Siege of Chittorgarh (1567–1568)
| Siege of Chittorgarh (1567–1568) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Mughal-Rajput War (1558-1578) | |||||||||
 Chittor fort today |
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Mughal Empire | Kingdom of Mewar | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Akbar | Rao Jaimal † | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| 8,000 men | |||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
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The Siege of Chittorgarh (20 October 1567 – 24 February 1568) was a part of the campaign of the Mughal Empire against the kingdom of Mewar in 1567. Forces led by Akbar surrounded and besieged 8,000 Rajputs and around 40,000 peasants under the command of Jaimal in Chittorgarh.
The history of the imposing fortress of Chittor is believed to date back to the 7th century. Known as Chitrakuta Durga, it is said to have been raised by Chitrangada of the Mori dynasty and then passed into the hands of the Pratiharas in the 9th century. Subsequent owners of this seat of power included the Paramaras (10th–11th century) and the Solankis (12 century) before it feel into the hands of the Guhilots or Sisodias of Mewar.
The fort stands atop a 152m hill and covers an area of 700 acres (2.8 km2). It has a number of gateways and ponds including the Gaumukha kund, which is supplied by perennial underground source of water. Heavily fortified, Chittorgarh was believed to be insurmountable until it was sacked by Alauddin Khalji of the Delhi Sultanate in 1303. It was sacked again a couple of centuries later by Bahadur Shah of the Gujarat Sultanate.
The Mughals had always been wary of the kingdoms of Rajasthan. Besides being a centre of power, the Rajput dominions also hindered access to both Gujarat and its prosperous seaports as well as Malwa. To control either of these regions, the Mughal emperor also needed to arrive at an understanding with the Rajputs. Local rulers such as Raja Bhara Mal of Amber had already submitted to Akbar in 1562. Mewar, the most powerful and prominent of the Rajput states, however, had not. While Udai Singh, the Rana of Mewar was open to accepting Mughal suzerainty and paying a tribute, he was not prepared to lower his head in obedience to Akbar as, according to Abu'l-Fazl, "none of his ancestors had bowed down and kissed the ground". Furthermore, the Rana had also vexed Akbar when he first granted asylum to Baz Bahadur of Malwa and later, to the Mirzas of Sambhal.
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