Preparations were now made for the advance of the British army into the Punjaub; the engineer department constructed a pontoon-bridge, and the whole British force, with its artillery, passed the Sutlej, and encamped on the opposite side, in the territory of the Sikhs: the enemy, disheartened and dismayed by their late defeats offered no opposition, retiring as the British army advanced. The distance from the river Sutlej to the capital of the Sikhs is less than fifty miles; the march to it was performed without opposition, and without difficulty: the power of the Sikhs was prostrate; their government sent chiefs of high rank as ambassadors to the British camp, to offer terms of submission to the Governor-General, suing for peace on whatever terms the conquerors might please to dictate.
Lieutenant Tritton died of his wounds on the evening of the battle, and early the next morning the regiment marched towards the bridge of boats, which was in progress at the nearest point on the Sutlej to Ferozepore; on this march it was joined by a detachment of sixty men under the command of Lieutenant M‘Kenzie, along with Assistant-Surgeon Massey, who had just arrived from Umballa, being part of an escort in charge of heavy guns, and an immense train of ammunition hackeries, which they had hoped to bring up in time for the last great battle, and were sadly disappointed to find it was all over;—such are the chances of war!! On the 12th the regiment was turned out at 10 o’clock P.M., and marching all night, crossed the river in native boats at sunrise, along with a large force under Sir Henry Smith, the band in the first boat playing “Garry-Owen,” and the men in high spirits at the prospect of entering the Punjaub.
This forced march was effected from a report having been sent to the Commander-in-Chief, that the Sikhs were about to oppose the crossing of the river, but no such demonstration took place. After halting some days at Kussoor, which is one march from the Sutlej, the army moved towards Lahore, marching at daylight every morning in order of battle, and every regiment in brigade keeping its own place through fields and jungles, forcing a way through every obstacle, and ready to form line at any moment. It was indeed a grand sight to see this splendid army on the morning of the 20th of February approaching the city of Lahore, over a boundless and perfectly open plain, on which it encamped about two miles from the city. On the 22nd the British Standard was hoisted on the citadel, and the event was announced to the army by the following General Orders of the Governor-General:—
General Orders by the Right Honorable the Governor-General of India.
“Camp, Lahore, 22nd February, 1846.
“The British army has this day occupied the gateway of the citadel of Lahore, the Badshahee Mosque, and the Huzzooree Bagh.
“The Army of the Sutlej has now brought its operations in the field to a close, by the dispersion of the Sikh army, and the military occupation of Lahore, preceded by a series of the most triumphant successes ever recorded in the military history of India.
“Compelled suddenly to assume the offensive by the unprovoked invasion of its territories, the British Army, under the command of its distinguished leader, has in sixty days defeated the Sikh forces in four general actions, has captured 220 pieces of field-artillery, and is now at the capital, dictating to the Lahore durbar the terms of a treaty, the conditions of which will tend to secure the British provinces from the repetition of a similar outrage.”
The decisive termination of the war in the Punjaub enabled the Governor-General and the Supreme Council to reduce the number of the Queen’s regular regiments in India. An order was accordingly issued for the return of the THIRTY-FIRST to Europe, but as it was desirable to retain all the efficient men who were willing to continue their services in India, the soldiers were permitted to volunteer into the other regiments serving in the Bengal Presidency.