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 eve............