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Chapter 21 – Lord Wellesley’s Administration – Mahratta Affairs, 1800–1803

Death of Nana Furnuvese, 1800

The destruction of Tippoo’s power, and the complete ascendency established at Hyderabad, left the Company with no antagonist but the Mahrattas, and the two rival powers now stood front to front. It was the firm conviction of Lord Wellesley that the peace and tranquillity of India could be secured only by the extension of British supremacy over all its princes, by means of defensive and subsidiary alliances, which recognized the British Government as the arbiter in every dispute. But nothing could be more unpalatable to the Mahrattas chiefs than this policy. The peace and tranquillity of India implied the termination of that system of plunder and aggression which was the foundation and element of their power. They believed, and not without reason, that these subsidiary alliances would extinguish their independence, and deprive them of the respect of their subjects. The offer of such an alliance, which was made in the first instance to the Peshwa, in July, 1799, was therefore declined,

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under the prudent advice of Nana Furnuvese. In March, 1800, that great statesman closed his long and chequered career. For more than a quarter of a century he had been the mainspring of every movement in the Mahratta empire. By the vigour of his character and the wisdom of his councils, he had controlled the disorders of the times, and he wanted only the addition of personal courage to render him supreme. He was distinguished by the rare, and among the Mahrattas of that age, the incredible qualities of humanity, veracity, and honesty of purpose. While he admired the English for their sincerity and their energy, he had a patriotic jealousy of the increase of their power, which it was his constant endeavour to restrain. “With him,” wrote Colonel Palmer, the Resident, “has departed all the wisdom and moderation of the Mahratta government.” He had been the only check on the growing ascendency of Sindia at Poona, who was left by his death without a rival and without control, and now ventured so far to indulge his spirit of domination, as on one occasion, when he feared that Bajee Rao meditated an escape, to surround his palace and place him temporarily under restraint. It was not, therefore, without secret delight that the Peshwa contemplated the rising power of Jeswunt Rao Holkar, by whose assistance he hoped to free himself from the tyranny of Sindia. In proportion as this hope increased, his inclination towards the alternative of a British affiance, which Lord Wellesley continued to press on him with great importunity, was slackened.

The Holkar family

To elucidate the rise of this celebrated chief, who played an important part in the transactions of the next five years, it is necessary to bring up the history of the Holkar family. Mulhar Rao Holkar, who raised himself from the condition of a shepherd to the dignity of a prince, died at the age of seventy-six, after a brilliant career of forty years. His only son died soon after the battle of Paniput, leaving his widow Aylah-bye, with a son and a daughter. The son died in 1766, and his widow, a woman of extraordinary powers, steadfastly resisted all the entreaties of the chiefs to adopt a

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son and retire into obscurity, and resolved to undertake the government of the state herself, in the capacity of regent. With singular discernment she selected Tokajee Holkar, a chief of the same tribe as Mulhar Rao, though not of his kindred, to take the command of the army. It was scarcely to be expected that in a country like India, and in a period of unexampled turmoil, an arrangement which placed the military power in the hands of a great soldier, while the civil government was administered by a female, would be of long continuance. But the gratitude and moderation of Tokajee, and the commanding genius of the Bye combined to perpetuate it for thirty years. He never failed in the homage due to her position, and was never known to encroach on her authority. She sat daily in open durbar, and gave public audiences without a veil, and dispensed justice in person to all suitors. She laid herself out to promote the prosperity of the country by the encouragement of trade and agriculture. She acquired the respect of foreign princes by the weight of her character, and in an age of extreme violence succeeded in maintaining the security of her own dominions. She raised Indore from a mere village to the rank of a noble capital. Like all wealthy Hindoo females, she fell under the dominion of the priesthood, and expended large sums on religious edifices and establishments in every part of India, from Ramisseram to Hurdwar. Relays of porters were daily employed at her expense in conveying the water of the Ganges to the sacred shrines in the Deccan, however remote, and she was rewarded by the brahmins with the title of an avatar, or incarnation of the deity. Whatever opinion may be formed of these acts of superstitious devotion, she was in other respects the purest and most exemplary of rulers, and added one more name to the roll of those illustrious females who have adorned the native history of India with their genius and virtues.

Death of Aylah-bye and Tokajee, 1795–97

Aylah-bye died in 1795, and Tokajee in 1797, and the reign of anarchy began, not to close but in the entire submission of the state to British

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authority, twenty years later. Tokajee left two sons by his wife, Kashee Rao and Mulhar Rao, and two by a concubine, Jeswunt Rao and Wittoojee. Kashee Rao was weak in mind and deformed in body, and his brother Mulhar Rao assumed the command of the army, and the government of the state. Kashee Rao repaired to Sindia at Poona, and he espoused his cause, and made a treacherous attack on the army of Mulhar Rao, who fell in the engagement. The house of Holkar, which had long been the rival of Sindia, was thus enfeebled and brought into complete subordination to his power, and another step was gained in his ambitious endeavours to obtain the universal control of the Mahratta commonwealth. Jeswunt Rao, who had taken part with Mulhar Rao, fled from the field of battle to Nagpore, but the raja, anxious to conciliate Sindia, placed him in confinement. He contrived, however, to make his escape, and sought refuge at the court of Anund Rao, the chief of the ancient principality of Dhar, to whom he was enabled to afford material assistance in coercing some of his refractory subjects. The enmity of Sindia still pursued him, and the raja was constrained to discard him, but, to compensate for this breach of Rajpoot hospitality, bestowed on him a parting gift of 10,000 rupees. He quitted Dhar with seven mounted followers, and about a hundred and twenty ragged, half-armed infantry, with the resolution to trust his future fortunes to his sword. Fully aware of the strong prejudice which existed against him on account of his illegitimacy, he announced himself as the champion and minister of his nephew, Khundeh Rao, the youthful son of Mulhar Rao, and called upon all the adherents of the house of Holkar to rally round him, and resist the encroachments of Sindia.

Rise of Jeswunt Rao Holkar, 1795

The freebooters, who swarmed in Central India, Bheels and Pindarees, Afghans and Mahrattas, hastened to join his standard, and thus commenced the career of this predatory chieftain. Soon after, he was joined by Ameer Khan, a Rohilla adventurer, then about thirty-two years of age, who had just taken service

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with the Chief of Bhopal, but quitted it in 1798 with a body of free lances to traverse the country, and levy contributions on his own account. For eighteen months the combined forces of the two chiefs spread desolation through the districts on the Nerbudda, but were obliged to separate when they were completely exhausted. Ameer Khan proceeded eastward to the opulent city of Sagor, belonging to the Peshwa, where he subjected the inhabitants to every species of outrage, and acquired incredible booty. Jeswunt Rao entered the province of Malwa, which had enjoyed repose and prosperity for thirty years, and dispersed his predatory bands in every direction, and the country was half ruined before Sindia could take measures to protect it. That chief was now obliged to quit Poona, where he had continued to reside for eight years, ever since his accession to the throne of his uncle, domineering over the unfortunate Peshwa, from whom he extorted the sum of forty-seven lacs of rupees on taking his departure. The notorious Sirjee Rao Ghatkay was left as his representative to maintain his authority with five battalions of foot, and 10,000 horse.

Holkar defeats Sindia’s army, 1801

Nothing can give the mind a clearer idea of the anarchy and misery which prevailed in Hindostan at this period than the ease with which Jeswunt Rao was able, by the allurement of plunder, to organise an army of 70,000 men within two years. With this force he laid waste the districts of Malwa, and then advanced against the capital, Oojein. To this city the widows of the deceased Mahdajee Sindia had fled with a large military force and their treasures, to avoid the violence of Dowlut Rao. Under the pretence of espousing their cause, Holkar contrived to lull them into security, and in the dead of night opened his guns on their encampment, and constrained them to fly for their lives, while he took possession of all their property, and of their valuable park of artillery. Two bodies of Sindia’s troops were immediately pushed forward from the south to avenge this insult, and expel Jeswunt Rao. One of these armies,

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though commanded by European officers, was constrained to lay down its arms, and the other, under Colonel Hessing, was attacked with such vigour as to lose a fourth of its number. Of eleven European officers attached to it, seven fell in action, and three were made prisoners. The city of Oojein was thus placed at the mercy of Holkar, but so absolute was the control which he had acquired over his troops that he was enabled to restrain them from plundering it, even in the excitement of victory; but he exacted the heavy ransom of fifteen lacs of rupees, which he transferred to his own military chest. Meanwhile the Peshwa, liberated for the first time from the despotism of Sindia by his departure from the capital, gave full scope to his natural disposition, and, instead of strengthening his throne by conciliating his feudatories, subjected them to the most wanton insult and plunder. His oppressive government became the object of universal hatred. Bands of brigands sprung up in every direction, and laid the villages under contribution. Wittoojee, the brother of Jeswunt Rao, was driven by necessity to join one of these bodies, and was taken prisoner. Bajee Rao sentenced him to be trampled to death by an infuriated elephant, and seated himself in the verandah of his palace to enjoy the revolting spectacle, and the yells of the unfortunate youth. A universal feeling of execration rose throughout the country at this atrocious murder of a son of Tokajee, who had for thirty years zealously maintained the interests of the Mahratta power. Jeswunt Rao, who, with all his ferocity, was really attached to his brother, vowed vengeance on his murderer, and it was not long before he had an opportunity of wreaking it.

Sindia defeats Holkar, 14 October, 1801

Sindia, alarmed by the defeat of his armies, and the increasing power of Holkar, summoned Sirjee Rao Ghatkay to join him with the troops under his command. That miscreant, after the departure of his master from Poona, proceeded to the Peshwa’s southern provinces, which he ravaged without mercy, and, when thus culled away, was encamped on his return within a mile of

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the capital which he was on the point of giving up to plunder. Sindia’s army thus reinforced, and comprising fourteen of De Boigne’s battalions, met Holkar on the 14th October, 1801, and totally routed him, capturing ninety-eight guns. This defeat was generally ascribed to the absence of Holkar’s European officers whom he had injudiciously left behind. Sirjee Rao entered Indore in triumph, and gave it up to spoliation, to avenge the plunder of Sindia’s capital. His ruthless troops were let loose on the city which Aylah Bye had spent a life in embellishing, and the noblest edifices were sacked and reduced to ashes. Those who were supposed to possess property were tortured to disclose it, and the wells were choked up with the bodies of females who destroyed themselves to escape dishonour. If Sindia had followed up his victory with vigour, the career of Jeswunt Rao would probably have been brought to a close; but, after expelling him from Malwa, he thought fit to enter into negotiations with him, under the impression that he was crushed beyond redemption. Holkar, however, either from mistrust of Sindia, or under encouragement from the Peshwa, or perhaps from an overweening confidence in his own fortune, advanced the most extravagant demands, and the negotiation fell to the ground. He was not long recovering from the blow. His wild and daring spirit was precisely suited to the character of the times and of the country. His standard again became the rallying point of the unquiet spirits who were hanging loose on society in Central India, and not a few even of Sindia’s soldiers deserted to it. With this force he proceeded northward, plundering every village and town in his route, and, to the horror of his own lawless but superstitious soldiery, not sparing the renowned shrine of Nath-dowrah. He then crossed the Nerbudda, and laid waste the province of Candesh, while one of his commanders was sent to ravage the southern Mahratta provinces. General Wellesley soon after marched up through this territory, and remarked that Holkar’s troops had cut all the forage, consumed the grain, and burnt the houses for fuel;

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that the wretched villagers had taken to flight, with their cattle; and that, except in one village, not a human being was left between Meritch and Poona. Meanwhile, Jeswunt Rao, who had been encamped at Chandore, moved down upon Poona, with the object, as he asserted, of claiming the protection of the Peshwa from the hostility of Sindia.

Battle of Poona, 1802

The object of Holkar’s march could not, however, be mistaken. The consternation at Poona may be readily conceived, and the Peshwa began to tremble for his own safety. Lord Wellesley had never abandoned the belief, that until we could obtain a footing and an influence at Poona, the peace of the peninsula would be periodically disturbed by Sindia and Holkar, and he had renewed his offer of an alliance with the Peshwa, whenever there appeared any chance of success. On the other hand, the vakeels of the raja of Berar and Sindia, constantly and earnestly dissuaded him from accepting it, and engaged to protect him from the designs of Holkar. The British negotiation fluctuated with the hopes and fears of Bajee Rao. Sindia sent his general, Sudaseeb Rao, with ten battalions of infantry, and a large body of cavalry to defend the capital from the threatened attack of Holkar; the Peshwa was thus encouraged to treat the advances of the Governor-General with indifference, and in the beginning of October, Colonel Close, the Resident, declared the negotiation at an end. As Holkar approached the neighbourhood of Poona, Bajee Rao made him the most humiliating offers, which he haughtily rejected, demanding the restoration of all the dominions belonging to his house, and the release of his nephew, and bitterly reproaching him with the murder of his brother, which he was now come to avenge. The troops of Sindia and the Peshwa were united under the walls of Poona on the 25th October. The combined force numbered about 84,000 horse and foot; and of Sindia’s battalions ten were under the command of Colonel Dawes. Holkar also had fourteen battalions disciplined by European officers, together with 5,000 irregular infantry and 25,000

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cavalry, and thus was exhibited the anomalous spectacle of British officers arrayed against each other under the hostile standards of native princes. The battle was long and obstinately contested. Success at first inclined to Sindia and his ally; the slaughter of Holkar’s troops was prodigious, and they had begun to give way, when he advanced from the rear, and vaulting into his saddle, called out to them “now or never to follow Jeswunt Rao.” He dealt about him like a mad lion, and his foaming valour restored the fortune of the day. The victory was complete, and placed in his hands the whole of the baggage, stores, and ammunition of his opponents. The Peshwa had come out to take part in the engagement, but he was terrified by the first firing, and hastened to place himself beyond the reach of it, on the hill Parbutee, where he was surrounded by a considerable body of his troops, who would have been more usefully employed against Holkar. As he perceived the scale of the battle turn against him, he sent a messenger in haste to Colonel Close, who was encamped in the neighbourhood, to accede to all the conditions of the alliance which he had previously objected to. When he found the day lost he retired to Sungumnere with about 7,000 men, and thence hastened to the sea coast, and despatched letters to the Governor of Bombay, requesting the accommodation of a vessel, in which he embarked, and reached Bassein on the 6th December.

Holkar places Umrit Rao in power, 1802

Jeswunt Rao, who entered the capital after the battle, was anxious, above all things, to obtain possession of the person of the Peshwa, and to construct an administration in which he himself should possess the same power and ascendency which Sindia had enjoyed for eight years; but the Peshwa was too deeply incensed at his conduct to listen to any overtures. Finding at length that he had no intention to return to his capital, Holkar sent for his brother, Umrit Rao, and placed him at the head of affairs, and seated his son on the musnud, bargaining for himself an immediate payment of two crores of rupees, and districts yielding

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another crore, together with the command of the army and the substantial power of the state. For two months after his victory, he exhibited a spirit of singular moderation, but in the end threw off the mask and gave up the city of Poona to indiscriminate plunder. Colonel Close was earnestly entreated by Holkar to continue as the British Resident at Poona, but he refused to countenance this usurpation by his presence, and retired to Bombay in the beginning of December.

Treaty of Bassein, 1802

He was immediately placed in communication with Bajee Rao, who was now eager for the alliance which was to restore him to his throne. Accordingly, on the last day of December, 1802, the memorable treaty of “defensive alliance and reciprocal protection,” was completed at Bassein. A British force of 6,000 infantry, with a suitable complement of artillery, was to be stationed within the Peshwa’s dominions, and districts in the Deccan yielding twenty-six lacs of rupees a-year were to be assigned for their support. The Peshwa agreed to entertain no European in his service belonging to any nation at war with the English, to engage in no hostilities or negotiations without their concurrence, and to refer all his claims on the Nizam and the Guickwar to the arbitration of the Governor-General. The treaty likewise guaranteed to the southern Jageerdars, the great feudatories of the Peshwa, the full enjoyment of all their rights.

Remarks on the Treaty, 1802

The treaty of Bassein forms one of the most important epochs in the history of British India. It completely paralysed the head of the Mahratta commonwealth, and it inflicted a blow on the Mahratta power, from which it never recovered. Although the Peshwa’s authority was often set at nought by the chiefs, they still continued to regard it as the centre of national unity, and a most important element in the existing struggle for the empire of India between the Mahrattas and the English. There has been no little diversity of opinion on the propriety of this treaty, but we have happily the views of two of the greatest statesmen of the age to assist us in judging of its merits. It was impugned

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by Lord Castlereagh, the President of the Board of Control, in a very able state paper, entitled “Observations on Mahratta affairs,” and its policy was triumphantly vindicated in an elaborate memorandum by the Duke of Wellington, then General Wellesley. From his own personal experience of six years, which was superior to that of any one else in India, the General drew a very vivid sketch of the position and the policy of the various country powers, whose interests were affected by the treaty. He demonstrated that it was the inevitable corollary of the engagements which had been entered into with the Nizam. On that prince the Mahratta powers had interminable claims – the Asiatic claims of the strong on the weak – and they would have neglected no opportunity of enforcing them, which must have compromised the tranquillity of the Deccan. The subsidiary alliance which Lord Wellesley had entered into with the Nizam, identified his interests with those of the Company, and gave him the protection of the British arms against the claims and the aggression of the Mahrattas. The necessity which had thus arisen of supporting the Nizam against all his enemies must have involved the Company, sooner or later, in a war with the whole of the Mahratta nation, and this could be avoided only by forming an alliance with its recognised chief, on the basis of constituting the British Government the arbiter of these demands. Lord Wellesley considered the position of affairs at the end of 1802, as affording the best occasion for effecting this important object. The Peshwa was a fugitive, and both Sindia and Holkar, though with private and opposite intentions, had repeatedly urged him to interpose in the settlement of affairs at Poona. He had the wisdom to avail himself of this golden opportunity, which might never return, and to form a treaty with the Peshwa which placed the settlement of all claims on the Nizam in the hands of the British Government, and at the same time secured to it an absolute ascendency in the counsels of Poona. The great Duke placed it on record that, “the treaty of Bassein and the measures adopted in consequence. of

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it, afforded the best prospect of preserving the peace of India, and that to have adopted any other measures would have rendered war with Holkar nearly certain, and war with the whole of the Mahratta nation more than probable,” and his approbation has been ratified by the judgment of posterity. The war with Sindia and the raja of Nagpore in the following year arose ostensibly from the conclusion of the treaty, but a war with them was all but inevitable, and the only difference made by the treaty was to hasten its occurrence, and to deprive them of all the resources of the Peshwa.

Discontent of Sindia and the Bhonslay, 1803

The establishment of the Company’s paramount authority at the capital of the Mahratta empire by the treaty of Bassein gave great umbrage to the Mahratta powers. It thwarted the ambition of some, and the interests of all. Sindia had solicited the interposition of the Governor-General for the restoration of the Peshwa, only in the hope of regaining his power at Poona, and he was mortified to find that all his ambitious prospects in the Deccan were at once overturned. “The treaty,” he said, “takes the turban from my head.” Lord Wellesley had offered him the “benefit” of an arrangement similar to that which had been made with the Peshwa, but he could not fail to perceive that this new system of subsidiary affiances must sap the foundation of Mahratta power, as effectually as the invention of the system of the chout had enabled the Mahrattas to destroy the Mogul empire. He lost no time in deputing his prime minister to confer with the raja of Berar on the formation of a confederacy of Mahratta chiefs to oppose the common enemy. The raja, a collateral branch of Sevajee’s family, had always cherished pretensions to the office of Peshwa, but the treaty of Bassein, by reinstating Bajee Rao under British protection, effectually destroyed all these expectations. He not only entered cordially into the views of Sindia, but became the life and soul of the hostile coalition. The Peshwa himself repented of the treaty as soon as he had affixed his seal to it, and commenced a series of intrigues to render it ineffectual. He

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despatched a confidential agent to Sindia and the raja of Nagpore, ostensibly to reconcile them to the affiance he had formed with the British Government, but in reality to invite them to Poona to assist him in frustrating it. Holkar, finding all his plans thwarted by the policy of Lord Wellesley, and by the advance of a British force to support it, quitted Poona and retired to the north. The raja of Nagpore made the most strenuous efforts to induce him to join the league, and at length succeeded in effecting a reconciliation between him and Sindia, on the condition that all the dominions of the family should be restored to him, and that his nephew, Khundeh Rao, should be liberated. But although he signed the engagement, and received possession of the family domains, he evaded every solicitation to bring up his forces and join the allies, alleging that he was unable to raise sufficient funds for the payment of their arrears. But, no sooner did he find Sindia actually involved in hostilities with the English, than he let loose his famishing host on the possessions of that prince in Malwa, while his confederate, Ameer Khan, proceeded to pillage his territories in another direction.

Lord Wellesley’s military movements, 1803

Lord Wellesley had early intelligence of this confederation, but he was anxious to maintain peace, and caused a communication to be made to Sindia and the Berar raja, that he was desirous of continuing his friendly relations with them unimpaired, but would resist to the full extent of his power any attempt on their part to interfere with the treaty of Bassein. To be prepared for every contingency, he ordered the whole of the Hyderabad subsidiary force under Colonel Stephenson, together with 6,000 of the Nizam’s own infantry, and 9,000 horse to advance to the north-western frontier of his kingdom; and they reached Purinda, 116 miles from Bombay, on the 25th March. General Wellesley was likewise directed to march up from Mysore in the same direction, a distance of 600 miles, with about 8,000 infantry, 1,700 cavalry, and 2,000 of the celebrated Mysore horse, under an able native commandant. It was

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important to the stability of the arrangements made with the Peshwa that the great southern Jageerdars, who, in consequence of a long series of aggressions, mistrusted his intentions, and detested his person, should be induced to rally round his throne. For many years there had been constant struggles for power and plunder among the chiefs themselves; but the energy displayed by General Wellesley in the pursuit of Dhoondia Wang had spread his fame through the Deccan, and the strength of his character had inspired such general confidence that he was enabled to compose their mutual feuds, and to bring up with him six of the chief feudatories, with 10,000 of their troops. Holkar, on quitting Poona, had left it in the hands of Umrit Rao, with 1,500 troops; but that prince, on hearing of the advance of General Wellesley in the direction of the capital, resolved to give it up to the flames, and then to withdraw from it. This nefarious design could not be kept secret, and General Wellesley, on being apprised of it, made a rapid march of sixty miles in thirty-two hours, and reached Poona in time to save it from destruction.

Restoration of the Peshwa, 1803

Soon after, the Peshwa left Bassein, accompanied by Colonel Close, and on the 13th May, a day selected by his astrologers as peculiarly fortunate, entered his capital, surrounded by British bayonets, and resumed his seat on the musnud under a British salute.

Development of the designs of the coalition, 1803

Meanwhile, the hostile designs of the confederates became daily more apparent. Sindia was at Oojein when he heard of the battle of Poona and the defeat of his army by Holkar, and began to move to the south in November. He halted for some time at Boorhanpore on the Taptee, and despatched a letter to the Governor-General, asserting the Mahratta claim to the chout of the Nizam’s dominions, and announcing his determination to proceed and enforce it. He then continued his march southward to form a junction with the raja of Nagpore, who entered his tents in the vicinity of that city on the 17th April, and advanced to meet Sindia with a large force. Both princes

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announced their intention to proceed to Poona, “to adjust the government of the Peshwa.” The Resident informed Sindia that the Governor-General would not fail to consider any such movement on his part an act of hostility, involving the most serious consequences. Sindia asserted that as he was the guarantee of the treaty of Salbye, the Peshwa was not at liberty to sign a new treaty without his concurrence, or to act without consulting the great Mahratta princes. He stated, moreover, that they were proceeding to Poona on the express and repeated invitations of the Peshwa himself; whereas the Peshwa had invariably assured Colonel Close that he had forbidden their approach. Lord Wellesley likewise obtained possession of a letter addressed by the raja of Berar to the Nizam, which stated that after an interview with Sindia, and a satisfactory arrangement with Holkar, he should advance with the allies to Poona “to settle affairs.” A letter was also intercepted from Sindia to the Peshwa’s officers in Bundelkund, ordering them “to prepare for war.” With these unequivocal tokens of hostility before him, the Governor-General directed Colonel Collins to demand from Sindia a categorical explanation of his intentions. The interview took place on the 28th May, when Sindia frankly admitted to the Resident that the treaty of Bassein contained nothing repugnant to his just rights.

Sindia’s fatal declaration, 1803

He disavowed any intention of invading the territories of the Company, or of their allies; but, in reference to the negotiations then on foot, he could give no decisive answer till he had seen the raja of Nagpore, then about forty miles distant; “when you shall be informed whether there is to be war or peace.” These ominous words proved to be the knell of Mahratta power. That Sindia, encamped with a large army on the frontier of the British ally, the Nizam, should rest the question of war or peace simply upon a conference with an armed confederate, was considered by Lord Wellesley a public insult to the British Government, and so palpable a menace of hostility, that a conflict was no longer to be avoided. The complication of

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affairs at this juncture was increased by the arrival of the French squadron, already alluded to, at Pondicherry, which Sindia did not fail to turn to account in his communications with the other Mahratta powers, as well as by the daily expectation of the death of the old Nizam, when the question of the succession to the throne of Hyderabad would open a wide door for the intrigues of the two Mahratta chiefs encamped on its frontier. But Sindia and the raja of Nagpore endeavoured to spin out the discussions with the Resident for two months longer, while they continued to press Holkar to cross the Taptee, and join their forces. During this period of suspense, the Peshwa was engaged in constant communications with Sindia, urging him to make no concession, but to advance at once to Poona. He was lavish in his promises to the Resident, but he took care to perform nothing. The contingent he was bound to furnish was withheld, supplies were prevented from reaching the English camp, and no opportunity was lost of embarrassing the operations of the British Government.

Full powers of General Wellesley – the result, 1803

Early in May, General Wellesley had represented to the Governor-General that no reply to any reference could be received from Calcutta under six weeks, and that all the advantages of delay rested with the Mahrattas; he therefore suggested the propriety of deputing to some authority on the western coast the power of summarily deciding upon every question as it arose. Feeling the full force of this advice, at this critical juncture, the Governor-General took on himself the responsibility – for which he was afterwards captiously censured – of vesting the full powers of government, civil, military, and political, in reference to Mahratta affairs, in General Wellesley, and after a clear and ample exposition of his own views, authorised him to commence hostilities, or to conclude treaties without any further application to Calcutta. This communication reached him on the 18th July, and he lost no time in announcing to Sindia and to the raja of Berar the plenary powers with which he had been invested, and called on them to demonstrate

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by their conduct the sincerity of the pacific declarations which they continued to make. Their armies, he said, now occupied positions not necessary for the security of their own territories, but menacing both to the Company, the Nizam, and the Peshwa. He proposed that they should withdraw their forces respectively to Hindostan and to Nagpore, while he sent back the British armies to their usual stations. Then ensued another week of frivolous and fruitless discussion, in the course of which Sindia, with that mixture of simplicity and perfidy which is so often found together in the oriental character, said that he and his confederate could determine upon no movement, because the arrangements for Holkar’s joining their camp were not as yet completed. Wearied with these studied delays, General Wellesley gave them twenty-four hours for their ultimatum, which they presented in this shape; that he should dismiss his troops to their respective cantonments, and that they should fall back forty miles to Boorhanpore. To this the General replied, “You propose that I should withdraw to Seringapatam, Madras and Bombay, the troops collected to defend these territories against your designs, and that you and your confederate should be suffered to remain with your forces, to take advantage of their absence. I offered you peace on terms of equality, and honourable to all parties. You have chosen war, and are answerable for all consequences.”

Colonel Collins quits Sindia’s camp, 1803

On the 3rd August Colonel Collins quitted Sindia’s camp, and this circumstance became the immediate precursor of hostilities. Thus commenced the Mahratta war of 1803.

Preparations for war, 1803.

Lord Wellesley, when he found that a war with Sindia and the raja of Nagpore was more than probable, determined to strike a decisive blow simultaneously at the possessions of both princes, in every quarter of India, though the field of operations was 700 miles apart in one direction, and 600 in another. In the grand combinations of the campaign he was his own war minister, and never had the resources of India been drawn forth on a scale of such magnitude,

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or applied with such efficiency. In the Deccan about 3,600 troops were left for the defence of Hyderabad and Poona, while a covering army of about 8,000 men protected the districts between the Kistna and the Toombudra. The advanced force under the command of General Wellesley of about 9,000, and of about 8,000 under Colonel Stephenson, was intended to operate against the main armies of the two allies. In the north of India, 10,500 troops were assembled under the Commander-in-chief, General Lake, to attack Sindia’s disciplined battalions, and wrest from him his possessions in Hindostan. A force of 8,500 men was allotted for the occupation of Bundelkund. On the western coast of India an army of 7,300 men was organised to dispossess Sindia of his districts in Guzerat, and 5,200 men were prepared to take possession of the province of Cuttack, in the bay of Bengal. The whole force, amounting to about 55,000, was animated by that traditionary spirit of enterprise and enthusiasm which had created the British empire in the east, and which, on the present occasion, was heightened by a feeling of unbounded confidence in the master mind of the Governor-General. The armies of Sindia and the raja of Berar were computed at 100,000, of whom 50,000 were cavalry and 30,000 infantry, trained and commanded by European officers, together with a superb train of artillery of many hundred pieces.

Capture of Ahmednugur, Aug. 12, 1803

As soon as Colonel Collins had left Sindia’s camp, General Wellesley opened the campaign by an attack on Ahmednugur, Sindia’s great arsenal and depot south of the Nerbudda. This important fortress, though it had been considered impregnable since the memorable defence of it by Chand Sultana in 1595, was surrendered after a brief resistance on the 12th August. The general then proceeded to take possession of all Sindia’s territories south of the Godavery, and crossed that river on the 29th August, in the hope of bringing the contest to the issue of a general engagement. But the confederates spent three weeks in marching and countermarching without skill, and without any apparent object except

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that of avoiding the pursuit of the British armies. On the 21st September General Wellesley found himself in the neighbourhood of Sindia’s encampment, and, at a conference with Colonel Stephenson, arranged that they should move on separate routes to the attack of the enemy on the 24th. But the General was misled by his scouts as to the actual position of the confederate army, and after marching twenty-six miles on the 23rd, unexpectedly discovered that it was encamped at no greater distance than six miles, whereas he had been led to believe that it was twice as remote from him. He was, likewise, assured that the allied chiefs were on the point of retiring from their present position, and under the apprehension that their infantry might escape him, he resolved to bring on an action before the close of the day, without waiting for the junction of Colonel Stephenson. On ascending an eminence, he beheld the Mahratta armies stretched out before him, consisting of 50,000 men, of whom 10,000 were trained sepoys, and supported by a hundred pieces of cannon.

Battle of Assye Sept. 23, 1803.

The handful of British troops which now moved down to attack this formidable host did not exceed 4,500. The Mahrattas had taken up a strong position, as they were always famous for doing, with their left resting on the village of Assye, and their infantry entrenched behind formidable batteries. General Wellesley had given the most positive injunctions to the officer commanding the pickets to avoid the cannon planted in the village, but he led his troops directly up to the muzzle of the guns, which poured an incessant shower on the assailants. The 74th, which supported them, was thus exposed to a hotter fire than any troops had ever before encountered in India. To save that gallant regiment from utter destruction, it was necessary to bring up additional corps; but so tremendous was the cannonade, that General Wellesley was at one time doubtful whether he could prevail on any regiment to advance and face it. The indomitable courage and energy of British troops, however, bore down all resistance, and Sindia’s splendid infantry, who stood to their guns to the last

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moment, were at length overpowered and dispersed. The victory was the most complete which had ever crowned British valour in India, but it was dearly purchased by the loss of one-third of the army. The slaughter would not have been half so severe but for the blunder of the officer commanding the pickets, for which the strategy of the General was not responsible. The raja of Nagpore fled at the first shot, and Sindia was not slow to follow his example. He lost all his guns, ammunition, and camp equipage. His army was completely and irretrievably disorganized, and he retreated with a small body of horse along the banks of the Taptee.

Capture of Boorhanpore, 16th, and Asseergur, 21st Oct, 1803

He then made a rapid movement southward, vigorously followed by General Wellesley, while Colonel Stephenson successively besieged and captured the flourishing town of Boorhanpore and the strong fortress of Asseergur. These were the last remaining possessions of Sindia in the Deccan, and General Wellesley was now at liberty to direct his undivided attention to the raja of Nagpore, who was the most determined enemy of the Company, and the prime mover in this war.

Capture of Cuttack, 1803

During the month of September, the army under Colonel Harcourt advanced into the maritime province of Cuttack, abutting on southern Bengal, of which the Nagpore family had held possession for more than half a century. It lay between the Bengal and the Madras Presidencies, and the Court of Directors had always cast a longing eye upon it, and pressed the acquisition of it, if necessary, by purchase, on successive Governors-General for twenty years. It was now to be added to their dominions by the fortune of war. The whole country was occupied without even the semblance of opposition. As the British army approached the temple of Jugunnath, which is considered to sanctify the whole province, and render it “the land of merit,” the brahmins hastened to the camp to inform the Colonel that on the preceding night they had inquired of the god whether he would rather live under the protection of the English than of the Mahrattas,

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and he had replied that he greatly preferred the English. This very sagacious and prudent determination was considered of such importance as to be communicated by express to Calcutta.

Armistice with Sindia, 1803

Sindia, stripped of the last of his possessions in Candesh, by the capture of Asseergur, made overtures of peace to General Wellesley, which, after a wearisome negotiation, resulted in a provisional armistice on the 23rd November. It stipulated that he should keep his army to a position forty miles east of Elichpore, and that his camp should not approach within the same distance of either of the British armies, then operating against the raja of Nagpore. Colonel Stephenson was marching to the siege of Gawilgur, a strong and important fortress in the Nagpore territories, in which the royal treasures were said to be deposited. The raja and his troops who had been for some time moving about in the southern districts, closely followed by General Wellesley, now moved up to the defence of the fort. The General, who had been separated from Colonel Stephenson for two months, opportunely joined him in time to support and cover the siege. On the 28th November, the British force, after a long and fatiguing march, came up with the Nagpore army, on the plain of Argaom.

Battle of Argaom, 28th Nov., 1803

Sindia, who was waiting for the result of circumstances, had not ratified the armistice, or observed its conditions, but was encamped within four miles of his confederate, and, in the engagement which ensued, did not hesitate to send his cavalry to aid him in charging the British regiments. Though it was late in the day, General Wellesley resolved to engage the enemy, but his troops had no sooner come within range of their guns than three entire battalions, who had behaved with distinguished gallantry on the field of Assye, under a far hotter fire, broke their ranks and fled. Fortunately, the General happened to be at no great distance, and succeeded in rallying them, and re-establishing the battle, or it would have been inevitably lost. The raja abandoned all his cannon and ammunition;

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and few of his troops would have escaped if there had been an hour of daylight left. On the 15th December the fortress of Gawilgur surrendered to Colonel Stephenson, and General Wellesley prepared to march on the city of Nagpore. The raja, reduced to despair by these rapid reverses, and trembling for his capital and his throne, hastened to sue for peace.

Treaty of Deogaom, Dec. 18th, 1803

The negotiation was entrusted to Mr. Mount Stuart Elphinstone, a young civilian of great talent and promise, who subsequently rose to great eminence in the public service, and had the honour of twice declining the post of Governor-General, for which not even an English statesman could have been better qualified. The treaty, known as that of Deogaom, was completed in two days. The province of Cuttack was ceded to the Company, and a letter-post was established without a break between Calcutta and Madras. The districts of Berar west of the Wurda, had belonged in part to the Nizam, but the raja of Nagpore, who owned the other portion, had collected the revenues of the whole, and appropriated the lion’s share to himself. This territory, which includes the “cotton field of the Deccan,” was now entirely transferred to the Nizam. Half-a-century later he assigned it to the Company for the pay of his contingent, and they immediately endowed it with the inestimable blessing of a railway. The raja likewise engaged to refer all his differences with the Nizam and the Peshwa to the arbitration of the British Government, and to exclude all Frenchmen and all Europeans of any nation at war with England from his kingdom. The large cessions of territory which the raja was thus constrained to make comprised the most valuable of his possessions, and reduced him to a secondary rank among the princes of India; and the power of another member of the Mahratta pentarchy was effectually crippled.

Sindia’s possessions in Hindostan, 1803

General Wellesley had deprived Sindia of all his possessions in the Deccan. Colonel Murray at the same time, captured Broach, his only seaport, and occupied all his districts on the western coast in

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Guzerat; but it was in Hindostan that he experienced the most overwhelming disasters. The valuable possessions of his crown in that quarter, which formed, in fact, an opulent kingdom, had been gradually enlarged and consolidated by the incessant labours of the late Mahdajee Sindia, and chiefly through the army raised and disciplined by De Boigne, on whose retirement to his native town in France, in 1796, the command devolved on General Perron. Dowlut Rao Sindia, from the period of his accession in 1792, had been continually encamped in the neighbourhood of Poona, coercing and fleecing the unfortunate Peshwa, and had never so much as visited his northern dominions. The governor of Delhi, emboldened by his master’s absence, had the temerity to set his authority at defiance. General Perron was directed to invest the city, and it was surrendered under the threat of a bombardment. The aged and blind emperor, who had been treated by the native warden of the palace with great severity, and often left without the common necessaries of life, was now transferred, after ten years of suffering, to the charge of Perron, and as every effort was made to alleviate his wretched condition, he had good reason to congratulate himself on the change of masters.

General Perron’s power, 1803

The continued absence of Sindia had thrown the whole administration of his dominions in Hindostan, both civil and fiscal, as well as the command of the army, into the hands of General Perron, who exercised this extensive power with great ability and moderation. He had succeeded in establishing the complete authority of Sindia throughout Rajpootana, and was gradually extending it over the Sikh states between the Jumna and the Sutlege. His advanced posts approached the Indus in one direction, and Allahabad in another, and throughout this wide expanse of country his power was paramount. The territory under his management yielded a revenue of two crores of rupees. The troops under his command consisted of 28,000 foot, not inferior in discipline or valour to the Company’s Sepoy army, and 5,000 horse, with 140 pieces of artillery.

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The jeopardy in which the Company’s interests were placed by the establishment of this powerful force – essentially French in its tendencies – along the whole line of their western frontier, was self-evident, and Lord Wellesley naturally considered the extinction of this danger an object of the highest importance. Happily for the accomplishment of his wishes, Sindia’s native officers entertained great jealousy of General Perron’s power, and Sirjee Rao represented to his master the indignation felt by his great sirdars at the confidence which he thought fit to repose in this foreigner. So strong was the adverse current that in April, 1802, the General repaired to Sindia’s camp, and endeavoured to avert danger and to strengthen his position by a nuzur of fifteen lacs of rupees. But the incessant murmurs of his ministers at length induced Sindia to divest Perron of the management of all the districts under his charge, with the exception of those allotted for the maintenance of his troops. He was therefore contemplating a retirement from Sindia’s service at the time when General Lake was preparing to take the field against him. The Governor-General, anxious to take advantage of this feeling of disaffection, directed the Commander-in-chief to offer him a reasonable consideration, if he would transfer his military power and resources, together with the person of the emperor, to the British Government. But, though he had received the greatest provocations from Sindia, he honourably rejected every inducement to betray his trust.

Capture of Allygur, 29th August, 1803

General Lake was invested with the same civil, military, and political powers in Hindostan, which had been conferred on General Wellesley in the Deccan, and he took the field as soon as it was known that Colonel Collins had quitted Sindia’s camp. He advanced towards General Perron’s encampment on the 29th August, but the enemy, though 15,000 strong, retreated without firing a shot. The French General retired with his body guard towards Agra, leaving Colonel Pedron in charge of the important fortress of Allygur, the great military arsenal

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and depot of the army in Hindostan, with orders to defend it as long as one stone remained upon another. Every appliance which science could suggest had been adopted in strengthening the fort; it was protected by ten bastions and a ditch, a hundred feet wide, and thirty deep, containing ten feet of water. Throughout Hindostan it was deemed impregnable, and it was considered questionable whether any amount of military strategy would have been sufficient to secure its surrender. But it was captured at once by the irresistible gallantry of the 76th Highlanders, commanded by Major Macleod, who blew open the gate, and forced their way in through the most intricate and loop-holed passages, raked by a destructive fire of grape, wall-pieces, and matchlocks. The number of guns captured amounted to 281. Our loss in killed and wounded was 217, of whom 17 were officers. This was one of those master strokes which served to confound the native mind, and which essentially promoted the submission of the native powers. General Wellesley, on hearing of it, remarked, that he had often attempted to blow open a gate, but had never succeeded, and that he considered the capture of Allygur one of the most extraordinary feats he had ever heard of. Yet, it was allowed to pass without any recognition for forty-eight years, and it was only in the reign of Queen Victoria that a medal was struck to commemorate the achievement, and presented to the few heroes who still survived. A week after, General Perron, having heard that his enemies in Sindia’s court had at length succeeded in procuring an order for his dismissal, informed General Lake that he had resigned the Maharaja’s service, and requested permission to retire with his family, his suite, and his property, through the British territories, to Lucknow. He was received in the British camp with the distinction due to his talents and position.

Battle of Delhi, 11th September, 1803

After the capture of Allygur, General Lake advanced towards Delhi, and Bourquin, who had succeeded to the command of Perron’s army,

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crossed the Jumna to oppose his progress. The British force, 4,500 strong, after a fatiguing march of eighteen miles, reached its encamping ground, within sight of the minarets of Delhi, and found the enemy posted in such force that the General, after a reconnaissance, deemed it advisable to begin the attack without delay. Bourquin’s army, consisting of sixteen battalions of regular infantry and 6,000 cavalry, in all about 19,000 men, with a large train of artillery, was drawn up with its rear resting on the Jumna. The position appeared impregnable and General Lake ordered his cavalry, which was advancing in front, to feign a retreat; the enemy, deceived by the movement, immediately abandoned all the advantages of their position, and rushed forward with their guns, shouting and yelling after the peculiar fashion of native troops. The British infantry, led by the ever ready 76th Highlanders and by the Commander-in-chief in person, advanced steadily, amidst a storm of grape and chain shot, and after delivering one round charged with cold steel. The shock was irresistible, the ranks of the enemy reeled and then broke up in disorder, flying down to the river in which great numbers perished. The British loss was comparatively small, only 409, but one-third of the casualties fell on the noble Highlanders. Three days after, Bourquin and three of his officers surrendered to General Lake.

The release of the emperor, 15th September, 1803

The city of Delhi was immediately evacuated by the troops of Sindia, and the British standard was hoisted on its battlements, forty-seven years after the sack of Calcutta by Seraja Dowlah had extinguished the British power and name in Hindostan. The emperor, in a previous communication with General Lake, had expressed a strong desire to obtain the protection of the British Government; Lord Wellesley was no less desirous of granting it, and thus securing to the Company the advantage which was connected with the possession of his person. The Mogul throne had not lost all its prestige. The emperor, though a prisoner and sightless, was still considered the

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fountain of honour throughout India, equally by the Hindoos and Mohamedans, and a patent of nobility under his seal was as highly prized in the remotest provinces of the Deccan, as it had been in the days of Aurungzebe. Tippoo was the only Mohamedan prince who had ventured to discontinue the homage due to the royal house, and the day after his fall, the Nizam’s general solicited General Harris’s permission to proceed in state to the great mosque, and resume the reading of the khootba in the emperor’s name. It was, therefore, considered important to the interests of the Company to be identified with the house of Timur. It was arranged that the heir apparent should arrive with his suite at the General’s tent at midday, but natives, and more especially native princes, consider that punctuality lessens their dignity. The General was kept waiting more than three hours, and it was nearly sunset before the cavalcade reached the city, where, to borrow the magniloquent diction of the Governor-General, “in the magnificent palace built by Shah Jehan, the Commander-in-chief was ushered into the royal presence, and found the unfortunate and venerable emperor, oppressed by the accumulated calamities of old age, and degraded authority, extreme poverty, and loss of sight, seated under a small tattered canopy, the remnant of his royal state, with every external appearance of the misery of his condition.” The inhabitants of the city manifested great enthusiasm at the change of masters, and the courtly news writers affirmed, that the emperor not only shed tears, but had actually regained his sight, in the excess of his joy. Lord Wellesley formed the judicious resolution of removing him and the royal family from the dangerous associations of Delhi, and proposed Monghir for their future residence, but the emperor clung with such tenacity to the spot which had been for six centuries the capital of Mohamedan greatness, that Lord Wellesley was reluctantly compelled to abandon this design. But the wisdom of it was abundantly vindicated half a century later, when the residence of the royal family at

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Delhi, entailed a bloody tragedy, which terminated in sweeping every vestige of the Mogul dynasty from the soil of India.

Capture of Agra, Oct. 17, 1803

Leaving Colonel Ochterlony in command at Delhi, General Lake marched down to Agra, which was still held by Sindia’s troops. In the exercise of the political powers with which he was invested, he concluded a treaty with the raja of Bhurtpore, who sent a body of 5,000 horse to co-operate with his army. He was the first to seek an alliance with the British Government in the flood tide of its success, and the first to repudiate it when the tide appeared to be ebbing. Agra capitulated, after a protracted siege, on the 17th October, and the treasure found in it, twenty-eight lacs of rupees, was promptly and wisely distributed among the officers and men, in “anticipation of the approval of the home authorities.”

Battle of Laswaree, 1st Nov., 1803

On the outbreak of the war Sindia sent fifteen of his disciplined battalions across the Nerbudda to protect his possessions in Hindostan. They were considered the flower of his army, and usually designated “the Deccan Invincibles.” But before their arrival the battle of Delhi had extinguished Sindia’s army in the north, with the exception of two battalions which joined the southern force, and raised its strength to 9,000 foot, 4,000 cavalry, and 72 pieces of artillery. No attempt was made to relieve Agra, but it hung on the skirts of the British army. General Lake did not fail to perceive that while so formidable a force continued unbroken it would be impossible to obtain the general confidence of the province, and he determined to attack it without delay. He had received an unfounded report that the Mahratta army was endeavouring to avoid him, and, with his usual impetuosity, started at midnight in search of it with his cavalry alone, leaving orders for the infantry to follow. He came up with the encampment of the enemy at daybreak on the 1st November, at the village of Laswaree, and found them, as usual, entrenched in a formidable position, with their guns drawn up in the

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front. The General led his cavalry up in person to the attack; a fearful discharge of grape and double-headed shot mowed down column after column, and rendered the fiery valour of the troops useless. To prevent their utter extinction, the General was obliged to withdraw them from the conflict, to await the arrival of the infantry, who had marched sixty-five miles in the preceding forty-eight hours, and twenty-five miles since midnight. After a brief rest and a hasty meal, they were launched on the enemy’s guns and battalions. The engagement was the severest in which the Company’s troops had ever been engaged, not excepting that of Assye. Sindia’s sepoys fought as natives had never fought before. They defended their position to the last extremity, contesting every point inch by inch, and refusing to give way while a single gun remained in their possession. But they were at length overpowered, and lost their ammunition and camp equipage, together with 71 pieces of cannon. It was even reported that one-half their number was left on the field, killed or wounded. On the British side the casualties amounted to 824, one-fourth of which belonged to the 76th Highlanders, who bore the brunt of the action. The General himself conducted every operation throughout the day, with more credit to his personal gallantry than to his military talent. Though a dashing soldier, and adored by his men, he was only a second-rate general; but the flagrant defects of his arrangements were covered, as has frequently been the case in India, by the undaunted valour of his men, at the sacrifice of their own lives. The battle of Laswaree served to exhibit the high state of efficiency to which the French generals in the Mahratta service had brought their native troops. It does not appear that there was a single European officer with them during the engagement, yet so complete had been their training, that when left to themselves they exhibited a degree of skill and intrepidity which staggered General Lake himself, and constrained him to remark that if they had been led by their French officers the result of the day would have been exceedingly doubtful.

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Treaty of Sirjee Anjengaom, Dec. 4, 1803

This defeat completed the humiliation of Sindia. In the course of twelve weeks the French battalions, the bulwark of his power, had been annihilated, and all his territories in the Deccan, in Guzerat, and in Hindostan, the rich patrimony bequeathed to him by his uncle, had been wrested from him. Seeing no alternative between the entire annihilation of his power and submission to the severe terms dictated by Lord Wellesley, he yielded to necessity, and within a fortnight after the raja of Nagpore had made his peace with the British Government, signed the treaty of Sirjee Anjengaom. It was negotiated on the one part by General Wellesley, on the other by Wittul Punt, Sindia’s chief minister, who, though advanced in years, was still considered the first native diplomatist of the age, and was designated by General Wellesley the Talleyrand of the east. By this treaty Sindia ceded all his territories in Hindostan, lying in the Dooab between the Ganges and the Jumna, as well as those north of the Rajpoot principalities of Jeypore and Joudhpore; the fortress and territory of Ahmednugur in the Deccan, and Broach with its dependencies in Guzerat. He relinquished all claims on the Peshwa, the Nizam, the Guickwar, and the British Government, and agreed to recognize the independence of the rajas and feudatories in Hindostan with whom treaties had been concluded by General Lake, and a list of whom was to be delivered to him when the treaty was ratified by the Governor-General. Two districts to the north of the prescribed limits were, however, restored to him, and pensions granted to some of his officers and the members of his own family.

Distribution of the conquered territory, 1803

The engagement made with the Nizam at the commencement of hostilities stated that he should share equally with the Company the conquests made by their joint efforts, if he honourably fulfilled the conditions of the alliance. That aged prince, the son of the renowned Nizam-ool-moolk, who had been decorated with honours by Aurungzebe more than a century before, was at the time

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on his deathbed, and expired four days after the war began. His son, Secunder Jah, was placed on the musnud by the decision of Lord Wellesley. But though the Hyderabad forces were sent to co-operate with Colonel Stephenson, the stipulations of the treaty were scandalously violated by the Nizam’s civil and military officers, whose sympathies were entirely with the confederates. Every obstacle was thrown in the way of military operations. The provision of grain for the army was purposely neglected, and permission was refused to purchase it in the Nizam’s dominions. The officers and men wounded at Assye were denied an asylum in the fort of Dowlutabad, and one of the Hyderabad commanders had the audacity to fire on the British troops from the guns of his fort. The Nizam had thus forfeited all claim to share in the spoils of war, but Lord Wellesley generously bestowed on him the rich province of Berar, lying to the west of the Wurda. The fortress and the district of the Ahmednugur, acquired from Sindia, were transferred to the Peshwa, notwithstanding the perfidy of his conduct. The province of Cuttack, the conquests in Guzerat, and the valuable districts in Hindostan were incorporated with the Company’s dominions. These last, together with the province ceded by the Nabob Vizier, were formed into the separate government of the north-west provinces, and now constitute the Agra Presidency. The territory which Lord Wellesley had annexed two years before to the Madras Presidency, and that which he now added to Bengal, was estimated at the annual value of six crores of rupees – an amusing comment on the Parliamentary denunciation of territorial aggrandisement.

Treaties of alliance in the north, 1803

Having thus reduced the power of the Mahrattas, Lord Wellesley was anxious to prevent the revival of their influence in Hindostan by establishing a barrier between their possessions and those of the Company. With this view, General Lake concluded treaties of alliance and mutual defence with the Jaut prince of Bhurtpore, and with the Rajpoot princes of Jeypore, Joudhpore, Machery, and Boondee, who were thereby absolved from all allegiance to

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the Mahratta powers. Sindia had entrusted the fortress of Gwalior and some of his districts in that quarter to Ambajee Inglia, who, after the battle of Laswaree, in which he took an active part, offered to desert his master, and transfer the fort and half the territory to the British Government, on condition of being acknowledged the independent ruler of the remainder. A treaty was accordingly drawn up and signed, to which, however, he did not long adhere. His commandant refused to surrender Gwalior, which was besieged and captured by an English force. Ambajee returned soon after to Sindia’s court, and was restored to favour. The rana of Gohud, whose dominions Sindia had appropriated to himself twenty years before, was reputed to possess great influence among the Jauts, and Lord Wellesley resolved to grant him the territory of which he had been dispossessed, together with the fort of Gwalior, on his engaging to subsidize three English battalions. The complications which arose out of this anomalous transaction we shall have occasion to notice hereafter. By the treaty of Bassein, the Peshwa had assigned for the maintenance of the subsidiary force districts in the Deccan yielding twenty-six lacs of rupees, but this arrangement was found inconvenient to both parties, and, upon the advice of General Wellesley, he was permitted to exchange them for territories in Bundelkund of the value of thirty-six lacs a-year; but as his authority in that province was merely nominal, the transaction was more advantageous to him than to the British Government, upon whom it entailed a long and harassing conflict. Lord Wellesley was, moreover, bent on establishing a subsidiary treaty with Sindia, and Major Malcolm was engaged for many months in a tedious negotiation, which, though eventually successful, produced no result, inasmuch as the quota of troops, 6,000 in number, was not to be stationed within his dominions, and their support was to be derived from the territories which he had already ceded unconditionally to the Company.

The Guickwar, 1800–1803

It only remains to notice the progress of events in Guzerat, the greater portion of which was included

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in the dominions of the Guickwar. It has already been told how the Mogul authority in this province ceased in 1755, when the capital Ahmedabad was captured by Damajee Guickwar. He died in 1768, and was succeeded after a long series of intrigues, by his son, Futteh Sing. On his death, in 1792, his brother mounted the throne, and died in 1800, leaving eleven children, and the country was immediately distracted by their struggles for the supreme power. Anund Rao, the eldest, though imbecile, was acknowledged as the legitimate successor to the musnud, and, having taken an able minister into his counsels, applied to the Bombay government for aid against his brothers and rivals, and offered to enter into a subsidiary alliance. This occurred at the time when Lord Wellesley was intent on extending these political arrangements throughout India, as the most effectual mode of establishing British supremacy, and the offer was cordially accepted. The subsidized force consisted of five battalions, and districts yielding between eleven and twelve lacs of rupees a-year were assigned for their support. The appearance of a British army in the field extinguished all opposition, the authority of Anund Rao was fully acknowledged, and Major Walker was appointed Resident at the court, which was now transferred to the new capital, Baroda. But the treasury was insolvent, and the finances were in a state of apparently hopeless confusion. The revenues amounted to fifty lacs of rupees a-year, and the expenditure to eighty-two. The deficiency had been made up, year after year, according to the fatal practice of native princes, by loans at extravagant interest, and mortgages and assignments, which devoured the resources of the state, and threatened the dissolution of all government. Major Walker was one of those great men to whom the Company has been indebted for the extension and the popularity of their rule. He had acquired the confidence of the natives of Guzerat even to a greater degree than that of his own Government, and with the universal consent of nobles and people, assumed the entire control of the administration. It was necessary in the first

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instance to relieve the country from the native army, which ceased to be necessary after the establishment of the subsidiary force, but it could not be disbanded without the payment of arrears, which amounted to forty-one lacs of rupees. Major Walker prevailed on the Governor-General to advance the sum of twenty lacs, and by the extraordinary influence he had acquired among the native bankers, obtained a loan of the remainder from them, though not without a British guarantee. The troops were at length paid up in full, and the country was freed from the insolence of these Arab mercenaries. The maritime district of Kattiwar took advantage of the dissensions of the time to refuse the payment of the tribute due to the parent state, but Major Walker marched into the country and constrained the insurgents to enter into an engagement for the payment of nine lacs of tribute a-year. His expedition into that province was rendered ever memorable by the moral results which it produced.

Abolition of infanticide, 1804

The custom of infanticide was universally prevalent among its Rajpoot inhabitants, who preferred the death of their daughters to the disgrace of an inferior alliance. By the influence of his official position, but more particularly by the weight of his personal character, Major Walker was enabled to obtain from all the principal chiefs a pledge, both on their own part and that of their fraternities, to abstain from the practice, to expel from the community all who were found guilty of it, and to submit to any penalty he might think fit to impose. The success of these efforts in the cause of humanity has shed a brighter lustre on his memory than all his political achievements, great as they were. It was through his exertions that peace and tranquillity were restored to the country, and the government of the Guickwar consolidated. The connection of the state with the British Government was closely cemented, and the resources of another Mahratta prince were detached from the Mahratta cause, and placed under the control of the Company.

Reflections

The transcendent genius and energy of Lord Wellesley had thus, in the course of five years,

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completely remodelled the whole policy of India, and placed the Company on the pinnacle of power. They had now become the masters of a great part of the continent, the protector of all the principal powers, and the acknowledged mediator in the disputes of all. Their sovereignty was greater, and their authority fixed on a fishier and more solid basis than that of Akbar or Aurungzebe. The administration of Lord Wellesley had reached its culminating point. The disasters which clouded the remaining period of his Indian career arose from the blunders of the Commander-in-chief, and not from any imperfection in his Government, though it was necessarily saddled with the obloquy they entailed.

This collection transcribed by Chris Gage
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