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Home , Anandibai, Arya Samaj, Ashta Pradhan, Baji Rao I, Balaji Baji Rao, Balaji Vishwanath

BA Semester VI- History 1707-1818 AD (HISKB 602)

Dr. Mukesh (Department of History) KMC Language University , U.P.-226013

UNIT-I Shahu-

Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj also known as Rajarshi Shahu was considered a true democrat and social reformer. First of the of , he was an invaluable gem in the history of . Greatly influenced by the contributions of social reformer Jyotiba Phule, Shahu Maharaj was an ideal leader and able ruler who was associated with many progressive and path breaking activities during his rule. From his coronation in 1894 till his demise in 1922, he worked tirelessly for the cause of the lower caste subjects in his state. Primary education to all regardless of caste and creed was one of his most significant priorities.

He was born Yeshwantrao in the Ghatge family in village of the as Yeshwantrao Ghatge to Jaisingrao and Radhabai in June 26, 1874. Jaisingrao Ghatge was the village chief, while his wife Radhabhai hailed from the of Mudhol. Young Yeshwantrao lost his mother when he was only three. His education was supervised by his father till he was 10-year-old. In that year, he was adopted by Queen , widow of Kingh IV, of the princely state of Kolhapur. Although the adoption rules of the time dictated that the child must have Bhosale blood in his vein, Yeshwantrao’s family background presented a unique case. He completed his formal education at the Rajkumar College in and took lessons of administrative affairs from Sir Stuart Fraser, a representative of the Indian Civil Services. He ascended the in 1894 after coming of age, prior to which a regency council appointed by the British Government took care of the state affairs. During his accession Yeshwantrao was renamed as Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj. Chhatrapati Shahu was over five feet nine inches in height and displayed a regal and majestic appearance. Wrestling was one of his favourite sports and he

1 patronised the sport throughout his rule. Wrestlers from all over the country would come to his state to participate in wrestling competitions. He was married to Lakshmibai Khanvilkar, daughter of a nobleman from Baroda in 1891. The couple had for children – two sons and two daughters. Social Reforms- Chhatrapati Shahu occupied the throne of Kolhapur for 28 years, from 1894 to 1922, and during this period he initiated numerous social reforms in his . His emphasis was on education and his aim was to make education available to masses. He introduced a number of educational programs to promote education among his subjects. He established hostels separately for different ethnicities and religions like Panchals, Devadnya, Nabhik, Shimpi, Dhor- communities as well as for Muslims, Jains and Christians. He established the Miss Clarke Boarding School for the socially quarantined segments of the community. He introduced several scholarships for the poor but meritorious students from backward castes. He also initiated a compulsory free primary education for all in his state. He established Vedic Schools that enabled students from all castes and classes to learn the scriptures and propagate education among all. He also started special schools for the village heads or ‘Patils’ to make them into better administrators. Chhatrapati Sahu was a strong advocate of equality among all strata of the society and refused to give the any special status. He removed Brahmins from the post of Royal Religious advisers when they refused to perform religious rites for non-Brahmins. He appointed a young Maratha scholar in the post and bestowed him the of `Kshatra. This incident together with the Shahu’s encouragement of the non-Brahmins to read and recite the led to the Vedokta controversy in Maharashtra. The Vedokta controversy brought a storm of protest from the elite strata of the society; a vicious opposition of the Chhatrapati’s rule. He established the Deccan Rayat Association in during 1916. The association sought to secure political rights for non-Brahmins and invite their equal participation in politics. Shahuji was influenced by the works of Jyotiba Phule, and he long patronized the Shodhak Samaj, formed by Phule. In his later life, he, however, moved towards the . Chhatrapati Shahu made great efforts to abolish the concept of caste segregation and . He introduced (perhaps the first known) reservation system in

2 government jobs for untouchable castes. His Royal Decree ordering his subjects to treat every member of the society as equal and granting the untouchables equal access to public utilities like wells and ponds, as well as establishments like schools and hospitals. He legalised inter-caste marriages and made a lot of efforts for the upliftment of the . He discontinued the hereditary transfer of and tenures of revenue collectors (), a caste infamous for exploiting the masses, especially enslavement of the , a lower caste. The Chhatrapati also worked towards betterment of the conditions of women in his empire. He established schools to educate the women, and also spoke vociferously on the topic of women education. He introduced a banning the Devadsi Pratha, the practice of offering girls to , which essentially led to exploitation of the girls in the hands of the Clergy. He legalised widow remarriages in 1917 and made efforts towards stopping child marriages. He introduced a number of projects that enabled his subjects to self-sustain in their chosen professions. The Shahu Chhatrapati Spinning and Weaving Mill, dedicated market places, establishment of co-operative societies for farmers were introduced by the Chhatrapati to alleviate his subjects from middle men in trading. He made credits available to farmers looking to buy equipment to modernise agricultural practices and even established the Edward Agricultural Institute to teach the farmers to increase crop yield and related technologies. He initiated the Dam on February 18, 1907 and the project was completed in 1935. The dam stands testament to Chhatrapati Shahu’s vision towards the welfare of his subjects and made Kolhapur self-sufficient in water. He was a great patron of art and culture and encouraged artists from music and fine arts. He supported writers and researchers in their endeavours. He installed gymnasiums and wrestling pitches and highlighted the importance of health consciousness among the youth. His seminal contribution in social, political, educational, agricultural and cultural spheres earned him the title of Rajarshi, which was bestowed upon him by the warrior community of . Civil War With – Tarabai (1675-9 December 1761) was the of the of from 1700 until 1708. She was the queen of Chhatrapati Rajaram Bhosale,

3 daughter-in-law of the empire's founder Shivaji and mother of Shivaji II. She is acclaimed for her role in keeping alive the resistance against occupation of Maratha territories after the death of her spouse, and acted as regent during the minority of her son. Tarabai came from the clan and was daughter of famed Maratha general Hambirao Mohite. She also was the niece of Soyarabai and therefore a cousin of her husband, Rajaram. On Rajaram's death in March 1700, she proclaimed her infant son, Shivaji II as Rajaram's successor and herself as the regent. As the regent, she took charge of the war against 's forces. Tarabai was skilled in movement and made strategic movements herself during wars. She personally led the war and continued the fight against the . A truce was offered to the Mughals in such a way that it was promptly rejected by the Mughal and Tarabai continued the Maratha resistance. By 1705, Marathas had crossed the and made small incursions in Malawa, retreating immediately. The Maratha country was relieved at the news of the death of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb who died at in in 1707. Battle with Shahu- In order to divide the Maratha onslaught, the Mughals released Shahuji, 's son and Tarabai's nephew, on certain conditions. He immediately challenged Tarabai and Shivaji II for leadership of the Maratha polity. Shahu eventually prevailed thanks to his legal position and in part to the diplomacy and Tarabai was sidelined. She established a rival court in Kolhapur in 1709 but was deposed by Rajaram's other widow, Rajasabai, who put her own son, Sambhaji II, on the throne. Tarabai and her son were imprisoned by Sambhaji II. Shivaji II died in 1726. Tarabai afterwards reconciled with Chhatrapati Shahu in 1730 and went to live in but without any political power

Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath-

Balaji Vishwanath (1662–1720), better known as Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath, the first of a series of hereditary Peshwa hailing from the Bhat family who gained effective control of the Maratha Empire during the . Balaji Vishwanath assisted a young Maratha Emperor Shahu to consolidate his grip on a

4 kingdom that had been racked by civil war and persistently intruded on by the Mughals under Aurangzeb. He was called "the Second Founder of the Maratha State." Later, his son Bajirao I became the Peshwa.

Balaji Vishwanath Bhat was born into an Indian Hindu Chitpavan family. The family hailed from the coastal region of present- day Maharashtra and were the hereditary for under the of Janjira. He went out in search of employment to the upper regions of western and worked as a trooper under various Maratha generals. According to Kincaid & , Balaji Vishwanath entered the Maratha administration during the reign of Chhatrapati Sambhaji or the regency of his brother, Rajaram Later, he served as an accountant for the Maratha general, , at Janjira. Between 1699 and 1702, he served as the Sar- subhedar or head-administrator at and from 1704 to 1707 as Sarsubedar of Daulatabad. By the time Dhanaji died, Balaji had proven himself as an honest and able officer. Balaji fell out with Dhanaji's son and successor, Chandrarao Jadhav and went over to the newly released Maratha ruler Chhatrapati Shahu who took note of his abilities and appointed Balaji as his assistant.

Role during Maratha Civil War

Since the death of Shivaji, his two sons Sambhaji and Rajaram continued the Maratha war against the . Emperor Aurangzeb entered the Deccan in 1686, hoping to put an end to the fledgling Maratha state. Aurangzeb spent the next 21 years in the Deccan in ceaseless warfare against the Marathas. Despite the cruel executions of Sambhaji and early death of Rajaram, Rajaram's widow Tarabai continued the resistance while Sambhaji's son Shahu was captured at a very young age and held captive of the Mughals. Aurangzeb died at in 1707 at the age of eighty-eight, with the Mughal armies exhausted and the treasury empty. The ensuing war of succession in the Mughal Empire resulted in accession of the aged Mu'azzam, who ascended the Mughal throne under the title of Bahadur

In the intrigues following the death of Aurangzeb, the Mughal governor of the Deccan released Shahu from captivity, hoping to keep the Marathas locked in an internecine struggle between the partisans of Shahu, and Tarabai, the widow of

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Rajaram who governed in the name of her son Shivaji and denounced Shahu as an impostor substituted by the Mughals for the son of Sambhaji. Tarabai sent the Maratha Dhanaji Jadhav to attack Shahu. Balaji Vishwanath was despatched by Dhanaji Jadhav to meet secretly with Shahu and verify his bona fides. Balaji is believed to have persuaded his master to support the cause of Shahu. Dhanaji's forces met Shahu's at Khed, in . Instead of attacking Shahu, Dhanaji Jadhav declared him to be the rightful successor to the Maratha throne. Dhanaji's confidence in Balaji Vishwanath, however, aroused the jealousy of his son and successor, Chandrasen Jadhav.

After the death of Dhanaji Jadhav in June 1708, Shahu appointed Dhanaji's son Chandrasen Jadhav as Senapati, but the rivalry between Chandrasen and Balaji led the former to intrigue with Tarabai, while seeking an opportunity to eliminate Balaji. A dispute over the conduct of a junior officer in Balaji's employ led Chandrasen to attack Balaji, who fled to the fortress of Purandar. Chandrasen besieged Purandar whereupon Balaji fled again to Pandavgad whence he sent an emissary to plead for help from his sovereign. Shahu had Balaji Vishwanath brought under escort to his capital Satara and asked Chandrasen to make the case against Balaji Vishwanath before him. Instead of obeying Shahu Chandrasen defected to the cause of Tarabai in April 1711. Haibatrao Nimbalkar, who Shahu had dispatched against Chandrasen, also defected to Tarabai, and Shahu's fortunes were an at their lowest. Bereft of his experienced generals, Shahu turned to Balaji Vishwanath, who undertook to raise a new army in the cause of Shahu. For his efforts, Shahu He bestowed Balaji with the title of Senakarte or Organiser of Maratha armies (20 August 1711)

Balaji "next turned against Tarabai her own armory of intrigue". The fall of Tarabai at Kolhapur in 1712 was the outcome of a conspiracy hatched by Balaji Vishwanath in connivance with the disgruntled elements of Tarabai's court. Balaji Vishwanath induced Rajaram's other widow, Rajasbai to conduct a coup against Shivaji II, the son of Tarabai and install her own son, Sambhaji II, on the throne of Kolhapur. This brought the ruling house of Kolhapur under protection and subordination of Shahu at that time

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Appointment as Peshwa-

Next Shahu turned to subdue the Angres. Tukoji Angre had commanded Chattrapati Shivaji's navy and was succeeded in 1690 by his son . Kanhoji received from Tarabai the title of "Sarkhel" or Koli Admiral of the Maratha fleet. Kanhoji seized the opportunity of war between Tarabai and Shahu to effectively free himself of the of either. Instead, he captured the major trading center of Kaiyan and the neighboring forts of Rajmachi and Lohgad. Shahu sent a large force under his "Peshwa" or Chief Minister, Bahiroji Pingale. Kanhoji defeated Pingle and imprisoned him at , and started to advance towards Shahu's capital Satara. Shahu commanded Balaji again to raise another army to subdue Kanhoji. Balaji preferred the path of negotiation and was appointed as Shahu's plenipotententiary to negotiate with the admiral. Balaji and Kanhoji met at . The newly appointed Peshwa appealed to the old sailor's patriotism for the Maratha cause. Angre agreed to become the Sarkhel (admiral) of Shahu's navy with control of the Konkan. Balaji and Angre then jointly attacked the Muslim of Janjira. Their combined forces captured most of the Konkan coast, including Balaji's birthplace of Shrivardhan, which became part of the Angre fiefdom. Delighted with Balaji's success, Shahu dismissed Bahiroji Pingale and appointed Balaji Vishwanath as Peshwa on 16 November 1713.

UNIT-II

Bajirao First-

Baji Rao I was a general of the Maratha Empire in India. He served as the Peshwa to the 4th Maratha Chhatrapati (Emperor) Shahu from 1720 until his death. Bajirao was Peshwa in the Ashta of Shahu. He is also known by the name Bajirao Ballal. Bajirao I is credited with expanding the Maratha Empire in India. Maratha Empire reached its zenith later on under reign of Chhatrapati Shahu and Bajirao. He was one of the major contributors in expansion over the . In his career spanning 20 years, Bajirao I never lost a single battle. The twenty year old Bajirao was appointed as Peshwa in succession to his father by Chhatrapati Shahu on 17 April 1720. By the time of Baji Rao's appointment, Mughal emperor had in 1719 recognized Marathas'

7 rights over the territories possessed by Shivaji at his death. The treaty also included the Maratha rights to collect taxes in the six of Deccan. Bajirao succeeded in convincing Chatrapati Shahu that if we want to defend the Maratha Empire then we have to be offensive on our enemy. Bajirao believed that the Mughal Empire was in decline and wanted to take advantage of this situation with aggressive expansion in . Sensing the declining fortune of the Mughals, he is reported to have said. Strike, strike at the roots and whole tree will also fall down. Listen but to my counsel and I shall plant the Maratha Flag on the walls of (Fort). Southern Policy, Relation with Nizam

On 4 January 1721, Baji Rao met Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah I at Chikhalthana to settle their disputes through agreement. However, Nizam refused to recognize the Maratha rights to collect taxes from the Deccan provinces. Nizam was made of Mughal Empire in 1721, but alarmed at his growing power, emperor Muhammad Shah transferred him from Deccan to in 1723. Nizam rebelled against the order, resigned as the Vizier and marched towards Deccan. The emperor sent an army against him, which the Nizam defeated in the Battle of Sakhar-. In response, Mughal emperor was forced to recognize him as the of Deccan. The Marathas, led by Bajirao, helped Nizam win this battle. In fact, for his bravery in the battle, Baji Rao was honored with a robe, a mansabdari of 7,000, an elephant and a jewel. After the battle, Nizam tried to appease both the Maratha Chhatrapati Shahu as well as the Mughal emperor. However, in reality, he wanted to carve out a sovereign kingdom and considered the Marathas his rivals in the Deccan. In 1725, Nizam sent an army to clear out the Maratha revenue collectors from the . The Marathas dispatched a force under Bhosle to counter him; Baji Rao accompanied Bhosle, but did not command the army. The Marathas were forced to retreat. They launched a second campaign after the monsoon season, but once again, they were unable to prevent the Nizam from ousting the Maratha collectors. Meanwhile, in Deccan, Sambhaji II of had become a rival claimant to the title of the Maratha Chhatrapati. Nizam took advantage of this dispute among the Marathas. He refused to pay the or sardeshmukhi on the grounds

8 that it was unclear who was the real Chhatrapati: Shahu or Sambhaji II (and therefore, to whom the payment needed to be made). Nizam offered to act as an arbitrator in this dispute. At Shahu's court, Shripatrao Pant Pratinidhi advised Shahu to open negotiation and relinquish to the arbitration of Nizam. At the court of Sambhaji II, his supporter was Chandrasen Jadhav, who had fought Bajirao's father a decade earlier. Bajirao convinced Shahu not to accept Nizam's arbitration offer and instead launch an assault against him. Nizam invaded Pune, where he installed Sambhaji II as Chhatrapati. He then marched out of the city, leaving behind a contingent headed by Fazal Beg. Nizam plundered Loni, Pargaon, Patas, Supa and Baramati. Seeing this, on 27 August 1727, Baji Rao started a retaliatory attack through against Nizam. He started to destroy the towns owned by Nizam. Leaving Pune he crossed near and plundered Jalna and Sindkhed. From there, Bajirao proceeded and destroyed Berar, Mahur, Mangrul and . From there, he suddenly changed his direction to north-west, reached and then crossed Tapi river at Kokarmunda and then through a great speed entered the east of to Chota . After hearing that Nizam turned to Pune, Bajirao feinted that he would devastate . Bajirao rightly calculated that after hearing the news of devastation of Burhanpur, Nizam will turn to save Burhanpur as it was strategically important to Nizam. But Bajirao didn't entered Burhanpur, rather he went to Betawad in Khandesh. On 25 February 1728, the armies of Bajirao and Nizam faced each other at the Palkhed, a town about 30 miles west of Aurangabad. Here he was quickly surrounded by Maratha forces. Nizam suddenly found himself trapped. His supply and communication was entirely cut off and he soon found it impossible to extricate himself and to escape to a place of safety. Nizam was defeated and forced to make peace. On 6 March, he signed the Treaty of Mungi Shevgaon, recognizing Shahu as the Chhatrapati as well as the Maratha right to collect taxes in Deccan. Baji Rao moved his base of operations from to Pune in 1728 and in the process laid the foundation for turning what was a kasba into a large city. Bajirao also started construction of on the right bank of the . The construction was completed in 1730, ushering in the era of Peshwa control of the city.

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UNIT-III

Balaji Bajirao (Nanasaheb)-

Balaji Bajirao Peshwa (December 8, 1720 – June 23, 1761), also known as , was a Peshwa of the Maratha Empire in India. He was appointed as Peshwa in 1740 upon the death of his illustrious father, the Peshwa Bajirao I. During his tenure, the Chhatrapati (Maratha king) was reduced to a mere figurehead. At the same time, the Maratha empire started transforming into a confederacy, in which individual chiefs such as the , the and the of kingdom became more powerful. During Balaji Rao's tenure, the Maratha territory reached its zenith. A large part of this expansion, however, was led by the individual chiefs of the Maratha Empire. By the end of 's tenure, the Peshwa was reduced to more of a financier than a general. Unlike his father, Balaji Baji Rao was not a great military leader and failed to gauge the seriousness of invasions in northern India. This ultimately resulted in a devastating Maratha defeat at the Third Battle of . Some judicial and revenue reforms were made during his tenure, but the credit for these goes to his cousin Sadashivrao Bhau and his associate Balshastri Gadgil. Balaji Rao was born in the Bhat family, to Peshwa , on 8 December 1720. After Baji Rao's death in April 1740, Chhatrapati Shahu appointed 19-year old Balaji as the Peshwa in August 1740, despite opposition from other chiefs such as Raghoji I . He was married to . The couple had three sons, who died in the battle of Panipat in 1761, Madhavrao who succeeded Nanasaheb as Peshwa and Narayanrao who succeeded Madhavrao in his late teens. Nanasaheb had an able brother called whose ambitions to be the Peshwa became disastrous for the Maratha empire.

Campaign against the Nizam In 1751, Balaji Rao had invaded the territories of Nizam of Salabat Jung, who was supported by the French Governor General of Pondicherry Marquis de Bussy- Castelnau. Due to Tarabai's rebellion and the French-trained enemy troops, the Marathas had to retreat. In 1752, Balaji Rao launched a fresh attack against the Nizam. He also sought support of the English to counter the French, but

10 the English refused to get involved in the conflict. The Marathas wanted to appoint Salabat Jung's brother Ghazi ud-Din as the Nizam; he had promised them a payment of 6,000,000 among other favours. However, Khan was poisoned to death by his step-mother. Ultimately, Balaji Rao and Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau concluded a peace treaty. Raghoji Bhonsle also agreed to peace on the condition that Nizam would grant him some in Berar. Relations with the Mughals- During Baji Rao's tenure, the Mughals had nominally granted the to the Marathas, but the control was not actually passed to the Marathas. After becoming Peshwa, Balaji Rao approached the Mughal emperor through Jai Singh II, and managed to get appointed as the Deputy Governor of Malwa. In return, he pledged faithfulness to the Mughal emperor. He also agreed to keep a force of 500 soldiers at the emperor's court, in addition to providing a force of 4,000 soldiers on a need basis. In 1748, Javed Khan, a rival of the Mughal wazir Safdarjung invited the new , to join an alliance against the wazir. Safdarjung requested Maratha support against Nasir Jung. Balaji Rao dispatched and chiefs to prevent Nasir Jung from reaching , and thus, saved Safdarjung. Starting in 1748, the king (Abdali) launched several invasions of India, forcing the Mughals to seek Maratha help. In 1752, the of the region rebelled against the Mughal emperor. They defeated Safdarjung in a battle, and invited Durrani to invade India. Once again, Safdarjung sought assistance from the Marathas, who helped him crush the rebellion. The Marathas and the Mughals signed an agreement in 1752. The Marathas agreed to help the Mughals defeat external aggressions as well as internal rebellions. The Mughals agreed to appoint Peshwa Balaji Rao as the Governor of and . The Marathas were also granted the right to collect chauth from , , , and some districts of Hissar and . However, the Mughal emperor had also ceded Lahore and Multan to Ahmad Shah Durrani in order to pacify him. In addition, he did not ratify the transfer of -ruled territories like Ajmer to the Marathas. This brought the Marathas in conflict with as well as .

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UNIT-IV

Third Battle of Panipat-

The took place on 14 January 1761 at Panipat, about 97 km (60 miles) north of Delhi, between the Maratha Empire and the invading Afghan army of the King of Afghans, Ahmad Shah Abdali, supported by three Indian allies the Najib-ud-daulah, Afghans of the Doab region, and Shuja-ud- Daula,the of Awadh. The was led by Sadashivrao Bhau who was third in authority after the Chhatrapati (Maratha King) and the Peshwa (Maratha Prime Minister). The main Maratha army was stationed in Deccan with the Peshwa. Militarily, the battle pitted the and cavalry of the Marathas against the heavy cavalry and mounted artillery of the Afghans and Rohillas led by Abdali and Najib-ud Daulah, both ethnic Afghans. The battle is considered one of the largest and most eventful fought in the 18th century, and it has perhaps the largest number of fatalities in a single day reported in a classic formation battle between two armies. The specific site of the battle itself is disputed by historians, but most consider it to have occurred somewhere near modern-day Kaalaa Aamb and Sanauli Road. The battle lasted for several days and involved over 125,000 troops. Protracted skirmishes occurred, with losses and gains on both sides. The forces led by Ahmad Shah Durrani came out victorious after destroying several Maratha flanks. The extent of the losses on both sides is heavily disputed by historians, but it is believed that between 60,000–70,000 were killed in fighting, while the numbers of injured and prisoners taken vary considerably. According to the single best eyewitness the bakhar by Shuja-ud-Daulah's Kashi Raj about 40,000 Maratha prisoners were slaughtered in cold blood the day after the battle. Grant Duff includes an interview of a survivor of these massacres in his History of the Marathas and generally corroborates this number. Shejwalkar, whose monograph Panipat 1761 is often regarded as the single best secondary source on the battle, says that "not less than 100,000 Marathas (soldiers and non- combatants) perished during and after the battle." The result of the battle was the temporary halting of further Maratha advances in the north and destabilisation of their territories for roughly ten years. This period is marked by the rule of Peshwa Madhavrao, who is credited with the revival of

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Maratha domination following the defeat at Panipat. In 1771, ten years after Panipat, Mahadji Shinde led a large Maratha army into northern India in an punitive expedition which re-established Maratha domination in that area and punished refractory powers that had either sided with the Afghans, such as the Rohillas, or had shaken off Maratha domination after Panipat. But their success was short lived as the centralised government of the was crippled by Madhavrao's untimely death at the age of 28, and infighting ensued among Maratha chiefs soon after, and they ultimately met their final blow at the hands of the British in 1818. Battle Early phases Before dawn on 14 January 1761, the Maratha troops broke their fast with sugared water in the camp and prepared for combat. They emerged from the trenches, pushing the artillery into position on their prearranged lines, some 2 km from the Afghans. Seeing that the battle was on, Ahmad Shah positioned his 60 smooth- bore and opened fire. The initial attack was led by the Maratha left flank under Ibrahim Khan, who advanced his in formation against the Rohillas and Shah Pasand Khan. The first salvos from the Maratha artillery went over the Afghans' heads and did very little damage. Nevertheless, the first Afghan attack by Najib Khan's Rohillas broken by Maratha bowmen and pikemen, along with a unit of the famed Gardi stationed close to the artillery positions. The second and subsequent salvos were fired at point-blank range into the Afghan ranks. The resulting carnage sent the Rohillas reeling back to their lines, leaving the battlefield in the hands of Ibrahim for the next three hours, during which the 8,000 Gardi musketeers killed about 12,000 Rohillas. In the second phase, Bhau himself led the charge against the left-of-center Afghan forces, under the Afghan Vizier Shah Khan. The sheer force of the attack nearly broke the Afghan lines, and the Afghan soldiers started to desert their positions in the confusion. Desperately trying to rally his forces, Shah Wali appealed to Shuja ud Daulah for assistance. However, the Nawab did not break from his position, effectively splitting the Afghan force's center. Despite Bhau's success and the ferocity of the charge, the attack did not attain complete success as

13 many of the half-starved Maratha mounts were exhausted. Also, there were no heavy armoured cavalry units for the Marathas to maintain these openings. In order to turn about the deserting Afghan troopers, Abdali deployed his Nascibchi musketeers to gun down the deserters who finally stopped and returned back to the field. Final phase The Marathas, under Scindia, attacked Najib. Najib successfully fought a defensive action, however, keeping Scindia's forces at bay. By noon it looked as though Bhau would clinch victory for the Marathas once again. The Afghan left flank still held its own, but the centre was cut in two and the right was almost destroyed. Ahmad Shah had watched the fortunes of the battle from his tent, guarded by the still unbroken forces on his left. He sent his bodyguards to call up his 15,000 reserve troops from his camp and arranged them as a column in front of his cavalry of musketeers and 2,000 swivel-mounted shutarnaals or Ushtranaal on the backs of . The shaturnals, because of their positioning on camels, could fire an extensive salvo over the heads of their own infantry, at the Maratha cavalry. The Maratha cavalry was unable to withstand the and -mounted swivel cannons of the Afghans. They could be fired without the rider having to dismount and were especially effective against fast-moving cavalry. Abdali therefore, sent 500 of his own bodyguards with orders to raise all able-bodied men out of camp and send them to the front. He sent 1,500 more to punish the front-line troops who attempted to flee the battle and kill without mercy any soldier who would not return to the fight. These extra troops, along with 4,000 of his reserve troops, went to support the broken ranks of the Rohillas on the right. The remainder of the reserve, 10,000 strong, were sent to the aid of Shah Wali, still labouring unequally against the Bhau in the centre of the field. These mailed warriors were to charge with the Vizier in close order and at full gallop. Whenever they charged the enemy in front, the chief of the staff and Najib were directed to fall upon either flank. With their own men in the firing line, the Maratha artillery could not respond to the shathurnals and the cavalry charge. Some 7,000 Maratha cavalry and infantry were killed before the hand-to-hand fighting began at around 14:00 hrs. By 16:00 hrs,

14 the tired Maratha infantry began to succumb to the onslaught of attacks from fresh Afghan reserves, protected by armoured leather jackets.

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