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34. As the rains were coming on, he retired with most of his men to Cawnpore, sending Colonel Monson with a considerable force to keep in touch with Holkar & to effect the junction with Colonel Murray. Monson was drawn on by Holkar & by hopes of soon joining Murray: but that officer had for some reason or another retired, & Monson suddenly found himself surrounded. He started his fatal retreat, Holkar continually swooping down on him. At last at the end of August the remnant of Monson's army struggled back to Agra. His whole force had been almost completely destroyed.
Recall of Wellesley
This disaster was, it is true, only momentary; but the home authorities, their minds already long turned against Wellesley for what they considered his rash & unnecessary political intrigues, no sooner heard of the reverse than they decided on his instant recall. Already, when nothing but success had attended all his plans, the Governor-General had been so disgusted at the timid & overcautious conduct of the Directors, & at their suspicions concerning his honour in the question of patronage, that he had twice offered to resign. Now he was recalled
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35. against his will.
Results of Monson's disaster.
The rest of the war, though not otherwise than successful, is of little interest; for although by it Holkar's power was, for the time at least, quite shattered, Monson's disaster not only involved the GovernorGeneral's recall, but prevented the final settlement of the Maratha question until thirteen years later by causing the reversal of his policy. We therefore pass over without remark the successes at Dig & Farukhabad, the three repulses at Bhartpur, & the eventual treaty with Holkar, similar to those with Sindhia & Bhonsla. If, Wellesley had remained in India or if his policy had been adhered to, all the Maratha powers would have been finally tranquilized, & the expense & anxiety of the war of 1817 - 1818 would never have been incurred.
Wellesley's civil work.
We now turn to the civil branch of Wellesley's work. In this he was even more hampered by the Court of Directors than in his political aims. There is no need for us to enumerate the ordinary duties & strenuous daily work of a GovernorGeneral of the time, & we look at once to Wellesley's particular schemes of improve
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36. ment, though there is not space to do more than roughly sketch the chief of these. We must, therefore, pass over his desire for the exclusion of all Europeans from Oudh other than the Company's servants; his action regarding Private Trade & the Company's monopoly; the steps which he took to restrain sedition in the native press; & the satisfactory state in which he left the Company's finances - under the guidance of M. Tucker - as compared with its condition on his arrival in India. His chief desire in connection with the British military force in India - its considerable increase - was fulfilled, & his second aim - that the authority over it should no longer remain divided between the Company & the Crown - was advanced halfway to fulfilment. It is notable that he was always desirous of giving religion a place in the public life of the Company, more - perhaps - to impress the natives than from a pure sense of Christian duty, but at least from a real desire to show Indians that Englishmen did not neglect their creed. He strictly insisted on the observance of Sunday, & gave the first public thanksgiving ever held for British national