Fall of the Mughal Empire v4.c56.s14.1

v4.c56.s14.1

From 29th August to 3rd September, Lake sat down before Aligarh, trying to take the fort by negotiation and thus avoid bloodshed. Inside Aligarh the garrison was divided in mind. The commandant, Col. Pedron, an aged Frenchman, and a few of his men wanted to make terms with the English, but the majority of the sepoys were high-spirited Rajputs and Ruhelas, soldiers by hereditary calling, who refused to stain their honour by admitting defeat without striking a blow. There was only one other French officer in the fort, but he escaped to the English camp on the 1st of September. “The garrison putting themselves under the command of Baji Rao, a Bhadauriya Rajput (?), confined the Colonel and resolved to defend the fort."* This internal discord hindered the completion of the defence works, such as carrying a mine under the causeway, flooding the environs by cutting the bank and joining two marshes together, &c. And General Lake struck before these steps could be taken. On 1st September a French deserter from the fort told him all about the disorder within, and next day, Captain Lucan, an Irishman, after resigning Sindhia's service, arrived at Koil from Delhi. He knew the ins and outs of Aligarh and undertook to guide the British storming party through the fort. Lake's plans were quickly matured, and at midnight between the 3rd and 4th of September, his troops were warned to be in readiness to deliver the assault next morning.