Siege of Chittorgarh | |||||||||
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Part of List of wars between the Kingdom of Mewar and the Delhi Sultanate | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
Delhi Sultanate | Guhila dynasty | ||||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
Alauddin Khalji |
Ratnasimha Rana Lakhan † Ari Singh †[1] | ||||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||||
Unknown | 30,000 killed.[2] | ||||||||
Location of the Siege of Chittorgarh |
The siege of Chittorgarh occurred in 1303, when the Khalji ruler Alauddin Khalji (r. 1296–1316) captured and sacked the Chittor Fort, toppling the Guhila king Ratnasimha, after an eight-month-long siege. The conflict has been described in several legendary accounts, including the historical epic poem Padmavat, which claims that Alauddin's motive was to obtain Ratnasimha's beautiful wife Padmini; though this legend is considered historically inaccurate by most historians. Alauddin ordered the fort to be pelted with stones from his siege engines (munjaniqs). When the fort was stormed, Rajput women committed Jauhar while most of the warriors died defending the fort. The city of Chittor was completely sacked by Alauddin's army and several temples were desecrated.