Fall of the Mughal Empire v1.c8.s5.26

v1.c8.s5.26

A year of peace followed the extermination of Bhāskar Rāo and other Marātha generals, and then in 1745 a domestic revolution turned Alivardi’s strongest allies into his bitterest enemies and the divided and weak condition of the province resulting from this internal dissension lured the Marāthas to renew their raids with a prospect of easy success which would have been otherwise impossible. Bengal has no indigenous race capable of the long continued exertion, the ready submission to discipline, the concerted action in large bodies, and the cool and steady fighting that are required in resisting the hardier races of invaders coming from the south or the west. War, as distinct from the mere guarding of palaces or convoys and the police protection of revenue-collectors and custom-officers, had not been the profession of any class of its people since the imposition of Mughal peace two centuries ago. Therefore, the army of the Nawābs of Bengal, Bihār and Orissā, after they had become independent of the central Government at Delhi, was filled entirely with Afghāns (both infantry and cavalry) and Hindu foot-musketeers of Baksar, with a sprinkling of Sayyids of Barha and other foreign settlers in Upper India and Bahelia musketeers from Oudh. Of these the Afghāns were by far the most numerous and efficient element. Their proud consciousness of superiority, inborn martial habits, and strong clannish cohesion made them quite irresistible if they could be only united under one great leader.