General Arthur Wellesley (the future Duke of Wellington) directing the
2nd Battalion 12th Regiment of Madras Native Infantry (now part of Punjab
Regimental Centre, Pakistan Army) at the Battle of Assaye, 1803
The British advance against the Maratha army at Assaye on 23 September
1803.
On 23 September 1803 British troops chased the line of Maratha troops
back and broke them, forcing them back into Assaye and then across the Juah
river.
Considered by the Duke of Wellington to be his finest
victory, the Battle of Assaye was one in which a small but well-trained British
army faced native forces well equipped and well tutored in European combat
techniques. Won against overwhelming odds, it demonstrated the indomitable
spirit of the colonial powers when faced with militarily sophisticated
opponents. Assaye also served as an early showcase for the Duke of Wellington’s
talents.
European imperialism began in earnest in the 16th century
with the conquest of the Americas. European soldiers operating in the New World
overcame the native cultures with surprising ease. A number of factors
accounted for this, among which were logistical organization and extraordinary
bravery, by means of which handfuls of Spanish conquistadors were able to
defeat great kingdoms such as that of the Aztecs. A similar pattern was
repeated elsewhere in the world, with native cultures being confronted, found
to be ill-prepared and far less able to withstand the early modern warfare
techniques which confronted them. The Russians conquered Siberia, while in
India the trading stations of Portuguese, French and British merchants were
turned into the stepping stones of empire.
BRITAIN IN INDIA
Britain’s involvement in India during the 18th century had
reached a crucial point with the Battle of Plassey in 1757, when Robert Clive
defeated the nawab (governor) of Bengal. The nawab’s army was ten times the
size of Robert Clive ‘s force of two thousand sepoys (native soldiers trained
by the British) and nine hundred Europeans. Despite the overwhelming odds,
Clive was victorious and the nawab was executed. This victory secured Britain’s
possessions in the subcontinent and entitled it to raise massive revenues from
the native population, which Britain then used to increase its military
presence further.
The influence of the Mughals, the most dominant power in
southern Asia up to that point, had been in decline since 1707 with the death
of Aurangzeb. The British were clearly in the ascendant, but unlike those in
the Americas, where native cultures never really rose to the challenge posed by
European military power, the rulers of India understood the nature of the force
they were up against. While the British considered themselves as successors to
the Mughals, there was an indigenous force in the form of the Maratha
confederacy that also claimed the right to rule India. The confederacy was a
grouping of various influential clan chiefs under the leadership of a peshaw
(chief minister); at times, the clans warred with one another, particularly for
leadership, but they also combined in various coalitions to resist the British.
The result was three Maratha wars fought in 1775-82, 1803-05 and 1817-18.
Recruiting European military advisers, frequently from one
of the competing imperial powers, such as the French, the peshaws and clan
chiefs rapidly transformed their feudal armies and equipped their soldiers with
artillery, muskets and Western-style military training. In a very short time,
these native armies could rely on twice as many cannons as the British. Major
Thome, a veteran of many battles in the region, complained of ‘the changes that
have taken place among the warlike tribes of India through the introduction of
European tactics and French discipline, which, combined with their natural
courage, often bordering on enthusiastic frenzy, and their numerical
superiority, has rendered our conflicts with them sanguinary in the extreme’.
By the late 18th century it was no longer easy for Britain
to overawe its opponents in India. And yet, such was their hunger for the
wealth to be derived from India that the British took on ever more difficult
and challenging campaigns in an effort to subdue the native population. Against
such a background, the Battle of Assaye emerges as being typical of a period in
which British forces outfought – rather than outgunned – otherwise impressive
native armies. It is also interestmg to note that the British were commanded by
a young Arthur Wellesley, later to become the Duke of Wellington. Assaye
demonstrates the strength of British fighting skills in the face of superior
numbers; Wellington, when asked forty years later which was his finest moment
in battle, answered with one word: ‘Assaye.’
WAR WITH THE MARATHAS
The Marathas had replaced the Mughal dynasty m central and
northern India, and in 1779 they defeated the British at the Battle of Wadgaon,
following Britain’s attempt to favour a candidate for peshwa. It was only a
matter of time before there would be a further clash, and in 1803 it arose.
This time the British were determined to intervene more forcefully. Richard
Wellesley. governor general of Bengal, sent his younger brother Arthur to offer
protection to Peshwa Baji Rao II, who had been defeated by the Holkar clan.
Other clans then objected to the British intervention. Wellesley penetrated
Maratha territory and stumbled across an army at the junction of the Juah and
Kaitna rivers. It was an impressive array: some 30,000 cavalry; 10,000
infantry, trained and equipped in the Western style by French soldiers; and 200
pieces of artillery. All Wellesley commanded was 4.500 regulars, mostly sepoys,
and half of these were cavalry. Despite this, Wellesley was supremely
confident, demonstrating efficiency and organization in abundance.
Later historians have praised Wellesley ‘s logistical
abilities above his triumphs in battle, and it is important to consider how the
British supported their armies in India, because it frequently proved decisive
in campaigns. Throughout history, most armies had supported their troops by
taking what they needed from the lands they passed through. Understandably,
this alienated local people, who frequently fought back and added to the difficulties
of a campaign. The British forces in India, however, adopted a system in which
they bought food and supplies from merchants who came to their camps. This not only
resulted in less incidental fighting, but also ensured the goodwill of the
local population. Intelligence information could also be obtained at these
military bazaars, sourced from merchants acting as spies. The relatively
wealthy British enjoyed the support of merchants who were not slow to exploit
their generosity. Wellesley did not invent this system but, with his excellent
eye for detail, he ran it superbly and it gave him an added edge over his
Maratha opponents.
Having left his baggage train in the village of Naulniah,
which he instructed to be fortified, Wellesley rode out to inspect the position
of his enemy at Assaye. Wellesley was well practised in this process of
reconnaissance, getting to know the landscape of the forthcoming battle so as
to be able to use it to his advantage. Ignoring the suspect knowledge of his
guides, he discovered a ford across the Kaitnathat he could make use of to
speed up the transport of his troops without making them vulnerable. It meant
he could also surprise the enemy. Wellesley led the way into the river, but as
his troops waded into the water, some Maratha artillery opened up. Fortunately
for him, it was half-hearted fire and it ceased when Wellesley formed his men
up on the opposite shore.
Wellesley placed his Madras sepoys between two units of
regular British troops and began the advance. Maratha cavalry were reported to
have crossed the river further west and could have threatened Wellesley ‘s
rear, but because his baggage tram was well fortified, he did not mind losing
communication with it for the duration of the battle. The Marathas had lost the
advantage of having their troops protected by the river, but they still
possessed superior numbers and a formidable array of cannons. As the two lines
of artillery began to duel, Wellesley knew he would lose the encounter if it
was prolonged and so he ordered his men forward, with the kilted troops of the
78th Highlanders leading the way.
SHEER AGGRESSION
Sheer aggression was the only way to win this contest; the
British fixed their bayonets and charged the well-trained Maratha troops. The
two Maratha commanders, Berar and Scindia, lacked the courage of Wellesley and
retired from the fighting, but their senior European adviser, Pohlmann, a
Hanoverian, remained in command of the Indian troops. The 78th Highlanders
halted at 55m (180ft), fired their muskets in a mighty volley, then charged and
plunged in with their bayonets.
It was this sort of hard, close-quarters fighting that the
British favoured and which would frequently send their enemies reeling, in
theatres of war from India to Spain.
Having taken a line of Maratha artillery, the 78th
Highlanders fired a second volley, which finally broke Pohlmann’s troops on the
southern flank. The Madras sepoys followed up on this success and also broke
the Maratha line. Carried away by their triumph, however, some of the sepoys
became disorganized and vulnerable to the nearby Maratha cavalry, but the
British cavalry was there to protect their flank and the sepoys regrouped. At
the forefront of the action, Wellesley had his horse shot from beneath him. On
the northern flank, the 74th Highlanders came under intense fire and had to
form a defensive square with ramparts composed of the bodies of their dead
comrades. They stood their ground long enough for the British cavalry to gallop
past and clear the ground before the village of Assaye.
The entire British line now swung round and pushed
Pohlmann’s men back to the Juah. Wellesley became caught up in the fighting and
a second horse was fatally wounded beneath him. His bravery must have inspired
his men; it certainly stood in stark contrast to that of the Maratha leaders,
who seemed more concerned with their personal safety. Faced by a renewed
British attack, the Marathas decided they had had enough and crossed the river,
leaving behind much of their equipment.
Wellesley’s victory decisively curbed Maratha power in
central India, but his losses had been heavy, with some 1,500 troops dead and
wounded – a casualty rate of more than 27 per cent. The Marathas had lost at
least 1,200 dead and had abandoned 98 cannons on the battlefield. A further
British victory at Argaum ended the war, but the British had many more
campaigns to fight in India against tough opponents, and their final conquest
of the subcontinent was a very hard-won experience not achieved until the
middle of the 19th century.
