Battle of Assaye
Arthur Wellesley (left front on horseback) leads his troops into the battle of Assaye
| date | September 23, 1803 |
|---|---|
| place | Assaye , in what is now Maharashtra in India |
| output | British victory |
| consequences | Collapse of the Marathas Confederation |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 12,300 | 54,000 |
| losses | |
|
409 dead, |
1,200 killed, |
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The Battle of Assaye on September 23, 1803 was a decisive battle during the Second Marathas War , in which the outnumbered troops of Great Britain and the East India Trade Company defeated their Indian adversaries decisively.
prehistory
The trigger of the Second Marathas War was ultimately British interference in the internal affairs of the Marathas after the Battle of Poona , when one of the vassal princes of the loser Daulatrao Scindia von Gwalior fled into the British sphere of influence. Together with the allied Indian princes, the British government tried to fill the power vacuum in the embattled southern Indian region of Pune . After the conflict between those involved continued to escalate, war broke out in 1803.
One of the first British attacks was now directed from Seringapatam to the north, against Ahmedneggar, with the city being captured in a storm attack by British-Indian troops on August 8, 1803, while the nearby fortress only surrendered on August 12, 1803.
From August 14, 1803, the British-Indian troops under Major General Sir Arthur Wellesley marched north from Ahmedneggar and tried to involve the marathon army of Daulatrao Scindia of Gwalior and the rajah of Berar in a field battle. In the subsequent period up to September 22, 1803, the British troops pursued the Marathon army through large parts of central India. During this period there were delays mainly because both armies were forced to cross rivers multiple times, which was a time-consuming affair.
It was not until September 21, 1803 that British reconnaissance forces found near Sailgaon evidence that the Marathon army was encamped in the vicinity of Bokardan. Wellesley planned to unite with his second army on September 24, 1803, to subsequently attack the Marathon army. When the British-Indian troops of Sir Arthur Wellesley's army reached the area around Naulniah on September 23, 1803, they learned that the entire Marathon army had taken up position near the village of Assaye.
Opposing associations
On the day of the battle, the opposing armies had the following positions:
The British Field Army under Wellesley
Major General Sir Arthur Wellesley commanded not only the associations used in Assaye, but Colonel Stevenson's army as well.
On the day of Assaye, Wellesley's forces were:
- infantry
-
- 1st Brigade under Lieutenant Colonel William Wallace
- 1st Battalion of the 74th Highlander Regiment
- 1st Battalion of the 4th Madras Regiment
- 2nd Battalion of the 12th Madras Regiment
-
- 2nd Brigade under Lieutenant Colonel William Harness
- 1st Battalion, 78th Highlander Regiment
- 1st Battalion of the 8th Madras Regiment
- 1st Battalion of the 10th Madras Regiment
-
- Field watch of the day under Lieutenant Colonel Orrock
- one half company each of the seven infantry battalions from Assaye and Naulniah
- cavalry
-
- Cavalry Brigade under Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Maxwell
- 19th British Light Dragoons
- 4. Indigenous Cavalry of the East India Company
- 5th Native Cavalry of the East India Company
- 7th Indigenous Cavalry of the East India Company
- artillery
- 22 guns
- Indian allies
- 5,400 Indian soldiers
The troops deployed at Naulniah
Major General Wellesley left a guard under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Chambers in the Naulniah camp to guard the train and baggage .
- 1st Battalion of the 2nd Madras Regiment
- 6 guns
Colonel Stevenson's forces
Major General Sir Arthur Wellesley had detached part of his troops under one of his senior deputies before the Battle of Assaye . These were to unite in a battle with the other British troops. In fact, these troops didn't arrive at Assaye until the morning after the battle.
- infantry
- 1st Battalion, 94th Highlander Regiment
- 2nd Battalion of the 2nd Madras Regiment
- 1st Battalion of the 6th Madras Regiment
- 2nd Battalion of the 7th Madras Regiment
- 2nd Battalion of the 9th Madras Regiment
- 1st and 2nd Battalion of the 11th Madras Regiment
- cavalry
- 3. Indigenous Cavalry of the East India Company
- 11. Indigenous Cavalry of the East India Company
- artillery
- 16 guns
The Marath Army
The combined armies of Maharaja Dolat Rao Scindia and the Raja of Berar comprised the following formations:
- 36,000 cavalrymen from both Indian rulers
- Compoo by Colonel Anthony Pohlmann (equivalent of a division)
- six battalions of infantry, 500 cavalrymen, 40 guns
- Compoo under the command of Major Dupont
- four battalions of infantry and 20 guns
- Compoo under the orders of Colonel Saleur
- five battalions of infantry and 25 artillery pieces
- Compoo of infantry of the Berar Rajah
- seven battalions under the command of Benji Singh
- another 160 guns
The formation of the Marathen army
The first line-up of the Marathen Army was based on a broad front along the course of the Kaitna river with the western end at the ford of Kodilly to the ford of Taunkley in the east, where the front swung to the north and therefore ended at the village of Assaye and the river Juah .
However, after the British-Indian troops began their advance from Naulniah north to Assaye and used the ford of Peepalgaon further east to cross over, the front of the Mahrata troops was now on the section between the river Kaitna at the ford of Taunkley and the village of Assaye on Juah was regrouped in a north-south direction, obsolete Sir Arthur Wellesley's original plan to flank the south-facing front.
Course of the battle
The British-Indian troops marched north in two attack columns: the infantry marched in the order: Field Guard of the Day, 1st Battalion of the 74th Highlander Regiment, 2nd Battalion of the 12th Madras Regiment, 1st Battalion of the 4th Madras Regiment , and 1st Battalion of the 8th Madras Regiment, 1st Battalion of the 10th Madras Regiment and finally 1st Battalion of the 78th Highlander Regiment. Separately from this, the cavalry marched north and formed a screen south of the Kaitna River, behind which the infantry marched.
The southern battle line
In the marching order, the British-Indian infantry swiveled westwards on a broad front, with the original column now advancing on a broad front to the west, where they lined up about 500 meters away. The entire British-Indian infantry now ran in a line running from north to south, while the regular British-Indian cavalry advanced over the Kaitna behind the infantry. Only the allied Indian cavalry remained south of the Kaitna.
After the infantry had completed their position by the gunfire of their own artillery, the frontal attack against the Marathas began. The four battalions of the Indian infantry and the Highlander battalion advanced through artillery fire from the Marathas until they overran the gun line and opened fire on the Marathan infantry positioned behind. In the following bayonet attack, the entire southern front of the Marathas broke. The Marathen cavalry behind it did not take advantage of the opportunity to crush the British-Indian infantry, which had been disorganized after the breakthrough.
After the British-Indian infantry had rallied, they were shelled from the east by the overrun gun line of the Marathen. Instead of being able to take action against the gathering infantry of the Marathas, the 78th Highlander Regiment was sent to the east, where it, together with the 7th native cavalry, again overran the gun line and secured all the guns.
The northern battle line
As part of the deployment, the field guard of the day and the 74th Highlander Regiment marched north together and lost contact with the rest of the infantry. Both units marched unsupported towards the village of Assaye, where they faced 20,000 marathons. The day's field watch was almost wiped out in the attack, the 74th Highlander Regiment was surrounded by Indian infantry and cavalry of the Marathas and suffered considerable losses in the battles at very close quarters. Only the intervention of the British-Indian cavalry (19th British Light Dragoons, 4th Native Cavalry, 5th Native Cavalry), which threw back the Marathen attack, saved the Highlanders, who then retreated to the east.
The last fights on the Juah and Assaye
After the Marathas infantry gathered along the course of the Juah, Wellesley gave orders to attack this last line. The four battalions of the East Indian Trade Company and the 78th Highlander Regiment, which had been ordered, attacked northwards, while three cavalry regiments (19th British Light Dragoons, 4th Native Cavalry, 5th Native Cavalry) attacked from the east. The last line of the Marathas was overrun in the late evening hours. The battle did not end until British artillery shot at Assaye and two battalions of infantry took the village from which the last of the Marathas had already fled.
Consequences of the battle
The success of the British-Indian troops was bloody bought with 409 dead, 1,622 wounded and 26 missing. The Marathas counted 1,200 dead and 3,600 to 4,800 wounded, for which the Marathas left behind 98 artillery pieces, which were mostly used by the British-Indian troops.
Aftermath of the battle
In the following period the British-Indian troops captured Asseerghur on October 20, 1803 and defeated another Marathan army at the Battle of Argaum on November 29, 1803. The campaign finally ended with the capture of Gawilghar Fort on December 15, 1803 by Sir Arthur Wellesley.
At the same time, the Marathas near Delhi were defeated further north by other British-Indian troops under General Lake and the city of Delhi was taken shortly afterwards. Nonetheless, the Battle of Assaye was the important preliminary decision on the southern theater of war, in which the mass of the trained Marathan troops were defeated.
Belletristic reception
Bernard Cornwell described the fighting during the Battle of Assaye in his novel Sharpe's Victory .