The First Battle of Panipat was one of India’s most significant battles. It was fought between the forces of Babur and Ibrahim Lodhi on the sun-baked plains of Panipat. Babur, with a smaller force, skillfully used artillery and fast light cavalry to defeat Lodi’s vast army and establish the Mughal Empire in India.
April 21, 1526. On an exceptionally hot Indian summer, two armies faced off on the sun-baked fields of Panipat, just 70 kilometers North West of Delhi. The clash of arms that followed would last just six hours, but its impact would shape the nation for the next 300 years.
The story behind that epic clash began when Zahir-ud-Din Mohammed—or Babur as history remembers him—embarked on his quest for an empire. He was just 13 when his father, the ruler of Fergana, died, and he was hastily thrust on the throne. With that began his induction into the power play of Central Asian politics.
Over the next decade and a half, he was pushed out of Fergana, recaptured it, captured Samarkand, lost both, and then captured Kabul in 1504, which finally gave him a base. From there, he cast his eyes covetously on India. Like his ancestors, Timur Lane and Chenghis Khan, he launched repeated raids into that rich, undefended land, returning each time with treasures and experiences.
His raids gave him a glimpse of the vast potential of India. His moment came when he was invited by Daulat Khan, the Governor of Punjab, to attack India and overthrow Ibrahim Lodhi, the weak, ineffectual ruler who sat on the throne of Delhi. Ibrahim Lodhi was a scion of the ruling Lodhi dynasty, but had turned many of his own nobility and generals against him through his high-handedness. When Daulat Khan’s invitation reached Babur, he found the temptation of Hindustan irresistible and made plans to come, not just to raid, but to rule.
He launched his first expedition in 1524. It was a disaster. His forces were defeated in the initial battles near Lahore itself. He fell out with Daulat Khan, and in a pique, he returned to Kabul. But that expedition taught him valuable lessons about his own weaknesses, his adversary and the conditions he would have to fight in. He returned the next year, and this time he was better prepared. He had built up an army of around 30,000 battle-hardened warriors, largely cavalry, who were highly trained in the concepts of fire and move. Armed with double curved, composite bows, they could fire on the move and outranged their opponents by over 70 yards. Best of all, in his wagon train, he carried an artillery park of around two dozen kazans, or heavy mortars, around 40-50 zarbzans or light cannons, and around 1,000 flintlocks. On the strength of his artillery, he would forge an empire.
Mughal Cavalry with a double curved bow
Babur moved slowly from Kabul in November 1525. He crossed the Hindu Kush Mountains, the Chenab, Jhelum and Sutlej and reached Panipat by the end of March 1526. By then, the vast army of Ibrahim Lodhi had already encamped in the vicinity of Panipat and was waiting for him. What is surprising is that Ibrahim Lodhi allowed the invader to come so far. He should have engaged Babur at the Hindu Kush Mountains, or at any of the rivers he had to cross en route. The threat was virtually at the doorstep of Delhi when he decided to confront it.
Babur halted a little to the north of Panipat and established a defensive position using the town to cover one flank and some low hills to cover the other. In between, he established a defensive line along a dried-up river bed, which he converted into a ditch. Along the ditch, he lined up his wagon carts, chained in pairs. Gaps of 60- 70 yards were strategically placed through which his precious cannon could fire. On the flanks were larger gaps of around 150-200 yards through which his cavalry could sally. Behind that defensive line, he marshalled his forces and waited.
For three weeks, both armies faced off, each waiting for the other to make the first move. None wanted to be the first to attack. Encounters were common as both sides skirmished virtually on a daily basis, to gauge their opponent. Then, on the night of April 19, Babur launched a large raid with around 5,000 men on the Afghan camp. The raid was a disaster. The raiding parties started late, moved in an uncoordinated manner and were detected by the Afghans, who attacked and forced the Mughals to flee, leaving behind over 2,000 dead. Babur, in his memoirs, claims it was a planned move, though in all probability it was just a botched-up raid. But it had its effect. Confident after their easy victory, the Afghans decided to attack the Mughal camp the next day- exactly what Babur hoped they would do.
That morning of April 21, 1526, the armies assembled to the sounds of drums, whistles and gongs. Babur deployed in a classical Turkish formation, with a light screening force ahead, a covering force behind them, and the main force assembled behind the defensive perimeter. Babur himself commanded the centre, (the Kol) with his son Humayun on the right flank (Baranghar) and his most trusted general, Mohammed Mirza, on the left flank (Jaranghar). Light cavalry contingents called Tulaqmas operated on the flanks, and in the rear was the strong reserve – the Iltimish – of around 10,000 heavy cavalry. The ace up his sleeve, his artillery, was deployed behind the wagon line positioned to bring down fire between the gaps. Each gun was carefully concealed and camouflaged to amplify its surprise and shock effect.
The Afghan army lined up in rows of 200-300 extending over 200 files deep. Leading the charge were the time-tested elephants. Surprisingly, the Afghans had not even reconnoitred the area and were not aware of the presence of the ditch or of Babur’s defensive layout. Nor did they have any idea of the cannon they were about to encounter for the first time.
The leading elements of Ibrahim Lodhi’s army encountered the screen and the covering force, which withdrew, drawing the army toward an open field which Babur had selected as his killing area. As they approached Babur’s defensive layout, his guns opened up. The flash and thunder of guns scared the elephants, who panicked and turned to flee, trampling over their own ranks. The gunfire took a heavy toll of the packed ranks, and to compound the effect, Babur sent his light cavalry on both flanks, who fired their arrows at long ranges, wheeled away, returned and fired again, each time causing heavy casualties but not entering into decisive combat.
As the leading elements of Ibrahim Lodhi’s army were being mowed down, the rear was not aware of the carnage ahead and continued pushing forward, compressing the ranks like a concertina. The leading elements could not advance because of the ditch ahead. The entire army was being pushed into a tight knot in which cannons, arrows and gunshot took a deadly toll. Adding to the chaos were the elephants running amok.
With Ibrahim Lodhi’s army trapped inside the killing area, Babur launched his iltimish—his reserve. His 10,000 heavily armed cavalry moved from a flank and tore through the rear of Ibrahim Lodhi’s forces, slashing and cutting their way through the bewildered ranks. Hemmed in from all sides, the Afghan army could neither manoeuvre nor fight. It was carnage. Ibrahim Lodhi made a desperate attempt to break out with 5000 of his personal guard, but was killed himself. His body was discovered after the battle, along with 25-30,000 Afghans who fell in the field of battle. His body was washed and ceremoniously buried. The rest were not so fortunate. Their bodies were decapitated, and a small hillock was made of their severed head as a grisly warning to any future contenders.
The battle
By noon, it was over. Babur himself describes it, “The battle commenced when the sun was spear high and lasted till midday when the enemy was completely broken. The mighty army, in the space of half a day, lay in the dust.” In the space of just six hours, his army had defeated a force almost twice its size and established the Mughal Empire in India. There would be other battles —Khanua, Ghaghra, Chausa, Bigram and many others - before the empire was finally consolidated. These battles too would be fought on the same principles of fire and manoeuvre, and their outcome would be the same. When the cannon smoke cleared, it would be the green flag with a golden lion emblazoned within that would hold sway over the battlefield and rule the country for the next 300 years.