ACTION OF AHMED KHEL
20 MILES from GHUZNI
19th April 1880.[[42]]
The General’s escort, filling the gap between the Horse Artillery Battery and the 59th, were driven back, and the 59th were ordered to throw back their right to check the rush. The order was so delivered that it was understood to imply the retirement of the whole regiment, and the movement was carried out. The ghazis were so close that there was a tendency to collect in groups for mutual protection—a fatal course when a general rush has to be checked; but General Hughes, by his example and energy, checked this in time, and after a few minutes’ excitement,—an excitement quite pardonable under the circumstances,—our men settled down and began a steady and continuous fire from their breech-loaders, which swept away the ghazis and covered the plain with dead. But there had been persistent hand-to-hand fighting before this fire began to take effect, for the ghazis fought with a bravery never excelled, and sold their lives as dearly as fanatics can sell them. Yet the three regiments—British, Sikh, and Ghoorka—to whom they were exposed, held their own, the 2nd Sikhs, in particular, attracting the General’s notice for their splendid steadiness in rolling back the attack, and the main body of Afghans holding aloof, the ghazis could not hope to break our line. But with what grand disregard for their lives they must have fought is shown by their charging to within thirty yards of the muzzles of Major Warter’s guns, and facing case and reversed shrapnel, which at close quarters mowed them down in scores. The gunners never flinched, but stood to their pieces manfully, trusting to the 2nd Punjab Cavalry to clear the enemy away until the infantry fire should begin to tell. The charges made by the 2nd Punjab Cavalry were repeated again and again, and were as brilliant as any made by cavalry during the whole war. This is the deliberate opinion of the men who witnessed them, and who owed much to the sowars who kept the right flank safe. The Horse Artillery guns were retired 150 yards when the first shock had passed, and at a range of a few hundred yards they continued to fire shell into the enemy with admirable precision. The guns of G-4 were in a comparatively safer position among the infantry, and their fire also was well directed and very effective. In the gap I have mentioned between A-B battery and the 59th Foot the General’s escort had a tough hand-to-hand fight with a body of ghazis who closed with them. Breech-loader and bayonet told against pistol and tulwar, while the few sowars of the 19th Bengal Lancers also gave their aid in the mêlée. How desperate the fighting must have been is shown by the casualties among the escort alone, which was merely used to give cohesion to the line. The company of the 60th lost its Colour-Sergeant (Chesham) and two privates killed and a bugler wounded; the company of the 25th had two sepoys killed, and the detachment of the 19th Bengal Lancers had seven sowars wounded. The heavy battery contributed its quota to the engagement as it got into action on a convenient piece of rising ground in rear of the infantry, and shelled a hill south of Ahmed Khel spur, on which large masses of the enemy had congregated, as if meditating a flank attack upon the baggage line. In the early part of the day Sir Donald Stewart, as I have said, had sent back word to General Barter to hurry up with reinforcements. General Barter started the 1st Punjab Cavalry at a trot, and followed with the 60th Rifles. The 1st Cavalry arrived in time to share in the pursuit of the fugitives, who had been unsuccessful in their attack upon our right flank, and many were killed before they could reach the protecting slopes of the Shilghur Hills on the east. The 60th formed up on the right of the 59th Foot, and the “cease fire” sounded just as they arrived, the enemy by that time being in full retreat. The cavalry pursuit had to be checked, as the six miles of baggage had to be looked after; and with so many regiments in advance, it was feared that detached bodies of ghazis might run amuck in the rear. The action had begun at nine o’clock, and “cease fire” sounded at ten, just an hour’s fighting; but the casualties were unusually heavy for Afghan warfare. Of the enemy 1,000 dead were counted on the field, and many bodies had been carried off: while their wounded must, at the smallest estimate, have numbered 1,000 or 1,500. The ghazis killed were all fine, handsome men, well nourished and of splendid physique, and their fanaticism had given them courage which veteran soldiers might envy. Among the dead was one woman, while twelve others were taken prisoners with arms in their hands. The casualties among our troops were seventeen killed, and 126 wounded; among the latter being six officers whose names have already been published. Lieutenant Young, of the 19th Bengal Lancers, had the misfortune to lose control over his horse, and the animal carried him into the thick of the ghazis, by whom he was cut down and fearfully wounded. From head to heel he was slashed until almost past recognition, and when picked up he was believed to be in a dying state. The surgeons have since given better reports of him, and his recovery seems assured. Of the wounded men, four have since died of their wounds, which in nearly every case were tulwar or knife-cuts received in hand-to-hand encounters. The 19th Bengal Lancers had fifty-three casualties, and twenty-four amongst the horses; the total loss of the whole cavalry brigade was more than 100, and from seventy to eighty horses.
The Hazaras, seeing the Afghans in full flight, pursued them with ardour, and their knowledge of the country gave them an advantage European troops could not hope to possess. How they harassed the fugitives only their own kinsmen will ever know, as pursuers and pursued disappeared into the hills very shortly after the action came to an end. The prisoners taken after the fight were dealt with by Major Euan Smith, Political Officer, all the wounded being treated by our surgeons and taken onwards towards Ghazni. Two ghazis only had to be shot; they were fanatics of too exalted minds to accept mercy, and when promised liberty in return for an undertaking to go quietly to their homes, they simply cursed all Kafirs, and swore to kill a Feringhi the instant they should be released. In justice to our men, their lives had to be taken, as Candahar experience has shown that such fanatics always keep their word. Our dead were buried on the field by Mr. Warnford, the Chaplain, as Sir Donald Stewart had resolved to march on to Nani without delay; and early in the afternoon the column was again moving northward. As our men passed along, ghazis who had feigned death rose and fired at them, and men severely wounded slashed at the legs of the soldiers; these dying spasms of fanaticism proving that the ghazis were consistent to the end.
On the evening of the 19th the force encamped at Nani, within fifteen miles of Ghazni, and on the following day the cavalry reached the fortress itself without further opposition. The tribesmen had made their grand effort to save the place, and had failed; there was nothing for it but to allow the Kafirs to do as they willed with the city and citadel, since it had fallen into their hands. The infantry and artillery encamped for the night at Chel Butcha Gaum (the Village of the Forty Children), a few miles south of Ghazni. It was noticed at the time that a low hill, some miles away on the right, was occupied by a large force of Afghans, who had their standards flying, but did not seem otherwise bent on hostilities. They were not interfered with then, as it was deemed advisable to push on to Ghazni, under the walls of which the Candahar column encamped on the 21st without further incident. Sir Donald Stewart had orders to make no long stay in Ghazni, and he intended moving out on the 23rd; but it was reported that the gathering of men seen on the 20th and 21st had largely increased, and that they were the advance-guard of an army of 15,000 or 20,000 which Mushk-i-Alam had raised in Shilghur and Zurmut. The effect upon the native mind, if such a force had been left unmolested when our troops evacuated Ghazni, would have been very damaging to our prestige, and Sir Donald Stewart resolved to disperse the tribesmen before moving northward. The peaceful state of Ghazni itself was an encouragement to this course of action, as he could freely use the regiments at his disposal without fear of an émeute[émeute] in the city.
As a preparatory measure a wing of the 19th Punjab Infantry occupied the citadel, and early on the morning of the 23rd a force under command of Brigadier-General Palliser marched towards Shalez, six miles south-east of Ghazni, said to be occupied by the enemy. The troops detailed for the work were:—
| A-B, Royal Horse Artillery. |  |  | |
| 11-11th, Royal Artillery. | |||
| 11-11th, Royal Artillery. | Brigadier-General R. Barter commanding. | ||
| 2-60th Rifles, 525 rifles. | Under the command of Brigadier-General C. H. Palliser, C.B. | ||
| 15th Sikhs, 578 rifles. | |||
| 25th Punjab Native Infantry, 458 rifles. | |||
| 2nd Sikhs, 424 rifles. | |||
| 1st Punjab Cavalry, 322 sabres. | |||
| 2nd Punjab Cavalry, 325 sabres. | |||
On the previous day a cavalry reconnaissance had been made, and 2,000 or 3,000 men had been seen about the Urzoo villages near Shalez. General Palliser, on arriving near the villages, found them occupied in force by 3,000 or 4,000 men. He immediately got his guns into action, and shelled the villages, but without any apparent effect. The enemy remained quietly within the walls, except their videttes, which were pushed forward more into the open, while some of their sharp-shooters lined a narrow ditch in the fields, and began firing at long ranges upon our infantry. The villages consisted of three walled enclosures, two in close proximity to each other facing our right, and a third somewhat in rear of, and removed from, the others. This third village would have borne the brunt of any attack from our left flank, and it had as a sort of screen a small garden outside the walls. General Palliser believed the ground between his troops and the villages to be irrigated, and thought that much loss of life would occur if he sent his infantry to make a direct attack. He silenced such of the enemy’s sharp-shooters as grew troublesome by telling off marksmen to keep their fire under, and continued shelling the villages very vigorously. Still the enemy made no sign either of attacking or retiring, and a message was at last heliographed to Sir Donald Stewart, saying the place was too strong to be taken by the troops then in front of it without sacrificing many lives. Upon news being received, General Hughes’s Brigade was ordered under arms, and a half battalion of the 59th foot (253 rifles), and six companies of the 3rd Ghoorkas (191 rifles), were sent out as a reinforcement. Still General Palliser did not consider it advisable to attack, and he withdrew to a ridge 2,500 yards from the villages, whence he continued to shell the enemy. Upon this Sir Donald Stewart moved forward with G-4, R.A., 254 rifles of the 59th, a half battalion of the 19th Punjabees, and the 19th Bengal Lancers. The heavy battery was left in camp with two companies of the 59th, two companies of Sappers, and a complement of guards furnished from each regiment. Sir Donald Stewart reached Shalez at nine o’clock, and found that General Palliser had withdrawn his artillery and infantry to a low hill some distance from the villages, with a view to entice the enemy into the open. The tribesmen were too cautious to be deceived by this manœuvre, and preferred bearing bombardment to coming under infantry fire in the plain. The two batteries had fired the unusual number of thirty rounds of shell per gun, a total of 360 rounds, but 7-pr. and 9-pr. shells can do but little damage against walled enclosures and stout mud walls. When our reinforcements arrived, a sudden burst of fanatical enthusiasm seized the defenders of the villages, and it seemed as if the ghazis’ rush at Ahmed Khel was about to be repeated. At first only their videttes were seen watching our troops, while an occasional puff of smoke from the ditch showed the presence of a sharp-shooter; but soon a number of mounted men were seen galloping about, and then out poured a mob from the shelter of the walls. They formed themselves rudely into line, and to the din of their tom-toms began to advance. This unexpected boldness on their part was met by our batteries of artillery opening fire at 800 or 900 yards’ range, and the first few shells caused many of the more timid to break and retire. Sir Donald Stewart ordered the infantry to clear the villages without delay, and General Barter’s Brigade advanced in line upon the right; while General Hughes, whose brigade had been joined by the 2nd Sikhs, made a direct attack in front, his left swinging round so as to take the detached village of Urzoo in rear. Our troops steadily advanced until within 200 yards of the enemy, when file-firing commenced. The fusillade was terrible, and so stunned were the wretched and ill-armed tribesmen, that they fled in confusion. Some preferred staying crouched in the ditch to running the gauntlet of the bullets. One can imagine the incessant “ping” when six regiments armed with breech-loaders are advancing in one long line, firing as rapidly as men can load. It was natural that an undisciplined mob should melt away before such an attack. The men who lay hidden fought hand to hand with our soldiers as the latter reached them; but there was really no stubborn resistance, and the cavalry and horse artillery were let loose to pursue the fugitives as soon as the villages were surrounded. The total loss on the part of the enemy was 300 or 400; while our casualties were almost nil—one private of the 60th and one sowar of the 1st Punjab Cavalry shot dead. Such of the enemy as came to close quarters with our men fought bravely enough, one ghazi making a desperate rush at Lieutenant Legh, of the 60th, who killed him with his sword.
The Tajik villagers of Urzoo stated that there were originally 4,000 footmen and 200 cavalry in the villages when General Palliser first arrived; but that, when our troops did not attack, word was sent to all neighbouring villages to turn out their fighting men, and many Pathans joined their friends just before Sir Donald Stewart’s arrival. There can be no doubt that Mushk-i-Alam had worked upon the fanaticism of the local tribesmen, in the hope of retrieving the defeat of Ahmed Khel. His hopes have been completely shattered, but as he has young Musa Khan still with him he may yet give us trouble. General Stewart left Sirdar Alum Khan in charge of Ghazni when the Candahar force moved towards Cabul. The defences of Ghazni were not touched, as they were considered too contemptible to give trouble if a force should ever find itself beneath the walls of the city.
ROUGH SKETCH
Showing the attack upon the villages of Urzoo
and Shalez by the Ghazni Field Force,
on the 23rd April 1880.