Battle of Khadki
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The Battle of Khadki (Kirkee) took place on November 5, 1817 between the forces of the English East India Company and those of Bajirao II the Peshwa of the Maratha Confederacy. The battle took place after 4 o'clock that afternoon.
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[edit] Events of the Battle and their Locations
A detachment commanded by Lt. Col. Burr advanced from near the village of Khadki near Pune in a southwestern direction. It swung a little to the right to meet up with a battalion under Captain Ford arriving south from Dapodi via Bopodi (near the confluence of Pavana and the Mula rivers). His detachment was placed in Poona for protecting the Peshwa. Before the battle, Moropant Dixit, Peshwa's commander convinced of the success of attempts to bribe the Company troops had offered to favour Ford, his friend, after the battle as he was confident of Peshwa's military success in it. Ford had refused these overtures and was to join the rest of East India Company's troops.
Ford's battalion threw back its right wing and repulsed the Peshwa forces somewhere in the eastern part of the current University of Pune campus. It is conjectured that this event took place by a brook (probably the brook running behind the garden along the road by the Ladies Hostel) from accounts of one Mr. Jadhavrao of Malagaon who had visited the Governor's residence (currently Main Building) in the 1860s or 1870s. This gentleman had taken part in the battle and recounted its incidents while visiting the Governor (See the reference of Mary Frere below). From the map given here, it appears that the battalion made its way south from near the north-east corner of current day Vibhagiya Phal Sanshodhan Kendra (Divisional Fruit Research Centre), Aundh which borders the Mula river on the south. A small lane actually takes one south through the fields till the boundary wall adjoining Aundh Road. Ford perhaps went precisely this way (up to a few metres by the sides). If one crosses Aundh road at this point, one would cross over into the campus of the University of Pune behind the NCRA-TIFR complex inside. Following a straight line south, one passes through a densely wooded area past the Khadki Gate of the University and further to Bodh-Vihar before the Ladies Hostel. At Bodh Vihar, the battalion seems to have thrown back its right wing. The brook thought to be the one mentioned in Jadhavrao's account lies nearby and corroborates well with this field investigation. Ford's battalion linked up with Burr's forces at a place probably near the point where the current Mutha left bank canal crosses from Agricultural College into Khadki Cantonment.
The Maratha cavalry made its first charge beginning from a location which would be close to the current day road leading from Police Ground square to Saakhar Sankul (opposite the PMT Depot of Na. Taa. Waadi). The lines were extended further up north across the railway line of today and the Mumbai-Pune Highway into the fields and further into Wakdewadi. The cavalry charge has been vividly described by James Grant Duff which is is well known to historians. Duff observed the battle from a position on the hills of Bhamburda. This location is likely to have been some place on the hill faces behind the present day Hanuman Nagar or Pandav Nagar. The Jaree-pat (Peshwa's flag) mentioned in the map also refers to the detachment which carried it. The Jaree-pat charged the 7th Bombay Native Infantry, which formed a part of Burr's detachment, somewhere near the present Range Hills colony from the north west part of the Agricultural College Campus as did the Peshwa horse which is known to have floundered on account of an unknown morass. Burr who had apparently suffered a stroke before he proceeded from Khadki, led his forces despite being ill. Both his aides were shot by his side and a gunshot went through his hat.
The Khadki Cantonment boundary turns North suddenly as one goes further westward. This is probably where the Infantry was actually attacked. The University has an internal road running from the main gate to the Main Building. It looks very similar in shape to the formation of the Peshwa's troops present in that area. This is perhaps not a coincidence given that the troops had taken position there. Moropant Dixit, Peshwa's commander was killed somewhere near this formation, ironically by firing from the battalion of his friend, Ford. He was seen encouraging his troops before the battle began and commandeered the troops till the end. The Peshwa had sent an emissary to him with the order of not commencing the battle. He had seen the emissary from a distance and guessed his mission. Before the emissary reached him, Moropant had given the order to commence.
The Peshwa's cavalry, its charge broken by now, made its way up North probably via the current day University campus towards Khadki where it was repulsed by guns. It is known that a battery existed at the site of the current day Queen Mary Technical Institute and it is likely that the guns were those. However, by local knowledge, the battery at the Institute was supposed to have been the Peshwa's. This matter has not been resolved. A Portuguese battalion commanded by one De Pinto took part in the battle against the East India Company. The church in Wakdewadi associated with "Father Pinto" was constructed after this action at Khadki.
[edit] Significance of the battle
The battle marked the end of the Maratha polity. A few battles were fought in sequel against the Bhosale faction at Sitabardi in Nagpur and against the Pindaris. But the Peshwa, the executive of the Maratha Confederacy was militarily defeated in the Battle of Khadki. Another brief skirmish occurred after 5 November at Yerawda following which the Peshwa fled Pune. The East India Company took over the Shaniwar Wada, the seat of the Peshwa on 17 November 1817. By 1818, the Peshwa surrendered to the East India Company.
[edit] Some more conjectures on locations
After the battle, the East India Company troops crossed the river at a place called Yelloura ford which is still unidentified. It is guessed that the place was probably where the bund of Bund Garden exists today. "Yelloura" is perhaps a corruption of Yerawda of today. This corroborates well with the mention of a nearby hill in Blacker's account (see references below). Also, the morass which played a crucial role in the battle is unidentified as of today. It is expected to have existed in the Range Hills Colony, the Military Station Depot of Khadki or near the Symbiosis Institute of Management or towards College of Agriculture. An account of the battle by Grant Duff is well known to historians. Grant Duff observed the battle from a position on the hills of Bhamburda. This location is likely to have been some place on the hill faces behind the present day Hanuman Nagar or Pandav Nagar.
[edit] Viewing the Battle Field
One can have a good view of most of the battle area while travelling by train between Shivajinagar and Dapodi stations. Important features like Chatushshrungi temple, Range Hills Colony and Agricultural College can be easily seen in one go. One can also view the battlefield from thesouth-west by climbing atop the hill face above Chatushshrungi temple (footwear is allowed on the steps which take you around and above the shrine onto the narrow paths which lead you further up). This view is the best by far. The Ganeshkhind hillock, University Main Building, Range Hills and Agricultural College are clearly seen in a single view besides other features.
[edit] Anecdotes
There seem to be no clear references to any detailed incident of the battle in traditional folklore. However, one particular belief held by a few old residents of the area near Pune University Main Gate has been noted in the field investigation. Several modern day incidents near the Main Gate have been attributed to the spirit of an English soldier who was killed near the place. The legend is specific in that the spirit is that of an English soldier 'whose head was cut off' and that the ghost haunts the banyan tree behind the PMT bus stop in the University Campus near the Main Gate. With no known records of other violent incidents having taken place in the area this belief is perhaps related to the battle.
[edit] References
- Memoirs of the operations of the British Army in India during the Mahratta war of 1817,1818 and 1819, London 1821- by Lt. Col. Valentine Blacker.
- J.M.Campbell, Gazeteer of the Bombay Presidency. Vol XVIII Part III Pune District, 1885.
- Pune:Queen of the Deccan - J Diddee and S. Gupta (2000) publ. Elephant Design Pvt. Ltd., Kothrud, Pune, INDIA. ISBN 81-87693-00-2
- There is an account of the battle from the "Peshwyaanchee Bakhar" (the official record of the reign of the Peshwas). It was written in the Modi script (translations are available) and it does not include maps. The fact that the 'Zaree Pat' staff broke prior to the battle has been recorded here, that being perceived as a bad omen. There is also a mention of the morass which obstructed the cavalry charge and that the Peshwa watched the battle unfolding from Parvati Hill with the help of a telescope.
- The morass which caused the Maratha cavalry charge to break is likely to have survived till today. Results of field work being carried out presently will be reported shortly to Bharat Itihas Sanshodhak Mandal, Pune, India.
- A History of the Marathas - James Grant Duff (1826) London
- Territories conquered from the Peishwa- Mountstuart Elphinstone
- Konkan:From the earliest to 1818 A.D. - V.G. Khoprekar
- History of Poona and Deccan in a Perspective - Archur Crawford
- Medieval Maratha Country - A.R. Kulkarni
- Bombay and the Marathas Up to 1774 - W.J. Desai
- The temple indicated as 'pagoda' in the map above is not the Chatushshrungi temple as earlier thought. At the location there exists a Ganesh temple named "Paarvatinandan" which is known to have been regularly visited by the Peshwas before their campaigns. Diplomatic correspondence between the Peshwa and Mountstuart Elphinstone days before the battle refer to a 'pooja' (worship programme) intended to be performed by the Peshwa at a local temple justifying the troop build up around Ganeshkhind.
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