The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 51 The fighting power of Indians

It stands to reason that the Nawab Kingdom occupies more than half of Sindh and one-third of the Punjab Province of the original Mughal Empire. It has a population of nearly 800 million and an army of more than [-]. It suppresses tens of thousands of civilians. During the riot, there was no need to ask for help from the Xizhou Governor-General of Qi State.

The reason why this happened is that the war in northwest India, which had been silent for more than seven months, suddenly became "lively" again.

In 1719, after another fierce battle for the throne within the Mughal Empire, Rohsan (the grandson of Shah Alam I) was helped to the throne by the powerful Nizam, and he was named Muhammad Shah.In order to consolidate his rule and establish his own prestige, the young emperor, instigated by Prime Minister Nizam, launched a war to unify and recapture Punjab and Sindh in February 1722.

In order to protect themselves, the Nawab Kingdom joined forces with the Panjinad Kingdom to send troops to fight against the Mughal Empire in Ludhiana, Rajput (today's Rajasthan, India) and other areas.

The war lasted for more than a year and affected the four provinces of Lahore, Multan, Sindh and Rajput. The armies of both sides suffered more than [-] casualties and millions of people were displaced and became refugees.

Although the war has become a stalemate and no one can defeat the other, the two sides did not stop fighting and make peace. Instead, they accumulated a large number of troops at the junction of the three parties and formed a confrontation with each other.

The Nawab Kingdom only retained a royal guard of less than 4000 people in the capital city of Multan. Facing the offensive of tens of thousands of rioting civilians inside and outside the city, the Nawab Kingdom was caught off guard and did not offer much resistance. After that, half of its personnel were lost. Afterwards, they escorted King Azim I and fled out of the city in embarrassment, heading straight to the Khanewal Fortress more than 30 kilometers away.

More than ten days later, just as the Nawab Kingdom was preparing to mobilize troops from the border areas to return to the capital to quell the rebellion, the Mughal Empire took the opportunity to launch a massive attack, effectively holding back the Nawab Kingdom's army.

Under the guidance of a "careful person", King Azim I urgently sent an envoy to the nearby Governor-General of Xizhou to request Qi to send troops to help the Nawab Kingdom quell the rebellion and stabilize domestic order.

When more than three thousand officers and soldiers stationed in Xizhou landed more than ten kilometers away from Multan, they were immediately attacked by thousands of rioting civilians.

However, when several small steamers lined up on the river and fired artillery bombardments on the shore, the angry mob quickly fled, leaving dozens of corpses and messes on the ground on the river beach.

In the afternoon of the next day, after hearing that the Qi army had arrived near Multan, an army of more than a thousand people from the Nawab Kingdom hurriedly rushed to meet them.

"Didn't you dispatch your own troops?" Pramod Mishra, the commander of the Guards of the Nawab Kingdom, who was leading the army, looked at the thousands of servants in gray cloth uniforms in surprise, with a look on his face. There was a hint of panic, "There were as many as 3 untouchables rioting, and they also seized the armory in Multan City, making them even stronger. If they are not defeated in time, more mobs will inevitably follow. The whole situation is going to get out of hand."

"More than [-] mobs are just a bunch of rabble." Jiang Chuntang, commander of the Xizhou garrison and Linghui Colonel (lieutenant colonel), said disdainfully: "Even if they seize the weapons and armor of your Nawab Kingdom's army, but before that How high can its combat effectiveness be if it has never been subjected to any formal military drills? In a war, sometimes it doesn't take more people to win!"

"However, there is a ten-fold difference in military strength, and your country has dispatched such...such...local troops. Isn't it a bit too much to underestimate the enemy?" Pramod Mishra eagerly persuaded: "General Qi, we should wait a little longer. Only after your Qi army arrives can we launch the most violent attack on the rioting untouchables."

Oh, I was looked down upon by others!

Although the 10 local servants of our Xizhou Garrison are all equipped with old "Hanxing Type 55" flintlock rifles, they are still combat-worthy soldiers who have been trained by professional officers of our army for more than a year. , we should be able to defeat a hastily organized mob of more than 65 people.Moreover, there was also a professional artillery unit accompanying them, equipped with twelve army light artillery pieces with calibers of [-] mm and [-] mm. If this could not defeat tens of thousands of mobs, it would be better to just disband them all and go back to eat dirt.

In the eyes of the people of Qi, the military capabilities of all Indian princely kingdoms, including the Mughal Empire, have become irrepressible since Emperor Aurangzeb led his army to a disastrous defeat at the hands of Qi more than 40 years ago. Land decline and regression.

I think back then, when Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire, moved from Central Asia to fight in India, his army was invincible in front of many Indian princely states. Wherever he went, he defeated all opponents in a devastating way. enemy.Not only do they have powerful artillery and muskets, but they also have the powerful military qualities of Central Asian and Persian soldiers.Even in a headwind situation where the battle situation was unfavorable and generals died, they were still able to fight tenaciously.

When Emperor Akbar carried out military reforms, the training, management and equipment levels of the troops were further improved, which laid a good foundation for the empire to expand its territory in India.

However, by the middle of the last century, the Mughal army was defeated in three battles with the Safavid dynasty of Persia for Kandahar, so much so that it suffered from "wave phobia" and did not dare to face its troops.In the ensuing melee over the succession of the throne, there were many defeats in which the entire army collapsed.In these battles, the imperial army fought bravely to take the lead in a favorable situation, fearing that they would not get any credit. However, once the situation was slightly unfavorable to their own side, their morale would immediately be shaken, and they would even flee in fear.

As a foreign conqueror of India, most of the soldiers in the army that the founding emperor Babur relied on came from the bitter cold mountains and deserts of Central Asia.These people grew up in a barren and difficult environment and developed the fine qualities of being hard-working, brave and good at fighting.At the same time, they also integrate the weapons, equipment, strategies and tactics of the Turks, Mongols, and Afghans, and have combat effectiveness that surpasses the local Indian army.

However, as they went deeper into the South Asian subcontinent and gradually took root in the warm and fertile land of India, they were inevitably infected by the warm and humid climate and comfortable and prosperous life here. Their combat effectiveness began to deteriorate rapidly, and their old spirit of hard struggle began to fade. I was gradually blown away by the wind of extravagance and enjoyment.

Moreover, starting from Akbar, three consecutive generations of Mughal emperors, in order to stabilize their rule, vigorously attracted local Hindu princes in India, allowing more and more local Indians to participate in the military and political affairs of the empire, and let them hold important positions in the military and political system.Compared with the Central Asians who can withstand the cold climate and impoverished environment, the Indian soldiers who enjoy the warm climate and fertile land of South Asia are obviously less tolerant of unfavorable war conditions and harsh environments, and have no enthusiasm to expand their territories. .

At the same time, lower-caste soldiers were deeply affected by strict class divisions and suffered discrimination from upper-caste people.They do not enjoy good treatment and training, nor do they have the opportunity to turn around and become successful after making meritorious deeds.This makes them not only poor in military literacy, but also less motivated to fight bravely.In the previous battles of the Mughal Empire, they were pushed onto the battlefield like cannon fodder, but before they truly became cannon fodder, they would often be quickly defeated and dispersed when the war encountered slight disadvantages.

After the Qi-India War, the Mughal Empire seemed to have its backbone broken by the Qi State. Not only did various separatist forces appear in the country, but the combat effectiveness of the army declined sharply.During the Aurangzeb period, the once aggressive development momentum came to an abrupt end, and rounds of internal fighting began.

The Marathas, Rajputs, Baluchis, Sikhs... and those independent provincial governors could all bite off a piece of flesh and blood from the huge Mughal Empire and absorb nutrients. , and gradually let yourself grow stronger.

In India, the people of Qi very carefully control the import quantity and import objects of various types of firearms. They must not only prevent one party from becoming too strong and have the strength to reunify the Indian region, but also rack their brains to control the progress of all parties. frequency and scale of wars to avoid excessive damage to the local economy and people's livelihood.

The Third Civil War of the Mughal Empire (also known as the Northwest War) that broke out last year, whether it was the Mughal Empire army, or the coalition forces of the Nawab Kingdom and the Panjinad Kingdom, although they also had many of the Qi Kingdom’s eliminated Old artillery, but the equipment of most soldiers is basically cold weapons, and the way of war has returned to the medieval mode. After the artillery bombardment from both sides, the cavalry and infantry started to cut each other with knives until one side could no longer support it. .

As for the local servants in our Xizhou garrison, they are also modern firearms units that have undergone months of rigorous training, and are also supported by professional artillery. When facing a group of rioters who don't even have enough to eat, if they can't fight To defeat it would be a bit of a slap in the face.

"Have a good rest tonight and set off tomorrow morning." Jiang Chuntang ordered: "I hope to be able to enter Multan City tomorrow night."

(End of this chapter)