The Prince Who Nearly Broke the Mughal Siege
History often remembers the great battles and legendary leaders, but sometimes the most dramatic moments happen behind the scenes. During the long and brutal siege of Gingee in the late 17th century, the mighty Mughal Empire faced an enemy unlike any other. But their greatest threat didn’t come from the Maratha defenders—it came from within their own camp, in the form of a reckless, ambitious young prince.
A Prince’s Treacherous Alliance
The Mughal siege of Gingee was a frustrating, drawn-out affair. As the weeks turned into months, a figure named Prince Kam Baksh—Emperor Aurangzeb’s youngest son—saw an opportunity. He was arrogant and unhappy, and he saw a chance to make a name for himself. In secret, he began exchanging letters with the Maratha king, Raja Ram. For the beleaguered Marathas, the idea of a secret ally inside the enemy’s camp was an incredible stroke of luck.
But the Mughal commander in charge of the siege, the sharp-eyed Zulfikar Khan, was a master of strategy and espionage. He quickly caught wind of the prince’s betrayal. To keep him in check, Zulfikar Khan placed his most trusted lieutenant, Dalpat Rao, in the prince’s camp. Dalpat Rao’s mission was simple: watch Kam Baksh and stop him from causing any trouble.
A War of Minds and Stomachs
As the siege dragged on, the Marathas’ greatest generals, Santaji Ghorpade and Dhanaji Jadhav, went on the offensive. They launched lightning-fast raids on Mughal supply lines. Soon, food became scarce, and starvation began to haunt the Mughal army.
To make matters worse, the Marathas started a clever campaign of psychological warfare. They spread rumors that the powerful Emperor Aurangzeb had died and that his older son, Shah Alam, was the new emperor. With this rumor, Kam Baksh feared he would lose his power and status under a new ruler. In a moment of desperation, he hatched a plan to abandon the siege and flee with his family to Gingee, where he would join forces with the Marathas to fight for the throne. But his ambitions were nothing but a pipe dream; Dalpat Rao and the Mughal intelligence network were too watchful, and the plan never got off the ground.
The Emperor’s Spies
The Mughal camp was full of spies, but Zulfikar Khan’s network was so good that he even had eyes within the Maratha ranks. Soon, word of Kam Baksh’s secret plans reached Aurangzeb himself. The emperor, furious but composed, ordered that his son be put under even tighter guard.
As the siege continued, the prince’s actions grew more bizarre and reckless. On the journey from Kadapa to Gingee, he acted as if he were on vacation—he hunted, went sightseeing, and delayed their travel. This strange behavior put a strain on his relationship with Asad Khan, the elderly general who had to accompany him, and deepened the internal anger and distrust that was already tearing the army apart.
Who Was Kam Baksh?
Kam Baksh was more than just a disloyal prince. He was a complex figure in the story of the Mughal Empire’s decline. Born in Delhi in 1667, he was Aurangzeb’s youngest son. After Aurangzeb’s death in 1707, Kam Baksh and his two older brothers, Bahadur Shah I and Muhammad Azam Shah, fought for control of the throne.
Azam Shah was defeated by Bahadur Shah I, and in the chaos, Kam Baksh declared himself an independent king from the city of Bijapur. He even minted coins in his own name and called himself “Padshah Kam Baksh-i-Dinpanah,” which means “Emperor, Protector of Faith.”
However, his rule was short-lived. In 1709, Bahadur Shah I’s army confronted him near the city of Hyderabad. Kam Baksh was defeated, suffered a mortal wound, and died shortly after.
This episode at Gingee, though a small part of his life, shows how the Mughal Empire was crumbling from within. The ambition and disloyalty of its own princes were just as dangerous as the brave and resourceful Maratha warriors fighting for their freedom.
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