The Saga of Narveer Tanaji's Bravery - नरवीर तानाजींची शौर्य गाथा

Looking Back... The Beginning and Planning of the Campaign

According to Major General Shishir Mahajan, due to the Treaty of Purandar, Shivaji Maharaj himself handed over Sinhagad (Kondhana) to Kiratsingh on June 14, 1665. While taking a review of the surroundings from Rajgad, Sinhagad remained an eyesore for Maharaj until February 3, 1670. The campaign started on February 4 (the night of Magh Vadya Navami). Tanaji Malusare was a staunch commander of five thousand infantry of Maharaj, and he voluntarily took the responsibility for this campaign. He planned an innovative but highly risky campaign to launch an overnight attack by taking the Mavlas from an unexpected location.

Shivaji Maharaj's Planning

According to Shivaji Maharaj's plan:
• Companies "A" and "C" were to attack the guards at the two ends of the cliff and inside.
• Before that, at least 300 Mavlas should be ready after climbing the cliff.
• The remaining Company "B" was to protect and assist 50 of their men to open the Kalyan gate from the inside.
• To draw Udaybhan out of the citadel and kill him.
• The advisory committee for this campaign included Yesaji Kank, Moropant Pingle, and Shelar Mama.

Why was Tanaji Malusare Given the Leadership of this Campaign?

According to Lieutenant General Dattatraya Shekatkar:
• Tanaji knew Sinhagad inside out.
• Being an infantry commander, Tanaji had the capability to raise a standing army of one thousand soldiers.
• Tanaji must have known Udaybhan's face and stature from having seen him earlier, and knowing exactly who to kill is very important.
• And most importantly, Shivaji Maharaj had immense trust in him.

Compilation of Bahirji's Intelligence

According to Lt. General Rajendra Nimbhorkar, the information gathered through Bahirji's spies was as follows:
• Troop strength, shift changes on the watchtowers, and the locations and numbers of guards.
• The number of guards at the 3 gates on the Kalyan village side was at least 30. Door number 2 was defective, as it could not be locked from the inside but could be closed.
• The Pune gate side was strongly secured from the inside with wooden logs.
• It was possible to infiltrate by claiming that the rope ladders and tethers were for the animals.
• The local Mavlas, who had traditionally managed the outer security of the fort's perimeter, could be won over by giving them gold bracelets.
• Between Kalavantini and Zunjar Buruj (current names), 4 new night patrol posts of 2 men each were set up from inside the ramparts for various commanders' troop detachments in weekly double shifts.
• There were always 3 guards present at the commanders' houses, and during the night shift, there were at least 50 to 70 soldiers. After 2 AM, they were mostly off guard.

Preparations and Secrecy

According to Lieutenant General Venky Patil, the following points were noted during Tanaji's survey:
• A tiger had not been seen in the jungle for the past few weeks. At night, deer, hyenas, and jackals roam around.
• Wild dogs and boars come to eat discarded leftover food.
• With the help of trappers, they searched for and destroyed cobra and snake holes, ant hills, and wasp nests.
• They cut down the prickly, itchy bushes of Karvi and Ghaneri.
• They gathered information from the stable keepers about what Udaybhan currently looks like, what he wears, how many bodyguards he has, and who they are.
According to Brigadier Hemant Mahajan:
• There was a significant increase in Udaybhan's Mughal soldiers on the fort, and they were on high alert due to the news of the broken treaty with Aurangzeb.
• Bundles of ropes sent under the pretext of tying animals and fodder had reached the fort.
• Two out of four men had gone up carrying white cloth to make the ropes visible in the dark at night by tying them to strong rocks and tree trunks along the cliff edge.
According to Commodore Shrikant Deshmukh (Navy):
• 1100 swords with hilts, sheaths, and sharpened edges, as well as tested shields, were ready.
• Jute ropes, rope ladders with cords, flintstones, smoke-producing salammoniac, oil-soaked rags to light fires, bandages for the wounded, Nirgudi leaves, and ointments were prepared.
• A rumor was spread that a wedding procession would be traveling on the road from Rajgad to Sinhagad.

Donagiri Cliff and Time Management

According to Lieutenant General Satish Satpute, because it was difficult to climb from the valley side of the Donagiri cliff, this area was neglected by Udaysingh's army. Once climbed, there was a hollow area convenient for hiding, and it was a convenient route to head towards the Kalyan gate.
According to Lt. General Sanjay Kulkarni, war stands on two pillars: 'speed and time'. If the required climbing height is considered to be around 15 meters, and initially, 10 men can climb Donagiri in 20 minutes using 2 rope ladders dropped from above. If 60 soldiers can climb in the first hour, and by increasing the number of rope ladders to 6 in the next 3 hours, 90 soldiers per hour can climb, making it 270 + 60 = 330, then the planning for the next phase can be done.
According to Air Marshal Bhushan Gokhale, 2 to 4 AM is the time of deep sleep. Since there were no watches then, the time of the attack must have been decided based on the speed and visibility of the moon. The moon on the night of Ashtami comes overhead after 12. Once it became visible on the side of the Donagiri cliff, it was to be understood that if 200 soldiers had reached the top, the attack should begin once another 100 had climbed.

Tanaji's Army and Yashwanti the Monitor Lizard

Air Marshal Sunit Soman imagined the orders given to Tanaji's army : "O brave Mavlas, we have to bring Kondhana back under the authority of our kingdom... Even though we are less than a thousand in total, we are more than a match for the more than 1500 enemies."
Regarding the Yashwanti monitor lizard, it is mentioned that a monitor lizard can be up to 5 feet long and weigh up to 50 kg. However, since it is a moody animal, relying on it for any planning was risky, and bringing it from 45 km away was not practical. Therefore, the likelihood of using the Yashwanti monitor lizard in this campaign is low.

Astute Warfare Tactics

According to Major General Amardeep Bhardwaj, 'Manoeuvre Warfare' (Astute Warfare Tactics) was used in this battle. In this fight, tactics like checkmate, creating confusion, deceiving, and winning the battle by making a massive hidden attack were used. He considered Shivaji Maharaj as one of the renowned military commanders in the world and gave him 9 out of 10 marks.

The Actual Operation

On the night of February 3/4, 1670, Tanaji Malusare reached the base of the fort with 500 Mavlas. Companies 'A', units 1 and 2 cleared the guards and secured Hanuman Gadhi. The task of Company 'C' was to establish Tanaji's observation post. Units 2 and 3 of Company 'A' beat the animals (horses, bulls) and made them run towards the soldiers' tents. Suddenly, a 'stampede' was created. Before the sleeping Mughals could understand what happened, the animals barged into the tents. Unit 3 set fire to the haystacks using the oil-soaked rags they had brought. Seeing the flames rising suddenly, the Mughal army rushed there.
Meanwhile, Company 'D', with about 200 Mavlas, came up from the Hanuman Gadhi side. The Mughal soldiers were trapped like a 'chicken neck' in the narrow gap between the citadel ramparts and the ravine. Tanaji blocked Udaybhan's fleeing soldiers in this narrow path.

Kalyan Gate and Udaybhan's Entry

Company 'B' started the task of opening the Kalyan gate from the inside. The Mughal guards threw the bunch of keys into the dark, leaving no option but to break the door. Suryaji was waiting outside the Kalyan gate with 500 Mavlas. When Udaybhan received the news of the chaos, he came out with his bodyguards. Seeing the door locked from the outside, he ordered his army to be ready to fight from the inside.
As the door did not open, the Mavlas grew anxious. Tanaji encouraged them: "O braves, the time has come for a heroic death... I know them. Don't be afraid at all... As long as I am here, I won't let anyone die". Finally, the door opened, and with the roar of 'Har Har Mahadev', Suryaji's 500 soldiers entered.

Tanaji and Udaybhan: Hand-to-Hand Combat

In the light of the torches, Tanaji and Udaybhan came face to face. Their swords clashed. Udaybhan changed his stance and held his sword in his left hand. Because Tanaji had practiced with right-handed fighters, his calculations started to fail. At the crucial moment, the straps of the handle of Tanaji's shield became loose. Udaybhan's blow landed on Tanaji's left arm, and he lost his balance and fell. Suryaji rushed to help. As Udaybhan's attention was diverted, Tanaji quickly got up and struck a powerful blow, bringing Udaybhan down. But while falling, Udaybhan's sword blow hit Tanaji's chest.

The Fort is Won, But...

Tanaji told his soldiers, "Show their commander Udaybhan dead... Make them agree to surrender by dropping their weapons and vacating the fort...!". Tanaji breathed his last. The Mughal army surrendered and vacated the fort. A large fire was lit to signal Shivaji Maharaj at Rajgad that the fort had been won. Thus, by using highly astute and daring warfare tactics, Tanaji Malusare won Sinhagad but sacrificed his own life.