Vintage British Indian Undivided Back Old Postcard. India. Ethnic Life. A native sitting on Top of the Big Gun in the Fort. Fortress. Bijapur - Malik-i-Maidan or Monarch / Lord of the Plain. / The Lord of the Battle Plain is a huge gun made from bell metal by Muhammed Bin Hussain Rumi. It caused havoc at the Battle of Talikota in 1565. Old History The cannon was cast in 1549 by Muhammad Bin Husain Rumi—a Turkish engineer serving to Sultan Burhan Nizam Shah I of Ahmednagar, the Sultan presented the Cannon to his Son-in-Law Ali Shah. In 1565 AD the cannon was used in the Battle of Talikota by Bijapur Sultan Ali Adil Shah I-an ally of Deccan Sultanates who joined forces to strike a decisive blow against the Aliya Rama Raya of Vijayanagara Empire. After the victory of Deccan Sultanates the cannon was named "The Malik-i-Maidan". The cannon, among world largest in its category, was attempted to be shifted to Great Britain by East India Company as a war trophy, but due to its huge size and un-conditioned transport infrastructure the cannon could not be transported. In 1624 AD Malik Amber, transported the Malik–i-Maidan with the help of trained war elephants from Daulatabad to Sholapur and used it in the Battle of Bhatvadi against Mughals and Bijapur Sultanat. Structure The Malik-e-Maidan made of bell metal, measuring 4.2 metres (14 ft) in length, 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) in diameter, and weighing 55 tons, is the largest cannon in India. Inscriptions Three inscriptions can be found on the cannon, of which two were inscribed during Burhan Nizam Shah I of Ahmednagar as per the inscriptions. It was cast at Ahmadnagar from bell metal by Muhammad Bin Husain Rumi in 1549. The third inscription was added by Aurangzeb when he conquered Bijapur in 1685–86.

Mughal Library