The 2nd battalion remained stationary at Trichinopoly until June, 1824, when it marched to Madras, where it halted until September. In the meantime hostilities had commenced between the British and the Burmese empire; and in September the battalion embarked from Madras and sailed for Calcutta, where it arrived on the 10th of October. Towards the end of the year it marched to Barrackpore for the purpose of suppressing a mutiny amongst the Company's native troops at that place; and after the performance of this painful duty it returned to Calcutta.
1825
In the middle of January, 1825, it received orders to proceed to Rangoon, a city and principal port of the Burmese empire, situated on the north bank of the river Irawaddy, thirty miles from the sea, to reinforce the troops under Brigadier-General Sir Archibald Campbell,[138] employed against the Burmese army. It accordingly embarked from Calcutta under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Armstrong,[139] on the 15th of that month; and on its arrival at Rangoon, the enemy having been driven from his position in its vicinity, the flank companies advanced with the army upon Prome, a city situated about 150 miles up the river Irawaddy, while the battalion companies formed part of the reserve.
The advance was commenced on the 12th of February; owing to the nature of the country and the want of sufficient means for transporting the necessary military stores, part of the force proceeded by land, and the remainder in boats up the river Irawaddy. The flank companies of the Royals, commanded by Captain Tenison, formed the advance-guard of the land column, which was commanded by Brigadier-General Sir A. Campbell. Proceeding along a narrow and difficult path, tending obliquely toward the Irawaddy river, the column marched through the provinces of Lyng and Sarrawah; and on its arrival at Mophi, between two and three thousand Burmese, commanded by Maha Silwah, quitted an old pegaun fort, where they had evinced some determination to resist, and dispersed into a close jungle in the rear. From Mophi the column continued its progress, uninterrupted by the enemy, and forded the river Lyng at Thaboon on the 1st of March. The Carian inhabitants of the country through which the army marched viewed the expulsion of the Burmese with much satisfaction, and assisted the troops in making roads and in procuring supplies of rice and buffaloes. On the 2nd of March the division arrived at Sarrawah, on the Irawaddy, where its junction with the water column had been intended. This column had destroyed several of the enemy's stockades, and had continued its course up the river until it arrived within sight of Donabew, where a series of formidable stockades extending nearly a mile along the banks of the Irawaddy, and protected by about 15,000 Burmese, presented a formidable opposition. Information was received of a gallant but unsuccessful attack having been made on this post by the water column; and Sir Archibald Campbell resolved to retrace his steps with the land column, and concentrate his force for the reduction of this formidable position. He accordingly crossed the Irawaddy at Sarrawah by means of canoes and rafts, which, owing to the insufficiency of the craft employed, was not effected in less than five days. After halting two days at Henzada, the column pursued its march along the right bank of the river, and arrived before Donabew on the 25th of March: on the 27th a communication was opened with the water column, under Brigadier-General Cotton, of the 47th regiment, and both columns co-operated in the reduction of the place. Batteries were constructed without delay, and during the progress of these operations the enemy made several spirited sorties: on one occasion seventeen elephants were sent out, each carrying a complement of men, supported by a body of infantry; but the result proved the inutility of employing such means against British troops. In the beginning of April the batteries opened their fire, and shortly afterwards, the Burmese commander, Maha Bandoola, having been killed by the bursting of a shell, the enemy deserted the place and retreated through the jungles in the direction of Lamina. The intrenchments were immediately taken possession of, and considerable stores of grain and ammunition, with a number of guns of various descriptions, fell into the hands of the British. The Royals at this place had only one private man wounded.
After the capture of Donabew the troops resumed their march; and having crossed the Irawaddy on the 7th of April, at Sarrawah, were joined at that place by the reserve from Rangoon, consisting of eight companies of the Royals, under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Armstrong, a regiment of native infantry, and a supply of elephants; the whole under the orders of Brigadier-General M'Creagh. Thus reinforced the army pushed forward; the Burmese retreated; and the British troops arrived before Prome without the necessity of firing a shot: this city, though strongly fortified, was deserted, and in part burnt. Shortly afterwards the wet season set in, and during the heavy rains the army remained inactive; but no opportunity was omitted of entering upon pacific negociations with the Burmese government.
Information having been received of the approach of the enemy with a considerable force towards the British position, a reconnoissance was made up the river in a steam-boat by fifty men of the Royal Regiment, under Brigadier-General Cotton; and on the 15th of August the enemy was discovered at Meeaday, on the left bank of the river, about forty miles from Prome, with a force of between 16,000 and 20,000 men, who appeared all armed with muskets: they had also a small force on the right bank of the river. The Burmese opened a battery of 16 guns upon the reconnoitring party, but the width of the river being upwards of three-quarters of a mile, their shot fell short. On the 16th the steam-boat returned to Prome.
In the early part of September pacific overtures were made by the enemy, and an armistice was afterwards concluded, when the Royals were selected to preserve the line of demarcation between the two armies. Terms of peace were also proposed, namely,—"a large portion of territory was to be ceded by the Burmese, and two crores of rupees paid as an indemnification for the expenses of the war." These conditions produced the utmost indignation at the court of Ava, and a determination to resist their invaders and prosecute the war with vigour. Hostilities recommenced on the 16th of November; and three bodies of British native infantry were soon afterwards repulsed in an attack upon the enemy's advanced position;—the Burmese being in greater force than was anticipated, and the troops sent against them insufficient to contend against so considerable a superiority of numbers.
The result of this attack inspired the Burmese generals with a high but false idea of their own power; and they advanced from their position with their whole force, amounting to between 50,000 and 60,000 men. Brigadier-General Campbell had only about 6000 men to oppose to this formidable host, which threatened to surround him; but though so very inferior in numbers to the enemy, he calmly awaited their approach, and determined to avail himself of any favourable opportunity of attacking them. In the meantime, in order to prevent the enemy's attempts to intercept his communication with Rangoon, and cut off his supplies, which had to be brought a distance of 150 miles up the river Irawaddy, the British commander established 100 men of the Royal Regiment, and an equal number of native infantry, under the command of Captain Deane of the Royals, at Pagahm-Mew, a few miles below Prome, on the Irawaddy, supported by a division of the flotilla on the river under Lieutenant Kellett, of the Royal Navy. This detachment was frequently attacked by superior numbers, and the meritorious conduct of both officers and men is detailed in the following copies of letters from Captain Deane to the Adjutant-General of the Forces serving in Ava:—
20th November.—"I have the honour to report, for the information of the Commander of the Forces, a brush which took place between the party under my command and the enemy this morning.
"In the early part of the morning the fog was so thick as to preclude our seeing anything in our front, and on its clearing up I discovered, by means of a reconnoitring party, that the enemy were in considerable force on the edge of the jungle in front of my left, and shortly afterwards I discovered them marching in three columns across my front, for the attack of my right, left, and centre;—their main object being evidently to gain the right of the village. I, consequently, detached a party to turn their left, and had, in a few minutes, the satisfaction to observe that column retiring in confusion, and with considerable loss. I then moved forward with the remainder of my party to attack their centre, which also retired in confusion after a very few rounds: during this time their right was engaged with a strong piquet which I had placed to dispute the passage of a bridge on the left of the village—this the piquet effectually did. In both the defence of my centre and left, I was much indebted to the prompt assistance afforded me by Lieutenant Kellett, R.N.