The rains having come on, the 2nd Battalion was ordered to remain
at Nawabgunge, and proceeded to build huts for shelter on raised
platforms; but this was done but slowly, the supply of Coolies for
the work being scanty, the Government having engaged them for other
work; and before the huts were completed the Battalion was moved, as
will be presently narrated.
The 3rd Battalion marched from Nawabgunge on the 21st at three in the
morning, and proceeded to Chinhut, where they encamped. Here they had
left their sick on the 12th, and it appeared that a fearful panic
had occurred on the next day. For some irregular cavalry and camp
followers had fled from the field while the battle was raging, and,
passing through Chinhut to Lucknow, had spread a report that we had
been cut up, and that the enemy were advancing. Some of the sick,
terrified by this intelligence, left their beds or their doolies,
and madly rushed about with scarce any clothing in the sun. This was
attended in some cases with fatal results. However, these alarmists
had better have faced the hostile fire on the field of Nawabgunge
than the face of the General at Lucknow, who, knowing their reports
to be false, ordered them to be soundly flogged.
On this march the Battalion brought with them five of the six guns
taken at Nawabgunge; and as their carriages were old, and the road
very bad, they much retarded their progress. However, they succeeded
in pitching their tents before the sun was powerful.
On the 22nd they marched again at three A.M., and arrived at the
Cantonments at Lucknow at nine, where they encamped. Soon after this
the rains set in, with a violent thunderstorm which flooded the tents
on July 8; and the men were employed to build huts, partly out of
the remains of ruined bungalows which had been destroyed by the
rebels, in order to shelter them during the rainy season. But no such
provision was made for the officers, who continued in tents. Here the
Battalion remained for more than three months, during which time the
men suffered much from cholera and from their recent exposure to the
weather.
On July 22 the 2nd Battalion left Nawabgunge for Fyzabad in order
to assist Maun Singh, who was besieged by the rebels. They struck
tents and marched eight miles to Dundirah, many men falling out from
fatigue. On the next day they proceeded to Turkani, six miles, and on
the 24th, intelligence having been received that Maun Singh could not
hold out four days longer, they pushed forward to Derriabad, thirteen
miles, instead of halting at the end of eight miles, as was intended.
This was a most distressing march; the weather was very hot, the
thermometer being at 105° in the tents; and numbers of men were taken
ill on the way. They halted on the 25th, it having rained all night,
but started again at four on the 26th, and encamped at Burehke Serai.
On the next day they proceeded to Begumgunge, and on the 28th tents
were struck at four in the morning; but in consequence of the heavy
rain they did not start till half-past-six. They marched seven miles,
and encamped at Samao, on the banks of the Gogra. On the 29th they
reached Fyzabad after a march of thirteen miles, only to find that
the rebels had left it that morning, and crossed the Gogra; however,
the Horse Artillery got up to the bank in time to get a couple of
shots at the last boat-loads. The Battalion halted at Fyzabad for a
fortnight, during which time, on August 6, the camp was shifted to
platforms on account of the rain; but while this was being done a
violent storm came on, and the men were drenched before the tents
could be pitched.
On the 9th Brigadier Horsford, with a portion of the 7th Hussars,
the Madras Fusiliers, a troop of Horse Artillery, and some native
troops, proceeded to Sultanpore; and the 2nd Battalion, being ordered
to reinforce him, started soon after three on the morning of the
16th. It was a dreadful march. Soon after starting, they lost their
way in the dark. The country being flooded from the rains, it was
some time before they could find a track; and even on this the water
was ankle-deep. Having marched about four miles, they halted for a
rest. It came on to pour, and the rest of the way the men were up to
their knees, sometimes to their middle, in water. The mud, too, on
which they walked was slippery and fetid. Under these circumstances
they did not reach their camping-ground at Butturpore, a distance
of twelve miles, till one o’clock in the afternoon. Even then their
sufferings were not at an end. The Commissariat carts were not up,
and it was three o’clock before the drenched Riflemen got their tents
pitched and broke their fast. On the 17th they marched to Perownee,
nine miles, a repetition of the discomforts of the preceding day,
save only that no rain fell. The men frequently fell into holes
that had been made for planting trees; a source of merriment to his
comrades, but of misery to the unfortunate diver himself. On arrival
at Perownee there was considerable difficulty and delay in finding a
spot dry enough to pitch a camp. At last some rocky eminences were
fixed on, which cropped up above the plain and stood up above the
flooded ground. Here the tents were pitched without order; for the
men were obliged to place them wherever the scanty ground afforded
room.
On the next day they marched to Burtenpore, six miles, with less
discomfort, the day being fine and the road tolerably good. Here they
halted on the 19th, to allow the Commissariat hackeries, which had
fallen two marches behind, to come up. And on the 20th moved on to
Sultanpore on the Goomtee, by a very good road. They found the enemy,
with a force of about 10,000 men, occupying the opposite bank of
the river, here not more than a hundred yards broad. They therefore
halted, observing the enemy, and exchanging occasional shots with
them, until General Grant came up on the 23rd with reinforcements.
On the 25th the Madras Fusiliers began to cross the river without
opposition. This occupied some days. And on the 25th the 2nd
Battalion was paraded at three o’clock to cross; but the Madras
Fusiliers not having completed their passage, the Riflemen were
ordered into bungalows for shelter. Later in the evening, however,
Sir Hope Grant having received intelligence that the Madras Fusiliers
were hard pressed, ordered the Battalion to cross immediately. They
were accordingly turned out at eight, and about two hours after began
to cross the river, much swollen by the rains, on rafts. Of these
there were only two, formed of old rum barrels, each calculated to
convey twenty-four or thirty men. However, Colonel Hill got over as
quickly as possible with two companies, who reached the opposite
bank about midnight; and after a march of about two miles, reached
the ridge occupied by the Madras Fusiliers. But it appeared to have
been a false alarm, for there was no appearance of danger. The men,
therefore, piled arms and bivouacked; and the night passed quietly,
except that the rebels kept up a constant fire on the picquets. On
the next morning a couple of tents were got over for the companies
on the right bank, and the remainder of the Battalion crossed and
encamped on the plain. On the 27th at sunset the enemy, who were
about two miles or more distant, turned out as if for an attack; but
they did not venture within 1,200 yards.
On the 28th the rebels, by giving a gun great elevation, and probably
half burying it, contrived to throw a few shot into the Riflemen’s
camp; doing no damage to them, however, though they killed an old
woman, and knocked over an elephant, by hitting him on the pad, but,
except rolling him over, doing him no hurt.
On the 29th they paraded at two in the morning, and marched at three
to the cantonments, making a circuit to get well round the enemy;
but to their great disappointment the enemy had gone off during the
night. The Riflemen waited under topes till the baggage came up, when
they pitched their tents, heavy rain coming on just as they did so.
The Battalion halted at Sultanpore for some weeks with little
change, such as, for instance, a company (under Lieutenant Sotheby)
recrossing the Goomtee to protect the heavy guns.
On October 4 six companies of the 3rd Battalion, under Colonel Glyn,
moved into Lucknow. And on the 5th Captain Alexander’s company
marched at nine in the evening to join an expedition to Sundeelah
(about forty miles from Lucknow), commanded by Brigadier Barker.
This party, consisting of 100 men, was in charge of Lieutenant
Andrew Green,[299] and accompanied by Ensign Richards; for Captain
Alexander had been ordered to take a detachment up the country.
On arrival at Sundeelah on the 7th, information was received that a
large force of rebels were about four miles off at a place called
Jamo.
At daybreak on the 8th, therefore, the column marched to Jamo. On
approaching the enemy’s position, which was a strong one, a village
on high ground and surrounded with dense jungle, fire was opened
on them from guns posted in the village and from matchlocks in the
jungle. The Riflemen were extended in skirmishing order on the right,
and entered the jungle. Lieutenant Green had warned the men not to
lose communication with their files; but in the thickness of the
jungle three men got separated, and were surrounded and wounded by
the enemy. Hearing firing, Lieutenant Green at once made for the
place, and was immediately surrounded by six rebels. He shot two
with his revolver. As he was in the act of dismounting to attack the
others, he was cut down and hacked at while on the ground. Springing
to his feet, however, he managed to knock down two more of his
assailants with the butt of his revolver, and drawing his sword, he
kept the others at bay. While he was about to fall back in search of
some of his men, he was attacked by three more of the enemy and a
second time cut down. Again getting to his feet, he contrived with
his wounded right hand to shoot another man, who was in the act of
cutting at him with his tulwar, and whose blow, descending as he
fell dead, inflicted a deep wound on Green’s head. Colour-Sergeant
Mansel,[300] meantime, had heard the firing, and was making his
way to the part of the jungle the sounds seemed to proceed from,
when he came on a Rifleman wounded and retiring, who informed him
that Lieutenant Green had come to his assistance, and was then hard
pressed by several Sepoys. Hurrying on in the direction the man had
pointed out, the Sergeant soon was attacked by a rebel, whom he
succeeded in shooting; but before he could reload his rifle he was
set upon by another man, who cut at him with his tulwar. After a
severe struggle Sergeant Mansel knocked him over by a blow with the
butt of his rifle, and soon after he came upon Green lying bathed in
blood outside the jungle, and with the help of two Riflemen carried
him fainting to the rear.
Green received fourteen sabre cuts and one gunshot wound. Four of
these wounds were obliged to be sewn up on the ground, and as soon
as he was brought back to camp his left arm was amputated below the
elbow, and his right thumb was taken off. Faint from loss of blood
and from excessive fatigue (for the Riflemen had been under arms from
four in the morning till three in the afternoon), it was not thought
that he could rally, and for some days his life was despaired of. He
was, however, moved to Lucknow on the 21st.
Few men, probably, have ever survived so many and such severe wounds.
Besides Lieutenant Green, three Riflemen were (as I have said)
wounded on this day.
It will be anticipated that Brigadier Barker speaks highly of this
gallant deed in his despatch of October 9.
‘The party of the Rifle Brigade, under Lieutenant Green’ he says,
‘gallantly rushed up the high position in front of the village, and
captured a six-pounder gun.’ ... ‘Among the wounded (and I am sorry
to say he is dangerously so) is Lieutenant Green, Rifle Brigade....
This officer had behaved so gallantly all through the day that I most
deeply lament this misfortune.’ Ensign Richards also was favourably
mentioned in this despatch.
The Adjutant-General of the Army in India, also, in forwarding this
despatch to the Secretary of the Government, by the direction of the
Commander-in-Chief adds, ‘I am also to request marked attention to
the gallantry of Lieutenant Green of the Rifle Brigade, who has been
dangerously wounded.’ And the Governor-General in his General Order
publishing these despatches, states his ‘great satisfaction’ at the
conduct of Lieutenant Green.[301]
On the 12th Captain Alexander, who had returned to Lucknow on the
previous day, proceeded to take command of his company, and arrived
at Sundeelah on the 13th.
On the 13th this company were engaged in a daur[302] to the fort of
Mandaula, which was blown up, and three guns were taken. And on the
18th three more companies, Atherley’s, Stephens’, and H. Newdigate’s,
under command of Major Oxenden, marched from Lucknow and joined it at
Sandeelah.
On the 21st the Brigade under Brigadier Barker proceeded to attack
the fort of Birwah, which was held by Gholab Singh and about 700
rebels. The four companies of the 3rd Battalion, commanded by
Captains Alexander and Stephens, and Lieutenants Percival and Cragg,
and led by Major Oxenden, accompanied this force. They paraded at two
A.M., and soon after marched in the direction of Birwah, and arrived
before it about seven in the morning. Brigadier Barker had resolved
to attack the west front. A few hundred yards from the fort was a
village on a mound, which was intrenched and occupied by the enemy’s
picquets. It was surmised that, as in so many previous instances, the
rebels would not have awaited the approach of the column. But the
assailants were soon undeceived; for a puff of smoke issued from a
large circular bamboo jungle on the right, and a round shot flew over
the column. The Riflemen were then hurried to the front; and with
some native police and an eighteen-pounder and mortars, gradually
inclined to the right till they came to the village, from which they
drove in the enemy’s picquets, and it and the intrenchments were at
once abandoned. They were then halted and ordered to lie down in a
wood beyond the village. In front was an impenetrable bamboo jungle,
out of which shots came now and then to show where the fort was, but
so thick was the mass of bush and thorns that they could not see the
walls; though from the reports of the guns they did not seem to be
more than 100 yards off.
The mortars were placed in the village, and the gunners were directed
to pitch their shells over the Riflemen, and to let them fall near a
flag-staff which was supposed to mark the centre of the fort; but the
enemy foreseeing this had moved the flag-staff to the further side,
so that the shells went over the fort altogether. The fire of the
mortars appearing thus to produce no effect, the eighteen-pounder
was brought to where the Riflemen were lying down among the trees, in
order to endeavour to make a breach in the wall. Lieutenant Percival
was sent with twenty men of the company in his charge into the
jungle, with orders to move along the ditch, to mount the breastwork
of the outer defences, and to clear it of the enemy. This was rapidly
effected. They drove the enemy before them, who abandoned the outer
works, leaving a gun in their hands, and escaping through the jungle,
retired to the fort. In this service two Riflemen were killed.
At this time a shell fell near Major Oxenden, who was on horseback
close behind the line of skirmishers, wounding his horse; wounding
also Colour-Sergeant Mansel in two places, and knocking over one or
two more Riflemen.
The eighteen-pounder continued to be fired point-blank through the
jungle; and a lane was speedily cleared by its fire, and the wall of
the fort was discovered about seventy yards distant.
As the fire of the mortars appeared to produce no effect, Brigadier
Barker ordered the fort to be assaulted about half-past two in the
afternoon. Captain Alexander’s company, which had left camp fifty of
all ranks, increased by a section of another company, was to act as
the storming party; while 100 Riflemen were to keep down the fire
from the place. At the same time another regiment (the 88th) was
sent round to the opposite face of the fort, to force an entrance by
blowing open the gate; while the native police were to occupy a gate
on another side, by which it was anticipated the rebels might attempt
to escape. Some of the native police who were left with the Riflemen
were to carry the scaling ladders. Captain Goodenough, R.A. Brigade
Major (who had joined the stormers as a volunteer), and Captain
Alexander crept forward through the jungle, close up to the ditch, to
reconnoitre it.
All being thus prepared, Alexander’s company advanced through the
jungle, the natives carrying the long bamboo ladders, till they came
to a space clear of jungle, extending thirty or forty yards from
the ditch. The enemy opened a heavy fire from the rampart, by which
several Riflemen were shot down, Corporal Rudd being killed by a
shot through the head. The native police dropped the ladders and
disappeared, and the stormers had to carry them themselves. When
they were placed in the ditch, which was here about twelve feet
deep,[303] and the Riflemen began to descend them, the rungs gave
way, and they had to let themselves down hand over hand. The ladders
were then tilted over to the other side to help the stormers to get
up the breach, which was very imperfect and almost perpendicular. It
seemed to them nearly forty feet to the top of the breach, and they
were almost up to their waists in water in the ditch. Richards was
the first man at the top of the breach, and Sergeant Maloney closely
followed him. Just before they got to the top of the breach a gun
exploded over their heads, with which the enemy had no doubt intended
to welcome them on arrival, but which was fired a few seconds too
soon. When the stormers reached the top of the wall the enemy ran
away; and the Riflemen having waited a minute or two there to allow
the remainder of the company to join them, moved forward, and found
themselves in a kind of broad street with houses on the right-hand
side, and the wall of the place on the left. At the further end,
near the entrance to a courtyard, were four or five guns with some
of the rebels near them. The Riflemen went at them as hard as they
could, and took the guns before they could be discharged; and the
enemy retreated into the courtyard, meaning probably to escape by the
other gates. But at these the 88th and the native police met them and
headed them back. Then it was that the hardest fighting took place.
The rebels, being thus caught in a trap, fought bravely for a time.
Many of the Riflemen were hit. Richards, while fighting hand to hand
with a gigantic rebel, whom he succeeded in thrusting through the
eye with his sword, was shot from a window, and received more than
one wound. One ball traversed the thigh, and passed out at the back
of the leg, just below the knee-joint. Sergeant Maloney picked him
up and carried him away bathed in blood. This youth, barely eighteen
years of age, had shown uncommon valour, both on this occasion and
at Jamo a few days before. He died of these wounds at Lucknow on
December 8. Captain Alexander was also slightly wounded at this time
in the neck by a pistol bullet and in the left shoulder by an arrow.
The enemy broke up, however, and retreated into the different
houses; and as these were loopholed and fortified, it was difficult
to dislodge them. Some of the houses were broken open; and the
Riflemen, taking advantage of whatever cover they could find, picked
off the rebels whenever they showed themselves; which they did on
the roofs of the houses, to hurl down stones or beams of wood on the
assailants. A Rifleman had his sword, which was fixed on his rifle,
bent nearly double by the blow of a great log of wood which fell
on it. Thus the fighting went on till night. Gholab Singh, it was
reported, and some of his followers had retreated to a house in the
centre of the fort, from which a smart fire was kept up. This house
was set on fire, and about ten o’clock the greater part of it was
blown up by the Engineers. Yet Gholab Singh with twelve men escaped
by making a rush, jumping from the wall, and getting into the jungle,
though troops--not Riflemen--were left to prevent his escape. With
this exception the defenders were all killed.
The casualties of the Riflemen were 2 officers (Alexander and
Richards) wounded; 1 corporal killed, 2 others wounded, of whom 1
died; Colour-Sergeant Mansel dangerously wounded, arm amputated; 1
bugler severely wounded; 1 private killed, and 24 privates wounded:
3 dangerously and 12 severely. Captain Alexander and some of the men
were wounded by barbed arrows. A long procession of doolies carrying
these (and other) wounded soon after set out from Sundeelah to
Lucknow.
Brigadier Barker, in his despatch dated October 24, 1858, thus speaks
of the conduct of the Riflemen:
‘Major Oxenden, commanding Rifle Brigade, deserves the greatest
credit for the manner in which he handled his men, and disposed
them for the assault of the breach.... Captain Alexander, Rifle
Brigade, commanding the storming party, deserves the greatest
credit; and Lieutenant Cragg and Ensign Richards, who accompanied
him, displayed the greatest courage; the latter, as I have
stated, was the first at the top of the breach, but I regret to
say was shortly after dangerously wounded.... Assistant-Surgeon
Storey, Rifle Brigade [and others], deserve the greatest praise
for their attention to the wounded during the night.... The names
of the men mentioned in the margin[304] have been brought to
my notice by their commanding officers as having particularly
distinguished themselves.’
I have now to resume the account of the movements of the 2nd
Battalion after their halt of six weeks at Sultanpore. On the morning
of October 11 this Battalion struck tents at four in the morning,
and recrossing the Goomtee marched with a force under Sir Hope Grant
to the north-east, in the direction of Tandah. They encamped that
night at Itkowlie after a march of five miles; on the next day they
proceeded to Rajahpore, nine miles; on the 13th, starting soon after
three, they made a march of fifteen miles on a very hot day, and
encamped at Dospore, where they halted till the 18th, when they moved
to Akberpore, ten miles. After a halt of two days they resumed their
march on the 21st; they encamped that night at Simree, nine miles;
moved to Jasingpore, twelve miles, on the next day; and returned to
Sultanpore, fourteen miles, on the 23rd.
They did not long remain here; for on the 26th they marched on an
expedition towards the fort of Amethie. Starting at four in the
morning, they encamped at Doadpore after an eleven miles’ march.
On the 27th they started at the same hour; four companies of the
Battalion formed the advanced-guard; and as the rebels were expected
to fight here, the Battalion formed up before entering the jungle.
The enemy had erected two batteries on the road. There was a river
running through, with a bridge which the batteries commanded. But
before the troops came up, the enemy had deserted this position.
The cavalry pursued them; but the country being full of jungle and
intersected with ravines, could not come up with them. At the end of
a twelve-mile march the Battalion encamped; but struck tents again at
three in the afternoon, and marched five miles further to Jugdespore.
They did not camp here till nine at night, when it was pitch dark;
and the men were much wearied with their long and fatiguing march.
On the 28th, leaving their camp standing, they marched at four in the
morning, about six miles into the jungle to a fort called Kataree. On
arrival they found it deserted. The fort was blown up, and they took
five guns, one brass and four iron. The former had an inscription
in Persian, stating that it had belonged to Rajah Buksh Ullah Khan
Bahadoor. It had been employed in the Sikh campaign. The iron guns,
being unserviceable, were destroyed.
It appeared from the traces on the ground that the rebels had
occupied with considerable numbers the positions they had gone over
in the late marches. Many of these were strong and commanding; and
had the enemy dared to make a stand they might have harassed our
people considerably; but their courage had failed them, and all were
found unoccupied. The Battalion returned to their camp at Jugdespore
about seven in the evening.
On the 29th they marched to Gooreabad, nine miles. A weary march,
for the siege guns could not be got forward in consequence of the
frequent occurrence of nullahs and aqueducts for irrigating the
country. These were broken down by coolies; yet the progress was very
slow, and they did not camp at Gooreabad, till after eleven.
On the 30th they started at four in the morning; and it was intended
to make a march of seventeen miles. But from the same difficulties
in moving the heavy guns as occurred the day before, the camp was
pitched at Itterowah, after marching nine miles, which it took six
hours to accomplish.
On the 31st the Battalion marched to Ettyah, eight miles, and halted
there for some days.
On November 9 they marched at four o’clock in the morning. The
country being cultivated there was great difficulty in getting the
siege guns forward, and the treasure chest broke down. Thus hindered,
it took the Battalion some thirteen hours to make a march of eighteen
miles; and they did not encamp, about a mile and a half from the fort
of Amethie, till five in the evening. Here they formed a junction
with the Commander-in-Chief’s army, which was encamped about five
miles from them, on the north-east of the fort; while General
Wetherall’s force was on the south-west. The Riflemen expected to
assault the fort on the morrow. But when that morrow came, Loll
Madhoo, the Rajah of Amethie, came into camp and capitulated,
declaring that he had no power over his people, and that he had been
compelled, in order to save his own life, to fire on the English
troops the day before.
But though the Rajah had himself surrendered, no doubt to secure
his personal safety, the occupants of the fort evacuated it in the
night, and disappeared through the jungle. Wherefore on the 11th
the Battalion received an order to start in pursuit; and marched at
three o’clock in the afternoon through very dusty roads nine miles
to Gowriegunge, and did not reach their camping-ground till seven
o’clock in the evening. On the 12th they proceeded to Ettyah, nine
miles.
On the 13th, starting at six in the morning, they marched twelve
miles to Pursaidepore, near Salone, where they arrived at twelve,
having on the march crossed the river Sie. At eight o’clock at
night they received a sudden order to move their camp further;
and accordingly on the 14th, at five in the morning, marched four
miles, and arriving at seven pitched their camp at Secrian, near the
entrance of the jungle, and furnished strong outlying picquets.
On the next day, starting early in the morning, they marched fourteen
miles by a very bad road and through clouds of dust to Shunkerpore.
This was a stronghold of Beni Madhoo, and it was hoped that by
concentrating the columns on it, he might be caught. But however
there was a fresh disappointment. In the dark hours of the morning he
managed to evade the picquets, and to escape with his followers, guns
and baggage. As soon as his flight was discovered on the morning of
the 16th, the Battalion received a sudden order to march in pursuit,
and starting at seven o’clock proceeded to Roy Bareilly, where they
pitched camp about two in the afternoon.
On the 17th they made a march of sixteen miles to Mohungunge,
starting at six and not arriving till about two, several long halts
having been made for guns to come up, the road leading through much
thick jungle.
On the 18th they made a long and tedious march of fourteen miles
to Jugdespore, where they halted for four days. On the 20th
they received an order to go on a reconnaissance, leaving their
tents standing, and paraded for that purpose; but the order was
countermanded.
On the 23rd they resumed their movements; and starting at six in the
morning arrived at Inhona, after a short and easy march of seven
miles, at a little after nine.
On the 24th the left wing of the Battalion, under Major Warren,
received during the night orders to move (with part of the 7th
Hussars and some guns) to the assistance of Colonel Galwey’s column.
That officer, it appeared, had come to some fort which had no guns;
but on its occupants being called on to surrender they had refused,
and had fired on and killed an Engineer officer and some men. The
Riflemen marched at six in the morning to Koilee, twelve miles, but
on arrival there found that the garrison of the fort had during the
night crossed the Goomtee and disappeared. This wing, therefore,
after a day’s halt at Koilee, marched on the 26th to Bekta, seven
miles; and on the 27th, after a short march of six miles, rejoined
Head-quarters at Hydergurh.
These had in the meanwhile had an encounter with the enemy. For
Brigadier Horsford had, before starting for Koilee, directed Colonel
Hill to march towards Lucknow, taking with him the other wing of the
Hussars and some Horse Artillery, and to attack a force of rebels
supposed to be about two marches in that direction; and to protect
the baggage of the entire column.
Colonel Hill came up with the rebels on the 26th near Hydergurh. The
Riflemen were first engaged, and as the enemy were making a running
fight of it, the cavalry and Artillery galloped up through the
skirmishers, and did considerable execution. The Riflemen took a gun;
and the Hussars under Sir William Russell pursued the Sepoys and cut
them up. The Riflemen then encamped at Hydergurh; and halted there
till December 2, when they marched sixteen miles to Monshegunge,
and encamped there for the night. And starting on the following
morning at five o’clock, arrived at the Dilkoosha, Lucknow, after a
fourteen-mile march, at half-past nine.
On December 5 the 2nd Battalion, forming part of a force under the
command of Lord Clyde, started at six in the morning from Lucknow,
and made a march of twenty miles, arriving at Newabgunge at about
three or four in the afternoon, when the men got their breakfasts.
On the 6th they struck tents at five, and paraded at six, but did
not get off till seven, when, making a very long march of twenty-two
miles, they proceeded to Gunnespore, Byram Ghât, which they reached
about three. The men were very tired and hungry, for they had had
nothing to eat till about five, when they got their breakfast. On
the way intelligence was received that the rebels were crossing the
river. The cavalry and Horse Artillery pushed forward; and sixteen
Riflemen and an officer (Lieutenant Sotheby[305]) were mounted on the
limbers. They went as hard as they could go; but when they came to
the Ghât they found the rebels had been too quick for them, and had
crossed the river. However, the Riflemen got a few shots at them. The
7th Hussars after this chase were much astonished to hear the words,
‘The Rifles to the front;’ for they fancied the whole Battalion was
coming up, and could not understand how they had kept up with such a
pace as the Hussars and guns had been going. However, only Sotheby
and his sixteen Riflemen then answered this call. For it had been a
joke with these Hussars when they were an advanced guard with the
Riflemen (and they had been on many): on the part of the troopers,
‘that they could not get rid of these little fellows;’ on the part of
the Riflemen, that they ‘marched the horsemen down,’ and ‘could not
make them march fast enough.’
On the 7th some companies of the Battalion were suddenly paraded
at half-past one, and with the 7th Hussars went five miles up the
river in search of rebels; but returned unsuccessful at seven in the
evening.
The great object was now to cross the Gogra; and as there was a
difficulty in forming a boat-bridge at Byram Ghât, Lord Clyde
determined to proceed to Fyzabad where a bridge already existed.
Accordingly on the 8th the Battalion, starting at six in the morning,
made a march of twenty miles to Derriabad, which they reached at
three in the afternoon. On the next day they marched seventeen miles
to Begumgunge, and on the 10th another long march of nineteen miles
to Fyzabad. In these long marches few Riflemen, if any, fell out,
though the marches lasted from six in the morning till two or three
in the afternoon, the hottest hours of the day.
On the 11th the Battalion crossed the Gogra by a bridge of boats.
The river is here about 600 yards broad, having a great expanse of
sand on each side. The turn of the Battalion to cross came at four
in the afternoon, and they afterwards marched about six miles on the
other side to Newabgunge, where they encamped about six. On the 12th,
starting at six in the morning, they arrived at Jamkapoorah at noon,
and on the next day marched to Dheras, fifteen miles. On the 14th
they proceeded to Secrora, another march of fifteen miles, and on the
day following to Kurrunpore, eleven miles. Mr. Russell, the ‘Times’
correspondent, who was accompanying the Commander-in-Chief’s column,
thus writes of the Battalion under this date: ‘The Rifle Brigade who
are with us are as hard as nails; faces tanned brown, and muscles
hardened into whipcord; and to see them step over the ground with
their officers marching beside them is a very fine sight for those
who have an eye for real first-rate soldiers. Lord Clyde is greatly
pleased with the officers because they do not ride on ponies, as many
officers of other regiments are accustomed to do.’[306]
On the 16th, though tents were struck at five in the morning, the
Battalion did not march in consequence of rain till eleven, when they
moved to Khariat, where, after a march of ten miles, they encamped at
three.
On the next day they marched in heavy and constant rain to Baraitch,
where camp was pitched in a very beautiful spot at eleven in the
forenoon. Here they halted for five days: the first halt they had
had since they left Lucknow, nearly a fortnight before; and very
acceptable it was to the men, though not without its discomforts.
For the night after their arrival was, as the day of their march
had been, one of incessant rain. And tents and everything men and
officers had on or possessed were saturated with wet. The morning
revealed a swamp, rather than a camp; many of the tents stood in
pools of water in which the men waded ankle-deep. A dense fog, too,
came down from the hills, and took away all hope of drying their
clothes. Whether for this reason, or on account of the increasing
cold which now began to be severely felt, the Riflemen resumed their
cloth clothing on the next day. However, the remaining days of their
halt at Baraitch were fine.
On the 23rd they again started at six in the morning; but soon after
leaving Baraitch they were halted, and their route altered. They then
made a march of fifteen miles, in the course of which they forded the
river, and arrived at Jeta at two.
On the 24th the order was to march as usual in the morning; but
as the men turned out rain came on, and the ‘halt’ was sounded,
luckily before the tents were struck. Their halt here gave them an
opportunity of making their arrangements for keeping Christmas on
the morrow. But these were very near being useless; for Lord Clyde
issued an order that the soldiers were to have their dinners at one,
and march at two. Great was the consternation; and fears of all the
good things they had provided being unconsumed or eaten half-raw
pervaded everyone. However, before the dreaded hour, staff officers,
who had been sent out to observe the roads, reported that they were
in too bad a state from recent rains for the troops to move. The
Commander-in-Chief, therefore, unwillingly postponed his intended
march. Serenity was restored to hearts which knew no fear save that
of losing the one good dinner long hoped for; and the day was spent
happily, the more so as it was fine.
But after this recreation, hard work soon began again. The Battalion
marched at six in the morning of the 26th. It was very foggy, but
cleared up about eight. After marching some twelve miles, they were
halted to allow them to eat their breakfast. Here they stayed about
two hours, resuming their advance at half-past one. Two companies
of the Battalion, under Captain Fremantle, with cavalry, formed the
advanced guard.
On their arrival near a jungle Sir William Russell, who commanded
the advance, ordered these two companies to the front, and desired
them to extend at the entrance of the jungle. They did so, and
advanced, and about four in the afternoon found the enemy in a tope
of trees, who opened upon them with two guns. The advanced companies
then, with the cavalry, Horse Artillery, and five other companies
of the Battalion, formed line and advanced. The cavalry and Horse
Artillery soon distanced the Riflemen; and while the former attacked
the flank of the enemy, the Riflemen brought their right shoulders
forward, and went on at the double. They pursued the enemy, who did
not make any stand, for five or six miles. The Battalion encamped at
Churdah about eight o’clock, the men being very weary; for they had
marched about twenty-one miles, and the latter part of it in pursuit
of the rebels had been got over at a very quick pace. The Riflemen
killed three Sepoys in this chase, and five guns were taken.
On the 27th it was understood that the Battalion was to halt; but at
nine o’clock they received orders to march in an hour. They started,
therefore, about ten, and after a march of about six miles, came to
a thick jungle, and were ordered to assault the fort of Mejidia. The
attack was confided to the Riflemen. Brigadier Horsford’s orders to
Colonel Hill were to advance to within 400 yards of the fort: then to
open fire on the embrasures. Mortars and heavy guns were ordered to
the front, and cavalry to the flanks. This took some time. Then the
Battalion advanced to the front face; two companies skirmishing; two
supporting them; two moved to the left; the remainder in support. A
sharp fire was opened, and was returned for some time by a fire of
grape from the fort. The Riflemen continued their fire for about two
hours, picking off the gunners at the embrasures. After that time the
fire from the place slackened; and Colonel Hill, having solicited
and obtained permission to advance, the Battalion moved forward. A
difficult thorny hedge interposed, which was soon cut down by the
swords of the Riflemen, and entrance was effected into the fort,
which was found to be evacuated. The Battalion took possession of the
stores and muniments of war, powder, shot, etc., which were found
there; and encamped in the evening after a very hard day’s work. One
sergeant and 6 rank and file were wounded, of whom one died on the
next day.
On the 28th they were engaged in destroying the fort, and securing
the stores of grain, etc., found in it. In the course of the day the
Riflemen discovered two guns hidden in the jungle within the fort.
On the 29th the first orders were still to halt; but about eleven
they received orders to march, and did so about noon, back to
Nanparah, ten miles, but by a route different from that by which they
had come on the 26th.
Here it was understood that they were to halt for three days. And
accordingly on the 30th many officers of the Battalion went out
shooting, the band played at five, and all things denoted a halt;
when a sudden order was issued that the Battalion was to march at
eight in the evening. They did so; half the men were carried on
elephants, five on each, and half marched, turn about, ride and tie.
The motion of the elephants was strange to the men; some were made
sick by the motion, and some tumbled off; but gradually they settled
down. The night was pitch dark, and those marching occasionally fell
into holes and water-courses, undistinguishable in the darkness. So
they moved on till four in the morning; when, it being ascertained
that if they continued their march they would reach the enemy’s
position at Bankee (whither they were bound) before daylight, a halt
was ordered. And they remained tormented by the cold and heavy dew;
for no fires were allowed, for fear of alarming the enemy whom Lord
Clyde hoped to surprise. This halt was probably continued too long.
At any rate, a march of five miles remained to be got over; and the
troops did not reach the enemy’s position till eight. The cavalry
(Carabiniers) were ordered to advance, and soon found themselves in
front of a thick jungle occupied by the enemy’s skirmishers and guns;
to whose fire they offered an easy mark, without their being able to
return it or to dislodge them. They were therefore withdrawn; and the
Riflemen were hurried to the front, and ordered to skirmish through
the jungle. Three companies were extended under the command of Major
Warren, Captain Singer and Lieutenant Lane,[307] accompanied and
directed by Colonel Hill, who dismounting accompanied the centre
company, Lieutenant Lane’s. On entering the wood they found a cart
track, along which the enemy were endeavouring to withdraw a gun.
The Riflemen pushed on at the double along this track, occasionally
getting a glimpse of the gun in their front, while the enemy’s
skirmishers were retiring rapidly before them, and turning off into
the jungle. Thus it happened that the advance of the Riflemen in the
cart track was very rapid, while that of those in the jungle on each
side of it was much slower, as they could not force their way through
the tangled wood nearly so fast. The track was about a mile in length
to the point where it reached the end of the jungle. By the time the
Riflemen got there the gun had quite distanced them. On arriving at
the end of this belt of jungle the whole of the enemy’s force was
seen on an undulating plain beyond, some few hundred paces distant.
The Riflemen, hurrying along the track in pursuit of the retreating
gun, had arrived at the edge of the jungle completely out of breath;
and Colonel Hill, on counting them, found himself accompanied by only
twenty men, with Lieutenant Lane and a Colour-Sergeant (Piper).[308]
As it was impossible to know where the remaining skirmishers and the
supports were at the moment, it was necessary to act with caution;
and the small party were ordered to remain hidden at the edge of
the jungle, while the enemy’s movements were observed. They seemed
to be contemplating a retreat. At this time three officers rode up
from the rear; and one of them, Sir Henry Norman, brought orders
from Lord Clyde for the Riflemen to retire. Colonel Hill pointed out
to him that the jungle was merely a belt; that if Lord Clyde was
aware of this he would probably wish to push on; and that as the
jungle was cleared, cavalry could now advance and act on the plain.
The staff officers accordingly galloped off, and soon afterwards a
squadron of the 7th Hussars came up. Meanwhile Major Warren’s and
Captain Singer’s companies had made their way through the jungle,
and joined their comrades at the edge of it. Sir William Mansfield
soon came up, and by his permission Colonel Hill advanced with two
companies, Warren’s and Lane’s, in skirmishing order. While the rest
of the Battalion, which had passed through the jungle, were halted
on the bank of a small but deep nullah, or river, which intersected
the plain, successive squadrons of the 7th passed on their right
flank; and though checked for a moment by the nullah, and exposed
to the fire of a battery of six guns, which the enemy had placed on
the opposite bank of the Raptee, charged the enemy’s cavalry who
were making for the ford of the Raptee, caught them on the bank, and
engaged them in the river. The Riflemen, who were in an excellent
position to observe this charge across the plain, saw with admiration
this gallant feat of arms performed by their comrades of the 7th.
Soon after this the Riflemen retired through the jungle, and pitched
their camp about four o’clock two miles and a half from the scene of
the action. But the men did not get settled till the evening, and it
was eight o’clock before they got food. They had been under arms from
eight o’clock the night before; had marched twenty-nine miles--most
of it night marching--from Nanparah, and two and a half back to
Bankee; and had been engaged from an early hour in the day.
In this affair the 2nd Battalion had one man wounded.
I have now to return to the 3rd Battalion, which we left at Lucknow,
where they were stationed from the time of the battle of Nawabgunge.
The Head-quarters left Lucknow at four o’clock on the afternoon
of November 22, four companies being still with Major Oxenden at
Sundeelah. They marched to the Alumbagh, and halted there while the
men had their tea and the officers their dinners. They started again
about nine, and proceeded to Bunnee bridge, which they crossed, and
then halted again from about 2.30 to 5.30 A.M. They then proceeded
to Nawabgunge on the Cawnpore road, which they reached about nine
and encamped. The object of this move was to intercept Beni Madhoo,
who was said to be at the head of a very large force of rebels. Here
they halted for a couple of days; and on the 26th they marched in
light order and leaving their camp standing, to Busserutgunge. Soon
after they had started, however, a note came in from Colonel Glyn,
who was in charge of a party some twenty miles distant, conveying
information of the supposed whereabouts of Beni Madhoo. This was
opened by the Quarter-master, who was in charge of the camp, who
despatched a messenger with it to Colonel Macdonell. The Battalion
returned to Nawabgunge on the morning of the 27th, not having seen
anything of Beni Madhoo or his army. On the 28th they marched to
Bunteera, thirteen miles; and on the next day to the Alumbagh, where
they encamped. But in the afternoon they received orders to start
again and march into the Cantonments at Lucknow, which they did not
reach till eight o’clock at night, when they had to put up their
tents in the dark. Their rest here was not long; for at four the next
morning they received an order to march and join the Head-quarter
division, a large force of the enemy being supposed to be near. They
moved, therefore, to Buxee-ke-talou, and halted there on December
1. On that night, the detachment under Colonel Glyn, consisting of
three companies, rejoined the Battalion, and the whole marched at
daybreak the next morning for the fort of Oomria. They kept the road
for some time, and then struck across country through thick jungle.
On approaching the fort, which on account of the density of the wood
surrounding it they could not see, they were attacked, but soon
drove their assailants back. They then halted till the baggage came
up. Later in the day, the 5th Fusiliers, supported by the Riflemen,
approached the place, but were met by heavy fire from two of its
faces, which caused some loss. As the men had had a long march and
it was late in the day, they were withdrawn; and arrangements were
made to storm the fort on the next day. Camp was therefore pitched,
but unfortunately within range of the guns of the fort. This made
it uncomfortable, and some damage was done; but it was too late to
move camp, and the men were tired. So they slept soundly, though
an occasional shot fell among the tents. In the morning the usual
discovery was made: the enemy had disappeared in the night, leaving
behind him ammunition and most of his property. This fort had
evidently been a residence of the Rajah; for many articles of women’s
furniture and belongings were found in some of the apartments: the
property, no doubt, of some of his wives. It was as well that the
Rajah and his troops had preferred discretion to valour; for the
works were very strong, one within the other, and with two deep
ditches. The loss, therefore, must have been considerable if it had
been defended with any tenacity.
The Riflemen halted on the 4th and 5th, and were engaged in
demolishing the fort and blowing up the mud walls round some
fortified villages near it. At one of these a gun was found concealed.
On the 6th they marched to Futtehpore, and just before their
arrival there had a skirmish with some rebels, who appeared to be a
rear-guard protecting a gun which had passed some time previously,
and the tracks of which were plainly visible. It was an eighteen-mile
march; and the skirmish at the end of it made the men weary enough.
They did not reach their camping-ground, in a field of tall dâl, till
after dark, and did not get their dinners till late at night. On the
7th they marched to Betwa, where was a strong fort which they found
unoccupied, the enemy having evacuated it in the morning. Their fires
were still burning when the Riflemen reached it in the afternoon. It
was as usual surrounded by thick jungle. They halted on the 8th and
9th to demolish this fort.
On the 10th they marched sixteen miles to Nawabgunge on the Fyzabad
road, the battle-field of June 13. In this march they passed several
small forts and intrenchments, some of which had evidently been but
recently evacuated; and some had been strengthened and repaired at
the expense of much labour by those who had not the courage to defend
them.
On the 11th they made a march of sixteen miles towards Derriabad,
which they passed through on the following day, and after a dusty
march of eighteen miles, halted for the night at Burehke Serai.
On the 13th they reached Mobaruckgunge on the Gogra at one in the
afternoon, after a hot, dusty and fatiguing march of fifteen miles.
For though the nights were cold, the mid-day sun was very hot.
On the 14th they marched to Fyzabad, and turning to the left before
they entered that town, encamped on the bank of the river near a
large mud fort.
On the next day they crossed the Gogra by the bridge of boats,
as their comrades of the 2nd Battalion had done four days before;
both forming part of the army assembled under Lord Clyde, which was
to drive the enemy into a corner, from which it was hoped if Jung
Bahadoor, the Chief Minister of Nepaul, stood true to us, he could
not escape, and so to terminate the war. After passing the river and
marching three miles, they forded a river about three feet deep. This
and its sandy banks much retarded the baggage, which also had been
delayed by the obstinacy of the elephants, who would not venture
on the bridge, and were made to swim the river under the lead or
guidance of an old elephant. It was late, therefore, before their
baggage came up and they encamped at Wuzeergunge.
On the 16th they made another long march to Gonda, where they
encamped near some ruined bungalows, said to have been once occupied
by the officers of a native regiment, who were murdered by their men.
Here they remained till after the close of the year without any
incident of importance, save that two companies (Major Bourchier’s
and Captain Windham’s) went out on a daur on the 21st and returned on
the 23rd.
On January 3, 1859, the 2nd Battalion shifted camp to Purainee, about
a mile from Bankee.
On the 6th they marched at seven in the morning to the bank of the
Raptee, and encamped at Sudheeria Ghât[309] about ten.
On the 8th Lord Clyde and the greater part of the force quitted the
frontier; leaving the 2nd Battalion, the 7th Hussars, and some native
troops, under Brigadier Horsford, to watch the fords of the Raptee.
On the 12th the Battalion shifted camp to Ballapore, on the banks of
a tributary of the Raptee; and at eleven at night three companies,
Captains R. Glyn’s, Blackett’s and Dillon’s, marched, under the
command of Major Vaughan, of the 5th Punjaub Regiment, and crossing
the Raptee, proceeded about sixteen miles, when they came on the
rebels and killed twenty-five out of about thirty. They returned to
camp on the 14th.
On the 26th they again shifted camp close to the Raptee.
At last, on February 8, they received authority to cross the frontier
into Nepaul, Jung Bahadoor having given consent to their entering
that territory. On the 9th, therefore, they marched at five in the
morning and crossed the Raptee. They then moved through about five
miles of very dense jungle with very large trees, and passed a mark
like a mile-stone, which denoted the boundary of Nepaul. They then
went round the spur of the mountains, and debouched on a large plain.
They went on some miles farther, when the Brigadier ordered Colonel
Hill, with a wing of the Battalion and some native troops, to recross
to the right bank of the Raptee, where, at a crossing called Sidka
Ghât, the enemy were reported to be in force, with fifteen guns in
position.
This force was told off: two companies to proceed along the river’s
bank; two under Major Warren to press through the jungle on the left,
and to endeavour to intercept the enemy or to fall on their right
flank; and the native troops under Major Vaughan to act in a similar
manner, but on ground farther removed from the river.
The companies near the river extended in skirmishing order, the right
file resting on the river’s bank. After advancing some distance they
found themselves in front of a hill, which they were obliged to file
round along the water’s edge. This was no easy work, for the ground
was very difficult, and interspersed with rocks and great boulders.
As they were thus proceeding, on reaching a bend of the river they
found themselves in front of the guns of the enemy, who were in a
strong position on some rising ground. These guns immediately opened
on them with grape, but did little mischief, as the fire flew over
their heads, wounding one man only. The Riflemen moved rapidly
forward, and as soon as they were clear of the rocks formed and
proceeded across the shingle, keeping up a smart fire which did much
execution.
But the rebel gunners stood by their guns till the Riflemen were
close upon them. Then they bolted and escaped into the jungle,
giving the slip to Major Vaughan, whose force had been sent round to
intercept them. They left fourteen guns and a mortar in the hands of
Hill’s force.
The other wing, with Brigadier Horsford, having given the attacking
party twenty minutes’ start, moved on along the plain, keeping the
Raptee on the left, till about three in the afternoon, when they
entered a dense forest. The ground became hilly and the road bad.
At half-past three they made another halt of twenty minutes, and
were just falling in when they heard guns open in the front. They
pushed forward, and soon came to a very steep hill, which they ran
down, and found themselves on the bank of the river, and saw the
skirmishers of the other wing entering the jungle on the opposite
bank. They were ordered to halt; and after their fight the other wing
recrossed the Raptee and joined them, and they then marched to camp,
which they found pitched about four miles off, and which they did
not reach till seven at night, after one of the hardest day’s work
they had ever had. For they had passed through dense and difficult
jungle; had scrambled over rough rocks, and had moved over shingly
and fatiguing ground; besides marching not less than twenty miles. A
non-commissioned officer (Sergeant Braun) was very nearly drowned in
crossing the Raptee. He fell twice, but one of the men on the right
bank rescued him.
They remained in this camp till the 12th, when it was shifted to
the tributary of the Raptee, near a jungle which seemed to be
interminable. The rain was very heavy, and the camp-ground became a
perfect swamp.
In his despatch reporting this action, Horsford favourably mentions
Lieutenant-Colonel Hill, Major Dillon and Lieutenant Fryer.
On the 14th, very sudden orders were received at eleven P.M. for
three companies, Captain Fremantle’s, one under the command of
Lieutenant Sotheby, and another, to start on an expedition under
command of Major Ramsay of the Kumaon Battalion. These companies
accordingly paraded at half-past three in the morning; but owing to
a delay in the arrival of elephants did not move off till half-past
four. They crossed the Raptee five times, and as it was deep and
rapid, the men for the purpose of crossing were mounted on elephants.
They then marched forward; and at about six arrived at the edge of
the jungle and formed up. They went on at a very brisk pace till
half-past nine, when they halted for twenty minutes, sending on a
spy to bring word if he could see anything of the enemy. Starting
again, they marched through a gorge in the hill, and by the side
and bed of a mountain stream, till half-past eleven; when, it being
suspected that they had missed their way, a Goorka was despatched,
who soon returned with the intelligence that they were on a wrong
track. They therefore retraced their steps, and soon meeting the spy,
were disappointed at hearing from him that the enemy had departed.
At one o’clock they came up to the ground they had occupied, and
found the ashes of their fires still smouldering. Here the Riflemen
bivouacked, no tents having been taken with this detachment; but
their rations did not come up till four o’clock. They had marched
about sixteen miles over bad ground at a very rapid pace, and were
much wearied.
On the 16th they returned to the camp of the Head-quarters, marching
at half-past six, and arriving at one.
On the 17th the Battalion, starting at six in the morning, marched
back to Sudheeria Ghât, where they camped about half-past eleven.
On the 21st the whole Battalion turned out early to take leave of
their friends and comrades of the 7th Hussars, who had received the
route for Umballa. They had been together for twelve months, and
fought together in many brilliant affairs, and undergone together
many weary days. Officers and men felt great regret at this parting;
for a feeling had grown up between them of such comradeship as is not
usual between separate corps.
On the 26th the Battalion marched to a place about three miles on the
other side of Bankee, and encamped there; the whole march being about
eight miles. On the next day, Brigadier Horsford, under whom they had
so long served, started with his Staff for Gonda, to take command of
the troops there, and the command of those on the Raptee devolved on
Colonel Hill.
On the 28th the Battalion marched to Nanparah, fourteen miles, the
country through which they passed being under water from daily rain.
For the next few days this rain was so heavy, accompanied often by
lightning and thunder, that though daily orders were given to march,
they were as regularly countermanded. The camping-ground became
first a swamp, then a perfect lake. At last, on March 6, they marched
at ten in the forenoon, and arrived at their old camping-ground at
Jeta at two in the afternoon. On the next day they proceeded to
Baraitch, arriving there at half-past two in the afternoon. The
rivers and nullahs, swollen by the rains, were up to a short man’s
hips.
They remained at Baraitch till the 28th, when they shifted camp; but
the ground chosen being found to be infested with reptiles, they were
moved back on the 30th to nearly their old ground.
On April 3 an order was received from Brigadier Horsford for two
companies, with some native troops and guns, to proceed to Bankee
to watch the ford there, and defend the line of the Raptee. Captain
Singer and Lieutenant Nicholl went on this duty.
On the 4th two more companies were ordered to the Raptee; and at
half-past four on the morning of the 5th Major Warren’s and Captain
R. Glyn’s companies started, and after marching fourteen miles,
halted to get something to eat. After which, marching about ten
miles farther, they arrived at Bhinga Ghât on the Raptee, their
destination. On the 6th they halted there, throwing out strong
picquets. On the next day these companies moved back to a tope on
the Baraitch road; and on the 8th they started on a reconnaissance
at half-past eight, and marched about eight miles. No two villages
which they passed through told the same tale. In one the inhabitants
had seen the _budmashes_[310] in thousands; in the next they vowed
that not one had been seen for six months. The companies got back to
their camp at half-past three in the afternoon, having marched about
sixteen miles in the heat of the day.
These companies halted during the 9th and 10th, and marched back to
Baraitch and joined Head-quarters on the 11th.
In the meantime the remainder of the Battalion, with the exception
of Captain Fremantle’s company which was left at Baraitch, marched
at five P.M. under Colonel Hill; and after marching sixteen miles
towards Rahdee, found that the enemy, whom they expected to find
there, had fled. They therefore encamped about three A.M. And on
the next day marched back at six in the evening to Baraitch, where
they arrived the following morning at five. The men were very much
fatigued, having had two nights’ marching, and having been unable to
sleep by day on account of the heat, the thermometer standing at 102°.
At midnight on the 8th-9th Captain Fremantle with his company, 2
Horse Artillery guns, 80 Punjaub rifles, and 150 native police,
marched to join a force under Captain Cleveland, 98th Regiment, at
Akouna. Halting every hour for ten minutes to rest the men, this
force arrived at Akouna, and encamped in a tope at nine in the
morning.
On the next day this detachment marched at half-past nine in the
morning, some of the men being on gun-waggons and some on elephants,
and arrived at Khagupore at half-past three. And on the following
morning marched at six to Dahnapore, where they arrived at half-past
eleven.
On the 12th they moved to Ramwapore, about five miles distant, and
arrived there at eight in the morning.
In the afternoon reports came in that the rebels were encamped about
three miles off, and would probably remain there during the night.
Accordingly, Fremantle marched his detachment at three P.M., leaving
his camp standing. After advancing for some time without seeing
anything of rebels, they came on a picquet of Hodson’s Horse, who
were marching westward, and who reported that rebels were close at
hand. It was then about six. They pushed on, and Captain Cleveland
directed Fremantle to take his company, the guns, and some native
horsemen round a jungle, and attack the rear of the enemy. After
marching about a mile, they turned off the road into the jungle; and
after about three quarters of a mile emerged into a kind of plain,
though surrounded with jungle on all sides. Here the native guide
said he could see a rebel vedette. Fremantle accordingly ordered
the Punjaub men to form company and advance; and they had scarcely
done so when a volley was poured into them at about forty yards. It
was now half-past six, and nearly dark. The native police, who were
leading, fled at the first fire, carrying away in their flight a
section of the Punjaub men. The remainder of these sat down on the
ground and fired at the enemy. Yet Fremantle could neither induce
them to face the hill and attack the rebels, nor yet to clear off to
the flank, and allow the guns and the Riflemen to act. At last he
succeeded in getting them off to a flank; and then the guns opening
with grape, and the Riflemen pouring in a steady fire, the flashes
from the bushes and the hill in front soon ceased. Advancing up the
hill, they found the camp of the rebels, their fires burning, and
their bedding and grass for their horses unmoved; but not a man was
there. This little affair lasted exactly half-an-hour. One Rifleman
was severely wounded. Fremantle then went round the jungle; and,
regaining the Fyzabad road, rejoined the main body under Captain
Cleveland at nine. And the Riflemen reached their camp at half-past
eleven, much fatigued by their marches and their fight.
On the 13th they halted, and on the next day marched back to
Khagupore, and on the day following to Akouna, where they halted
during the 16th. On the 17th this company marched to take up a
position to cover the fords of the Raptee at Gunespore. Here they
remained till the 22nd; when, being relieved by Sotheby’s company,
which had started from Baraitch the day before, they marched at
2.30 in the morning of the 23rd; and encamping during that day at a
village, resumed their march at three o’clock the following morning,
and rejoined the Battalion soon after seven on the 24th.
During this time, however, other expeditions had taken place. On the
9th one company, under Lieutenant Eccles, had marched about eighteen
miles towards Nanparah, but returned on the 11th.
On the 20th Colonel Hill, having received Brigadier Horsford’s orders
to meet him at Nanparah, proceeded thither with three companies of
the Battalion. The object was to clear the Jugdespore jungles of a
number of rebels who had taken refuge there.
Accordingly, these three companies started from Baraitch in the
afternoon of that day, and marched about seven miles. And on the
21st, marching early, they reached Nanparah, after a very long march,
and found the Brigadier awaiting them. On the next day they started
soon after four, and marched sixteen miles; and on the 23rd made a
further march of twelve miles to Hureeha, in the course of which they
crossed the Surjoo river, and encamped on its banks.
On the 24th (Easter Sunday) they started soon after two in the
morning, and made a march of eighteen miles, nearly half of it
through thick jungle; and as the heat was now oppressive, the march
was very wearisome. They had now got near the enemy, who was in a
delta of the River Gogra. So that on the 25th they struck tents at
two. Soon after starting they lost their way in the jungle, so that
day broke before they were fairly started. Colonel Hill commanded the
infantry of the force employed.
The Rifle companies marched on until they came to a ford of the
Gogra. Here they were halted till the cavalry and guns, which had
proceeded by another route, came up. On their arrival they crossed
the river, which was at the ford waist-deep, holding their pouches
up to their shoulders. They formed on the other side, and found the
rebels in a large open space in front of a thick jungle. They were
evidently surprised, and tried to make off. The Riflemen broke into
extended order, and after a very smart skirmish, drove the enemy
into a further jungle. Here Dr. Reade had a very narrow escape of
his life, being attacked with great audacity by two of the enemy’s
Sowars immediately in rear of the supports. The rebels broke into
three parties, and so gave the Riflemen some trouble, as they had to
pursue them through jungle so thick that it seemed never to have been
trodden by the foot of man. However, as the enemy had taken refuge in
it, and it seemed impossible then to dislodge them, camp was pitched
about eight o’clock, and the Riflemen rested for the night, weary and
hungry; for they had received only half-a-pound of bread and a dram
of rum till they reached their camp; and they had fought hard and
marched far.
On the next day orders were given to clear the jungle. Accordingly
Colonel Hill with his Riflemen scoured the whole of the delta, on
which these jungles were situated, to the river’s bank. But the
rebels forded the river, and made good their escape. However, in the
fight of the previous day a number (it is said 200) of them were
killed, and some prisoners taken.
On the 27th, having effected the object of their expedition, they
began their return, and marched eight miles. On the next day they
marched the same distance to Hureeha, having recrossed the Gogra at
a different point, where the water was deeper and the current very
strong. Some men narrowly escaped drowning, and a bugler (Horton)
saved the lives of three men. It was a difficult and dangerous ford,
and a rifle and two swords were lost.
On the 29th they marched ten miles to Doobra; on the 30th fourteen
miles; on May 1 twelve miles; and on the next day, after a march of
sixteen miles, arrived at Nanparah.
Here they halted during the 3rd. And on the following day one
company, accompanying the Brigadier and the cavalry, returned to
Baraitch. The remaining two companies remained at Nanparah until June
6, when they started on their return to Baraitch.
I have now to return to the movements of Sotheby’s company, which,
as I have said, started from Baraitch on the 21st to relieve Captain
Fremantle. On that day they marched twelve miles to Bamparah, and on
the next seventeen miles to Gunespore. On the 28th they turned out at
night, the picquets having been fired upon. From the 4th to the 10th
May they patrolled about the neighbourhood. On the 4th they crossed
the Raptee, and marched eight miles; on the 5th marched nine miles
to Pepree Ghât; on the next day thirteen miles to Akouna, where they
halted one day; and returned on the 8th to Pepree Ghât; and on the
10th marched back to their camp at Gunespore. On the 27th half the
company proceeded to Bhinga, but finding no rebels there, returned
to their camp the same evening. On June 2 the force under Captain
Cleveland was broken up, and Sotheby, with the company under his
command, marched for Baraitch, where they arrived on the 3rd, and
joined Head-quarters of the Battalion.
The Mutiny was now virtually at an end. No enemy remained in the
field, and only a few scattered fugitives skulked in the jungle, and
these not in numbers sufficient to give uneasiness to our posts,
or to necessitate keeping an army on the frontier or in the field.
The 2nd Battalion, therefore, received on June 13 an order to
march towards Lucknow, halting at Byram Ghât for Captain Singer’s
detachment of two companies, which was still watching the fords of
the Raptee. On the 15th they left Baraitch at three in the morning,
arriving at Puckerpore at half-past eight. The next day they were
detained in the morning by heavy rains, but started at half-past four
in the afternoon: the heat was intense, and it was like marching in
a vapour bath, so that the men were much knocked up. The baggage,
too, went astray, and on their arrival at their halting-place about
nine at night, there were neither tents, rations, nor grog. The men
lay down on the damp ground till two in the morning; and at three
resumed their march without refreshment, and at daylight reached
Hissampore; but no baggage appearing, they were obliged to set out in
search of it, and at half-past eight arrived at a place where they
halted, and sent for the baggage, having made a twenty-mile march.
But no sooner was their camp pitched than a violent storm came on,
blowing some of the tents clean away from the ropes, and leaving
their inmates exposed to the full violence of the weather. On the
18th they started again at two in the morning, and arrived at Byram
Ghât at seven. The river was much swollen, and there was no bridge.
Two companies embarked at half-past seven, and attempted to cross;
but the boats missed stays, and did not succeed in getting over.
And as in consequence of the wind it was only practicable to cross
in the morning or evening, they could not make a fresh attempt till
six in the evening, when these two companies got across and landed
at 6.20. The Regiment continued crossing on the 20th; and all got
across on the 21st, Captain Singer’s two companies from Bankee, which
had arrived on the previous day, bringing up the rear. On the 22nd
they marched at half-past four, and encamped beyond Ramnaghur, a
march of six miles, soon after seven. On the next day they proceeded
seven miles. On the 24th seven more, and encamped at Nawabgunge. On
the 25th they were unable to continue their march on account of the
violence of the rain; but on the next day they made a march of ten
miles in the morning, and were ordered to march again at four in
the afternoon; but rain poured down steadily, and continued all the
evening. On the 27th they marched at half-past four in the morning,
and arrived at the Yellow Bungalow at Lucknow at a quarter after
eight. Here they encamped, but were ordered to parade again at four.
It was so hot, however, that this was postponed till five, when they
moved near the Dilkoosha. It had rained every day for some time, the
country they had marched through was very wet, and the ground on
which they now encamped was a perfect swamp.
Here they remained, furnishing a detachment of three companies to the
Imaumbarah, till early in July, when the men were placed in barracks:
a comfort few if any of them had enjoyed since they left Dublin two
years before. The officers, however, continued in tents. The men now
suffered much from their long exposure to the climate, and it is said
that in August there were 200 men in hospital. But not till their
work was over had they succumbed to fatigue, exposure, or climate.
For twenty months they had been in the field; often bivouacked in
the open; never once in quarters. They had marched 1,745 miles in
161 marches (not including often shifting their camp to distances
less than four miles), and every company-officer--save one who was
lame--had accompanied his men on foot in these marches. They were,
I believe, the only battalion which, from their landing in November
1857 to their cantonment at Lucknow in July 1859, had not at some
time been in quarters; but had kept the field from the date of their
arrival till the last day of the Mutiny.
Their casualties in that time may now be summed up.
Of officers, 2 had been killed in action; 4 had been severely
wounded; 2 had died of their wounds; and 2 had died of disease. A
total of 10 officers.
Of the Riflemen in the ranks there were
+-------------------------+-----------+---------+----------+-------+
| | Sergeants | Buglers | Privates | Total |
| +-----------+---------+----------+-------+
| Killed in action | | | 10 | 10 |
| Wounded severely | 6 | 1 | 24 | 31 |
| ” slightly | | | 29 | 29 |
| Died of wounds | | | 7 | 7 |
| ” disease | 11 | 3 | 118 | 132 |
| Invalided, and not | | | | |
| included in the above | 3 | | 34 | 37 |
| +-----------+---------+----------+-------+
| Grand total | 20 | 4 | 222 | 246 |
+-------------------------+-----------+---------+----------+-------+
There had landed in India, either with the Battalion or by drafts
joining it, up to this period: 44 officers, 61 sergeants, 25 buglers,
and 1,147 men. So that in this campaign nearly one-fourth of the
officers, and a little more than one-fifth of other ranks, were
killed, wounded, or invalided.
On October 22 Lord Canning, the Governor-General, made his entry into
Lucknow; on which occasion the Battalion escorted him through the
town, parading for that purpose at three A.M., and returning to their
quarters at nine.
On the 29th they were inspected by the Commander-in-Chief, Lord
Clyde, on which occasion there was a review and march-past. And on
that evening the Governor-General, accompanied by their old Commander
in the field, Sir Hope Grant, visited and went round their barracks.
We left the 3rd Battalion at Gonda in December 1858. On January 9,
1859, Head-quarters, with four companies, marched to Murajgunge,
a distance of twenty-five miles; and on the 10th proceeded to the
bank of the Raptee and encamped there. On the next day the Riflemen
crossed the river on rafts, the baggage elephants and camels being
made to wade across, and arrived at Tulsipore in the afternoon. The
object of this march was to take over and escort the guns which
had been taken at the Raptee and previously. Accordingly, on their
arrival at Tulsipore they received from a company of Sikhs three guns
and some treasure.
After a day’s halt they started from Tulsipore on the 13th, and
recrossing the Raptee arrived at Bulrampore after a fatiguing march
of eighteen miles. On the 14th they proceeded to Cughar, seventeen
miles; and on the next day rejoined the remainder of the Battalion at
Gonda.
After one day’s halt the Battalion started on the 17th for Agra,
and passing through Secrora, recrossed the Gogra at Byram Ghât on
the 20th. They proceeded to Nawabgunge on the 21st; and on the
23rd arrived at Lucknow. They marched from there on the 25th, and
reached Bunteerah on the 27th, and Cawnpore on the 28th. Thence
they proceeded by daily marches by Chobeepore, Poorah, Urroul,
Mukrundnuggur, Chubramow, Bewar, Shekoabad, and Ferozabad to Agra,
which they reached on February 12, and were there stationed.
FOOTNOTES:
[299] Lieutenant-Colonel Green, Captain of a company at Chelsea
Hospital.
[300] Sergeant William Mansel was appointed Ensign in the 12th Foot,
August 24, 1859.
[301] ‘London Gazette’ and MS. Narratives of Colonel Green and Mr.
Mansel.
[302] _i.e._ An expedition, literally, a run.
[303] It was found afterwards by measurement to be nearly forty feet
wide, and thirty feet deep, with three or four feet of mud at the
bottom.
[304] ‘ ... Rifle Brigade--Colour-Sergeant Maloney; Private
Etteridge.’
[305] Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Sotheby.
[306] ‘My Diary in India,’ ii. 370.
[307] Captain G. C. Lane, half-pay.
[308] Mr. Piper is now Paymaster of the 63rd Regiment.
[309] This seems to have been called also Sidhonia Ghât.
[310] _i.e._ blackguards, scoundrels: a name applied by the soldiers
and the loyal to the rebels.