Monson's Advance and Retreat

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This event was part of the 2nd Maratha War

Summary

General Lord Lake wanted to contain the forces of Jaswant Rao Holkar in Malwa and ordered Lt-Colonel William Monson with five battalions of native troops to guard the Bundi and Lasheri passes. Encouraged by local support at Kotah, Monson advanced further south extending his lines of communication and supply. He was hoping to meet up with Colonel Murray moving north with a force from General Wellesley's army. Unable to make contact with Murray and realising the threat from Holkar's forces, Monson decided to retreat. He was harried all the way back to Kotah, lost considerable numbers of men and much baggage at the Mej and Bunaas River crossings, and finally straggled back to Agra a defeated rabble. Of the more than 10,000 in Monson's original force, only a few hundred survived.

Field Force

Monson's Detachment

• 2nd Btn 2nd Bengal Native Infantry
• 2nd Btn 8th Bengal Native Infantry under Lt-Col Patrick Don
• 1st & 2nd Btn 12th Bengal Native Infantry
• 2nd Btn 21st Bengal Native Infantry
• One Coy European Artillery

• Two 12-pounders
• Ten 6-pounders
• Six galloper guns

• 3,000 Irregular Horse under Lt Lucan, 74th Regt
• 1,500 Maratha Horse under Bapuji Sindhia

Reinforcements from Agra

• 2nd Btn 9th Bengal Native Infantry under Lt-Col M'Culloch
• 1st Btn 14th Bengal Native Infantry under Lt-Col Ashe
• A body of Irregular Horse
• Six guns

Biographies

Entries in the Dictionary of Indian Biography 1906:
Gerard Lake (1744-1808)
Wiliam Monson (1760-1807)

External Links

The Delhi Campaign Article by Maj Agha Humayun Amin
1st Bengal European Fusiliers in the Delhi Campaign Google Books
Map of Delhi 1857-58 www.columbia.edu
Siege of Delhi Google Books