Kharda 1795: Order of Battle For Maratha Confederacy
Main source: Majumdar, R [1991] The Maratha Supremacy Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay 1991.
The Battle of Kharda was fought in March 1795 between the Maratha Confederacy and the Nizam of Hyderabad. It has been described as the last hurrah for the Confederacy.
It was the culmination of a long rivalry between the expanding Confederacy and the long established kingdom of Hyderabad. The Confederacy reached its high tide at Third Panipat in 1761, and while its defeat there began the process of its fall, at the time of Kharda it was still probably the second strongest – and certainly the most effective – military power in India.
Ironically, during this period The Confederacy and the Nizam were allied – with the British – against Tipu Sultan, then militarily the strongest Indian king. The dispute that led to Kharda arose when the Maratha Peshwa demanded from the Nizam chauth, the 1/4th tribute paid by a king to his overlord. The Nizam refused and was defeated. He ceded territory and paid an indemnity of Rupees 3 crores (thirty million).
One account gives the Nizam’s casualties as less than 200.[1]
Confederacy Forces
Baji Rao I (King and commander)
127,665 troops
Major contingents and commander:
70,665 cavalry, Peshwa
25,000 cavalry and infantry, Daulat Rao Scindhia
15,000 Raghuji Bhosle [The contingent fought under the command of Subedar Vithal Ballal.]
10,000 Tukoki Holkar
7,000 Parashuran Bh????
The role of the Pindari Chieftain, Karim Khan, is not known to us, but he must have participated on the winning side, because he took great plunder at Kharda.[2]
Main source: Majumdar, R [1991] The Maratha Supremacy Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay 1991.
The Battle of Kharda was fought in March 1795 between the Maratha Confederacy and the Nizam of Hyderabad. It has been described as the last hurrah for the Confederacy.
It was the culmination of a long rivalry between the expanding Confederacy and the long established kingdom of Hyderabad. The Confederacy reached its high tide at Third Panipat in 1761, and while its defeat there began the process of its fall, at the time of Kharda it was still probably the second strongest – and certainly the most effective – military power in India.
Ironically, during this period The Confederacy and the Nizam were allied – with the British – against Tipu Sultan, then militarily the strongest Indian king. The dispute that led to Kharda arose when the Maratha Peshwa demanded from the Nizam chauth, the 1/4th tribute paid by a king to his overlord. The Nizam refused and was defeated. He ceded territory and paid an indemnity of Rupees 3 crores (thirty million).
One account gives the Nizam’s casualties as less than 200.[1]
Confederacy Forces
Baji Rao I (King and commander)
127,665 troops
Major contingents and commander:
70,665 cavalry, Peshwa
25,000 cavalry and infantry, Daulat Rao Scindhia
15,000 Raghuji Bhosle [The contingent fought under the command of Subedar Vithal Ballal.]
10,000 Tukoki Holkar
7,000 Parashuran Bh????
The role of the Pindari Chieftain, Karim Khan, is not known to us, but he must have participated on the winning side, because he took great plunder at Kharda.[2]
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