LIEUTENANTS MOORE AND MALCOLMSON, AND THE VICTORIA CROSS.
Who among our readers has not been interested about Persia—that
mysterious land in which such wonders have been said to exist? So many
of the tales in the “Thousand and One Nights” refer to Persia, that most
boys, at least, are well acquainted with some of the peculiarities of the
people.
Although it is difficult to pronounce any decided judgment as regards
the actual antiquity of any Eastern nation, yet there seems to be but
little doubt that before England had even emerged from a condition of
semi-barbarism, civilization had made considerable progress in Persia;
and although that nation is principally famous to us on account of its
tales of winged monsters, dragons, enchanters, and genii, yet this
peculiarity may be in consequence of early travellers bringing to us
that which was at the time the most acceptable; and as we in England
can scarcely assume to have been lovers of science and truth during
more than three hundred years, it is possible that any profound or
philosophical truths brought from the East would have been formerly as
little appreciated as a book of algebra would be in a nursery. The laws
of the Medes and Persians are referred to in the Bible, and in the book
of Esther reference is made to a King Ahasuerus, who it is said ruled
over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces, which then constituted the
kingdom of Persia.
It is stated by some of the earliest writers that the Persians were a
nation of shepherds, hardy and warlike, that they gradually increased
in numbers and power, and conquered and brought under their rule less
powerful nations, until they became almost the greatest people of the
East.
The most celebrated of the ancient kings of Persia was Cyrus, who
organized the Persians, gave them special laws for their guidance,
political institutions, and established a well-disciplined army. This
Cyrus not only became King of Babylon, Media, and Persia, but at length,
by the right of conquest, obtained absolute dominion over the greater
part of Asia.
Cyrus was succeeded by his son Cambyses, who was a man that delighted in
war. He died in consequence of a hurt which he received while mounting
his horse.
Following Cambyses was Artaxerxes; and we then come to Darius, who loved
conquest better than had any of his predecessors. This king was desirous
of obtaining the homage even of Greece, and sent heralds to claim it,
but without success. He then raised a large army and invaded Greece, but
the Athenians under Miltiades met him, and gained a great victory, known
as the battle of Marathon, and fought two thousand three hundred and
fifty-two years ago.
Xerxes succeeded Darius, and continued the attack on Greece. It was
during this war that Leonidas, with his band of Spartans, defended the
pass of Thermopylæ against such overwhelming odds—a deed which would
certainly have gained him the Victoria Cross in modern times.
Darius III. had reached the dangerous condition of a very rich but not
a warlike king; when then, he, by means of his wealth, incited other
nations to make war upon Alexander, King of Macedonia, this great
conqueror determined to attack Persia—a feat which he accomplished with
so much success that he everywhere defeated the Persians, who for upwards
of a hundred years were, in a great measure, under the yoke of Greece.
In more modern times Persia has been invaded by the Tartars, a vagrant
race of hunters and shepherds who were warlike and organized enough to
subjugate Persia.
With the exception of the early wars with the Greeks already referred
to, the Persians, up to the year 1700, had not met in battle any of the
armies of Europe. Peter the Great of Russia had, however, for a long time
been desirous of extending his territory to the banks of the Caspian Sea,
and had merely waited for a pretext to wage war with Persia. He did not
seek an opportunity in vain, for a Russian caravan returning from China
was plundered by the Persians, and this offence so irritated the Russian
autocrat that he put himself at the head of his army, sailed from the
Volga, and landed at Daghestan. Shortly after hostilities ceased, and
Russia obtained from the Persians the towns of Baku, Derbund, and several
provinces. During this period the Persians were also at war with the
Afghans, who had invaded Persia and had been the cause of much misery.
The late Czar Nicholas of Russia had no sooner ascended the throne than
he commenced war with Persia, and at length, in 1828, concluded a treaty
by which he gained several provinces.
About the years 1836, 1837, a collision took place between the Persians
and the Afghans. It was the object of the Persians to gain possession of
the district of Herat. Now this district lies on the north-west of India,
and may be called one of the barriers to our Eastern Empire, and as such
it is essential to be preserved as an independent state. In July, 1837,
the Persians marched an army against the Afghans, and, after a siege of
ten days, succeeded in capturing Ghorian, and in December commenced the
siege of Herat.
Various remonstrances had been made to the Persians by the British
authorities in connexion with the attack upon Herat, but without avail,
and they merely had the effect of making the English unpopular. At this
time a confidential messenger bearing despatches for the British minister
was insulted and detained by the Persians. This and one or two other
similar proceedings on the part of the Persians, in addition to their
attack upon our then allies the Afghans, rendered amicable communications
with them out of place, so that in June, 1838, our minister quitted the
Persian court and ceased any friendly communication with the Persians.
During March, 1839, Sir Frederick Maitland, commander-in-chief of
the naval forces in India, landed some men from the _Wellesley_ at
Bushire. It appears that there was only one locality at which a landing
or embarkation ought to have taken place, and in the present instance
this custom was not paid attention to, and it was nearly leading to
unfortunate results, as the Resident was threatened by a large party
of armed men. Fifty marines and about thirty sepoys were provided with
sixty rounds of ball cartridge each, and, under the command of Captain
(now Lieutenant-General Sir S.) Ellis, approached the shore. Upon coming
within range a heavy fire was opened on this small party, wounding
several men, but fortunately killing none. A rapid pull, a leap on shore,
and steady advance towards the position occupied by the Persians, had
the effect of driving the enemy away, and the small body of Europeans
effected an entrance into the Residency and commenced preparations for
carrying off the Resident to the ships.
At this time, however, a heavy gale of wind sprang up, which lasted
three days, and entirely prevented communication by boats between the
vessels and the shore. The Persians, knowing this, rather anticipated the
capture or massacre of the small party left on shore, but so decided were
the proceedings of the officer in command and so judiciously were his
arrangements made, that his enemy, although numbering ten to one, thought
it more prudent to leave him alone.
During each evening of these three days the Persians used to assemble to
the number of several hundreds and make demonstrations as though they
purposed attacking our men, but no sooner did they appear than the little
garrison was turned out and kept under arms, ready and willing for a
fight should the Persians feel so disposed. This bold proceeding seemed
to have the effect of awing them, for no attack was made, and even a
field-work that was being constructed in front of the Residency was not
continued, upon Captain Ellis’s intimation that he would fire upon the
working party the instant a spade was put into the ground.
On the fourth day after landing, a reinforcement was sent from the ships,
and the whole party, including the Resident, safely passed through the
armed throngs and embarked in the boats. Each of these, provided with
a gun, pulled out, showing a muzzle directed on the rabble and ready to
discharge its iron hail should a shot be fired at the boats.
Towards the end of 1855 it was evident that the Persian Government did
not intend to keep faith with England, for in December Prince Sultan
Moorad Meerza set out from Tehran in command of an army that was to act
against Herat. Whilst our Government was remonstrating with that of
Persia on this proceeding, several insults were offered to the British
officials at Tehran, and the right of asylum accorded to the residence of
the British mission was violated. After various futile attempts to obtain
redress, war was at length decided upon, and an expedition was despatched
to the Persian Gulf from India.
In January, 1857, the expedition embarked, and reached its destination
at the end of the month, and shortly after was landed at Bushire. The
Arabian and Persian coasts on either side of the entrance to the Gulf
are desolate in the extreme; steep cliffs without any sign of vegetation
rise from the water’s edge, whilst inland there seems no sign of a
habitation; several barren islands stud the coast on both sides, and are
the residence of a few sea-birds only.
The village of Bushire, which was captured with scarcely any opposition,
is a place of some importance. It is imperfectly defended by a wall,
with towers at intervals to afford a flank defence. The town itself is
composed of narrow streets or alleys, whilst the buildings are square and
solid-looking. The places of interest in the town are the church, the
bazaar, and a reservoir. In the background is a range of mountains which
is usually covered with snow.
The troops forming the Persian expedition were very soon actively
employed. On the 3rd of February the entire force was assembled and drawn
up in order of march. This force consisted of the 64th Regiment, 78th
Highlanders, 20th and 26th Regiments of Native Infantry, the 2nd Light
Infantry, and 4th Bombay Rifles, 3rd Light Cavalry, some horse artillery,
and field batteries—a somewhat diminutive army with which to invade a
kingdom, but one which was found efficient enough for the work it was
called upon to perform.
During the first two days’ march this little army encountered two of the
most disagreeable incidents of a tropical climate. First a gale of wind
sprang up, carrying with it a huge cloud of sand, which penetrated not
only the eyes, nose, mouth, and ears, but seemed actually to force its
way into the pores of the skin. When the army halted, and were bivouacked
in order of march, a tremendous thunderstorm burst upon them, rain and
hail coming down in torrents, when both officers and men were drenched
to the skin, for they had no cover such as tents or trees. A piercing
cold wind blew upon them, and rendered their condition more trying than
can easily be imagined except by those who have experienced similar
inconveniences. But many examples have shown that nothing can daunt the
courage or decrease the ardour of the British soldier, especially when
led, as he was in this instance, by such a man as Outram.
It was known that the Persians were in order of battle at about eight or
nine miles from the spot on which the troops had bivouacked on the night
of the 4th of February; therefore, before proceeding on the march on the
morning of the 5th, the loaded arms were discharged and reloaded, in
order to avoid the damaging effects of the night’s rain.
Shortly after mid-day the Persian army was discovered in an intrenched
position. A short halt took place, in order to get the regiments into
their proper positions, when, to the annoyance of our men, the enemy were
seen in full retreat, which they continued at such a pace as to prevent
their being overtaken, except by a few of our cavalry who attacked their
rear-guard.
Our troops immediately took possession of their intrenched camp, in
which were large quantities of ammunition, grain, and camp equipage. The
intrenched position was found very weak, and would easily have been taken
by our little army, whereas a village near, termed Brás-Joon, had it been
but slightly fortified, would have become a most formidable position.
During the 6th and 7th of February the troops were occupied in destroying
military stores and searching for hidden guns, treasure, &c. On the night
of the 6th an alarm occurred in the camp, and the whole force stood to
their arms. Fortunately, the moon shone brilliantly, and thus a probable
disaster was avoided, for one of the corps mistook a patrol of the Poonah
Horse for a party of the enemy, and skirmished up to it, but fortunately
discovered the mistake before a shot was fired.
These night alarms—especially with soldiers not thoroughly trained—are
invariably dangerous, the probability being that friends are mistaken
for enemies, and shots not unusually exchanged. We were once witness
to a scene which, although ludicrous afterwards and to the lookers-on,
was certainly unpleasant to the principal performer. It happened that a
soldier in his shirt and trousers had wandered some distance from our
camp during the night, when an alarm arose that the enemy were upon
us. Men scarcely awake rose to their feet, rifle in hand, and seeing a
white object in the distance rushing towards them opened fire on it. The
more the unfortunate man shouted (for he was within the white object,
which was his shirt) the more rapid was the firing at him, until he came
sufficiently close to be recognised. Fortunately the darkness of the
night and the hurried manner in which the men fired saved him from being
hit.
On the evening of the 7th of February the return march of the army
commenced towards Bushire, the enemy having been observed retreating
amidst the fastnesses of the mountains far away. Until midnight all was
quiet, and no enemy was expected, when suddenly the discharge of musketry
in the rear caused the forces to be on the alert, and it was then found
that the rear-guard was attacked. In less than half an hour the whole
army was surrounded by skirmishers and galloping horsemen, who yelled and
trumpeted, making as much noise as possible. One of the Persian buglers,
who was acquainted with the English calls, sounded the “Cease firing”
repeatedly, close to the Highlanders.
[Illustration: Lieutenant John Grant Malcolmson, 3rd Bombay Light
Cavalry, rescuing his brother officer, Lieutenant and Adjutant Arthur
Moore, at the battle of Kooshab.]
Our troops, although surprised in a great measure, were as steady as
though on parade, and received the charges of the enemy’s cavalry with
a fire which emptied many saddles. This exhibition of courage and
discipline was the more commendable, considering very few of the men had
ever previously been under fire.
During the greater part of the night the Persians kept up a desultory
fire, which, however, produced but little damage, and when at daybreak
the fire slackened it was feared that there would not, after all, be any
real battle; but as the morning fogs dispersed the enemy were seen in
position, their right resting on a village called Khoosh-aub. Several dry
watercourses were in their front, and these were lined with skirmishers.
There were also large bodies of cavalry on both flanks, and altogether a
force of about 8000 (one-fourth of which was cavalry) was assembled to
oppose us.
As soon as there was light enough a rapid cannonade commenced on
both sides, whilst a change of front was made by our own commander,
immediately after which the advance was made with but little loss,
considering the heavy firing brought against us.
The fire from the Persian guns was soon almost silenced by that from our
own, which was carried on at a tolerably close range.
Our cavalry, consisting of some irregulars and the 3rd Bombay, finding
some of the enemy’s horsemen opposed to them, made a brilliant charge,
fairly sweeping the enemy before them. There were only two or three of
the regular battalions of the Persians that stood their ground at all or
retired in regular order. The 3rd Cavalry charged through these men, who
received them with tolerable steadiness. It was on this occasion that
Lieutenant A. Moore gained the Victoria Cross.
Lieutenant Moore was first within the square at which his regiment
charged. His horse fell dead beneath him, and he would soon have fallen
a victim had not a brother officer (Lieutenant Malcolmson) fought his
way back and assisted him with difficulty out of the crowd of the enemy.
Both Lieutenants Moore and Malcolmson gained the Victoria Cross for their
conduct on this occasion.
The result of this battle was the entire rout of the enemy, who were
defeated at every point, and in the retreat were cut up by the artillery
and cavalry. A couple of brass guns were captured, a standard, and
a large number of muskets. The Enfield rifle, which was used in this
affair, cast terror on the Persians. On one occasion a horseman, who was
making threatening demonstrations at a distance of 800 yards, was neatly
picked off by a good shot, an officer in the 2nd European Light Infantry.
About 700 dead were found on the field, and a vast number of wounded were
carried away.
The troops, after the battle, moved off a short distance and bivouacked,
but were very shortly disturbed by heavy rain, which continued without
interruption during several days. The roads became almost impassable, the
soil—a mixture of clay and sand—being ankle-deep in mud. The troops at
length were forced to halt, and without complaining stretched themselves
in the mud, and took that rest which all so much required. Although the
distance from the field of battle to the lines at Bushire was over forty
miles, yet it was passed by the troops, under all the disadvantages
named, in thirty hours. The loss on our part during these proceedings
consisted in one officer and eighteen men killed, four officers and sixty
men wounded.
Shortly after these events another expedition was undertaken by our
troops, and with complete success, the Persians, although brave men,
lacking that essential to make them good soldiers—viz., discipline. There
are several nations of the East—the Chinaman, Hindoo, and others—who have
scarcely any fear of death, and who would rather cast themselves on their
own swords and thus perish than fall into the hands of an enemy, and yet
when these men meet in battle our own soldiers they invariably suffer an
almost ignominious defeat, in consequence of their want of discipline and
of steadiness under fire.
The soil and climate of Persia do not appear to be very favourable:
during the day it is intensely hot, and during the night equally cold. In
summer, likewise, the heat is intense. Vast deserts of sand occur in many
places, and long ranges of sterile mountains cross the country in various
parts. Vegetation is not very abundant, and cultivation is carried on
but scantily. Game, however, abounds in many places, deer, antelopes,
partridges, and wild-fowl being found, and the lion is also said to be
occasionally seen.
Whether we consider the Persians as soldiers, their country as a
paradise, or their cities as noble works of art, we find ourselves
disappointed; for the first are little better than a half-trained rabble,
their country is not fertile, and their cities are badly constructed and
dirty. So that after contemplating these items we can candidly exclaim,
“There’s no place like home.”
[Illustration: Bushire]
[Illustration]