Siege of Dwarasamudra
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| Siege of Dwarasamudra | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Campaigns of Malik Kafur | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Delhi Sultanate | Hoysala Empire | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Malik Kafur |
Veera Ballala III  | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 10,000 | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 0 | Unknown | ||||||
| Ballala promised to pay an annual tribute in the future. Kafur agreed to these terms, and thus the siege of Dwarasamudra was lifted without much violence | |||||||
In late 1310, the Sultan of Delhi Alauddin Khalji sent his slave-general Malik Kafur on an expedition to the southernmost regions of India. In February 1311, Malik Kafur besieged the Hoysala capital Dwarasamudra (present-day Halebidu), and the defending ruler Veera Ballala III surrendered without much resistance. Ballala agreed to pay the Delhi Sultanate an annual tribute, and surrendered a great amount of wealth, elephants and horses.
By 1310, Alauddin Khalji, the Sultan of Delhi controlled large parts of northern India, and had repelled the Mongol invasions. The Yadava and Kakatiya monarchs of Deccan region in southern India were forced to become his tributaries. During the 1310 Siege of Warangal against the Kakatiyas, his slave-general Malik Kafur had learned that the region to the south of the Yadava and Kakatiya kingdoms was also very wealthy. After returning to Delhi, Kafur told Alauddin about this, and expressed his desire to lead an expedition there. Alauddin readily agreed to the proposal. His motive appears to have been plundering, although his courtier Amir Khusrau says that the objective of the expedition was to "spread the light of shariat" in the South.[1]
March to the Hoysala kingdom
On 17 November 1310, the Delhi army led by Malik Kafur marched from Delhi with Alauddin's symbol, the royal canopy.[2] Their first stop was Tankal, a village located on the banks of the Yamuna River; the modern identity of this place is uncertain.[3] Here, the minister of war Khwaja Haji held a review of the army over the next 14 days. The army left Tankal on 2 December 1310, and reached a place called Katihun in 21 stages. The modern identity of this place is also uncertain.[2]
After leaving Katihun, the Delhi army crossed hills, valleys and three rivers, the largest of which was Narmada. After 17 days, it reached a place called Ghargaon, which can be identified with modern Khargone. Here, the Delhi generals encamped for 20 days during which they conducted a second review of the army. In addition, the army was reinforced with 23 elephants sent by the Kakatiya king Prataparudra.[2]
The Delhi army resumed its march on 29 January 1311, and after crossing the Tapti River, reached the Yadava capital Devagiri on 3 February 1311.[2] The Yadava ruler Ramachandra had decorated the city to welcome the army, and had made arrangements to facilitate their onward march. He had ensured that all of the army's necessities, including a variety of clothes and fruits, were available at the local bazaars (markets), at a fair price. He had also arranged for a number of money changers (sarrafs) with gold and silver tankas (coins).[4] Khusrau says that the Muslim soldiers of the Delhi army and the local Hindus interacted peacefully.[5]
After arranging itself in formations and replenishing its stocks at Devagiri, the Delhi army left Devagiri on 7 February 1311. Over the next 5 days, it crossed three rivers: Godavari, Sini (Sina), and Pahnur (or Binhur, identified with Bhima). It halted at Bandri (identified with Pandharpur), the fief of Ramachandra's general Parasuram Deva, who had been instructed by his master to support the Delhi army. With Parasuram's assistance, Malik Kafur learned the following details: Taking advantage of a fight between the Pandya brothers Vira and Sundara, the Hoysala monarch Veera Ballala III had left his capital to plunder cities in the Pandya territory. However, after learning about the Delhi army's presence in the Deccan, he had decided to return to his capital.[4]
