Fall of the Mughal Empire v3.c34.s9.4

v3.c34.s9.4

As usual in India, the rainy season enforced inactivity on all parties. At its close the imperial forces invaded the Jat territory stretching south of Delhi and took a number of small mud forts. But the Jat Rajah made peace with the Marathas by agreeing to a money contribution, and being thus relieved of one enemy, sent his forces to oppose the imperialists. His vanguard was led by René Madec with a newly equipped well-armed force of 3,000 men and eight field guns, besides Jat cavalry. At Madec’s approach the imperialists fell back and all these Jat posts were recovered without a blow. The Emperor then promptly concluded his long drawn negotiations for seducing Madec. The French partisan leader was promised Rs. 40,000 per month with power to add to his contingent of 3,000 men up to any number he might consider necessary; and a patent for the title of Nawab Shams-ud-daulah Bahadur Qaim Jang, six-hazari (both zāt and sawār) was sent to him. Madec assures us that in this act of desertion his object was purely patriotic. In leaving the Jat service abruptly he was sacrificing much of his property lodged in his house in Bharatpur as well as the sum of two lakhs of Rupees, being the arrears of his pay due from Nawal Singh; but he was at this heavy cost carrying out the instructions of M. Chevalier, the French Chief of the Chandernagar factory, for establishing a French force and French influence at Delhi as a set-off to the British conquest of Bengal.