Wednesday, March 3, 2021

Assaye.


This is coolbert:

His Grace the Duke of Wellington. Here with a lesser known aspect of Wellington as military commander. The Duke [Arthur Wellesley] rated among the TEN best generals of all time.

Assaye. Combatants of the British East India Company versus the Maratha army. Wellington commanding.

"The Battle of Assaye was a major battle of the Second Anglo-Maratha War fought between the Maratha Empire and the British East India Company."

"It occurred on 23 September 1803 near Assaye in western India where an outnumbered Indian and British force under the command of Major General Arthur Wellesley (who later became the Duke of Wellington) defeated a combined Maratha army of Daulat Scindia and the Raja of Berar. The battle was the Duke of Wellington's first major victory and the one he later described as his finest accomplishment on the battlefield, even more so than his more famous victories in the Peninsular War, and his defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of Waterloo."

From my perspective battles of this type, armies of the various Indian raja, sultan, nawab, emir and nizam at a distinct disadvantage when faced by British troops equipped with the most modern [at the time] black powder weaponry to include massed cannon. A "turkey shoot" as it is defined.

"In military situations, a turkey shoot occurs when a group or team catch the enemy off-guard or outgunned to the point of being unfair"

BUT THIS IS JUST NO SO!

That Maratha army had modern black powder firearms apparently in abundance to include cannon! At Assaye the forces of the Maratha also commanded by an European officer.

"Distinct disadvantage" of the Maratha not really such!!

coolbert.





https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Cuillier-Perron




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