India Under British Rule

Eldred Pottinger.

One British officer appears to have kept his head amidst all these bewildering disasters. This was Captain Eldred Pottinger, a man who knew how to lead Asiatics, and how to control them. He was inside Herat throughout the siege, and by sheer pluck and fertility of resources kept the enemy at bay until the siege was raised. He was one of the hostages made over to Akbar Khan, and was sent with the others to a fortress in the northern mountains. There he bribed the Afghan commandant with a written promise of a future ransom. He hoisted the British flag over the fortress, took possession of the surrounding country, collected the revenue, called in supplies, and kept up the spirits of ladies and children amidst the general depression and humiliation. Eventually the prisoners were delivered from their enemies and restored to their families and friends; but Eldred Pottinger died and was forgotten.

Lord Ellenborough, 1842-44.

§3. Before the tidings of disaster reached England, Lord Ellenborough was appointed Governor-General of India, in succession to Lord Auckland. In February, 1842, he touched at Madras, and heard of the destruction of the British army in the Khyber Pass. Meanwhile an avenging army, under the command of General Pollock, was marching to the relief of Sale, who was closely besieged at Jellalabad by an Afghan army under Akbar Khan. The British garrison at Jellalabad had defended the place with the utmost resolution, and before the arrival of General Pollock, Akbar Khan had been compelled to raise the siege.

Candahar.

Up to this time nothing was known of General Nott at Candahar. The fact was that he and Major Rawlinson were holding out against overwhelming odds, as Elphinstone and Macnaghten ought to have done at Cabul. History teaches that such a surrender as that of Macnaghten to Akbar Khan too often means "massacre." It meant "massacre" at Patna, in the days of Mir Kasim, and during the sepoy mutiny of 1857 it bore the same meaning at Jhansi and Cawnpore.

Close of the Afghan war, 1842.

General Pollock advanced westward from Jellalabad, whilst General Nott advanced northward from Candahar. Both armies met at Cabul. Shah Shuja had been murdered, and Akbar Khan had fled away to the northward. All the British hostages, including the ladies and children, reached Cabul in safety. Dost Mohammed Khan was set free at Calcutta, and returned to Cabul and recovered his throne. Thus the first Cabul war was brought to a close, and for some years the Afghans were ignored.

Outside troubles.

The disasters of 1841-42 led to disturbances in Asiatic states outside British territory. The Amirs of Sind were tempted to violate their treaty obligations. In 1843 they were defeated by Sir Charles Napier in the battles of Meanee and Hyderabad, and their territories were eventually incorporated with the Bombay Presidency. There was also some excitement in Nipal and Burma; but British prestige was restored by the victories of Pollock, Nott, and Napier, and the disorders soon died away. Meanwhile, the British government was drawn into a war with China; but relations with China have not as yet been brought to bear upon British rule in India.

Gwalior affairs, 1843.

§4. In 1843 Lord Ellenborough interfered in the affairs of Gwalior. The ruling prince, who was known by the hereditary name of Sindia, had died without leaving any son, real or adopted. He had been a weak and incapable ruler, and had permitted the army of Gwalior to grow too powerful for the state, and to swallow up two-thirds of the public revenue.

Overgrown army, 1843.

The disbandment of the army was necessary, not only for the well-being of Gwalior, but for the security of the British government. It numbered 40,000 men and 200 guns. Meanwhile, the Sikh army in the Punjab had grown more dangerous. It consisted of some 60,000 men, well provided with artillery, who had been drilled and trained by French officers. It was no longer under the control of a strong ruler like Runjeet Singh, and at any moment might cross the Sutlej into British territory. Under such circumstances a junction of the Sikh army with the army of Gwalior would have raised a terrible storm in Hindustan.

Revolt, 1843.

The death of Sindia rendered some action necessary. He had left a widow who was only twelve years of age. This girl, however, was permitted to adopt a small boy of eight, and a minister was appointed, under the sanction of Lord Ellenborough, to conduct the administration of Gwalior during the minority. Shortly afterwards the girl dismissed the minister from his post, and he was fool enough to accept the dismissal. The girl then appointed a minister of her own, and won over the army by large distributions of money, in open defiance of the paramount power. The consequence was that disturbances broke out in Gwalior, and many persons were killed.

Settlement, 1843.

Lord Ellenborough proceeded to Agra, and ordered the British army to advance to Gwalior under Sir Hugh Gough. Two battles were fought on the same day, the 29th of December, 1843, one body of the Gwalior army being defeated at Maharajpore, and another at Punniar. Lord Ellenborough then carried out the necessary reforms. The army of Gwalior was reduced from 40,000 men to 9,000, and the number of guns from 200 to thirty-two. A subsidiary force was created of sepoys, trained and commanded by British officers, which was afterwards known as the Gwalior Contingent. The government was taken out of the hands of the girl-widow, and entrusted to a council of regency, consisting of six nobles of Gwalior, who acted under the advice of the British Resident until the adopted prince attained his majority.

Lord Ellenborough recalled, 1844.

In June, 1844, Lord Ellenborough was recalled by the Court of Directors. It was urged that he was too fond of war, but it was whispered that he had given mortal offence by promoting military officers to posts previously occupied by civilians. The question raised some controversy at the time, as the recall was opposed by Sir Robert Peel and the Duke of Wellington; but it has long ceased to be of importance, and may be dropped into oblivion.

Sir Henry Hardinge, 1845-48.

§5. Sir Henry Hardinge succeeded Lord Ellenborough as Governor-General. At this period the Punjab was a political volcano, and the Sikh army was a menace to Hindustan.

Rise of the Sikhs, 1400-1500.

The Sikhs were religious fanatics, dating back to the fifteenth century. Their founder was a prophet, or Guru, named Nanuk Guru, who was at once priest and king. The object of the Guru was to reconcile the Hindu religion with the Mohammedan by teaching that there was but one God, one Supreme Spirit, and that the Vishnu of Hinduism and the Allah of Islam were one and the same deity. The church of Nanuk was a platform of comprehension. A brotherhood was formed, known as Sikhs, and all its members were declared to be equal in the eyes of God and His Guru, whatever might be their individual caste, wealth, or position.

Sikh religion.

The Sikh religion was in reality a revival of a Buddhism recognising deity. Nanuk Guru bears a striking resemblance to Gotama Buddha. He was born in 1460 of the royal race of Kshatriyas, the modern Rajputs, or "sons of Rajas." He taught that goodness in thought and deed was especially pleasing to God. He denounced the distinctions of caste, and preached universal charity and toleration. He was followed by a line of nine Gurus, who taught the same doctrines and formed an apostolic succession, inspired by God, and worshipped as incarnations or avatars of deity. The city of Amritsar, the "pool of immortality," became the sacred city of the Sikhs, and every year formed a centre of Sikh gatherings like those of the Hebrews at Jerusalem and those of Mohammedans at Mecca.

Persecutions of Aurangzeb.

The new faith was eagerly accepted by Hindus, especially those of the lower castes, but Mohammedans stood aloof from the heresy. The stern Aurangzeb, who reigned as Great Mogul from the days of Oliver Cromwell to those of Queen Anne, persecuted the Sikhs with relentless ferocity, and the ninth Guru was beheaded in the imperial palace of Delhi in the presence of Aurangzeb and his courtiers.

Guru Govind: the Khalsa.

Under Guru Govind, the tenth and last of the old Sikh pontiffs, the Sikhs were transformed by persecution from a brotherhood of saints into an army of warriors. Guru Govind stands out as the real founder of the Sikh Khalsa or "saved ones." He set apart five faithful disciples, namely, a Brahman, a Rajput, and three Sudras, to form a Khalsa, and to be a model for all other Khalsas. He consecrated them by sprinkling holy water; he gave to each the name of Singh, or "lion warrior," but he gave to the whole five collectively the name of Khalsa; and he solemnly promised that wherever a Khalsa was gathered together, he, their Guru, would be in the midst of them.

Army of the Khalsa.

Henceforth the Sikhs were known as the "Army of God and the Khalsa." The constitution was changed. Guru Govind was taken prisoner by the Moguls and executed, and his successors lost their spiritual prestige. The Sikhs were divided into twelve misls or clans, each having its own chief or Sirdar; but the Sirdars changed with the times. Some took the field at the head of their sons and vassals, zealous only for God and the Khalsa. Others were mere freebooters, who led bodies of irregular horse to devastate and plunder. Others again formed a brotherhood of fanatics known as Akalis, who called themselves soldiers of God, and were distinguished by steel bracelets and dark-blue dresses and turbans.

Runjeet Singh, 1800-39.

Out of these discordant elements Runjeet Singh created his famous army of the Khalsa. By consummate tact he stirred up the old enthusiasm of the Sikh soldiery, whilst employing French officers to drill and command them. He added Cashmere and Peshawar to his dominions, and was known as the "Lion of Lahore." His depravity is indescribable; his court at Lahore was a sink of iniquity, like the cities of the plain; but, knowing the real source of his power, he gloried in the title of "Commander-in-Chief of the Army of God and the Khalsa." When he died, in 1839, four queens and seven slaves were buried alive with his remains.

Hopeless anarchy.

Between 1839 and 1845 the Punjab was sinking into hopeless anarchy. There was a deadly conflict between Sikhs and Rajputs. Plots and murders followed in rapid succession. Princes, ministers, and generals were carried off in turns by assassination or massacre. Meanwhile the treasures of Runjeet Singh were squandered in wild debauchery, or lavished on the army. There was a British envoy at Lahore, but he could do nothing. On one important occasion he reported that every minister of state had been drunk for several days. On another occasion he entered the council-hall unexpectedly, and found the prime minister figuring in the guise of a dancing-girl amidst the applause of his colleagues. An infant, named Dhuleep Singh, said to be the son of Runjeet Singh, was the nominal sovereign; but the queen-mother, a woman of low origin, and her minister and paramour, were the rulers of the country.

Army supreme.

By this time the army of the Khalsa were masters of the state—the prætorian guards of the Punjab. It was dangerous to the Sikh government, and was only kept quiet by money and concessions. It demanded more pay, and got it. The French officers fled for their lives. The Sikh officers were compelled to obey certain little Khalsas, which by this time had come to be elected by the soldiery in every corps, and were supposed to be animated by the invisible but presiding spirit of Guru Govind. The army was bent on sacking the capital and slaughtering all who stood in their way, whilst the Akalis, the fanatical soldiers of God, were burning to purge the court at Lahore of its iniquities.

Non-intervention.

The Sikh rulers implored the British government to protect them against the army of the Khalsa; but non-intervention was still the ruling policy, and the British government refused to interfere. Meanwhile the dangers of Sikh invasion had been minimised by the reduction of the army of Gwalior, and the British government underrated the strength of the Sikh army. Amidst the general lull the crash came. The ministers were afraid of a reign of terror at Lahore, and sent the army of the Khalsa across the river Sutlej to plunder the cities of Hindustan.

Sikh invasion, November, 1845.

§6. The British government was taken utterly by surprise. There was no warning whatever, and the enemy was estimated to number 100,000 men with 150 large guns. Ferozpore, the frontier station of the British army on the north-west, was held by a British force of 10,000 men. The Sikhs might have overwhelmed Ferozpore, and marched on to Delhi and Agra before the main army could have taken the field. Fortunately for the British the Sikh generals were cowards and traitors, thinking of nothing but themselves. The British force at Ferozpore moved out and offered them battle, but they shrank from a collision. They divided the Sikh army into two bodies: one stopped to watch Ferozpore, whilst the other entrenched a camp a few miles off at Ferozshahar.

Moodki, December.

Sir Henry Hardinge and Sir Hugh Gough were soon moving to the frontier with a British army. On the 18th of December a battle was fought at Moodki. The Sikh general fled at the outset, but the Sikh soldiers opened fire with a rapidity and precision which for a while staggered the British. At last the British gained a victory, but it was not decisive.

Ferozshahar.

Two days after Moodki, the British attacked the Sikh force at Ferozshahar. They met with a resistance which they never expected. The Sikhs were again deserted by their general, but fought with the reckless bravery of zealots; and Sir Hugh Gough charged up to the muzzles of their guns with cold steel before he could carry their batteries. Night came on, and the firing ceased. During the darkness there was an uproar in the enemy's camp, and it turned out that the Sikh soldiers were plundering their own treasury—the military chest which their general had left behind in his hasty flight from the field. Next morning the battle was renewed, but the Sikhs had lost their enthusiasm, and were soon in full retreat to the Sutlej.

Aliwal and Sobraon, 1846.

Early in 1846 the Sikh army recrossed the Sutlej by a bridge of boats. Sir Harry Smith defeated one force at Aliwal, but the main army of the Khalsa was strongly entrenched at Sobraon. In February Hardinge and Gough advanced to storm the entrenchment. Then followed the hardest and bloodiest battle which the British had hitherto fought in India. The Sikhs fought with the desperation of despair, but were slowly beaten back by the fiery resolution of the British. At last they retreated to the Sutlej, and thousands were drowned in the river. Their general had fled on the morning of the battle, and had broken down the bridge to prevent their return to the Punjab.

Mixed government, Sikh and British.

Thus ended the first Sikh war. The British army marched in triumph to Lahore, and Sir Henry Hardinge, now Lord Hardinge, began to settle the future government of the Punjab. He was unwilling to annex the country, for the British nation was already jealous of the territorial possessions of the East India Company. He dared not withdraw the British army lest the army of the Khalsa should spring again into life and sweep away the Sikh régime. He tried a compromise. He recognised the infant, the queen-mother and her minister, as de facto rulers of the Punjab. He reduced the army of the Khalsa to a third of its former strength. He annexed the frontier province on the north, known as the Julinder Doab, and he demanded a subsidy of a million and a-half sterling towards the expenses of the war.

Sale of Cashmere.

The money was not to be had. Out of twelve millions sterling that were found in the Lahore treasury after the death of Runjeet Singh, only half a million remained. The difficulty was overcome by the Viceroy of Cashmere, a Rajput named Golab Singh, who held the province in subordination to the Sikh government. He offered one million sterling, provided the British government recognised him as Maharaja of Cashmere, independent of Lahore. The bargain was struck, and Cashmere was sold to Golab Singh.

Council of Regency.

Still it was impossible for the British to withdraw from the Punjab without bringing on a second war. Before the end of 1846 the queen-mother was found to be utterly unfit to rule, whilst her minister was stirring up the people of Cashmere to revolt against the Maharaja. The minister was removed from his post. Eight of the leading Sirdars at Lahore were formed into a council of regency, under the direction of Sir Henry Lawrence, the British Resident at Lahore; and it was determined that a small British force should remain in the Punjab until the infant Dhuleep Singh attained his majority.

Lord Dalhousie, 1848-56.

§7. Two years passed away. In 1848 Lord Hardinge was succeeded by Lord Dalhousie, and returned to England accompanied by Sir Henry Lawrence. Sir Frederic Currie, a Bengal civilian, was Resident at Lahore, and the Punjab was to all appearance quiet. About this time the Sikh governor of Multan, named Mulraj, quarrelled with the council of regency at Lahore, and resigned his post in disgust. Two Englishmen, Mr. Vans Agnew and a Lieutenant Anderson, were sent to Multan with a Sikh escort to take overcharge.

Revolt at Multan, April, 1848: murder of two Englishmen.

Multan is situated on the river Chenab, about 200 miles to the south-west of Lahore. The two Englishmen reached the place in April, and took up their quarters at a mosque in the suburbs. Mulraj paid them a visit, and there was some disagreement about the accounts, but the two Englishmen went over the fortress with Mulraj, and all three left the place together on horseback. At that moment the two Englishmen were felled from their horses. Mulraj galloped away into the country, and the two Englishmen were carried away to the mosque and brutally murdered. Mulraj returned to the fortress, and issued a proclamation calling on the people of all religions to revolt against British supremacy.

Revolt of Shere Singh.

The Sikh and British authorities at Lahore treated the outbreak as an isolated rebellion. Lieutenant Herbert Edwardes, a rising officer, marched an irregular force against Multan; but though he defeated the rebels, he could not capture the fortress. A Sikh noble, named Shere Singh, marched from Lahore to co-operate with Edwardes, and a British force under General Whish was also sent in a like direction. It turned out, however, that Shere Singh was negotiating with the rebels inside the fortress, whilst swearing fidelity to the British authorities outside. When the British guns had opened fire, and the capture of the fortress was a mere question of hours, Shere Singh suddenly beat the drum of the Khalsa, proclaimed a religious war against the British, and started for the north with the whole of his men as fast as their long Sikh legs could carry them. Whish saw that pursuit was hopeless, and could only entrench his troops and wait for reinforcements whilst keeping watch on Multan.

Army of the Khalsa.

The hot weather was coming on, British advance was delayed, and the British authorities at Lahore were discovering that a second Sikh war was inevitable. The queen-mother was organising a general confederacy against the British government, but her intrigues were found out in time, and she was sent to Benares to repent at leisure. Rebel chiefs were plotting in all directions to get rid of the British government, and bring back the old days of anarchy and plunder. Later in the year many villages were found empty. The able-bodied men had gone off to join rebel chiefs, and fight once more for God and the Khalsa; and no one remained behind but the halt and the lame, the women and the children.

Afghans occupy Peshawar.

To crown all, Dost Mohammed, Khan of Cabul, had joined the rebel Sikhs. As a Mohammedan he must have hated the Sikhs and their religion, especially as Runjeet Singh had wrested the important valley of Peshawar from Afghan dominion. But he saw his opportunity to recover Peshawar. He overran the valley and captured the fortress of Attock; and he determined that whatever might happen, he would hold Peshawar for the future against Sikh or Englishman.

Gough's advance, 1848.

In November, 1848, the British army, under Lord Gough, entered the "land of the five rivers." On the 13th of January he approached the army of Shere Singh, which was strongly entrenched at Chillianwalla on the left bank of the Jhelum—the Hydaspes of the Greeks—and probably not far from the spot where Alexander routed the Rajput army of Porus. The Sikh army was hidden from view by a dense jungle. Lord Gough ordered a reconnoitre; he proposed to give his army a night's rest, and to begin the battle next morning.

Chillianwalla, 13th January, 1849.

Shere Singh upset this arrangement. He did not care to fight the British army after a night's rest, and after his position had been reconnoitred. He stirred up the Irish blood of Lord Gough by opening a fire on the British camp. The impetuous general returned the fire, and ordered an advance. For a brief interval nothing was to be heard but the roar of artillery, whilst the battle was hidden from view by smoke and jungle. Presently the British guns were silenced by the advance of infantry, and soon afterwards the sharp rattle of musketry told that the conflict had begun. But the battle of Chillianwalla was disastrous. The Sikh artillery continued to roar after the British artillery was silenced. A brigade of British infantry was beaten back. A cavalry brigade was repulsed with a loss of guns. At last, the ringing cheer of British infantry told that the day was gained, but it was dearly purchased with the loss of 2,400 officers and men. The Sikhs were driven from their position, but they entrenched themselves still more strongly on better ground only three miles off. Had there been a forward movement on the following morning, the doubtful success of the 13th of January might have been converted into a decisive victory.

Fall of Multan, 22nd January.

On the 22nd of January Mulraj surrendered the fortress of Multan to General Whish. This enabled Whish to bring his forces to the help of Lord Gough. Later on Shere Singh began a march to Lahore, but was stopped by Gough and Whish at Goojerat on the right bank of the Chenab.

Goojerat, 21st February.

The battle of Goojerat was fought on the 21st of February, 1849. It was known as "the battle of the guns," for there was no premature advance of infantry or cavalry, as at Chillianwalla. For two hours and a-half the Sikh army was pounded with British shot and shell, and then, and not till then, a charge of bayonets and a rush of cavalry completed the destruction of the army of the Khalsa. The victory at Goojerat saved the reputation of Lord Gough. Sir Charles Napier had been sent out to supersede him as commander-in-chief, on account of the losses at Chillianwalla; but before Napier could reach India the war was over, and Chillianwalla was condoned, although it could not be forgotten. The Punjab was once more prostrate at the feet of the British, and the Afghans were driven out of Peshawar.

Annexation of the Punjab, 1849.

The mixed government of Sikhs and British had failed in the Punjab, under Sir Henry Lawrence and Sir Frederic Currie, as it had failed in Bengal nearly a century before under Clive and his successors. Lord Dalhousie decided, and to all appearance rightly, that annexation was the only chance of salvation for the Punjab. So the weak and helpless relics of the family of Runjeet Singh were pensioned off by the conquerors, and his kingdom was incorporated with the British empire, and formed into a province under British rule.

British rule in the Punjab.

§8. The administration of the Punjab was, in the first instance, placed under a Board of three members. But the Board did not work smoothly, and Lord Dalhousie objected to Boards, and preferred fixing responsibilities on individuals. Accordingly Mr. John Lawrence, a younger brother of Sir Henry Lawrence, was appointed sole ruler of the Punjab under the title of chief commissioner. It will be seen hereafter that John Lawrence was destined to leave his mark in history; to become Governor-General of India, and finally to take his seat in the House of Lords. The Punjab was delivered from the grinding exactions of Sikh officials, and brought under the just and impartial rule of British officers. Within the space of less than a decade, the kingdom of Runjeet Singh, which had been distracted by wars and disorders worse than those of England under the Heptarchy, was brought under the civilised and European administration of the nineteenth century.