Battle of Palkhed

Battle of Palkhed was a land battle that took place on February 28, 1728 at the village of Palkhed, near the city of Nashik, Maharashtra, India between the Maratha "Peshwa", Baji Rao I and the "Nizam-ul-Mulk" of Hyderabad. The Marathas defeated the Nizam.

The battle is considered an example of brilliant execution of military strategy.

Background

The seeds of this battle go to the year 1713, when Maratha "Chattrapati" (King) Shahu, appointed Balaji Vishwanath as his "Peshwa" or Prime Minister. Within a decade, Balaji had managed to extract a significant amount of territory and wealth from the fragmenting Mughal Empire. In October, 1724, the Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah appointed one of his generals, Qamar ad-Din Chin Qilij Khan Asif Jah I as the "Nizam-ul-Mulk" of the "Subah" (Urdu for province) of Deccan.

The new Nizam set about strengthening the province by attempting to control the growing influence of the Marathas. He utilized a growing polarization in the Maratha Empire due to the claim to the "Chattrapati" (King/Protector) title by both Shahu and Sambhaji's heir, Sambhaji II. The Nizam began supporting the Sambhaji faction, which enraged Shahu who had been proclaimed as "Chattrapati". The Nizam further decided to halt the payment of a fourth ("chauth") of the Deccan province revenue to Shahu, as had been agreed by the puppet Mughal Emperor, Rafi Ul-Darjat in 1719.

Battle

The battle plan was set by the withdrawal of Baji Rao's army from the southern reaches of the Maratha empire during May 1727. This was followed by Shahu breaking off negotiations with the Nizam-ul-Mulk about restoration of the chauth.

The Nizam pursued Baji Rao's army around the vicinity of Pune for about six months, where Baji Rao executed a series of thrust and parry moves to finally corner the Nizam at Palkhed.

Outcome

The Nizam was defeated by the Marathas, and signed a peace treaty on March 6, 1728 at the village of Mungi-Paithan.(coord|19.409126|75.445175|region:IN_type:city_scale:25000 [ [http://wikimapia.org/#lat=19.409126&lon=75.445175&z=13&l=0&m=h&v=2 Mungi] ] )

Quotes

* "A masterpiece of strategic mobility." - British Field Marshal Bernard "Monty" Montgomery describing the battle in his book, The Concise History of Warfareref|monty.

References

* Montgomery, Bernard Law. "A Concise History of Warfare", Great Britain:William Collins Sons, 1968, ISBN 1-84022-223-9, pg. 132

External links

* [http://historytelling.wordpress.com/maratha-pages/the-events/the-palkhed-campaign-1728/ Atul Sabnis' excellent article on the battle]

Additional reading

* Palsolkar, Col. R. D., "The life of an outstanding Indian Cavalry commander - 1720-1760 the Peshwa.", India:Reliance Publishers, 248pp, 1995, ISBN 81-85972-93-1.
* Paul, E. Jaiwant. "Baji Rao - The Warrior Peshwa",India:Roli Books Pvt Ltd, 184pp, ISBN 81-7436-129-4.