The Battle of Tarain (1191-1192) : Medieval Indian History

Muhammad Ghori lost the first important battle to Prithviraj Chouhan. This Battle of Tarain was fought between the forces of Muhammad Ghori and Prithviraj Chouhan in 1191 A.D. The Hindu rulers prevailed over Muslim Sultan for the first time, which encouraged other Hindu tribes to rise against the Muslim conquerors.

To avenge this defeat he made serious preparations and gathered an army of 1,20,000 men. He came with this large force to Lahore via Peshawar and Multan. He sent a message to Prithviraj asking him to acknowledge his supremacy and become a Muslim.

Many Hindu rajas and chieftains also joined him. In the ensuing Second Battle of Tarain in 1192, Muhammad Ghori thoroughly routed the army of Prithiviraj, who was captured and killed.

The second battle of Tarain was a decisive battle. It was a major disaster for the Rajputs.

The whole Chauhan kingdom now lay at the feet of the invader. The first Muslim kingdom was thus firmly established in India at Ajmer and a new era in the history of India began.

After his brilliant victory over Prithiviraj at Tarain, Muhammad Ghori returned to Ghazni leaving behind his favourite general Qutb-nd din Aibak to make further conquests in India.

Aibak consolidated his position in India by occupying places like Delhi and Meerut. Kanauj was occupied by the Muslims after the battle of Chandawar. The battles of Tarain and Chandawar contributed to the establishment of Turkish rule in India.