Rawther History

Rawthers are not originated from single tribe, but they have one thing common.  Rawther is a subdivision of the Tamil speaking Muslim society, the name Rawther came from their association with horse trade, horse riding and training. The flourishing horse trade between Arabia and east coast is referred to in the sangam literatures during the medieval ages, the ports of kilakkarai, devipattanam and kayalpattanam were busy centers for trade in horses. Marco polo, ibn Battuta, wassaf and rashiduddin give detailed accounts of horse trade in coramandel port.

“Rabithu” in Arabic, “Ravuth” in telugu, “Rahootha” in Sanskrit – all terms are titles connected with horse traders, cavalry soldiers.  Though the present day Rawther Muslims are without horses and activities connected with it, the title Rawther stayed among them and was faithfully followed to this day. There are many place names like Rawthamatham (Kallakurichi Tk) Rawthanpatti (Kulithalai Tk)
Rawthan Vayal (Pudukkottai Dt) Rawthanpalayam (Thiruneiveli Tk). These places might
have been their early settlements or their stronghold. They remember their ancient trade
and heroic valour in their marriage ceremonies and the bridegroom is conducted in parade
on a horse. But this practice is fast disappearing.

First wave Rawthers from AD 1040.

Nadishr Shah or Nathar wali, was a muslim preacher from middle east who migrated to tamil nadu in the 11 th century, where he travelled from area to area to preach the faith of islam to the locals. He came to Trichy in the 11 th century; his shrine is located in thiruchirapalli, tamil nadu. Nathar Vali's origin is unclear, though various legends describe him as a Byzantine nobleman, who left his comfortable life in search of murshid (spiritual preceptor).  It is said that he had a dream in Islamic Prophet Muhammed guided him to spread Islam in India. He was a qalandar (unmarried saint) came to India along with 900 qalandars to spread Islam. During this time, he is said to have performed miracles. Along with his qalandars, he came to Tiruchirapuram, which is now known as Tiruchirappalli, and led a religious life with his qalandars in a flower garden there. He died in Tiruchirappalli in 1039 and was buried in the city and a mosque constructed at the spot. Long after his death, Tiruchirappalli is still referred to by his followers as "Natharnagar". Nathar Vali died on the 15th of the month of Ramadan.

Second wave of Rawthers from AD 1270

Expansion of Turkic dynasties from North India, made discomfort for Pandian kingdom of Tamil land. Various war tactics of Qutubddin aibak and iltumish became famous stories that time. Iltumish win multiple wars against Mongols. Turkish war machines became a nightmare for all south kingdoms. Turks are famous for their cavalry.

 Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I was a Pandyan king, who ruled regions of South India between 1268–1308 CE, though Sen states he ruled until 1310. His death lead to the Pandyan Civil war in 1308-1323.

Kulasekara pandyan invited the Seljuk Turks from Ottoman Empire for trade link in 1279 AD, then biggest armada of Turks traders and missionaries settled in Tharangambadi (Nagapattinam), Karaikal, Muthupet, Koothanallur and Podakkudi. Turks (Rowthers) were unable to convert Hindus in Tanjore regions. The Turks settled in this area's with their armada and expanded to a moderate size of Islam community with population of almost 1 million Rowthers. These new settlements were now added to the Rowther community. Hanafi franctions having fair complexions because they were more closely connected with the Turkish than others in South. There are some Turkish Anatolian and Turkish Safavid Inscriptions found in wide area from Tanjore to Thiruvarur and in many villages, inscriptions seized by Madras Museum and available for public viewing. You may contact Archeologic Division [II] at Madras Museum, for viewing and further research.

Kulasekharapatnam now even called Rawthar Paalyam that a part of it. Due to the trade of horses. Turks married former muslim coverts (by nathir shah), thus formed an indo Turkish tribe. Turkish father and Indian (mostly from maravar community) mother.

Rawther calls there father using “ata” (Turkish word for father) and mother using “amma” (drividian term for mother). That says entire history. Because there mother relation, they became more like son of a soil and obedient of pandian kingdom.

 Turkish invasion of the Pandya kingdom AD 1310

Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khalji sent an army led by Malik Kafur to the southernmost kingdoms of India. After subjugating the Hoysalas, Malik Kafur invaded the Pandya kingdom (called Ma'bar in Muslim chronicles), taking advantage of a war of succession between the Pandya brothers Vira and Sundara. During March–April 1311, he raided several places in the Pandya territory, including their capital Madurai. He was unable to make the Pandya king a tributary to the Delhi Sultanate, but obtained a huge plunder, including elephants, horses, gold and precious stones.

By 1310, Alauddin Khalji of the Delhi Sultanate had forced the Yadava and Kakatiya rulers of Deccan region in southern India to become his tributaries. During the 1310 Siege of Warangal against the Kakatiyas, Alauddin's general Malik Kafur had learned that the region to the south of the Yadava and Kakatiya kingdoms was also very wealthy. After returning to Delhi, Kafur told Alauddin about this, and obtained permission to lead an expedition to the southernmost regions of India.

In early 1311, Malik Kafur reached Deccan with a large army. In February, he besieged the Hoysala capital Dwarasamudra with 10,000 soldiers, and forced the Hoysala king Ballalato become a tributary of the Delhi Sultanate. He stayed at Dwarasamudra for 12 days, waiting for the rest of his army to arrive at Dwarasamudra. At this time, the Pandya kingdom, located to the south of the Hoysala territory, was in a state of political turmoil. After the death of the king Maravarman Kulashekhara, his sons Vira and Sundara Pandya were engaged in a war of succession.^[3] Some later chroniclers state that Sundara sought Malik Kafur's help, leading to the Delhi army's invasion of the Pandya territory. However, the writings of the contemporary writer Amir Khusrau cast doubt on this claim: Khusrau's account suggests that Malik Kafur raided the territories controlled by both of them.

“As per khusru’s accounts, Rawther cavalry (50000 soldiers) stood against malik kuffur and many of them fight until there death”.

In Draupadi Amma temples, found in North Tamil Nadu and parts of Andhra Pradesh, one of the guardians is invariably a Muslim warlord called Muttal Ravuttar (meaning horseman). Muttal rawther consider to be the cavalry chieftain of rawthers fights against Malik kaffur, who helps to protect Madurai meenakshi temple.

Once again they proved their Turkish blood by their willing to die for trust, even against their brothers.

Madurai Sultanate from AD 1335

Madurai Sultanate, was a short lived independent Muslim kingdom based in the city of Madurai in Tamil Nadu, India. The sultanate was proclaimed in 1335 when the then viceroy of Madurai, Jalaluddin Ahsan Khan declared his independence from the Delhi Sultanate. Ahsan Khan and his descendants ruled Madurai and surrounding territories until 1378 when the last sultan, Ala-ud-Din Sikandar Shah fell in battle against the forces of the Vijayanagara Empire led by Kumara Kampana. In this short reign of 43 years, the Sultanate had 8 different rulers.

In the early 14th Century, South India was subjected to repeated invasions by armies of the Delhi Sultanate. There were three separate invasions within a period of fifteen years. The first invasion in 1311 CE was led by Malik Kafur, who sacked Madurai. Following this there were two more expeditions from the Delhi Sultanate - the second in 1314 CE led by Khusrav Khan and the third in 1323 CE by Ulugh Khan. These invasions shattered the Pandyan Empire beyond revival. While the previous invasions were content with plunder, Ulugh Khan annexed the former Pandyan dominions to the Delhi Sultanate as the province of Ma'bar. Most of South India came under the Delhi's rule and was divided into five provinces - Devagiri, Tiling, Kampili, Dorasamudra and Ma'bar.

In 1325, Ulugh Khan acceded to the throne in Delhi as Muhammad bin Tughluq. His plans for invading Persia and Khorasan, bankrupted his treasury and led to the issuing of token currency. This led to counterfeiting and further worsened the sultanate's finances. He was unable to pay his huge army and the soldiers stationed in distant provinces revolted. The first province to rebel was Bengal and Ma'bar soon followed. The Governor of Ma'bar, Jalaluddin Ahsan Khan declared independence and set up the Madurai Sultanate.

The Vijayanagara empire under Bukka Raya, made a series of efforts to conquer Southern India. There were a series of Vijayanagar invasions in the middle of the fourteenth century which succeeded in initially restricting and finally ending the Madurai Sultanate's rule over South India. Vijayanagar's armies were led by Bukka's son Kumara Kampanna Udaiyar. Kampanna first subdued the Sambuvarayar dynasty in present-day Kanchipuram district, then a vassal of Delhi Sultanate who refused to aid the Madurai conquest and then conquered Madurai. Kampanna's invasion has been chronicled in the Sanskrit epic poem Madhura Vijayam (The conquest of Madurai) or Vira Kamparaya Charithram (History of Kampanna) written by Kampanna's wife Gangadevi. Kampanna's victory is symbolised by the restoration of Srirangam temple to its old glory in 1371 CE. Vijayanagar formally declared Madurai to be its possession during Harihara II's rule in 1378 CE.

Subject: ravuttan cavalry

Culture: Indo-Turkish

Setting: Vijayanagara Empire, 14-16thc

Context

* Chase 2003 p130

"[I]n southern India, the population was spreading from the fertile river valleys and coastal regions to the arid upland plateaus in the center of the peninsula. Pressure from the Bahmani sultans of the Deccan contributed to the rise of the powerful Hindu kingdom of Vijayanagara in the mid-1300s.  For over three centuries, from the mid-1300s to the mid-1600s, four successive dynasties ruled the greater part of southern India from their capital on the plateau.  Vijayanagara halted Muslim expansion by borrowing Turkish techniques of mounted warfare and by attracting Turkish horsemen into its own forces."

* Doniger 2009 p560 

"'Ravuttan' designates a Muslim horseman, a folk memory of the historical figure of the Muslim warrior on horseback, 'whether he be the Sufi warrior leading his band of followers or the leader of an imperial army of conquest.'"

Helmet

* Elgood 2004 p57

"There are a number of metal helmets from south-west India with 'anchor' nose guards."

* Robinson 1967 p106

"This large nasal is almost certainly a feature of southern Indian armor and a means of identification."

Armor

* Elgood 2004 p55

"We have in sixteenth-century Vijayanagara a tradition of padded cloth armour for man, horse and elephant (augmented in the higher ranks with metal plates) but no mention of mail.  This form of armour continued in use until the nineteenth century in Hindu society ...."

* Elgood 2004 p56

"[T]he warrior riders depicted on the pillars of Vijayanagara buildings in the sixteenth century have a raised rib pattern on their upper and lower garments like widely spaced courduroy.  This occurs so frequently that it appears to be a standard item of equipment; the presumption must be that it represents some form of cloth armour since it is clearly flexible and the design is inconsistent with metal armour."

Migration towards other places

Rawther warriors and traders from southern Tamil land moved to different areas such as present day Kerala and Karnataka. Rawther cavalry helped for the formation of Travancore kingdom. And have main role in Tippu sultan’s army.

Many traders migrated and became wealthy merchants even outside India, they settled in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and many more.

“Rawthers are famous for their physical strength and attitude, some of them are very proud about their past. But some of them became ignorant and socially backward Need to conduct more research about rawthers, to reestablish there proud”

sculpture showing the maritime trade of the Muslims found at the Thirukurungudi Nambi temple in southern Tamil Nadu

The Jumma Masjid of Kilakarai was built in the 17th century in the style of a Dravidian temple.