India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) - Keith Bain [472]
Built in the 7th century, it remained the capital of Mewar until 1568, when the capital shifted to Udaipur. During this time Chittaurgarh was ravaged three times, but the story of the first sacking that took place in 1303 during the reign of Rana Ratan Singh is perhaps the most romantic (see “Battling for a Glimpse of Beauty,” below).
Chittaurgarh returned to Rajput rule in 1326 and the Mewar enjoyed 2 centuries of prosperity before it was again laid siege to, this time by Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat. To save the life of the Rajput heir Udai Singh, his nursemaid Panna Dai sacrificed her own infant son, leaving him as a decoy for the murderous sultan and spiriting the tiny heir away to Kumbhalgarh Fort. The women and children of Chittaurgarh committed jauhar (mass ritual suicide) while their men died in battle.
When, at the age of 13, Udai was reinstated at Chittaurgarh, he searched in earnest for a new site for the capital, building Udaipur on the shores of Lake Pichola. Eight years later, the Mughal emperor Akbar, trying to contain the arrogance of Udai Singh—who poured such contempt on Jai (of Jaipur) Singh’s collaboration with the emperor—attacked Chittaurgarh. This time 30,000 Rajput lives were lost, and the women and children again flung themselves on the flames rather than be captured by the Muslims. Chittaurgarh was given back to the Rajputs in 1616, much of it in ruins, but by this time the royal family was comfortably ensconced in Udaipur, and the fort was never lived in again.
Battling for a Glimpse of Beauty
It is said that the rapacious sultan Allauddin Khilji laid siege to the fort because he had become obsessed with tales of the legendary beauty of the Maharana (or Rana) Ratan Singh’s queen, Rani Padmini. He promised to withdraw, provided Singh allow him an opportunity to lay eyes on her—an outrageous demand considering that a strange man’s gaze was tantamount to the defilement of a Rajput royal woman. But in the spirit of compromise, Singh reluctantly agreed to present him with her reflection in the lotus pond that lay below the palace’s women’s quarters. The sultan used this opportunity to betray the king, ambushing and capturing him on his departure. The next day a bereft Padmini sent word to the sultan that she would give herself to him in return for her husband and the withdrawal of his troops. She then descended through the seven pols (gates), surrounded by what appeared to be her maids-of-honor—Singh’s troops, disguised as women. Singh was rescued from the sultan’s camp, but the ensuing battle cost the lives of some 7,000 of Singh’s men—a crippling loss. When it was clear that the Rajputs would be defeated, the funeral pyres were lit, and Padmini and 13,000 women and children committed jauhar, flinging themselves onto the flames, after which the last of Singh’s men went to meet certain death below the ramparts.
The fort is approached through seven massive pols, or gates—look for the chhatri (cenotaph) of the chivalrous Jaimal and his cousin Kala near Bhairon Pol. Jaimal was seriously wounded defending Chittaur against Emperor Akbar but he refused to give up and was carried back into battle on the shoulders of Kala, where both were slain. At Ram Pol is a memorial to Phatta who, at 16, having lost his father in battle and witnessed the deaths of his sword-wielding mother and young wife on the battlefield, led his saffron-robed men to certain death while the