Prithvi Raj Chauhan (1168-1192 CE; pronounced: [prɪ.t̪ʰvɪ.ˈraːdʒ tʃaʊ.

ˈhaːn]) Prithvi Raj

Chauhan was a king of the Hindu Rajput Chauhan (Chauhamana) dynasty, who ruled a
kingdom in northern India during the latter half of the 12th century.

Prithvi Raj Chauhan was the second last Hindu king to sit upon the throne of Delhi (the
last Hindu king being Hemu). He succeeded to the throne in 1179 CE at the age of 11,
and ruled from the twin capitals of Ajmer and Delhi. He controlled much of Rajasthan
and Haryana, and unified the Rajputs against Muslim invasions. His elopement with
Samyukta (Sanyogita), the daughter of Jai Chandra, the Gahadvala king of Kannauj, is a
popular romantic tale in India, and is one of the subjects of the Prithviraj Raso, an epic
poem composed by Prithviraj's court poet and friend, Chand Bardai.

Prithvi Raj fought and defeated the Afghan ruler Muhammad Ghori in the First Battle of
Tarain in 1191 CE but was then immediately defeated at the Second Battle of Tarain in
1192 CE. After his defeat, India was open to invasion by the Mahmud Ghori, and Delhi
came under the control of him. Qila Rai Pithora in Delhi, also known as Pithoragarh, is
named after him.Contents [hide]
1 Childhood
2 Ancestors
3 Conquests
4 Elopement with Sanyogita
5 Entry of Mohammad Shahab ud-din Ghori and his conquests
6 References
7 See also

[edit]
Childhood

Prithvi Raj Chauhan was born on the 12th of Jyestha in Gujrata, the son of Someswara
and Karpuradevi. As per the planetary positions, his birth was in V. 1223 (or -57 for CE,
hence 1166). In V. 1234, Someswara died and Karpuradevi became regent. Prithviraj
assumed the reins of administration from circa V.1237/1180 CE and soon found himself
engaged in a number of wars.

When Someswara ascended the throne of Ajmer and Sakambhari around V. 1226 his
family accompanied him there.

Coin of Prithiviraja of Chauhans or Chahamanas of Ajmer/Delhi, circa 1179 AD -1192

AD.
Obv: Rider bearing lance on caparisoned horse facing right.Devnagari Legends : Sri
Prithvi raja deva'. Rev: Recumbent bull facing left ,trishula on bulls rump,Devnagari
Legends : Asavari / Sri Samanta deva.

[edit]
Ancestors
Vigraharaj, Prithviraj III’s uncle, killed his father to usurp the throne of Ajmer. The
parricide did not rule long. His brother Vigraharaj IV appears to have led an uprising and
slain him in a battle. As per Prithvirajvijaya, he was the only king of Sakambari clan who
didn’t attain heaven.

Vigraharaj is accredited to the capture of Delhi and Hansi from the Tomaras. The
conquest of Delhi turned the Chauhans into an Indian empire. His first fight against the
mlecchas was in self-defense. The Moslem ruler Hammira invited Vigraharaj into
submitting his authority. His Prime Minister Sridhara thought it better to buy the invader,
but the Chauhan considered it disgraceful. He had decided to protect his friends, the
Brahamanas, and sacred places. He not only defeated the attacker but also recovered lost
territory from other Ghaznavites (Mohammad from Ghazni had raided Gujarat half a
century earlier and plundered the Somnath temple).

Vigraharaj IV was succeeded by his son Amaragangeya, but he didn’t rule long. He was
slain by Prthvibhata or Prithviraj Chauhan II. Prthvibhata died before the end of the
Vikrama year V.1226., probably without leaving any issue. The ministers offered the
throne to Someswara, the only surviving son of Arnoraja, who was at that time in Gujarat.

[edit]
Conquests

Kaimbhasa was the chief minister during the regency. As per Raso, he was slain by
Chauhan upon his return from hunting he found Kaimbhasa in the room of his favourite
concumbine. As per Prabhandha, he was killed by Chauhan because Chauhan’s ears had
been poisoned to believe that Kaimbhasa was responsible for repeated attacks by
Muslims in India.

Nagarjuna, one of the enemies of Prithviraj II (Prithviraj III’s cousin) decided to take
advantage of the king’s tenderness and inexperience. He captured the town of Godapura.
Prithviraj II marched against him with a large army and laid siege of Godapura.
Nagarjuna managed to escape the fort but his wife, mother and followers fell into the
hands of the victor with a large amount of booty. Devabhata, an officer of Nagarjuna, and
the remaining soldiers under him, were soon killed and their heads were hung across the
gate of the fort of Ajmer.

Prithviraj III captured the city of Mahoba, the capital of Chandel monarch Paramala, after
a stiff fight with Alha and Udal who were also aided by army from Kannauj.

On one of his many wars, Chauhan led a night attack on Dharavarsa Paramara of Abu.
The attack is said to be a failure as he was defeated by the warrior brothers Alha-Udal.

Legends of Mahoba, a small town in modern Uttar Pradesh even say that Alha was given
boon of immortality by goddess Sharada.
[edit]
Elopement with Sanyogita

The story as given by Chandra Bardai, Abdul Fazl and Chandrashekhara, the author of
Surjanacharita, states that Prithviraj, who loved the beautiful daughter of Jayachandra of
Kanauj and had his passion fully reciprocated, succeeded in carrying her off from a
swayamvara to which he had deliberately not been invited on account of his rivalry for
the overlordship of India. His samantas covered the eloping pair’s flight, engaged the
forces pursuing them and fell fighting to the last for their beloved master. Not many were
the heroes who returned to the Chauhan capital where Prithviraj duly married the princess
and spent most of his time in the company of the new Queen. ... leaders of units or
regiments of Prithviraj’s cavalry swooped almost unexpectedly on the Gahadwala capital
while Jayachandra was engaged in certain religious rites and carried off the princess as
desired by Prithviraj III.

[edit]
Entry of Mohammad Shahab ud-din Ghori and his conquests

Ghori was appointed as the governor of Ghazni 1173 CE by elder brother Ghiyas-ud-din
Muhammad and led his first expedition to India in 1175, nearly two years after
Prithviraj's accession. He captured Multan from the Karamitah and took Uchcha from the
Rajput ruler after having him poisoned by his queen. He advanced against Gujarat in
1178. By V. 1235, he reached Nadol and captured it. Due to the impending danger to the
Indian states, upon arrival of Ghori's messenger suggesting that Chauhan pay homage or
tribute to Ghori, Prithviraj saw it as a good time to prepare for a war.

The Gujaratis needed help, but they had none from Prithviraj because of the advice of his
Chief Minister Kadamvasa. Taking both the Gujaratis and Moslems alike as their
enemies, the Chauhans of Ajmer were rather glad to see they were fighting and
destroying each other. Due to a serious reverse sustained by Ghori at the hands of the
Gujaratis in the battle of Kasahadra, the Chauhans would not taste immediately the fruit
of their policy. Chauhan’s failure to help the Gujaratis proved in subsequent years
detrimental not merely to the cause of Chauhans but also that of the Hindu nation as a
whole.

In 1181, Ghori marched to Sialkot and built a fort there. Five years later, he made himself
the master of Punjab by treacherously seizing Khusrao Malik, the last Ghaznavite ruler of
Lahore. From this new base, he proceeded to the conquest of further Indian territory and
naturally soon came into conflict with Chauhan.

The campaign leading to Ghori’s first great battle with Chauhan began in the winter of
1190-91. Advancing from either Ghazni or his new base at Lahore, Ghori captured
Tabarhindah in the dominions of Chauhan and put it in the charge of Qazi Ziya-ud-din of
Tulak and a garrison of 1200 horsemen, asking them to hold it until he returned there
after a period of eight months. Before he could leave the fortress, he received the
alarming news that Prithviraj and Govindaraj Chauhan were marching towards the fort.
He therefore set out to meet the Chauhan forces and encountered them at Tarain, a village
in the Karnal district - the very field of Kurukshetra where the Pandavas and Kauravas
fought each other and decided the fate of their country in their days of yore.