The Foundation of Muslim Rule in India: A History of the Establishment and Progress of the Turkish Sultanate of Delhi, 1206–1290 A.D. c21.6

c21.6

advantage. Victory in such wars did not lead to any increase of fighting potential for, usually, all that the victor demanded was a recognition of his paramountcy; and the vanquished felt at liberty to join any of the belligerents in the next war. Thus, instead of gaining any positive advantage they merely frittered away their resources. How great was this waste in men can be estimated when we remember that the Hindu soldier was drawn almost exclusively from one class of the population. Among themselves, the Rajput kings were generally evenly matched in fighting strength but against a foreigner, not bound by any professional caste-rules, they could bring forth an equal number of men only by straining their entire fighting personnel. Owing to their unshakeable belief in numerical superiority they usually brought out their entire army and thus staked everything on the fortunes of a single battle. Their sense of honour forbade retreat; soldiers were either taken prisoner or perished in battle. A single defeat thus became a lasting catastrophe.