Battle of Patan

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Patan
date=June 20th , 1790
place=Patan, India
result=Decisive Maratha victory
combatant1= Maratha Confederacy
combatant2=Rajputs of Jaipur
Mughal Empire
commander1=General de Boigne
Gopal Bhau
Holkar
commander2=Ismail Beg
Shovram Bhandari
Shahmal
Sukhlal Haldia
strength1=10,000+
strength2=45,000+
casualties1=52 cavalry killed, 309 wounded, 400+ infantry
casualties2=3000+ Rathore horsemen killed, 5 Rajput battalions and an entire Mughal unit vanquished. [Sarkar, Jadunath. (1994) A History of Jaipur 1503-1938. Orient Longman. Page 295]

The Battle of Patan was fought on June 20th, 1790 between the Maratha Confederacy and the Rajputs of Jaipur and their Mughal allies.

Background

With the crushing defeat in the Third Battle of Panipat, imperial ambitions of Marathas had suffered a serious setback. But by 1783, with the conquest of Gwalior, Maratha chieftain Madhavrao Scindia had managed to reassert Maratha influence over much of Northern India, especially Rajputana. Many Rajput kingdoms like those of Jaipur and Malwa were threatened by the Marathas.

After the failure of Lalsot campaign of July 1787, Marathas of Scindia had evacuated the Jaipur territory. In early 1790, hoping to completely rid the Rajputana off Maratha interference, Rajput nobility managed to sway the Mughal general Ismail Beg over to their side.

The Pursuit

Intending to prevent the junction of Ismail Beg with his Rajput allies, Madhavrao Scindia, dispatched an army under his generals Gopal Rao Bhau and Benoît de Boigne. On the morning of 10th May, Marathas came upon Ismail Beg at Patan.

The Battle

For over three weeks, nothing was effected between the two armies. On 19th June, Ismail Beg expressed his intentions of attacking the Maratha lines. By this time, his Rajput allies had come to his aid. General de Boigne proceeded to advance to encounter the Mughals with all his force the following morning.

De Boigne's disciplined brigade and artillery guns formed the spearhead of Maratha attack and occupied the central position in the Maratha lines [Sarkar, Jadunath. (1994) A History of Jaipur 1503-1938. Orient Longman. Page 292] . The Maratha captains Ambaji Ingle and Balaji Ingle commanded the left wing (opposite Ismail Beg) whilst Holkars commanded the right wing. Gopal Bhau commanded the Deccan cavalry which formed the centre.

The armies faced each other in east-west direction along a straight line. Ismail Beg's contingent formed the southern wing of Rajput-Mughal combine. It was followed by Rathore horsemen and Abdul Mtalab's (Ismail Beg's lieutenant) battalions. Bulk of the Rajput cavalry was concentrated in the centre of wing. The left wing was formed entirely by Jaipur Nagas (fighting monks). The alliance had over 125 artillery pieces at its disposal. They were placed in three rows, one before Ismail Beg, one before Matlab and the remaining one the trenches of Jaipur Nagas.

Maratha artillery under de Boigne's brigade, though smaller in number, was more rapid, accurate and mobile than the one in possession of their adversaries. Battle of Patan began in the form of sporadic skirmishes and evolved into an all out battle only at its end. The command of Rajput-Mughal army was disunited and had no concrete plan of action. It was this lack of organisation that was instrumental in a decisive Maratha victory as the Marathas had the initiative and the element of surprise on their side.

At the onset of the battle, neither side was in haste to come to grips. The Maratha army took up arms at the daybreak and advanced four miles westwards from their camps to the mouth of the pass leading to Patan. But it took their adversaries over a quarter of a day to take up positions on the hill over overlooking the pass. However hostilities didn't break out for six more hours. It was "ekadashi", an auspicious day in the Hindu calendar. Hindu soldiers on both sides were observing a religious fast. Exchange of fire during this period occurred only between the Muslim soldiers on both sides.

At dusk, Rajputs and their Muslim allies, retired to their respective camps. The Maratha army however held its positions at the mouth of the pass. The real battle however precipitated in the evening by an unforeseen skirmish. Some Maratha Pindaris from the left wing of Maratha lines, managed to seize animals that were a part of Ismail Beg's contingent. This inevitably led to a small skirmish with Ismail Beg's men. General de Boigne then directed his guns on Ismail Beg's contingent. Caught on unawares, the murderous fire of Maratha guns proved to be deadly. Gopal Bhau and de Boigne, sensing victory, went for the kill. Marathas descended upon enemy camps. Taken aback by the suddenness and the ferocity of the Maratha attack, Rajput resistance capitulated. The Jaipur Nagas held on to their positions before finally being overwhelmed at around 9 pm in the night.

Maratha Gains

The Rajput fugitives were relentlessly pursued by their Deccan adversaries all throughout the night and the next day. Rajput horsemen managed to flee into the countryside, but the trained Mughal and Rajput battalions took refuge in the Patan city. All the arms and property of Rajput-Mughal alliance left in the field was captured. On 22st June, de Boigne went with some guns to the gates of Patan city and threatened it's ruler, Raja Sampat Singh with bombardment. The Raja was powerless to resist. Some battalion commanders managed to flee, but most battalion commandants along with 2000 cavalry and 10,000 sepoys surrendered. General de Boigne then proceeded to lay a siege to the fort o Patan. The defenders of the fort gave up within 6 hours and all the wealth of Patan fell into the hands of victors.

Marathas recovered over 105 pieces of artillery from the enemy, along with 21 elephants, 1300 camels and 300 horses. Rajputs lost over 5 battalions and 3000 Rathore horsemen. As for Ismail Beg's army, in words of Sir Jadunath Sarkar

Ismail Beg's army was practically annihilated; it ceased to exist as a military unit and lost all its arms, equipments, tents, baggage and even cooking pots.

Marathas on their part lost over 52 cavaliers and 300 sepoys.

The Aftermath

Pitted against European armed and trained Marathas, Rajput states capitulated one after the other. Marathas managed to conquer Ajmer and Malwa from Rajputs. Although Jaipur lost the battle, it remained unconquerable. Battle of Patan, effectively ended Rajput hopes for independence from external interference. Sir Jadunath Sarkar notes:

From the day of Patan (20th June 1790) to the 2nd of April 1818 when Jaipur entered into protective subsidiary alliance with the British government, lay the gloomiest period in the history of Jaipur kingdom.

His victory increased Scindia's influence with the Peshwas (Maratha Prime Ministers) in Pune, the seat of Maratha government. The Battle of Patan along with the subsequent gains helped Marathas regain lost influence and morale, which had been badly shaken by the Panipat debacle. The Maratha confederacy however couldn't consolidate on the gains and soon fell to infighting. The Marathas eventually lost their sovereignty to the British in 1817.

Notes

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