Ahom Military Engagements: War, Warfare, and Weapon

Sauradeep Nath

Abstract: The Ahom ruled over the Brahmaputra Valley between 1228 CE and 1826 CE. During this period, they were engaged in conflict against neighbouring ethnic groupsand kingdoms, such as Chutiya, Dimasa, Miri, Dafla, Mughal, etc. In these armed conflicts, they used various military tactics as well as weapons. However, apart from brief references in the literature about war and warfare, there is no comprehensive and chronological account of Ahom's battle since the 13th century CE. Moreover, there is also less information regarding their weapons. Hence, to mitigate the gap, the paper aims to describe Ahom battles between the 13th century CE and 19th century CE, and also identify the Ahom weapons used in these armed conflicts. To meet the objectives, primary sources in the form of chronicles, i.e., Buranji are taken into account, along with weapons preserved in museums across Assam. The collected primary information is then corroborated with the relevant literature that helped to mitigate the problem and extend knowledge of Ahom history.

Keywords: Ahom, Brahmaputra Valley, Military History, Weapon

Edition: Volume 12 Issue 12, December 2023,

Pages: 1188 - 1193