In 1811 Moorcroft travelled extensively in the northern sub-continent in search of better breeding stock. Despite travelling to Lucknow, the capital of Oudh, and to Benares, then still part of Maratha territory, Moorcorft failed to acquire the ideal breeding horses that he sought. In Benares he learned that Bukhara was rumoured to have "the greatest horse market in the world." Moorcroft recruited a Persian named Mir Izzat-Allah to make a scouting trip to Bukhara and map out the route. He also learned that fine breeding horses might be found in Tibet.