Disregarding the Moulvie, and his skilful onslaught on the rear, Sir Colin pursued his march to Bareilly, where Khan Bahadoor Khan had 40,000 or 50,000 men of all arms, and forty guns. Here, in front of Bareilly, on the 5th of May he engaged the enemy. Penny's force had already joined him; Brigadier Jones was on the other side of the city. While Sir Colin attacked the enemy on the east, Jones broke into the place from the west. The enemy were defeated, but managed to escape in a disordered and broken state, some flying for the Ganges and some for Oude. During this action a body of Ghazees—fanatic Moslems—made a dash on the 93rd and 42nd. Sir Colin was near the Highlanders, but the Ghazees came on so rapidly that he had only time to call on his men to stand firm, and bayonet them as they came on, before the dare-devils were in their midst. A number of them got round the flank of the 42nd, dragged Colonel Cameron from his horse, and cut General Walpole over the head. Both were saved by the Highlanders. "Sir Colin had a narrow escape. As he was riding from one company to another, his eye caught that of a quasi-dead Ghazee, who was lying, tulwar in hand, just before him. The chief guessed the ruse in a moment. 'Bayonet that man!' he called to a soldier. The Highlander made a thrust at him, but the point would not enter the thick cotton quilting of the Ghazee's tunic; and the dead man was rising to his legs, when a Sikh, who happened to be near, with a whirling stroke of his sabre, cut off the Ghazee's head at one blow, as if it had been the bulb of a poppy!" The enemy's troopers also got round the rear and did considerable mischief before they were driven off. But Bareilly was captured, and the enemy dispersed. Sir Colin's first thought was for the safety of Shahjehanpore. He sent off Brigadier Jones with his brigade to relieve Colonel Hale; and, having established a garrison in Bareilly, followed himself. Jones easily drove off the Moulvie's troops on the 11th, and covered the place. Sir Colin himself marched from Bareilly on the 15th. Arriving at Shahjehanpore on the 18th, he marched through the town, and drew up on the eastern side. There the Moulvie had made a demonstration with an immense force of horsemen. The action, however, was almost wholly carried on by the artillery. When the infantry were deployed and developed, the enemy retired. Sir Colin now handed the army over to the command of Brigadier John Jones, and with a weak escort set off suddenly for Futtehghur. Jones marched on Mohumdee, the last stronghold of the rebels on the eastern frontier of Rohilcund; but the enemy would not wait for him. This ended the campaign for the summer in Oude and Rohilcund. While the Commander-in-Chief had been thus engaged, Sir Hope Grant, with a flying column from Lucknow, had scoured the country towards Fyzabad, and had surprised and defeated the enemy at Nawabgunge. Sir Edward Lugard had relieved Azimghur, and, following up Koer Singh, had passed the Ganges, driven the valiant old chief into the jungle, and restored confidence in Behar. The troops were put under cover as far as possible, but there was still considerable fighting at different points in the Doab, and north and south of Allahabad; while Colonel Rowcroft kept down the rebel element on the north of Goruckpore, and facilitated the march of Jung Bahadoor and his plunder back to the mountains of Nepaul.
THE MARTINIÈRE, LUCKNOW. (From a Photograph by Frith & Co.)
CHAPTER XVII.
THE REIGN OF VICTORIA (continued).
The State of Central India—Objects of Rose's Campaign—The two Columns—Capture of Ratghur—Relief of Saugor—Capture of Gurrakota—Annexation of the Rajah of Shahghur's Territory—Capture of Chandaree—Rose arrives at Jhansi—The Ranee and Tantia Topee—Bombardment of Jhansi—Tantia Topee beaten off—Jhansi is stormed—Battles of Kooneh and Calpee—Tantia Topee captures Gwalior—Smith and Rose rescue the Place—Lord Elphinstone's Proceedings—Flight of Tantia Topee—Lawrence in the Punjab—Banishment of the King of Delhi—Other Rewards and Punishments—The Subjugation of Oude—Hope Grant's Flying Column—Britain does her Duty—Transference of the Government to the Crown—The Queen's Proclamation—Clyde enforces the Law—The Hunt for Bainie Madho—Further Flights and Pursuits—An Accident to Lord Clyde—His Last Action—Disappearance of the Begum and Nana Sahib—The Country at Peace—The Last Adventures of Tantia Topee—His Flight into Oodeypore—He is headed from Rohilcund—And from the Deccan—He joins Feroze Shah—Disappearance of the latter and Execution of Tantia Topee—Settlement of India—The Financial Question—The Indian Army—Increase of European Troops—The Native Levies—Abandonment of Dalhousie's Policy.
SIR HUGH ROSE, it will be remembered, arrived at Indore on the 16th of December, 1857, and assumed command of the Central India Field Force, mustering 6,000 men, of whom nearly one half were Europeans. He had a severe task to accomplish with these means. The whole country north of the Vindhya range of mountains was in the hands of the enemy. The only British post was Saugor, where several hundred Europeans were shut up in a fort, but where, strange to state, the 31st Native Infantry and part of the 42nd were faithful. Deeper in the country, towards the Jumna, the Ranee of Jhansi held the town and district of that name, and kept up communication with the disaffected subjects of Scindia, the remains of the Gwalior Contingent reorganising itself at Calpee, and the rebel bands who wandered up and down the Jumna, and made dashes into the Doab, from Allahabad to Agra. Sir Hugh Rose was entrusted with the duty, first, of relieving Saugor, then of capturing Jhansi, and finally of making his way to Calpee. He was to be supported on his left by another column from Bombay, under General Roberts, which was collected at Nusseerabad, in Rajpootana; and on his right by a Madras column, under General Whitlock, whose starting-point was Jubbulpore, on the higher waters of the Nerbudda. Thus, while Rose swept the country between the Sinde and the Beas, and Whitlock marched on his right between the Beas and the Sone, his object being Banda, Roberts was to march eastward by Kotah, then in the hands of the rebels and mutineers, into the Gwalior country.
Sir Hugh Rose divided his force into two columns or brigades. The first, under Brigadier Stuart, was formed at Indore; the second was collected at Sehore, about ninety miles to the north-east, on the road to Bhopal. The first was ordered to march on Chandaree, a very strong place on the left bank of the Betwa. The second, or right brigade, with which Rose himself marched, was directed from Sehore upon Ratghur and Saugor. Stuart's brigade was not to leave Indore until Rose had started for Bhopal, so that the two columns, although separated by a wide interval, might march in parallel lines, and then converge to a point north of Chandaree. Stuart's course lay down the left bank of the Betwa, and he had no serious hostility to apprehend until he approached Chandaree.