The Collapse: Defectors, Rumors, and Cascading Desertion

Marathi History Book Reading Session Summary

The Defector Problem (Early Afternoon)

Who They Were: About 2,000 Afghan soldiers who had joined Maratha forces with Vittal Shivadev

Where They Came From: From Kunjapura Fort:

Marathas captured the fort
Some defenders died, some were captured, some surrendered
Those who surrendered agreed to fight with Marathas
~2,000 of them came over

The Recruitment Logic: Marathas would "love to swell their ranks" - add numbers to their army.

The Hidden Problem:

"These are not Abdali's camp defecting. These were potentially Kunjapura forces, and they were someone else's Afghan. That was a mistake. They may end up double-crossing Marathas."

They're not committed to Maratha cause—they're opportunists.

The Identification System

The Saffron Headgear: To prevent friendly fire/confusion:

Defectors given saffron headgear/turbans
Easily identifiable as "good Afghans" (allied with Marathas)
Distinguishes them from Abdali's forces

The Theory: "If we mark them, we'll know who's who in the chaos"

The Reality: In chaos, nothing works perfectly.

The Betrayal (Around 3 PM - After Vishwas Rao's Death)

The Moment: When Vishwas Rao died and chaos erupted:

Defectors threw away saffron headgear
Switched sides immediately
Revealed they were waiting for exact moment

Their Position:

In rear lines of Maratha force
Close to "Bunge" (support staff, non-combatants)
Cooks, merchants, maintenance personnel
All the logistics/supply people

Their Attack:

"They started attacking these support staff on the Maratha side. They threw away their headgear and started fighting the Maratha side. They attacked the non-combatants in the back."

The Tactical Impact: 2,000 enemies suddenly appearing in the rear = complete breakdown of Maratha rear-guard security.

The Psychological Amplification

The Appearance vs. Reality:

"What appeared was that Abdali's army had reached all the way to the back of the Maratha camp."

Not true, but appeared true:

Soldiers at front don't know defectors are only 2,000
They see Afghans attacking from rear
Think: "Afghan main force has broken through"
Panic cascades

The Rumors:

Vishwas Rao dead (fact)
Afghans in rear (partially true—defectors)
Abdali winning (unverified rumor)
Battle is lost (false, but believed)

The Information Problem:

"You cannot see the entire battlefield, like both sides. You only see 100 meters ahead of you. If this is what people are saying, then you tend to believe it."

Soldiers can't verify rumors. They only know:

Their visible commander area
What others are saying
The general feeling

The Rumor Effect:

"Rumor spreads faster than the truth."

By 3-4 PM:

Rumor: Marathas are losing (partly true at this point)
Rumor: Afghans in rear (defectors, but who knows that?)
Rumor: Commander might be dead (Vishwas Rao is dead)
Rumor: We should flee (natural conclusion)

The Cascading Desertion

First: Vittal Shivadev

Believed rumors/confusion
Supposed to be fighting
Left his position and fled
Takes ~5,000 soldiers with him

The Impact of Commander Leaving:

"When Tom, Dick, and Harry soldiers see their commanders fleeing, they think 'oh, that's over.' Their leader believed the rumors, so soldiers think the rumors must be true."

Second: Damaji Gayakwar

Badly injured (already wounded)
Was with Vittal Shivadev
Follows Shivadev's retreat
Takes ~3,000-4,000 soldiers
These are his personal followers/army

Third: Malhar Rao Holkar

Timing unclear (maybe ~1-2 PM or slightly later)
Left battlefield with 5,000-6,000 soldiers
Took western route toward Yamuna then south toward Delhi
Gave safe passage by Najib Khan Rohila (the Afghan commander)

Why Holkar Got Safe Passage:

Had good relationship with Najib Khan
Najib made sure he "was given safe passage"
Otherwise dangerous for Holkar (major commander) to escape alone with 6,000 soldiers
Abdali would normally chase him
But battle still ongoing, so Abdali forces couldn't spare manpower
Holkar timed his escape perfectly

Holkar's Motivation (Disputed)

Theory 1: Forced Responsibility Before battle, Bhau allegedly told Holkar:

"If we are on the losing side and if I am not to be seen or something happens, you have responsibility of saving my wife. Take her back to safety."

Holkar's wives came with him. So maybe he left to fulfill this duty?

Theory 2: Strategic Disagreement

Holkar never believed in this battle plan
Never liked frontal attack strategy
Never believed in artillery power
Fought for first 4-5 hours but then left
Thinks: "I told you this wouldn't work"

The Terrain Argument: Bhau said: "We're in flatland. There's no mountain, no jungle. We need artillery to compensate."

Holkar said: "Do the Ganimikawa style" (Shivaji's guerrilla tactics with terrain advantage)

Bhau: "There IS no terrain here. Your strategy won't work."

The Reality: Probably both. Holkar:

Was responsible for Bhau's wife (duty to leave early)
Didn't believe in the plan (justification for leaving)
Had strategic disagreements (ongoing tension)
Timed his escape well (showed competence)

The Net Effect

The Number Loss: After Vishwas Rao's death, three major commanders left with ~13,000 soldiers:

Vittal Shivadev: ~5,000
Damaji Gayakwar: ~3,000-4,000
Malhar Rao Holkar: ~5,000-6,000

The Total:

Maratha total fighting force: ~50,000-60,000
Suddenly lost: ~13,000 (roughly 20-25%)
Lost: 3 important commanders

The Cascading Effect:

"If some of them are leaving, then people who are fighting will question themselves as to why am I fighting? If others are leaving, it has the dynamics of its own."

When important commanders flee, it creates:

Doubt in remaining soldiers
Rumor of defeat
More soldiers fleeing
Momentum toward collapse

The Timing

The Battle Duration:

Started: ~8-9 AM
Morning dominance (Maratha): 9 AM - 12 PM
Afternoon crisis: 12 PM - 3 PM
Mass desertion: ~3 PM onward
Battle effectively over: ~6:30-7 PM (winter darkness)

Total: ~9-10 hours of continuous battle

With 200,000+ people engaged.

Bhau's Strategic Error

The Larger Mistake: Bhau was not as experienced as Abdali:

Brave warrior ✓
Good fighter ✓
Strategic commander ✗

The Specific Error:

"He got into the battlefield himself like he's a soldier. That's not what you should be doing when you're commander-in-chief."

Dismounted from elephant
Got on horse
Entered direct combat
Got wounded
Lost command authority
Couldn't control the collapsing situation

The Personality Issue: "He was very hot-headed. Couldn't control himself."

Warrior instinct overrode commander instinct.

The Defector Gambit: Recruiting 2,000 defectors seemed smart. But they were never loyal. They were waiting for chaos. One visible sign of defeat (Vishwas Rao dying) and they flipped. Numbers don't matter if they're not committed.

The Information Vacuum: Soldiers couldn't verify rumors. So they believed them. Rumor: Afghans in rear = panic. Reality: only defectors. But who knew?

The Commander Cascade: When one commander flees, it triggers others. Vittal leaves → Damaji follows → soldiers of both follow → Holkar sees collapse → leaves with safe passage (negotiated with enemy!).

Holkar's Pragmatism: He had pre-negotiated safe passage with Najib Khan. Shows: Holkar was hedging his bets. Knew battle might go south. Had escape plan. Executed it professionally.

The Snowball Effect: Morning: 75,000 Marathas winning. Afternoon: 62,000 Marathas losing. Not because of tactics, but because 13,000 left (or were tied down by defectors attacking rear).

Where We Left Off: By 3-4 PM, Maratha collapse accelerating. Defectors attacking rear. Three major commanders fled with 13,000 soldiers. Remaining forces demoralizing. Battle still ongoing (continues until dark ~7 PM) but outcome already decided. Maratha momentum reversed completely.

By 3 o'clock in the afternoon, everything fell apart. Vishwas Rao was dead. Bhau was wounded. The defectors Marathas had recruited threw off their turbans and started killing supply staff. Rumors of Afghans in the rear spread like fire. Vittal Shivadev looked around, saw chaos, decided he was leaving. Took 5,000 soldiers. Damaji Gayakwar, wounded and following Shivadev, took another 3,000-4,000. Malhar Rao Holkar, who'd never believed in this battle, had already negotiated safe passage with Najib Khan Rohila (the enemy!) and slipped away with 6,000. In the space of an hour, 13,000 soldiers vanished. Not killed. Just left. And when soldiers see commanders leaving, they figure if it's good enough for the boss, it's good enough for them. That's when the rout became inevitable.