THE BATTLE In 1191, Muhammad Ghori proceeded towards western Punjab through Khyber pass and captured the Tabarhindah Fort probably present day in Bhatinda ,which was presumably under Chahamana control. The Ghurid campaign that led to the first battle of Tarain may have started in 1190, but the actual battle was most probably fought in the winter of 1191 CE. Prithviraj refused to agree to the Ghurid envoy’s terms, which according to Hasan Nizami, included converting to Islam and accepting the Ghurid suzerainty. Mu’izz ad-Din then decided to invade the Chahamana kingdom.
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The Chahamana-sponsored text Prithviraja Vijaya, which describes Mu’izz ad-Din as an “evil” beef-eating “demon”, portrays the envoy as an extremely ugly person whose “ghastly white” complexion made him appear to be suffering from a skin disease, and whose speech was like “the cry of wild birds”. Muhammad Ghori sent his ambassador – the chief judge Qiwam-ul Mulk Ruknud Din Hamza – to the court of Prithviraj, to persuade the Indian king to come to a peaceful agreement. Tajul-Ma’asir, a chronicle by the Muslim writer Hasan Nizami, describes the envoy as a “prominent dignitary”, who conveyed Mu’izz ad-Din’s message to Prithviraj “in a refined and graceful manner”, using “elegant language”. BACKGROUND OF THE BATTLE The western Punjab was already annexed by Muhammad Ghori but the province of eastern Punjab were within the control of Prithviraj Chauhan. In 1186,he attacked Punjab and defeated Khusru Malik and added Malik’s empire to his territory. In 1178, he invaded the chalukya Kingdom in present day Gujarat and the northern Rajasthan but suffered defeat in the battle of Kayadara from the ruler of Gujarat, Bhimdev Solanki II. Muhammad Ghori captured Multan in 1175 and occupied whole of Sind in his subsequent expedition. After having made his position strong and secure at Ghazni, Muhammad Ghori decided to attack in India. After his death, Ghori defeated the Turks and laid foundation of Ghurid empire. MUHAMMAD GHORI Muhammad Gazni established the Ghaznavi empire with capital of Ghazni. His capital was located at Ajaymeru or Ajmer. He controlled much of the present day Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi and some parts of Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. He ruled Sapadalaksha, the traditional Chahamana territory, in present day north – western India.
PRITHVIRAJ CHAUHAN Prithviraja III, popularly known as Prithviraj Chauhan or Rai Pithora was king from the Chahamana (Chauhan ) dynasty. Muhammad Ghori avenged this defeat at the SECOND BATTLE OF TARAIN a year later. The army of the Muhammad Ghori was defeated by the Rajput army of Prithviraj Chauhan. The battle was fought near the town of Tarain (Taraori), near Thanesar in present day Haryana. The FIRST BATTLE OF TARAIN was fought between the Ghurids, a Turkish tribe, led by Mu’izz al-din Muhammad or Muhammad Ghori and the ruler of Ajmer, Prithviraj Chauhan III and his allies.
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INTRODUCTION THE BATTLE OF TARAIN also known as THE BATTLE OF TARAORI where series of two battles was fought in 11 A.D.