I was on a road trip with family to Manali when we passed a sign board reading Panipat.
Three Bloody Wars were fought in this area. I was greeted with a rudimentary town,dirt and mud everywhere. Curiosity and a genuine inquisitiveness made me go on. As I stood rooted to the spot the entire episode of the last war engulfed me.
The year was 1761. Panipat then was a stark, barren land with a few shrubs growing as though defying nature, on one side and the once mighty Jamuna, in full spate on the other.
It was here that the third and last battle was fought between the Marathas and Ahmad Shah Abdali's troops. Sadashiv Rao Peshwa, and the very young Vishwas Rao Peshwa, he was only 18yrs old at the time, led the mighty Maratha Army. It took the Cavaliers and the foot soldiers almost six months to reach.
The Marathas fought the war valiantly but Trickery, Treachery, Deceit and Miscommunication
proved to be their downfall.
A line from a poem came to my mind, "Into the Valley of death rode the 600". It was a complete massacre. Braving the cold, hunger and no compensation, the soldiers fought to the bitter end. Each one died a Martyr and the ones who were spared were scarred for life.
Such was the intensity of the battle that the earth was soaked in blood.
My aim was to go and pay due respects to the Martyrs and also to see for myself the war zone!.
I was in for a complete surprise, the area which was barren had transformed itself into a beautiful landscaped Oasis,serene and calm. There were two outstanding Murals depicting the wars and my Blog image is one of them. This transformation of the land has been due to the painstaking work carried out by the Archaeological Survey of Harayana.
I sat there gazing at the beauty of the place and thought that finally... peace and serenity had come back to this unsettled land which had been a witness to only bloodshed and misery in the past.
Three Bloody Wars were fought in this area. I was greeted with a rudimentary town,dirt and mud everywhere. Curiosity and a genuine inquisitiveness made me go on. As I stood rooted to the spot the entire episode of the last war engulfed me.
The year was 1761. Panipat then was a stark, barren land with a few shrubs growing as though defying nature, on one side and the once mighty Jamuna, in full spate on the other.
It was here that the third and last battle was fought between the Marathas and Ahmad Shah Abdali's troops. Sadashiv Rao Peshwa, and the very young Vishwas Rao Peshwa, he was only 18yrs old at the time, led the mighty Maratha Army. It took the Cavaliers and the foot soldiers almost six months to reach.
The Marathas fought the war valiantly but Trickery, Treachery, Deceit and Miscommunication
proved to be their downfall.
A line from a poem came to my mind, "Into the Valley of death rode the 600". It was a complete massacre. Braving the cold, hunger and no compensation, the soldiers fought to the bitter end. Each one died a Martyr and the ones who were spared were scarred for life.
Such was the intensity of the battle that the earth was soaked in blood.
My aim was to go and pay due respects to the Martyrs and also to see for myself the war zone!.
I was in for a complete surprise, the area which was barren had transformed itself into a beautiful landscaped Oasis,serene and calm. There were two outstanding Murals depicting the wars and my Blog image is one of them. This transformation of the land has been due to the painstaking work carried out by the Archaeological Survey of Harayana.
I sat there gazing at the beauty of the place and thought that finally... peace and serenity had come back to this unsettled land which had been a witness to only bloodshed and misery in the past.
2 comments:
A big thanks to Archaeological survey of Haryana!
I have written a Book on this Topic Hope you read this contact me if you want a discount.
http://thirdbattleofpanipatmaratha.blogspot.in/2012/07/sadashivrao-bhau-maratha-senapati-in.html
Post a Comment