Battle of Rakshasbhuvan
{{Short description|1763 battle of the Maratha–Nizam War}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{infobox military conflict
| name = Battle of Rakshasbhuvan
| partof = Maratha–Nizam War
| date = 10 August 1763
| place = Rakshasbhuvan dam, Godaveri, India
| combatant1 = {{flag|Maratha Confederacy}}
| combatant2 = {{flagicon image|Asafia flag of Hyderabad State.svg}} Nizam of Hyderabad
| commander1 = 25px Madhavrao I
25px Raghunath Rao
25px Malhar Rao Holkar{{Cite book |last=Ramakrishna Gunesh|first=Burway |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.35750/page/n198/mode/1up?view=theater |title=Life Of Subhedar Malhar Rao Holkar|date=1930 |pages=142 |language=en}}
25px Damaji Rao Gaekwad{{Cite book |last=Ramakrishna Gunesh|first=Burway |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.35750/page/n198/mode/1up?view=theater |title=Life Of Subhedar Malhar Rao Holkar|date=1930 |pages=142 |language=en}}
| commander2 = {{flagicon image|Asafia flag of Hyderabad State.svg}} Asaf Jah II
{{flagicon image|Asafia flag of Hyderabad State.svg}} Vitthal Sundar{{KIA}}
{{flagicon image|Asafia flag of Hyderabad State.svg}}Vinayak das{{KIA}}
{{flagicon image|Asafia flag of Hyderabad State.svg}} Murad khan{{POW}}{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.35153/page/29/mode/2up | title=Peshwa Madhav Rao 1 | date=11 February 2024 }}
| strength1 =
| strength2 =
| casualties1 = Unknown
| conflict = Battle of Rakshasbhuvan
| campaignbox = {{Campaigns of Madhavrao 1}}
}}
The Battle of Rakshasbhuvan in India was fought on 10 August 1763. After the defeat of the Maratha Confederacy at the Battle of Panipat, their rivals started seizing the opportunity to recover their losses in the past at the hands of Marathas. Particularly, the Nizam of Hyderabad wanted to recover territory he had lost at the Battle of Udgir. He decided to launch a war on the Marathas.{{Cite book |last=Stewart Gordon |url=http://archive.org/details/the-marathas-1600-1818-cambridge-history-of-india-vol.-2-part-4 |title=New Cambridge History of India: The Marathas - Cambridge History of India (Vol. 2, Part 4) |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1993 |isbn=9781139055666 |location=Cambridge}}{{Cite book |last=Jaques |first=Tony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EbLOEAAAQBAJ |title=Dictionary of Battles and Sieges: A Guide to 8,500 Battles from Antiquity through the Twenty-first Century [3 volumes] |date=2006-11-30 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA |isbn=978-0-313-02799-4 |pages=838 |language=en}}
Battle
As Nizam Ali made his way towards Aurangabad, the Peshwa's army followed closely behind. However, Nizam Ali crossed the Godavari River with a portion of his forces, leaving Vithal Sundar in charge of the remaining troops and all the artillery and baggage on the south bank. Rakshasbhuvan was situated on this side of the river. Raghunath Rao, sensing an opportunity, decided to prevent Vithal Sundar from crossing. Meanwhile, Janoji Bhonsle left Vithal Sundar's side under the pretext of not being paid his troops. Raghunath Rao quickly marched to attack Vithal Sundar at Rakshasbhuvan. The ensuing battle, known as the Battle of Rakshasbhuvan, was a decisive victory for Madhav Rao's forces. Vithal Sundar was severely wounded and killed in the battle, along with another prominent commander Vinayak das on Nizam Ali's side. Another prominent commander Murad Khan was captured by the Marathas and sent to Asaf Jah to cede territories worth crores and some forts. This battle marked a significant setback for Nizam Ali's army as they lost a large number of troops and valuable resources.{{Cite book |last=Banerjee |first=Anil Chandra |url=http://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.35153 |title=Peshwa Madhav Rao 1 |date=1943}}
Truce
A truce was reached and a treaty was signed at Aurangabad, whereby the Nizam lost 50 lacs territory including Bhalki and except Telangana and the eastern part of the Godavari river in Maharashtra. They gained the Bidar and Naldurg forts in exchange for Bhalki.{{page number needed|date=November 2023}}
References
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{{MarathaEmpire}}
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Category:Battles involving the Maratha Confederacy