Chapter 1655 - 1561: The Battle for Delhi

Chapter 1655: Chapter 1561: The Battle for Delhi

September 21, 1801.

In the north-central part of India, on the alluvial plains between the Ganges and the Jumna Rivers.

This area is known as Doab, a necessary path from England’s vassal state Oderx to the Gwalior region controlled by Scindia.

Outside the city of Kampur in the south of Oderx, the British Army’s General Commander Gerard Lake looked through his telescope at the Aigar Fort, built of rammed earth, and the British soldiers loitering before the fort, and he turned to his staff and said:

"You’re putting too much pressure on the Gwalior people. Have Major Bernard retreat one mile."

"Yes, General."

The staff left, and Fokner, the overseer of the Indian Administration, also looked towards the fort and said, "I expected to see you here, like a war god descending, crushing these natives swiftly."

The Indian Administration was established under William Pitt Junior to oversee all affairs of the East India Company on the Indian Peninsula, including the military. However, the British Government had been striving for years, and the core power in India was still in the hands of the East India Company.

Lake sat back on a small chair and smiled, "Have you seen Scindia’s army?"

"No," Fokner replied honestly, "but I often interact with soldiers from other Indian Princely States."

Lake nodded: "Gwalior’s army is completely different. Over ten years ago, they hired that Frenchman named Boigne, and later replaced him with General Peron, who is currently at the fort.

"They’ve trained over twenty thousand native soldiers in the full French-style drills, all armed with flintlock guns, employing infantry line tactics, and have dozens of cannons smuggled from Europe."

Fokner frowned: "It seems the enemy is quite formidable. Was that Peron sent by the French Government?"

Lake chuckled: "No, he’s an adventurer. As far as I know, he hasn’t spent a day in a military academy."

Fokner sighed in relief: "Then he’s certainly not your match. So, what are you still waiting for?"

Since the British Army arrived in the Doab region, they’ve been stationed here for over a month, which is why the administration sent him to check things out.

Lake took out an Iroquois-style pipe, signaled an attendant to light it for him, and then said, "Although the Maratha Confederacy is in discord, they might immediately set aside their disputes and form allied forces to decisively battle us if faced with a life or death crisis."

"But we cannot stay here indefinitely..."

"Of course." Lake took a deep drag, enjoying it as he squinted his eyes, "You’ve probably heard that Punjab, Hyderabad, and even Baroda and Gidder have requested to join us in carving up the Maratha Confederacy.

"If I’m not mistaken, the Mysoreans should have already occupied Kolhapur State by now and will soon encounter Holkar’s cavalry."

Fokner suddenly understood: "You want to crush the weakened Gwalior in one fell swoop after they’ve exhausted the Maratha Confederacy’s forces?"

"Exactly as you said." Lake nodded, "However, another reason for my patience is to ensure that the Mysoreans won’t pull any tricks.

"Look, if we launched an attack on the Maratha Confederacy recklessly, and Tipu suddenly tore up our agreement and seized our east coast colonies, we’d find it very difficult to redeploy troops for defense."

Fokner waved away the drifting smoke, asking, "What do you mean by confirm?"

Before he could finish his sentence, a staff member came quickly, handing Lake a battle report: "General, just arrived from the southern front."

Lake opened the report, glanced at it, and handed it to Fokner with a smile: "This is it."

Fokner saw on the paper: Mysore Army engaged in a fierce battle with 4,000 Indore cavalry at Satara; Indore Army suffered nearly half casualties and retreated to defend Pune.

Fighting like this, the Mysoreans certainly aren’t pretending. Moreover, their troops have already penetrated deeply into Holkar’s southern side, making a swift retreat impossible now.

Lake tapped his pipe on the edge of the wooden table, stood up, and instructed the staff: "Inform the forces of Hyderabad, Punjab, and others that the Maratha Confederacy has already suffered a crushing defeat, and have them initiate a joint assault."

He turned to Fokner again: "If we’re lucky, we might not even have to fight much to claim a large portion of Gwalior’s land, because Mr. Scindia will need us to prevent other Princely States from occupying his capital."

The latter first nodded in admiration, then hesitated: "But that way, Mysore will gain more land than us. Also, Baroda, Punjab will take a significant portion of territory."

Lake said nonchalantly: "After the war, Mysore will be next. The powers allied with us now will again participate in partitioning Mysore.

"Besides, you’re overlooking the most important thing."

"What is that?"

"Delhi." Lake looked towards the west, "The Imperial Palace there houses the Emperor of the Indians. As long as we have that old blind ruler, we can command all of India’s princely states, and no one in all of India will dare challenge us again!"

It should be said, the British judgment was quite correct.

Historically, the East India Company indeed occupied Delhi three years later, making Alam II their puppet, achieving total control over the Indian Peninsula.

But what Lake did not know was that as he issued the orders for the "vassal states" to assault the Maratha Confederacy, a Punjabi army, led by Ranjit Singh, had already occupied Lalnagar — the last sizable town north of Delhi, less than a hundred kilometers away.

Indeed, Scindia never anticipated a sudden attack from the Punjab, so he moved his main forces to Doab to guard against the British, leaving only two to three thousand soldiers in the west.

Such a small force was not even enough for Singh, the Sikh War God, to pick his teeth with. He almost kept a marching pace as he dealt with Scindia’s garrison.

And behind him were nearly a thousand Mysore "Holy Warriors" — elites personally chosen from the Imperial Guard by Tipu, willing to give their lives for the Sultan at any moment.

Should the Punjabi army face resistance, they would immediately charge into the battlefield, relentlessly tearing the enemy apart.

Singh waited for two days in Lalnagar before receiving the British order to attack.

Though tempted by the enormous benefits, he still didn’t want to offend the British, and now with this order, it would be hard for the British to find an excuse to trouble him later.

At noon that day, 7,000 Sikh soldiers began marching rapidly south.

Three days later, the towering spires of Delhi’s Jama Mosque appeared in Singh’s telescope.

The young Maharaja, in a very calm tone, instructed the Order Officer: "General Gurdeep will lead four cavalry squadrons to flank the south side, preventing Shah Alam from escaping.

"The Shahjogad Corps will launch a feint attack from the east, while the artillery sets up a firing position to the north of the city..."