Muhammad Ghori, also known as Mu’izz al-Din Muhammad, was a prominent ruler of the Ghurid dynasty in the 12th century. The Ghurid dynasty was an Islamic dynasty that ruled over parts of present-day Afghanistan & Iran. Muhammad Ghori is best known for his frequent invasions, to loot the small hindu kingdoms of India.
Muhammad Ghori was a Turko-Islamic invader, whose conquests led to the establishment of Islamic sultanates in hindu India.
Prithviraj Chauhan or Rai Pithora, was a hindu king from Chauhan dynasty, who ruled a small territory of Sapadalaksha, with his capital at Ajmer. Ascending the throne as a minor in 1177 CE, Prithviraj inherited a kingdom, which stretched from Thanesar in the north to Mewar in the south.
Muhammad Ghori’s military campaigns were marked by brutality, massive violence and cruel acts against innocent people.
Consequent to his victory, he destroyed several Hindu temples and ancient books.
He established a tax system Zazia, only for brahmins. He converted many hindus with the power of his sword. Prithviraj Chouhan had
fought with Muhammad Ghori, in 1191 CE, and defeated him in the first battle of Tarain. However Ghori apologised & assured him that if he is pardoned then he shall not return & attack his kingdom in future. Prithviraj Chouhan defeated Muhammad Ghori sixteen times, subsequently but the short sighted hindu king spared his life, after his victories, because every time Gouri begged for his life. It is pertinent to mention here that hindu traditions, do not allow harming or killing those enemies who seek apology & shelter.
However during the seventeenth battle; Ghori emerged victorious. He defeated the Rajput ruler. Prithviraj Chauhan had earlier defeated Ghori 16 times in a row, but he was defeated 17th time due to deceit by Ghori by attacking after midnight against the then war ethics. As per the norms for the battling armies, till then, they were not supposed to engage in warfare after sunset. Chauhan was defeated, but he refused to bow his head in front of the Sultan. According to popular perception, Jaichand had helped Ghori planning this military strategy, to gain a foothold in India by conspiring to defeat Chauhan, his arch-rival. It is understood that this was
Jayachandra, who had invited Muhammad Ghori to invade India & defeat Prithviraj.
According to historical accounts, after his victory, Ghori is said to have displayed a very high degree of cruelty by executing all captured Rajput soldiers. Prithviraj Chauhan was vanquished and taken prisoner in the battle of Tarain. He was handled horribly, had hot irons thrust into his eyes, and was rendered blind.
Earlier in 1175, he had led his first expedition into India, capturing the fortress of Bhatinda. Over the next two decades, he launched multiple campaigns, gradually extending his control over various parts of northern India. His most significant victories was the Battle of Tarain in 1191, wherein he had defeated the Chauhan king, Prithviraj III, and established his authority over Delhi.
Muhammad Ghori’s military campaigns and his impact on Indian history are often viewed from different perspectives. Some consider him a conqueror who introduced Muslim rule to the Indian subcontinent, while others see him as an invader, who disrupted the existing political and cultural fabric of the region. Nonetheless, his expeditions left a lasting impact on the course of Indian history, shaping the subsequent dynasties and the cultural landscape of the subcontinent.
Muhammad Ghori was killed by Prithviraj Chauhan near the Indus river on 15 March 1205. He was returning to Ghazni after his campaigns in India. He handed over all his affairs in India to the slave ruler Qutb-ud-din Aibak, who laid the foundation of the slave dynasty and eventually the Delhi Sultanate in India.
Emperor Prithviraj Chauhan was defeated by Mohammad Shahabuddin Ghori of Ghazni in the 17th battle which was fought at Tarain.
It’s being written that Prithviraj was taken back to Ghazni present days Afghanistan by Ghori and all kinds of atrocities was performed on him by Ghori. Even his eyes were removed through hot iron rods.
Poet Chand Bardai and the childhood friend of Prithviraj visited to Ghori and explained him the ability of Prithviraj Chauhan to be capable of doing archery very precisely by merely listening to sound, which is known as “Shabdbedhi Baan Vidya”
Ghori being baffled by listening to this fact wanted to witness this through his own eyes. So he ordered to bring the Prithviraj Chauhan and asked him to show his archery skills.
Prithviraj as usual was able to hit the target by merely listening to sound, then all of a sudden Chand Bardai said this phrase to Prithviraj wherein he was actually trying to inform the Prithviraj the actual position of Ghori he said “Chaar haath chaubis gaj angor asth praman taa upar sultan he mat chuko Chauhan”
Just immediately Prithviraj was able to guess the position of Ghori and Ghori also ordered to shoot the arrow which was enough for Prithviraj to kill the Ghori within a fraction of second.
All the members of Ghori Court ran towards Prithviraj in order to kill him then Prithviraj said rather requested his friend Chand Bardai to kill him because he would not like to get killed by the hands of enemy.
Chand Bardai followed the order of Prithviraj and both of them killed each other through a dagger.
