Hemu

Tardi Beg Khan, who was Akbar's governor in Delhi, wrote to his masters who were camped at Jalandhar, that Hemu had captured Agra and intended to attack the capital Delhi which could not be defended without reinforcements. While the main army could not be spared due to the belligerent presence of Sikandar Shah Suri, Akbar's regent, Bairam Khan, realising the gravity of the situation, sent his most capable lieutenant, Pir Muhammad Sharwani, to Delhi. Meanwhile, Tardi Beg Khan had also ordered all the Mughal nobles in the vicinity to muster their forces at Delhi. A council of war was convened where it was decided that the Mughals would stand and fight Hemu, and plans were made accordingly.[14]

After winning Agra, Hemu, who had set off in pursuit of the city's governor, reached Tughlaqabad, a village just outside Delhi where he ran into Tardi Beg Khan's forces. The Mughals while outnumbered, put up a gallant fight against Hemu's forces which, according to Bada'uni,[4] included 1000 war elephants, 50,000 cavalry, 51 cannons and 500 falconets.[13] Jadunath Sarkar describes the battle thus:[13]

The Mughal army was thus drawn up: Abdullah Uzbeg commanded the Van, Haidar Muhammad the right wing, Iskandar Beg the left, and Tardi Beg himself the centre. The choice Turki cavalry in the van and left wing attacked and drove back the enemy forces before them, and followed far in pursuit. In this assault the victors captured 400 elephants and slew 3,000 men of the Afghan army. Imagining victory already gained, many of Tardi Beg's followers dispersed to plunder the enemy camp, and he was left in the field very thinly guarded. All this time Hemu had been holding 300 choice elephants and a force of select horsemen as a reserve in the centre. He promptly seized the opportunity and made a sudden charge upon Tardi Beg with this reserve. At the impetuous advance of the huge beasts and the dense cavalry behind them, many of the Mughal officers fled away in terror without waiting to offer a defence. At last Tardi Beg himself took the same course.

Hemu's push was also bolstered by the timely arrival of fresh reinforcements from Alwar under the command of Haji Khan.[14] When the previously victorious Mughal vanguard and left wing returned from their pursuit, they realised that the day was lost and dispersed without offering a fight. Hemu took possession of Delhi after a day's battle on 7 October 1556.[13]

c. 1910s portrayal of Hemu Vikramaditya

After taking control of Delhi, Hemu claimed imperial status[15] and assumed the title of Vikramaditya (or Bikramjit), an appellation used by a number of Hindu kings and emperors in India's ancient past. What this signifies is, however, a subject of speculation among historians.

Historians such as Satish Chandra do not believe that this implies that Hemu had declared himself to be an independent emperor. He reasons that, for one, none of the Mughal authors of the time explicitly say so in their histories. In the Akbarnama, Abu'l-Fazl writes that after Hemu's victory at Tughlaqabad, "the ambition of sovereignty" was stirring within him. According to Bada'uni, Hemu took on the title of Bikramjit like a great Raja of Hindustan. Another contemporary historian named Nizamuddin Ahmad merely states that Hemu took on said title, but refrains from saying anything more. Secondly, it would have been an ill-advised move as Hemu's military force was composed almost entirely of Afghans. According to Bada'uni, there were also some murmurings against Hemu amongst the Afghans who were "sick of his usurpation … prayed for his downfall".[8]

Other historians describe Hemu's claim to be an attempt to set himself up as an independent ruler,[16] throwing off the yoke of Adil Shah's authority.[17] Abraham Eraly quotes Ahmad Yadgar[18] who states in his history of the Afghans that Hemu "raised the imperial canopy over him, and ordered coin to be struck in his name". This was done in connivance with the Afghans to whom he had liberally distributed the spoils. But Eraly notes that Hemu continued to humour Adil Shah with professions of fealty.[19]

Whether he had set himself up as an independent emperor or not, Hemu Vikramaditya's reign was to be short-lived as he would again clash with the Mughals only a month later. This time the battlefield would be at Panipat, not far from the site where Akbar's grandfather, Babur, had been victorious against the Lodis 30 years earlier.

The defeat of Hemu, a c. 1590s painting by Kankar from the Akbarnama. Neither Hemu nor Akbar are depicted here suggesting that this might be part of a double-page composition.[20]

On hearing the disastrous news from Tughlaqabad, Akbar immediately set off for Delhi. Ali Quli Khan Shaibani who had been sent ahead with 10,000-strong cavalry force chanced upon Hemu's artillery which was being transported under a weak guard. He was easily able to capture the entire train of artillery. This would prove to be a costly loss for Hemu.[21][22]

On 5 November 1556, the Mughal army met Hemu's army at the historic battlefield of Panipat. Akbar and Bairam Khan stayed in the rear, eight miles from the battleground.[23] The Mughal army was led by Ali Quli Khan Shaibani in the centre with Sikandar Khan Uzbak on the right and Abdulla Khan Uzbak towards the left and the vanguard led by Husain Quli Beg and Shah Quli Mahram. Hemu led his army himself into battle, atop an elephant named Hawai.[24] His left was led by his sister's son, Ramya, and the right by Shadi Khan Kakkar.[21] It was a desperately contested battle but the advantage tilted in favour of Hemu. Both the wings of the Mughal army had been driven back and Hemu moved his contingent of war elephants and cavalry forward to crush their centre. Hemu was on the cusp of victory when he was wounded in the eye by a Mughal arrow and collapsed unconscious. This triggered a panic in his army which broke formation and fled.[25][26] The battle was lost; 5000 dead lay on the field of battle and many more were killed while fleeing.[23]

Mughal miniature painting from an Akbarnama manuscript depicting a tower of skulls being built with the remains of Hemu's soldiers and supporters, circa 1590

Hemu's family who lived in Machari (near Alwar) was captured by Pir Muhammad, a Mughal officer who had fought at Panipat. Pir Muhammad offered to spare the life of Hemu's elderly father if he converted to Islam. When the old man refused, he was executed.[31] However, Hemu's wife did manage to escape.[26][32]

With the passing of Hemu, Adil Shah's fortunes also took a turn for the worse. He was defeated and killed by Khizr Khan, son of Muhammad Shah of Bengal, in April 1557.[26][32]

The spoils from the battle at Panipat included 120 of Hemu's war elephants whose destructive rampages so impressed the Mughals that the animals soon became an integral part of their military strategies.[33]