HISTORY OF THE INDIAN MUTINY. With the Publishers- Com- & HISTORY OF THE INDIAN MUTINY, 1857-1858. COMMENCING FROM THE CLOSE OP THE SECOND VOLUME OF SIR JOHN KAYE'S HISTORY OF THE SEPOY WAR. COLONEL G. B. MALLESON, C.S.I. AUTHOR OF "HISTORY OF THE FRENCH IN INDIA," HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE NATIVE STATES OF INDIA," ETC., ETC. VOLUME II. LONDON: WILLIAM H. ALLEN AND CO. L8 WATERLOO PLACE, PALL MALL, B.W. 1879. Alt righi r< trvtd. LONDON : PRINTED BY W. H. ALLEN ANH <-'< Stack Annex m v V IN THE HOPE THAT THIS BOOK MAY LIVE, I DEDICATE IT TO THE MEMORY OF MY BROTHER-IN-LAW, OF THE CORPS OF GUIDES, ONE OF THE FIRST OF THE MANY GALLANT MEN WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR COUNTRY ON THE RIDGE BEFORE DEHLI. THE WORDS WHICH HE UTTERED, WHEN, ON THE 9TH JUNE, 1857, HE RECEIVED THE WOUND WHICH HE KNEW TO BE MORTAL, DULCE ET DECORUM EST PRO P ATRIA MORI, WERE CHERISHED AS A MOST PRECIOUS INHERITANCE BY HIS BROTHER, StogrHnm Sattgt, WHO, ENTERING THE SERVICE AFTER HIS DEATH, WAS APPOINTED TO THE SAME REGIMENT, THE CORPS OF GUIDES, AND BY UNFLINCHING GALLANTRY AND DEVOTION WON FROM THE STERN FRONTIER MEN WHO COMPOSED IT THE ESTEEM AND AFFECTION WHICH THEY HAD BORNE TO QUINTIN. FOLLOWING THROUGHOUT HIS NOBLE LIFE IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF HIS BROTHER, HE EMULATED HIM IN THE MANNER OF HIS DEATH, FOR HE TOO DIED LEADING THE GUIDES IN A GALLANT CHARGE AGAINST THE ENEMIES OF ENGLAND, AT FATHABAD, NEAR JALLALABAD, THE 2ND APRIL, 1879. SIMILAR AS WAS THEIR LIFE, SIMILAR AS WAS THEIR DEATH, I WOULD NOT SEPARATE IN THIS DEDICATION THE TWO GALLANT BROTHERS. PAR MOBILE FRATRUM. PREFACE. In the preface to my last volume I expressed my intention of publishing the volume which should conclude the history of the Indian Mutiny in the early part of the current year. But after writing the six hundred pages which form the volume I now offer to the public, I found that the stirring events in the Western Presi- dency, including a review of the administration of Lord Elphinstone ; the occurrences in southern and central India, and in Bandalkhand , including the campaigns of Sir Hugh Rose, of Sir Robert Napier, and of Whitlock ; and the campaign which terminated in the pacification of Oudh, had still to be recorded. I had, too, to write a review of the policy inaugurated by Lord Canning in the later phases of the revolt. Compelled, as I have been, to confine to the smallest space the notice of events not germane to the main threads of the story, and conscious Vlii PREFACE. that even with the greatest possible compression the history of the mutiny up to the point it has reached in the present volume had occupied nearly six hundred pages, I felt that were I to condense in the same volume the occurrences still remaining to be told, either I should be forced to write them on a scale much smaller than that which their intrinsic importance demanded ; or, the volume would attain an exceptional bulk, extremely in- convenient to the reader. Under these circumstances I could not hesitate. I decided to publish the second volume at once. The division which by these means is produced seems in other respects to be convenient. Whilst the present volume deals with the storming of Dehli; with Sir Colin Campbell's campaigns of 1857 in Oudh, and of 1858 up to the end of May of that year in Oudh and Rohilkhand ; with the movements of the several columns and detach- ments in north-western India, in the Azamgarh district, in Bihar, in eastern Bengal, and on the south-western frontier ; whilst, in fact, it deals generally with the Bengal Presidency and Raj- piitana, the volume which is to follow, and which I hope to offer to the public in the first month of the coining year, will narrate the occurrences in the sister presidencies, in Haidarabad, and in central India. I propose, too, to devote one chapter of that volume to a comprehensive review of Lord Canning's later policy ; and another to a PBEFACE. IX consideration of the action of the civil officers in many of the districts which came, more or less, under the influence of the great wave of the revolt. In the present volume I have endeavoured to render justice not less to the generals entrusted with the suppression of the mutiny than to those officers of less exalted rank whose splendid exer- tions enabled the geuerals to conquer. In the instances in which the conduct of a general has seemed to me to be open to criticism I have endeavoured to state the case with fairness and impartiality. There is not a published official document, there is not a document, relating to the events I have recorded, to which it was possible for me to have access, which I have not carefully read and noted. Whilst expressing my acknowledgments to those who have, in this way, rendered me invalu- able aid ; to others who have placed at my disposal journals and letters written at the time, it is fit that I should admit the special obligation under which I lie to the writer of an article on Lord Clyde's Indian Campaign which appeared in Blackwood's Magazine for October 1858. If the author of that article, who, I understand, is Major- General Sir Archibald Alison, C.B., had con- tinued his story in the same graphic and nervous style, and with the same attention to correct detail which characterises the article to which I PREFACE. refer, this history would never have been written. Having traversed the same ground in Blue-books and private documents, I have shown my opinion of that writer's historical power and impartiality by the copious extracts I have made from his article, and I am desirous to place here upon record my admiration of its vigour, its truth, and its vivid reality. I am anxious, before I conclude, to acknowledge the generous reception which the first volume of this work has met with in this country, in the colonies, and in America. It was not possible, writing of events, many actors in which survive, and to some of whom a record of their perform- ances cannot be palatable, that I should absolutely escape hostile criticism. But the bulk of opinion in England, in Australia, and in America has been sufficiently out- spoken to encourage me to believe that with the course of time the history I have written of the occurrences of a very memo- rable period will meet with universal acceptance. G. B. MALLESON. 27, West Cromwell Road, 9th August 1879. GLOSSARY OF PROPER NAMES. The mode of spelling now adopted. The old mode of spelling. Agra Ajmir . Alambagh Aligarh Allahabad Arab. Azamgarh Baksar Balamgarb Balandshakr Banaras Bandalkband Banni . Barhampur Bbagalpiir Bhutan Bihar Biluchi Chaibasa Chatgaon Chattra Chutia. Nagpi Dakha. . Danapur Daxj fling Dehlf, or Dihlf Dilkiisha Faizabad FarrakhaWul Fathgarh Fathpiir Firozpur Gandak Ghaghra Agra. Ajmir. Alunibagh. Aligurh. Allahabad. Arrah. Azimgurh. Buxar. Ballumgurh. Bolundshuhr. Benares. Bundelkhund. Bunnee. Berhampore. Bhagulpore. Bbootan. Behar. Beloochee. Cheybassa. Chittagong. Chuttra. Chota Nagpore. Dacca. Dinapore. Darjeeling. Delhi. Dilkoosha. Fyzabad. Furruckabad. Futtehgurb. Futtehpore. Ferozpore. Gundu< L Gogra. xn GLOSSARY OF PROPER NAMES. The mode of spelling now adopted. The old mode of spelling. Ghazipur Gorakkpiir Giiuiti . . Ghazipore. . Gorruckpore. . Goomtie. Gwaliar . Gwalior. I ni a nib ar a . Emambarah. It;i\va . . Etawah. Jagdispiir Jaipur . Jajhar . Jalpaigori Janina . . Jugdispore. . Jeypore. Jujjhur. . Julpigori. . Jumna. Janpur Jodhpur Kalpi . Kanhpiir Kanuj . Katak . . Jaunpore. . Jodhpore. . Calpee. . Cawnpore. Canouj. . Ctittack. Kiisi . Koosi. Lakhnao Lucknow. Mainpuri Manghir Mathura . Mynporie. . Monghyr. . Muttra! Miiltan . Mooltan. Naddi . . Nuddee. Nasfrabad . Nusseerabad. Nimach . Neemuch. Nipal . Orisa . . Nepaul. . Orissa. Panjab Patna . . Punjaub. . Patna. Purnia, . Pui'nea. Raj put ana Robilkhand . Rajpootana. Robilkhund. Ri'irki . . Roorkee. Silhat . . Sylbet. S6n Soane. Tirhut . . Tirlioot. Tista . . Teesta. CONTENTS OF THE SECOND VOLUME. PREFACE . GLOSSARY Page vii xi BOOK X. CHAPTER I. The siege of Dehli ....... 1 General Wilson doubts the success of an assault . . 2 The Chief Engineer, Major Baircl Smith ... 3 Baird Smith's arguments in favour of an assault . . 4 General Wilson yields to those arguments ... 6 Description of the fortifications of Dehli ... 7 Plan of the attack ....... 9 Effective strength of the besiegers ■ . . .10 General Wilson's order to his army . . . .11 The tracing of the batteries begins on the 7th . .12 Brind's battery (No. 1) opens fire . . . .14 And renders the Mori harmless . . . . .15 Gallantry of Lieutenant Lockhart . . . .16 No. 2 battery is traced and opens fire . . .18 XIV CONTENTS. Medley traces No. 3 battery The enemy are alive to the opportunities they had neg- lected ..... The great artillery duel Splendid conduct of the Bengal Artillery The engineers are sent to examine the breaches They report them practicable The columns of assault detailed The commanders of the columns of assaxdt The order of assault .... Nicholson orders the advance Storm of the first column Storm of the second column . The explosion party at the Kashmir gate Gallant advance of the third column The storm of the fourth column Eeid is struck down .... And the attack is repulsed Disastrous effect of this repulse Nicholson determines to press on . After losing many officers, he leads the way, and is struck down .... The cavalry during the storm The third column falls back on the church The results of the day's work The losses of the day .... The success does not correspond to the General's hopes Neville Chamberlain urges him to persevere Baird Smith is not less peremptory On the 15th preparations are made to push on Progress made on the 16th And on the 17th The attack on the Lahor gate on the 18th fails Despondency of General Wilson . Great progress made on the 19th . Page 19 21 22 23 24 26 27 30 32 33 34 35 36 38 40 41 43 44 45 47 49 52 53 54 55 55 57 58 59 61 62 63 64 CONTENTS. XV The Jamma Qiasjid and Palace occupied on the 20th Lieutenant Aikman captures the Selimgarh Dehli after the capture .... The King of Dehli, and the influences about him He takes refuge in the tomb of Huniayun Whilst the rebel army evacuates the city Hodson of Hodson's Horse . Hod son induces the king to surrender Hodson induces the princes to surrender And murders them .... Comments on the deed The gates of the city are secured Major Brind clears the city of the scum of the popula tion ...... Death and character of Nicholson Remarks on the siege .... Page 66 67 69 70 73 74 75 77 79 80 80 81 82 83 84 CHAPTER IT. A column is dspatehed south-eastwards under Greathed 87 < rivathed moves on Balandshalir .... 89 Attacks and defeats the rebels at that place . 91 Death of Lieutenant Home ..... 92 Greathed receives letters from Agra imploring aid . 93 The condition of Agra subsequent to the 9th September 94 Difficulties of its position increased by the storming of Dehli 96 Greathed reaches Agra on the 10th October . . 98 Encamps on the parade ground ..... 100 His camp is suddenly attacked by the rebels . . 101 Battle of A Lira and defeat of the enemy . . . 101 The " surprise " greater to the rebels than to the Bri- tish' 104 (ip-a.tlx-d is siiprrsedi'd by Hope Grant . . . 105 XVI CONTENTS. BOOK XI. Pa#e Who takes the column to Kanhpur, and thence to the Banni bridge ...... 106 Van Cortlandt re-establishes order north of Dehli" . 107 Showers is sent with a column to the districts west and south-west of Dehli ...... 108 On his return another column, under Gerrai'd, is sent in the same direction . . . . . .109 Combat of Narnul 110 Splendid feat of Colin Cookworthy . . . .116 Q-errard beats the rebels, and, while pursuing, is killed 117 Seaton succeeds Gerrard, and returns to Dehli, pre- paratory to escorting a convoy towards Kanhpur 118 CHAPTER I. State of affairs in India on the arrival of Sir Colin Campbell ..... The enormous difficulties by which he is beset His manner of " organising victory " . The China troops begin to arrive Captain William Peel and the Naval Brigade Character of William Peel Troops begin to arrive from England . Sketch of the districts intervening between Sir Colin Campbell's base of operations at Allahabad, and Calcutta 129 Mr. George Yule and eastern Bihar .... 129 Captain Dalton and Chutia Nagpiir . . . .134 119 120 122 125 126 127 128 CONTENTS. XV11 The Madras army 137 How that army lent its aid to Bengal . . . 138 Major English defeats the rebels at Chattra . . 141 CHAPTER II. Sir Colin Campbell starts for the seat of war . . 142 Colonel Powell and William Peel march towards Kanh- pur 143 Powell hears of the enemy at Kajwa. .... 144 Battle of Kajwa, and death of Powell . . . 145 William Peel, succeeding to the command, completes the victory ....... 146 How the fall of Dehli drove the Grwaliar contingent into the field against the British . . . 147 Consideration of Sir Colin's position at Kanhpur, and of the reasons which prompted him to relieve Lakhnao before crushing the Grwaliar troops . 148 He leaves a force at Kanhpur under Windham . . 149 And joins Hope Grant in the plain beyond Banni . 150 Outram and Havelock at the Residency . . . 151 How Outram provided fresh quarters for his troops . 152 The sorties at Lakhnao .... 154 to 156 Outram fails to open out the Kanhpur road . .157 The mining and countermining ..... 158 Altered tactics of the rebels . . . . .160 Some casualties of the siege . . . . .161 Outram improvises telegraphic communication with the A'lambagh 162 Thomas Henry Kavanagh . . . . . .163 Kavanagh penetrates in disguise the enemy's lines and reaches Sir Colin Campbell .... 164 Composition of Sir Colin's relieving force . . . 165 Sir Colin inspects his troops, — the effect . . . 166 II. b XV111 CONTENTS. 168 169 170 171 173 His plan of operations ..... He moves on, and encamps near the A'lambagh Adrian Hope carries the fort of Jallalabad . The several brigades of the relieving force . The force carries the Dilkusha and the Martiniere Sir Colin holds his position that afternoon and the night, repulsing several attacks . . . 174 to 177 The rear-guard under Ewart, 93rd, reaches camp . 177 The 15th, and preparations for the 16th . . .178 The advance on the 16th 179 On the Sikandar Bagh 180 Splendid gallantry of Blunt, Bengal Artillery . .181 The storming of the Sikandar Bagh .... 182 Richard Cooper, Ewart, and a few followers leap through the breach 183 The daring gallantry of those officers and their fol- lowing ........ 184 Their gallantry gives time to their comrades to force the gate and window ..... 185 The Sikandar Bagh is gained ..... 187 The " Barracks " are captured 188 The Shah Naji'f 188 The attack on the Shah Naj if 189 Its obstinate resistance ..... . 190 Infantry, artillery, and naval brigade are baffled . . 192 Till Sergeant Paton, 93rd, indicates a way of which Adrian Hope takes advantage, and the place is gained 194 The troops then bivouac for the night . . .195 How the merits of officers cannot be discovered from the mention of a few in the despatches . . 196 Some of the deserving stormers . . . . .197 The action of the rebels during the 16th . . .199 Sir Colin's plans for the 17th 199 He sends Brigadier Russell to secure his left flank . 200 CONTENTS. XIX Page William Peel cannonades the Mess House . . . 201 And Garnet Wolseley storms it and the Moti Mahal . 202 The meeting of Outram and Havelock with Sir Colin . 204 The proceedings of Outram and Havelock to open out a communication with Sir Colin . 205 to 208 The difficulties which still remained after the commu- nications had been opened under Russell and Hale 209 The operations on the left rear . . . 209 to 215 Withdrawal of the women and children . . . 215 And of the force 216 The cavalry during the siege . . . . .217 Death of Havelock 218 His character and career .... 218 to 220 Sir Colin reaches the Xlainbagh and reorganises his force . . • 217 Leaves Outram with four thousand men at the Xlain- bagh, and moves towards Kanhpur . . . 222 Hears on the road alarming rumours, and receives more alarming letters, regarding the state of affairs at Kanhpur ....... 223 Leaving his infantry to follow, he gallops to the front with his staff and artillery .... 224 And discovers the disaster by which Windham was threatened 225 CHAPTER III. Explicit instructions sent to Windham at Kanhpur . 226 Description of the ground between Kalpi and Kanhpur 228 Tantia Topi crosses the Jamna at Kalpi, and occupies that ground 229 Windham asks for and obtains permission to detain the ' troops arriving a.1 Kanhpur .... 230 b * XX CONTENTS. Page He marches beyond the town and displays his force . 231 Increasing difficulties of his position . . . 232 Solicits Sir Colin' s sanction to a plan of offensive de- fence 233 Communication with Lakhnao having ceased, he takes up a position on the Kalpi road covered by the canal 234 The rebels approaching him, he resolves to attack them 235 In the battle Carthew and Kelly capture three guns . 236 Windham falls back on the brick-kilns, threatened by the enemy's cavalry ...... 237 Windham learns that Sir Colin is marching on Kanh- pur 237 On the 27th he prepares to stand on the defensive, when he is attacked ..... 238 Carthew, on the right, repulses the enemy . . . 239 Windham is not so fortunate on the left, but is forced by the superior artillery power of the enemy to fall back 240 He hopes to make a stand at the brick-kilns . . 241 His injudicious order, repeated, to Carthew to fall back exposes his right ...... 242 Carthew, nevertheless, returning, stems the advancing tide 243 And gallantly repulses for the night the attack on the right 244 Remarks on the manoeuvres of the day . . . 245 Windham makes his dispositions for the 27th . . 246 Does not give sufficient strength to the decisive point 247 Carthew gallantly and successfully defends the i*ight . 248 The attack on the left, not being the decisive attack, is easily repulsed ...... 249 Windham orders Carthew and Wilson to advance . 250 Wilson's repulse exposes Carthew's right . . . 251 Windham has no supports on the decisive point . 252 CONTENTS. XXI Splendid tenacity of Carthew and the 34th . . . 253 Carthew is forced to fall back on the intrenchment . 253 Carthew and Windham 254 Reinfoi-cements are sent to Carthew, too few, and too late 255 The aggressive action of Windham justified in principle 256 Sir Colin Campbell arrives on the scene . . .257 CHAPTER IV. Sir Colin has an interview with Windham . . . 258 The rebels plan the destruction of the bridge . . 259 Sir Colin baffles them and crosses his army . . 260 The position occupied by the enemy .... 261 They attempt to harass the British .... 262 Sir Colin despatches the ladies and children to Allah- abad 264 He detects the one weak point in the enemy's position 265 The strength of the hostile armies .... 266 Sir Colin's plan of battle 268 Battle of Kanhpur. Greathed threatens the centre - 269 Walpole employs the right, whilst Adrian Hope turns the right flank 270 Desperate struggle on the canal is decided by William Peel's dash 271 The enemy are completely beaten . . . .272 Mansfield is sent to cut them off at the Subadilr's tank 27o Character of General Mansfield . . . . .274 He allows the enemy to escape . . . . .275 Hope Grant is then sent to pursue them . . . 276 He attacks and destroys them near Sheorajpur . . 278 XX11 CONTENTS. Page Comments on Sir Colin Campbell's tactics . . .279 The part of the programme remaining to be carried out 281 CHAPTER V. Sir Colin's further movements are hampered by want of carriage ........ 283 He detaches Walpole to Mainpuri .... 284 A few fanatics bar his way at Itawa .... 285 Bourchier clears them out, and Walpole reaches Main- puri . 286 Seaton starts from Dehli with his convoy for Mainpuri 287 Suddenly hears that the rebels are marching against him 288 He attacks and completely defeats them . . . 289 Finds the rebels at Pattiali 290 Where he again beats them ...... 291 And to a great extent pacifies the country . . . 292 Again he defeats the rebels near Mainpuri . . . 294 Daring exploit of Hodson and McDowell . . . 295 Seaton unites with Walpole ..... 298 CHAPTER VI. Sir Colin marches from Kanhpur towards Fathgarh . 299 The rebels lose their opportunity of breaking down the bridge over the Kali Naddi .... 300 Vaughan's skilful gun practice 302 Gallant dash of the 53rd 303 The enemy are completely beaten .... 304 The soldiers give an ovation to Sir Colin . . . 304 Gallant conduct of Lieutenant Roberts . . . 305 CONTENTS. XX111 Page B-easoiis why the Coniniander-m-Chief advocated the reduction of Rohilkhand prior to an attack on Lakhnao ........ 306 Reasons which actuated Lord Canning in deciding to attack Lakhnao in the first instance . . . 307 Lord Canning's action justified ..... 308 The military position occupied by Sir Colin considered 309 He leaves Seaton to command at Fathgarh . . . 310 Deceives the Rohilkhand rebels ..... 311 Adrian Hope attacks and defeats them at Sutia . .312 The final preparations for an attach on Lakhnao . . 313 The British army is at last in the plains between Kanh- pur and Lakhnao. Its composition . . .314 315 CHAPTER VII. Jaug Bahadur of Nipal offers his aid to Lord Can- ning ........ The offer, after some delay, is accepted . . . 316 The Nipal troops are sent to A'zamgarh and Janpur . 317 They surprise and defeat the rebels at Mandori . . 318 And pacify the district . . . . . .319 Lieutenant-Colonel Lougden is sent with a detachment to co-operate with the Nipal troops . . . 319 Combat at Chanda ....... 320 Longden drives the rebels from Atraolia . . . 320 The Governor- General concludes an arrangement with Jang Bahadur for a further supply of Nipal troops led by himself .... Rowcroft defeats the rebels at Sobanpur Jang Bahadur occupies Gorakkpur lb- d.-i'.-ats the rebels at Phulpur ami enters I >ulone had held the ridge. All the pickets detached from the main force to various points on the ridge had been under his orders, and his only. The posts thus under his command had included the main picket at Hindu Rao's house, the Observatory, the Sammy House, the Crow's Nest, and the Sabzi- mandi. On the positions so indicated he had, THE STAKE IN THE BALANCE. 31 between the 8th June* and the 14th September, book x. repulsed no less than twenty-six attacks, dis- Chapter L playing a daring, a coolness, and a presence of . if 8 ?*' i -i y-v Sept. 13-14. mind not to be surpassed. On the 17th June, with a small force of four companies of the 60th Rifles, his own regiment, the Sirmiir Battalion, and twenty-five sappers, he had stormed the strong position of Kishanganj, destroying the enemy's batteries stationed there, and returning the same evening to his position on the ridge. Brigadier Longfield, commanding the reserve Longfieia. column, was brigadier of the second brigade during the siege. His conspicuous services fully entitled him to the post which was assigned him on this memorable occasion. It was 3 o'clock in the morning. The columns Sept. u. of assault were in the leash. In a few moments The enor - thev would be slipped. What would be the re- dependent on suit? Would the skill and daring of the soldiers £SS^ of England triumph against superior numbers defending and defended by stone walls ; or would rebellion, triumphing over the assailants, turn that triumph to a still greater account by incit- ing by its means to its aid the Pan jab and the other parts of India still quivering in the balance ? That, indeed, was the question. The fate of * Major Reid's services in tions with Mi'rath and A'li- the mutiny commence from garh, and with the seat of • v.-ii ;i i-ri'.j-'late. He marched Government in Calcutta, a with his regimenl from Dehra service of vital importance, on the 14th May 1857, and for which he received the by his vigorous action in the thanks of the Governor-Gen- disturbed district of Baland- era] in Council. shahr, opened comtnunica- 32 THE ORDER OF ASSAULT. Book x. Dehli was in itself the smallest of the results to ap ei ' be gained by a successful assault. The fate of Se\ 8 t 57 i4 India was in the balance. The repulse of the British would entail the rising of the Panjab ! The order of It had been decided that whilst the first and second columns should direct their attack against the breaches near the Kashmir and Water bas- tions, an explosion party should steal ahead and blow up the Kashmir gate, through which the third column should then effect an entrance into the city. The explosion party consisted of Lieu- tenants Home and Salkeld of the Engineers ; of Sergeants Smith, Carmichael, and Corporal Bur- gess, alias Grierson, of the Sappers and Miners ; of Bugler Hawthorne, H.M.'s 52nd Light In- fantry; and of eight native sappers. It was covered by two hundred men of the 60th Rifles, nnder Lieutenant- Colonel Jones of that regi- ment. The duty devolving on the Sappers and Miners and their officers, was, it is almost need- less to state, to blow up the Kashmir gate ; that of Bugler Hawthorne was to announce, by means of his bugle, to the storming party, that the ex- plosion had done its work completely. The first, Though preparations had been made to advance thirdcoiumns to the assault a little after 3 in the morning, set out. S ome slight delay occurred, and the day was dawning ere the columns were in motion. All this time the besiegers' batteries were pouring; in a heavy and continuous fire — a fire which the enemy, always on the alert, answered with rockets, shells, and round shot. It was amid the din and tumult caused by this artillery duel that, just NICHOLSON ORDERS THE ADVANCE. 33 after dawn, the first, second, and third columns bookx. started on their tremendous errand. General u — v Nicholson had the general management of the S ept°i4. attack. He looked quiet but anxious. General Wilson rode up just as the columns were advanc- ing, evidently full of anxiety.* No wonder, know- in o\ as he did know, the enormous issues at stake on the result of the day's work before his men. The columns advanced as far as the ground Their pro- opposite Ludlow Castle. There they halted. The ground o PP o- first column then moved sharply to the left to ^ t fe Udlow take up its position in Kiidsia Bagh, there to wait for the signal ; the second went further to the left, and formed up behind No. 3 battery ; the third remained on the high road, to await there the bugle-sound which was to summon them to the Kashmir gate. The signal for the assault of the first and second columns was to be the sudden advance of the skirmishers of the 60th Rifles. The columns having taken up their positions, Nicholson Nicholson gave the signal. The Rifles at once signal to dashed to the front with a cheer, extending along push on " and skirmishing through the low jungle— which at this point extends to within fifty yards of the ditch — and opening at the same time a fire on the enemy on the walls. At the sound of their advance, the engineer officers attached to the first column, previously posted on the edge of the jungle whence the column was to advance towards the breach, waved their swords to show the way * Medley. II. 34 THE STORM OF THE FIRST COLUMN ; Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 14. The engi- neers of the first column reach the breach. The assail- ants are met by a terrible fire, but by des- perate valour gain the breach. to the stormers. The fire from our batteries had ceased, whilst that of the enemy, now thoroughly alive to the nature of the contest, continued in- cessant. Through this fire Medley and Lang and the ladder-men advanced at a quick walk till they reached the edge of the cover. Then, form- ing their ladder-men into a sort of line, they rushed to the breach, closely followed by the storming party, and in a minute gained the crest of the glacis. They were here in the open exposed to a terrific and unceasing fire from the breach and the open parapet walls, which told with fatal effect. So hot was the fire that for ten minutes it was impossible to let clown the ladders. " Man after man was struck clown, and the enemy, with yells and curses, kept up a terrific fire, even catching up stones from the breach in their fury, and, clashing them down, dared the as- sailants to come on."* But, undaunted by these cries and by the fire by which they were accom- panied, the British soldiers did push on. They succeeded at length in getting two of the ladders into the ditch, and instantly the officers led their men down themf. Once in the ditch, to mount the escarp and scramble up the breach was the work of an instant. But the enemy did not wait * Medley, who is my chief authority for all the details of the assault. f " The storming parties pushed on, two ladders were thrown into the ditch, and a brave officer, Fitzgerald, of H.M.'s 75th Regiment, who was killed directly afterwards, was the first to mount. As soon as I saw my first ladder down, I slid down into the ditch, mounted up the escarp, and scrambled up the breach, followed by the soldiers." — Medley. OP THE SECOND COLUMN. 35 for them. The insulting yells and curses ceased as Book x. the whilom utterers hurriedly vacated their posi- u *^— tion. " The breach was won, and the supporting sept^. troops pouring in fast, went down the ramp into the main-guard below."* Whilst the first column was thus carrying out, The second with daring and success, the work assigned to it, the second, under Brigadier "William Jones, C.B., had not been less occupied. Led by its engineers, Greathed and Hovenden, the column advanced towards the breach in the Water bastion. By The bulk of some mistake the supporting party of the stormers the right and pressed forward on the right of the party, and, f a a ^ t e . rushing to the counterscarp of the curtain, slid into its ditch, climbed its breach, and won the ram- part. The stormers of the 8th, f however, most T }° sto ™ er9 r ot tho 8th of them carrying ladders, followed the engineers ■ King's to the Water bastion. They had to make a slight detour to the right to avoid some water in the ditch, and being in the open, they were ex- posed to the full fury of the enemy's fire, which, at this point, was incessant and well directed. The two engineer officers fell, severely wounded, and of the thirty-nine ladder-men, twenty-nine were struck down in a few minutes. But here, as at gain the .„ . . , -, , breach of the the Kashmir gate, British valour was not to be water gate, daunted. The ladders were at length placed and the breach was carried by the survivors, twenty- five in number, the senior of whom was a colour- sergeant. Meanwhile the remainder of the column, which * Medley. tenants Pogson and Metge, t Captain Baynes, Lieu- and seventy-five rank and file. 3 * the Kabul gate 36 THE EXPLOSION PARTY. Book x. had entered by the curtain breach, had done wonders. Their entrance into a vital point of Sept 14 the defences, where an attack had not been ex- pected, for the moment paralysed the enemy. Brigadier Brigadier Jones, who, in command of the column, forward to SeS na ^ displayed great gallantry, took advantage of the disorder into which they had been thrown by clearing the ramparts as far as the Kabul gate, on the top of which he planted the column flag,* carried by a private of the 61st, Andrew Laughnan. Before recording the proceedings of the third column, I propose to follow the explosion party, on whose action the movements of that column were to depend. The explosion The composition of this party has already been par y " given. Posted in front of the third column, it advanced straight on the Kashmir gate, in the Splendid face of a very hot fire. Undeterred by this fire, audacity of T . , . TT -, ? i ' Home. Lieutenant Home and lour men, each carrying a bag of twenty-five pounds of powder, pushed on through a barrier gate, which was found open, across the ditch, to the foot of the great double gate. So great was the audacity of this pro- ceeding, that it completely paralysed the enemy. Firing only a few straggling shots, they closed the wicket with every appearance of alarm, and Home, after laying his bags, had time to jump into the ditch unhurt. Salkeld was not so for- * This flag was presented proclamation of Her Ma- by Sir William Jones to Her jesty's title of Empress of Majesty the Queen on the 1st India. January 1877, the day of the THE GATEWAY IS SHATTERED. 37 timate. Before he could reach the gate the bookx. it -in ,1 ■ • i Chapter I. enemy had recovered trom their panic, and, divining his object, had resolved to do their sep^u utmost to thwart it. From either side of the top of the gateway, and from the open wicket close by, they poured upon him and his party a deadly fire. Salkeld, nevertheless, laid his bags, Saikeid lays but was almost immediately after shot through i s ls WO unded U the arm and leg, and fell back disabled on the bridge. He handed the portfire to Sergeant Burg-ess, bidding him light the fusee. Burgess, Burgess and , 6 ' _ & iiia n Carmichael trying to obey, was shot dead, sergeant Oar- are killed. michael then seized the portfire, lighted the fusee, but immediately fell, mortally wounded. The other sergeant, Smith, thinking that Carmichael Wonderful had failed, rushed forward to seize the portfire, Smith. but noticing the fusee burning, threw himself into the ditch. The next moment the massive gate was shattered with a tremendous explosion. Home Home orders at once ordered Hawthorne to sound the bugle- to e b g vance call.* Fearing that in the noise of the assault sounded. the sound might not be heard, he had it repeated three times. The 52nd, anxiously awaiting the signal, did not hear it; but their colonel, the * A more daring and gal- mended by General Wilson lant achievement than that of for the Victoria Cross. But the officers and non-commis- Salkeld succumbed in a few sioned officers mentioned in days to the severe wounds he the text has never been re- had received; Home met his corded. Their subsequent death shortly afterwards at fate cannot but inspire in- M&lagarh; Smith and Haw- terest. Burgess and Car- thorae survived, to receive michael were killed on the the honours that they had so gpd ; Salkeld, Home, Smith, nobly earned. and Hawthorne were recom- 1857. Sept. 14. 38 Campbell's gallant advance. book x. gallant Campbell, who also commanded the column, in front of which he had posted himself, noticing the explosion, and expecting the call, Campbell asked, not hearing it himself, whether it had the S sound 6ar reacne( i the ears °f an y °f those about him. bnt orders Though no one had heard it, Campbell felt that on hearing at so critical a moment action was better than the explosion. g t anc [i n g still- He at once ordered the advance. The column responded eagerly. The 52nd gal- lantly led the way, and in less than a minute after the bugle had sounded, they dashed on over the bridge, and entered the city just as the other columns had won the breaches.* Campbell Colonel Campbell, on gaining the main-guard Stbin sTght inside the gate, at once re-formed his column, and Ma?id Jamma P usne( l on with the intention of occupying the Kdtwali, and, if possible, the Jamma Mas j id. He cleared the Water bastion, within which some of the enemy were still lurking, the church, and the enclosure known as the "Delhi Gazette com- pound," and forced his way through the Kashmir Grate bazaar. A gun which commanded the line of advance was carried by a rush of a party of the 52nd, under Lieutenant Bradshaw, who, however, paid with his life on the spot the penalty of his daring. Still pressing forward, Campbell reached the gate opening on the Chandni Chdk. Forcing this, he advanced with- out much opposition, except from a musketry fire from a few houses. A sudden turn of the road * Lieutenant Home's Be- Statement ; Medley ; Bayley's port ; Bugler Hawthorne's Assault of JDehli. THE FOURTH COLUMN. 39 brought him within sight of the Jamraa Masjid, book x. its arches and gates bricked up, incapable of — being forced without powder-bags or guns, ren- septfu. dered safe against assault from mere infantry. Unwilling to forego the chance of storming this For want of formidable position, Campbell remained in front tSSTonthe of it for half an hour, under a fire of musketry B * gam Bagh - from the houses, in the expectation of the suc- cessful advance of the other columns. But as time went on, and there were no visible signs of the approach of the one or the other, Campbell deemed it advisable to retire on the Begam's Bagh, a large enclosure. He held this place for an hour and a half, exposed to a heavy fire of musketry, grape, and canister. Here I must leave him whilst I trace the progress of the fourth column. Much depended on the success of its attack. Attack of the Commanded by Major Reid, it was designed to column. move from Hindu Rao's house, on the right, against the suburbs of Kishanganj and Pahari- piir, with a view of driving the enemy thence and effecting an entrance at the Kabul gate after it should be taken by General Nicholson. The suc- cessful advance of the first, second, and third columns depended, then, very much on the result of this flank attack. Mai or Reid's column,* com posed of detachments His column . i .', M . • i i it l deficient in of eight different regiments, eight hundred and gulls . sixty men in all, with a reserve of one thousand two hundred infantry of the Jammu contingent, * Vide Appendix A. 40 THE FOURTH COLUMN. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 14 The Jammu troo23s, sent by Reid to make a diver- sion, become engaged with the enemy. Reid advances. formed up at 4.30 a.m. on the Grand Trunk Road, opposite the Sabzi Mandi picket. Before 5 a.m. all was in readiness, but the four horse artillery guns which were ordered to accompany the column had not arrived. Presently the guns came up, but the officer reported that there were only sufficient gunners to man one gun. Reid had no intention of taking one gun into action contrary to the rules of the service, so he directed the officer to obtain the full complement of gunners as soon as possible. It was now broad daylight, and he was anxiously listening for the explosion (the blowing in of the Kashmir gate), which was to have been his signal to advance, when he heard musketry fire on his right, and soon discovered that the party of the Jammu troops, four hun- dred infantry and four guns, which he had ordered to proceed direct from the camp at 3.45 a.m., for the purpose of making a diversion by occupying the Idgar, had become engaged with the enemy. No time under these circum- stances was to be lost, so he at once pushed on with the column without the horse artillery guns, and more than half an hour before the attack of the other columns. The detachment of the 60th Rifles, under Cap- tain Muter, was thrown out in skirmishing order to the right of the road, while a feeling party of the Guides was sent a short distance ahead of the column. When within sixty yards of the canal bridge, Reid discovered that the enemy had manned their breast-works across the road, as also one running parallel to the road, and that THE FOURTH COLUMN. 41 both of them had been considerably strengthened book x. during the night. The head of the column ap- ap Gr proached the first line of breast-works, within se\ 8 t 57 i4 fifty yards, when the enemy opened with a tre- mendous volley. The 60th Rifles meanwhile closed to the left, and with the Sirmur Giirkahs, made a dash, and instantly drove the enemy from his first line of defence. They at once retreated on their second line. Meanwhile a steady fire was kept up by the enemy from the loop-holed wall of Kishanganj, eighteen feet high, which completely commanded the position now gained by the head of Reid's column, and many of his men fell. Reid, who was standing on the parapet of the canal bridge, now observed that the enemy had been reinforced from the city. They came in thousands down the dry bed of the canal over which Reid was standing, and a large body appeared on the road, hesitating apparently whether they should drive our men from the breast-work already gained, or attack the detachment of the Jammu troops on the right, which had never approached the Idgar — a result of their starting from the camp nearly an hour after the time laid down. Guns at tins time, whilst the enemy stood in a mass on the road, Embarrass- would have been invaluable, and would have proved ReM from y of the greatest service to Reid, but, though the guns tb ° 7 ant of o ' o o artillery. had been sent, no gunners, through some unac- countable mistake, were available to man them. Reid was just about to feign an attack in front Koii1 k of the K is] in n gaii j heavy batteries, whilst he should direct a real oue in their flank and rear, when lie fell over the parapet of the bridge with a musket- 42 EEID IS SEVERELY WOUNDED. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 14. On reviving he makes over com- mand to Richard Lawrence. Fatal effect of the fall of Reid. shot wound in the head, his engineer officer, Lieutenant Maunsell, who was standing near him, being also hit in the head. Up to this time, Reid states in his dispatch, " all was going on admir- ably, the troops were steady, and well in hand, and I made sure of success." How long he lay on the ground insensible is not known — all thought he was dead — but when he came to his senses he found himself on the back of one of his G-urkahs. He then saw the party of the Jammii contin- gent on his right hard pressed. He sent for Captain Lawrence, who was his second in com- mand, and, presently meeting him, directed him to take command and to support the right. The reserve, under Captain Lawrence, consisting of one thousand two hundred infantry of the Jammii contingent, was in rear of the column. The de- tached party of four hundred infantry destined for the Idgar, became perfectly disorganised after Reid's fall. They rushed into the main column, and caused the greatest confusion, making it difficult to distinguish friend from foe. The fall of Major Reid was an irreparable blow to the success of the fourth column. He knew every inch of the ground thoroughly : he knew the officers, he knew the men ; and every officer and every man felt in his leading the most abso- lute confidence. The first effect of his fall showed itself in the confusion which was thereby caused in the command. Next in seniority to Reid was Captain Richard Lawrence, brother of the Chief Commissioner of the Panjab. Captain Lawrence was in command of the body of the Kashmir FATAL CONSEQUENCES OF HIS WOUND. 43 contingent, one thousand two hundred strong, Bookx. which formed the reserve to that part of the fourth ap ei column which was attacking Kishanganj. Major septfu Reid had been stunned by his wound ; but, as I have already stated, on recovering his senses, he called out for Captain Lawrence, and personally made over the command to him. But before this had happened, many of the officers who had been con- ducting the attack under Major Reid, feeling the absence of a commander, and seeing that the attack had failed, had resolved to fall back. Falling back, they came upon Captain Lawrence, to whom they reported themselves, and who ap- proved their conduct. Meanwhile Captain Muter Captain of the 60th Rifles, who was with the attacking suni egth"e column, seeing Major Reid fall, and apparently command of regarding Captain Lawrence in the light only of the column, a political officer attached to the Kashmir force, assumed the command of tkc portion of the column with which he was serving. This caused considerable confusion; Captain Lawrence and Captain Muter each regarding himself as com- mandant of the column, and each giving his own orders. As reinforcements of artillery which had been applied for failed to arrive, and as the enemy, pressing forward on the right flank of the column, seemed to threaten his rear, Law- rence retired leisurely on the batteries behind Hindu Rao's house. The attack on the Idgar, the attack of r» i xr , i which is re- conducted by a portion or the Kashmir troops pulsed. under Captain Dwyer, was still more unfortunate. The Kashmirians, greatly outnumbered, were not only repulsed, but lost four guns. 44 RESULT OF EEPULSE OF THE FOURTH COLUMN. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 14. Disastrous effect on the other columns of the repulse of the fourth column. Position of the Lahor The repulse of the fourth column greatly ag- gravated the difficulties of the assault. I left the first and second columns, to which I must now return, victorious inside the breach. Nicholson at once collected the great body of his column on the square of the maiu-guard, then turning to the right, pushed forward along the foot of the walls towards the Lahor gate. The second column, under Brigadier Jones, had previously cleared the ramparts, and passing the Mori bas- tion, had planted their flag, in the manner already indicated, on the summit of the Kabul gate. Nicholson advanced beyond this in the hope of feeling the support of the fourth column. But we have seen that the attack of this column had failed, and it was this failure which now ren- dered the position of the advanced assailants difficult and dangerous in the extreme. In pushing along the foot of the walls towards the Lahor gate our troops had been assailed by musketry fire from the houses in the place, and by grape and round shot from the Selimgarh and the palace. This, however, had not impeded the advance. But when the column had reached the eastern extremity of the town and ascertained that, by the failure of the fourth column, the defences there were still in the hands of the enemy, they saw that their entire position was altered, and that they had before them another struggle at least as serious as that which they had but just then overcome. The Lahor gate of the city was the gate which led to the Chandni Chok or principal street of the NICHOLSON KESOLVES TO PUSH ON. 45 city. This gate was commanded by a bastion bookX. about two-thirds of the way between it and the Kabul gate. But to reach this bastion not only Se pt 5 i4 had narrow streets, the houses in which were The enemy strongly manned, to be forced, but the left of the ~^ w attacking party would be exposed to a very heavy streets lead- fire from the enemy now concentrating there. It was a prospect such as to make the boldest leader pause. Nicholson was a man of great daring, but there were men with him at the time, not less brave, who pointed out to him that under the circumstances in which he found him- self it would be wise to be content with esta- blishing himself in the houses which dominated the position, and await intelligence before advanc- ing further. Seymour Blane of the 52nd, who acted as his brigade-major, strongly pressed this advice upon him. Major Jacob of the 1st Fusi- liers, a most able and gallant officer, and who commanded the regiment on the occasion, sup- ported this view. But Nicholson was impatient Nicholson is to press on. He believed that delays were dan- force them, gerous, that the fullest advantage should be taken, monstranoes" at the moment, of the successful storm. More tothecon- than two hours had already elapsed since his men had stood triumphant on the breach. A firm footing in the city had been gained. But this was not in itself sufficient. The repulse of the fourth column had renewed the hopes of the enemy. To destroy these it was necessary, in the opinion of Nicholson, to penetrate into the city. In front of the column was a lane, tolerably JjfgJgJS! 46 HE PUSHES ON. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 11. tion occupied by the enemy. The assault. Gallantry of the assail- ants, straight, about ten feet wide, but narrowed in places by projecting buttresses or towers with parapets. Where these buildings existed the roadway was narrowed to about three feet.* The city side of the lane was bounded by houses with flat roofs and parapets. Not only were all these buildings strongly occupied by the enemy, but the lane was further defended by two brass guns ; one about a hundred and sixty yards from its opening, pointed in the direction of the ad- vance ; the other, about a hundred yards in its rear, commanding it. Behind both was a bullet- proof screen, whilst projecting as it were from the wall was the bastion commanding the Lahor gate, armed with heavy pieces, and capable of holding a thousand men. It was this formidable position that Nicholson decided to attack whilst yet the enemy might still be under the influence of their defeat at three out of the four points attacked. On re- ceiving the order, his men dashed gallantly up the lane, took the first gun with a rush, and then pushed on to the second. But within ten yards of this they were assailed by a fire of grape and musketry, and volleys of stones and round shot, thrown by hand, so severe that they recoiled under the terrible and ceaseless shower. There was no shelter for them, and they were forced to retire. It would be difficult to paint in colours too bright the exertions of their officers. Con- * " The 1st Bengal Euro- pean Fusiliers in the Delhi Campaign," an article contri- buted to Blackwood's Maga- zine for January 1858. NICHOLSON RUSHES FORWARD HIMSELF. 47 spicuous amongst these was Lieutenant Butler Bookx. of the 1st Fusiliers. This officer penetrated up to the bullet-proof screen already mentioned. s e pt 5 i4 How he escaped with his life was a marvel. At the screen two bayonets were thrust at him which pinned him between them as if he were between the prongs of a fork. There he stood, unable to advance or to retire, until, firing his revolver down the loop-holes, he forced the men who were thrusting at him to withdraw their weapons.* The assailants were, I have said, forced to re- who are tire. Only, however, for a few moments. Re- formed, they again advanced. Again they cap- tured the first gun, which was spiked by Captain Greville, 1st Fusiliers; again they dashed at the again. second. As they rushed on, their leader, Major Jacob is Jacob of the 1st Fusiliers, a cool, daring, and S^aKi accomplished officer, was mortally wounded, many officers Lying there on the ground, knowing his hour Fusiliers. had come, the gallant Jacob called to his men to press onward. But the fire was tremendous. Wemyss, Greville, Caulfield, Speke, Woodcock, Butler, all officers belonging or attached to the 1st Fusiliers, were in turn struck down. The men, greatly discouraged, were falling back a second time, when Nicholson rushed to the front. Nicholson XT . i i 1 • then rushes His voice never rang more nobly, his presence to the front, was never more inspiring, than when, waving his sword, he summoned the men to follow where their general led. But the broken order could * "The 1st Bengal Fusiliers is the Delhi Campaign." 48 AND IS STBUCK DOWN. book x. not be restored in a moment, and before a suffi- u aper . c j en j. num k er f men could respond to the call, Sept 5 u John Nicholson was struck down by a bullet but is pierced wliich pierced his body. by a bullet. rp^ woun d wa s mortal, and Nicholson knew it to be so. But neither the agony of the pain, nor the certain approach of death, could quench the He stm urges ardour of that gallant spirit. He still called upon the men to go on. He insisted on lying there till the lane should be carried. But he was asking dying, as he had asked living, that which was all but impossible. Without artillery, the enemy's position was too strong to be carried. Soldiers not accustomed to be baffled, the same men who that morning had carried the walls by escalade, had recoiled twice before it. In that lane alone eight officers and fifty men had fallen. But the men There was nothing for it but to retire. The fallen mateiy forced hero was then carefully removed to the hospital to retire. on fa e ridge, and the men fell back on to the Kabul gate. Nicholson still lived, and the lungs being uninjured by the ball, the doctors had some hope of his life. He alone had the certainty that the triumph for which he had prepared would escape his grasp. Nicholson is By the fall of Nicholson the command of the snccGCclocT in command by first and second columns, now established at or near the Kabul gate, devolved on Brigadier Jones, C.B. Whilst the infantry were thus contending with alternate success and mishap to establish them- Action of the selves in the imperial city, the cavalry were not cava ry. j egg actively employed outside the walls. It had THE CAVALRY 49 never been absolutely certain that all the four bookx. columns would succeed in their attack, whilst it ° !Ll r was tolerably clear that the failure of any one of sepfu. them would entail a counter assault from the vic- torious enemy. It was necessary likewise that the flanks of the assaulting columns should be efficiently covered. With wise prevision, then, General Wilson had directed Brigadier Hope Grant to move with the greater part of his cavalry and a troop and a half of Horse Artillery at the time of the assault to the vicinity of No. 1 battery, to check any attempt to take our storm- ing columns in flank by sortie from the Labor and Ajmir gates, and to hold himself in readiness to act as circumstances might require. Hope Grant, taking with him two hundred men Hope Grant of the 9th Lancers, four hundred of the Sikh horsemen, and a troop and a half of Horse Ar- tillery, under Major Tombs, moved to the point indicated. Handling his men skilfully, he effec- tually covered the assaulting columns. Moving onwards as the columns advanced, he took up a position under the walls of the city, covering the batteries. Here he remained, ready for further action, till the moment when the movement of the enemy on his right showed him that the fourth column had been repulsed. In fact the enemy following up that column had thrown themselves into the houses and gardens near Kishanganj, and now opened a heavy musketry fire on the cavalry. Hope Grant at once ordered the Horse Artillery to the front. Tombs galloped up, unlimbered, opened fire, and compelled the enemy to fall back. ii. 4 50 COVER THE DEFEAT OF THE FOURTH COLUMN. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 14. Their pre- sence pro- duces a ma- terial effect on the enemy's movements. The gallantry displayed the greater be- cause of the compulsory inaction. The reserve column. But as they did so, the guns on the Burn bastion opened out on the cavalry. At a distance of five hundred yards, drawn up for action, though com- pelled to remain inactive, their presence on the spot constituted a material aid to the infantry then endeavouring to make good their position within the city. For two hours they stood to receive. General Wilson, alive to their danger, promptly despatched Captain Bourchier's battery to aid them. But the round shot from the Burn bastion continued to empty saddle after saddle, or to dismount officer after officer. Nine officers of the Lancers had their horses shot under them. Conspicuous on either side of this gallant regi- ment were the scarlet-clad horse of Dighton Pro- byn, and the Panjabis of John Watson in their slate-coloured garments. Gallantly they stood, conscious that thus exposing their lives without the power of retaliating they were serving the common cause. At the end of about two hours the cavalry were further reinforced by about two hundred of the Guides and Giirkahs. Then shortly afterwards came the intelligence that the infantry had established their positions within the town. Then, and then only, did Hope Grant withdraw leisurely to Ludlow Castle, satisfied that he had not only prevented the enemy from following up their victory over the fourth column, but had occupied their attention with a very con- siderable result on the main operations. We have now to consider the operations of the reserve column. The commander of this column, Brigadier Long- RESULTS OF THE DAY's WORK.. 51 field, having previously detached the wing of the Rook x. Biliich battalion, three hundred strong, to the u ^Ll r right of No. 2 battery, followed No. 3 column s ^t ? ii. through the Kashmir gate, and cleared the Col- lege gardens. One portion of the column, con- sisting of the 4th Pan jab Rifles and some of the 61st Regiment, occupied these gardens; whilst another, composed of the Jhind Auxiliary Force and some of the 60th Rifles, held the "Water bastion, the Kashmir gate, Colonel Skinner's house, and the house of Ahmad AH Khan, a large, commanding building. The position of four out of the five columns of Results of , . i • • the day's the attacking force as the evening set in may work. thus briefly be described. The entire space inside the city from the Water bastion to the Kabul gate was held by the first, second, and fifth columns. The fourth column, repulsed in its attack on Kishanganj, was holding the batteries behind Hindu Rao's house. We have still to account for the third column. I left that column, gallantly led by Colonel Campbell, holding a large enclosure parallel with the Chandni Chdk, called the Begam Bagh, anxiously expecting assistance from the other columns, and exposed to a heavy fire of musketry, grape, and canister. The failure of the first column in its attempt Reason for to master the lane leading to the Chandni Chok, slip port ac- and the repulse of the fourth column, account for SSttol the unsupported position in which Colonel Camp- bell was left. In advance of, and without com- munication with, the other columns; in the vicinity of a position strongly occupied by the 4 * 52 THE THIRD COLUMN. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 14. Campbell, to- wards even- ing, falls back on the church. enemy ; liable to be cut off from the main body ; the position was eminently dangerous. But Colonel Campbell knew himself, and he knew the men he commanded. They were eager to dare, anxious to press on. But the Jamma Masjid had been made impregnable to an attack from infantry, and the Brigadier had neither artillery to beat down, nor powder-bags to blow up, the obstacles in the way of his men. Under these circumstances, taking a soldierly view of the situation, he had occupied the Begam Bagh, resolved to hold it till he could communicate with head-quarters. Whilst occupying this position he was rejoined by the Kamaon Battalion, belong- ing to his column, but which had in the advance diverged to the right, and had occupied the Kot- wali. An hour and a half elapsed, however, before he was able to communicate with head- quarters. Then, for the first time, he learned that the first and second columns had not been able to advance beyond the Kabul gate, and that he could not be supported. A glance at the plan of Delhi will make it evident, even to non-military readers, that with the main body unable to penetrate beyond the Kabul gate, it would be injudicious for the third column to attempt to hold the Begam Bagh during the night. Colonel Campbell, then, leisurely fell back on the church, the nearest point at which he touched the reserve column. Placing the 52nd in the church, he occupied Skinner's house with the Kamaon Battalion, and posted the 1st Panjab Infantry in the houses at the end of the two streets THE POSITIONS GAINED ARE SECURED. 53 that lead from the interior of the city into the Book x. open space around the church.* At the head of ap er these streets guns had previously been posted. s e 18 t 57 i4 A review of the work of the 14th September Notwith- 1857, will show that though the British loss had hJTvy^sses been heavy, though all had not been accomplished * S0 I id V ase •/ » o j. for further which it had been hoped to accomplish, yet not operations only had great obstacles been overcome, but a ga ined. en solid base had been obtained whence to continue and complete the work. In less than six hours the army had lost sixty-six officers, and eleven hundred and four men in killed and wounded. Four out of five of the assaulting columns were within the walls, but the position which they held was extensive, and owing to the failure of the fourth column, their right flank was threatened. The enemy were still strong in numbers, strong in guns, strong in position. They, too, had had success as well as reverses, and they had not yet abandoned all hope of ulti- mate victory. The first care of the assailants was to secure as The positions best they could the posts that had so dearly ^™*™ e gained. That night the engineers who were still d ™ng the fit for duty — they were but few, for out of seven- teen ten had been struck down during the assault — were sent to fortify the advanced positions. Here they threw up barricades, and loop-holed and fortified the houses commanding the ap- proaches. To maintain the flank communica- tions bet ween the heads of the several columns, * Major Norman's Narrative in the Blue J3ook,No. 6, lb58. 54 THE LOSSES OF THE DAY. Bookx. in the shape of strong pickets, throwing out - — - r ' vedettes, were established.* Sept 57 f4. Such was the result of the assault of the 14th Review of the September. At the cost of a very heavy loss losses of the of life ft firm i oc ig men t had been gained. The five assaulting columns numbered, exclusive of the Kashmir Contingent, five thousand one hundred and sixty men. Of these, one thousand one hundred and four men and sixty-six officers, or about two men in every nine, had been killed or wounded. Amongst the brave men who were killed or died of their wounds, were Nicholson, of whom I shall write further on; Jacob of the 1st Fusiliers; Speke, 65th Regiment Native Infantry ; Salkeld, Engineers ; Roper, 34th Foot ; Tandy, Engineers ; Fitzgerald, 75th Foot; Bradshaw, 52nd Light Infantry ; "Webb, 8th Foot ; Rempay, 4th Pan- jab Infantry ; Pogson, 8th Regiment ; Mac- Barnett, Davidson, and Murray, doing duty re- spectively with the 1st Fusiliers, the 2nd Panjab Infantry, and the Guides. The number of wounded officers amounted to fifty- two, of whom eight were Engineers. All these officers were but a type of the unreformed British army. They were men in whom their soldiers had confidence, whose physical energies had not been neutralised by a premature absorption of the powers of the brain, who had learned their duties in the practical life of camps, who were ever to the fore in manly exercises in canton- ment, ever as eager as able to lead their men * Medley. HESITATION OP GENERAL WILSON. 55 on the battle-field. Honour to their memory ! BooK x. However limited their acquirements might have u — been regarded by examiners, they at least knew s^pt 5 ^. how to lead their men to victory ! The determination not only to hold the ground General wu- 1-, iii i • cii i • son is inclined already won, but to continue further operations, to withdraw was not arrived at by General Wilson without '^{^eiKd considerable hesitation. The success achieved, gained, important as it was, had not corresponded — I will not say to his anticipations, for he had never been very confident — but to his hopes. The repulse of the first and fourth columns, the mortal wound of Nicholson, the tremendous loss in killed and wounded, the conviction he personally acquired that evening that the city had yet to be taken, — all these considerations combined to work on a nature never very sanguine or self-reliant, and now enfeebled by anxiety and ill-health. The General's first thought had been to withdraw the assaulting columns to the positions they had so long held on the ridge. From this fatal determination General Wilson But is do- wn s saved by the splendid obstinacy of Baird rcmon- y Smith, aided by the soldierly-like instincts of sSs^th Neville Chamberlain. What sort of a man Baird and Neviiio . . Chamberlain. Smith was, I have recorded in a previous page. Neville Chamberlain had been cast in a mould not less noble. A soldier almost from the hour of his birth, Neville Chamberlain united to the most com- Neviiio _ „.. pip 1.L- Chamberlain. plete forgetfulness ot self, a courage, a resolution, a coolness equal to all occasions. The only fault that the most critical could find with his action was that he was too eager to press forward. If Sept. 14. 56 NEVILLE CHAMBERLAIN UEGES I book x. a fault, it was a noble fault — a fault which the !£!l r " critics carefully avoided. But, warring against \ei)t 7 u Asiatics, to go forward is never a fault, and I have been assured, not by one but by many, that Chamberlain's personal daring had contributed greatly to inspire with confidence the soldiers he commanded. Chamberlain was Adjutant- General of the Army. He had been a consistent counsellor of bold and daring measures, and he had more than once, after repulsing a sally of the enemy, led the counter-attack which had driven him headlong within the city. In one of these daring pursuits he had been severely wounded, and it was this severe wound which had prevented him from taking an active part in the actual assault. But from the summit of Hindu Rao's house he had witnessed all the events of that memorable day. The repulse of the fourth column, and the demon- stration made by the enemy to pursue that column, seemed for a moment indeed to imperil his position, and he had summoned the native guard to the roof to defend the threatened maga- zine. This danger was averted by the action, already recorded, of Hope Grant and the cavalry. But this episode in no degree diverted the atten- tion of the Adjutant- General from the other events. He noticed the first successes of the other columns; then the check — the apparently insurmountable check — evidently a bar to further progress on that day. To Chamberlain its sig- nificance was clear and unmistakeable. There was but one course to pursue. To hold, at any BAIRD SMITH INSISTS. 57 cost, the positions taken, to fortify them, and to book x. make them the base of a fresh attack at the earliest !^_l r moment. Unable to move himself, he sent to the s^ 57 ^ General a record of his convictions, accompanied by an earnest request that he would hold the ground for the night. Would the written request of the Adjutant- General, not actually on the spot, have alone suf- ficed to turn the General from the course which a personal inspection had at once suggested to him ? It is doubtful. The General undoubtedly believed that the safety of the army would be compromised by the retention of the positions they had gained. Fortunately, Baird Smith was Baird Smith's at his elbow. Appealed to by General Wilson as answer to to whether he thought it possible for the army WUson - to retain the ground they had won, his answer was short and decisive, " We must do so." That was all. But the uncompromising tone, the re- solute manner, the authority of the speaker, com- bined to make it a decision against which there was no appeal. General Wilson accepted it.* The following day, the 15th, was devoted to Sept. 15. the securing of the positions gained, to the esta- * Many other officers gave depression, and by his tact, the General the same advice, judgment, and practical abil- Amongst others, prominently, ity, contributed to bring his his Assistant Adjutant-Gene- mind into a state willing to ral of Artillery, Captain Ed- accept the advice of Cham- win Johnson, who shared his berlain and Baird Smith. tent. This officer not only All the foremost officers of constantly urged General the army, Nicholson, Jones, Wilson to see the matter Reid, and others, had been through to its bitter end, but all along in favour of de- sustained him in his hours of cisive action. 58 PROCEEDINGS ON THE 15TH SEPTEMBER. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 15. Proceedings on the 15th. Temptations placed in the way of the Europeans. blishing and making use of mortar batteries to shell the city, the palace, and the Selimgarh, to the restoring of order, and to the arranging of means for putting a stop to indiscriminate plun- dering. That our troops were permitted to carry out this programme with but slight disturbance from the enemy, shows how truly Baird Smith and Chamberlain had judged the position. It is not too much to affirm that a retrograde movement on the 15th would, for the time, have lost India. As it was, whilst a mortar battery, established by our engineers in the College gardens, effected considerable damage in the enemy's defences, and our men, under the cover of that fire, were able to occupy and fortify some houses in front of the position taken the previous evening, the enemy's fire from Selimgarh and the magazine was com- paratively ineffective. Already the depression of failure, which our retirement would have changed into the joy of triumph, was beginning to weight their efforts very heavily. I have said that measures were taken on the 15th to restore order and to put a stop to indis- criminate plundering. The fact is, that the part of Delhi which our troops had occupied was the part which abounded in stores containing intoxi- cating liquors. What a temptation this would be to men faint from work of the severest character, and subjected for months to deprivations on the ridge, may easily be conceived. The indulgence in half an hour's unchecked impulse might para- lyse the force. The danger was imminent, for the advanced guards fell victims to the snare. THE MAGAZINE IS STORMED. 59 But it was met promptly and with energy. The book x. General ordered that the whole of the liquor should be destroyed, and the order was, to a very g e ptfi5. great extent, carried out. The morning of the 16th dawned hopefully. Sept. 16. During the night and in the early morning the . enemy evacuated the suburb of Kishangani, Kishanganjis ^"^ G VtlCllclrt PCI t)V whence they had, on the 14th, repulsed the fourth the rebels, column. Our men at once occupied the position, and captured five heavy guns which had been left there by the enemy. They were immensely im- pressed with the great strength of the place. The fire from our batteries, also, having effected a breach in the magazine, a party, consisting of H.M.'s 61st Regiment, a part of the 4th Panjab Rifles, and the wing of the Biluch Battalion, was detached, personally directed by the General, to storm it. The position was carried with but slight loss to the stormers — three men only being and the ma- wounded — another proof of the growing depres- farmed! sion of the enemy. The capture was of the highest importance, the magazine containing one hundred and seventy-one guns and hoivitzers, most of them of the largest calibre, besides am- munition of every kind. On the afternoon of the same day, the enemy made an attempt to recapture the magazine, as well as the workshops adjoining it. They ad- vanced under cover of the fire of some guns in front of the palace gate, carried the workshops, but were driven back from the magazine, and ultimately from the workshops also. On this Gallantly of . T . . . Reniiy. occasion, Lieutenant Renny of the Artillery dis- 60 CONTINUED DEPRESSION OP WILSON. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 16. Continued despondency of Wilson. played great coolness and contempt of death. For, mounting on the roof of the magazine, he pelted the enemy with shells which were handed to him with their fuses burning ! It would be natural to imagine that the fact that the army could not only hold its own, but make an impression upon the enemy so formid- able as that implied by the abandonment of Kish- anganj, and the feeble defence of the magazine, would have inspired the General with a confident hope as to the ultimate issue. But he was still desponding, and with Nicholson dying and Cham- berlain unable to take an active part in his opera- tions, it needed all the exertions of the engineers, than whom it would have been impossible to have collected a more daring and energetic set of men,* to carry out the necessary forward movement. * Pre-eminent amongst these were Alexander Taylor, of -whom Baird Smith thus wrote : " He was, throughout, my most able and trusted subordinate ; " George Ches- ney, at a later period author of the Battle of Dorking ; Fred Maunsell and Henry Brown- low, both shot down in the assault ; Julius Medley, who to ability and daring added a genius for organization of no common order. The tone of General Wil- son's mind, at this particular period, may be gathered from his correspondence. " We took possession," he wrote at 2 o'clock on the afternoon of the 16th, "of the magazine this morning with the loss of only three men wounded. This advances us a little, but it is dreadfully slow work. Our force is too weak for this street fighting, when we have to gain our way inch by inch ; and of the force we have, un- fortunately there is a large portion, besides the Jummoo troops, in whom I place no confidence. . . I find my- self getter weaker and weaker every day, mind and body quite worn out. The least exertion knocks me down. I walk with difficulty, and fully expect in a day or two to be laid altogether on my bed. . . We have a long and hard struggle still before us ; I hope I may be able to see it out." EESISTANCE SLACKENS THE 17tH AND 18TH. 61 On the 17th and 18th the advance was pushed book x. still further. The brain-task fell to the engineers, it having been decided to avoid the line of the Sep t 8 i7li8. streets and to sap through the houses. In The advance this way the bank, Major Abbott's house, and the Emwd house of Khan Muhammad Khan were taken, and 18tl } h ?J> h * engineers our posts brough close up to the palace and the Chandni Chdk. During these days, too, the posi- tions on the right and left, indicated by the Kabul gate and the magazine, were brought into direct communication by a line of posts. Nor were the artillery silent. Whilst the and by the . . ,-i artillery. steady progress of sapping was going on, tne heavy mortars and guns in the magazine, and the recovered and re-armed batteries of the enceinte bastions and gates, were at work, pouring a con- tinuous flight of shells into the city and palace. Of the enemy's resistance it may be said that, though continuous, it was not characterised by the determination which had marked their conduct on the 14th. They had read their doom, and though they still fought, their hearts were elevated neither by the hope of victory nor by the energy of despair. Many had abandoned the city. The courage of ^ c e e resist " those who remained was still undaunted, but slackens. hopelessness of success had weakened their powers. Owing partly to this, and in a great measure to the skill of the attack, the British losses on those days were small. The position of the attacking force on the evening of the 18th has thus been described : Sept. is. 11 The lino of the canal may be said to have been our front ; on its h.-mk sonic light mortars were 62 AN ATTACK ON THE LA.HOR GATE FAILS. book x. posted, to clear the neighbourhood of the Lahor -L!? ' gate ; while light guns were posted at the main Se\ 8 t 57 i8 junction of the streets, and sand-bag batteries erected to prevent the possibility of a surprise."* The establishment of communications between the extreme right and left has been already men- tioned. In the rear everything was our own. Greathed'a Still all was not couleur de rose. On the morn- Lahorgate ing of that day an attack on the Lahor gate had fails ' been directed, and failed. Greathed, who directed that attack at the head of a column composed of detachments from the 8th, the 75th, and a Sikh Regiment, and supported by fifty men of the 1st Fusiliers, had to advance up a narrow lane lead- ing into the Ohandni Chdk through a gate at the end of it. This gate had been closed, and behind it dwelt the unknown. Greatked had led his men up the narrow lane, but as he approached the end leading into the Chandni Chdk the gate was sud- denly thrown open and displayed to his astonished gaze a 24-pounder turned on the assailants. This gun opened suddenly with grape on the column, whilst simultaneously from the houses on either flank poured a smart and continuous fire of mus- ketry. No wonder that the men recoiled. They were enormously outnumbered, and occupied a cramped position, which gave no play for manoeuvring. Greathed drew them back, and, bringing a 6-pounder to the front, ordered a charge under cover of the smoke. But all was in vain. For a moment indeed the hostile gun * Eight Months' Campaign against the Bengal Sepoys, Bourchier. ITS EFFECT ON GENERAL WILSON. 63 appeared to be in the possession of our men ; * Book x. but the oclds were too great, the position too iap confined; the enemy being thoroughly on the alert, sepTw surprise had become impossible. No one saw more clearly than Greathed that the attack on the Chdk had failed. He therefore gave the order to retire. The retreat was effected in good order and without loss, the enemy not venturing to enter the lane. The repulse of Greathed's column had filled its lowering the mind of General Wilson with despair. " We General are still," he wrote, that same day, " in the same Wllson - position in which we were yesterday. An attempt was made this morning to take the Labor gate, but failed from the refusal of the European sol- diers to follow their officers. One rush, and it would have been done easily ; but they would not make it. The fact is, our men have a great dislike to street fighting; they do not see their enemy, and find their comrades falling from shots of the enemy who are on the tops of houses and behind cover, and get a panic, and will not advance. This is very sad and, to me, very dis- heartening. We can, I think, hold our present position, but I cannot see my way out at all. I have now only three thousand one hundred men (infantry) in the city, with no chance or possi- bility of any reinforcements. If I were to attempt to push on into the city, they would be lost in such innumerable streets and masses of houses, * Blackwood's Magazine, the article is known to the :i . l 358. The writer <>i' author. 64 TAYLOR PUSHES ON WITH THE PICKAXE. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 18. Sept. 19. The Burn bastion. Alexander Taylor is authorised to work through to the Burn bastion. and would be annihilated or driven back." The reader will remark that, desponding as are these words, they mark a step in advance of those uttered on the evening of the 14th. Then, General "Wilson was inclined to retire to the ridge to save his army. On the 18th, though he still doubted of ultimate success, he felt he could hold his own. On the 19th action of a different character was taken. A glance at the plan will show the posi- tion, previously described, attained on the evening of the 18th. Immediately in front of our right was the Burn bastion, no longer supported by the presence of a strong hostile force in Kishan- ganj and Taliwari. Now the Burn bastion com- manded the Labor gate, and with it the Chandni Chdk ; and, though from our advanced post in the Bank that important street could be occupied, it would be difficult to maintain it and to push on operations against the palace and the Jamma Mas j id until the remaining strongholds on the enemy's left should be occupied. To the clear minds of the Chief Engineer and of his principal coadjutor, Captain Alexander Taylor, the requirements of the position were apparent. With the concurrence, then, of the former, Captain Taylor obtained from the General an order to the Brigadier commanding at the Kabul gate to place at his disposal, for operations on the following morning, a body of men to work through the intermediate houses, and thus to gain the Burn bastion. Whilst this gradual and necessarily somewhat slow process was being JONES OCCUPIES THE BURN BASTION; 65 adopted, a column of about five hundred men, book x. taken from the 8th and 75th and the Sikh regi- J _Ll r ment, proceeded, under Brigadier William Jones, Se pt 5 i9. to attack the Lahor gate. The sapping party, directed by Captain Taylor, Its capture gradually made their way through the detached Jones. houses situated between the Kabul gate and the Burn bastion, annoyed only by a constant mus- ketry fire maintained by the enemy upon such of their number as were forced to show themselves. Making their way, as it were, step by step, they succeeded, as night fell, in occupying a house which completely overlooked the Burn bastion. From this place they were able to pour a com- manding fire upon the occupants of the latter, and they did this with so much effect that the enemy, convinced of the impossibility of holding it, evacuated it during the night. Brigadier Jones then pushed forward his men, and found it de- serted. But his men were in a very unruly con- dition. Much brandy had fallen into their hands, and it was difficult to keep them steady.* The news brought to the General that night The immense (19th) by Captain Taylor of the capture of the capture. Burn bastion, could not fail to revive his spirits. * The men were in a very poisoned they did not suc- unruly state . . . Much ceed. . . One old soldier, brandy, beer, and other in- a thirsty soul, taking up a toxicating liquors were left bottle of brandy, and looking so exposed by the enemy, at it, said: " Oh no, Sir, the that it would seem they had capsule is all right — Exshaw almost briii left about pur- and Co.' — no poison that." — posely; and though the ofK- Blackwood's Magazine, Janu- cers endeavoured t<> persuade ary 1858. their men thai the Liquor was ii. 5 66 AND CARRIES THE LAHOR GATE. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 19. Sept. 20. Jones carries the Lahor gate, and Brind the Jamma Mas j id : he then in- vites Wilson to attack the]! palace. It was an immense gain ; for the possession of that bastion was the certain key to the capture of the Lahor gate. So impressed was General Wil- son with the importance of the conquest that he sent some officers of his staff to spend the night in the bastion, and to take measures for its reten- tion. The precaution, wise though it was, was not needed. The enemy by this time were thoroughly cowed, and, far from thinking of re- covering the place, were hurrying out of the city as fast as their legs could carry them. The capture of the Burn bastion was the be- ginning of the end. Early the following morning (the 20th) Brigadier Jones's column, pursuing the advantage of the previous evening, carried the Lahor gate with a rush ; the Garstin bastion fell also to their prowess. The Brigadier then received instructions to divide his force, and, whilst detaching one portion up the Chandni Chdk to occupy the Jamma Masjid, to proceed with the remainder towards the Ajmir gate. The opportune arrival of Major Brind and his artillery caused the Brigadier to confide to him the com- mand of the first portion. Brind, having under his orders, in addition to his own men, the 8th Regiment and the 1st Fusiliers, marched at once to the Jamma Masjid, and carried it without difficulty. He had no sooner occupied it than he perceived that the one thing wanting to assure the complete capture of the city was to assault the palace, promptly and without delay. He, therefore, on the spot, wrote a pencil note to the General reporting his success, and urging THE PALACE IS CAPTUEED. 67 him to an immediate attack on the royal resi- book x. dence. Ch !£!l r L Meanwhile Jones had penetrated to the Ajmir Se 18 t 57 20 gate. Almost simultaneously the main body of Completion of the cavalry, going round by the Idgar, found the tioVSfthe" camp of the mutineers outside Dehli evacuated, s ate - and secured the clothing, ammunition, and plunder left by the rebels in the precipitation of their flight. Greneral Wilson responded to Brind's note by wnson sends ordering the advance of the column at the maga- against the zine to attack the palace. The decreasing fire v alace ' from the battlements of the residence, famous in history, famous in romance, of the descendants of Babar, had made it abundantly clear that the last representative of the family which had for so long ruled in Hindustan had, with his family and attendants, sought refuge in flight. When the British troops (the 60th Rifles), pressing forward, reached the walls, a few fanatics alone remained behind, not to line them, for their num- bers were too few, but, careless of life, to show to the very last their hatred of the foe they had so long defied. Powder-bags were promptly which is cap- brought up, the gates were blown in, and our troops entered, and hoisted the British flag. The Se"limgarh fort had been occupied even a little earlier. Its capture was effected in a manner which demands a separate notice. me short time before the assault on the palace gate, Lieutenant Aikman, with a small party of Wilde's Sikhs, had been directed to feel his way to the Left. Aikman, the most daring and intrepid Aikman oa P - of men, knew the ground thoroughly; and having s"i'im K Hii,. ft * 68 SPLENDID DARING OF AlKMAN. Book x. received, as lie imagined, permission to act on Chapter . -^ Q ^ n judgment, he resolved to effect an o 18 . 57 on entrance into the Selimgarh from the rear, and Sept. 20. ° hold the enemy as in a trap. Accordingly he doubled round to the Calcutta gate, forced it open, and pushed on to the Selimgarh. The few men in that fort fled on his appearance, and es- caped across the river. Aikman's attention was then turned to the gateway at the narrow passage from the Selimgarh into the rear of the palace. This passage connected the rear gate of the palace with an arched gate over the fort, over which was a parapet. Were he able to gain possession of this he could stop the escape of multitudes till the storming party should reach them from the front. Thus thinking, he acted without hesita- tion, shot the sentry at the gate opening on to the drawbridge leading into the rear of the palace, and placed his men in the best position to defend it. He then, with the assistance of the Sergeant -Major of Renny's troop or bat- tery, set to work to spike the heavy guns directed against the Water bastion. He was in possession of the gate and drawbridge when the gates of the palace were blown in. The rush of the fugitives was not so great as had been anticipated, so extensive had been the flight on the two preceding days. But some at least were kept back. A more gallant or well-thought- out act was not performed even during that long siege.* * Official report of Major Wilde, commanding 4th Sikh Infantry. :zi \ fa i DEHLI AFTER THE CAPTURE. 69 In the afternoon of the same day General Wil- Book x. son, having given directions for the establishment !Ll r of posts at the various gateways and bastions, g e 18 t 57 jJo took up his quarters in the imperial palace. The appearance of Dehli after the capture of Appearance the palace, the Selimgarh, and the Jamma Mas- the captured jid had placed it in the hands of the British, has thus been graphically described by a gallant officer who took part in the assault and in the subsequent operations.* " The demon of destruction," writes Colonel Bourchier, " seemed to have enjoyed a perfect revel. The houses in the neighbourhood of the Mori and Kashmir bastions were a mass of ruins, the walls near the breaches were cracked in every direction, while the church was completely riddled by shot and shell. ... In the Water bastion the destruction was still more striking. Huge siege-guns, with their carriages, lay about seem- ingly like playthings in a child's nursery. The palace had evidently been hastily abandoned. The tents of Captain de Teissier's battery, stationed at Dehli when the mutiny broke out, were left standing, and contained plunder of all sorts. The apartments inhabited by the royal family combined a most incongruous array of tawdry splendour with the most abject poverty and filth. The apartments over the palace gate, formerly inhabited by Captain Douglas, who commanded the palace guards, and Mr. Jennings the clergy- * Eight Months 1 Campaign Colonel George Bourchier, against the Bengal Sepoys, by C.B., ll.A. 70 THE KING OF DEHLI Book x. man, were denuded of every trace of the unfor- J !Ll r tunate party which had inhabited its walls, and SepT 7 20 W ^ n wnom J n °t many months before, I had spent a happy week. It was with a sad and heavy heart that I paced its now empty rooms, which could tell such terrible tales of the scenes there enacted." Dehli was now virtually our own. But though the strong places had been occupied by our troops thousands of the mutineers were still in the vi- cinity, armed, and ready to take advantage of any slackness of discipline. The very relief of guards and batteries was still a matter of danger and difficulty, nor did the event of the following day, which deprived the rebels of their nominal leader, lessen in any material degree the magnitude of the risk. The King of The King of Dehli, his family, and his personal adherents had shown themselves as easily de- pressed by adversity as they had been cruel and remorseless when Fortune had seemed, in the early days of the revolt, to smile upon them. Sept. 14. The result of the events of the 14th September had produced upon the mind of the King effects precisely similar to those which had, for the moment, mastered the cooler judgment of the British commander. We have seen that General Wilson, surveying his position on the evening of the 14th, declared that a prompt retreat to his original position could alone save the army. Baird Smith and Neville Chamberlain forced him, so to speak, to remain. On the other side, the King and his advisers, deeply impressed by the IS UEGED TO FLEE WITH THE ARMY. 71 successful storm of the assailants, and not con- Book x. sidering that success outweighed, or even balanced, u ap er by the repulse of the first and fourth columns, se?^ rapidly arrived at the conclusion that, unless the British should retire, the game was up. There was no Baird Smith at the right hand of the King to point out to him how many chances yet remained in his favour if he would but profitably employ the small hours of the night ; no Neville Chamberlain to urge him, above all things, to Sept. 15. dare. When the morning of the 15th dawned, Thepersist- . ence of the and the British were seen to have retained their British de- positions, to be making preparations for a further adherents e f advance, the hearts of the King and his advisers the Kin s- fell, and they began even then to discount the future. Still, as long as the Selimgarh, the palace, the Jamma Masjid, and the Labor gate were held, no active measures for retreat were taken. But Sept. 19. when, on the night of the 19th, the Burn bastion, Their success ' D completes the virtually commanding the Labor gate and the despondency. Chandni Chok, was captured, the thought that had been uppermost in every heart found expres- sion. That thought was flight. The commander-in-chief of the rebel army, Bakht Khan the Bakht Khan, whom we have seen exercising King 8 to ac- so strong an influence at Bareli,* evacuated the ^Jf^ 6 city that night, taking with him all the fighting flight. men upon whom he could depend. Ways of egress, that by the bridge of boats, and those by the Khairati and Dehli gates were still open to * Vol. i., page 303, note. 72 THE KING VACILLATES. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 19. The King vacillates. The secret thoughts of Mirza Ilahi Bakhsh. them; and of these they availed themselves. Bakht Khan exerted all his eloquence to induce the King to accompany him. He represented to him that all was not lost, that though the Eng- lish had gained their stronghold the open country was before them, and that, under the shadow of his name and presence, it would be still possible to continue the war, always with a chance of success. Had Bahadur Khan possessed a spark of the persistent nature or the vigorous energy of his ancestors, of Babar, of Huinayun, or of Akbar, that appeal had not been made in vain. But he was an old man — one of that class of old men who have exhausted youth in their teens, and who become, with increasing years, more and more nerveless and irresolute. It is probable that throughout the mutiny the King had been a mere puppet in the hands of others. Whilst the siege lasted the chiefs of the army had sustained their power over him by promises of ultimate victory. But with impending defeat their in- fluence vanished ; and the old King, acted upon by events, was in the humour to fall under any spell which might seem to promise him immunity for his misdeeds. Such a spell was at hand. Of all the nobles about him the wiliest was Mirza Ilahi Bakhsh, whose daughter was the widow of the eldest son of the King. It is probable that in the early days of the mutiny the counsels of Ilahi Bakhsh had been strongly in favour of vigorous action. But he had a keen eye for probabilities. The 1857. Sept. 19. FALLS UNDER REACTIONARY INFLUENCE. 73 events of the 14th and 15th September had read Book x. to him no doubtful lesson. He foresaw the triumph of the English — a triumph fraught with ruin to himself and his family unless he could turn to account the few days that must still intervene. He did turn them to account. Having made He moulds all his plans, he listened, without speaking, to his purpose. the eloquent pleadings made to the King by the commander-in-chief, Bakht Khan. When all was over, and when Bakht had departed with a promise from the King that he would meet him the following day at the tomb of Humayun, Ilahi Bakhsh persuaded the Moghol sovereign to accompany him to his house for the night. Having brought him there, he moulded him to his purpose. He pointed out to him the hard- ships which would follow his accompanying the army, assured him of its certain defeat, and then, showing the other side of the shield, indicated that a prompt severance of his cause from the cause of the Sepoys would induce the victorious English to believe that, up to that moment, he had acted under compulsion, and that he had seized the first opportunity to sever himself from traitors. These arguments, urged with great force upon one whose brain power, never very strong, was sept. 20. waning, had their effect. When, next day, the The King King of Dehli, his zenana, his sons, and his nobles, accompany met the rebel commander-in-chief at the tomb of tlu ' ;in ". v - Humayun, lie and they declined to accompany 1 1 1 1 1 j . Rather than undergo the fatigues, the 74 INTEIGUES OP MIEZA ILAHI BAKHSH. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 20. The rebel army leaves Dehli. The intrigues of Mirza Ilahi Bakhsh. Their nature communi- cated to Cap tain Hodson. perils, the uncertainties attendant on the pro- longation of a contest which they had encouraged, they deliberately preferred to trust to the tender mercies of the conqueror. What those tender mercies were likely to be did. not seem to trouble much the degenerate Moghols. They promised, at all events, a quick decision — a decision preferable to the agony of suspense. Bakht Khan and the rebel army, then, went their way, leaving behind the royal family and a numerous crowd of emasculated followers, the scum of the palace, men born never to rise above the calling of a flatterer or a scullion. So far had the plans of Mirza Ilahi Bakhsh succeeded. The next step was more difficult. It involved the betrayal of his master. Difficult, it was not insurmountable. Chief of the native agents maintained by the English to obtain correct information regarding the move- ments of the enemy during the siege, was Munshi Rajab Ali, a man possessing wonderful tact, cleverness, assurance, courage — all the quali- ties which go to make up a spy of the highest order. He possessed to the full the confidence of the English administrators, and he was true to his employers. With this man Ilahi Bakhsh opened communications. Rajab Ali requested him simply to detain the royal family for twenty-four hours after the departure of the rebel army, at the tomb of Humayun, and to leave the rest to him. Rajab Ali communicated the information he had received to Hodson of Hodson's Horse ; Hod- son at once rode down to the General's head- HODSON of hodson's hoese. 75 quarters, communicated the news, and requested Book x. . . , • i i • pi- Chapter I. permission to take with him a party ot nis men to bring in the King*. "With some reluctance — Sep? 20. for he knew Hodson's nature — General Wilson ac- corded the permission, but solely on the condition that the King should be exposed to neither injury nor insult. Hodson, taking fifty of his troopers with him, galloped down towards the tomb. "Who was Hodson ? Some men are born in Hodson. advance of their age, others too late for it. Of the latter class was Hodson. Daring, courting danger, reckless and unscrupulous, he was a con- dottiere of the hills, a free-lance of the Middle Ages. He joyed in the life of camps, and revelled in the clang; of arms. His music was the call of the trumpet, the battle-field his ball-room. He would have been at home in the camp of Wal- lenstein, in the sack of Magdeburg. In him human suffering awoke no feeling, the shedding of blood caused him no pang, the taking of life brought him no remorse. The certaminis gaudia did not entirely satisfy his longings. Those joys were but preludes to the inevitable consequences — the slaughter of the fugitives, the spoils of the vanquished. Hodson rode off, full of excitement, towards the Hodson rides tomb of Humayun. As he approached that time- the C K J in U g. e honoured structure he slackened his pace, and making way cautiously to some ruined buildings near the gateway, posted his men under their shade. Having takes every precaution, he then sent to announce to the King his arrival, and to invite him to surrender. 76 THE KING SUEEENDEES CONDITIONALLY, Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 20. The scene within the tomb of Humaynn. The King surrenders on condition that his life be spared. Hodson re- ceives the Within the tomb despair was combating with resignation. The favourite wife of the last of the Moghols, anxious above all for the safety of her son, a lad not old enough to be implicated in the revolt, and yet not too young to escape massacre, was imploring the old man to yield on the con- dition of a promise of life ; the mind of the old man, agitated by a dim recollection of the posi- tion he had inherited and forfeited, by despair of the present, by doubts of the future, was still wavering. Why had not he acted as Akbar would have acted, and accompanied the troops to die, if he must die, as a king ? What to him were the few years of dishonour which the haughty con- queror might vouchsafe to him ? Better life in the free plains of India, hunted though he might be, than life in durance for him, a king ! But then rushed in the fatal conviction that it was too late. He had decided when he dismissed Bakht Khan ! The Frank and his myrmidons were at his door ! Yet still the difficulty with him was to act on that decision. His mind was in the chaotic con- dition when everything was possible but action. For two hours, then, he hesitated, clutching at every vague idea only to reject it ; his wife, his traitorous adviser, his surroundings, all urging upon him one and the same counsel. At last a consent was wrung from him to send a message to Hodson that he would surrender provided he should receive from that officer an assurance that his life should be spared. On receiving this message, Hodson gave the AND IS TAKEN INTO DEHL1. 77 promise. Then, issuing from his cover, he took Book x. post in the open space in front of the gate of the " ap er tomb, standing there alone to receive the royal Sept20 prisoner. Preceded by the Queen and her son in King as a palanquins, the King issued from the portico, captlve carried in a similar conveyance. Hodson spurred his horse to the side of the palanquin and de- manded of the King his arms. The King asked if his captor were Hodson Bahadur. Receiving an affirmative reply, the King asked for a pro- mise from the Englishman's own lips of his life and of the lives of his wife and her son. The promise given, the arms were surrendered and the cortege moved towards the city. The progress was slow, and for a great part of the journey the palanquins were followed by a considerable number of the King's retinue — men never dan- gerous and now thoroughly cowed. These gra- dually dropped off as the Labor gate was approached. By that gate Hodson entered, and traversing the Chandni Chok, made over his cap- and makes tives to Mr. Saunders, the principal civil officer the dSf in the city. He then went to report his success- authonties - ful achievement to the General, carrying with him the arms of the last sovereign of the imperial house of Babar. So far Hodson had acted as a chivalrous officer of the nineteenth century. But the spirit of the eondottiere now came into play. The same active Hodsouieama agents who had informed him of the whereabouts Bang's sons of the Kin?, now came to tell him that two of the :in(1 :l -'"• u " 1 - O' son could be King's sons and a grandson, men who were re- captured, ported to have taken part in the massacre of May, 78 HODSON RIDES TO SEIZE THE PRINCES. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 20. Sept. 21. He starts with a hun- dred troopers to capture them. Refuses to promise to spare their lives. had not accompanied the rebel army but were concealed in the tomb of Humayun or in its vici- nity. The information excited all the savage instincts of Hodson. These men could not stipu- late for mercy. He might himself " rid the earth of those ruffians." He rejoiced in the opportu- nity.* The following morning, then, having ob- tained permission from the General to hunt down the princes, he started, accompanied by his second in command, Lieutenant McDowell, one hundred troopers, and his two spy-informers, Miinshi Rajab Ali and Mirza Ilahi Bakhsh, and rode for Humayun' s tomb. The three princes, Mirza Khazar Sultan, Mirza Moghol, and Mirza Abu. Bakht, were in the tomb attended by a consider- able number of the scum of the people — the same who, the previous day, had seen, without resist- ance their king carried off, and who were not more prepared to resist now. It is true that the more daring among them, seeing the approach of Hodson, implored the princes to resist, offering to defend them to the last. Better for the princes, ten thousand times better for Hodson' s reputa- tion, if the offer had been accepted. At least, then, the Englishman would have been able to aver that he killed his enemies in fair fight. But with the example of their father before them, the princes hoped to gain the promise of their lives by * " In twenty-four hours I disposed of the principal members of the House of Titnour the Tartar. I am not cruel, but I confess that I did rejoice in the oppor- tunity of lidding the earth of these ruffians." — Letter from Hodson, 23rd Sep- tember 1857. THE PRINCES SURRENDER TO HIS MERCY, 79 negotiation. For two hours they implored, that book x. promise. Hodson steadily refused it. Their ' ^— spirits weakened by the useless effort, the three septal princes then surrendered to the mercy and gene- They surren- rosity of the conqueror. mercy and They came out from their retreat in a covered generosity. cart. Similar carts conveyed the arms of which Hodson, in the meanwhile, had deprived the crowd. Hodson placed troopers on either side of the cart which bore the princes, and directed it towards the Lahor gate. The people, the same miserable population who had previously followed the King, followed this cortege also. Between them and the cart containing the princes were a hundred of Hodson' s far-famed horsemen. There was no real danger to be apprehended from them. They were too cowed to act. Hodson would have rejoiced had they displayed the smallest intention to resist. He wanted blood. His senses were blinded by his brutal instincts. He had completed five-sixths of his journey from the place of cap- ture to Dehli without the display of the smallest hostility on the part of the crowd. Despairing, then, of any other mode of gratifying his long- ings, he made the pressure of the mob upon his horsemen a pretext for riding up to the cart, stopping it, and ordering the princes to dismount, and strip to their under garments. Then, ad- He shoots dressing the troopers, he told them in a loud „',',"!„" /mile voice, so as to be heard by the multitude, that of Dehh - the prisoners were butchers who had murdered our women and our children, and that it was the will of the Government that they should die. Hodson's act. 80 WHICH IS DEATH. book x. Then, taking a carbine from the hands of a Chapter I. ,.-._... . trooper, he snot dead, his three unresisting Sep 8 t 5 2i. captives ! Comments on A more brutal or a more unnecessary outrage was never committed. It was a blunder as well as a crime. It is true that the gossip of the camp had accused the princes of the imperial house of having instigated the massacre of our countrymen and countrywomen in the month of May, but not a single item of evidence had been adduced to substantiate the charge. It is quite possible that a fair trial might have cleared them ; or, had it convicted them, the British public would have enjoyed the satisfaction of knowing that they deserved the fate which would then have befallen them. The princes surrendered, prisoners of war. It is idle to say that unless they had been shot they would have been rescued. No attempt was made by the crowd to wag a finger on their behalf. Its undisciplined and unarmed component parts had lost the only fair chance of resistance when they assented to the surrender of the princes. They made no sign when Hodson ordered his intended victims to descend from the cart and to strip. It is possible, indeed, that a man deficient in nerve might have been so far daunted by the sight of the number of men fol- lowing his troopers as to lose his presence of mind, and, in sheer desperation, end the matter by murdering his captives. But Hodson had nerves of iron. He had all his wits about him. He had regretted that his instructions forbade him to kill the King. His savage instincts re- THE ACT IS NOT TO BE JUSTIFIED. 81 quired to be satisfied, and he satisfied them by Book x. .-, . -.-I -, Chapter ] this cowardly murder. It is to be regretted on every ground that he sepT^i gave way to the promptings of his nature. On the grounds of justice, because it was a base and unnecessary act ; on the grounds of public interest, because the trials of the princes would probably have elicited much curious information regarding the revolt ; on the grounds of his own reputation, for though whilst men's blood was still hot the deed might have been overlooked, their better feelings would have asserted themselves in the end, and Hodson would have been a marked man for ever. In the history of the mutiny there is no more painful episode than that connected with his name on this occasion. It is now time to return to the city. I left it on the evening of the 20th, its strong places fully occupied by our troops. On the following morning began the work of securing the city. To Major James Brind — known in the camp, for his gallantry, for his untiring energy, for the earnest and persistent manner in which he had pounded the enemy, as Brind of the batteries — was allotted the task, in conjunction with the Chief Engineer, of ensuring the safety of the gateways and posts. A more high-minded, a more gallant, or a more merciful officer than Major James Brind never lived. Every soldier knew, and every soldier loved him. He brought to his task all the cha- racteristics which had gained for him respect and affection. lint that task was no light one. The n. 6 82 BRIND ENSURES THE SAFETY OF THE CITY. Book X. Chapter I. 1857. Sept. 21. Brind clears the city of murderers and incen- diaries. scum of the rebel army still lurked in the place, hiding in mosques or burying themselves in un- derground receptacles. As Major Brind went about it he was again and again startled by reports of cold-blooded murder of our soldiers, of their being enticed by a promise of drink into the dark corners of the city and there basely murdered. He found that numerous gangs of men were hanging about, prepared to interfere with the reliefs of the batteries and posts, and that it was even possible they might attempt to surprise the garrison. The time was critical. It was necessary to show the rebels that we were prepared for them. Major Brind, therefore, determined to make an example of the first gang of murderers who might be caught. Just at the moment a murder of an atrocious character was reported to him. Col- lecting a few artillerymen, Brind hastened to the spot, stormed the mosques and houses where the murderers and their associates were assembled, ordered the perpetrators to be executed, and made over the remainder to the authorities. This act of vigour, combined with acts of the same nature carried out by other commanding officers, had a wonderful effect. The remainder of the rowdy element quitted the city, and from that day forth there was neither murder nor disturbance. Major Brind was then able to continue, in com- parative freedom from alarm, his task of making the gate-ways and other military posts as se- cure as possible from attack. Colonel Burn, an officer not attached to the force, but who, being on leave at the time, had joined it, was, JOHN NICHOLSON. 83 on the 21st, nominated military governor of the Book x. Chapter I. city. One sad event remains yet to be chronicled — sep^i. the death of the heroic man who, sweeping across the Panjab, had come down to reinforce the be- sieging army, to inflict a deadly blow on the enemy at Najafgarh, and to command the storm- ing party on the 14th. After lingering for eight Sept. 22. days. John Nicholson died. As fortunate as JohnNichoi- » 1 son dies. Wolfe, he lived long enough to see the run success of the attack he had led with so much daring. At the age of thirty-seven he had achieved the highest rank alike as an administrator and as a soldier. There never lived a man who more tho- roughly exemplified the truth of the maxim that great talents are capable of universal application. Whatever the work to which he had applied him- self, he had succeeded. Hijs mastery over men was wonderful. His penetrating glance never failed in effect. It was impossible to converse with him without admitting the spell. With all that, and though he must have been conscious of his power, he was essentially humble-minded. " You must not compare me with Herbert Edwardes," he said to the writer in 1851. In appearance, especially in the eye and the contour of the face, he bore a i • tion he had acquired at the age or thirty-seven — Sept. 22. the reputation of being the most successful ad- ministrator, the greatest soldier, the most perfect master of men — in India, it is impossible to believe that he would have fallen short of the most famous illustrations of Anglo-Indian history, for to all the military talents of Clive he united a scrupulous conscience, and to the administra- tive capacity of Warren Hastings he joined a love of equal justice for the rights of all. Remarks on The stronghold had fallen, " the first great the siege. blow struck at the rebel's cause." * The total loss of the army, from the 30th May to the final capture on the 20th September, had amounted to nine hundred and ninety-two killed, two thousand seven hundred and ninety-five wounded, and thirty missing, out of a force never numbering ten thou- sand effective men. But in addition to these, many died from disease and exposure. " In the history of sieges," wrote at the time an officer, in words the truth of which the lapse of twenty years has confirmed,f "that of Dehli will ever take a prominent place. Its strength, its resources, and the prestige attached to it in the native mind, combined to render for- midable that citadel of Hindustan. Reasonably might the ' Northern Bee ' or the ' Invalide Russe ' question our ability to suppress this rebellion if they drew their conclusions from the numerical * Medley. f The Bed Pamphlet. THE BEJTISH AND NATIVE S0LDJEKS. 85 strength of the little band that first sat down Book x. before Dehli. But the spirit that animated that ' !f_I r handful of soldiers was not simply the emulative sl S5 t 7 ' 2 -? bravery of the military proletarian. The cries of helpless women and children, ruthlessly butchered, had gone home to the heart of every individual soldier and made this cause his own. There was not an Englishman in those ranks, from first to last, who would have consented to turn his back on Dehli without having assisted in meting out to those bloody rebels the retributive justice awarded them by his own conscience, his country, and his God. It was this spirit that buoyed them up through all the hardships of the siege, that enabled them for four long months of dreary rain and deadly heat, to face disease, privation, and death, without a murmur." It was indeed an occasion to bring out the rare The Britisl1 i* • pi ti • • it soldier. qualities of the British soldier, to show how, under the untoward circumstances of climate, of wet, of privation, he can be staunch, resolute and patient whilst waiting for his opportunity, daring when 1 hat opportunity comes. With him, too, can claim equal laurels the splendid Giirkah regiment of Charles Reid, the magnificent frontier warriors His native of the Guide Corps, the cavalry regiments of Probyn, Watson, and Hodson, the levies from the various parts of the Panjab. These men were worthy to vie with the British soldier. Their names, unfortunately, do not survive for the advantage of posterity; but their commanders live to speak for them. They, in their turn, will leave the scene of this world. But when the tale 86 THEIR OFFICERS. book x. is told to our children's children, the names of !^ r ' Nicholson, of Chamberlain, of Charles Reid, of se 8 t 7 22 Baird Smith, of Edwin Johnson, of Alec Taylor, The heroes of of James Brind, of Seaton, of Daly, of Jacob, of the siege. p ro by n , of Watson, of Medley, of Quintin Battye, of Speke, of G-reville, of Aikman, of Salkeld, of Home, and of many others — for the list is too long — will be inquired after with sympathy, and will inspire an interest not inferior to that with which the present generation regard the achieve- ments of their forefathers in Spain and in Flanders. 87 BOOK X. CHAPTER II. Deeply sensible of the fact that a victory not followed np is a victory thrown away, General "Wilson prepared, as soon as he felt his hold upon Dehli secure, to detach a force in the direction of wiison Balandshahr and Aligarh to intercept, and, if pos- ^tm!"!^ 110 sible, cut off the rebels. Dehif Had Nicholson lived, it had been the General's intention to bestow upon him the command of this force. On his demise it was thought that it would be offered to the commandant of the lry brigade, Brigadier Hope Grant. The by sending presence of this gallant and able officer was, ?owa?ds however, still thought necessary at Dehli. The officer selected was Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Great lied, commanding the 8th Foot. The force consisted of two thousand seven hundred and ninety men, composed as follows : — A'j 88 greathed's column leaves dehlt, Book X. Chapter II. 1857. Sept. 21. Glad sensa- tions of officers and men on leav- ing Debli. Sept. 24. Captain Remmington's Troop of Horse Artillery, five guns Captain Blunt' s Troop of Horse Artillery, five guns Major Bourchier's Battery, six guns ..... Sappers ..... H.M.'s 9th Lancers . Detachments, 1st, 4th, and 5th Pan jab Cavalry, and Hod- son's Horse .... H.M.'s 8th and 75th Regiments 1st and 4th Regiments Panjab Infantry .... Europeans. Natives. 60 — 60 — 60 300 450 60 200 400 — 1,200 930 1,860 " Never," wrote a distinguished member of the force,* " never did boys escape from the clutches of a schoolmaster with greater glee than we experienced on the 21st September, when we received our orders to proceed on the following morning to the plain in front of the Ajmir gate, where a column was to be formed under the command of Colonel Greathed, H.M.'s 8th Foot, destined to scour the Gangetic Doab." With the exhilarating feelings sufficiently indicated in the above extract, the force I have detailed marched on the morning of the 24th by way of the Hindan in the direction of Balandshahr. * Eight Months' Campaign by Colonel George Bourchier, against the Bengal Sepoy Army C.B. during the Mutiny of 1857, AND MOVES OX BALANDSHAHR. 89 Crossing the Hindan, and passing through Book x. Ghazi-ii-din Nagr, the force reached Dadri on ' i!_ the 26th. The Gujar inhabitants of this place $ e ^%- 2 7. having been convicted of having sacked the loyal Greathed de- town of Sikandarabad, their town was destroyed. f^omtTL Pushing: on, Greathed reached Sikandarabad on the track of ° , the rebels. the 27th. Here he found himself upon the track of the enemy, a body of their cavalry having evacuated the place only on the day pre- ceding. The distance from Sikandarabad to Balandshahr is about eight miles. Five miles from the latter is the fort of Malagarh, a place which had been held for upwards of three months by Walidad Khan, a partisan of the royal family of Dehli, and connected with it, it was said, by ties of blood. To expel Walidad Khan from Malagarh was then the first object of Greathed' s mission. Starting in the early hours of the 28th, the Se P*- 28 - column reached at daylight four cross roads Bailndshahr. within a mile and a half of Balandshahr. One of these cross roads led to Malagarh. Balandshahr was immediately in front of the column. A picket of the enemy's cavalry, stationed at the cross roads, falling back before the advanced cavalry of the British force on Balandshahr, made it clear to Greathed that that station was the true point of attack. He at once prepared to avail himself of his knowledge. Strengthening the advanced guard with two Horse Artillery guns, and forming a reserve under Major Turner for the protection of his baggage, lie advanced, his troops well in hand, towards the town. 90 COMBAT OF BALANDSHAHR. Book X. Cnapter II. 1857. Sept. 28. Position of the rebels. Greathed's order of attack. The cavalry turn the enemy's right. The rebels had occupied a position in front of the town, at a point where two roads leading to it converged. The position was well-wooded, abounding in high crops, and in gardens, the walls of which were lined with infantry. Their guns were in the centre, concealed by the crops. On this position Greathed marched, four guns of Remmington's troop moving on by the main road ; Bourchier's battery, supported by a squad- ron of the 9th Lancers and the squadron of the 5th Panjab cavalry, advancing on the right, the remainder of the cavalry with the other two guns of Remmington's troop under Lieutenant Crack- low, on the left ; the 8th and 75th Foot and the 2nd Panjab Infantry being at the same time pushed forward through the gardens and houses of the civil station. Remmington's guns pounded the enemy in front, while Bourchier advanced till he could gain a position to open a cross fire on the enemy's flank. The moment this position was gained, the enemy gave in, and the British centre and left advancing, drove them headlong into the town. Meanwhile the cavalry under Major Ouvry and Cracklow's guns had circled round to the left, and though exposed in their progress to a severe fire, from a serai* which the enemy had fortified and from the jail, which momentarily checked them, they carried all before them. Their loss was heavy, — not, however, out of proportion to the results obtained by their dash. The advan- * A traveller's resting-place. THE KEBELS EVACUATE MALAGAEH. 91 tao-e they had gained was followed up by the BooK x - Chapter II. infantry and the remainder of the cavalry, who penetrated into or turned the place. The rout S ep t 57 28. then became general. Four hours after the halt at The infantry the cross roads, the town, three guns, a quantity come up and of baggage and ammunition, were in the hands complete the of our troops. The enemy lost about three e nemy.° hundred men, the victors forty-seven in killed and wounded. The wisdom of forming a reserve to cover An attack on the baggage was justified by the results. For no repulsed with sooner had the main column advanced to attack loss ' the town than a flying party of the enemy made a dash at the baggage. Major Turner, however, beat them off, and Lieutenant Probyn with the squadron of the 2nd Cavalry following them up killed several of them. Lieutenant Watson, 1st Panjab Cavalry, and Lieutenant Blair, 9th Lancers, greatly distin- guished themselves in this action. Of Lieutenant Roberts, of the Artillery, so distinguished during the present year as General Roberts for his con- duct in Afghanistan, and who, a few months later, gained a Victoria Cross, Captain Bourchier writes that he " seemed ubiquitous." Malagarh was, however, the main object of Sept. 28- Greathed's hopes, and he at once reconnoitred " " with a view to attack it. But the blow inflicted pushes on to at Balandshahr had penetrated to Malagarh. The rebels evacuated it in a panic, leaving behind them all the plunder the) had collected there. Malagarh was occupied, and orders were given to destroy ii< fortifications. In carrying out this 92 DEATE OF LIEUTENANT HOME. Book X. Chapter II. 1857. Sept. 28- Oct. 2. Accidental death of Lieu- tenant Home. Oct. 3-9. Kurjah and its skeleton. operation an accident happened, by which the engineer, Lieutenant Home, was unhappily killed on the spot. Home was an officer of great distinction and greater promise. He was the sole surviving officer of the gallant band who had blown up the Kashmir gate on the morning of the 14th September. For that act, one of many deeds of skill and daring, he had been promised the Victoria Cross. To die by accident after having survived the storming of the Kashmir gate was a hard dispensation, but though Home did not live to reap the fulness of his reward, he had at least known how his former splendid service was appreciated by his comrades. From Balandshahr the column marched, 3rd October, to Kurjah. On entering this town the soldiers were greeted by a sight calculated above all others to excite their feelings of resentment to boiling pitch. "As we entered Kurjah," writes Colonel Bonrchier, " a skeleton was stuck up on the road-side, exposed to public gaze, against a wall. The head had been severed from the body, and cuts in the shin-bones were apparent, in- flicted by some sharp instrument ; and, in the opinion of a medical committee, this skeleton was that of a European female." Kurjah was on the high road to Aligarh. It was a place of some importance, for it paid a con- siderable revenue. The civil officer attached to the column was, therefore, strongly opposed to the prosecution of any measures of retaliation against the townspeople. To the indignation, then, of the soldiers, Kurjah was spared, and PROGRESS OF GRBATHED's COLUMN. 93 Greathed pushed on for Aligarh, two marches in book x. advance, where he believed he should meet a a ]^ IL considerable force of the rebels. ^\ 85 7v, - Oct. 3-9. Aligarh, however, was found substantially un- The column defended, the enemy having evacuated it and taken SaJ^STJn to the open. Pursued and overtaken in headlong toAkbarabad. flight, about two hundred and fifty of them fell to the British troopers, whose loss amounted only to three men wounded. Leaving here a gar- rison, Greathed pushed on to Akbarabad, and was fortunate enough to surprise it with two notorious rebel chiefs within its walls. The two chiefs, Mangal Singh and Maitab Singh, were tried and summarily executed. Greathed now pushed forward in the direction of Agra, from which place " epistles, imploring aid, in every language, both dead and living, and in cypher, came pouring into camp."* On the 9th October he was at Bijegarh, forty-eight miles Oct, 9. distant. Near this place, a contrast to the An instance general destruction of European property by the bearanceof mutineers, was found a house belonging to an the rebels ' indigo factory, containing all its furniture unin- jured, and having servants in attendance. The owner, a European, had fled to Agra. From Bijegarh, in consequence of the urgent entreaties be nceived from Agra, Greathed sent forward at midnight the cavalry and horse artillery by forced marches. Four hours later he followed with his infantry, using the utmost speed, mounting his men on elephants, carts, and * Bourchier's Eight Months? Campaign. 94 AGRA. Book x. camels. The despatches lie received on the way Chapter II. l i-, were more and more urgent. His credit was Oct?9-io. a t stake," he was told, "if Agra were attacked Greathed and he so near." Thus implored, he pressed urgent 8 on w ^ tn the utmost expedition, overtook his prayers for artillery and cavalry, and with them crossed the assistance f J . « fromA'gra. Jamna at the bridge of boats under the walls of the fort of Agra on the morning of the 10th. To account for the urgent requisitions of the Agra garrison it is necessary to give a brief nar- rative of the occurrences at that place from the time we left it. Sept. 9. We left Agra on the 9th September. The The condition fe^ f Mr. Colvin had left Mr. E. A. Reade the oi A gra senior civil officer in the North-west Provinces. To great capacity for work, a clear brain, and a large understanding, Mr. Reade added the rare virtue of absolute disinterestedness. Conscious that inter arma silent leges, Mr. Reade at once wrote to the Supreme Government, recommend- ing that until order were restored the adminis- tration should be vested in the hands of a military chief, and promising his hearty co-operation in any capacity. Pending the orders of Government, Mr. Reade, though the senior officer, retained only his office of Financial Commissioner. Even before Mr. Colvin' s death Agra had been agitated by the rumour of another attack. The 23rd Native Infantry, which, it will be recol- lected, had mutinied at Mau on the night of the 1st July — joining itself to the mutinous contingents of Central India — those of Mehid- piir, of Malwa, and of Bhopal — and to the THREATENED BY MUTINOUS SEPOYS. 95 rabble of the Native States, had reached Grwaliar. book x. There, by the loyal exertions of Maharaja Sindia, ' ap er in active correspondence with the political agent, sen'9 Major Charters Macpherson, residing in the for- tress of Agra, they had been detained the whole of the month of August. To detain them so long the Maharaja had strained his authority, and was at times in imminent personal danger. To keep them longer was impossible. Early in September, then, this force of Central Indian mutineers, threatened by . . -, ! 1 » ri /t t -iii the mutineers joined by a number 01 U-waliar malcontents, f Central though not, it is believed, by any of the regular India ' army of that State, broke loose from the capital, and marched on Dholpur. This place lies nearly midway beween Gwaliar and Agra, being distant but thirty-four miles from the latter. The pre- sence, then, of a large force of the three arms at Dholpur constituted an undoubted threat to the fortress of Agra. So much was known at the time of Mr. Colvin's who are em- death, It was impossible to attempt to disturb thecompui- the intruders by detaching from the fortress of attuuci^of the Airra any portion of the small garrison upon whom garrison. the safety of so many thousand lives depended. Emboldened by the silent attitude of the English, the rebels began then to feel their way towards Agra. Sending out detachments from Dholpur abi >ut the 11th September, they spread over the dis- So i )l - 1L tricts of Khairagarh, Fathpiir-Sikri, Iradatnagar, and Fathabad, expelling from them the native officials in the pay of the British Government. The storining of Dehli, instead of lessening, Thediffloui- avated for the momenl the difficulties of the ^'gra garrison 96 IMMEDIATE RESULT OF THE FALL OF DEHLI. Book X. Chapter II. 1857. Sept. 14-17. momentarily aggravated by the fall of Dehli. Sept. 26. Measures taken in con- sequence by the Agra authorities. Sept. 19. Sept. 30. Colonel Hugh Fraser, C.B., is appointed Chief Com- missioner. British authorities in Agra. For, although the result of the 14th September at Dehli had been partial, yet the persistence of General Wilson on the 16th and 17th, had had the effect of inducing the more soft-hearted of the rebels to leave the town. A considerable body of these men, led by a Shahzadeh named Firozshah, bent their way from Dehli towards Mathura, reached that place on the 26th September, and joining there the rebel Sepoys of the regular army, mainly of the 72nd Native Infantry, led by one Hira Singh, a subadar of that regiment, effected a junction with the rebels from Central India. To combat the facts and rumours surging about him, Mr. Reade, in conjunction with Lieutenant- Colonel Cotton, commanding the garrison, issued orders on the 19th September, to set to work at once to level some obstacles which interfered with the free play of the guns mounted on the fort, and to mine some of the more prominent build- ings, including the great Mosque, which were in dangerous proximity to the walls. On the 30th September an order from Cal- cutta was received at Agra nominating Colonel Hugh Fraser, C.B., of the Engineers, to act as the Governor-General's Chief Commissioner for Agra and its dependencies. Three days prior to the installation of Colonel Fraser, official intelligence had been received in Agra of the complete success of the British arms in Dehli, of the capture of the king, and the slaughter of his two sons and grandson. It was then anticipated that a column of the Dehli force, VIEWS OF THE AGRA AUTHORITIES. 97 released from its siege operations, would at once Book x - be despatched to Agra by Giirgaon and Mathura on the right bank of the Jamna. Sep? 30- Great then was the consternation in the fortress 0ct - 10 - when the news arrived that though a column Jj^tJ^Sf under Colonel Greathed had been despatched cations sent • it -it t /ii-i to Grreathed. southwards, it had crossed the Jamna and had taken the route of Kiirjah and Aligarh. To the minds of the British within the fortress there was present always the possibility that Greathed' s force, regarding Agra as secure in the strength of the fortifications, might push on towards Kanhpur or Bareli, leaving the Agra garrison threatened by the incongruous mass of rebels of whom I have spoken. Hence it was that the urgent applications I have referred to were sent to Colonel Greathed, — applications im- ploring him to make the best of his way to Agra, to relieve the garrison therefrom their unpleasant predicament, and to re-establish the Government of the North-west Provinces. That these urgent applications should have been misunderstood, and have been the cause of some merriment among the officers of Great- bed's force, is scarcely surprising. The officers Reason why and men or that column had tor more than tions caused three months occupied a position before Dehli, J2f 8 m exposed to the fire of the enemy, to rain, and force - beat, ;i!id privations of every sort. They were fresh from the storming of the imperial city, and worn by exposure, by fatigue, by watchings,* * " We went," writes Mr. Bevolt) "to the royal l>nsi i.»n 0. Baikei {Notes "// the Agra this morning, l<> see Oolonel 98 GEEATHED BEACHES AGRA, Book X. Chapter II. 1857. Sept. 30- Oct. 10. Greathed reaches A'gra and is in- formed that the enemy have retreated. their minds were scarcely tuned to listen to entrea- ties for help from men who, however anxious and wearisome their position, seemed to have enjoyed comparative ease in the shelter of the fortress. We have already seen how Colonel Greathed, responding to the entreaties pressed upon him with so much urgency, turned off the Grand Trunk Road and hurried by forced marches to the threatened capital. When at sunrise on the morning of the 10th he marched his force over the bridge of boats, cheered by the 3rd European Regiment on the bastions, to the gates of the fort, he was informed that the enemy, alarmed at his approach, had retired beyond the Kari Nadi, a stream about nine miles distant.* Greathed' s movable column cross the bridge. Sikhs, Lancers, three batteries of Horse Artillery, and skele- tons of two Queen's regi- ments. This column came in by long forced marches, owing to an express sent out by Colonel Fraser. From the bastion we went down to the Dehli gate. The Queen's 8th passed within three yards of us. ' Those dreadful-looking men must be Afghans,' said a lady to me, as they slowly and wearily marched by. I did not discover they were Englishmen till I saw a short clay pipe in the mouth of nearly the last man. My heart bled to see these jaded, miserable objects, and to think of all they must have suffered since May last, to reduce fine Englishmen to such worn, sun-dried skele- tons." * An attempt has been made to deny this. In his official report, Mr. Phillips, Magistrate of A'gra, quotes a memorandum by Mr. — now Sir William — Muir, that "there was no intimation given to Colonel Greathed, by any of the authorities, on the morn- ing of the 10th, that the enemy were re-crossing." But the presence of the enemy was either unknown or misbelieved, for I find it stated in a manuscript jour- ney of a very high official : " Major Hennessy, Com- mandant of the Agra Militia, had been on picket duty dur- ing the previous night (9th) with militia-men, mounted AND ENCAMPS ON THE PARADE GROUND. 99 The force halted on the public road in front of the fortress, whilst the Agra authorities and Colonel Greathed were debating about an en- campment ground. Two hours were spent in this discussion — a dreary two hours for men who had just completed a forced march of forty-eight miles. The " local executives," touched doubt- less by the sun-burnt appearance of the troops, were all for encamping them "in a series of gardens overgrown with brushwood, where the guns would not have had a range of fifty yards, and where the cavalry could not possibly act," but Greathed was too much of a soldier to accede without urgent remonstrance, to such a proposi- tion. In the end, however, Greathed's proposal that Book X. Chapter II. 1857. Oct. 10. Difference of opinion as to the encamp- ing ground. and foot, at the Metcalfe Testimonial and the cemetery beyond it. His warning of the approach of the enemy, though some of his scouts had been fired upon, was disre- garded. 8 a ch ivas the confi- dence that the arrival oj Colonel Greathed's force would deter any attempt, that I ieated remonstrances led In his bi'iinj summarily re- mand- j i j_i the English early on the rnornmg 01 the loth. But when the had not come clock struck eight, then nine, and when then the h u e vacates hands beeran to point towards ten, and not a his splendid -mi it- i position. -ingle speck of dust was visible on the horizon, he gave them up for the day, and retiring to his camp, near a dilapidated fort of the same name, about two miles in the rear, there gave orders to his iiicn to dismount and eat. He thus deliberately abandoned, though for the short space of only 112 FORTUNATE DELAY OF THE BRITISH. Book X. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 16. Causes which had for- tunately re- tarded the British. The delay smooths away great difficulties. one hour, a position which it would have required all the dash, all the energy, all the exertions of the small British force, numbering altogether about two thousand five hundred men, to carry. That hour was fatal to him. The fact was, that the impediments in the road between Kanaund and Narnul had terribly — though owing to the incompetence of the rebel leader, fortunately — delayed Grerrard' s advance. The distance to the fort of Narnul was but four- teen miles, and Gerrardhad started at 1 o'clock in the morning. Yet, in the first instance, the enor- mous difficulty experienced by the artillery in traversing the narrow and sharp-angled streets of Kanaund, and, in the second, the depth of the sand in the road which followed, so hindered the advance, that in ten hours they were only able to accomplish twelve miles ! At 11 o'clock Gerrard reached the village of Narnul, now guilt- less of the presence of an enemy. How he and his officers grumbled at the in- evitable delay, may well be imagined. Not one of them could imagine that Fortune was working for them — that the blind goddess was really re- moving the difficulties in front and plotting to spare the lives of many — to give them in the plain the easy victory which, though still certain, would have been difficult and bloody in the village. At Narnul, 1 have said, Grerrard saw no signs of the enemy. The difficulties of the march had greatly fatigued his men. He therefore halted while a dram was served out, and the men de- voured the small store of food which each had THE EEBELS RETURN TO THEIR POST. 113 carried with him. They had hardly finished this bookx. frugal meal when " a slight cloud of dust was ' a il!l seen to rise over a gentle swell of the ground to N oy 5 i6 the left in front."* Another smile from Fortune ! The enemy Sannand Khan had withdrawn his men for an ^ uru \°, . occupy txXOll* hour that they might break their fast at the position, encampment near the ruined fort : he was now re- turning, hoping to reoccupy his strong position ! In a moment the British infantry stood to their arms, the cavalry were in the saddle. A A Guide trooper belonging to the Corps of Guides rode to connoitres. the front to reconnoitre. As he nears the rising ground a bullet strikes the ground close to him. But prior even to that evidence of the presence of the enemy he had seen enough. He turned to report to his commanding officer, but before he could reach him the rebel horsemen showed them- The enemy selves in numbers moving from left to right along selves in™' the crest of the rising ground. Meanwhile Gerrard numbers - had ordered an advance, the Carabineers and the Guides on the right, linked to the centre by a wing of the 7th Panjab Infantry, and six light guns. In the centre the 1st Fusiliers, the heavy 18- pounders, which it had cost so much trouble to drag across the sand, a company of the Guide In- fantry,and the 23rd Panjab Infantry. Toconnect Gerrard the centre with the Irregular Cavalry and Multani advances - Borse on the left, and protected by the Sikh Infantry, were four light Sikh guns. In front of all rode Gerrard, a handsome man, with wavy grey hair, his red coat covered with decorations, Blackwood's Magazine, the a-rtiqle was present al the June L858. The writer of affair. II. H 114 A CAVALEY CONFLICT ENGAGES. book x. conspicuous on his white Arab, surrounded by his _ — staff. So steady were the movements, it might Nov. 5 i6. have been an ordinary field-day. The trooper of whom I have spoken had scarcely rejoined his regiment when the enemy's guns opened with grape on our right. There reply to them first our light guns, next the big The cavalry eighteens and an 8-inch howitzer. Many hostile hosts 6 join? saddles are emptied, so the rebels, thinking this poor work, mass their cavalry on their left, and come down with a shout. But the movement has been foreseen, and the Carabineers and Guides, moving up at the same moment, gallop to meet them. About midway between the two lines the rival hosts join. The cavalry It was a gallant conflict. Never did the enemy fight better. There was neither shirking nor flinching. Both sides went at it with a will. The Gruides were commanded by Kennedy,* " the worthy son of a worthy sire," and he led them with a skill and a daring which could not be sur- passed. The Carabineers, splendidly led by Ward- law, who commanded the entire cavalry, equalled, if they did not surpass, their former splendid achievements. Never was there a charge more gallant, and certainly, never were the British cavalry met so fairly or in so full a swing by the rebel horse. As the rival parties clashed in deadly shock, the artillery fire on both sides was suspended as it were by instinct, the gunners gazing with outstretched necks at the converging horsemen. * Now Colonel Kennedy, commanding a cavalry regiment in Afghanistan. THE KEBEL CAVALRY BEATEN. 115 The result was not long doubtful. Though the Book x. enemy fought with the courage of despair, though ha .£!!! IL they exposed their lives with a resolution which No "^ 5 i 6 forbade the thought of yielding, they were fairly borne down. The Carabineers and the Guides forced them back, cleaving down the most stubborn foemen, till the remainder, overpowered, sought- safety in flight. Then Wardlaw and Kennedy, mindful of the mistake of Prince Rupert, gathered up their men, and, instead of pursuing the routed horsemen of the enemy, wheeled suddenly round to the left, and came down with a swoop on the enemy's guns. The shock was irresistible ; the gunners who stood were cut down. Leaving the guns, the cavalry then went on to prevent any rally on the part of the enemy's horse. But that had long since been cared for. Mean- The infantry while the enemy's infantry and gunners, recover- ing from their panic, had, after our horsemen had swept by, pushed forward, and recovering the iruns, opened fire on our advancing infantry. Not for long did they continue this hazardous game. The 1st Fusiliers, coming up with a run, reached the guns after two rounds had been fired, and recaptured them. On our left the cavalry movement had not been The conflict so successful. The Miiltani Horse, new levies, had not displayed the alacrity to come to close quarters which their comrades on the righl had so conspi- cuously manifested. In vain did bheir gallant ('(iiimiMiidcr, Lirwteiian! hind, dash amongst the foe. But few followed him, until the Field Engineer, Lieutenanl Humphrey, who that day 8 * 116 colin cookwoethy's feat. book x. acted as Aide-de-Oamp to Grerrarcl, riding up to Chapter ii. tte gtm hesitating masSj oa llecl upon them to Noy 5 i6 follow him, and charged single-handed the rebel horse. Then the Multanis followed, not, how- ever, before the gallant Humphrey had been un- horsed and cut down, receiving a severe wound in his right arm, another, slighter, on the left side of his body, " while a third entirely divided his leather helmet and thick turban which covered it, fortunately without injuring his head." He subsequently recovered. But the action was over. The right and the centre had won it, and the charge of the Multanis tardy though it was, completed their good work. The enemy The enemy, beaten and in disorder, fell back defeated. y through the gardens and broken ground on their left, in full retreat to their camp. The British fol- lowed them up with vigour, each arm vying with the other. It was on this occasion that the Horse Artillery performed a feat unsurpassed even in Cookworthy's the annals of that splendid regiment. It is thus recorded by an eye-witness : * " On turning up from the left, the Artillery got into a ploughed field, which was separated from the road by a mud wall fully three feet high. At this, Dawes's troop, this day commanded by Captain Cook- worthy,! rode at full gallop. On they come — over go the leaders, nicely both together, next follow the centre pair, and lastly the wheelers take the leap ; then, with a sort of kick and a bump, over goes the gun on to the hard road. * Blackwood's Magazine, f Now Major-General Colin June 1858. Cookworthy, GERRAED IS KILLED. 117 The Fusiliers were so delighted that they gave a book x. willing cheer, while the Sikhs, who witnessed the feat, said nothing for some time, but looked on No \ 85 i' 6 . with open mouths and eyes ; at last ' Truly that The old is wonderful ! ' burst from their lips spontaneously. ' ' A rtatery ! Of such was the old Bengal Artillery, unsurpassed and unsurpassable ! Colonel G-errard, the commander of the column, had ridden in front the whole time. He was the only man of the force — his orderly officer, Captain Osborn alone excepted — dressed in red, the infantry wearing the khaki, or dust-coloured uniform, then authorised for service in the field. As in the fight, so in the pursuit, Gerrard main- Gerrard, ° . • . tt i i i- 1 directing the tained his prominent position. He pushed forward, pursuit, directing the men, till he reached a rivulet with partially wooded banks. On these banks he drew in his horse, whilst he directed the movements of the troops to the other side. To him, thus sitting on his white Arab and giving directions calmly, one of his staff officers, Lieutenant Hogg, sud- denly pointed out a man on the opposite bank taking deliberate aim at him. Just then the man fired, but missed. Hogg entreated the Colonel to move back. Gerrard replied that he would move in a in in ute, but that he must see what was going on. But before he did move, the man had re- loaded and fired. This time his aim was true, is killed. Gerrard fell mortally wounded, and died in two hours. Bv tin There CQuld not be a grea t e r Au| 5 i3- delusion. Dreaming of reorganisation, sanguine Oct. 26. that the coming troops would at once settle the St of tiT business, the members of the Government had Supreme opened wide their mouths in expectancy. They had done nothing, and nothing had fallen into their mouths. They had prepared no means of transport ; they had no horses, either for cavalry or artillery; Enfield rifle ammunition was defi- cient ; flour was even running out ; guns, gun- carriages and harness for field batteries were either unfit for service or did not exist.* Sir Colin Campbell's first care was to supply these defi- sir Colin ciencies. He moved the Government to the pur- -rorgani? chase of horses on a large and necessarily an victory." expensive scale ; to indent on England for Enfield rifle ammunition whilst stimulating the manufac- ture of it on the spot; to procure flour from the Cape ; to cast field guns at the Kasipiir foundry ; to manufacture tents ; to make up har- ness; to procure English-speaking servants for the expected European regiments from Madras. Before the end of August Sir Colin had quin- tupled the activity of the " departments," and had infused even into the Government a portion of his own untiring energy. Nor was his attention confined to the prepara- tions necessary for the troops before they could stir one foot from Calcutta. Those troops were * Blackwood's Magazine, October 1858 ; also personal experience and observation. SIR COLIN " ORGANISES VICTORY." 123 to move forward — but how ? I have given a de- book xi. scription, in outline, of the two routes which were open to them — the river route and the land route. Aug. 13- But useful, and in some respects superior, as the 0ct - 26 - river route had been in the months of June, July, Se Govern- and August, Sir Colin could not but feel that with ment t0 or - . . -, gamse a the cessation of the rainy season the river would bullock tram fall, and the way by it would become tedious and troopTto uncertain. He therefore resolved to do all in his Allah abad. power to improve the land route and to quicken the means of transport. With this view, under his inspiring pressure, the Government established the bullock train. This train was composed of a number of covered waggons, in each of which a fixed number of European soldiers could sit at ease. To draw these, a proportionate number of bullocks were posted at stages all along the road. The starting-point of the bullock train was the railway terminus at Raniganj, one hundred and twenty miles from Calcutta. The soldiers, leav- ing the train, were supposed to enter the bullock- carriages and to travel in them all night and in the early hours of the morning and evening, rest- ing for food during the heat of the day. This The scheme scheme was soon brought to perfection, and was brought to made to work so as to land daily in Allahabad P crfectio11 - two hundred men fresh and fit for work, con- veyed in the space of a fortnight from Calcutta. But, I have said, Mr. Beadon's famous line of Dangers six hundred miles, once already rent in twain, was Ihroatened still far from safe. Constant revolts rendered it *'"' '""' l " 1 ,)0 traversed by less and less so every day. The Raingarh battalion, the buiiock stationed at R.inclii, on the left of the road, tram. 124 SECURES THE GRAND TRUNK ROAD. Book XI. Chapter I. 1857. Aug. 13- Oct. 26. Sir Colin orders patrol parties to secure it. The tempta- tion thus af- forded to the civil authori- ties to use these troops for local pur- poses some- times ir- resistible. breaking the bands of discipline, menaced all the salient points running within easy distance of that station ; on the right the remnants of the Dana- pur garrison, of the 5th Irregular Cavalry, and subsequently the mutinous portion of the 32nd Native Infantry, uniting themselves with the bands of Kunwar Singh, threatened the dis- tricts in the neighbourhood, and spread con- sternation amongst the local authorities. These mutinous bands constituted the great difficulty of Sir Colin Campbell. Not that they were sufficiently formidable to check a British force. Could they have been found collected, a few companies of Europeans would have annihi- lated them. But spreading over a vast tract of country, they harassed every district and threa- tened every post. For the moment Sir Colin's one care was to ensure the safety of the small parties travelling along the Trunk Road in the bullock train. To secure this he formed moveable columns, of about six hundred men each, infantry and artillery, to patrol the road. This measure, successful in so far that it secured the passage of the troops, was less so in another. It afforded to the civil authorities the temptation of diverting some of the troops to small and comparatively unimportant local operations on the flanks, " So that," says a well-informed writer, " at one period, out of about two thousand four hundred men who were proceeding by the different routes to Allahabad, one thousand eight hundred were, on one pretence or other, laid hold of by the civil power, and employed for the time being in opera- THE CHINA TROOPS ARRIVE. 125 tions extraneous to the general plan of the cam- book xi. ,,,. Chapter I. paign. * The efforts made by the Government to pro- A u- 5 i3- duce resources and to ensure the safety of the road Oct. 26. were beginning to bear good fruit when most of SSTikJc!! 6 the troops diverted by Lord Elgin from the China jKtjan read. Expedition arrived. These consisted of the 93rd Highlanders, the 23rd Fusiliers, three companies of the 82nd Foot, two companies Royal Artillery, and one company of Sappers. About the same time also, that is during September and in the first week of October, there arrived from the Cape of Good Hope a company of Royal Artillery with fifty-eight horses and about five hundred of the 13th Light Infantry. To hurry forward these troops had now become a matter of the greatest necessity. In the interval before their arrival Dehli had, it is true, fallen, but Lakhnao had not been relieved ; so far from it, the British force The g a P left that had reached our garrison in the Residency, tionof Out? besieged itself by the rebels, had been thus with- JJ 1 £j£jJ B drawn from active operations, and left a gap on which an enterprising enemy might act with fatal effect. The rebel troops of Gwaliar were displaying unwonted activity, and it certainly was in their power at this particular period to cut the British Line in two, and sever communications between Calcutta and Kauhpur. To press on troops necessitatis •ii »iii'i/T i • prompl and quickly to Allahabad, where equipments were a.iiw .,,.;, being prepared, became then an imperative duty. slir ° 8- To this end every exertion was made. Horses * Blachwood'e Magazine, October 1858. 126 THE SHANNON AND PEAEL. (?h°°^ XI i were taken bodily from regiments which had mutinied, and were pressed into service. The Aug. 13- Military Train Corps, composed to a great extent Oct. 26. £ j^ d ra g 0ongj was formed, by means of some of the horses so become available, into a cavalry regi- ment, and they, too, were sent on with the rest. The Shannon But before a single man of the China expedi- and Pearl. tionary Corps had left Calcutta, there had set out from that city in river steamers a gallant body of men, gallantly commanded, destined to cover themselves with glory in a series of actions for which they had no special training. In another part of this history I have alluded to the arrival in Calcutta of H.M's ships Shannon and Pearl, and of the offer made by Lord Elgin to place those vessels with their respective crews at the disposal of the Governor-General. The offer was Aug. 18. accepted, and, on the 18th August, Captain William Peel had started for Allahabad in the river steamer Ghunar with a flat in tow, convey- ing four hundred and fifty men, six 68-pounders, two 24-pound howitzers, and two field-pieces. Captain Peel took with him also a launch and cutter belonging to the Shannon* * The following officers Lord Walter Kerr, Lord accompanied Captain Peel : Arthur Clinton, and Mr. Lieutenants Young, Wilson, Church, midshipmen ; Messrs. Hay, and Salmon, R.N. ; Brown, Bone, and Henri, Captain Gray and Lieutenant engineers ; Mr. Thomson, Stirling, R.M. ; Lieutenant gunner ; Mr. Bryce, car- Lind, of the Swedish Navy ; penter ; Mr. Stanton, assist- the Rev. G. L. Bowman ; Dr. ant-clerk ; and Messrs. Wat- Flanagan; Mr. Comerford, son and LasceHes, naval Assistant Paymaster; Messrs. cadets. — The 8hanno7i's Bri- M. Daniel, Garvey, E. Daniel, gade in India. WILLIAM PEEL. 127 Captain William Peel was a man who would book xi. i t i • 1 • in Chapter I. nave made ins mark m any age and. under any circumstances. To an energy that nothing could aJ 85 i8 daunt, a power that seemed never to tire, he captain added a freshness of intellect, a fund of resource, Wllliam Peel - which made him, in the expressive language of one of his officers, " the mainspring that worked the machinery." Bright and joyous in the field, with a kind word for every comrade, he caused the sternest duty, ordered by him, to be looked upon as a pleasant pastime. " The greatness of our loss we shall in all probability never know," wrote Dr. Russell, on learning of his untimely death from small-pox. And, in truth, that reflec- tion of the genial correspondent represents the exact measure by which to gauge the value of Peel's services. Starting from Calcutta on an expedition unprecedented in Indian warfare, he conquered every obstacle, he succeeded to the very utmost extent of the power to succeed. He showed eminently all the qualities of an organiser and a leader of men. Not one single speck of failure marred the brightness of his ermine. His remarkable success in a novel undertaking, on an untried field — a success apparently without an effort — was in itself a proof that had he survived, his greal powers might have been usefully em- ployed in larger and more difficult undertakings. Tli ere must be something in the man who, not exercising supreme command, is able to stereotype his name in the history of liis native land. Yet William Peel accomplished this. To the chaplets of fame placed by his father on the altar of his 128 MORE ENGLISH TEOOPS ARRIVE. Book XI. Chapter I. 1S57. Sept. 2-20. The Shannon brigade reaches Allahabad. More troops reach Calcutta. Sept.-Oct. 26. country, he, still young, added another not less immortal. Peel reached Allahabad on the 2nd September. There he was joined on the 20th of the following month by the two parties from the Pearl and Shannon,* which came to complete his brigade, bringing its numbers to seven hundred and twenty men, exclusive of officers. Here for the present I must leave him. We left Sir Colin Campbell in Calcutta engaged in " organising victory." We have seen how in September and the first week of October he had been gladdened by the arrival of troops from China and the Cape, how he had at once sent them to the point of rendezvous in batches of two hundred daily. During the next fortnight there had arrived the remainder of the 82nd Foot, one hundred and ninety-eight men of the 38th, H.M.'s 34th, and one hundred and forty-four men of the -42nd Highlanders, and one hundred and two recruits for the local European regiments. These were quickly followed by six hundred and twelve men of the Royal Artillery, nine hundred and three of the Rifle Brigade, 2nd and 3rd battalions, two hundred and ninety of the 42nd Highlanders, three hundred and fifty-two of the 54th Foot, six hundred and twenty-seven of the 88th, and * The contingent from the Pearl was composed of one hundred and fifty-five men, commanded by Captain Sothe- by, R.N. ; the second detach- ment from the Shannon of one hundred and twenty men, under Lieutenants Vaughan and Wratislaw; Mr. E. H. Verney, mate ; Mr. Way, mid- shipman ; and Mr. Richards, naval cadet. THE ROAD BEHIND SIR COLIN. 129 eight hundred and eighty- three recruits. Having book xl placed upon a thoroughly well organised basis the scheme for despatching these reinforcements as ct. 5 27. expeditiously as possible to the front, Sir Colin Campbell, with the Army Headquarters and Staff, set out, on the 27th October, by post, for Allah- abad. The operations of Sir Colin Campbell demand ^ r ^ tive an entire chapter to themselves. It will be ad- road behind visable that, before entering upon them, I should campbSi. clear the road behind him, and place before the reader a general view of the transactions in Bengal and Bihar since .Vincent Eyre's splendid gallantry had redeemed the laches of the Government in those important provinces. The large division of Bhagalpur, comprising the Bhagalpur. districts of Bhagalpur, Manghyr, Piirnia, Santha- lia, and Rajmahal, was governed by Mr. George Yule as Commissioner. The division constituted the eastern moiety of the province of Bihar. The headquarters were at the station of Bhagalpur, on the Ganges, two hundred and sixty-six miles • ward of Calcutta. Mr. George Yule* was a good specimen of a Mr. George manly, true-hearted gentleman. He was essen- tially a man of action. His even-handed justice had gained for him — what was rare in those days — the confidence alike of the native ryot and the European planter. Both classes alike trusted him, and both were prepared to obey his orders without hesitation or murmur. * Now Sir George Yule, K.C.S.I. II. 9 130 EASTERN BIHAR AND Book XI. Chapter I. 1857. June. The native troops in eastern Bihar. Mr. Yule, at the outset, tries to main- tain order without European troops, Up to the time when the native garrison of Danapiir broke out into revolt, there had been no signs of disaffection in the Bhagalpiir division. The troops quartered there — the 5th Irregular Cavalry, with their headquarters at Bhagalpiir, the 32nd stationed at Baosi, and the 63rd at Barhain- piir, had, with the exception noted in the pre- ceding volume,* displayed no inclination to fol- low the example of their mutinous brethren. The conduct of Major Macdonald on the occasion in question had greatly impressed the men of the 5th, and the strong will of that courageous man had repressed the smallest inclination on the part of his soldiers to manifest the sympathies which, subsequent experience proved, they held in secret. The men of the corps had, subsequently to the event of the 12th June, been detached to various stations in the division, as well to divide them as to overawe the turbulent classes. Although ruling over a native population num- bering, besides the Santhals, about six millions, Mr. Yule had considered it unnecessary to ask for, or to accept, the services of a European de- tachment, however small. He believed that if the districts contiguous would but remain loyal, he would be able, with the assistance of his assistants and the planters, to maintain order in Bhagalpiir. He did so, successfully, till the third week of July. But when, during that week, the mutiny of the 12th Irregular Cavalry and the native regi- ments quartered at Danapiir threatened the loss * Vol. i. page 37. MR. GEORGE YULE. 131 of western Bihar, he deemed it prudent to detain book xi. at Bhagalpiir ninety men of the 5th Fusiliers, u — then being towed up the river, and to despatch JJJjjf ' fifty men of the same regiment to garrison the but the important fortress of Manghir. a^ect^ The proceedings of the native soldiers of the affairs 1 ° . , forces nun to Danapiir garrison, almost invited to mutiny by detain a few. the supine action of the Supreme Government, Eff ecton .., ., , . ,... t> -rr , eastern Bihar combined with the immediate rising of Kunwar of the Dana- Singh to render the condition of eastern Bihar pui u my * dangerous in the extreme. Not only was it impossible any longer to rely upon the native soldiers in that province, but it had become ne- cessary, for the security of life and property, to prove to the disaffected that the hand wielding executive power was thoroughly aware of the danger, and thoroughly ready to meet it. Mr. Yule, as a practical man, accustomed to command, was well aware that occasions may arise when an active demonstration is the best defence. Such an occasion had, in his opinion, arisen in i -fern Bihar, and he prepared to act accordingly. Fore-warned, it was necessary to be fore-armed. The securing Bis first act, then, had been to press into his ser- points in his vice the detachment of the European troops sires'the 8 " line by, and secured Bhagalpiir and Manghir. navigation of ' . • , ,,. & * n the Ganges, the importance ot this precautionary measure can scarcely be over-rated. The occupation of those two st;it ions, both salient points on the Ganges, was absolutely essential to the free navi- gation of thai river, and it must be remembered thai in 'July, when Mr. Beadon's line of six hun- dred miles had been broken, the Ganges consti- 9 * 132 THE DISAFFECTED DEFER ACTION. Book XI. Chapter I. 1857. July. and stops communica- tion between the dis- affected of eastern and western Bihar, who now wait for the result of the siege of A'rah. The natives not always inclined to trust the news they receive. tuted the only safe highway between Calcutta and Allahabad. Great as was the advantage thus gained, another, second only to it in importance, naturally followed. The native troops stationed at Barham- piir had not, up to that time, thanks to the timid policy of the Government, been disarmed. Had Bhagalpiir and Manghir not been occupied by Europeans, the armed mutinous soldiers scattered over western Bihar would have held uninterrupted communication with their brethren on either side of them, and a general insurrection would pro- bably have ensued. But the occupation of those stations cowed the disaffected for the time. They were content to wait. The fate of eastern Bihar now depended on the result of the siege of Arah. To that the eyes of the natives were turned with an excite- ment daily increasing. One rather remarkable circumstance deserves to be noticed. Ill news generally, it is said, flies quickly. But it is a fact that through- out the troubled times of the mutiny, news betokening evil to the rebels did not fly surely to their friends. It was not that the rebels failed to transmit to them a true record of events. But that record came, not written on paper, but by word of mouth. The result was that when the news was bad, the men who re- ceived it, impatient of inaction, and confident of ultimate success, refused to believe it. Their sanguine natures induced them to imagine that the Europeans had invented the bad news and THE 5TH IRREGULARS AND THE 32ND N.I. 133 had caused it to be conveyed to them by men bookxi. whom they had suborned. They proceeded to act J !LL r then, in very many cases, as though the bearing August. of the news were exactly contrary to the actual meaning of the words in which it was conveyed. So it happened on this occasion. The 5th Irre- The 5th irre- gular Cavalry in the districts round Bhagalpiir had, i n eastern 7 in common with the other native soldiers in the B[hiv mutin y- province, waited long for the result of the leaguer of Arah. Had they not waited, but broken out, the difficulties of the British position in Bihar would have been enormously increased. But they waited to hear of its fall. On the 14th August information reached the men of the 5th that Arah had been relieved by Eyre. They believed this story to be a weak invention of the enemy — that the contrary had happened. That night, therefore, J e h ^ c * r jfhe° they deserted, and pushed with all speed for Baosi, 32nd, where the 32nd Native Infantry were stationed. But before the mutineers of the 5th Irregulars reached the 32nd Native Infantry, the men of that regiment had received positive proof of the utter and absolute defeat of their brethren at Arah and at Jagdispur. Mr. Yule, too, with an energy worthy of the occasion, had despatched to their commandant, Colonel Burney, a special mes- senger, warning him of the departure in his din-ction of the 5th. Burney was acapable man, ^ho, under * *• * the influence a splendid linguist, and thoroughly conversant of Colonel with the native character. He harangued his them? 7, repe men, and made it palpably clear to them that whether they should march eastward or westward, they would march to destruction. He spoke 134 CHUTIA NAGPUR. Book XI. Chapter I. 1857. August. Chutia Nagpur. July. Effect in Chutia Nag- pur of the mutiny at Dana/pur. eloquently and with effect. When the 5th Irre- gulars then, on the 16th, presented themselves at Baosi, they were received by the 32nd with bullets and bayonets. The 5th, baffled in their hopes, continued their course via Rohni to Arah. For the moment the active measures of Yule had conjured from eastern Bihar all danger. It was, however, otherwise in the neighbouring district of Chutia Nagpur. This mountainous district lies between southern Bihar, western Bengal, Orisa, and the Central Provinces. It is called Chutia Nagpur from Chutia near Ranchi, the residence of the Rajas of Nagpur. It is chiefly inhabited by aboriginal tribes, such as Kdls, Oraons, Mundas, Bhumij, Korwas, and others. Its chief military stations were Hazaribagh, Ranchi, Chaibasa and Parulia. At Hazaribagh there was quartered in July 1857 a detachment of the 8th Native Infantry ; at Ranchi, the headquarters and artillery of the local Ramgarh battalion ; and at Chaibasa and Parulia, detachments of that battalion. The acting Commissioner of the district was Captain Dalton. The news of the mutiny of the native garrison at Danapur and of the rising of Kiinwar Singh, reached Hazaribagh on the 30th July. The de- tachment of the 8th Native Infantry at once mutinied, driving their officers and the civil authorities from the station. Those were still the days of confidence. Al- most every officer of the native army, whilst admitting and deploring the disaffection of other SUCCESS OF THE REBELS. 135 regiments, believed implicitly in the loyalty of his b °ok xi. own men. When, then, intelligence reached " l — Duranda, the civil station adjoining Ranchi, that August. the troops at Hazaribagh, only sixty miles The troops distant, were shaky, the officer commanding ^^g^ m at that station despatched Lieutenant Graham rally mutiny with thirty horsemen of the Ramgarh Irre- gular Cavalry, two companies of the Ramgarh battalion, and two guns, to Hazaribagh, to dis- arm them. Graham marched, but he had not reached the second stage before Captain Oakes met him with the information that the detach- ment of the 8th Native Infantry had mutinied the previous day. That same night his own infantry mutinied, seized, in spite of his protestations, the guns and ammunition, as well as four ele- phants, the property of Captain Dalton, and marched back to Ranchi, breathing hostile impre- cations against the Europeans there stationed. The cavalry remained staunch. Captain Dalton and a few European officers Captain 1 -r~. / i • mi • t !_• i • i* Dalton aban- were at Ranchi. I hey received timely intorma- dons Ranchi tion of the revolt. The defence of the place was ™ d H J£SS! d8 impossible. They remained there, however, till b%h v the latest safe moment, and then proceeded to Hazaribagh, now abandoned by the rebels, and whither Lieutenant Graham with a few horsemen who had remained faithful had preceded them. The stations of Rjinchi and Duranda fell into The plunder the hands of the rebels, who plundered the and Duranda. treasury, fired cannon at the church, released the prisoners, and destroyed private property. Meanwhile, Dalton, ably seconded by the offi- 136 LOYALTY OF THE RAJA OP RAMGARH. Book xi. cers of the Ramgarh battalion and the cavalry, -I!!! ' by his own civil officers, Captains Davies and A* 5 Jat W- ^- Oakes, was exerting himself to restore Efficient order in Hazaribagh. In this he was loyally SenTy assisted by the Raja of Ramgarh. This petty Daiton to chief placed at the Commissioner's disposal some forty or fifty armed men. With the aid of these men, and of the few native horsemen and foot soldiers who had remained faithful, Daiton not only tranquillised Hazaribagh, but he recovered a large quantity of the property seized by the rebels, and captured many of them. In a few days the courts were re-opened, and business proceeded as usual. Paniiiaand At Parulia and at Chaibasa, the other posts chaibasa. in q]^^ Nagpiir occupied by native troops, scenes had taken place similar to those enacted at Ranchi and Hazaribagh. On the 5th August, the sepoys of the Ramgarh battalion, stationed at those places, mutinied, plundered the treasury, released the prisoners, and sacked the private houses of the Europeans. These, few in number, fell back upon Raniganj. Loyal conduct The Raja of Ramgarh, at the time that he afforded of aL^arl. to the Commissioner of Chutia Nagpur the aid in armed men of which I have spoken, had expressed his strong conviction that it would be difficult to hold Hazaribagh against the surging influences around it, unless European troops should be sent to occupy it. He had therefore pressed upon Captain Daiton the necessity of asking at once for a European regiment. Captain Daiton asked for a European regiment. THE MADRAS ARMY. 137 It was but natural and proper that lie should do BooK XL t-» ■ -iin i n Chapter I. so. But now was it possible tor the Government to comply? Dehli had not fallen. The districts August. below Kanhpiir were in the state which I have Daiton endeavoured to describe in the opening pages of European 1 this chapter. Sir Colin Campbell had just ar- tro °P s - rived, but Sir Colin Campbell had not a soldier to dispose of. When an army was urgently ^^J required at Kanhpur, it was not in his power to do more than to organize transport for the troops which were to come, but which had not arrived. It happened, however, that the Government other re- •F-F » _ _ sources at had other resources at its disposal, and that it the disposal was possible to use these for the double purpose ° e rnment." of tranquillising Chutia Nagpur en route and of then lending a hand to the force which was con- centrating at Allahabad. The native soldiers of the army of the Madras Presidency — those of one regiment, the 8th Light Cavalry alone excepted — not been tainted by the mutinous spirit which had disgraced their brethren in the Bengal army. Inheritors of the The Madras D " army. fame of the men who had fought the French soldiers of Lally, who had helped to wrest Southern [ndia from the grasp of Haidar Ali, the Madras sepoys had come forward, on the first bursting of the storm, to offer their services, had begged — to use their own touching language — " to be granted an opportunity of proving their faithful attachment to the Government which had cherished them." After some hesitation, the Government of India responded favourably to the requesl thus pressed upon them. On the 5th 138 THE AID RENDERED BY THAT ARMY. Book XI. Chapter I. 1857. August. Brigadier Carthew. The Madras troops con- stitute the other re- sources at the disposal of the Govern- ment. Reply of the Government to Dalton's requisitions. August, the 27th Regiment Madras Native Infantry, and a wing of the 17th Regiment Native Infantry, landed in Calcutta. They were speedily followed by the remaining wing of the 17th Regiment, some native artillerymen, a company of sappers, half of the E Troop Horse Artillery, and a little later by a Rifle battalion composed of the rifle companies of the 1st, 5th, 16th, 24th, 36th, 49th, and 34th Regiments of Native In- fantry, the whole under the command of Briga- dier M. Carthew. Of Brigadier Carthew I shall have to speak more in detail further on. It will suffice here to state that to a thorough knowledge of his profes- sion he combined great quickness of military vision, the capacity and the nerve to strike at the right moment. All that he did, he did thoroughly and well. With larger opportunities it cannot be doubted that he would have achieved great things. Besides the troops of the Madras Army already enumerated, there were others marching by land from Katak in eastern Bengal. Among these was the 18th Madras Native Infantry, under the com- mand of Lieutenant-Colonel Fischer. These Madras troops constituted the further resources at the disposal of the Government of India to which I have alluded, and which enabled them to reply with effect to Captain Dalton's requisition for European troops. They pointed out to him, in effect, that the moment the artillery, then daily expected from Madras, should arrive, a considerable force would DIFFICULTIES OF DALTON AND THE GOVERNMENT. 139 be sent to restore order ; that one column would book xi. proceed along the grand trunk road to Barhi and Hazaribagh, the other direct to Parulia and August. Ranchi. The Government expressed a hope that until these reinforcements should arrive Captain Dalton would be able to maintain himself at Hazaribagh. But this was "just what Captain Dalton could Difficulties of i i 'in Dalton. not do. Matters became so threatening that he, accompanied by his few adherents, was forced, on the 13th, to fall back on Bagoda. Here he re- mained for a few days, when he was joined by one hundred and fifty of Rattray's Sikhs, under Lieutenant Earle. With these men, Dalton re- occupied Hazaribagh. But the mutineers were still at large, and Difficulties of , ~ , the Govern- alt hough the Government, grown wise by expe- men t rience, had endeavoured to prevent any augmen- tation of their forces by the disarming, on the 2nd August, of the 63rd Native Infantry, the 11th Irregular Cavalry, and the troops of the Nawab Nazim at Barhampiir, yet the presence of a con- siderable body of revolted soldiers of all arms in the vicinity of the grand trunk road — the line of six hundred miles — constituted a danger which it was necessary to meet, and meet quickly, enhanced by The danger was increased by the sudden mutiny, t ini C s er ' accompanied by the murder of their officers, of two companies of the 32nd Native Infantry at Deogarh in the Santhal districts. Tin- Government therefore revised their plans. Fiacheria r\ i • i • • • /• i • ordered to Countermanding their intention or working on marohdireot two lines, they directed Colonel Fischer, command- \\\^' A 140 MADRAS TROOPS GUARD THE TRUNK ROAD. Book XI. Chapter I. 1857. September. Fischer des- patches a de- tachment, 53rd, under English towards Doranda. Fischer is directed to protect the trunk road, ing a detachment of Madras troops, to mass them, and march by way of Doranda on Hazaribagh. Fischer received this message at Barhi on the night of the 13th September. He had with him his own regiment, a few Sikhs, a detachment of the 53rd, and two guns. Before the message arrived, he had ascertained that the mutineers had left Chutia Nagpiir, pro- bably for Rhotasgarh : he submitted that instead of inarching on Hazaribagh, he should move to intercept them in their retreat. This was agreed to in principle, but other contradictory telegrams from headquarters disarranged Fischer's plans. When at length he received the orders to carry out his own ideas, he had already despatched Major English with one hundred and fifty men of the 53rd and one hundred and fifty Sikhs towards Doranda. Whilst English was marching on Doranda, Rattray, with two hundred Sikhs, was intrenched at Dehri, and Fischer, with the main body, was moving towards Jalpa. No one knew where the enemy was. " It is incredible, but a fact," wrote Colonel Fischer, on the 24th September, to the Chief of the Staff at Calcutta, " that the Ram- garh mutineers, with their guns, are moving about in a small province, and not an official, civil or military, can tell where they are to be found." A careful consideration of probabilities induced Fischer, however, to think that Chattra would prove to be their place of refuge. He informed the Chief of the Staff of his opinion. But in reply, Fischer was relieved from the charge of ENGLISH DEFEATS THE REBELS AT CHATTKA. 141 the operations against the insurgents, and directed book xi. 11 i m P n • Chapter I. to protect the trunk road, lhe small campaign in Chutia Nagpiir was confided to Major English, QcSr. under the direct orders of the Commander-in-Chief . English to Major English marched then on Chattra, gainst the reached that place at 9 o'clock on the morning of insurgents, the 2nd October, and encamped on the west side a ttfcksthe of the town. That officer's force now consisted of !? ei ?/ at Chattra, one hundred and eighty men of the 53rd Foot, one hundred and fifty Sikhs, and two guns, in all about three hundred and fifty men. The rebels amounted to three thousand. Nothing daunted, English attacked them, and after a resistance lasting over an hour, completely defeated them. The survivors fled in great disorder, hotly pur- sued for some distance, leaving in the hands of the victors four guns and waggons complete, and com- forty carts laden with ammunition, ten elephants, feats them, twenty-nine pair of ordnance bullocks, and several boxes of treasure. The loss of the British amounted to forty- two killed and wounded : that of the enemy was never accurately known. This action removed the greatest danger from The province the grand trunk road. Though English's de- t0 the protec- tachment, in the pressing circumstances of the jjjjtjj times, was not allowed to remain in the province, Rattray's Sikhs were left there, and these ex- cellent soldiers, under the guidance of their active and energetic commander, proved themselves fully competent to make head against the in- surgents in Chutia Nagpiir and in the districts immediately to the north and east of it. 142 BOOK XI. CHAPTER II. sir Colin I return to Sir Colin Campbell. That gallant seat of war, e officer left Calcutta for Allahabad on the 27th October. The insecurity of the road was almost illustrated by his capture. The two revolted com- panies of the 32nd Native Infantry had pushed northwards, travelling on the elephants they had purloined. Sir Colin and his staff travelled with- out an escort. They reached Sherghati in safety, and runs a Again setting out, they had proceeded ten or risk of being- ^ we i ve m iles, when a turn of the road revealed to C EL ID t' U-l G Q. * the driver of the foremost carriage the fourteen elephants laden with native soldiers, and escorted by some twenty-five sowars. Fortunately, the bullock train with a British detachment was some short distance behind. On this train the carriages at once fell back. But for the good look-out and prompt action of the drivers, the Commander-in-Chief could not have escaped capture — and worse. powell's march to allahabad. 143 On the evening- of the 1st November, Sir Colin book xi. arrived at Allahabad. The troops of the Line and the Naval Brigade, pushed to that station by the jJJJJ { energy of the Commander-in-Chief, had, under The troops as his instructions, left it in strong columns or de- ISSKdaw tachments for Kanhpiir. Some of these had ^ n on d ™ reached that place without encountering an enemy tachments to on the road. The case was otherwise with the column of which a detachment of Peel's Naval Brigade, under Peel himself, formed a consider- able portion. One detachment of the Naval Brigade, consist- ing of a hundred men and four officers, escorting the siege-train, had left Allahabad for Kanhpiir on the 23rd October; the second detachment, The Naval no Brigade and under Peel himself, followed on the 28th. 53rd detach- Accompanying this second detachment, were a mon wing of the 53rd Regiment, a company of the 90th, drafts for different regiments, and a com- pany of Royal Engineers, the whole under the command of Colouel Powell, C.B., of the 53rd. commanded , T , < " T Colonel It is witli tins last detachment that 1 have at p'oweii. present to deal. This column reached Fathpur, about midway Powei] learns between Allali;'il>;id and Kanhpiir, at midnight of 'that the the 31st October. That afternoon, information oioaeathand. had reached Powell that the revolted regiments of the Danapiir garrison, the same whom Eyre had driven out of Bihar, their ranks swollen by other mutineers, were then occupying a strong position at the village of Kajwa, some twenty-four miles north-wesl of Fathpur. Their uumbers were estimated at, in round numbers, two thousand 144 HE MARCHES AGAINST THE REBELS AT KAJWA. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nor. 1. Kajwa. Colonel Powell, C.B. He marches against the rebels at Kajwa. sepoys, and about the same number of untrained adherents. Kajwa is rather a famous place in Indian his- tory. Here it was, in January 1659, that Aurang- zib gained the empire of Hindustan by a decisive victory over his brother Shiija. Close to the town is a spacious garden, walled and turreted, flanked by enclosures, capable, when held by good soldiers, of offering a solid resistance to an advanciug foe. Moreover, troops occupying this place barred the road to any column marching from Fathpiir to Kanhpur. Powell possessed the truest instincts of a soldier. He had been in Fort William in command of his regiment when the mutiny broke out. He had watched every turn it had taken, and throughout, when our fortunes seemed lowest, had proclaimed his certain confidence in the ultimate success of our arms. He had panted for action. Now, un- expectedly, the opportunity came to him. He marched on at once to Fathpiir and arrived there at midnight. That night he made all his prepara- tions for a forced march and an attack on the following morning. At half past 5 o'clock on the morning of the 1st November, Powell set out with a detachment, increased before coming into action to five hun- dred and thirty men. It consisted of a hundred and three officers and men of the Naval Brigade under Peel, one company of Royal Engineers, under Captain Clarke, two companies (one hun- dred and sixty-two men) of the 53rd, under Major Clarke, one company of the 90th, under Captain BATTLE OF KAJWA. 145 Cornwall, and a company made up of the men of book xi. different detachments, under Lieutenant Fanning. ' ap er It had two 9-pounder guns, under Lieutenant Nov 7 i Anderson. Captain William Peel was the second in command. It was not till 3 o'clock on the afternoon of the False position following day that Powell came in sight of the ° e enemj - enemy. He saw at a glance that he had them. Instead of taking advantage of the walled garden and the buildings in Kajwa, they had placed their right on open ground, covered by some sand hil- locks, forming a sort of embankment ; their left on higher ground on the other side of the road. They had three guns posted in the road, two somewhat in advance, the third on a bridge near the village behind. A field of standing corn in front of their position concealed their skirmishers. Powell attacked at once. Pushing the enemy's Powell skirmishers out of the corn-fields, he made a dash a em; at the two foremost guns, the fire of which had done great execution amongst his men. He had is killed just just secured these when he fell dead with a bullet captured two through his forehead. The command then de- guna - volved on Peel. Whilst the 53rd, under Powell, had been march- The Naval ing on the guns, the Naval Brigade, on the right, baokthe had forced back the enemy's left. The position enera y' 8loft ; of the battle was then changed. The enemy, driven back on the left, now faced the road, and the British, whose right bad been thrown forward, Pee! then faced them. Peel gave them no time to rally. fWt- in 'i'w,., Posting ;i strong force to secure his new position, : ( , , , ' ( ', l II < 1 k>teat8 lie carried his troops round the upper end of the ii. 10 146 SIR COLIN REACHES KANHPUR. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 2. Result of the action. Sir Colin reaches Allahabad, and pushing on, arrives at Kanhpiir. Nov. 3. His resolve to march on Lakhnao justified. embankment, cut the enemy's force in two and drove them from their positions, capturing their camp, two of their guns, and a tumbril. Pursuit was impossible. The infantry had marched seventy-two miles in three days, and Peel had no cavalry. His losses, too, had been severe, amounting in killed and wounded to ninety- five. That of the enemy was estimated at three hundred. The captured guns and tumbril, as well as a third gun and three tumbrils, abandoned by the rebels in their flight, were brought into camp the same evening. Peel then regained the high road and pursued his march to Kanhpiir. This successful action Avas fought the day Sir Colin Campbell arrived at Allahabad. It made the way clear for his further progress. Sir Colin stayed at Allahabad only one day. He did not leave, however, until he had perfected all the arrangements for the districts he had left, those especially by which a force under Colonel Longden, of the 10th Foot, was to clear of rebels the district of Azamgarh and its neighbourhood. The move- ments of this force will be referred to hereafter. The Commander-in-Chief reached Kanhpiir on the 3rd November. Rejecting the counsels which conceited men attempted to thrust upon him, he had resolved, before doing anything else, to re- lieve Lakhnao. Oudh was the ulcer which had up to this time swallowed up all the reinforce- ments which had been pushed up from Calcutta, which was attracting to it the hardened warriors released by the fall of Dehli. At all costs the heart of Oudh must be pierced : Lakhnao must be THE GWALlAR CONTINGENT. 147 really conquered before a single step could be taken Book xi. • , l . ,.„ . . • i Chapter II. to subdue enemies still rising up on many sides. I use the expression, " still rising up," ad- -^ov^-s. visedly. It had been very generally believed that The imme- the fall of Dehli would terminate the revolt. ^the'Sfof It did nothing of the sort. It is true that it Dehifisto i & add to the saved India : that is, occurring when it did, it enemies of prevented the insurrection of the Panjab. On the other hand, it added greatly to the number of our enemies in the field. The rebellious sepoys, cooped up till its fall in Dehli, spread in detach- ments over the country. But, perhaps, its most important result was the manner in which it affected the trained soldiers of the Maharaja of Grwaliar. In the preceding volume I have narrated how its effect on p r< • i i i ■ • i ci • j • Sindia and on whilst the troops of binclia had mutinied, bmclia the Gwaiiar himself had remained loyal to his British overlord. contin g ent - Sindia continued loyal to the end. When, on the 22nd September, he received certain tidings of the complete conquest of Dehli, his joy could not contain itself. At last he was free from the ten- sion that had almost killed him. He could breathe : he could talk : he could even laugh. It often happens that sudden transition from anxiety to its opposite can find relief only in exaggerated expressions of pleasure. It was so in this instance. Sindia's joy was so unmistakeable, that the trained soldiers, whom till then he had succeeded in de- taining at Gwaiiar under various pretences, broke loose from his grasp, and sought a chief who would lead them against the English. After brief negotiation they agreed to the terms offered by 10 * 148 REASONS INFLUENCING SIR COLIN. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 3-8. Reasons which prompted Sir Colin to march, in the first instance, on Lakhnao. Hope Grant's position beyond the Banni bridge. the Rani of Jhansi and her confederate, Tantia Topi, the Maratha chief, who, under the orders of Nana Sahib, had superintended the massacre of Kanhpur. Tantia at once assumed command of them. A wary, capable, astute man, he alone of all the natives brought by the mutiny to the front — Kiln war Singh and the Oudh Moulvi alone ex- cepted — showed any great qualities of generalship. Tantia was a man to be feared. Fortunate was it for the British that the Gwaliar soldiers had not earlier placed themselves under his orders, for his first act on taking up his office was to march them southwards to occupy a position which should threaten Kanhpur. A weaker mind than that of Sir Colin Campbell might have been deterred, by the action of Tantia Topi, from leaving Kanhpur with a small garrison and marching to a contest which must be desperate, and might be doubtful at Lakhnao. But, in war, something must always be risked. The informa- tion from Lakhnao was to the effect that the store of provisions could not well last to the end of the month. There we had our soldiers, our women, our prestige. That was the decisive point — and Sir Colin had a way of always striking at the decisive point. Before he reached Kanhpur, then, he had made all his arrangements for an advance on Lakhnao. I have already stated that Hope Grant's column had reached Kanhpur on the 26th October, and had been there increased to an effective strength of five thousand five hundred ; that he had crossed the Ganges on the 30th, and pushing forward, WINDHAM LEFT AT KANHPUK. 149 bad encamped on the plain between Banni and bookxi. the Alambagh, to await there the arrival of Sir Cha !!!! IL Colin. In this position Grant formed the point xo^a-s d'appui upon which all the detachments and store carts, as they came up, were to mass themselves. Daily there arrived something in the way of pro- visions and carriage — for the certainty of having to carry back with him the women and children had not been lost sight of by the Commander-in-Chief. Sir Colin Campbell joined Hope Grant on the Nov. 9. 9th. The interval — from the 3rd to the 9th — had been spent by the Commander-in-Chief in ar- ranging for the protection of his base — that base being Kanhpur. He left behind him at that The force left station about five hundred Europeans. These con- sisted of four companies of the 64th Regiment, strengthened by men belonging to other regi- ments to four hundred and fifty men ; forty-seven men of the Naval Brigade ; and some eighteen or twenty artillerymen. There were besides a few Sikhs, who, with the artillerymen, manned a field battery of four guns, which had been hastily im- provised. This garrison was placed under the command of Major-General Charles A. Windham, commanded C.B., of Redan celebrity. Windham was directed by the Commander-in-Chief to place his troops within the intrenchment which, on the reoccupa- tion of Kanhpur by Havelock in July, had been hastily constructed on the river; not to attack any enemy unless by so doing he could prevent the buinbanlment of the intrenchment ; to send into Oudh, by wings of regiments, the detachments of European infantry which mighl arrive; on no by Windham. 150 SIR COLIN JOINS HOPE GRANT. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 9. Instructions given to Windham. Sir Colin joins Hope Grant. Kavanagh joins Sir Colin from the Resi- dency. Nov. 10. pretext to detain them unless he should be seriously threatened, and, even in that case, to ask for in- structions from the Commander-in-Chief. Wind- ham was authorised, however, to keep back the bri- gade of Madras native troops, expected the follow- ing day, the 10th November, until the intentions of the Gwaliar contingent should become developed. Having, by these instructions, secured, as he believed, his base, Sir Colin Campbell started on the 9th, accompanied by his staff, to join Hope Grant's camp in the sandy plain four miles beyond Banni. He reached it that afternoon, had a cordial meeting with Hope Grant and his old friends of the Dehli force, and, after a short conversation, gave his orders for the following day. In pur- suance of these orders, Colonel Adrian Hope was sent forward to the Alambagh, the following day, in charge of a large convoy of provisions. The provisions were to be left there, and the carts laden with sick and wounded to be sent back to Kanhpur. That same day a portion of the siege- train, escorted by the Naval Brigade, arrived in camp. This had been expected. But it had been preceded by an arrival wmich was not altogether anticipated. Suddenly, in the early morning of the 10th, there presented himself to the astonished gaze of Sir Colin Campbell, an European gentleman, disguised as a native, and who, in that disguise, had managed to make his way through the be- leaguring forces, carrying on his person important despatches. His name was Kavanagh. To under- stand thoroughly the nature of the information he brought, I must ask the reader to return with OUTRAM AT LAKHNAO. 151 me to Laklmao, and to view the Residency on the book xi. morrow of the arrival of the relieving force under ' aap ei Outram and Havelock. September. On the night of the 25th September, the ad- ontram and vanced portion of Havelock' s force had entered H av <;iock ™ \ the Resi- the Residency. They were followed the next dency. morning by all but the rear-guard. Thanks to the splendid exertions of Colonel Napier, R.E., and the valour and skill of Crump, of Olpherts, of Fraser, of Private Duffy — of the artillery — of Lowe of the 32nd, who covered the movement, of Dodgson and of others, the wounded men and the guns were brought safely to the new ground occupied by the British, and to which reference will be presently made, on the 27th. It had been already discovered that the advent of Outram's force constituted not a relief but a reinforcement ; that means of transport for the ladies and chil- dren, the sick and the wounded, were wanting ; that an enormous addition had been made to the hospital list ; and that even had the transport been available, the combined force was scarcely strong enough to escort it to Kanhpur. But one course, then, remained open to Outram, and that was to hold the Residency until he should be effectively relieved by Sir Colin Campbell. Outram's first care was to provide accommo- Tko manner (1 ;i1 ion for the largely increased force. With this outram pro- view, he at once caused the palaces extending along Vld ® 8 * 000 i rx " the line of the river, the Tara Koti, the Chattar th.im n^,,! Manzil, and the Farid Baksh, to be occupied, the enemy's works and guns in tho vicinity being at the same time destroyed. 152 PROVIDES ACCOMMODATION FOR HIS TROOPS. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. September. The palaces extending along the river are taken and occupied. The A'lam- bagh. These posts were taken on the morning of the 26th September. One party, composed of one hundred and fifty men of the 32nd Regiment, under Captain Lowe, commanding that regiment, attacked the rebels in the Captain Bazaar, drove them into the G-umti with loss, and captured three large and four small guns. Another, com- posed of the 13th Native Infantry, under Lieu- tenant Aitken, assaulted the gateway leading to the Farid Baksh palace, and carried it with con- siderable loss to the enemy. It was mainly in consequence of these sorties that the palaces above mentioned fell into the hands of the British. These new posts were held by the troops form- ing Havelock's command, and were under his personal orders. The old garrison, reinforced by the Madras Fusiliers, continued, under Brigadier Inglis, to occupy their posts in the Residency. There remains to be mentioned the Alambagh. The reader will remember that this place had been occupied by Havelock on the 23 rd Sept- ember, that he had stored there the baggage of the force, and left in it a guard of two hundred and fifty men. This small party had under its charge many of the wounded, several of whom speedily became convalescent and able to bear arms. Separated from the Residency as was the Alambagh by the city, which was still and was likely to remain in the hands of the rebels, it was very defensible. A fortified enclosure, the garrison brought to defend it two heavy guns and two 9-pounders, besides others taken from IS FOECED TO KEEP HIS CAVALRY. 153 the enemy. They had ammunition and water, book xi. J £ ,- £ 1 i. £ Chapter II. every necessary of lite except a large store ot provisions. It was very desirable to maintain Bep JS eri the position as a touching point for a relieving army. But the want of provisions constituted a difficulty. Outram therefore instructed Major Mclntyre, 78th Highlanders, the senior officer at the post, to hold it as long as he could do so, and only in case of absolute necessity to fall back on Kanhpiir. To rid himself entirely of his native cavalry, He attempts useless inside a fortified enclosure, (Jutram, at the native an early period after his arrival, directed Lieu- cavah 7> tenant Hardinge to endeavour to arrange so that they should all leave the enclosure in the dark of the night, and, if successful in this, should make at once for Kanhpiir. Hardinge got his men under arms and endeavoured to lead them out. But the sound of his horses' hoofs was the signal for a heavy and con- centrated fire upon them from the loop-holed houses of the streets through which they had to pass — a fire so heavy and so concentrated that the attempt had to be abandoned. It was clear but the that the enemy were well on the alert. The bafflehim. result was that the horses, reduced in the absence of grass to feed on the bark and branches of the trees, died in great numbers, and those that sur- vived to get out were utterly unfit for service. The six weeks which followed the arrival of Difference i ■ j_1 J "U 1 between the Outram s force have not been inaptly described porio(1 ,„.;,,„ as the blockade. That arrival had terminated the "jggj^ siege. The danger of being overwhelmed by the tothereifef. 154 SORTIE OF 27TH SEPTEMBER. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. September. Sortie of the masses of the enemy had in a grea£ measure passed away. But, in spite of this change in their condition, events were of frequent occur- rence which served to keep up the soldierly excitement of the garrison. There was only this difference in the feeling. Before the reinforce- ments had reached it, it had generally been the excitement of defence; it had now become the more stirring excitement of attack. On the 27th September, for instance, a party of 27th septem. the lst Fusiliergj and some men f t ] ie 32 n d Regi- ment, under the command of Major Stephenson, made a sortie for the purpose of taking some guns in the enemy's Kanhpiir battery. The British troops were met by a very heavy fire from the enemy, and although they succeeded in spiking three of the enemy's guns, they were unable to bring them back within the defences. On their return, they were exposed to so de- structive a fire from the tops of houses and loop- holes that they found it most difficult to carry in their killed and wounded. One sergeant, severely wounded, must have been left on the ground, had not a private of the 32nd, in the most gallant manner, and with the assistance of Captain Galway 1st Madras Fusiliers, carried him to a place of safety. Lieutenant Huxham, of the 48th Native Infantry, was wounded.* The unexampled losses which the 32nd Regi- ment had suffered, may be gathered from the The 32nd Foot. * For his conduct on this gallantry, Private William occasion, following on pre- Dowling, of the 32ud Foot, vious acts of distinguished received the Victoria Cross. SUBSEQUENT SOETIES. 155 fact that, on this occasion, they were commanded Book xi. by Lieutenant Warner, of the 7th Light Cavalry, solely because there were no regimental officers Sep tember. available. Tried as this gallant regiment had been during the siege, its men were yet detailed for every sortie and for every attack. Thus on the 29th September, three sorties were Subsequent made simultaneously. One of these proceeded their results, from the left square of the Brigade Mess ; the second from the Sikh Square ; the third from the Redan. The last named, composed of two hundred men, with a reserve of one hundred and fifty, from the 32nd and 5th Fusiliers, drove the enemy from their guns, and advanced till they came to a lane commanded by an 18-pounder. In this advance they lost Captain McCabe of the 32nd, a most distinguished officer, who was then leading his fourth sortie. Major Simmons of the 5th Fusiliers was also shot dead ; and, it being ascertained that no further advance could be made without considerable loss, the party was recalled. The second party, from the Sikh Square, commanded by Lieutenant Hardinge, was com- posed of men from the 32nd, 78th, and 1st Madras Fusiliers, two hundred in all, and supported by some men of the 13th Native Infantry, under Lieutenant Aitken. They succeeded in demolish- ing several houses and batteries. The first- named party, commanded by Captain Shute, and composed of men from the 32nd, 64th, and 84th, succeeded in destroying a 24-pounder gun, and in spiking two mortars, and four native guns of small calibre. Their loss was very severe, 156 OPFICEES AND MEN OF THE INDIAN ARMY. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. September. The officers and men of the Indian army. quite disproportionate to the service rendered. On the 2nd November Lieutenant Hardinge again led a party composed of the 32nd, 84th, 1st Madras Fusiliers, and seven artillerymen, to destroy some guns on the Kanhpiir road. This was done effectively and almost without op- position. To write a detailed account of these operations would require a volume devoted wholly to the siege of Lakhnao. Dealing with a large subject I unwillingly confine myself to a simple statement of deeds in which every man was a hero. In these the officers of the Indian army were not one whit behindhand. Constantly recurring are the names of Wilson, Aitken, Ouseley, Apthorp, Forbes, Graham, and Cubitt ; the Engineers, McLeod Innes, Anderson, and Hutchinson ; there were, too, many others. Some, not less prominent, and whose names will be found mentioned further on, were killed. With them, too, Thornhill of the Civil Service, one of the most daring of men.* * As a proof of the fidelity and gallantly of the native troops, I may mention that every native officer of the 13th Bengal Native Infantry was either killed, wounded, or died during the siege. The subadar-inajor of the regiment, Amar Singh, a gal- lant old Rajput, received two wounds at Chinhat, but strug- gled back into the Residency with the beaten troops from that fatal field, and served throughout the siege and for many years afterwards as su- badar-inajor of the Regiment of Lakhnao. Debidm Misr, the drill havildar of the 13th, got through the siege without a wound, in spite of his con- spicuous gallantry, and was for many years subsequently subadar-inajor of the Regi- ment of Lakhnao. Hira Lai Misr, a sepoy of the 48th, at the commence- ment and throughout the siege was the right-hand man of Captain James, the head of the Commissariat. He dis- NAPIEK STORMS PHILLIPS'S BATTERY. 157 On the 2nd October, Outram. finding that the book xi. , -. \ n £ Chapter II. garrison were greatly annoyed by a nre irom a very strong battery — known as Phillips' Garden o^er. battery, on the Kanhpur road — ordered ont a Napier party formed of. detachments from several ^Garden" regiments under Colonel Napier to storm it. battery, Napier conducted the attack with his usual combination of science and daring, and took the battery — a very strong one — with the loss of two men killed and eleven wounded. He captured three guns — two 9-pounders and a j£ r d J ap ^ s res 6-pounder. There was nothing strange in this : but it was remarkable that he should have res- Remarkable rescue ot a cued a private soldier of the Madras Fusiliers, soldier. who had been three days in the power of the enemy, without their knowing it. The man had fallen down a well, and had remained there, un- discovered by the rebels who were occupying the place. Outram had been very much impressed with ^^ the advantage which must accrue from adopting open out the Kanhpur played the greatest gallantry the 13th when the siege com- and intelligence, and died menced, and native officers a few years ago a subadar of when Sir Colin Campbell the Regiment of Lakhnao. came to the relief of the He, like many of the distin- Eesidency, are worthy of guished native officers, who mention, as are Aniika Singh served throughout the De- and Hira Singh, both Sikhs ; fen.;.-, received a village in RamnarainPande,who greatly perpetuity. distinguished himself, under .Many other gallant sepoys, Lieutenant Aitken, in the .•specially of the 13th, may be sortie of the 26th September, mentioned. 8eor4] Singh (se- All ranks of this gallant regi- v.-r.-lv wound. -d th very gallant officer. Iiam T 1857 - " Nov. 17. enemy, and Wolseley, far from checking them, and follows determined to push his advantage to the utmost. *he Moii"' ' " He had, it is true, no orders to attack the Moti Mahal, Mahal, but the inborn instinct of the soldier had taught him that nothing tended so much to blood- less victory as immediate pressure upon a defeated foe. He pressed on therefore to the wall of the Moti Mahal, but the opposition offered was great, and the wall was solid, and the gateway had been blocked up. He had, therefore, to send back for the sappers. These promptly came up, and which, after succeeded after a time in making narrow open- ance! 'JJ 681 ^" ings in the wall. Through these Wolseley and storms - his men eagerly rushed, and attacked the net- work of buildings within. The resistance they encountered was, however, stout and even des- perate, every room being contested. At length the enemy were expelled, and the Moti Mahal, the last building held by the rebels on the hue com- municating with Outram and Havelock, came completely into British possession.* * " It will be allowed that letter of instructions in that, Wolseley had good reason to when he was only ordered anticipate the congratulations to take the Mess-house, he andthanksof tln'CommanfliT- actually of his own motion in-Chief for his conduct, but had driven the enemy out of what was his astonishment on the Moti Mahal! The Bri- li-;irniiig from his Brigadier, gadier advised him to keep the Hon. Adrian Hope, that out of the way, as the Chief Sir Colin was furious with was asking for him, ami he him for having ex< led the never saw a man more enraged 204 MEETING OP SIR COLIN CAMPBELL Book XL Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 17. An open space, nearly half a mile in width, still intervened between the assailants and the advanced positions of Outram and Havelock. This space was exposed to a heavy musketry fire from the Kaisarbagh and could not be crossed without imminent risk. But the risk did not pre- vent the two gallant generals and their staff from crossing the space to meet the Commander-in- Chief. They started — eight officers and one civilian. They were Outram, Havelock, Napier (now Lord Napier of Magdala), Vincent Eyre, young Havelock (now Sir Henry Havelock), Dodgson, the Deputy Adjutant-G-eneral, the aide- de-camp Sitwell, the engineer Russell, and the gallant Kavanagh. They had not gone many paces before they were seen by the enemy, and the musketry fire from the Kaisarbagh redoubled. Napier was struck down, young Havelock was struck down, Sitwell and Russell were struck down. Outram, Havelock, Eyre, Dodgson, and Kavanagh, alone reached the Moti Mahal unin- jured. Then, to borrow once again the appro- priate language of Sir Colin Campbell, " the relief of the garrison had been accomplished." The conversation between the Commander-in- Dodgs°on%nd Chief and his four visitors, though animated and joyful, was not long. The visitors had to return across the terrible space. They set out at a run. Outram Havelock return. in his life." — Low's Life of Sir Garnet Wolseley. It is due, however, to Sir Colin, to add, that although when he met Wolseley the following morning he wigged him severely, he almost im- mediately cooled down, con- gratulated him on his courage and ability, and promised to recommend him for promo- tion. WITH OUTRAM AND HAVELOCK. 205 Outram and Kavanagh were able to keep it up. book xi. But Havelock, weak and ill, soon tired. Turning C1 T" " to Dodgson, he exclaimed, " I can do no more, J- 857 ^ T _ _ .Nov. 17. Dodgson, I can do no more." Dodgson, than Havelock and whom no braver, no more modest, and no more Dod ° son - deserving soldier ever lived, at once supported the gallant veteran. Resting on Dodgson, then, the illustrious soldier traversed, at a slow and measured pace — the only pace of which his strength was capable — the ground still remaining to be gone over, the enemy's balls striking all around them, at their feet, just short of them, just before them, just behind them, but all missing their mark. I propose now to devote a few moments to ex- The proceed- plain in detail the manner in which Outram and lS a °l d 0ut ' Havelock had accomplished their portion of the Hav eiock. allotted task. I left Outram on the 9th Novem- ber, sending off the devoted Kavanagh, disguised as a native, to the camp of the Commander-in- Chief. From that date Outram was made aware, by means of preconcerted signals, of each move of Sir Colin Campbell's force ; of his successive arrivals at the Alambagh and the Dilkusha, and of his movement against the Sikanclar Bagh and the Shah Najif on the morning of the 16th. The time, so long and eagerly looked for, had Havelock now arrived when it would be possible for the man^SS™ troops pent up in the Residency and the adjoin- ing buildings to co-operate actively with the re- lieving force. Withhis usual self-denial, Outram once again assigned to the illustrious Eavelock the honour of conducting this critical operation. advance. Nov. it;. 206 HOW HAVELOCK CO-OPERATED Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 16. Composition of the ad- Havelock's plan. In pursuance of his instructions, Havelock selected from his division a body of about one thousand two hundred men, and held them in readiness on the first signs of the successful storming of the Sikandar Bagh, to drive the enemy from the strong positions which would still intervene between him and the advancing columns of the Commander-in-Chief. The force selected by Havelock consisted of one hundred and sixty men of the 5th Fusiliers, under Lieutenant Mara ; of forty-eight of the 64th Regiment, under Captain Shute ; of one hundred and sixty of the 84th, under Captain Wills ; of one hundred and forty-two of the 78th Highlanders under Captain Lockhart; of one hun- dred and eighty-one of the 90th Light Infantry, under Lieutenant-Colonel Purnell ; of one hundred of the Regiment of Firozpur, under Lieutenant Cross. Of artillery, he had three batteries of heavy guns, howitzers, and mortars, commanded respectively by Yincent Eyre (with the rank of Brigadier), Olpherts, and Maude, R.A. Each column was likewise accompanied by a party of miners, with tools and powder-bags, under the command of an engineer officer. The engineer officers were Russell, Hutchinson, and Limond. To these also was attached Captain Oakes. The reserve was composed of two hundred men from the 5th Fusiliers, 78th Highlanders, and Regiment of Firozpur. Havelock had occupied the Farid Baksh palace. It was his intention, as soon as the attack on the Sikandar Bagh should be pronounced, to blow WITH THE RELIEVING FORCE. 207 up, by means of mines previously prepared, the Book xi. outer wall of the Farid Baksh palace, and open a heavy fire upon the enemy from the heavy N( ^ 8 °i6 batteries which had been constructed behind it. As soon as that fire should produce a cer- tain effect, the infantry would rush forward and storm two buildings between Farid Baksh palace and the Moti Mahal, known as the Harn-khana and the steam-engine house. Under these, mines had been constructed. It may be convenient to state that, on the two batteries constructed behind the outer wall of the the Farid Baksh were mounted four 18-pounder guns, one 8-inch iron howitzer, four 9-pounder field guns, and two 24-pounder field howitzers. In position behind these were six 8-inch mortars, under Captain Maude, R.A. At about 11 o'clock Havelock learned that the He gives -, n , ■ • ci • i n orders for advancing force was operating against feikanaar act i onj Bagh. He at once gave orders for the explosion of the mines under the outer wall of the Farid Baksh. It happened, unfortunately, that the result of the explosion was not nearly so effective as he had hoped, and it devolved upon the batteries to complete the work which the mines had only very partially accomplished. Vincent Eyre and the officers serving under him were, however, in no way discouraged, A continuous fire lasting over three hours, not only demolished the remaining obstacles of the wall, but produced a very con- siderable effect on the buildings beyond it. So great was it, indeed, thai at 3 o'clock Havelock formed his columns of assaull in the square "I' the 208 THE DIFFICULTIES THAT REMAINED. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 16. and carries the enemy's position as far as the engine-house. The diffi- culties that yet remained Chattar Manzil — outside the battered wall of the Farid Baksh — and ordered his engineers to fire the mines laid under the two buildings beyond. At a quarter past 3, two of the mines of the Harn-khana exploded with good effect. A quar- ter of an hour later the signal for assault was given. " It is impossible," wrote Havelock in his despatch, " to describe the enthusiasm with which this signal was received by the troops. Pent up in inaction for upwards of six weeks, and subjected to constant attacks, they felt that the hour of re- tribution and glorious exertion had returned." Their action corresponded to the feelings which swayed it. Dashing forward with a cheer, they carried the Harnklmna, then the engine-house, and were thus in a position to extend their hands to their friends of the advancing force as soon as these should have captured the Moti Mahal. I have already shown how this was done. "The relief of the garrison was accomplished." Yes — but to quote once again from the gallant writer whose account of Lord Clyde's campaign is a masterpiece of description of military move- ments,* " a most difficult and dangerous task still remained. The garrison, with women and children, sick and wounded, guns and stores, had to be withdrawn ; and to effect this in the face of the vast force of the enemy was no easy task. One narrow winding lane alone led to the rear, and through it the whole force had to be filed. * Blackwood's Magazine, October 1858. 1857. Nov. 17. SIR COLIN S PLANS TO SURMOUNT THEM. 209 To protect the march of the convoy, the whole of bookxi. the immense line, extending from the ruined walls of the Residency to the wooded park of the Dil- kiisha, required to be held, and this gave a most hazardous extension to our forces — far too weak for the maintenance of so extended a position. To keep any considerable reserve in hand was impossible." The circumstances were indeed such as to merit sir Colin the earnest care and consideration which the eqnaftocope Commander-in-Chief devoted to them. Fortu- yxith them - nately, Sir Colin Campbell was a man of iron nerves, of splendid resolution. He could act promptly and steadfastly even when confronted by so great a difficulty as that which now pre- sented itself. His plans were quickly formed. The enemy still occupied the Kaisarbagh in great force. From the Kaisarbagh they threatened the flank and the left rear of the British army. To permit an enemy so numerous to occupy a posi- tion so strong and so threatening whilst carrying out the delicate operation which it had now de- volved upon Sir Colin Campbell to attempt, was more than any prudent commander could permit. Sir Colin's first object, then, was to silence the fire from the Kaisarbagh. This silenced, two lines of retirement might be open to him. I have already stated* that on the 17th No- His plans, vember Sir Colin had detached the 5th Brigade, under Brigadier Russell, with some artillery and rockets, to carry the house called Banks's house * Page 200. II. 14 210 RUSSELL OCCUPIES BANKS S HOUSE. Book XI. Chapter II. Nov. 17, Brigadier Russell car- ries Banks's house and the bungalows. Bussell's position is fired upon by the rebels, and four bungalows, adjacent to the Barracks, with the view of converting them into military posts covering his left rear. Russell found the positions well fortified, and strongly garrisoned. But he was equal to the occasion. The four bungalows were first stormed. A detachment of the 2nd Pan jab Infantry, led by a gallant subaltern, Lieutenant Keen, was then pushed forward to Banks's house. This officer occupied that house without difficulty and remained there with fifty Sikhs, during the remainder of the opera- tions for the relief of Lakhnao. His position was extremely dangerous, for the enemy were in great numbers, and in his comparatively isolated posi- tion, he might at any moment have been over- whelmed before assistance could reach him. But he showed a bold front which daunted the enemy. The chain of posts covering the British left rear was now complete. The proper right of this chain was the Barracks occupied by Lieutenant- Colonel Ewart and three hundred of the 93rd, its proper left Banks's house ; the right centre was formed of the four bungalows referred to, the left centre by gardens. But precisely at the moment when Russell's brigade had succeeded in occupying the right centre and left of the position, there rose in the minds of the rebels the conviction that such occupation barred to them the road by which they had intended to operate, and that they must at any cost expel the British. Throughout the night of the 17th and during the whole of the 18th, then, they kept upon the right and right centre of the position, a vigorous THE ENEMY ALIVE TO THE DANGER. 211 and unceasing: fire from muskets and from an book xi. Chapter II 18-pounder. Had it been Sir Colin Campbell's intention simply to occupy these posts whilst his Nov! is. large convoy was being withdrawn by the line Reasons why tttt -iii'- i_ n l the retention he had advanced, this incessant tire, however an- f the post noying, would have had no important result. J™ s t impor ' But Sir Colin Campbell having resolved, as I have shown, to dominate in the first instance the fire of the Kaisar Bagh, and thus to secure properly a second line of retirement by the Barracks and Banks's house, the line of posts had become a base from which to attack and occupy certain build- ings between them and the Kaisar Bagh. In this view the heavy fire kept up by the enemy during the 18th possessed a far greater importance. The first building Russell had decided to attack Russeiirecon- was the hospital, the nearest important post to roa d s . the four bungalows and the Barracks. But before he could move, it was necessary to silence the enemy's fire. This could only be done by means of artillery. Early on the morning of the 18th, then, Sir Colin directed Colonel Biddulph of the Bengal Army, head of the Intelligence Depart- ment, to proceed in company with Major Bour- chier, to reconnoitre the roads leading to the Barracks and the canal, with the view of disco- vering whether guns could not be taken down to co-operate with Russell. To no nobler and more zealous men could Bourohier this dangerous task have been entrusted. Bour- chier, to whose splendid services I have already referred, was one of the most daring officers of his in ism passed regiment — the Bengal Artillery. 14 * 212 THE REBEL COUNTER ATTACK IS EFFECTIVE, Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 18. Russell is vvonnded. Biddulph is killed. Hale assumes command, Biddulph was cool, intelligent, and a thorough soldier. They quickly found a road, and then with the utmost speed brought down a 9-pounder and a 24-pound howitzer, and four 5^-inch mor- tars. The gun and the howitzer were placed in position in front of the bungalow, on the ex- treme right, the mortars behind the bungalow. The fire then opened. Brigadier Russell was almost immediately placed hors de combat by a contusion.* Colonel Biddulph then assumed the command. The fire continued with great effect, and the rebels withdrew their 18-pounder. Bid- dulph then organised a column for an attack on the hospital. But as he was explaining his plans to the officer next to him in command, Lieutenant- Colonel Hale of the 82nd, a bullet, which had pre- viously traversed the cap of the latter, penetrated his brain. Hale then assumed command. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, he led his column to the assault, covering it with a quick fire from the 24-pound howitzer. Traversing some intermediate gardens, he attacked the hospital. The resistance, how- * The story is thus told by (' 1( _ el Bourchier (Eight Months' Campaign against the Bengal Sepoys): "The 18- pounder (rebels') was not above one hundred and twenty yards distant, and to avoid giving notice to the enemy of our intentions by opening an embrasure, the muzzle of the 9-pounder was crammed through a hole that a shot had just made. The riflemen declared they had not been able to load again. As we fired, so did they. A cloud of dust is all I re- member. Brigadier Russell, Captain Ogilvy, and I were on our backs. Poor Russell had just been grazed on the back of the neck : the clods broken from the wall had knocked us over." AND CONTINUED. 213 ever, was obstinate, nor did he drive out the Book xi. enemy until they had inflicted a severe loss on his a J_ff column. Nor, unfortunately, was he able to main- Nodi's tain himself in the hospital after it had been but can make stormed. Its thatched roof was kindled by the no P ro s ress - enemy, and the heat of the flames alone forced him to retire. He withdrew, then, in perfect order, to his original position.* Whilst the struggle, followed by the retirement, The enemy 3.ttjipk f lift had been going on at the hospital, the rebels, centre thinking that the central position, that between P lckets - the Barracks and Sikandar Bagh, must have been thereby weakened, attacked the pickets in considerable force. But Sir Colin Campbell, attentive to every detail, was no sooner cognisant of the situation, than he himself brought up Remmington's troop of Horse Artillery, a com- pany of the 53rd, and a company of the 23rd, to meet the attack. These were absolutely the only troops of which he could dispose, but they were sufficient. The conduct of Remmington's troop Splendid elicited the admiration of the whole army. Remming- ton's troop. * Colonel Bourchier thus and left in the garden for an mentions a gallant deed, per- hour and a half. The drum- formed on this occasion, nier stuck by him, and dashed which ilc.serves a permanent into the picket to report the record in history. " Lieu- fact. The little party above tenant Harrington, Bengal mentioned, under a very hot Artillery, and another officer fire, rushed out and brought (who*'- oame 1 regret 1 never in the wounded man. As they knew) belonging to H. M.'s left the picket a round shot Bervice, with a gunner of Btruck the ground under their artillery and a drummer of in- feet." Lieutenant Harring- Eantry, did most gallant ser- ton received the Victoria rice. A man of the storming Cross, column had been wounded 214 A PRACTICABLE ROAD IS DISCOVERED. Book xi. " Captain Bemmington's troop of Horse Artil- chapterii. leJ y„ wrote gir Colinj » wag brongllt upj and J 857 ,- dashed right into the nimble with the leading Nov. 18. ° . t skirmishers, and opened fire with extraordinary rapidity and precision. Captain Remmington distinguished himself very much. I superintended this affair myself, and I have particular pleasure in drawing your Lordships' attention to the con- duct of this troop on this occasion as an instance of the never-failing readiness and quickness of the horse artillery of the Bengal Service." The attack was repulsed. The roads on Thus ended the 18th. The British had main- liVnnoSr tained the position covering their left rear, but had made no substantial progress towards gain- ing a second line of retirement. The difficulties experienced in gaining the posts which would command such a line rendered it advisable once more to reconnoitre the ground between the positions actually held and the canal, to ascertain whether it was possible, abandoning the projected line of retirement by the direct road from Sikandar Bagh to Banks's house, to with- draw the guns and the troops by one of the un- metalled roads behind the bungalows already and are found occupied. The reconnaissance showed that the forges. e roads in that locality, though heavy, were prac- ticable for artillery. On receiving a report to this effect, Sir Colin determined to withdraw his force by the road by which he had advanced. He therefore directed Colonels Ewart of the 93rd, Hale of the 82nd, and Wells of the 23rd, com- manding the posts covering the left rear, simply BOMBARDMENT OF THE KAISAR BAGH. 215 to maintain their positions, whilst he would bookXi. himself personally superintend the delicate opera- tion of the withdrawal by the road already tra- No Jf59-22. versed of the sick and the wounded, the women sirCoiin's and the children. The order was simple, compre- ^^° f retire ' hensible to the meanest capacity, and was carried out to the letter. On the morning of the 20th, whilst Captain Theretire- _ .. , . 8 . . . . r ment. Ogilvy, already mentioned m these pages, was, under the direction of Colonel Hale, engaged in entrenching the positions covering the left rear, Sir Colin Campbell began to carry out the with- drawal. As a preliminary measure, William Peel, William Peel it/ opens fire on on the morning of that day, opened on the Kaisar the Kaisar Bagh a tremendous fire from his heavy guns. si^aiTffect. This fire continued during that day, the day fol- lowing, and the 23rd, increasing every hour in intensity. It gradually assumed the character of a bombardment. The enemy suffered enormous losses, and on the evening of the 22nd three breaches in the walls of the Kaisar Bagh invited assault. They expected it. Such, however, was The rebels not the intention of Sir Colin. The bombard- SriVunder ment had in fact been used to cover the withdrawal XSteUeo- of the women and children, sick and wounded, tation sir ii 1-i.lI Colin with- Loiio; Ix'tmv it concluded, these had reached the draws, Dilkuslm in safety. The effecting of the three breaches on the evening of the 22nd was used to carry out the retreat of the glorious garrison of Lakhnao. Whilst the rebels passed that night in devising measures to meet the assault which fchey expected on the morrow, the garrison which had so long held them at \r.\y, the veterans of 216 THE WOMEN AND CHILDREN WITHDRAWN. Book xi. Inglis's force, the victors in many fights of Have- p lock's and Outram's, began, at midnight, their re- Nov 8 22-23 tirement. The gnns which they could not carry away they rendered useless. Then, " behind the screen of Campbell's outposts, Inglis's and Have- lock's toil worn bands withdrew. Then these began also to retire ; the pickets fell back through the supports, the supports glided away between the intervals of the reserve — the reserve, when without being all had passed, silently defiled into the lane — thick darkness shrouded the movement from the gaze of the enemy — and, hours after the position had been quitted, they were firing into the abandoned posts. Hope's brigade, which had so nobly headed the advance, had also covered the retreat. Before daylight on the 23rd, the last straggler had quitted the camp at Dilkiisha." * How Hale Whilst the Commander-in-Chief was thus effect- leftTrear. & m g" the well-planned retirement, in the security gained by his skilful operations against the Kaisar Bagh, his lieutenants, Hale, Ewart, and Wells, covering his left rear, had remained occupying the positions they had gained and intrenched. During the three days of the bombardment of the Kaisar Bagh, the rebels had never relaxed their musketry fire against those positions. But they had attempted no assault. The fact that they made no attempt at all is another remarkable proof, added to the many already cited, of the scarcity of military ability amongst their leaders. For Banks's house was not only entirely sepa- * Blackwood's Magazine, October 1858. THE ARMY FALLS BACK ON THE DILKUSHA. 217 rated from the other posts, but it was garrisoned BookXi. only by fifty Sikhs, who might have been over- whelmed ere succour could have reached them. N0V28. But no such attempt was made, and Hale and Hale rejoins his lieutenants, as soon as he had ascertained that t £ D il S i J , haf the Commander-in-Chief had advanced far enough on his line of retreat, evacuated the Barracks and bungalows, and fell back on the Dilkiisha by the road which had been selected after the reconnais- sance of the 19th. They rejoined the main force at this place early on the morning of the 23rd. The re-united force remained at the Dilkiisha where the . , -,-v army halts, during that day and the ensuing night. But but does not there was no rest for officer or private. The de- tachment parties who had come up with the re- lieving force had to be distributed to their several regiments ; carriages had to be allotted : arrange- ments for the formation of the convoy of the women and children under responsible officers, had to be made. In a word, there was made on this day a reorganisation of the whole force to remain in operation as far as the Alambagh. Looking back from this place — the first halt — The cavalry. after the successful relief, I find a sincere plea- sure in paying the tribute of the historian to the splendid exertions of one arm of the service, whose place on the field of action has not yet been specifically mentioned. The storming of the Si- kandar Bagh, of the Shah Najif, of the Moti Mahal, of the bungalows adjacent to the Bar- racks, was the united work of the artillery and the infantry ; the bombardment of the Kaisar Bagh, of the artillery and the sailors. During 1857. Nov. 23. 218 DEATH OF HAVELOCK. Book xi. this time, the cavalry, ever ready, always on the alert, prompt to take advantage of every opening, had been engaged in covering advanced move- ments, in keeping up the long line of communica- tions, and in repelling the counter attacks of the enemy on the extreme right. Their leaders. Such services were necessary to the safety of the force, and, though they might be less promi- nent, they were not inferior in value to those of the other arms. The names of Little, and of Ouvry, of Probyn, of Watson, of Younghusband, and of Gough, still live in the memory of those who served under them. Haveiock Nor, when writing of the halt at the Dilkiisha, dare I omit to chronicle the one mournful event which tinged the joy of the relief. That day, Have- lock, who had been long ailing, passed away to his last home. He had lived long enough to hear that his Queen and his countrymen had appre- ciated his noble qualities, that his name had become a household word among the homes and the hearths of England. Haveiock. The life of Haveiock had been a life devoted to his profession. He had made the strict perfor- mance of duty his polar-star. Grifted with mili- tary abilities of a very high order, and conscious that he possessed those abilities, he had borne without repining the sapping torment of slow promotion and its inevitable results — employment in positions below his capacity. But every trial of Fortune had found Haveiock cheerful, resolute, and devoted. To the smallest office he gave his best abilities. And, whilst thus labouring, he had HIS CHARACTER AND CAREER. 219 striven also to prepare himself for the eventuali- Book xi. ties which were to follow. Cha £!!! IL A story is told of the famous Scot-Austrian V 185 L '' .Nov. 23. Marshal, Loudon, that when he was a major on frontier duties in Croatia, he used to spend his leisure in studying an enormous map of the Aus- trian dominions. This map he had placed on the floor of one of his rooms. His wife, jealous of this devotion, burst open one day the door of his study, and seeing Loudon on his knees tracing a parti- cular route on the map, exclaimed, in a pet, " I wonder what pleasure you can find in eter- nally studying that map?" Loudon, turning to her, replied, " Leave me alone, my dear, the knowledge I am now acquiring will be useful to me when I become a Marshal of the Empire." Not only did Loudon become a Marshal of the Empire, but he came also to be recognised as the one Austrian general whom the great Frederic respected.* Similar was the course pursued by Havelock. He studied all his life for the future. Similar, too, was the result. When the opportunity did come, he used it in a manner which electrified his contemporaries, which gained for him the confi- dence and devotion of his soldiers. His daring march from Allahabad to Kanhpiir against enemies * On one occasion after site to that on which Frederic the seven years' war, when was seated. " Come uj> here Joseph H. entertained Frede- and sit near me," called to ric at Nenstadt, in Moravia, him the latter. "I woul.l London tad modestly takes rather see you by me than a seat towards the end of opposite t<> me." the table on the Bide oppo- 220 CHARACTER AND CAREER OF HAVELOCK. Book xi. excited by the slaughter of our countrymen ; the a Z-f! splendid defiance of rule which he showed by, to Nov 5 . 7 23. effect a great end, fighting the battle of Kanhpur with a river in his rear ; the skill with which he gained it; the inspired audacity which characterised his marches into Oudh; the confidence with which he resolved at all risks to hold on to the position he had taken up at Kanhpur — a position in a mili- tary sense false, inasmuch as his communications were liable to be severed : all these deeds stamp him as a general of the very first order. He was bold and daring in conception, prompt and sudden in execution, persistent and unshaken in his re- solves. The jealousy of men in whose hands the opportunities granted to Havelock would have shattered, has attempted, since his death, to diminish his glory. But the poisoned darts have rebounded, blunted, from the iron cuirass of the warrior. His deeds speak for themselves. The incidents of that Kanhpur campaign will live, an imperishable record of his glorious qualities. The statue which adorns Trafalgar Square, whilst it will show his outward form to the generations which shall have known him not, will whet their curiosity to inquire regard- ing the early training and later deeds of one who, in a short and glorious campaign, illustrated all the qualities which combine to form a com- mander of the first rank. Havelock Havelock died on the 24th. On the morning buried at the p ,-i ri£j.l i • • • A'lambagh. ot tne Zbth, his remains were consigned to a humble grave in the Alambagh. His gallant son, the leaders who had been associated with him, THE AEMY WITHDRAWS TO ALAMBAGH. 221 Campbell, Grant, Outram, Inglis, and others, and bookXi. a crowd of officers, followed him to his last rest- Chapter IL ing place. He had fought a good n^ht : he had J-* 37 ;, , ■ L . .Nov. 24. died, as he had lived, in the performance of duty. sh-Coiinand To return. On the afternoon of the 24th, Sir ^Ict th? Colin, having made all his arrangements, marched A'lamMgh. with his men and the train of women and children whom they guarded, leaving Outram' s divison, in front of the Dilkiisha, to cover his re- tirement. That evening Sir Colin, with his long convoy, reached the Alambagh. The rebels had made no demonstration against Outram, and that officer, having received a supply of carriage from Sir Colin, fell back and rejoined his chief on the Nov - 2 5- 25th. As Outram was preparing to fall back, the rebels showed themselves for a moment — only, however, to disappear. They had not forgotten the rough lessons of the preceding days. "With the junction of the divisions of the army Freeh aistri- at the Alambagh came the necessity for making a force at°the e new distribution of it. Three matters pressed A ' lam bagh. themselves particularly on Sir Colin' s attention, viz. the safe transport of the ladies and children to Kcinhpur, the necessity of dealing with the Cwaliar mutineers, and the occupation by a suffi- cient force of the Alambagh. The second of these matters was a cause of considerable anxiety, in- asmuch as Sir Colin had for many days received no communication from General "Windham, com- manding at Kanhpiir, and it was impossible to say how circumstances had gone with him subse- quently to the 9th November. The third matter was, naturally, that first settled. 222 SIB, COLIN FALLS BACK ON KANHPUR. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. SNov. 26. Outrani ordered to remain at the A'ambagb. Sir Colin and the remain- der of the force start for Kanhpur ; Nov. 27. reaches Banni, but can hear nothing of Windham. His position should Wind ham have Sir Colin decided on the 26th that Sir James Out- ram should remain at Alambagh with a force augmented to about four thousand men of all arms, twenty-five guns and howitzers, and ten mortars. Outrani would thus occupy a position threatening Lakhuao, and would retain it till the Commander- in-Chief, having placed his convoy in safety and disposed of the Grwaliar mutineers, should return, to act offensively against the city of Lakhnao. To maintain the communication with Kanhpur, a post at the Banni bridge, up to that time occu- pied by the wing of a Madras native regiment and two guns, was strengthened by a detachment of European troops. Having made this disposition on the 26th, Sir Colin set out for Kanhpur at 11 a.m. on the 27th. He had with him about three thousand men, in- cluding the wasted remnant of the 32nd Regi- ment, and the few survivors of the native pen- sioners who had responded to the call of Sir Henry Lawrence. Under the convoy of the troops, were the ladies, the children, the sick, and the wounded, numbering altogether about two thousand, and the treasure which had been rescued from Lakhnao. That same evening Sir Colin encamped at the Banni bridge. In reply to an inquiry as to whether any communi- cation had been received from Kanhpur, the officer there commanding reported that not only had he heard a cannonade during that day, but during the day previous also. This information was of an alarming nature. If Windham had been overwhelmed, the rebels ALARMING REPORTS ON THE ROAD. 223 would certainly have destroyed the bridge of Boor XL boats, and the British army would be cut off from Chapter IL its own provinces, which for the moment would 185 J- be in the power of the rebels. There was nothing beenTver- for it but to press on with the utmost expedition. whol,1UHl - Early on the following morning, the force pressed onward. " At every step the sound of a heavy and distant cannonade became more distinct ; but A cannonade mile after mile was passed over, and no news ILdiHtance. could be obtained." * Just before noon, how- ever, a native who had been concealed behind a hedge, ran forward, and delivered a missive to the Staff at the head of the advance guard. " He had a small rolled-up letter in the Greek charac- ter, addressed ' Most urgent, to General Sir Rer Colin Campbell, or any officer commanding impending troops on the Lakhnao road.' The letter was wiilai ,!,'■','.' dated two days previously, and said that unless unless he affairs shortly took a favourable turn, the troops relieved! 3 would have to retire into the intrenchment ; that the fighting had been most severe ; and that the enemy were very powerful, especially in artillery. It concluded by expressing a hope that the Com- mander-in-Chief would therefore see the necessity of pushing to their assistance with the utmost speed, "f The information contained in this note con- verted into certainty the impressions which t i i < • sound of the cannonade had produced. It deepened * Blackwood's Mntjuziif. stati-'l thai he received throe f A Lecture on the Relief notes in succession, vidt Bour- qf Luchnow, by Colonel II. cider's Eight tifonthe' Cam- W. Norman, 0.13. Sir Colin paign. 224 SIR OOLIN TRESSES ON. Book XI. Chapter II. 1857. Nov. 28. The scene that followed described by an eye- witness. The tension too great for Sir Colin ; he announces his approach by salvoes ; then gallops on with his the anxiety of the leaders, the impatience of the troops. The scene that followed has thus been painted by an eye-witness : — * " The impatience and anxiety of all became extreme. Louder and louder grew the roar — faster and faster became the march — long and weary was the way — tired and footsore grew the infantry — death fell on the exhausted wounded with terrible rapidity — the travel-worn bearers could hardly stagger along under their loads — the sick men groaned and died — but still on, on, on, was the cry." After progressing in the usual order for a short time, the tension became too great for Sir Colin. Leaving the infantry to march on with the con- voy, he pressed forward with the cavalry and horse artillery. On reaching Mangalwar, about five miles on the Lakhnao side of the Ganges, he halted his troops, directed the artillery to fire salvoes to announce the approach of assistance, and galloped forward with his staff, in mingled hope and fear regarding the condition in which he might find the bridge of boats. As he approached the river, a glance dissipated every doubt on this head. Through the glimmering light, for evening had set in, the bridge was seen to be intact. Flames rising in every direction, mingling with the light of the setting sun, showed that the enemy must have taken the city and a large part of the canton- ments ; that the tents intended for the ladies and children, the sick and wounded from Lakhnao, and the stores of clothing intended for the de- * Blackwood's Magazine, October 1858. i 4 AND CROSSES THE BRIDGE INTO KANHPUR. 22~> fenders of the Residency, must have been de- bookxi. stroyed; whilst the artillery fire occasionally /ia ^ directed at the bridge, and the musketry fire near N( \ s \V S the river bank, proved that a sharp crisis was has a glimpse impending. In a word, to use the language of ° gt g r e an officer on Sir Colin' s staff, " the veil which had so Ions: shrouded us from Windham was rent asunder, and the disaster stood before us in all its calamity." * What that disaster was, and how it came about, ;is h<- gaiiopa will form the theme of the next chapter. I leave bridge into Sir Colin and his staff galloping, on the dusky p " evening of the 28th November, across the bridge, the preservation of which might yet enable him to repair the evil that had been accomplished. * Blackwood's Magazine, October 1858. II. I.", 226 BOOR XI. Kanhpur. Detailed instructions given to General Windham, CHAPTER III. In the preceding chapter I mentioned that when, on the 9th November, Sir Colin left Kanhpur to join his army in the plain beyond Banni, he had left at that station about five hundred Euro- peans and a few Sikhs under the command of Major-General C. A. Windham. On the 6th No- vember, in a memorandum addressed to that officer, he had directed him to occupy and improve the intrenchment which had been constructed on the river ; to keep a careful watch over the move- ments of the Gwaliar force ; to send into Oudh, unless he should be seriously threatened, by de- tachments of wings, any European infantry that might arrive ; but to detain, if he should think fit, the brigade of Madras native troops, expected the following day, until the intentions of the Grwaliar contingent expected to arrive at Kalpi on the 9th, should become developed. In case of any pronounced movement towards Kanhpur on the part of that force General Windham was directed to make as great a show as possible of EXPLICIT INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN TO WINDHAM. 227 the troops at his disposal by encamping them con- Booi xi. spieuously and in extended order in advance of L1 '"'" or 11L the intrenchment, which, however, was to be suf- v u r> ■ r\ NOT. 9-28. ficientl}' guarded. On no account was lie to move out to attack, unless compelled to do so by force of circumstances, in order to save the intrench- ment from being bombarded. It is a proof alike of the careful supervision which Sir Colin Campbell exercised over the generals subordinate to him, but placed in inde- pendent command, and of the anxious attention which he devoted to that particular position, that, two days later, he sent to General Windham a nipple- second memorandum, in which he entered in full T',-Z'a uZZ,. detail into the possibilities before that officer. 1: "" 1 "" 1 f»tii] _, „ , _. , more in .h very movement of the Gwahar troops was pro- detail. vided for; the corresponding action of General Windham was defined; and the retention of cer- tain troops and the despatch into Oudh of others were again insisted on. era! Windham prepared at once to carry oul Windham the directions of the ( 'ommander-in-Chief in their .','!,'* most i — ntial point. The rendering the in- BirCohVi 1 _ oroi fcrenchmenl Becure against any attack was thai int. The intrenchmenl guarded, though it did n<>t absolutely protect, the pas of the river, the commissariat stores, and two of the hospitals. Windham, then, at once took tneasur to clear the glacis and the country beyond it, to extend and ben I he \\ orks, and to t rain men to work the guns. For the intrenchmenl be Lrtnieryai had nine guns worked l»y a detaohmenl of llir Naval Brigade. Si\ field guns were to arrive with ]:, * 228 THE GROUND BETWEEN KALPI AND KANHPUR. Book XL Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. Tantia Topi arrives at Kalpi. The country between Kalpi and Kanhpur. the Madras force on the 10th. He had, besides, two 9-pounders and one 24-pounder howitzer, with ammunition in their waggons. But there being no gunners attached to these guns, Windham set to work to train some Sikh soldiers for that purpose. Meanwhile, Tantia Topi was preparing to esta- blish his claim to generalship. Well served by his agents, Tantia had received very minute and very timely information regarding the move- ments of Sir Colin Campbell. He arrived with the revolted Gwaliar contingent at Kalpi on the 9th November. Kalpi lies on the right bank of the river Jamna, forty-six miles south-west from Kanhpur. The direct road between the two places ran through the villages of Bhognipiir and Su- chandi. From Suchandi to Kanhpur the distance is fourteen miles, the road being intersected at the fourth milestone by the Pandu rivulet, at the eighth by the Ganges canal. Another line, which led to positions a little to the north-east of Kanh- pur, must now be referred to. Leaving Kalpi, and passing through Bhognipiir, this road, just about midway from the latter to Suchandi, branches off to Akbarpur. Thence, running nearly north, it touches the Pandu rivulet at Sheoli, and then, taking a turn to the north-west, crosses at a distance of four miles the Ganges canal, and prolonging itself for two miles, reaches the village of Skeorajpiir on the grand trunk road about three miles from Serai Ghat on the Ganges, and twenty-one miles north-west of Kanhpur. To march on Kanhpur, Tantia had first to cross TANTIA TOPI OCCUPIES THAT GEOUND. 229 the Jamna. There was no one to oppose the i { ""k KL passage. He had left at Jalaon his treasure and '' '' " impedimenta. Kalpi he garrisoned with three ^J 8 ?, 7 ^ thousand men and twenty guns. Then, on the pians and 10th, he crossed the Jamna, The passage effected, ^S^° Tantia, determined not to make too decided a ma,li1, '■'• demonstration until Sir Colin Campbell should have absolutely committed himself to the relief of Lakhnao, and hoping that the rebel troops there would find means to detain him at least the time necessary for the perfect carrying out of his own scheme, moved slowly forward with about six thousand men and eighteen guns to Bhogni- pur. Leaving here one thousand two. hundred He occupies men and four guns, he advanced by Akbarpur to points be- Sheoli and Sheorajpur, occupying the first-named Km?*!?" place with two thousand men and six guns, Sheoli JamnAj with the same number and four guns, and Sheo- rajpur with one thousand men and four gun-. These operations, beginning about the 10th November, were completed about the L9th. Their effect was completely to sever the communications '' - / / -ii i i ''"' r " ,u - between Kanhpur with the wot and north-west — mnxuoationa the country on which it had been mainly dependenl ^l,^^.,,,,, for it- supplies. 'pp 1 ^ Windham had been neither blind uor indifferenl Effect of to the movements of the enemy. Ee was duly T: """ . , , . , ' movements informed of the passage OI the .Jamna and the on Windham. occupation of positions reaching to the Gangi . some twenty miles to the north-wesl of his posi- tion. What did this movement forebode ? Some though! that, the march on the Ganges mi m pru- dent distance from Kanhpur indicated an intent ion 230 WINDHAM EECEIVES AN ACCESSION OF FORCE, Book XI. Chapter III. 1857. ■ Nov. 9-28. He divines the reasons which actuate the rebel leader. Communi- cates to Sir Colin the enemy's movements. Eeceives per mission to detain Euro- pean troops. Brigadier Carthew arrives ; to cross unmolested into Oudh to act there on the rear of Sir Colin Campbell. Windham was not of this opinion. Crediting Tantia Topi with merely natural acuteness, he could not believe that he had any other intention but that of taking advantage of Sir Colin' s absence to crush him at Kanhpur. He believed, in fact, that Tantia would act as a general in his position ought to act. Yet, believing this, convinced of it, he had still those positive and reiterated orders of the Com- mander-in-Chief which required him to forward into Oudh by detachments of wings of regiments the European troops as they should arrive. General Windham, whilst obeying these instruc- tions, made an urgent representation to Sir Colin Campbell, informing him of the disquieting reports he was daily receiving regarding the movements of the Gwaliar contingent, and re- questing permission to retain such troops as he might consider absolutely necessary for the defence of the place. Pending a reply, he con- tinued to forward the arriving detachments to- wards Lakhnao. On the evening of the 14th November the 'required permission arrived. On the morning of that day the Madras brigade, commanded by Bri- gadier Carthew, had marched into Kanhpur. It was but a shadow of its former self. One of the regiments of which it had been composed, the 17th Native Infantry, had been left, by superior orders, at Fathpiir, to maintain the communica- tion between Allahabad and Kanhpur. Carthew AND DISPLAYS HIS TROOPS. 231 brought with him, then, only the wing of one Book XL native regiment, the 27th, four 9-pounders, manned by natives, and two manned by Euro- ^ l v 85 J: 2 ^ peans. Between this date and the 26th the force i s followed by was increased by successive companies or drafts Jf E^ p e e ^ of the 34th, 82nd, 88th Regiments, of the Rifle regiments. Brigade, and by the remaining wing of the 27th Madras Native Infantry. But the course of the narrative will show that not all of these were retained. Windham was now more at ease. On the 17th, Windham . . ill j T, takes up a following the instructions he had received, ne position west took up a position beyond and to the west of ofth8to,ni ' the town, near the junction of the Dehli and Kalpi roads, and encamped there. This camp, composed of detachments from the 34th, 82nd, 88th, and Rifle Brigade, and of the right wing of the Madras Native Regiment, the 27th, with six guns, was placed under the command of Brigadier Carthew. Windham thus entirely followed out his orders, making a show of his troops, encamp- and displays ° , i his troops. ing them conspicuously, at the same time that lie covered the town and with it the buildings between the town and the intrenchment, some of which had been prepared for the reception of the Lakhnao ladies, and in others of which supplies had been stored. Matters so continued till the 20th. On that date Windham had become aware of the move- ment of the Gwaliar contingent I have already described, and of their occupation of strong posi- tion* stretching from Kalpi to Sheorajpur. Nor w;is tins alL Up to the L9th he had received in- ,„,„ u „i, the 232 DIFFICULTIES OF HIS POSITION. Book XL Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. Commander- in-Chief ceases. Windham learns that the Banni bridge has been sur- prised. He de- spatches troops to re- occupy that bridge. Windham is thoroughly aware of the difficulties and danger of his position. telligence of the successful attacks made by the Commander-in-Chief on the Sikandarbagh and the Shah Najif. But from that date all commu- nications from Lakhnao, even from the Alambagh, ceased; while, to add to his perplexity, he re- ceived, on the 22nd, information that the enemy had surprised and defeated the police force stationed to guard the Banni bridge, on the high road to Lakhnao ! The occupation of the Banni bridge by the rebels might, if permitted to continue, lead to fatal consequences ; for Windham could not know how, since the 19th, it had fared with Sir Colin Campbell. It was quite possible, with thirty thousand still unconquered rebels in Lakhnao, that he might yet have to fight hard for it. Under these circumstances the conduct of Windham was marked by great judgment and great self-denial. Not caring to consider, in the presence of this possibly great danger, that Tantia Topi and his trained soldiers were pressing upon him, he deli- berately diminished his force to re-open the com- munications with Lakhnao. At 3 o'clock on the morning of the 23rd the right wing of the 27th Madras Native Infantry, with two 9-pounder guns manned by Europeans, marched, by his orders, to re-occupy the Banni bridge. Notwithstanding the permission he had received, and on which he had acted, to detain at Kanhpiir the European troops who might arrive, Windham had felt from the first that the showy position he had, in obedience to orders, taken up beyond the city, would in no way defend Kanhpiir in case of HE PEOPOSES A PLAN OF AGGEESSIYE DEFENCE. 233 a serious attack. Under no circumstances could b° ok x J- t i l • n Chapter III. he prevent the enemy from bombarding the bridge with their heavy guns. The extent of the posi- No v 8 g-28. tion, too, would prevent its proper defence with even the larger number of troops at his disposal, while, in the event, almost certain were he attacked seriously, of having to fall back on the intrenchment, the city and the houses I have spoken of would fall into the enemy's hands. With respect to the intrenchment, it should be borne in mind, that though Windham had done much to strengthen it, it was not, in a military sense, defensible. Windham was a brave and adventurous soldier. ^^Xfa His position not being, in point of fact, defensible, plan of ag - he asked himself whether an aggressive defence defend might not present better chances of success. Thinking the matter over, he devised a scheme which he was prepared to carry out, and, on the very day on which he had taken up the position at the junction of the Dehli and Kalpi roads — the 17th Xovember — he transmitted this scheme to Lakhnao to obtain for its execution the sanction of the Commander-in-Chief. This scheme was based on the honoured prin- *£™ e o{ the ciple of taking advantage of the separation from each other of the enemy's posts and of destroying them in detail. The enemy had taken up posi- tions, as already stated, at Bhognipiir, Akbarpur, Sheoli, and Sheorajpur. Between the two last- named villages at the distances of fchree miles and two miles (lowed the Ganges canal. Windham conceived the idea of transporting one thousand 234 POSTS HIMSELF ON THE KALPI ROAD. Book XL Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. Receiving no reply from Sir Colin, he takes up a position on the Kalpi road. The rebels accept his challenge, two hundred men in the night by this canal, taking his guns along the towing-path, and falling upon one or other of the positions (Sheoli or Sheoraj- pur), overwhelming it, always able to fall back on Kanhpiir before the enemy from Akbarpiir could reach it. To the request containing this plan Windham received no answer. The roads were closed. Meanwhile he had simply maintained his position and had sent off troops, as already mentioned, to regain the Banni bridge. But he had every day fresh causes for disquietude. The very day that he had heard of the defeat of the police force at the Banni bridge information reached him that rebels were crossing over from Oudh to swell the ranks of Tantia Topi's force. It was necessary to take some decisive step. He hesitated to attempt a plan so opposed to his instructions as the canal- plan without special sanction. But something must be done. Windham knew, from his reading, from his instincts, from conversation with officers experienced in Indian warfare, that the most cer- tain mode of defeating an Asiatic enemy is to march straight against him. At half past 8 o'clock on the morning of the 24th, then, he broke up his camp, and marching six miles south- westward, took up a position close to the bridge by which the road to Kalpi crosses the canal. The position was comparatively strong, for his entire front was covered by the canal, and he was still nearer to the intrenchment than the enemy. The Gwaliar troops, noting Windham's forward movement, regarded it as a challenge. They ac- PREPAEES TO ATTACK THE ADVANCING REBELS. 235 cepted it. That very day the detachment at Book xi. Akbarpiir set out for Suchandi. Between this a L!l village and the canal, about midway, runs the ^J 8 ^. Pandu rivulet. The rebels reached Suchandi and march to on the 24th; the banks of the Pandu on the the Mndu - 25th. As soon as information of this movement reached Brigadier Carthew he despatched a special messenger with it to the General. Windham at once galloped to the camp, and reached Carthew' s tent a little after midnight — during the first hour of the 26th. Windham at once made his plans. Dividing ^SSTto his force into two brigades, he placed Carthew at attack them. the head of the first, composed of the 88th Con- naught Rangers, four companies of the 2nd bat- talion Rifle Brigade, and four 6-pounder guns, manned by natives. The second brigade, consist- ing of the 34th Regiment, four companies of the 82nd, and four 9-pounder guns, drawn by bullocks and manned by Europeans and Sikhs, he gave to Colonel Kelly of the 34th. Windham had also nt his disposal one hundred native troopers and ten men of the 9th Lancers. With this force he determined to take the initiative the following morning. His plan was to deal the most advanced division of the enemy a heavy blow ; then, return- ing to his base, repeat, should occasion offer, the same tactics on another portion of their force. Before daylight of the 26th, Windham, having Herecon- J o ' Doitre8, taken precautions to guard his baggage, to pro- tect the- can ;il bridge, and to observe the enemy on the Bide of Sheorajpiir, rode forward to recon- noitre. He found the rebels posted beyond the 236 SUCCESS OF CARTHEW AND KELLY. Book XL Chapter III. 1S57. Nov. 9-28. and advances to the attack. Carthew silences the enemy's fire, and Kelly, pushing on the 34th, captures their guns. Windham marches back to the city, but threat- ened by the enemy's cavalry, Pandu rivulet, then nearly dry. They numbered about two thousand five hundred infantry, five hundred cavalry, and they had six guns of large calibre. Windham at once sent back orders for his troops to advance. The order was at once obeyed. Carthew led forward his brigade from the right, the men of the Rifle Brigade leading in skirmishing order. The enemy were seen in masses in front of a large tope of trees, but as the skirmishers ap- proached they moved to their right. This move- ment completed, their guns in the tope opened a very heavy fire. The balls passed over the skirmishers and fell right into the 88th, who were following them, knocking over many officers and men. Carthew brought his guns into position as quickly as possible, and opening upon the enemy, silenced their fire, whereupon Kelly, from the position on the left, led the 34th at the guns, and captured three of them (two 8-inch iron how- itzers and one 6-pound er gun). Such, in brief, was the story of the main fight. I may add, that prior to Colonel Kelly's attack, a portion of his regiment had repulsed a charge of the enemy's cavalry. These did not appear again until later in the day, but it will be seen that they then made their presence felt. The capture of the guns was followed by the flight of the enemy, who were pursued for some distance. Windham then drew off his troops and marched back towards the city. This retrograde movement inspired the enemy w r ith courage, and their cavalry, coming to the front, became so inso- lent that Windham halted and deployed his ASTUTE STRATEGY OF THE REBEL LEADER. 237 troops. It was no part of their game, however, C h°°t e ^ni to attack our men in the open, so they again drew — off. Windham then marched his force to a new Nov. 9-28. position near the town across the Kalpi road, takes up a _ „ i • l i *i a new position immediately m front ot some brick-kilns. A across the letter from the Commander-in-Chief's camp had Kalpi road - reached him to the effect that all was well, and that the army was marching towards Kanhpur. Windham hoped, then, that the blow he had inflicted that day might serve as a deterrent to the enemy at least till the Commander-in-Chief should arrive. Their loss had been severe ; his own amounted to ninety-two killed and wounded. But the leader of a rebel army was no fool. The Tdntia ? J °Fi •J _ perceiving blow dealt by Windham, far from frightening Windham's him, had disclosed to his astute mind the weak- resolves to ness of the British leader. A force, completely attack him ' victorious, does not as a rule fall back beyond even the position it had occupied before the action had commenced ; nor, in falling back, does it allow itself to be threatened with impunity by the troops it had defeated. But these things had happened to the little army of Windham. It had been victorious on the field — a fact proved by the capture of three of the enemy's guns. But the necessities of his position had forced Windham, after his victory, to fall back, threatened by the enemy's horse, to a position nearer to the city than that he had occupied before the battle. Tantia Topi read the necessities of Windham's position as he would have read an open book, and, with llif instincts of a real general, he resolved to take advantage of them. 238 THE KEBELS ATTACK WINDHAM. book xi. Far, then, from allowing "Windham the respite of twenty-four hours which would, that general Nov?9-28. hoped, bring the Commander-in-Chief to his aid, in front and Tantia Topi directed that portion of his force which had engaged at Suchandi the previous day to stand at their arms at daybreak, ready for a forward movement, but to withhold that move- ment until the detachments at Sheoli and Sheo- rajpiir, which would march in the night, should open fire on the right flank of the British. That fire was to be the signal for a general attack. Windham, Meanwhile, Windham, hoping much from the the defensive, blow he had delivered the previous day, had not the less prepared for possible eventualities. His troops stood to their arms at daybreak. But, as there were neither signs of an enemy, nor any certain information as to his movements, they were dis- missed, at 9 o'clock, to their breakfasts. The General, after partaking of his morning meal, ordered up two 24-pounder guns, drawn by bul- locks, and manned by seamen of the Shannon, and then went to reconnoitre. The aspect of affairs evidently did not satisfy him, for at 11 o'clock he sent down to the camp an order for the whole force to stand to their arms. An hour later, just as the British gun in the intrenchment fired the is attacked at mid-day signal, he rode into camp. He had scarcely arrived when a heavy cannonade was opened on the right flank of the British. Almost simultaneously a shell exploded over the trees in their front. It was evident that an attack in force had begun on all points. Cool and prompt in action, Windham at once windham's dispositions to repel it. 239 directed Brigadier Carthew, with the 34th, two book xi. companies of the 82nd, and four 6-pounder guns, to take up and hold a position on the right, de- nov^s fending the approaches to the town by the Bithor He detaches road. Carthew at once moved off, detaching the repuiseThe* 34th to occupy some gardens on the left of his enemy on Mb position, throwing some fifty men of the 82nd into some ruined huts on its right, and covering the guns in the centre with the remainder of the two companies of that regiment. As his brigade, so to call it, was marching to the points indi- cated, the enemy opened fire upon it at a long range. But so effective was the reply from the Carthew suc- L J 7 . ceeds. 6-pounders and Ennelds, so steady and continuous their fire, that the rebels ceased their attack on that side. In the front, forming: the extreme left of Windham's '. & front, or left, his position, Windham had not been so fortu- position. nate. He had there five companies of the 2nd battalion Rifle Brigade, the 88th Regiment, two 9-pounder guns, and two 24-pounder howitzers, and two 24-pounder guns manned by seamen of the Shannon. To the right of this position, in a wood midway between it and that occupied by Carthew, was posted the main body of the 82nd. Windham placed the guns in the centre of his position, supporting them by the Rifle Brigade and the 88th on either flank. Before the first gun had been fired, he proceeded himself to the right to watch the attack in that quarter, leaving the left brigade in charge of Colonel Walpole of the Rifle Brigade. The 24-pounder guns were then 240 windham's left is forced back. Book XI. Chapter III. 1857. Xov. 9-28. The great superiority of the rebels in artillery makes itself felt. Finding his position un- tenable, Windham falls back on the brick- kilns, pushed to the front to within sight of the enemy.* The enemy on sighting them, fired the first shot from a gun they had placed on the road. The British guns at once replied, but they had not fired two rounds when the rebels opened fire with grape and canister from batteries in front and on the right flank of Windham's position. So superior, from their immense superiority in the number of guns, was their fire, that Wind- ham, on his return, an hour later, from the right brigade, found that his men were getting all the worst of it. The rebel leader, with great judg- ment, kept back his infantry, and fought Wind- ham with his artillery alone. The advantage he derived from his greatly superior numbers was enormous, for they enabled him to form a semi- circle round the British position. Any attempt on the part of Windham to break through this semicircle at any point would have placed it in the power of the rebel leader to lap over and overwhelm his far inferior force. Windham used all the means in his power to make head against the enemy. Their flanking fire he attempted to silence by turning upon it one of the 24-pounders worked by the men of the Shannon. But all would not do. The position was not tenable against an enemy superior in number and who fought only with their guns. To add to his misfortunes, the bullock-drivers, not liking the prospect, deserted as fast as they could, and, as a final blow, ammunition began to run short. Orders were accordingly given to fall back * The Shannon's Brigade in India, page 36. THE REBELS PURSUE WINDHAM. 241 on the brick-kilns, a little to the left of the posi- book xi. tion Windham had taken up on the night of the 26th. Windham at the same time sent for the No * 8 9 7, 28 34th to reinforce him, and directed Carthew, by and orders an order twice repeated, to fall back also on the £^r e todo brick-kilns.* Carthew, meanwhile, had held the position on Before this, ' it- t Windham had the right, and with the force at his disposal he reinforced his probably could have held it. But, at this mo- sVi^take^r ment, Windham, to protect his retiring move- ^™ Car " ment, sent for the bulk of the 34th. This regi- ment, which had covered itself with glory by its repulse of the enemy, was accordingly sent to re- inforce the left brigade. It found that brigade in considerable disorder. The two big guns had been for the moment abandoned, and the men were falling back disheartened. The 34th came up in f^iiam ° . . li' f a Us back. time to take the initiative m dashing at the big guns, and, with the aid of the sailors, in bringing them on with the retreating column. But the retiring movement had served as a Tjjeenemy signal for the enemy to advance. They crowded on in numbers, firing their guns. The English fell back, confused and in disorder, on the brick-kilns. Here it was hoped a stand might be made. It was now 5 o'clock, and Windham, thinking the posi- Windham • i i i i n -i • (• gallops to the tion now readied might be held, and anxious tor right, the condition of the right brigade, weakened by the withdrawal of the 34th, left General Dupuis, * Windham stated subse- 1ml the e the order to Dupuis to fall back on the intrench- *£*■»***« ment. This movement had been just begun when Windham, riding towards the force after the ex- Windham ploit just recorded, personally directed Carthew treason the to take two companies of the 88th and his four mtrenchment » 6-pounders, to return to the position he had va- n^thT^ cated on the right, and on reaching the Bithor defend his road, to fall back on and occupy the theatre. This building lay about a quarter of a mile south of the intrenchment, and was filled with stores and clothing for the troops. Whilst the main body, abandoning tents and the soldiers' kits, fell back on the intrenchment, " pursued by the enemy and harassed by mus- ketry," * Carthew moved to the right to execute Carthew Windham's latest order. Between the suburb right" t0the through which he had to pass and the Bithor road were the abandoned lines of a native regiment. On debouching from the suburb, ho saw the enemy's skirmishers feeling their way down the road toward the int lvnchinent. They were ex- posing their righl flank to Carthew, but the mo- ment they saw him they fell back in Boldier-like VA. Sktmnon's Brigade eur kit and encampment, in India, page '■'><>■ A private which we saw burning during Letter from .i Boldier of the the night." ■ ', it b ■ They \>» penetrate on his right. Winn, after the evil had bo \';\r worked its effect as to necessitate the order to Dupuis to fall buck, Windham attempted to repair it by 246 THE NIGHT THAT FOLLOWED. Book XI. Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. The night that followed. Windham issues in- structions for the morrow. Line of de- fence en- trusted to Walpole, sending back Carthew to his old position, Carthew did, indeed, by a display of skill and daring, prevent the mischief from becoming irremediable. But the position at the brick-kilns, which might have been maintained, had to be abandoned and the town to be sacrificed. The night passed quietly. The British, that is to say, were not assailed. But the glare of the flames, and the tumult outside their position, pro- claimed the triumph of the rebels. A great anxiety reigned within the British lines. Windham passed the night in consultation with the officers he most trusted. At one time he hoped to be able to redeem the past by a night attack on the rebels, but he could obtain no trustworthy information as to the locality of the enemy's guns. Nothing re- mained to him, then, but to make the best prepa- rations to repel the renewed attack to be expected on the morrow. That night Windham issued to the senior offi- cers of his force the instructions for carrying out the plan upon which, after mature consideration, he had decided. To Colonel Walpole — command- ing five companies of the Rifle Brigade under Lieutenant- Colonel Woodford, two companies of the 82nd Regiment under Lieutenant-Colonel Wat- son, and four guns — two 9-pounders manned by Madras gunners, and two 24-pounder howitzers manned by Sikhs, under Lieutenant Green, R.A. — he confided the defence of the advanced portion of the town on the left bank of the canal, that is, the portion in the left rear of the brick-kilns separated from them and from the rest of the DISPOSITION OF THE BRITISH FORCE. 247 town by the canal ; to Brigadier Carthew — having Book xi. under him the 34th commanded by Lieutenant- l __ Colonel Kelly, the flank companies of the 82nd, N ov 8 9-28 and the four Madras 6-pounders under Lieutenant to Carthew, Chamier — the defence of the Bithor road, in a position more advanced than, and a little to the right of, that occupied the previous day. The intrench men t was entrusted to the care of the 64th under Brigadier N. Wilson, who was also to guard to Wilson, against a turning movement on the right by esta- blishing a post at the Baptist Chapel; whilst Windham himself, having under him the 88th towindham Regiment commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Maxwell, should defend the portion of the town nearest the Ganges, on the left bank of the canal. Before the action has begun, the impartial reader Dispropor- cannot but be struck by the disproportionate force allotted to allotted to Brigadier Carthew. That officer had <£*£?££* to defend the key of the position. He had proved tion - his capacity the day before ; and yet to him, oc- cupying the post which was certain to draw upon him the weight of the enemy's attack, a force was assigned not larger than that given to Walpole, whose position was far more defensible. At daylight on the 28th the several movements indicated took effect. Carthew pushed across Carthew, the bridge he had barricaded the previous evening vanoing.is with the 34th and guns, covering his flanks with g^E^dd? the two companies of the 82nd. He had just fond the reached the point al which the road turned off to the position he was to occupy a little to the right, win 'ii tin; Assistant Quartermaster-General, 248 CAETHEW's SUCCESSFUL DEFENCE. Book XI. Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. Captain Stewart. Successful defence offered by Carthew. Captain M'Crea, brought him a,n order from the General to fall back on to the bridge. This position, then, Carthew took up, covering his left with two companies, occupying with three the ruined houses in the front and on the flanks of the bridge, and keeping the remainder at the bridge. The de- tached party on the right consisted of one com- pany of the 34th commanded by Captain Stewart. The house it occupied was a lofty building with a flat roof, and from this roof Stewart noticed the advance of the enemy's artillery to a position whence their guns could bear with decisive effect on the bridge. A zealous, intrepid officer, beloved by the regiment, Stewart posted his men in posi- tions whence they could pick off the enemy's gunners. They succeeded in this task beyond their hopes, in spite of the grape and round shot which came pouring upon them. This state of thing's continued for more than two hours, from half-past 9 o'clock till noon, the enemy pouring in shot and shell, the 34th and 82nd replying with musketry, and Chamier's two small guns* doing all the mischief of which they were capable. The enemy made no way, but their artillery fire did considerable execution, and though they, too, suf- fered severely from the British fire, their immense superiority in numbers enabled them to fill up vacancies as they occurred. This was the state of affairs on the right at 12 o'clock. On the leftWalpole had received the * The other two had been sarily, to defend the Allah- withdrawn, most unneces- abad road. SUCCESS OF TVINDHAH ON THE LEFT. 249 attack of the enemy. But the enemy's attack on Book xl , P1 , „ , i 1 -. -> • p Chapter III. the left bank of the canal, though made in torce and with great resolution, was but the adjunct to No ^ 8 |_2 8 . his main attack on the right. The left advanced Success of position was not the decisive point of the scene the f e ° ft e on of action, yet on this point the British were posted in numbers sufficient to beat back the enemy ; and though Windham from his post to Criticisms on the rear of them sent and brought up supports, conduct at those supports were not required to ensure the ^ s e . conjunc " repulse of the enemy, for Walpole had achieved that result without them.* A real general, having under his command in reserve a fine British regi- ment such as was the 88th, seeing that Walpole was able to hold his own, would at once have hurried to the scene of action, which the lay of the ground and the importance of the position to be gained there must have shown him to be the decisive scene. The stores, clothing, and impedimenta of all sorts were on the side which Cartliew was defending — not where Walpole was successfully fighting. But Windham did not possess the coii/i d'oeil Bfe sends an of a general. Instead of hurrying to the support carthewto of Carthew, he despatched to him, at 12 o'clock, advance > his Assistant Quartermaster-General, Captain M'Crea, to direct him to advance once again up * " On the left advance, pounder guns. The glory of Colonel Walpole, with the this well-contested fight belongs Rifles, supported bj Captain entirely l" the above-named Greene's battery, and pari of companies and artillery." — the 82nd Regiment, achieved < teneraJ Windham's I despatch, ,, complete victory over the 30th November 1867. The enemy, and captured two 18- italics arc mine. 250 CARTHEW IS ORDERED TO ADVANCE. Book XI. Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. and to Wilson. The ground on which they were to act. Carthew ad- vances. Impossibility of further progress without cavalry. the road, and promising him that the 64th Regi- ment under Brigadier N. Wilson would make a parallel advance on his right. To cover this movement of the 64th, M'Crea took with him to strengthen that regiment, forty men of a company of the 82nd, till then under Carthew' s orders. That the reader may more clearly comprehend the movements which followed, I may here state that after crossing the bridge the road runs up the centre of a parade-ground about six hun- dred yards long and two hundred yards wide, traversed by a watercourse, and having houses on both sides of it. On the advance being sounded, the three companies which till then had occupied the ruined buildings in front and on the flanks of the bridge pushed across the plain in skirmish- ing order, in spite of a continual shower of grape from three guns posted at the further end of it. When within about one hundred yards of these, Captain Stewart, who was leading his men in splendid style, was shot through the thigh. The adjutant of the 34th, Leeson, at once supplied his place, but the fire from the front and from the buildings on either side was so hot that it was impossible to reach the guns. To gain breath the men lay down in the water- course of which I have spoken, whilst Carthew, mounted, in the middle of the parade-ground, endeavoured to collect a sufficient number of men to make a rush at the enemy. But, crippled by the paucity of his numbers — a paucity caused by the necessity of guarding his left flank — his efforts in this respect were fruitless. He was WILSON, ON HIS EIGHT, IS REPULSED. 251 more successful, however, in causing Chamier's Book xi. two guns to be brought to the front. These, un- ia ^!i ' limbering, replied to the enemy's fire; and, splen- n^ 85 ^ didly served by the Madras gunners, in the course of twenty minutes not only silenced it, but com- pelled the enemy to withdraw their pieces. Then was the chance if Carthew had but had one squadron of horse at his disposal. He had not a single trooper ; and just at the moment he dis- covered that Wilson's attack on his right had failed and that his right rear was threatened by the rebels. Captain M'Crea, taking with him forty men of wilson . being the 82nd, had directed Brigadier Wilson to move to the front parallel with Carthew. The two companies covered the advance, harassed by a fire from six guns in position in their immediate front.* When w T ithin about a hundred yards of these guns the skirmishers charged them and for a few minutes had them in possession. Unfor- tunately the main body were too far behind, and the rebels, recovering from their first panic, came exposes Car- 1 i • i -i , , • thew's right. on in overwhelming numbers, and cut to pieces many of the heroic band of skirmishers. There fell bere Brigadier Wilson, Captain M'Crea, Captain Morphy, Major Sterling, Lieutenant McKenna, * General Windham writes which he advanced were thus in his despatch : " Bri- nearly half a mile from the gadier Wilson thought proper, guns in front of Carthew's prompted by his zeal for the troops. They were, as stated service, to lead his regiment in the text, covering the line against four guns placed in upon which Windham himself fn.ni <»f Brigadier Carthew." had, by the mouth of M'Crea, Brigadier Wilson did nothing ordered Wilson to advance, of the sort, The guns upon 252 CARTHEW FALLS BACK ON THE BRIDGE. Book XL Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. Criticisms on Windham's conduct at this conjunc- ture. Carthew falls back to his old position, now scarcely defensible, but which he still bravely defends. Lieutenant Gibbins, all nobly fighting. The sup- ports came up only in time to cover the retreat of the few survivors. Windham had thus engaged, without sup- ports, his entire right wing on the decisive point of the scene of action. The available supports were in his own hand on a side part of action, never intended by the enemy to be the decisive scene. The advance in parallel lines on the right, ordered by himself, had, owing to one of those accidents always likely to occur in war, failed. Carthew had indeed repulsed the enemy, but he had no men to follow him up. The 64th had been repulsed, and their repulse endangered Carthew' s right. Now was the moment when supports would have been in- valuable. They might even have changed the face of the day. His right rear threatened — for the 64th had been gradually forced back on the intrenchment — ■ Carthew very gradually, and showing a bold front to the ever-increasing enemy, fell back on the bridge. But how different was his position here to what it had been in the morning ! Then, the bridge was the centre of a chain of posts, both flanks being guarded, and his front covered. Now the flanking parties had fallen back and he was isolated. Still, Carthew knew the importance of the position, and he resolved to hold it as long as he could. But the enemy's attacks became more and more furious, the number of his guns increased and their fire became more concentrated. Still CAETHEW'S SPLENDID TENACITY. 253 Cartliew did not move. He had but two guns Book xi. with which to reply, but the gallant Chamier and iL!l the sturdy Madrasis worked them with a will. Nol 8 °9-28 But every moment was pregnant with some new danger for him. The rebels, climbing to the roofs of the houses which the retirement of the 64th and of the detachment which connected him with that regiment had left empty, poured upon the gallant soldiers of the 34th a stream of fire. Gallantry of to . . the 34th; But the unconquered soldiers of that splendid regiment still held on. Twice did they clear the streets in their front, twice the Church compound on their right. But the continuous stream of fire and increas- of which I have spoken would not allow them to o^theTnemy. hold the positions they had gained at the point of the bayonet. More than that, the enemy shifted their position so that Chamier's guns could no longer bear on any vital point, whilst the fire from the roofs caused the defenders to drop fast. A strong reinforcement might still have saved in spite of the position. Carthew sent for it. Pending S pi ndid its arrival this gallant leader went amongst the tenacit y> men, cheering them, and keeping them to their work. Even when the position had become practically untenable, when the enemy had all Im it turned his flanks, and when the party he had sent under Colonel Simpson of the 34th to keep open his communications was forced back, lie still held on. Still the reinforcements did not come. At last, when it was absolutely certain thai unless he were to retire he would be cut off, Carthew reluctantly ^ave the order — to rive teiaatiasi , compelled in which when he could no longer hold out he had fallbaok. 254 HE IS FORCED AT LAST TO FALL BACK. Book XL Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. Carl hew and Windham. the authority of Windham — to fall back on the intrenchment.* All this time where was Windham? Windham was with the victorious left wing, where his pre- sence was not needed. What he was precisely doing, or why he did not hasten to strengthen the key of his position, may never be known. He never attempted to explain his action. In his despatch he endeavoured, in the most ungenerous manner, to cast, by implication, the blame of the defeat on Carthew. "Brigadier Carthew," he wrote, " of the Madras Native Infantry, had a most severe and strong contest with the enemy from morning till night ; but I regret to add that he felt himself obliged to retire at dark." This passage conveyed to the mind of Sir Colin Camp- bell the impression that Brigadier Carthew had, at a critical period, retired from his post without orders ; and, on the 9th December, he animad- * " I have not the slightest hesitation," wrote, on the 11th December 1857, Lieutenant- Colonel Simpson of the 34th to Brigadier Carthew, "in giving my opinion about the brigade retiring from the position we held on the bridge on the evening of the 28th November. It is my firm conviction that you had no other alternative — that if you had not retired the bri- gade would have been cut off, as the enemy were completely outflanking us on our left. By your orders I sent round two companies of this regi- ment to check them, which they did for the moment, but could not make a stand, as they in turn were quite out- flanked on their left. When the two officers commanding those companies (officers in whom I have the greatest confidence) came back and told me what was going on, and from what I saw myself, I spoke to Colonel Kelly, Colonel G-wilt, and one or two more of the regiment, and I myself, and I think others, told you that if we did not retire we should be cut off. You then, reluctantly, gave the order to retire." EEINFOKCEMEKTS TOO LATE, AND TOO FEW. 255 verted very severely in an official memorandum on Bo °k xi. such conduct. When Carthew received the memo- a L!L randum he took it at once to Windham, who — it Nov^s will scarcely be credited — advised him not to reply to it. But Carthew had too nice a sense of his own honour to act upon such advice. He not only replied to it, but forced from Windham an acknowledgment that he himself had given the Brigadier authority to retire when he could no longer maintain his position. Upon this, Sir Colin Campbell not only withdrew his censure, but expressed his regret that under an " erroneous impression " he should have given pain to a meri- torious officer. But, — to return to the question, — where was As he is failing Windham ? I have already stated that Carthew r ^ e ives reS! had sent for reinforcements. He received them forcements, in the shape of two companies of the Rifle Brigade, as he was falling back, just in time to cover his retreat. Had Carthew not begun his retreat the reinforcement was too small to be of too few in much avail. Windhain states that he himself mimber > took down this reinforcement, and, returning, ordered up two companies of the 82nd. But it was too late — the mischief had been done; a tooiatem strong reinforcement an hour earlier might have saved the position. It was not to be saved by sending on small supports in piecemeal. Under cover of the riflemen Carthew fell back in good order within the intrenchment. It was then quite dark. Ee and his officersand men had been Forthirty- ??^ hew i*£ e J .( Il h, and l lie si\ hours almost without, fond and sleep. lie had ■■<■ i <>r ins brigade. 256 THE AGGRESSIVE DEFENCE JUSTIFIED. Book XL Chapter III. 1857. Nov. 9-28. Windham's aggressive defence pro- bably saved Kanhptir, exposed himself to the hottest fire throughout the day. His cool and calm courage had been the admiration of everyone. His efforts had been splendidly supported by all under his command. In the 34th alone three officers had been killed and eight wounded. The total number of killed and wounded in Windham's operations up to the night of the 28th amounted to three hundred and fifteen. Carthew brought back with him all his guns. The plain account I have given of the day's proceedings requires little comment. That Wind- ham was justified in deciding to make an aggres- sive defence cannot, I think, be questioned. It is the opinion of those best qualified to form an opinion that, regard being had to the enormous superiority of the rebels in artillery, a purely defensive system would have ensured the destruc- tion of his force, and the occupation of Kanhpur by the rebels, with consequences — Sir Colin and the women and children of the Lakhnao garrison beinor on the other side of the river — the evil extent of which it would be difficult to exag- gerate. Windham, by his military instincts, saved the country from this disaster, and he is entitled to all the credit due to a daring initia- tive. That the action might have been more skilfully fought is certain ; but the aphorism of Napoleon, that in war victory is to the general who makes the fewest mistakes, must never be forgotten. Mistakes will be made ; and it should be remembered that this was the first time that Windham had held an independent command in the field. THE REBELS USE TEEIR VICTORY. 257 Both wings fell back that evening into the in- b °°k xi. trenchment. The town of Kanhpiir, the theatre — and the houses, full of clothing and stores, or pre- No * 8 | 7 " 28 . pared for the reception of the Lakhnao ladies, Destruction fell into the hands of the rebels. KbSK ° d But before the right wing had reached the in- defeat. trenchment, whilst Carthew, nobly daring, was still holding on to the Baptist Chapel, an event full of importance had occurred. Sir Colin Campbell had arrived, the precursor by a few hours of his army. ii. 17 258 BOOK XI. CHAPTER IY. The second chapter of this book left Sir Colin Campbell, followed by his staff, crossing the bridge of boats into Kanhpur. The shades of evening were falling, and the light was the short twilight following the setting of the sun. Ascending at a gallop the road leading to the gate, some men of the Rifle Brigade, posted on the rampart, recog- nised their general, and repeated cheers at once announced his arrival alike to Windham's soldiers Sir Colin and their enemy. Windham was within the in- intrrach- he trenchment, and Sir Colin had hardly reached him meat. when a demand for reinforcements arrived from the Baptist Chapel — a proof that even then Car- thew was still, with the small means at his disposal, attempting the impossible. The reinforcements were sent, but they arrived too late, and Carthew fell back in the manner already related. With THE REBELS ATTACK THE BRIDGE OP BOATS. 259 his arrival within the intrenchment the fighting book xi. P , , • i , i Chapter IV. tor the night ceased. Sir Colin remained some time with Windham, nJJ 51 ^ listening to his report and asking questions. He After conver- then communicated to him his plans. He would Windham, 1 ' recross the river to his camp ; as soon as possible returns to his . . camp. the next morning drive the enemy with his guns from the positions he had taken up near the bridge, and then send over his infantry. Sir Colin then rode back to his camp, " into which, all night, the guns, stores, women, and sick, con- tinued to stream."* Early the following morning Sir Colin pro- ceeded to execute his plans. Peel's heavy guns had reached the ground, from their march of thirty miles, only an hour before sunrise. The astute leader of the rebel army had noticed with the early light of the morning the mass of soldiers The rebels filling the plain on the Oudh bank of the river, breaktiie and that sight had told him that unless he could £" a d t f e of break the bridge his chances of ultimate victory would melt away. But there was yet time to break the bridge. He had therefore brought down his heaviest guns to the positions on the banks of the river whence he had the previous day driven tlir 64th, and had opened upon it a heavy, bui fortunatelyan ill-directed fire. Sir Colin Camp- SirOoiin, bell hadforeseen that the rebels would try this last- attempt, chance. Allowing, then, the men of the Nava] Bri- baffleathem - gade but oik- hour Eor rest and food, he despatched tin in ;it sunrise to a point above the bridge of * Norman' 8 llelicf <>/ Luck in m\ 17 * 260 SIR COLIN GROSSES HIS TROOPS. Book XL Chapter IV. 1857. Nov. 29. The enemy fire the cap- hired stores. Sir Coliu takes mea- sures to meet every eventu- ality and every attack. The passage of the troops continues without a break till the evening of the 30th. boats whence they could play on the enemy's guns. The artillery fire from the intrenchment was directed to the same point. For some time the artillery combat appeared not unequal, but gradually the guns of the British asserted their superiority. Then commenced the passage of the cavalry, the horse artillery, and of Adrian Hope's brigade. As they crossed, dark masses of smoke mingled with sheets of flame, arising from the store-laden buildings so well defended by Carthew the previous day, proved that the enemy had given up the contest for the bridge, and that they had set fire to the stores to cover his change of position. But it was yet possible that they might attempt a counterstroke on the weakened camp, crowded with non-combatants, on the Oudh bank of the river. The upper course of the river was in their possession ; they had numberless boats at their command. What could be easier than to take advantage of the divided state of the British force and overwhelm the weaker portion ? But the contingency had entered into the calculations of Sir Colin. By 9 o'clock he had crossed the troops I have already mentioned. On reaching the Kanhpiir bank these were instructed to take up a position facing the city, their right resting on a point near the intrenchment, their left stretching towards the grand trunk road. Their passage effected, Sir Colin crossed and established his headquarters on the Kanhpiir side, leaving Brigadier Inglis to protect the convoy until all the troops should have crossed. At 3 o'clock in the afternoon the passage of the convoy commenced. STKENGTH OF THE REBELS' POSITION. 261 During that afternoon, during the ensuing night, Book xi. and till 6 o'clock on the evening of the 30th, the —J passage of the convoy and of the troops forming Nov^'o the rear-guard continued. Practically it was not interrupted by the rebels, and by the hour I have mentioned it was accomplished. The ladies and children, sick, and wounded were taken across the canal to a camp on the plain near " the mouldering remains and riddled walls of the posi- tion Wheeler had held so long." The rebels still continued to hold the town and Confidence of the line of the canal passing through it to the westward. They were in considerable numbers, had a strong force of artillery, were flushed with victory, and they had as their leader a man of very great natural ability. They were evidently re- solved to try conclusions with Sir Colin, and they had perhaps some reason for believing that even Sir Colin might find it a very difficult, perhaps an impossible, task to drive them from the position fchey bad occupied. That position was, indeed, extremely strong. Great "Their left," to quote from the actor in the their position. scene whose graphic journal I have so largely used,* " was posted among the wooded high grounds, intersected with nullahs, and thickly sprinkled with ruined bungalows and public buildings, which lie between the town of Kanhpiir and the Ganges. Their centre occupied the town itself, which was of great extent, and traversed only by narrow winding streets, singularly sus- * Blackwood?* Magazine, October 1858. 262 THEIE NUMBERS. Book XI. Chapter IV. 1857. Nov. 30. Their numbers. As a prelimi- nary to attacking them, ceptible of defence. The portion of it facing the intrenchment was uncovered ; but from the camp of our army it was separated by the Granges canal. . . . Their right stretched out behind this canal into the plain, and they held a bridge over it, and some lime-kilns and mounds of brick in its front. The camp of the Gwaliar contingent was situated in this plain, about two miles in rear of the right, at the point where the Kalpi road comes in." The reader will be able the better to picture to himself the position if he will bear in mind that the right of the enemy was in the position whence they had dislodged Windham on the 27th ; the left, that whence they had driven Carthew and Wilson on the 28th ; and that the town, between the two, and up to the Ganges canal, formed the centre. This position was held by an enemy whose numbers were computed at twenty-five thousand men, with forty guns. It is probable that, even granting the correctness of this computation, the number of trained soldiers did not exceed fourteen thousand. To attack a position so strong, and so nume- rously guarded, Sir Colin felt that he would require the services of every man of whom he could dispose. It was then, obviously, a main condition to despatch to Allahabad the ladies and children, the sick and wounded, before engaging in an action. Victorious though he felt he would be, the presence of the convoy near the battle- field, whilst constituting a danger to its members, would deprive him of the troops necessary to pro- tect it against contingencies. His first care, THEY CONTINUALLY HAEASS SIR COLIN. 263 then, was to arrange for the despatch of the BoOK xi. & l Chapter IV. convoy. I have already stated that by 6 o'clock on the Dec?°i%. evening of the 30th November, every man, woman, sir Colin and child had crossed into Kanhpiir. The days despatch the of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd December were devoted ^jes and 7 children to to the perfecting of arrangements for the despatch Allahabad. of the convoy to Allahabad. The rebels did not fail occasionally to remind the Commander-in- Chief of their presence. On the 1st they attacked the British outposts. Although they were not in great force, and were easily repulsed, they managed nevertheless to effect some damage. Ewart, of the 93rd, whose gallantry at the storming of the Sikandar Bagh will be remem- bered, had his left arm carried away by a round shot, his regiment being at the time under cover of the unfinished barracks. On the 2nd they The enemy opened a very brisk cannonade, apparently pointed, mpt him. at the tents occupied by Sir Colin Campbell and the head-quarter staff. The cannonade became so pronounced, that the Commander-in-Chief detached a body of riflemen to occupy some houses near the canal, commanding the position occupied by the battery which was annoying him. This movement compelled the enemy to with- draw. At length the arrangements for the transport of The convoy , i , i rm j • starts on the the convoy were completed. 1 lie communications night of the between Kanhpiir and Allahabad, interrupted ^ Decem " during Sir Colin' a absence, had been restored, and, on the night of the 3rd December, the convoy, composed of the women and children who 264 THE LADIES AND CH1LDEEN AEE SENT AWAY. Book XI. Chapter IV. 1857. Dec. 3. The attack delayed till the convoy should be out of distance. The rebels still endea- vour to harass Sir Colin. had survived the dangers and trials of the siege of Lakhnao, of the wounded who had shared those dangers and trials, or who had bled to relieve them, started for Allahabad. If for them war ceased thenceforth to be an affair of personal concern, inasmuch as they were no longer ex- posed to the fire of the enemy, the memory of its dread effects could not fail to accompany them. The sufferings of more than a lifetime had for many of that gentle cohort been crowded into the brief period of three months. There were few amongst them who had not experienced the loss of someone near and dear to them, of a hus- band, a child, a relation ; and, rescued though they were, many were still leaving behind to the chances of death from a ruthless enemy the one dear companion, without whom the burden of life would be indeed hard to bear. Relieved from the anxiety which the presence of such a convoy within his lines could not fail to produce, Sir Colin Campbell prepared to attack the enemy. One strong reason moved him to delay still for a few days. For, whilst the convoy was near, it was always possible for the rebels, though beaten in action, to double round and destroy it. He wished, too, to arrange for the disposition of those slightly wounded men whom it had not been considered necessary to despatch to Allahabad. These were brought within the intrenchment. In spite of the check given to them on the 2nd, the rebels still continued their attacks on the Bri- tish position. On the 4th, they floated a number THE WEAK POINT IN THE EEBELs' POSITION. 265 of fire-boats, which, carried by the current against book xi. the bridge of boats, should set it on fire. This attempt was detected in sufficient time to cause d^Vs. it to be frustrated. On the afternoon of the 5th, they opened a heavy fire of artillery on the left pickets, whilst they threatened, or seemed to threaten, to turn that flank with infantry. The enemy's artillery fire gradually extended along their whole front. It needed a considerable dis- play of troops and a continuous fire from the British guns to force them to cease their attack. Sir Colin Campbell determined it should be their last. He would himself take the initiative the next day. I have already described the position held by The one weak mi ^ --n i p •! i point of the the rebels. The reader will not have tailed to position of the perceive that whilst it was strong, and, in a mili- rebels tary sense, unassailable in the centre and on the left — as whilst that left rested on the Ganges, both it and the centre and part of the right were enormously strengthened by the possession of buildings, bridges, narrow streets, and winding lanes — the extreme right was comparatively weak. It was weak because it rested almost without cover on a broad plain, intersected only by the canal. This canal, whilst it covered the centre and right, could be crossed in front of the latter only by two bridges. Whilst assailable with diffi- culty in front, the right was thus liable to be turned and driven in on its centre. This turning movement promised, moreover, another advan- tage. The troops executing that movement won lil naturally seize the Kalpi road — which 266 THE WEAK POINT DETECTED BY SIR COLIN. book xl formed, so to speak, a prolongation of the ground ' a ^_!I ' occupied by the enemy's right wing ; and the D^c 5 ^ seizure of that road, by depriving the Gwaliar troops of their natural line of retreat, would drive them, were the execution to correspond with the is detected by design, into the British net. This idea decided Sir Colin' s plans. He resolved to mass the largest number of troops on his left — the decisive point — to attack and defeat the enemy's right before it could receive assistance from the centre ; then, taking possession of the Gwaliar camp, establish himself on the Kalpi road, and striking at the ene- my's communications, compel him to renounce the strong positions occupied by his centre and left. Reasons for One word as to the number and composition of number of the the enemy's force. I have already said that it sSdiers of the has been computed at twenty-five thousand men enemy. with forty guns. But, I repeat, it is difficult to believe that more than one half of these, or, at the outside, fourteen thousand, were trained soldiers. The Gwaliar contingent was composed of four companies of artillery, two regiments of cavalry, and seven regiments of infantry, a total of about seven thousand men. There may have been in addition an equal number of trained sepoy regiments, some of which had attached themselves to Nana Sahib — who com- manded on the left — in the earlier period of the mutiny, others which had come in from Bandalkhand and Central India. The remainder of the force consisted of the adherents of the Rani of Jhansi, attached to the Gwaliar troops on the right; and of the undisciplined and irregular COMPOSITION OF THE BRITISH FORCE. 267 followers of Nana Sahib and of other discon- book xi. tented landowners on the left. Chapter iv. Sir Colin Campbell's force consisted of about d 857 5 five thousand infantry, six hundred cavalry, and Number and thirty-five guns. His [infantry were divided into S^heBriSsii four brigades. That called the 3rd, commanded force - by Brigadier Greathed, consisted of the wasted remnant of the 8th, of the 64th, and of the 2nd Panjab Infantry; the 4th, under Adrian Hope, was composed of the 53rd Foot, the 42nd and 93rd Highlanders, and the 4th Panjab Bines; the 5th, commanded by Inglis, counted the 23rd Fusiliers, the 32nd Regiment, and the 82nd ; the 6th, led by Walpole, was formed of the 2nd and 3rd battalions Rifle Brigade, and a detachment of the 38th Regi- ment. The cavalry was the same as that which we have already seen doing such good service at the relief of Lakhnao — the 9th Lancers, and de- tachments of the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Panjab Cavalry, and Hodson's Horse, commanded by the same gallant leader, Brigadier Little. The artillery consisted of the guns of the Naval Brigade, led by William Peel, of the troops of Blunt and Remmington, of the batteries of Bourchier, Mid- dleton, Smith, Longden, and Bridge, commanded in chief by Dupuis. The engineer brigade, the same as that which had served in Oudh, was com- manded by Colonel Harness. To Windham was consigned the command of the intrenchment — a command, it will be seen, of considerable impor- tance. Hope Grant acted, nominally, in command of the whole force, but his real position was that of second fco Sir Colin Campbell. 268 sir colin's plan of attack. Book XI. Chapter IV. 1857. Dec. 5. Position occu- pied by the British force. Sir Colin's plan of attack. Sir Colin begins the action at 9 o'clock on the 6th December with a fire of artillery. The advanced positions of the British force occupied the suburb called Generalganj, an old bazaar of very considerable extent along the canal, facing the centre of the enemy. This post had been held since the 30th by Greathed, and upon him and his brigade had fallen the brunt of the skirmishing of the subsequent days. Sir Colin's plan of attack was simple. Whilst Greathed should continue to occupy his position facing the enemy, Windham was to open on the enemy's left from the intrenchment a very heavy fire, so as to draw the attention of the rebel leaders to that point. The rest of the infantry, meanwhile, were to be massed in contiguous columns behind, and covered from view by, the old cavalry lines, buildings to the left rear of Greathed's position, and communicating by a cross road running im- mediately in their rear, at a distance of rather less than half a mile, with the grand trunk road. As soon as Windham's fire should produce the intended effect, the turning movement would be attempted. To facilitate this, certain orders were given to Greathed and to the other brigadiers, the purport of which the narrative of the action will disclose. Early on the morning of the 6th December, Sir Colin Campbell struck his camp, and, to avoid the slightest risk of accident, despatched it to the river side under a guard. This having been ac- complished, and the men having breakfasted, Windham, at 9 o'clock, opened fire. The enemy promptly replied, and in a few moments the earth shook with the noise of a terrific artillery com- THE BATTLE OF KANHPUR. 269 bat. Under cover of this fire, the infantry were book xi. massed in the position I have indicated, whilst the cavalry and horse artillery were held in readi- D ec 5 6. ness, at the same time, to cover the turning move- ment and to make a detonr to the left, and crossing the canal by an unguarded bridge about a mile and a half further up, to threaten the enemy's rear, and to cut him off or intercept him when defeated. The artillery duel continued about two hours. Greathod It then gradually slackened, and Greathed, in attack on the pursuance of his instructions, moved forward on centre > to the canal, occupying the houses near it and from them opening a severe musketry fire on the enemy's centre. At the same time, the main body proceeded to carry out the plan confided to them. The position assigned to each brigade may thus whilst Wai- r ° i • i • i P°l e » Hope, be stated. Walpole, with the sixth, immediately and ingiis on Greathed' s left, was to cross the canal above Kthe right, the town, and advancing along its face, was to mask every gate, and prevent the enemy from affording assistance to their right wing. Mean- while, on his left, which was the extreme left, Adrian Hope would debouch with the fourth bri- gade, supported by Ingiis with the fifth, and carry out the turning movement. When, then, the fire of the artillery slackened, Waipoie i i j crosses the and the rattle of Greathed s musketry was heard, t . an ai. Walpole, assisted by Smith's battery, dashed with bis riflemen at the bridge, crossed the canal, and moved along the outskirts of the western face of the town. As be did this, a strong fire opened 270 ADRIAN HOPE TURNS THE REBELS RIGHT. Book XI. Chapter IV. 1857. Dec. 6. Adrian Hope turns the right of the rebels. Splendid con- duct of the 4th Panjab Sikhs and the 53rd. from the heavy guns of the Naval Brigade, and from Bourchier's and Longden's batteries massed on the left. The fire had scarcely opened when Adrian Hope brought his brigade into the open, supported by that of Inglis, and covered by the cavalry and horse artillery. The dust raised by the progress of the latter effectually concealed from the enemy the movements of the infantry. They marched to the left, in the direction given by the cross road already indicated. Suddenly, when they reached a point rather beyond a line parallel with the brick-kilns which played so prominent a part in Windham's fight of the 27th, the infantry bri- gades brought forward their left shoulders — the cavalry and horse artillery still continuing their forward movement parallel with the canal. Hope had covered his advance with the Sikhs of the 4th Panjab Rifles in skirmishing order, supported by the 53rd. As these gallant men pushed for- ward, there opened upon them a very heavy fire of shot and shell from the enemy's guns posted behind the canal. At the same time masses of the rebel infantry, protected by the brick-kilns and by mounds formed by the operation of brick-making, poured in a rattling fire of musketry. But our men were not to be baulked. The Sikhs, splen- didly supported by the 53rd, rushed on at the double, and driving the enemy from the mounds, gained for themselves a momentary shelter. Only momentary, however. Obeying an order conveyed to them, they rushed at the bridge over which the rebels had fallen back. But the bridge GALLANTEY OF WILLIAM PEEL. 271 had been well cared for by the enemy. Upon it book xi. guns were pointed, whilst the rallying infantry a £_!I of the enemy, recovering heart, again poured upon dS^. . the skirmishers incessant volleys. For a moment Firm resist- the struggle seemed doubtful, when a rumbling enemyVt'tL sound was heard, and "William Peel and his sailors, canaL dragging with them a heavy 24-pounder, came up bringTupT with a run, dashed through the skirmishers, 21 -pounder ' m ° and opens ore. planted the gun on the bridge, and opened fire. The effect of this splendid deed was electric. Whilst it roused our men to the wildest enthu- siasm, it completely cowed the enemy. High- landers, Sikhs, and 53rd, dashing by the gun, or fording the canal, rushed on the enemy, and cap- The eanai is turing their guns, drove them back in the wildest disorder. The Grwaliar camp was now almost within their grasp. But, before the infantry could reach it, the battery of the gallant Bourchier, always in the front, passed them at a gallop, and, and the enemy J \ n -r <• • j.i are beaten. unlimbermg, opened tire. In a tew minutes the infantry had repassed them, and the Gwaliar camp was their own.* Sir Colin Campbell ioined his two left brigades General new 1 J of the action. at the enemy's camp. His measures had been completely successful. Windham's bombardment of the rebels' left had concentrated their attention * " So complete was the smith left his forge, and the surprise, so unexpected the surgeon his ward, to fly from onslaught, that the chup- the avenging bayonets. Every p allies were found heating tent was found exactly as its upon the fires, the bullocks late occupants had sprung stood behind the hackeries, fromit." — Blackwood? 'sMaga- the sick and wounded were vine, October 1858. Lying in the hospitals; the 272 THE ENEMY ARE COMPLETELY BEATEN. book xi. on that quarter ; then Greathed's threatened attack on their centre so far imposed upon them, Dec 6 that they made no attempt, as a really capable general assuredly would have done, to pierce that — the weakest point of our line ; Walpole had successfully prevented the centre from debouch- ing by the western faces of the town to support their right. Adrian Hope and Inglis, Peel, Bourchier, aud the gallant officers with their bri- gades and batteries, had done the rest. There was but one drawback to his complete satisfaction. The guide sent with the cavalry and horse artil- lery had misled them, and they were not on the The enemy are S p t when the camp fell into our hands. Thev pursued along L L *> the Kaipi came up shortly afterwards, however, m time to join in the pursuit which Sir Colin at once di- rected along the Kalpi road, and which was con- tinued by Sir Colin in person to the fourteenth milestone.* Completeness It was .i great victory. The most formidable over the 10 ° ry portion of the enemy's army, the Gwaliar contin- Gwaliar troops. # " For two miles without a pace. A small cloud coming check the pursuit was carried nearer and nearer is seen on on by the battery alone " the left. The head of the (Bourchier' s), " accompanied cavalry column debouches by Sir Hope Grant and his from a grove. The order for staff. Four times in that a further pursuit is given, distance did we come into The cavalry spread like light- action, to clear our front and ning over the plain in skir- flanks, until General Grant, mishing order. Sir Colin thinking wisely we were too takes the lead. The pursuit far from our supports, deter- is continued to the fourteenth mined to wait until the cavalry milestone, assuming all the arrived. A halt was called ; character of a fox-hunt." — not until it was recpuired, for Bourchier's Eight Months' the horses, though in the con- Campaign against the Bengal dition of racers, had felt the Sepoys. MANSFIELD SENT TO THE SUBADAR's TANK. 273 gent, had been completely defeated ; their camp, book xi. with all their stores, magazines, and a part ot their materiel, had been captured. In a word, the right v^Je. wing of the rebel army, its head, its brain, had been severed from the body. The centre and left of the enemy were thus cut The centre t unci lGit still off, shut up in Kanhpiir. They had but one line shut up in of possible retreat, that by the Bithor road. On the Bithor road, due north of the city, Their line of and immediately in rear of the enemy's left, was a laro;e tank, known as the Subadar's Tank. As the Commander-in-Chief had cut them off on the right, and Greathed and Windham had imposed upon them in front, the occupation of this posi- tion would, Sir Colin Campbell felt, force the sur- sir Colin, _ -t) j? before pursu- render of the entire force of the enemy. Before, m g the Gwa. then, he had started to pursue the beaten right se^Mana- wing, he ordered a force to occupy it at once. j«id *?°°™py Whether he felt his presence more necessary with retreat. the pursuers, or whether, in the generosity of his heart, he desired to give a chance to one of his generals, I know not. But, considering the re- gard, almost amounting to affection, he felt for the officer whom he did select for this duty, it is, I think, probable that he was anxious to give him an opportunity of distinguishing himself as a commander. This officer was the Chief of the Staff, Major- General William Mansfield. General Mansfield was, in many respects, a General 1 t i • Mansfield. remarkable man. Tall, and soldierly in appear- ance, it was impossible for anyone to look at his face without feeling certain that the man before whom lie Btood possessed more than ordinary ii. 18 274 GENERAL WILLIAM MANSFIELD. Book xi. ability. Conversation with him always confirmed ' a ^ ' this impression. Mansfield was a man of more De 8 c! 7 6. ^an ordinary ability. He could write well, he could speak well, he was quick in mastering details, he possessed the advocate's ability of making a bad cause appear a good one. He had that within him to procure him eminence in any profession, excepting one. He was not, and could never have become, a great soldier. Possessing undoubted personal courage, he was yet not a general, at all, except in name. The fault was not altogether his own. Nature, kind to him in many other respects, had denied him the penetrating glance which enables a man to take in, on the instant, the exact lay of affairs in the field. His vision, indeed, was so defective that he was forced to depend for information regarding the most trivial movements upon the report of others. This was in itself a great misfortune. It was, in the case of Mansfield, made irreparable by a haughtiness and innate reserve which shrank from reliance upon anyone but himself. He dis- liked advice, and though swayed, perhaps too easily, by those whom he loved and trusted, he was impatient of even the semblance of control from men who were brought in contact with him only officially and in a subordinate position. Hence it was that, when in independent command, unable to take a clear view himself, he failed to carry out the action, which, to so clever a man, would undoubtedly have recommended itself, had he had the leisure to study it over a map, in the solitude of his closet. THE ENEMY ESCAPE HIS GEASP. 275 Greneral Mansfield took with him the whole of BooK xi. the infantry with which Sir Colin had turned the enemy's right wing, with the exception of the 23rd Deo? 6. and a wing of the 38th, which he left to guard the The troops captured camp. £ ManS " It was about 2 o'clock in the afternoon. He advances Mansfield advanced, the Rifles skirmishing in subadar's ° front, the heavy guns following, then the main Tank - body, the 93rd Highlanders in reserve. The position on which Mansfield was ordered to march — and which, if properly occupied, would com- pletely cut off the enemy — was one to the north of and close to the Subadar's Tank. Driving the enemy before him, he marched to this point, and there halted. He then ordered the infantry to lie down. He Consequence could not see, and would not believe that he had tive vision. placed them in a position where they could not act, and in which, if the enemy had had any audacity, they might easily have been cut off from the rest of the force. But the enemy had but one idea, that of escaping. The troops were held back, apparently to facilitate their escape. Their indig- nation was unbounded. More than one senior indignation of officer pointed out to Mansfield the golden oppor- tunity he was losing. But he could be persuaded to do no more than to withdraw his infantry from the false position in which he had placed them. II' still insisted on keeping back his men, whilst the horse and the foot and the artillery of the n-hcls filed down the road to Bithor. This passive action not only rendered the move- The enom y 1 " . are em- inent to the Subadar's Tank useless, but, in boidened, 18 * 276 HOPE GRANT PURSUES THE REBELS, Book XI. Chapter IV. 1857. Dec. 6-7. and carry off their guns to Bithor. Dec. 8. Sir Colin rests his troops, then detaches Hope Grant to follow up the escaped rebels. accordance with the invariable rule of warfare of India, it emboldened the enemy to venture an artillery attack upon the stationary British. This, indeed, was repelled, but Mansfield still allowed the enemy to carry off all their guns without let or hindrance.* The left wing and centre of the enemy thus succeeded in making good their retreat on Bithor. The victory, though great, was not absolutely de- cisive, for Mansfield's inaction had made it neces- sary to follow it up with another blow. Giving his men one clear day's rest, Sir Colin detailed a body of troops for this duty on the 8th. The officer he selected this time to command was Hope Grant — a tried, daring, noble-hearted soldier. At 1 o'clock in the afternoon of the 8th, Hope Grant set out on his mission. He had with him Adrian Hope's brigade, composed of the 42nd and 93rd Highlanders and 4th Pan jab Rifles; five hundred and fifty-one cavalry ; Middleton's field battery, Remmington's troop of horse artillery, and one hundred sappers, or about two thousand seven * " Their guns might have been taken," wrote Mansfield, in his despatch, " but I re- frained from giving the neces- sary order, being aware that it was contrary to your Excel- lency's wish to involve the troops among the enclosures and houses of the new can- tonments," &c. Whether Sir Colin Campbell was satisfied with this explanation may be doubted. Let the reader con- trast the'notice in his despatch, without comment, of Mans- field's inaction, with his laud- atory remarks in the same despatch on Hope Grant's operations two days later. With respect to the absolute correctness of the account in the text of Mansfield's opera- tions, I appeal with confidence to the surviving officers of the 93rd and of the other regi- ments present on the occasion. k G FINDS THEM NEAR SHEORAJPUR, 277 hundred men of all arms. It was known that the book xi. rebels had retreated by the Bithor road, but as it aY — was considered far from improbable that they Decks', might attempt to cross into Oudh by the Serai ferry, about three miles from Sheorajpur, Grant had received discretionary power to change his route in that direction. In the course of his march Grant, careful to He traces the examine the traces of the retreat, satisfied him- taken. J self that the rebels had taken the road leading to the ferry. He therefore continued his march, halting only at sunset for a light meal, direct to Sheorajpur. He reached that place a little before daylight. Leaving here, under a small guard, the impedimenta not absolutely necessary for combat, Grant dashed across country with the bulk of his force for the ferry. When within about a mile of it he galloped to the front to recon- noitre. Whilst thus engaged, the men of his escort were fortunate enough to capture alive a trooper of the rebel force. From this man Grant learned that he had arrived in time ; that the rebel guns were on the banks of the river, and that the crossing was to take place that day. Having satisfied himself that the man had told the truth, He and s them, Grant sent back orders for the cavalry, guns, and infantry to come on with all speed. The remainder of the story is best told in the words of the noble and gallant Boldier who commanded.* "The narrow road ran sometimes parallel to, and sorae- tinics through, a sort of quicksand. Under a * Incidents in the Sepoy vate journals of General Sir U'"/-, compiled from the pri- Eope Grant, G.O.B. 278 AND COMPLETELY DEFEATS THEM. Book XI. Chapter TV". 1857. Dec. 8. and defeats them, capturing their guns. high bank, and close to the river, we found the long-sought-for 24-pounder * embedded up to its axle-trees. We had great difficulty in getting our guns over this bad ground ; but at last we reached sounder soil, and then we advanced rapidly. As soon as we came within one thou- sand yards of the enemy, a tremendous fire opened upon us ; but Lieutenant Warren, a fine young fellow, who commanded the leading guns, never stopped until within five hundred or six hundred yards of the rebels, when he opened fire on them. In a few minutes Captain Middleton joined him with the remainder of the battery. Captain Remmingtou now galloped up with his troop, and came into action in an excellent posi- tion behind a bank, at a range of two hundred yards or less. This concentrated artillery-fire told with such terrible effect upon the enemy, crowded into a mass, with their guns, bullocks, baggage, that they gave way and retreated as fast as possible along the river bank, where it would have been difficult to pursue them in force, owing to the marshy state of the ground. How- ever, the irregular cavalry managed to overtake and to cut up some of them. My gallant regi- ment, the 9th Lancers, was in support of our batteries. We captured fifteen of the enemy's guns, with the finest bullocks I ever saw, belong- ing to the Gwaliar contingent. We were only just in time ; for as we came up to the ferry, we * This was one of the two which mysteriously disap- 24-pounders captured in the peared whilst our troops were Kalpi road on the 6th, but continuing the pursuit. SIR COLIN AS A GENERAL. 279 found the rebels preparing to embark the gnns Book xi. in some boats which they had collected for the & ^1 ' purpose." A gallant and effective deed of arms, D 1 e 8 c 57 - told in the modest language eminently charac- Character of teristic of the chief actor in the scene ! But Hope Hope Grant - Grant was as modest as he was daring, as care- less of self as he was prodigal of his zeal. His forced march of twenty-five miles, and the prompt movement which followed it, enabled him to re- pair the mismanagement at the Subadar's Tank on the 6th. The rebel army was now utterly crushed. In Results of the the two days' fight, the 6th and the 8th, it had efhanf °8th. he lost thirty-two guns, a strong position, and a vast number of killed. The two parts of which its army was composed had been for ever separated ; the one driven headlong to Kalpi; the other, pre- vented from crossing into Oudh, had fled without its guns to Bithor, there still within our reach. These great results had been accomplished by the British with a loss to them of only ninety-nine killed and wounded ! * The battle established the right of Sir Colin sir Coiiu Campbell to be regarded as a great commander. £* eEL" & * In attacking with five thousand men an army of fourteen thousand regular troops, in addition to some odd thousands of irregulars, occupying a very strong position, it was necessary to run some risk ; and there can be no doubt that in leaving * The official return was : four subalterns, one staff- two subalterns, one sergeant, sergeant, five sergeants, i'ii rani and file, killed ; two seventy-one rank and file, field officers, three captains, wounded. 280 HIS TACTICS JUSTIFIED. Book xi. Greathed's weak brigade, not exceeding one a L!!. * thousand men, to guard his centre whilst he Dec 5 8 massed the rest of his army against the extreme right of the enemy, Sir Colin did leave an opening of which a Napoleon or a Frederic would have taken advantage. But the great thing for a general is to know when to dare. Sir Colin knew that the opponents' general was neither a Napo- leon nor a Frederic, and that the soldiers he com- manded were neither Frenchmen nor Prussians. He felt that with his actual opponents he could take liberties which they would not resent. It is true that he risked his centre, but the false attack which it made reduced all danger in that quarter to a minimum. Knowing his enemy, as he did, it was a sound and daring policy, a policy certain to obtain the end he was aiming at — that of pre- venting an attack — to order Greathed to feign an onslaught on the enemy's position at the moment he was about to hurl the bulk of his forces against their right wing. This movement would appear to the enemy the necessary corollary of the heavy artillery fire to which they had been subjected from the intrenchment. The plan succeeded, as it emi- nently deserved to succeed. Completely imposed upon, the enemy's centre and left remained quiet whilst their right was being destroyed. They allowed the centre to be hemmed in in front by Greathed's weak brigade, and on the right by "Walpole — and why ? Simply because Greathed and "Walpole played offensive and not defensive parts. Sir Colin understood Indian warfare well, and he knew that attack supplied inferiority in numbers. HOPE GRANT DESTROYS BITHOR. 281 The theoretical weakness in his plan of attack Book xi. . , , j. ,i Chapter IV. was, then, under the circumstances ot the case, no weakness at all. The plan was admirably Dec. 8 9-h. adapted to the occasion, and the execution was worthy of the general. It was no barren victory. One section of the rebel army did indeed escape, though with heavy loss, to Kalpi, but the other, forced to evacuate the town, was pursued to the Ganges, and deprived of its power for mischief on the banks of that river. Nor did Bithor itself escape. Sir Colin Camp- Bithor is bell, on receiving from Hope Grant a report of his success, directed that officer to march at once on the residence of Nana Sahib and destroy it. Grant set out on the 11th. He found the place evacuated. He carried out his orders by blowing up the temple and burning the palace. Amongst the booty discovered in a large well contiguous to the palace were " some curious pots, lamps which seemed of Jewish manufacture, and spoons of a barbaric weight. All were of the purest metal, and all bore an appearance of antique magnificence." Of the large programme Sir Colin Campbell Two parts of p i . • • i at Sir Colin's had sketched out for Ins operations m the North- plans have west Provinces and Oudh, the two first had now pushed 000 ™' been accomplished. He had relieved Lakhnao, and he had utterly defeated the rebel army threatening Kanhpiir. His way was now clear for the performance of the third act of the drama — the opening communications between Kanhpiir and the Panj&b. This accomplished, he would be free to take vengeance on Lakhnao, and to reconquer Rohilkhand. 282 THE MINOR PARTS OF THE GREAT SCHEME. book xi. It is necessary that the reader should bear in mind that whilst the main action of the campaign Deo.9-ii. rested with the army led by the Commander-in- Minor parts of Chief, there were other actors who contributed schemed be effectively, though on a smaller scale, to bring considered. to a perfect conclusion the general scheme which had been sketched out. In a previous chapter* I have referred to the order given to Colonel Seaton to escort a convoy from Aligarh to the south-west. His movements, which would also serve to reopen completely communication with the north-west, will be noticed in the next chapter. I shall then have to transport the reader to the east and north-east, to witness the other opera- tions, conducted by columns under Brigadiers Franks and Rowcroft, and by the Nipalese force under Jang Bahadur, having for their object to co-operate with the fourth great movement con- templated by Sir Colin Campbell — the reconquest of Lakhnao. Page 118. 283 want of carriage BOOK XL CHAPTER V. Aftek the decisive actions of the 6th and 8th sirCoiin's December, Sir Colin Campbell was naturally de- hampered by sirous to push onwards whilst the memory of the defeat of the rebels should be yet fresh in the minds of the combatants and their sympathisers. But there was one material difficulty in the way of his progress. His means of transport were re- stricted. It had taxed his energies to the utmost to procure carriage in sufficient abundance to serve for the transit of the ladies and children, sick, and wounded he had rescued from the Residency. These, to the number of at least two thousand, had been sent to Allahabad. In leaving Outram with four thousand men at the Alambsigh, he had supplied him with the means of moving his troops in case of necessity. For his own entire army, forced to march rapidly a distance of fifty miles, he had not retained the wherewithal to enter upon a harassing campaign. He could 284 WALPOLE IS SENT TO MAINPURI. Book XI. Chapter V. 1857. December. The carnage arrives, arid Sir Colin detaches Walpole to Mainpuri. equip a column, but not an army. The supply of camels from northern and central India was cut off. He was forced, then, to remain inactive until the carriage conveying the convoy of ladies should return from Allahabad. This carriage did not reach Kanhpiir till the 23rd December. Meanwhile Sir Colin had been maturing his plans. Fathgarh — the Fathgarh whose Nawab had cast in his lot with the rebels, and had aided the mutinous sepoys in the de- struction of our countrymen * — Fathgarh was the first point to be attacked. The occupation of this place, about midway between Allahabad and Dehli, would complete the command over the Doab, which had been secured only partially by the reconquest of Dehli and the maintenance of Agra and Allahabad. That point regained, Ro- hilkhand would still remain to be conquered and Lakhnao to be regained. To quench the embers of the insurrection in the minor places on the left bank of the Jamna, and to the east of Allah- abad, flying columns would, it was hoped, prove sufficient. Sir Colin Campbell's movements against Fath- garh were planned with his usual caution. Avail- ing himself of Seat on' s march from Aligarh, he directed Walpole to make a semicircular sweep by the Kalpi road via Akbarpur to Itawa and Mainpuri, at once threatening the Kalpi force and clearing of rebels the districts dependent upon Agra. At Mainpuri Walpole would effect a junc- Vide volume i. pp. 335 to 346. ITAWA RESISTS WALPOLE. 285 tion with Seaton, who was to wait for him there. BooK xi. These, uniting^ their forces, were then to march on — Fathgarh, upon which place the Commander-in- December. Chief would move by the direct road from Kanh- piir. In recounting these separate movements, I propose to follow first Walpole, then Seaton; then, leaving the two combined, to proceed to the leader, who had the shortest distance to traverse, and upon whom it devolved to fight the decisive battle. "Walpole, taking with him the 2nd and 3rd Waipoie • -r» • t en T-i marches on battalions Rifle Brigade, a detachment 38th .boot, itawa. Bourchier's battery, Blunt' s troop of horse ar- tillery, and one company of sappers, set out on the morning of the 18th December. The column marched by Akbarpiir to Itawa without adventure of any kind. Itawa had been plundered in the early days of the mutiny.* It was now a wreck; the church, the court-house, the private resi- dences were in ruins ; but it was now held by the rebels. On learning of Walpole' s approach the majority a few fanatic of these men evacuated the place. A few fanatics, way. however, occupying a covered, square, loop-holed enclosure, determined to hold out to the last. Few in number, armed only with muskets, they were animated by a spirit fiercer even than the spirit of despair — by a determination to die mar- tyrs to their cause. Walpole reconnoitred the place. It was, for a place to stop an army, in- significant. It could easily be stormed. Yet to Volume i. pp. 160tol63. 286 BOUKCHIER BLOWS UP THE REBELS. Book XI. Chapter V. 1857. December. The place they occupy is blown up. Walpole reaches Mainpuri. Composition of Seaton's force. storm it in the face of its occupants would cost valuable life, and it seemed that easier and less costly means were available. These easy means were at first tried. Hand grenades were thrown in ; an attempt was made to smoke them out with burning straw. But all in vain. Through their loop-holes the rebels poured in a constant and effective fire on the assailants, and for three hours kept them at bay. At last it was resolved to blow up the whole place. For this purpose Bourchier, aided by Scratchley of the Engineers, made a mine, with a number of his gun cartridges, in the roof. The explosion con- ferred on the defenders the martyrs' honours they coveted. It buried them in the ruins. This happened on the 29th December. The column marched without further adventure to Mainpuri, and the following day, the 3rd Feb- ruary, joined Brigadier Seaton's force at Bewar, fifteen miles distant, on the road to Fathgarh. Meanwhile Seaton, appointed to the command of the force ordered to escort to Kanhpur a large convoy of grain and stores,* had set out on the 9th December for Aligarh. He had under him, of artillery, two hundred and thirty-three men, manning six 9-pounder guns, two 6-pounders, two 18-pounders, one 8-inch howitzer, and two 5-|--inch mortars ; of cavalry, a squadron of the Carabineers, and a few of the 9th Lancers, one hundred and forty in all, and Hodson's Horse, five hundred and fifty strong, led by Hodson ; of Vide page 118. SEATON MARCHES ON ALIGARH. 287 infantry, the 1st Fusiliers, three hundred and Book xi. seventy-six strong ; the 7th Panjab Infantry, five J *?— hundred and forty strong ; of sappers, one hun- De *ember. dred and twenty. He was joined on the march by Wales's Horse and some Sikhs. The nio-ht before Seat-on left Dehli he was in- Seaton, leam- '11111 C 1111 ln £ *^ a * *^6 formed that a considerable body or rebels had rebels are in assembled in the Aligarh district, and that they aStrictf^ were threatening to attack the small force with which Colonel Farquhar held it. "With charac- teristic vigour, Seaton, in spite of his convoy, proceeded to Aligarh by forced marches. Arriv- ing there, he placed his convoy under the guns of the Aligarh fort, made arrangements for a field hospital, rid himself of every ounce of extra bag- gage, and taking with him a small portion of the marches i -ii pioiTt against them, fort garrison (one hundred men ot the ord Euro- peans) under Major Eld, set out to join Farquhar. He found him encamped at a place called Gangari, close to the suspension bridge over the Kali river. The enemy were believed to be some thirteen miles distant. Seaton at once, then, crossed the and sends , ., ., Tiii- i • Hodson to river, marched a mile and a halt, encamped in reconnoitre. some fields, and sent Hodson to the front to reconnoitre. Whilst Hodson, accompanied by Major Light Beaton and of the Bengal Artillery, a very gallant and skilful ^ breakfast- soldier, were galloping to the front to reconnoitre, ^ g b ' r ° r ak a ^ Seaton and the other officers sat down to their breakfasts, whilst the men, hungry after their march, watched the cook-boys as they prepared for them the same stimulating meal. The officers had breakfasted, the men were about to sit down 288 ATTACKS THE ENEMY NEAR GANGAEI. Book xi. to their breakfasts, already placed, smoking hot, — before them, when the alarm called them, fasting, December. ^o their posts. Half a minute before, Light, when the galloping at full speed, had brought the in- sormded. formation that the enemy was advancing on both flanks. At once all was bustle and anima- tion. The infantry, without waiting to put on their coats, turned out, as in the Dehli days, with their muskets and side-arms. The cavalry were in their saddles in less than three minutes. The gunners, always on the alert, were not a whit The troops behindhand. In less time than it has taken to turn out, fast- . . ing. describe it, all arms or the force, thus suddenly alarmed, were in their places. On the extreme right were the Carabineers and Lancers ; on the extreme left Hodson's Horse; the 1st Fusiliers and one hundred men of the 3rd Europeans were in the centre behind the guns ; on the left of the 1st Fusiliers were the Sikhs and Rifles. Seaton ad- Seaton moved forward to meet the enemy. He thJreifefs. 1118 had scarcely set his troops in motion when Hod- son rode up and reported to the Brigadier that he had seen the enemy some miles in front filing through a village with guns; that having watched their further proceedings, he had sent on Light to make his report. Hardly had he finished speaking when the heads of the enemy's columns appeared in sight — two large bodies, one on each flank. Their infantry soon followed, filling up the gap between the two. Seaton at once ordered the guns to the front. These at once opened on the enemy. The hostile guns replied, and though the reply was feeble, yet from the position they AND COMPLETELY DEFEATS THEM. 289 had taken up they were able to rake the British Book xi. line. Seeing this, Wardlaw of the Carabineers, ' ^-!! who had received discretionary orders, charged December, the enemy's battery. The guns turned at once Gallant upon the gallant soldiers led most gallantly. But SSKJjS? nothing stopped them. Out of the five officers who, in spite with the Carabineers three, Wardlaw, Hudson, turethTgS and Vyse, fell dead ; the lieutenant of the handful of Lancers charging with them, Head, was dan- gerously wounded, whilst of the men six were killed and eleven wounded ; but the guns were captured ! The cavalry were then led by the only surviving officer, Lieutenant Russell, along the fields, and his men, making good use of their carbines, cleared out the enemy without further loss. "Whilst this was happening on the left, Hodson Hodson over- i •-ij-i-i-i-i-i'-i-i- • • i throws the on the right had dashed with his regiment against enemy on the the enemy's horse, and had overthrown them. ng t- The infantry did not pause to receive. Throw- ing away their arms, they ran to hide themselves in the fields and ravines, or to continue their flight over the country. They had lost all their guns, one The enem y J J i completely 9-pounder and two 6-pounders, and — what was dofeated. of greater importance — had received " great dis- couragement." It appeared that they had no idea Their mis- that Seaton had come up ; they hoped to have to do only with Farquhar's small force of Biluchis. The discovery that a considerable European force was marching through the districts was ;i warning to them that from that time forth their occupa- tion was gone ! This fight received from the inline of the town II. I«.) 290 FINDS THE REBELS AGAIN AT PATTIALI. Book XI. Chapter V. 1857. December. Seaton occu- pies Khas- ganj, and pushes on to Pattiali, where, hear- ing of the rebels, he sends Hodson to recon- noitre. Hodson re- ports the position occu- pied by the enemy. Seaton forms his plan. near which it was fought the title of combat of Khasganj. That town was occupied the follow- ing morning. It was a strong place, filled with brick houses, and surrounded by old gardens, en- compassed with strong mud walls, and, if well- defended, would have been hard to take. Seaton then pushed on to Sahawar, and the next day, the 17th, to Pattiali. When, however, passing through a village about two miles of this place, a few shots were heard, and Hodson, who was with the advanced guard, sent word that the enemy's outposts had fired their muskets, and galloped off. On receiving this report, Seaton brought all his men through the village, then halted, and served out bread and grog to the men, whilst Hodson and the engineers went to the front to reconnoitre. In about twenty minutes Hodson returned to report that the enemy had formed across the road, barring the entrance to Pattiali ; that their right and right centre were resting on some large ravines, on the right face and front of which earth- works had been thrown up ; that their left centre and left were posted in front of gardens and en- closures, covered on the extreme left by their cavalry, posted in an open country. In front of the centre of their position, and about half a mile from it, was a small village, through which, they had calculated, the British force would ad- vance. They had laid their plans accordingly. On hearing this report Seaton disposed his force for action. On the right he massed Hod- son's Horse, the Carabineers and Lancers, and HE ATTACKS AND DEFEATS THEM. 291 some light guns ; in the centre the Europeans ; Book xi. on the left the native infantry, and the heavy J ' ap er guns. His plan was to turn their left flank. _. 1857 - ° r t December. Occupying, then, the small village of which I Begins the have spoken with a few men, and thus constitnt- batt ]^.? ith i an artillery ing that village the left of his position, he brought duel ; four guns to the front on the extreme right, and sent four more to teike up a position almost en- filading the enemy's position from left to right. But before these could unlimber, the enemy opened fire from a battery of twelve guns. In a few minutes, however, the British guns replied, and the duel commenced in earnest. The artillery contest lasted about thirty minutes, the cavalry and infantry meanwhile being halted. But as the fire from the British guns had, during those thirty minutes, been gradually gaining on the enemy, when that time had elapsed, Seaton could contain himself no longer. Giving the order to the infantry to advance, he charged then, charg- himself at the head of the cavalry. The enemy Chilis 18 * did not await that charge. They broke and fled, cavalr 7- and when the infantry, which had advanced on receiving the order, reached the spot, they found that their efforts were not required : they had been forestalled by their gallant Brigadier.* * " On we move, and, to and horse artillery, with our surprise, without receiv- some few of Hodson's Horse. ing .1 snot tVnin the enemy, In fact, seeing the enemy whose guns, we found, <>n wavering, this bold charge, reaching their position, bad Led by Seaton, decided been captured by Ool 1 matters, s<> Ear as the guns i, who had led the Staff were concerned." — The 1st 19 * 292 GREAT EFFECT OF HIS VICTORY. Book XI. Chapter V. 1857. December. The rebels are pursued and slaugh- tered ; among them their heredi- tary com- mander-in- chief. Great effect on the coun- try of this victory. The gallant charge of Seaton decided the day ; but it did not stop the slaughter. The Cara- bineers, the Lancers, Hodson's Horse, and the artillery " got in " among the fleeing enemy, and pursued them for seven miles, taking blood for blood. It is computed that not less than six hundred of the rebels succumbed in this pursuit. On the side of the British the loss was singularly small, one man only having been killed and three wounded. The number of guns taken amounted to thirteen. Amongst the trophies captured on this occasion were the elephant, the silver how- dah, and the sword of the Hakim, hereditary commander-in-chief of the Nawab of Farrakh- abad. The Hakim himself had been killed by Hodson. In the choice of an open position in front of one very defensible, he had clearly de- monstrated that the qualities which go to form an efficient commander-in-chief are not here- ditary. Seaton halted three days at Pattiali, chiefly to give time to the administrative officers to reor- ganise their establishments and settle the country. This halt showed him the marvellous effect which his triumphant march had produced. On all sides the rebels were falling back, terrified, on Fathgarh, or endeavouring to cross the Ganges into Oudh. Some bodies of them, of whose movements he heard, and against whom he de- spatched a small force, fled on the appearance even Bengal Fusiliers after the the article was at the time fall of Delhi (Blackwood's attached to the 1st Fusiliers. Magazine). The writer of SEATON MARCHES TOWARDS MAINPURI. 293 of a reconnoitring party ! * Seaton thought, book xi. then, that he might fairly return for his J ap ei convoy. „ 1857 ; «/ December. Accordingly on the 21st he retraced his steps. Hodson dis- On the 22nd, when within a few miles of Kims- K3£w£ ganj, he was met by Mr. Cocks, the Civil Com- missioner of the division, with the information that a notorious rebel, named Jawahir Singh, who had fought against him at Pattiali, had doubled round, and had returned with one son, wounded in that engagement, to Khasganj. Hodson was at once sent to the front to dispose of the ques- tion. He disposed of it in his own manner. He killed the son ; the father, taken prisoner, was tried by a military commission and blown from a gun that evening. He deserved his fate, for not only was he in receipt of a pension from the British Government as a native officer, but he was receiving also the emoluments attaching to the Order of British India, of which he was a member. From Khasganj Seaton sent Major Eld to es- Seaton cort the captured guns to Aligarh and to despatch ii'I '"m^oy, 1 the convoy thence under charge of the escort with which he furnished him. He then resumed hie march to Jta. There he received information thai the Raja of MainpiSri, a debauchee, named ^marches ° L on Maiimuri. ' "On the appearance in still cooking on the fire, their the distance of the recon- pots and pans, and all their noitring party they bad fled baggage standing apart. The pitately. The officer Eear of us had fallen on all over the ground on the district round ahout." — which they bad been en- From Cadet to Colonel, by Sir camped, and found their food Thomas Seaton, K.C.B, 294 HE AGAIN DEFEATS THE REBELS. Book XL Chapter V. 1857. December. Learns on his march that the rebel Raja is in his path, to oppose his progress. Seaton out- manoeuvres, and defeats him. Seaton halts at Mainpuri. Hodson pro- poses to open communica- tion with the Commander- in-Chief. Tej Singh, had raised a force with the intention of barring the road to him. Upon Mainpuri, then, Seaton marched, via Karaoli. At Karaoli, fourteen miles from Mainpuri, Seaton learned from his scouts that the young Raja had drawn up his little force in position across the road from Karaoli just above the junc- tion with the grand trunk road leading to Agra, and that he had occupied walled gardens on either side of the road, and had covered the road itself with field-works. Seaton' s plan was instantly made. When within a mile of the enemy's position, he turned off from the main road by a path to the right, hiding his movement, as far as possible, by the dust made by the cavalry, until he had gained a position whence he could rake the enemy's line from left to right. In vain did the enemy bring their guns to bear on him. Seaton continued his movement until he had reached the point he was aiming at. The British guns then opened. Two rounds were sufficient. The enemy fled in disorder, abandoning on the field and in the fort, which they did not attempt to defend, eight guns. Their loss cannot be properly esti- mated ; it did not probably exceed one hundred. Seaton' s amounted to two wounded ! The action near Mainpuri was fought on the 27th December. Seaton halted in the vicinity of that place till the 31st, whilst Hodson of Hodson' s Horse made a daring and most successful effort to open communications with the Commander-in- Chief. Many gallant deeds were performed during DARIXG EXPLOIT OF HODSON. 295 the mutiny, but not one exceeded this in cool bookxi. j i vi j Chapter V. and deliberate courage. My opinion of Hodson has been already re- December corded. He was a free-lance of the Middle Ages. Hodson in- But if his action towards the unarmed and cap- partisan &S a tive princes of the House of Taimiir proved that leader - the instincts of the natural savage reigned strong within him, his fearlessness, his contempt of danger, his joy in the battle, his ever cool brain, made him invaluable as a partisan leader. When a risk for the general good was to be undertaken, Hodson always came forward to undertake it. In matters affecting, or likely to affect, him phy- sically, he never counted the cost. He was in- valuable to a commander. Was information re- garding the enemy's movements required, Hodson would get it. Was a delicate movement at a particular period of a battle considered essential, the execution of it was entrusted to Hodson. Always in the position where his presence was needed, always the first to detect a false move- ment, always with his life in his hand ready to risk it, Hodson could not fail to be the right-hand man of his general. "He is indefatigable," said Seaton, to General Penny, when asking for his services — " a soldier of the highest class ; I have unbounded confidence in him, and would rather have him than five hundred more men." The undertaking to which he now devoted him- Dangerof the in • • ■ , it t undertaking sell was one requiring nerve, intelligence, and be proposed activity of the highest order. Seaton's camp was ' p , 1 ' i ^ l ' tom " at MainpuTi. The Commander-in-Chief was re- ported to be at G-tirsahaiganj, about forty miles 296 DARING EXPLOIT Book XI. Chapter V. 1857. December. Hodson and M'Dowell start on their dangerous errand. Leaving their escort behind, they reach their destina- tion to find the Chief still distant from it. Alarming nature of the situation ; from Mainpuri, marching for Fathgarh. But the country between the two places was the country into which the rebels, so often beaten, had been driven, and though some, doubtless, had reached Fathgarh, others had lingered on the road. The rebels beaten at Mainpuri must of necessity be there. Still, it was very advisable to attempt to open out communications with the Commander-in- Chief, and, the task being difficult and dangerous, Hodson naturally volunteered to execute it. His offer was accepted, and on the morning of the 30th he set out, taking with him his second in command, M'Dowell, a very gallant officer, and seventy-five of his own men. He carried on his person Colonel Seaton's despatches. Hodson rode straight to Bewar, fourteen miles distant. There he left all his escort except twenty-five men. With these and with M'Dowell he continued his course to Chibramao, another fourteen miles, where he made another halt. From this point he determined to push on to Giirsahaiganj accompanied only by M'Dowell. The distance was about twelve miles. Leaving, then, the twenty-five native troopers in Chibra- mao, the two officers rode on alone. They reached G-iirsahaiganj in safety, only to find, however, that the Commander-in-Chief's camp was at Miran-ka-serai, some fifteen miles further off. The situation was alarming. The villagers re- ported that the rebels, seven hundred strong with four guns, were within two miles of the place. But hesitation never entered into the calculations or hodson and m'dowell. 297 of Hodson. He and his comrade continued their bookXI. journey, and reached the headquarter camp, with- J out adventure, at 4 o'clock in the morning. They December, had ridden fifty-five miles in ten hours, without but they l n i push on, and change ot horse. I, ain th( ; It happened that on the road between Chibra- ? h[ei ' s cam P 1 r . in safety. mao and Grursahaiganj , Hodson had bestowed While h " e is alms upon a native. A very short time after he thei ' e 1 tlie 1 _ " road he tra- had left the former place, it had been entered by versed is a party of two thousand rebels on their way to thTrebeis. 7 Fathgarh. These men overpowered and killed the troopers, and having gathered from the vil- lagers that Hodson and his companion would return, they resolved to lay wait for them. Mean- while, Hodson had been splendidly received by Sir Colin Campbell, had been closeted with him the greater part of the day, and had dined with him. At 8 o'clock in the evening, he and M'Dowell set out on their return iournev. Thev Hodson and APT1 - 11 proceeded without adventure till within five or six B tart to miles of Chibramao. Here they were stopped retuni ; by the native whom Hodson had befriended in warned of the morning, with the information that Chibra- U ,e da "-" °' threatening m;in was occupied by the rebels, who were on the them. look-out for them. It was near midnight, the moon was bright, and the wind cold. It was neither the time nor place for deliberation, nor did Hodson require it. He determined to push on. Dismounting, then, from their horses, he and his companion led them to the soft unmacadamised st iip which forms the border to an Indian road, B iniilinl and followed by the native, walked on. They boldness they gradually approached Chibramao, they entered it, danger, 298 WALPOLE JOINS SEATON. Book XI. Chapter V. 1857. December. and retiarn. they saw the camp of the enemy, they heard the hum of voices ; but they reached unseen the further end of the village. On emerging from it, they dismissed their guide, with a promise from him to join them in their camp, remounted, and rode on. At Bewar they were met by a party which Seaton, hearing of the surprise at Chi- bramao, had sent out to look for them. Seaton, indeed, alarmed at the reports brought in by the troopers left at Bewar, had moved on Seaton effects to that place on the 31st. Here he remained a junction . _ - .' •nir»-iT i withWaipoie. with his convoy till the ord January, when, as already related, Brigadier Walpole marched into Bewar. Seaton's force came at once under his orders. 299 BOOK XI. CHAPTER VI. It is time now to return to the Commander-in- Chief. The carriage necessary for his movements sirCoiin returned from Allahabad on the 23rd December, sets out for Sir Colin marched from Kanhpur on the 24th. a gai Clearing the country lying between the main road and the road by which he had despatched Walpole with his left brigade, and stripping the Ganges of boats with a brigade on his right, Sir Colin reached M i ran -ka- serai on the 30th. It was at this place that he met Hodson in the manner I have related in the preceding chapter. The following day he reached Gursahaiganj. Here a road branches off from the main road, and leads the traveller over the Kali Naddi, traversed by a suspension bridge at a distance of five miles from the junction of the roads to Fathgarh. The advance of the Commander-in-Chief had Tberebeia been acting on the various detachments of rebels a ii si.i.-s t!" 300 THE BRIDGE OVER THE KALI NADDI. Book XL Chapter VI. 1857. Dec. 30-31. wards Fath- garh. They deter- mine, too late, to de- stroy the bridge over the Kali Naddi. They begin their work of destruction. But are checked by Adrian Hope. in the manner of a loaded net sunk in a stream and drawn upwards by men on both banks. Walpole and Seaton prevented escape on one side, Sir Colin drove his victims up on the other. There was one outlet, however, which neither com- manded, and for this the harassed tribe was now making. The outlet was Fathgarh. The Kali Naddi barred the entrance of a hos- tile force into Fathgarh. But I have said that it was spanned by a suspension bridge. The rebels, jammed into the place from all sides, some fleeing from Seaton, some from Walpole, some from the Commander-in-Chief, began, recovering from their panic, to reflect that their last chance of safety lay in the removal of the suspension bridge. Like so many of their reflections, it came too late. However, on the 31st they sent down a party to destroy the bridge. Had they worked with a will they might have succeeded. But though they effected some damage that night, they left the piers and the main chains intact, hoping, it may be supposed, to deal with them on the morrow. But for the destruction of the bridge there was to be no morrow. Early on the morning of the 1st January, Sir Colin detached Adrian Hope's brigade, reinforced with two 24-pounders and one 8-inch howitzer, under Lieutenant Vaughan of the Naval Brigade, and some engi- neers, sappers, and cavalry, to the Kali Naddi, with orders to drive away the enemy and to repair the bridge in case it should be found damaged. THE REBELS BEYOND IT OPEN EIRE. 301 On the approach of Adrian Hope the rebels fled, book xi. and the engineers and sappers at once set to work a ^-!L to repair it, covered by a strong infantry picket. Ja JJ ^_ 2 They laboured with so much earnestness that day and through the night, that by half -past 7 o'clock the next morning the bridge was in a fit state to be traversed. The labours of the British troops had but just sh-Coiin been completed, and the sailors, who had helped reconnoitres in the work, were on the river-bank washing their beyoncTthe garments, when the Commander-in-Chief and bridge. & his staff arrived to examine the position. Halt- ing, he uoticed a large village, facing the bridge, at a distance of about three hundred yards, flanked on its right by some tall trees. In front of the village was a small square building, which proved afterwards to be a toll-house. The road from the river-bank gradually ascended to a point beyond the village, which it intersected. Sir Colin had had barely time to make these The reb eis observations when the rebels, who till then had upon him. ki" districts cleared bj Seaton. The 310 SIR OOLIN PREPARES TO ATTACK LAKHNAO. Book XL Chapter VI. 1858. January. and on the right. Sir Colin makes pre- parations for Lakhnao. victory near Fathgarh and the occupation of that place by Sir Colin protected it against attacks from the left during its progress. It was scarcely less secure on its right. For, although the broken remnant of the Gwaliar con- tingent was supposed to be at Kalpi or in its vicinity, the men forming it could scarcely have recovered from the heavy blow and sore discou- ragement inflicted upon them on the 6th Decem- ber. It seemed almost certain, too, that they would feel in their rear the effects of the super- human efforts which it was known were being made by the British troops in Central India and in Bandalkhand to get at them ; whilst the fact that Kanhpiir was guarded by a brigade under Insrlis, that the communications with Allahabad were preserved by a Madras brigade under Car- thew, and that those between that place and Banaras were protected by another brigade under Franks, left them, in reality, but one line upon which they could act against the siege-train — the line by Akbarpiir, and that was the line which Walpole had but very recently cleared, and along which no force could march from Kalpi without exposing its right to Kanhpiir and Bithor. The siege-train was then ordered from Agra. Whilst it was on its way, Sir Colin had time to organise the measures he considered necessary to secure his conquests and to facilitate his move- ments. To guard the position at Fathgarh and the districts to the west and south-west of it, in- cluding Itawa, Mainpiiri, and Miran-ka- Serai, he required an officer of more than ordinary intelli- SEATON IS LEFT AT FATHGARH. 311 gence and decision, well-acquainted with the na- Bo °k xi. tives, and capable of arriving at and acting on a ap ei decision. For this command he selected Colonel jauuir Seaton. What Seaton was may be gathered from the account I have given of his march from Dehli to Bewar. A gallant soldier, shrinking from no responsibility, always ready to give his life for his country, he was just the man to hold a position full of difficulty and danger. The post that was offered him came emphatically within that cate- gory. For, to hold Fathgarh and the districts which Fathgarh covered, Sir Colin proposed to leave him only two weak English regiments, — one of which only, the 82nd, was at Fathgarh — the 7th Pan jab Infantry, a 9 -pounder field battery, and three hundred and fifty newly raised native horsemen ; this, too, when fifteen thousand rebels were within seven miles of Fathgarh ! But, diffi- cult as was the occasion, Seaton was equal to it. Meanwhile, Sir Colin had endeavoured to amuse sir Colin the Rohilkhand rebels. His great object was to ^ta toln- mislead them — to impress them with the idea that t^Rowl 16 * Bareli was the object of his attack. Iminediatery khandishis obiect after occupying Fathgarh, he had sent Adrian Hope's brigade to scour the country in the vici- nity. On Hope's return, learning that a force of fifteen thousand men had assembled at the town of Allahganj on the banks of the Rainganga river, some seven or eight miles distant, Sir Colin sent Walpole's brigade, with guns, cavalry, and sap- pers, to make a demonstration against them. Walpole's orders were to make as much display as possible, but not to commit himself to as en- 312 COMBAT OP SUTIA. Book XI. Chapter VL 1858. January. Sutia. gagement across the river. He carried out these orders to the letter ; he made as though he would repair the bridge, which the rebels had broken down, across the Ramganga ; and to add to the delusion, Sir Colin rode out himself and made a careful reconnaissance of the spot. The ruse succeeded admirably, for the rebels were com- pletely deceived, and, for a time, became rooted to the left bank of the river. Whether suspicion gradually dawned upon them, or whether they were well served by their spies, I do not know. But it is certain that after remaining in this position ten or twelve days, they detached a body of five thousand men to Adrian Hope attempt an incursion into the reconquered dis- rebeisat tricts. These men, crossing the Ramganga at a point above that watched by Walpole, marched to a ferry on the Ganges, called Surajghat, about twelve miles above Fathgarh, crossed that river, and occupied the village of Shamsabad. At ten o'clock on the evening of the 26th January, Adrian Hope's brigade, consisting of the 42nd, the 93rd, the 4th Panjab Rifles, Remmington's and Blunt' s troops of Bengal Horse Artillery, two squadron's of the 9th Lancers, and half of Hodson's Horse, was sent to attack them. March- ing all night, Adrian Hope found the enemy at 8 o'clock in the morning posted at the village of Sutia, half a mile from Shamsabad. As soon as the rebels saw the English their guns opened fire. Hope did not reply till well within distance ; but when he did reply, it was with considerable effect. At the fifth discharge the rebels broke and fled. FINAL PREPARATIONS. 318 Hodson and the 9th Lancer squadrons were Bookxi. amongst them at once, and though the rebel a ^— ! cavalry fought well, the slaughter of them was T 1858 ' great. The British loss did not exceed five or six killed and about twenty wounded. Amongst those wounded mortally was M'Dowell, the gal- lant second in command of Hodson' s Horse, the companion of Hodson in many a daring enter- prise. Hodson himself was wounded in two places. The enemy were pursued eight or nine miles. Those who escaped recrossed the Ganges into Rohilkhand, leaving four guns in the hands of the victors. Meanwhile, in order the better to relieve pres- Final pre- sure on Seaton's small brigade, Sir Colin Camp- before° nS bell had arranged with the Chief Commissioner of ™ ar f hin sr on ° > Lakhnao. the Panjab, Sir John Lawrence, that a force should be organised at Riirki for the purpose of entering Rohilkhand from the north-west. This column, he had reason to believe, would be ready to set out on this expedition on the 1st February. It was now approaching that date ; Hope's victory at Siitia had been severe enough to impose prudence on the rebels for a few days ; the siege-train was well on its way to Kanhpiir ; Seaton had had a week to examine the lay of the districts committed to his care and prudence; there was no reason for further delay. Sir Colin was anxious to return to the place which was to be his base in the new campaign, to see how the works lie had ordered to cover the bridges were progressing, to be present there to receive the siege-train, and to despatch it across the Ganges 314 SIR COLIN CROSSES INTO OUDH. Book xi. to the first advanced position on the Lakhnao — road — the station of Onao. He left Fathgarh, January, then, on the 1st February, followed by the cavalry and the horse artillery, and making forced marches, reached Kanhpiir on the 4th. Hope's brigade and the artillery park started the same day by regular marches, whilst Walpole's brigade, strengthened by a portion of that which Seaton had brought down, stayed a few days longer, to cover to the last the communications with Agra. But by the 23rd February all had crossed the Granges into Oudh. On the sandy plains between Oonao and Banni were massed engineers, artillery, horse, foot, commissariat waggons, camp-followers, the most efficient European army ever ranged in the plains of India. It counted seventeen bat- talions of infantry, fifteen of which were British ; twenty-eight squadrons of cavalry, including four English regiments ; fifty -four light and eighty heavy guns and mortars. They are there on the eve of their departure. The morrow will see them start for the rebellious city, the capture of which will be so fatal to many among them. I must leave them for the moment ; for before I describe their deeds it is fitting that I should narrate the manner in which Jang Baha- dur and Franks had been co-operating from the south-east, and how Outram and his gallant com- panions were bearing up in the A'lambagh. 315 BOOK XI. CHAPTER VII. Among the offers of assistance which, in the early Jang Bahadur days of the revolt, had been made to the Governor- early date"o General was one of peculiar significance. Jang aidtosup- r °. # ° press the Bahadur, the virtual ruler of the independent Hill revolt. State which, touching the British territory at Kamaon, extends all along the north-east border of Oudh, then rejoining British territory at a point in the Gorakhpiir district due north of the station of the same name, continues the touch to within a few miles of Darjiling — Jang Bahadur had, in the month of May, placed the whole mili- tary resources of Nipal at the disposal of the Governor-General. The independent position oc- cupied by Nipal, the known ability of the man, who, though only Prime Minister, wielded all real authority in the country, the certainty that the overthrow of the British could scarcely fail to offer great opportunities to an able general commanding a compact and well-disciplined army, 316 jung Bahadur's aid is accepted. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1857. May-July. The offer, after some delay, is accepted ; and a few Gurkah troops are sent to the A'zamgarh district. gave to Jang Bahadur's proposal the appearance of being inspired by a pure and generous friend- ship. Few untravelled independent rulers would have acted in a similar manner. But Jang Baha- dur had but a few years previously visited Europe. This visit had enlightened him on many points, and on one point in particular. It had convinced him that, under all circumstances, England would be able to maintain her hold on India. It became therefore with him a matter of interest to support the stronger combatant. Lord Canning thanked Jang Bahadur for his offer, but it was not till some time in the month of June that he accepted it. In pursuance of the agreement between the contracting parties, Jang Bahadur in July despatched three thousand Griir- kahs from Khatmandu. These, entering the Bri- tish territory at a point north of Gorakhpur, marched on that place, and reached it at the end of the month. Their arrival was the signal for the disarming of the sepoys stationed there (1st August). The neighbouring stations of Azam- garh and Janpur were then in the throes of anarchy. Yainly had the heroic Yenables, the indigo-planter, who had been steadfast among the faint-hearted, struggled and fought for order. It is true that on the 16th July, after a gallant fight of the few against many, he had repulsed them in an attack on Azamgarh. But, after the victory, his own followers had shown symptoms of mutiny, and he and the few Europeans who followed him had been forced, on the 30th July, to retreat on Grhazipur. To restore order, then, THE N1PAL TKOOPS EEACH AZAMGARH. 317 in Azamgarh and its vicinity, the arrival of the Bookxi. o v i Chapter VII. Nipalese troops was opportune. They occupied — Azamgarh on the 13th August, and Janpur on the Au g®| 7 e ' pt . 1 5th. Meanwhile, on their evacuating it, Grorakh- pur was taken possession of by rebels from Oudh, commanded by one Muhammad Husen. The Government of India, to ensure concert British between these allies and its own troops, had t0 represent transmitted orders to the military authorities at ^1^°^' Banaras to appoint certain officers, left unem- the Nipai . _ . . • troops. ployed by the mutiny ot their regiments, to join and act with the Nipalese. In obedience to these orders, Captain Boileau and Lieutenants Miles, Hall, and Campbell, came to Janpur and took up the duties assigned to them. Two or three weeks elapsed before an opportunity offered of testing the quality of the allied troops, but in the third week of September the approach to Azamgarh of a large body of rebels gave an occasion of which they eagerly availed themselves. Azamgarh was the point threatened. Lieute- A'zamgarh , -I . T'' 1S a S ain nant-Colonel Wroughton, commanding at Janpur, threatened. deemed it advisable then to detach the Sher regi- ment of Nipalese, one thousand two hundred strong, and two guns, to reinforce that station. The Nipalese left Janpur at 10 a.m. on the 18th September, marched forty miles that day, and reached Azamgarh at 6 o'clock in the evening. It was known when they arrived that the rebels were encamped at or near a village called Man- dori, ten miles distant; and as they would pro- bably be ignorant of the arrival of the Nipal reinforcement it was determined to surprise them. 318 THE NIPALESE DEFEAT THE REBELS. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1857. September. The Nipal troops and Mr. Venables surprise and defeat the rebels. The victory is followed up. Accordingly, at half past 1 o'clock the next morning, the Sher regiment again set out, accom- panied by Captain Boileau as English officer in charge of the force, by Mr. Wynyard the judge, by Mr. Venables, the gallant planter whose recent services I have just referred to, and by three other officers. Mandori was reached a little after sunrise. The rebels were found strongly posted, their centre covered by the village, and their flanks protected by fields of sugar-cane, then at their full height. Nothing daunted, the Nipal colonel, Shamsher Singh, formed his men up in five columns, and dashed at the enemy's position. Their onslaught was so fierce, that in ten minutes the rebels were in full flight, leaving on the field three brass guns. They lost about two hundred men killed and wounded. On the side of the Nipalese two were killed and twenty-six wounded. Mr. Wynyard, in his report of the action to his civil superiors, alluded in the highest terms to the conduct of the Nipal troops. Regarding Mr. Venables, who commanded the cavalry, he wrote : " He was always where fighting was hardest ; he was first up at the first gun taken, and killed three men with his own hand."* This victory had an excellent effect on the con- querors. Up to that time some hesitation had been shown in employing our allies against the rebels, but with the victory of Mandori all uncer- tainty vanished. To march fifty miles in two * So sensible were the to his country that they rebels of the immense ser- offered a reward of five hun- vice rendered by Mr. Venables dred rupees for his head. LONGDEN IS SENT TO AZAMGARH. 319 days and then to win a battle in an unknown BookXi. country would have reflected credit on veteran a E_!l soldiers. Their success on this occasion filled the c lf ? 57 - . Sept.-Oct. English officers with confidence, and caused the step already taken to be followed up by others. On the 27th September, another party of Nipal troops from Janpur, commanded by Colonel Wroughton, and accompanied by the civil officers, marched against and occupied Mubarakpur — the stronghold of a rebel Raja, IradatKhan. He was captured and hanged. Proceeding onwards, the Nipal troops pacified the entire district. On the 29th, a similar demonstration was made from Azamgarh, and with similar success. Atraolia, the stronghold of the rebel leader Beni Madho, was occupied, its fortifications were destroyed ; and although Beni Madho escaped, he quitted the district, and up to the borders of Oudh order was for the time restored. To support the Nipal troops, the Government a detachment had, in September, directed the despatch from troops sent Banaras of a small force, consisting of three hun- u r n °dc r Banara8 dred and twenty men of the 10th Foot, two Longden. 9-pounder guns, a small detachment European artillery, and one hundred and seventy of the 17th Madras Native Infantry, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Longdon of the 10th Foot. But before this small force could reach the scene of action, the Oudh rebels had again crossed the frontier, and had encountered and been beaten by the Nipalese at Kiidua on the 19th October, and at Chanda on the 30th of the same month. The last-named action was severe enough to 320 SUCCESSES IN THE AZAMGARH DISTRICT. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1857. Oct.-Nov. Longclen captures Atraolia. The Govern- ment con- cludes an arrangement with Jang Bahadur merit a separate record. The rebels, number- ing from four to five thousand men, were strongly posted and had seven guns. The Nipal troops counted only one thousand one hundred with two guns. The battle, obstinately contested, termi- nated in the complete defeat of the rebels, with a loss on their side of three hundred killed. Four of their guns were taken. But the victory was dearly purchased. Lieutenant- Colonel Maddan Man Singh, and eleven men were killed, and fifty-nine were wounded. But the gallantry of the Nipal troops had been conspicuous. Of one of them, Lieutenant Gambhir Singh, it is related in the official account of the action that " single- handed, he took a gun, cutting down five of the artillerymen, and wounding and driving away two others." This gallant ally was covered with wounds but eventually recovered. Longden reached Janpur just after the action of Chanda. Three days after his arrival (4th November) the Oudh rebels, to the number of one thousand, with two guns, again crossed the Oudh frontier, and seized the fort of Atraolia. The attention of Longden was at once called to the fact. Uniting his force to that of the Nipalese, he marched out at once, and, on the 9th, cannonaded the place so vigorously, that the enemy evacuated it during the night. But the fact that the British territory was still liable to invasion, and that the British troops, though strong enough to repel an isolated attack, were not strong enough to defend the whole fron- tier, and might be forced, under certain circum- NEW ARRANGEMENT WITH JUNG BAHADUR. 321 stances, to fall back on Banaras, induced the bookXi. Government of India to conclude with the Nipal ap ei Government a new arrangement. In virtue of ^Jf-j) ec this, it was arranged that Jang Bahadur should for assistance proceed himself to the scene of action with a S eif. 7 nm " force of nine thousand picked troops, and that to this force Colonel MacGregor should be at- tached with the rank of Brigadier- General. At the same time measures were taken greatly to in- crease the British force on the eastern frontier of Oudh. Large reinforcements were likewise sent to the Janpiir force, and that force so strengthened was placed under the command of one of the ablest officers in the British army, Brigadier- General Franks, C.B. Similarly, another mixed The British force is force was organised by Colonel Rowcroft to move likewise from Tirkiit along the Gandak towards Gorakkpur. 8tren g thened - These three separate corps d'armee had but one primary object, to clear the British districts to the north of Banaras and east of Oudh ; these once cleared, whilst one corps would remain in observa- tion, the other two would inarch to co-operate with Sir Colin Campbell in his attack on Lakhnao. It will be necessary to deal with them separately. Rowcroft's force was composed of thirty men Colonel of the Royal Marines, one hundred and thirty of force the Naval Brigade under Captain Sotheby, three hundred and fifty Nipal troops, fifty men of the Bengal Police Battalion, and four Impounder howitzers, two of which were mountain-train guns. It occupied an intrenched camp at Mirwa, about forty-nine miles from Chaprd. Seven miles distant, a1 Sobanpiiron the west bank of the little ii. 21 322 R0W0R0FT DEPRATS THE REBELS. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1857. December. beats the rebels at Sobanpur, and halts on the Ghaghra for orders. Jung Baha- dur enters G-andak, lay a small rebel army, computed to consist of twelve hundred regular sepoys, and four thousand armed adventurers, of whom one hundred were mounted, with four guns. On the morning of the 26th December, Rowcroft, who had waited for the arrival of the Gorakhnath Nipal regiment from Sigaoli, marched to attack them. The enemy's position was strong. They occupied a village, covered in front by a tank with high banks, and on the right by a tope of trees. Rowcroft halted within half a mile of the place and rode forward to reconnoitre. He resolved to render useless the enemy's strong positions in the centre and on the right by turning his left. He did this with great coolness and success. The Nipal troops behaved splendidly under fire. So- theby of the Naval Brigade managed the artil- lery with great skill. The Minie rifles of the Royal Marines, directed by Lieutenant Pym, pro- duced a striking effect. The result was that the enemy, attacked a little after 10 o'clock, were completely beaten by half past 1, forced back from Sobanpur, and followed six miles further to Majaoli, and thence driven across the Gandak, with the loss of one large iron gun. Rowcroft followed up his victory the next day by crossing the river and destroying the homesteads of the leading rebels. Then, in pursuance of instructions he had re- ceived from Brigadier-General MacGregor, under whose orders he had been placed, he marched to Burhat Ghat on the river Ghaghra, there to await further instructions. Jang Bahadur's little army, meanwhile, setting JUNG BAHADUR OCCUPIES GORAKHPUR. 323 out from Nipal, had crossed the British frontier. b °°k xi. On the 23rd December, it reached Bhetia, eighty- U L!^_ two miles east of Gorakhpiir. Here it was joined DeT-jtn by MacGregor. Continuing its march, it crossed British tem- the river Gandak on the 30th, and arrived in the tory ' vicinity of Gorakhpiir on the 5th January. Go- rakhpiir was occupied by the rebels, but by rebels disheartened, divided in purpose, and hopeless of success. "When attacked, then, the following and beats the tvt- •! 1 rebels at morning by the Nipal army, they made but a Gorakhpiir. feeble resistance, but fled across the Rapti, leaving seven guns in the possession of the con- querors. These lost but two men killed. Seven were wounded. The loss of the rebels amounted to about two hundred. The civil administration was at once re-esta- Civil admini- blished in Gorakhpiir. The British districts were stored in cleared of rebels. At the same time, awaiting the Gorakh P ur - time when the Nipal force at Azamgarh should cross the Oudh frontier in co-operation with that under General Franks, MacGregor transmitted orders to Rowcroft to embark his little force in boats and ascend the river. Before Rowcroft came up, the moment referred Rowcroft it • n ir t»i/t • n approaches to had arrived, and Jang Bahadur, starting from the Nipal Gorakhpiir on the 14th February, reached Barari, force ' on the left bank of the Ghaghra, on the 19th. On the evening of that day, Rowcroft' s force an- chored within four miles of that place, and landed on the right bank. There, on the morning of the 20th, he was joined by a brigade of the Nipal force, with six guns. Rowcroft's boats were or- dered to be brought up to allow bhe reel of the 21 * 324 JUNG BAHADUR ENTERS OUDH. Book XL Chapter VII. 1858. Feb.-March. and defeats the rebels at Phulpur. Jang Baha- dur enters Ondh, and storms a strong fort. Nipal force to cross over at Phulpur. But meanwhile, Rowcroft, discovering that place to be in the occupation of the rebels, marched on it, attacked, and dispersed them, capturing three guns. A bridge was then formed of the boats, and the entire Nipal force crossed. It was ar- ranged that Rowcroft, with the Naval Brigade, the Yeomanry Cavalry, which had joined him, and two Nipal regiments, should occupy Grorakhpiir, to keep open the communications, whilst Jang Bahadur should march via Sultanpur on Lakhnao. Crossing theGhaghra, Jang Bahadur marched to Ambarpiir on the 25th February. The road to that place was commanded by a small fort, having a triple line of defence within a bamboo jungle, and defended by thirty -four men. It was necessary to storm this post, for though it might be turned, yet its occupation by the rebels would enable them to act on the communications of the ad- vancing force. The Nipal troops, then, were sent against it. It was defended with so much vigour and resolution, that the assailants lost seven men killed and forty-three wounded before they gained possession of it. The defenders died, all, at their posts. The effect of this capture was great, for two days later the rebels evacuated a larger fort oc- cupied by two hundred men, towards which the Nipalese were advancing. Neither their passage across the Giimti near Sultanpur, nor their further progress to Lakhnao, was disturbed by the enemy. They reached the vicinity of that city on the 10th March, and moved into line with the British army GENERAL FBANKS's COLUMN. 325 on the 11th, in full time to take an efficient part bookxi. in the capture of that city. Chapter vn. I propose now to turn to General Franks. On ^ T 185 t* the 29th November that officer had been appointed General to command the troops in the A'zamgarh and Jan- Franke : pur districts. The force at his disposal consisted of about five thousand five hundred men — of whom three thousand two hundred were Nipalese — and twenty guns. His own brigade was composed of his force; the 10th, 20th, and 97th Foot, the 6th company 13th battalion, and 8th company 2nd battalion Royal Artillery ; detachments of the 3rd battalion Madras, and of the 5th battalion Bengal, Artillery, and a detail of native artillery. The Assistant his Assistant Adjutant- General of the force was Captain H. Genera?;' Havelock, son of the famous general, and who had served under Franks, as adjutant of the 10th Regiment, for six years. This gallant officer, on learning the nomination of his old colonel to the command of the force, had at once applied to serve with it; and on the application being granted, though still suffering from severe wounds, had hastened to join. Franks was officially informed that his main duties would consist in protecting his instruc- Banaras against attack, in preventing the rebels lons ' from crossing the Ganges into Bihar, in recovering British districts occupied by them. It was at the same time impressed upon him, in a memorandum, that the safety of Banaras was the prime, the main consideration, to which every other was to be subordinated.* * Lord Canning's Memo- 1857, addressed to Colonel random, dated 29th November Franks. 32(5 MR. grant's supplementary instructions. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1857. December. Supplement- ary instruc- tions given to him by Mr. Grant. He shows a bold front to the invader. The rebel leader and his army Nevertheless, the Lieutenant-Governor of the Central Provinces, Mr. J. P. Grant, in communi- cating this memorandum to Colonel Franks, wisely supplemented it with a description of the state of the frontier, of the rebel chiefs, of their following, of the positions they had taken up, as well as of the probable means of offence and defence at their disposal. This memorandum, written clearly and with accurate knowledge, proved of inestimable value. By end of December, Franks had organised his force, and had placed it in strong defensive posi- tions, showing a bold front to the invader. His right column was near Azamgarh, his centre some miles in front of Janpur, and his left at Badlapiir. Though the attitude taken up imposed on the rebels so far as to prevent them from hazarding an attack, it did not hinder them from pillaging and plundering the districts about one hundred and twenty miles to the west of Janpur. The leader of the rebels was called Mehndi Husen. He called himself Naziin of Siiltanpur. Like many men who rise to the surface in a period of riot and disorder, he was an adventurer, whose main object in life was to secure for himself some- thing tangible out of the general wreck. He had under him about fifteen thousand men, mostly matchlock-men, of whom not more than a third could be depended upon to fight. The rebel leader had his headquarters at Chanda, a town thirty-six miles from Janpur, on the direct road from that station to Siiltanpur; but his lieutenant, Fazal A'zimj occupied a strong position at Saraon, just FRANKs's DEFICIENCY IN CAVALRY. 327 fourteen miles north of Allahabad. His outposts book xi. were within four miles of that place. a L^l Franks had no regular cavalry. He had, in- January deed, thirty-eight mounted policemen, known as HowFranks'a the Banaras Horse, commanded by Captain Ma- ^vainf theson. To compensate as far as possible for the deficiency, he had mounted twenty-five men of the 10th Foot, and placed them under the com- mand of Lieutenant Tucker, of the Bengal Cavalry. The services rendered by these men can scarcely be exaggerated, but their numbers were insuf- ficient to effectively follow up a victory. It would have been easy for him, with the force at his dis- posal, to beat the pseudo-Nazim or his lieutenant ; but a barren victory — a victory which could not be efficiently followed up — would be useless. The Government and the Commander-in-Chief were equally alive to the necessity that Franks should be supplied with this arm in sufficient numbers, and they did all that seemed to them possible under the circumstances. But the supplv could waa i tii rm /» (• attempted to only proceed by detachments. 1 he first ot these, be supplied. composed of two squadrons of the Bays, and four horse artillery guns, was despatched from Allahabad on the 20th of January to reinforce him. As soon as he heard that cavalry were on their Franks moves way to join him, Franks (21st January) moved forward with his left column, numbering four- teen hundred men, of whom eight hundred were X ip:'i li-sc, and six guns, to Sikandra, seven miles from ttaraon. He found that Fazal Azim, with eight thousand men and fourteen guns, was still at that place. Fazal Azim heard at the same time forward. 328 FRANKS ATTACKS THE REBELS AT NASRATPUR. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1858. January. Tho enemy advance to a strong position. Franks waits for his cavalry, which arrives. Franks attacks and beats the rebels. of the arrival at Sikandra of General Franks. The country all about Saraon being open, he broke up his camp that night and advanced to Nasratpiir, a very strong position, held then by an ally, an influential talukdar, Beni Bahadur Singh. In this position, extremely strong by nature, and the ap- proach to which had been rendered more difficult by art, the two friends hoped to be able to give a good account of any assailant, even though that assailant should be British. Franks learned next morning of the retreat of the rebels. He could not attack them at once, for his cavalry had not come up, and he had directed them to join him at Sikandra. The day of the 22nd, then, was devoted to preparing for the move, which he thought would scarcely be delayed beyond the morrow. Franks gathered all the in- formation possible regarding the enemy's position, and whilst receiving this, he erected a kind of stockade, or fortified enclosure, there to leave his baggage whilst he should march on the enemy. In this way the day passed, anxiously towards the closing hours, for the cavalry did not appear. At last, about 8 o'clock, they arrived, accompanied by four horse artillery guns. There was no more hesitation. Next morning Franks sent his men in two columns against the enemy. The strength of the position did not stop them ; Nipalese rivalled European. With the loss of only six men slightly wounded, the stronghold was cap- tured ; the rebels hastily fleeing to save as many of their guns as possible. Two of these were captured ; but the density of the jungle, first, FRANKS ENTERS OUDH. 329 and the difficult nature of the ground, after- book xi p i i Chapter VII. wards, greatly impeded the action 01 the cavalry, and the rebels were able to carry the remainder j an " 8 _ 5 F eb . across the Oudh frontier. After the action, Franks was forced, to his The cavalry regret, but in obedience to orders, to send the Allahabad. cavalry back to Allahabad. Having destroyed the rebel stronghold, Franks Franks moves -i n , i i • i i , 1 • M .1 t0 the 0udh moved to Saraon, re-established the civil autno- frontier at rities in the districts bordering on Allahabad, and Sin sr amAo ' then returned to Badlapur, preparatory to an advance by Siiltanpiir on Lakhnao. Thence he moved eight miles in advance to Singramao, close to the frontier, there to await the action of Jang Buhadur, on his right, at Grorakhpur. "We have seen how the arrival of Rowcroft at and advances G-orakkpiir on the 19th February loosed the hands of the Nipal Maharaja. Franks set out the same day for Sultanpiir. The distance was thirty-three miles, but the greater portion of it was occupied by the rebels. Their advanced post, Chanda, thirteen miles from Singramao, was guarded by eight thousand men, of whom two thousand five hundred were sepoys trained by British officers and another strong corps of ten thousand men lay within a few miles of them. Franks, I have said, marched on the 19th from He reaches Singramao. His plan was to move rapidly and defeat the enemy's forces in detail, and he carried out his programme to the letter. Reaching Chanda about 8 o'clock in the morning, he found the place occupied by the rebel corps I have already men- tioned. This corps, eight thousand strong, had 330 HE BEATS THE REBELS AT OHANDA, Book xi. eight guns, a good position, and every incentive Chaptervn. to ^^ a sturdy resistance. Its commander, a Februar civil officer, named Banda Hiisen, had despatched Proceedings very early that morning express messengers to of the enemy. kj s cn i e f, the pseudo-Nazim, Mehndi Husen, in- forming him of the approach of the British, and begging him to move up with his following of ten thousand men to his support. Could he resist but for three hours, that support was assured to him. Franks But the impetuous onslaught of the British and defeats S Banda Nipalese was not to be withstood even for three Husen hours. Sepoys from four trained regiments were there, but they were there only to give way, almost without a serious effort. After a contest, which did not cost the allies a single man, Chanda was occupied, and the enemy were pursued three miles further to Rampiira. At Rampiira Franks halted — only for two hours. He had become aware that the reinforcements under Mehndi Husen were on their way, and he was resolved to deal with them before they should recover from the panic which the defeat of the Chanda force would certainly inspire. He took ground, then, to the left, and occupied the village and Mehndi f Hamirpiir. Mehndi Husen had been in full march for Chanda when he learned from some fugitives of the defeat of his lieutenant. Surprised as he was, he still hoped to retrieve the day. After a short halt for reflection, he made a circuit, and, as the shades of evening were falling, he appeared on the left rear of Franks' s position. But Franks was not so to be caught. At once changing front, he dashed at the rebels. Surprised, when they had AND AT HAMIRPUR. 331 hoped to surprise, they made but the semblance book xi. of resistance, and then fled in disorder. Owing ap _!L to the lateness of the hour, Franks pursued them Fe bruary. but a short distance : he then bivouacked on the ground he had occupied before the action. The loss of the allies in these two actions Losses on -, -. -, -, i n n both sides. amounted to only eleven wounded — a proot ot the slightness of the resistance. That of the enemy cannot be accurately computed ; but the speed of their flight and the paucity of cavalry with the victors would induce the belief that it was not considerable. The pseudo-Nazim rallied his forces at Wari, importance to intent on renewing the struggle. Between the f the P fort e f contending armies and Siiltanpur was a very Budhayan. strong fort, surrounded by a jungle, and com- pletely commanding the approaches to that town — the fort of Budhayan. The Nazim was tho- roughly well aware of the importance of this posi- tion, and he resolved to secure it. But Franks possessed a knowledge not inferior and a determi- nation at least equal. He possessed, too, this ad- vantage, that at Hamirpur he occupied a position from which he could deal a blow at an enemy who should attempt to attack Budhayan from Wari' The Nazim did, nevertheless, make the attempt, and in a manner which entitled him to some con- sideration as a general. It was far from his desire to encounter the English in the plain. The re- collection of the battle of the previous day was strong within hira. But he was anxious to mis- lead his enemy, and gain a post from which he could defy him. 332 THE REBELS OCCUPY A STRONG POSITION Book XI. Chapter VII. 1858. February. Franks out- manoeuvres the Nazim, who takes up a strong position near Sultanpur. Franks is constrained to act with- out cavalry. The position of the rebels at Sultanpur. But he failed. Do what he would, Franks always put himself in his way. After a long day of manoeuvring, it came to this, — that the army which was ready to fight a battle would gain Budhayan. The Nazim would do everything but that. Franks would do everything including that. The greater daring gained the day, and on the afternoon of the 21st Franks occupied Budhayan. The Nazim, baffled, though not discouraged, made a long detour, and turning the town of Sultanpur, took up a position at Badshahganj, two miles beyond it, ready there to dispute the further pro- gress of the allies. On this point, rallied all his scattered partisans, and the troops of Banda Husen. Here, too, he was joined by Mirza Gaffiir Beg, a general of artillery under the ex-king of Oudh, who had been sent from Lakhnao for the express purpose of assuming the command and of driving back Franks. He assumed the command, but he did not drive back Franks. Franks had halted at Budhayan on the 22nd to await the arrival of the Lahor Light Horse and the Pathan cavalry, urgently required and anxiously expected. But as these had not arrived on the early morning of the 23rd, he felt con- strained to act without them. He set out, then, at 6 o'clock in the morning of that day, to attack the enemy. The position which Graffur Beg occupied was very formidable. It may thus be described. His whole front was protected by a deep and winding nullah, which ran into the Grumti. The main body extended in a line of a mile and a half in the plain NEAE SULTANPUE. 333 behind that nullah, the left resting on the Sultan- book xi. pur bazaar, the centre placed behind the ruined ia ^_ lines of the police battalion ; the right covered by Pe Jruary. a range of low hillocks in advance of the village and strong masonry buildings of Badshahganj. The nullah which covered his front was crossed by the road leading to Lakhnao, and which Franks must traverse. To prevent such a movement, Gaffiir Beg placed his principal battery on this road. The rest of his guns were distributed along his front, three being posted in the village near the bazaar on his extreme left, six in the masonry building of Badshahganj on his right. Formidable though the position was, it had its defects. one great fault. It could be turned on its right. The road from Allahabad to Lakhnao, to the south-west, crossed the nullah at a point out of reach of the enemy's fire, and led to ground behind their right. Graffiir Beg had forgotten this, for he had pushed neither cavalry nor scouts in that direction. Franks marched, as I have said, at 6 o'clock in the morning. At about 9 o'clock, or a few minutes after, his advance guard, composed of the twentv-five mounted men of the 10th Foot, Franks de- t» e tt • tects the and thirty-eight men of the Banaras Horse, which weak point of constituted his only cavalry, caught sight of the po itio£ enemy's outposts on the nullah. Franks at once halted his force. He had detected the weak point in the position of the enemy, and had resolved to profit by it. Feigning a front attack, occupying the enemy Battle of i-i i i n , l Sultiinpur. by ;i demonstration winch bad all the appearance 334 BATTLE OF SULTANPUR. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1858. February. Macleod Innes. His splendid gallantly. of being real, he moved his infantry and light guns obliquely to the left, and seized the Allah- abad road. The feigned attack so completely concentrated upon it all the attention of the enemy, that the movement of the infantry bri- gades remained unmolested, and those brigades had reached a position completely in rear of the enemy's right before the latter had the smallest suspicion that they were not in front of them. The surprise when the Anglo-Indian force de- ployed and attacked may be surmised. In vain did the rebels attempt to rectify the error, to bring their guns round to the new front — it was too late. The English pushed forward with a decision that allowed no time to repair mistakes. In advance even of the skirmishers, a gallant officer of engi- neers, who had during the siege of Lakhnao ren- dered the most splendid service, Macleod Innes, secured the first hostile gun, as the rebels were abandoning it. Falling back from this, the rebels rallied round another gun further back, from which the shot would, in another instant, have ploughed through the advancing columns. Mac- leod Innes noticed the danger. He never stopped to consider, but galloping up, alone and unsup- ported, he shot the gunner as he was about to apply the match, and remaining undaunted at his post, the mark for a hundred matchlockmen who were sheltered in some adjoining huts, kept the artillerymen at bay till assistance reached him.* * For this splendid act Macleod Innes received the Victoria Cross. TOTAL DEFEAT OF THE REBELS. 335 The British line then swept on. Its left soon BookX. reached the high road to Lakhnao. The rest of the enemy were enclosed between the British and February. the nullah. The latter, which had covered his front, now held in his rear. Soon after, the cen- tral battery was captured. Franks himself, cap in hand, led the skirmishers of the 10th Foot right up to the guns, which the enemy's gunners served to the last, dying at their posts. After this, the battle was over. The plain was covered The enemy totally with fugitives who had left behind them twenty defeated, guns (one 32-pounder, two 24-pounders, two Im- pounders, four 12-pounders, one 9-pounder, and ten smaller pieces), their camp, their baggage, and their ammunition. It is probable that a con- siderable number of them were killed and wounded. " Had the Labor Light Horse and Pathans reached but not em- o ciently pur- me six hours sooner," wrote Franks, " when the sued for want whole plain was covered with fugitives, whom the utmost efforts of my infantry could not overtake, their loss would have been considerably heavier." The casualties on the side of the British amounted to two killed and five wounded. The cavalry referred to — augmenting the cavalry force under Franks to six hundred sabres — arrived on the ground shortly after the action was over. The next morning Franks was joined by the Sl^ 78 Jalandhar Cavalry.* This body of horse, raised notion. on the Guide principle under the auspices of Lake, Deputy Commissioner of Jalandhar, only a few * This regiment was subsequently absorbed into the 3rd Sikh ' ';tvalry. 336 GALLANT DEED OF AIKMAN. Book XT. Chapter VII. 1858. Feb.-March. Aikman joins with the Jalandhar cavalry. Gallant deed of Aikman. months before, and equipped and drilled by Lieu- tenant Aikman, bad marched from the Satlaj to join Franks in an incredibly short space of time — the last march covering forty miles. " I did not expect you for a fortnight," exclaimed Franks, as he welcomed Aikman : " had I known you would have been here, I would at any cost have post- poned the action." It will be seen that, though too late to share in the battle of Siiltanpiir, Aik- man was to inaugurate the arrival of his new levies by an action not yielding in brilliancy to any performed in the campaign. The road to Lakhnao was now apparently open, and there seemed little chance of any further opposition being offered. But on the early morn- ing of the 1st March, Aikman, who had been posted for the night three miles in advance of the camp with a hundred of his men, learned that a body of five hundred rebel infantry, two hundred cavalry, and two guns, under a noted rebel chief, Mansab Ali, who had long evaded pursuit, was occupying a position three miles off the high road, on the banks of the Griimti. This was quite enough for Aikman. Despatching a trooper to Franks, begging him to send up in support the cavalry and the guns, he led his men to the spot, charged the enemy, totally defeated them, killed more than one hundred of them, and drove the survivors into and across the Griimti, capturing the two guns. This most gallant and successful charge was made under every disadvantage of broken ground, and partially under the flanking fire of a hostile fort. Nothing could exceed the FRANKS ATTACKS DHA0RARA. 337 splendid daring displayed by Aikman on this occa- book xi. f „ I- -u T ■ l Chapter VII. sion. For some time he was at sword s point with several rebels at the same time, and from JS. one of them he received a severe sabre-cut across the face. The cool and resolute courage with which he continued to fight inspired his men with the supreme resolution which caused the combat to terminate in the successful manner I have described.* The cavalry and the guns arrived after the fight was over. After this splendid achievement, Franks pushed on, and, on the morning of the 4th, reached a mosque a mile beyond the town of Amethi, eight miles from Lakhnao. He had received orders from the Commander-in-Chief to advance. Learning, however, that the fort of Dhaorara, two miles to the right of the road, was occupied by a large body of the rebels with two guns, Franks, apprehensive that that body, if un- molested, might annoy his long train of baggage, resolved to drive them out. The resolution in itself was perfectly sound, Tho repulse but the mode in which it was carried out left much to be desired. Against the fort Franks detached, with a body of cavalry, only two horse artillery guns. In vain did Havelock protest, as far as he could protest, urging the general to use the two 24-pounder howitzers which were avail- able. Franks was obstinate. The result was that the two horse artillery guns, moved up succes- * Lieutenant, now Lieutenant-Colonel, Aikman received the Victoria Cross for this gallant act. ii. 22 338 REPULSE AT DHA0RARA. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1858. March. Results of Franks' s campaign. sively to four hundred, three hundred, and even two hundred yards of the fort, failed to breach the walls or to silence the matchlock fire of the rebels. Subsequently the 24-pound howitzers were brought up, the outer defences were forced, and the hostile guns were captured; but the rebels barricaded themselves in a house guarded by a massive gate, and still bade defiance to the British. The shot from one of their own guns which had been turned against this making no impression upon it, and a fire kindled against it producing no effect, and the only engineer officer, Macleod Innes, having been severely wounded while trying to burst the gate open, Franks determined to withdraw. The force then resumed its march and joined Sir Colin the same evening.* This was the last action which signalised Franks' s successful march from the borders of eastern to central Oudh. He joined Sir Colin on the night of the 4th March, having, in thirteen days, marched one hundred and thirty miles, beaten an enemy immensely superior in four general actions, and captured thirty-four pieces of ordnance with the small loss of thirty-seven officers and men killed and wounded. Such leading- needs no comment. Franks was known as one of the best regimental officers in the British * It was believed that this check had important conse- quences for Franks. He had been selected by Sir Colin to command the corps (Varmee which was to act on the left bank of the Gumti; but when, it is said, Sir Colin heard of the slap on the face he had received at Dhaorara, he struck his name out and substituted that of Outram. EEVIEW OF FRANKS's CAMPAIGN. 339 army. This short campaign stamped him as quali- book xi. fied to take very high rank among its generals. ia P_^_ The repulse at Dhaorara was little more than an March accident, arising from over-confidence. It is true he was well supported. In Captain, Haveiook. now Sir Henry, Havelock, he had an Assistant Adjutant- General, who combined to a vigorous frame an ardent love of his profession and a clear head, able to detect the weak points of an enemy's position and to devise the means of profiting by his faults. Havelock was a born general, and, possessing as he did the entire confidence of Franks, his intuition may be discerned in every action but one of this short campaign. That one was the last. Against the attack with insufficient means, when sufficient means were available, Havelock protested with all the energy of his nature. Had his advice been followed, the great opportunity which had been in the grasp of Franks would not have been denied him. But there was another gentleman attached to Patrick . i -i Carnegy. Franks' s staff, whose services deserve special mention. I allude to Mr. Patrick Carnegy, of the uncovenanted service. The son of a general officer in the service of the Company, Patrick Carnegy had wanted the interest which in those days was required to obtain for a man a commis- sion in the military service. Forced to become a civilian in the uncovenanted grade, Carnegy had brought to the performance of his duties an in- telligence, an industry, and a zeal which would bave won his spurs in any profession. He worked his way up steadily. He gained the confidence 22 * :U<> SOME OFFICERS OF HIS FORCE. Book XI. Chapter VII. 1858. March. Venables. Longden. of the Government and the affection of the people. His tact and judgment enabled him to steer clear through every crisis. In Franks' s camp he had charge of the intelligence department, and in this office his knowledge of the people, their language and their customs, made him invaluable. Brought constantly into connection with Have- lock, who was scarcely less distinguished as a linguist, a desire to attain the same ends in the same plain straightforward manner brought about an intimate friendship, in itself most advanta- geous to the public service.* " His information regarding the enemy has proved so correct," wrote General Franks, " that on it alone the whole of my operations might have been planned : he has always accompanied me in the field, and as- sisted in carrying orders under the heaviest fire." Another non-military gentleman, Mr. Yenables, whose services will be more specially referred to further on, rendered splendid service in this campaign; Colonel Longden, of the 10th Foot, showed, too, special qualifications for the service in which he was employed, that of commanding the advanced guards of marksmen and light guns. The troops led by these men from the eastern side of the province have at last been brought to the scene of action, their part in which is to be so brilliant. But before I narrate their deeds, or * In subsequent years Mr. Carnegy rose as high in the service as it was possible for an uncovenanted officer to i-ise. Had he had a commis- sion, or had he entered the Civil Service, there is scarcely any position in India to which he might not have attained. FRANKS JOINS SIE COLIN. 341 the deeds of their comrades now marching from book xi. Kanhpnr, it is fit that I should briefly tell how Ontram had borne his part in the period which mS had elapsed since the Commander-in-Chief, on the The story 26th November, had entrusted to his safe keeping 0utTam tO the Alambagh, and to his watchful eye a super- vision over Lakhnao. 342 BOOK XI. CHAPTER VIII. In the second chapter of this book,* I stated that on the 26th November Sir Colin Campbell, marching with his large convoy to Kanhpiir, had left to occupy the Alambagh and to threaten Lakhnao, until he should return, Major- General Sir James Outram, with a force of between three and four thousand men of all arms, and twenty- five guns and howitzers. f As the period of Sir Colin Campbell's return is now approaching, it is fit that I should relate how Outram and his * Page 222. infantry, or in all four thou- f The European force con- sand four hundred and forty - sisted of three hundred and two. But, of these, five hundred thirty-two artillerymen, two and forty were detached to the hundred and ninety-two ca- Banni bridge. The infantry valry, two thousand seven regiments were the 5th, the hundred and seventy-one in- 95th, the 84th, the 98th, the f antry ; the Native, of one 90th, the 1st Madras Fusiliers, hundred and eight artillery, the Firozpur Eegiment, the seventy-seven cavalry, and 27th Madras Native Infantry, eight hundred and sixty-two and the Madras Sappers. THE ALAMBAGH. 343 gallant warriors had comported themselves during Book xi. -. -, .i ,i i • i • j i Chapter VIII. the more than three months which intervened — between the departure and the return of the Dumber. Commander-in-Chief. The Alambagh was one of the royal gardens, ^ h A ' lam " being a square of five hundred yards, enclosed by a wall about nine feet high, and entered by a handsome gateway. In the centre was a double- storied garden-house of masonry. The garden had been full of fruit trees ; but these had been cut down, and all traces of them had disappeared. The wall, on the city side, had been strengthened by a strong ramp of earth ; and an interior earthen ramp or traverse had been thrown all round the centre building to protect it from the enemy's fire. Well-formed earthen bastions had been erected at each angle, and the face of the enclosure next the road was protected by a ditch. It lay on the right of the high road coming from Kanhpiir, at a distance of about two miles from the outskirts of the city of Lakhnao.* Outram did not occupy the Alambagh with his f^ ^ b main force. Holding it with a small detachment Outram. and a few guns, he pitched his camp in the open, about half a mile behind it. He then occupied a position across the road, extending to the right and left on either side ; on the right as far as the fort of Jallalabad, and covered on all points by batteries, trenches, and abattis ; on one or two by some happily situated swamps. The artificial defences I have indicated were Theenemy ly CUB- * (juliliins's Mutinies in Otulk. 344 Till: REBELS HECOVEli CONFIDENCE. Book XI. Chapter VIII. 1857. December. heartened by the successful ■withdrawal. Their leader devises a skilful plan to expel Outram. Kecovering confidence, they begin to work out their plan. not thrown up at once, they were developed as the energy of the enemy showed them to be re- quired. But that enemy had received a lesson so severe in the storming of the Sikandar Bagh and of the Shah Najif, and in the bombardment of the Kaisar Bagh, that several days elapsed ere he ventured to show himself on the track of the conqueror who had robbed him of his prey. Nor was it till the early days of December that any indications of life or movement whatever were visible on his part. But on the 2nd December it became apparent that he had recovered heart, and that he was preparing an attempt to dislodge Outram. The British right, resting on the fort of Jallal- abad, was tolerably secure. The leader of the rebels, the famous Moulvi, known as Ahmad Shah, far from meditating an attack in that quarter, had devised a plan, not at all despicable had it been carried out with sufficient force and with energy, whereby, amusing the whole front of the British, he should suddenly turn their left, and pouncing on the Banni bridge, hem them in between two fires. The manner in which the rebels began to work out this plan indicated a return of confidence. They began, in the first week of December, to throw up batteries in front of the British left. When these were completed, they began to ex- tend them towards their proper left, opposite the right centre of the British. Whilst these were in progress, they threatened the British position, skirmishing up to within grape distance, but THEY ATTACK OX THE 22ND DECEMBER. 345 always making their attacks in front. They re- book xi. peated these until the gunners of Outram's force ap !!l_ came to look forward to a daily visitation as a De J^ r matter of course. At length, on the 22nd December, the rebels The rebels threw off the mask, and attempted to carry out attack. the programme they had drawn up. They sent a detachment of four thousand infantry, four hun- dred cavalry, and four guns, to march by the villages of Gaili and Badriip to Banni, and there, in the rear of the British force, to intrench themselves, severing the communications with Kanhpiir. Skilful as was this plan, it yet laboured under Their plan a fatal defect. Two days before it was executed betrayed to it had been betrayed to Outram by his spies. 0utram - Possessing the inestimable advantage of complete acquaintance with his enemy's designs, Outram determined to play their own game against them ; and, whereas they were trying to sever his com- munications with Kanhpur, he determined to cut them off from Lakhnao. The rebels set out on the night of the 21st The rebels December, reached the village of Gaili, and, oc- outram's cupying a position between that village and Bad- J°™ g mumca " riip, encamped for the night. In that position they were not quite cut off from Lakhnao, for the left of their position was but half a mile from the Dilkiisha, which had, since Sir Colin' s departure, been strongly reoccupied by the insurgents. Against the rebels so encamped, Outram started Out ram .i • r j i rtct i -i.1 £ attacks ill. 'in, very early on the morning ot the 22nd, with a force consisting of one thousand two hundred and 346 OUTEAM DEFEATS THEM. Book xi. twenty-seven infantry, under Brigadier Stisted, apter^ . ^^ hundred and ninety cavalry, under Major DeSan. Robertson, and six 9-pounder guns, under Cap- tain Olpherts. At daybreak he came upon them. Sending his centre against their main position, with his left he drove them from Graili, doubling them back on Badriip. Surprised, the rebels scarcely attempted resistance as these manoeuvres and drives were being carried out. They lost their four guns them back on & ,7 . ° the Diikusha. and an elephant. They were then again attacked and driven from Badrup. Changing their line of retreat, they then fell back on the Diikusha. The pursuit then ceased, and in sufficient time. For the detachments from the main rebel army, hearing the uproar, were crowding from the Diikusha to re- trieve the day. They arrived in time only to receive their beaten comrades. The loss of the rebels ex- ceeded fifty killed. That of Outram amounted to two killed and some eight or ten wounded. After three This repulse considerably checked the enemy's parative rest, ardour, and during the three weeks that followed oTthe rebels tue J ^ut once ma & G a manifestation of attack, returns On this occasion they confined themselves to a long cannonade, ineffective against our position, but too successful in killing a most prominent artillery officer, Lieutenant D. Gordon. Nothing further occurred till the 12th January. But on that day the rebels made a supreme effort for victory, on learning Circumstances seemed to favour them. They, has weakened too, were well served by their spies, and they had ins force. learned that on the 8th January Outram had weakened his force by four hundred and fifty in- THE REBELS ATTACK ON THE 12TH JANUARY. 347 fantry, eighty cavalry, and four guns, detached to Book xi. protect a convoy of empty carts — to be laden and ap .!!l. returned — he was sending into Kanhpiir. T 1858 - ° _ ± _ January. A rebel partisan, named Mansiib Ali, was at Reasons for this time in the district, in communication with J^ e e a J^™ g the main body of the Lakhnao rebels. The task had been assigned to him to hover about the main line of British communication, and to harass and, when possible, to cut off small detachments and convoys. It had become known to Outram that early in January this man had received con- siderable reinforcements from Lakhnao. Hence it was that he had detached a large covering party with the convoy I have alluded to. The Lakhnao rebels waited till they believed that the convoy and its escort had reached Kanhpiir. They then, on the morning of the 12th January, made their long meditated attack. They came out in force — to the number, it was The rebel . s estimated, of thirty thousand. Massing this large supreme body opposite the extreme left of Outram' s posi- effort " tion, they gradually extended so as to face his front and his left flank, thus covering nearly six miles of ground. Threatening only with their left, their right centre and right advanced to the attack. Outram waited till the enemy s movement should Outraxn de- l -lip -rr-n -it volops his take some ascertainable torm. He allowed them, plans. therefore, to extend — even round his left flank. But the moment he began to advance he dealt, with rapidity, the counter blow he kept ready for delivery. Forming up his two brigades, the one consisting of seven hundred and thirteen, the 348 THE BATTLE OF THE 12TH JANUARY. Book xi. other of seven hundred and thirty- three European Chapter VIII. . . „ , ,,, r , troops, to face the front attack or the enemy, he Jwuuury. directed the ever-daring Olpherts to take four horse artillery guns, and, supported by a detach- ment of the Military Train, to dash at the over- lapping right of the enemy. The protection of the rear of the position in case it should be threatened, was confided to the volunteer and native cavalry, oipherts foils With the dash and energy eminently charac- right!" 51 teristic of the man, Olpherts took out his guns at a gallop, and pushing to the front, opened fire on the rebel masses just as they had begun the second overlapping movement, to gain the rear of the British position. The vigorous assault made by Olpherts completely disconcerted them. Renouncing their turning efforts, they fled in con- fusion and dismay. Down foils Whilst Olpherts was thus delivering a decisive blow on the extreme right, a repulse, scarcely less signal, had been inflicted upon the rebel troops opposed to the British left centre. These ad- vanced with considerable spirit into a grove of trees in front of the picket commanded by Cap- tain Down of the Madras Fusiliers, and usually occupied by him. Down allowed them to come rather near ; then dashing at them with the bayonet, drove them back with loss. Whilst the enemy's attacks were thus being repulsed on the left and the left centre, they had not been idle on the British right. This part of the British line was covered by the fort of Jallalabad, upon which some rough repairs had been executed, and it was their centre. COMPLETE REPULSE OP THE EEBELS. 349 considered comparatively unassailable. Acting bookxi. upon the probability that it was, therefore, weakly ia p ei defended, the enemy, whilst threatening, as we 1858 - J ' . January. have seen, the left, and making on that side a noisy demonstration, had quietly massed a large body of infantry against the picket connecting the right with Jallalabad, and, bringing three guns to the front, opened upon that picket a heavy fire. But here, too, Outram was equal to the occasion. Bringing to the front, from the left of the right brigade, detachments of the 5th Fusiliers and Brasyer's Sikhs, and two guns of Moir's bullock battery, he took up a position which gave him the Outram foils right flank of the enemy, and then opened upon that flank. The effect was instantaneous. The rebels abandoned the advanced position, evacuated the village they had occupied, and though for a time they continued the fire from their guns, their practice was bad, and caused no damage. Simultaneously with the attack just described, and they are the enemy advanced against the Alambagh, and fronTthe 10 established themselves in a thick cover close to that A ' liimba s h > enclosure. From this, about 12 o'clock, they ad- vanced into the open. Here, however, they be- came exposed to a heavy fire from Maude's guns and riflemen, and they were soon driven back. By 4 o'clock in the afternoon the rebels were in and the rebels fall full retreat on all sides. Their losses must have baok. been considerable. Outram' s amounted, on that day, to only three wounded. The serious manner in which the rebels were Religious affected by their repulse and their losses was mani- affecting the fested in a very curious manner. The natives of n: " lv,s - 350 THE MOULVI SWEARS AN OATH. Book XI. Chapter VIII. 1858. January. The Moulvi's oath, India are peculiarly influenced by religious in- fluences. They believe in fortunate days and periods — days and periods peculiarly auspicious for producing certain results. It happened that the most learned pandit in Lakhnao had declared on the 12th January that unless the British were driven from their position within eight days from that period, they never would be expelled ; and, moreover, that the period in question, from the 12th to the 20th inclusive, was peculiarly favourable to effecting their expulsion. In conse- quence of this prophecy it had been resolved by the rebels to give the British no rest throughout the period indicated. But when the attack, prepared with so much foresight, and delivered with all the skill of which they were capable, failed, their spirits sank to zero ; and, in spite of the pandit, they remained quiescent on the 13th and two following days. Nor was it till the 16th that they made their second attempt. • But though they made no attack on the British position, they did attempt to intercept the convoy. The active and determined Moulvi had sworn that he would capture the convoy and ride back into Lakhnao through the British camp. He left Lakhnao with a considerable force without bag- gage, on the night of the 14th, turned the British camp, and took up a position from which he could advantageously pounce on the convoy. Every- thing seemed to favour him. A violent dust storm was blowing towards the direction whence the convoy was approaching, and its leader had OLPHERTS FORCES HIM TO BREAK IT. 351 no warning. But again did Outram's prescience book xi. baffle him. Reports as to the Moulvi's move- ap ei ments had reached that general, and he, noting Ja ^f a 8 r ' how the weather seemed to favour an attack, ordered out Olpherts with two guns and a detach- ment of the Military Train, on the road to Banni. He subsequently supported this small body with the rest of the battery and the Military Train, a detachment of Wale's Horse, and the 90th Light Infantry. Olpherts revelled in danger. He possessed the and coup a mil ot a dashing leader, was ready m performance. resource, and quick to act as circumstances might require. He waited for the enemy till he came in the open, and then opened on them and killed or dispersed them. The Moulvi was wounded, and narrowly escaped capture. Early on the morning of the 16th, between 1 The British -1,-i-iT ... ,. convoy safely and 3 o clock, the convoy returned with supplies arrives in to the camp. The force was thus increased camp ' again by about four hundred men. No attack was anticipated, and many officers were about to unpack and distribute some of the private stores arrived, when, about 9 o'clock, the enemy made a sudden and very formidable attack on a picket guarding a battery in the process of erection, between Jallalabad and the camp. No guns were An attack on mounted here, and the picket had to fall back on rJpuS 7>y the intrenchment ; but the alarm had no sooner g£hg 0r ' 8 been given than Brasyer's Sikhs, ready for any emergency, rushed to the front, and rallying the picket, put the enemy to flight and captured their leader, attired in the imaginary costumo of the 352 ATTACK OF 12TH JANUARY REPULSED. Book XI. Chapter VIII. 1858. Jan.-Feb. That on the left is driven back by Gordon and Olpherts. Thencefor- ward till the loth Febru- ary the enemy cease to attack in force. god Hanuman. He turned out to be a Brahmin, very influential with his countrymen. The enemy's loss was severe. On the left the rebels confined themselves for several hours to a cannonade on the position. Their attack, though it ranged along the whole front, seemed specially directed against the picket occupying a village on the extreme left. Their grape and round shot came in very thick at this point, but beyond sending their cavalry within one thousand yards of the British front, only to be driven back, they made no demonstration with the other arms till evening had set in. But as soon as it was dark they pushed forward masses of infantry against the village. The officer com- manding at this point was Major Gordon, 75th Regiment. Gordon allowed the enemy's masses to approach within eighty yards, when he opened out upon them with three guns and musketry, and drove them off immediately. The left rear was guarded by Olpherts with four horse battery guns and a detachment of the Military Train. With these he beat back the cavalry demonstra- tion above indicated. The British loss from the enemy on this occasion amounted to one killed and seven wounded. The failure on this occasion completed the dis- couragement of the rebels. From that time forth until the 15th February they confined themselves to demonstrations, to attempts to excite alarm — and to incessant bugling. Outram's spies an- nounced attacks for given dates, but the dates passed by and the attacks were not made. Mean- LIKEWISE THAT OF 15TH FEBRUARY. 353 while the conviction seemed to be stealing into BoOK X J- their minds that they were bound to a losing cause. — _ They heard of the loss of Fathgarh, and rumours j a n 8 _ 5 |eb. even reached them of the capture of Bareli. This Contentions conviction was not slow in producing discord in JJJJJS the their councils, and blows between rival chieftains. On the 22nd January the troops led by the Moulvi and those obeying the orders of the Begam came to a sharp encounter, resulting in the slaying of about one hundred men. All this time the ad- vance portion of Sir Colin's force was approach- ing, and on the 23rd January Outram received a Outram . P , n . iii £ receives rein- reinforcement ot ten guns escorted by a party ot f or cements. the 34th Regiment. To counterbalance this, the remnants of the heroic 75th, of Dehli renown, left on the 14th February for the Himalayas. At last, goaded by the Moulvi, who, after a brief imprisonment by the Begam' s party, had escaped and assumed an ascendancy in the rebel councils, the enemy hazarded an attack on the The Moulvi 15th. They attempted their favourite plan of the^sthT turning the left. But Outram was ready for them. The 90th turned out, and Olpherts, always full of zeal, galloped to the front with his guns, accom- panied by the cavalry of the Military Train. When within four hundred yards of the rebels, Olpherts but olpherts unlimbered and poured in round after round, back. The rebels could not stand it, but broke and fled. The British lost one man killed and one wounded. On the morning of the 16th they threatened BHurther vain to renew the attack, but after a great deal of tans of the show, they retired ; in the evening, however, they rt ' l,,,u - .i. 23 354 THEY PLAN ONE LAST ASSAULT. Book XI. Chapter VIII. 1858. Feb. 16. The rebels determine to attempt one last assault. Sunday, 21st February. came on against the whole British front as though they were in earnest. They made four separate advances, and retired as often, coming under musketry fire only on one point, the extreme left of the British. But finding the picket on the alert, they made no serious attack even here. Their advances were accompanied by yells and shouts and the clang of brass instruments. This day they admitted to a loss of sixty killed and wounded. Stores were now coming in daily from Kanh- pur, and the movements of the various brigades of Sir Colin Campbell's force had become so pro- nounced as to spread conviction amongst the rebel leaders that unless they could, within the next five or six days, succeed in their projects against Outram, they would be for ever baffled. They determined, therefore, to try one last grand assault — an assault better planned, on a larger scale, and more sustained than any of its prede- cessors. Having ascertained from their spies that it was the custom of the General and a large proportion of officers and men to attend church parade early on Sunday morning, they fixed upon an early hour on the following Sunday, 21st February, for their great blow. They had calculated correctly. The men of the right brigade were attending a Church parade, the General being with them, when masses of the enemy began to concentrate opposite the extreme right and left of the British position, Captain Gordon, whom we have known as aide-de-camp to General Niell, and who was now on the Staff, ASSAULT OP THE 21ST FEBRUARY. 355 noticed the movements of the enemy from No. 2 book xi. -in Chapter VIII. battery, and rode down to report the tact to the General. Outram at once sent down the As- FeXi. sistant Adjutant-General, Captain Dodgson, to turn out the left brigade, whilst the batteries opened all along the line. For the enemy, origin- ally massing their forces on both flanks, had gradually extended inwards, and were threaten- ing the whole position. They had advanced, in fact, within five hundred yards of the British position before the troops were turned out ready to receive him. But then the old story was re- peated. On the right the enemy, advancing against Jallalabad, were checked by an artillery fire, whilst Captain Barrow, with two hundred and fifty of the volunteer cavalry and two guns, coming up from behind that fort, dashed upon a party sent to turn the British position, and drove them back to their main body. On the left Olpherts and a squadron of the Military Mounted Train, under Major Robertson, carried out the same plan, with the same success. Forced now to make a front attack, and threatened in turn on their left, the enemy did not long persevere. Once indeed they made as though they would try and overwhelm the left turning The rebels party, but at the decisive moment some well- beaten, directed rounds of shrapnel and round shot in- duced them to pause. "He who hesitates is lost" is ;i truth more applicable even to warfare than to the ordinary affairs of life. They did not renew their design, but, at a quarter past 10 o'clock, fell buck, beaten, baffled, and humiliated, 23 * 356 THE ASSAULT OF THE 25TH FEBRUARY. Book XL Chapter VIII. 185S. .Feb. 25. Outram receives rein- forcements. The rebels make a final attack in sheer desperation. to the city. They admitted to a loss of three hundred aud forty men killed and wounded. That of the British amounted to nine men wounded. The last, the most desperate, and the best- fought attack was made on the 25th February. During the few days immediately preceding, troops from Kanhpur had been gradually pour- ing in, and up to that date the force under Out- ram's orders had been strengthened by the arrival of Remmington's troop of horse artillery, of the 7th Hussars, of Hodson's Horse, and of the 1st Bengal Fusiliers. Hence he was now able, should he think fit, to retaliate more effectively on the enemy in the open plain. The despairing attack of the rebels was made with all the pomp and circumstance of war. For the first time the royal Begam, mounted on an elephant, attended by the Prime Minister and principal nobles, similarly mounted, accompanied the assailants. The proceedings began by a vio- lent cannonade directed against the Alambagh at 7 o'clock in the morning. This lasted an hour. A little later, about 10 o'clock, a strong force was sent to threaten the British left, whilst the main body began to march along the right front, to the right, and out of the range of the guns. Of this force, which consisted of between twenty and thirty thousand men, a moiety, after passing the extreme point of the British right, made a sharp turn to the right again, and continued this until they had gained a position, sheltered by trees, in the right rear of the fort of Jallalabad. The other moiety, with which was the Begam, BATTLE OF THE 25TH FEBRUARY. 357 halted at the turning angle, so as to support the BoOK xi. attack, or to maintain communications with the a p ei main posts, as might be required. The ad- fI\?% vanced portion began at once to shell the fort of JalMlabad. The movement of the rebels to the right rear Outram attempts to of the British position had been so pronounced cut off the rebels froE their base. that, at last, Outram thought he had them. r Taking with him his right infantry brigade, four of Olpherts's guns, four of Remmington's, a squadron of the 7th Hussars, the Military Train, and detachments of Hodson's Horse and Graham's Horse, he started, a little before 10 o'clock, to the right, to cut off the advanced moiety of the rebels, whilst Barrow's Volunteers and Wale's Horse, making a detour, should take them in rear. The line taken by Outram naturally brought He first . drives back him in sharp contact with the second or reserve their sup- moiety of the rebel army. The cavalry with this por s " reserve, numbering nearly a thousand, supported by infantry, came up to within seven hundred yards of Outram's left flank, and threatened to come nearer. But the ubiquitous Olpherts, always ready, at once wheeled his four guns to the left, and advancing a short distance, unlimbered and opened fire. The effect was remarkable. The Begam left the field, the Prime Minister followed in attendance, and the courtiers accompanied to guard the Prime Minister. The consternation caused by the fire of Olpherts's guns had not abated — for the enemy had begun to fall back — ■ when Remmington came up at full gallop, and 358 HA.TTLE OP THE 25 r fH FEBRUARY. Book XI. Chapter VIII. 1858. Feb. 25. Brigadier Campbell charges and captures two guns. The rebels succeed in falling back, taking up a position about four hundred yards to the left and in advance of Olpherts, opened fire on the retreating enemy ; the squadron of the 7th Hussars and Brasyer's Sikhs advanced with them, and kept the enemy in check. Made secure of his left by the action of these gallant men, Outram pushed forward with the remainder of his force to deal with the first or advanced moiety of the enemy's army. Acting under his orders, Brigadier Campbell of the Bays took with him the Military Train and detachments of Hodson's Horse and Graham's Horse, and ad- vanced beyond Jallalabad. Turning then to the right, he came in full view of the enemy. Alarmed by the sound of Olpherts' s and Remmington's guns, the rebels, sensible of the presence of danger, were forming up hurriedly when they caught sight of Campbell's horsemen. Campbell gave them no time for reflection, but at once charged the two guns which had been playing on the fort. The sepoys, surprised as they were, did not flinch. They met the charge with courage, and though, as its result, the two guns remained in the hands of the Military Train, fifty corpses about them testified to the desperate valour of the defenders. The enemy's infantry meanwhile had fallen back on a tope of trees, from the upper branches of which some of their marksmen kept a constant fire on Outram' s force as it approached. The defence of this tope was so sustained as to give time for the main body of the rebels to fall back and recover their line of retreat. They even once again threatened the fort, but gave way COMPLETE REPULSE OF THE REBELS. 359 before the persuasive powers of Olpherts and bookxi. Remmington. Chaptervm. It was now half -past 2. The fighting for the F Jlf 8 / 5 day was apparently over. But the rebels were and then resolved to make one final effort. Strengthening "J^ :i final their right with the troops who had fought in the morning, they made a desperate attack, about 5 o'clock, on the village forming the left front of the British position. Never had they fought with greater determination. They took posses- sion of the tope of trees in front of the village, and then pressed on, encouraged by the fact that the British picket, just then short of ammunition, was falling back. But their triumph was short. A reinforcement came up, and forced them to retire. All that night, however, they continued but are their endeavours to take that village, threatening at the same time the entire left front of the position. Nor was it till the dawn of the following day that they gave up the task as hopeless. With this attack the defence of the Alambagh Service ren- may be said to merge into the more exciting country i!/ drama of Lakhnao. It is, however, impossible theTO °c? a Bfn] oiviipatioii of to leave the gallant defenders of that important theAlam- position without endeavouring, however inade- quately, to indicate the great service which their prolonged occupation of it had rendered to the country. For more than three months Outram, with a force originally nearly four thousand strong, and subsequently often smaller, had kept in check the main army of the rebels. That army, known in November to count thirty thousand men, most of them trained soldiers, under its banners, had been 360 SERVICE RENDERED TO ENGLAND book xi. gradually augmented after the fall of Delili to ap ^!l_ ' more than treble that strength.* Between that Feb 5 28 augmented army and the Ganges lay Outram and his four thousand men — his right, his left, his rear, equally exposed. His nearest base was the Granges ; but between him and that base lay forty miles of road, guarded only at one point, the Banni bridge, and which, if sometimes occupied by the British, was occupied only by long convoys. He was, so to speak, in the air, liable to meet attacks on all sides. In point of fact, he was attacked on all sides — in front, on his flanks, and in his rear. If there be any who might be inclined to make light of the service rendered by his successful defence, I would ask them to consider what the state of affairs would have been had Outram succumbed to the attacks made upon him on all sides. He had no line of retreat but that leading to the Granges. Driven from the Alambagh, he would have fallen back, hotly pursued, on that river. In the face of such pursuit, could he have crossed by the frail bridge of boats ? No one will affirm that to * Outram ascertained, on strength of the enemy on that the 27th January, that the date was as follows : — 37 trained regiments of sepoys - 27,550 14 regiments of new levies - - 5,400 106 Najib, or irregular regiments - 55,150 26 regiments of cavalry - - - 7,100 Camel corps .... 800 96,000 This did not include artillery- estimated at 20,000. Alto- men, the number of whom gether there could not have was unknown, nor the armed been less than 120,000 men followers of the Talukdars, in Lakknao on that date. BY THE DEFENCE OF THE ALAMBAGH. 361 have been possible. He would have been lost ; „, BooK £. 1 ■ -i « • /t 1 • » Chapter ^ III. Kanhpur would have been reoccupied ; sir Uolm s communications would have been severed; the Fcbfl's. rebels might have captured Allahabad, and — the Azamgarh district and Bihar being in revolt — they could then have penetrated to Calcutta. All this would have been possible, but all this Outram and his gallant followers prevented by their gallant defence. Of Outram himself I have often spoken ; but The men who who were his followers ? First, deserving a large ram. meed of praise, comes Colonel Berkeley, of the 32nd Regiment, occupying virtually the position of chief of his staff. Than Berkeley it would have been difficult to find a more competent officer. To great activity of body he joined a head to devise the most complicated movements, and skill and coolness to carry them into execu- tion. " He possesses," wrote Outram, after bearing testimony to his services, " to an extent I have rarely seen equalled, the power of securing the confidence, acquiring the respect, and winning the personal regard of those with whom he is thrown in contact." He was, in very truth, the right hand of his chief ; and the relations between them, founded on mutual respect, were of the most cordial character.* Fit to be bracketed with Berkeley may be mentioned Vincent Eyre, Bri- gadier of the artillery force, who sustained to the full the reputation he had gained at Aral). In * This mosl gallanl officer paign in which be was so did not long survive the cam- gloriously engaged. 362 THE MEN WHO AIDED OUTRAM. book xi. Olplierts and Maude lie had lieutenants of more " than ordinary skill and daring, always to the Feb. 5 28. front, and always full of fight. Dodgson, the Assistant Adjutant-General — the most modest, the least pushing, but the bravest of men ; always cool, calm, self-possessed, and yet always in the place where his services were most required ; Macbean, the able and energetic commissariat officer, without whose fertility of resource the army could not have been fed ; Moorsom, the Assistant Quartermaster - General, uniting to the finest qualities of a fighting soldier the skill of the accomplished draughtsman ; — it was to his skill, indeed, that Outram and Havelock were indebted for the plan which enabled them to pene- trate so skilfully to the Residency ; Gould Weston, who had served throughout the long defence of that Residency in command of Fayrer's house, and of whom, now attached to the Intelligence Department, Outram wrote in the despatch he penned after the capture of Lakhnao, that "he has signalized himself by the spirit and gallantry which he displayed on several occasions, and has been of much use to me"; Chamier and Hargood, most efficient as staff officers ; Alexander Orr and Bunbury, useful from their knowledge of the country and the people ; Barrow and Wale, daring cavalry leaders; Brasyer, of Brasyer's Sikhs — whose name in those stirring times was a house- hold word; Nicholson, of the Royal Engineers, unsurpassed in his profession; — these are but a few names amongst the many of the gallant men who contributed to that splendid defence. THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF ARRIVES. 363 But it has become a thing of the past. On the book xi. 1st March the Commander-in-Chief visited the Chap !!L vm - Alambagh, and on the 3rd his troops were seen m^s marching past that post. To the Commander-in- Chief, then, I must now return. 364 COOK XI. The force at Sir Colin's disposal. Description of the de- fences of Lakhnao. CHAPTER IX. The force at the disposal of Sir Colin Campbell for the capture of Lakhnao amounted, inclusive of the division under the command of Outram, to twenty thousand men and one hundred and eighty guns. With such a force, four times as large as that with which he had relieved the Residency in November, Sir Colin was able to act on a scientific plan, at once effective and exposing to no unnecessary risk the lives of his soldiers. This plan, drawn up in consultation with Colonel R. Napier, now Lord Napier of Magdala, may thus briefly be described. The city of Lakhnao on the right bank of the Grumti cannot be strange to my readers. On that bank was the Residency; on that bank the Kaisar Bagh, the Moti Mahal, the Shah Najif, the Bar- racks, the Sikandar Bagh, the Dilkiisha, and those other strong places described in the first chapter of this Book. On this side also was the city. On THE DEFENCES OP LAKHNAO. 365 the left bank of the river were few buildings of book xi. strength. Some gardens indeed there were, such ia ^_ as the Badshah Bagh, the direct road to which Marc? 1 traversed the bridge of boats, but the ground was mainly covered by small earth-built houses, form- ing nominally a suburb, but reaching almost the dimensions of a town. Through this suburb ran the road across the iron bridge connecting the Residency with the old cantonment of Mariaon.* The city and the strong buildings on the right The inner bank of the Giimti were occupied by the rebels, fence. They occupied an irregular parallelogram, covered on its northern side by the Griimti ; and on its eastern face by the canal, which, running into the Gumti, forms a junction at right angles to it near the Nawab ki Kothi. The third side of the figure was formed by an imaginary line running from the Charbaghf bridge on the canal along the southern face of the city, and was guarded by an interior line of very strong posts, thus enume- rated in their proper order : Banks's house, the fortified mosque which played an important part in November, the Begam Koti, Hazrat Ganj, the Imambara, and the Kaisar Bagh. The fourth side was partly open, but as it approached the Gumti it had strong defences in buildings such as the Miisa Bagh and the Great Imambara. The city, I have shown in the preceding volume, was formed of narrow streets flanked by tall houses, and capable of a very strong defence. This position, naturally strong, had, during the three months which had elapsed since November, * Vol. i. page 860. t Vol. i. page 586. 366 THE DEFENCES OF LAKHNAO. Book XL Chapter IX. 1858. March 1. The canal. The second line of de- fence. been made infinitely stronger. The canal, from the Charbagh bridge to its junction with the Giimti, had been deepened in some parts, and at its lower end a new and straight cut had been dug to supersede the shallow and tortuous bed near that point. All the bridges over it had been broken down, and, regarding it as a wet ditch, the rebels had built a strong earthern rampart, with strong bastions at intervals, on the city side of it. A second line of defence started from the Giimti in front of the Moti Mahal, covered the Mess-house, the Imambara, and the Hazratganj. A third line covered the river face of the Kaisar Bagh. This place, as well as the other places I have named, had been so strongly fortified as to constitute small citadels. The streets and main roads, too, had been blocked up at various points, the houses loop-holed and strengthened, and iso- lated batteries had been constructed in command- ing positions.* Such was the fortified camp, extremely strong on two sides of the parallelogram, f covered by works on which were mounted not less than one hundred and twenty guns and mortars of various calibres, and garrisoned by from sixty thousand to a hundred thousand armed men. This camp possessed outworks beyond the canal — theDilkushaand the Martiniere — both described in a previous chapter. * Medley's A Year's Cam- paigning. f I call it a parallelogram, as it more nearly approaches that figure than any other, but it was very irregular; the vast extent of the city and suburbs would violate the limits of any regular fio-ure. THEIE WEAKER POINTS. 367 But strong 1 as was the fortified camp on the BookXi. -it • n ci iii Chapter IX. eastern and southern sides ot the parallelogram, on the northern it was weak. There it had only Marchl. the river Giiinti ; and it was quite within the power The out- of an enemy, by advancing on that face, to take defence, all his defences in reverse. The western face had The weak strong defences only near the Griimti ; elsewhere defence, it was open. Whv the rebels should have neglected to throw Reasons why J . ° 1 _ this face was up defences on the northern side seems, at the first neglected, glance, most strange. The real reason affords an additional proof to the many already cited of the absence of original thinking power from their ranks. The natives of India are essentially crea- tures of habit, of custom. When set to repeat a task already once accomplished they follow im- plicitly the lines previously trodden. So it was now. Havelock and Outram, in their attempt to relieve Lakhnao, had advanced by the Charbagk bridge ; Sir Colin Campbell, in November, had crossed the canal and attacked the Sikandar Bagh. Neither the one nor the other had ap- proached the Giimti. Hence, drawing the con- clusion that the courses pursued before would be followed again, the rebels neglected the Gumti, and concentrated all their energies on the lines previously attacked. Sir Colin Campbell detected at a glance the SirOoiin error they had committed, and he resolved to weak point, profit by it. He had men enough at his disposal to risk a division of his forces. He determined, then, to send across the Giimti a strong corps cfarmSe, which, inarching up that river, should 368 SIR COLIN S PLAN. Book XI. Chapter IX. 1858. March 1. His plan of attack. March 2. Sir Colin advances take the enemy's position in reverse, and, by the fire of artillery, render it untenable. At the same time, advancing with his main force across the canal, he would turn the enemy's position, and move by the Hazrat Ganj on the Kaisar Bagh. Whilst a strong force should hold the base of the triangle Outram's force would occupy one side of it. Rather more than one half of the opposite side would be held by the Alambagh force and the Ni- palese. Neither the remaining part of that side nor the western side could, with the troops at his disposal, be hemmed in, but it was to be hoped that as Sir Colin advanced his base, Outram might move round the angle on one side, whilst the Alam- bagh force and the Nipalese might close up round the corresponding angle on the other. Should the execution equal the design the entire rebel force would be reduced to extremities. Early on the morning of the 2nd March, Sir Colin Campbell began to execute his plan. Taking with him the headquarters of the Artillery Divi- sion (Sir A. Wilson and Colonel Wood, C.B.) and three troops of horse artillery (D'Aguilar's, Tombs's, and Bishop's), two 24-pounders, and two 8-inch howitzers of the Naval Brigade, and two companies of sappers and miners ; the head- quarters of the Cavalry Division (Hope Grant), and Little's Cavalry Brigade (9th Lancers, 2nd Pan jab Cavalry, detachment 5th Pan jab Cavalry, 1st Sikh Irregulars) ; and the 2nd Divi- sion of Infantry (Sir E. Lugard), comprising the 3rd and 4th Brigades : (3rd Brigade (Guy), 34th, 38th, and 53rd; 4th Brigade (Adrian Hope), THE ADVANCE ON LAKHXAO. 369 42nd and 93rd Highlanders and 4th Pan jab book xi. Rifles) ; he marched on the Dilkiisha park. Pass- ing the fort of Jallalabad within sight of the ^^2 Alambagh force, Sir Colin drove in the advanced on the du- pickets of the enemy, and captured a gun. The W hich\ e palace was then seized and occupied as an ad- ^ptures, vanced picket on the right — a small garden, known as Muhammad Bagh, fulfilling the same purpose on the left. It was found impossible to bring up the main body of the infantry, for the enemy's guns, in position along the canal, completely com- manded the Dilkiisha plateau. Sir Colin there- fore drew back his infantry as far as was prac- ticable, while he issued orders to erect batteries and ered a with all convenient haste at the Dilkiisha and the there to keep Muhammad Bagh to play on the enemy and keep J^V I^w'il' down their fire. Until the batteries could be es- tablished — and they were not established till late on the night of the 2nd — the British troops were greatly annoyed by an unremitting fire, directed with precision on a point the range to which was thoroughly well known. But when, on the morning of the 3rd, the bat- March 3. teries established at the Dilkiisha and Muhammad The batteries open B;igh opened their fire, that of the rebels began perceptibly to decline. They were, in fact, forced to withdraw their guns, and though, from the further distance whence they directed a new fire, ami siionoe the shot occasionally ranged up to and into the K1 ',', 1 ^" British camp, it caused but a trifling loss. On thai day and the day following, then, the r< v - mainder of the siege-train, together with the :> >r mi 11 • ^ S a ^ n a P os i- zeal of the stormers. Ihe rebels were in such tionoom- haste to save themselves' that, emerging from the ™ *°k)n lithe Imambara through the great gateway into the road, Kaisar Bii s h - they ran as fast as they could to the Kaisar Bagh. Brasyer's Sikhs, burning to avenge Da Costa's death, dashed after them as they fled, and a few men of the 10th joined in the pursuit. Following in a parallel line, a portion of the 90th, guided by the Deputy Assistant Adjutant-General of the Division, Henry Havelock, forced their way into a palace which commanded three bastions of the Kaisar Bagh. Once in that position, they brought to bear upon the enemy's gunners below them a fire so withering that one by one the guns were deserted, the last to fire being an 8-inch howitzer, which was only abandoned under pressure not to be withstood. This daring act had the most im- portant consequences. By it the second line of the enemy's defences, the line stretching from the Gumti, in front of the Mess-house, to the [mam- bar;!, was turned. Its defenders, panic-stricken at seeing their position thus taken in reverse, bad no thought but to save themselves. Aban- doning, then, the second line, they run into the 392 THE THIRD LINE OP DEFENCE IS TURNED. Book xi. buildings yet intervening: between the Imambara Chapter IX. , ,- V' -r. / ! i c ^ ! • t i and the Kaisar Bagh, and trom behind the walls March 8 i4. °^ these endeavoured to stay the further progress of our troops. Then it was that the engineers proposed to suspend operations for the day, and Brasyer's to proceed by the slower process of sap. But the comiyfrd™ *&©n, the Sikhs of Brasyer's regiment especially, Skar's/h 6 were n °t to ^ e restrained. The joy of conquest had mastered every other feeling. Led by Brasyer and Havelock, they effected an entrance into a bastion by a vacant embrasure, and forced their way, cheering, under a terrible fire into a courtyard adjoining the Kaisar Bagh, driving the enemy before them. The Sikhs Seeing the possibilities before him — the chance ton 1 t°h t e hF ° 0t of gaining the Kaisar Bagh at a blow— Havelock third line of ran back to the detachment of the 10th Foot, the defences. „ 7 commanded by Captain Annesley, and ordered it to the front. Obeying with alacrity, the 10th dashed to the front and joined the Sikhs. A portion of these latter, led by Brasyer, diminish- ing by casualties as they went, pushed daringly on, nor did they halt until, expelling the enemy before them, they had penetrated to the Chini Bazar, to the rear of the Tara Kothi and Mess-house, thus turning the third line of the enemy's works. Iva^uatShat ^ e enem y' congregated in numbers at not less line. than six thousand in the Tara Kothi and the Mess- house, now finding themselves taken in reverse, evacuated these buildings, and endeavoured to re-enter the city by an opening in the further gateway of the Chini Bazar. Had they succeeded in so doing, they would have cut off Brasyer and THE SUPPORTS JOIN THE STORMERS. 393 his gallant band, which must then have been book xi. overwhelmed. But Havelock, advancing with sixty Sikhs, in support of Brasyer, promptly ^^'u seized two adjoining bastions, and, turning the six guns found there on the enemy, so plied their masses, issuing from the positions above named, with round shot, grape, and musketry, that he stopped their dangerous movement and turned them back. This action assured the posts won by the ad- vanced party. Gradually Havelock' s small body was strengthened by a company of the 90th, brought up by Colonel Purnell himself, and from that moment success was certain. By this time the fourth note sent by Havelock Supports urging him to come on reached Franks, and that gallant officer at once pushed forward with every available man to aid the advanced parties. His arrival shortly after with his supports, accom- panied by the Chief Engineer, made the position of the attacking party completely solid. The only question now to be solved was, whether the ad- vantages already so wonderfully achieved should or should not be turned to account by the storm- ing of the Kaisar Bagh. Every consideration seemed to urge the attempt. Bhaii the Although that morning it had been intended to pursued? storm only the inianibara, events had moved so quickly, the assailants had displayed so much energy and daring, the enemy had been so mastered by panic, that it seemed advisable to push on whilst t be stormers were still eager, the rebels still dejected. Accordingly, after a brief consultation, Franks 394 THE KAISAR BAGH IS STORMED. Book XI. Chapter IX. 1858. March 14. The Kaisar Bagh is stormed. The plunder- ing which followed. and Napier resolved to push on. Reinforcements were sent for from the rear, and an order was despatched to the troops at the Sikandar Bagh and the Shah Najif on the right to push forward. The reinforcements soon came up, and whilst the troops on the right advanced and occupied, with but little resistance, the Moti Mahal, the Chattar Manzil, and the Tara Koti, Franks sent his men through the court of Sadat Ali's mosque into the Kaisar Bagh itself. The Kaisar Bagh is a rect- angular enclosure, made up of a series of courts and gardens, interspersed with marble summer- houses. These were still full of sepoys, who, from the roofs and from the summits of the houses in the adjoining enclosure, poured a heavy musketry fire on the invaders. But the British once within the garden, the game for which the rebels were struggling was lost, and, in a comparatively short space, those of them who had failed to escape lay dead or in death's agony. Then began a scene of plunder, of which it is difficult to give an adequate description. The glowing words of an eye-witness, then in the zenith of a literary fame which still lives, mellowed by time and increased by experience, brings it, however, as vividly before the reader as words can bring a scene so rare and so terrible. "The scene of plunder," wrote Dr. Russell, " was indescribable. The soldiers had broken up several of the store-rooms, and pitched the contents into the court, which was lumbered with cases, with embroidered THE SCENE OF PLUNDER. 395 cloths, or ld and silver brocade, silver vessels, J* 00 ? x }- ' o ' ' Chapter IX. arms, banners, drums, shawls, scarfs, musical instruments, mirrors, pictures, books, accounts, March 14. medicine bottles, gorgeous standards, shields, spears, and a heap of things which would make this sheet of paper like a catalogue of a broker's sale. Through these moved the men, wild with excitement, ' drunk with plunder.' I had often heard the phrase, but never saw the thing itself before. They smashed to pieces the fowl- ing-pieces and pistols to get at the gold mount- ings, and the stones set in the stocks. They burned in a fire, which they made in the centre of the court, brocades and embroidered shawls for the sake of the gold and silver. China, glass, and jade they dashed to pieces in sheer wanton- ness ; pictures they ripped up, or tossed on the flames ; furniture shared the same fate. . . . Oh the toil of that day ! Never had I felt such exhaustion. It was horrid enough to have to stumble through endless courts which were like vapour baths, amid dead bodies, through sights worthy of the Inferno, by blazing Avails which might be pregnant with mines, over breaches, in and out of smouldering embrasures, across frail ladders, suffocated by deadly smells of rotting corpses, of rotten ghee, or vile native scents ; but the seething crowd of camp-followers into which we emerged in Hazratganj was some- thing worse. As ravenouSj and almost as foul as vultures, they were packed in a dense mass in the street, afraid or unable to go into the palace-, and, like the birds they resembled, 396 OUTRAM DESIRES TO CROSS THE IRON BRIDGE. Book XI. Chapter IX. 1858. March 14. Result of the day's work. Outram proposes to cross by the iron bridge. waiting till the fight was done to prey on their plunder."* The day's work was over. A work great, un- expected, and, in every sense of the word, mag- nificent. The line which in the morning had stretched from the Shah Najif to Hazratganj now ran from the Chattar Manzil to the Eesi- dency side of the Kaisar Bagh. Two strong defensive lines of works, garrisoned by thirty thousand to forty thousand men, had been turned, and the great citadel on which the second of those two lines rested had itself been stormed ! It was a great, even a magnificent work, but it might, and ought to, have been greater. Its greatness and magnificence were due mainly to the Sikhs and the 10th Foot, to the gallant leading of Havelock and Brasyer, the confident daring of Franks, and the skill of Napier — its want of completeness is attributable solely to Sir Colin Campbell and Mansfield. How this was so I shall explain in a few words. In a previous page I have narrated how, on the 13th, 14th, and 15th, Outram continued to occupy his positions on the left bank of the Giimti commanding the direct approaches to the iron bridge, but restricted from further movement in that direction by the orders of the Commander- in-Chief. The iron bridge led across the river to a point not far from the Residency. Now, when, on the 15th, the stormers under Franks attacked the Imambara, and, pushing onwards, dashed * My Diary in India, by William Howard Kussell. SIR COLIN REFUSES PERMISSION. 397 against the Kaisar Bagh, the enormous effect bookxi.^ which would have been produced by the crossing &1 —- of the river and the penetrating into the very MaiSfu heart of the enemy by Outram's division, may be imagined. Outram wished to carry out such an operation, and applied to the Commander-in-Chief for permission to do so. In reply he was informed by the Chief of the Staff that he might cross by the iron bridge, but "that he was not to do so if he thought he would lose a single man" A more Unsatisfac- t . . -, , tory reply of extraordinary proviso never accompanied an order the Com- to advance given to a general in the presence chie? 1 m of the enemy. It was tantamount to an absolute prohibition. Outram had that afternoon recon- noitred the enemy's position across the river. His plans were laid, his troops were ready to attack, but he saw that there was at least one gun on the bridge ; that the bridge itself was commanded by a large mosque and by houses which had been loop-holed ; and that the rebels, in anticipation of a forward movement on his part, had laid their batteries in such a manner as to render it difficult and dangerous. Not only, then, would he have lost one man, but probably very many. On the other hand, the passage of the Gumti by Outram that afternoon would have been fatal to the enemy. It would have in a great measure intercepted their retreat. Their slain would have been counted by thousands, and, in all probability, the province of Oudh would have immediately succumbed. The rebels who escaped on the 14th were the rebels who fell back on the forts and Btrong places of the province, there to renew the re- 398 COMMENTS ON SIR COLIN S REPLY. Book XI. Chapter IX. 1858. March II. Comments on the Com- mander-in- Chief's reply. The 15th on the right bank of the The 15th on the left bank. sistance which, had broken down in the capital. Had they been cut off, that resistance would not have been ! That they were not attacked in their retreat was due solely to Sir Colin' s order to Outram not to advance if the advance would cost him the life of one single man. "Why the hands of a gallant soldier like Outram were thus tied is a question which has not been answered. True it is that Sir Colin had only contemplated on the 14th an attack on the lmambara. The Kaisar Bagh, in his pro- gramme, was reserved for the day following. But he had sufficient experience of war to be aware that the unexpected is always possible, and knowing that, he committed a grave error when he restricted the action of a lieutenant occupying a position which, under certain circumstances, could be made fatal to the enemy. In the camp the order was attributed to the counsels of Mansfield ; but the responsibility rested, and still rests, with Sir Colin. To return. The 14th, as we have seen, had been a day devoted entirely to work, and to little but work. It was necessary to take early measures to consolidate the progress which had then been made. To this end the 15th was devoted — on the right bank of the Giimti. Under the orders of the Commander-in-Chief powder was removed, mines were destroyed, and mortars were fixed for the further bombardment of the positions still held by the rebels on the line of advance, up the right bank of the river, and in the heart of the city. On the left bank it was different, Here two movements were ordered, both of which would OUTRAM CROSSES LOWER DOWN. 399 have been more effective if directed the previous book xi. day. Sir Colin, sensible now that the door of a ^- retreat had been left too open to the enemy, March'is despatched Hope Grant, with eleven hundred Hope Grant cavalry and twelve horse artillery guns, to pursue JjJ SJtto 611 them along the Sitapur road. Brigadier Camp- in "' s j ie tbe bell was likewise directed to move with his in- fantry brigade, some guns, and fifteen hundred cavalry from the Alambagh on the Sandila road. Neither of these operations came to anything. The rebels had taken neither the Sandila nor the Sitapur road, and the only effect of the two movements, combined with a third on the 16th, to which I am about to refer, was to leave open to them the road to Faizabad, by which more than who, how- twenty thousand of them eventually escaped. cape ' The third movement was made by Outram. Outram That general was directed on the 16th to cross croSfTthe the Gumti, near the Sikandar Bagh, with Doug- Gdmti - las's brigade, the 5th, (23rd, 79th Highlanders, March 16. 1st Fusiliers), and join the Commander-in-Chief at the Kaisar Bagh, leaving Walpole's brigade still in its position on the left bank watching the iron and stone bridges. Outram crossed the Giimti by a bridge of n, ,,,. casks, far removed from the fire of the enemy, s'jk';',!'., near the Sikandar Bagh, and, joined by the 20th B4 s h ]{<"_riiiH'iii and Brasyer's Sikhs, marched towards the Kaisar Bagh by a road made the previous day by the sappers. On the way Sir Colin rode ou1 to the force and gave his final Instructions to : ,.„i ...... Outram/ These were to push on through tin- VtV J/.V. ... > Residency, take the iron bridge in reverse, and 400 OUTRAM STORMS THE RESIDENCY. book xi. then, advancing a mile further, to storm the a L!L Machhi Bawan and the great Imambara. March 8 i6. Outram pushed on at once, passed through the Contrast Kaisar Bagh, and then moved straight on the England Residency. As his little force neared the vene- the Indian rated and battered defences of that monument of defence of the . --it Residency. British valour, the 23rd leading, it was assailed by a fire of musketry from the line of posts which Aitken and Anderson, Sanders and Boileau, G-ray- don and Gould Weston, and many noble men had defended so long and so bravely. But now the positions were inverted. Then the assailants were Asiatics, the defenders mostly Englishmen. Now Asiatics defended, Englishmen assailed. The difference showed itself in a remarkable manner. For whereas in the former case the Englishmen defended themselves, unassisted, for eighty-four days, in the latter the Asiatics were disposed of in less than half an hour. One charge of Outram' s division, and the enemy fled, panic-stricken and panting, from the classic ground. Outram, The 23rd pursued the fleeing rebels, followed war! by Brasyer's Sikhs and the 1st Fusiliers. Two companies of the 23rd under Lieutenant-Colonel Bell, guided* by Gould Weston, pressed rapidly forward, and, taking the enemy's defences in reverse, captured the gun of which I have spoken as commanding the passage across the iron bridge. The force then pushed on, taking in reverse the batteries between the two bridges. * Outram's despatch. — one for which his knowledge This was a duty often as- of the localities peculiarly signed to Captain Weston, fitted him. ibad PL A N in illustrate the operations of the BRITISH ARMY BEF ORE l a k a >: a a IN MARCH 1858. J WT> PURSUES BIS SUCCESS. |D| Meanwhile Major Cotter crowned the Residency book xi. height with a field battery of Madras Artillery, Cha ^l IX - and opening a heavy fire on the Machhi Bawan, M ^|f h 8 ' 16 maintained it till he was relieved by two 68- captures the pounder guns of the Naval Brigade. After ^^SuE these had played with effect for some time on MaehM the devoted place, the 1st Fusiliers and Brasyer's Sikhs were sent forward to finish the work. This they did without difficulty, and the Machhi Bawan and great Imambara fell into their hands, the enemy abandoning seven guns. In this advance Captain Salusbury of the 1st Fusiliers and Lieu- tenant MacGregor,* doing duty with that regi- ment, greatly distinguished themselves. Whilst these operations were successfully pro- The retreat- gressing on the right bank of the Giimti, a number StJfcWai. of the enemv. driven from the Residencv and P° le > bn J ;in ' • >> repulsed. other places, poured over the stone bridge, and, the better to cover their design of retreating on Faiz&bad, made a strong attack on Walpole's pickets. The attack was repulsed, but the rebels made good their retreat. A more serious counterblow had beer attempted in anot her quarter. The garrison of the Alambagh had been re- Reduced duced by the aumber of troops withdrawn by ^'Vi .',',',,' '' Sir Colin to Less than a thousand men of all arms. k These were made up of aboul lour hundred in- fantry, the Military Train, a small del achnimt of the 7th II n- id some artillery. The post wii- commanded by Brigadier Pranklyn. one! MacGri i O.B., I - I O.I.E., author of Niw of ii Journey through ti to. A o. ji. 26 402 COUNTER-ATTACK ON THE ALAMBAGH. book xi. At 9 o'clock on the morning of the 16th the Chapter ix. rebelg came ^ own j n considerable masses, of the * T 18 fi« three arms. Whilst their infantry menaced March lb. ..,.-. The rebels the front of the British position their cavalry attack it. an( j ar tillery endeavoured to force back the left flank, and to get round it, with the view of giving their infantry the opportunity they were awaiting. They are met, To meet this movement Franklyn ordered four guns and the Military Train and cavalry, under Robertson, to the village in the rear of his posi- tion, whilst to Olpherts and the four guns which remained to him he entrusted the defence of his left. and repulsed These arrangements were made just in time. andr^ Tlie rebels had been coming on boldly, but no by Robertson S00 ner did Olpherts sweep the plain with his guns than their cavalry first halted, and then began to retire. A few of them did indeed make a sudden dash at the left front picket, and even entered the village in which it was, but eventually these, too, followed the example of their comrades. Meanwhile the main body of the infantry at- tacked the front, throwing out skirmishers, and advancing beyond the British rifle-pits. But in the centre Vincent Eyre, who commanded the whole of the by Vincent .,, -. , . . , Eyre. artillery, arranged his guns m such a manner as to rake their whole line from left to right, whilst the infantry brigade, commanded by Brigadier Stisted, waited for them to come on. The fire of the guns first checked the rebels and then drove them back ; but the fact that the attack began at 9 o'clock and ceased only at half- JANG BAHADUR ADVANCES ON THE LEFT. 403 past one will give some idea of its determined Book xi. r & Chapter IX. nature. — Two days previously, the 14th, the Commander- MaroiPie in-Chief had requested Jang Bahadur and the Jang Bahadur Nipalese to move to his left, up the canal, and ooiMaander. take in reverse the positions which, for three j n ; ciiief ' s • loft. months, the rebels had occupied in front of the Alambtigh, the garrison of which was now reduced to two regiments. Jang Bahadur carried out the instructions conveyed to him with ability and success. One after another the enemy's positions, from the Char Bagh bridge up to the Residency, with their guns, fell into his hands. This opera- tion, which effectually covered, as it was carried out, the Commander-in-Chief's left, occupied several days. The losses the Nipal chief expe- rienced were inconsiderable.* The 17th, Outram, pursuing his onward course, Outram continues * Jang Bahadur's success- the place in which the two ful advance was memorable ladies were confined. They foi the recovery from capti- at once procured the aid of a vity of two English ladies — party of fifty Nipalese, and Miss Jackson ami Mrs. Orr. after walking through narrow In the first volume "i' this Btreeta — aboul half a mile — history (m>t.', page 389) I have they reached a house occupied ii a sketch <>f the adven- by one Wajid Ah', an officer tures of the Sitap&r fugitives, of the old Court. In a room and have told how it was within the house the] found that on the 17th March only the two ladies dressed in two of these, Mrs. On and Oriental costume. They at J , survived. On the once procured a palanquin, 20th March two British officers and notwithstanding the op- attached to the Nipal troops, position threatened by a body Captain McNeil] and Lieu- of ruffians who would have tenanl Bogle, when exploring prevented the rescue, they some deserted si urthe i reyedthe ladies in safety Eaisar Bagh, were informed to the camp of Jang Baha- by ■ friendly native of dnr. 26 * 404 OUTRAM PUSHES HIS SUCCESSES WESTWARD. Book XL Chapter IX. 1858. March 17. his forward movements on the 17th An explosion causes loss of life. Further pro- gress on the 18th. occupied, without resistance, in the morning, the Huseni Mosque and the Daolat Khana. In the afternoon he moved, with a brigade (Middle- ton's field battery, two 8-inch howitzers, one company native sappers, wing 20th Foot, wing 23rd Foot, wiug 79th Highlanders, Brasyer's Sikhs), to occupy a block of buildings known as Sharf-u-Daola's house. The enemy made no resistance, but hastily evacuated the place. The success, however, was marred by a deplorable accident. In the courtyard in rear of the Jamma Masjid, impeding the progress of the troops, nine carts, laden with gunpowder packed in tin cases and leather bags, were found. Outram directed Captain Clarke and Lieutenant Brownlow of the Engineers to remove the carts, and to dispose of the powder by throwing it into a large and deep well. If the order had been carefully carried out no accident could possibly have occurred. But it is supposed that in the course of the operation a tin case struck the side of the well near the surface and ignited. The fire communicated itself to the powder in the carts, and caused an ex- plosion, which resulted in the death of the two officers and about thirty men. Others were also injured, more or less seriously. On the 18th, Outram's advanced post (a picket of the 20th under Lieutenant Gordon) cleared the houses and streets in front of it, though not without meeting a sharp opposition from the enemy. In carrying out this operation they cap- tured a very fine brass 9-pounder gun, loaded to the muzzle with grape, and pointed down the AND MARCHES ON THE MUSA BAGH". 405 street which they had to clear. The enemy, bookXI. however, abandoned it on their advance, without ' p discharging; it. „ 18 f' & & _ March 18. It had become known during these last two sir Colin days, to the Commander-in-Chief, that the rebels J earns that u a , . large number had occupied, to the number of from eight to of . re beis are nine thousand, the Musa Bagh, a large palace Musa Bagh. with gardens and enclosures, standing in the midst of an open country filled with trees, about four miles to the north-west of Lakhnao, near the right bank of the Gumti. These rebels were believed to be animated by the presence of the Begam and her son, and of the more desperate leaders of the revolt. Sir Colin Campbell was resolved, now that all the strong points in the city itself were in his hands, to expel them from this last stronghold. On the morning of the 19th, therefore, Outram, Outram under instructions from Sir Colin, marched against the Musa the Miisa Bagh. His force consisted of two B Jf a h r ' ch 19- squadrons of the 9th Lancers ; one company Royal Artillery ; one company native sappers ; Middleton's field battery ; two 18-pounders, two 8-inch howitzers, four 8-inch mortars, under Captain Carleton, R.A. ; three companies 20th Regiment : seven companies 23rd Regiment ; 79th Highlanders and 2nd Panjab Infantry. Whilst this force marched against the place from the advanced positions in the city, Sir Hope Grant, still on the left bank of the Gmnti, was directed to cannonade it, and, on the enemy being dislodged, to fall upon those who should attempt to cross the river j at the same time 1858. March 19. and the Musa Bagh. 406 CAPTURE OP THE MUSA BAGH. book xi. Brigadier Campbell of the Bays was ordered to Chapter ix. take ^ w - t k a brigade f infantry, fifteen hun- dred cavalry, and a due proportion of guns, a position on the left front of the Musa Bagh, ready to pounce upon the rebels when Outram should expel them from their stronghold. The Nipalese troops were likewise directed to enter the city, from the Charbagh line of road, towards the rear of the Hiiseni Mosque. This time it was hoped and believed there would be no fugitives. But again expectation was baulked. Captures Aii Between Outram's advanced posts and the house s Musa Bagh there stood, near the Grao Glhat, on the Giimti, a house belonging to the last prime minister of Oudh, the Nawab Ali Nakki Khan, at the time a prisoner in Calcutta. A company of the 79th, led by Lieutenant Evereth, attacked and drove the rebels from this place. Outram's further advance was delayed nearly two hours by the necessity of breaking through a thick wall. When at last this obstacle was removed, the troops pushed on through the suburbs to the Musa Bagh. Here the enemy appeared in great strength, but on Outram threatening their flanks, at the same time that his guns opened fire on their front, they hastily abandoned the place, leaving behind them two guns, which had been posted to protect the approaches to it. They fled by the line which Campbell should have commanded. But where was Campbell ? " With his large force of cavalry and artillery," writes Sir Hope Grant, " there was a splendid opportunity for cutting off the large masses of GALLANTRY OF COLONEL HAGART. 407 fugitive rebels, yet nearly all were allowed to book xi. escape." The gallantry of Colonel Hagart, a f_!L splendid as it was, was far from atoning for the M i„h'i9. mistakes of his chief. I proceed to show the manner in which it was displayed. Close to the position taken up by Campbell was a village with a small mud fort, of which the enemy had taken possession. To dislodge them Campbell sent a troop of the 7th Hussars, some of Hodson's Horse, a few of the 78th, and two of Tombs' guns, the whole under the command of Colonel James Hagart of the 7th Hussars. A Gallantry of ° Colonel couple of shells had been fired into the fort, when Hagart. the rebels, to the number of fifty, rushed out and made a dash at the guns. Hagart ordered the 7th to charge ; but before they could be put in motion, the three troop officers, Slade, Wilkin, and Banks, were cut down, the latter mortally wounded. The loss of their officers took the men by surprise, when Hagart dashed at the rebels, who were hacking Banks as he lay on the ground, shot three with a revolver, and knocked over a fourth with the hilt of his sword, which was tied to his wrist by a silk pocket-handkerchief. His men quickly rallied round him, and killed every one of the enemy.* * Hope Grant' s 8q toy War. tin gale was divided, his Sir Hope Grant further adds Bword-hilt dented in, the regarding Hagart's daring pocket-handkerchief severed ■it: •• Everything about as clearrj as with a razor, and him bore traces of his gallant a piece of the skin of his struggle. - His saddle and his right handout away." — Sir horse were slashed about both Hope Grant recommended infronl and behind, his mar- Hagart Eor the Victoria Cross. 408 CAMPBELL ALLOWS THK EEBELS TO ESCAPE. Book XL Chapter IX. 1858. March 19. Eemarks on William Campbell's inaction. Splendid pursuit by the 9th Lancers This was almost the solitary achievement of Campbell's fine brigade. No attempt whatever was made by him to cut off the fleeing enemy. His conduct was officially attributed to his having lost his way. " But," records an officer who wrote of these occurrences the year following that in which they took place, "his error appears to have partaken of wilfulness. He moved his force in utter disregard of the statement of his guides, in opposition to the protestations and explanations of all to whose information and advice he was bound to listen."* Consequently the greater number of the rebels escaped. Not, however, all. Outram, keenly alive to the necessity of following up a victory, no sooner noticed that the rebels were abandoning the Miisa Bagh, than he detached in pursuit two squadrons of the 9th Lancers, which had in anticipation taken up a position on the enemy's left flank. Assuredly no man more de- served it. He alone rescued Banks, though in the end Banks died of his wounds ; he gave the cue to his men when the sudden loss of the troop officers had for a mo- ment staggered them. The reason why the recommenda- tion was not attended to is, to say the least, curious. " Sir Colin Campbell." writes Sir Hope, " did not, however, forward the recommendation, as he considered the reward an inappropriate one for an officer of so high a rank as Hagart." The italics are my own. * Calcutta Review, March 1859; Art. "The Campaign of 1857-8." The writer continues: "But whatever may have been the cause of his erratic proceedings, whether they were accidental or whether they were worthy of blame, we believe that the mischief which resulted from them was incalculable ; that to them is attributable such or- ganization as the enemy were enabled to maintain, and the perseverance and pertinacity with which they still carried on a guerilla warfare with the British." THE 9TH LANCERS AND ARTILLERY PURSUE THEM. 409 For four miles the men of this splendid regiment, Book xi. despite of the obstacles offered by nullahs almost impassable and ravines difficult for horsemen, March 19. pursued the enemy, nor did they desist till they had captured six guns, and killed about a hun- dred of the foe. Nor were the 9th Lancers alone in the chase. The field artillery and infantry followed them in *f d .^ e support as rapidly as possible, and captured the remaining four guns of the twelve possessed by the rebels that morning. After this decided success Outram left the 2nd Pan jab Infantry in occupation of the Miisa Bagh, and returned to his positions of the previous day. The following day copies of Lord Canning's Lord Can- ° J . t • mi i. ning's Pr0 " Oudh proclamation were received in camp, inat ciamation. proclamation professed to confiscate the whole March 20 - proprietary right in the soil of Oudh, save in the case of six comparatively inferior chiefs. To rebel landowners who should at once surrender to the Government immunity from death and imprisonment was promised, provided only that they could show they were guiltless of unprovoked bloodshed. To those who bad protected British lives special consideration was promised. Of the proclamation itself I shall speak in another place. I will only refer here to the effect it produced in the camp. It arrived just Effect of it in 111 • 1 1 L ™ e C,llll l'- when the city of Lnkhnao had been gained, but when Oudh was still in insurrection, and when the rebel army, which had vainly defended the city, bad easl itself on the provinces, there to 410 lord canning's oudh proclamation. Book XL Chapter IX. 1858. March 20. A qualifying clause added to it on the suggestion of Outram. March 21. The city is cleared of rebels. by the 93rd and 4th Pan- jab Rifles. offer a fresh resistance. Every leading man who had taken a part in the campaign was struck with the impolicy, at such a moment, of disinheriting a whole people, that people being still armed and in the field. "I have not," wrote Dr. Russell,* who was attached to the headquarter staff , "heard one voice raised in its defence ; and even those who are habitually silent, now open their mouths to condemn the policy which must perpetuate the rebellion in Oudh." Owing to the urgent re- monstrance of Sir James Outram, authority was given to insert in the proclamation a qualifying clause, by virtue of which a further indulgence was held out to those who would throw themselves on British mercy, a claim to which would be strengthened by aid which might be given in the restoring of peace and order. But the other clauses remained. Something remained to be effected even in the city itself. The Moulvi — the most obstinate of the rebel leaders — had returned to Lakhnao ; he was still there, at Shadatganj, in its very heart, occupying, with two guns, a strongly fortified building, whence he bade defiance to the British. To dislodge him, Lugard was detached, on the 21st, with a portion of the division which had conquered the Begam Kothi the first day of the attack. The troops employed were the 93rd Highlanders and the 4th Panjab Rifles. Seldom did the rebels display so much pertinacity and resolution as on this occasion. They defended # My Diary in India. — W. H. Russell. HOPE GRANT AT KURSI. 411 themselves most bravely, and were not driven out Book xi. until they had killed several men and severely a ^!^ wounded many others on our side. When at last Marc"h2i they were dislodged, they were met by Brigadier Campbell's brigade of cavalry, this time on the spot, and were pursued, with considerable loss, for six miles. The Moulvi, however, effected his escape. The following night, that of the 22nd, Hope H °pe Grant Grant was ordered out at midnight with a strong rebels at force (two troops horse artillery, two 18-pounders, K S£oh22. two howitzers, four Cohorn mortars, nine hundred cavalry, and four regiments of infantry) to attack the enemy, reported to be four thousand strong, at Kiirsi, a small town twenty-five miles from Lakhnao, on the Faizabad road. The mistake of a guide delayed the march, but at 4 a.m. on the 23rd Kiirsi was sighted. The enemy did not wait an assault, but, on the appearance of the British troops, began to evacuate the town. Upon this Hope Grant sent his cavalry at them. Two squadrons of the Panjab Cavalry under Captain Browne,* and a party of Watson's Horse led by Captain Cosserat, dashed at them. " Cap- tain Browne, who commanded," wrote Sir Hope Grant, in his diary, " seeing some guns moving off, charged the rebels in the most magnificent style. Five limes he rode clean through them, killing about two hundred, and taking thirteen ^'•inis and ;i mortar. His unfortunate adjutant, Lieutenant Maedonald, was shot dead in the act ■ Now Major-General Sir manding in a portion oi At- 8. Browne, V.C., <'.!>., com- ghanistan. 412 REMARKS ON THE CAMPAIGN. Book XL Chapter IX. 1858. March 22. Remarks on the cam- paign. Claims of Sir Colin to a- of cutting down a sepoy. Captain Cosserat was shot through the face, and died shortly after." The enemy having been pursued for some time, Hope Grant returned to Lakhnao. With this action the operations in Lakhnao and in its immediate vicinity ended. The city was cap- tured. It had been gained at a loss — from the 2nd to the 21st March inclusive — of one hundred and twenty-seven officers and men killed, and five hundred and ninety-five wounded. Notwithstand- ing two errors which I have indicated — the one attributable to the Commander-in-Chief himself, the other, in the first instance, to one of his bri- gadiers — it is impossible to withhold admiration of the skill with which the operations were planned, of the courage with which they were carried out. The plans of the rebels, based on the conjecture that the British force would advance by the lines of the previous November, were entirely baffled by the masterly movement across the river. That movement, which placed an enemy on their flank, raking their defences, completely cowed them. It took all the heart out of them. Enfiladed from the opposite bank, they could not offer a stern or determined resistance to the foe advancing on their front. The weakness of their defence of the Imambara and the Kaisar Bagh was due in a very great degree to the moral depression which the position occupied by Outram had caused in their minds. But if, as has been well asserted,* the strategy Medley. sir colin's strategy. 413 of Sir Colin Campbell in his attack on Lakhnao bookXi. "must ever be the subject of admiration on the ' a il!! part of the military student of this campaign," it Maroh'22 is fit that history should mark the blunder which high or to the prevented it from being decisive. Outram was a aSgenemf lieutenant to be trusted. He was cool and daring 1 in action, always kept his troops well in hand, and carefully guarded his communications. No living man had a greater or more profound knowledge of the native character. If any man, in the circumstances in which he was placed, might have been trusted to act on his own judg- ment, that man was Outram. Yet when, at a Reasons critical period of the advance, Outram, firmly decisive seated on the left bank, proposed to co-operate cEto^he with the Commander-in-Chief in a manner which hi g hest rank. would have rendered the victory of the latter absolutely decisive, the proposal was refused in language totally unworthy of Sir Colin Campbell. He was forbidden to cross " if he thought lie would lose a single man." The reasons for this prohibition have never been published. Dr. Rus- sell, who was very much in the confidence both of Sir Colin and of Outram, whilst admitting the " blot" caused by Outram's compulsory inaction, does not explain the motive by which Sir Colin was actuated to make it compulsory.* Whether, * "The relations between officer. Had Sir Colin not Sir C"lin;in«l General Outram, bound Outram's hands so though nol unfriendly, are a tightly the advance would little stiff, on account of past have taken place, and a tre- erents, ;ui<1 Out nun is not the mendous slaughter of tl ae- 111 hi to ad in opposition to my must have followed." My the commands of hia superior Diary in India, W 1 1 . Ru jsell. 414 THE TWO ERRORS COMMITTED book xi. a s some assert, it was prompted by Mansfield, or whether it was the emanation of his own March22. mind, Sir Colin, as the issuer of the order, The prohibi. was responsible for it, and he alone must bear ram to cross the blame. That order derogates from his claim the Gumti. t ]j e pl ace d in the rank of the greatest com- manders. He must be classed as a great general of the second rank, a general who could skil- fully plan, carefully carry out that plan, who could achieve a victory, but who could not follow it up. The appoint- The second failure to pursue the beaten enemy William is due likewise, though in a lesser degree, to Sir fbTapprovaT 1 Colin Campbell. For the delicate operation he of his failure, was bound to select an officer specially qualified, and if not acquainted with the country, yet ready to listen to the experienced officers at his elbow or to understand the language of the guides. He appointed, on the contrary, an officer new to the country, who would listen to nobody, who could not understand the guides, and who, consequently, let slip a golden opportunity. Yet this action, which allowed thousands of rebels to escape, was justified by Sir Colin Campbell. " Brigadier Campbell, in command of the cavalry on the left," he writes, in his despatch, " performed his detached duty with much vigil- ance and judgment. His march round the city on the 19th hist., which was a running fight for the greater part of the clay, was a very difficult one." What it really was has been recorded in these pages. STAND ALONE. 415 These errors, however, stood alone, and the bookxl . i^k^ -n • Chapter IX. capture of Lakhnao in March 1858 will remain to all time a splendid achievement of skill and March 82. daring. 416 BOOK XII. CHAPTER I. It will be conducive to the clearness of the narra- tive, if, before recording the events in the north- west Provinces which immediately followed the capture of Lakhnao, I return for a moment to Calcutta, record the progress made towards the Bengal. restoration of order in eastern Bengal and the Bihars, and progress thence towards Allahabad by way of Azamgarh and the adjacent districts. Then I propose to trace the action of Carthew in guarding the important line between Allahabad and Kanhpiir. Returning north-westward, I shall record the action of Seaton in the vicinity of Fathgarh, of Jones in Rohilkhand, of Walpole in Oudh, of Lugard, Rowcroft, and Douglas in the A'zamgarh and Grhazipur districts and in Bihar, of Jones and Coke in Rohilkhand, and of Sir Colin Campbell in Bareli. The book will close with an account in detail of the progress of events in Rajputana. Calcutta w 7 When Sir Colin Campbell, on the 27th Novem- the cam- paign. WITB SIR COLIN RESTED THE FATE OF INDIA. 417 ber, had left Calcutta for Kanhpur, he carried with b <>ok xii. him the power of the country. For the moment ' ^l r " the civil authority, though nominally existing, was No?-jfn in abeyance. The fate of India was in the hands, ceased, after not of Lord Canning, but of Sir Colin Campbell ; SVi'coiin, 1 ' 6 and although, as I have noted on one important t0 excise an occasion, the opinions of the Governor-General in influence on g Council exercised a potential influence on the general plan of campaign of the Commander-in- Chief, yet to the hands of the latter functionary its execution was committed. From the moment, then, when Sir Colin Campbell left Calcutta to direct the military measures for which he had been preparing, he became the chief centre of interest ; and the capital, giving habitation though it did for a time to the Governor- General and his Council, was proportionately shorn of its import- ance. Thenceforward Calcutta deserves notice as the port for the reception of the troops, and the depot of stores and supplies from England ; the terminus whence the new arrivals started for the seat of war, and the invalids and wounded for Europe. The continuous attacks made upon the rebels satisfied the longings even of those who had been the severest critics of the tardy, the hesitating, and the half-hearted action of Lord Canning and his councillors: while the social tranquillity of the capital, no longer in real danger, was but once disturbed, and then by a panic which had for its foundation a want of confidence in the firmness of the Government. In the third week of January, 1858, Lord Lord Canning Canning quitted Calcutta and proceeded to Allah- SuiaMbad. ii. 27 418 PANIC OF THE 3ED MARCH IN CALCUTTA. book xii. abad. A few days after his arrival at that place Chapter i. ^ F e b ruarv ) , he abolished the temporary office of Fob-March Clnef Commissioner of Agra, till then held by Colonel Fraser, C.B., and drew the whole of the north-west divisions, that of Dehli excepted, Change in the within one lieutenant-governorship. A few days administra- ^fear, ^ j p Q^ wh() ^ ft trying and cri . tical period had governed with marked ability the Central Provinces, returned to Calcutta to take up the office of President of the Council, the Governor-General assuming the charge which Mr. Grant thus vacated. Panic of the It was after the return of Mr. Grant to Cal- Oaioutta! m cutta that the panic of which I have spoken oc- curred. Nothing happened, indeed, which ought to have alarmed men's minds, but in times of ex- citement the slightest causes often produce the most startling effects. The case was simply as follows. On the 3rd March, a telegraphic mes- sage from Barrakpiir was received in Calcutta to the effect that the sepoys of two native regiments stationed there were deserting in bodies of ten and twelve, and making their way to the capital. People did not stay to reflect that the sepoys had been disarmed ; that in addition to regular troops there was a fine volunteer regiment — horse, foot, and artillery — in the city. The information con- veyed by the telegram was circulated in exagge- rated terms ; and the inhabitants of the suburbs, consisting mainly of Eurasians, became much alarmed. Pickets of the volunteer guards were promptly posted at the points supposed to be threatened ; the streets were patrolled by the the 34th mutiny at chatgaon. 419 volunteer cavalry : the artillerymen took post at BooK XIL , . ii • i i. Chapter I. their guns ; the regular troops in the tort were placed under arms. But no enemy appeared. March. Some sepoys had indeed deserted, but with no in- it passes tention of attacking Calcutta. The panic passed away more quickly even than it had been pro- duced. In eastern Bengal there had been some cause Easter.. ° Bengal. for anxiety. On the 18th November, the detach- 18 57. ments of the 34th Regiment Native Infantry, sta- Nov - 18 - tioned at Chateraon, mutinied, plundered the Mutiny of the , i,i • o • -i i , 3 4th at chat- treasury, released the prisoners from jail, burnt g d n. down their own lines, fired the magazine, and then left the station, carrying off with them three elephants, the property of Government, and the whole of the treasure they found in the collecto- rate, with the exception of three hundred and forty rupees in cash. These, as well as the stamps, the Government securities and records, they left untouched. They attacked none of the Euro- peans, and the only man who suffered at their hands was a native jailer who protested against their proceedings. Him they killed. They then made off in the direction of Tiparah, but at Sha- re mid they left the high road, and making for Hill Tiparah, endeavoured to make their way along the hills in a north-westerly direction, avoiding British territory. Four days later an attempt was made by Lieu- Aitempi to tenanl Lewis, Indian Navy, to disarm the de- native troopa tachments of the 73rd Native [nfantry, and atDh4k4 - Native Artillery, stationed at Dhaka, numbering aboul two hundred and fifty sepoys. Lewis had 27 * 420 CONFLICT WITH THE SEPOZS AT DHAKA. Book XII. Chapter I. 1857. Nov. 22. They resist, but are beaten ; many are killed ; at his disposal five officers and eighty-five men, English sailors., and two mountain-train howitzers. One of these w r as commanded by Lieutenant Dowell of the Bengal Artillery, who volunteered his services for the occasion. Three members of the Civil Service, Messrs. Carnac, Bainbridge, and Macpherson, and Lieutenant Hitchins of the Bengal Army, likewise accompanied the force, armed with rifles. Lewis disarmed, without resistance, the de- tached guards at the offices of the treasury, of the commissariat, and of the executive engineer. But when he marched down to the lines, he found the bulk of the sepoys drawn up close to their maga- zine, with two 6-pounders in their centre. Par- ties of them also occupied strong brick-built buildings in the vicinity, the walls of which had been carefully loop-holed. Lewis at once de- ployed his force, but the movement was not com- pleted when the sepoys opened upon him with canister and musketry. Replying with one volley, Lewis then charged up the hill with his infantry, whilst the two mountain guns, taking up a posi- tion on the left rear of the enemy, opened upon them. The charge was most successful. The rebels, though offering a determined resis- tance, were driven, one by one, from their strong positions, until those who survived took refuge in flight. Forty-one dead bodies w^ere counted on the ground, eight men were brought in despe- rately wounded, three were drowned or shot in attempting to cross the river. This success was not attained without some loss. The list of killed LOYALTY OF THE KAJA OF TIPARAH. 421 and wounded contained one man killed, five dan- Book xil gerously, eight severely, and four slightly wounded, '^L! r in all eighteen. The sepoys who escaped at once Nov 57 22 went off in a north-westerly direction, making, it the survivors was believed, for Jalpaigori, the headquarters of esca P e - the regiment. Prevented from reaching that place, they found a temporary refuge in Bhutan. The action of the local authorities at Chatgaon Chatgaon. was prompt and effective. Whilst arrangements were made at the station for the security of European life in case the sepoys should return to it, the Commissioner communicated at once with the Raja of Tiparah. This loyal feudatory The Raja of at once directed his retainers and subjects to exercises his check the progress of the mutineers, and, if fc^oSofthe possible, to close the passes against them. British. The Commissioner called likewise upon the two principal zamindars occupying the hill districts which it was thought the mutineers would tra- verse, to summon their men to arms and follow them up, and either to attack them or to shut them up in the defiles which lay before them. The manner in which this appeal was responded to, and the results it produced, will be related immediately. Xnr was the action of the Government at Cal- Prompt cutta less satisfactory. Dealing with the cases of Government Dhaka and Chatgaon as intimately connected the of lndl!K one witli the other, they despatched, on the 2(3th Nov. 26-27. November, by river from Calcutta, three companies of tin' 54th Regiment, and one hundred seamen; on the 27th, by the same route, another party of sailors. It was the intention of the ( lovenuneiit that whilst the 54th detachment should proceed al 422 THE MUTINEERS FROM CHATGAON Book XII. Chapter I. 1857. December. The Chat- gaon muti- neers traverse the hill ranges and suffer much dis- tress. They attack a police first to Dakha and thence pursue the Chatgaon rebels in the direction it would be ascertained they had taken, the Naval Brigade should move northwards to Rangpiir and Dinajpiir to protect the country towards which it was believed the mutineers from both stations were making their way. Their arrival at their destination on the 10th December contributed greatly to the preservation of order in the neighbouring districts. The Chatgaon mutineers were, meanwhile, be- ginning to experience the drawbacks to a march across the hills, pursued and threatened by ene- mies. On leaving Sitakiind, they had followed a northerly course, and, crossing the ferry at Ram- garh ghat, had pushed on towards Udaipiir, thence towards Agartala, the residence of the Raja of Tiparah. That chief, hearing of their approach, despatched a considerable body of men, who stoppped them at Sankhola on the 2nd December. Turning then westward, they entered British territory at or near Mogra, and made their way towards Singar Hill — about one and a half day's journey north of Komilla, and on the direct route to Silhat. In their progress they had been much harassed ; they lost the three elephants, and about ten thousand rupees of the treasure they had stolen ; of the prisoners they had released from the jail, many were daily being captured ; they found the mountain paths difficult, and though the hillmen were ready enough, for payment, to cut a way for them, their progress was necessarily slow. But worse things were in store for them. Harassed by the opposition of the Raja of ARE PURSUED BY TROOPS FROM S1LHAT. 423 Tiparah, and of the zaruindars of whom I have Bo °k xii. spoken, the mutineers resolved to make their way to Manipur. On their way to that place, they December. descended from the hills, attacked and plundered, station in on the 15th December, a police-station in British t ™y] sh tern " territory. This attack gave to the British the information they had desired as to their position. Mr. Allen, the chief civil officer at Silhat, had the capacity to discern that the European troops would arrive too late to intercept the rebels. He took upon himself, then, the responsibility of ordering the Silhat Light Infantry, commanded by Major the Hon. R. B. Bvnff, into the field. That regiment left The silhat _,._. . • » i t i i j ,i Light In- oilhat in pursuit ot the rebels that very day, the fantry are 15th, and reached Partabgarh, a distance of eighty J^J gj^ miles, by a forced march, in thirty-six hours. At Partabgarh, Byng received information from Mr. Dodd, who had accompanied the force for the special purpose of guiding it, that the rebels had changed their route, and would be at Latii, a place which they had passed through, on the night of that day, the 17th, or early the following morning. Latii was twenty-eight miles from Partabgarh ; the men had made a forced march of eighty miles, After forced but with one voice they expressed their willing- ness to return. The road led through jungles and swamps, but, getting out, they marched back cheerily. Dodd, who had ridden on in advance, met the column as it was entering the village of Latii at daw u on the bSth, with the informal ion that the rebels Were Close at hand. Uofore lino could theyen- , , -, counter t hem be formed, thoy were soon advancing in good order. .,, utL [n the engagement which followed, the rebels made 424 THE CHATGAON REBELS ARE DEFEATED. Book XII. Chapter 1. 1857-8. Dec. -Jan. Byng is killed. Sherer suc- ceeds, and drives the rebels into the jungles, where they cannot be followed. The Chatgaon mutineers entering Manipur, many efforts to seduce the men of the Silhat Light Infantry — one half of whom were Hindustanis — to make common cause with them. But their per- suasions were answered by the cold steel of the bayonet. Notwithstanding their long march, the loyal soldiers of the Silhat regiment displayed a vigour and an energy which carried all before them. In the early part of the action their gallant leader, Major Byng, was killed. This occurrence only roused them to greater fury. The post he had held was filled by Lieutenant Sherer, an officer of rare merit — a son of the gallant soldier whose splendid audacity at Jalpaigori I have described in the preceding volume — and Sherer gave the rebels no breathing-time. After a loss of twenty-six men killed and a still larger number wounded, the enemy abandoned the field, and sought shelter in the close and difficult jungles which lie between Latii and Manipur. Into these jungles it was impossible to follow them. Detachments having been sent to watch the issues from the jungle into Manipur, the bat- talion returned to Silhat. The party of the 54th Regiment, which had been sent on to Silhat and had even marched towards Latu, was ordered back, first to Dhaka, and a few weeks later to Calcutta. After their defeat by Sherer, the Chatgaon mutineers marched north-eastwards, and entered the Manipur territory. There they were joined by one of the Manipur princes, with a few followers. The hopes they might have conceived from this accession of strength were, however, of short duration. On the 1 2th January they were attacked THEY ARE EVENTUALLY ANNIHILATED. 425 by a party of the Silhat corps, under Captain Ste- b°ok xii. vens, and after a fight which lasted two hours, u — they were driven into the jungles, with the loss jannai-j. of twenty men killed. Ten days later, the same are attacked officer, having learnt where they were encamped, j™ captain succeeded in surprising them while their arms Stevens, were piled, and putting them to flight, with the ^prifeT loss of all their arms and accoutrements. On them - this occasion they lost ten men killed. Eight days later another detachment of them was at- tacked and completely defeated, with the loss of thirteen men, by a small party of the Silhat regi- ment, led by a native officer, Jemadar Jaggathir. This was the finishing stroke. Since their depar- ture from Chatgaon, the rebels had lost two hun- dred and six men in battle. The remainder were The sur- no w blocked up in hilly country, the passes leading biooked up in out of which were closed, and there the greater * h . e moun - ° tains. number perished miserably. Thus, by the firm attitude and the fearlessness Result of of responsibility on the part of the civil authori- promptitude. ties, especially of Mr. Allen, and by the daring leading of a few European officers and the gal- lantry of their native followers, order was re- established in the important districts to the east of Calcutta. All this time Colonel Sherer was nobly maintaining his position at Jalpaigori, dominating, by the force of his character, the armed native regimenl which he commanded. I pass on now to eastern Bihar, the division Eastern under the control of Mr. George Yule. Although party of Rattray's Sikhs, com- 440 DANGER OF BRITISH OFFICERS IN MANBHUM. Book XII. Chapter I. 1857. December. The rebels defeated in the Sambal- pur districts. Dangerous position of Mr. Lushing- ton and his followers. manded by Captain Hale, was in the neighbour- hood. Hale, supported by the followers of one of the local chieftains, attacked and dispersed the followers of the pretender. But for some time the insurrection remained unsubdued. The unsatisfactory state of affairs in the three districts of which I have spoken, Palamao, Sam- balpiir, and Singhbum, continued without any important change until the 30th December. On the day immediately preceding that date, Captain Wood arrived in the Sambalpiir district with a squadron of the Nagpiir Irregular Cavalry, and drawing to him one hundred and fifty men of the Madras Native Infantry and fifty of the Ramgarh Infantry, he attacked the main body of the rebels the following morning, and completely defeated them, killing three of their chiefs. This victory was succeeded by a multitude of small affairs in the several districts, in most of which the advantage inclined to the side of authority. It was not, however, always so. On one occasion the Commissioner of the Manbhiim and Singhbhum divisions, Mr. Lushington, attended by Dr. Hayes and accompanied by Captain Hale, Lieutenant Birch, and fifty Sikhs, who had been engaged in seizing men convicted of murder, found themselves suddenly surrounded by not less than three thousand to four thousand infu- riated Kdls, armed with arrows, who had stolen up unperceived. Nothing but the steady gal- lantry of the Sikhs extricated the party from their perilous position. They had to fight their way through their numerous opponents, and it TRANQUILLITY 18 GRADUALLY RESTORED. 441 was only by great perseverance, and at the ex- book xii. pense of a large casualty roll that they ulti- Chapter L mately succeeded. Twenty-five Sikhs were T 1858 - u J January. wounded, one mortally; one was killed. Cap- Heisextn- tain Hale was wounded in four places ; Lieu- ca * ed by * be ± ' valour of the tenant Birch had his arm pinned to his side by Sikhs - an arrow : Mr. Lushington and Dr. Hayes were also wounded. Of the enemy one hundred and fifty are said to have fallen. The British party was, however, forced to abandon their camp equipage in order to effect a secure retreat. After this affairs soon began to mend. On the Tranquillity 7th January Major Bates forced the Shergati pass ; restored! 1 7 two days later Captain Shakespear stormed the Singhora pass and over-ran the country with his cavalry ; on the 21st January Captain Dalton and Lieutenant Graham completely defeated the rebels near the Palamao fort ; and about the same time Major Forster, with the Shakawati battalion, restored order in Singhbhum. These successes were followed by others of a similar character. Captain Dalton pursued the rebels from place to place. Ably seconded by Mr. Cockburn, and as- sisted by Major Forster, by Ensign Wardlaw, by Captain Moncrieff, and by other officers placed at his disposal, he re-established everywhere British authority. The embers of disaffection continued, however, to smoulder long after every enemy had disappeared from the field, and it was not before the close of 1858 that perfect tranquillity could be said to reign in every corner of Clnitia Nagpiir. 442 BOOK XII. CHAPTER II. Retrospect of Taking the reader with me north-westward, I western . Bihar. propose to narrate now the state of affairs in western Bihar; to explain how the communica- tions between Kanhpiir and Allahabad had been preserved; then, proceeding to the Azamgarh districts, to show how insurrection triumphed there for a moment, only to be driven back to seek a refuge, destined to be of long duration, in the districts and jungles which owned the authority of the remarkable landowner, Kiinwar Singh. I have told in the first volume how the im- portant division of Western Bihar, saved by Mr. "William Tayler during the dark and terrible days of June and July 1857, then exposed, by the wilful blindness of the Government, to dangers more acute, more vivid, more active, had been preserved from immediate destruction by the gal- lantry of Vicars Boyle, of Wake, of Colvin, and their companions, and finally, completely rescued by the splendid daring of Vincent Eyre. I have recorded the ingratitude with which one of BIHAR UNDER MR. TAYLER's SUCCESSOR. 443 these gentlemen, Mr. William Tayler, had been Bookxii. treated by the G-overnment he had served with ' a L!! an energy all-absorbing and a success most signal, j a f 8 fXu and how the other principal actor in the drama, Vincent Eyre, after storming the stronghold of Kiin war Singh, had been ordered to join the avenging army of Outram. From the hour of their departure a new era was inaugurated in western Bihar — an era in which truckling took the place of independence, and a desire to dis- cover mistakes in Mr. Tayler's administration the determination to suppress, before all, the dangers threatening the State. For some weeks after his departure the effect Patna under of Eyre's victories continued to be felt in western successor" S Bihar. The Government, alive at last, after one revolt had been quelled, to the advisability of preventing another, had placed under the orders of Mr. Samuells, the successor of Mr. Tayler, two hundred Europeans, for the safeguard of Patna, and had despatched a gun-boat, under the orders of the Magistrate of Ohapra, to patrol the banks of the Ghaghra. But as time went on, the mis- guided spirits in the province began to be sensible that Eyre had left them, and that the spirit of William Tayler no longer inspired the adminis- tration. Though Patna, thanks to the presence of British troops, was reported to be quiet, strong precautionary measures were not the less taken. The opium godown was fortified, six guns were placed in position bearing on the town, and fehe most stringent measures were taken to avert a collision between the townspeople and the Europeans. 444 WESTERN BIHAR, Book XII. Chapter II. 1857. Aug.-Sept, The difficul- ties in west- ern Bihar aggravated by risings elsewhere. The mutinous 5th Irregulars approach Gay a. Rattray marches to meet them, The aspect in the district was even less assur- ing. Kunwar Singh, with one thousand men, had taken up a position on the Son river, and it became known that dangerous and discontented characters, such men as his brother Ammar Singh, Nisban Singh, and Jiiban Singh, were nocking to his standard. At the same time, the 5th Irregular Cavalry, whose disarming Mr. Tayler had before ineffectually recommended, and whose mutiny in eastern Bihar I have already recorded,* were allowed to spread over the districts in the western province, and to plunder with impunity. The difficulties of the position in western Bihar were greatly aggravated by the evacuation of Gorakhpiir by the British civil authorities, one alone excepted,! on the 13th August, and sub- sequently by all ; by the consequent pressure of rebels into British districts from Oudh; and by the exposure of the districts of Chapra, Cham- paran, and Mozaffarpiir to the incursions of the leader of the Oudh rebels, Mehndi Husen. These difficulties soon came to a head. The mutinous 5th Irregulars, finding no one to oppose their course, destroyed the public buildings at Noada, and marched in the direction of Graya. Rattray, with a small force of Sikhs and Euro- peans, numbering about two hundred, had been posted to protect Gaya. But, learning that the rebels were approaching that place, he, acting on the strongly pressed advice of Mr. Alonzo Money, inarched out on the 8th September to attack * Vide page 133. t The exception was Mr. F. M. Bird, the joint magistrate. UNCHECKED PROGRESS OF THE REBELS. 445 them. But the rebels, almost all mounted,* took book xn. advantage of Rattray's advance from his base to go " !L!! round his position — inflicting upon him in his vain ge J t 8 ^ ' ct attempts to hinder them, a loss of twenty wounded and isde- — and to reach Gaya some hours before he could feated - fall back. Arrived at Gaya, they liberated four hundred prisoners from the jail, and attacked the fortified house which the residents had prepared as a place of refuge. But in this attempt they were repulsed, owing mainly to the spirited con- duct of Mr. Skipwith Tayler, son of the late Commissioner of Patna. The disorder was subsequently further aggra- Two compa- vated by the mutiny, on the 9th October, of two ^nVmutiny. companies of the 32nd Native Infantry at Deogarh and by threatened movements on the part of Kiinwar Singh. The Commissioner had at his Forces at the disposal Rattray's Sikhs, a portion of the Naval thTcommi Brigade, under Captain Sotheby. Colonel Fis- cher's brigade of Madras troops entered the western Bihar districts early in October. Besides which, Lieutenant Stanton of the Engineers was at Sahasram and its vicinity, and the energy, the zeal, and the activity of this officer compensated to a very great extent for the paucity of fighting men. Rattray was the first to come in contact with the rebellious sepoys. This officer had avenged his disaster of the 8th September by defeating a body of rebels on the 7th of the following mouth * They consisted of the . r >th A < • « • « > 1 1 1 j . ; i r i \ i j i «_r them \v;is a [rregularfl ami other horse- large party of marauders, men who had mutinied, some mounted on ponies, amounting to six hundred, someonfn-.i. commis- sioner. 446 THE DEFENCE OF THE LINE Book XII. Chapter II. 1857. November. The road between Kanhpur and Allahabad. Carthew at Fathpur. at Akbarpiir, and he now went in pursuit of the mutinous 32nd. On the 6th November he caught them at the village of Dhanchiia. The numbers on both sides were equal, and the contest was severe. Night fell whilst the combat was raging ; then, covered by darkness, the rebels effected a retreat. The events which followed each other in western Bihar until the formation of Colonel Rowcroft's force in November, present a constant succession of skirmishes, of movements against petty forts, and similar occurrences of a purely local character. To Rowcroft I shall return shortly. But before doing so it seems incumbent upon me, for the clearness of the subsequent narrative, to describe, as concisely as may be, the occur- rences in the districts and on the grand trunk road between Allahabad and Kanhpur during the period intervening between Sir Colin Campbell's battle of Kanhpur and the final fall of Lakhnao. After the battle of Kanhpur Brigadier Carthew was detached, with the Madras brigade, to com- mand at Fathpur. The command was an impor- tant one, as it was exposed to attacks from the districts south-west of Kanhpur — from Kalpi, from Jhansi, from Bandalkhand. Fathpur, more- over faced — a narrow strip of land on the right bank of the Ganges alone intervening — the south- western frontier of Oudh, and was at any mo- ment liable to incursions from flying parties of rebels. It devolved, therefore, upon Carthew, not only to thrust back attacks from these oppo- site quarters, but to guard intact the trunk road BETWEEN KANBTUK AND ALLAHABAD. 447 — the line of communication between Kan lip ur BookXH. and Allahabad. The fact that troops and well- ' a iL^ guarded convoys were constantly marching up December the road doubtless facilitated his task, and en- The task abled him to employ advantageously such passing ^voh-ed troops to aid him in clearing the districts lining u P on him - the road. The duties devolving upon the officer com- Campbeiiat manding at the south-eastern end of the line of which I am writing — the station of Allahabad — were of not less importance. Situated at the confluence of the great rivers the Jamna and the Ganges, abutting alike on Bandalkhand, on Oudh, and on the disturbed districts of A'zaru- garh and Janpur, Allahabad was a place always threatened, and yet to be preserved at all risks. Allahabad was, in fact, at once the outlying fron- tier fortress of the province of Bihar, and its key. At the time of which I am writing, December 1857 and January 1858, the officer commanding at Allahabad was Brigadier Campbell. Carthew took up his command at Fathpur on Fathpur. the 19th December. Just before he arrived (11th December) a small party under Colonel Barker, R.A., had made a raid amongst the disaffected villages in the district, had burned some, and had expelled the turbulent villagers from others. In this way the district had been purged of its dis- loyal citizens. The revenue returns and the supply of provisions to the headquarters proved, almost at once, how very beneficial had been these domiciliary visits. The expelled villagers had fled across the n»»W" i o iiHMmiblu on 448 THE LINE BETWEEN KANHPUR AND ALLAHABAD. Book XII. Chapter II. 1857-8. Dec-Jan. the right bank of the Jamna. Carthew clears the country on the left bank. Jamna, and it was on the right bank of this river, from Kalpi down to Banda, that mutineers from Grwaliar, Jhansi, and Bandalkhand, even fugitives from Fathgarh, now began to assemble. Amongst them were the Raja of Chikani and a brother and nephew of Nana Sahib ; some ac- counts even spoke of Nana Sahib himself. Cer- tain it is that the rebel leaders who had their headquarters at Julapur on the Betwa, near Kalpi, exercised the right of sovereignty by call- ing upon the landowners west of the Jamna to furnish money and recruits for the service of the representative of the Peshwa. Across the Jamna it was not possible to act. The Commander-in-Chief, however, deemed it especially advisable that the districts to the east of that river should be kept clear of the muti- neers. In accordance, then, with instructions which he issued, Carthew marched on the 10th January with a small force (two horse artillery guns, four companies Rifle Brigade, two hundred 17th Madras Native Infantry) along the Kanhpiir road. On reaching Jahanabad, he turned west- ward towards Kalpi, communicated with the 34th Regiment, sent from Kanhpur to co-operate with him, and then moved on Bhognipiir. The occu- pation of this place, the locality of which has already been indicated,* forced the several rebel parties who had come over from Kalpi to recross the river. Carthew then, in compliance with an order received from Brigadier Inglis, pushed on to Sikan- Vide page 228. PATEOLLED BY MOVEABLE COLUMNS. 449 dra, and then returned leisurely, via Kanhpur, to book xii. Fathpur. He had thoroughly purged the district Cha !L r IL of rebels. 1858. , , " . January. About the same time (5th January) Brigadier Brigadier Campbell, with a brigade composed of the 79th Se^thl Highlanders, a regiment of the Rifle Brigade, c °*ntry some foot and horse artillery, and a newly-raised Ganges. ° cavalry levy, the Banaras Horse, effectually cleared the districts near Allahabad, on the left bank of the Ganges. His operations were in every respect successful, and in three encounters which he had with the rebels the latter admitted a considerable loss. But the efforts of these columns occasionally Moveable despatched into the districts could not prevent pa^oTthe a fresh appearance of the enemy after their de- districfc - parture. It was natural that so long as the Lakhnao question remained unsolved the delta west of Kanhpur, that is the narrow strip lying between the two great arteries the Ganges and the Jamna, should be constantly threatened, and almost as constantly invaded. It was necessary, therefore, to patrol the entire district. In March a moveable column,* commanded by Lieutenant- Colonel Christie, engaged in this work, moved down to the village of Dhana, near the left bank of the Jamna, to prevent a threatened passage of the river at that point. Christie found the enemy occupying Siraoli, a town in the Hamirpiir district, * I in.- 1 2-poondei howitzer, men, 80th Foot ; two hundred one 6-poundji -r gun; seventy an' > 1,s for from the staff officer at Azamgarh, begging him to push on without a moment's delay. But to march a force of four hundred and forty-four men across a country utterly unknown to any of them, to re- lieve a place besieged by an army whose mini hers certainly exceeded five thousand, and mighl amount to fifteen thousand, was an idea not to he enter- tained by a prudent commander. Defeat would 460 LORD MARK ATTACKS THE REBELS. book xii. but precipitate the evil lie had been sent to avert. Lord Mark Kerr, then, wisely resolved to defer April 6. hi s m arch till the day should approach its dawn. He marches He set out at 4 o'clock on the morning of and comes on the 6th — a reconnoitring party of the Bays, with the rebels whom was Lord Mark, leading the way. After a march of two hours, Lord Mark observed some buildings and a mango grove to the left of the road, and the banked ditches of the fields to the right of it, to be crowded with sepoys lying in ambush and evidently on the look-out for him. Making as though he had not observed them, he made his cavalry dismount, and halted till his train of elephants, camels, and carts had closed up ; he then despatched a company of the 13th to the right with the view of forcing back the enemy's left, and of thus opening a way for the progress of the and fights train. In this he so far succeeded, that the rebels fell back on the left, but almost at the same time a heavy fire opened from the buildings and the mango groves of which I have spoken, and which, on the left of the road from the British advancing line, constituted the enemy's right. Lord Mark threw out his men in skirmishing order and brought up the guns, which, at a distance of five hundred yards, began to throw shrapnel into the buildings. Sdt?es d o?his ^ ne enem y> however, were so numerous, and were position. so completely on all four sides of him, that it re- quired all the soldierly skill of the British leader to keep them at a distance. His position was compli- cated by the necessity of defending the large train of animals accompanying the force, and the capture of which would, naturally, be a special object of 1858. April. HIS CRITICAL SITUATION. 461 the rebels. These animals, when the action had book xii. begun, had turned round with fright and bolted to the rear, the mahouts clinging to the elephants, whilst the drivers, descending from the carts, had run off, calling upon the trees and bushes to cover them. Everything now depended upon Lord Mark's ability to make head against the enemy. Up to this time, when the fight had lasted an hour, though he still held the position he had taken up, he had made no impression upon them ; and just at the moment he could discern in rear The rebels of their skirmishers their reserves forming up in accession of quarter- distance column, whilst a large body 8tren s fch - was being detached with the evident purpose of penetrating between him and the baggage animals. In this, before long, the rebels partly succeeded ; for they set fire to many of the carts. The situation was critical. The two 6-pounders Critical had been gradually brought to within sixty yards of Lord Mark of the main building, without, however, producing Kerr ' the required effect. Lord Mark was anxious to try the effect of shelling, but the two mortars were so located, that, to use them with effect, it had become necessary to cause the gunners and their supports to fall back, and Lord Mark had noticed that the smallest retrograde movement caused The slightest the enemy to rise to their feet and, with loud wou id have shouts, display their numbers with a view to en- lost him> circle him. But he felt the main building must be carried at any price. At last the two 6-pounders effected a small breach, and volunteers being called for, some thirty or forty men rushed to the storm. Tlicv found t lie bread) not quite practicable, but, 462 THE REBELS ARE AT LENGTH DEFEATED, book xii. far from falling back, they set to work vigorously J a Lf! to enlarge it. Their labours disclosing an inner Marob wa ^ J G ^ umn j ure d, Lord Mark recalled them, and His splendid resumed practice with his guns. Before the men perseverance £ e jj ^ ac ^ } ^hey set fire to the wooden portions of the building. The guns then re-opened fire, but the effect they produced was slight, since, to main- tain his position, Lord Mark was forced to use one of them to throw shrapnel at the rebels in the rear of his right flank. Gradually, however, pro- is crowned gress was made, and Lord Mark was meditating a ' J second assault, when the flames, which, despite the efforts made to subdue them, had been gra- dually spreading, forced the rebels to evacuate the building. Instantly, a pursuit was ordered, the Bays rushed to the front, and the day was won ! The rebels But while the position of the rebels in front nTa^aTtack was being thus forced, they had completed the made, mean- circle, and were now attacking the rear of Lord while, on the . ° baggage. Mark's small force. In this part of the field a high embankment crossed the road. This em- bankment the enemy now seized. Captain Wilson Jones of the 13th, commanding the company of that regiment which formed the rear guard, at once faced about and charged them. He drove the enemy back, but lost his own life. Lord Mark Lord Mark's position was now peculiar. He bTJgag^with ^d pierced the enemy's centre ; the way to Major Tyler, Azamgarh lay open to him ; on his left, the rebels, terrified by the defeat in the centre, were rapidly falling back ; but on the right, notwith- standing the success of the charge just narrated, they still occupied a menacing position. The AND AZAMGARH IS RELIEVED. 463 drivers and the cartmen had run away, and the book xii. baggage remained exposed. Under these circum- ' a .L!I stances, Lord Mark resolved to leave a sufficient ^n force to hold front to the right, whilst he should push on to Azamgarh, and return with the Madras sepoys he might find there, who, on a pinch, would drive the carts. No doubt he calculated that the enemy, believing themselves threatened by the movement, would be glad to retreat while they could. Sending, then, Major Tyler of the and moves on 13th, a cool and capable officer, to command the rear and baggage guards, he pushed forward on the Azamgarh road. The enemy's right wing, noticing the movement, beat a hasty retreat. No sooner had the enemy retreated than many of He is rejoined the carters and drivers and mahouts reappeared, by Major and Major Tyler pushed on rapidly after his chief. Tyler ' No further opposition was offered. A village which had to be traversed, and which might have been easily defended with a few men, was aban- doned. The bridge across the river leading to the intrenchment was reached at 11 o'clock. This and enters bridge had been rendered impassable by the rebels, and after their flight they still continued to maintain a heavy fire on it. It was repaired under this fire by Lieutenant Colomb, R.A., acting under the orders of Lord Mark. As soon as it had been rendered serviceable, the Madras Rifles crossed it in compliance with a request made by Lord Mark, and the convoy was brought in in safety. This gallant little action reflects the greatest Credit duo to ... , _ ° Lord Mark credit on the troops and the commander. Lord Kerr. 464 CREDIT DUE TO LORD MARK KERR. Book xii. Mark was accompanied by Lieutenant-Colonel Chapter IT. — Longden of the 10th Foot and Mr. Venables, the April ' daring indigo-planter, whose previous gallant achievements have brought him more than once before the reader ; and no doubt the previous experience of these two gallant men was useful to him. But he was the leader ; upon him it depended whether to advance against numbers or to retreat before numbers. Upon his shoulders rested the responsibility, and to him must be accorded the praise. When it was urged upon him to abandon the convoy and to make for the intrenchments, he merely replied "Wait a bit: we'll win yet," and persevered. The number against whom he contended did not, at the lowest computation, fall short of four thousand men, and probably greatly exceeded it. Against these, de- ducting his baggage guards, he could not put in line more than three hundred men. In the daring, the conduct, and the success of the achievement, Lord Mark Kerr's relief of Azamgarh may be classed with Vincent Eyre's relief of Arah. His pmdence Nor, whilst awarding Lord Mark Kerr this high equalled his . . ° ° daring. praise for his daring, can History deny him the not inferior merit of military prudence. The im- ploring letters he received for immediate aid on his arrival at Sarsana might have induced a less prudent commander to start that night on an errand, the accomplishment of which successfully might well be supposed to depend on the most absolute promptitude. There can be no more tor- menting pressure on the mind of a commander than the knowledge that his countrymen within a few HIS VICTORY SAVED BANARAS. 465 miles of hini may perish for want of immediate book xii. ' .. Chapter II. relief ; that the few hours of the night, well em- ployed, would bring them that relief; but that April ; prudential considerations compel him not to use those hours. Lord Mark Kerr felt that pressure, and yet had the wisdom to resist it. The state of affairs at Azaingarh was bad in- state of . ° . . .. affairs in deed. Milman's force, after its precipitate and A'zamgarh. disastrous retreat, had marched straight into the intrenchments within the jail, leaving the town to the mercy of the rebels. But these moved so cautiously that the reinforcements of which I have spoken * were able to enter. Two days later the rebels occupied the town and beleaguered the jail. Fortunately, this was surrounded by a deep ditch, and Kunwar Singh did not care to risk an assault. He invested the place, and trusted to the effects of famine and an unremitting fire. He even had it in contemplation to blockade the jail and to march on Banaras, and there can be no doubt that this programme would have been carried out but for the splendid achievement of Lord Mark Kerr. The action fought by Lord Mark had cost the Defects in ° ~ . . , Kunwar British a casualty list large m proportion to the Singh's number engaged, eight officers and men being tactics - killed and thirty-four severely or dangerously wounded. At such a price the defeat of Kunwar Singh was cheaply purchased. That leader had showid himself greater as a strategist than a tac- tician. Bis plan of campaign was admirable, but * Vide page 458. ii. 30 466 kunwar singh's fatal error. Book xii. i n carrying* it into execution he committed many Chapter II. -»*-i 1 • serious errors. Milman gave him a great, an un- ip^{_ expected opportunity. He had that officer at his mercy. When Milman' s men were waiting for their breakfast in the mango grove near Atraolia, it was in the power of Kunwar Singh to cut them off from Azamgarh. He preferred to attack them in front. Then the pursuit was not pressed on with sufficient vigour. A capable commander would still have cut them off. Once having seen them housed in Azamgarh, he should have left a portion of his force to blockade them, pressed on with the remainder towards Banaras, and occupied a position in which he could have en- gaged Lord Mark Kerr with advantage. He had at his disposal, it subsequently transpired, about twelve thousand men. To oppose these the few men led by Lord Mark were alone available. Everything was within his grasp had he dared to Probable stretch out his hand. The chances are that, cause of his , . , 1 . false tactics, capable man as he was, he saw all this. It was his misfortune to have under him many petty leaders, all wishing to be supreme ! I have now recorded the result of the message sent from Azamgarh to Banaras and Allahabad. Another result was produced by the message despatched to Lakhnao. What that was will be narrated when I return to the army still massed in the conquered city. 467 BOOK XII. CHAPTER III. I left Sir Colin Campbell master, on the 21st March, of Lakhnao. I propose to narrate now the measures which he adopted to reap every possible advantage from his conquest. Three main obiects first presented themselves The action , . . mi „ . i i still remain- to his attention. 1 he first was the strengthen- ing to be ac- ing of the weak places which had been threatened com P lished - during his advance ; the second, the formation of a moveable column for the reconquest of western and north-western Oudh; the third, the recon- quest of Rohilkhund. Combined with this last \\ r as the necessity of holding out a hand to the brigade of Seaton, left at Fathgarh, and to the coin in us of Jones and Penny still accomplishing, or about to accomplish, the work which had remained to be curried out in the north-west. On thelM-th March Sir Colin detailed a con- siderable force to constitute, for the moment, the 30 * 468 LUGARD IS ORDERED TO AZAMGARH. book xii. garrison of Lakhnao.* The command of this chapter in. ^^ ^ entrusted to gi r Hope Grant. March 0n the 28th the Militai T Train ' tlie 10th Sir e. Lugard Regiment, and a field battery left for Allahabad, in ordered to n^ same dav Sir Colin received information of A zamgarh. J , . Milman's disaster near Azamgarh, narrated m the previous chapter. His movement to repair the misfortune was as prompt as could be desired. On the 29th Sir E. Lugard was despatched, with a brigade of infantry (10th, t 34th, 84th), seven hundred Sikh sabres, and eighteen pieces of ar- tillery, by the direct road to Azamgarh, taking Atraolia en route. Whilst Lugard would thus relieve Azamgarh, the advance of Jang Bahadur's force towards Faizabad, on their return to Nipal, would, it was hoped, relieve Rowcroft, whom I left encamped at Amdrah. I propose, in the first instance, to follow the course of Sir E. Lugard. But before setting out with him 1 may state that there still remained at Lakhnao four regiments of cavalry and eight of infantry, with artillery in proportion, to be accounted for. These were constituted as a moveable column, at the head of which was placed Brigadier- General Walpole. To him I shall revert in due course. * Two troops horse artil- 53rd, 90th, 97th Begiments, lery ; two field batteries ; four and 1st Madras Fusiliers ; garrison batteries ; one com- Headquarters 27th Madras pany engineers ; three com- Native Infantry ; 5th Pan jab panies pioneers. Infantry. The 2nd Dragoon Guards ; f The 10th had started on the Labor Light Horse ; 1st the 28th en route to England, Sikh Cavalry ; Hodson's but were recalled by an ex- Horse ; the 20th, 23rd, 38th, press that night. HE DEFEATS THE REBELS NEAR TIGRA. 469 Lugard left Lakhnao on the 29th March. The Book xii. distance to Azamgarh was fifteen marches. Push- lap e . r . ing on as rapidly as possible he reached Sultanpur -^^^^ ril the 5th April. It had been his intention to cross He sets out the G-umti at this place, and inarch direct on 29fch March » Azamgarh. But to carry out this plan would have necessitated a week's delay. The bridge had been destroyed by fire, and there were no boats. Under these circumstances he resolved to continue his march down the right bank, and to make, in the first instance, for Janpur. A few miles onlv from Janpur, to the north- a , nd defeats n- it ip oi i ' e re bels west or it, and on the direct road from Sultan- near Tigra. piir, lies the village of Tigra. Within four miles of this village a rebel force of three thousand men, one third of whom were trained sepoys, and two guns, under the command of Grhulam Hiisen, had appeared on the 10th April, threaten- ing Janpur. The following day this rebel force attacked and burnt a considerable village within six miles of Tigra. The afternoon of that day Lugard reached Tigra, and heard of the vicinity of the rebels. He had made a sixteen-mile march, his troops were exhausted, the heat of the day excessive. He therefore resolved to remain where he was for the day. Towards evening, however, he received information that the rebels were on the move. He at once turned out his men, dashed after them, caught and attacked I hem. The rebels attempted for a moment to stand, but they could not resist the terrible on- slaught of the cavalry. After a short resistance, they turned and fled, leaving eighty killed and 470 LUGARD MOVES ON AZAMGARH. Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. April. Death of Charles Havelock. On the side of the six sowars were wounded. There was their two guns on the field. A'zamgarh. Plans of the British gar- rison. victors but one killed — but the loss was the loss of a most gallant officer, who had rendered excellent service during the mutiny. He who fell was Lieutenant Charles Havelock, a nephew of the renowned general. Lugard marched on the next day to Didarganj, relieved the Giirkahs at Janpur by three com- panies of the 37th Regiment, and then pushed on for Azamgarh. On the 14th he was within seven miles of that place. Azamgarh was still invested by the force under Kunwar Singh, computed to be thirteen thousand strong ; but if that leader had been unable to force his way into the British intrenchment when it was occupied by Milman's small force, still less was he capable of making an impression upon it after the reinforcements from Ghazipiir and Banaras had reached the place. Indeed, the British garrison had been so greatly increased that, had it taken the field, it might have ended the campaign at a blow. Colonel Dames, who commanded, was, however, restrained from action by the express orders of Sir Colin, and directed to await in his intrenched position the arrival of Sir E. Lugard. The rebels, there- fore, still occupied the town, and still threat- ened the intrenchment. On the approach of Lugard, on the 15th, Kunwar Singh drew up his forces along the banks of the little river Tons, commanding the bridge of boats across it, and resolved to dispute the passage. But the wily chieftain had matured plans far deeper than even THE PASSAGE OF THE TONS. 471 those about him could fathom. He knew very Book xii. well that the soldiers who had failed to stop the small force of Lord Mark Kerr would have no Ap 1 r 8 il 8 { 5 chauce against the more considerable brigade of piansof Sir E. Lugard. He therefore so arranged his ^gh. ar forces that whilst those upon whom he could most depend should defend the passage of the Tons as long as possible, the great bulk, travers- ing the town, should march with all speed to the Ganges, and, crossing that river at or near Ghazipur, should endeavour to reach his native jungles at Jagdispiir, there to renew the war. Lugard attacked the rebels with great vigour. Lugard forces But for some time he failed to make any im- f 6 tne S ToS. pression upon them. They held the bridge of boats with a resolution and perseverance worthy of veterans, and it was not until they had by their long resistance ensured the safety of their comrades that they fell back. Lugard then crossed the Tons, and at once detached half a troop of horse artillery, the Military Train, and two squadrons 3rd Sikh Cavalry in pursuit. In this action Mr. Venables, the indigo-planter, ;il ways to the front, always daring, and always, from his intimate acquaintance with the country, eminently useful, was severely wounded. To the regret of every soldier, he died of his wounds. Death of Mr. Venables. lb- had rendered splendid and unpaid service to bifi country. In fche earlier days of the mutiny, when all had been clouded and gloomy, he had Bel a noble example to everybody, and, when his station had been abandoned by the civilians, had 472 KUNWAR SINGH FALLS BACK, UNBEATEN. Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. April 15. The rebels retreat, but are not beaten. The pursuers make little impression upon them. Lugard sends Douglas in pursuit. shown the power of preserving order which even one resolute Englishman can wield in India. The rebels had taken every advantage of the firm resistance made by their comrades at the Tons, and the pursuers had a gallop of twelve miles before they caught sight of them. And when they did see them, the sight was far from reassuring. Instead of a defeated and scattered host seeking safety in flight, they came upon a body of men retiring unbroken and in good order. They were the men of the old Danapiir brigade, of the 7th, 8th, and 40th Native Infantry. But the pursuers did not hesitate. They charged — to make, however, no impression. " It was all we could do," wrote one of the officers engaged, "to hold our own against such odds. Imme- diately our cavalry charged they stood and formed square, and used to abuse and tell us to come on." The loss of the British was considerable. Hamil- ton of the 3rd Sikhs, a very gallant officer, was killed charging the squares. And although, by greatly daring, the British force succeeded in cutting off three of the enemy's guns, they found it useless to continue the pursuit. They there- fore halted at Nathupiir, where they had fought, watched the enemy disappear in the direction of the Ganges, then sent their killed and wounded into Azamgarh, with a request for reinforcements. Lugard, after crossing the Tons, had encamped at Azamgarh, and drawing to himself the garrison of the place, was preparing to move actively against two rajas, allies of Kunwar Singh — who, after the battle, had taken a northerly direction THE PURSUIT OP KUNWAR SINGH. 473 towards Oudh — and to watch the reuniting por- book xn. tions of G-hulam Husen's force. But the naoment *£_ he received the report of the pursuing column Ap ,Jf52^ 17 . halted at Nathupur, he detached Brigadier Douglas at the head of a wing of the 37th, the 84th, one company Madras Rifles, four guns Major Cotter's battery Madras Artillery, two 5-^-inch mortars, to reinforce them. Douglas started at once, and reached Nathupur that night (16th April). Meanwhile Kunwar Singh had halted at the Kunwar r ° i i £ Singh halts village of Xaghai, near Azamgarh, about tour- a t Naghai. teen miles from Nathupur. The reasons which influenced Kunwar Singh, at so critical a con- juncture, cannot be divined. It is fair to believe, however, that knowing, from the custom of his enemy, he would be pursued, he hoped to be able to strike him a blow so disabling as to permit him to continue his retreat without further molestation. Certain it is that he had occupied a strong position, and arranged his forces with considerable skill. Occupying groves of large trees, he had covered his front with breastworks, and had disposed his guns so as to reap the greatest possible advan- tage from their working. Here Douglas found Douglas o ° , j , , attacks him him on the morning of the l/tli, and here he there, attacked him. But again did Kunwar Singh dis- play great tactical ability. He kept Douglas at bay till he bad secured two lines of retreat for his main columns, which he had divided. He then fell back leisurely, and though many of his Kunwar meu were cul up, they maintained to the end of S'skii-" the day their determined attitude. As soon as fl,llv - 474 PURSUIT OF KUNWAE SINGH. Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. April 17-20. Douglas pursues, and Kurt war Singh retires. Douglas tracks and at last reaches him. Douglas's pursuit — continued for four or five miles — relaxed, the two divided columns reunited, and took up a position for the night. Douglas lay that night at Ahiisi, within six miles of the rebels. Early next morning he started again in pursuit. But the rebels had been equally prompt, and inarched that day with- out molestation to Nagra, eighteen miles distant. They were followed all day by the British cavalry and horse artillery, but the infantry did not come up in time to permit Douglas to engage. He en- camped that night within three or four miles of the enemy's position. But Kiinwar Singh was well served by his spies. No sooner had he heard that the British had halted for the night than he broke up his camp, marched to Sikandarpur, crossed the Grhagra by the ford near that place, and pushed on to Mannahar, in the Grhazipur dis- trict. There he and his followers halted, wearied and hungry, hoping they might have time for sleep and food before their pursuers should appear. But Douglas would allow them time for neither. At midnight on the 18th he heard of their move towards Sikandarpur. At 2 o'clock in the morn- ing he was on their track, and marching all day, picking up many stragglers as he proceeded, he bivouacked that night within four miles of Kiin- war Singh's position. He did not rest there long. Hoping to catch the enemy, he turned out his men at a very early hour on the 20th, and march- ing rapidly, found himself at daylight in front of his enemy. That position was neither so strong nor so well PURSUIT OF KUNWAR SINGH. 475 chosen as that at Naghai. The defence conse- book xn. quently was less determined, and the disaster was lA v__^ greater. Douglas advanced his infantry under Aprffib. cover of a fire from his guns, at the. same time that Douglas he threatened the enemy's right with his cavalry. deSats'tie The rebels made no stand, but fled in disorder, rebels at Mannahar. leaving on the field a brass 9-pounder gun, several limbers and waggons, an immense quantity of am- munition, a large amount of treasure, a number of carts and bullocks, four elephants, and the colours of the 28th Regiment Native Infantry, which were found wrapped round the body of a Siibadar who was shot. The rebels were pursued for six miles, but, in pursuance of a preconceived plan, their several columns took different routes, to reunite again at a given hour of the night at some settled spot. What was this spot Douglas found it impossible to find out. Accordingly, when darkness set in, he bivouacked, prepared to move early on the morrow. But Kiinwar Singh had displayed his accus- Ktinwar tomed subtlety. His object was to cross the cumberiege 8 Ganges. He had impressed the country people J^Q^es and many of his own following that having no into Bihar. boats it would be necessary to cross the river on elephants, of which a certain number still remained. By this report he hoped to deceive the English general. But, meanwhile, he had, by means of his agents, collected a sufficient number of boats at Sheopur Ghat, ten miles below Balliah. When, therefore, night fell, he inarched off to this point, and outwitting Colonel Cumberiege, who with two regiments Of Madras cavalry was waiting to ■±76 KUNWAR SINGH BAFFLES THE PURSUERS, Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. April 21-22. He retires to Jagdispur. Captain Le Grand resolves to attack him. pounce upon him at Balliah, succeeded in em- barking all his men except two hundred before the British appeared on the scene. Douglas, in- deed, had started in pursuit at 2 o'clock in the morning, but misled by the false information circulated by Kiinwar Singh, he only reached the right track in time to cut off the two hundred men of whom I have spoken, to capture some elephants and another brass gun, and to sink one — the last — of the enemy's boats. Kiinwar Singh thus crossed the Ganges in safety. He made his way without delay to his an- cestral domain at Jagdispur. Here he found his brother, Ammar Singh, with several thousand armed villagers ready to support him. Kiinwar Singh posted these and the few men who, after crossing the Ganges, had adhered to his fortunes, in the jungles covering his castle — the same thick jungles which Yincent Eyre had forced on the 12th August of the preceding year. But if, as I have already had occasion to re- mark, there was no William Tayler to exercise a vigilant supervision over the several districts of western Bihar, neither was there a Vincent Eyre to retrieve the errors of the Bengal Government. It happened that Arah was at this time occupied by a party of one hundred and fifty men of the 35th Regiment, one hundred and fifty of Rattray's Sikhs, and fifty sailors of the Naval Brigade, the whole under the command of Captain Le Grand of the 35th. Le Grand, knowing well what Vincent Eyre had accomplished in the same locality, how, with a smaller force at his disposal, he had beaten AND COMPLETELY DEFEATS LE GRAND. 477 an enemy certainly not less numerous, and far bookxii. better armed and disciplined, determined, if pos- & v_^_ sible, to emulate his example. Accordingly, on Apriiifa. the 23rd April, he inarched from Arah with the force I have mentioned, and two 12-pounder howitzers. Early on the morning of the 23rd he came upon the little army of Kim war Singh. It He attacks consisted of about two thousand men, dispirited, badly armed, and without guns. It occupied the thick jungle, about a mile and a half in depth. Le Grand began the action with a fire from his two howitzers. These, however, seemed to make no impression on the enemy, and the infantry were then brought up to make the charge which, against Asiatics, has never failed. The exact course of the events which followed has never been clearly ex- plained. But this is certain, that at a critical moment of the advance into the thick jungle, when the men in extended order were about to rush forward with a cheer, the bugle sounded the re- treat. By whom the order to sound was given, and is com- or whether it was intended to sound the retreat, defeated. is not known. The effect of it on a scattered body of men unable to see each other was to cause ir- retrievable confusion. To repair it Le Grand used every means in his power, but in vain. The evil had been done. The men fell back in disorder, followed by the enemy, and abandoning the howitzers, fled to Arah. The 35th suffered very severely. Two-thirds of their number, amongst them Le Grand and two officers, were either killed* casualties were in two men, Bailors nineteen, killed, 35th, one hundred an«l Sikhs niue, officers three. 478 DOUGLAS CROSSES INTO SHAHABAD. Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. April. Brigadier Douglas crosses into Shahabad. Death of Kiin-war Singh. Ammar Singh suc- ceeds him. or died from apoplexy on the retreat. The gunners, refusing to retire, were killed at their guns. The disaster was complete. This disaster threw the district once more into disorder. A panic ensued at the station of Chapra, and expresses were sent from Danapiir to Briga- dier Douglas, urging him to cross the river with- out delay. Douglas, whose incessant pursuit of Kiinwar Singh without tents had tried his men to the utmost, had been inclined, when the rebel chief had escaped his clutches, to wait till his heavy baggage should arrive. But on receipt of the expresses from Danapiir, he crossed the Granges, 25th April, at Sina Ghat, pushed on the 84th Foot and two guns to Arah on the 29th, and followed himself two days later. But before Douglas could act against the rebels, a material change had taken place in their affairs. Whether Kiinwar Singh was wounded at the action fought at Mannahar, or, whether, as some of his followers aver, as he was crossing the Ganges, this is certain, that immediately on his arrival at Jagdispiir he underwent amputation of the wrist. He was an old man, and the shock was too much for him. He died three days after he had defeated Le Grand. Kiinwar Singh was succeeded by his brother Ammar Singh. Though hardly the equal of his brother in military skill, Ammar Singh was not one whit behind him in energy and resolution, and the manner in which he conducted the operations which followed left little to be desired in a par- tisan leader. LUGARD OCCUPIES JAGDISPUR. 479 The rebels, after defeating Le Grand, bad fol- book xii. ° i a i Chapter III. lowed up tbeir victory by an attack on Arab. Though repulsed, they still continued to threaten May ; it, and as their numbers were daily augmenting, Douglas Douglas thought it advisable to await the arrival arrival of of Lugard, who had warned him of his approach. Ward, Lugard, who, since I last spoke of him, had ^^^ remained at Azamgarh, occupied in clearing the surrounding districts, had no sooner heard of Kun war Singh's successful passage of the Granges and the disaster of Le Grand, than he set off with a portion of his brigade, crossed the sacred stream on the 3rd and two following days of May, and marched at once to the neighbourhood of Arab. The news he received there led Lugard to Plans ° f believe that the rebels, who were reported to number eight thousand, were intrenching them- selves in tbe jungle between Bihia and Jagdispur. He resolved, therefore, to occupy with his main body a position in front of the western face of the jungle, guarding Arab with a detachment, whilst Colonel Corfield, commanding a small force at Sahasram, should march from that quarter to his aid. Lugard reached Bihia on the 8th, sent back Lugard o -i ~ -i i i occupies thence the detachment to guard Arab, and then jagdfepdr. marched on the 9th to a plain a little to the west of Jagdispur. Eere he intended to halt to await the arrival of Corfield. But the enemy's move- ments forced him to change his plan. On the afternoon of that day Ammar Singh, covering his movement by a threatened attack on Lugard's camp, marched from the jungles with the bulk of 480 THE REBELS DISPERSE ONLY TO REUNITE. Hook XII. Chapter III. 1858. May. Progress of the cam- paign. The per- sistent dis- persion of the rebels, only to reunite. his following in the direction of Arah. Lugarcl resolved, then, to attack at once. Checking the ad- vance on Arah with his cavalry and guns, he then divided his force into three columns, and driving the enemy before him, occupied Jagdispiir. In this operation he did not lose a single man killed, and only a few were wounded. The rebels fell back on Satwarpiir, a village in the jungle district. The day following, Lugard, sensible of the necessity of following up his advantage, set out in pursuit. On the 11th he was joined at Piru, seven miles south-west of Jagdispiir, by Corfield, who, fighting almost daily and always success- fully, had made his way from Sahasram. That same day he surprised and defeated the rebels at Hetampur. From this day, skirmishes were of daily occurrence. On the 12th, he beat them at Jathin, whilst Corfield drove them from Diivim. On the 20th they were again beaten, though they managed to kill an officer, Dawson, of the Mili- tary Train. Lugard, however, avenged his death on the 27th by inflicting a crushing defeat upon them at Dalilpiir, recapturing the two howitzers they had taken from Le Grand. On this occa- sion he did not lose a single man. But these victories did not crush the rebellion in the district. On each occasion the rebels, knowing every inch of the country, dispersed to reunite in nearly the same strength as before. Dividing themselves into small parties, they or- ganised a system of freebooting, dangerous to life and property, and threatening to the stations, the peaceful villages, and the isolated posts all over THE REBELS STILL HARRY THE DISTRICT. 481 the country. It was impossible to wage a war of BooK xn. extermination. Yet the jungles offered the rebels a ^- a means of defying for a series of months disci- j^?* plined soldiers led by skilled and capable generals. The defy In vain were their positions marked, encircled, a^e^soheme and then marched upon from different quarters. is de ^sed by The smallest delay on the part of one of the con- with the verging columns gave them the opportunity, of which they were ever prompt to avail themselves, to escape. Nor was it until the genius of a staff officer serving under Douglas devised a plan, based upon his experience of its efficiency elsewhere, that a certain means was attained for the exter- mination or expulsion of the persistent rebels. The nature of that plan will be developed in the pages which follow. After the defeat at Dalilpiir on the 27th, the rebels broke up into small parties, and commenced their new trade of marauding on a large scale. One party attacked and destroyed an indigo fac- They hany tory near Dumraon, another plundered the village of Rajpur near Baksar, a third threatened the railway works at Karamnasa. These proceedings spread dismay and disorder throughout the Shah- abaci district. In the campaign up to the point which I have now reached, the British troops had suffered greatly from the heat and exposure to the sun. But in the presence of the occurrences just re- corded, Lugard was compelled to keep them Lugard again actively employed. To facilitate their movements and to lessen the chances of the escape of the enemy, lie scl to work to intersect the jungles by n. 31 482 LUGARD RESIGNS HIS COMMAND. Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. June. but many escape. Lugard resigns his command from ill- health. roads. On the 2nd June, he divided his force into two parts, the one at Keshwa the other at Dalilpur, opposite points on the edge of the jungle. Between these he cut a broad road. Occupying this with a line of posts as a base, he attacked the rebels from the outside on the 4th, and defeated them with great slaughter, the 10th and 84th showing great dash and daring. But still many managed to escape. It would be tedious to follow the course of every skirmish; to show how Douglas pursued the rebels with energy and vigour towards Bak- sar, and how the main body yet managed to elude his pursuit ; how they again and again baffled Lugard. He could beat but could not clutch them. He had not, in fact, the means of maintaining a continuous and crushing pursuit. The rebels, therefore, though repeatedly beaten, were able to rally at a distance and return by a circuitous route to the corner of the jungle. But by the 15th June Lugard had so far succeeded that the rebels had been expelled to a further distance from the jungles than had ever been the case previously, and he was able to report that the task entrusted to him had been completed. Wearied and broken down by the unparalleled hardships of the contest, Lugard was then forced to resign his command and proceed to England. The troops were ordered into quarters. But they had scarcely retired from the field, when the rebels, strong in a conviction of real success in the past, and confident that the rainy season would secure them immunity for the four THE EEBELS EEOCCUPY THEIE OLD POSITIONS. 483 months to come, reoccupied their old positions, Book xii. their numbers daily increased by recruits from all &J —L parts of the country. jJSpt. It was under these circumstances that Brigadier Douglas suc- Douglas, C.B., was appointed to succeed Lugard. ceedshim - He had no sinecure. He had not even assumed command when he heard that owing to the manoeuvres and intrigues of Ammar Singh, the rebel prisoners in the jail at Gaya had been re- leased, and, joined by the police and the convicts, had driven the English into their intrenchment. This outrage — which was speedily repaired — was Difficulties of followed up by a raid into the station of Arah, the firstassuming j» -i • -i i_ j i 1 j.' j bis command. garrison or which had been cunningly enticed away, and by the burning of a gentleman's bungalow. The civil authority had, in fact, everywhere disappeared. Under these circumstances stronger measures Douglas n . devises means were resorted to. Douglas was placed m com- to baffle and mand of the whole of the disturbed districts as far as Danapiir. The troops under his command were augmented to a numerical strength of seven thousand. He began at once to work on a system. He organised strong posts at easy dis- tances from each other in all directions. He located his troops in such a manner that it would be easy to mass them at short notice on one par- ticular point. He sent out trusted sepoys in dis- guise i" penetrate the designs of the mutineers, Mini even to bring in their leaders, alive or (lend. He continued with great effect the practice, ini- tiated by his predecessor, of covering the jungles with roads. Finally, ns a supreme remedy, he 3] * subdue the rebels. 484 DOUGLAS PLANS THEIR DESTRUCTION. Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. June-Sept. Operations are neces- sarily de- ferred till after the rains. The rebels continue active, in spite of frequent defeats. elaborated a plan for driving the rebels into Jag- dispiir, as a common centre, and for there finishing the campaign — as he had every right to expect — by the assault and capture of that stronghold. This plan, it will be observed, involved the deferring of larger operations until October or November. Meanwhile it was necessary to secure the grand trunk road. On this road, which traverses the lower portion of the district from east to west, and the safety of which was of vital importance to Sir Colin Campbell and his army, large bodies of troops under Colonel Turner, C.B., 97th Regiment, were constantly employed. For the four months that followed Turner was un- remittingly engaged on this arduous but necessary service. The rebels on their side were very persevering. Am mar Singh reoccupied Jagdispiir, and his adherents, in small parties, kept the districts in continued disturbance throughout July, August, and September. They seemed to be ubiquitous. Many places in opposite directions were attacked about the same time. Their principal deprecia- tions, however, were confined to the country south of the Ganges and west of the Son river. It is true they met several reverses. On the 9th September, Colonel Walters defeated them at Rampur ; on the 20th Captain French and a party of the 35th destroyed their boats on the Son; on the 14th October, Mr. Probyn, of the Civil Service, and twenty Sikhs, ran up a creek on the Shahabad side of the river and destroyed four large boats defended by three hundred and seventy-five sepoys HE EXECUTES HIS PLAN. 485 and one hundred horsemen — a most gallant per- Book xii. formance. Not the less, however, did the rebels continue to threaten Arah ; they even attacked October. the cavalry picket at that station. But the end was now approaching. The rainy Reasons for T . » . beginning season was passing away. In one point ot view operations on it would have been advisable to defer serious 13th 0ctober - operations until it had actually passed. It was feared, however, and not without reason, that on the complete cessation of the rains, the rebels, thoroughly aware of the preparations made against them, would cross the Son and carry rapine and the sword into the districts which had up to the time been free from their presence. Conse- quently Douglas resolved to begin operations on the 13th October. On the 9th of that month he set out from Onthei3th Danapiir to carry into execution the plan he had Douglas carefully and elaborately devised. The ground ™i™™™ n was still swampy, but, though this was likely to converge near . , \. n ° • *\i Jagdispur. prove a material disadvantage in a campaign the success of which depended upon the exact punc- tuality of arrival at a given point of several con- verging: columns, it was at least a guarantee that the rebels were still within the district.* From three opposite points of this district, Douglas set in motion, on the 13th October, seven different columns, the object of all being to drive the rebels before them to the common centre of * It mav I"- convenient to It was bounded on tin- north stab.- thai fchedistrid in ques- by the Ganges, on the east tdon may be ronghly described by the .Son, and on the west as a triangle, each side of and south transversely by the which measured fifty miles, billy districts of tfirzap&r. 486 THE PLAN FAILS. Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. October. The rebels are pressed within the Jagclispur jungles. Douglas orders the " columns to converge on Jagclispur. C ) wing to Colonel Walter's mistake tin' rebels escape Jagdispur, there to fall upon them and finish the campaign at one stroke. Success crowned his earlier combats. On the 14th Douglas drove the rebels out of Karisat. On the 16th, Durnforcl, leading the Baksar column, defeated them, though after a deter- mined resistance at Kampsagar. On the 17th Turner's column headed and defeated them at Pirii, and followed hotly in pursuit. These move- ments had been so thoroughly executed that the rebels, numbering four thousand five hundred, were pressed in on all sides towards the centre, and it was known on the evening of the 17th that they were all within the circle, the outlets on the outer ring of which were watched by the seven converging columns. Douglas believed that he had them, and he had a right to believe it. Nothing but a mistake on the part of one of the leaders of the seven columns could save them, and he had impressed his orders so strongly on those leaders, and had made them see so clearly the issue at stake, that he had every reason to feel confident. He fixed the assault for noon of the following day. The result showed the mistake of reckoning with abso- lute certainty on the success of a manoeuvre, the threads of which are in the hands of seven men, the failure of any one of whom, whether from accident or stupidity, would spoil the combina- tion. The failure of one man out of the seven effectively ruined Douglas's well thought out plan. Six of the columns converged punctually to the common centre, only to find the place SIR HENRY HAVELOCK'S PLAN. 487 evacuated. The seventh column, commanded by Rook xn. Colonel Walter of the 53rd, had been delayed Cha £!!l 1IL five hours by inundation consequent on the cut- October ting of embankments, and the rebels had escaped by the outlet he had given them ! It was at this period that the staff officer to Haveiock's whom I have alluded in a preceding page sub- mitted to the general a plan which he believed would meet the difficulties of the case. The staff officer, who was no other than Major Sir Henry Havelock, Deputy Assistant Adjutant- General of the force, had, in his experience of Franks's advance without cavalry from the eastern frontier of Oudh to Lakhnao, noticed the enor- mous service which a few mounted soldiers of the 10th Foot, carrying rifles on horseback, had been able to render. Conceiving the idea, some time before Douglas had set out from Danapur, that the services of a few men might be advantageously utilised in a similar manner, he had caused forty riflemen of the 10th Foot to be hastily trained by Captain Bartholomew of that regiment. He now approved aud proposed to Douglas, and received permission, to ado P ted - employ the men so trained as mounted infantry — as men, that is to say, who could pursue and overtake the enemy, then, dismounting, hold them in check till the main force should arrive. He increased the forty men to sixty by volunteers from the 10th, and then, learning that the rebels Havelock were marching towards the Son, lie set out to head them, having three troops of the Military Train and sixty cavalry as supports. The orders given to Havelock were to en- his cam- paign. 488 HAVELOCK PURSUES THE REBELS, Book XII. Chapter III. 1858. October. Havelock heads the rebels ; who try to escape by- pushing westward. The mounted riflemen overtake them, deavour, by a forced march, to interpose between the rebels and the Son, whilst two columns of infantry should be despatched in the same direc- tion, one north, the other south, of their line of flight, so that should he succeed in turning them they would find themselves surrounded. Havelock set out from his post near Jagdispur at a little past 8 o'clock on the night of the 18th ; he reached Arah at 1 o'clock in the morn- ing of the 19fch, halted there for six and a half hours, and starting again at half-past 7, reached the Son before the rebels. The latter, finding themselves headed, halted, remained irresolute for twelve hours, and then retraced their steps south-westward. Havelock's mounted column followed, main- taining by patrols a constant communication with the infantry detachments, and guiding their movements. The mutinous sepoys, now fairly aroused to a sense of their danger, put forth their best efforts to out-march their pursuers, and, after an ineffectual attempt to re-enter the Jagdispur jungle, pushed directly westward. But the mounted riflemen were sadly embarrassed by rice-fields, inundated to a depth of from one to two feet, making one continuous swamp for miles. These the rebels on foot avoided by moving along the "bands," or ridges used to confine the water. Still Havelock gradually gained on them. Over- taking their rear-guard of four hundred infantry on the afternoon of the 20th of October near Nonadi, he succeeded, by a dismounted rifle-fire on two faces, one towards the main body, one de- AND ACHIEVES SIGNAL SUCCESS. 489 taining the rear-guard, in cutting them off from Book xil ., & . , , to , ' . -,.,,! -i Chapter III. the mam body, and hemming them into that vil- lage till the arrival of Colonel Turner's infantry October. column. Turner then stormed the village, and and cut them slew three hundred rebels. About one hundred, up * desperately breaking out, were " ringed " in an adjoining field by Havelock's mounted riflemen, who shot them down till their numbers were so reduced that the supporting cavalry, bursting in on them, sword in hand, sabred almost every man. Only three or four, amongst whom was Ammar Singh himself, disguised, found safety in a neighbouring cane-crop. This was the most efiective blow that had been struck against the Shahabad rebels. Its success is to be attributed solely to the new use of the mounted riflemen, without whose presence the enemy would, as on every former occasion, have escaped unscathed through their superior speed. The main body of rebels had meanwhile con- tinued its flight, after several doubles, finally due west. Following on its track, Havelock again overtook it after a forty miles' march, on the afternoon of the 21st. The infantry column, Havelock under Brigadier Douglas's personal command, suited pur " guided by reports from the mounted rifles, had J£J|j5lt ke8 the been able to follow the foe in straight lines from point to point of his numerous twistings and doublings, so that when the sepoys, thoroughly fagged, halted on that afternoon to cook, it was sufficiently near to be expected to take part in the combat. Havelock's column came on the rebel- while thus employed. Passing beyond 490 THE REBELS ONCE AGAIN ESCAPE. Book xii. tliem by a circuit, it again headed them towards the infantry, drove them from their cooking, and October, circling them in on three sides with skirmishers, kept them in check for three hours in the plain, waiting for the infantry to come up. There was now every hope that the success of the previous day would be repeated, but this expectation was who escape, not realised. By a mistake of the person guiding take of a " Douglas's infantry, they were brought up in at d n']5»w et the rear of Havelock's force instead of behind start. that of the rebels, who at once availed themselves of this error, and slipped out of the opening left for them. Evening, setting in at the same time, gave them ten hours' darkness to cover their flight. But, thoroughly terrified now at finding that they could not shake off their pursuers, they abandoned all attempt to do mischief in the dis- trict, and confined all their efforts to the one object of escape. Favoured by the long hours of darkness, and by the whole population of the dis- trict, who constantly and systematically misled the pursuers by false information, they marched in the next forty hours sixty-three miles further without being overtaken, making for a range of hills which bound the south-west of the district, and are accessible from the plain only by three difficult passes. Haveiock a But Havelock's mounted riflemen, not to be third time , , „„ . , overtakes the shaken on, again overtook the enemy on the even- punfshef in g of the 23l ' d - The nors es were by this time so them. exhausted that it was impossible either to head or to charge the rebels, who, drawing up in two solid squares flanking each other, steadily continued BUT AEE FINALLY DEIVEN INTO THE HILLS. 491 their way to the hills. But at every step men and b°°k xii. horses fell in their very midst under the long-range rifles of the pursuers, who, while thus inflicting October a severe punishment, were themselves beyond reach of the enemy's muskets. Not a minute but witnessed the capture of baggage-animals, includ- ing Ammar Singh's elephant, carrying a howdah containing" his suit of chain armour. The rebels Terror of * he . . . rebels at the continued their hurried flight to the Kaimur hills, practice of But so great had been the terror inspired by the EnfiekTrifle. new arm, now for the first time in India employed against them, and from which escape seemed im- possible, that even the telegraph wire, which it had always been their main object to destroy, re- mained uncut along the trunk road which they crossed in their flight ; and the whole of the depot establishments there — of vital importance to the regular supply of troops and stores to the army under Lord Clyde — remained uninjured. Have- lock's loss in this singular pursuit, which covered two hundred and one miles in five days and nights, was only three men killed and eighteen wounded. But forty-three horses died of fatigue. The rebel loss in the three actions of the 19th, 20th, and 21st October was not less than five hundred killed, including those hemmed in and subsequently de- stroyed by Colonel Turner's column at Nonadi. Thus sixty men, organised on a novel plan, and Success of aided by a handful of cavalry, had effected, with p ia U e f almost nominal loss, in five days, what three "J™ 1 ^ thousand regular troops hud for six months failed to accomplish — viz. the complete expulsion of four thousand five hundred rebels from the pro- 492 FINAL COLLAPSE OF THE REBELS. book xii. vince, and the infliction on them of a punishment a L!L ' the impression of which has not to this day been OcSov effaced. When once the inhabitants of the dis- trict became aware that the enemy was opposed by troops against whom they could not only hope for no success in the field, and whom it was im- possible for them to shake off in flight, their confidence in British power returned, and the restoration of order was an easy task. Complete Meanwhile, the Jagdispiir jungle had been cut the rebels. down and cleared away. The rebels were gra- dually driven from place to place, their hiding- places being occupied as the pursuers advanced. It is true that in the long pursuit the rebels managed once or twice to pounce upon the baggage of their enemies. But, in its results, the plan inaugurated by Havelock was most successful. On the 24th November Douglas sur- prised, by a night march, the main body of the rebels at Salia Dahar, in the Kaimiir hills, killed many of them, and took all their arms and am- munition. Before the year ended he could boast that the districts under his command had been completely cleared. The campaign had been more trying, more fatiguing than many which are counted more glorious in their results. Never had troops in India made longer, or more con- tinuously long, marches. On one occasion, I may repeat, the British infantry marched twenty-six miles a day for five days ; and the average daily march of Havelock' s cavalry was scarcely less than forty miles. 493 BOOK XII. CHAPTER IV. I return once more to Laklmao. Of the army which conquered that city, one division, that com- manded by Sir E. Lugard, has been disposed of in the preceding pages. There remain still the corps aVarmee under Hope Grant, and the divi- sion under "Walpole. I shall deal first with the former. On the 9th April, Sir Hope Grant, command- Ho P e Grant ,» L .. -i * t • • * 8 ordered to mg the torce already noted,* received instructions the districts. in person from the Commander-in-Chief, to march at once with a column to Bari, twenty-nine miles from Laklmao, to drive thence a body of rebels who had collected there under the famous Moulvi ; then marching eastwards to Muhammadabad and following the course of the Ghagra, to reconnoitre a place called Bitaoli, where it was rumoured the * Vi'i' page 168, note 494 HOPE GRANT MARCHES TO BARI. Book xii. Begam of Lakhnao with six thousand followers had Chapter IV. J _ & . J _, , taken post ; thence to march to Kamnagar to cover April'. the march of the Nipalese troops on their return to Nipal. Composition To carry out these instructions, Hope Grant inarched from Lakhnao on the morning of the 11th April. He took with him Middleton's bat- tery, Mackinnon's troop of horse artillery, two 18-pounders, two 8-inch howitzers, two 5^-inch Cohom mortars, the 7th Hussars, one squadron 2nd Dragoon Guards, Wale's Panjab Horse, the 2nd battalion Rifle Brigade, the 38th Foot, the 1st Bengal Fusiliers, five hundred men of Vaughan's Panjab Corps (the 5th), one hundred sappers and miners with a proportion of engineer officers — in all, about three thousand men. Daring recon. A curious incident, emblematic of the progress the Sis 7 made by the rebels in the art of daring yet crafty reconnoitring, occurred on the night of the fol- lowing day. Hope Grant had encamped about three parts of the way between Lakhnao and Bari. As he lay there that night, a troop of irregular cavalry penetrated within the line of pickets, which at that point were drawn from Wales's Horse. When challenged, they replied, with the most absolute truth, that they belonged to the 12th Irregulars. They did not add that their regiment had mutinied so far back as July of the previous year, and murdered their commandant.* The pickets, replied to in this confident manner, sus- pected nothing, and allowed them to pass on. The * Vol. i. page 72. THE MOULVI DEVISES A SKILFUL PLAN, 495 mutineers, having seen all they cared to see, Bookxii. quietly slipped out and returned to Bari. Chapter iv. The plan which the rebel leader, who was no ^ 8 ^" other than the Moulvi, adopted on receiving the The MouM's information which the men of the 12th had ac- plan quired, did credit to his tactical skill. He at once occupied a village about four miles on the Bari side of the British encampment with his whole force. This village was covered all along its front by a stream, the banks of which on the side nearest to it were high, and the ground leading up to which was honeycombed. It was a very strong position. The idea of the Moulvi was to hold the village with his infantry, whilst he sent his cavalry by a circuitous route to fall on the flanks of the attacking force. It was really a brilliant shows great idea ; for the British force, he was aware, would march at daybreak, entirely unsuspicious of his presence, and, could he but conceal his infantry from view till the British were well within ransre, and restrain his cavalry till the resistance from the side of the village had begun, the chances of success seemed to be all in his favour. But the brilliant idea was spoilt by the mode in Hi s cavalry which it was executed. Hope Grant did indeed trspoint. ed march at daybreak, unsuspicious of danger. The bulk of the enemy's cavalry, avoiding the line of march, was rapidly gaining a position on his rear, there to fall upon the six thousand carts which were carrying the baggage of the force, when their leaders were tempted by the sight of two guns in the British advance, lightly guarded 496 WHICH IS SPOILT IN THE EXECUTION. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April. Their easy is changed into defeat. The rebels are forced to retreat, and evacuate the village. by Wale's Horse, to throw to the winds the plan of their general and attempt to capture the guns. For a moment fortune seemed to favour them. They surrounded the picket, wounded the officer commanding it, Lieutenant Prendergast, and had the guns in their power. Just as they were about to carry them off, however, they caught sight of a troop of the 7th Hussars, led by Cap- tain Topham, on the point of charging them. Without awaiting the charge, they abandoned their prey, galloped off, and endeavoured to recur to the original plan. But they had spoilt it. The British were now thoroughly awake. Hope Grant made prompt arrangements for the protection of his rear guard, and though the enemy made two considerable efforts to capture the baggage, they were baffled, first by a splendid charge of the 7th Hussars troop under Topham, and secondly by a volley, delivered within thirty yards of them, by two companies of the 1st Bengal Fusiliers. Com- pletely defeated in their plans, they then retreated. Meanwhile, Hope Grant pushed forward with his infantry to the village. He noticed the strength of the position, the difficulty it might give him were it well defended. But the premature action of the cavalry, while it had ruined the plan of the Moulvi, had taken all the heart out of his fol- lowers. Prepared to surprise the British force and even to resist should the cavalry charge throw it into disorder, they did not care to meet the assault of the troops which had already re- pulsed the cavalry. Under the circumstances they preferred to wait for a more favourable STATE OF JUNG BAHADUR'S ARMY. 407 opportunity, and evacuated the village without BookXii. T - J Chapter IV. firing- a shot. — Pushing on to Bari and eastward from that Apr f{ place, Hope Grant reached Muhammadabad on Hope Grant the loth, and Ramnagar on the 19th. Ramnagar J^lLSigar. was but six miles from Bitaoli, the spot where it was rumoured the Begam and her followers had taken post. But the Begam, wise in her genera- tion, had not awaited the arrival of the English general, and Bitaoli was found evacuated. Bitaoli evacuated, Hope Grant proceeded to JungBaha- 1 T darsmpa- look after Jung Bahadur s JNipalese. He round iese. them at Masaoli, midway between Ramnagar and Nawabganj. In his journal, the general gives a vivid description of the condition of our allies. "The European officer in com- mand," he writes, " had great difficulties to contend with in marching through a country so filled with rebels. His force consisted of eight Their condi- ° tion described thousand men with twenty guns ; yet he could by Hope only reckon on two thousand men for actual fighting purposes. He had two thousand sick and four thousand carts ; and each of the latter being filled with tents, private property, and loot, required, according to the usages of these troops, a man to guard it." * From this place Hope * Hope Grant's ///>•/,/,„/* it without molestation. They of the Sepoy War. reached Grorakhpur early in these troops took no May, and resumed their further pari in the war, i1 march thence on the 17th ln;i , be convenient to Btate idem, [n consequence of the here that they continued their number of their carts bhej retreat Erom Masaoli towards experienced some difficulty in their own country and effected crossing the Oandau a1 Ba- II. 32 498 PLANS TO RECONQUER ROHILKHAND. Book xii. Grant marched sutliwarcls to protect the road ' a ^_!l ' between Kanhpiir and Lakhnao, then threatened JJJfy' at Onao. After some skirmishes of no great Hope Grant moment, in which the rebels were invariably dis- Lak™iao.° persed, he reached the fort of JallalaMd, near Lakhnao, on the 16th May. Here, for the present, I must leave him to follow the plans of the Com- mander-in-Chief with respect to Rohilkhand. SirCoiin's Jt had been determined by the Governor- reconquest of General, the reader will recollect, that the recon- Rohiikhand. q Ues t f this province should follow the recapture of Lakhnao, and, in a flying visit paid by Sir Colin Campbell to Allahabad after the storming of Lakhnao, he had found Lord Canning still firm in this respect. He accordingly at once arranged to converge three columns, starting from different points, on the doomed province. One of these columns, commanded by General Penny, was directed to cross the Ganges at Nadaoli and march on Miranpiir Katra. At this place it would join Walpole's division, ordered to advance thither from Lakhnao along- the Ganges, whilst Brigadier-General Jones, starting with another division from Riirki and making for Moradabad, would penetrate into the province from the north-west. Connected, to a certain extent, with these operations was the force I have left at Fathgarh under Brigadier Seaton, guarding there the south-east entrance into Ro- hilkhand on the one side, and the districts between gaha. Marching thence by they crossed the Nipal fron- way of Bhetia and Sigaoli, tier early in June. POSITION OF SEATON AT FATHGARH. 499 the two o-reat arteries, the Granges and the Jamna, bookXH. . , °, Chapter IV. on the other. — Seaton, left by Sir Colin Campbell, as previously JJJJ narrated,* at the end of January, as Brigadier in seatonat command of the Fathgarh district, had employed Fath * arh - the time which passed till the fall of Lakhnao in strengthening the fort of Fathgarh, in removing the bridge of boats to a point under the walls of the fort, and in practising his artillery at marks on the other side of the river near the positions which an advancing enemy would be likely to take up. The rebels meanwhile continued to threaten him from the Rohilkhand side of the Ramganga, though they took care to keep out of the range of his guns. But, as time went on, and Seaton made no The rebels move, whilst reinforcements nocked into the rebel resuming the camp, the situation became critical. Still more ° ensive - so when the rebel Raja of Mainpiiri, Tej Singh, entered their camp, and incited them to profit by the supineness of the British at Fathgarh to cross the Ganges and raise the Doab. But Seaton, supine as apparently had been his ^'£° a fcheir action, had been neither blind nor indifferent to proceedings. tin proceedings of the enemy. He had held his hand so long as it seemed probable that they would remain on the left bank of the river; but the moment they showed ;i disposition to attempl to bursl the door of the Doab, he resolved to attack I hem. Bazardous as it was, with Ins slender force, to ^X^" '* * Rtge 81 1 . 32 * 500 SEATON DEFEATS THE REBELS AT KANKAR. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April. remained supine. He resolves to attack the central posi- tion of the rebels. He defeats them and baffles their main plans. assault a powerful enemy, he could not act other- wise. For the occupation of the Doab by a large rebel force would close the grand trunk road, and cause the preparations, now about to be set in action, against Rohilkhand, to be indefinitely delayed. Seaton ascertained that the rebels occupied three strong positions : one at Aliganj, seven miles from Fathgarh, on the further bank of the Ramganga; a second at Bangaon, three miles from a ferry on the Granges, twenty-four miles above Fathgarh ; and a third at Kankar, in the same direction, twenty-two miles distant. Now, in the opinion of Seaton, Aliganj was so strong as to be proof against attack ; Bangaon was too far off for a night's march. He re- solved, then, to attack Kankar. Kankar being situated between Aliganj and Bangaon, he be- lieved, to use his own expression, that "if he knocked out the middle post the upper one would collapse on the lower." So, indeed, it proved. Leaving Fathgarh with his small force (one thousand infantry, three hundred cavalry, and five guns) at 11 o'clock on the night of the 6th April, Seaton reached Kan- kar by daylight, drove back the enemy's cavalry, and then stormed the villages occupied by the infantry, inflicting upon them a loss of two hun- dred and fifty killed and wounded, and taking three guns. In this action Lieutenant de Kant- zow greatlv distinguished himself. Seaton had only five men killed and seventeen wounded. The immediate effect was still more important. The GENERAL PENNY IS KILLED IN A SURPRISE. 501 invasion of the Doab was renounced, and so B °o K xil - . , Chapter IV. terrified were the rebels at Aliganj that they broke down the bridge across the Ramganga. Ap J n ; Whilst Seaton was thus keeping fast the door General _. 7 ■, ,. Penny of the province, Penny was moving down irom Balandshabr to join in the operations contem- plated by the Commander-in-Chief in Rohilkhand. His force consisted of two hundred of the Cara- bineers, three hundred and fifty- three of the 64th, three hundred and sixty Biliich Battalion, two hundred and fifty Multani Horse, three hundred and twenty 2nd Panjabis, and six heavy and six light guns. Penny met Sir Colin Campbell at Fathgarh on the 24th, then crossed the Ganges, and pushed on to Ushait, a town on the further ^pif I ' U shait. side of one of the confluents of the main stream. Ushait was found deserted, and Cracroft Wilson, the political officer with the column, brought the general information that the enemy had fled into Oudh, and that his march to Badaon would not be opposed. Penny accordingly started on the night and marches of the 30th April to make a night march of up- wards of twenty miles to that place. He had reached Kakraoli, riding with Cracroft Wilson at the head of the advanced guard, commanded by Captain Curtis, when some dusky forms and sonic Lights wore noticed a short distance ahead. It was quite dark, and before the aature of these heisauddeniy n , . a! tucked by appearances could he ascertained, a discharge ot Hi,, reboiaand grape came into their midst. Penny was aever seen again alive, and it was supposed that his horse, frightened by the sudden discharge, over- 502 WALPOLE MARCHES FOR ROHILKHAND. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May. The rebels are eventu- ally beaten. Walpole's division. powered and carried him into the ranks of the enemy. Certain it is that his body was found there after the fight, shot, stripped, and sabred. When the discharge occurred the infantry were some distance in the rear. The Carabineers at once charged, took the gun, and then, it being dark, dashed forward into a trench full of Ghazis (fanatics). A desperate contest ensued, many of the officers being cut down. As soon as they could extricate themselves, the village, which the enemy occupied in force, was shelled. When the guns had done their work, the infantry charged and carried it — the enemy retreating with but small loss. The column, falling under the com- mand of Colonel Jones of the Carabineers, then continued its march, and joined the Commander- in-Chief at Miranpur Katra on the 3rd May. Walpole's division had left Lakhnao for that place on the 7th April. He had with him the 9th Lancers, the 2nd Panjab Cavalry, the 42nd, 79th, and 93rd Highlanders, the 4th Panjab Rifles, two troops of horse artillery, two 18-pounders, two 8-inch howitzers, some mortars, and a few engineers and sappers. Nature of the task en- trusted to Walpole. The name of General Walpole has been men- tioned more than once in these pages, but once only as an officer holding independent command. The expedition upon which he was now about to enter was not one likely to test the qualities of a commander. It offered no difficulties. A fort here or there might require to be taken, a disorganised MILITARY CHARACTER OP WALPOLE. 503 band of rebels to be dispersed. To carry it to a Book xii. • i • t tit i i Chapter IV. successful issue, then, demanded no more than the — exercise of vigilance, of energy, of daring — quali- A ^ n ' ties the absence of which from a man's character would stamp him as unfit to be a soldier. Walpole, unhappily, possessed none of these ^j™*" °* qualities. Of his personal courage no one ever general, doubted, but as a commander he was slow, hesi- tating, and timid. With some men the power to command an army is innate. Others can never gain it. To this last class belonged Walpole. He never was, he never could have been, a general more than in name. Not understanding war, and yet having to wage it, he carried it on in a blun- dering and haphazard manner, galling to the real soldiers who served under him, detrimental to the interests committed to his charge. It may be remarked that this censure, how- Possible i • <• i c objections to ever justly applicable, is out ot place as a pretace such a de- to a short campaign conducted by the commander hneatlon - in question — a campaign which I have already described as " offering no difficulties." If the campaign offered no difficulties, it may be urged, surely any man, even a Walpole, might have car- ried it to a successful issue. Thus to brand a commander with incapacity when the occasion did not require capacity, is as unnecessary as ungenerous ! It might be so, indeed, if the campaign, devoid Thoobjec- j tions replied of difficulty as it \v:is, had not been productive to. of disaster. Bui the course of this history will show, thai though there ought, to have been no difficulties, Walpole, by his blundering and obsti- 504 WALPOLE MARCHES TO RUIYA. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April. Walpole marches to Ruiya. April 15. Description of Ruiya. nacy, created them, and, worse than all, he, by a most unnecessary — I might justly say by a wanton — display of those qualities, sacrificed the life of one of the noblest soldiers in the British army — sent to his last home, in the prime of his splendid manhood, in the enjoyment of the devotion of his men, of the love of his friends, of the admiration and well-placed confidence of the army serving in India, the noble, the chivalrous, the high-minded Adrian Hope. Walpole, I have said, set out from Lakhnao on the 7th April. His orders were to advance up the left bank of the Ganges, and so to penetrate into Rohilkhand. For the first week the march was uneventful. But on the morning of the 15th, after a march of nine miles, Walpole found him- self in close vicinity to Ruiya, a small fort fifty- one miles west by north from Lakhnao, and ten miles east of the Ganges. The fort was enclosed by a mud wall high on its northern and eastern faces, loop-holed for musketry, and defended on those sides by a broad and deep ditch. It was provided with irregular bastions at the angles, and had two gates on the northern and eastern sides, where it was covered by a thick jungle. It be- longed to a petty landowner named Nirpat Singh, a man who was a rebel as long as rebellion seemed profitable, but who had not the smallest inclina- tion to run his head against a British force. Walpole had received information the previous dav that Ruiya was occupied by rebels, and there can be no doubt that their number was, as usual, greatly exaggerated. The two or three hundred DESCRIPTION OF RUIYA. 505 men who followed Nirpat Singh had been increased BooK X[I - by report to fifteen hundred. It happened that one of the troopers of Hod- ±Sn. son's Horse, who, taken prisoner in some previous information encounter, had been confined within the fort of Sooper^ofthe Riiiva, found means that morning to escape, and «^ te of . J . ° L affairs within to penetrate into the British camp. Taken to Ruiya. the general, he informed him of the state of affairs within the fort, and that Nirpat Singh was prepared, after making a show of resistance, suffi- cient to save his honour, to evacuate it that after- noon, leaving one gate open for the British to walk in. Walpole gave no credit to the man's story. Waipoie dis- TTX1 . believes the What was worse, he would not even reconnoitre. 8 t ry. He clung to the belief that the fort was garrisoned by fifteen hundred men, and, it would seem, he was anxious to win his spurs by driving them out of it. He did not take the trouble to reconnoitre. Actual state The slightest examination would have shown him em and that whilst the northern and eastern faces were ^ e g U i n a faces strong, covered by dense underwood and trees, the western and southern were weak and incap- able of offering defence. These faces were ap- proached by a large sheet of water, everywhere very shallow, and in many places dried into the ground, and the walls (here were so low than an active man could jump over them. But, as 1 have said, Walpole made no reconnaissance. Without examining the fort at all, he sent his Heattaoksit. men in a blundering, haphazard manner against it- atrtfngesi face I Thsreb«ia The rebels were prepared i<> evacuate the fori, "* ol ™*° 1 i defend n . 506 RTJIYA IS ATTACKED, book xii. and they had intended to fire a few rounds and a iL!i retreat. But when they saw the British general ApSnis. sending his infantry in skirmishing order against the face which could be defended, they changed their minds, and determined to show fight. The attack on Two companies of the 42nd Highlanders and repufsed. one hundred and twenty of the 4th Panjab Rifles were sent, in skirmishing order and with no sup- ports, to the front on this dangerous errand. The enemy meanwhile had not only manned the wall, but had sent skirmishers to mount the numerous trees within the fort. The fire from these men considerably annoyed the infantry as they ad- vanced. When at length they neared the fort, they perceived the deep ditch, till then invisible, and at the same time encountered a concentrated fire from the loop-holed walls. The skirmishers still persevered, some of them even penetrated into the ditch ; but their valour was useless, the enemy remained unseen, there was no breach, there were no ladders, and the hostile fire con- Gaiiantry of tinued. Several feats of splendid valour were performed. Edward Willoughby, a young officer of the 10th Bombay Native Infantry, now attached to the 4th Panjab Rifles, though on the sick list, had left his dooly to join in the fight. Mortally wounded by a shot in the throat, he still pressed on up to the glacis, and there dropped dead. Of the one hundred and twenty men who composed his regiment that morning, forty-six were killed and two wounded. Nor was the gallantry and de- votion of the 42nd less conspicuous. Lieutenants Douglas and Bramley and fifty-five of their fol- officers and men AND THE ATTACK IS REPULSED. 507 lowing were killed ; * and when, about 2 o'clock, book xn. as I shall presently relate, the order to retire from — the scene of useless slaughter reached them, there April is. were men amongst that following who could not resolve to leave there the bodies of the officers who had so nobly led them on. Conspicuous amongst these was the Quartermaster-sergeant of the regiment, Simpson by name. No sooner had this man heard the order to retire than he rushed back into the ditch, and brought back the body of Bramley safely in spite of the shower of mus- ketry he encountered. He returned to do the same with Douglas, and then with seven other Gallant of his comrades. Not alone was he in this noble work. Private Davis was his able coadjutor at this point ; whilst at another not remote, Lance- Corporal Thomson and Private Spence, all of the 42nd, brought back the body of the gallant Wil- loughby. It is a satisfaction to know that these men, Spence alone excepted, received the coveted Cross — and Spence was only excepted because he died two days later from a wound received in carrying out his gallant exploit. Before these gallant deeds had been performed, Waipuk- Walpole, alarmed at the consequences of his own retreat! rashness, had caused his heavy guns to open out on the wall ; but as their fire seemed to make no impression, and the slaughter of the infantry con- tinued, lie ordered a retreat. This retreat was the Bignal tor the display of the splendid devotion jusi recorded. Fwo other officers of the Lieutenant Harington of the l-jiicl were wounded, and Artillery was killed. 508 DEATH OF ADRIAN HOPE. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April 15. Adrian Hope is about to ride up to Walpole, when he is shot dead. The commu- nication Adrian Hope was about to make. Nirpat Singh evacuates Ruiya. All this time Adrian Hope had, after vain re- monstrance against the madness of the mode of attack, seen, with grief and rage with difficulty suppressed, the useless sacrifice of his gallant soldiers. At last he could bear it no longer. Before the order to retire, of which I have spoken, was given, he had made up his mind how to act. He turned his horse in the direc- tion where he believed Walpole to be, and was about to ride up to him, when one of the skir- mishers in the trees within the fort marked him and shot him dead.* What was Adrian Hope going to say to Wal- pole ? It can never perhaps be accurately known, but a general belief prevailed that he was about to take from him the command. That he would have been justified in virtually superseding him cannot be doubted. The image of helplessness, whilst his soldiers were being uselessly butchered, Walpole was then no more than a lay figure. It would have been kind to treat him as a lay figure. Adrian Hope fell. Then, the retreat having been ordered, Brigadier Hagart was directed to bring off the dead. Walpole rode back to camp. That same night the rebels evacuated the fort. Nirpat Singh kept his word. He marched out after vindicating his honour ! But, thanks to Walpole, at what a cost to us ! The loss the country sustained by the deaths of Willoughby, of Douglas, of Bramley, of Har- * I have received these particulars from an officer present on the occasion. UNIVERSAL INDIGNATION AND C4RIEF. 509 ington, and of the hundred and odd men uselessly BooK XIL sacrificed before Riiiya was great — but the loss of Adrian Hope was a cause for national sorrow. Aprfiis. His death was mourned on the spot by every man Mourning for in the camp. Loud and deep were the invectives ^theclmp 6 against the obstinate stupidity which had caused it.* Nor, though twenty-one years have since passed away, is he yet forgotten. Adrian Hope was indeed a man to be loved. B y the P ublic 11 • • ii anc * ky the A gentler, braver spirit never breathed — a true authorities, soldier, a kind, courteous, noble gentleman, in word and deed; devoted to his profession, be- loved by his men, adored by his friends — this indeed is a sad loss to the British army." So wrote on the spot William Howard Russell. Nor was the testimony of the Govern or- General and the Commander-in-Chief less genuine. "No more mournful duty lias fallen upon the Governor- General in the course of the present contest," wrote Lord Canning, " than that of recording the premature death of this gallant young com- mander." " The death of this most distinguished * Dr. Russell writes : " I on the principle, then, as found the officers of the 42nd now, in fashion, of conferring and 93rd in a slate of furious honours on men, nol for the wrath and discontent with deeds they achieve, but for their general. The] told me the high positions they oc- they were afraid of mutiny, or cupy, that the general who worse, when pom- Hope was losi more than one hundred buried ! Nirpal Singh drew men and Adrian Hope, in off his men in the night, and failing to take this pettj fort, when Walpole wob told the was made a K.O.B. next morning thai the place Though he Failed to take wm evacuated, he said, the fort, he was yet a divi- ' Thank < ;.m| ! ' " sional commander ! It is a curious commentary 510 WALPOLE JOINS SIR COLIN. Book XII. Chapter IV lsr.s. April 22. Walpole expels the rebels from Sirsa,' but the bulk of them escape. The Com- mander-in- Chief joins. and gallant officer," wrote Sir Colin Campbell, " causes the deepest grief to the Commander-in- Chief. Still young in years, he had risen to high command ; and by his undaunted courage, com- bined as it was with extreme kindness and charm of manner, had secured the confidence of the brigade in no ordinary degree." Walpole pushed on the following day, and on the 22nd reached the village of Sirsa, forty miles beyond the fatal fort. Sirsa is a strong village on the right bank of the Ramganga, not far from Alaganj, the place occupied by the rebels who had so long annoyed Seaton. And, in fact, they were the same rebels, who had now crossed the river. The experience he had gained at Riiiya had made "Walpole careful of his infantry. This time he brought his artillery to bear on the village in front, whilst he sent his cavalry to turn their flank. The manoeuvre was so far successful that the enemy were driven out of the village, leaving their four guns behind them, and forced to cross the river in such disorder that they did not de- stroy the bridge which spanned it. But no proper arrangements had been made for follow- ing up the victory, and the great bulk of the rebels escaped. Five days later, 27th April, Walpole was joined by the Commander-in-Chief on the Rohilkhand side of Fathgarh. The force then marched on Shahjahanpur, which the enemy had evacuated. It then pushed on without opposition to Miranpur Katra, where it united with the troops lately commanded by Penny, on the 3rd May. COLONEL JOHN POKE. 51 1 I proceed now to trace the course of the Riirki JJ^Sv. column, commanded by Brigadier-General Jones — — of the 60th Rifles. April. Sir Colin Campbell had, in the first instance, A brigade 1 , , formed at decided that the force forming at Rurki to march storki thence across Rohilkhand to Bareli should be merely a brigade force, and he had appointed Colonel John Coke, commanding the 1st Pan jab Infantry, to lead it. Colonel Coke was one of the best known and Colonel Coke. most distinguished officers of the Pan jab Frontier Force. To a thorough knowledge of his profes- sion he added an acquaintance with the natives of India not to be surpassed, and a rare power of bending them to his will. He had seen much service. He had been with Sir Charles Napier Hi* previous j service. in Upper Sind, with Gongh at Chihanwala and Giijrat, with Gilbert in pursuit of the Sikhs. After the conclusion of the second Sikh war, he served continuously, up to the outbreak of the mutiny, on the frontier. There his name became a household word. Scarcely an ex- pedition was undertaken against the wild border tribes but Coke bore a part in it. Twice was he wounded; but his unflinching demeanour, his power of leadership, whilst it gained the supreme confidence of his men, extorted respect and admiration from his enemies. Wherever he might be, his presence was a power. Summoned to Dehlf early in August, Ooke brougbl bo the pari assigned him in the siege all the qualities which had made his name on the 512 PREVIOUS SERVICES OE COKE. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April. The troops composing his brigade. frontier. He was always prominent in the fight, always daring and self-reliant.* The force into the command of which he sud- denly fell was such as might well have inspired * I may be pardoned if I relate here one special act, amongst many, which illus- trated his conduct at this period. On the 12th August Coke received instructions from Brigadier Showers to turn out the European picket at the Metcalfe stables, and taking the men composing it with him, to proceed through the Metcalfe gardens and at- tack the guns which had been firing on the picket the pre- ceding day. No information was given him as to the locality of the guns ; but having been quartered at Dehli before the outbreak, Coke imagined that he would find them in the vicinity of Ludlow Castle. He directed, then, the officer commanding the picket to extend the men on his right, and to follow the direction he should take. At the same time he ordered Lieutenant Lumsden, com- manding his own regiment, to skirmish through the gar- dens on his left — the direc- tion in which he expected to find the enemy in force. He then rode through the gardens towards Ludlow Castle. On reaching the boundary wall of the gardens on the main road leading to the city, he found that an embrasure had been made in the wall of the garden. At the same moment he saw the enemy's guns — two 9-pounder brass guns — in the road with horses at- tached, but no one with them, the enemy having apparently taken refuge in Ludlow Castle when driven out of the Metcalfe gardens by Lums- den. The horses' heads were turned towards the city. An alarm— a stray bullet — a dis- charge close to them — might start them off at any moment. Quick as lightning the idea flashed into Coke's brain that if he could but turn the horses' heads towards the canip, it would little signify how soon the horses might be alarmed: they would, of themselves, capture the guns for the British. On the in- stant he alighted from his horse, got down thi'ough the embrasure into the road, ran to the horses of the leading gun, and turned them up the road towards canton- ments. Whilst doing this he was shot in the thigh by the enemy in Ludlow Castle, but the guns were captured. He had done his self-allotted task, and reaped his only reward in the admiration of all who witnessed his splendid audacity. EVIDENCE OF HIS PRACTICAL ABILITY. 513 him with the hope of sraininff distinction as an book xn. . -i tj i £ Chapter IV. independent commander. It was composed or a troop of the 9th Lancers, of Cnreton's Multani 2prfi". Cavalry, of a wing of the 60th Rifles, of the 1st Pan-jab Infantry, of the 1st Sikhs, and of the 17th Panjab Infantry. The artillery portion of it was formed of Austin's light field battery and two 18-pounders. Coke had arrived at Riirki on the 22nd Feb- Scarcity of carnage. ruary, but April was approaching, before, with the assistance of Baird Smith, who was then at that station, lie had been able to complete his commissariat arrangements. The country, in fact, had been so thoroughly exhausted that but little carriage was procurable. In this dilemma Coke's practical knowledge and fertility of re- source came into play. He had read how, in His practical 1 . -i -n • • ' • knowledge the olden clays of Indian warfare, the Brmjans causes the — dealers who carry their grain on pack cattle be S^Sd, — had made themselves eminently serviceable. Calling to mind, then, that at the actual season these men were accustomed to pasture their cattle in the Terai, he sent thither, found them, and made such arrangements with their head men as enabled him to conquer a difficulty which many another man would have found insurmountable. The carriage had been supplied, all the ar- Brigadier. © pill General rangements for the march of the force had been Jones super- completed, the Eorce was about to march, when Coke was suddenly superseded. It had seemed good bo SirColin Campbell to make the command of fche field Eorce a divisional command. The nih.T wing of the 60th Rifles was accordingly n. S3 514 COKE IS SUPERSEDED BY JONES. Book XII. Chapter IV. 185a April. The real command of the force is still with Coke. The force crosses the Ganges at Hardwar. The position and hopes of the rebels. added to it, and with that wing came Colonel John Jones, with the rank of Brigadier- General, to command the whole. Coke acted as brigadier and second in command under Jones. In reality the change was only in name. Gene- ral Jones was a very brave man, but he was un- wieldy in body, and incapable of very great activity. But he had no jealousy, and he was gifted with rare common sense. He saw at a glance that Coke was the man for the work, and he was content to leave it in his hands. In the campaign that followed, then, and of which he reaped all the credit, he never once interfered with Coke's arrangements. That officer con- tinued to be supreme — in all but name. General Jones — nicknamed at the time, from his habit of denouncing vengeance against the rebels, " The Avenger " — joined the force early in April. On the 17th of that month he opened the campaign by crossing, unopposed, the Ganges at Hardwar. The reb^l troops were occupying the thick forest on the left bank of the river in considerable force. They were aware that the British force would be compelled to march through this forest, and, as it was traversed in many places by deep canals, they hoped to find opportunities for attacking them at advantage. Jones had learned from Coke the general posi- tion of the enf my, and he had authorised that officer, as brigs iier commanding the advance, to make the necessary arrangements for forcing it. When, then, he had crossed the Ganges, POKE DEFEATS THE REBELS. 515 Coke pushed on rapidly with the advance in the B U0K XI i- r r J . Chapter IV. direction of the town of Nagal, near which it was — known the enemy's main force was located. But Apri j he had marched only four miles when he fell in Coke pushes with a considerable body of rebels posted in a °nd finds the thick jungle, and their front covered by a canal. B^^ 41a at a place called Bhogniwala. They had six guns, which at once opened on the British. But Austin, bringing up his field battery, promptly ^ t c e °^- replied to them, whilst the infantry, in skirmish- defeats them, ing order, steadily advanced. When they reached the canal, the water in which was nearly dry, they had a fair view of the rebels. At that mo- ment Lieutenant Gosling, commanding a troop of the Multani Horse, let loose his men, and forced them back. This was the decisive moment. Coke, bringing the bulk of Cureton's regiment (the Miiltani Horse) and Austin's battery well to the front, charged the rebels whenever they attempted to form. The retreat soon, then, became a rout, the rebels abandoning their camp equipage and guns, casting away their arms, and even throw- ing off their clothes to facilitate escape. The Miiltanis followed them for some miles, cutting up a large number of them, and capturing four guns. On this occasion Lieutenanl G-osling killed eight men with his revolver. The loss of the victors was smull, amounting to one man killed and sixteen wounded. That of the conquered was considerable.* * That it was \. irj great Baying of the natives, "thai ;LV be inferred from the the spirits of the dead 38 * 516 COOL COURAGE OF A NATIVE OFFICER. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April 18. Brilliant feat of arms by a native officer. The force pushes on to Naghma. The following morning a very brilliant and very daring feat of arms was accomplished, under the inspiration of Cureton, by a native officer of the Multani Horse, Jamadar Imam Bakhsh Khan. Conceiving that the rebels defeated on the pre- vious day might have taken refuge in the thick jungle to the north of Najibabad, Cureton de- spatched the Jamadar mentioned and forty troopers to patrol in that direction. The Jamadar, in carrying out this duty, received information from villagers that a rebel Nawab with five hundred followers was in occupation of a fort called Khot, a few miles distant. "With happy audacity, Imam Bakhsh Khan proceeded at once to the fort, and summoned the garrison to surrender. He so im- posed on them by his bearing and threats that they yielded unconditionally. Imam Bakhsh dis- armed and dismissed the garrison, made prisoner of the Nawab, and then returned to camp to report his brilliant exploit.* That day, the 18th, Jones pushed on first to Najibabad, and, finding that place abandoned, to the fort of Fathgarh, also deserted by the enemy. In these two places he captured eight guns besides ammunition and grain. On the 21st, having in the interval been joined by four heavy guns and a squadron of the Carabineers, he still haunt the scene, and that their groans may he heard in the night." — Vide Comhill Magazine for January 1863, article "Indian Cos- sacks," containing a spirited account of this little cam- paign hy an actor in it. * He received the third class of the Order of Merit — an insufficient acknowledg- ment of such a deed. THE KEBELS DEFEATED AT XAGHINA. 517 marched to Xaghina, where, he had been informed, book xn. • j Chapter IV. the rebels, numbering ten thousand infantry and — two thousand cavalry, with fifteen guns, had April 21. taken up a strong position. The position was strong. Its front was covered Position of 1 ° the rebels by the canal, guarded by ten of their guns ; a near bridge on the left was protected by a battery of ag lna ' five guns, whilst a tope of trees protected the right. The British force marched directly on to the canal. Whilst the guns on the right attacked the enemy's battery on the bridge, the 60th J h ^^ ly Rifles and the 1st Pan jab Infantry, with the defeated. Multani's on their left, crossed the canal and formed up to the right — the 1st Sikhs, under Gordon, clearing, meanwhile, its banks. By the time the canal had been cleared, the force which had crossed it had gained a position completely turning the enemy's right. The order was then given to charge. Never was a charge more successful. The rebels, panic- stricken, made no attempt to defend their guns, but fled in wild confusion. On this day Cureton rendered splendid service with his Multanis. He pursued the enemy for five miles, and notwith- standing the resistance of despair winch he and his followers encountered, lie did not rest until he had slain their chiefs and captured their ele- phants and guns. It was a greater glory for him g£Jj^ " f to rescue an unfortunate English telegraph sig- naller, who, previously taken prisoner by the rebels; bad been brought into the field thai he mighl witness the defeal of his countrymen I 513 SPLENDID GALLANTRY OF CURETON. book xii. Cureton rescued this man at great personal Chapter IV. , , . , „ A — danger to nimseli.* a rffl'i But ^ ne *°^ °^ * ne ^ a y was no ^ y e ^ over - ® n Cureton returning from the slaughter of the chiefs with remnant h that ms two hundred mounted followers, Cureton de- had escaped, scried approaching the main body of the defeated enemy, a compact force of eight hundred infantry five hundred cavalry, and some guns. The pre- sence with him of the captured elephants of the Nawabs made it probable, he thought, that the rebels would regard the Multanis as a party of their own friends. Cureton accordingly drew up into a grove by the roadside to await their ap- proach. On they come, and the grove containing their supposed friends is almost reached. "Still not a sound issues from the trees, not a greeting strikes the ear, not a signal meets the eye. Sud- denly a clear English voice rings out the word ' Charge ! ' and in an instant the Multanis are in the midst of the panic-stricken foe. Taken by surprise, daunted by the fury of the onset, the rebels do not resist long, but flee in all directions, leaving upwards of one hundred dead on the ground, and a green standard and several guns as trophies."! * " Indian Cossacks." — of Cureton and his Multanis Vide supra. in the action of Naghma. t The Cornhill Magazine, They may well be proud of January 1863, Art. " Indian that day ; for to defeat cavalry Cossacks." The author of and artillery, then infantry, this article, who is believed then again cavalry, artillery, to be a distinguished officer and infantry combined, in of the British army, thus pro- the latter case contending ceeds : " With this feat of against enormous odds, were arms and the gallant deeds exploits of which even a CURETON AND HAXXA. 519 In the combat of Naghina the British loss was bookxii. small in comparison with that of the rebels. The army had to regret, however, the death of Lieu- A S t tenant Gosling, a gallant and meritorious officer, Death of who fell in the final charge of which I have K^"* spoken. Where all so distinguished themselves it is difficult to single out any officer for special notice, but I cannot omit to record that the cavalry leading of Cureton * was talked of in How Cure- camp at the time, and has been handed down to arms was the new generation as a most brilliant example ^g 5 "^ 6 * 1 - of the combination of skill, daring, readiness of resource, and practical ability. Amongst the volunteers present whose gallantry Mr. Hanna. was marked was a young student of the Riirki Civil Engineer College named Hanna. The despe- rate gallantry of this gentleman, who accompanied Cureton, procured him two serious wounds. It was then believed that he was a young officer, nor was it till after the fight was over that his real calling was discovered. Thanks to the strong recommendation of Cureton and his own intrepid spirit, Mr. Hanna obtained an unattached com- mission in the Indian army. The victory was decisive. Thenceforward the Th « f °rce progress of the column was not seriously opposed. Moradibud. Bijnor was reoccupied without opposition. Jones did not delay there, but pushed on rapidly to Moradabad. veteran oorpi mighl boast, thai day in its second ac- BLcrw much more, then, a lion ! " ronng regimenl only three * Now Lieutenant-General montni raised, and engaged Onreton, C.B. 520 STATE OP AFFAIRS IN MORADABAD. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April 21. State of affairs in Moradabad. The loyalty of the inha- bitants is shown by the expulsion of Prince Firoz Shah. April 26. Coke captures several rebel chiefs. The course of affairs at this station had not impressed the inhabitants with the advantage of the native rule of Khan Bahadur Khan,* and they had heard with anxious and beating hearts of the progress of the columns of the Avenger. The pent-up longings of their hearts had been confirmed and strengthened by the loyal attitude of a neighbouring native chieftain, the Nawab of Rampdr, who had from the first exerted himself to maintain the authority of the British. As Jones advanced nearer and nearer these feelings dis- played themselves in action. It happened on the 21st April, Firoz Shah, a prince of the royal house of Dehli, who had cast in his lot with the Rohilkhand revolters, marched upon Moradabad, and demanded money and supplies. The towns- people refused, whereupon the prince, after some negotiation, endeavoured to take them by force. But the townspeople still holding out, the news of the approach of the avenging column forced Firoz Shah to beat an ignominious retreat. But the following day he returned secretly into the native part of the town. Jones arrived in the vicinity of Moradabad on the 26th April. His camp was there joined by Mr. Inglis, C.S., a gentleman thoroughly ac- quainted with the characters and doings of the rebel chiefs then figuring in Rohilkhand. Inglis informed Brigadier Coke that many prominent leaders of the revolt were at the moment in hiding in the city of Moradabad, and that it would not Vol. i. pages 331, 332. SEVERAL REBEL CHIEFS CAPTURED THERE. 521 be impossible, by the exercise of daring and Bo«xn. 1 J ,. . Chapter IV. prudence, to seize them. These two qualities — shone conspicuously in the character of Coke. April 2 ' 6 He at once made arrangements to effect the cap- ture of these men. Placing the Multani cavalry to guard the outlets of the city, he entered with his infantry and proceeded to the houses indi- cated to him. The task was difficult and dan- gerous, but it resulted in success. Twenty-one notorious ringleaders of the revolt were actually taken. Others were slain defending themselves. In this affair Lieutenant Angelo greatly dis- tinguished himself. Bursting open the door of one of the houses, he seized a prominent rebel leader and one of his sons. Whilst engaged in this work he was fired at from one of the upper rooms of the house. He at once rushed upstairs, forced the door of the room whence the firing- had proceeded, and found himself face to face with seven armed men. Nothing daunted, he shot three of them with his revolver, and kept the remainder at bay with his sword till reinforced from below. Firoz Shah, unhappily, escaped. A few days later Jones again started to take ™ e ve f °™ pari in the operations which the Commander-in- Barflf. Chief was directing against Baivli, and to which I must now return. I have already atated thai bhe Commander-in- ; r |;;;.;;:;^ ls Chief, with the Eorce from Fathgarh joined fco Bhahjahin- fcnal of Walpole, had reached Shahjahanpur on the 30th April, and had Eound h evaouated. It wae qoi 90 much the evacuation of this im- portant place as bhe escape of bhe rebel armj pur. 522 THE MOULVl EVADES SIR COLIN. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. April 30. The conse- quent failure, to a great degree, of the plan of the campaign. Sir Colin moves on Barelf. State of affairs in Barelf. which had held it, commanded by the notorious Moulvi, accompanied, it was believed, by Nana Sahib* and his followers, in the direction of Oudh, which caused vexation to Sir Colin. It was a proof that, notwithstanding his great efforts, the campaign had failed in one important particular. Though he had planned that four armies, starting from different points, should converge on Bareli and Shahjahanpur, enclosing the rebels on four sides, their most formidable enemy had managed to break through the meshes, and to break through them, too, on the side for which he and Walpole were mainly responsible ! However, there was no help for it. The Rohilkhand rebels were still in Bareli. They, at all events, he was resolved, should not escape him. Leaving at Shahjahanpur five hundred men of the 82nd under Colonel Hales, De Kantzow's Irregular Horse, and four guns, Sir Colin pushed on, picked up Penny's column — commanded by Jones of the Carabineers — at Miranpiir Kutra on the 3rd May, and on the 4th arrived at Faridpur, a day's march from Bareli. Khan Bahadur Khan was still holding sway in the capital of Rohilkhand. The exact amount of his force cannot be stated with certainty. Spies had rated it at thirty thousand infantry, six thousand horse, and forty guns, but it certainly did not reach anything like that number. The * Before evacuating Shah- order that the Europeans, on jahanpiir, Nana, Sahib is said their arrival, might find no to have caused all the official shelter, buildings to be destroyed, in RESOURCES OF KHAN BAHADUR KHAN. 523 feeling that animated leader and men was the Book xii. - i 11 Chapter IV. reverse ot sanguine, tor they knew that the town was threatened on both sides. Nevertheless May 8 *, there were amongst them a certain number of fanatics (Ghazis) who were resolved to sell their lives dearly, neither to give nor to accept quarter. Bareli itself did not offer a strong defensible Defensive . position of position. The town consisted or a mam street, BareU about two miles long, having occasionally narrow offshoots on both sides. Outside these streets were large suburbs formed of detached houses, walled gardens, and enclosures; outside these again were wide plains intersected by nullahs. One of these, called the Nattia Naddi, covered the town on the south side. Its banks were steep, and, if well protected, it was capable of presenting an obstacle to an advancing enemy. But it was bridged, and the bridges had not been broken. Khan Bahadur Khan heard on the 5th of the Khan Baha- rA • r^^ • n • J t Khan arrival of the Commander-in- Chief at randpur. resolves to He was likewise aware that Jones was advancing ^ds^ia the from Moradabad. There was yet a way of escape face - open to him — the way he subsequently followed — in the direction of Pilibhit. But the hot Rohilla blood of the descendant of Hafiz Rahmat forbade him to flee without striking a blow for his cause. He determined to meet the British force in the open plain outside the town. On tin- evening of the 4th May ho took up his Hetakesup • -vr -vr l t i i l a P OSU "'"' position. Crossing the Nattia JNaddi, he placed his lt mis on some rising ground — sand-hills — which commanded the line by which the British 524 sie colin Campbell's force. book xii. must advance, covered by his first line of infantry, Chapter iv. w]lilst he g uar d e d both his flanks with his cavalry. 1858. His second line occupied the old cantonments May 4. l nearer to the town. Composition To force this position Sir Colin Campbell had force" ° lm S under his orders a very considerable force. He had two brigades of cavalry,* the first commanded by Brigadier Jones, 6th Dragoon Guards, the second by Brigadier Hagart, 7th Hussars ; Tombs's and Remmington's troops of horse artillery, Hammond's light field battery; two heavy field batteries under Francis; and the siege-train with Le Mesurier's company and Cookworthy's detachment, the whole commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Brind ; some sappers and miners under Colonel Harness ; the Highland brigade under Leith Hay, consisting of the 93rd, 42nd, 79th, 4th Panjab Rifles, and the Biluch battalion ; Brigadier Stisted's brigade, consisting of seven companies 64th Foot, 78th Highlanders, four companies 82nd, 2nd Panjab Infantry, 22nd Panjab Infantry. Sir Colin Very early on the morning of the 5th Sir Colin WtfT ° n broke U P from Faridpiir and marched on Bareli. As he approached the place the vedettes reported the presence of the enemy. It was 6 o'clock. Sir Colin halted his troops and formed them in two lines. In the first line he placed the High- * The first cavalry brigade jab Cavalry, detachments was composed of two squad- Labor Light Horse, 1st rons 6th Dragoon Guards and Panjab Cavalry, 5th Panjab Lind's Multani Horse; the Cavalry, and 15th Irregular second, 9th Lancers, 2nd Pan- Cavalry. SIR, COLIN PUSHES BACK THE REBELS. 525 land regiments, supported by the 4th Paniab Book xil ° ' rr . J J Chapter IV. Rifles and the Biluch battalion, with a heavy field battery in the centre, and horse artillery and Miiy 5 ' cavalry on both flanks. The second line, consist- forms up his ing of the remainder of his force, he disposed to m terJ? protect the baggage and siege-train. The mime- battle< rons cavalry displayed by the enemy seemed, in the opinion of Sir Colin, to render this precaution necessary. It was striking 7 o'clock iust as these disposi- The rebels fall back tions were completed. Sir Colin then moved before him. forward. He had not marched a hundred yards, however, before the enemy's guns opened upon him. But the British force advanced with so much steadiness and precision that the rebels promptly abandoned their first line, and made no attempt to defend the stream. Their infantry fell back on the old cantonments, covered by their cavalry and horse artillery, both of which occasionally made as though they would charge the British line. Nothing came of it, how- ever. The British force still continued to press on, capturing as they reached the rivulet the guns which the rebels had failed to remove. The rivulet, not defended, offered but a slight Bir Colin , . , crosses the obstacle to the advance of the British army. Nattiarivn- Whilst the left of their first line held the bridge, the righl crossed it. The firsl line then advanced about three-quarters of a mile towards the town. The heavy guns were then rapidly passed over in [Jgjjfjyj succession, and were placed in a position to rake turn. the enemy's Becond line. The troops then halted 526 THE ONSLAUGHT OP THE GHAZIS. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May 5. The rebels make a counter attack. The on- slaught of the Ghazis. to allow time for the siege-train and baggage to close up. Whilst the troops formed up, thus halted, the 4th Panjab Rifles in some old cavalry lines on the left, the enemy made a desperate effort to change the fortunes of the day. In my description of the troops led by Khan Bahadur Khan I stated that there were amongst them a certain number who were resolved to sell their lives dearly, and neither to give nor accept quarter. I alluded to the Ghazis, men who be- lieved that the taking the life of an infidel opened to the slayer the gate of Paradise, and who were thus impelled by the most self-appealing of all motives to court, sword in hand and desperation in every act, the death which was to give them a glorious immortality. The line, formed up, was halting, when a con- siderable body of these fanatics, " fine fellows, grizzly-bearded elderly men for the most part, with green turbans and kammarbands, every one of them wearing a silver signet-ring, a long text of the Koran engraved on it," * rushed out from the right, and dashed at the village held by the 4th Panjabis. " They came on," wrote the eye- witness I have already quoted, " with their heads down below their shields, their talwars flashing as they waved them over their heads, shouting 1 Din, Din ! ' " t dashed at the village, swept the surprised Sikhs out of it with the impulse and force of their rush, and then hurled themselves * W. H. Eussell. f Faith, Religion. THE GHAZIS D1K WHBEE THEY FOUGHT. 527 against the 42nd Highlanders, who were moving book xil to the support and to cover the re-formation of the Panjabis. Fortunately Sir Colin happened to May 5. be close to the 42nd. He had just time to call out " Stand firm, 42nd ; bayonet them as they come on!" The 42nd did stand firm. The Ghazis could make no impression upon their ser- ried ranks. They killed some of them indeed ; and they acted up to their professions. Not one of them went back. Killing, wounding, or fail- ing to kill or to wound, every man of them who had flung himself against the Highland wall was bayoneted where he had fought. But a portion of them had swept past the 42nd Danger of 1 in Cameron, and had dashed to the rear, where were Cameron commanding that regiment, and, a little further back, Walpole, of Riiiya renown. Three of the Ghazis dashed at Cameron, pulled him off his horse, and were about to despatch him, when Colour-Sergeant Gardner of the 42nd dashed out of the ranks and bayoneted two of them, whilst a private shot the third.* Walpole narrowly *»*»* escaped death from a similar cause, and was delivered by men of the same regiment. This attack repulsed, the 42nd, supported by TheBritfeh the 4th Sikhs mid a pari of the 79th, advanced, advanoe, sweeping through the empty lines and pushing forward for about a mile and a half into the old cantonments. The heal was intense; the men win,, si.- had suffered greatly from the heat, Iroin thirst, denlyhalta and even from sunstroke, thai Sir Colin thought ""'"'■ * Gardner received fche be unable to record here fche Victoria Cross. I regret to name of the private. 528 SIK COLIN HALTS FOR THE DAY. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May 5. The rebels attack the baggage, but are i-epulsed. Sir Colin orders the baggage guards to close up. Fresh encounter with the Ghazis. it advisable to sound the halt for the day, even at the risk of leaving a door of escape to the enemy — for Bareli had not been entered. Another reason weighed to a certain extent with him in arriving at this conclusion. During the attack of the Ghazis the enemy's cavalry, skilfully handled, had galloped round the British left, with a view to plunder the baggage. The amount of alarm, confusion, and panic created by this movement amongst the drivers and camp- followers is not to be described. A few rounds from Tombs' s guns, and a threatened counter- attack from the Carabineers and the Miiltani Horse, soon dispersed the enemy. But Sir Colin deemed it nevertheless desirable that the im- pedimenta should close up with the main force. Directing, then, a portion of the 79th and 93rd to seize all the suburbs in their front, he placed the troops as far as possible in the shade, and halted for the day. The attack thus made on the suburbs led to fresh encounters with the Ghazis. One company of the 93rd — led by Lieutenant Cooper, whose gallant bearing at the Sikandar Bagh was the theme of admiring comment * — sent on this duty, arrived at a spot near the suburbs where some artillery guns under Lieutenant-Colonel Brind were posted. Brind pointed out to Cooper the position which he believed the Ghazis were occupying. That officer, carefully noting the place, posted his men in some ruined houses and under cover of * Fide page 183. KHAN BAHADUR KHAN ESCAPES SIR COLIN. 529 some walls to the left and left front of it. The Book xii. guns then opened fire. After a few rounds the a ^l buildings occupied by the G-hazis caught fire. jj® 5 | The Ghazis rushed out. Some five or six made a dash at Cooper. Two of these he shot dead, a third he killed after a brisk pursuit ; with a fourth he then engaged in a sword fight, when the Ghazi was shot dead by a private. The others were disposed of by the men. The halt ordered by Sir Colin, desirable as it The halt was for the health of the troops, was, in a mili- Bahadur tary point of view, fatal. It gave Khan Bahadur K ^ t0 Jl ' ° withdraw, Khan a chance which he eagerly seized. No sooner had the shades of darkness fallen than the wily Rohilla quietly withdrew the bulk of his trained forces from the town and stole away to Pilibhit, thirty-three miles north-east of Bareli, leaving only a rabble to maintain a show of resistance. When, then, the following morning, the guns and the city of Sir Colin Campbell began to play upon the evacuated 7 city, they met with no reply. The sound of ar- .May 6. tillery fire was indeed heard on the opposite side, but that fire proceeded from the guns of Bri- gadier General Jones. I left that officer marching from Moradabad <;<'»erai towards Bareli to attack that city on the side op- i,', ",','„ I'h','.' posite to that by which Sir Colin Campbell had <»&•*««** approached. The march was one long-continued skirmish. At NTtirganj, twenty-one miles from Bareli, the Multiini cavalry ami Pat linn horse again dicjr admirable service, completely defeating the rebels, and capturing several guns. As he ii. -;i 530 jones's column joins sir colin. book xii. approached with the advance of the force to Bareli, chapter iv. Coke could obtain nQ tidings f gi r Colin or his 1858. movements ; but whilst waiting for information, some Hindu retail dealers announced to him that the rebels had deserted their guns placed at the entrance to the city. With a combined cau- tion and daring adapted to the circumstances, Coke presses Coke determined to proceed himself, and, should advIncV* 16 the story prove true, to take possession of the guns. He took with him a detachment of the Pathan cavalry. But he had hardly come within sight of the guns, barely within range, when the falsehood of the traders' tale became apparent — for the guns at once opened fire on his party. Fortunately the rebels were unable to control their impatience, or the consequences might have been disastrous. As it happened, one trooper only was killed. Coke at once sent back for the heavy guns and the infantry; then, placing a company of the 60th Rifles in a walled garden command- ing the entrance to the city, ordered the guns to open fire. Ten minutes later the enemy's guns were silenced. Coke then led the Panjab infantry regiments into the city and penetrated as far as the great mosque. Cureton's cavalry had mean- while been sent to operate outside with the double view to cut off the rebels from their line and effects a of retreat to the north and to open out communi- junction with cat i on w ith Sir Colin. The action of the cavalry bir Colin. . i • t • outside speedily made itself felt within the city, for the rebels, fearing for their line of retreat, evacuated the place with so much haste, that when Coke proceeded to make arrangements to SKILFUL STRATEGY OF THE HOULVI. 531 force his way further, he discovered that none book xii. were required, as the city had been deserted. The Clmpter IV - next day, the 7th May, a junction was effected M ^ with Sir Colin. The town had indeed been conquered, but the The second bulk of the rebel army had escaped. This was the Sbeifhld second occasion in this short Rohilkhand campaign ^ lufle(1 Sir • i Colin. in which the rebel leaders had outmanoeuvred the British commander : on the first, the Moulvi had doubled back from Shahjahanpur into Oudh ; on the second, Khan Bahadur Khan had succeeded in escaping to a point not far from the Nipal fron- tier, along which it would not be difficult to pene- trate into the same kingdom. But the Moulvi was influenced by motives skilful nobler than those indicated by a mere avoidance JjJJjJJJiJj of his powerful enemies. With the prescience of a capable general he had counted on the probability that Bareli would offer to the British army a certain resistance ; and he had resolved to avail himself of the opportunity thus offered to make a raid upon Shahjahanpur and overpower the small garrison which he hoped would be left there. Sir Colin Campbell had left in Shahjahanpur Force left in a wing of the 82nd, a detachment of artillery plunder*" with two 24-pounders and two 9-pounders, and OoioneiHaie. De Kantzow's [rregular Horse — the whole under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Eale, C.B., of the 82nd. The habitable houses in Shah- jahanpur having been unroofed by order of Nana Sahib, Bale had pitched his camp in a tope of trees near the jail, indicated to him by Sir Colin ' 34 * 532 HE SEARCHES TO SURPRISE HALE. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May 2. The Moulvi resolves to surprise Hale's force. His plan is ruined by a halt on the road. Hale is in- formed of his approach. as the place to be held should he be attacked. The enclosure round this building he at once pro- ceeded to make defensible, placing in it his guns and as large a stock of provisions as he could pro- cure. Working with great zeal and energy, Hale completed his preparations in one day — the day on which the Commander-in-Chief left him to pro- ceed to Bareli — the 2nd May. Meanwhile the Moulvi and his army had reached Mohamdi. There he found, eager to join him in any attack on the British, the Raja of that place, and one Mian Sahib, one of the old Lakh- nao chiefs, each at the head of a considerable body of armed men, most of them mounted. Their plans were quickly formed. Learning that the bulk of the British force would leave Shahjahan- pur for Bareli on the morning of the 2nd, they resolved to attempt to surprise the place and cut up the detachment left to guard it the following morning. They marched that day and part of the night of the 2nd to carry out this resolve. But again an excellent plan was spoiled by inefficient execu- tion. Had the Moulvi pushed on he would have reached the town in the dead of night, and it is possible that he might have reaped all the advan- tage of a complete surprise. But, when within four miles of the place, he halted to rest his men. The halt was fatal to his complete success. Native spies employed by the British were on the alert, and one of these flew with the intelligence of his dangerous vicinity to Colonel Hale. Hale acted at once with the prudence which BAFFLED IN THIS, HE OCCUPIES THE TOWN. 533 the circumstances required. He Lad been or- BooK x n. dered to remain on the defensive. Instantly, then, — he moved his stores and camp equipage into the May!'. jail, covering the transfer with four companies of the 82nd. He then went forward with De Herecon. Kantzow's Horse to reconnoitre. The sudden apparition of vast bodies of cavalry, numbering about eight thousand, covering the plain, proved the truth of the spy's story. De Kantzow,* truly one of the heroes of the mutiny, always ready for action, always cool and resolute, was for a charge to check their advance. Hale, mind- and then ful of his orders, would not permit it, but falling the jail. back, brought all his men within the jail enclosure, thence to bid defiance to the enemy. Meanwhile the Moulvi and his allies, pressing The MouM on, speedily mastered the undefended town, seized p^Xrathe the old fort, and then imposed a money requisition town - upon the wealthier inhabitants. In acting thus he simply conformed to the customs of war as practised in Europe. Simultaneously he placed his guns, eight in number, in position against the jail. From this day, the 3rd, till the morning of the 11th, he bombarded the British position incessantly, with- out, however, producing any other effect upon Hale and his comrades than an increasing resolve to hold out until assistance should arrive. Intelligence of the state of things at Shahja- Sir Colin hanpur first reached Sir Colin Campbell on the state of 7th. On thai very day he had become master of S£h?aMn- Bareli, and had effected a junction with the Rurki p**- • l /./. v<»l. i. |.;il"- 157 '.», .iii.l page 500 of this volume. 534 SIR COLIN SENDS JONES TO SHAHJAHANPUR. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May 7-11. He orders Jones to inarch on Shahjahan- pur. Composition of Jones's force. He advances on Shahja- hanpur, column under Jones. The news was like a mes- sage from heaven. Fortune gave him a chance to repair the error by which the Moulvi had been allowed to escape him on his march, and this time he was determined that there should be no mistake. He at once sent for Brigadier John Jones, and directed him to march the following morning with a brigade, the nature and composition of which he indicated, to Shajahanpur, there to deal with the Moulvi. He gave him further discre- tionary power to pursue his success, and, should he think it advisable, to attack Mohamdi. The troops composing the brigade ordered on this duty were the 60th Rifles, the 79th High- landers, a wing of the 82nd, the 22nd Panjab In- fantry, two squadrons of Carabineers, the Miiltani Horse, with some heavy guns and some horse artil- lery. With this little force Jones marched on the morning of the 8th. Shortly after sunrise on the 11th he reached a point close to Shahjahanpur, where the road branches out to the city and can- tonments. Immediately afterwards the advance guard reported the presence of the enemy. Jones at once drew up his men, the heavy guns in the centre, and then moved forward. He soon came in sight of the enemy, huge masses of horsemen, formed up, and ready, apparently, to dispute the further progress of the British. A few shots from the heavy guns checked them, and, the High- landers and Rifles pushing on in front whilst the horse artillery guns opened on their flanks, their hesitation developed into retreat, and, very soon after, by a continuance of the same tactics, retreat JONES FORCES HIS WAY INTO THE CITY. 535 into flight. They still held the old fort, the book xn. bridge of boats over the river, the stone bridge a ^- over the Kanarat Naddi, the houses in the town, Mayii. all loop-holed, and the position was in all respects formidable. But Jones was too quick for them. Pushing forward his skirmishers and horse artil- and presses i ii i p back tte lery, he drove the enemy to the banks ot the river enemy. opposite to the entrance to the city, and by a heavy and continuous fire forced them to abandon the idea they had attempted to put into execution of destroying the bridge of boats, and drove them within the city. Bringing up then his heavy guns and mortars, he compelled them to abandon, one after the other, the old fort, the stone bridge, and other commanding positions. He had now only the town to deal with. Made aware, by the reports which reached him, that all the houses in the mam street had been loop-holed, and that the enemy counted upon his forcing an entrance through that street, Jones resolved to baffle them Jones by avoiding the route indicated, and by taking the suburbs road which led through the eastern suburb. He met with no opposition as he traversed the suburbs, but no sooner did he emerge into a plain near the new schoolhouse, than he dis- covered a body of rebel cavalry. He at once attacked them, drove them back, and then quickened their movements by a few rounds of Bhrapnel. The Carabineers, who came up in the nick of time, were at once sent in pursuit. At first the rebels seemed inclined to measure swords with that gallant regiment, but second am i ( i r i V e„tue thoughts came bo their aid, and they fled, Leaving l . vhuU beforo 536 JONES EFFECTS A JUNCTION WITH HALE. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May 11-14. He effects a junction with Hale, and waits for reinforce- ments. Reinforce- ments, too, flock to the Moulvi. a gun and ammunition waggon in the hands of their pursuers. Jones halted for a quarter of an hour in the open space I have mentioned, to allow his men to form up, and then pushed on by the church and across the parade ground to the jail, still held by the gallant Hale and his comrades. But there commenced the difficulties of the re- lieving force. The main body of the enemy was here found assembled. Their advanced positions — leading through the main street, and which could only have been forced at great risk and with enormous loss — had been turned by the skilful manoeuvre of Jones. But in this open plain, where the masses of their cavalry could act freely, they were too strong to be attacked with any hope of success. Jones, therefore, was forced to maintain himself on the defensive until re- inforcements should reach him from Bareli. To wait for these he established himself in a strong position, flanked on one side by the jail. So passed the 11th. The 12th, 13th, and 14th were spent in preparations for the encounter looming in a very near future, Jones engaged in increasing his means of resistance, the Moulvi in welcoming fresh allies. And, indeed, those allies poured in with an alarming celerity. It was not alone the rabble escaped from previous fights, the discontented landsmen, the freebooters by pro- fession, who flocked to his standard. There came, likewise, one after another, the Begam of Oudh, the prince Firoz Shah, and although Nana Sahib did not himself appear, he sent a body of his fol- lowers, whose presence gave colour to the rumour THE MOULVI ATTACKS JONES. 537 that he too was not afraid to meet in fair fight BooK xn - ,, . ,. iiTi -in Chapter IV. tne countrymen 01 those whom he had murdered. — Rumour lied. Nana Sahib loved his life too well May 14-15. to risk it in a battle with the English. By the evening of the 14th all these reinforce- The Mouivi ments had poured into the Moulvi's camp. On jone^. 8 the 15th he struck his great blow. He attacked Jones with his whole force. But the troops led by Jones were men unaccustomed to show their backs to a foe. Charged and charged again, they repelled every assault. Jones's deficiency in cavalry would not permit him to retaliate, to carry the war into the enemy's camp. But at least they gained no ground from him. His men clung, then, with all the stubbornness of their natures, to the positions which they had been ordered to defend ; and when evening fell, and the baffled enemy ceased their attack, they could boast that they had not lost so much as an inch. They could make the same boast when, three days later, the Commander-in-Chief appeared in person on the scene. To him I must now return. When Sir Colin Campbell had despatched Jones sir Coim, on tn Shahjahanpiir on the 8th, he imagined that he joneato had certainly disposed of the Mouivi and had J&Jffifi; cleared the country as far as Mohamdi in Oudh. butes his forces Regarding, then, the Rohilkhand campaign as vir- tually settled, he began at once to distribute his forces. He nominated General Walpole as divi- sional commander of the troops in Rohilkhand. Some regiments were ordered to remain at BareUi itself; Borne to proceed to Lakhnao; one or two to march fco Mirath. A column, consisting of b 538 SIR COLIN HAD STARTED FOR FATHGARH. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May 15-18. and sets out for Fathgarh. Hearing, on the march, of Jones's posi- tion, he turns towards Shahjahan- pur. He effects a junction with Jones. wing of the 42nd Highlanders, the 4th Pan jab Rifles, the 1st Sikh Infantry, a portion of the 24th Panjab Infantry, a squadron of the Carabi- neers, a detachment of the 17th Irregular Ca- valry, and a considerable force of artillery, with three weeks' supplies for the Europeans and four weeks' for the natives, was directed on the 12th to proceed, under the command of Brigadier Coke, towards Pilibhit, the line of retreat taken by Khan Bahadur Khan. Having made these arrangements, Sir Colin deemed that he might safely return himself to some central station on the great line of commu- nication, whence he could more easily direct the general campaign. Taking with him, then, his headquarter staff, the 64th Foot, two troops of the 9th Lancers, the Biluch Battalion, Tombs's troop of horse, and Le Mesurier's company of foot, artillery, he started from Bareli in the direction of Fathgarh on the 15th. On the 16th, at Faridpur, he received Jones's message. Sir Colin at once sent to Bareli for the remainder of the 9th Lancers, and the next day moved cautiously forward to Tilhar. That evening he received information that the Moulvi, whilst still pressing Shahjahanpur, had withdrawn the bulk of his troops in the direction of Mohamdi, the entire length of the road to which he com- manded. The next morning, the 18th, Sir Colin marched towards Shahjahanpur. As he approached the place, a strong force of the enemy's cavalry, calculated to number fifteen hundred men, with WHEN HE IS SUMMONED TO SHAHJAHANPUB. 539 five guns, threatened to attack him. But it was BooK XIL ° • a- n t Chapter IV. little more than a demonstration, and fen* Lolm, passing the ground on which he had previously May is. encamped, made a partial circuit of the city to the bridge of boats. Crossing this, unopposed, he traversed the city, and effected a junction with Brigadier General Jones. But even then the British force was too weak His cavalry in cavalry to encounter the enemy with any hope ^th the of a decisive result — a result, that is to say, rebels - fraught not only with defeat but with an annihi- lating pursuit. The truth of this presumption was fully shown that very day. Sir Colin had no intention whatever to engage the enemy. It hap- pened, however, that a reconnoitring party of horse was fired on by the enemy from four guns posted in a fortified village called Panhat ; the sound of the guns brought out the masses of the ene- my's cavalry ; and these again attracted to the field the Commander-in-Chief and his whole force. The battle then partially engaged. The 82nd, which brings pushed forward, occupied the village of Panhat, on the right front. They were followed by the horse artillery, and a field battery, and part of the 9th Lancers and the Irregulars. The 79th then took possession of a grove of trees in the centre of the position, near a small rising ground, on which were posted a couple of heavy guns ; whilst a heavy field battery, supported by a wing of the Rifles, with parties of fche Carabineers and Bi- luchis, covered fche Left Hank. It was a strong which,** ' . .j want or defensive position, on which fche enemy could cavalry, ia make no impression. In fcheartillery and cavalry 540 THE MOULVI FALLS BACK INTO OUDH. book xii. skirmish which followed, the rebels displayed more ' a Pj^ • th an ordinary skill and courage, and although in M a 18 i8-W the end they gave ground, no attempt was made to pursue them, sir Colin Sir Colin, in fact, was quite satisfied with the Coke's* 01 ' repulse of the enemy. He preferred to defer a brigade. decisive battle till he should have more troops, especially more cavalry. He sent off, then, a despatch to Brigadier Coke, directing him to bring down his brigade with all possible speed. He then Coke at once turned back, and joined the Corn- Stack tke° mander-in-Chief on the 22nd. On the 24th the rebels, whole force marched to attack the enemy. But again the Moulvi baffled him. Whilst his light cavalry did their utmost to hinder the British advance on Mohamdi, retiring the moment the who fail back pursuers halted to discharge their guns, the mtoOudk. Moulvi and his allies evacuated that place, after destroying the defences. They had similarly treated Katchiani, the mud fort which had pre- viously given shelter to European fugitives. The expulsion of the rebels from Rohilkhand was the one result of the campaign. Close of the How they were followed up and hunted down summer cam- ^ q^ j ^^ ^ ^ another chapter. The occurrences in Rajpiitana, long neglected, demand immediate attention. It will suffice here to state that on the expulsion of the Moulvi from Rohil- khand, the Rohilkhand and Riirki field forces were broken up, the regiments of which they were composed being detailed for other duties. The Commander-in-Chief himself, and the headquarter staff, resumed his journey to Fathgarh; Brigadier THE ARMY is BROKEN UP. 541 Seaton, relieved by Colonel M'Causland in his com- BoOK xn - , , , " . , on i • i / Chapter IV. mana at that place, was appointed to bhalrjanan- piir, having under him the 60th Rifles, the 82nd, ^y the 22 nd Pan jab Infantry, the Miiltani Horse, two squadrons of the Carabineers, and some ar- tillery. Coke turned with his force to Moradabad, to act as Brigadier commanding the district ; the 64th went to Mirath; the 9th Lancers to Ambala; the 79th to Fathgarh. The army was broken up. In south-eastern India, Oudh alone remained to be thoroughly subjugated. But I cannot leave the scene of so many com- The Mould, bats without recording events which, either from their historical interest, or from the deep personal sympathy they excited, demand special notice. The first of these, not in date, not in importance, not in the sympathy it excited, but in the con- nection which it bears to the contents of this chapter, is the death of the Moulvi of Faizab^d. The Moulvi was a very remarkable man. Sir Thomas Seaton, who had many opportunities for arriving at a just opinion, has described him as " a man of great abilities, of undaunted courage, of stern determination, and by far the best sol- dier among the rebels." It has been surmised, and with great reason, that before the mutiny occurred the Moulvi was travelling through India on a roving commission, to excite the minds of his compatriots to the step then contemplated by thr master-spirits of the plot. This at least is known : that such a commission was undertaken; thai the Moulvi travelled t<> the parts of India which subsequently proved mosl susceptible to 542 PREVIOUS CAREER OF THE MOULVI. Hook XII. Chapter IV. 1858. May. His appear- ance and ability as a leader. His death follows im- mediately the close of the summer campaign. the revolt ; that lie was the confidential friend and adviser of a very prominent member of the de- posed royal family of Lakhnao. If, as I believe, the mutiny was really caused not less by the an- nexation of Oudh than by the sudden and trea- cherous manner in which that annexation was carried into effect — that the greased cartridges were simply a means used by the higher conspi- rators to force to revolt men who could be moved only by violence to their faith — the story of the action of the Moulvi only seems natural. Certain it is that in April 1857 he circulated seditious papers throughout Oudh ; that the police did not arrest him ; and that to obtain that end armed force was required. He was then tried and con- demned to death. But before the sentence could be executed, Oudh broke into revolt, and, like many a political criminal in Europe, he stepped at once from the floor of a dungeon to the footsteps of a throne. He became the confidential friend and adviser of the Begam of Lakhnao, the trusted leader of the rebels. In person the Moulvi was tall, lean, and mus- cular, with large deep-set eyes, beetle brows, a high aquiline nose, and lantern jaws. Of his capacity as a military leader many proofs were given during the revolt, but none more decisive than those recorded in this chapter. No other man could boast that he had twice foiled Sir Colin Campbell in the field ! His death he owed, strange to say, not to his enemies, but to his quondam allies. After his retreat from Mohamdi, determined to use every THE MOULYI ASKS AID AT POWAIN. 543 means in his power to hinder the complete sue- BoOK xii t cess of the British, the Moulvi started off, armed ' — with the authority and money of the Begam, for ]™ Powain, a town on the frontiers of Oudh and Rohilkhand, thirteen miles north-east of Shahja- hanpur. The Raja of this place was supposed to possess a certain amount of influence, and it was the Moulvi's object to induce him and others to join in a new league against the British. The Moulvi started for Powain, with a small The manner following, on the 5th June, having previously sent forward a messenger to make known his wishes to the Raja. The Raja, Jaggarnath Singh by name, was a fat unwieldy man, not given to mar- tial feats, desirous to sit at home at ease, and par- ticularly anxious to avoid giving offence to the British in the hour of their triumph. He, however, consented to grant the Moulvi a conference. Upon this the Moulvi pushed on to Powain. On reaching that place he found, to his surprise, The Moulvi that the gates were closed, the walls manned, and force'aV the Raja, his brother, and his armed retainers, jSjpJJJi^ were lining the ramparts which overlooked the gateway. Amid these unpromising appearances the conference began. But the Moulvi soon satisfied himself that unless he could overawe the Raja his eloquence would be wasted. To overawe him, then, he made the driver of the elephant upon which he was mounted urge the animal forward to burst open the gate The elephant advanced, and applied his head with such force to the barrier, that in :i second or two it must inevitably have yielded. In this crisis the Raja's brother, inspired 544 THE MOULVI IS KILLED. Book XII. Chapter IV. 1858. June. and is shot dead. His head is exposed. Tribute due to the Moulvi, by the urgency of the occasion, seized a gun and shot the Moulvi dead. His followers at once turned and fled. The Raja and his brother at once cut off the Moulvi' s head, and, wrapping it in a cloth, drove to Shahjahanpur, thirteen miles distant. Arrived at the magistrate's house, they entered, and found that official and his friends at dinner. They at once produced the bundle, and rolled the bloody head at the feet of the English- men. It was at once exposed to view in a con- spicuous part of the town, " for the information and encouragement of all concerned."* Thus died the Moulvi Ahmad Ulla of Faizabad. If a patriot is a man who plots and fights for the independence, wrongfully destroyed, of his native country, then most certainly the Moulvi was a true patriot. He had not stained his sword by assassination, he had connived at no murders : he had fought manfully, honourably, and stub- bornly in the field against the strangers who had seized his country, and his memory is entitled to the respect of the brave and the true-hearted of all nations. Naturally enough, the British Government re- joiced to be rid of a formidable enemy. But another death, occurring a few weeks earlier, caused an outburst of the deepest sorrow in the heart of every Englishman serving in India — throughout the homes and the hearths of England. The reader who has accompanied me so far will * The Government paid thousand pounds for killing the Rapi a reward of five the Moulvi. HONOURS AWARDED TO WILLIAM PEEL. 545 have marked with pride and pleasure the record Book xii. of the splendid achievements of the Naval Bri- CbapterIV - gade under its gallant and accomplished leader, I 85 ?- William Peel ; they will remember that on the William Peel. 9th March, when seeking a suitable place for the posting of some guns to breach the outer wall of the Martiniere, William Peel was shot in the thigh by a musket-ball. The ball, however, was extracted, and the progress to convalescence after the extraction, if slow, was solid and hopeful. With the capture of Lakhnao the work of the Reception Naval Brigade was regarded as completed. On ulm w»a hfe the 1st April, thou, the sailors struck their tents, caiSSta™ and started for Kanhpur on their way to Calcutta. Great preparations were made to receive them in that city. The Government had decided to notify their sense of their splendid services by giving them a public reception, and the Calcutta people, for once in accord with the Government, were resolved that the reception should yield, in hearti- ness, in sincerity, and in splendour, to none by which a body of public men had ever been greeted in their palatial city. No one foresaw that the daring leader, for whom the greatest ovation was reserved, would be called to his last home too soon to witness the admiration of his non-com- batant countrymen. One gratification, indeed, had been reserved for Honours William Peei. On the 2nd March be had received wuSf^e] the mark of I be approval of bia Gracious Sove- bytheOrown, reign, intimated by his nomination to be an Aide- de-Camp to the Queen, and by the bestowal of the Knight Commandership of the Bath. Thej n. .'Jo 546 HIS DEATH. Book XII. Chapter IV 1858. April. He is attacked by small-pox, and dies. Universal grief at his death. General order issued on the occasion by Lord Canning, were fit honours for his noble service, rewards of the nature he would prize the most, as constituting spontaneous testimony from his Sovereign of the efforts he had made to suppress the rebellion, the possible mischief of which, if unchecked, no one had recognised more clearly than had the First Lady in the Realm.* William Peel reached Kanhpiir in safety. Though still weak, he was still slowly gaining strength, when, on the 20th April, he was attacked by confluent small-pox. His frame had been too much weakened to bear the shock. On the 27th he succumbed to the disease. In him England lost one of the worthiest, of the noblest of her sons. How thoroughly he had impressed his spirit on the men whom he led may be gathered from the journal of one of them. " I cannot say," wrote Lieutenant Verney, on the 30th April, " what a sad loss we all feel this to be, and how deeply his death is felt and regretted by every officer and man ; the mainspring that worked the machinery is gone. We never felt ourselves to be the Shannon* 's Naval Brigade, or even the Admiralty Naval Brigade, but always PeaVs Naval Brigade." But the grief was not confined to the gallant men who had followed him. It was overpowering ; it was universal ; it was realised that England had lost a king of men. The Government were not slow in giving ex- pression to the universal feeling. On the 30th April Lord Canning issued a general order, in Life of the Prince Consort, vol. iv. chapter 78. GENERAL RECOGNITION OF HIS MERIT. 547 which, after notifying the sad fact and recapitn- book xti. lating his services, he thus eloquently recorded ap e his sense of the extent of the catastrophe, of the P 5 ^,' greatness of the man :— " The loss of his daring but thoughtful courage, joined with eminent abili- ties, is a heavy one to this country ; but it is not more to be deplored than the loss of that influence which his earnest character, admirable temper, and gentle kindly bearing exercised on all within his reach — an influence which was exerted un- ceasingly for the public good, and of which the Governor-General believes it may with truth be said, that there is not a man of any rank or pro- fession who, having been associated with Sir William Peel in these times of anxiety and danger, has not felt and acknowledged it." The memory of his great name and his great Marble deeds still survives. In the Eden Gardens of Cal- Lloakutta. 1 * 1 cutta a statue in white marble recalls to the citi- zens, by whom those gardens are nightly thronged, the form and fashion of him who was indeed the noblest volunteer of this or any age, who was successful because he was really great, and who, dying early, left a reputation without spot, the best inheritance he could bequeath to his country- men. I have already recorded the death of Venables. Venabies. This gentleman, an indigo-planter, had, by his un- flinching daring, saved the district of Azamgarh in June 1857, when its natural guardians had with- drawn from it. Subsequently he had struggled bravely against the invaders from Oudli, and had ridden witb Pranks, asa volunteer, in his glorious 35 * 548 VENABLES, Book Xll. Chapter IV. 1858. April. march from the eastern frontier of Oudh to Lakh- nao. Withdrawing thence to Allahabad, ''broken in health and spirits, anxious for rest, looking for- ward eagerly to his return to England,"* he was persuaded by the Governor- General to return to Azamgarh, once again seriously threatened. The reader will recollect how useful were the services he then rendered to the gallant Lord Mark Kerr. Nor were those subsequently given to Sir E. * Letter from Lord Can- ning to the Committee of the Calcutta Chamber of Com- merce, assembled in June 1858, to devise a fitting monument to Mr. Venables. The letter ran thus : — " It will be a satisfaction to me to join in this good work, not only on account of the admi- ration which I feel for the high qualities which Mr. Venables devoted to the public service, his intrepidity in the field, his energy and calm temper in upholding the civil authority, and his thoroughly just appreciation of the people and circum- stances with which he had to deal, but also, and espe- cially, on account of circum- stances attending the last service which Mr. Venables rendered to his country. After the capture of Luck- now, where he was attached to Brigadier-General Franks's column, Mr. Venables came to Allahabad. He was broken in health and spirits, anxious for rest, and looking forward eagerly to his return to Eng- land, for which his prepara- tions were made. At that time the appearance of affairs near Azimghar was threaten- ing ; and I asked Mr. Vena- bles to forego his departure from India, and return to that district, with which he was intimately acquainted, thei'e to assist in preserving order until danger should have passed away. He at once consented cheerfully ; and that consent cost him his life. I am certain that the Court of Directors, who are fully informed of all particu- lars of Mr. Venables' great services and untimely death, will be eager to mark, in such manner as shall seem best to them, their appreciation of the character of this brave, self-denying English gentle- man ; and I am truly glad to nave an opportunity of join- ing with his fellow-country- men in India in testifying the sincere respect which I feel for his memory." THE 'BKAVE. SELF-DENYING ENGLISH GENTLEMAN.' 549 Lugard less remarkable. It was in the perform- Book xii. ance of "these great services," inspired by the a p ei highest sense of duty, that, on the 15th April, he * 8 Jjj* was struck down. The wound was mortal. "A The noble few days afterwards," wrote in eloquent language renderecUo some years ago an able and conscientious histo- his country, rian,* " death, resulting from the wound, cut short the sufferings and belied the hopes of this ' brave, self-denying English gentleman,' one among many such who in those days of sharp trial proved their right to be held in equal honour with the best rewarded officers of the East India Company and the Crown." * Trotter's History of the British Empire in India. 550 BOOK XII. Rajputana. Continues tranquil. CHAPTER V. I have brought the history of events in Rajpu- tana up to the end of June 1857, and have shown how the foresight and energy of General G. St. P. Lawrence, had till then baffled all the efforts of the mutinous soldiers who had been sent to support British authority in that extensive country. The tranquillity restored in June continued throughout July. General Lawrence maintained his headquarters at Ajmir, but he moved thence occasionally, as his military and political duties required, to Biadr and Nasirabad. To show his confidence in the Mairs, he would have no other guard but a native officer's party of the Mair- wara battalion, and it is only fair to those loyal men to add that the events which followed, many of them peculiarly trying, fully justified that con- fidence. CONFIDENCE IN GENERAL GEORGE LAWRENCE. 551 It was a considerable evidence of the satisfac- book xii. , j» t» • /i / ^ Chapter V. tion felt by the princes and people 01 Kajputana with the mild but effective suzerainty of the British J^J; that they showed no sympathy with the revolted Effect on the sepoys. The exactions of Amir Khan and the ^"pie^/the grinding tyranny of the Marathas were not so re- j^ ld B ^J h of mote but that the recollection of them could be entirely forgotten. The forty succeeding years of peace and prosperity, of protection against outer enemies, had been a proof of the advantage of the British connection too practical to allow the existence of a wish that the connection should be severed. They felt keenly, that whatever might be the result of such severance, even were it to be effected, it would not be to their advantage ; and they knew from the experience of the past that complete success in the field of military hordes was the certain prelude to unbridled license, to a condition of rule without law. These sentiments of the people w r ere fully dis- The confi- , . -. . " -, dence played on more than one occasion during the bestowed by months that followed the outbreaks at Nimach q*™£ x and Nasirabad. The air was infected with panic ; Lawrence. the movement of a corporal's guard was magni- fied into a great military demonstration : rumours, Blight in their origin, were multiplied by every mouth that repeated them, until the resemblance to the original disappeared altogether. In this state of affairs the merchants, the bankers, the trading community in the great centres of Raj- ptitana, terrified by the reports, would send away their families for security, and then come to "their father," the Governor -General's agent, for 552 THE DISAFFECTED FEW. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. July-August. General Lawrence's demeanour. The dis- affected few. An emeute the A'jmir advice and protection. In every instance Gene- ral Lawrence succeeded in calming their fears, and in inducing them to recall their families. His own example tended not a little to inspire them with confidence. When at Ajmir he never once allowed the routine of civil duties to be in- terrupted, but held open court, almost daily visit- ing the city, where, in spite of the fierce and sullen looks of the disaffected, he was always regarded with respect. Treating the people with a generous confidence, General Lawrence was nevertheless stern, even severe towards all wrong- doers, and never once relaxed the reins of strict and efficient discipline. I have spoken of " the fierce and sullen looks of the disaffected." In all great cities, in all large countries, there must be some who hate re- striction. The criminal class, the men who having nothing would live by other means than by labour, answer to this description. But above all, in the circumstances of 1857, were the soldiery. Through- out this period there was, there could not help being, a considerable amount of sympathy between the native soldiers of the Company and the native soldiers of the indigenous princes. They were of the same caste and the same class ; they often came from the same recruiting-ground. The causes which impelled the British sepoys to mutiny could not fail to influence greatly their comrades in other services. These were the men whose looks were fierce and sullen, these the classes from whom danger w^as to be apprehended. From these classes the danger came. On the OCCASIONAL OUTBREAKS. 553 9th August an outbreak took place in the Aimir book xn. ° . \ tip Chapter V. jail, and fifty prisoners escaped — an outbreak ot the criminal class. But General Lawrence was A ug 8 |-io. prompt. He sent out a detachment of the jail is sup- mounted police, previously warned by him to be presse in readiness, to pursue them, and rode after them himself. The fugitives were cut up or captured. It was a sign of the good feeling of the respect- able classes, that when he set out on this pursuit, many leading Mahomedans of the city volunteered to accompany him. On the day following, one of the other classes jWJjJ*" referred to — the military class — showed its teeth. Nasirabad One of the regiments accompanying the force for which Lawrence had made a requisition on Disa, and which had reached Nasirabad on the 12th June, was the 12th Bombay Native Infantry. A trooper of the 1st Bombay Lancers, suddenly mounting his charger, had galloped in front of the lines of his regiment, endeavouring by cries and threats to induce his comrades to mutiny. The Bombay Lancers, however, were staunch, and some of them mounted their horses to pursue the rebel, whereupon, discharging his carbine at one of them, a native officer, he fled to the lines of the 12th, where he was received and sheltered. Meanwhile the Brigadier, Henry Macan, had come on to the parade ground. He at once ordered the men of the 12th to turn out. Only forty obeyed. Upon this the Brigadier called out the guns, and bringing up a company of the 83rd, proceeded to the lines of the 12th. The original mutineer, the suppressed trooper ofthe 1st Cavalry, fired at him but missed. %**** 554 OCCASIONAL OUTBREAKS. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. Aug. 10-12. A similar occurrence at Nimach is success- fully met by Colonel Jackson. The rebel himself was then shot by an artillery officer. The men of the 12th were paraded, and all who had disobeyed the order to turn out were disarmed. Their muskets were found loaded. The ringleaders were then tried by court-martial, five were hanged and three sentenced to imprison- ment for life. Twenty-five had previously deserted. To the remainder their arms, on their expression of contrition, were restored, and they behaved well in the field ever afterwards. A similar feeling displayed itself about the same time at another station. I have already stated* that after the revolt of the native troops at Ni- mach, General Lawrence, having no other soldiers at his disposal, had caused that place to be occu- pied by detachments from Mewa, Kota, and Biindi. Subsequently, placing little trust in these men, he had ordered up a force composed of one squadron of the 2nd Bombay Light Cavalry, one hundred men of the 83rd, and two hundred of the 12th Bombay Native Infantry to relieve them. But some of the relievers were as bad as the relieved. About the 12th August some disaffected men of the 2nd Light Cavalry and the 12th Native Infantry endeavoured to promote a disturbance. But Colonel Jackson, the commanding officer, acted with great promptitude. Before the mutiny had actually declared itself, he brought up the 83rd, and seized the ringleaders. Some of these were arrested, eight escaped, one man of the 83rd was killed, an officer and two men were wounded, but the mutiny was nipped in the bud. * Vol. i. page 256. THE JODHPUR LEGION. 5 5 5 But the mutinous feeling had been too widely book xil spread over the province to be checked by one ' - — or two failures, nor had the officers at the out- Anjult. stations at hand the same means of repression as those possessed by the commandants at Nimach and Nasirabad. The station of Mount Abu, in the native state Mount A'bu, oi • ' • i* i n summer of Sirohi, was the summer residence ot the bo- residence in vernor- General's agent, and generally of the wives a]pu an ' and families of the officers serving under him. There, at this time, were congregated the wife and two daughters of General Lawrence, and the wives and families of many officers serving in the field. In the European barracks were likewise thirty convalescent soldiers of the 83rd. To pro- tect the station was a detachment of sixty to seventy men of the Jodhpur legion — whose head- quarters were at Irinpurah — under the command of Captain Hall. The Jodhpur legion consisted of artillery, Composition J m , .,, of the Joclh- cavalry, and infantry. I he artillery — two P ur legion. 9-pounders — was drawn by camels and manned from the infantry. The cavalry consisted of three troops, each having two native officers, eight non-commissioned officers, seventy-two troopers, and a trumpeter. The infantry was formed of eight com]. allies of Hindustanis, each having two native officers, twelve non-commissioned officers, and eighty privates; and three companies of Bhils, each counting seventy men besides native officers. The legion, especially the cavalry por- tion of it, had a good reputation tor efficiency. On the I'M I. August a company of the infantry *JJ£g 556 THE ATTEMPT ON MOUNT ABU Hook XII. Chapter V. 1857. .Vug. 19-21. of the legion meet at Anadra. Captain Hall inspects them and finds them cheery. The men at Anadra mutiny, climb the hill, and fire into the barracks. portion of the legion, which had been sent with the view of holding in check a rebel chief in the neighbourhood, arrived at a place called Anadra, two miles from the foot of the mountain pass leading to Abu. A troop of cavalry of the same legion had arrived there a few days previously, and had been distributed in small parties in the different villages to protect the road from Disa to Abu. The following afternoon Captain Hall arrived at Anadra to give orders for the occuj3ation by the detachment of certain villages. The sepoys and their baggage had been soaked by heavy rain, but the men seemed cheery and well-disposed. Having given the necessary orders, he returned to Abu. But on his way he met a havildar belong- ing to the detachment at that place, who, in reply to his question, said that he was going to see his newly arrived friends. This w T as true so far as it went : but the havildar deemed it unnecessary to add — what nevertheless was proved from subse- quent inquiry to be the fact — that " he had been deputed to manage the attack which was to come off the following morning."* The morning of the 21st was thick and hazy, and the people residing at A'bii, under the in- fluence of murky atmosphere, kept their beds late. Not so the men of the Jodhpur legion at Anadra. They rose very early, climbed the hill, and, under the cover of the dense fog, crept un- seen to the door of the barracks, in which lay, * Priehard's Mutinies in Rajpidana. IS COMPLETELY BAFFLED. 557 buried in sleep, the thirty sick and invalid British Book xn. soldiers. The native assassins then peeped through ; ap ei the window and saw their intended victims sleep- J^ 5 ^ ing. Then raising their muskets, they poked the muzzles through the windows — and fired. They aimed too high ! The British soldiers Complete . J & failure of the starting from sleep at that sound, unwonted at mutineer. Abu, divine the cause, seize their muskets, and begin to load. But then another volley is poured in, harmless as its predecessor. By this time their muskets are loaded, they rush out, they reply. The result is "singular but satisfactory; one mutineer fell — the rest ran away."* While the main body were thus engaged at the They fail abo i i .i . j- j- i n to km Cap- barracks, another party or mutineers had crept tain Hail, round to Captain Hall's house, to dispose, if pos- sible, of a man whom they knew to be capable and resolute, and whose influence they dreaded. Arrived in front of the house, they became aware that Captain Hall was asleep. They at once ex- tended in line in front of it, and by word of com- mand fired a volley within. Again was the result futile. Hall, awakened by the noise, managed to escape by a back door with his family into the schoolhouse, which had been fortified as a place of refuge. Leaving his family there, he took with him a small guard of four men of the 83rd, and, charging the assailants, drove them off. He was speedily joined by the remaining men of the 83rd, and the mutineers were driven from the hill. The state of the weather rendered pursuit im- possible. * Prichard. 558 TBE MUTINEERS AT IRINPUliAH. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. Aug. 21-22. but wound Mr. Law- rence. The muti- neers set out for I'rin- purah. The Jodhpiir legion muti- nies at that place. Trying position of Lieutenant Conolly. He appeals to the Bhils, Only one European was wounded, and that was Mr. Alexander Lawrence, son of the General. Hearing the firing, he bad started for Captain Hall's house, when the sepoys noted and shot him — in the thigh. The wound was severe, but he recovered. The mutineers, baffled first by their own clum- siness, and secondly by the spirit of the men they had tried to murder, made at once for the head- quarters of the regiment — the station of Irinpii- rah. The only Europeans at this station at the time were the adjutant, Lieutenant Conolly, two sergeants and their families. Early on the morn- ing of the 22nd, a letter from one of the baffled mutineers was brought to Conolly by his orderly, Makdiin Bakhsh by name. This letter, addressed to the men at headquarters, called upon them to revolt and join their comrades " who had been to Abu, fought with the Europeans, and taken all precautions." Conolly immediately mounted his horse and rode down to the parade ground. A glance showed him that the spirit of mutiny had infected the troops. The gunners were running to their guns, shouting to Conolly, as they ran, to keep off. Conolly then determined to appeal to the Bhils, who had no sympathies of caste, of kindred, or even of a common origin, with the men of the other branches of the legion. But to reach the Bhils he was forced to pass the lines of the cavalry. These, too, he saw were mutinying, and though he stopped to order them to turn out under arms, but not to stir from their lines, his orders were not attended to. At last he reached COOL DARING OF CONOLLY. 559 the Bkils. He found them loyal and ready to book xn. i • /^i Chapter V. obey mm, except so tar as to march against the loaded guns and muskets of their more numerous Aug? 22. comrades. As a last resource, Conolly rode back to make an appeal to the infantry. He found then to the them mad with excitement, and refusing to hear a word. He then tried the gunners. But, as he then to the ? 1 1 ■ 1 gunners, neared the guns, the men shouted to him to keep off; as he persisted in advancing, they wheeled their guns round, and pointed the muzzles at him, holding the portfires ready. Conolly then turned his horse's head, and changiug his direction, rode again at the guns, taking them in flank. Upon this several troopers rode at him, between him and the guns, and pointing their carbines at him, ex- claimed, "Go back, or we will fire." Conolly and fails with then called out with a loud voice that those on his side should join him. A few troopers rode over. Meanwhile the sepoys had begun the work of The small r " / . , , . English plunder. The two English sergeants with their colony is in wives and families, two men, two women, and five grea children, unable to stem the tide, had abandoned their houses, and were seeking refuge in vain flight. Conolly sent for them to join him in the cavalry lines. They came. " Here, then," writes the chronicler of the story of the mutinies in Raj- putana,* " the little band of English men and * Lieutenant Hindus Tho- after 1858, and devoted him- maa Prichard, of the l. r >th self to literature, in which he Regiment Native [nfantry, a played, in India, a conspicuous soldier and a scholar of n<> and honourable part. His mean capacity. The mutinj work on the mutiny ia styled of his regiment disgusted The Mutinies in h'uj/ii'ifi'ni'i : Mr. Prichard with military a Personal Narrative, service. Ee left the army 560 A PEW MEN RALLY ROUND HIM. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. Au°\ 22. soon to become still greater, when a slight reaction occurs. The "loyal" rebels are willing to spare Conolly and the children, but not the sergeants and their wives. women were collected, utterly helpless, surrounded by blood-thirsty villains, every instant plunging- deeper and deeper into their career of crime, from which there was no drawing back, and becoming- more and more intoxicated with the unbridled in- dulgence of their passion for plunder, lust, and rapine." It was indeed a terrible and a trying position. It was soon to become worse. Gradually the men who had responded to Conolly' s call began to show a disposition to desert him. There were a few noble and loyal spirits, however, who in this dark hour dared to show that they preferred honour to life. A rasaldar,* Abbas Ali by name, came forward, and taking off his turban in a solemn manner before the more infuriated of the rebels, declared to them that before they should offer violence to the English, they would have to pass over his body. His example was followed by another native officer, Abdul Ali. The orderly, too, Makdiin Bakhsh, exerted himself to save his officer. Ultimately forty-five troopers swore to stand by Conolly or to die in his defence. With a strange inconsistency, however, they would not ride off with Conolly and the sergeants and sergeants' families : they would not allow them to depart alone. They offered to allow Conolly to ride away, and to take charge of the children — but as for the parents, it was impossible, they said, to save them. With a spirit becoming a British officer, Conolly under those circumstances * A native cavalry officer — a squadron commander. continues. HE IS CARRIED OFF BY THE REBELS. 56 L declined to leave. He resolved to save his com- book xii. rades with himself, or to share their fate. Chapter v. Meanwhile the rebels had brought their guns A u 857 2 ' 2 to bear upon the cavalry lines. To prevent the The crisis escape of the Europeans and the loyal troopers, they then insisted that all the cavalry horses should be picketed close to the guns, and that the Europeans, now their captives, should be sent to occupy a small tent on the parade ground, care- fully guarded. So that long night passed. The next morning The Anadra the Anadra mutineers, fresh from their baffled arrive. 66 ™ attempt on Abu, marched into the station with Aug. 23. a swagger scarcely consistent with their actual performances. However much minded they may have been to avenge their defeat on the prisoners, they were unable to do so without a fight with their own brethren. For the faithful "forty-five" still kept jealous guard. They contented themselves, then, with an outpouring of abuse. The ways of the mutineers throughout the Th e rebels mutiny were inscrutable. They were so specially sergeant! La on this occasion. We have seen that on the day ^ [ irfainmea . of the revolt of Irinpiirah, the revolters were awayConoiiy. willing to allow Conolly to go, but not the ser- geants and their wives. On the evening of the second day they came to a resolution to permit the two sergeants, their wives and children, to depart, bul to retain Conolly. In consequence of this resolve, the sergeants and their families were sent away. The mutineers then marched from the station in the direction of Ajmir, taking «. 30 562 CONOLLY LS AT LAST RELEASED. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. Aug. 23-24. The rebels allow Conolly to depart. The " loyal " rebels offer to submit on promise of a pardon, which the political agent has no power to grant. Conolly with them, a prisoner, mounted but care- fully guarded. Conolly bad given up all hope of life. But never was he in outward appearance more cheery. He has left in a letter to a friend a vivid account of the occurrences of that and the following day. On the third day he was allowed to depart, and he rode into Irinpiirah, followed by three faithful troopers.* The rasaldar who had first proved his loyalty, then wrote to Captain Monck-Mason, the political agent at Jodhptir, offering to desert with a large body of the cavalry, and the guns, provided he and his comrades should be pardoned and reinstated in the service of the Government. It may be convenient to state here that Monck- Mason was anxious to accept the offer, but his hands were tied by the order of Government, which prohibited all officers from making terms with rebels while they had arms in their hands. Monck-Mason therefore replied that though he was precluded by recent orders from accepting the terms offered, yet that if Abbas Ali would act as a faithful soldier and servant of the British Government, and weaken the cause of the rebels by deserting in the manner he proposed, there was no doubt but that his case would be leniently dealt with by the Government, and he would pro- bably receive an unconditional pardon and a suitable reward. Abbas Ali, regarding this reply as a refusal, became an active leader of the rebel force. The results were serious to the British * Vide Appendix C. JODHPUR SENDS AN AIJMV AGAINST THE REBELS. 563 cause, and especially serious to Captain Monck- book xii. lf , . ,, Chapter V. Mason nirnselt. The rebels, after dismissing Conolly, pushed on ^lat, towards Ajmir with the intention of taking it. The Raja of Their line of march lay through the Jodhpur Jends an country. To stop them, and, if possible, to annihi- a l m ? against late them, the Raja, acting in conformity with the advice of Monck-Mason, despatched his own army, commanded by his favourite officer, a very daring and a very gallant man, who had given several instances of his courage — Anar Singh — to Pali, a place on the high road to his capital. To aid Anar Singh with his counsels, a British officer, Lieutenant Heathcote, was, by order of General Lawrence, despatched from the Rajpu- tana field force, of which he was Deputy Assistant Quartermaster-General. The Jodhpur troops in- trenched themselves at Pali. Meanwhile the rebels, advancing towards that The Thakur place, had arrived at Awah. The Thakur or baron of this stronghold was in rebellion against his liege lord, the Raja of Jodhpur. The Thakur, a man of a long and proud lineage, of great repute throughout the country, was unwilling to enter into any bond of alliance with men whom he re- garded as the revolted hirelings of the European. But revenge is sweet. And he, probably the second man in importance in Marwar, believed that his WTongs cried out for vengeance. A rebel against his Raja, he was likewise to that extent a rebel against the British suzerain of that Raja. Before, however, lie would consent to the terms which the rebel sepoys, in their anxiety to gain 3G * 564 THE THAKUR OP AWAH REBELS. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. Aug. -Sept. makes offers of submission to Monck- Mason, which that officer has no power to accept. He therefore coalesces with the rebels. The rebels march on Pali. him, pressed upon him with urgency, he de- spatched a messenger to the British agent, Monck- Mason, to tell him that if the British Govern- ment would accord him certain conditions, which he named, he would return to his allegiance, would keep the gates of his fort closed against the mutineers, and, if co-operated with either by a British force or by the troops of the Raja, would open fire upon their camp, which was within gunshot of his walls. Again was Monck-Mason tempted. Sound policy would have induced him to accept the Thakur's offer. The conditions named were of no great practical importance, relating as they did more to sentimental than to real grievances. But his hands were tied. He had no authority to treat with rebels still in arms. He had no authority at all to treat with this Thakur, whose first complaint lay against the Raja. He was obliged to send a reply to this effect by the mes- senger ; to inform him in addition that the Thakur's quarrel was with his own Raja, and that the Raja had frequently expressed his determination to hold no communication with him unless he should confess his error, throw himself upon his mercy, and pay up his arrears of revenue. The result of this reply was that the Thakur and the rebel sepoys came to terms, and together marched towards Pali. They marched towards Pali ; but when they saw the intrenched position of the Jodhpiir troops, they did not care to attack it. The delay which ensued, trying as it was to men situated as were THE REBELS DEFEAT THE JODHPUR TROOPS. 565 the Jodhpiir troops, might have been endured bookXH. but for the evil effect it was sure to produce on ' the native courts and the native troops of Rajpii- Se pt 8 e mber. tana. These could not understand the utility of Considera- a Torres Vedras. Royal troops who would not ^j 1 ^ advance were half beaten. The moment was troops not to remain quiet. especially full of anxiety for the officer responsible for the security of this important part of India, and General Lawrence was justified in the desire he expressed to the Raja that some more active measures should be taken by his troops than those involved " in dancing attendance on the rebels, like orderlies." But before General Lawrence's letter reached The rebels t -it / .1 i p.li i attack and Jodhpur, the commander ot the royal troops, defeat the Anar Singh, had left his strong position and en- Jjj£Jjj ur camped in close proximity to the rebels. Here, on the early morning of September 8th, his camp was surprised by the enemy, his men gave way, and though he, with a few, a very few, kindred spirits, fought bravely to the last, giving their lives for their Raja, he could not redeem the day. His camp, his guns, his military stores, fell into the hands of the rebels. Heathcote, after using every effort to induce the men to stand, had mounted his horse and galloped from the field. General Lawrence was at Ajmir when the General events I have recorded occurred. From the 21st to the 26th August he received no intelligence from JLbii, but on the 22nd a letter bad reached him from Conolly at Irinpiirah, telling him of the an- ticipations lie entertained of an outbreak at that 566 LAWRENCE MARCHES ON AWAH, Book xii. station. Five days later he received the bare ap outline of the mutinies at both stations. September. We nave seen tnat tne European forces at the disposal of Lawrence were all required for the maintenance of order at the great military centres in Rajpiitana, and that few, if any, could really be spared for service in the field. No one can wonder, then, at the anxiety expressed by the Governor- General's agent for the prompt and energetic assembles a action on the part of the Jodhpur troops. But, rercVthe 6 10 after tlie defeat of those troops at Pali, Lawrence rebels. considering, and rightly considering, that the effect on the country would be very injurious if the course of the rebels were not promptly checked, assembled as soon as possible a small force at Biaor for the purpose of co-operating with the Jodhpur troops. This force was composed of one hundred and fifty men of the 83rd, a portion of the Mairwara battalion, the 1st Bombay Lancers, two 12-pounders, three 6-pounders, and two mortars. The rebels The rebels, after their victory over the Raja's AVah!* 011 troops, had fallen back on Awah, the fortifica- tions of which they proceeded to strengthen. Awah is surrounded by a high wall, and is only approachable through a dense jungle. Being well supplied with guns, it could claim to be defensible against the small force which Lawrence was marching against it. General He arrived before it on the 18th, and pro- Lawrence i -. . , n arrives before ceeded at once to make a reconnaisance m torce. Awah. This had the effect of causing the enemy to bring a strong fire to bear upon his men from every BUT SUBSEQUENTLY RETIRES ON AJMIR. 567 gun on their walls. It was seen that the place Bo °s xn. was strong and could scarcely be carried by an ' - — assault. Lawrence, then, hoping that the enemy s e p t 8 e mber would come out and attack him, fell back on the village of Chulawass, about three and a half miles distant. Here he was to have been joined by Monck-Mason, but that officer, on arriving within three hundred yards of the place where the General was standing, was decoyed by the enemy's bugle- sound — similar to those of the British — and was shot dead. His death was a Monok- loss to the State, for he was a man of many and killed! ia varied accomplishments, with a noble heart and a lofty mind — one of the old school of soldier- politicians who constituted one of the glories of the Company's rule. Lawrence remained three days at Awah. The Lawrence i_ -i -i P., -i • • i •! • j • falls back on rebels left him in peace, busily occupied in a'ji imir. strengthening their position. Unable with his actual force to take the place, and having to a certain extent impressed the people of the country through which he marched, Lawrence then fell back leisurely on Ajmir and Nasirabad. Awah bade him defiance, but with the exception of Kota, the remainder of Riijpiitanii remained for the three months that followed loyal and sub- missive. It may be convenient to add a word here regarding the proceedings at Awah. Not many days elapsed before the proud Thakur and his rebel allies quarrelled. Instead of coming Ultimate fate to blows, however, they sensibly agreed to sepa- pur i eg ion. * rate. The Thakur remained at Awah; the sepoys took their way towards Dehli. They were en- 568 KOTA. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. October. Kota. Troops from Kota tempo- rarily occupy Nimach. Major Burton and his sons return to Kota. countered, completely defeated, and many of them cut up by a British force under Gerrard at Nar- niil on the 16th October following.* Kota, an offshoot from the more ancient prin- cipality of Biindi, is a native State bordering on the south-west frontier of Sindia's dominions, having an area of five thousand square miles, and a population of four hundred and thirty- three thousand souls. In 1857 the ruling chief was Maharao Ram Singh. An auxiliary force of the three arms, commanded by European officers, had been maintained in the State since 1838. The entire cost of this force was maintained by the Maharao. The political agent, representing the British Government, was Major Burton. The reader is aware that, when the troops of the regular army revolted at Nimach, Lawrence had caused that station to be reoccupied by de- tachments from the contingents of Mewar, Koti, and Biindi, until such time as the Europeans he had sent for from Disa should arrive. f Major Burton had accompanied the Kota troops on that expedition. He did not, however, return with them, General Lawrence having requested him to remain at Nimach for some three weeks, as "in those unsettled times he could not have confidence in his troops." Major Burton, consequently, remained at Ni- mach. But, after the occurrences at A'wah to which I have adverted, deeming his presence at * Page 112. I may add that the rasaldar, Abbas A'li, was ultimately pardoned by Lord Canning. t Vol. i. page 256. burton's interview with THE RAO. 569 the capital of the State to which he was accre- BookXii. dited necessary for the assurance of the policy J of the Maharao, he set out to return to Kota, o^ber. accompanied by two of his sons, the one aged twenty-one, the other sixteen, but leaving behind him, under the safeguard of the British troops at Nimach, his wife and four remaining children. He reached Kota on the 12th October, was visited by the Maharao in state the following morning, and returned the visit on the 14th. The Maha- rao subsequently stated that at the return visit Barton gave him the names of some of his officers whom he knew to be disaffected, and impressed upon him the advisability of punish- ing or at least dismissing them. "Whether Burton The Maharao gave this advice can never be certainly known; Burton 8 to the but this is certain, that that same day the Maha- J^f 0111 rao caused the officers and men of the contin- denounced, gent to be informed that he had given it ! Officers and men were, in very truth, alike disaffected, and, being so, the communication made to them by order of the Maharao deter- mined them to take the law into their own hands. Accordingly they assembled the following morn- who attack n -it^-T tne R eS1 ' ing, and killing Mr. Salder, the Residency surgeon, dency, and Mr. Saviell, the doctor of the dispensary in the city, who resided in houses in the Residency grounds, attacked the Residency itself. The guards and servants tied from the premises and hid themselves in the ravines close by. Major Burton and his two sons, left with a single Bervant, a camel-driver, took refuge in a room on the roof of the house. The revolters then 570 MURDER OF MAJOR BURTON. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. October. and murder Burton, his sons, and other Euro- peans. The Maharao excuses him- self. fired round shot into the Residency. " For four hours," writes General Lawrence in his graphic account of the mournful transaction,* " these four brave men defended themselves, till at length the Residency was set on fire, and Major Burton, feeling the case desperate, proposed to surrender on condition of the mob sparing his son's lives. The young men at once rejected the offer, saying they would all die together. They knelt down and prayed for the last time, and then calmly and heroically met their fate. The mob had by this time procured scaling-ladders, and thus gaining the roof, rushed in and despatched their victims, the servant alone escaping. Major Burton's head was cut off and paraded through the town, and then fired from a gun, but the three bodies were by the Maharaja's order interred that evening." The Maharao at once communicated the occur- rence to General Lawrence, accompanying the communication with the expression of his regret and with the excuse that the troops had taken the law into their own hands and that he was powerless. He may have been powerless, but he had, perhaps unwittingly, set the troops on. The Government of India subsequently signified their opinion, that though innocent of fore-knowledge, the Maharao had not wholly performed his duty, by reducing his salute from seventeen to thirteen guns. * Reminiscences of Forty- three Years' Service in India, by Lieut. -General Sir George Lawrence, K.C.S.I., C.B. DISTURBANCES NEAR MMACH. 571 The tragedy at Kota was not the only outrage Book xii. ,.,.,. 7 , , <• i 7 a • Chapter V. which disturbed the peace or the country during the month of October. About the same time that October. Burton was being besieged in the Residency of Disturbances the former place, a party of rebels from Mandisiir, near N{mach ' led by a chief who pretended relationship to the royal house of Dehli, marched on and seized Jiran, a fortified town with a very strong defence, within ten miles of the cantonment of Niniach. It was impossible to allow such an outrage to pass un- noticed. On the 23rd October there was sent from Nimach to attack them a force of four hun- dred men, with two guns and a mortar. The men were chiefly Bombay native troops, cavalry and infantry, but they were headed by fifty men of the 83rd, the whole commanded by Captain Tucker. They found the enemy still at Jiran. The repulse Tucker at once opened fire with his guns, and when they had played some time upon the de- fences, he sent his infantry to attack the town. The rebels then sallied out in overwhelming numbers, drove back the infantry, and, pushing on, captured the mortar. Upon this the cavalry charged, recovered the mortar, compelled the enemy to re-enter the town, and silenced their fire. But the place itself was too strong for the efforts of a force so small and so lightly pro- vided ; the loss already incurred had been heavy, two officers, Tucker and Read, having been killed, and three wounded; a retreat was therefore ordered. Strange to say, the enemy evacuated Jiran t bal night. Their retreat, however, was only the prelude JJ^ 61 * 572 LAWBENCB CAPfURES AWAH. Book XII. Chapter V. 1857. November. again in greater numbers and attack Nimach. Lawrence applies for reinforce- ments. 1858. January. On the arrival of some of them he besieges, and captures A'-wah . to an advance in larger numbers. On the 8th November a body of them, numbering four thou- sand, advanced on Nimach, occupied the station, and forced the European and native troops to take refuge within the fortified square. This they attempted, but vainly, to escalade ; then, after a siege of fifteen days' duration, hearing that re- inforcements were advancing to the aid of the British, they fell back. On receiving intelligence of the murder of Captain Burton and his sons, General Lawrence had made an urgent requisition to Bombay for troops. The first and smaller detachments of these began to arrive in Rajputana in January 1858, but it was not until March that the rein- forcements assumed a sufficient strength to justify decisive action on a large scale. The detachments which arrived in January, however, enabled General Lawrence to throw off the quiescent attitude which he had till then deemed it politic to assume. In January he was able to detach a force of eleven hundred men, with a due proportion of guns, under Colonel Holmes, 12th Bombay Native Infantry, against A'wah. Holmes invested the place on the 19th, and the same day his guns opened fire. At the end of five days a practicable breach had been made, and the assault was ordered for the follow- ing morning. The garrison, perfectly cognisant of all that was going on in the British camp, resolved not to wait. Fortunately for them there raged that night a storm so fearful, and there ruled a darkness so intense, that sentries only a REINFORCEMENTS ARRIVE. 573 few paces apart could neither see nor hear each bookXii. •. -r-r n r> i ^ Chapter V. other. Under cover ot these portents they eva- — cuated the place in the night. jan.-March. The strength of the fortifications of A'wah, Thefortifi- when it was occupied next morning by the British ^™ s of troops, were such as to justify to the full General Lawrence's determination regarding it in the pre- vious September. It had a double line of de- fences, the inner of strong masonry, the outer of earthwork, both being loop-holed. Thirteen guns, three tons of powder, and three thousand rounds of small arms ammunition were found in the place. The keep, the bastions, and all the justify ( masonry works were blown up and destroyed, so previous as effectually to prevent the stronghold becom- retirement - ino- a nucleus of rebellion for the future.* This act of vigour had a very salutary effect. Order was maintained in the country; and in March, when the reinforcements from Bombay poured in, the difficulty of the task for which troops had been required in the previous Novem- ber had in no way increased. The reinforcements numbered five thousand The main reinforce* five hundred men of all arms. They were com- ments arrive posed of the 92nd, 83rd, and 95th Regiments, the 10th Bombay Native Infantry, the 8th Hussars, the 1st Bombay Lancers, the Sind Horse, Brown's battery of artillery, eighteen field-pieces, of which ten were 8-inch mortars and howitzers, and a corps of sappers and miners. They were com- manded by Major-General H. G. Roberts of the Bombay ;inny. * Forty-three Years in India, Sir (!. Lawrence. 574 THE CONDITION OF KOTA. book xii. On the arrival of General Roberts in March, , mpter General Lawrence resigned the military command 1858. j nto hi s h an( j s and reverted to his civil and poli- Marcn. ' r under tical functions as agent to the Governor- General. Robert! ^ n ^hi s capacity he accompanied the force. The state of The first operation to be attempted was the Kota after re00V ery of Kota. Ever since the murder of the murder of iVV/w J Burton. Captain Burton disorder had prevailed in that State. The sepoys, having tasted the pleasure of revolt, drained the cup to the very dregs. They imprisoned the Maharao in his palace. They then forced him to sign a paper consisting of nine articles, one of which was to the effect that he had ordered the murder of Major Burton. The Maharao endeavoured by compliance to keep the rebels in good humour, but meanwhile he de- spatched secretly messengers to the Raja of Karaoli, begging him to send troops to his aid. The Raja complied, and his troops, faithful to their liege lord, drove the rebels from the part of the town of Kota in which the palace was situated, and released the Maharao. They were still occupying it, for the defence of that prince, when Roberts arrived in Rajpiitana. The rebels, however, occupied the other part of the town, reduced already by pillage and other excesses to extreme misery. The road A military march from Nasirabad, the head- NaSbad quarters of Roberts's force, to Kota, was not one and Kota. which a general could regard as being necessarily a pleasure trip. Not only did the town of Kota occupy a formidable position, covered by the river Chambal on one side and by a large and deep lake KOTA IS RECAPTURED. 575 on the other, but the approach to it offered many « 00K XI J ; i £ Chapter V. positions capable of easy defence by a small force against one much larger. Chief amongst these March. was the Mokandara pass — a long and narrow valley between two ranges of hills. But once more the want of true military instinct Roberts was manifested. None of the difficult positions to Kota, were defended. Roberts, marching from Nasir- abad on the 10th, encamped on the north bank of the Chambal, opposite Kota, on the 22nd March. He found the rebels in complete possession of the south bank, on which they had planted their guns, many in number, and some of them large in calibre. Roberts ascertained at the same time that the fort, the palace, half the city, and the ferry over the river, were held by the Malia- rao with the Karaoli troops. Early on the morning: of the 25th, information He attaoks •/ ° . . and com- reached him that the rebels were making an pieteiy assault on the palace with a view to seize the jjjjjj the ferry. Roberts instantly sent across three hun- dred men of the 83rd, under Major Heath, to aid the Maharao. The attack was repulsed. On the 27th he crossed over himself with six hundred of the 93rd, and two 9-pounders, and having placed the heavy guns in the fort in position to bear on the enemy's camp, he opened upon it on the 29th a heavy fire of shot and shell. On the 30th, whilst fche remainder of the force cannonaded the rebels' position from the north bank, he, march- ing from the Port in three columns, moved on it on the south bank, and gained it with y and tne J almost a11 escaped. The authority The British troops occupied Kota for three of the Maha- wee k s# ^ fc t he en( j f that time, the authority of 1'flO IS 1*6* stored. the Maharao having been completely re-esta- blished, General Roberts evacuated it and re- turned to Nasirabad, despatching a portion of his force to garrison Nimach. With the fall of Kota peace and order had been completely re- stored throughout Rajputana, and although, two months later, both were broken by Tantia Topi, the action of this famous leader was strictly an invasion. Tantia induced neither prince nor peasant to join his standard. The reason Of all the large tracts of territory inhabited tLa was%V mainly by a people boasting a common origin, not mSe a affMted one P asse( ^ through the trying period of 1857-58 by the with smaller injury to itself, with less infliction of suffering and bloodshed, than the territory of Rajputana. Parcelled out into eighteen sovereign States, each ruled by its own independent chief, the circumstance may seem surprising. But the causes of it are not far to seek. I attribute the re- sult mainly to the fact that no people in India had suffered so much or so recently as the Rajputs from the lawlessness which characterised the sway immediately preceding the suzerainty of the Bri- tish — the sway of the Marathas. When the policy of Marquess Wellesley towards the Rajput States was reversed in 1805 by Lord Cornwallis and Sir George Barlow, a system of oppression and misrule was inaugurated, under which the buffalo mutiny. GEORGE ST. PATRICK LAWRENCE. 577 was to the man who held the bludgeon, and the book xii. fair daughters of the land were to the strong arm ha ^f Y - of the marauder. For twelve years the sufferings 1858, of Rajputami cried to heaven for redress. That redress came only when, in 1817, the Marquis of Hastings reverted to the policy of his great pre- decessor. Uuder that policy the princes of Raj- piitana have been secured against invaders from outside and against each other. Once more has every man been able to lie down in his own mango-grove and to eat of his own date-tree. Security has prevailed throughout the land. The honour of every man and of every woman has been secured. It was the sense of this security, enjoyed under British suzerainty, that ensured the loyalty of the great bulk of the Rajputs during the troublous times of the mutiny. It is proper to add that this recollection of past George and present benefits was stimulated and enforced LawreiS? by the choice made by the Government of India of the agents to carry out their policy. Foremost among these was George St. Patrick Lawrence. His tact, his energy, his fearlessness, his readiness of resource, when he had not a single European soldier at his disposal, stamp him as a man emi- nently fitted to rule in troublous times. The display of these ' ju;i 1 ities begat confidence in the minds of the native princes, fear and dismay among the adventurers who welcomed turmoil. His presence, thus, proved itself to be worth an army. But for his promptitude, Ajmir would have fallen, and with Ajmir occupied by two or three regiments of Bril ish sepoys, Bril ish aul hority ii. " 37 578 THE STORY REVERTS TO BOMBAY. book xii. would have disappeared. The preservation of chapter v. j^jp^.^ then, will ever be connected with the 1858 - name of this gallant and distinguished officer. The story The inroad of Tantia Topi into Rajputana, and Bombay* tne campaign in pursuit of that famous leader, will be treated of in its proper place in the next volume. Before dealing with him it will be my pleasing duty to record the statesmanlike mea- sures by which Lord Elphinstone caused Bombay to become a strong wall of support to the threat- ened edifice of British rule in India, and to narrate how Sir Hugh Rose illustrated the highest genius of the inspired warrior by his daring and suc- cessful campaign in Central India. 579 APPENDIX A. 1.— (Page 39 of text.) Major Reid's plan of attack on the strong position of Kishanganj lias never been published. I therefore give it verbatim. On the 2nd February, 1858, after he had in a measure recovered from his wound, he wrote as follows : " With regard to Kishenganj I can only say that were I ordered to attack the place to-morrow, supposing the enemy's heavy guns to be in the same position they were in on the 14th September last, my plan of attack would be just what it was then. " Tou have seen the position, and know the localities and great strength of the place, and will therefore understand me when I say the hugging the garden wall on the lefl of the roaui 1 consider it only fair to General Richard Lawrence that they should be placed on record in this volume. 582 APPENDIX A. Memo. : on a correspondence connected with the operations of the fourth column of attack on Delhi, on the 14th September, 1857, referred to me for arbitration by Majors Norman and Lawrence. 1. Major Lawrence complains of three passages,, in a Nar- rative of the Siege of Delhi, published by Major Norman. The passages are as follows : " No. 4 column, under Major Reid, advanced from the Siibzee Mundi towards Kissengunge, the Cashmere contin- gent co-operating on its right. The latter, however, was so sharply attacked by the insurgents, who were in great force, that, after losing a great number of men and four guns, they were completely defeated, and fell hack to camp>." " Major Reid's column met with the most strenuous oppo- sition, greatly increased, doubtless, by the failure of the Cash- mere contingent. " Captain Muter, 60th Rifles, the next senior officer (a) judiciously withdrew the troops to their former posts (b) at Hindoo Raos and in the Subzee Mundi." ' 2. The sentences in italics contain the statements objected to ; and I proceed to express the opinions I have formed on the documentary evidence placed before me by Majors Law- rence and Norman, aided by conversation on the matter with Brigadier- General Chamberlain previous to my perusal of the papers ; and a fuller personal inquiry made by me now from Captain Boisragon (who was in the action) after perusing the documents, for the sake of clearing up doubtful points. 3. The first passage is certainly very inaccurate, inasmuch as it conveys the impression that either the whole, or at all events the main body, of the Cashmere contingent was co- operating on the right of No. 4 column, and lost four guns ; whereas the contingent on that occasion acted in two bodies. First, the main one (eight hundred strong, under Major R. APPENDIX A. 583 Lawrence) as reserve to "No. 4 column in its attack on Kis- sengunge, which shared in the failure of that column, and lost no guns ; and secondly, a detachment of four hundred, under Captain Dwyer, which acted separately against the Edgah at a distance of three-fourths of a mile on the right of No. 4 column, which was completely defeated, and did lose four guns. This inaccuracy is fully admitted by Major Norman in his reference to me, and it is unnecessary to discuss it farther than to mention that it arose apparently from the official report of Major Muter. 4. The second passage would similarly be admitted by Major Norman to be so far inaccurate as he spoke of the "Cashmere contingent" instead of a detachment of the Cashmere contingent ; but with that exception he is still in- clined to think that the passage is correct, that Captain Dwyer' s detachment attacked the enemy at the Edgah before Colonel Reid attacked at Kissengunge, and that its defeat was sufficiently early to bring down a greater pres- sure on Colonel Reid's column, and so to contribute to its re- pulse. The evidence on these points is not always positive, and is very conflicting. Lieutenant Evans, who was in the Crow's Nest battery, evidently saw Captain Dwyer's detach- ment engaged with the enemy at the Edgah while No. 4 column was forming up ; and I consider his testimony decisive upon that point. His evidence is not precise about the time of the retirement of Captain Dwyer's detachment, though it leans apparently to its having occurred previous even to Colonel Reid's assault. This cannot be the case, as Colonel Reid precisely states that some time after he had been wounded, and was making over the command to Major Lawrence, one hundred yards in rear of the canal, he told Major Law- reDce "to support the four hundred Jummoo troops on the right, who were becoming hotly engaged with the enemy." This establishes that the two engagements were going on simultaneously at Kissengunge and Edgah, and the inquiry 584 APPENDIX A. is thus narrowed to which of the two repulses occurred first. Major Muter says that No. 4 column attacked thus twice, and failed in being able to get up another attack, the loss was so heavy, the confusion so great, and the men so disheartened. This all occurred within a quarter of an hour of the fall of Major Eeid, who was one of the first hit ; in that quarter of an hour we lost two hundred men out of the seven hundred and fifty. Here it is precisely stated that No. 4 column had been finally repulsed a quarter of an hour after Colonel Eeid was wounded; Colonel Eeid describes himself as having been " for some time " insensible on the ground after being hit, and when he became conscious he was carried to the rear, where he met Major Lawrence. It would seem, then, that the second attack must have been about failing, if it had not failed, when Colonel Eeid asked Major Lawrence to send aid to Captain Dwyer's detachment, which was then " becoming hotly engaged with the enemy " ; but Colonel Eeid goes on to say that " up to this time the troops were well in hand, and were as steady as possible, and I made sure of success," which would be irreconcileable with Major Muter' s account, if we did not remember that Major Muter was in front engaged in the action, and therefore cognizant of the facts, while Colonel Eeid was in the rear after having been some time insensible. Again, Captain Shebbeare is clear that one reason for the retirement of No. 4 column was the running in of Captain Dwyer's men upon the right flank of No. 4 column, which allowed the enemy to work round to the rear ; on the other hand, Lieu- tenant Manderson, who was with Captain Dwyer's party, is equally clear that as he was returning he met two Cashmere guns coining back from No. 4 column, and the native officer in command related how No. 4 had been repulsed. The opinion I form upon these statements (which are perhaps not more conflicting than those of officers engaged in diffe- rent parts of a field usually are) is that the two engagements APPENDIX A. 585 at Edgali and Kissengunge were raging simultaneously, and that the repulse of neither was long enough before the other to have any effect on the result, considering that they were nearly a mile apart. The loss of more than one-fourth of No. 4 column, as described by Major Muter, sufficiently accounts for its repulse. It was obviously too weak for the operation, and I should say this alone was the cause of its failure. 5. The third passage contains two statements which Major Lawrence objects to. 1st. That Major Muter was " the next senior officer " after Colonel Reid's withdrawal. 2nd. That Major Muter " withdrew the troops to their former posts." It is now acknowledged by all that the next senior officer in the field on the occasion was Major R. Lawrence, who was commanding the main body of the Cashmere contin- gent, which formed Colonel Reid's "reserve"; and Colonel Reid states that, on recovering his senses after his wound, he called out for Major Lawrence, and meeting him one hundred yards over the bridge, gave over the command to him : therefore, by military usage, Major Muter could not be described as " the next senior officer," though in point of fact he was the senior officer of all those who were in front with the troops which formed the column of attack, and, that being the case, in an affair wherein minutes were hours, while two desperate attacks had crowded themselves into oue quarter of an hour, been overwhelmingly repulsed, and followed by hopeless confusion, Major Muter might fitly have retired with the attacking column, at all events as tar as thr reserve, and there have left the real senior officer to resume the attack or not. But I do not consider that he could fitly have withdrawn from the field the column which he knew was not under Ins command. Hut ii does uol appear in these documents thai Major Muter ever assumed 586 APPENDIX A. the command of the troops in front, or organised the re- tirement. Captain Shebbeare describes " all the officers in front as agreeing among themselves, in the absence of a commander, to retire, as the attack was a failure, and as having reported what they had done to Major Lawrence, when they found him after recrossing the canal, knowing him to be the next in command to Colonel Reid, on which ' he,' i.e. Major Lawrence, confirmed the order, but shortly after ordered an advance, which he again countermanded almost immediately. When he reached the serai in the Subzee Mundi, he, at my suggestion, ordered me to occupy the Crow's Nest and the line reaching right up to the bat- tery. These are distinct acts of command amounting to this, that the final relinquishment of the attack, and the re- tirement of the majority of the troops in No. 4 column ' to their former posts,' were really carried out under the orders of Major R. Lawrence, who was also the proper person to issue them. Captain Wriford states that on Colonel Reid being wounded he considered Major Lawrence in command, but getting no orders from either him or Major Muter, he thought both were hors de combat, and withdrew his men, on his own judgment, to Subzee Mundi, where he found that Major Muter was present, and resigned the command to him as senior officer, and some little time after this Major Law- rence came into the Subzee Mundi picquet, when he of course became senior." This tallies with Captain Mocatta's account that he was sent by Major Lawrence to the posts in rear to bring up the European troops again, who had clearly been withdrawn without his authority, and, as he seems at first to have judged, without necessity (though in that matter I cannot agree with him). Major Muter himself puts the above testimonies beyond doubt, for in reply to a question whether during the day he received any orders, directly or indirectly, from Major Lawrence, he says he has " some recollection of a requisition for European sol- APPENDIX A. 587 diers long after the men had been reposted in our old posi- tion " ; therefore Major Lawrence must have kept the field " long after " Major Muter, and he must have had troops with him. He could not have been alone. This is, in other words, what Captain Boisragon stated, that " the native por- tion of the column, Ghoorkas, Guides, and Sikhs, were in the field as long as I was present, hotly engaged with the enemy," and he explained that he was in the field for up- wards of an hour after Major Eeid was wounded. Farther, Doctor Corby n, in a letter to Major Lawrence, testifies that he " went into the Subzee Mundi serai, where Parker and myself were of great assistance to the wounded Euro- peans. Here I found Captain Muter, Wriford also I think, and a number of Europeans. You did not retire with the Cashmeres, I know, for nearly an hour afterwards." And this brings me to the difficulty which I judge from the papers, more than anything else, prevented Major Norman from modifying the passages in his narrative ; I mean the difficulty of understanding how the Europeans, Ghoorkas, and Sikhs of distinguished regiments, who were in the column of attack, could be repulsed, and retreat to their former posts, while the Jummoo reserve, consisting of troops of inferior discipline and armament, still kept the field. It seemed to Major Norman to involve an incredible reproach to the column of attack. But having very carefully ana- lysed these papers, and corrected my notions of the locali- ties by a published plan of the " City and Cantonments of Delhi," and by interrogating Captain Boisragon, who was in the ^action, it seems to me quite clear that the two state- ments are perfectly reconcilable with the honour of both corps. As I understand it, Colonel Eeid disposed the Jummoo reserve on bis right rear. The attack tailed from being totally inadequate, Colonel Eeid Eel! and was removed. The confusion in the column of attack, in consequence oi the repulse, and of the enemj Following hotly ap, was rerj 588 APPENDIX A. great. The next senior officer being in the rear with the reserve, could not possibly give any timely orders, or know that Colonel Eeid had been wounded. No orders were con- sequently issued for retiring in good order, and the officers at the head of the column agreed together to withdraw, and did so to the best of their ability. Major Muter and Cap- tain Wriford reached Subzee Mundi with the majority of their men without even meeting Major Lawrence, and Cap- tains Shebbeare and Boisragon, commanding the Guides and Ghoorkas, both fell in with Major Lawrence, and placed themselves under his orders. A new advance was thought possible but abandoned, and Captain Shebbeare's party was ordered to occupy certain posts. But Major Lawrence re- mained out with the Jummoo reserve and Captain Boisragon' s men, and (as Captain Boisragon informs me) fragments of almost every detachment, European or native, that had made up No. 4 column, for the following up of the enemy after the repulse of the column was very hot, and it became in- dispensable to check them ; and this was effectually done by our broken parties and the reserve lining the banks of the canal and occupying the jungle on the right of the road, while Lieutenant Evan's guns continued to fire over their heads, and completed the check of the enemy. Things seem to have remained in this position for a couple of hours at least, till the firing ceased and both sides withdrew. Thus the Jummoo reserve never renewed the attack on Kis- sengunge after the repulse of No. 4 column, and, as I understand, does not pretend to have ever advanced to the point between the first and second breastworks, where the column had been repulsed, and in no way puts itself in in- vidious comparison with any of the other troops, but did remain in the field with numbers of native and some Euro- pean soldiers of No. 4 column, exchanging a hot fire with the enemy, and losing of its own number forty-three killed and wounded. APPENDIX A. 589 While, therefore, it shared iu the general failure of the column of which it was the reserve, I cannot see that it in any way contributed to that failure ; and, on the contrary , it took its full share in covering the retreat. Some opinions are offered in the correspondence that it was useless to keep the troops out a moment, longer than could he helped after the main object of the column had failed ; but in this I connot concur, for every rebel sepoy held engaged at Kissen- gunge was a loss to the garrison in the city. The siege of Delhi has been often compared with the siege of Sebastopol, and I should think that No. 4 column was to the other three columns at Delhi much what the English at the " Eedan " were to the French at the " Malakoff ." 6. The whole of the present misunderstanding has arisen, as it seems to me, from Major Muter taking the irregular course (as he admits to Major Lawrence) of reporting direct to G-eneral "Wilson instead of through Major Lawrence. Had he pursued the regular military course, his due share of credit as the senior remaining officer of the attacking column would have accrued to him; Major Lawrence would have appeared as having done the best with a command to which he succeeded when the day was lost ; Major Muter' s mistake as to the two divisions of the Cashmere contingent (of which he seems to have only now become aware) would have been corrected in time ; and no blame would have been attached to that contingent for sharing in the general failure of the fourth column which the disparity of numbers and artillery rendered perfectly inevitable. (Signed) Herbert B. Edwardes, Commissioner and Superintendent July 1st, 1879. 590 APPENDIX B. Since I wrote the remarks in the text, a case of neglect, as remarkable as that of Cooper of the 93rd, has been brought to my notice. It is very curious that the neglect in this case should apply to an officer also of the name of Cooper — a near relative, I am informed, of Richard Cooper of the 93rd. I extract the case from Colonel Pack's Memoirs, published in 1878. " As dawn approached, it became known that the guns were not to open, and that instead of our waiting for the signal to attack after two hours' bombardment, we were to look for it shortly after the French assault on the Malakoff. The Brigadier (Yea) came across from the Quarries and took post at the extremity of the Boyaus, that he might there watch for the commencement of the action. . . . " Whilst watching the Malakoff, probably a few minutes, the Bines, stationed close to the Quarries as a covering party, having evidently mistaken one of the French rockets for the British signal, commenced firing from their hiding- places, when round shot dropping about from the Redan proved our red jackets were observed. The error of the coverers was great, and considerably annoyed the Brigadier, APPENDIX B. 591 who, pointing to a flagstaff near the 8-gun battery, said, ' A flag will be hoisted there when Lord Raglan stauds.' He added, ' That fire,' (alluding to the covering party of the Rifles) ' must be stopped. Somebody must go across the open : it is no use attempting to get through the trenches.' " Moments like these try the mettle of men and prove of what they are made. No mere bravado answers ; for that always fails when actual and perilous deeds of cool and deliberate courage have to be performed. Whoever volunteered to fulfil the Brigadier's mission knew he must go as it were with his life in his hand. Not only every step, but every inch of the distance between the trenches and the covering party was strewn with peril, and carrying the message and escaping with his life was not for an instant to be looked for. " A momentary silence ensued. The fire from all arms was pounding away in every direction, and the service was very perilous. To cross the open and reach the Quarries we saw and knew exposure to the fire from the Malakoff was certain, and the able marksmen and the guns of the Redan were also to be encountered. The duty was seen to be so momentous that all hesitated to undertake it, not from fear, but from the feeling of all but certain failure. Brigadier Yea then repeated his desire, saying, ' Who will go ? ' Then there was another pause, when every soldier who heard his leader's request felt his heart beat with intense rapidity, and every mental energy of his mind awakened. For a few moments there was intense silence amongst us, and then quickly and nervously Captain Cooper, one of bis aides-de-camp, answered, 'I will, Sir! ' And out this gallant officer went. "Snrin^intj over the trench, commencing with a quick walk, he increased bis pace gradually (ill he ran. Eis eyes were fixed upon the Rifles, all eyes were upon aim. All ted to see aim Ball; bul Providence guarded him. Ee 592 APPENDIX B. reached the Quarries, and stopped the fire, his life most probably preserved by this courageous act of gallantry, for the crowd and confusion at the opening of the miserably small trench whence the stormers issued were so great, he never could have rejoined his lamented chief had he gone by the way of the trenches. " Yet, though many an officer and many a man have received the Victoria Cross for the common act of humanity — aiding or assisting to bring in a wounded officer or comrade under circumstances of danger — acts which most of us at the time they happened thought little about, and certainly never regarded them as deserving the designation of ' dis- tinguished,' for the above gallant act, setting an example of the highest devotion to the service of his Queen and country in the face of hundreds, this officer received no reward."* The officer in question was Captain Joshua Cooper, 7th Fusiliers. — Sebastopol Trenches, and, Five Months in Them, by Colonel Reynell Pack, C.B., 7th Fusiliers. * The italics are Colonel Pack's. 593 APPENDIX C. Page 562 of text. Lieutenant Conolly thus wrote to Captain Black, regarding his escape : " Such a scene of confusion I never saw ; some sepoys firing at Bhils, they shot seven poor wretches on the parade-ground, who, I declare, were only looking at the novel scene. During the day we halted. The first day we marched to , and a greater rabble never crossed country than our once smart legion ; not a sepoy hardly saluted me. I was taken to Abbas Ali's tent at , and the infantry were a little behind, when a tremendous row commenced. Some Minas made a rush at the carts ; the infantry thought it was an attack ; away went the cavalry to see to matters, cut up a few Bhils, and, seeing no one else, pulled up to look about them. Another row, and rush towards where I was standing near my saddled horse. I can't say I was desperately alarmed, for all hope of life I had cast aside some hours before, when we marched. The rush towards me was caused by soiii^ iiinial.le sepoys taking the opportunity to make a run at me. Abbas Ali and his men saw it, and were soon between us; but I cannot enter into details of self; a. 38 594 APPENDIX 0. once again they attempted to get at ine at Doola. What made them so mad was, that my strenuous attempts to seduce the cavalry had been made known to Mihrwan Sing, and he swore I should die. At Doola they had three or four rows — councils they called them — about me. At last, Mihrwan Sing and the other beauties, seeing Abbas Ali would not give me up, said I might go solus. Next morning, they sent again to say, no, I should not go. However, Abbas Ali and his men surrounded my charpoy all night ; we none of us slept, and on the morning of the 27th, when the force was ready, the guns were loaded, the infantry shouldered arms, and I was brought up. I was told to ride to the front ; poor Dokul Sing, the havildar-major, and some others, ran out blubbering ; Abbas Ali and Abdul Ali, rode up on each side, made me low salaams, and told me to ride for it ; that not a sowar should be allowed to interfere with my retreat. My three sowars, who, I have forgotten to say, had stuck to me as if I had been their brother since the very beginning, by a preconcerted plan, were ordered to see me off a little way. I could not help giving a farewell wave of the hand to the infantry in irony ; they shouted and laughed, the band struck up, and that is the last I saw of the legion. I rode right in to Erinpoora with three sowars ; I came straight here, and the people seemed ready to eat me with joy. The names of the three sowars are, Nusseeroodeen, second troop ; Elahu Bux, third troop (the man who used to ride my grey) ; and Momin Khan, first troop. They left everything behind, and, I must say, are three as fine fellows as I wish to see. By-the-by, the cavalry said if I would agree to turn Mussul- man, to a man they would follow me. Very kind of them. They offered me money when I was coming away, and also on the march. I took twenty rupees from Abbas Ali ; now I wish I had taken my pay ; they twice offered it. Now is our time, the legion is divided. Jawan Sing, golundaz, and his party, about seven other golundaz (gunners), will play the APPENDIX 0. 595 infantry a trick if they can. I have told Jawan Sing I will myself give him five hundred rupees if he breaks with the infantry. : Abbas Ali, the havildar-major, and Abdul Ali, are in danger on my account, and they are kept with their men under the guns night and day. I feel most glad to think I did them as much harm as I could. Makdun Bux had a musket put to his breast for letting me ride with my sword on. I was a bone of contention. I have this morning- sent a sharp kossid to Abbas Ali, telling him, for his own sake, to try and communicate with Mason, who, I believe, is at Pali, and to whom I have written to try and communicate with Abbas Ali." ERRATA. Page 48, lines 15 and 16 from foot, for " to the hospitnl on the ridge,' read " to his own tent." Page 237, line 14 from top, for " a rebel army," read " the rebel army. 1 Page 352, head -line, for " 12th January," read " 16th January." Page 365, line 10 from foot, for " Begam Koti," read, " Begam Kothi." Page 416, line 8 from foot, omit " of Jones in Rohilkhand." 427, note, line 3 from foot, for "Shanghai," read " Chinhai." DIRECTIONS TO BINDER. Plan to illustrate the Operations of the British Army before Dehli in the year 1857 .... to face page 68 Sketch of Operations for relief and withdrawal of Lakhnao garrison ..... to face page 224 Sketch of the City of Kanhptir ... to face page 276 Plan to illustrate the Operations of the British Army before Lakhnao in March 1858 ... to face page 400 LONDON : PRINTED BT W H. ALLEN AND CO WORKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR. In Demy 8vo., Price 20s., Cloth. HISTORY OF THE INDIAN MUTINY, 1857-58. Commencing from the close of the Second Volume of Sir John Kaye's History of the Sepoy War. By Colonel G. B. Malleson, C.S.I. Vol. I. Contemporaneous with Sir John Kaye's third volume. London: W. H. Allen & Co. 1878. " Colonel Malleson is executing, in a manner deserving marked commendation, the task he has set himself. His research is un- tiring, and his love of his subject amounts to a passion. The equitableness of his judgments will rarely be challenged. 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