the plan of the british general for the capture of ghuznee was a bold one. he knew that his little guns could make no impression upon the walls, and that it would take weeks before it would be possible to effect a breach. his idea was to blow in the gate and to pour his troops in through the opening. his plans were admirably laid. at midnight six companies of infantry established themselves in the gardens to the right and left of the spot where the assaulting column were to take up their position, ready to advance as soon as the gate was blown in. two hours later three companies of a native regiment made a detour and took up a position to the north of the fortress. the field artillery took up their post on a height. at three o'clock in the morning the infantry on the north opened a musketry fire. at the same moment the artillery on the hills began a brisk cannonade, while a camel battery directed its fire against the walls. the guns of the fortress at once replied, and the walls were fringed with the musketry fire.[pg 145] it was still an hour to daylight when captain thompson, of the royal engineers, with a party of his men, crept forward to the gate, carrying with them nine hundred pounds of gunpowder in twelve sacks.
the movement was altogether unobserved by the garrison, who had been taken completely by surprise by the sudden fire. the night had been exceptionally favourable for the attempt. the wind blew so strongly that the tramp of the columns and the sound of the wheels of the guns failed to reach the ears of the sentries on the walls. when the fire broke out the afghans at once burned numbers of blue lights to endeavour to obtain a clear view of the attacking force; but the light failed to pierce the darkness, and the fireworks burned but fitfully owing to the force of the gale. they therefore distributed themselves along the whole circuit of walls instead of concentrating upon the point where the attack was about to take place.
the engineers had done their work admirably. they crept silently along the causeway which afforded a passage across the moat, and then up the steep ascent which led to the gate, unnoticed by those who manned the loopholes. two minutes sufficed to place the sacks in position. the fuse was then fired, and the party ran back to such cover as they could find. at this moment the afghans lit a large and brilliant blue light immediately over the gate, but before they could obtain any idea of what was passing below the explosion took place. the gate was blown to pieces, and masses of masonry and fractured beams fell into the passage beyond. then a bugle was sounded by the engineers, and the storming party rushed down and crept into the dark, blocked-up passage. here they were fiercely opposed. the afghans had rallied almost instantly from their first surprise, and rushed down to defend the passage. a desperate struggle took place in the dark, but british valour was tri[pg 146]umphant, and the four companies of the 2nd and 17th regiments fought their way into the interior of the fortress.
had they been at once supported by the column behind them, commanded by brigadier-general sale, the capture of ghuznee would have been comparatively bloodless; but as he was advancing he met one of the engineer officers, who had been terribly bruised and injured by the explosion. upon being questioned, the latter said that the gate had been blown in, but that the passage was blocked with the ruins. as in that case it would have been madness to advance, the general ordered the retreat to be sounded. the call was heard by the leading companies, but not obeyed. instead of the troops retreating, they halted irresolutely, rather than carry out an order the most unwelcome that can be given to british soldiers. fortunately another engineer officer soon came along and assured the brigadier that, although the passage was greatly blocked, the storming party had made their way through; whereupon the column at once rushed forward. the delay, however, had given the garrison time to rally, and large numbers had run down from the wall to take part in the fight. many, however, despairing of successful resistance now that their assailants had won their way into the town, allowed the storming party to pass and then attempted to escape through the gateway. but as they did so, general sale with the head of his column arrived, and another desperate fight took place among the ruins of the gate.
the general himself was cut down, and his assailant endeavoured to complete his work. sale succeeded in grasping his sword hand, but, weakened by his wound, must have been overpowered had not an officer run up and severely wounded the afghan. the struggle continued, but the general managed to gain his feet and cut down his assailant.
the column was a long time in passing over the heap of[pg 147] ruins, now further encumbered by wounded and dead. as soon as they had entered, the reserve, who had been suffering from the fire of the afghans still on the walls, followed them, and while general sale's division ascended the steep path that led to the citadel, which rose far above the rest of the fortress, the reserve began the work of clearing out the afghans from the houses. large numbers of afghans had taken refuge here as the troops entered, and these, rushing out, flung themselves upon the troops with the fury of despair. many of these who had first entered, exhausted by their exertions, were with the wounded sitting in the courtyard at the foot of the citadel. upon these the fanatics rushed, cutting and slashing with their keen tulwars alike at the soldiers who started to their feet, the wounded on the ground, and their own horses, who, mad with terror, were galloping wildly over the courtyard. a series of desperate hand-to-hand conflicts were waged until the last of the afghans were shot or bayoneted. the walls were cleared with little difficulty, but many soldiers were shot as they passed through the narrow streets of the native town. all resistance ceased at a quarter past five. thus in two hours and a quarter after the first shot was fired, a fortress deemed impregnable and garrisoned by three thousand five hundred men was captured.
ghuznee had been provisioned for six months, and so certain was mohummed hyder of the ability of the place to hold out that he had brought with him all the ladies of his zenana. in spite of the desperate nature of the fighting, not one of the afghans who surrendered was injured, nor was the slightest insult offered to the ladies of the zenana or the women in the native town. the troops who had ascended to the citadel found the gates open, the afghan prince having lost all hope as soon as he found the lower fortress in possession of the british. he was found hiding[pg 148] in disguise, and was brought before shah soojah. the latter magnanimously said to him: "what has been has been; you have deserved evil at my hands, but you have this day behaved like a brave man. i forgive thee the past; go in peace." the young prince was then handed over to sir alexander burnes for safe custody.
the success had been cheaply purchased. only seventeen non-commissioned officers and privates had been killed, and eighteen officers and a hundred and forty-seven men wounded. of the afghans, five hundred and fourteen bodies were buried next day; more than a hundred fugitives were killed outside the walls; upwards of a thousand horses, a great number of camels and mules, vast quantities of provisions, ammunition, and arms fell into the hands of the conquerors, together with more than fifteen hundred prisoners. over a thousand made their escape.
at the first outburst of firing angus had sprung to his feet; as the fight increased in fury he was certain that a night attack was in progress, and he at once proceeded to drive in the wedges he had prepared. just as he had completed this he heard the dull roar of the explosion, followed by loud and excited shouts, but the noise of the gale prevented him from catching the words. he had no doubt, however, that either the gate had been blown in or that a mine had been driven into the wall, and that the explosion of an immense charge of powder had effected a breach. then came the sound of a heavy and continuous rattle of musketry. the cannon of the fortress opened fire, while those of the besiegers answered. by the occasional fall of masses of masonry, and the screams of women, he had no doubt that the british artillery were now directing their fire against the citadel, in order to add to the confusion among the defenders of the fortress.
prop
he took down the prop, and thrust it suddenly with all his force through the hole.
[pg 149]
presently he heard a rush of feet up the staircase, then the bolts of the door were pulled back, and a yell of rage and surprise arose as the door did not yield to the push against it. the staircase was a very narrow one, and but one person could mount at a time. as it terminated at the door, one man only could use his strength against it, and angus felt perfectly sure that it would need a much greater pressure than this to force it open. he had already propped the plank against it, and stood with his foot at the lower end to prevent it from slipping. the man next to the door, finding that it did not yield, began to hammer with the hilt of his sword, but soon desisted, finding that his blows did not even shake it. there was a confused sound of talking, and then silence for a few minutes; then there was a renewed noise, and a heavy blow was struck at the door. evidently a large block of wood had been brought up; but this did not greatly alarm angus. the staircase was a circular one, and at most but two men could work the battering-ram, which on account of the confined space was necessarily short.
this proving unsuccessful, there was again silence. after an interval came blows of a sharper sound, an axe of some sort was being used. during the lulls of the wind the sounds of the struggle below could be plainly heard, and as it was now dawn angus could have seen what was going on had not the loophole been on the opposite side, but from the sharpness of the sound he had no doubt that the firing was in the courtyard, and that his countrymen had effected an entrance. the chopping went on regularly. the door was thick and strong, and it was half an hour before the edge of the axe first showed through it; another five minutes and a hole a foot wide appeared some four feet from the ground. at this rate it would be some time before an[pg 150] opening large enough for a man to pass through could be made. he took down the prop, and thrust it suddenly with all his force through the hole, striking the man who was wielding the axe full in the face.
there was a terrible cry, mingled with yells of rage from the others. presently a pistol was thrust through the hole and fired; he had expected this, and had stood back. again and again shots were fired. it was evident that there was an unwillingness on the part of his assailants to try the axe again. presently he heard a shout from below. the words came up distinctly, "mohummed hyder's orders are that the attack is to cease," and angus felt that he was saved. the prince, indeed, seeing that all was lost, had sent an officer in great haste to put a stop to the attack on his prisoner's cell. he no longer thought of carrying out his former intentions. the british army was not after all an impotent enemy to be insulted, but a victorious one to be appeased, and as soon as he was informed of the attack on his prisoner's cell he had sent off to put a stop to it. it had not been made by his orders, but was the act of the soldiers on the wall near it, who, seeing that the british had entered, had determined to take vengeance upon the captive.
a few minutes later angus heard the triumphant cheers of the troops as they poured in through the open gate of the citadel.
it was another hour before the contest in the courtyard below and on the walls of the fortress came to an end. shortly afterwards he heard steps approaching, and through the hole in the door saw a british officer coming up the stair; behind him was azim.
"i am glad indeed to see you, campbell," the officer said, as he caught sight of his face. "we had all given you up as dead when we found that none of your escort came back;[pg 151] but your boy, on questioning the prisoners, found out that you were confined here, and came at once to tell me. i see by the state of the door that you have been standing a siege. are you uninjured?"
"yes, my rascally troops seized me suddenly and brought me here. i will tell you about it as soon as i have unfastened the door."
"it is the first time i ever heard of a prison door having bolts on the inside."
"they are not bolts, as you will see directly."
it took some minutes to get all the wedges out. macgregor then entered and shook angus warmly by the hand, while azim threw himself on his knees, and seizing his master's hand kissed it again and again, tears of joy streaming down his cheeks.
"where in the world did you get these wedges?" macgregor asked.
"i cut them out of this plank. it took me all day yesterday to make them and this mallet. how the plank came here i don't know, but it certainly saved my life."
"that and your wits, campbell. it was a capital idea, first-rate. i see there is blood on the staircase."
"the plank came in useful again. i used it as a battering-ram on the fellow who was chopping, and as i caught him full in the face, the blood is accounted for. as you see by the opposite wall, they fired a few shots through the hole afterwards, but of course i took good care to be out of the line of fire."
"well, come along. sir alexander has been asking about you, but could get no information, and it might have been some time before you were set free had it not been for your boy."
on going down into the body of the citadel, angus was most warmly greeted by sir alexander burnes and the other[pg 152] officers who knew him, for all supposed that he had been murdered. he explained to his chief why his life had been spared.
"you had a narrow escape indeed," the latter said, "for i have no doubt whatever that the afghan would have carried out his threat had we attacked in a regular way. it is quite in accordance with their barbarous customs. but i certainly wonder that they did not kill you when we entered the fortress."
macgregor then told the manner in which angus had converted his little cell into a fort, and had resisted successfully the attacks made upon it.
"a very narrow escape indeed, mr. campbell," sir alexander burnes said. "it was fortunate indeed that that piece of wood had been left in the cell; but the idea of cutting wedges from it and fastening the door would not have occurred to everyone. it was a most happy thought, and certainly was the means of saving your life. it was a treacherous business indeed of hajee khan kakur, for i have no doubt that he was the concocter of the plot. he has given us the strongest grounds for suspicion ever since we left candahar, and has continually been making excuses for lagging behind. we have strong reason for believing that if we had failed here, he would at once have turned against us."
"i do not think he knew of this, sir. when i was seized, the trooper said. 'do you think that because our chief is a traitor we are traitors too?'"
"these fellows are very crafty, mr. campbell, and hajee has a special reputation that way, having before now turned traitor in spite of promises and vows. he may very well have instructed one of his men to say this, in order that if, contrary to all probability, you ever rejoined the army, he[pg 153] himself might be shielded by your repeating this speech. we have never put any trust in him since he joined us, though of course it was politic to seem to do so, as other chiefs might follow his example. he was questioned very sharply as to the orders he had given his men when you did not return that afternoon. of course he swore by the prophet that he had chosen men in whom he had the greatest confidence, which was, i have no doubt, true. however, as it was possible that you and they might have fallen into an ambush, the matter was dropped for the time. but our suspicions gained ground when, as we came up here, no signs of a fight were discovered, no bodies either of men or horses, and i intended to reopen the matter as soon as things were a little settled down. well, i can assure you i am heartily glad to see you back again safe and sound, and i shall not fail to report the matter to sir john keane, and tell him how cleverly you escaped the fate intended for you."
the army remained for a week at ghuznee while preparations were being made for converting the fortress into a base from which further operations could be carried on. it was thought well to pause, so that the full effects of the disaster might be felt throughout the country before the advance began again. the fall of ghuznee had indeed entirely disarranged the plan of campaign that had been decided upon by dost mahomed. the fortress had been provisioned for six months, and it was confidently believed that it could resist all attacks for that time. with the approach of winter, the position of a besieging army would be desperate. the cold would be intense, they would be surrounded on all sides by swarms of fierce tribesmen, would be unable to obtain provisions in the country round, and must either retire through the passes they had ascended, to candahar,[pg 154] or be forced by famine to surrender. in the former case, the disaster that afterwards occurred in endeavouring to retire from cabul would probably have befallen them.
this plan was entirely brought to naught by the fall of ghuznee, and six days later the brother of dost mahomed arrived in camp with an offer from the ameer to surrender the government to shah soojah, on condition that he himself should, as the head of the barukzyes, fill the hereditary office of wuzeer, or prime minister. as this would have placed the whole power of the state in his hands, the offer was refused, and on the 31st of july the army resumed its march. after three days' march, they learned that the kuzzilbashes had mutinied. this body of troops were of persian descent, and had for very many years formed an important part of the military power of cabul, and held a position similar to that of the janizaries of constantinople and the mamelukes of egypt. under but very slight control, they were constantly causing trouble by their insolence and exactions, and they now showed that they entertained no feeling either of loyalty or gratitude towards the dynasty which they served.
in spite of the exhortations of the ameer, they insisted upon his granting them a discharge from his service, and as it was evident that the news from ghuznee had so much dispirited the whole army that no reliance whatever could be placed on their fidelity, the unfortunate monarch was obliged to allow the kuzzilbashes to disband, and the rest of the army to disperse, and to take to the mountains as a fugitive, accompanied only by a small party of personal followers. a force was at once sent in pursuit of him; but as the following of the traitor, hajee khan, formed the principal part of this force, the double-faced chief, who desired to make himself safe whatever turn affairs might take, so contrived that dost mahomed and his party were[pg 155] not overtaken. in the meantime the main force marched forward to cabul wholly unopposed. twenty-two guns were found abandoned at the spot where the ameer's army had dispersed. these, placed in a strong defile, and supported by a large force of tribesmen, might have long resisted our advance had the kuzzilbashes and other afghan horsemen swept round on our rear, and although british valour might have finally succeeded, it could only have been after a terrible struggle. but now the ameer was a fugitive, the guns were in our hands, the kuzzilbashes and native tribesmen had come in to salute their new ruler, and nothing remained but to enter the capital in triumph.
the entry took place on the 7th of august. the ceremony was an imposing one. shah soojah, after an exile of thirty years, rode at the head of the cortege, on a white charger with golden trappings. he wore a jewelled coronet, his arms and garments were ornamented with precious stones, and his waist encircled with a broad girdle of gold encrusted with rubies and emeralds. accompanying him were the commander-in-chief, and mr. macnaghten and sir alexander burnes, who were in full diplomatic dress. two of the shah's sons and a few of the principal chiefs rode behind him with a number of staff officers in full uniform. following him came the army that had performed so long and difficult a march to place him on his throne. the surrounding country traversed was rich and fertile in the extreme, and almost covered with orchards of peaches and other fruits; under these crops of all sorts grew luxuriantly. on the eminences commanding the plain immense numbers of tribesmen assembled to witness the martial display.
on entering the city, the victors found the inhabitants clustered in the streets through which they passed to the royal residence in the bala hissar, a great citadel situated on a hill commanding the town, and so strongly fortified that[pg 156] it would have been difficult to capture it unless by the aid of a regular siege train. the aspect of the inhabitants was perfectly peaceful; there were no shouts or exclamations of enthusiasm, but it was evident from the expression of satisfaction on their faces that the majority were well satisfied with the termination of the rule of the barukzyes, whose exactions had pressed heavily upon them.
dost mahomed himself was popular. he was affable and kindly in disposition; his decisions on all matters brought before him were just and fair; he was accessible to all having complaints to bring before him; and had he possessed a body of trustworthy infantry to overawe the marauding kuzzilbashes and the semi-independent chiefs, there can be no doubt that his rule would have been a wise and beneficial one. shah soojah was the reverse of his rival. haughty and arrogant, he regarded and treated with contempt his new subjects, seldom granted audience, or troubled himself in any way with their affairs, rarely went abroad, and remained in almost constant seclusion in his palace.
the shops of cabul excited the admiration of the officers and men of the british force. probably nowhere else in the world could such a display of fruit have been collected. here were piles of peaches equal to the finest product of english hothouses, grapes of five varieties, rosy apples, juicy pears, several delicious kinds of melons, almonds, pistachio nuts, walnuts, quinces, cherries, and red and white mulberries, and vegetables of all kinds. the butchers' shops were cleanly and well arranged; there were public ovens, in which loaves, and the cakes of which the afghans are extremely fond, were baking when the force entered. in the potters' shops were jars and drinking vessels of all kinds; afghan, persian, and russian cloths, cloaks, furs of many kinds, sets of china and dresden porcelain in the shops of the wealthier traders; and behind these open shops[pg 157] were inner apartments with very fine and costly shawls, silks, precious stones, valuable carpets, and tea imported by way of bokhara. conspicuous were the shops of manufacturers of swords and daggers, and makers of scabbards and belts, shields and chain armour, and even of bookbinders, who manufactured covers for manuscript copies of persian poems and stories. unfortunately for the moral of the army, there were also manufactories of spirits. since leaving candahar no spirit rations had been served out, and the troops had greatly benefited in health during their arduous work by the privation, but the power to purchase vile spirits at a very low price now tempted many into drinking to intoxication, and lowered at once their health and discipline.
mr. macnaghten and his staff had a fine building in the bala hissar allotted to them. sir alexander burnes with his assistants occupied a house in the city. the position of burnes was an unsatisfactory one. he had a right to expect that after his previous residence in cabul he would be appointed british resident there, and he had only accepted a secondary position upon the understanding that macnaghten's appointment was a temporary one. he had on the way up rendered much valuable assistance, but he had no strictly defined duties. his opinion was seldom asked, and if given, was wholly disregarded. for this he was himself somewhat to blame. his temperament was a changeable one. at times he was full of enthusiasm and saw everything in the rosiest light; at other times he was depressed and despondent, and came to be regarded as a prophet of evil. having no serious work to occupy his mind, he worried over trifles, exaggerated the importance of the bazaar rumours, and was often filled with the gloomiest anticipations.
the war had been undertaken altogether in opposition to[pg 158] his advice. he had been most favourably impressed with dost mahomed, and his remonstrances against the attempt to force shah soojah on the afghans had been so strong and persistent, that the home government, in defending themselves from the public indignation excited by subsequent disaster, even went the length of suppressing some of his despatches and garbling others, after he was no longer alive to proclaim the falsification.
once at cabul, his opportunities for doing useful service came to an end. macnaghten, who was always sanguine to an extent that, in the light of subsequent events, seemed to border on insanity, was all-powerful with the new ameer. the expression of any opinion which ran counter to his own was in the highest degree distasteful to him, and it was only in negotiations for the supply of the troops, and with the petty chiefs, that burnes and his staff found any employment.
although pushtoo was the language of the country-people who came in with goods, the inhabitants of cabul almost universally spoke persian, and angus campbell and azim found themselves quite at home among them.
on the 3rd of september, a force under colonel wade, which had advanced through the khyber pass, arrived at cabul. it was a mixed body composed principally of pathans and sikhs. it had met with comparatively small resistance, but had rendered valuable service, as a large force had been detached from dost mahomed's army to oppose its advance, and thus greatly weakened the army with which the ameer had intended to meet the british advance from candahar. the afghan force had been recalled in haste after the news of the fall of ghuznee, but had not arrived until after the disbandment of the ameer's army and his flight to the bamian pass, when it had also broken up, and wade was therefore able to reach cabul without opposition.
[pg 159]
it was now necessary to decide what should be done with the army of occupation. macnaghten was pressing by a constant succession of letters that large reinforcements should be sent up in order to win back for shah soojah the territories that had once formed part of the afghan empire. he urged that in order to check russian aggression an army should not only occupy herat, but should extend its operations until it became paramount at bokhara; while, on the other hand, peshawur and the territory wrested from afghanistan by the sikhs should be reconquered, and the sikh nation, which was becoming more and more hostile to us, should be brought into subjection. but fortunately lord auckland, now freed from the pernicious influence of macnaghten and surrounded by discreet counsellors, was by no means disposed to turn a favourable ear to these fantastic projects. the cost of the army of occupation was a heavy drain on the revenue of india, and so far from any assistance being rendered by afghanistan, shah soojah was constantly clamouring for subsidies to enable him to maintain his position. the absence of so many troops was also much felt in india, for they were greatly needed on the frontiers of the beloochees as well as those of the sikhs. macnaghten had so persistently asserted that shah soojah was personally popular with the afghans, that it was decided that only a comparatively small force was needed to uphold his authority in case dost mahomed should make an effort to recover his throne, and orders were given that the greater portion of the bombay army should march down through the kojuk and bolan passes, and most of the bengal troops through the khyber, leaving some six regiments, with a proportion of artillery, at cabul, with garrisons at ghuznee, candahar, quettah, and jellalabad.
macnaghten in vain remonstrated and entreated. it was settled that the movement should begin at the end of sep[pg 160]tember, so that the troops could regain the plains before winter set in in earnest. september passed quietly. the climate at this time was perfect, and the troops enjoyed the rest, with the abundance of fruit and vegetables. there were reviews and races. shah soojah established an order of knighthood, and held a grand durbar, at which the principal officers were invested, with great ceremony, with the insignia of the new order. on the 18th of the month the bombay column started on its march, but news having been brought down from the force that had occupied the bamian pass, that dost mahomed was collecting a formidable army, the authorities were induced to maintain a great portion of the bengal force round cabul. great difficulties arose with reference to provisioning these troops through the winter. there was abundant accommodation for them in the bala hissar and its citadel, but shah soojah strongly objected to the presence of a large body of troops there. macnaghten, with his usual weakness, gave way.
on the 15th of october sir john keane, with that portion of the bengal force that was to return, set out. the ameer left two days later, to spend the winter in the more genial climate of jellalabad, and macnaghten accompanied him. sanguine as he was, he could not help feeling uneasy at the situation. the british occupation had greatly benefited the merchants and traders, the farmers and cultivators of cabul, but it had seriously injured the poorer portion of the community. the natural result of so large an army, well supplied with money, being stationed in the city, was to raise the price of all articles of consumption prodigiously, and to cause wide-spread discontent. the exactions of the native tax-collectors pressed heavily upon all the tribesmen. the british officers, by the terms of the treaty with shah soojah, were unable to interfere in any way with the internal affairs of the country; but when the natives revolted[pg 161] against the unjust exactions it was they who were called upon to suppress them, consequently the infidel supporters of the ameer became more and more hated by the people, and it was soon dangerous for them to go beyond the limits of their camps. the ameer himself resented the state of subjection in which he considered that he was held, though he could not dispense with british bayonets and british money. macnaghten left behind him experienced administrators. burnes, conolly, leech, todd, and lord had all long acquaintance with the country, and if anyone could, under such circumstances, have reconciled the country to foreign occupation, they would have done so.
