First Battle of Tarain
| First Battle of Tarain | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Indian campaigns of Muhammad of Ghor | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Ghurid Empire | |||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Muhammad of Ghor (WIA) Qutubuddin Aibak Bahauddin Tughril Qazi Zia ud-Din Tulaki |
Prithviraj Chauhan Pajawan Kachhwaha Govind Rai (WIA) Skanda | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Unknown, outnumbered by Rajputs | 100,000 Rajput cavalrymen | ||||||||
The First Battle of Tarain, also spelt as the First Battle of Taraori, was fought on 14 January 1191 between the invading Ghurid army led by Muhammad of Ghor and the Rajput Confederacy led by Prithviraj Chauhan, near Tarain (modern Taraori in Haryana, India). The battle ended in a victory for the Rajputs; however, Muhammad of Ghor managed to escape and returned to Ghazni.
After the Ghurid armies were routed, they retreated to Ghazni and left garrison of 2,000 soldiers under Zia ud-Din Tulaki to secure the fort of Tabarhind (present day Bhatinda) to delay the Rajput army and was successful in keeping them at bay for thirteen months, while Muhammad of Ghor, during these months, raised a stronger army of 120,000 men, and invaded again, leading to the Second Battle of Tarain, which ended Chauhan's rule.