A Soldier's Experience; or, A Voice from the Ranks: Showing the Cost of War in Blood and Treasure. A Personal Narrative of the Crimean Campaign, from the Standpoint of the Ranks; the Indian Mutiny, and Some of its Atrocities; the Afghan Campaigns of 1863Gowing, T. (Timothy)
History
A Soldier's Experience; or, A Voice from the Ranks: Showing the Cost of War in Blood and Treasure. A Personal Narrative of the Crimean Campaign, from the Standpoint of the Ranks; the Indian Mutiny, and Some of its Atrocities; the Afghan Campaigns of 1863
Gowing, T. (Timothy)
Crimean War, 1853-1856 -- Personal narratives
The attacking columns of the enemy numbered thirty thousand
men, and their supports and reserves thirty thousand more.
These columns were in such a state of disorder from the
repeated vehement charges of the British that they had not
the slightest chance of victory. They were nothing more nor
less than a confused and enraged mob. Our men, and the
French, who had come up to our assistance, continued pouring
volley after volley into them, and some of our heavy siege
guns were ploughing roads through them. Their loss at this
stage of the battle was enormous. Their massive columns of
supports and reserves were mowed down wholesale, until the
dead lay in heaps. When the retreat of this confused and
enraged Muscovite mob commenced we expected every moment to
be despatched by these well-thrashed drunken brutes. They
carried as many of their wounded away as possible. Noticing
the confusion all round, the captain of the 23rd passed the
word for us to make a dash for our liberty, saying, "We can
but die, my boys." We instantly got on the alert, but our
good intentions were stopped. We were then doubly guarded,
and hurried from the field. The retreat was in no formation,
but a complete rabble, our huge Lancaster guns cutting lanes
through them. There was but one column we saw leave the
field in anything like order. We were a little on their
flank, when an officer of the leading company perceived us.
He came over to us and addressed us in good English as
follows, "Well, Englishmen, if you are prisoners, there is
one consolation for you, you have given us a sound good
thrashing to-day," and then rejoined his company. As soon as
he left, our captain said, "Men, I believe that officer to
be an English gentleman serving in the Russian army, and is
delighted his countrymen have gained such a glorious
victory." The enemy captured no more prisoners, except a few
wounded who escaped being bayoneted, and those were placed
in carts with other wounded. I was one of those appointed to
look after the poor wounded. My care was a Guardsman, shot
under the left breast, passing out under the left shoulder
blade; the poor fellow was bleeding inwardly, and I had to
keep him in a sitting position. We were at this time in the
centre of the retiring mass, when a wounded Russian drummer
tried to get into the cart, and, in endeavouring to do so,
placed his arm on the wounded knee of one of the men of the
47th whose knee-cap had been shot away. He instantly struck
the wounded Russian under the chin and sent him headlong
amongst his retiring comrades. We then made sure that we
should be all bayoneted; but no, all the pluck and vodkie
was fairly thrashed out of them. In crossing to the north
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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