Buildup to the Battle

1. In 1857, on hearing the news of rebellion at Meerut and other places, the people of the Rewari rose up in revolt.

2. Rao Tula Ram and His cousin Gopal Dev took the lead in Rewari.

3. On l7 May, 1857, Rao Saheb went to the tehsil headquarters at Rewari with four to five hundred followers and deposed the tahsildar and thanedar.

4. They appropriated the cash from the tehsil treasury, took all the government buildings in their possession and proclaimed, under the sanction of Emperor Bahadur Shah, their rule over the pargana of Rewari, Bhora and Shahjahanpur.

5. For their headquarters, they chose Rampura, a small fortified village, one mile south-west of Rewari. Tula Ram, the elder Rao became Raja and Gopal Dev his commander-in-chief.

6. Mughals Delhi fall to the British on September 2O, 1857. Soon after Brigadier-General Showers led out a column (from Delhi) of 1,500 men with a light field battery, 18 two-pounder guns and two small mortars, "to attack and destroy Rao Tula Ram and his follower and to raze his fort (at Rewari)."

7. The column had light skirmish with some Rewari-sowars on October 5 at Pataudi, 37 miles from Delhi. In the words of Hodson, who accompanied the column : "They fired at Our advance and bolted at speed."

8. The column's next attack was direct, on Rewari which was still held by Rao Tula Ram. The situation was serious and the Rao foresaw that a fight with the British forces in the mud fort of Rampura, in the changed circumstances after the fall of Delhi, would result in the complete destruction of his army without any serious loss to the British. So he left his fort before Showers' arrival.



Rampura Fort Falls in Hands of Britishers without Resistance

1. British column reached Rewari on October 6. The fort of Rewari (Rampura) was taken without any opposition. Immediately after the Occupation of the fort of Rewari, Brigadier-General Showers sent a messenger to Tula Ram telling him that if he submitted along with guns and arms, he would be treated on merits. But Tula Ram turned down the inducement. The British authorities at Delhi were alarmed by these developments.

2. They sent a strong column comprising about 1,500 strong under Colonel Gerrard, an officer of conspicuous merit on November 10, 1857. The column reached Rewari three days later. They occupied the abandoned fort of Rampura. Here they were joined by two squadrons of the Carabineers.

3. Col. Gerrard proceeded to Narnaul via Kanaud and reached there in the evening. In the night he was joined by the Haryana Field Force. On November 16, Gerrard marched to Narnaul. As the track was sandy, the column reached Nasibpur, a small village, two miles northwest of Narnaul and halted for a short rest.

4. Pran Sukh Yadav was given charge to create formation of Front and Rear army units. Pran Sukh Yadav was a celebrated commander of Military in Sikh Army. He earlier fought alongside Hari Singh Nalwa. He also fought in both Anglo Sikh Wars.



Aheers attacked British forces in Nasibpur

1. The rebel force, having abandoned their strong fort in the center of the town pounced on them.

2. Rao Tula Ram's first charge by their Front armed unit was irresistible and the British forces scattered before them.

3. The Patiala Infantry and the Multani Horse on the British left were completely disheartened.

4. The whole of the right Bank tied. But at this juncture, the Guides and the Carabineers came to their rescue and saved the situations.

5. The English fire, especially of the artillery was too much for the rebels. The Guides and the Carabineers, under the cover of the artillery fire, made a heavy attack.

6. Next, the 1st Bengal Fusiliers swooping upon the weak rebel Artillery, captured some of their guns. This encouraged the British cavalry on the right and they pressed through the Indian ranks and successfully overpowered them on right and in the center.

7. But soon the situation took an Unexpected turn as the Rear Unit attacked and Col. Gerrand, the British Commandant, was mortally wounded by a musket ball, with the result that the British too were demoralized.

8. Taking full a advantage of the circumstances, Rao Tula Ram swooped down upon them. The British could not stand the charge and the Multani Horse fled away in bewilderment. They recaptured their guns and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. The right and the left wings of the British forces were thrown into confusion.



Britishers started Heavy Bombardment

1. Appreciating the gravity of the situation Major Caulfield, the officiating British Commandant, ordered his artillery to start heavy bombardment and his cavalry and infantrymen to charge straight on with full force in to their front ranks. Rao Tula Ram's forces fought back furiously and stood their grounds.

2. The British artillery fire, nevertheless, broke their backbone and split their forces into two parts-one engaged in the close quarter battle and the other fleeing to go out of the range of the British guns. Meanwhile Kishan Singh and Ram Lal, the two best commanders, received musket shots and died.

3. This disheartened Pran Sukh Yadav and Rao Tula Ram's forces and they retreated. The British resumed advance until they came to a dry bed of a stream flowing between Nasibpur and Narnaul. The British guns were unable to cross the stream owing to sand, so they diverged to the right and took up a position near the Horse Artillery guns, whilst the 23rd Panjab Infantry and Patiala Infantry with other units of the cavalry crossed the stream and advanced towards the camp.

4. The heavy artillery and infantry fire confused Rao Tula Ram; and they ran pell-mell in all directions. Mostly, they retreated to the town and hide in the buildings. The pursuit of the fleeing soldiers was quick and inexorable, and they were very soon driven out of the town after a little fighting Rao Tula Ram lost the day and, when the sun went down, there remained none in Narnaul except heaps of corpses here and there.



... and the gods cried at their bravery

1. Though Tula Ram, Pran Sukh, and Abdus Samad Khan were still alive, Rao Kishan Singh, Ram Lal, Samad Khan's son and many other top-ranking officers were killed in action. The British captured nine guns and other arms. The total loss on the British side was 70 killed and 45 wounded. They lost their commander, Col. Gerrard and Capt. Wallace, while Lieutenants Graije, Kennedy and Pearse were severely wound.

2. The battle of Narnaul was undoubtedly one of the most decisive battles of the Uprising of 1857. The English felt jubilant over their success in this confrontation, for it resulted in the marked the Close of the crucial period of the struggle in the Haryana region and northern Rajasthan.



A Poem in Haryanavi Detailing the Whole Battle

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