Battle of Pratapgad

Battle of Pratapgad
The fort of Pratapgad
Date November 10, 1659 Location Pratapgad, now in Satara district near Pune, Maharashtra, India Result Decisive Maratha victory and major territorial gain for the Maratha forces
Belligerents
Adilshahi forces of Afzal Khan	Maratha forces of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Commanders and leaders
Afzal Khan † Rustam Zaman Fazal Khan Musa Khan Manoji Jagdale Sardar Pandhare Ambar Khan Krishanaji Bhaskar Kulkarni	Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Netaji Palkar, Kanhoji Jedhe, Raghunath Pant Atre, Moropant Pingle, Ramoji Dhamale deshmukh, Yesaji Kank, Jiva Mahale,Pantaji Bokil
Strength
20,000 Adilshahi cavalry 15,000 infantry 10,000 Afzal Khan personnel cavalry 5,000 Afzal Khan personnel Infantry 1,500 musketeers 85 elephants 1,200 camels 80-90 cannon artillery 12,000 reserved infantry at Wai.	6,000 light cavalry headed by Netaji Palkar 3,000 light infantry headed by Moropant Pingale 4,000 reserved infantry headed by Kanhoji Jedhe.
Casualties and losses
5,000 killed 5,000 wounded 3,000 imprisoned Loss of artillery, 65 Elephants, 4000 Horses, 1200 Camels, jewels worth 300,000 Rupees, 1,000,000 Rupees, heaps of precious cloths, tents to the Marathas. Loss of money and grain stored at Wai.	1,734 killed 420 wounded.

The Battle of Pratapgad was a land battle fought on November 10, 1659 at the fort of Pratapgad near the town of Satara, Maharashtra, India between the forces of the Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and the Adilshahi general Afzal Khan. The Marathas defeated the Adilshahi forces despite being outnumbered. It was their first significant military victory against a major regional power, and led to the eventual establishment of the Maratha Empire.

King Shivaji held a commendable position in parts of Maval. The Adilshahi court wanted to curb his activities. Afzal Khan, a renowned general of Bijapur who had previously killed Shivaji's brother in a battle, was selected to lead an assault against Shivaji. He started from Bijapur in January 1653.

After starting from Bijapur, Afzal Khan began by destroying the temple of Bhavani at Tuljapur. He moved on to the Vittal temple at Pandharpur. He was trying to entice Shivaji out of the mountainous areas he occupied and onto the plains, where Khan's larger army trained and equipped for warfare on plain grounds would have an absolute advantage. Shivaji had encamped at Pratapgad, which, being located in a hilly area, was strategically advantageous for mountainous guerrilla warfare.

Unable to incite him to attack first, Afzal Khan moved his army to Pratapgad. As he had once been the subedar of Wai, he had experience with the geography of the region. He tried to bolster his position by obtaining the support of the militarily independent landlords of the region. Although they nominally acknowledged the sovereignty of the Adilshah, the powerful baron Kanhoji Jedhe, as directed by Shahaji, helped Shivaji to counter these moves and garner their support.

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