Fall of the Mughal Empire v2.c27.s8: § 2. The Bhāu's troops and munition supply
Fall of the Mughal Empire v2.c27.s8
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§ 2. The Bhāu's troops and munition supply
v2.c27.s8.1
From Patdur the Bhau moved to Sindhkhed, 26 miles northwards, on 16th March. Two days later at an auspicious moment he made the formal commencement of his journey by entering into his marching tents pitched four miles in advance of that village, and halted there for some days in order to complete the necessary preparations for his campaign. He had to organize an army in its entirety in view of the long distance he was to march and the powerful enemy he was to meet. The Peshwā had begun the Udgir campaign with 40,000 horsemen of his own, and 12,000 French-trained sepoys under Ibrāhim Khān Gārdi, a former officer of Bussy. From this total must be deducted the wastage of the recent war and sickness. Even then all the remnant could not be spared for the northern expedition. The Nizām had to be watched; he was exulting over the fall of Dattāji and trying to evade the fulfilment of the severe terms of peace that he had signed under compulsion. The Peshwā, with 10,000 troops of his own and a similar contingent of the Nāgpur Rajah, stayed near Aurangabad for some days till the Nizām brothers should go back to their capital. Another division of 10,000 was detached to the Karnātak under Visāji Krishna Biniwālé. So, the Bhāu could be supplied with only 22,000 Marathi troops (namely 10,000 of the Household Cavalry called *Huzarāt* or *khās pāgā*) and 12,000 men from the forces of his subordinate generals), in addition to 8,000 disciplined sepoys under Ibrāhim Khan Gārdi, —a total of 30,000 regular troops.
v2.c27.s8.2
The munitions sent with him from the Ahmadnagar arsenal consisted of 8,184 cannon balls of large size (against 19,000 required), 160 maunds of lead, 800 maunds of gunpowder, 99,150 flints for muskets, and a quite inadequate quantity (65 sheets against 2,000 requisitioned) of European paper for charging the muskets. *
v2.c27.s8.3
The expedition for the reconquest of the Maratha dominion in Hindustan could not even make its start without overcoming great difficulties. The Udgir campaign had cost much money, but not a pice of the promised indemnity had been actually realized. The Bhāu's soldiers were in arrears and required an advance (*nālbandi*) to equip themselves for the coming campaign properly. Some of them who had lost their horses in the Sindhkhed campaign of two years ago, had not yet been paid the price of new remounts. However, after a halt of some days near Sindhkhed, the Bhāu distributed advances to his troops and put them in proper trim for campaigning.
v2.c27.s8.4
∗ Raj. i. 168, 169. Kharé, i. 14 (misprinted as 11), 21 (this last letter gives 20,000 *Deshche fauj*, evidently meaning Pindharis, in addition to the above 30,000.) The civil officers attached to the Bhāu were Nānā: (*i. e.*, Trimbak Sadāshiv) Purandaré, Balwant Ganesh Mehendélé, Mahipat Avji Chitnis, Shivarām Khāsgiwālé,— and to Vishwas Rao, Sakhārām Bāpu and Krishna Rao Parasnis. *SPD.* ii. 122 (munitions sent.)
Linked texts (1)
- Selections from the Peshwa Daftar — Marathi