1879
Sherpur--Defence of Sherpur--Arrest of Daud Shah
--Rumours of an assault--Attack and counter-attack
--Communication with India re-opened--Sherpur made safe
The moment the gates were closed I telegraphed the result of the day's
operations to the Viceroy and Commander-in-Chief, for I knew that the
enemy's first thought would be to stop communication with India
by cutting the telegraph-wires. I reported that I had ordered
Brigadier-General Charles Gough's brigade to push on from Gandamak as
fast as possible; and I recommended that General Bright should have
more troops sent up to him, to allow of his keeping open the route to
Kabul, and of his reinforcing me should I find it impossible to clear
the country with the force at my disposal. It was a satisfaction to
be able to assure the authorities in these, to me, otherwise painful
telegrams, that there was no cause for anxiety as to the safety of the
troops; that sufficient supplies for men were stored in Sherpur for
nearly four months, and for animals for six weeks; that there
was abundance of firewood, medicines, and hospital comforts, and
sufficient ammunition both for guns and rifles to admit of an active
resistance being carried on for between three and four months.
It was fortunate there was no lack of provisions, for our numbers were
considerably increased by the presence of Wali Mahomed Khan and many
other Sirdars, who begged for shelter in Sherpur, on the plea that
their lives would not be safe were they to return to the city. They
were far from being welcome guests, for I could not trust them;
ostensibly, however, they were our friends, and I could not refuse
their petition. I therefore admitted them, on condition that each
Sirdar should only be accompanied by a specified number of followers.
The stormy occurrences of the 14th were succeeded by a period of
comparative calm, during which the entrenchments were strengthened,
and the heavy guns found in the Kabul arsenal were prepared for
service.
The great drawback to Sherpur, as I have already mentioned, was its
extent and the impossibility of reducing the line of defences owing to
the length of the Bimaru ridge. The cantonment was in the form of a
parallelogram, with the Bimaru heights running along, and protecting,
the northern side. Between this range and the hills, which form the
southern boundary of Kohistan, lay a lake, or rather _jhil_, a barrier
between which and the commanding Bimaru ridge no enemy would dare to
advance.
The massive wall on the south and west faces was twenty feet high,
covered at a distance of thirty feet by a lower wall fifteen feet
high; the southern wall was pierced at intervals of about 700 yards by
gateways, three in number, protected by lofty circular bastions, and
between these and at the four corners were a series of low bastions
which gave an admirable flanking fire. The wall on the western flank
was of similar construction, but had been considerably damaged at the
northern end, evidently by an explosion of gunpowder.
The weak part of our defence was on the eastern face, where the wall,
which had never been completed, was only seven feet high, and did not
extend for more than 700 yards from the south-east corner; the line
then ran to the north-west, and, skirting the village of Bimaru, ended
at the foot of the ridge.
From this description it will be seen that, though the perimeter[1]
of Sherpur was rather too large for a force of 7,000 effective men to
defend, its powers of resistance, both natural and artificial, were
considerable. It was absolutely necessary to hold the Bimaru ridge for
its entire length; to have given up any part of it would have been to
repeat the mistake which proved so disastrous to Elphinstone's army in
1841. In fact, the Bimaru heights were at once the strength and the
weakness of the position. So long as we could hold the heights we were
safe from attack from the north; but if we had been forced, either
from the weakness of our own garrison, or from any other cause, to
relinquish the command of this natural barrier, the whole of the
cantonment must have lain open to the enemy, and must forthwith have
become untenable.
The question of how Sherpur could best be defended had been carefully
considered by a committee,[2] assembled by my orders soon after
our arrival in Kabul; and a scheme had been drawn up detailing the
measures which should be adopted in case of attack.
On the recommendation of this committee six towers had been
constructed on the Bimaru heights, and shelter trenches and gunpits
made at the points where Infantry and Artillery fire could be used
with the greatest advantage. These trenches were now deepened and
prolonged, so as to form one continuous line of defence, protected by
an abattis; and the defences in the depression between the heights
were so arranged that fire could be brought to bear on an enemy
advancing from the north. To strengthen the north-east corner, a
battery was thrown up on the slope of the ridge, which was connected
with the tower above and the village below. The village itself was
loop-holed, the outlying buildings to the front made defensible,
and the open space to the north-east secured by abattis and wire
entanglements. The Native Field Hospital was strengthened in like
manner, and sand-bag parapets were piled upon the roof, which was
somewhat exposed.
The unfinished wall on the eastern face was raised by logs of wood,
and abattis and wire entanglements were placed in front. In the open
space lying between the Bimaru ridge and the north-west circular
bastion, a defence on the _laager_ system was constructed out of
gun-carriages and limbers captured from the enemy; while the village
of Ghulam Hasan Khan, which formed an excellent flanking defence along
the northern and western faces, was held as an independent post.
I divided the whole of the defences into five sections, under the
superintendence of five different commanders: Brigadier-General
Macpherson, Colonel Jenkins, Brigadier-General Hugh Gough,
Major-General Hills, and Colonel Brownlow. Brigadier-General Massy was
given the centre of the cantonment, where were collected the forage
and firewood; and Brigadier-General Baker commanded the reserve, which
was formed up at the depression in the Bimaru heights mentioned above,
that he might be able to move rapidly to either end of the ridge, the
weakest points in our defences.
The several sections were connected with each other and with my
Head-Quarters by a telegraph-wire, and visual signalling was
established at all important points.
In my arrangements for the defence of Sherpur I relied to a great
extent on the advice of my accomplished Chief Engineer, Colonel Æneas
Perkins, and it was mainly owing to him, and to the exertions of
his competent staff, that the work was carried on as rapidly and
satisfactorily as it was.
During these days of preparation the enemy remained comparatively
inactive, being chiefly employed in looting the city and emptying the
Amir's arsenal. The gunpowder had been destroyed as far as possible;
but a great deal still remained, and many tons of it were carried off
by the army of Mahomed Jan, who had now become the practical leader of
the Afghan combination, and had lately proclaimed Yakub Khan's eldest
son, Musa Khan, Amir.
On the afternoon of the 16th I received the welcome news that Colonel
Hudson had successfully resisted an attack on his position by the
Ghilzais--welcome because I could now feel assured that Lataband could
be depended upon to hold its own.
For the next five days nothing of much importance was done on either
side. The enemy took up positions daily in the neighbouring forts and
gardens, causing a few casualties, and some of our troops moved out to
dislodge them from those places from which they could specially annoy
us. I destroyed some of the forts, and removed other cover in the
immediate vicinity of the walls; but I did not undertake any large
sorties, for to have attempted to drive the enemy out of the outlying
posts, which I could not then have held, would have been a useless
waste of strength.
My chief trouble at this time was the presence of the Afghan Sirdars
within the cantonment. I had good reason to believe that some of them,
though full of protestations of friendship, had been in communication
with Mahomed Jan, the high-priest Mushk-i-Alam, and other Afghan
leaders, so that I felt sure that neither they nor their followers
were to be depended upon. I was also somewhat anxious about the Pathan
soldiers in our ranks, a feeling which I was unwilling to acknowledge
even to myself, for they had hitherto behaved with marked loyalty,
and done splendid service; but they were now being exposed to a most
severe trial, in that they were, as I knew, being constantly appealed
to by their co-religionists to join in the _jahad_ against us, and
bitterly reproached for serving their infidel masters. Whether they
would be strong enough to resist such appeals, it was impossible to
tell; but it would have been most unwise, as well as most painful
to me, to show the slightest suspicion of these fine soldiers. It
happened that the Corps of Guides and 5th Punjab Infantry, which had
of all regiments the largest number of Mahomedans amongst them, were
located at the two extremities of the Bimaru range, the points most
likely to be attacked; to have made any change in the disposition
would have been to show that they were suspected, so I determined
(after taking their commanding officers, Colonels Jenkins and McQueen,
into my confidence) to leave them where they were, and merely to
strengthen each post by a couple of companies of Highlanders.
I was also considerably exercised about the safety of the large stacks
of firewood, grain, and forage, for if anything had happened to them
we could not have continued to hold Sherpur. There were not enough
British soldiers to furnish guards for these stacks, so I was obliged
to have them watched for a time by officers; an opportune fall of
snow, however, on the night of the 18th, rendered incendiarism
impossible.
One other extremely unpleasant precaution I felt it my duty to take
was the placing of Daud Shah, Yakub Khan's Commander-in-Chief, under
arrest. I liked the man, and he had mixed freely with us all for more
than two months. He was not, however, absolutely above suspicion: some
of his near relatives were the most prominent amongst our enemies; and
I had been struck by a change in his manner towards me of late. In
trusting him to the extent I had done, I acted against the opinion of
almost everyone about me, and now that I had a doubt myself, I felt I
was not justified in leaving him at liberty, for if he were disposed
to make use of his opportunities to our disadvantage, his unrestrained
freedom of movement and observation would be certainly a source of
great danger.
For three or four days cloudy weather prevented heliograph
communication with Lataband, and messengers sent by Hudson had failed
to reach Sherpur, so that we were without any news from the outer
world; but on the afternoon of the 18th I received a letter from
Brigadier-General Charles Gough, conveying the disappointing
intelligence that he had only got as far as Jagdalak, twenty-one miles
from Gandamak, and that he did not consider himself strong enough to
advance on Kabul.
Gough no doubt felt himself in an awkward position. The line to his
rear was weakly held, the telegraph-wire on both sides of him was
cut, his rear guard had been attacked near Jagdalak, there was a
considerable collection of men on the hills to his front, and, as he
reported, 'the whole country was up.' Moreover, Major-General Bright,
under whom Gough was immediately serving, shared his opinion that it
would be wiser for him to wait until reinforcements came up from the
rear.
Gough, however, had with him 4 Mountain guns and 125 Artillerymen, 73
Sappers and Miners, 222 Native Cavalry, 487 British Infantry, and 474
Gurkhas; in all, 1,381 men, besides 36 officers--not a very large
force, but composed of excellent material, and large enough, I
considered, augmented, as it would be, by the Lataband detachment, to
move safely on Kabul. I had no hesitation, therefore, in sending Gough
peremptory orders to advance without delay, thus relieving him of all
responsibility in the event of anything unexpected occurring.
Hudson, at Lataband, as has already been recorded, was only victualled
until the 23rd, before which date I had calculated that Gough would
surely have relieved the garrison and brought the troops away. But now
all was uncertain, and it was incumbent upon me to send them food. The
difficulty as to how to get supplies to Lataband was solved by
some Hazaras, who had been working in our camp for several weeks,
volunteering to convey what was necessary, and it was arranged that
the provisions should be sent with two parties, one on the 19th, the
other on the 20th. The first got through safely, but the second almost
entirely fell into the hands of the enemy.
On the 21st a heliogram from Hudson informed me that Gough's brigade
was expected the next day; but as it had been found necessary to drop
his Cavalry at the several posts he passed on the way for their better
protection, I deemed it expedient to send him the 12th Bengal Cavalry,
for he had to pass through some fairly open country near Butkhak,
where they might possibly be of use to him. Accordingly, they started
at 3 a.m. on the 22nd, with instructions to halt at Butkhak should
that post be unoccupied, otherwise to push on to Lataband.
Finding the former place in possession of the Afghans, Major Green,
who was in command of the regiment, made for the further post, where
he arrived with the loss of only three men killed and three wounded.
It was not easy to get reliable information as to the movements or
intentions of the enemy while we were surrounded in Sherpur; but from
spies who managed to pass to and from the city under cover of night, I
gathered that plans were being made to attack us.
It was not, however, until the 21st that there were any very great
signs of activity. On that and the following day the several posts to
the east of the cantonment were occupied preparatory to an attack from
that quarter; and I was told that numbers of scaling-ladders were
being constructed. This looked like business. Next, information was
brought in that, in all the mosques, mullas were making frantic
appeals to the people to unite in one final effort to exterminate the
infidel; and that the aged Mushk-i-Alam was doing all in his power to
fan the flame of fanaticism, promising to light with his own hand
at dawn on the 23rd (the last day of the _Moharram_, when religious
exaltation amongst Mahomedans is at its height) the beacon-fire which
was to be the signal for assault.
The night of the 22nd was undisturbed, save by the songs and cries of
the Afghans outside the walls, but just before day the flames of the
signal-fire, shooting upwards from the topmost crag of the Asmai
range, were plainly to be seen, followed on the instant by a burst of
firing.
Our troops were already under arms and at their posts, waiting for the
assault, which commenced with heavy firing against the eastern and
southern faces. The most determined attack was directed against the
two sections commanded by Brigadier-General Hugh Gough and Colonel
Jenkins, who by their able dispositions proved themselves worthy of
the confidence I had reposed in them.
It was too dark at first to see anything in front of the walls, and
orders were given to reserve fire until the advancing masses of the
assailants could be clearly made out. Gough's Mountain guns, under
Lieutenant Sherries, then fired star-shells, which disclosed the
attacking force up to a thousand yards off. The 28th Punjab Infantry
were the first to open fire; then the Guides, the 67th, and 92nd, each
in their turn, greeted by their volleys the _ghazis_ who approached
close to the walls. Guns from every battery opened on the foe moving
forward to the attack, and from 7 to 10 a.m. the fight was carried on.
Repeated attempts were made to scale the south-eastern wall, and many
times the enemy got up as far as the abattis, but were repulsed,
heaps of dead marking the spots where these attempts had been most
persistent.[3]
Soon after 10 a.m. there was a slight lull in the fighting, leading us
to believe that the Afghans were recoiling before the breechloaders.
An hour later, however, the assault grew hot as ever, and finding we
could not drive the enemy back by any fire which could be brought
against them from the defences, I resolved to attack them in flank.
Accordingly, I directed Major Craster, with four Field Artillery guns,
and Lieutenant-Colonel Williams, with the 5th Punjab Cavalry, to move
out over the hollow in the Bimaru range and open fire on a body of the
enemy collected in and around the village of Kurja Kila. This fire had
the desired effect; the Afghans wavered and broke.
From that moment the attacking force appeared to lose heart, the
assault was no longer prosecuted with the same vigour, and by 1 p.m.
it had ceased altogether, and the enemy were in full flight.
This was the Cavalry's opportunity. I ordered Massy to follow in
pursuit with every available man, and before nightfall all the open
ground in the neighbourhood of Sherpur was cleared of the enemy.
Simultaneously with the movement of the Cavalry, a party was
despatched to destroy some villages near the southern wall which had
caused us much trouble, and whence it was necessary the enemy should
be driven, to facilitate the entrance of Brigadier-General Charles
Gough the next day, for that officer had arrived with his brigade
within about six miles of Sherpur, where I could see his tents, and
gathered from the fact of his pitching them that he meant to halt
there for the night. The villages were found to be occupied by
_ghazis_, who refused to surrender, preferring to remain and perish in
the buildings, which were then blown up. Two gallant Engineer
officers (Captain Dundas, V.C., and Lieutenant C. Nugent) were most
unfortunately killed in carrying out this duty.
The relief I felt when I had gathered my force inside the walls of
Sherpur on the evening of the 14th December was small compared to that
which I experienced on the morning of the 24th, when I realized that
not only had the assault been abandoned, but that the great tribal
combination had dissolved, and that not a man of the many thousands
who had been opposed to us the previous day remained in any of the
villages, or on the surrounding hills. It was difficult to form an
accurate estimate of the numbers opposed to us. As the Contingent from
the more distant districts advanced, they received accessions from
every place they passed, and as they neared Kabul they were joined by
the inhabitants of the numerous villages, and by the disaffected in
the city. It was calculated by those best able to judge that the
combined forces exceeded 100,000, and I myself do not think that an
excessive computation.
[Illustration: PLAN TO ILLUSTRATE THE DEFENCES OF SHERPUR AND
THE OPERATIONS ROUND KABUL IN DECEMBER, 1879]
Our casualties between the 15th and the 23rd were remarkably few: 2
officers, 9 men, and 7 followers killed, and 5 officers, 41 men, and
22 followers wounded; while the enemy lost not less than 3,000.
I think I had great reason to be proud of my force. All night and
every night, the ground covered with snow and the thermometer marking
sixteen degrees of frost, officers and men were at their posts, and
each day every available man had to be hard at work strengthening the
defences. Native and European soldiers alike bore the hardships and
exposure with the utmost cheerfulness, and in perfect confidence that,
when the assault should take place, victory would be ours.
Early on the 24th the fort of Mahomed Sharif was occupied, and a force
moved out to escort Charles Gough's brigade into Sherpur, a precaution
which, however, was hardly necessary, as there was no enemy to be
seen.
I next set to work to re-open communication with India, Butkhak was
re-occupied, and the relaying of the telegraph was taken in hand.
General Hills resumed his position as military Governor of Kabul; the
dispensary and hospital were re-established in the city under the
energetic and intelligent guidance of Surgeon-Captain Owen;[4] and
in the hope of reassuring the people, I issued the following
Proclamation:
'At the instigation of some seditious men, the ignorant people,
generally not considering the result, raised a rebellion. Now many
of the insurgents have received their reward, and as subjects
are a trust from God, the British Government, which is just and
merciful, as well as strong, has forgiven their guilt. It is now
proclaimed that all who come in without delay will be pardoned,
excepting only Mahomed Jan of Wardak, Mir Bacha of Kohistan,
Samandar Khan of Logar, Ghulam Hyder of Chardeh, and the murderers
of Sirdar Mahomed Hassan Khan. Come and make your submission
without fear, of whatsoever tribe you may be. You can then remain
in your houses in comfort and safety, and no harm will befall you.
The British Government has no enmity towards the people. Anyone
who rebels again will, of course, be punished. This condition is
necessary. But all who come in without delay need have no fear or
suspicion. The British Government speaks only that which is in its
heart.'
The effect of this Proclamation was most satisfactory: the city and
the surrounding country quieted rapidly, shops were re-opened, and
before the close of the year the bazaars were as densely thronged as
ever. Most of the principal men of Logar and Kohistan came to pay
their respects to me; they were treated with due consideration, and
the political officers did all they could to find out what they
really wanted, so that some basis of an arrangement for the peaceful
administration of the country might be arrived at.
While taking these measures, which I thought would create confidence
in our clemency and justice, I endeavoured in other ways to prevent
a repetition of further serious troubles. Snow was still deep on the
ground, but I did not let it prevent my sending General Baker to
destroy a fort about twenty miles off, where dwelt an influential
_malik_, who was one of the chief ringleaders in the revolt. All
walled enclosures within 1,000 yards of the cantonment were razed to
the ground, roads fit for guns were made all round the outside walls
and towards the several gates of the city and Siah Sang, while two
bridges, strong enough for Artillery to pass over, were thrown across
the Kabul River.
The increased numbers to be accommodated on the arrival of Gough's
brigade necessitated the re-occupation of the Bala Hissar, the
defences of which were reconstructed so as to give a continuous line
of fire, and admit of free circulation round the walls; roads were
made through the lower Bala Hissar, and redoubts and towers were built
on the Shahr-i-Darwaza range.
A strong fort--Fort Roberts--was constructed on the south-west point
of Siah Sang, which commanded the Bala Hissar and the city; a smaller
one was built at the crossing of the river; and as these two forts
were not within sight of each other, a tower to connect them was
constructed at the north-west extremity of Siah Sang.
Sherpur was thus made safe; but for the absolute protection of the
city against an enemy operating from the Chardeh direction, a third
fort was erected on the Asmai heights, which completed a formidable
line of defences most skilfully carried out by Colonel Perkins and his
staff.
[Footnote 1: Four and a half miles.]
[Footnote 2: The committee consisted of Brigadier-General T. D.
Baker, Lieutenant Colonel Æ. Perkins, commanding Royal Engineers, and
Lieutenant-Colonel B. Gordon, commanding Royal Artillery.]
[Footnote 3: A curious exemplification of the passive courage and
indifference to danger of some Natives was the behaviour of an old
Mahomedan servant of mine. At this juncture, just at the time when the
fight was hottest, and I was receiving reports every few seconds from
the officers commanding the several posts, Eli Bux (a brother of the
man who had been with me throughout the Mutiny) whispered in my ear
that my bath was ready. He was quite unmoved by the din and shots, and
was carrying on his ordinary duties as if nothing at all unusual was
occurring.]
[Footnote 4: This hospital was admirably managed, and was attended by
a large number of patients, half of whom were women. The disease moat
prevalent in Kabul was ophthalmia, caused by dust, dirt, and exposure,
while cataract and other affections of the eye were very common. Dr.
Owen, amongst his other many qualifications, excelled as an oculist,
and his marvellous cures attracted sufferers from all parts of
Afghanistan.]
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