In 1776 the wars of conquest still continued. Another great man arose, Ran Bahadur Sah, uncle to Pratap Simha Sah's infant son, who was on the throne. Bahadur Sah was a man of ability, and, as Regent, decided to subjugate the Chaobisi principalities. He conspired with the Rajah of Palpa, one of the Chaobisi states, agreeing to a division of the spoil in return for his assistance. The Gurkha-Palpa alliance was then formed, and nearly all the Chaobisi states were subjugated, the Gurkhas keeping the lion's share. Meanwhile the Gurkha armies in the east, under General Saroop Simha, were victorious, and the whole of the Rai and Limbu districts of eastern Nepal were conquered. For some time after that they continued the extension of their rule in Sikkim and parts of Tibet. This latter invasion brought upon the Gurkhas a strong Chinese army, which utterly routed them in the year 1792. In consequence of this the Regent was executed by order of the infant king, who himself, on account of his later atrocities, was forced to abdicate in 1800. After some years of exile in India he returned as a firebrand to Gurkha, and died unhonoured and unmourned in 1807. It was during the second and third Afghan wars that the Gurkhas and the Highlanders fought together in an admirable combination. A brief description of these two wars, containing some graphic incidents of battle, and showing the part the Gurkhas and the Highlanders played together, will be found in the following chapter. SOME BATTLES IN WHICH THE GURKHAS HAVE FOUGHT It is interesting to trace to-day the heroic exploits of the Gurkhas through campaigns in which they have fought side by side with the Highlanders of our own country. Space admits of only a brief account, but it will serve to show exactly how and why the Arms of Lord Roberts come to bear, as supporters, a Highlander and a Gurkha. The second Afghan war (1878-80) was brought about by the discovery of Russian intrigues with Shere Ali. Although the Amir had been advised by Lord Lytton that he was sending Sir Neville Bowles Chamberlain on a mission to Kabul, he made no satisfactory reply either in assent or dissent; but when Sir Neville reached Ali Musjid, a fortress on the Afghan frontier, his embassy was confronted by an armed force, and, not possessing sufficient troops to attack, he was compelled to turn back. Smarting under this affront--for it had been clearly laid down that his mission was not of a hostile nature--he returned to Peshawur, from which point an ultimatum was despatched to Shere Ali. This led to the formal proclamation of war on November 21st, 1878. Ali Musjid was the scene of the first battle, in which, under Sir Samuel Browne, the 6th Native Infantry, the 45th Sikhs, and 27th Punjab Infantry were engaged. Prior to this battle the Kurram Column, or Field Force, had been formed, under General Roberts. The native troops included in this force were as follow:--