The Afghan War of 1879-80: Being a Complete Narrative of the Capture of Cabul, the Siege of Sherpur, the Battle of Ahmed Khel, the Brilliant March to Candahar, and the Defeat of Ayub Khan, with the Operations on the Helmund, and the Settlement with Abdur Rahman KhanHensman, Howard
History
The Afghan War of 1879-80: Being a Complete Narrative of the Capture of Cabul, the Siege of Sherpur, the Battle of Ahmed Khel, the Brilliant March to Candahar, and the Defeat of Ayub Khan, with the Operations on the Helmund, and the Settlement with Abdur Rahman Khan
In the meantime General Macpherson had fallen upon a large body of
Afghans higher up the valley, and with the 67th Regiment and the 3rd
Sikhs had completely broken their ranks and pursued them towards
Argandeh. General Macpherson did not then know of the loss of the guns,
but in facing round towards Cabul he came upon the scene of the charge,
and was then able to recover the bodies of Lieutenants Hearsey and
Ricardo and of the troopers killed in action. His own loss was not
heavy, Lieutenant Cook of the 3rd Sikhs being the only officer wounded.
Sir F. Roberts remained at Dehmazung until Macpherson’s force reached
it, about nightfall; and then, leaving the Brigadier with his men
encamped below the gorge, where Wali Mahomed had a camp with some
mountain guns (he was preparing to start for Turkistan), the
Lieutenant-General returned to Sherpur. He had before received the news
that the guns had been pulled out of the watercourses into which they
had fallen, and were on their way to cantonments. How they were
recovered, well deserves telling.
When Sir F. Roberts trotted across to the Cabul gorge, there were
Lancers, gunners, and drivers, making their way towards Sherpur, and
most of them were out of hand, their officers having been either put out
of action or being missing. At the Nanuchi Kotal, facing the western end
of Sherpur, most of these rallied about Colonel Macgregor, Captain Dean
also having gathered some stragglers together. When the enemy veered off
towards Dehmazung, Colonel Macgregor saw that the village of Baghwana,
near where the guns were lying, was not guarded by any of Mahomed Jan’s
rear guard, and he thought there might be a chance of recovering the
guns without waiting for General Macpherson’s advance. With a scratch
lot of Lancers and Artillerymen, he accordingly followed the upper
Argandeh Road; and, beyond stray shots from villagers (who, as on
October 8th, blazed at us whenever we were within range), the party met
with no opposition. The baggage of Macpherson’s brigade was met making
its way to Sherpur; and as the enemy were then well on their way to
Indikee, Colonel Macgregor took thirty men of the 67th, and about the
same number of Sikhs and Ghoorkas—sixty in all—and, extending them in
skirmishing older, made for the abandoned guns. On arriving at the
village he placed his men in an enclosure well adapted for defence
against any numbers; and such artillerymen as were with him set to work
to get out the guns. This was done after a long struggle, and then it
was found that teams sufficient only to give four horses per gun were
present. The rest had galloped into Sherpur with their officer, Major
Smith-Windham. With no artillery officer, but with the Chief of the
Staff, rests the credit of recapturing the guns. Colonel Ross was told
to bring them safely into camp with the baggage escort and the scratch
gathering of mounted men, and this he did.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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