Fall of the Mughal Empire v3.c34.s6.9

v3.c34.s6.9

The victory was decisive. The Afghan resistance had been shattered at one blow. All was now confusion terror and despair in Zābita Khan’s ranks. Every ford held by his men was abandoned and the contagion even spread to Shakartāl. When the news of the Marathas having established themselves in full force on the eastern bank of the Ganges, with the road to the Ruhela homes open before them, reached Zābita that evening, he went to beg armed aid from his brother-in-law Faizullah Khan, who had encamped with some 4000 men opposite to this fort. “Faizullah who had never seen a battle, in terror declined the proposal to assist in the defence of Shakartāl, but that very night took the road to Rampur, whence after only a night’s halt he fled to the Tarai jungles with his family and treasures, setting fire to his capital.”