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The River War

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On the 5th of September the 1st (Lewis) and 2nd (MacDonald) Brigades
moved to Dulgo, and at the same time the remainder of the army began
to march across the loop from Kosheh by Sadin Fanti to Absarat.
Every available soldier had been collected for the final operation
of the campaign.

The Expeditionary Force was organised as follows:

Commander-in-Chief: The SIRDAR

The Infantry Division: COLONEL HUNTER Commanding

1st Brigade 2nd Brigade 3rd Brigade 4th Brigade
MAJOR LEWIS MAJOR MACDONALD MAJOR MAXWELL MAJOR DAVID
3rd Egyptians XIth Soudanese 2nd Egyptians 1st Egyptians
4th " XIIth " 7th " 5th "
IXth Soudanese XIIIth " 8th " 15th "
Xth "

Cavalry Brigade and Mounted Forces: MAJOR BURN-MURDOCH

Cavalry . . . . . 8 squadrons
Camel Corps . . . . 6 companies
Horse Artillery . . . 1 battery

Artillery: MAJOR PARSONS

Field Artillery . . . 2 batteries
Maxims . . . . 1 battery (British)

Divisional Troops: MAJOR CURRIE

North Staffordshire Regiment . . . . 1st Battalion

The Flotilla: COMMANDER COLVILLE

Gunboats . . . Zafir, Tamai, Abu Klea, Metemma, El Teb
Armed Steamers . . . Kaibar, Dal, Akasha

Total: 15,000 men, 8 war-vessels, and 36 guns


Thus thirteen of the sixteen battalions of the Egyptian Army were
employed at the front. Two others, the 6th and XIVth, were disposed along
the line of communication, holding the various fortified posts. The 16th
Battalion of reservists remained at Suakin. The whole native army was
engaged in the war, and the preservation of domestic order in the capital
and throughout the Khedive's dominions was left entirely to the police and
to the British Army of Occupation. By the 9th all four brigades had reached
the rendezvous at Dulgo; on the 10th the British regiment, which it was
determined to send up in the steamers, was moved to Kosheh by rail from
Sarras and Gemai. The Sirdar prepared to start with the flotilla
on the 12th.

But a culminating disappointment remained. By tremendous exertions
the Zafir had been finished in time to take part in the operations.
Throughout the army it was expected that the Zafir would be the feature
of the campaign. At length the work was finished, and the Zafir floated,
powerful and majestic, on the waters of the Nile. On the afternoon of
the 11th of September many officers and men came to witness her trial trip.
The bank was lined with spectators. Colville took command. The Sirdar and
his Staff embarked. Flags were hoisted and amid general cheering the
moorings were cast off. But the stern paddle had hardly revolved twice when
there was a loud report, like that of a heavy gun, clouds of steam rushed
up from the boilers, and the engines stopped. Sir H. Kitchener and
Commander Colville were on the upper deck. The latter rushed below to learn
what had happened, and found that she had burst her low-pressure cylinder,
a misfortune impossible to repair until a new one could be obtained from
Halfa and fitted.

In spite of this, however, the advance was not delayed. On the 13th
the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Brigades occupied Kaderma. Here the flotilla
overtook them, and henceforward the boats on the river kept pace with
the army on the bank. Fareig was reached on the 14th, and as the numerous
palms by the water afforded a pleasant shade a halt of two days was
ordered. On the 16th the 4th Brigade arrived, and the concentration of
the force was then complete.

After the annihilation of his strong advanced post at Firket,
the Dervish Emir, Wad Bishara, concentrated his remaining forces
in Dongola. Here during the summer he had awaited, and in the middle of
August some small reinforcements under one Emir of low rank reached him
from Omdurman. The Khalifa, indeed, promised that many more should follow,
but his promises long remained unfulfilled, and the greatest strength that
Bishara could muster was 900 Jehadia, 800 Baggara Arabs, 2,800 spearmen,
450 camelmen, 650 cavalry--in all 5,600 men, with six small brass cannon
and one mitrailleuse gun. To augment in numbers, if not in strength,
this small force of regular soldiers, he impressed a large number of the
local tribesmen; but as these were, for the most part, anxious to join the
Government troops at the first opportunity, their effect in the conflict
was inconsiderable.

The first sign that the forces were drawing closer was the cutting of the
telegraph-wire by a Dervish patrol on the 6th of September. On the 10th
the Sirdar heard that Kerma was strongly held. On the 15th of September
the Egyptian cavalry first established contact with the Dervish scouts,
and a slight skirmish took place. On the 18th the whole force advanced to
Sardek, and as Bishara still held his position at Kerma it looked as if an
action was imminent. It was resolved to attack the Dervish position at
Kerma at dawn. Although it seemed that only four miles separated the
combatants, the night passed quietly. With the first light the army began
to move, and when the sun rose the spectacle of the moving masses of men
and artillery, with the gunboats on the right, was inspiring. The soldiers
braced themselves for the expected action. But no sooner were the village
and fort of Kerma visible than the report passed along the ranks that they
were deserted. Rumour was soon merged in certainty, for on reaching Kerma
it was found that the Dervishes had evacuated the place, and only the
strong, well-built mud fort attested the recent presence of Bishara.
Whither had he gone? The question was not left unanswered.

Half a mile to the southward, on the opposite bank of the river,
among the groves of palm-trees ran a long and continuous line of shelter
trenches and loopholed walls. The flanks of this new position rested on the
deep morasses which extend from the river both on the north and south sides
of Hafir. A small steamer, a fleet of large gyassas and other sailing
vessels moored to the further shore explained what had happened. Conscious
of his weakness, the prudent Emir had adroitly transported himself across
the river, and had thus placed that broad flood between his troops and
their destruction.

Meanwhile the three gunboats--all that now remained of the armed flotilla,
for the Teb had run on a rock in the Hannek Cataract--were steaming
gradually nearer the enemy, and the army swung to the right, and, forming
along the river bank, became spectators of a scene of fascinating interest.
At half-past six the Horse battery unlimbered at the water's edge,
and began to fire obliquely up and across the river. As soon as the first
few shells had reached the Arab entrenchment the whole line of shelter
trenches was edged with smoke, and the Dervishes replied with a heavy
rifle fire. The distance was, however, too great for their bad rifles and
inferior ammunition, and their bullets, although they occasionally struck
the ground on which the infantry were drawn up, did not during the day
cause any loss to the watching army.

The Dervish position was about half a mile in length. As the gunboats
approached the northern end they opened fire with their guns, striking the
mud entrenchments at every shot, and driving clouds of dust and splinters
into the air. The Maxim guns began to search the parapets, and two
companies of the Staffordshire Regiment on board the unarmoured steamers
Dal and Akasha fired long-range volleys. Now, as on other occasions
throughout the war, the Dervishes by their military behaviour excited the
admiration of their enemies. Encouraged by the arrival in the morning of a
reinforcement from Omdurman of 1,000 Black Jehadia and 500 spearmen under
Abdel Baki, the Dervish gunners stood to their guns and the riflemen to
their trenches, and, although suffering severely, maintained
a formidable fire.

The gunboats continued to advance, beating up slowly against the strong
current. As they came opposite Hafir, where the channel narrows to about
600 yards, they were received by a very heavy fire from guns placed in
cleverly screened batteries, and from the riflemen sheltered in deep pits
by the water's edge or concealed amid the foliage of the tops of the
palm-trees. These aerial skirmishers commanded the decks of the vessels,
and the shields of the guns were thus rendered of little protection.
All the water round the gunboats was torn into foam by the projectiles.
The bullets pattered against their sides, and, except where they were
protected by steel plates, penetrated. One shell struck the Abu Klea on
the water-line, and entered the magazine. Luckily it did not explode,
the Dervishes having forgotten to set the fuse. Three shells struck the
Metemma. On board the Tamai, which was leading, Commander Colville was
severely wounded in the wrist; Armourer-Sergeant Richardson was killed at
his Maxim gun, and on each boat some casualties occurred. So hot was the
fire that it was thought doubtful whether to proceed with the bombardment,
and the Tamai swung round, and hurried down the river with the current and
at full steam to report to the Sirdar. The other gunboats remained
in action, and continued to shell the Dervish defences. The Tamai soon
returned to the fight, and, steaming again up the river, was immediately
hotly re-engaged.

The sight which the army witnessed was thrilling.
Beyond the flood waters of the river, backed against a sky of staring blue
and in the blazing sunlight, the whole of the enemy's position was plainly
visible. The long row of shelter trenches was outlined by the white smoke
of musketry and dotted with the bright-coloured flags waving defiantly
in the wind and with the still brighter flashes of the guns. Behind the
entrenchments and among the mud houses and enclosures strong bodies of the
jibba-clad Arabs were arrayed. Still further back in the plain a large
force of cavalry--conspicuous by the gleams of light reflected from their
broad-bladed spears--wheeled and manoeuvred. By the Nile all the tops of
the palm-trees were crowded with daring riflemen, whose positions were
indicated by the smoke-puffs of their rifles, or when some tiny black
figure fell, like a shot rook, to the ground. In the foreground the
gunboats, panting and puffing up the river, were surrounded on all sides
by spouts and spurts of water, thrown up by the shells and bullets.
Again the flotilla drew near the narrow channel; again the watching army
held their breath; and again they saw the leading boat, the Metemma,
turn and run down stream towards safety, pursued by the wild cheers
of the Arabs. It was evident that the gunboats were not strong enough to
silence the Dervish fire. The want of the terrible Zafir was acutely felt.

The firing had lasted two hours and a half, and the enemy's resistance
was no less vigorous than at the beginning of the action. The Sirdar now
altered his plans. He saw that his flotilla could not hope to silence the
Dervishes. He therefore ordered De Rougemont--who had assumed the command
after Colville was wounded--to run past the entrenchments without trying to
crush their fire, and steam on to Dongola. To support and cover the
movement, the three batteries of artillery under Major Parsons were brought
into action from the swampy island of Artagasha, which was connected
at this season with the right bank by a shoal. At the same time three
battalions of infantry were moved along the river until opposite the Arab
position. At 9 A.M. the eighteen guns on the island opened a tremendous
bombardment at 1,200 yards range on the entrenchments, and at the same time
the infantry and a rocket detachment concentrated their fire on the tops
of the palm-trees. The artillery now succeeded in silencing three of the
five Dervish guns and in sinking the little Dervish steamer Tahra, while
the infantry by a tremendous long-range fire drove the riflemen out of the
palms. Profiting by this, the gunboats at ten o'clock moved up the river in
line, and, disregarding the fusillade which the Arabs still stubbornly
maintained, passed by the entrenchment and steamed on towards Dongola.
After this the firing on both sides became intermittent, and the fight
may be said to have ended.

Both forces remained during the day facing each other on opposite sides of
the river, and the Dervishes, who evidently did not admit a defeat,
brandished their rifles and waved their flags, and their shouts of loud
defiance floated across the water to the troops. But they had suffered very
heavily. Their brave and skilful leader was severely wounded by the
splinters of a shell. The wicked Osman Azrak had been struck by a bullet,
and more than 200 Ansar had fallen, including several Emirs. Moreover,
a long train of wounded was seen to start during the afternoon for the
south. It is doubtful, however, whether Bishara would have retreated,
if he had not feared being cut off. He seems to have believed that the
Sirdar would march along the right bank at once to Dongola, and cross there
under cover of his gunboats. Like all Moslem soldiers, he was nervous about
his line of retreat. Nor, considering the overwhelming force against him,
can we wonder. There was, besides this strategic reason for retiring,
a more concrete cause. All his supplies of grain were accumulated in the
gyassas which lay moored to the west bank. These vessels were under the
close and accurate fire of the artillery and Maxim guns on Artagasha
island. Several times during the night the hungry Dervishes attempted to
reach their store; but the moon was bright and the gunners watchful.
Each time the enemy exposed themselves, a vigorous fire was opened
and they were driven back. When morning dawned, it was found that Hafir
was evacuated, and that the enemy had retreated on Dongola.

Wad Bishara's anxiety about his line of retreat was unnecessary,
for the Sirdar could not advance on Dongola with a strong Dervish force
on his line of communications: and it was not desirable to divide the army
and mask Hafir with a covering force. But as soon as the Dervishes had
left their entrenchments the situation was simplified. At daybreak all the
Arab boats were brought over to the right bank by the villagers, who
reported that Bishara and his soldiers had abandoned the defence and were
retreating to Dongola. Thereupon the Sirdar, relieved of the necessity
of forcing the passage, transported his army peacefully to the other bank.
The operation afforded scope to his powers of organisation, and the whole
force--complete with cavalry, camels, and guns--was moved across the broad,
rushing river in less than thirty-six hours and without any
apparent difficulty.

The casualties on the 19th were not numerous, and in a force of nearly
15,000 men they appear insignificant. Commander Colville was wounded.
One British sergeant and one Egyptian officer were killed. Eleven native
soldiers were wounded. The total--fourteen--amounted to less than one per
thousand of the troops engaged. Nevertheless this picturesque and bloodless
affair has been solemnly called the 'Battle of Hafir.' Special despatches
were written for it. It is officially counted in records of service as
a 'general action.' Telegrams of congratulation were received from her
Majesty and the Khedive. A special clasp was struck. Of all the instances
of cheaply bought glory which the military history of recent years affords,
Hafir is the most remarkable.

The 20th and part of the 21st were occupied by the passage of the army
across the Nile. The troops were still crossing when the gunboats returned
from Dongola. The distance of this place by water from Hafir is about
thirty-six miles, and the flotilla had arrived opposite the town during
the afternoon of the 19th. A few shells expelled the small Dervish
garrison, and a large number of sailing vessels were captured. The results
of the movement of the gunboats to Dongola must, however, be looked for
at Hafir. In consequence of the Sirdar's manoeuvre that place was
evacuated and the unopposed passage of the river secured.

Bishara continued his retreat during the 20th, and, marching all day,
reached Dongola in the evening. Wounded as he was, he re-occupied the town
and began forthwith to make preparations for the defence of its
considerable fortifications. The knowledge of his employment was not hidden
from his enemy, and during the 21st the gunboat Abu Klea, under Lieutenant
Beatty, R.N., arrived with the design of keeping him occupied. Throughout
the day a desultory duel was maintained between the entrenchments and the
steamer. At daylight on the 22nd, Beatty was reinforced by another gunboat,
and an unceasing bombardment was made on the town and its defences.

Notwithstanding that the army did not finish crossing the river until
the afternoon of the 21st, the Sirdar determined to continue his advance
without delay, and the force accordingly marched twelve miles further south
and camped opposite the middle of the large island of Argo. At daybreak the
troops started again, and before the sun had attained its greatest power
reached Zowarat. This place was scarcely six miles from Dongola, and, as it
was expected that an action would be fought the next day, the rest of
eighteen hours was welcomed by the weary soldiers. All day long the army
remained halted by the palms of the Nile bank. Looking through their
glasses up the river, the officers might watch the gunboats methodically
bombarding Dongola, and the sound of the guns was clearly heard.
At intervals during the day odd parties of Dervishes, both horse and foot,
approached the outpost line and shots were exchanged.

All these things, together with the consciousness that the culmination
of the campaign was now at hand, raised the excitement of the army to a
high pitch, and everyone lay down that night warmed by keen anticipations.
An atmosphere of unrest hung over the bivouac, and few slept soundly.
At three o'clock the troops were aroused, and at half-past four
the final advance on Dongola had begun.

It was still night. The full moon, shining with tropical brilliancy
in a cloudless sky, vaguely revealed the rolling plains of sand and the
huge moving mass of the army. As long as it was dark the battalions were
closely formed in quarter columns. But presently the warmer, yellower
light of dawn began to grow across the river and through the palms,
and gradually, as the sun rose and it became daylight, the dense
formation of the army was extended to an array more than two miles long.
On the left, nearest the river, marched Lewis's brigade--three battalions
in line and the fourth in column as a reserve. Next in order Maxwell's
three battalions prolonged the line. The artillery were in the centre,
supported by the North Staffordshire Regiment. The gunners of the Maxim
battery had donned their tunics, so that the lines and columns of yellow
and brown were relieved by a vivid flash of British red. MacDonald's
brigade was on the right. David's brigade followed in rear of the centre
as a reserve. The cavalry, the Camel Corps, and the Horse Artillery
watched the right flank; and on the left the gunboats
steamed along the river.

For two hours the army were the only living things visible
on the smooth sand, but at seven o'clock a large body of Dervish horse
appeared on the right flank. The further advance of half a mile discovered
the Arab forces. Their numbers were less than those of the Egyptians,
but their white uniforms, conspicuous on the sand, and the rows of flags
of many colours lent an imposing appearance to their array. Their
determined aspect, no less than the reputation of Bishara, encouraged
the belief that they were about to charge.

The disparity of the forces was, however, too great; and as the Egyptian
army steadily advanced, the Dervishes slowly retired. Their retreat was
cleverly covered by the Baggara horse, who, by continually threatening
the desert flank, delayed the progress of the troops. Bishara did not
attempt to re-enter the town, on which the gunboats were now concentrating
their fire, but continued to retire in excellent order towards the south
and Debba.

The Egyptian infantry halted in Dongola, which when they arrived
they found already in the hands of detachments from the flotilla.
The red flag with the Crescent and star waved once again from the roof
of the Mudiria. The garrison of 400 black Jehadia had capitulated, and were
already fraternising with their Soudanese captors, whose comrades in arms
they were soon to be. While the infantry occupied the town the cavalry
and Camel Corps were despatched in pursuit. The Baggara horse, however,
maintained a firm attitude, and attempted several charges to cover the
retreat of their infantry. In one of these an actual collision occurred,
and Captain Adams's squadron of Egyptian cavalry inflicted a loss of six
killed on the enemy at a cost to themselves of eight men wounded.
The cavalry and Camel corps had about twenty casualties in the pursuit.
But although the Dervishes thus withdrew in an orderly manner from the
field, the demoralising influence of retreat soon impaired their discipline
and order, and many small parties, becoming detached from the main body,
were captured by the pursuers. The line of retreat was strewn with weapons
and other effects, and so many babies were abandoned by their parents that
an artillery waggon had to be employed to collect and carry them.
Wad Bishara, Osman Azrak, and the Baggara horse, however, made good their
flight across the desert to Metemma, and, in spite of terrible sufferings
from thirst, retained sufficient discipline to detach a force to hold
Abu Klea Wells in case the retreat was followed. The Dervish infantry made
their way along the river to Abu Hamed, and were much harassed by the
gunboats until they reached the Fourth Cataract, when the pursuit
was brought to an end.

The Egyptian losses in the capture of Dongola and in the subsequent pursuit
were: British, nil. Native ranks: killed, 1; wounded, 25. Total, 26.

The occupation of Dongola terminated the campaign of 1896.
About 900 prisoners, mostly the Black Jehadia, all the six brass cannon,
large stores of grain, and a great quantity of flags, spears, and swords
fell to the victors, and the whole of the province, said to be the most
fertile in the Soudan, was restored to the Egyptian authority.
The existence of a perpetual clear waterway from the head of the Third
Cataract to Merawi enabled the gunboats at once to steam up the river
for more than 200 miles, and in the course of the following month the
greater part of the army was established in Merawi below the Fourth
Cataract, at Debba, or at Korti, drawing supplies along the railway,
and from Railhead by a boat service on the long reach of open water.
The position of a strong force at Merawi--only 120 miles along the river
bank from Abu Hamed, the northern Dervish post--was, as will be seen,
convenient to the continuance of the campaign whenever the time should
arrive. But a long delay in the advance was now inevitable, and nearly
a year was destined to pass without any collision between the forces
of the Khedive and those of the Khalifa.

The success of the operations caused great public satisfaction in England.
The first step had been taken. The Soudan was re-entered. After ten years
of defensive war the Dervishes had been attacked, and it was clear that
when they were attacked with adequate forces they were not so very terrible
after all. The croakers were silent. A general desire was manifested in the
country that the operations should continue, and although the Government
did not yet abandon their tentative policy, or resolve utterly to destroy
the Khalifa's power, it was decided that, as the road had so far been safe
and pleasant, there was at present no need to stop or turn back.

A generous gazette of honours was published. With a single exception,
which it would be invidious to specify, all the officers of the Egyptian
army were mentioned in despatches. Sir H. Kitchener, Colonel Hunter,
and Colonel Rundle were promoted Major-Generals for distinguished service
in the field; a special medal--on whose ribbon the Blue Nile is shown
flowing through the yellow desert--was struck; and both the engagement at
Firket and the affair at Hafir were commemorated by clasps. The casualties
during the campaign, including the fighting round Suakin, were 43 killed
and 139 wounded; 130 officers and men died from cholera; and there were
126 deaths from other causes. A large number of British officers
were also invalided.




CHAPTER VIII: THE DESERT RAILWAY



It often happens that in prosperous public enterprises the applause
of the nation and the rewards of the sovereign are bestowed on those whose
offices are splendid and whose duties have been dramatic. Others whose
labours were no less difficult, responsible, and vital to success are
unnoticed. If this be true of men, it is also true of things. In a tale of
war the reader's mind is filled with the fighting. The battle--with its
vivid scenes, its moving incidents, its plain and tremendous results--
excites imagination and commands attention. The eye is fixed on the
fighting brigades as they move amid the smoke; on the swarming figures of
the enemy; on the General, serene and determined, mounted in the middle of
his Staff. The long trailing line of communications is unnoticed.
The fierce glory that plays on red, triumphant bayonets dazzles the
observer; nor does he care to look behind to where, along a thousand miles
of rail, road, and river, the convoys are crawling to the front in
uninterrupted succession. Victory is the beautiful, bright-coloured flower.
Transport is the stem without which it could never have blossomed.
Yet even the military student, in his zeal to master the fascinating
combinations of the actual conflict, often forgets the far more intricate
complications of supply.

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