Maharana Pratap

The Story

When Akbar demanded the submission of Mewar, the other Rajput houses had made peace with the empire — but Pratap, crowned in 1572, refused. He prepared for war instead, and in 1576 the Mughal army under Man Singh met him at the pass of Haldighati.

The battle of Haldighati was one of the most desperate of history of Bhārat: Pratap's outnumbered Rajputs charged the Mughal centre, and he himself attacked Man Singh's position — but his horse Chetak was wounded and the day was lost. The king escaped into the hills, and for years he lived in the wilderness, eating forest roots, while the Mughals held his capital.

Through years of guerrilla war he slowly rebuilt, winning back fort after fort — including the great fort of Kumbhalgarh — until Mewar was free again, and Akbar never conquered it. He died in 1597 of a hunting injury, having kept his word: he had never bowed. His son submitted to the Mughals after his death, but Pratap's refusal remains the eternal symbol of Rajput independence.