THE BATTLE OF PEGU.
1852.
The next event of importance in this campaign was the desperate attack
made by the Burmese on Martaban, to recover the town which they had
lost. On the 26th May, upwards of a thousand Burmese made a violent
onslaught upon the British troops in occupation. Major Hall of the 49th
Madras Light Infantry was in command, and, after some pretty severe
fighting, during which three men of a reconnoitring party were killed,
the artillery were brought into action with deadly effect, and the foe
driven back.
Says one account:--“The British cannon-balls made literal lanes in the
seething masses of Burmese, crushing many to atoms, and dismembering
others who were unlucky enough to be in their track.” The discomfiture
of the enemy was subsequently largely augmented by shot and shell from
the British war vessels, and a total rout of the attacking party was
the result. Martaban was thus securely retained in British hands; but
the war was far from being over.
Early in July, Captain Tarleton, R.N., was ordered to ascend the
Irrawaddy with five steamers and reconnoitre the position and defences
of the Burmese in the vicinity of Prome. This town of wooden houses is
about a mile and a half in circumference, and lies on the left bank
of the river. It is surrounded by low-lying swamps which at times
are inundated by the overflow of the Irrawaddy. At a short distance
from the city the river divides itself into two streams--the left, or
western, being the deeper, and the only one navigable, except in the
heart of the rainy season. On the left bank of the navigable branch
of the stream Captain Tarleton soon decried a force of nearly 10,000
Burmese, who from a strongly-fortified bastion were preparing to oppose
his advance up the left branch of the river. Eagerly the Burmese
watched the approach of the British gunboat, which they believed would
shortly be at their mercy, as it steamed steadily forward towards the
left branch of the river, where their cannon and musketry were already
trained to receive it. Captain Tarleton, however, had no intention of
being caught in the trap. Realising the enemy’s strength, he resolved
to risk his vessel, which was of light draught, in the waters of the
eastern branch of the stream, aware that at the rainy season it would
be navigable for at least some distance. Such, indeed, proved to be
the case, and, to the astonishment of the crowds of baffled Burmese
onlookers, the little craft plunged boldly up the eastern water, and
was very soon out of range of their cannon. A few shot indeed reached
the British vessel, but no damage was done, and Prome was reached on
the 9th without further opposition. Here it was found that no garrison
had been left in charge, and after carrying off some guns, and spiking
others, and destroying all the enemy’s stores they could lay hands on,
the expedition returned to Rangoon.
On the return journey the main Burmese army was encountered crossing
the parent stream of the Irrawaddy, and a heavy cannonade was opened by
the British on the confused mass as it performed its clumsy evolutions.
Not only the state barge of the Burmese general fell into our hands,
but between 40 and 50 boats containing stores and munitions of war,
which were destroyed. After nine days’ absence, Captain Tarleton
returned to Rangoon in triumph, well satisfied with the result of his
reconnoitring operations.
On the 27th July, Lord Dalhousie, the Governor-General of India,
arrived at Rangoon on a brief visit, and expressed his great
satisfaction with the work of the troops.
Not until the 16th September were any more extensive operations
conducted by General Godwin, the interval being spent in collecting
munitions of war and transport material, and, by the gunboats, in
patrolling the river between Rangoon and Prome. On the date mentioned,
however, the embarkation began, with Prome as the objective. On the
morning of the 9th October the expedition came in sight of Prome, and
the war vessels anchored in the small bay which lies opposite the town.
Towards evening the troops were landed. A suburb to the north of Prome,
and outside the town, was chosen as the point of debarkation, as it was
known that the enemy were in force further to the south.
The landing was opposed by the Burmese with musket and gingale. From
some of the wooden houses of the suburb, from the adjacent jungle, and
from a small pagoda which faced the immediate path of the troops, a
fierce musket fire was poured upon the attacking force, and so hot did
this become that it became necessary to dislodge the unseen assailants.
Brigadier Reignolds, with Captains Christie and Welsh, with several
companies of the 80th regiment, were quickly sent forward to rush the
foe from their position--an operation which they performed with great
gallantry and with every success, one man only being killed in the
attack. The captured pagoda was retained by our men for the night,
the enemy not returning to the attack. In the morning the landing was
completed, and, on a general advance being made, it was found that the
enemy had been so severely handled in the engagement of the previous
evening that they had evacuated the place, “leaving in our possession
a town overrun with thick and rank vegetation and abounding in swamps.”
Says General Godwin of the position of our troops at this stage of the
war:--“I have been for a long time aware of the assemblage of a large
force of troops about ten miles east of Prome--nearly 18,000 men, well
posted in two or more stockades. It is not my intention to disturb them
in any way at present, as, by their concentration at that point, the
fine force now assembling here will have an opportunity of striking a
blow which may put an end to much future opposition.”
Accordingly, a different scene of operations was next chosen. The
Burmese, as early as the month of June, had occupied the town of Pegu,
capital of the old kingdom of that name, to the great distress of the
native inhabitants, who were, however, powerless to offer resistance on
their own behalf.
Pegu forms the southern portion of the Burmese empire, and by it had
been annexed in 1757. The town itself is situated some seventy miles
north of Rangoon. These marauding Burmese it was now determined to
dislodge, and to occupy the city by British arms. Brigadier McNeill of
the Madras army was selected by General Godwin to command the venture,
but the General himself accompanied the expedition. The flotilla was
commanded by Commander Shadwell.
The vessels forming the expedition dropped anchor about two miles below
Pegu, which is connected by the Pegu river with the Irrawaddy, on the
evening of the 20th November. The next morning the debarkation was
carried out without any opposition, the troops landing in high grass
jungle, and the whole country being enveloped in a thick fog.
The position of the enemy was known to the British commander, as a
previous expedition in June had enabled Captain Laller to roughly
map the country. The site of the old city, which formed the enemy’s
position, was formed by a square surrounded by a high bund, each side
of which was estimated to be two miles in length. The west side faced
the river, and a moat, between 70 and 80 paces wide, ran entirely round
the position. It was determined to force a way along the moat and
endeavour to turn the enemy’s left.
Accordingly, the advance was commenced, Captain Laller and a Burmese
leading the direction of march. The Bengal Fusiliers were in front, the
5th Madras Native Infantry followed, and the Madras Fusiliers brought
up the rear. The troops marched in file. Slowly and laboriously the
invaders crept forward, struggling for two hours through the almost
impenetrable grass and jungle along the edge of the moat, and exposed
to a warm fire from the enemy. At length a part of the moat was reached
which admitted a passage for the troops, but unhappily it was covered
by a strong post of marksmen and two guns. From this point of vantage
the enemy kept up a galling fire, and it soon became evident the
battery would have to be stormed.
Colonel Tudor, with 250 men, was ordered to drive the Burmese out, and
with a cheer the gallant little band plunged into the muddy waters of
the moat and, scaling the bank in front of them, drove the foe from
their position with cold steel. Having mastered this point, the key
of the position, Pegu did not long remain in the possession of the
Burmese. With enormous difficulty, over the almost impassable ground,
Captain Mallock brought forward his artillery, and kept down the
enemy’s fire. A short halt followed to rest the troops and collect the
not inconsiderable number of wounded. A large pagoda now lay in the
path of advance, and from this the Burmese kept up a heavy musketry
fire. Here again history repeated itself. Gallantly springing forward
with some 200 of the Madras and Bengal Fusiliers, the steps of the
pagoda were soon ascended, the foe driven out, and Pegu was ours.
The amount of the Burmese force in Pegu which we drove out on capturing
the town, was estimated at 4000 or 5000; our own troops barely amounted
to 1000 men. A garrison of 400 was left in charge, and the success of
the enterprise duly reported to the Governor-General at Calcutta. The
immediate result was a proclamation annexing the entire province of
Pegu.
Fighting, however, in the vicinity was not at an end. Day by day
unceasing, but abortive, attacks were made by the Burmese to recover
their lost position. Major Hill gallantly defended his post, but at
length it became necessary to relieve him, and an attempt was made
to bring the Burmese to a general action. Early in December, General
Godwin once more left Rangoon for Pegu, and with an army of only 1200
men proceeded to seek the enemy in his lair. After a march of a few
miles through dense jungle, their position was discovered. “They were
admirably posted behind an entrenchment; large spars formed their
breastwork, and it appeared to be about a mile long, filled with masses
of men, a few hundreds of the Cassay horse, some elephants, and a few
guns.”
On the advance of the British the enemy for a time made no move beyond
firing an occasional shot, and all ranks believed that at length the
foe was to stand at bay. On coming, however, to close quarters, the
Burmese rapidly retreated, bitterly disappointing our men, and a two
days’ further march in pursuit failed to bring them to a standstill,
and General Godwin and his forces were compelled reluctantly to return.
No further event of importance occurred in ’52, but early in the year
following, taking advantage of the unsettled state of the country, and
the quarrels between British and Burmese, numerous dacoity chiefs made
inroads here and there upon the peaceful inhabitants of the country,
raiding and killing and striking terror into the hearts of the country
folk.
Against several of these General Godwin found it necessary to direct
his forces--one in particular, a chief named Mea Toon, giving immense
trouble ere he was finally subjugated. Three times was a British
force led against--on two occasions on the 10th January, and again
later, with disastrous results to our arms. On the second occasion
he succeeded in killing as many as 50 of our men. Finally, in March,
Sir John Cleape brought the dacoity chief to bay, and after a severe
struggle, lasting four hours, in the course of which two British
officers were killed, he succeeded in overpowering the foe. The wily
Mea Toon himself, however, effected his escape, and fleeing from the
neighbourhood of Donnabew, where the engagement took place, escaped
with his immediate following. No trouble was, however, given by him
later.
The main scheme of operations now took the form of a series of attempts
to bring the main Burmese army to bay, but besides an occasional
skirmish, little hard fighting resulted, the Burmese avoiding coming to
grips.
Commenting on the state of the Burmese campaign at this period the
“Annual Register” tersely sums up the enormous difficulties which
General Godwin and the devoted troops under his command had to contend
with:-
“An army can do little,” says the official narrative, “where there are
no roads, nor adequate means of transport for artillery, and when the
enemy retires into jungles, and we have to contend against the heat of
a tropical sun varied by long periods of incessant rain.”
The end, however, was not far off. By this time the greater portion
of the Burmese was under our jurisdiction, and the ultimate and final
success of the British arms seemed to be but a matter of time. Such,
at least, was the view taken by the King of Ava, and without the
drawing up of any formal treaty he at length decided to treat for peace
by granting the concessions demanded of him. Protection to British
trade and life was definitely assured, and the British forces shortly
thereafter withdrawn.