ABSTRACT

Holkar's state 'still commanded great resources, which his weak Government was incapable of organizing or controlling'. Lord Hastings demanded that the Regent, Tulasi Bai, and the young Maharaja should reside under British protection until their country had been reduced to order. Meanwhile all its resources were to be put into the general pool, to exterminate the Pindaris. Holkar's cavalry fled early, and his gunners and infantry lost 3,000 men, most of them in the pursuit. The victors' loss was also heavy, 778 casualties. The campaign's historian draws the conclusion 'that more victories have been gained in the field by British armies in India through the bravery of the troops, than by manoeuvres of the commander'. It is characteristic, however, of the coolly professional manner in which war was beginning to be assessed, after the prolonged instruction of Napoleon's campaigns in Europe, that at the time the stand was criticized.