Prithiviraj, Victorious!
It is said that history is written by the victors. Those that survive the battle, even though they lose, gets to keep their narrative alive. This story that I am about to tell you is somewhat similar but with much….. greater effects it has in the history of Bhārata.
First Battle of Tarain, 1191.
Blood, sweat and terror raged across the battlefield as the Ghurid Turkish cavalry smashed into the Rajputana cavalry in front of him.
He had thought the battle would be won by now.
Of course he is wrong.
He knew for a fact that this wretched fight in which he had lost the majority of his precious Afghan soldiers would not be over until he can rend the neck of that Chahamana King with his own hands. As he is just about to signal his cavalry to target the weak central position of the Rajputana infantry, he saw both his right and left flanks getting mauled and coming dangerously close to breaking apart by the enemy’s own infantry and the hated elephant corps.
‘And isn’t that a surprise?’ Mu’izz ad-Din or more commonly known as Muhammad of Ghor (in the future) thought in disdain, as he swiped his sword from the scabbard and yelled out a war cry.
“Qutb-ud-Din, signal the remaining cavalry to charge at the center. THIS IS OUR ONLY CHANCE TO WIN THIS FIGHT!” The young boy beside him was knocked out of his funk and raised a war horn near him.
As he charged his fine Sogdian horse to the front lines with his commanders beside him, the small trickle of cavalry near him became a deluge as every Ghurid horsemen in his pay tried to ham fist their way to the center where the Chahamana King “Rai Pithora” [1] and his commanders were situated including the brilliant (in his eyes) Govind Rai.
And for a moment he thought he had succeeded.
But much to his horror, he saw that behind the infantry wall was a massive elephant upon which the shadowed, helmeted form of Govind Rai shone through like a god.
“MY LORD” Qutb-ud-Din Aibak yelled as he threw a spear for him which he caught. After which, he wound his arm back and pinpointed it directly at the plume-helmeted figure who himself had wound back an arrow from the menagerie of weapons he probably had at the back of the elephant.
Yah Allah, let luck favor us this once.
He threw the spear and the enemy released his arrow and thus it landed.
The lance hit the faceplate in between the eyes of Govind Rai who lurched back as the force that was transferred almost broke his neck but he quickly righted himself and looked down at the invading Sultan.
Muhammad was however, not so lucky.
The arrow had gored straight through his right eye and it took the entire strength of the harnesses of his horse to not snap under the weight as the Ghurid sultan stumbled back, dead. [2]
The last fleeting thoughts in his mind was that of his precious ghulams back in Ghazni, his sons and daughters.
I hope Qutb-ud-Din manage to make it back home. D-Did Taj already raised the army that I had requested of him to raid Balkh? I hope both he had Qutb manage to a-a-ave-.
Mu’izz ad-Din’s heart stopped.
The Battle of Tarain as it is known now did change the landscape of the Indian subcontinent quite a bit, for this would be the final time any Islamic army would seriously try to invade Jamdudvipa [3]. The complete collapse of the Ghurid army after the death of its sultan would directly lead to the death of more than 20,000 men as the elephants ran amok the disillusioned soldiers, picking up the men, crushing and trampling them.
Prithiviraj seized upon the opportunity presented to him like a dying man given water. He had lost more than 10,000 soldiers and he wanted payback. Qutb-ud-din Aibak had left a paltry 1,000 men to reinforce the fort of Tabarhind [4] and was quite sure that Prithiviraj wouldn’t follow him without securing it first.
Of course, the “Rai Pithora” surprised him.
Prithiviraj had completely bypassed the fort and ordered Govind Rai to take it with just the infantry he had while he and the 80,000 strong cavalry forces under his command raced ahead to capture Lahore and extinguish the survivors of the battle. They met outside the small town of Manhala were the deeply exhausted Ghurid army were forced to turn and again fight the Chauhans. Qutb-ud-Din Aibak had no choice but to sacrifice more of his men as he himself made his way back to Ghazni.
Prithiviraj did not give chase after the battle of Manhala as he received news that Govind Rai had manage to take the fort of Tabarhind with minimal causalities. He received a much bigger and much more joyous news that his dear wife Samyogita had given birth to a child. His son.
After naming one of his commanders as the temporary governor of the city he raced back to Delhi.
23rd of the month of Vaisakha, Ulugh Beg publications, Purushapura, Vikram Samvat 2076.
Written by Dr. Baba Gangotri.
…………………..The defeat of the nascent Ghurid state had upended the delicate balance of power in the Pariyatra [5] Mountains as rival claimants and the previous sultan’s own slaves started vying for power in Ghazni. Qutb-ud-Din Aibak, who had come with the news of the sultan’s death was joined by Taj-al-Din as they and Ghor’s nephew Ghiyath tried to stop the advance of Baha-al-din Sam II of Bamiyan. The two army’s one composed full of Turkic soldiers and the other by Iranians met in place now forgotten in history. The battle was quite inconclusive. The 14th century Persian philosopher Abu Hayyam had written that the battle took place “in an abode of snow, which killed men from both armies as many froze to death”. Both sides had claimed victory with Baha-al-din striking coins in his name from Bamiyan and refusing to recognize the suzerainty from Ghazni.
The Ghurid sultanate had effectively split in two…………………………..
Prithiviraj’s return to Delhi was with much fanfare. His defeat of the “Mlecchas” at Taraori was celebrated throughout his kingdom. The Bahttis of Jaisalmer, Tomars of Gwalior and the Gahlots of Chittor once learning of Ghor’s defeat had all come to swear in to the new Maharajadhiraja [6] of Bharat so that he doesn’t turn his eyes on them. All except Jaichand, the Raja of Kannauj who was still angry at Prithiviraj for absconding with his daughter, Samyogita.
His new born son named ‘Bhīma’, as named by his wife had made him take a step further as he now had an heir, crowned himself the new king of Aryavarta in Delhi and swore to his commanders and nobles.
“I will not rest until my hand reaches the forests of Brahmadesh [7] and the mountains of Jejabhukti [8]! I will not rest until the lands of Harsha [9] are united under me!”
[1] Another name for Prithiviraj Chauhan.
[2] Our POD, well one of many, in OTL Muhammad Ghor survived because Govind Rai used a javelin which only injured his arm. Here he uses an arrow which kills the dude. The overarching POD is that Govindraja is not born at all and uhhhhhhhh Prithiviraj and Sanyogita had some alone time together before he went to subjugate the lands of his forefathers.
[3] Ancient name for the Indian subcontinent.
[4] Fort in the present day city of Bathinda.
[5] The Hindu Kush mountains in Sanskrit given by the future geographers ITTL.
[6] King of Kings in Sanskrit.
[7] Burma.
[8] The name for the Bundelkhand region under the Chandelas.
[9] 7th century emperor who united North India after the Guptas. Man was such a good ruler that he didn’t have a kid for some reason and after his death three different empires fought each other to control his capital for more than two hundred years.
First Battle of Tarain, 1191.
Blood, sweat and terror raged across the battlefield as the Ghurid Turkish cavalry smashed into the Rajputana cavalry in front of him.
He had thought the battle would be won by now.
Of course he is wrong.
He knew for a fact that this wretched fight in which he had lost the majority of his precious Afghan soldiers would not be over until he can rend the neck of that Chahamana King with his own hands. As he is just about to signal his cavalry to target the weak central position of the Rajputana infantry, he saw both his right and left flanks getting mauled and coming dangerously close to breaking apart by the enemy’s own infantry and the hated elephant corps.
‘And isn’t that a surprise?’ Mu’izz ad-Din or more commonly known as Muhammad of Ghor (in the future) thought in disdain, as he swiped his sword from the scabbard and yelled out a war cry.
“Qutb-ud-Din, signal the remaining cavalry to charge at the center. THIS IS OUR ONLY CHANCE TO WIN THIS FIGHT!” The young boy beside him was knocked out of his funk and raised a war horn near him.
As he charged his fine Sogdian horse to the front lines with his commanders beside him, the small trickle of cavalry near him became a deluge as every Ghurid horsemen in his pay tried to ham fist their way to the center where the Chahamana King “Rai Pithora” [1] and his commanders were situated including the brilliant (in his eyes) Govind Rai.
And for a moment he thought he had succeeded.
But much to his horror, he saw that behind the infantry wall was a massive elephant upon which the shadowed, helmeted form of Govind Rai shone through like a god.
“MY LORD” Qutb-ud-Din Aibak yelled as he threw a spear for him which he caught. After which, he wound his arm back and pinpointed it directly at the plume-helmeted figure who himself had wound back an arrow from the menagerie of weapons he probably had at the back of the elephant.
Yah Allah, let luck favor us this once.
He threw the spear and the enemy released his arrow and thus it landed.
The lance hit the faceplate in between the eyes of Govind Rai who lurched back as the force that was transferred almost broke his neck but he quickly righted himself and looked down at the invading Sultan.
Muhammad was however, not so lucky.
The arrow had gored straight through his right eye and it took the entire strength of the harnesses of his horse to not snap under the weight as the Ghurid sultan stumbled back, dead. [2]
The last fleeting thoughts in his mind was that of his precious ghulams back in Ghazni, his sons and daughters.
I hope Qutb-ud-Din manage to make it back home. D-Did Taj already raised the army that I had requested of him to raid Balkh? I hope both he had Qutb manage to a-a-ave-.
Mu’izz ad-Din’s heart stopped.
The Battle of Tarain as it is known now did change the landscape of the Indian subcontinent quite a bit, for this would be the final time any Islamic army would seriously try to invade Jamdudvipa [3]. The complete collapse of the Ghurid army after the death of its sultan would directly lead to the death of more than 20,000 men as the elephants ran amok the disillusioned soldiers, picking up the men, crushing and trampling them.
Prithiviraj seized upon the opportunity presented to him like a dying man given water. He had lost more than 10,000 soldiers and he wanted payback. Qutb-ud-din Aibak had left a paltry 1,000 men to reinforce the fort of Tabarhind [4] and was quite sure that Prithiviraj wouldn’t follow him without securing it first.
Of course, the “Rai Pithora” surprised him.
Prithiviraj had completely bypassed the fort and ordered Govind Rai to take it with just the infantry he had while he and the 80,000 strong cavalry forces under his command raced ahead to capture Lahore and extinguish the survivors of the battle. They met outside the small town of Manhala were the deeply exhausted Ghurid army were forced to turn and again fight the Chauhans. Qutb-ud-Din Aibak had no choice but to sacrifice more of his men as he himself made his way back to Ghazni.
Prithiviraj did not give chase after the battle of Manhala as he received news that Govind Rai had manage to take the fort of Tabarhind with minimal causalities. He received a much bigger and much more joyous news that his dear wife Samyogita had given birth to a child. His son.
After naming one of his commanders as the temporary governor of the city he raced back to Delhi.
23rd of the month of Vaisakha, Ulugh Beg publications, Purushapura, Vikram Samvat 2076.
Written by Dr. Baba Gangotri.
…………………..The defeat of the nascent Ghurid state had upended the delicate balance of power in the Pariyatra [5] Mountains as rival claimants and the previous sultan’s own slaves started vying for power in Ghazni. Qutb-ud-Din Aibak, who had come with the news of the sultan’s death was joined by Taj-al-Din as they and Ghor’s nephew Ghiyath tried to stop the advance of Baha-al-din Sam II of Bamiyan. The two army’s one composed full of Turkic soldiers and the other by Iranians met in place now forgotten in history. The battle was quite inconclusive. The 14th century Persian philosopher Abu Hayyam had written that the battle took place “in an abode of snow, which killed men from both armies as many froze to death”. Both sides had claimed victory with Baha-al-din striking coins in his name from Bamiyan and refusing to recognize the suzerainty from Ghazni.
The Ghurid sultanate had effectively split in two…………………………..
Prithiviraj’s return to Delhi was with much fanfare. His defeat of the “Mlecchas” at Taraori was celebrated throughout his kingdom. The Bahttis of Jaisalmer, Tomars of Gwalior and the Gahlots of Chittor once learning of Ghor’s defeat had all come to swear in to the new Maharajadhiraja [6] of Bharat so that he doesn’t turn his eyes on them. All except Jaichand, the Raja of Kannauj who was still angry at Prithiviraj for absconding with his daughter, Samyogita.
His new born son named ‘Bhīma’, as named by his wife had made him take a step further as he now had an heir, crowned himself the new king of Aryavarta in Delhi and swore to his commanders and nobles.
“I will not rest until my hand reaches the forests of Brahmadesh [7] and the mountains of Jejabhukti [8]! I will not rest until the lands of Harsha [9] are united under me!”
[1] Another name for Prithiviraj Chauhan.
[2] Our POD, well one of many, in OTL Muhammad Ghor survived because Govind Rai used a javelin which only injured his arm. Here he uses an arrow which kills the dude. The overarching POD is that Govindraja is not born at all and uhhhhhhhh Prithiviraj and Sanyogita had some alone time together before he went to subjugate the lands of his forefathers.
[3] Ancient name for the Indian subcontinent.
[4] Fort in the present day city of Bathinda.
[5] The Hindu Kush mountains in Sanskrit given by the future geographers ITTL.
[6] King of Kings in Sanskrit.
[7] Burma.
[8] The name for the Bundelkhand region under the Chandelas.
[9] 7th century emperor who united North India after the Guptas. Man was such a good ruler that he didn’t have a kid for some reason and after his death three different empires fought each other to control his capital for more than two hundred years.
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