Battle of Talikota 1565 AD - Watershed moment in the history of India

 

From the 8th century and onwards, the Indian subcontinent was

 subject to relentless Islamic invasions.

 Eventually, Muslim leaders oversaw the forming of various Empires and Sultanates, establishing a presence that lasted for centuries.

 Around the mid-1500s, in the Deccan region of south India, the presence of those faithful to the word of the prophet was manifested in the form of five Sultanates that despite sharing the same faith were constantly at each other’s throats.

 But while the Islamic states were expanding their influence and territories, local Hindus were not being idle.

 Just to the south of the Deccan sultanates stood a powerful Hindu state, the Vijayanagara Empire.

 The Vijayanagara Empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts by the southern Hindu powers to ward off Islamic invasions. At its peak, it had subjugated almost all of South India's ruling families, thus becoming a notable power.

 In 1542 AD, the latest Vijayanagara Emperor died at a young age, leaving only his nephew Sadashiva Raya, who was under age at the time, as the heir to the throne.

 A commander and son-in-law of the previous emperor, Rama Raya, saw an opportunity to assert himself and seize the throne. He was a valiant commander, a skillful and fearsome warrior who had led several successful campaigns in the past, and was also an able administrator and diplomat.

 Acting as regent, he put the legitimate heir under virtual house arrest, quickly taking control of the state, and replaced officers in important positions with people personally loyal to him.

 Now a de-facto ruler of the Vijayanagara Empire, Rama Raya’s policy was that of pitting one Sultan against the other, aiming to expand the borders of his empire and keeping the realm secure by capitalizing on the enmity between the Deccan Sultans.

 This policy of “divide and rule” was made easier by the quarrelling Deccan Sultans, who repeatedly asked Rama Raya to act as mediator.

 In the mid-1540s, when the rulers of Ahmadnagar and Golconda sought help against the Sultan of Bijapur, Rama Raya initiated his policy of intervention by entering the conflict and securing a strategic area to the north of his realm.

 A couple of years later in 1549, the ruler of Bijapur and Bidar declared war on Nizam Shah of Ahmadnagar.

 As a result, Rama Raya fought on behalf of the Ahmadnagar ruler and secured the fort of Kalyana.

 Then in 1557, he allied himself with Ali Adil shah of Bijapur and the ruler of Bidar, during the Bijapur invasion of Ahmadnagar. The combined armies of the three kingdoms were able to defeat the alliance between Ahmadnagar and Golconda.

 Year in, year out, as conflicts between the Deccan Sultanates continued for almost 20 years, Rama Raya skilfully kept switching sides to further his interests.

 Then, in 1558, yet another conflict sparked between the Deccan Sultanates.

 The Ruler of Bijapur was on the brink of war with the Sultan of Ahmadnagar. Ali Adil Shah of Bijapur sought the assistance of the ruler of Golconda and of Rama Raya.

 In a continuation of this vicious cycle of interchangeable and opportunistic coalitions, which was typical of the period, the three powers entered into an alliance.

 In 1559, the large allied host travelled north to Ahmadnagar and besieged the fortress capital.

 The Ahmadnagar forces chose to abandon the capital and engage in guerrilla warfare, given the overwhelming odds against them.

 Reportedly, Rama Raya and his army responded by committing terrible atrocities and inflicting horrific violence upon the locals, destroying mosques and

 ravaging the countryside.

 This display of cruelty shocked the ruler of Golconda who backed out of the alliance. The ruler of Bijapur was equally alarmed by the conduct of his ally but remained loyal due to political concerns.

 By 1561, Hussain Nizam

 Shah of Ahmadnagar sued for peace.

 Rama Raya accepted, on the condition that Hussain agree to three humiliating terms.

 First, give disputed lands to Bijapur.

 Second, execute his best general.

 And third, Hussein would be forced to eat out of Rama Raya’s hands, a humiliating act deemed outrageous at the time.

 Having little choice… the ruler of Bijapur complied… but swore vengeance… Needless to say, Rama Raya had by now become a problematic ally for the Sultanates, but what eventually tipped the political scale against him was what he did next.

 While retreating through Bijapur, his army plundered and ravaged the lands of his own ally, even going as far as annexing some of his territory.

 Feeling utterly betrayed, Ali Adil Shah terminated his alliance with Rama Raya.

 The leaders of the Deccan sultanates realized that the real threat was the aggressive and powerful Vijayanagara Empire.

 And so… the Sultans of Bijapur, Ahmadnagar, and Golconda entered a pact.

 Intermarriage between Sultanate families helped resolve any differences between the Muslim rulers, cementing their alliance.

 Resentful, they agreed to make war against Vijayanagara, and as soon as the marriage festivities were over, an emissary was sent to Rama Raya’s court with a simple message: “Give up the key forts of Mudgal and Raichur”.

 Rama Raya made no attempt to hide his contempt for this ultimatum and sent the emissary back without even considering a formal reply.

 The stage was set.

 In early 1565, the combined

 forces of Ahmadnagar, Bijapur, and Golconda began marching towards Vijayanagara.

 Meanwhile, an overconfident Rama Raya continued to remain unperturbed. And even though he didn’t perceive this as a threat of any consequence, he nonetheless began to make his own preparations.

 A contingent of about twenty thousand horsemen was sent as an advance force under the leadership of one of his brothers. He followed up with another force of sizeable strength, intending to prevent the Islamic army from crossing the Krishna River, which demarcated the northern borders of his empire.

 The huge but cumbersome Vijayanagara army slowly marched to meet the enemy.

 On the 28th of December 1564, allied Sultanate armies reached the river Krishna and were soon followed by the huge army of Rama Raya.

 The fords were few and well-guarded by Hindu vanguards, and given the numerical advantage of the Vijayanagara army, a contested crossing would have been far too risky for the coalition forces.

 It was the Sultan of Ahmadnagar who eventually came up with a cunning stratagem. He ordered the sultanate armies to march eastwards to an undefended ferry further down the river.

 Rama Raya started following him after withdrawing many of his forces from the river fords.

 For two days, both armies marched eastwards until, on the 2nd of January 1565, behind the screen of dust that was made by the moving army, a select body of hardy and swift cavalry under Nizam Shah made a forced march back to the original fording point.

 The few remaining Vijayanagara troops that were guarding the ford were caught completely off guard and were annihilated by the lightning-fast Muslim contingent.

 With a bridgehead secured, the rest of the Sultanate armies lost no time and immediately marched back and crossed the river. In a stroke of genius, Nizam Shah stole the crossing, avoiding potentially massive casualties.

 Despite being outwitted, the old Vijayanagara regent, who was then in his 80s, was not disheartened by this setback. He decided to personally lead the Hindu armies and ordered some of his units to randomly attack the Muslim force. But the conduct of his soldiers was undisciplined and without a strategy.

 After some minor skirmishing, the two armies marched southwards until they reached a plain near the city of Talikota.

 Αt the crack of dawn, on January 26th 1565, the two enormous armies arrayed for battle.

 Estimations about the size of the Muslim force that marched against Rama Raya’s empire, vary wildly. In total, the army numbered around 80,000 infantry and 30,000 cavalry, accompanied by several dozen modern artillery cannons that were the trump card of the allied army.

 The army of the Deccan Sultanates deployed in a linear formation, with infantry and cavalry intermixed between the different rulers of the coalition.

 The cannons were placed behind the main line.

 Rama Raya’s Hindu army was even larger, numbering an estimated 140.000 infantry, 10.000 cavalry, and over a hundred war elephants.

 The force also included a considerable amount of cannons, but their artillery pieces were heavy, unwieldy, and obsolete.

 The Vigajanagara also deployed in a linear, bulky formation, designed to use the advantage of their huge numerical superiority. Rama Raya’s army would rely on brute force to win the day.

 Around noon, the battle began with heavy artillery fire.

 The barrage lasted for almost 2 hours but did little damage to both armies.

 Then, the right-wing of the Hindu army charged frantically against the enemy left wing.

 Hindu soldiers ploughed

 through the Muslim divisions, their assault so vigorous that it looked like a Hindu victory was imminent.

 Nizam Shah sent a few of his forces to shore up the ranks of his hard-pressed left, which was by now in retreat.

 What followed was a bloody

 melee of men and metal.

 Soon afterward, the Hindu left-wing fell upon the opposing Muslim right. Here too it initially appeared to be a Hindu onslaught.

 As the bloody and obstinate combat was raging on, swift Muslim horse archers wheeled to their right and began peppering the Hindu formations with murderous arrows.

 Now… the odds turned, as Rama Raya’s forced were being pushed back. A few contemporary reports also claim that two Islamic commanders that served in Hindu army on the left wing, now switched sides and refused to fight and kill fellow Muslims.

 Seeing this, the Hindu leader ordered his treasurer to place heaps of money all around him, so that he might confer rewards on anyone distinguishing himself in battle.

 “We are not cowards to be intimidated of this insignificant war! Go on, fight!” He cried out.

 Reinvigorated by this display of bravery, the Hindu centre now charged against Nizam Sha’s men!

 A tumultuous crowd of thousands of men was now attacking the “heart” of the Islamic army. It was the critical point of the battle...

 Just before the Hindu soldiers reached the Muhammadan line, the front rank of artillery pieces fired a devastating shot at close quarters.

 In a moment of pure genius, the artillery officers had stuffed their guns not with the usual shot, but with bags full of slug-like copper coins. In one grapeshot, 5000 of the Vijayanagarans lay dead or writhing in pain.

 This tactic threw the Hindu centre into confusion, upon which 5000 Muslim cavalry charged through the intervals and cut their way into the midst of the disorganized mass, trying to reach the spot where Rama Raya had taken post.

 Dismounted from his horse, Rama Raya was instead carried on a sedan chair, ultimately failing to escape the fast-moving Muslim cavalry.

 The litter-bearers let fall their precious burden in terror at the enemy’s approach. Before he had time to recover himself and mount a horse, the old commander was seized and promptly beheaded.

 This event threw the Hindus into a general panic. What followed next was a massive and disorganized retreat.

 Seizing the moment, Nizam Shah’s cavalry charged the retreating Hindus. The Warriors of Islam slaughtered everyone in sight, along an area spanning about twenty miles, now littered with dead bodies.

 The stragglers fled to their capital from the victorious Muslim army, but the confusion was so great that little attempt was made to defend the walls and the approaches.

 Eventually, almost all of the Hindu army was annihilated.

 The victorious Sultans marched to the capital of the Empire virtually unopposed.

 Those who had the means escaped but others were not so lucky. With axes, crowbars, fire, and sword the victorious armies of the Deccan sultanates went about the task of bringing to rubble the city of Vijayanagara.

 In just a few days, one of the most magnificent cities in the world was reduced to a smouldering ruin… It never recovered from the destruction.

 The battle of Talikota was a decisive moment for the history of the Indian subcontinent.

 It was the death knell for large Hindu kingdoms in India, spelling the end of the Vijayanagara Empire, which survived only as an insignificant peripheral kingdom until 1646.