Ahom–Mughal Conflicts - Conflict Inception

Conflict Inception

From the time the Mughals appeared in the north-eastern frontier, a state of indirect rivalry and hostility began between the Mughals and the Ahoms. After the final defeat of Parikshit (1613) the first organised Mughal attack upon Assam was made with a view to conquer that kingdom. It was the outcome of the aggressive imperialism of the Mughals. "A desire for political supremacy and territorial expansion appears to have been the guiding motives of the Mughals." Boundary disputes and the trade rivalries appear to have complicated the situation and political issues precipitated the conflict. After the extinction of the Kamrup monarchy, the Mughals came to regard the territory east of Barnadi up to Singiri as part of the conquered region and hence asserted their political right over it. Ahoms strongly resented this claim. "Moreover the rich natural resources of the Assam valley and the prosperous kingdom of Kamrup in lower Brahmaputra valley, abounding in elephants and aromatic plants excited the cupidity of the Mughals and they were determined to force open the door of Assam."

The first organised open encounter with the Ahom kingdom was the well-deserved punishment meted out by the Ahom government to an unauthorised trader from Mughal India named Ratan Singh. His illicit trade was detected, his goods were confiscated and he was expelled from Assam. The Mughals got the necessary pretext for war and an imperial army was at once detached in 1615 under the command of Abu Bakr and Raja Satrajit of Bhusna. The imperial army advanced towards Barnagar, the old capital of Kamrup and next moved to Hajo and numerous outposts were raised in the surrounding region. In November 1615, Abu Bakr suddenly fell upon Kajali, the Ahom frontier post on the southwest. After a short skirmish, the Ahoms were defeated and leaving their war boats and the fort, they fled. Flushed with easy success the Mughals indulged in a series of aggressive measures against the Ahoms. The Ahom king then fortified the fort of Samdhara with a view to check the advance of the Mughals. Meanwhile the Mughals had reached the confluence of the Brahmaputra and the Bharali facing Samdhara. After a month of inaction the Mughals achieved a great triumph. They transported their horses across the Bharali and made a violent assault on the Ahom stockade on the left bank.The Ahoms thus suffered another discomfiture. The Ahom king sent a strong detachment to the Ahom commanders at Samdhara and exhorted them to fall on the enemy and fight to finish. The Ahoms gained an initial success and reoccupied the stockade at the mouth of Bharali. The imperialists were taken by complete surprise and suffered heavy casualties. Thus in spite of the initial success, the maiden attempt of the Mughals upon Assam ended in a disastrous failure. They suffered a colossal loss in men and money besides military prestige.