesubai (Sambhaji's wife), and others from the royal family were made prisoners.

The Marathas sustained this grievous loss with a stout heart. They decided to resist the Moghal invaders with all the strength at their command and fought desperately first under the leadership of Rajaram and then under Tarabai till. 1707 when the Moghal might was subdued and the emperor died of a broken heart. The period witnessed many a running battle fought between the Maratha and the Moghal generals thtoughout the Deccan and the district of Nanded had its own share in this grim struggle.

With the fall of Rayagad Rajaram became the regent. To relieve Moghal pressure on Maharastra he left for Jinji in Tamil Nad. Aurangzeb deputed Gajiuddin Firoj Jung against Marathas in the Deccan but sent Zulfikar Khan to capture Jinji. The fort fell to the Moghals in 1698. Rajaram returned to the Svarajya and planned an invasion or Berar. He was checked by prince Bedarbakht and Zulfikar Khan and had to return. He died in the fort of Sinhgad 1700. The Moghal power was, however, becoming exhausted. The Marathas took full advantage of this situation. They. adopted guerilla tactics. In 1700 a Maratha army was pursued by Zulfikar Khan, the Moghal general as far from Pandhari Mungipaithan, Hirukala, Asti, Paranda, Ausa, Udgir and Nanded up to the borders of the subha of Hyderabad. The same story was repeated in 1702 when Aurangzeb was busy in capturing the fort of Visalgad. Zulfikar Khan contacted the Marathas first at Paranda, and then at Carthana. He, marched through Berar. The Marathas had spread in Khandes and Berar and at one time came upon him with 6,000 troops. Zulfikar Khan reached Nanded. He was received by Khudabanda Khan (son of Sayasta Khan), the faujdar of Nanded. He was so afraid of theMaratha depredations that he refused to leave Nanded and assist Zulfikar Khan in his pursuit of the Marathas. Zulfikar Khan had a contingent of about two thousand five hundred troopers. Relying upon his own strategy he reached the town of Billoli (Nanded district) and attacked the Marathas. He fought a running battle with the Marathas for four days till he reached Kaulas '(on the border of Nanded, now in Andhra Prades). The Marathas with their light cavalry attacked the heavily equipped Moghal troops and harassed them by their guerilla tactics. On reaching Kaulas, Zulfikar Khan kept his heavy baggage at the foot of the fort and by deploying his troops in battle order attacked the Marathas. The Moghals, led by Rav Dalpat and Ramsingh Hada fought desperately. The battle continued for the whole day and neither side could win, As the hour of night fell, the Marathas left the field. The Moghals were now short of ammunition. Zulfikar Khan got reinforcements from Bidar and fell back towards Billoli. Bhimsen Saxena was present in the camp and has given a graphic account of the severe economic strain resulting Telangana consequent up on the continuous ravages of the Marathas.

The Marathas had now formed themselves at Mudhol (formerly in Nanded district now in Andhra Prades) on the banks of the Banganga. Zulfikar Khan took counsel with his officers and decided to attack the Maratha concentration. He left his baggage at Billoli and arrived on the banks of the river Banganga, where the Marathas had camped. The Marathas heavily out-numbered the Moghals. They attacked the Moghals, and a severe battle ensued. Both the sides fought heroically. At night-fall the Marathas withdrew from the battle but maintained their positions round the Moghal encampment. The aim of the Marathas was not to win the battle but to inflict maximum losses on the enemy and to keep him constantly on the run. In the morning, Zulfikar Khan rearched back to Billoli. The Marathas again gathered and attacked the rear of the Moghals with guns and rifles. On reaching the hanks of the Godavari, they withdrew. Zulfikar Khan reached Billoli and expecting the Maratha manoeuvres from any side decided to stay on at Billoli. After a few days, the Marathas were reported to be heading towards Nanded. Once again Zulfikar Khan left Billoli and reached Nanded before the Marathas could attack the town (1703). At this time Gajiuddin Firoj Jung was appointed to the subhedari of Berar. He was also entrusted with the task of guarding the subha of Telangana. Firoj Jung encamped near the fort of Kandhar. In the same year Azizullah Kurbegi was appointed the killedar of Kandhar in place of Sazavar Khan. These precautions did not give any respite to the Moghals. In 1703 the Marathas again ravaged Berar. Rustum Khan Bijapuri, who worked as the deputy of Firoj Jung in Berar, left with 7,000 troops to counter the Marathas. He was heavily defeated and fell into their hands. He secured his release by paying a heavy ransom to the Marathas. On receiving the news of the defeat which Rustum Khan had suffered at the hands of Marathas, Firoj Jung himself left Kandhar in pursuit of the Maratha forces. The Marathas crossed the Narmada followed by Firoz Jung. But without giving a battle he fell back to his own territory. In 1704 Khudabanda Khan was removed from the subhedari of Nanded and sent as the faujdar of Bijapur Karnatak. The last years of Aurangzeb's stay in the Deccan witnessed a complete, reversal of the situation as it existed in 1689 when the Moghals, were at the height of their supremacy.

The Marathas had not only recovered all their former posses sions but they were also invading Gujarat and Malva. The death of Aurangzeb which occurred on the 20th of February 1707 marked the end of Moghal efforts to destroy the Maratha State.

Under the Moghals, the Deccan was divided into six subhas viz., Khandes, Berar, Aurangabad, Bidar, Bijapur and Hyderabad. The present district of Nanded was roughly composed of two districts, viz., Mahur and Nanded. The former was included in the subha of Berar and the latter in the subha of Bidar. Nanded was at that time the district headquarters. Savanehe Dakkan, a Persian work of Munim Khan Aurangabad gives details about the administrative organization of these two districts. It states that Mahur district was composed of 20 talukas, and 1,141 villages. Nanded district was composed of 30 talukas and 949 villages. The six-monthly revenue receipts of Mahur and Nanded districts were placed at Rs. 8, 47,113 and Rs. 20, 68,193 respectively.

The death of Aurangzeb was followed by a war of succession among his heirs, Muazzam, Azam and Kambaks. In the battle fought at jaju between Azam and Muazzam, the former was killed. Muazzam crowned himself under the title of Bahadur Sah. It will be of interest to note that when Bahadur Sah marched to the south in 1708 to fight against Kambaks. Guru Govind Singh died at Nanded in November 1708. In his northward march to meet Muazzam, Azam had released Sahu, the son of Sambhaji who was in confinement. Sahu marched southward to claim the Maratha chiefship. His claims were opposed by Tarabai, the widow of Rajaram. The issue was decided on the field of battle in 1707 at Khed and Sahu was crowned king of the Marathas, Tarabai established a separate principality at Kolhapur. Among the many Maratha nobles who bad sided with sahu was Parsoji Bhosle. In recognition of the services rendered by him, he was granted the sanad for collecting cauth and sardesmukhi for Gavil, Narnala, Mahur Khedale, Pavnar and Kalamb by Sahu and was made the Send saheb Subha. In 1709 Daud Khan who was deputy for Zulfikar Khan, the Moghal governor of the Deccan, agreed to pay such Maratha chiefs who acknowledged Sahu’s authority, the cauth or one-fourth of the revenue of the six Deccan provinces, but reserved the right of collectin and paying it through his own agent.

In 1712 Bahadur Sah died and was succeeded by Farrukh Siyar after a short reign of Jahandar Sah. In 1713 Daud Khan was replaced by Gin Kilic Khan, the future founder of the Nizam dynasty of Hyderabad, with the title of Nizam-ul-Mulk. The Nizam was partial to the Kolhapur branch and hostile to Sahu. He set aside the settlement of Daud Khan and took many Maratha noblemen into his service. In 1715 Sayyad Husain Ali Khan, one at the two Sayyad brothers who dominated the Moghal court from 1712 to 1720, was appointed as the subhedar at Deccan. The Nizam from the beginning opposed the supremacy of the Sayyad brothers. The emperor too wanted to get rid of them. The Sayyad brothers, therefore, courted Sahu to support their cause. The Sayyads succeeded in deposing Farrukh Siyar in 1719 and as a reward for the help rendered by the Marathas, conceded to the Marathas the grants for Cauth, Sardesmukhi and Svaraj, It was the imperial recognition of their claims which laid the foundation of that system of government, known as do-aimli. The power of the Sayyads did not last long and Muhammad Sah, whom they had raised to the throne, brought about their' downfall. Nizam-ul-Mulk who had been appointed governor of Malva in 1719 headed for the Deccan and overthrowing the Sayyad's authority in the Deccan became the master of the Moghal dominions south of the Narmada. In 1722 Nizam-ul-Mulk was appointed the Vazir of the empire. He stayed in Delhi for only two years. In 1724 he moved to the Deccan. The court party secretly instructed Mubariz Khan, the subhedar of Hyderabad and until recently, a warm partisan of the Nizam, to oppose the latter. Nizam-ul Mulk advanced southward and met Mubariz Khan at Sakharkharda. In October 1724 a severe battle was fought in. which Mubariz Khan was killed. The Nizam assumed the viceroyalty of the six subhas of the Deccan, nominally in subordination to the emperor but virtually as independent ruler of the country by right of conquest. The Nanded district thus passed under the Nizam's sovereignty after nearly a century of direct rule by the Moghal emperors. of Delhi. The history of the district from now onwards merged with the history of the State of Hyderabad.

During the period ending with 1724, Nanded was in charge of Amin Khan Deccani, son of Saikh Nizam Muqarrab Khan (who had captured Sambhaji in 1689). The Masir-ul-umara of Sah Navaz Khan gives the following account of Nanded and Amin Khan.

Account of Nanded and its Administrator Amin Khan Deccani

The Masir-ul-Umara says, "After the grants of the sanads of cauth and sardesmukhi to the Marathas. in 1719, Ivaj Khan Bahadur was appointed from, the court of Delhi to the government of Berar. Amin Khan Deccani, son of Khan Zaman saikh Nizam was put in charge of the administration of Nanded, which then consisted of forty-four mahals and parganas and was spread over the present districts of Nanded and Adilabad and Nizamabad (now in Andhra Prades). Owing to greed and injustice and at the instigation of the zamindars of parganai of Bodhan appertaining to Nanded there arose an unjust quarrel with the fielholder, who was Mandhata by name, and whose father Kanhoji Sirkiya (Sirke) was one of the Mahrata panchazaris, and had performed exploits in the time of Aurangzeb. Amin Khan got him into his power by means of agreements and promises, and destroyed him. Subsequently he, owing to the old quarrel, sought to funish Jagpat IIma, who had taken possession of Nirmal, and that proprietor, knowing of this, asked assistance from Father Singh the adopted son of Rajah sahu who was the mokasadar of that district. Another circumstance increased the audacity of that wicked person (either Jagpat or Fathe Singh). The account of it is as follows: At this time the Maharatta peace had been made, which fixed the the stain of a bad name on the Amir-ul-Umra which will last till the judgement-day. The agreement was that in the case of those estates, where on account of the strength of their position and the resistance of the land-holders, the cauth could not be collected, the Amir-ul-Umra should render assistance. The Khan in spite of the letters of the Amir-ul-Umra would not lend himself to the disgrace and altogether neglected to collect the cauth. The province was taken from him and given to Mirza Ali Yusuf Khan, who was one of the brave men of the time. The Khan, whose authority had been diminished by the report that he had been superseded, when off to Balkonda on the occasion of his daughter's marriage. All at once Fathe Singh and Jagpat came against him. He looked to his lineage and glory, did not consider the number of the foe and went to encounter them with a few men. As in this topsy-turvey world, success is twinned with failure, and fortune and misfortune come together, the Khan played away against these worthless fellows his amirship and his many years of reputation, but at last escaped and came to Balkonda. After that Saiyid 'Alam' Ali Khan Bahadur, when he was master of the Deccan, restored him to his province of Nanded, and appointed him to the command of the right wing in the battle that he had with Navab Fathe Jang (Asaf Jah). The worthless fellow acted in an unsoldierlike manner and did not put his hand to the work and became a mere spectator, and drew the line of erasure over the deeds of his ancestors. Though after the victory Fathe Jang (Nizam-ul-Mulk) sent him back to his taluqs, his position in hearts was lost and his reputation was gone. At the same time, as 'Ivaz' Khan Bahadur was on account of his rapacity (shaltaq), averse to his returning to Berar, he procured his being set aside, and Mutahavar Khan Bahadur Khvesgis being appointed in his room. As soon as he heard of this he went to Navab Fathe Jang (Nizam-ul-Mulk) who had then gone towards Adoni, but received no encouragement. He returned and settled at the town of Parbhani, which was an estate in his fief and is twelve kos from Pathri. In the mashrut (i.e., assigned) mahals of Nanded he offered opposition to the collector. Although the Khan aforesaid tried to amend him yet he did not emerge from his ignorance and folly. At last he was arrested by him and remained in prison for a long time. When his son Muqarrib Khan in whose biography there has been mention made of these things-was promoted to service, he was by his intercession released, and villages yielding Rs. 50,000 were settled upon him out of Balkonda for his expenses, and he spent a long time in the charge of his son. As he felt distressed by his control, he, in the 6th year of Muhammad Sah's reign (1723), came to Aurangabad and sought the help of Ivaz Khan Bahadur and entertained hopes of recovering his rents and Jagir, At this time Asaf Jah (Nizam-ul-Mulk) came from Upper India, and the battle with Mubariz Khan took place in October 1724. From the necessity of the time he got fresh encouragement and bound the girdle of companionship on the waist of endeavour, and after remaining in the city (Aurangabad) for some time, making preparations, he came out. When from reverses and a succession of errors his, senses and intellect had left him and he had become debased, he vainly thought of turning over a new leaf and by marching in the evening and the night joined Mubariz Khan {in Haidarabad), who had secretly shaken the chain of promises and agreements. On the day of battle, without his having achieved anything, the figure of his life was by water of the enemies' sword, obliterated from the page of time. This happened in the year 1137 Hijra (1724)".

The Nizams of Hyderabad

Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah.

The family of Gopalsingh Gaud Kandharvala:- The forefathers of Gopalsingh were the zamindars of Indrukhi in the Allahabad province. They subsequently took service under the king of Orcha. In the reign of Aurangzeb, Biharsingh, the grandfather of Gopalsingh was killed by Mulukcand, the deputy of Muhammad Azam in Malva for rebellious activities. Bihari singh's son, Bhagvat Singh met with a similar fate, when he attacked Mulukcand to take revenge for his father's death. The family lost its zamindari due to these events. Gopalsingh then migrated to Bundelkhand where he rose to the command of 300 troops. In the reign of Muhammad Sah he was given the title of Raja and the honour of sirpanc.

When Nizam-ul-Mulk, due to the intrigues in the imperial court, headed for the Deccan, Gopalsingh and his son Dalpatsingh joined him. They fought bravely on the side of the Nizam against Alam Ali Khan and Dilavar Khan in the battle of Balapur. In the battle of Sakharkheda which resulted in a decisive victory for the Nizam and which enabled him to establish a separate kingdom in the Deccan, Gopalsingh rendered valuable service for the Nizam. The Nizam rewarded him with the grant of Jahagir of Pargana Kandhar in the Nanded district. Gopalsingh thus came to be known as Gopalsingh Kandharvala. In the rebellion of Nasir Jung; the son of Nizam-ul-Mulk, against his father, Gopalsingh sent troops to help the Nizam under the command of Jamadar Dalsingh. Even though Gopalsingh had received in Jahagir the pargana of Kandhar, the killedar of the fort was appointed by the Nizam. At that time Nasir Khan held that fort. Friendly relations did not prevail between Gopalsingh and Nasir Khan. Hence, the Nizam dismissed Nasir Khan and appointed Mir Ibrahim Khan in his place.

After the death of Nizam-ul-Mulk in 1748, Nasir Jung succeeded as the Nizam. Gopalsingh's son, Ajayacand Gaud, represented his father at the Nizam's court, In 1749 Nasir Jung appointed him as, the killedar of Kandhar in place of Ibrahim Khan with the title of Raja. Gopalsingh died in 1749 and was succeeded by Ajayacand both as the Jahagirdar of pargana Kandhar and Killedar of the fort, with the title, Raja Ajayacand Gaud Bahadur Gopalsingh Sawai. His younger brother Narpatsingh also held a high post in the Nizam's army.

Ajayacand had recruited a few Gardis in his troops. Kadar Saheb was one of them and he commanded 300 troops. He was killed at Tandulja by the Marathas in the battle of Udgir in 1760 A.D. He built a large palace at Kandhar, the remains of which are still extant and are known as Gardikhanaci Haveli..

Raja Ajayacand died in August 1763 in the battle of Raksas bhuvan while fighting against the Marathas. On the death of Ajayacand his eldest son Lal Kabirisingh succeeded his father with the title Gopalsingh the third, Hindupat Mahendra Bahadur. His other two sons Tejsingh and Padamsingh were granted jahagir at Kanherkhed. (Berar) and Kaulas (in Andhra Prades), respectively. The younger brother of Ajayacand, Narpatsingh was appointed as the killedar of Mahur and as the head of the district of Nanded.

It may be noted that the Nimbalkar family enjoyed saranjam in the district of Bid. On the death of Sultanji Nimbalkar, in 1748, his son Hanmantrav succeeded him. He died in 1763. His son Dhanvantrav succeeded him but the administration of the saranjam fell in disrepute and hence Narpatsingh was ordered by the Nizam to look after the saranjam of Nimbalkar family in 1771. Narpatsingh was in control of the saranjam of Nimbalkar's in Bid district for a year when in 1772 Sarafdaullah Tahavarajung was appointed to that saranjam.

In 1773 in the battle fought in the neighbourhood of Bidar between Raghunathrav and the Nizam, Narpatsingh and Gopalsingh the third were on the Nizam's side. Narpatsingh was honoured by the Nizam after the battle. Narpatsingh died in 1775. In the days of Nizam Ali Khan, the Nizam, when Musir ul-mulk became the Divan, the family of Kandharvala fell on evil days. They were deprived of the jahagir of the pargana of Kandhar. Lal Kabirisingh was kept only in charge of the town of Kandhar and the killedari of the fort (Feb. 1784). This humiliation hastened his death. Gopalsingh the third alias Lal Kabirisingh had no son. He had adopted Kuvar Jayasingh, the son of his brother Tejasingh, the jahagirdar of Kanherkhed. He succeeded Lal Kabirisingh. Being a minor his father Tejasingh looked after the administration of the jahagir. In 1786 when the Marathas and the Nizam jointly attacked Tipu Sultan of Mysore and besieged Badami, most of the family of Kandharvala were present in the battle on the Nizam's side. Tejasingh died in 1804 and Jayasingh in 1819. His son Gulabsingh succeeded to his father's jahagir. He died in 1840 but had no son. He was succeeded by Hirasingh, his step-brother. He died in 1850 and with him ended the family of Gopalsingh Kandharvala.

As was previously noted, the fort of Kaulas formerly in Nanded district was in charge of Padamsingh the youngest son of Ajayacand Gopalsingh Savai. His great-grandson Dipsingh rose to fame in the 1857 war of independence. He was contacted by Rangrav Ratnakar Page on behalf of Nanasaheb and both of them started collecting troops. However, Rangarav was arrested land deported for life imprisonment. He died in 1860. The jahagir of Dipsingh was confiscated. Subsequently it was transferred to his son Durjansingh. He died issueless and with him ended this branch of the Gopalsingh family.

It must not, however, be supposed that the Nizams of Hyderabad exercised undisputed contral, over their wide dominions. Under the terms of the treaty of 1719 between the Moghals and the Marathas, the latter were allowed to levy an impost known as cauth amounting to one quarter of the land revenue and a further contribution known as sardesmukhi amounting to one tenth of the revenue to cover the cost of collecting the cauth. Asaf Jah's sovereignty was, therefore, subject to this limitation. Raghuji Bhos!e was appointed by sahu to the post of the Sena Saheb Subha and confirmed in the jahagir which Parsoji Bhosle had enjoyed by displacing Kanhoji Bhosle who had turned towards the Nizam. Raghuji, whose claims were disputed by his uncle Kanhoji, prepared to meet Kanhoji. Raghuji entered Barar and collected cauth and sardesmukhi in Berar in the name of Sahu. He dispatched his troops all over Berar and defeated Sujayat Khan, the deputy of the Navab of Ellicpur. In the meanwhile Kanhoji was negotiating with the Nizam through Hirjullah Khan, the subhedar of Mahur. The forces of Raghuji had laid siege to the fort of Bham, but Kanhoji escaped to Mahur, hotly pursued by Raghuji. Ultimately he was taken prisoner by Raghuji and taken to Sahu. He was kept in prison at Satara where he subsequently died.

The Nizam did not have friendly relations with the Marathas and he never accepted the Maratha position as the rightful collectors of cauth and sardesmukhi. This led to a conflict between the two and the humiliation of Nizam at Palkhed in 1728 and his defeat at Bhopal at the hands of Bajirav, the Maratha Pesva, in 1737.

Muhammad Qasim, an officer of Nizam-ul-mulk, says in his biography of Nizam-ul-mulk the "Ahvale Khavakeen", "Hardly had the Nizam been free from these engagements when news was received that the Raja of Devgad had turned hostile. Similarly Kanhoji Bhosle had raised disturbances. The Nizam marched in the direction of Berar. He crossed into the province through the pass of Devalghat. Kanhoji Bhosle fled away. The Nizam then turned towards Devgad. He had reached Tankal ghat when the Raja of Devgad surrendered and paid a large tribute. The Nizam then returned to Aurangabad (p. 222).

The Nizam spent the rainy season at Aurangabad. After the rains were over he decided to march towards Karnatak. He arrived at Hyderabad. After spending a few days in Hyderabad he moved towards Gulbarga. There he heard that the Bedar chief of Wakinkheda near Gulbarga was causing disturbances. Nizam-ul-Mulk despatched his Mir Baksi, Sayyad Laskar Khan AL to Wakinkheda. He himself followed his Mir Baksi a few days later. In a few days the chief was evicted from Wakinkheda. He then returned to Gulbarga. He spent the rainy season (1733) at Gulbarga (p. 223). After the rains were over he returned to Hyderabad.

Nazir Jung, the son of Nizam-ul-mulk, had under the influence of evil persons been indulging in activities not sanctioned by religion. As he was acting in this way due to youth and youthful follies Nizam-ul-mulk warned him against such indulgences. Since Nazir Jung did not heed the warning he was deprived of his Mansub and was under detention in Hyderabad. Nizam-ul-mulk while camping in Hydrerabad expressed the desire to meet Nazir Jung but Nazir Jung refused. He even said that were Nizam-ul-mulk to persist in his desire to see him, he (Nazir Jung) would commit suicide. Although officers like Kvaja Afsar Khan interceded, their efforts bore no fruits. Nizam-ul-mulk had to return to Hyderabad without seeing his son (p. 224).

After reaching Aurangabad Nizam-ul-mulk despatched his troops in different directions. One force was sent under Badiuzzaman Khan against Mohan Singh, the Zamindar of the Narmada region, who had turned hostile against Khvajam Quli Khan, the Governor of Kharganv. Nizam-ul-mulk wrote to Hafiz-ud-din Khan to join his forces with that of Badiuzzaman Khan. Hafiz-ud-din Khan was the Governor of Barhanpur. These three officers marched against Mohan Singh and forced him to surrender and to pay tribute. Badiuzzaman Khan then returned to the camp of Nizam-ul-mulk.

Jamil Beg Khan was the Governor of the province of Nanded. Iradat Khan had also been posted in that region to assist Jamil Beg Khan. Bhaskar and Raghuji Bhosle, the generals of Sahu, invaded the province of Nanded. They devastated the towns of Manvat and Indore (at present Nizamabad, Andhra Prades). On hearing of this news the three officers of the Nizam, Muhammad Sayid Khan, the Governor of Medak, Jamil Beg Khan and Iradat Khan combined their forces and set out in pursuit of the Maratha chiefs. A stiff fight took place. The Maratha army was 30,000 strong while the Nizam's Generals had an army of 14,000 strong. As the Providence was kind to the Nizam, the Marathas retreated. The generals pursued the Marathas. After a running fight, Bhaskar, the Maratha General, retreated hurriedly towards Satara, while Raghuji Bhosle was incurring heavy losses in men and horses every day at the hands of the Nizam's army. He was in danger of being captured by the Nizam's army.

At this time Nizam-ul-Mulk himself had marched from Aurangabad on his way to Devgad. He crossed into the province of Berar near Devalghat.

Kanhoji Bhosle, the son of Parsoji Bhosle, was for the last many years causing disturbances, in Berar. He did not pay any attention or heed to Sahu's instructions. He never allied himself with Sahu. The agents of the Nizam used to chide him for his faithlessness, towards Sahu. Sahu had asked Kanhoji Bhosle to leave Berar, but he did not pay any heed. He would say "Sahu is the ruler but I too am a Raja in my territory. Who is he that I should act according to his instructions?"

When Kanhoji Bhosle heard about the arrival of Nizam-ul-Mulk near Devalghat he was frightened and fled into wilderness. His army too scattered. Kanhoji Bhosle had in his flight only 500 troops left with him. Manaji Jacak, an officer of Raghuji Bhosle, heard of the flight of Kanhoji. He pursued him and after a skirmish captured Kanhoji. Kanhoji was taken to Satara.

Hirzulla Khan, the custodian of the fort of Mahur and the Governor of the surrounding territory, had been reduced to great straits at the hands of Kanhoji. He now proceeded to dismantle the fort set up by Kanhoji. Nizam-ul-mulk proceeded to Devgad. He had not yet crossed Tangalghat when the Raja of Devgad surrendered and paid the required tribute. Nizamul-Mulk then turned towards Hyderabad.

The reason for his march towards Hyderabad was as follows: In the previous year Nizam-ul-Mulk had decided to march towards Karnatak (Arcot). But the campaign had to be, postponed because of the hostility of the Bedar chiefs of Wakinkheda. This time Nizam-ul-Mulk moved to Hyderabad with the determination to settle order in the districts of Karnatak. He also wanted to console Nazir Jung who was at Hyderabad.

Even before the Nizam had crossed the river Godavari on his way to Hyderabad it was reported to him that Raghuji Bhosle had rushed into Berar with an army of 20,000 and that Muhammad Sayid Khan, Iradat Khan and Jamil Beg Khan were pursuing him. Raghuji Bhosle had devastated the towns of Manvat and Indore. Bhaskar, the general or Raghuji Bhosle, had withdrawn towards Satara. It struck Nizam-ulMulk that while his abovementioned generals were in pursuit of Raghuji Bhosle, Bhaskar might return from Satara and devastate the districts of Nanded and Medak. Under these circumstances it would not be useful to go towards Karnatak. It was necessary to first counter the moves of the Marathas. Nizam-ul-Mulk therefore postponed his departure towards Hyderabad. He wrote to Muhammad Sayid Khan as follows: "Take care of the territory under your charge. I am not sure that Bhaskar will not return. Were he to invade your district while you are in pursuit of Raghuji there would be nobody to oppose him. He would then devastate your territory".

As, instructed by Nizam-ul-Mulk Muhammad Sayid Khan returned to his district while Jamil Beg Khan, Iradat Khan and Sultanji Nimbatkar set out in pursuit of Raghuji Bhosle. Raghuji Bhosle was in flight and was daily losing his men and of horses. In the meanwhile Nizam-ul-Mulk appointed his Mir Bak_I Sayyad La_kar Khan to the task of pursuing Raghuji Bhosle. He was instructed to pursue Raghuji wherever he might be and to capture him. Sultanji Nimbalkar was asked to assist Sayyad Laskar Khan. Iradat Khan and Jamil Beg Khan were recalled by the Nizam and posted to the region of Nanded. They were instructed to join Muhammad Sayid Khan and punish Bhaskar in case the latter invaded the district of Nanded.

The Nizam then moved towards Barhanpur. While he was camping near the city Sayyad Laskar Khan after evicting Raghuji from Berar, joined Nizam-ul-Mulk. Sayyad Laskar Khan was not able to capture Raghuji Bhosle as Raghuji's movements were very quick. Nizam-ul-Mulk reached Barha pur. He camped there for some time and then returned to Aurangabad."

In 1740, Nasir Jung rebelled against his father Nizam-ul Mulk. The latter however succeeded in quelling the rebellion of Nasir Jung. Nasir Jung was taken to the Nizam and was kindly received by him but as a matter of precaution Nasir Jung was confined at Kandhar for some time. The Nizam died in 1748. At the time of his death the Nizam was firmly established as an independent sovereign of a kingdam which included the province of Berar. One year after, Sahli, the Maratha king, also died.

Nasir Jung / Mujaffar Jung / Salabat Jung / Nizam Ali Khan / Sikandar Jah

After the death of Nizam-ul-Mulk, Nasir Jung, the son of Nizam-ul-Mulk and Mujaffar Jung, his grandson by one of his daughters contested for the throne. At this time the British and the French had appeared on the scene as powerful rivals for supremacy in the east and each of them supported the claims of the rival claimants to the throne. Nasir Jung's cause was espoused by the British, whereas Mujaffar Jung found support from the French Mujaffar Jung, however, fell a prisoner into the hands of his uncle Nasir Jung. But Nasir Jung was killed by Himmat Khan, the chief of Kurnool, in a treacherous attack on his camp. Mujaffar Jung was proclaimed the Nizam, and Dupleix, the French governor, now enjoyed uncontrolled authority over the Nizam's affairs. However, shortly after, Mujaffar Jung was killed by some Pathan chief and the French then raised to the throne Salabat Jung, another son of the late Nizam Asaf Jah. In 1752 Sayyad sarif Khan sujat Jung, the governor of Berar, died. Salabat Jung, the Nizam appointed Sayyad Laskar Khan as subhedar of Berar in his place. In the meanwhile Gaziuddin, the eldest son of the late. Nizam now appeared as a claimant to the throne and received the support of Balaji Bajirav, the Pesva. With a view to align the Marathas to his cause more closely, Gaziuddin assigned to them the revenues of all the northern districts of the Deccan. "Raghuji Bhosle, on the pretext of Gaziuddin's promise conected and retained the whole of the revenues of Berar. However, on his, southward march Gaziuddin died suddenly at Aurangabad in October 1752; His death put a stop to further struggles. The Marathas got the sanads of the northern districts of the Deccan reconfirmed from the Nizam Salabat Jung. In 1756 on the advice of Sahanavaj Khan, the prime minister, the Nizam appointed his brothers Nizam Ali and Basalat Jung to the subhedari of Berar and Bijapur respectively. The British and the French were now contesting for power and influence in the Deccan. But the victories of the British in Karnatak forced the French to leave Salabat Jung, the Nizam to his own fate. This was regarded as the best opportunity by Nizam Ali Khan to assume all powers and turn Salabat Jung into a nonentity. This he achieved in 1759 A. D. Shortly after, in July 1762 he deposed Salabat Jung and seized the Nizamship. Salabat Jung was killed in prison shortly after the battle of Raksasbhuwan in August 1763, when the Marthas inflicted a severe defeat on Nizam Ali Khan. In 1763 he appointed Gulam Sayyad Khan as governor of Berar but replaced him next year by appointing Ismail Khan in his, place.

In 1766 and 1768, the British entered into treaties with the Nizam. Under the terms of the first treaty the Northern Sarkars were ceded to the British on the condition that the Nizam was to be furnished with a subsidiary force by the British in times of war. Moreover the Nizam was to be paid an amount of six lakhs of rupees when no troops were required and further the Nizam was to assist the British with his troops when so required. Under the treaty of 1768 the British and the Navab of Karnatak promised to help the Nizam with troops when required to do so, the Nizam promising to reimburse the expenses involved. In 1790, war broke out between the British and Tipu Sultan of Mysore. The British, the Marathas and the Nizam entered into a tripartite offensive and defensive alliance but Tipu came to terms and agreed to relinquish half of his dominions to the allies to be divided among them. In 1798, the British entered into another agreement with the Nizam under which the British were to provide the Nizam with 6,000 regular troops and a proportionate number of guns. The Nizam on his part was to pay a subsidy of twenty-four lakhs of rupees for the maintenance of these troops. Subsequently after the fall of Srirangapanam and the death of Tipu Sultan in 1799, the Nizam had a large share of Mysore territory under the Treaty of Mysore. The withdrawl of the Pesva from the treaty further augmented the share of the Nizam.

The treaty of 1798 between the British and the Nizam was followed in 1800 by a fresh treaty between the two. Under this treaty the subsidiary troops were augmented by two battalions of infantry and one regiment of cavalry. For the maintenance of these troops the Nizam agreed to cede to the British all the territories which he had acquired under the treaties of 1792 and 1799, known as the ceded districts, of Madras. These troops excepting two battalions reserved to guard his own person along with the 15,000 troops composed of 6,000 foot and 9000 horse of the Hyderabad army were to help the British in times of war against the enemy.

The Nizam, Nizam Ali Khan, had now grown old and in 1803 his health was in a precarious condition. At this time Sinde and Bhosle invaded the Hyderabad dominion from the north. To counter the attack, the subsidiary troops numbering 6,000 infantry and two regiments of cavalry joined by 15,000 troops of the Nizam's own contingent took up position at Parenda, on the western frontier of the Nizam's dominion. The Holkar's army was stationed at Poona. Under these circumstances General Wellesley was, ordered with 10,000 troops to cooperate with the army stationed at Perenda in aid of the Pesva Bajirav II. But before General Wellesley had reached Poona, Holkar had moved out of the town and on his northward march towards Malva had plundered some of the villages in the Nizam’s dominion and levied contribution on Aurangabad. On receipt of the news of the activities of Holkar, Colonel Stevenson advanced towards the Godavari with all the troops under his command and was joined by General Wellesley near Jalna. Two memorable battles were fought at Assaye (September 23) and shortly after at Adganv between the British on the one hand and the sinde and Bhosle on the other, in which the Marathas were defeated. The subsequent treaties secured the Nizam's, territories. In 1803 Nizam Ali Khan died and was succeeded by his son Sikandar Jah. During his time the Nizam's contingent was raised, recruited and trained by the British at the expense of the Nizam. It was called upon to put down rebellions in the territory of the Nizam. Of these the Hatkar rebellion in Nanded district was one.

The Hatkar Rebellion 1819

The community of the Hatkars were a nightmare in the districts of Nanded, Parbhani and in the country across the river Painganga for more than 20 years led by their brave leader Novsaji Naik. They had taken possession of a number of strongholds, in the district of Nanded and in Berar. After the conclusion of the Maratha War, the Government of Hyderabad took action to deal with their rebellions. The Contingent Forces marched against the stronghold of the Hatkars at Nowah, situated in the Hadganv Taluk of the Nanded district. Novsaji Naik put up a stiff resistance. He was also assisted by a number of Arabs, who had recently left Nagpur and were on their way to Hyderabad. The siege of Nowah was a prolonged one. It was started at the end of January with a bloody conflict. The garrison consisted of more than 500 Arabs, of whom more than 80 were dreadfully wounded and nearly 400 were killed. The besieger's, loss was 24 Killed and 180 wounded. There were 6 European officers among the wounded. So important was siege of Nowah that the word Nowah was displayed upon colours and the badges of the regiments, which took part in siege, lasting from 8th Jansuary 1819 to 31st January 1819.

With the capture of Nowah the rebellion of the Hatkar Naiks, which had lasted for 20 years, was brought to an end. The; following is a detailed account of the siege of Nowah as given in Major R. G. Burton's book: A History of the Hyderabad Contingent (pp. 76-78), and the official papers extracted from A Memoir of the Operations of the British Army in India during the Mahratta War of 1817, 1818 and 1819 by Lieut. Colonel Valentine Blacker, published in 1821 (pp. 480-483).

The siege of Nowah

At the close of the year 1818 a force was ordered to assemble near Umerkhed, between Nanded and Hingoli, and 40 miles south-east of the latter place, for the reduction of some insurgent Naiks who were established in the neighbourhood. This force, under the command of Major Pitman was, concentrated in January 1819, and was composed of

The Russell Brigade-I, 780 of all ranks, including 171 artillery.
Berar Infantry-1st Battalion, flank companies, 116 men; 3rd Battalion, 886 men; artillery 81.
Reformed Horse-Three Risalas, amounting to 2,000 men, under Captain Evan Davies.

The most important of the insurgents, was the Naik Novsaji, who had assembled a large number of Arabs, and held the fort of Nowah and Umerkhed. The fort of Nowah consisted of an oblong, having a bastion at each angle, and one on each side of the gateway, with outworks in the form of a faussebraye, covered way, ditch, and glacis. Guns were mounted on an outwork protecting the principal gateway.

The force took up a position before this stronghold on 8th January 1819, and a battery was erected 600 yards from the north face of the fort, an attempted sortie against the working party being driven back by two companies of the Russell Brigade under Captain Hare. The battery, and another one still nearer for 18-pounders opened fire on the 11th, soon silencing the hostile guns. By evening of the same day, positions were established on the right and left of the batteries within 300 yards of the fort, and a 6-pounder and a mortar-battery were constructed in front of the east face, at a distance of 350 yards, from it. On the night of the 13th the enemy made a sortie, and attempted to pass the right post of the besiegers, but was driven back by three companies of tile Berar Infantry under Lieutenant George Hampton. During the night of the 14th an 18-pounder battery was advanced to within 250 yards of the fort, and lilies of communication were established between the several advanced positions.

On the 15th, the enemy being very troublesome, a few shells were thrown with considerable effect. From this time up to the 18th the besieged attempted no annoyance, seeming not to understand or to care for the operations of the investing force. On the 19th the garrison kept blue lights burning nearly the whole night, and occasionally threw stones from a montar. At about ten o'clock an attempt was made by the rebel Chief Hawaji (Hansaji), with a party of horse, to surprise the camp from the rear; but, the sentries being on the alert, the piquets soon turned out, and after a little firing the enemy retired, and was pursued some miles by Lieutenant Sutherland and a party of Reformed Horse, but owing to the darkness of the night he effected a safe retreat.

On the 20th a party from the garrison made a sortie, driving in the working party and destroying a small portion of the works, but the guard of the trenches obliged them to retire. The fire from the garrison was exceedingly hot, and some loss was sustained.

On the 21st, the enemy made a desperate sortie, and, sword in hand, attacked the working party at the head of the sap, but was soon driven back to the fort.

On the 25th the sap had reached the crest of the glacis, where a 6-pounder battery was established and two mortars were brought into it. On that night the engineer commenced his mine, which was completed on the 29th. The day of the 30th was employed in battering, the breaches were considerably opened out while shell and grape were thrown into them during the night.

On the 31st, the breaches being reported practicable, orders were issued for the assault and the mine was sprung at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the explosion making an excellent descent which filled up one part of the ditch, over which the storming party were able to pass. Under cover of a cloud of dust which darkened the air for four or five minutes, Ensign Oliphant rushed forward and planted the ladders, and Captain Hare with the grenadiers, supported by Captain Currie with his light infantry, mounted the breach before the enemy had recovered from their consternation, while Lieutenant George Hampton, bounding so far ahead of his men as to be nearly cut off, carried with his flank companies the enemy's, works to the right. Ten minutes after the explosion the inner fort was carried, and in the course of an hour the whole of the works were in the hands of the assailants.
Two hundred of the enemy fled from the gate of the fort, but were immediately attacked by Lieutenant Ivie Campbell, who commanded a party of infantry posted there to intercept them, and nearly at the same time they were charged by Captains Davies and Smith and Lieutenant Sutherland with different detachment of the Reformed Horse, so that not a man escaped.

The enemy, having - twice refused to surrender, were mostly put to the sword, losing 439 killed, and 100 prisoners, 80 of whom were badly wounded.

On the attacking side 22 men, including two native officers, were killed, and 6 European officers, 10 native officers and 171 men were wounded, The wounded officers were:

Six horses were killed and 40 wounded.

During the siege the following projectiles were expended :--

Shells 8-inch . . . . 213

Shells 51/2 inch . . . . 1, 040

Round-shot, 18 per . . . . 1,380

Round shot, 16 per . . . . 462

NOVSAJI NAIK'S REBELLION

The Capture of Nowah

Official Papers, detailing the Operations of Major Pitman's
Detachment against Nowah.

I have the honour to report. to you, that on the 7th instant, in conformity with your instructions, I assumed the command of the force which had assembled for service against the Naiks, at the village of Tonnah, twenty-four miles north-east of Nandair, and three miles east of Nowsaghee Naik's Fort of Nowah.

On the following day, the detachment took up a position before Nowah, and I was, joined by Lieutenant Sutherland with his of reformed horse.

Nowah is a strong mud fort, of the usual construction: A square, with a bastion at each angle, and one on each side of the gateway. The rest of the works consist of a faussebraye extending all round the fort, a covert way, ditch, and glacis. The gateway is protected by an outwork, in which cannon were mounted. The wall of the faussebraye is almost entirely covered by the glacis; and pieces of ordnance, throwing shot of between five and six pounds in weight, were mounted on the different faces.

From the above description it will be evident, that the only mode of reducing the place was by regular approaches. Accordingly, on the 10th instant, a mortar-battery was commenced, about six hundred yards from the north face of the fort, when the enemy advanced and fired upon our working-party. He was immediately driven back into the fort by Captain Hare, with two companies of the Russell Brigade. This battery, and one of our eighteen-pounders, one hundred paces in advance of it, was completed during the night. Both began to ply at sunrise the following day, with considerable effect, silencing the enemy's guns, and knocking off the defences.

On the evening of the 11th, positions were established to the right and left of our batteries, and within three hundred yards of the place; and a six-pounder and a mortar-battery were constructed in front of the east face, distant three hundred and fifty yards.

On the night of the 13th, the enemy made a sortie, and attempted to pass our post on the right. He was quickly driven back by Lieutenant Hampton, with three companies of the Berar infantry. He then attempted to pass our post on the left, but retired after receiving a few shots from the party posted there.

During the night of 14th, eighteen-pounder battery was and fifty yards of the fort, and formed between our several an advanced to within two hundred lines of communication were advanced positions.

On the 16th, a sap was commenced from our post on the right, which this morning reached to within twenty-five yards at the crest of the glacis. If the soil will permit it is intended to form a mine to blow in the counterscarp; otherwise the ditch, which is our principal obstacle, must be filled in some other manner. In either case, I hope to be enabled, in a few days, to report to you the successful termination of our operations against the place. Our loss hitherto has been, five sepoys and three horses killed and three European officers and fifty-five Native officers, sepoys and lascars wounded.

At ten p.m. of the 19th, about two hundred of Nowsaghee's horse came suddenly and fired on a small guard in the rear of my camp. They were soon repulsed, and Lieutenant Sutherland with a small party of the reformed horse, pursued them for a few miles; but owing to the darkness of the night, they got clear off.

Having received information that a part of five hundred of Nowsaghee's matchlock men had taken possession of Omurkair, which is nine or ten coss distant from Nowah, and is represented to be in a dilapidated state, I determined to attempt to carry it by escalade. I accordingly detached Captain Sayer, last night, with eight companies of infantry, his battalion field-pieces, and six hundred reformed horse, and directed him to make the attempt, should there appear to be a fair prospect of sucress. He will afterwards take up a position to be ready to check the movements of the enemy, who has of late been plundering the country in every direction.

List of Officers Wounded before Nowah, to the

I have the satisfaction to report to you that the Fort of Nowah was carried by assault this day, at two p.m. The greater part of the garrison was put to the sword.

With reference to my letter to your address under date the 21st instant, I have the honour to acquaint you, that at nine a.m. of the following Jay, the enemy made a desperate sortie; and sword in hand attacked our working-party at the head of the sap, but was very soon driven back to the fort.

On the morning of the 24th, a man brought me a letter from the Jemidar Arab Commanding the fort, requesting permission to send two persons to treat for its surrender. No notice was taken of this letter; but the people in the fort ceased firing, and called out to me to do the same; and an Arab was sent to me with another letter, of the same purport as the former. To this I returned a written answer, offering to allow the garrison to surrender at discretion. The Jemidar replied by claiming their arrears of pay, and permission to leave the fort with their arms and property of all kinds. I answered that, as he had not agreed to the terms offered, none other would be granted. I have the honour to inclose copies of the notes which passed on this occasion.

On the 25th, our sap had reached the crest of the glacis, where a six-pounder battery was established and two mortars were brought into it. On that night, the engineer commenced his mine, which was completed on the 29th. The whole of the 30th was employed in battering in a breach with the eighteenpounder, and in demolishing the Rownee or Porkotah wall with the six-pounder. During the night, shells and grape were thrown into the breach; and it was determined to spring" the mine and make the assault, this day at noon.

At eight a.m. two Arabs were again sent to request permission to treat for terms, but they were told that no other could be granted than that of unconditional surrender.