6.4 The Rohillas

• Afghan (Pashtun/Rohilla) military adventurers and settlers who established themselves in the Rohilkhand region (present-day northwestern Uttar Pradesh, between the Ganga and the Himalayan foothills) during the political vacuum of the declining Mughal Empire in the 18th century.
• Ali Muhammad Khan is generally regarded as the founder/organizer of Rohilla power in the region (c. 1720s–1740s CE), consolidating various Afghan mercenary bands into a cohesive local power under nominal Mughal suzerainty.
• Rohillas frequently allied with and fought alongside Ahmad Shah Abdali (an ethnic Afghan) during his invasions of India, including in the Third Battle of Panipat (1761 CE) against the Marathas — again beyond this note's exact date range but relevant to the broader story of 18th-century regional power fragmentation.
• The Rohillas later came into conflict with Awadh (Nawabs of Awadh, allied with the British East India Company) leading to the Rohilla War (1774 CE) — well beyond this note's period but useful context for understanding the eventual absorption of regional powers into British-dominated politics.

Key Facts / Quick Revision Points — Rohillas

• Afghan settlers in Rohilkhand region (Ganga-Himalayan foothills, UP).
• Ali Muhammad Khan — key early organizer of Rohilla power.
• Allied with Ahmad Shah Abdali; later fought Awadh/British (Rohilla War, 1774).

PART 7: ARRIVAL OF THE EUROPEANS (up to 1757 CE)

The arrival of European trading powers in India, seeking direct access to the lucrative spice and textile trade (bypassing Arab/Venetian middlemen and the overland routes controlled by the Ottoman Empire), is a crucial bridge between "Medieval" and "Modern" India in the exam syllabus.