During July very few interesting events had occurred in the Corps, and
although there is nothing spectacular to record, it was just such
incidents that kept up the spirits of the men and gave opportunities for
individual distinction combined with very useful work. Of such was a
reconnaissance made by Captain Roe, 4th Gurkhas. Starting by daylight,
this gallant officer, accompanied by Lieut. C. C. Manson of the Indian
Army Reserve of Officers attached to the battalion, and his acting
Subadar-Major, Senbir Gurung, spent five hours reconnoitring the enemy
trenches from “No Man’s Land.” In the doing of this they all ran very
considerable risks, but certain information was much needed and they did
not hesitate to run every risk to gain it. I will not go into the
details: suffice it to say they not only discovered and sketched many
German traps, trenches fitted with armoured loopholes, dummy
machine-guns, barricades, and other unpleasant accessories of trench
warfare, but killed a German officer and another man, and returned with
their information and a useful sketch.
Not content with this the same trio, accompanied now by eighteen
N.C.O.’s and men, sallied out on 4th July and in three groups repeated
the performance on a larger scale. Covering parties were told off and
other necessary preparations made. Roe and his group were subjected to a
sharp bombing which temporarily knocked them out, but quickly regaining
their feet they outmatched the Huns in the bombing game, killing five of
them. Senbir was very severely wounded, but refused to be moved and
continued to exercise his command. Manson here got his chance, and with
his covering party just caught the Germans at the moment they were
gaining a decided advantage. They were utterly surprised and as they
very hurriedly retired a fortunate shell from one of our field batteries
which was assisting the operation burst over them. This ended all
opposition and the grand little Gurkhas returned full of themselves.
Roe received the D.S.O., Manson the Military Cross, and Senbir Gurung
the Indian Order of Merit. Others who were awarded the I.D.S.M. will be
found in the Appendix.
The Bishop of Nagpore visited us towards the end of July and accompanied
me to several of our advanced posts and batteries. He gave us a very
impressive service in the French schoolroom of the town, and we were
glad indeed to have had one of our Indian Bishops in our midst. In this
Corps we of course had less Christian chaplains than was naturally the
case with others, but those we had have left a splendid record of
devotion and will ever be remembered by all who served with them.
Witness one name alone, Ronald Irwin, Indian Ecclesiastical Department,
Chaplain of the Leicesters, who during the war won the D.S.O. and M.C.
with bar.
I had a very pleasant duty to perform during July when on comparing
statistics of all Brigades in the Corps I was able to report to First
Army that for the two previous months the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the
Connaught Rangers, who as I said before had been amalgamated into one
unit, had not a single court-martial, and showed the lowest average of
sick (1·37) amongst the British troops of the original Army Corps. All
of these battalions could not be beaten in the Army, but it always
rejoices me to see Irishmen setting the example, and they generally will
set it if they are taken in the right way.
Sir John French, with that soldierly instinct he possesses in so high a
degree, at once directed that an expression of his appreciation of the
efforts of the C.O. and all other ranks of the Connaughts to raise the
Corps to such a high state of discipline was to be conveyed to the
battalion.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
Major-General Lambton, the Military Secretary at G.H.Q., had a difficult
task. Considering the numerous details he had to deal with and the
difficulty of following the ramifications of promotions and rewards in
the Indian Corps, it was wonderful how successfully he managed. His
fairness in apportioning them, and his desire to do justice to the
Indians, were very apparent. In comparing the awards with those of other
Indian Expeditionary forces, up to the time I left France, I think we
perhaps suffered in proportion to our numbers and the conditions we
lived in. There can be no question as to which force of Indians had the
hardest task and the most trying conditions to contend with during the
first months of the war, but the number of rewards for Indians were in
some cases less than their more fortunate comrades received in other
theatres. Writing of rewards I may add that Lieut.-General Sir Charles
Anderson, who commanded the Meerut Division for eleven months and
succeeded me in command of the Indian Corps, was perhaps the only Corps
Commander who never received a French decoration. He later commanded a
British Army Corps for many months, but he is still without anything to
show that he served in France.
Lieut.-Colonel S. Barry of the Northamptonshire Regiment, A.D.C. to the
Commander-in-Chief, was an officer who invariably exercised a tact that
made visits to G.H.Q. a pleasure whenever he was on duty.
General Macready, Adjutant-General, G.H.Q., was always most anxious to
help the Indian Corps, and we owe him a debt of gratitude for many
actions taken by him to keep our house in order.
It will interest those who sympathise with the complications of this
command to glance at the accompanying short extract from our “Summary of
News,” 1st to 5th June 1915. It was taken haphazard from many in my
possession. In order to convey to the Indians some idea of what was
going on in all theatres of war it was of course necessary to publish
such news in their own language. This meant, first, translation of the
ordinary summary issued to the Army into Hindustani, and then the local
presentation of it in the Persian and the Hindi character. It was all
done rapidly and regularly, with a result that the sepoy in the trenches
was enabled to learn frequently what his comrades and the Allied Armies
were doing. Without it he would have known nothing of either.
_Summary of News, 1st June to 5th June 1915._
WESTERN THEATRE
_British Front._—The British troops have captured the Château of
Hooge, about 2–1/2 miles from Ypres on the Menin road.
On the night of the 4th-5th June the British on the right of the
Indian Corps captured forty-eight German prisoners of the 56th
Regiment, Seventh Corps. These are mostly men between thirty-five and
forty years of age, who have only recently been called up for service.
From their statements it appears that in this neighbourhood the enemy
has at present no apparatus for asphyxiating gas.
_French Front._—The French continue to advance near Notre Dame de
Lorette and Souchez, fifteen to twenty miles south of the Indian
Corps. On the 31st May they captured the front German trenches of the
large work known as the “Labyrinth,” taking four officers and 146 men.
The “Labyrinth” was composed of subterranean chambers believed by the
enemy to be impregnable. The French also captured the Souchez Sugar
Factory, a large and strongly defended building. During the night the
Germans recaptured it, but were driven out again by our Allies at
daybreak on the 1st June. During this battle the French captured over
800 prisoners, including nine officers, fifty N.C.O.’s and two
machine-guns. They are now in firm possession of the building and of
the trenches all round it.
The following particulars of the results of the fighting in this
neighbourhood are issued officially by the French authorities:
“Between the 9th May and 1st June 3100 German prisoners, including
sixty-four officers, were captured, and 2600 German corpses buried,
all by one French Division.” This probably represents a loss of at
least 10,000 killed, wounded, and prisoners. “The losses of this
French Division were about 3200 in all, of which two-thirds were only
slightly wounded.” Ends.
A month before I left France Lieutenant E. Bullard, of the Indian Postal
Service, attached to the Corps, was killed by a shell whilst in his
motor-car on duty well behind the advanced posts. Poor lad, he had done
excellent service, and this will readily be understood when it is
remembered that he was responsible for the distribution of letters,
packages, post cards, and a hundred forms of correspondence and gifts
written in innumerable dialects or wrapped in the most impossible
covers, and despatched in a manner that no Westerner can conceive.
Notwithstanding this, like other exceptional matters, there was always
an officer ready and capable of carrying them out. Indian training in
this respect is difficult to beat.
[Illustration: TRENCHES. INDIAN CORPS. 27–8–1915.]
During August a company of Bhutias from the Darjeeling district of
Bengal joined us for ambulance work. Great Britain was indeed gathering
her hosts from all parts of the world. I inspected them and never
remember to have seen a more cheery detachment. They were accommodated
in tents and plainly showed that they had come to enjoy the show, for
they had no hesitation in calling the war a regular _tamasha_ (sport,
fun). They changed their mind as to the _tamasha_ part of it, but were
always in good spirits.
The 12th August was a proud day for me, for I had the honour of
receiving from His Majesty’s hands the G.C.M.G. he had been pleased to
confer on me, and at the same time my son in the Black Watch was
honoured by receiving the Military Cross. The King was kind enough to
tell the boy that he was glad to see both father and son together, and
after the Investiture I was summoned to an interview, when His Majesty
told me he had heard good reports of the Corps and directed me to convey
to the officers, N.C.O.’s, and men his good wishes. Of course this was
speedily done, and little did I then realise that only three weeks later
I was to leave my beloved Army Corps and field service for ever.
I again saw Lord Kitchener and he asked me if I had any objection to
releasing a thousand Gurkhas from the Corps for service in Gallipoli. He
wished four companies to be taken from four different battalions, but I
suggested one whole battalion being sent and made up to a thousand rank
and file. He agreed to this and I selected the 4th Gurkhas. It was a
blow losing them, but necessity demanded it, I suppose.
Only a week later Lord Kitchener again visited us in France and saw all
Corps Commanders of the First Army at St. Venant. On this occasion he
informed me that it had been suggested to him to relieve the Indians,
but he was determined they should stay on in France, and he said he was
arranging reliefs of units.
For few perhaps in the British Forces in France has the 3rd September
1915 any special significance, but for me, without any kind of immediate
warning, it was the last day of soldiering. For thirty-seven years the
thought of suddenly ending my career had never entered my head, and I
still hoped that if my Corps could be transferred to Egypt, Mesopotamia,
or anywhere from France, I should have the satisfaction of seeing the
war through. If we remained on in France, I knew it was only a matter of
time when I should be forced myself to ask for a move. However, we were
on the eve of the great attack at Loos; the Indian Corps was in as good
fettle as was then possible; every kind of preparation was in process of
completion for the attack; and as far as I was concerned there was no
immediate reason for any foreboding of evil. We had just received some
excellent drafts from India and everything seemed to be going well.
But it is the unexpected that often happens in war, and in justice to
myself and the Indians then in France, I say plainly that at a time of
comparatively profound calm on the battle front, I was for very good
reasons obliged to suggest to the G.O.C. First Army that as my services
apparently no longer met with his approval I considered it best for the
Army that I might be relieved of my command.
The war is over, I am only one humble individual, my staying or leaving
could have no bearing on events, but justice is a thing we expect in our
Army.
On the 2nd September 1915, with my old and valued friend, Colonel Sir
Frederick Lugard, Governor-General of Nigeria, who was home on leave and
paying a short visit to France, I went round almost the whole of our
front trenches. It was a murky day and nothing beyond the usual shelling
and firing was happening, but the Indians were glad to see me, as usual.
One section was held by Pathans, and some of them were singing to a
_sitar_ (guitar). My knowledge of Pashtu is limited, but I had years ago
learned their favourite song, “Zakhmi Dil” (The Wounded Heart), so I
joined in and gave them a verse. Men from other parts of the trenches
came running over, and presently to dance and music we were having an
improvised concert. I did not know it was to be my last with my brave
comrades of many campaigns.
After a long day’s tramp, and having personally inspected the various
new trench positions for guns which were to be brought up to the very
front, etc., we got home late, and for some reason I was in particularly
good spirits. Loos was about to be fought, and the Indian Corps had been
detailed to make a subsidiary attack from near Mauquissart and we had
been preparing everything for many days.
Early on the 3rd September there was a conference of the First Army at
Hinges Château; it was the first Headquarters I had been in when I took
over our front in October 1914, and I found myself back in the old
familiar room and seated at the same spot where we had begun our great
adventure. How much had passed since those early days; how few of my old
comrades of the Staff, or indeed of any kind, still remained with us!
My thoughts could interest nobody but myself, but to me as I look back
they were the last I should ever reflect, as a fighting soldier; for
within an hour I was no longer Commander of the Indian Corps. Discipline
is the marrow of an army; silence, when it is imperative that one should
uphold the authority which the King has placed over us, is sometimes
hard to endure.
An hour later, on my way back to my Headquarters, I told my Staff
officer that I had seen the Army Commander and my end had come. He was
not surprised; who that was present could be? Only twenty days
previously I had had the honour of receiving the G.C.M.G. at the hands
of His Majesty, and had been summoned afterwards to his presence, as I
have already told, when he graciously congratulated me and praised the
work of the Indian Corps, and within three weeks I was forced to leave
the Corps in which I had served with a loyalty that no man could exceed.
_Nemo repente fit turpissimus._
I had gone to the Conference in high spirits; I was leaving it, little
caring whither I went. I should have to depart before even I could shake
the hand of many brave Indians, officers and men, my lifelong friends. I
felt I must perforce go without saying a word, lest any spark of
ill-feeling should be revealed. The enemy was before us; individuals had
to go under, rightly or wrongly, but, above all, no Indian soldier
should know from me that his commander was leaving for such a reason.
They would, of course, not understand it, and so I knew the bitter pill
must be swallowed. I had long foreseen what must come; that it came with
a greater suddenness than even I had imagined possible is another story.
In my Diary under 5th September I find:
This day last year I was appointed to command the Indian Corps and the
self-same day a year later I got my orders to go. The only order in
fact I have received is, that I may proceed on leave, and that was
given me verbally by the Military Secretary. It is war time and so I
must hold my peace for the foe is at the gates, but if this is justice
then chivalry has indeed departed.
From that day to this I have never received any orders. ARGUMENTUM
BACULINUM.
Even the India Office was not informed, and my own intimation some days
later, that I had left, was the first they heard of the fact. Would this
have been possible in any other Army Corps?
Lord Kitchener saw me on 16th September, or ten days after my return,
and informed me that he had heard verbally, but had no official report
and had telegraphed for it.
I was the third senior officer in France; what must have been the fate
of many junior to me?
Had Lord Kitchener lived, I think I may safely say I should not have
been cast on the scrap-heap; with his death vanished the last hope of
re-employment in the war, and what other employment was worth having?
I have a sufficient sense of discipline to refrain from further probing
this story. I am still on the “Active List” of the Army and it is my
duty to hold my peace; but I retain the right to tell my own tale when I
am no longer employed, and I shall then do so. Even had I been totally
deficient in “initiative and tactical skill,” there are ways of doing
things. I had during my thirty-seven years’ soldiering served in
fourteen campaigns; had received the Freedom of the City of London and a
sword of honour, and the unique distinction of being mentioned by name
in King Edward’s first Speech from the Throne. Had I not the right to
expect ordinary courtesy?—but I belonged to the Indian Corps!—that
explains much.
The story of my own share in the work of the Corps in France is
finished. I have endeavoured faithfully to record, to the best of my
ability, the brave doings of brave men, British and Indian. I have tried
to repay in some small measure the heavy debt I owe to them, but
especially to the soldiers of India, my faithful friends and comrades in
many campaigns, through whose loyalty, courage, and devotion I have
risen from Subaltern to General. The memories of the long years spent in
India are, at least, a possession of which I cannot be deprived.
Ille terrarum mihi praeter omnes angulus ridet.
The following numbers of casualties, up to within a week of the date I
left France, will give some idea of the part played by the Army Corps in
the fighting and of the debt which England owes to her own sons and
brothers from overseas; but still more to those chivalrous men,
Mahomedans and Hindus, for they came from a sense of loyalty to their
King-Emperor alone, although they had no personal bias in the quarrel,
except to uphold Great Britain’s righteous cause.
British officers 850
„ other ranks 10,300
Indian officers 420
„ other ranks 17,230
——————
Total 28,800