The Ahoms are the descendants of the Tai race, who had accompanied the Tai

prince
Sukapha into the Brahmaputra valley in 1228 and ruled the area for six
centuries. Sukapha
and his followers established the Ahom kingdom (1228–1826) and the Ahom
dynasty
ruled and expanded the kingdom till the British gained control of the region
through the
Treaty of Yandabo upon winning the First Anglo-Burmese War in 1826. The
Tibeto-
Burman locals near the Ahoms gave them the name ‘Ahom’.
The Ahoms mostly had cordial relations with every tribe of the region, except
with the Jaintias who kept defying them. Even though the Kacharis were
defiant, they
were not much of a trouble for the Ahoms. The overall Ahom policy towards
their
neighbours was based on four well-known principles of the Indian political
philosophy,
viz., Sama-dana-danda-bheda, i.e., establishment of relations of equal status,
establishment of subservient suzerainty, by awarding punishments and driving
wedges
between neighbours.
The Moamaria rebellion during the 18th century was a conflict between the
Morans,
adherents of the Moamara Sattra, and Ahom kings. Gaurinath Singha, the Ahom
king,
appealed for help of men and materials to the East India Company. In response
to this,
Lord Cornwallis, the Governor General despatched Captain Thomas Welsh with
sepoys
to help Gaurinath.

The Ahom Kingdom is also known as the Kingdom of Assam. It spanned for
nearly 600
years of the history of Assam from 1228 to 1826. Ahom Kingdom was situated
in the
Brahmaputra valley. Sukapha is credited with having established the Ahom
kingdom. He was a
Tai prince from Mong Mao. It started with being a Mong in the upper reaches of
the
Brahmaputra river with its base lying in wet rice cultivation. In the 16th century,
there
was sudden expansion of the kingdom under Suhungmung. At this point the
Ahom Kingdom
turned multi-ethnic. This created a huge effect on both social and political life of
the
people in the Brahmaputra valley. During the phase of the Moamoria rebellion,
the
Ahom kingdom got weak and as a result it was plagued by Burmese invasions.
In the
First Anglo-Burmese War, the Burmese were defeated and had to enter into a
treaty
with the British. The treaty was known as the Treaty of Yandabo 1826. Under
the terms
of the treaty, the East India Company got control of the Ahom Kingdom.

Sukaphaa, is credited with having established the Ahom Kingdom. It is said

that there was a conflict between his kinsmen for which he left behind the
women folks and fled to another place with some of his followers and
unconsciously reached the Patkai range.

In 1215, he left his home country and wandered around for almost 13 years. He
managed to reach the Brahmaputra Valley. When he reached Khamjang he
established small towns which led to the beginning of Ahom rule in Assam.
The ethnic tribes of the Ahoms were the Morons and Boralis. It is said that he
encouraged inter-marriage and was not harsh towards the ethnic tribes. The
Ahom government adopted a policy of conciliation, as well as a policy of
force towards various tribes of the north east. The Ahoms did not interfere too
much in the affairs of the hills. Rather, they
conciliated with the tribes by providing them many types of facilities and
privileges.
However, finding the place unsuitable he left behind the Khamjang area under
one of his nobles and thus moved forward to Namprup, Khanapur and
Daikaorong. He continued to move from one place to another until he found a
suitable place set up his capital.

He set up his capital in Chairido which became the first capital of Ahom. He
tried to settle in the river of Dihing. But he found it unsuitable because of the
floods during the rainy season. He settled in Sinduguri for some time and started
to consolidate his power. He was assisted by his two officers namely, Bar
Gohain and Bura Gohain. Sukhapha died in 1268 AD.

AHOM-MUGHAL CONFLICT (1659)

The history of the Ahoms during the seventeenth century was mainly the history
of the
Ahom-Mughal conflict which arose due to the imperial ambition of the Mughal
emperors
to extend their dominions to east beyond Bengal and if possible to seek routes to
China
and Tibet; at the same time to collect articles such as gold dust, long pepper,
elephant
teeth, musk, and lac, which were valued greatly by the royalty and nobility in
the Mughal courts.

The annexation of the Koch kingdom into the Mughal dominions made the
Ahom
kingdom coterminous. The long reign of Susengpha (1603-41), better known as
Pratap
Singha, was important in the history of Assam in several respects. The Mughal
claim on
the Koch territory to the east of Barnadi and the trading adventures of certain
Mughal
merchants caused conflict and tension along the border leading to the first
serious battle
with the Mughal army and navy at Bharali near Tezpur in which the enemy side
was
completely routed. This was in AD 1616.
It is said that there were 17 wars fought between the Ahoms and the Mughals.

Battle of Sandhara(1615-1639)

The first Mughal-Ahom, Battle of Samdhara took place in 1615 when the
Mughals attacked the Ahoms, then under Pratap Singha. This resulted in a
period of Ahom-Mughal conflicts fluctuating fortunes that ended with the
Treaty of Asurar Ali in 1639.

The next Ahom-Mughal conflict took place during the reign of

Sutamla or Jayadhvaj Singha which was marked by a major invasion of
Assam by the Mughal army headed by Nawab Mir Jumla, governor of
Bengal and the ruler of Assam and Cooch Bihar during the reign of
Mughal emperor Aurangzeb at Delhi. This episode of Ahom Mughal conflict
has been well portrayed in the persian chronicle, Fateha-e-Ibreya or
Tarikh-e- Aashaam.
It is said that luck favoured
Mir Jumla and he was able to occupy Garhgaon, the Ahom capital, before the
beginning of the rainy season. During the time of conflicts, it is said that the
food supplies for the Mughals were cut off. In 1662, Bengal was hit by a famine
this, food supplies could not reach Mughals.
Mir Jhumla fell seriously ill therefore it was impossible for them to come to
conclusion. Nevertheless, they came into conclusion with the signing of the
Treaty of Ghilajarighat on 23rd January, 1663.( It was a humiliating treaty for
the Ahoms).

Battle of Saraighat 1671

Lachit Borphukan is known for his leadership in Battle of Saraighat. He was the
Commander in Chief of the Ahom Kingdom Army.