1 THE FIRST SIKH WAR, 543
2 this state, with a handful of men who had carried the batteries the night
3 before, I remained till morning, taking very short intervals of rest by lying
4 down with various regiments in succession to ascertain their temper and
5 revive their spirits. I found myself again with my old friends of the
6 29th, 31st, 50th and 9th, all in good heart; My answer to all and every
7 one of them was that we must fight it out, attack the enemy at day-break,
8 beat him, or die honourably on the field. The gallant old- General (Sir
9 Hugh Gough) kind-hearted and heroically brave, entirely coincided with
10 me.” There was a proposal to fall back on Ferozepur during the night, but
11 the dauntless spirit of Lord Gotigh and the intrepid courage of Sir Henry
12 Hardinge were strongly averse to the adoption of such a course. In the
13 midst of their difficulties, the spirit of the wearied soldiers was cheered by
14 the genial temper and lofty bearing of the Governor-General. The Sikhs
15 had provided themselves with abundant brush-wood, which they lighted
16 during the night to warm their stiffened limbs. They continued to harass
17 the British troops by the fire of their artillery, and the position of the
18 English was one of great danger. Amid these difficulties, the night wore away.
19 As soon as daylight broke on the 22nd, the British infantry formed into line
20 with alacrity, and fire was opened from the centre by such of the heavy
21 guns as remained effective, aided by a flight of rockets, The cold was so
22 severe that it was with difficulty that the men could handle their muskets.
23 Their thirst during the day was so intense that they were driven to drink
24 putrid water which, at any other time, would have been rejected as poison ;
25 the horses almost went mad with fatigue and privation. Sir Hugh Gough
26 and Sir Henry Hardinge advanced steadily, unchecked by the enemy’s fire,
27 and drove them rapidly out of the’ village of Fevozshahr and their en-
28 campment; then charging down on the centre, the British force swept
29 through the camp, bearing down all opposition, and dislodged the enemy
30 from their whole position. The line then halted, receiving its two leaders,
31 as they rode along its front, with a gratifying cheer, and displaying the
32 captured standard of the Khdlsé. The English were masters of the field,
33 and had captured upwards of 73 pieces of cannon. The Sikh army was in full
34 retreat across the Sutlej, in the greatest confusion and dismay, having aban-
35 doned large stores of grain, camp equipage and ammunition. Their commander,
36 Lal Singh, had fled at an early period, and his military chest was plundered
37 by the exasperated soldiery. ;
38 But the toils and glories of the victors were not yet at an end. Téj
39 Singh, who had commanded in this great battle, brought up from the Sutlej
40 a fresh force consisting of 20,000 infantry, 5,000 cavalry and 70 guns. The
41 sudden advance of a new Sikh army was looked upon with much concern by
42 the British commanders at this juncture, for their ammunition of all sorts
43 was nearly expended, while the troops were thoroughly exhausted, and had
44 hardly had time to recover from their late privations. It happened, however,
45 that after firiug a few shots from their guns, the Sikhs, apparently panic-
46 stricken at the movement of British cavalry, retired as they had come. Tj
47 Singh had been advised by his zealous and faithful soldiery to attack the
48 British column at daybreak; but he intentionally delayed, and did not
49 appear on the scene until he had seen that Lal Singh’s force was defeated
50 at every point, his object being to disperse and overawe the turbulent
51 Khdlsé army. This completed the victory of the British.
52 Never before had a more severely contested battle, with so many attend-
53 ing perils, been fought on the plains of India since the British set foot on its
54 soll, Their loss in this battle was great, being 694 killed and 1,721 wounded,
55 or about a seventh of the whole British force engaged. Amongst those
56 Sri Satguru J agjit Singh Ji eLibrary N
57 Battle renewed in
58 the morning of Decem-
59 ber 22nd, 18:16,
60 Binal advance and
61 victory.
62 Disastrous retreat
63 of the Sikhs,
64 Téj Singh’s move-
65 ments,
66 He suddenly retires,
67 The real object of his
68 manceuvre,
69 Severe losses,
70 amdhariElibrary@ gmail.com