1837
Early in the year 1837, the regiment furnished a detachment, under the command of Captain N. Chadwick, to accompany the commander-in-chief, General Sir Henry Fane, G.C.B, on a visit to the ruler of the Sikhs, Maharajah Runjeet Singh, at Lahore, the capital of his dominions. After a journey of several weeks, General Sir Henry Fane arrived at Lahore on the 10th of March, and was greeted at the court of the ruler of the Sikhs by a gorgeous display of oriental magnificence, for which Asiatic potentates have been celebrated. The British troops which accompanied the commander-in-chief, were reviewed, on the 17th of March, by the Maharajah, who expressed great admiration of their appearance and discipline, and in a general order published immediately after the review, it was stated,
‘The Commander-in-Chief has much pleasure in communicating to the officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers of the escort, that their appearance and steadiness under arms, this morning, met with much approbation, and their performance of the various movements will leave in the Punjaub a very favourable impression of their discipline.’
Very valuable presents were made to the officers of the escort, and the Maharajah also gave eleven thousand rupees (1100l.) to be distributed among the non-commissioned officers and soldiers.
The Commander-in-Chief remained seven weeks at the capital of the ruler of the Sikhs, and afterwards commenced his journey back to the British dominions, and the officers and soldiers of the Thirteenth Light Infantry rejoined the regiment at Kurnaul.
1838
Events occurred in the years 1837 and 1838, which appeared to render a temporary departure from those pacific councils, which have marked the British policy in India, necessary, and which occasioned the Thirteenth Light Infantry to take the field, under the following circumstances. Shah Shoojah-ool-Moolk had been driven from the throne of Affghanistan, and his kingdom divided among several chiefs. A Persian army besieged Herat, on the frontiers of Affghanistan, and the court of Persia claimed an extensive portion of that kingdom, which lying between India and Persia appeared to menace the safety of the British dominions in the East Indies. These circumstances, and the unprovoked attack made on an ancient British ally, Runjeet Singh, by Dost Mahomed Khan, who relied on Persian encouragement and assistance, were followed by the conclusion of a tripartite treaty, between the British, Runjeet Singh, and Shah Shoojah, for the purpose of effecting the restoration of the dethroned monarch of Affghanistan, and a British force was assembled to achieve this important change in the aspect of affairs beyond the river Indus; this force was called the “Army of the Indus,” and the Thirteenth Light Infantry having been selected to take part in this enterprise, left Kurnaul in November, and proceeded to the rendezvous of the army at Ferozepore, where they arrived before the end of the month. They encamped within four miles of the Gharra, beyond which river the crimson tents and pavilions of the army of the Punjaub, designed to co-operate in the enterprise, presented a splendid and imposing appearance. The ruler of the Sikhs was with his forces; the governor general arrived at the camp, and grand interviews, entertainments, and reviews, took place, which were conducted with great magnificence. In the meantime the Persians had raised the siege of Herat, and the strength of the army was, in consequence thereof, reduced.
From the gala scenes on the banks of the Gharra the troops were called to the more arduous duties of the field, and they advanced upon the capital of the Daoodpootra state; the country was open, the roads good, the air clear and healthful, the river contiguous, and this pleasant march was completed before the end of December, 1838, when the army pitched its tents at the city of Bhawalpore.[19]
1839
After a short halt, the Thirteenth resumed their march in the beginning of January, 1839, and after passing the boundary of Bhawul Khan, they entered the territory of the Khyrpore Ameer, where the inhabitants evinced a disposition bordering on hostility, and withheld aid of every kind. Towards the end of January they arrived at Roree, and beheld the river Indus, which they were about to pass, upwards of half a mile broad, with its banks clothed with groves of date trees covering hills, which presented a striking contrast to the plains near them, green with corn and tamarisk bushes. After some delay, the fortress of Bakkur was delivered up to the British, as a place of arms during the war in Affghanistan.