XXI. BATTLE HONOURS FOR SERVICES IN CHINA, 1842-1900
Chinese War of 1840-1842--Canton--China, 1857-1860--Taku Forts--Pekin--China, 1900--Pekin, 1900.
CHINA, 1840 (WITH THE DRAGON).
This distinction was conferred on the regiments which participated in the first China War, under Sir Hugh (afterwards Lord) Gough, and is borne by the
Royal Irish. Cameronians. Border Regiment. Royal Berkshires. North Staffords. 2nd Queen's Own Sappers and Miners. 62nd Punjabis. 66th Punjabis. 74th Punjabis.
The first China War, generally known as the "Opium War," while not entailing any very severe fighting, cost us many hundred lives, owing to the neglect of the most elementary precautions on the part of the officials who were responsible for the fitting out of the expedition. The actual casus belli was the refusal of the Chinese Government to permit the importation of opium into the Empire. British merchants had been in the habit of importing the drug from India, and large fortunes had been amassed in this trade. When the edict was issued, there were large stocks of the drug in the warehouses of our fellow-countrymen, and its seizure entailed, it is said, a loss of £3,000,000. The British Commissioner on the spot insisted on the right of disposing of the opium, but the Chinese authorities put this beyond a doubt by destroying the forbidden article. We then demanded compensation, which was refused, and a force was despatched from India to enforce satisfaction and pecuniary compensation. This consisted of the 18th (Royal Irish), the 26th (Cameronians), and the 49th (Royal Berkshires), with a battalion of Bengal infantry, composed of volunteers from the whole of the Bengal army. Chusan was occupied with but little loss, and the Viceroy of the province sued for peace. Terms were arranged, the Chinese ceding Hong-Kong and paying an indemnity of 6,000,000 dollars. Grave doubts were felt as to the permanence of this arrangement, and our troops occupied certain points in the country. No efforts were made to provide them with suitable clothing or food, and the mortality was appalling, the Cameronians losing no less than 286 men between July 1, 1840, and January 1, 1841.
Early in 1841, weary of the vacillation of the Chinese, the British Government sent out considerable reinforcements, and Lieutenant-General Sir Hugh Gough was placed in supreme command. His little army was thus composed:
First Brigade--Major-General Lord Saltoun: 26th (Cameronians), 98th (North Staffords), and Bengal Volunteers.
Second Brigade--Major-General Schoedde: 55th (Border Regiment), 2nd (now the 62nd), 6th (now the 66th), and 37th Regiments of Madras Native Infantry.
Third Brigade--Major-General Bartley: 18th (Royal Irish), 49th (Royal Berkshires), and 14th (now the 74th) Madras Infantry.
Early in May, 1841, the forts at the entrance of the Canton River were bombarded and captured. The fleet then passed up the river, and on May 24 Canton itself was taken, after slight resistance, our losses being 14 killed and 91 of all ranks wounded. In the month of August Amoy was occupied, and in October Chusan was reoccupied, our losses being an officer and 19 men killed and wounded.
The winter of 1841-42 was spent in fruitless negotiation, and with the opening of the spring Sir Hugh Gough recommenced operations. In March, 1842, Ningpo was taken, and in the month of May Chapoo was captured, after a sharp fight, in which our losses were 6 officers and 51 of all ranks killed and wounded. In the month of July the fleet pushed up the Yangtse Kiang River, with a view of showing the Chinese that we could and we would reach the very heart of their country. A more determined resistance was met with at Ching-Kiang-Foo, which was carried with a loss of 13 officers and 111 of all ranks. This broke the back of the war-party. Emissaries came in suing for peace. The fresh terms included a war indemnity of 21,000,000 dollars and the opening of a number of ports to free and unrestricted trade.
LIST OF CASUALTIES.
+----------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +----------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |18th Roy. Irish | 2 | 6 | 8 | 73 | |26th Camer'ians | 2 | 2 | 6 | 24 | |49th R. Berks | 1 | 8 | 7 | 49 | |55th Borders | 1 | 3 | 5 | 40 | |98th N. Staffs | - | - | 13 | 1 | |62nd Punjabis | - | 3 | 1 | 8 | |66th Punjabis | - | 1 | 1 | 11 | |74th Punjabis | - | 1 | 1 | 13 | +----------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
The little army was well rewarded for its arduous services, and the following list of honours conferred for the China War of 1840-1842 effectually dispels the legend that the lavish distribution of rewards for military services is a product of the later Victorian era. Sir Hugh Gough was created a Baronet, the three Brigadiers received the Knighthood of the Bath, three officers were made Aides-de-Camp to Queen Victoria, twenty-nine received the Companionship of the Bath, eight were made Brevet Lieutenant-Colonels, and thirteen received the Brevet of Major. The young Queen was graciously pleased to allow the East India Company to strike a medal commemorative of the campaign, and officers and men of her regiments were authorized to wear this decoration. At the same time Her Majesty expressed her opinion that in future medals should only be granted by the Sovereign, and that it should not be left to a company of "merchant venturers" trading to the East Indies to issue decorations to her soldiers.
CANTON (1858).
This distinction was conferred on the 59th Foot (now the East Lancashire Regiment) for its services when holding the city of Canton during the second Chinese War of 1857-1860.
The terms of the treaty entered into after the war of 1842 had never been faithfully observed by the Chinese. At last the seizure of a vessel called the Arrow, flying the British flag, compelled us to demand reparation. This was contemptuously refused, and in the early spring of 1857 a force was despatched from England to enforce respect to our flag. The outbreak of the Indian Mutiny necessitated the diversion of the regiments from China to India, so the punishment was delayed. General Straubenzee was then in command of the troops in China, which consisted of the 59th (East Lancashires), four battalions of sepoys, and a couple of battalions of Royal Marine Light Infantry.
Sir Michael Seymour, the naval Commander-in-Chief, who was in supreme command of the naval and military forces, was acting in conjunction with a French brigade, and it was deemed advisable to seize Canton with the available forces, rather than allow the Chinese to strengthen its defences, and so increase the difficulties of capture.
In the month of January, 1858, the Admiral, after consultation with General Straubenzee, determined to attempt the capture of Canton. The force at his disposal consisted of the 59th (East Lancashires), two strong battalions of Royal Marines, and a brigade of bluejackets numbering 1,800 men. This force was placed under the command of Major-General Straubenzee. The Chinese showed considerable determination, but the energy and gallantry of our bluejackets carried all before them, and Canton was occupied, with a total loss of 2 officers and 14 men killed, 4 officers and 112 men wounded, the 59th (East Lancashires) contributing to the casualty list 2 officers and 2 men killed, 1 officer and 17 men wounded.
CHINA (1857-1860).
This distinction was conferred on the regiments which took part in the operations in China during the years 1857-1860, and is now borne by the following corps of the Indian Army:
7th Rajputs. 10th Jats. 11th Rajputs. 15th Sikhs. 22nd Punjabis. 27th Punjabis. 105th Mahratta L.I.
The necessity for putting forth our whole strength in the suppression of the rebellion in India led, as I have said on p. 321, to a temporary cessation of the military operations in China. Lord Elgin, who had been deputed by the Home Government to carry through the negotiations, was naturally anxious to do so without the effusion of blood. He had a considerable naval force at his disposal, and a number of native troops had been sent from India, more with a view of removing them from the sphere of temptation than with the intention of their carrying out serious military operations.
In 1858 the Chinese Commissioners agreed to our demands that the treaty of peace between the two nations should be concluded at Pekin; but on realizing that Lord Elgin was determined to carry out this clause, every obstacle was thrown in his way. Finally, when Sir Frederick Bruce attempted to pass up the Peiho River, he was fired on, and three of our gunboats sunk. The Indian Mutiny was now at an end, and Sir Hope Grant, who as a cavalry leader had gained great distinction in its suppression, was nominated to the chief command of the China Expeditionary Force. Sir Hope had a double claim to this distinction, for he had acted as Brigade Major to Lord Saltoun in the war of 1840-42. It was very evident from the tone of the correspondence of the Chinese Commissioners that all memory of the defeats they had experienced in the war of 1840-1842 had been effaced. Our Envoys were treated with supercilious disdain, and we were gravely warned of the dangers we were incurring in thus treating the Celestial Empire. In reply to our ultimatum they wrote:
"The contents of the letter of the English Envoy fills us with the greatest astonishment, and the demand for an indemnity is against all decorum. The language in which the English letter is couched is too insubordinate and extravagant even to be discussed. In future the British Ambassador must not be so wanting in decorum, or he will give cause for serious trouble."
In face of such language as this, it was evident that nothing short of a sharp lesson inflicted at the capital itself would teach this irrepressible people the power of our arms, and preparations were at once made for the final advance of the troops, under Sir Hope Grant.
CASUALTIES DURING THE OPERATIONS IN CHINA, 1858-1861.
+-----------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-----------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |7th Rajputs | - | - | - | - | |10th Jats | - | - | - | - | |15th Sikhs | - | - | - | - | |22nd Punjabis | - | - | - | - | |27th Punjabis | - | - | - | - | |105th Mahr. L.I. | - | - | - | - | +-----------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
NOTE.--I have been unable to ascertain the losses of the Sepoy battalions during the occupation of the Chinese Ports, 1857-62.
CHINESE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE OF 1860.
The army, under the command of Lieutenant-General Sir Hope Grant, which was to act in conjunction with a French force, numbered some 16,000 all told, and was brigaded as under:
Cavalry Brigade--Brigadier-General Pattle (King's Dragoon Guards): King's Dragoon Guards, 11th Probyn's Lancers, 19th Fane's Horse.
First Infantry Division--Major-General Sir John Mitchell, K.C.B.
First Brigade--Brigadier-General Staveley, C.B.: The Royal Scots, 31st (East Surrey Regiment), and 15th Ludhiana Sikhs.
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General Sutton: 2nd (Queen's), 60th (King's Royal Rifles), and 23rd Sikh Pioneers.
Second Division--Major-General Sir Robert Napier, K.C.B.
Third Brigade--Brigadier-General Jephson: The Buffs, 44th (Essex Regiment), and 20th Brownlow's Punjabis.
Fourth Brigade--Brigadier-General Reeves: 67th (Hampshires), 99th (Wiltshires), and 19th Punjabis.
To each infantry division a field battery was attached, and a troop of horse artillery acted with General Pattle's cavalry brigade. At the immediate disposal of the Commander-in-Chief were three field and two mountain batteries, a battalion of Sikhs, a company of Royal Engineers, under that fine soldier the late Sir Gerald Graham, who had recently gained the Victoria Cross for a series of acts of gallantry in the Crimea, and with him were two companies of the Madras Sappers and Miners.
The 87th (Royal Irish Fusiliers) were left to garrison Hong-Kong, whilst other points on the coast were occupied by native troops from Bengal and Madras.
TAKU FORTS (AUGUST 12, 1860).
This battle honour was awarded to the regiments which assaulted the Taku Forts at the commencement of the second phase of the Chinese War of 1860:
King's Own Dragoon Guards. Royal Scots. Queen's. Buffs. East Surrey. Essex. King's Royal Rifles. Hampshire. 11th Probyn's Horse. 19th Fane's Horse. 2nd Queen's Own Sappers and Miners. 20th Brownlow's Punjabis. 23rd Pioneers.
Early in June, 1860, the force, under Sir Hope Grant, disembarked in Talien-Wan Bay, where the 99th (Wiltshire) and the 19th Punjabis were left to hold the base, whilst preparations were made for the advance on Pekin. The first objective was the capture of the Taku Forts, at the entrance of the Peiho River--the forts which had inflicted such a serious blow to our prestige in the previous year. On August 20 these were carried by storm by Napier's division, the colours of the 44th and the 67th being almost simultaneously placed on the ramparts by Lieutenants Rogers and Chaplin of those regiments. Both of these officers received the Victoria Cross for their heroism, both having been badly wounded in their gallant dash for the prize of honour.
CASUALTIES AT THE STORMING OF THE TAKU FORTS.
+------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | - | 2 | - | 15 | |2nd Queen's | - | - | - | - | |3rd Buffs | - | - | - | 2 | |31st E. Surrey | - | - | - | - | |44th Essex | - | 2 | 10 | 50 | |Royal Marine L.I. | - | 5 | 1 | 24 | |67th Hampshire | - | 8 | 6 | 63 | +------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
PEKIN (OCTOBER 12, 1860).
This battle honour is borne by the regiments which accompanied General Sir Hope Grant to Pekin during the second Chinese War of 1860:
King's Dragoon Guards. Royal Scots. Queen's R.W. Surrey. King's Royal Rifles. Hampshire. Wiltshire. 11th K.E.O. Lancers (Probyn's Horse). 19th Lancers (Fane's Horse). 2nd Q.O. Sappers and Miners. 20th Brownlow's Punjabis. 23rd Pioneers.
After the fall of the Taku Forts, the Chinese Envoys made every effort to induce Sir Hope Grant to forgo his march on the capital, but both the English and the French commanders felt this was a point that could not be waived. In the course of the negotiations some members of the Staff were seized by the Chinese, and, after undergoing the most brutal torture, were foully murdered. Such conduct merely emphasized the necessity for the occupation of the capital, and on October 5 the allied armies entered Pekin, having experienced but slight opposition during the advance, the survivors of the little band who had been so treacherously captured having been previously released.
OTHER CASUALTIES IN ACTION DURING THE MARCH TO PEKIN.
+-----------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |K. Drag. Gds. | - | 1 | 1 | 10 | |2nd Queen's. | - | - | 1 | 2 | |3rd Buffs | - | - | - | 3 | |11th Probyn L. | - | 2 | 4 | 16 | |19th Fane's H. | - | 2 | 3 | 24 | |20th Brownlow's Punjs. | - | - | 2 | 6 | |23rd Pioneers | - | 1 | 1 | 8 | +-----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
CHINA, 1900.
This distinction is borne by the regiments which took part in the expedition to China in the year 1900, under the command of General Sir Alfred Gaselee, in conjunction with the allied army, which was entrusted to the supreme command of Field-Marshal the Count Waldersee, a German officer of distinction.
15th Cavalry. 33rd Q.O. Light Cavalry. 2nd Q.O. Light Infantry. 1st K.E.O. Sappers and Min. 2nd Q.O. Sappers and Min. 3rd Sappers and Miners. 6th Jat. Light Infantry. 14th Sikhs. 20th Brownlow's Punjabis. 34th Pioneers. 57th Wilde's Rifles. 61st Pioneers. 63rd Light Infantry. 88th Carnatic Infantry. 91st Punjabis. 98th Infantry. 122nd Rajputana Infantry. 130th Baluchis. 4th Gurkhas.
Anti-dynastic and anti-Christian troubles had been rife in China for some time previous to the Boxer Rising of 1900. Little is really known of the Boxers, except that they formed a secret society, having as their object the extermination of all Christians and the overthrow of the existing dynasty. The murder of some English missionaries in the neighbourhood of the capital and a general sense of insecurity led the various foreign Ministers in Pekin to call up a mixed force of Marines and bluejackets from the allied fleets in Chinese waters for the defence of the Embassies. This step was replied to by the Chinese by the murder of the German Minister and a general attack on the Embassies, which for a period of eight weeks were exposed to one of the closest sieges of modern times. Thanks to the gallantry of the British Minister, Major Sir Claude Macdonald--a soldier who had served his apprenticeship in that excellent regiment the Highland Light Infantry, and who was unanimously nominated to the supreme command of the little garrison, numbering only 400 officers and men--the Legations, though hard pressed, were enabled to hold out until assistance arrived.
In June, 1900, on learning of the precarious situation of the Legations, Admiral Seymour, commanding our fleet in Chinese waters, and the senior of the foreign Admirals, essayed to march to their relief with a mixed force of 2,000 seamen and Marines from the various fleets. His little force included Americans, Austrians, French, German, Italian, and Russians, as well as our own men, our contingent numbering close on half the total. The Admiral found his force too small to cope with the hordes of Boxers, and he was compelled to make a stand at Tientsin. In the meantime the European Powers, together with Japan, were hastily despatching troops for the double relief of the Legations and of the Admiral. On June 16 the allied fleets bombarded and seized the Taku Forts, as well as the Chinese flotilla, the torpedo-boats built by the Germans for the Chinese fleet being gallantly cut out from under the guns of the forts by a young English Lieutenant, Roger Keyes. By the beginning of August the Indian brigades, under Sir Alfred Gaselee, reached the mouth of the Peiho, and after a series of small engagements pushed its way up to Pekin, and on August 14 the relief of the beleaguered Legations was accomplished.
PEKIN, 1900.
This honour was awarded to the regiments which accompanied General Sir Alfred Gaselee to the relief of the beleaguered Embassies in Pekin, when besieged by Chinese during the Boxer Rising of 1900:
Royal Welsh Fusiliers. 1st Duke of York's Own Lancers. 7th Rajputs. 51st Sikhs. 24th Punjabis.
I have given on p. 344 the names of the regiments which are entitled to bear the distinction "China, 1900," on their colours and appointments. It is difficult to fathom the reasoning which has denied this distinction to the regiments which accompanied General Gaselee to Pekin. As well deny a regiment the honour "Sevastopol" because it had been already granted one for the Alma. Sir Alfred Gaselee's task was no easy one. The relieving force was composed of many nationalities, and international jealousies were not unknown. Some of the allied commanders were desirous of delaying the advance until the arrival of the whole of their contingents. Gaselee and General Chaffee, the chief of the American contingents, set their faces against this. The lives of women and children were at stake, and the English General let it be distinctly understood that he was going to march on a certain day, whatever the others might decide. The Americans and the Japanese were one with him. On August 14 the relieving force started.
+---------------+--------+-------+ |International| Men. |Guns.| | Force. | | | +---------------+--------+-------+ |Japanese | 10,000 | 24 | |Russians | 4,000 | 16 | |British | 3,000 | 12 | |U.S.A. | 2,000 | 6 | |French | 800 | 12 | |Germans | 20 | - | |Austrians | 100 | - | +---------------+--------+-------+
+----------------------+-------+ | British Force. | Men.| +----------------------+-------+ |Royal Welsh Fusiliers | 300 | |1st Bengal Lancers | 400 | |7th Rajputs | 500 | |24th Punjabis | 300 | |51st Sikhs | 500 | |Chinese Regiment | 100 | |Hong-Kong Regiment | 100 | |Naval Brigade | 300 | +----------------------+-------+
Little resistance was met with, and on August 20 General Gaselee had the satisfaction of learning that, thanks to his decision, the lives of the beleaguered garrison of the Legations had been saved. The force he took with him was dangerously small, but he had been compelled to leave a strong detachment, under Generals O'Moore Creagh and Lorne Campbell, to guard his long line of communications, as well as to leave garrisons at Hong-Kong and Shanghai, where there was a considerable amount of anti-Christian feeling. Originally his brigades had been organized as under:
First Brigade--Brigadier-General Sir Norman Stewart: 7th Rajputs, 24th Punjabis, 51st Sikhs, and 126th Baluchis.
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General O'Moore Creagh, V.C.: 2nd Queen's Own Light Infantry, 14th Sikhs, 1st Battalion 4th Gurkhas, and 130th (Prince of Wales's Own) Baluchis.
Lines of Communications--Brigadier-General Lorne Campbell: 63rd Palamcottah Light Infantry and 122nd Rajputana Infantry.
Divisional Troops: 1st Bengal Lancers, 61st Pioneers, and two batteries of artillery.
Sir Norman Stewart, as the second senior officer, and as the one who had the widest experience of war, was selected by General Gaselee to command the brigade which was to have the honour of relieving the garrisons.
XXII. BATTLE HONOURS FOR SERVICES IN SOUTH AFRICA, 1806-1879
Cape of Good Hope, 1806--South Africa, 1835--South Africa, 1846-47--South Africa, 1851-1853--South Africa, 1877-1879.
CAPE OF GOOD HOPE, 1806.
This distinction has been conferred on the following regiments:
South Wales Borderers. East Lancashire. Highland Light Infantry. Seaforth Highlanders. Royal Irish Rifles. Sutherland Highlanders.
Before touching on the capture of the Cape in 1804, it will be advisable briefly to allude to the previous capture in 1795.
When Holland threw in her lot with revolutionary France, the Cape became a subsidiary base for the French fleets, which put in there for provisions and water, as well as for refit. As the islands of Rodriguez, Bourbon, and Mauritius belonged to France, it became necessary for the safety of our Indian possessions that we should seize all those points which were detrimental to the preservation of the trade route to India. The reduction of the French islands necessitated the employment of a force larger than we at that time could dispose of, but the Dutch settlements presented no such difficulties. It was therefore determined to despatch a joint naval and military expedition from England, which should be reinforced by troops from India.
Admiral Sir Keith Elphinstone was selected for the naval command, his force consisting of the Monarch (74 guns), Tremendous (74), America (64), Stately (64), Ruby (64), Sceptre (64), Trident (64), Jupiter (50), Crescent (50), Sphinx (24), and Moselle (16). Major-General Craig embarked on the fleet with the 78th Highlanders, having instructions to pick up the St. Helena Regiment at that island. Detachments of the 25th and 27th Light Dragoons also embarked, the idea being to horse them on arrival at the Cape.
Commodore Blanket, then commanding the fleet in the East Indies, had instructions to proceed south to co-operate with the Admiral, and he was to convoy a force under the command of Sir Alured Clarke, composed of the 84th, 95th, and 98th Regiments. Leaving Spithead in the Monarch on April 5, Elphinstone arrived at the Cape on July 11, and Craig at once disembarked his troops. Desultory skirmishing took place with the Boers until September 3, when the Indian contingent arrived. The Dutch, seeing the futility of further resistance, surrendered. In the meantime Elphinstone had taken possession of the Dutch fleet of eight fine ships--the Dordrecht (66 guns), Revolution (66), Admiral Tromp (54), Castor (44), Brave (40), Bellona (28), Sirene (28), and Havik (18). The total casualties amounted to 9 men killed, 3 officers and 53 men wounded, and fell, as will be seen, chiefly on the force commanded by General Craig.
CASUALTIES AT THE CAPTURE OF THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE IN 1795.
+---------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +---------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |78th Seaforth Highlanders | - | 2 | 6 | 24 | |84th York and Lancaster | - | - | - | 1 | |Royal Navy | - | 1 | 3 | 15 | |98th (now Argyll Highlrs.) | - | - | - | 3 | |95th | - | - | - | 6 | +---------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
CAPE OF GOOD HOPE, 1806.
In accordance with our time-honoured Parliamentary custom, the Cape, which had been captured in 1795, was restored, by the terms of the Treaty of Amiens, to the Dutch, thus necessitating its recapture on the renewal of the war in 1803. It was known that efforts had been made to render this more difficult, and therefore it was determined to employ a larger force. The command of the troops was entrusted to Sir David Baird, a soldier who had shown conspicuous gallantry on several occasions in India, and who had displayed considerable resource when in command of the Indian division of the Egyptian Expeditionary Army in 1801. With him was associated Admiral Sir Home Popham, whose squadron, comprised the Diadem, Raisonnable, Belliqueux, Diomed, Leda, Narcissus, Espoir, and Encounter.
The troops forming the expedition were the 20th Hussars; a Highland brigade, under Brigadier Ronald Fergusson, an officer who had distinguished himself as Lieutenant-Colonel of the 84th at the capture of the Cape in 1795, and had added to that reputation by his conduct in Flanders under Abercromby. This brigade consisted of the 71st (Highland Light Infantry), 72nd (Seaforths), and 93rd (Sutherland Highlanders). The Second Brigade, under General Beresford, afterwards the well-known commander of the Portuguese army in the Peninsular War, under Wellington, consisted of the 24th (South Wales Borderers), the 38th (South Staffords), 59th (East Lancashires), and the 83rd (Royal Irish Rifles).
On January 7 the troops were landed, General Beresford, with the 20th Hussars and the South Staffords, being sent round to Saldanha Bay to effect a diversion, his brigade being handed over to Colonel Baird, of the 83rd. In landing, the 93rd unfortunately lost thirty-six men by the upsetting of a boat. On the following day--January 8--the Dutch were driven from their entrenched position on the Blue Mountain by the Highland Brigade, and on the 9th the General capitulated.
When the order was issued conferring this distinction on certain of the regiments which had taken part in this expedition, the two corps which were detached under Beresford were for some reason omitted from the list. There would seem no reason why the 20th Hussars and South Staffords should not now be allowed to assume the honour. The casualties amounted to 15 killed and 189 wounded, and fell chiefly on the Highland Brigade.
CASUALTIES AT THE CAPTURE OF THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE IN 1806.
+----------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |24th S. Wales Borderers | 1 | - | 3 | 16 | |59th E. Lancs | - | 1 | 2 | 5 | |71st Highland L.I. | - | 2 | 6 | 7 | |72nd Seaforth Highlanders | - | 2 | 2 | 36 | |83rd R. Irish R. | - | - | - | 6 | |93rd Sutherland Highlanders | - | 5 | 2 | 57 | +----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
SOUTH AFRICA, 1835.
This distinction is borne by the
Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. Seaforth Highlanders. Gordon Highlanders.
Our difficulties at the Cape may be said to have commenced with its first capture in 1795, and to have lasted until the conclusion of peace with the Boers more than a century later. In the year 1819 we had to embark on a campaign with the Kaffirs, and now, in the early part of 1835, there was a general rising of the Kaffirs against the European settlers in South Africa. Delagoa Bay was attacked, the Portuguese Governor killed, and the fort captured. Our own Colony was overrun, and it became necessary to use force against force. The garrison of the Colony had been reduced to a dangerous level. There were but three weak battalions of the line, one company of artillery, and that fine old regiment the Cape Mounted Rifles. Fortunately, we had as Governor a man well qualified to deal with the crisis. Sir B. D'Urban was an officer who had acted as Adjutant-General to Lord Beresford throughout the Peninsular War, and he now had as his Adjutant-General Colonel Harry Smith, subsequently known as the victor of Aliwal, and whose name will be associated with a later war in South Africa.
Leaving the 98th (North Staffords) to garrison Cape Town, General Sir B. D'Urban moved up the 72nd (Seaforths) to Grahamstown, then held by a wing of the 75th (now the 1st Gordons). A laager was constructed round Port Elizabeth, and the inhabitants formed into battalions of irregulars, and placed under the command of regular officers. A similar proceeding was adopted at Grahamstown, and in April Colonel Harry Smith was ready to take the field. His force did not number more than 3,000 men. It was composed of the 72nd (Seaforths), Cape Mounted Rifles, some 1,500 mounted Boers, and two weak battalions of armed Hottentots. Desultory fighting continued for some weeks--indeed, it was not until the month of December that a permanent peace was concluded, our frontiers being pushed still farther to the north.
SOUTH AFRICA, 1846-47.
This distinction commemorates a long-forgotten campaign, and is borne by the
7th Dragoon Guards. Royal Warwicks. Scottish Rifles. Inniskilling Fusiliers. Royal Highlanders. Sherwood Foresters. Argyll Highlanders. Rifle Brigade.
For some considerable time prior to the outbreak of hostilities our relations with the Gaikas, a powerful tribe on the Natal frontier, had been on the verge of breaking-point; and as no embargo was placed on the importation of arms, it was foretold that as soon as these gentry felt themselves strong enough a struggle for the mastery was inevitable. In the early spring of 1846 the storm broke by the Gaikas attacking a convoy of prisoners and releasing some of their own tribesmen, and for a time Grahamstown was practically besieged. There was but a small force in the Colony to make head against the insurrection, but as the Boers had as much, if not more, to lose at the hands of the Kaffirs, large numbers of them were enrolled for defence. The Governor of the Colony was General Sir Peregrine Maitland, and he promptly moved up to the front with all the available troops. Fortunately, a transport conveying the 90th (Scottish Rifles) from Ceylon to England had put into Port Elizabeth in distress, and the regiment was at once disembarked and sent up to the front.
In April, Colonel Somerset, of the Cape Mounted Rifles, took the field, with the 7th Dragoon Guards, the 91st (Argyll Highlanders), and his own regiment, strengthened by some Burghers and Hottentot levies, and on April 16 inflicted a sharp defeat on the enemy. The 6th (Royal Warwicks), 27th (Inniskilling Fusiliers), 45th (Sherwood Foresters), and the Rifle Brigade were successively sent out to reinforce Sir Peregrine. In the early part of 1847 an advance was made into the Amatole Bush, and after a few trifling skirmishes the Gaikas sued for peace, and our frontier was pushed up to the Kei River.
SOUTH AFRICA, 1851-52-53.
The following regiments are entitled to bear this distinction, for which a medal was granted by an Army Order of November 21, 1854
12th Lancers. Queen's Royal West Surrey. Royal Warwick. Suffolks. Royal Highlanders. Oxford Light Infantry. King's Royal Rifles. Highland Light Infantry. Argyll Highlanders. Rifle Brigade.
Sandilli, the Gaika chief, had never reconciled himself to accepting loyally the terms of the treaty entered into after the war of 1847. In December, 1851, a party of the 45th (Sherwood Foresters) was surprised and cut up, although we were supposed to be at peace with the tribes. The Governor of the Colony, Sir Harry Smith, was a man of energy, and one who knew the country well, for he had been in actual command of the troops during the war of 1835. Since then he had added to his reputation in India, both in the Gwalior and Sikh Wars. He was not the man to sit down tamely under such an insult. He at once proceeded to Grahamstown to judge for himself the necessity of the case, and then wrote home for reinforcements. Without waiting for these, he commenced operations by an invasion of the Amatole Bush with two columns, the one commanded by Colonel Fordyce, of the 74th, the other by Colonel Mitchell; these operations were not unattended with loss, and further movements in the Waterkloof Mountains cost the 74th their Colonel and some thirty men.
In the autumn reinforcements commenced to arrive from England. These included the same battalion of the Rifle Brigade which had done so well in the previous campaign; but this time the Rifles were armed with the Minié, a weapon which ranged up to 1,000 yards. A few of the same weapons were served out to each company of the other regiments, and though perhaps in close Bush fighting the old Brown Bess was effective enough, yet, when it happened, which it often did, that the Kaffirs were holding a position with open country in its front, the long range of our weapons won the day before our men began to suffer any loss.
The policy of Sir Harry Smith did not commend itself to the Home Government, and in the early part of 1852 General Sir George Cathcart was sent out to the Cape to replace him. Sir George had earned a high reputation as a writer on military subjects, and was an officer of considerable experience. He had acted on the staff of his father, who was attached to the Russian army during the campaign of Leipsic, as well as in that of 1813-14 against Napoleon, and he had been Aide-de-Camp to the Duke of Wellington at Waterloo. It was not until the commencement of 1853 that Sandilli sued for peace, when Sir George Cathcart returned home. He subsequently became Adjutant-General of the army, but resigned that position to take command of a division in the Crimean War, and he fell gallantly leading on his men at the Battle of Inkerman on November 5, 1855.
SOUTH AFRICA, 1879.
The regiments entitled to bear this distinction on their colours and appointments are the
King's Dragoon Guards. 17th Lancers. Buffs. King's Own Lancasters. Somerset Light Infantry. Royal Scots Fusiliers. South Wales Borderers. Scottish Rifles. South Staffords. Northamptons. Middlesex. King's Own Royal Rifles. Wiltshires. Connaught Rangers. Argyll Highlanders.
The campaign was undertaken with a view of punishing the Zulus, a powerful tribe bordering our Colony of Natal, for continual violations of our territory. The Zulus were undoubtedly the most powerful tribe in Southern Africa, and on more than one occasion they had defeated the Boers. We unfortunately entered on the campaign with our usual contempt for the forces opposed to us. The General in command was Major-General Lord Chelmsford, an officer who had considerable war experience, and who had held the highest staff appointments in India, both in war and in peace. He had served in the Crimea, first as a regimental officer in the Grenadier Guards, and subsequently on the staff. Exchanging into the 95th (Derbyshire Regiment), he served with that fine old corps in Central India, and in 1867 he was Adjutant-General to the Abyssinian Expeditionary Force.
The invasion of Zululand was to have been carried out by five columns, the Commander-in-Chief exercising a general supervision of the whole, but at the outset moving with the two centre columns.
No. 1 column was under the command of Colonel Pearson, of the Buffs, and consisted of the 2nd Battalion of the Buffs, the 99th (Wiltshires), a strong naval brigade, and some native levies. It numbered 4,750 men, with four guns.
No. 2 column was under the command of Colonel Durnford, of the Royal Engineers. It consisted entirely of native levies, commanded by British officers, and was 3,300 strong. Its commander had considerable colonial experience, and was generally looked upon as the best officer in South Africa for dealing with native questions.
No. 3 column was under the command of Colonel Glyn, of the 24th (South Wales Borderers). It consisted of both battalions of that unfortunate regiment, one of native levies, with six guns. Its strength was 4,700 men.
No. 4 column was under Colonel (better known as Field-Marshal Sir Evelyn) Wood, V.C., C.B., of the 90th (Scottish Rifles). He had with him the 13th (Somerset Light Infantry), his own corps, and native levies, including a regiment of Frontier Light Horse, under Colonel Redvers Buller, V.C., C.B. Its strength was 2,270 men, with six guns. In composition and leadership there is no doubt that this was the best organized of the five columns.
No. 5 column was under that exceptionally fine soldier Colonel Hugh Rowlands, V.C. It consisted of the 80th (South Staffords), with a number of native levies, bringing up its strength to 1,600 men, with three guns. The duty of this column was to watch the western frontiers of Zululand, and to keep a watch over another recalcitrant chieftain, Sekukuni, who had to be dealt with in the near future.
The army crossed the frontier in three columns--No. 1, under Pearson, following the easternmost road, near the sea, to Etshowe; Nos. 3 and 4, with the Commander-in-Chief, crossing the Tugela River at Rorke's Drift; whilst Sir Evelyn Wood took a more northerly course. On January 22 Lord Chelmsford, leaving Colonel Durnford at Isandhlwana, within the Zulu border, moved forward to reconnoitre. No means were taken to keep touch with Durnford's column, which was attacked by an overwhelming force of the enemy, and the whole force annihilated, the 24th losing no less than 25 officers and 591 non-commissioned officers and men. To the credit of the corps it must ever be remembered that not a man fell back; all died at their post. The colours were borne away at the distinct orders of the commanding officer by two young officers, Lieutenants Coghill and Melville, whose dead bodies were found some days after in the bed of the Tugela River, with the blood-stained standards lying safe beside them. A few hours later the Zulus followed up this success by a vigorous attack on the post at Rorke's Drift, on the Tugela River, held by one company of the 24th. Its commander, Lieutenant Bromhead, came of a famous fighting family, and he was associated with a sapper officer, Lieutenant Chard. The post was defended with unsurpassed heroism. After some hours the Zulus, unable to stand against the accurate shooting of the 24th, fell back, and so the communications with the Cape were maintained, and the Commander-in-Chief, who, although within hearing of the firing, was ignorant of the true state of affairs, was enabled to fall back and to reorganize his army.
Colonels Pearson and Wood held on to their positions. Wood was attacked on the 25th by the Zulus at Kambula, but beat them off after a sharp engagement with but slight loss, his two regiments showing themselves worthy of their high reputations as light infantry corps.
Pearson, on the other hand, was shut up in Etshowe, and was only relieved some days later by the Commander-in-Chief, who on his march to Etshowe inflicted a defeat on the Zulus at Ginghelovo.
The news of the disaster to the 24th caused a strong sensation in England. Reinforcements were hurried out to the Cape, and the command of the forces entrusted to Sir Garnet Wolseley. On his arrival in Natal he reorganized his army, which was now constituted as under:
First Division: Major-General Hope Crealock.
First Brigade--Brigadier C. Pearson: 2nd Battalion 3rd Buffs, 88th (Connaught Rangers), and 99th (Wiltshires).
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General J. Mansfield Clarke: 57th (Middlesex), 3rd Battalion King's Royal Rifles, and 91st (Argyll Highlanders).
Divisional Troops: Naval brigade (800 strong), ten mountain guns, one company of sappers, and two battalions of native troops.
Second Division: Major-General Newdigate.
First Brigade--Colonel Glyn: 2nd Battalion 21st (Royal Scots Fusiliers) and the 58th (Northamptons).
Second Brigade--Colonel Collingwood: 1st Battalion 24th (South Wales Borderers) and the 94th (Connaught Rangers).
Divisional Troops: Three battalions of native levies, one company of Royal Engineers, and three batteries of artillery.
Flying Column--Colonel Evelyn Wood, V.C., C.B.: 1st Battalion 13th (Somerset Light Infantry), 90th (Scottish Rifles), 80th (South Staffords), Buller's Frontier Horse, and two squadrons of mounted infantry.
Cavalry Brigade--Major-General Marshal: King's Dragoon Guards, 17th Lancers, and native mounted troops.
Lines of Communications--Major-General Hugh Clifford, V.C., C.B.: 88th (Connaught Rangers) and details.
Before Sir Garnet Wolseley had time to arrive at headquarters, Lord Chelmsford moved up from Ginghilovo, and defeated the Zulus in a serious engagement at Ulundi. Our losses were trifling, those of the enemy extremely heavy. With this defeat the active opposition of the Zulus ceased, and Sir Garnet Wolseley at once organized a number of flying columns to traverse the country and to effect the capture of the King. This brought the war to a close.
Early in the following year Sir Garnet turned his attention to King Sekukuni, whose stronghold was captured by a portion of the army which had been engaged at Ulundi.
The troops who took part in the campaigns against the Zulus and against Sekukuni were honoured by being awarded the South African War Medal, with a clasp bearing the date "1879" or "1880," as the case may be, and the regiments were authorized to add the words "South Africa" to the other distinctions on their colours. If we except the losses incurred by the 24th Regiment at Isandhlwana and the cutting up of a company of the 80th (South Staffords), the losses in the campaign were not of a very serious nature, as the appended casualty return shows:
CASUALTIES IN SOUTH AFRICA, 1877-1879.
+-----------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | 3 | 2 | 68 | 4 | |Roy. Engineers | 1 | - | 4 | - | |K. Drag. Gds. | - | - | - | - | |17th Lancers | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | |Buffs | - | - | 3 | 3 | |4th King's Own | - | - | - | - | |13th Somerset L.I. | 1 | 2 | 8 | 28 | |2nd Batt. 21st Roy. Scots F. | - | 4 | 3 | 24 | |1st Batt. S. Wales Bdrs. | 16 | - | 404 | 2 | |2nd Batt. S. Wales Bdrs. | 5 | - | 187 | 4 | |57th Middlesex | - | 1 | - | 3 | |58th N'amptons | - | 2 | 1 | 10 | |3rd Batt. 60th Rifles | 1 | - | 1 | 5 | |80th S. Staffs. | 1 | - | 60 | 1 | |88th Connaught Rangers | - | - | - | - | |90th Scottish R. | 2 | 3 | 15 | 46 | |91st Argyll Highlanders | - | - | 1 | 8 | |94th Connaught Rangers | - | 2 | 2 | 22 | |99th Wilts | 1 | - | 2 | 4 | |Naval Brigade | 2 | 1 | 8 | 15 | +-----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
XXIII. BATTLE HONOURS FOR MISCELLANEOUS ACTIONS
Jersey, 1781--Rodney's Victory of April 12, 1782--The Glorious First of June, 1794--St. Vincent--Fishguard--Copenhagen--New Zealand--Abyssinia--Ashantee.
JERSEY, 1781.
This distinction is borne on the colours of the
1st Royal Jersey Light Infantry. 2nd Royal Jersey Light Infantry. 3rd Royal Jersey Light Infantry.
It commemorates the gallant conduct of these three regiments in repelling the French attack on that island in the year 1781. In the early dawn of January 6 a French force, under the command of the Baron de Rullecourt, made a sudden descent on the island of Jersey, landing a short distance to the east of St. Helier, the capital. Entering the town, they occupied the central square, and surrounded the house of the Lieutenant-Governor, who was at once made a prisoner. He was compelled to sign a capitulation of the island, although he explained to the French commander that such an act would, of course, be ignored by the next senior officer. However, under cover of a flag of truce, the French commander, accompanied by the unfortunate Governor, approached Elizabeth Castle, which dominates the town of St. Helier, and demanded the surrender of the garrison.
The troops at that time in the island, detachments of which were in the castle, consisted of the 78th Highlanders, 83rd Glasgow Volunteers (now the 71st Highland Light Infantry), and the 95th Regiment (the forerunners of the Rifle Brigade), together with the three regiments of Militia named above. The senior officer was Major Pierson, of the 95th. So far from obeying the orders of the Lieutenant-Governor, who, of course, being a prisoner, was deprived of all vestige of authority, Major Pierson replied to the French commander that unless the Governor was released and the French troops laid down their arms within ten minutes he would open fire on them. Rullecourt retorted that unless the castle accepted his terms he would hang the Governor. It is said that Pierson's reply was brief and to the point: "Hang, and be damned!" said he. The French officer was allowed to rejoin his troops, then Pierson, moving a couple of companies of the 78th to a hill on the opposite side of St. Helier, which had not been occupied by the French, descended into the square. The French made a brave resistance, but at the end of an hour Rullecourt, who had been shot through the jaw, surrendered. Our losses were by no means small, the most serious being the death of the gallant Pierson, who fell at the head of his men, and whose gallant conduct and heroic death are commemorated by a monument in the square of St. Helier.
CASUALTIES IN JERSEY, JANUARY 6, 1781.
+------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | - | 1 | - | - | |78th Highlanders | - | - | 1 | 3 | |83rd Glasgow Volunteers | - | - | 6 | 8 | |95th Regiment | 1 | - | 2 | 13 | |1st R. Jersey L.I. | - | - | - | 4 | |2nd R. Jersey L.I. | - | 3 | - | 6 | |3rd R. Jersey L.I. | - | - | 4 | 24 | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
A NAVAL CROWN, SUPERSCRIBED APRIL 12, 1782.
This distinction is borne by the Welsh Regiment in commemoration of the part played by a detachment of the old 69th Regiment, which were acting as Marines on the fleet in the action when Rodney defeated De Grasse off the island of Martinique, taking the French Admiral a prisoner, with his flagship, the Ville de Paris, of 120 guns.
The total losses in this engagement were 10 officers and 237 men killed, 22 officers and 766 men wounded, the 69th losing 5 officers and 29 men killed and wounded.
A NAVAL CROWN, SUPERSCRIBED JUNE 1, 1794.
This distinction was conferred on the Queen's (Royal West Surrey) and the Worcester Regiment for their services when acting as Marines on the ships composing Lord Howe's fleet in the memorable action on the Glorious First of June. Our prizes included two line-of-battle ships of eighty and four of seventy-four guns, whilst the sinking of the Vengeur afforded our adversaries material for a pretty piece of fiction. The total losses in this battle were 15 officers and 235 men killed, 39 officers and 669 men wounded. To this total the regiments above mentioned contributed as under:
CASUALTIES ON JUNE 1, 1794.
+--------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ | The Queen's | 1 | 1 | - | - | | Worcesters | 1 | 1 | 11 | 24 | +--------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
ST. VINCENT, FEBRUARY 14, 1797.
This battle honour has been conferred on the Welsh Regiment in recognition of the services of a detachment of this regiment, under Lieutenant Pierson, when acting as Marines in Lord Nelson's ship, the Captain, at the battle which gave Sir John Jervis his peerage. The gallantry of a sergeant of the 69th, who smashed in the quarter gallery of the Spanish flag-ship, was specially mentioned by Nelson, who also begged to be allowed to retain the services of Lieutenant Pierson on board his ship.[26]
FISHGUARD, FEBRUARY 24, 1797.
This distinction is borne on the appointments of the Pembrokeshire Yeomanry, and, with the exception of "Jersey, 1781," borne on the colours of the three regiments of Jersey Militia, is the only battle honour granted for services in the United Kingdom. It recognizes the promptitude with which that regiment turned out to repel an incursion of French troops on the coast of Pembrokeshire on the date above mentioned. Strangely enough, in the despatches in which Lord Cawdor, the senior officer on the spot, and Lord Milford, the Lord-Lieutenant of the county, report the circumstance to the Duke of Portland, the Prime Minister, no mention whatever is made of the Yeomanry being present. Lord Cawdor wrote that, hearing that three French ships of war and a lugger had anchored in a small roadstead near Fishguard, he at once proceeded to the spot "with a detachment of the Cardigan Militia and all the provincial forces" he could collect. He found that 120 men had disembarked, and in the course of the evening the French commandant surrendered unconditionally. Lord Milford, the Lord-Lieutenant of the county, reported that "before the troops arrived many thousands of the peasantry turned out, armed with pikes and scythes, to attack the enemy." It does not appear that any shots were exchanged, or that Monsieur Tate, Chef-de-Brigade, made any effort to regain his ships or to oppose the armed peasantry who were ready to attack him. The name Tate has not a very Gallic flavour. One of the French ships, La Résistance, was captured on March 9 by H.M.S.
Nymphe, and brought into the navy under her new name Fishguard, thus connecting the navy with her battle honour.
1800.
This distinction is borne on the appointments of the King's Own Malta Regiment of Militia, and has been awarded to that corps for its services during the defence of the island against the French.
COPENHAGEN, APRIL 2, 1801.
This distinction has been conferred on the Berkshire Regiment and the Rifle Brigade for the services they rendered as Marines on the fleet under Sir Hyde Parker and Sir Horatio Nelson when the Danish fleet was destroyed at Copenhagen. The casualties suffered by the troops were slight. It is worthy of remark that the Queen's, Worcester, and Welsh Regiments have been granted permission to add a naval crown to the dates of the fleet actions which they bear on their colours. The Berkshires and Rifle Brigade have not been accorded this augmentation.
CASUALTIES AT COPENHAGEN, 1801.
+--------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Berkshire | - | 2 | 13 | 40 | |Rifle Brigade | - | - | 3 | 4 | +--------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
COPENHAGEN, 1807.
The regiments that would be entitled to this battle honour are the
Coldstream Guards. Scots Guards. K.O. Royal Lancaster. Royal Fusiliers. King's Liverpool. Royal Welsh Fusiliers. Gloucester. Cornwall Light Infantry. Oxford Light Infantry. South Lancashire. Royal West Kent. Cameron Highlanders. Gordon Highlanders. Rifle Brigade.
It is difficult to understand why the troops which took part in the expedition to Copenhagen in 1807 should be denied the battle honour conferred on the Berkshires and Rifle Brigade for their services as Marines in the expedition of 1801. In neither case were the losses severe, but the later expedition was in no way less successful than the former. The attitude of the Danes and the fear that their fine fleet would fall into the hands of the French led the Ministry of the day to assemble a powerful fleet and a by no means inconsiderable army in order to carry out their policy.
The former, which consisted of no less than twenty-six line-of-battle ships, was under the command of Sir James Gambier; whilst General the Lord Cathcart was in command of the land forces. The troops employed were thus brigaded:
Right Division: Lieutenant-General Sir G. Ludlow.
Brigade of Guards--Major-General Finch: Coldstream, Scots Guards.
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General J. Walsh: 1st Battalion 28th (Gloucester) and 79th (Cameron Highlanders).
Left Division: Sir David Baird.
Third Brigade--Major-General Grosvenor: 1st Battalion 4th (King's Own Lancaster) and 1st Battalion Royal Welsh Fusiliers.
Fourth Brigade--Major-General Spencer: 32nd (Cornwall Light Infantry), 50th (Royal West Kent), and 82nd (South Lancashire).
Fifth Brigade--Brigadier-General Macfarlane: 1st Battalion 7th (Royal Fusiliers) and 1st Battalion 8th (King's Liverpool Regiment).
Reserve Division--Sir Arthur Wellesley: 1st Battalion 43rd (Oxford Light Infantry), 2nd Battalion 52nd (Oxford Light Infantry), 1st Battalion 92nd (Gordon Highlanders), and 1st Battalion 95th (Rifle Brigade).
There was, in addition, a strong division of the King's German Legion, under Lieutenant-General the Earl of Rosslyn, comprising three regiments of cavalry, ten battalions of infantry, two batteries of horse and four companies of field artillery. For siege purposes, ten companies of the Royal Artillery, under Major-General Bloomfield, and three of Royal Engineers, under Colonel D'Arcey, accompanied the force.
On July 18 the troops, numbering upwards of 27,000 men, embarked on 377 transports, and on the 15th of the following month disembarked without opposition at Wibeck, a few miles from Copenhagen. On the 28th of the month the Reserve Division, under Sir Arthur Wellesley, had a sharp brush with the Danes, capturing ten guns and 1,500 prisoners; and on September 1, the siege-works being complete, the city was summoned to surrender. General Peiman, the Danish Commander-in-Chief, returned a bombastic reply, intimating that the Danes were ready to die to a man rather than surrender their capital or their fleet. On the following day the batteries opened fire, and on the 5th the General surrendered unconditionally. Our trophies included eighteen line-of-battle ships and fifteen frigates, the prize-money accruing to the two Commanders-in-Chief amounting to upwards of £300,000! On October 15 the troops re-embarked, and in the course of the following month troops and prizes arrived in England. It is worthy of note that of the huge convoy of 377 transports, few of which exceeded 500 tons burden, only six were wrecked. Five, unfortunately, were picked up by French frigates.
CASUALTIES DURING THE EXPEDITION TO COPENHAGEN, 1807.
+--------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | 1 | - | 2 | 4 | |Scots Guards | - | - | - | 3 | |4th K.O. Royal Lancasters | - | - | 1 | 3 | |Royal Fusiliers | - | - | 2 | - | |8th King's Liverpool | - | - | 1 | 1 | |23rd R. W. Fus. | 1 | - | 4 | 5 | |43rd Oxf. L.I. | - | - | - | 3 | |50th Royal W. Kent | - | 1 | 2 | 15 | |79th Cameron Highlanders | - | - | 1 | 3 | |82nd S. Lancs | 1 | 2 | 4 | 17 | |92nd Gordon H. | - | - | 3 | 5 | |95th Rifle Bde. | - | - | 1 | 4 | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
The total casualties amongst the troops amounted to 4 officers and 39 men killed, and 6 officers and 139 men wounded. Amongst the latter was Sir David Baird, who had been badly wounded, as we have seen, in India, and who was destined to lose an arm at Corunna in the following year.
NEW ZEALAND.
This distinction has been conferred for three separate campaigns, but no attempt has been made by the addition of dates, as in the case of the wars in South Africa, to differentiate between the various operations.
NEW ZEALAND, 1846-47.
The first campaign took place in the years 1846-47, and the regiments which obtained the honour for these operations are the
Northamptons. Manchesters. Wiltshires.
NEW ZEALAND, 1860-61.
The regiments which earned this distinction are the
Suffolk. West Yorkshire. South Lancashire. Middlesex. York and Lancaster.
At the time of the dispute which led to these operations there was but one British battalion in the islands, and so critical was the situation that the city of Auckland was practically besieged by the natives. Urgent messages were sent to Australia and to Tasmania, where at that time we had garrisons, and the 12th (Suffolks) and 40th (North Lancashires) arrived very shortly from Sydney and Melbourne respectively. At the same time, on the news reaching England, the 68th (Durham Light Infantry) was ordered from Burmah, the 57th (Middlesex) and 70th (East Surrey) from India, and the 2nd Battalion of the 14th, a newly-raised corps, from the Curragh. General Pratt, who had arrived from Australia, took command of the operations, but some dissatisfaction was expressed at his strategy, and in March, 1863, he was superseded by Sir Duncan Cameron, an officer who had done good service in the Crimea.
The New Zealanders--or rather the Maori--showed themselves most gallant foes. Their pahs, or stockades, were constructed with much skill, and until these had been thoroughly searched out with artillery fire we found them almost impossible to carry.
It was generally conceded that the war was one which, with a little exercise of forbearance on the part of the Colonial Government, might have been avoided, and there was a good deal of friction between the civilian and military elements in consequence, many of the soldiers openly expressing an opinion that their foes had not been fairly dealt with. In the spring of 1861 a hollow truce was patched up. Our casualties during the operations, so far as the regular troops were concerned, had not been heavy, except in the case of the 40th (North Lancashires) and 65th (York and Lancasters).
+------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | 1 | - | 2 | 12 | |Roy. Engineers | - | 1 | 1 | 4 | |12th Suffolks | - | 1 | 1 | 7 | |14th West Yorks | - | - | - | 2 | |40th N. Lancs | 2 | 3 | 38 | 58 | |57th Middlesex | - | - | - | 6 | |65th York and Lancaster | 1 | 1 | 5 | 38 | |Naval Brigade | - | 2 | 5 | 20 | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
NEW ZEALAND, 1863-1866.
The regiments which were present during the operations, which lasted for nearly three years, are the
Suffolks. West Yorkshire. Royal Irish. North Lancashire. Oxford Light Infantry. Royal West Kent. Middlesex. York and Lancaster. Durham Light Infantry.
The same causes which led to the war in 1860 were once more the origin of armed resistance to the Government. The natives considered that they were not being dealt fairly with in the matter of the sale of their lands, and, as I have said before, there was a very strong party in the Colony who sympathized with them. At the same time, it was felt that the Government must be supported until peace had been restored, and that then, but not till then, could the cause of the disturbance be removed. The troops, which included all the regiments named above, were under the command of Sir Duncan Cameron, and he had on his staff a number of exceptionally good men--men who came to the fore in our later wars--amongst them being Sir George Greaves and Sir Thomas Baker, both of whom became Adjutant-General in India. With them were Sir Henry Havelock and Sir John MacNeill, the latter of whom obtained the Victoria Cross in the campaign.
CASUALTIES IN NEW ZEALAND, 1864.
+------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Naval Brigade | 3 | 8 | 13 | 34 | |Royal Artillery | 1 | 2 | 5 | 8 | |12th Suffolks | 1 | - | 7 | 24 | |14th W. Yorks | 2 | 8 | 13 | 29 | |18th Roy. Irish | 1 | 1 | 19 | 44 | |40th N. Lancs | 2 | 3 | 22 | 42 | |43rd Oxford L.I. | 7 | 2 | 13 | 19 | |50th W. Kent | 1 | 3 | 18 | 30 | |57th Middlesex | 2 | 2 | 23 | 47 | |65th York and Lancaster | 2 | 8 | 24 | 49 | |68th Durham L.I. | - | 4 | 9 | 41 | |70th E. Surrey | 1 | 2 | 8 | 16 | | | | | | |Colonial Troops | 6 | 15 | 650 | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
Although the war dragged on for so long, it calls for no special remark. It resolved itself into the attack of the Maori stockades, which were constructed with great skill. On more than one occasion we certainly came off second best. One point, however, is worthy of note. It was found that the red coats and shakos of the soldiers were not the most suitable garments for Bush warfare, and, to the distress of the old soldiers of the leather stock and pipeclay school, the men fought in blue jumpers and forage-caps.
In the month of June we experienced rather a serious reverse at what was known as the Gate Pah; but the distinguished regiment which suffered heavily on that day showed a few weeks later that it had lost none of the dash for which it had been so famous in Wellington's days. In the early spring of 1866 peace was declared, and since then there have been no more loyal servants of the Crown than our Maori fellow-subjects.
ABYSSINIA, 1867-68.
The following regiments are authorized to bear this battle honour:
3rd Dragoon Guards. King's Own Lancasters. Cameronians. West Riding. Sherwood Foresters. 10th Hodson's Horse. 12th Cavalry. 33rd Q.O. Light Cavalry. 2nd Q.O. Sappers and Miners. 3rd Sappers and Miners. 21st Punjabis. 23rd Pioneers. 102nd K.E.O. Grenadiers. 103rd Mahratta Light Infantry. 104th Wellesley's Rifles. 121st Pioneers. 125th Napier's Rifles. 127th Baluch Light Infantry.
The above regiments formed the expeditionary force, under Sir Robert Napier, then Commander-in-Chief in Bombay, which had for its object the release of a number of English and German prisoners held in captivity by Theodore, King of Abyssinia. Until the year 1861 our relations with this half-savage, half-Christian potentate had been of the most cordial nature. He looked on Mr. Plowden, the British Consul, as his most trusted adviser, and amongst the members of his personal household was more than one Englishman. On Mr. Plowden's death a change occurred. The new Consul seems not to have been on the best terms either with the King or with the Foreign Office, and the neglect of the latter to take any notice of an autograph letter addressed to our Queen by King Theodore led to an open rupture. The King swept all Europeans into prison, including the Consul, and on remonstrances being made detained other emissaries. As Theodore had contracted a habit of doing away with his prisoners, it was considered necessary to back up verbal remonstrances with force, and the conduct of the negotiations was removed from the Foreign Office and placed in the hands of the Commander-in-Chief in Bombay.
Little was known of the country, and the most pessimistic forebodings were indulged in by the English Press. The result proved the falsity of the critics. Sir Robert Napier was a master of the art of organization, and from the date of the landing of the troops in Zoulla Bay until their final embarkation there was not a single mishap. There was practically no fighting. The army traversed close on 300 miles of country destitute of roads, crossed mountain-ranges 9,000 feet in height, stormed what Theodore fancied was an impregnable fortress, effected the release of the European prisoners, and freed the Abyssinians from the tyranny of a bloodthirsty King, without the loss of a single man killed in action, and of only thirty-seven who died by disease. The result was due to one man, and to one man alone, and it proved the wisdom of not interfering with the General in command when once he has been entrusted with the conduct of military operations. The House of Commons grumbled at the cost of the expedition, but Sir Robert Napier judged the value of a British soldier at a higher price than mere pounds, shillings, and pence, and preferred that the tax-payer should pay for the mistakes of the Foreign Office in hard cash rather than that the army should pay in the lives of its men.
Thirty years later the Italians tried their 'prentice hand in the same country. The annihilation of their army threw into stronger relief the wisdom of the tactics employed by Lord Napier, where, by utilizing native labour for the construction of the necessary military roads, he saved the health and the lives of his soldiers.
It is impossible to write of the Abyssinian Expedition without adding a word as to the marvellous manner in which the disembarkation and final embarkation of the army was conducted, without hitch or loss, by the Quartermaster-General at Zoulla Bay, then Major Fred Roberts,[27]
The casualty rolls are instructive, and may be compared with advantage with those of the Italian army which was cut to pieces in Abyssinia thirty years later:
CASUALTIES IN ABYSSINIA, 1867-68.
+------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Roy. Engineers | - | 1 | - | 3 | |4th King's Own | - | 1 | - | 6 | |33rd West Riding | - | - | - | 5 | |33rd Q.O. Light Cavalry | - | - | - | 1 | |23rd Punjab Pioneers | - | - | - | 12 | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
ASHANTEE, 1873.
This distinction has been conferred on the
23rd (Royal Welsh Fusiliers). Black Watch. Rifle Brigade. West India Regiment.
It commemorates the services of a force, under the command of Major-General Garnet Wolseley (now Field-Marshal Viscount Wolseley), which was organized for the purpose of putting a stop to the intolerable cruelties and depredations of the Ashantee monarch on the West Coast of Africa. In February, 1873, King Coffee Kalkali, not content with ravaging the territories of our allies, actually invaded our own territories in the neighbourhood of Cape Coast Castle. He was beaten off by Colonel Harley, then in command of the troops, and a second invasion was also repulsed by Colonel Festing, of the Royal Marine Artillery. Our relations with the Ashantees had been clouded by the memory of a severe defeat we suffered at their hands when Sir Charles Macartney, the Governor of the Colony, had been killed, and his head carried in triumph to Coomassie, the capital. It was now deemed imperative to teach the Ashantees that the English arm was longer than they imagined, and Sir Garnet Wolseley, who had only recently carried through a most successful little expedition in the North-West Territory of Canada, was selected for the command of the Ashantee Expeditionary Force. With him were associated a number of special-service officers, whose duty it was to raise regiments from the tribes which had suffered at the hands of King Coffee Kalkali, and to act in co-operation with our own advancing troops.
The expedition was perfectly successful. After penetrating to the capital, the force returned to the coast, and re-embarked for England. There were several sharp skirmishes during the advance, in which the 42nd (Royal Highlanders) particularly distinguished themselves, and in which they suffered severely. The expedition, however, is more noticeable in that it produced a school of officers for long known as "the Wolseley Gang," to whom the army and the nation owe a deep debt of gratitude for the institution of many of the most valuable military reforms.
At the conclusion of the war a medal was granted to the officers and men who took part in the expedition, with a special clasp--"Coomassie"--to those who were fortunate enough to have been present at the final advance on the capital.
CASUALTIES IN ASHANTEE WAR, 1873.
+----------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +----------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Staff | - | 3 | - | - | |Royal Artillery | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |Roy. Engineers | 1 | 1 | - | 4 | |Naval Brigade | - | 7 | - | 32 | |R. Welsh Fus. | - | 1 | - | 4 | |42nd R. Highl. | - | 11 | 6 | 120 | |Rifle Brigade | - | 3 | 3 | 30 | |Native Levies | 2 | 11 | 5 | 122 | +----------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
SIERRA LEONE, 1898.
This distinction is borne by the West India Regiment and West African Regiment, and commemorates their conduct in the campaign undertaken for the purpose of putting down the rebellion in the Colony of Sierra Leone in that year. The rising was a most serious one, and for a time the lives of all the whites on the West Coast were in danger. Nominally the cause of offence was the imposition of a hut-tax; in reality the grievance was a stricter interpretation of the laws regarding slavery. Little heed was paid to the warnings of disaffection. A number of towns in the hinterland were burnt and many English were massacred before we were in a position to cope with the rebels. The command of the operations was entrusted at first to Major-General Woodgate, who afterwards met a soldier's death at the head of his brigade at the Battle of Spionkop, in the Boer War. On his falling ill, the operations were brought to a successful conclusion by Colonel Cunningham, of the Cornwall Light Infantry. The losses of the West India Regiment amounted to 3 officers and 8 men killed, 8 officers and 39 men wounded.
WEST AFRICA.[28]
WEST AFRICA, 1887.
The above distinction is borne on the colours of the West India Regiment, and has been conferred on that hard-working corps for a series of arduous campaigns on the West Coast of Africa.
The campaign of 1887 was under the command of Major-General Sir Francis de Winton, the troops being accompanied by a naval brigade furnished by H.M.S. Icarus and Royalist. It was undertaken for the subjugation of a powerful tribe called the Yonnies, who had carried fire, sword, and rapine through the hinterland of the Colony.
WEST AFRICA, 1892.
The campaign of 1892 was under the command of Colonel Scott, an officer who had served in the 42nd Highlanders through the Crimea, the Mutiny, and the two Ashantee wars of 1874 and 1890. It was necessitated by the conduct of the Egbas and Jebus, two tribes who were blocking all the trade-routes from Lagos into the interior.
WEST AFRICA, 1893.
The campaign of 1893 was under the command of Colonel Ellis, of the West India Regiment, and was undertaken for the punishment of the Sofas, a tribe which had been giving much trouble on our own and on the French frontier. The expedition was marred by an unfortunate contretemps between our forces and the French Senegalese troops, in which we lost three officers killed, the subaltern in command of the French detachment falling a victim to the mistake of his men.
WEST AFRICA, 1894.
This year was marked by two expeditions--the one from Bathurst, under Captain Gamble, of the Royal Navy, accompanied by a detachment of the West India Regiment. In this the navy were roughly handled, losing 3 officers and 14 men killed, 6 officers and 32 men wounded. In the following month Major Fairtlough, of the Royal Artillery, took up the threads of the affair, and brought it to a successful conclusion. The recalcitrant chief, Foda Silah, took refuge in French territory, and was handed over to us for deportation.
In the month of September, 1894, the attitude of the ruler of Benin compelled us to destroy the armed towns on his frontier. Admiral Bedford, commanding the Cape of Good Hope Station, was entrusted with the chief command. The bulk of the forces were drawn from the ships on the Cape Station, but a detachment of the West India Regiment well and worthily upheld the fame of that corps. Our trophies included 106 guns of all calibres, a large number of small arms, 14 tons of gunpowder, and 8,300 dozens of gin!
BRITISH EAST AFRICA, 1896-1899, 1901.
This battle honour has been conferred on the
104th Wellesley's Rifles. 116th Mahrattas. 124th D.C.O. Baluchistan Infantry. 127th P.W.O. Baluch Light Infantry.
It commemorates arduous work, of which little is heard in England, in tropical regions of East Africa and the fever-haunted hinterland of Zanzibar. Split up into a number of small detachments, these regiments have showed themselves worthy successors to the old Bombay army, which more than a century ago broke the power of the Mahrattas and set the stamp of civilization on the coast of Malabar. The list of casualties shows that sickness was not the only foe these distinguished regiments had to face.
CASUALTIES DURING THE OPERATIONS IN EAST AFRICA.
+-------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |104th Wellesley's Rifles | 1 | - | 27 | 4 | |124th D.C.O. Baluchis | - | - | - | - | |116th Mahrattas | - | 1 | 2 | 6 | |127th P.W.O. Baluch L.I. | 2 | 3 | 19 | 20 | +-------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
ASHANTI, 1900.
This distinction has been conferred on the West African Regiment, in commemoration of its services in the campaign undertaken for the relief of the Residency of Coomassie during the rebellion in Ashantee in the year 1900. The practical annexation of the kingdom of Ashantee after the campaign of 1890, for which no battle honour was granted, though a bronze decoration was awarded to the troops, had not been accepted with any degree of heartfelt loyalty by the people, and, though peace had been maintained, it was known that this was due to the personal ascendancy of successive Residents rather than to the acquiescence of the people in the new state of affairs. During the absence of the permanent Resident it was determined to obtain possession of the Golden Stool, the emblem of royalty. To effect this, a small expedition was despatched from Kumassi, the capital and seat of the Residency. This expedition was repulsed, and the repulse was followed by a general upheaval of the tribes. The Residency was closely besieged, and there were no troops on the coast to despatch to its relief.
Brigadier-General Willcocks, an officer who to youth added experience, was selected to command an expeditionary force; but, in consequence of the war in South Africa, it was found inexpedient to employ British troops. The General set out on his mission with a mixed force, made up of detachments from the various corps in West Africa. The West India Regiment furnished its quota, as did the West African Frontier Force, the Central African Frontier Regiment, and the West African Regiment, of which the greater part was engaged. The country was an exceedingly difficult one, but its difficulties were known. Although the rising commenced in the month of April, it was not until July that Sir William James Willcocks was ready to move forward. His force numbered, all told, 152 whites and 2,800 natives, the former including a number of invaluable non-commissioned officers. It was fiercely opposed the whole way from the coast to Kumassi, and the severity of the fighting may be gauged from the fact that the total losses amounted to 9 Englishmen and 113 natives killed, and 53 English and 680 natives wounded.
XXIV. BATTLE HONOURS FOR THE SECOND AFGHAN WAR
Afghanistan, 1878-1880--Ali Masjid--Peiwar Kotal--Charasiah--Kabul, 1879--Ahmad Khel--Kandahar, 1880.
AFGHANISTAN, 1878-1880.
This battle honour was granted to all regiments which took part in any of the operations during the course of the war in Afghanistan between the years 1878 and 1880. In the two campaigns there were no less than thirty-one regiments of cavalry and eighty battalions employed, and though few of these were actually under fire, yet all were accorded the distinction. It is borne on the colours of the following regiments:
Carabiniers. 8th Hussars. 9th Lancers. 10th Hussars. 11th Hussars. 15th Hussars. Northumberland Fusiliers. Royal Fusiliers. King's Liverpool. Norfolks. Devons. Suffolks. West Yorkshire. East Yorkshire. Leicesters. Royal Irish. K.O. Scottish Borderers. East Lancashire. East Surrey. Hampshire. North Lancashire. Berkshire. K.O. Yorkshire L.I. Shropshire L.I. King's Royal Rifles. Manchester. Seaforth Highlanders. Gordon Highlanders. Rifle Brigade. 1st Skinner's Horse. 3rd Skinner's Horse. 4th Cavalry. 5th Cavalry. 8th Cavalry. 10th Hodson's Horse. 11th Probyn's Lancers. 12th Cavalry. 13th Watson's Horse. 14th Murray's Lancers. 15th Cureton's Lancers. 17th Cavalry. 18th Tiwana Lancers. 19th Fane's Lancers. 21st Daly's Horse. 22nd Sam Browne's Horse. 23rd Cavalry. 25th Cavalry. 26th Light Cavalry. 32nd Lancers. 33rd Light Cavalry. 34th Poona Horse. 35th Scinde Horse. 36th Jacob's Horse. 38th Central India Horse. 39th Central India Horse. Q.O. Corps of Guides. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 2nd Q.O. Sappers and Miners. 3rd Sappers and Miners. 2nd Q.O. Light Infantry. 3rd Brahmins. 4th Rajputs. 5th Light Infantry. 6th Light Infantry. 8th Rajputs. 9th Bhopal Infantry. 11th Rajputs. 12th Pioneers. 13th Rajputs. 14th Sikhs. 15th Sikhs. 16th Rajputs. 17th Loyal Regiment. 19th Punjabis. 20th Brownlow's Punjabis. 21st Punjabis. 22nd Punjabis. 23rd Pioneers. 24th Punjabis. 25th Punjabis. 26th Punjabis. 27th Punjabis. 28th Punjabis. 29th Punjabis. 30th Punjabis. 31st Punjabis. 32nd Pioneers. 42nd Deoli Infantry. 44th Merwara Infantry. 45th Sikhs. 51st Sikhs. 52nd Sikhs. 53rd Sikhs. 55th Coke's Rifles. 56th Punjab Rifles. 57th Wilde's Rifles. 58th Vaughan's Rifles. 61st Pioneers. 64th Pioneers. 75th Carnatic Infantry. 81st Pioneers. 90th Punjabis. 101st Grenadiers. 104th Wellesley's Rifles. 105th Mahratta L.I. 108th Infantry. 109th Infantry. 110th Mahratta L.I. 113th Infantry. 115th Mahrattas. 119th Multan. 124th Baluchistan. 127th Baluch L.I. 128th Pioneers. 130th Baluchis. 1st Gurkhas. 2nd Sirmoor Rifles. 3rd Gurkhas. 4th Gurkhas. 5th Gurkhas.
A very large number of these regiments were employed in keeping open the three lines of communication with Afghanistan--viz., by the Khyber, the Kuram, and the Bolan Passes. Though they did not participate in any of the actions which appear on the colours of certain more fortunate regiments, they were nevertheless exposed to continuous hardship, and some to constant attack by the fanatical tribes who inhabit the borderland between Hindustan and the territories of the Amir. Some, indeed, suffered more heavily in these long-forgotten skirmishes than did many of the regiments which added two or three names to their list of battle honours.
In consequence of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877, our relations with Russia became very strained, and owing to what the Sultan of Turkey considered our neglect to afford him material support against Russia, the long-standing friendship between England and Turkey was imperilled. Both nations turned towards the Amir of Afghanistan as the one potentate who could assist them to indulge in the policy of pinpricks towards England, and both nations despatched Missions to Kabul with this end in view. The Afghan Amir soon showed a change in his policy towards us. In accepting a Russian Mission at Kabul he defied treaty rights, and in refusing to accept an English Mission he inflicted on us a deliberate insult. The English Cabinet in the month of October, 1878, presented an ultimatum, and on November 21 our armies crossed the frontier.
The plan of campaign was simple. Afghanistan was to be invaded by three columns, operating respectively by the Khyber route from Peshawar, by the Kuram route from Kohat, and by the Bolan Pass on Kandahar. The detail of the northern force was as under:
PESHAWAR VALLEY FIELD FORCE.
Lieutenant-General Sir Samuel Browne, V.C., K.C.S.I., C.B., commanding.
Cavalry Brigade--Brigadier-General C. J. S. Gough, V.C., C.B.: Two squadrons 10th Hussars, 11th Probyn's Lancers, Guides Cavalry.
Commanding Royal Artillery--Colonel W. J. Williams: One horse, one field, three heavy, and three mountain batteries.
First Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General H. T. Macpherson, V.C., C.B.: 4th Battalion Rifle Brigade, 20th Brownlow's Punjabis, 4th Gurkhas.
Second Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General J. A. Tytler, V.C., C.B.: 1st Battalion Leicestershire, Guides Infantry, 51st Sikhs.
Third Brigade--Brigadier-General F. Appleyard, C.B.: 81st (North Lancashire), 14th Sikhs, 27th Punjabis.
Fourth Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General W. Browne: 51st (King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry), 6th Jat Light Infantry, 45th Sikhs.
Mobilizing at Peshawar in the early days of November, 1878, the column crossed the frontier at Jumrood on November 21, and advanced on Ali Masjid, the hill fortress at the Afghan entrance of the Khyber Pass. Some show of fight was made, and Sir S. Browne deferred making the assault until the arrival of all his troops. In the course of the night the Afghans evacuated the fort, which was occupied by our men. Thus, with a casualty list of under sixty, the main road to Kabul had been opened.
ALI MASJID.
This battle honour is borne by the
10th Hussars. Loyal North Lancashires. Leicester. K.O. Yorkshire L.I. Rifle Brigade. 11th Probyn's Lancers. Q.O. Corps of Guides. 6th Light Infantry. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 14th Sikhs. 20th Brownlow's Punjabis. 27th Punjabis. 45th Rattray's Sikhs. 51st Sikhs. 4th Gurkhas.
The casualties incurred were:
+-------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | - | - | 1 | 9 | |51st K.O. Yorkshire L.I. | - | - | 1 | 1 | |14th Sikhs | - | 1 | 8 | 24 | |20th Punjabis | - | - | - | 1 | |27th Punjabis | 2 | - | 4 | 6 | +-------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
KURAM VALLEY FIELD FORCE.
Major-General F. S. Roberts, V.C., C.B., commanding.
Cavalry Brigade--Brigadier-General Hugh Gough, V.C., C.B.: One squadron 10th Hussars, 12th and 25th Cavalry.
Commanding Royal Artillery--Colonel A. H. Lindsay: One horse, one field, and two mountain batteries.
First Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General A. H. Cobbe: 1st Battalion Liverpool Regiment, 23rd Pioneers, 29th Punjabis, and 58th Vaughan's Rifles.
Second Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General J. B. Thelwall: 72nd (Seaforth Highlanders), 21st Punjabis, 56th Rifles, and 5th Gurkhas.
The Central, or Kuram Valley, Field Force assembled at Kohat, and advanced up the Thull Valley to be ready to cross the frontier on November 21. The Afghans were known to be holding the Peiwar Kotal in force, but the approaches to this position were well known, having been accurately surveyed many years before by Sir Frederick Roberts, predecessor in the post of Quartermaster-General Sir Peter Lumsden. A frontal attack was out of the question, and there were elements of weakness in Sir Frederick Roberts's army. One of his British regiments was dangerously weak, both in physique and in numbers, and one of his native regiments was disaffected. However, this did not deter the officer, who throughout his career had ever displayed, not only great personal gallantry, but quickness of decision and a long-acquired habit of accepting to the full all responsibility in cases of doubt. The frontier was crossed on the exact date, the Peiwar Kotal reconnoitred, its defences accurately estimated, and on December 2 the Kuram route was in our hands.
PEIWAR KOTAL, DECEMBER 2, 1879.
The regiments authorized to bear this distinction are the
King's Liverpool. Seaforth Highlanders. 12th Cavalry. 23rd Pioneers. 29th Punjabis. 56th Punjab Rifles. 58th Vaughan's Rifles. 5th Gurkhas.
A medal and clasp, inscribed "Peiwar Kotal," were issued to the troops engaged.
The battle honour commemorates a sharp little fight between the Kuram column of the Afghan army, commanded by Major-General Frederick Roberts, of the Royal Artillery, and the Afghan army. The Afghans were drawn up behind a strongly entrenched position on the summit of the Peiwar Kotal, a pass at the entrance of the Kuram route to Kabul. Their numbers were estimated at 10,000 men, and they had a well-equipped force of artillery. The position was capable of being turned by a well-known but exceedingly difficult path, known as the Spin Gawi. Roberts determined to turn the position with the bulk of his force, numbering only 2,263 men, with eight guns, whilst a frontal attack was entrusted to Brigadier Cobbe, with 1,000 men and five guns. Starting at midnight, the turning column pushed up an almost inaccessible path in the dead of night, and as dawn broke appeared on the left flank of the astonished Afghans. The resistance was for a time stubborn, but as the troops were enabled to form across the ridges and bring a rifle-fire to bear on the enemy, the issue soon was put beyond doubt, and so the future Earl Roberts was able to secure his first victory.
CASUALTIES AT THE ACTION OF THE PEIWAR KOTAL, DECEMBER 2, 1879.
+--------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | 1 | - | - | 3 | |8th K. Liverpl. | - | 1 | 1 | 7 | |72nd Seaforth Highlanders | - | 1 | 2 | 9 | |12th Cavalry | - | - | - | - | |23rd Pioneers | 1 | - | 2 | 7 | |29th Punjabis | - | - | 5 | 12 | |56th Punjabi Rifles | - | - | 7 | 11 | |58th Vaughan's Rifles | - | - | - | 4 | |5th Gurkhas | - | - | 2 | 16 | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
The army destined for the invasion of Afghanistan from the south was double the strength of the northern columns. It was composed of two divisions, which were under the command of Lieutenant-General Donald Stewart, an officer of the Indian army who had held a high staff appointment at the Siege of Delhi, had subsequently commanded the Bengal division in the expedition to Abyssinia, and who had seen a considerable amount of service on the Peshawar frontier when Adjutant of a native regiment. He had held responsible staff appointments in peace, and had earned a good reputation for handling large bodies of troops at manœuvres. The command of the Second Division was entrusted to Major-General Michael Biddulph, an artillery officer who had done good service in the Crimea, and had served in many situations in India, in all of which he had displayed high military qualifications. This army, the composition of which is given below, was intended to provide for the occupation of Southern Afghanistan, and also to despatch one division to join hands with the northern army at Kabul, should such a step be deemed advisable. From Multan and Quetta as bases, the Kandahar army advanced on the capital of Southern Afghanistan, which was occupied without resistance.
KANDAHAR FIELD FORCE.
First Division: Lieutenant-General Donald Stewart commanding.
Cavalry Brigade--Brigadier-General Walter Fane, C.B.: 15th Hussars, 8th Cavalry, 19th Fane's Lancers.
Commanding Royal Artillery--Brigadier-General C. G. Arbuthnot, C.B.: One horse, three field, two heavy, three siege, and one mountain battery.
First Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General R. Barter, C.B.: 2nd Battalion King's Royal Rifles, 15th Sikhs, and 25th Punjabis.
Second Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General W. Hughes: 59th (East Lancashire), 12th Kelat-i-Ghilzai Regiment, 1st and 3rd Gurkhas.
Second Division: Major-General M. A. S. Biddulph, C.B.
Artillery--Colonel Le Mesurier commanding: One field and two mountain batteries.
Cavalry Brigade: Brigadier-General C. H. Palliser, C.B.: 21st Daly's Horse, 22nd Sam Browne's Horse, and 35th Scinde Horse.
First Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General R. Lacy: 70th (East Surrey), 19th Punjabis, and 127th Baluchis. Second Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General T. Nuttall: 26th Punjabis, 32nd Pioneers, 55th Coke's Rifles, and 129th Baluchis.
The three columns now proceeded to occupy strategic positions in the country until the Amir should accede to our demands. Sir S. Browne pushed up the Khyber Pass to Gundamak, General Roberts undertook the pacification of the tribes bordering on the Kuram route, and General Stewart despatched his Second Division to the Helmund. In the spring of 1879 the Amir Shere Ali died, and his successor at once opened negotiations with the Indian Government. A fresh treaty was concluded, under which the Amir assented to the nomination of a British Envoy at Kabul. Sir Louis Cavagnari was selected for this important post, and towards the end of July left for the Afghan capital, accompanied by a small escort of the Corps of Guides. Our troops were recalled within the new frontier, and all boded well, but on September 3 the Mission was attacked in the Residency at Kabul, and every member slain, the little escort of the Guides adding to the reputation of the regiment by refusing all overtures from their co-religionists, and dying by the side of their officers. Such an outrage demanded swift retribution, and Sir Frederick Roberts at once took up the command of the troops in the Kuram Valley, and prepared for an advance on Kabul. His army was composed as under:
DETAILS OF THE KABUL FIELD FORCE.
Major-General Sir Frederick Roberts, K.C.B., V.C., commanding.
Cavalry Brigade--Brigadier-General Dunham Massey: 9th Lancers, 12th Cavalry, 14th Lancers, and 25th Cavalry.
Royal Artillery--Brigadier-General B. L. Gordon: Two horse and two mountain batteries.
First Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General Herbert Macpherson, V.C., C.B.: 67th (Hampshire Regiment), 92nd (Gordon Highlanders), and 28th Punjabis.
Second Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General T. D. Baker, C.B.: 72nd (Seaforths), 53rd Sikhs, 23rd Pioneers, 58th Vaughan's Rifles, and 5th Gurkhas.
Third Brigade--Brigadier-General J. Tytler, V.C., C.B.: 85th (Shropshire Light Infantry), 11th and 13th Rajputs, and 20th Punjabis.
Fourth Brigade--Brigadier-General T. E. Gordon: 2nd Battalion King's Liverpool Regiment, 7th Rajputs, 21st and 29th Punjabis.
Leaving his Third and Fourth Brigades to maintain communications with India, Sir Frederick at once pushed on to Kabul, meeting with no opposition until in the immediate vicinity of the capital. On the way he had been joined by the new Amir, who wished to disclaim all participation in the attack on the Residency. His presence was not an unmixed blessing. It was more than suspected that he was in close communication with the malcontents, and that he was cognizant of the intention of his troops to hold the position at Charasiah, where, on October 6, Sir Frederick fought and dispersed the Afghan army, with but little loss on our side.
CHARASIAH, OCTOBER 6, 1879.
This battle honour is borne by the following regiments:
9th Lancers. Hampshires. Seaforth Highlanders. Gordon Highlanders. 12th Cavalry. 14th Murray's Lancers. 25th Cavalry. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 23rd Pioneers. 28th Punjabis. 58th Vaughan's Rifles. 5th Gurkhas.
The force at Sir Frederick Roberts's disposal only amounted to 4,000 men and eighteen guns. The enemy occupied a series of hills some three miles in extent, and dominating the plain to a height of over 3,000 feet. The brunt of the fighting fell on the two Highland regiments. Again the British General, who showed himself an adept in mountain warfare, essayed a turning movement with Baker's brigade, and, with a loss of but 88 killed and wounded, made his way into Kabul.
CASUALTIES AT THE ACTION OF CHARASIAH, OCTOBER 6, 1879.
+--------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |9th Lancers | - | - | - | 1 | |Royal Artillery | - | - | - | - | |67th Hampshire | - | - | - | - | |72nd Seaforth Highlanders | - | 1 | 3 | 33 | |92nd Gordon Highlanders | - | - | 3 | 6 | |12th Cavalry | - | - | - | - | |14th Murray's Lancers | - | - | - | - | |25th Cavalry | - | - | 1 | 2 | |23rd Pioneers | - | 1 | 1 | 2 | |28th Punjabis | - | - | - | - | |58th Vaughan's Rifles | - | 1 | 4 | 4 | |5th Gurkhas | - | - | 4 | 7 | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
On the issue of the medal for Afghanistan, a clasp inscribed "Charasiah" was issued to all the troops engaged.
KABUL, 1879.
This battle honour was granted to the regiments which took part in the operations in the neighbourhood of Kabul under Sir Frederick Roberts in the month of December, 1879. It is borne on the colours and appointments of the
9th Lancers. Norfolk. Hampshires. Seaforth Highlanders. Gordon Highlanders. 12th Cavalry. 14th Murray's Lancers. 25th Cavalry P.F.F. Q.O. Corps of Guides. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 23rd Pioneers. 28th Punjabis. 53rd Sikhs. 58th Vaughan's Rifles. 2nd Gurkhas. 4th Gurkhas. 5th Gurkhas P.F.F.
With his entry into Kabul, which was effected without further opposition after the Battle of Charasiah, the difficulties of Sir Frederick Roberts's army were only at their commencement. The Amir was in our camp, but it was clear that he was heart and soul with his people, and that they were bitterly opposed to us was self-evident. They appeared forgetful of the ease with which they had been defeated at Ali Masjid, at the Peiwar Kotal, and again at Charasiah; but they remembered the campaign of 1842, when they had annihilated a British army. Early in December the clouds broke, and after a few engagements, in which we were not uniformly successful, Sir Frederick Roberts withdrew his whole force into an entrenched position at Sherpur, just outside the city, and there awaited the attack. His dispositions were thoroughly sound. Reinforcements were ordered up from the line of communications, but these were delayed, owing to determined attacks by the tribes on our posts at different points between Kabul and Peshawar.
From December 14 to 24 Sir Frederick was practically besieged in Sherpur. On the 23rd the much-vaunted attack was delivered, but the troops vied with their commander in steadiness. None had lost confidence in him owing to the unfortunate failure of his combinations against the enemy at the commencement of the month--a failure for which the General-in-Chief was by no means responsible. If the Afghans thought that they were likely to catch a British army asleep at midnight, the attack on Sherpur must have woefully disappointed them. In spite of the fact that 100,000 men had assembled to sweep the British out of the land, the assault was repelled before the arrival of a single man of the reinforcing troops, and with a loss of but 57 officers and men killed and wounded during the siege of ten days.
A clasp was added to the Afghan medal for this brilliant feat of arms.
CASUALTIES IN THE ENGAGEMENTS NEAR KABUL, DECEMBER 11 TO 23, 1879.
+--------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |9th Lancers | 3 | 4 | 20 | 28 | |Royal Artillery | 2 | - | 3 | 8 | |Roy. Engineers | 2 | 1 | - | - | |67th Hampshire | - | - | 1 | 11 | |72nd Seaforth Highlanders | 2 | 2 | 12 | 39 | |92nd Gordon Highlanders | 1 | 1 | 3 | 25 | |12th Bengal C. | - | - | 5 | 4 | |14th Lancers | 1 | 1 | 8 | 7 | |25th Cavalry P.F.F. | 2 | 2 | 8 | 6 | |Q.O. Corps of Guides | 1 | 3 | 15 | 37 | |23rd Pioneers | - | - | - | 1 | |28th Punjabis | - | - | - | 1 | |53rd Sikhs | - | 5 | 5 | 9 | |58th Vaughan's Rifles | - | - | 4 | 17 | |5th Gurkhas | 1 | 1 | 4 | 10 | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
The complicity of the Amir Yakub Khan in the attack on the Residency was never clearly proved, but it was very evident that he made no attempt to save the lives of the Envoy and his Staff. His desire, therefore, to abdicate was encouraged, and he was deported as a State prisoner to India. His successor, the Amir Abdur Rahman, had been a fugitive on Russian soil for many years, and his hold on the people was but slight. It was deemed advisable to show our strength in those parts of the country where no British army had been seen, and in the month of March, 1880, Sir Donald Stewart, who was in command at Kandahar, left the capital of Southern Afghanistan for Kabul. His force consisted of:
Cavalry Brigade--Brigadier-General C. H. Palliser, C.B.: 19th Fane's Lancers, 21st Daly's Horse, and 22nd Cavalry.
Royal Artillery: One horse, one heavy, and two mountain batteries.
First Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General R. Barter: 2nd Battalion King's Royal Rifles, 19th and 25th Punjabis.
Second Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General R. J. Hughes: 59th (East Lancashire), 15th and 52nd Sikhs, and 3rd Gurkhas.
In all, some 2,000 British and 5,000 native troops.
Leaving Kandahar on the last day of March, Sir Donald found himself attacked by a strong body of Afghans on nearing Ghuznee, and though for a moment things looked threatening, at the end of an hour the enemy were in full retreat, and the name "Ahmad Khel" had been added to the colours of the
East Lancashires. King's Royal Rifles. 19th Fane's Horse. 21st Daly's Horse. 22nd Sam Browne's Horse. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 15th Sikhs. 19th Punjabis. 25th Punjabis. 52nd Sikhs. 3rd Gurkhas.
Our casualties being--
+--------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | - | 1 | - | 2 | |East Lancashire | - | 2 | 1 | 10 | |2nd Batt. K. Royal Rifles | - | - | 4 | 1 | |19th Punjabis | - | - | - | 3 | |19th Fane's H. | - | - | - | 19 | |22nd Sam Browne's H. | - | 2 | 3 | 20 | |25th Punjabis | - | - | - | 3 | |52nd Sikhs | - | - | 1 | 9 | |3rd Gurkhas | - | - | - | - | +--------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
A few days later a second skirmish took place, but the march was not further interrupted, and by the end of the month Sir Donald Stewart had assumed the command in Northern Afghanistan.
His successor in the south now experienced a series of mishaps. At the Battle of Maiwand a British force was totally defeated, and Kandahar closely invested by the Afghans. A sortie, gallantly led by Brigadier Brooke, in which that officer lost his life, resulted in the siege being prosecuted by the Afghans with greater vigour.
CASUALTIES AT THE BATTLE OF MAIWAND, JULY 27, 1880.
+------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Staff | 1 | 1 | - | - | |Royal Artillery | 2 | 1 | 12 | 12 | |Roy. Engineers | 1 | - | 2 | 3 | |66th Roy. Berks | 10 | 2 | 276 | 30 | |33rd Q.O. Light Cavalry | 1 | - | 26 | 18 | |3rd Scinde H. | 1 | - | 14 | 5 | |3rd Sappers and Miners | 1 | - | 15 | 6 | |101st Grenadiers | 10 | 6 | 356 | 55 | |130th P.W.O. Baluchis | 6 | 7 | 235 | 25 | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
CASUALTIES AT THE SORTIE FROM KANDAHAR, AUGUST 16, 1880.
+------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Staff | 3 | 3 | - | - | |Royal Fusiliers | 2 | 2 | 22 | 28 | |59th E. Lancashire | - | - | 2 | 2 | |33rd Q.O. Light Cavalry | - | 1 | 6 | 2 | |34th P.W.O. Light Cav. | 1 | 1 | - | 4 | |3rd Sappers and Miners | - | 1 | 6 | 7 | |119th Multan I. | 2 | 1 | 20 | 24 | |128th Pioneers | 1 | 1 | 30 | 22 | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
The precarious situation at Kandahar demanded immediate measures, and once more Sir Frederick Roberts was chosen to vindicate British honour and to teach the Afghans that they were powerless in the face of well-led and well-handled British troops; and he was placed in command of the following compact force, with instructions to march to Kandahar with all possible despatch, and crush the anti-British movement in Southern Afghanistan.
DETAILS OF THE KABUL-KANDAHAR FIELD FORCE.
_Commander-in-Chief: Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick Roberts, K.C.B._
Cavalry Brigade--Brigadier-General Hugh Gough, V.C., C.B.: 9th Lancers, 3rd and 23rd Regiments of Cavalry, and Central India Horse.
Artillery Brigade--Colonel Alured Johnson: Three mountain batteries.
Infantry Division: Major-General Sir John Ross, K.C.B.
First Brigade--Brigadier-General H. Macpherson, V.C., C.B.: 92nd (Gordon Highlanders), 23rd Pioneers, 24th Punjabis, and 2nd Gurkhas.
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General T. D. Baker, C.B.: 72nd (Seaforth Highlanders), 52nd and 53rd Sikhs, and 5th Gurkhas.
Third Brigade--Brigadier-General C. M. Macgregor, C.B.: 2nd Battalion King's Royal Rifles, 15th Sikhs, 25th Punjabis, 4th Gurkhas.
The total strength being 2,562 British and 7,151 native troops, with eighteen guns.
On August 11 the Kabul-Kandahar Force commenced its march to the south, and on the 31st of the month reached Kandahar--a distance of 313 miles. No opposition was experienced on the march. The garrison of Kandahar was found in a state of extreme dejection. In order not to attract the enemy's fire the General in command had given instructions that even the British flag should not be hoisted on the walls. Neither Sir Frederick Roberts nor his force were the men to delay when a fight was in prospect, and as the army of Ayub Khan was still encamped in the vicinity, flushed with their victory over General Burroughs at Maiwand, Sir Frederick determined on at once attacking the Afghans, and on the very day of his arrival the Chief sent out General Hugh Gough to reconnoitre the enemy's position.
KANDAHAR, SEPTEMBER 1, 1880.
This honour is borne by the
9th Lancers. Royal Fusiliers. Royal Berkshires. King's Royal Rifles. Seaforth Highlanders. Gordon Highlanders. 3rd Sappers and Miners. 3rd Skinner's Horse. 23rd Cavalry. 33rd Q.O. Light Cavalry. 34th Poona Horse. 38th Central India Horse. 39th Central India Horse. 15th Sikhs. 23rd Pioneers. 24th Punjabis. 25th Punjabis. 52nd Sikhs. 53rd Sikhs. 101st Grenadiers. 104th Wellesley's Rifles. 119th Multan. 128th Pioneers. 129th Baluchis. 2nd Gurkhas. 4th Gurkhas. 5th Gurkhas.
Sir Frederick adopted the same tactics here as in his earlier actions: making a wide sweeping movement with a portion of his infantry and his cavalry, he pressed home the frontal attack with the two Highland regiments, and in an hour the Afghan army was in full retreat. The only troops actually engaged were those who had marched down with General Roberts from Kabul.
CASUALTIES AT THE BATTLE OF KANDAHAR, SEPTEMBER 1, 1880.
+------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Staff | 1 | - | - | - | |Royal Artillery | - | - | - | 6 | |60th Roy. Rifles | - | - | - | 2 | |72nd Seaforths | 2 | 2 | 11 | 20 | |92nd Gordons | - | 2 | 19 | 69 | |3rd Skinner's H. | - | 1 | - | 1 | |23rd Cavalry P.F.F. | - | 1 | - | 6 | |33rd Q.O. Light Cavalry | - | 1 | - | 1 | |3rd Scinde Horse | - | - | - | 1 | |38th C.I. Horse | 1 | - | - | 5 | |15th Sikhs | - | - | 2 | 4 | |23rd Pioneers | - | 1 | 2 | 13 | |24th Punjabis | - | 1 | 1 | 10 | |25th Punjabis | - | 1 | - | 1 | |52nd Sikhs P.F.F. | - | 1 | 3 | 23 | |53rd Sikhs P.F.F. | - | - | - | 6 | |129th D.C.O. Baluchis | - | - | - | 1 | |2nd Gurkhas | - | 2 | 8 | 21 | |4th Gurkhas | - | 2 | 1 | 4 | |5th Gurkhas | - | - | 1 | 2 | +------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
Chapter XXV
BATTLE HONOURS FOR OPERATIONS ON THE NORTH-WEST INDIAN FRONTIER, 1895-1897
Defence of Chitral--Chitral--Malakand--Samana--Punjab Frontier--Tirah.
DEFENCE OF CHITRAL, 1895.
This battle honour is borne by one regiment--the 14th Prince of Wales's Own Ferozepore Sikhs.
It commemorates one of those gallant but little-remembered occurrences where a handful of British officers, at the head of sepoys no less brave than themselves, have upheld the honour of our flag against overwhelming odds, and thus belied the oft-repeated cry of the decadence of the present generation of Englishmen. There are few episodes in our military history which can vie with the defence of Chitral, none which excel it in sublime heroism.
A few words are necessary in retrospect. Chitral is a small State perched up in the almost inaccessible Himalayas, on the main route between Hindustan and the Pamirs. In the year 1876 the ruler of this State, which hitherto had been independent, placed himself under the protection of the Maharajah of Kashmir, and so became one of our vassals.
Matters marched smoothly for some years, but in the early part of 1895 intertribal disputes arose, the ruler was murdered, and his throne seized by a usurper, who possessed the support of all the neighbouring clans, and was, it was shrewdly suspected, receiving the moral, if not the material, support of the Amir of Afghanistan. The Chief Political Agent in those regions was Surgeon-Major George Robertson, a medical officer who had studied the languages and customs of the Upper Himalayan tribes, and who was trusted as implicitly by them as by our own Government. He hurried from his headquarters at Gilgit to Chitral in the hope of allaying the excitement, but he found himself in the face of a determined effort on the part of the usurper and his supporters--all fanatical Moslems--to free themselves from the yoke of the Kafir. All that Robertson could do was to throw himself into the little native fort of Chitral, and there to hold out until help arrived from India. The few scattered garrisons in the Upper Himalayas were isolated, and all were in equal danger. In one case a detachment of Sikhs was practically annihilated, its surviving officers being taken prisoners.
Robertson had with him in Chitral five young officers, a company of the 14th Sikhs, numbering 88 men, and 300 Kashmiri levies--these last all untrained in the use of the rifle with which they were armed. The story of the defence of Chitral has been told in all too modest language by one of the principal actors, and I can cordially recommend "The Story of a Minor Siege," by Sir George Robertson, to the attention of those who talk of the deterioration of our race. For seven long weeks did that heroic garrison hold out, and when at last relieved, the relief was effected by a force entirely composed of native soldiers--the 32nd Pioneers--who, under their indomitable Colonel, had traversed the gigantic passes of the Himalayas, swept aside all opposition, and shown the world that the Indian army contains in its midst, men who are not to be equalled by any soldiers in the world.
The losses sustained by that one company of the 14th Sikhs during the defence of Chitral were 1 officer and 17 men killed, 1 officer and 53 men wounded.
CHITRAL, 1895.
This distinction, which was granted to commemorate the services of the troops which relieved the beleaguered garrison of Chitral, is borne by the following regiments:
Buffs. Bedfords. K.O. Scottish Borderers. East Lancashire. King's Royal Rifles. Gordon Highlanders. Seaforth Highlanders. Q.O. Corps of Guides. 9th Hodson's Horse. 11th Probyn's Lancers. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 13th Rajputs. 15th Sikhs. 23rd Pioneers. 25th Punjabis. 29th Punjabis. 30th Punjabis. 32nd Pioneers. 34th Pioneers. 37th Dogras. 54th Sikhs. 4th Gurkhas.
The General in command was General Sir Robert Low, K.C.B., and his force was distributed as under:
First Brigade--Brigadier-General A. A. A. Kinloch, C.B.: 1st Battalion Bedfords, 1st Battalion King's Royal Rifles, 15th Sikhs, and 37th Dogras.
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General Waterfield: 2nd Battalion King's Own Scottish Borderers, 1st Battalion Gordon Highlanders, 54th Sikhs, and the infantry of the Corps of Guides.
Third Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General Gatacre: 1st Battalion Buffs, 2nd Battalion Seaforth Highlanders, 25th Punjabis, and 4th Gurkhas.
On the line of communication and in reserve were the 1st Battalion East Lancashires, the Guides Cavalry, the 11th (Probyn's) Lancers, the 13th Rajputs, the 23rd Pioneers, and the 30th Punjabis.
Whilst this force was being hastily mobilized, messages had been despatched to Colonel Kelly, commanding the 32nd Pioneers at Gilgit, far away to the west of Chitral, advising him of the critical position of the garrison. Kelly was one of the few officers in the Indian army who had attained the command of a regiment without having participated in any great campaign. He was known to be a good and a keen soldier, but luck had been against him. Now his turn had come. In the depth of winter, the passes covered with snow, often waist deep, mountain torrents unbridged, paths over which even the mules picked their way with difficulty, every ounce of food to be carried for the whole long march of 200 miles, and a formidable rising of all the fanatical Moslem tribes in his front--these were some of the difficulties that Kelly had to face. The story of that march vies with the story of the defence. It was a war against Nature, and the British-led force won.
Sir Robert Low, with the main army pushing up over the Malakand Pass, easily dispersed the gathering of the tribes which endeavoured to bar his advance on Chitral, and so relieved the pressure which otherwise might have militated against Kelly's success. In these engagements the relieving force suffered the following casualties:
+-------------------------------+-----------------------+-----------+ | | Officers. | | | +-----------+-----------+ Men. | | Regiments. | British.| Native. | | | +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |16th (Bedford) | - | - | - | - | 1 | 2 | |25th (K.O. Scottish Borderers) | - | 2 | - | - | 2 | 15 | |60th (King's Royal Rifles) | - | - | - | - | - | 4 | |78th (Seaforth Highlanders) | - | - | - | - | - | - | |75th (Gordon Highlanders) | - | 3 | - | - | 3 | 9 | |11th (Probyn's) Lancers | 1 | - | - | - | 1 | 10 | |37th Dogras | - | - | 1 | - | 2 | 16 | |54th Sikhs | - | 2 | - | 2 | 3 | 7 | |4th Gurkhas | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | +-------------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
PUNJAB FRONTIER.
This honour, which was sanctioned by the Viceroy of India, is borne by the following regiments of the Indian army:
3rd Skinner's Horse. 6th K.E. Cavalry. 9th Hodson's Horse. 11th Probyn's Lancers. 13th Watson's Horse. 18th Tiwana Lancers. 38th Central India Horse. 39th Central India Horse. Q.O. Corps of Guides. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 12th Khelat-i-Ghilzai. 15th Ludhiana Sikhs. 20th Brownlow's Punjabis. 22nd Punjabis. 24th Punjabis. 30th Punjabis. 31st Punjabis. 34th Pioneers. 35th Sikhs. 36th Sikhs. 37th Dogras. 38th Dogras. 39th Gharwal Rifles. 45th Rattray's Sikhs. 53rd Sikhs. 56th Punjabi Rifles. 81st Pioneers. 128th Pioneers. 1st Gurkhas. 2nd Gurkhas. 3rd Gurkhas. 4th Gurkhas. 5th Gurkhas. 9th Gurkhas.
In the year 1897 Greece, in defiance of the warnings of the Great Powers, threw down the gauntlet to Turkey, and at the end of a brief fortnight's campaign was compelled to sue for peace. Through the good offices of the same Powers she was permitted to escape the just punishment she had incurred. The victory of the Turks was greatly exaggerated throughout the Moslem world, and there is no doubt that emissaries of the Sultan were sent through all Moslem countries to expatiate on the greatness of the Ottoman Power and the invincibility of her armies.
About this time the Amir of Afghanistan published a work appealing to the faithful, and a fanatical priest perambulated the mountains along our frontier preaching a war against the infidel. All these causes tended to a great feeling of restlessness--a restlessness not confined to one clan, but showing clearly all down the frontier, from the Black Mountain to the Waziri Hills.
A brief explanation of the condition of affairs on our Punjab frontier is here necessary. That frontier extends up to and impinges on that great mountain-range which interposes between the Indian Empire and the kingdom of Afghanistan. This range is peopled by wild warlike tribes, who own allegiance to no man. Their names are more or less familiar to the British public by reason of the many punitory expeditions we have been compelled to undertake into their hills. Intertribal jealousies have generally been our strongest ally, and never until the year 1897 have we found such a serious combination of tribes against us.
The campaign commemorated by this battle honour--"Punjab Frontier"--commenced by a most treacherous attack on a detachment of troops in the Tochi Valley. It was followed up by a most determined attack on our garrison at Malakand by the Swatis--a tribe who for many years had given us no trouble. Then came an incursion of the Mohmands into the Peshawar Valley, and finally came the attack on the garrisons in the Khyber Pass by the Afridis, that great clan which furnishes some of the very best soldiers to the Indian army. For the operations against the Afridis a separate battle honour--"Tirah"--was granted.
The casualties suffered by our troops in the various expeditions for which the battle honour "Punjab Frontier" was awarded to native regiments are tabulated on p. 402. It must be remembered that this distinction has not been conferred on the British regiments engaged.
MALAKAND, 1897.
This battle honour has been awarded to the undermentioned regiments of the Indian army by the Viceroy in Council, in recognition of the gallant services rendered in the defence of the Malakand Pass on the North-West Frontier of India at the outset of the great rising of the tribes in 1897:
11th K.E.O. Lancers (Probyn's Horse). Q.O. Corps of Guides. 24th Punjabis. 31st Punjabis. 35th Sikhs. 38th Dogras.
The Chitral campaign of 1895 had taught us the necessity, not merely of constructing good gun-roads from our Punjab frontier stations to the remoter garrisons in the Upper Himalayas, but also of keeping garrisons on those roads in order to overawe the frontier tribes. The Malakand Pass lies some thirty miles beyond Hoti Mardan, the cantonment which for more than half a century has been the home of the Guides, the most famous of all our frontier regiments. The pass was held in strength. Its commander, Brigadier-General W. Meiklejohn, was a soldier who had a considerable experience of Frontier Wars, and who had received his early training under one of the most accomplished masters of the art of mountain warfare that the Indian army has ever produced--Field-Marshal Sir Charles Brownlow. Meiklejohn had with him some of the pick of the Indian army--a squadron of the 11th (Probyn's) Horse, the 24th and 31st Regiments of Punjab Infantry, and the 45th Sikhs. Within thirty-two miles were the Guides, and twenty-six miles farther south, at Nowshera, lay a brigade which comprised a battalion of British troops.
There had been ominous murmurings in the mountains to the north of Peshawar. As I have shown on p. 397, a fanatical Moslem priest had been preaching a religious war, and this spirit of fanaticism had been fanned into a flame by exaggerated accounts of the success of the Turks over the Greeks in Thessaly. Although nominally at peace with his neighbours, Meiklejohn was not a man to take any risks. On more than one occasion frontier camps had been rushed by fanatics, and when on the evening of July 26, 1897, the Swatis of Malakand endeavoured to rush the camp on the Malakand Pass, they were met by men who had studied hill warfare in the best of all schools--that of the Punjab frontier. When dawn broke the little garrison had lost 50 killed and wounded, but this they knew was but the commencement of their troubles. A telegram had been got through to Hoti Mardan before sundown. It reached that place at half-past eight in the evening. It must be here remembered that this was the month of July, the leave season, and that the cry of "Wolf, wolf!" has so often been heard on the Punjab frontier that its repetition is never considered sufficient to stop leave. At that moment the temporary command of the Guides was in the hands of a Lieutenant, Lockhart. As I have said, he received the message at 8.30 p.m.; five hours later--at 1.30 a.m.--the Guides were on the march for Malakand; at half-past six the following evening they swung up the Pass, having covered thirty-two miles in the hottest season of the year in just seventeen hours, thus rivalling the marvellous march they made in the Mutiny from Mardan to Delhi. It is related by an officer who was present that so little affected were the Guides by this trying march that company after company, as it swung by the main guard of the Malakand Force, came to the shoulder with all the accuracy of a battalion of the Guards.
That night the garrison had to meet a second attack, in which the Guides fought with all their accustomed élan. The same day the Brigadier at Nowshera, in response to the messages from Malakand, despatched the headquarters and two squadrons of the 11th (Probyn's) Horse, two mountain batteries, and two battalions (the 35th Sikhs and 38th Dogras), to the relief of Malakand. Some idea of the severity of the weather may be gathered from the fact that the 35th Sikhs lost 21 men from heat apoplexy in that march from Nowshera to the foot of the Pass.
With the arrival of these reinforcements all danger had passed, but the attitude of the tribes made it abundantly clear that we were face to face with the greatest frontier upheaval since Sir Walter Gilbert had driven the Afghans through the Khyber Pass in the spring of 1849.
The first step was to chastise the tribes in the immediate vicinity of Malakand, and orders were at once issued for the mobilization of the following force, under the command of a distinguished officer of the Royal Engineers, Major-General Sir Bindon Blood, K.C.B., who had acted as Chief of the Staff to Sir Robert Low in the Chitral Expedition in 1895. This force was brigaded as follows:
First Brigade--Brigadier-General W. Meiklejohn, C.B., C.M.G.: 1st Battalion Royal West Kent, 24th Punjabis, 31st Punjabis, and 45th Sikhs.
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General P. de Jeffreys: 1st Battalion Buffs, the 35th and 36th Sikhs, and the Infantry of the Guides.
Third Brigade--Brigadier-General J. H. Wodehouse, C.B., C.M.G.: 1st Battalion Highland Light Infantry, 1st Battalion Gordon Highlanders, 21st Punjabis, and the 2nd Battalion 1st Gurkhas.
The divisional troops consisted of the 10th Hodson's Horse, 11th Probyn's Horse, four mountain batteries, and the 22nd Punjabis.
The losses sustained in the defence of the position prior to the operations of the army acting under Sir Bindon Blood amounted to--
+--------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +--------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Q.O. Guides | - | 3 | 3 | 27 | |24th Punjabis | 1 | 2 | 8 | 24 | |31st Punjabis | - | 2 | 12 | 32 | |45th Sikhs | 1 | - | 4 | 28 | +--------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+
No account of the defence of Malakand would be complete without an allusion to the gallant action of a company of the 45th Sikhs, under a subaltern, in holding on to the outpost of Chakdarra, a few miles farther up the pass. So sudden was the outburst that Lieutenant Rattray, the officer in command, was actually playing polo with the officers at Malakand when he heard of the threatened attack. He at once galloped back to the outpost, passing en route groups of the tribesmen, who made no attempt to hinder him. He arrived to find that his brother subaltern had commenced to prepare for the fray. That night they were attacked, and from July 25 until August 2 were continuously under fire. When they were relieved by the advance of a force from Malakand, the casualties in the company of the 45th Sikhs at Chakdarra amounted to 5 killed and 18 wounded, whilst the sergeant's party of the 11th Bengal Lancers lost 3 men.
While yet the force was being mobilized for the punishment of the Swatis for the attack on Malakand, the Mohmands raided some villages in the Peshawar Valley. The raiders were promptly punished by the Peshawar Division, under General Elles; but this was not deemed sufficient, and in the month of September Sir Bindon Blood, having dealt with the Swatis, advanced against the Mohmands from the north, the while that General Elles, with a well-equipped brigade, moved up from Peshawar.
DISTRIBUTION OF THE MOHMAND FIELD FORCE.
First Division: Major-General Sir Bindon Blood, K.C.B.
First Brigade--Brigadier-General Jeffreys, C.B.: The Buffs, 35th Sikhs, and 38th Dogras.
Second Brigade--Brigadier-General Wodehouse, C.B.: The Queen's, 22nd Punjabis, and the 39th Punjabis.
Second Division: Major-General Edmond Elles, C.B.
Third Brigade: Somerset Light Infantry, 20th Brownlow's Punjabis, and 2nd Battalion 1st Gurkhas.
Fourth Brigade: 2nd Battalion Oxford Light Infantry, 37th Dogras, and the 9th Gurkhas.
After inflicting considerable punishment on the clans in the lower valleys, the Peshawar Division was withdrawn to take part in the Tirah Expedition (p. 404), whilst Sir Bindon Blood remained in occupation of the country. The Mohmand Expedition was productive of some sharp fighting, as the subjoined list of casualties prove:
CASUALTIES IN THE SWAT, MOHMAND, AND KURAM VALLEY EXPEDITIONS IN 1897.
+-----------------------------+-----------------------+-----------+ | | Officers. | | | +-----------+-----------+ Men. | | Regiments. | British.| Native. | | | +-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |2nd (Queen's) | - | - | - | - | 3 | 6 | |3rd (Buffs) | - | - | - | - | 7 | 19 | |11th (Devons) | - | - | - | - | - | - | |52nd (Oxford Light Infantry) | - | 3 | - | - | 3 | 11 | |50th (Royal West Kent) | 1 | 5 | - | - | 3 | 24 | |107th (Royal Sussex) | - | 1 | - | - | 4 | 7 | |6th K.E.O. Cavalry | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | 5 | |9th Hodson's Horse | - | - | 1 | - | 3 | 4 | |18th Lancers | - | 1 | - | - | - | 2 | |12th Pioneers | - | - | - | - | 3 | 3 | |20th Brownlow's Punjabis | - | - | - | - | 7 | 47 | |22nd Punjabis | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | |34th Pioneers | 1 | - | - | - | - | 2 | |51st Sikhs | 1 | 2 | - | 1 | 13 | 15 | |55th Coke's Rifles | 1 | 2 | - | - | 7 | 4 | |9th Gurkhas | - | - | - | - | 2 | 2 | +-----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
SAMANA, SEPTEMBER 12-14, 1897.
This distinction was conferred on the 36th Sikhs by the Viceroy of India as a recognition of the gallant conduct of a detachment of that regiment at the defence of Fort Gulistan against a very superior force.
The attack on Fort Gulistan was one of the incidents which led to the expedition against the Afridis, and which is commemorated on the colours of our army under the title "Tirah." This fort, which is situated on the Samana Range, to the west of the frontier station of Kohat, dominates one of the main roads into the Afridi Hills, and is held by a detachment of native troops furnished from the garrison of Kohat. Almost simultaneously with the attack on the garrison of Malakand (see p. 398) symptoms of unrest displayed themselves amongst all the tribes along our North-West Frontier. The forts on the Khyber Road were attacked, the Mohmands made their descent into the Peshawar Valley, and the Afridis, not content with the attacks on the Khyber line, endeavoured to turn us out of the position on the Samana Ridge.
The garrison of Fort Gulistan consisted of two companies of the 36th Sikhs, under Major Des Vœux, and hard by was a little detached work, with a garrison of but twenty men, under a native officer. The conduct of this detachment must for ever remain one of the brightest pages in the history of our Indian army, and yet the history of that army abounds with instances of the self-devotion and heroism of our native soldiery.
Cut off from all communication with any senior officer, the Subadar[29] in command of the Saragai post was left entirely to his own devices. Gallantly did he carry out his orders. Surrounded by 10,000 Afridis, he not only repelled all attacks for three days, but when offered terms and a safe conduct to Kohat, his reply was that until he received instructions from his Colonel he could not abandon the post committed to his care; and so the brave old Sikh and his gallant men stayed on and died, true to the last to their trust. When the Fort Gulistan was relieved, on September 14, it was found that Saragai was in the hands of the Afridis, and that every man of the garrison had died at his post. To commemorate the heroism of its garrison the Government of India erected a monument, on which the names of that heroic band are inscribed, within the walls of the great Sikh cathedral, the Golden Temple at Umritsar.
The losses sustained by the two companies of the 36th Sikhs in the defence of the Samana Ridge were 22 killed and 48 wounded out of a total of 166 combatants.
TIRAH, 1897-98
This battle honour, sanctioned by Army Order No. 23 of 1900, is borne by the following regiments:
Queen's. Devons. Yorkshire. Royal Scots Fusiliers. K.O. Scottish Borderers. Sherwood Foresters. Northamptons. Gordon Highlanders. 18th Tiwana Lancers. 1st P.W.O. Sappers and Miners. 15th Sikhs. 30th Punjabis. 36th Sikhs. 53rd Sikhs. 56th Rifles. 128th Pioneers. 1st Gurkhas. 2nd Gurkhas. 3rd Gurkhas. 4th Gurkhas.
It was granted in recognition of one of the most arduous campaigns we have been called upon to wage on the Indian frontier. Our opponents were the great tribe of Afridis, who people the mountains to the west of the cantonment of Peshawar, and who furnish some of the best soldiers in our Punjab regiments. The Afridis are subdivided into a number of clans, all antagonistic to each other. Intertribal wars are of frequent occurrence, and although on many occasions we have been compelled to undertake punitory expeditions against certain of these, it has never been our lot to find such a unanimity of feeling against us as on this occasion.
It was thoroughly realized that we had a foe well worthy of our steel. The Afridis were well armed, and they counted some thousands of men who had been through the mill of discipline in our own regiments. Many of the very best regiments of the Indian army contained a large number of Afridis, and though these men have never hesitated to fight bravely against their own co-religionists in our border wars and in Afghanistan, there was more than a possibility that their loyalty would be too severely tried were we to employ them against their own fellow-tribesmen.
The chief command was entrusted to General Sir William Lockhart, an officer well versed in frontier warfare, one who understood the Afridi character thoroughly, and who was well known and well respected by the tribesmen. His army was the most powerful that we had ever mobilized for frontier war. It numbered close on 35,000 men, of whom 10,900 were British, and was distributed as under:
First Division: Major-General W. Penn Symons, C.B.
First Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General R. C. Hart, V.C., C.B.: 1st Battalion Devonshires, 2nd Battalion Sherwood Foresters, 2nd Battalion 1st Gurkhas, and the 30th Punjabis.
Second Infantry Brigade--Brigadier-General Alfred Gaselee, C.B.: 1st Battalion Queen's, 2nd Battalion Yorkshire Regiment, 2nd Battalion 4th Gurkhas, and the 53rd Sikhs.
Second Division: Major-General Yeatman Biggs.
Third Brigade--Brigadier-General F. J. Kempster, D.S.O.: 1st Battalion Dorsets, 1st Battalion Gordon Highlanders, 1st Battalion 2nd Gurkhas, and the 15th Sikhs.
Fourth Brigade--Brigadier-General R. Westmacott, C.B., D.S.O.: 2nd Battalion King's Own Scottish Borderers, 1st Battalion Northamptons, 1st Battalion 3rd Gurkhas, and the 36th Sikhs.
The divisional troops at the disposal of the Commander-in-Chief comprised the 18th Tiwana Lancers, three mountain batteries, and the 128th Pioneers.
A second column was organized to act from Peshawar, and was placed under the command of Brigadier-General A. G. Hammond, V.C., an officer who had served in the famous Corps of Guides for twenty years, and who was a master in the art of mountain warfare, having won the Victoria Cross during the Afghan War of 1879, under the eyes of Lord Roberts. His force comprised the 2nd Battalion Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, the 2nd Battalion Oxford Light Infantry, the 9th Gurkhas, the 32nd Pioneers, and the 45th Sikhs, with the 9th Hodson's Horse, one field and one mounted battery.
A third column, under Colonel Hill, of the Indian army, was assembled in the Kuram Valley. It consisted of the 6th King Edward's Own Cavalry, the 38th and 39th Central India Horse, the 12th Pioneers, and the 1st Battalion of the 5th Gurkhas, the total force amounting to 34,880 fighting men, British and native, with no less than 20,000 followers.
No white man had ever penetrated the upper valleys of Tirah, and our knowledge was based on the information of the Afridi officers and men, who for forty years had formed the backbone of so many of our Punjab regiments. The frontier town of Kohat formed the base of operations, which had of necessity, owing to the absence of roads, to be carried on in one single line. The advance took place on October 18, and two days later the Dargai Heights, which commanded the entrance to the valley, were stormed, with a loss of 200 killed and wounded. The Afridis were too wise to risk a general engagement. They had been trained in our own school, had studied under our officers, and had well learned their lesson. Instead of wasting life in futile attacks on our troops when in mass, they waged a ceaseless war against convoys or survey parties. Sir William Lockhart remained in occupation of the Afridi country until the middle of December, when negotiations for peace were opened; but it was not until the commencement of April, 1898, that the Afridis consented to pay the fines imposed or to give up the rifles demanded.
Our casualties, which are set out in detail in the subjoined return, amounted to 23 British officers, 4 native officers, and 287 other ranks killed; 56 British officers, 16 native officers, and 853 of all ranks wounded--a tribute to the gallantry of our foe and to the musketry training of the British officers who had taught them how to shoot.
CASUALTIES IN THE TIRAH EXPEDITION.
+-----------------------------+-----------+-----------+ | |Officers.| Men. | | Regiments. +-----+-----+-----+-----+ | | K. | W. | K. | W. | +-----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+ |Royal Artillery | 1 | 2 | 4 | 21 | |2nd Queen's | - | 2 | 10 | 29 | |11th Devons | - | - | - | 9 | |19th Yorkshire | 1 | 3 | 6 | 33 | |21st Roy. Scots Fusiliers | - | 1 | 2 | 13 | |25th K.O. Scottish Borderers | - | 3 | 7 | 34 | |39th Dorsets | 4 | 4 | 19 | 65 | |48th N'amptons | 3 | 1 | 23 | 41 | |75th Gordon H. | 2 | 8 | 9 | 63 | |95th Derbyshire | 1 | 1 | 8 | 33 | |Roy. Engineers | 1 | 1 | 3 | 14 | |18th Bengal Lancers | - | 1 | 2 | 6 | |15th Sikhs | 2 | 7 | 11 | 35 | |30th Punjabis | - | - | 3 | 8 | |36th Sikhs | - | 5 | 15 | 50 | |53rd Sikhs | - | 4 | 8 | 28 | |56th Punjab R. | 2 | - | 5 | 27 | |121st Pioneers | - | 1 | 2 | 13 | |128th Pioneers | - | 1 | 9 | 24 | |2nd Gurkhas | 4 | 4 | 23 | 75 | |3rd Gurkhas | 1 | 3 | 13 | 43 | +-----------------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+