Yashwantrao's Success and Anxiety in British Camp
Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar wrote letters to different kings to unite and fight against the British. He stated, "First Country, and then Religion. We will have to rise above caste, religion, and our states in the interest of our country. You too must wage a war against the British, like me." His appeal fell on deaf ears, as all of them had already signed treaties with the British.In a letter dated 15 February 1806 to Vyankoji Bhosale of Nagpur he states:
| “ | The Maratha state had been grasped by foreigners. To resist their aggression, God knows, how during the last two and a half years I sacrificed everything, fighting night and day, without a moment’s rest. I paid a visit to Daulatrao Sindia and explained to him how necessary it was for all of us to join in averting foreign domination. But Daulatrao failed me. It was mutual cooperation and goodwill which enabled our ancestors to build up, the Maratha states. But now we have all become self-seekers. You wrote to me that you were coming for my support, but you did not make your promise good. If you had advanced into Bengal as was planned, we could have paralyzed the British Government. It is no use of now talking of past things. When I found myself abandoned on all sides, I accepted the offer which the British agents brought to me and concluded the war. | ” |
On 4 April, Lake forwarded some intercepted correspondence of Holkar, which he was said to have been carrying on with the other Indian chiefs of Hindustan to forge an alliance against the British. Lord Wellesley needed no fresh argument to justify his war against Holkar.
In a letter to General Wellesley he demanded 1. That the right of Holkar to collect the tribute, as old, should be recognized; 2. That the ancestral claims of the Holkar family in the Doab, and the right to one pargana in Bundelkhand, should be recognized; 3. That the country of Haryana, which formerly belonged to Holkar, should be surrendered; and 4. That the country now in Holkar’s possession should be guaranteed and stated: “Although unable to oppose your artillery in the field, countries of many hundred miles in extent will be overrun and plundered. British shall not have leisure to breathe for a moment; and calamities will fall on the backs of human beings in continual war by the attacks of my army, which overwhelms like the waves of the sea.”
When agents of General Perron visited him with a message, “Jaswantrao pointed to his horse and spear, and directed the men to tell their master that the former at all times afforded him a shade to sleep in, and the latter means of subsistence and that he carried his Kingdom on the saddle of his horse and the dominion of the saddle was still formidable.”
In letter dated 4 March 1804 to Lake he told, “My country and property are upon the saddle of my horse, and please God, to whatever side the reins of the horses of my brave warriors shall be turned, the whole of the country in that direction shall come into my possession. As you are wise and provident, you will consider the consequences of this affair, and employ yourself in settling the important matters which will be explained by my agents.”
Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar defeated the British army, led by Colonel Fawcett, at Kunch, in Budhlekand. On 8 June 1804, the Governor General, in a letter to General Gerard Lake, wrote that the defeat caused a great insult. This would endanger the company rule in India, and hence Yashwantrao Holkar should be defeated as soon as possible.
On 8 July 1804, Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar defeated the army of Colonel Manson and Leukan at Mukundare and Kota. Bapuji Scindia surrendered before Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar. From June till September 1804, he defeated the British at different battles. On 8 October 1804, Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar attacked Delhi to free Mugol Emperor Shah Alam II, who was imprisoned by the British. He attacked the army of Colonel Actorloni and Berne. The battle lasted for a week, but Yashwantrao Holkar could not succeed as General Lake came to help Colonel Actorloni. Assessing the situation, he changed the plan, and postponed it. Admiring his bravery, Mughol Emperor Shah Alam gave him the title of "Maharajadhiraj Raj Rajeshwar Alija Bahadur".
Colonel Marey and Wallace captured Indore and Ujjain on 8 July 1804. On 22 August 1804, Wellesley marched against Holkar from Pune, along with Bajirao Peshwa's army. In Mathura Maharaja, Yashwantrao Holkar learned that the British had captured some of his territory; he decided to stay in Mathura and work out a strategy to regain his territory. In a letter dated 11 September 1804 written to Lord Lake, Wellesley said that if Yashwantrao Holkar was not defeated at the earliest, the rest of the Kings of India may unitedly stand against the British.
On 16 November 1804, Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar reached Deeg by defeating the army of Major Frazer. After the death of Major Frazer, Manson took the charge of the British army. The Jat King Ranjit Singh of Bharatpur welcomed him and decided to be with Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar against the British. In Farrukhabad, Lord Lake was a mute spectator, watching Yashwantrao Holkar proceeding towards Deeg; he didn't dare attack Maharaja Yashwantrao Holkar. The Governor General was disappointed by this conduct of Lord Lake, and he wrote to him about his disappointment.
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