MEDIEVAL HISTORY

RISSE OF RAJPUTS IN HIMACHAL PRADESH

 After the death of Harsha Rajput used to rule on HP, as Harsha made Kannauj an imperial city and it
became the center of attraction and core of power in Northen India
 The fact was that the one who win the Kannauj was the paramount ruler of the western Himalayas in this
struggle three empire starts to fight between themselves
 First Empire: Rashtrakutas from Deccan (MP) whose leader was Danti Durga
 Second Empire: Palas from East India whose leader was Dharam Pal
 Third Empire: Pratiharas from West & North India whose leader was Nagar Bhatta I, Mihir Bhoja, Mahender
Pal
 In this struggle (Known as Triangular war) of supremacy Gurjara Pratiharas became the ruler of Western
Himalayas Hill States

AFTER THE FALL OF PRATIHARAS IN THE LATER HALF THE RAJPUT RISE IN RAJASTHAN AND
(GANGA-YAMUNA DOAB)
 The weakness of Rajput was the conflicts between themselves to show their supremacy which cause huge
loss to the whole empire
 When some of Rajput in Rajasthan cannot conquer so they turned towards the north with their followers
penetrated into western & central Himalayan Valley
 Between 18th to 12th Century adventurous Rajput founded numerous States in the outer ranges of
Himalayas between Ravi & Yamuna River
 The Rajput defeated the previous rulers (Thakurs & Ranas) and they came under the control of Rajput and
Rajput founded numerous princely states

PRINCELY STATES OF HIMACHAL PRADESH

1. KANGRA: Former part of Trigarta-Sasthas of Jallandher valley after the invasion of Muslims the plain
Territory was lost and the Hilly area constituted a separate state with the Capital at – Nagarkot (Kangra)
With the passage of time the state sprang the o shoot into di erent new states

KANGRA

JASWAN GULER

SIBA DATTARPUR

2. JASWAN: 1170 AD founded by – Raja Purab Chand

3. GULER: Foundation by Hari Chand (live at fort of Haripur)
4. SIBA:15th Century founded by – Raja Sibran Chand (younger brother of Hari Chand)
5. DATTARPUR: Founded by – Dattar Chand (scion of Siba Family)
6. NURPUR: Founded by Tomar Rajput – Jhetpal (Delhi)
7. CHAMBA: Former part of Trigarta-Shasthas founded by – Sahil Varman in 920AD (on the name of his
daughter)
8. KULLU: Founded by – Raja BrahamPal in 500AD (according to Hiuen Tsang the area of kullu state was 75
miles in circle and surrounded by high mountains
9. SUKET: Founded by – Raja Bir Sen (son of Laxman Sen) in 1288AD (after migrating from Bengal due to the
fear of muslim attacker Bakthyar Khalji they came here and defeated local chiefs and formed suket state
10. MANDI: this state was o shoot from Suket state formed by – Ajber Sen in 1527AD
11. KUTLEHAR: Founded by – Brahman Jaspal who later ranked himself as a Rajput
12. BHAJJI & KOTI: These State were founded by the descendants of Jaspal named Bhajji & Koti
13. BHANGAL: Founded by a Brahmin – Prithvi Pal in 1200AD
14. KEHLUR(BILASPUR): Founded by – Bir Chand Chanderi (Rajput of Bundelkhand-UP) & the capital of Kehlur
was at – Naina Devi
15. NALAGARH: This state was the o shoot from Bilaspur and founded by – Ajay Chand (scion of Kehlur Raja)
16. BUSHAHAR: This state was the largest state in HP.
Unfortunately there is no evidence regarding the formation of this state but The capital was at –
Kamru(Bapsa Valley) later which was shifted to Saharan
17. SIRMAUR: Founded by – Raja Rasalu (Son of Salvahan former Rajput of jaisalmer-Rajasthan) the Capital of
the state was – Sirmauri Tal (Nahan).
The area of sirmaur was approximately same as the area of the ancient kingdom of Srugna.
Sirmauri tal later was washed away by floods in Giri River so the capital was shifted to Nahan

REMAINING STATES WERE SMALL PRINCIPALITIES SO THEY ARE KNOWN AS THAKURAIS

12 Thakurais – Lower Shimla Hills

THAKURAIS (30)
18 Thakurais – Upper Shimla Hills (Satluj, Tons, Pabbar Valley)

12 THAKURAIS FOUNDER 18 THAKURAIS FOUNDER

Keonthal Giri Sen -1211AD Jubbal Ugra Chand of Rathore

Clan (Chandervansi
Rajput- Rajasthan)
Bagahal & Bhagat Two Panwar Rajput Balson & Ratesh Rai Singh & Alak Singh
Bhajji & Kotti 2nd & 3rd son of Raja Ghund, Madhan & Theog Chandel Rajput (Jaipur-
Rampal Sen (Una) Rajasthan)
Dhami Descendant of Prithvi Raj Kumharsain, Khaneti, Kirat Singh (gaya came in
Chauhan Delath, Karingla & HP due to the fear of
(kotkhai-Kotgarh) Muslim attacks in Bihar)
Mehlog Hari Chand (Ayodhaya) Darkoti Durga Singh (Rajput from
Jaipur-Rjasthan)
Kuthar Surat Chand (Rajauri-J&K) Tharoch Deokaran (Maharaja
Kumar – Udaypur
Kunihar Bhoj Deo (Jammu Hills) Dhadi O shoot of Tharoch
Mangal Attri Rajput (from Rana Sangri O shoot of Bushahar
Pratap’s Family – Marwar)
Beja & Bharoli Fugitive Rajput princess Dodra Kawar Tributory of Bushahar
from plain

INVASION OF ISLAM (MUSLIMS)

 The founder of Islam was Prophet Muhammad, Muhammad Bin Qasim was the first Muslim to attack India
at Sindh who later was the founder of Unayyad Dynasty
 In 9th Century the Caliphate declined and Turkish rulers rise and attacked India, the first Turkish who
attacked India was Mahmood of Ghazni

Alptgin Subuktgin Mahmud Ghazni

(son in law - Alptgin)

 Mahmud Ghazni (1001-1043) attacked India 17 Times during (1000-1027) AD & in HP Salaya Dynasty ruled
but Mahmud Ghazni attacked & destroyed this Dynasty completely which led to free from rule over them
  Katoch Dynasty of Kangra (Ruler was – Jagdish Chand) announced their freedom after end of Salaya
Dynasty
 Mahmud Ghazni attacked Nagarkot (Kangra) and Defeated Anandpal in the First Battle of Waihind at
Peshawar in 1009 AD & His Son in Second Battle of Waihind and they undertook the control of Kangra Fort
(1009-1043AD)
 Mahmud Ghazni attacked the temple of Mata Brijeshwari Devi and in 1000AD – defeated Jaya Pal,
1025AD – Looted Somnath Temple, 1027AD – Punished Jatt community for the rebellion
 Later that time Tomar Raja King Mahipal of Delhi ended the rule of Turkish ruler over Nagarkot and take
back the control of Kangra fort

GHURID DYNASTY (INVASION OF MUHAMMAD GHORI)

 Under the sultan Alauddin, Muhammad Ghori the (brother of Alauddin) attacked India 7 times &
considered to be the founder of Muslim Empire in India
 He launched a campaign against Mahmud Ghazni in Punjab for the possession of Turkish and then he
wants advance into Gangetic Doab which brought him into conflict with Rajput ruler Prithvi Raj Chauhan
(conflict was for Bhatinda)
 Prithvi Raj Chauhan & Muhammad Ghori fought two battles:
I. 1st Battle of Tarain: Prithvi Raj Chauhan defeated Muhammad Ghori
II. 2nd Battle of Tarain: Muhammad Ghori defeated Prithvi Raj Chauhan (setup the Muslim empire)
 Muhammad Ghori doesn’t have any son but he had his two most trusted chiefs

Qutub-Ud-din-
Aibak
Muhammad Ghori
Bhaktyaar Khalji

 Due to fear of the Muslim attacks in (Bihar,rajasthan, Bengal) Rajput with their Brahmins flooded in
Himachal Pradesh which later founded many princely states
 When Muhammad Ghori going back to home he was killed by n Arab Muslim Fanatic of rival section in
1030AD

RISE OF MUSLIMS & FORMATION OF DELHI SULTNATE

Tughlaq Sayyad
Slave Dynasty Khalji Dynasy Lodi Dynasty
Dynasty Dynasty
(1206-1290) (1290-1320) (1451-1526)
(1320-1414) (1414-1451)

I. Tughlaq Dynasty In HP:

 The founder of this dynasty was Gaya Sudddin Tughlaq who have two sons – Muhammad Bin Tughlaq &
Feroz Shah Tughlaq
 One of the projects of Muhammad bin Tughlaq was to sending expedition against hill chiefs in the
Himalayas (specially against Kangra king – raja Prithvi Chand)
 To overlook the matter the sultan personally undertook the campaign & attack on Nagarkot on 1377AD
 After the death of Muhammad bin Tughlaq Feroz Shah Tughlaq sit on throne and similarly Rup Chand take
the Throne in Kangra
 The kangra king Rup Chand used to loot the places which was under the control of muslims and he went
too far as he reached Delhi from ganga plains
 To punish Raja Rup Chand Feroz Shah personally led the expedition and attacked Nagarkot in 1361AD due
to the fear of Feroz Shah the kangra king Shut himself in the fort & seize lasted 6 months until Raja Rup
Chand surrendered in 1365 which was mentioned in Tariki-i-Farishta & Tarikhi-i-Firozshahi.
  After the submission of Rup Chand Feroz Shah decided to visit the temple of Jawalamukhi from there he
got 300 Volumes (out of 1300 volumes) of Sanskrit books of various subjects.
 The books were translated into Persian language and the translation was done by Aazz-ud-din-Khalid Khani
and the tittle was (Dalai-e-Firozshahi) in 1365.
 In this mean time nagarkot was Known as – Muhammadabad.
 The last ruler of Tughlaq dynasty was Nassiruddin Tughlaq.
 Sagar Chand gave refuge to Nassiruddin and that time the ruler of Hinndur was Alam Chand

II. TIMUR INVASION IN INDIA (HIMACHAL PRADESH)

 During the rule of Tughlaq Dynasty Timur attacked India in 1398AD the leader of Timur was Mongol they
came here from central Asia
 Timur completely destroyed and vanished Tughlaq dynasty & with the help of their best and supreme
Soldier (Khiddar Khan)
 Later Khiddar Khan was tittled as Sultan of Delhi and established Sayyad Dynasty
 Way back to home (central Asia) Timur go attacking through HP (Sirmaur, Nagarkot) and the Nagarkot king
Raja Megh Chand Strongly opposed to the attacks & visit of Timur
 Nurpur & Pathankot was also su ered by the visit of Timur & at Nalagarh the king (Alam Chand)
surrendered himself to Timur & they attacked Kirda-dun Valley (Sirmaur)

RISE OF MUGHAL EMPIRE

After the battle of Panipat the Mughal empire was set up by Babur in 1526 by defeating Ibrahim Lodi

Great Mughals

The Mughal empire was divided into two types of Mughals:

Later Mughals

Humayun
Babur Akbar Jahangir Shah Jahan Aurangjeb
(1530-40 &
(1526-30) (1556-1605) (1605-1627) (1627-1658) (1658-1707)
1555-56)

 In 1525AD Babur established his outpost at Melaut (kangra) & on 21st April 1526 in the battle of Panipat he
defeated Ibrahim Lodi and set up the Muslim empire (Mughal Empire)
 After Babur Humayun succeeded him and Humayun was known as the most unfortunate ruler of Mughal
empire
 A former ruler rise in the region of Bihar & UP under the Afghan Power Popularly known as Sher Shah Suri
originated from Farid Khan
 Sher Shah Suri and Humayun fought two Battles:
 Battle of Chausa: Sher Shah Suri defeated Humayun in 1539
 Battle of Kannauj: Sher Shah Suri defeated Humayun in 1540
 After defeating Humayun Sher Shah Suri sent his general Khawas Khan to Capture the Kangra Hills and
after successful conquest he placed Hamid Khan Kakkar as the In-charge of Kangra hill areas
 After the death of Sher Shah Suri his successors ruled till 1555 and then Humayun re conquest India then
he died in 1556 due to fall from stair case of his library.

AKBAR
 After the death of Humayun his son Akbar take the throne at the age of 13 & first 4 years he spent
expending his region and then he sent his army to capture Sikander Shah (Descendent of Sher Shah Suri)
 Sikander Shah invaded Punjab in 1557 so Akbar wants his army to capture Sikander Shah.
 At the time of Akbar The people and chiefs of HP revolted against him & there were 4 revolts:
 REVOLT FACTS AND EVENTS
Revolt I  Jai Chand of Kangra was imprisoned as a suspect of rebel in Delhi.
(1572)  To take the revenge of his Father Bidhi Chand revolted against Akbar.
 Akbar sent Khan Jahan Hussain Quali Khan along with Birbal to suppress the
rebellion and the area was supposed to give to Birbal as Jagir.
 Mughal forces than reached Nagarkot & Kept the fort under siege for 3 months.
 The siege was lifted soon due to conflicts at Delhi Sultnate However Akbar
induced a permanent settlement which was worked out by his Finance Minister
– Todarmal in 1573.
 The portion of the Demars taken from Kangra have included 66 villages of Kangra
Valley besides Rihlu, Chari, Ghaoh annexed from Chamba.
 Soon raja Jai Chand of Nagarkot was released & ascendent his position as ruler
of his state.
Revolt II  When Bidhi Chand ascendent the throne in 1585 most of hill chiefs ruling
(1588-89) between Jammu & Kangra formed a secret Confederation under Bishi Chand
later they Broke out into rebellion in 1588
 Members of this confederation were – Bidhi Chnad, Basu-Mau
(Nurpur/Dhameri), Anirudh (jaswan), Raja of Kehlur.
 Akbar sent his foster brother Zain Khan Koka to suppress the rebellion and he
marched through the hills from Pathankot to Sutlej.
 On their surrender 13 of chiefs accompanied him to Akbar’s court to o er their
allegiance.
 On the behalf of submission Akbar agreed for their terms but Bidhi Chand have
to kept his son Trilok Chand as a hostage in Mughal Court for the trust.
Revolt III  A Revolt was led by Raja of Jasrota Rai Bahadur Buzura which was followed by
(1594-95) hill chiefs of Jammu & Sutlej.
 Akbar sent forces under the Leadership pf Mirza Rustam, Qandhari, Sheik Farid
Khan & Jagat Singh
 After successful campaign Sheik Farid Khan was entitled by – Mustaza Khan
Revolt IV  Raja Basu of Nurpur was a man of turbulent nature and he again revolted
(1602-04) against Mughals.
 Akbar sent Madhu Singh Kushwaha to punish him.
 Adter successful suppression Akbar made a deal with Raja Basu.
 Despite of all of this Raja basu continued to enjoy a Mansab of 1500 under
Akbar & it was raised to 3500 by Jahangir

JAHANGIR

Jahangir sent 4 expeditions to capture kangra Fort

EXPEDITION FACTS & EVENTS

Expedition I  Jahangir commissioned Sheikh Farid Khan governor of Punjab & Suraj Mal (son of
(1615) Raja Basu) of Nurpur to Subjugate Kangra
 Due to conflicts between Suraj mal & Farid Khan Jahangir summoned Suraj Mal
back & soon after Farid Khan became Ill and died at Pathankot
First a empt to capture kangra Fort was Failed
Expedition II  Jahangir made Raja Maan Singh of Jaipur the governor of Punjab and the leader of
(1616) the campaign to capture the fort.
 But due to a conflict with a Zamindar named Sangram Raja Maan Singh got Killed
Second a empt to capture Kangra Fort was Failed
Expedition III  Jahangir selected Suraj Mal & Shah Quali Khan Muhammad Taqi for the campaign.
(1617)  Before leaving for the campaign they were awarded with:
Suraj Mal – A sword, Khilat, An Elephant, jeweled Khapua (Dagger)
Taqi – A Khilat.
  In September 1917 they started their expedition.
 On the way to nagarkot Suraj Mal started quarelling with Muhammad Taqi and due
to this Jahangir recalled Taqi back to his Court.
 Suraj Mal plundered & looted the movable property of Mughals in paragamas at
foot hills.
 The main reason for the revolt from Suraj mal was the good & health relations with
Katoch family.
 Jahangir Sent Rai Raiyan Sunder Das (Raja Bikram Jit) to suppress the rebellion.
 When Mughal army reached Nagrkot Suraj Mal fled away to Mankot Fort & than to
Nurpur Fort & than to Taragarh Fort (Chamba) where he died in 1619.
Third a empt to capture Kangra Fort was Failed
Expedition IV  After the activites of Suraj Mal Jahangir Summoned Jagat Singh (the brother of
(1620) Suraj Mal) from Jaipur to led this expediyion.
 Jagat Singh joined Rai Raiyan Sunder Das in this siege of Fort 7 the expedition
started on 5th September 1619.
 Jahangir can only capture the fort after the siege for 19 monrhs .
 This expedition lasted for 14 months.
 The Guleria Chief Rup Chand also took an active part in the siege.
 Finally Mughal Empire succeeded in capturing the Knagra Fort in 1920.
 Hari Chand II was the ruler of Kangra that time When Jahangir captured Kangra
Fort.
 The Kangra Fort was under the Mughal possession about 163 years (1620-1783).
Fourth a empt to capture Kangra Fort was Successful

 Jahangir Visited Kangra in 1622.

 He praised Raja of Chamba Janardhan for his smartness and rule.
 Jahangir built a Mosoq in Kangra Fort
 Jahngir proposed to change the name of Dhameri to Nurpur in the honor of his beloved wife Noorjahan &
and Raja Jagat Singh changed the name of Dhameri to Nurpur.

SHAH JAHAN
In 1634 appointed Jagat Singh of Nurpur as the Fauzdar of Bangash (kurren valley & Kohat) – area between
Pakistan & Afghanistan.
Jagat Singh revolted against Shah Jahan along with son Raja Raj Rup Singh.
Shah Jahan sent prince Murad Baksh to suppress the Revolt.
After ressistence & fortification of Maukot, Nurpur, Taragarh Jagat Singh surrendered.
In 1645 Jagat Singh was awarded with – A Khilat, A Sword with gold enameled & A horse with silver
mounted saddle for his honor.

AURANGZEB
He never visited Nagarkot.
Alif Khan was appointed to collect the tributes from Kangra & adjoining principalities.
Alif Khan visited Raja of Kangra Kirpal Chand or Bhim Chand for the matter of non-adherence of Mughal
orders of giving tributes.
Raja Bhim Chand suggested him to compel the King of Bilaspur to give tribute and this will led other also to
give tribute.
To counter this issue Alif Khan headed towards Kehlur which brings him into a conflict with Raja of Kehlur
(Bhim Chand) and Sikhs and it led to the Battle of Nadaun.
 FALL OF MUGHAL EMPIRE AND COMBACK OF KATOCH DYNASTY IN KANGRA

Ahmad Shah Abdali of Durani (Afghanistan) raided India several times between 1748-58.
Ghamand Chand recovered his lost territory during his ancestors except nagarkot.
Adina Beg the Viceroy of Punjabin 1745 compeeled all hill chiefs to submit ro him.
In 1759 Ahmad Shah appointed Ghamand Chand as Nazim Subedar of Jalandher Doab
Ghamand Chand had enlisted an army of 4000 Muhammadan chiefly Rohillas & Afghans and they attacked
Kangra Fort but they were unable to capture the fort.
Invasion of Abdali weaken the Mughal empire & hill chiefs took its advantages.
Intervention of British (East India Company) also led to fall of Mughal Empire.
Rise of Sikhs also played a role in fall of Mughals.

Fall of Mughal empire and Rise of Katoch Family in Kangra led to free flow of autonomy in HP chiefs