Battle Of Chausa and Kannauj: Events and Outcome

The battles of Chausa and Kannauj were a series of battles that took place in the years 1539 and 1540 respectively. The Battle of Chausa was fought on 26th June 1539 between Sher Shah Suri and the Mughal Emperor Humayun. And again, the Battle of Kannauj took place between them on 17 May 1950. The Battle of Kannauj is also known as the Battle of Bilgram. Both the battles resulted in the defeat of the Mughal Emperor Sher Shah Suri.

	Battle of Chausa	Battle of Kannauj
Date	26 June 1539	17 May 1540
Place of the Battle	Chausa of Bihar	Kannauj of ‎Uttar Pradesh
Forces Involved	Sher Shah Suri Vs Mughal Emperor Humayun	Sher Shah Suri Vs Mughal Emperor Humayun
Won By	Sher Shah Suri	Sher Shah Suri

Battle of Chausa: Event and Outcome

The Battle of Chausa was a battle fought between the Sur Dynasty and the Mughal emperor Humayun. The battle was fought at Chausa in Bihar on June 26, 1539. The Sur emperor, Sher Shah Suri, won the battle.

• Humayun extensively travelled through the Grand Trunk road, which passes through south Bihar and is under the jurisdiction of Sher Khan. 
• Humayun was forced to go through the Ganges again to reach Chausa, which is on the border between Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, where Sher Khan also arrived. 
• The two armies remained there for three months, facing each other, between April and June 1539 AD. 
• Peace talks were held, but nothing came out of them.
• Sher Khan deliberately prolonged the battle and employed a strategy in place. He waited for the rains to start, which eventually started. 
• On June 25, he signalled to the Mughals that he would capture a tribal ruler in Bihar. But on the following morning i.e. on June 26, he returned and launched a 3-pronged attack against the Mughal army. 
• The entire Mughal army was wiped out. Humayun then jumped into the Ganges, navigated it with a water carrier, and escaped.

After this battle, Sher Khan declared himself to be the Emperor with the title “ Sher Shah”. Thereafter, Sher Shah returned to Kannauj, after also conquering Bengal. Humayun’s liberal policies and his pardon of his rebellious brothers made it impossible for them to unite.

Battle of Kannauj: Event and Outcome

The Mughal Army was again led by the Mughal Emperor Humayun, but they were unable to overcome the Afghans, except for an early victory. 

• In order to consolidate his power over Bengal, Sher Shah destroyed the forces of Humayun that were stationed there. 
• Finally, to resolve his conflicts, he marched his forces on Agra, thus consolidating his rule over the entire eastern India. Sher Shah also possessed Kalpi and Kannauj
• On the other hand, Humayun was unhappy with any help from his brothers, so he moved his forces to lower ground by crossing the south bank.
• However, the rains began to fall,  but Humayun didn’t care and made the same mistake he made at Chausa.
• The two armies faced each other for around a month without any fighting, but as the rains started to fall Humayun’s camp was flooded with so much rain that all his weapons and ammunition had been destroyed. 
• Sher Shah looked forward to this opportunity and finally on the 17th of May 1540 A.D., when he saw that the Mughals were moving their camps, he attacked. 
• The attack caused chaos and resulted in the destruction of the entire Mughal Army. 
• Humayun fought a brave battle but lost and was forced to flee.

After the battle of Bilgram, Humayun almost went on the run. He reached Agra but Sher Shah chased him with a large army. Humayun learned about the defeat at Delhi and Agra only when he reached Lahore. 

Humayun’s brother ran into him in Lahore, but because of their selfish ambitions, they were unable to unite against Sher Khan. Hindal, his younger brother, wanted to take over Sindh, while Kamran was busy planning the security of the Punjab and Afghanistan. Kamran’s brother stopped him from travelling to Kashmir, so he went to Sindh through Lahore. Eventually, Humayun fled from India to seek refuge with the Persian Shah.

Also Read – Who Wrote Humayun Nama?

Causes of Humayun’s Failure against Sher Shah

The reasons for Humayun’s defeat against Sher Shah in the battles of Chausa and Kannauj are as follows:

• Humayun’s neglect of the welfare of his people during his reign from 1530 to 1540, which led to empty treasuries and public discontent.
• Humayun’s failure to understand the Afghan authority and Sher Shah’s deceptive tactics.
• The cohesive nature of Afghan tribes in north India and their ability to unite under effective leaders like Sher Shah Suri.
• The Mughals’ numerical disadvantage was without the support of local lords and zamindars due to Humayun’s strained relationships with his brothers and alleged character flaws.
• Humayun’s strategic errors, such as the poorly planned Bengal campaign and his misinterpretation of Sher Shah’s intentions.
• Humayun’s failure to recapture territory after his defeat at Chausa and his defensive approach, which diminished his reputation.
• During the Battle of Kannauj, Humayun’s mistakes, such as choosing a low-lying camp and remaining inactive for an extended period, ultimately led to his defeat when Sher Shah launched a sudden attack.

Humayun’s failure to retake the territory from Kanauj to Banaras after his defeat at Chausa in 1539 was compounded by his defensive strategy, which lowered his standing. Additionally, he failed to effectively utilize his artillery when Sher Shah Suri unexpectedly attacked.

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