Fall of the Mughal Empire v4.c51.s10.1

v4.c51.s10.1

The campoo touched the lowest depth of degradation in the “Europeanised” corps of the Peshwa. Its composition in 1787 was made up of one captain and 32 European soldiers, and 44 Goanese Christians, together with 183 *gardis* or trained Indian musketeers, a total of 260 men. In addition there was a Portuguese artillery captain, miscalled *Musa Naras* in Marathi, *i.e.*, Senor Noronha, who served the Peshwa from before 1779 till after 1798, and distinguished himself in the fight with the English at Talegaon (in January 1779.) Two other captains in this service are known, namely Boyd the American and William Tone the Irishman. The miserable condition of the Peshwa’s campoo is graphically described by Major Dirom, who saw them in the train of Hari Pant Phādké and Parashuram Bhāu Patwardhan in Cornwallis’s war with Tipu in May 1791. He writes, “The Maratha infantry is composed of black Christians, and despicable poor wretches of the lowest caste, uniform in nothing but the bad state of their muskets, none of which are either clean or complete; and few are provided with either ammunition or accoutrements. They are commanded by half-caste people of Portuguese and French extraction, who draw off the attention of the spectators from the bad clothing of their men, by the profusion of antiquated lace bestowed on their own; and if there happens to be a few (pure) Europeans among the officers and men, which is sometimes the case, they execrate the service and deplore their fate."*