Book 5 — CHAPTER 5

Rāja Sūr Singh, A.D. 1595-1620.—Sur Singh succeeded in S. 1651 (A.D. 1595). He was serving with the Imperial forces at Lahore, where he had commanded since S. 1648, when intelligence reached him of his father’s death. His exploits and services were of the most brilliant nature, and had obtained for him, even during his father’s life, the title of “Sawai Raja,”^[1] and a high grade amongst the dignitaries of the empire. He was commanded by Akbar to reduce the arrogant prince of Sirohi, who, trusting to the natural strength of his mountainous country, still refused to acknowledge a liege lord. This service well accorded with his private views, for he had a feud (wair) with Rao Surthan, which, according to the chronicle, he completely revenged. “He avenged his feud with Surthan and plundered Sirohi. The Rao had not a pallet left to sleep upon, but was obliged to make a bed for his wives upon the earth.” This appears to have humbled the Deora, “who, in his pride, shot his arrows at the sun for daring to shine upon him.”

Campaign in Gujarāt.

—Surthan accepted the imperial [39] farman in token of submission, and agreed to serve with a contingent of his hardy clansmen in the war then entrusted to Raja Sur against the king of Gujarat, whose success we shall relate in the simple language of the chronicle: “The Raja took the

pan

against the king Muzaffar, with the title of viceroy of Gujarat. The armies met at Dhandhuka,

[2]

where a terrible conflict ensued. The Rathors lost many valiant men, but the Shah was defeated, and lost all the insignia of his greatness. He sent the spoil of seventeen thousand towns to the king, but kept a crore of

drabs

[3]

for himself, which he sent to Jodhpur, and therewith he enlarged the town and fort. For this service Akbar increased his

mansab

, and sent him a sword, with a khilat, and a grant of fresh lands.”

970Raja Sur, it appears in the sequel, provided liberally for the bards; for no less than “six lords of verse,” whose names are given, had in gift £10,000 each of the spoils of Gujarat, as incentives to song.

On the conquest of Gujarat, Raja Sur was ordered to the Deccan. “He obeyed, and with thirteen thousand horse, ten large guns, and twenty elephants, he fought three grand battles. On the Rewa (Nerbudda) he attacked Amra Balecha,^[4] who had five thousand horse, whom he slew, and reduced all his country. For this service the king sent him a naubat (kettle-drum), and conferred on him Dhar and its domain.”

On Akbar’s death and the accession of Jahangir, Sur Singh attended at court with his son and heir, Gaj Singh, whom the king with his own hands invested with the sword, for his bravery in the escalade of Jalor, which had been conquered by the monarch of Gujarat and added to his domain. The poet thus relates the event: “Gaj^[5] was commanded against Bihari Pathan; his war-trump sounded; Arbuda [Abu] heard and trembled. What took Alau-d-din years, Gaj accomplished in three months; he escaladed Jalandhara^[6] sword in hand; many a Rathor of fame was killed, but he put to the sword seven thousand Pathans, whose spoils were sent to the king.”

Raja Sur, it would appear, after the overthrow of the dynasty of Gujarat, remained at the capital, while his son and heir, Gaj Singh, attended the king’s [40] commands, and, soon after the taking of Jalor, was ordered with the Marwar contingent against Rana Amra of Mewar: it was at the very moment of its expiring liberties,^[7] for the chronicle merely adds, “Karan agreed to serve the king, and Gaj Singh returned to Taragarh.^[8] The king increased both his own mansab (dignity) and that of his father, Raja Sur.”

Thus the Rajput chronicler, solicitous only to record the fame of his own princes, does not deem it necessary to concern himself 971with the agents conjoined with them, so that a stranger to the events of the period would imagine, from the high relief given to their actions, that the Rathor princes commanded in all the great events described; for instance, that just mentioned, involving the submission of the Rana, when Raja Gaj was merely one of the great leaders who accompanied the Mogul heir-apparent, Prince Khurram, on this memorable occasion. In the Diary of Jahangir, the emperor, recording this event, does not even mention the Rathor prince, though he does those of Kotah and Datia, as the instruments by which Prince Khurram carried on the negotiation;^[9] from which we conclude that Raja Gaj merely acted a military part in the grand army which then invaded Mewar.

Death of Rāja Sūr Singh, A.D. 1620: his Character.

—Raja Sur died in the Deccan, in S. 1676 (

A.D.

1620). He added greatly to the lustre of the Rathor name, was esteemed by the emperor, and, as the bard expresses it, “His spear was frightful to the Southron.” Whether Raja Sur disapproved of the exterminating warfare carried on in these regions, or was exasperated at the unlimited service he was doomed to, which detained him from his native land, he, in his last moments, commanded a pillar to be erected with a curse engraven thereon, imprecated upon any of his race who should once cross the Nerbudda. From his boyhood he had been almost an alien to his native land: he had accompanied his father wherever he led the aid of Maru, was serving at Lahore at the period of his accession, and died far from the monuments of his fathers, in the heart of the peninsula. Although the emperor was not ungrateful in his estimate of these services,—for Raja Sur held by patent no less than “sixteen [41] grand fiefs”

[10]

of the empire, and with the title of Sawai raised above all the princes, his associates at court,—it was deemed no compensation for perpetual absence from the hereditary domain, thus abandoned to the management of servants. The great

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vassals, his clansmen, participated in this dissatisfaction, separated from their wives, families, and estates; for to them the pomp of imperial greatness, or the sunshine of court-favour, was as nothing when weighed against the exercise of their influence within their own cherished patrimony. The simple fare of the desert was dearer to the Rathor than all the luxuries of the imperial banquet, which he turned from with disgust to the recollection of “the green pulse of Mandawar,” or his favourite

rabri

, or ‘maize porridge,’ the prime dish with the Rathor. These minor associations conjoined with greater evils to increase the

mal de pays

, of whose influence no human being is more susceptible than the brave Rajput.

Raja Sur greatly added to the beauty of his capital, and left several works which bear his name; amongst them, not the least useful in that arid region, is the lake called the Sur Sagar, or ‘Warrior’s Sea,’ which irrigates the gardens on its margin. He left six sons and seven daughters, of whose issue we have no account, namely, Gaj Singh, his successor; Sabal Singh, Biramdeo, Bijai Singh, Partap Singh, and Jaswant Singh.

Rāja Gaj Singh, A.D. 1620-38.

—Raja Gaj, who succeeded his father in

A.D.

1620, was born at Lahore, and the

tika

of investiture found him in the royal camp at Burhanpur. The bearer of it was Darab Khan, the son of the Khankhanan,

[11]

or premier noble of the emperor’s court, who, as the imperial proxy, girt Raja Gaj with the sword. Besides the “nine castles” (

Naukoti Marwar

), his patrimony, his patent contained a grant of “seven divisions” of Gujarat, of the district of Jhalai in Dhundhar; and what was of more consequence to him, though of less intrinsic value, that of Masuda in Ajmer, the heirloom of his house. Besides these marks of distinction, he received the highest proof of confidence in the elevated post of viceroy of the Deccan; and, as a special testimony of imperial favour, the Rathor cavaliers composing his contingent were exempted from the

dagh

,

[12]

that is, having their steeds branded with the imperial signet. His elder son, Amra Singh, served with [42] his father in all his various battles, to the success of which his conspicuous gallantry on every occasion contributed. In the sieges and battles of Kirkigarh, Golkonda,

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Khelna, Parnala, Gajangarh, Asir and Satara, the Rathors had their full share of glory, which obtained for their leader the title of Dalthaman, or ‘barrier of the host.’ We have already

[13]

remarked the direct influence which the Rajput princes had in the succession to the imperial dignity, consequent upon the inter-marriage of their daughters with the crown, and the various interests arising therefrom. Sultan Parvez, the elder son and heir of Jahangir, was the issue of a princess of Marwar,

[14]

while the second son, Khurram, as his name imports, was the son of a Kachhwaha

[15]

princess of Amber. Being the offspring of polygamy and variously educated, these princes were little disposed to consider consanguinity as a bond of natural union; and their respective mothers, with all the ambition of their race, thought of nothing but obtaining the diadem for the head of their children. With either of these rival queens, the royal children who were not her own had no affinity with her or hers, and these feelings were imparted from the birth to their issue, and thus it too often happened that the heir of the throne was looked upon with an envious eye, as a bar to be removed at all hazards. This evil almost neutralized the great advantages derived from intermarriage with the indigenous races of India; but it was one which would have ceased with polygamy.

Death of Parvez, A.D. 1626.

—Khurram felt his superiority over his elder brother, Parvez, in all but the accidental circumstance of birth. He was in every respect a better man, and a braver and more successful soldier; and, having his ambition thus early nurtured by the stimulants administered by Bhim of Mewar, and the intrepid Mahabat,

[16]

he determined to remove this barrier

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between him and the crown. His views were first developed whilst leading the armies in the Deccan, and he communicated them to Raja Gaj of Marwar, who held the post of honour next the prince, and solicited his aid to place him on the throne. Gratitude for the favours heaped upon him by the king, as well as the natural bias to Parvez, made the Raja turn a deaf ear to his application. The prince tried to gain his point through Govinddas, a Rajput of the Bhatti tribe, one of the foreign nobles of Maru, and confidential adviser of his prince; but, as the annals say, “Govinddas reckoned no one but his master and the [43] king.” Frustrated in this, Khurram saw no hopes of success but by disgusting the Rathors, and he caused the faithful Govinddas to be assassinated by Kishan Singh;

[17]

on which Raja Gaj, in disgust, threw up his post, and marched to his native land. From the assassination of Parvez, which soon followed,

[18]

the deposal of his father appeared but a step; and Khurram had collected means, which he deemed adequate to the design, when Jahangir appealed to the fidelity of the Rajputs, to support him against filial ingratitude and domestic treason; and, in their general obedience to the call, they afforded a distinguished proof of the operation of the first principle, Gaddi-ka-an, allegiance to the throne, often obeyed without reference to the worth of its occupant. The princes of Marwar, Amber, Kotah, and Bundi put themselves at the head of their household retainers on this occasion, which furnishes a confirmation of a remark already made, that the respective annals of the States of Rajasthan so rarely embrace the contemporaneous events of the rest, as to lead to the conclusion that by the single force of each State this rebellion was put down. This remark will be further exemplified from the annals of Bundi.

Offence given to the Rāthors.

—Jahangir was so pleased with the zeal of the Rathor prince—alarmed as he was at the advance

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of the rebels—that he not only took him by the hand, but what is most unusual, kissed it. When the assembled princes came in sight of the rebels, near Benares, the emperor gave the

harawal

, or vanguard, to the Kachhwaha prince, the Mirza raja of Amber. Whether this was a point of policy, to secure his acting against prince Khurram, who was born of this race, or merely, as the Marwar annals state, because he brought the greater number into the field, is immaterial; but it was very nearly fatal in its consequences: for the proud Rathor, indignant at the insult offered to him in thus bestowing the post of honour, which was his right, upon the rival race of Amber, furled his banners, separated from the royal army, and determined to be a quiet spectator of the result. But for the impetuous Bhim of Mewar, the adviser of Khurram, he might that day have been emperor of India. He sent a taunting message to Raja Gaj, either to join their cause or “draw their swords.” The Rathors overlooked the neglect of the king in the sarcasm of one of their own tribe; and Bhim was slain, Govinddas avenged, the rebellion quelled, and Khurram put to flight, chiefly by the Rathors and Haras [44].

Death of Rāja Gaj Singh, A.D. 1638.

—In S. 1694 (

A.D.

1638), Raja Gaj was slain in an expedition into Gujarat;

[19]

but whether in the fulfilment of the king’s commands, or in the chastisement of freebooters on his own southern frontier, the chronicles do not inform us. He left a distinguished name in the annals of his country, and two valiant sons, Amra and Jaswant, to maintain it: another son, Achal, died in infancy.

Rāja Jaswant Singh, A.D. 1638-78.

—The second son, Jaswant, succeeded, and furnishes another of many instances in the annals of Rajputana, of the rights of primogeniture being set aside. This proceeded from a variety of motives, sometimes merely paternal affection, sometimes incapacity in the child “to head fifty thousand Rathors,” and sometimes, as in the present instance, a dangerous turbulence and ever-boiling impetuosity in the individual, which despised all restraints. While there was an enemy against whom to exert it, Amra was conspicuous for his gallantry, and in all his father’s wars in the south was ever foremost in the battle. His daring spirit collected around him those of his own race, alike in mind, as connected by blood, whose actions, in periods of peace, were the subjects of eternal complaint to his father,

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who was ultimately compelled to exclude Amra from his inheritance.

Amra, Amar Singh excluded from the Succession.

—In the month of Baisakh, S. 1690 (

A.D.

1634), five years before the death of Raja Gaj, in a convocation of all the feudality of Maru, sentence of exclusion from the succession was pronounced upon Amra, accompanied by the solemn and seldom practised rite of Desvata or exile. This ceremony, which is marked as a day of mourning in the calendar, was attended with all the circumstances of funereal pomp. As soon as the sentence was pronounced, that his birthright was forfeited and assigned to his junior brother, and that he ceased to be a subject of Maru, the khilat of banishment was brought forth, consisting of sable vestments, in which he was clad; a sable shield was hung upon his back, and a sword of the same hue girded round him; a black horse was then led out, being mounted on which, he was commanded, though not in anger, to depart whither he listed beyond the limits of Maru.

Amra went not alone; numbers of each clan, who had always regarded him as their future lord, voluntarily partook of his exile. He repaired to the imperial court; and although the emperor approved and sanctioned his banishment, he employed him. His gallantry soon won him the title of Rao and the mansab of a leader of three thousand, with the grant of Nagor as an independent domain, to be held directly from the crown. But the same arrogant and uncontrollable spirit [45] which lost him his birthright, brought his days to a tragical conclusion. He absented himself for a fortnight from court, hunting the boar or the tiger, his only recreation. The emperor (Shah Jahan) reprimanded him for neglecting his duties, and threatened him with a fine. Amra proudly replied that he had only gone to hunt, and as for a fine, he observed, putting his hand upon his sword, that was his sole wealth.

Amra, Amar assassinates Salābat Khān.

—The little contrition which this reply evinced determined the king to enforce the fine, and the paymaster-general, Salabat Khan,

[20]

was sent to Amra’s

977

quarters to demand its payment. It was refused, and the observations made by the Sayyid not suiting the temper of Amra, he unceremoniously desired him to depart. The emperor, thus insulted in the person of his officer, issued a mandate for Amra’s instant appearance. He obeyed, and having reached the Amm-khass, or grand divan, beheld the king, “whose eyes were red with anger,” with Salabat in the act of addressing him. Inflamed with passion at the recollection of the injurious language he had just received, perhaps at the king’s confirmation of his exclusion from Marwar, he unceremoniously passed the Omrahs of five and seven thousand, as if to address the king; when, with a dagger concealed in his sleeve, he stabbed Salabat to the heart. Drawing his sword, he made a blow at the king, which descending on the pillar, shivered the weapon in pieces. The king abandoned his throne and fled to the interior apartments. All was uproar and confusion. Amra continued the work of death, indifferent upon whom his blows fell, and five Mogul chiefs of eminence had fallen, when his brother-in-law, Arjun Gaur, under pretence of cajoling him, inflicted a mortal wound, though he continued to ply his dagger until he expired. To avenge his death, his retainers, headed by Balu Champawat and Bhao Kumpawat, put on their saffron garments, and a fresh carnage ensued within the Lal kila.

[21]

To use the words of their native bard, “The pillars of Agra bear testimony to their deeds, nor shall they ever be obliterated from the record of time: they made their obeisance to

978

Amra in the mansions of the sun.” The faithful band was cut to pieces; and his wife, the princess of Bundi, came in person and [46] carried away the dead body of Amra, with which she committed herself to the flames. The Bokhara gate by which they gained admission was built up, and henceforward known only as “Amra Singh’s gate”; and in proof of the strong impression made by this event,

[22]

it remained closed through centuries, until opened in 1809 by Capt. Geo. Steell, of the Bengal engineers.

[23]

A. Namely, Hathi Singh, his son Anup Singh, his son Indar Singh, his son Mokham Singh. This lineal descendant of Raja Gaj, and the rightful heir to the “cushion of Jodha,” has dwindled into one of the petty Thakurs, or lords of Marwar. The system is one of eternal vicissitudes, amidst which the germ of reproduction [47] never perishes.

979