Narrative of the Voyages and Services of the Nemesis from 1840 to 1843

It appears that in Chinese fortifications, as before described, there are always two gateways; the outer one placed at right angles to the main wall of the town, so as to be flanked by it, and leading into a large court, surrounded by walls similar to the walls of the town, and in which there are commonly cells for prisoners, &c. The second gate and archway leads from it directly into the body of the place, and is surmounted by a guard-house upon the top of the gateway, to which you ascend by a flight of stone steps on either side.

All resistance at the gateways had been already overcome, the Chinese guard at the inner gate having given way before the advanced party of the 55th regiment; and the open court, or space between the two gateways, having been just occupied by a party of marines and seamen, under Captain Peter Richards and Captain Watson, who had escaladed the outer wall very near the gateway.

As no detailed account of this interesting part of the day's work has yet appeared, and as some misapprehension has prevailed with regard to the affair of the boats of the Blonde in the canal, I have taken pains to ascertain the particulars from two officers who were present, and who were both wounded on the occasion. The following condensed statement of what took place may therefore be relied on for its accuracy.

The boats of the Blonde, which vessel was at anchor off one of the principal southern branches of the Grand Canal running under the city walls, having been employed in landing the Artillery Brigade during the early part of the morning, were ordered, about ten o'clock, to re-embark part of the Artillery and Gun-Lascars, with two howitzers, for the purpose of assisting in the attack of the west gate, and to create a diversion in favour of the troops. At all events, whatever the object of the movement might have been, it is certain that the guns were put on board the boats of the Blonde, and that there were altogether about one hundred men embarked. The boats consisted of the launch, barge, pinnace, cutter, and flat of that ship, together with two boats belonging to transports. They proceeded up the canal, which took a winding direction through the suburbs, for some distance, until they came suddenly in sight of the west gate of the city, which until then had been obscured by the houses. The whole of these boats were under the command of Lieutenant Crouch, of the Blonde, having Messrs. Lambert, Jenkins, and Lyons, midshipmen, under his orders.

On coming in sight of the gate, the barge, cutter, and flat were a little in advance of the other boats, and proceeding in single line towards a spot pointed out by Major Blundell, of the Madras Artillery, as well adapted for the landing of the guns. Suddenly a heavy fire of ginjals and matchlocks was opened on them from the whole line of the city wall, running parallel with the canal; and, as the height of it was little less than forty feet, the small gun of the barge could not be elevated sufficiently to do any service, and the fire of musketry which was returned was inefficient.

The Chinese opened their fire with deadly effect upon the advancing boats, and, in the course of about ten minutes, sixteen seamen and eight artillerymen were wounded; Lieutenant Crouch himself was hit in three places, and one midshipman (Mr. Lyons) and two officers of the Artillery were also wounded. Under these circumstances, the men were got out of the boats as quickly as possible, and placed under cover of the houses in the suburbs, on the opposite side of the canal. At this time these three boats were considerably in advance of the rest, and, as soon as the men were all landed, the boats were abandoned and the guns left behind. The launch and pinnace, who were behind them, as soon as they saw the disaster, and that to advance further would only expose themselves to a destructive fire, without the possibility of returning it with effect, stopped under cover of some buildings, which sheltered them from the city walls.

The officers and men who belonged to the advanced boats, having many of their comrades wounded, were now in a trying predicament. The only alternative left was to endeavour to join the other boats which had remained under cover; to do which they had to pass across an open space by the side of the canal, exposed to the whole fire of the enemy from the walls on the opposite side. This was, however, effected without farther loss, although a heavy fire was opened on them, (but of course at a greater distance than when in the boats.) Some of the wounded were necessarily left behind, and were kindly treated by the Chinese people in the suburbs, who shewed no hostility.

As it was evident that nothing further could be attempted at present, they all returned down the canal in the launch and pinnace, and reported the circumstances to Captain Richards, of the Cornwallis, to which ship the rest of the wounded were immediately removed.

On receiving the information of what had happened, Captain Peter Richards lost not a moment in landing with two hundred marines, at the entrance of the canal, where he was joined by about three hundred men of the 6th M.N.I., under Captain Maclean, of that corps, and then pushed through the suburbs towards the city walls; at the same time the whole of the boats of the Cornwallis, under the command of Lieutenant Stoddart, advanced by the canal, in company with the remaining boats of the Blonde, to bring off the boats and guns which had been left behind. They were also to endeavour to check the fire of the Chinese at the west gate, when Captain Richards advanced through the suburbs to escalade the wall.

As soon as Captain Richards had landed, he was joined by Captain Watson and Mr. Forster, (master,) of the Modeste, with a boat's crew and a small body of marines belonging to that vessel. On reaching the foot of the walls, a heap of rubbish was luckily found to have been left by accident not far from the gate. Upon this the ladders were planted by Captain Peter Richards and Captain Watson, under cover of the fire of the Marines, in face of a large body of Tartars, who lined the walls, and appeared determined to defend their post to the last. These two officers, together with Lieutenant Baker, of the Madras Artillery, and a private marine of the Modeste, were the first to ascend the ladders. As they got upon the wall (with much difficulty) they were directly exposed to the cross fire from the guard-houses over the outer and inner gateway, by which the marine was killed, and Captain Watson and Lieutenant Baker were wounded; the former having one of the buttons of his jacket driven into his side, and three balls passing through his jacket. The marine was killed by several shots passing through his body, and another marine, (also belonging to the Modeste,) who followed afterwards, was severely wounded.

With great difficulty and exertion about a dozen men got upon the wall; and Lieutenant Fitzjames, having succeeded in bringing up some rockets, lodged one of them in a guard-house over the gateway, which immediately caught fire, and threw the enemy into such consternation that they then gave way. Captain Richards, (who had, as if by a miracle, escaped being wounded,) was now able to dash down, at the head of his men, into the open space between the two gateways; and, just afterwards, the outer gate was blown in, as before described, by powder-bags. The advanced guard of the 55th had in the meanwhile come round along the walls from their north-eastern angle, where General Schoedde's brigade had escaladed it, and had now reached the inner gateway.

The third brigade, under Major-General Bartley, accompanied by Sir Hugh Gough, and also by Sir William Parker, dashed in over the ruins of the gate, and, to their great disappointment, found that the walls had been already carried; but, within the city itself, the resistance of the Tartars was by no means overcome. Part of the 18th and 49th regiments, under Major-General Bartley, were now ordered to march along the western face of the walls, and they threw out a line of skirmishers as they advanced along some ditches and old houses below the wall. As the brigade filed along the walls left in front, they suddenly received a heavy fire from a body of Tartars, by which two officers were killed and two wounded, and several men struck down. The leading division of the 49th immediately dashed down the ramparts upon the enemy's left, while the 18th pushed forward to turn their right. They were soon dispersed, although many of them fought with great determination. One company of the 18th pursued them into the Tartar city. In this spirited affair the 18th had one officer killed and one wounded, with about twenty men killed and wounded. The loss of the 49th was one officer killed, one wounded, and about twenty-four rank and file killed and wounded.

In the meantime, the Admiral, having put himself at the head of the seamen and marines, marched some way along the walls, where they had been already cleared by the 55th, and, as the heat of the sun at this time (past noon) was almost insupportable, he had directed the men to take shelter for a little while, in one of the watch-houses upon the ramparts. The heat was quite overpowering, and the men being already much fatigued, several of them died from sun-stroke. Here it was that the gallant Major Uniacke, R.M., fell, from the effects of the sun, and in the list of casualties of the day no less than sixteen men are included, who died from the same cause.

Having rested something less than an hour in the guard-house, a heavy firing was heard within the Tartar city, and the men were instantly formed, and advanced in the direction of the firing, under Captain Richards and Captain Watson. On passing through a narrow street in the Tartar part of the city, a sudden fire was poured upon them by a body of Tartars drawn up across the street, behind a small gateway, where they seemed prepared to make a most determined stand. Several men were wounded, and it was necessary to advance with caution, taking advantage of shelter when it could be found. Here Lieutenant Fitzjames was wounded while endeavouring to get a rocket off.

Captain Watson was now sent round by a side-lane, to endeavour to turn the flank of the Tartars, but there also the latter were prepared for them, behind a temporary barricade. However, a cheer, and a sudden rush from both divisions at once, upon the front and flank of the Tartars, carried the point, and the enemy were driven back with heavy loss, after shewing individual instances of the most desperate valour, in several hand-to-hand encounters. When the brave Tartars at length saw that their utmost efforts were of no avail, then began the scenes of horror, and the tragedy of self-immolation, which makes one's very blood run cold to hear of. The Admiral himself was a witness of what took place. Some of the Tartars kept the doors of their houses with their very lives, while others could be seen within, deliberately cutting the throats of their women, and destroying their children, some by strangulation, and others by throwing them into the wells. In one house in particular, a Tartar was found in the act of sawing his wife's throat with a rusty sword, as he held her over the mouth of the well into which his children had been already thrown. He was shot before the deed was completed, in order to save the woman, who was immediately taken care of, and had the wound, which was not severe, tied up. Yet the first use she made of her tongue, as soon as she could speak, was to utter the most violent imprecations upon the heads of the victors. The children who were in the well (in which there was little water) were all got up, and recovered.

In other houses, numbers of poor creatures were found dead, some by their own hands or the hands of each other, and the rest by the hands of their husbands. In one house no less than fourteen dead bodies were discovered, principally women; in others the men began to cut their own throats the moment they saw any of our soldiers approaching; while in other instances they rushed out furiously from some hiding-place, and attacked with the sword any one who came in their way.

Several of our officers had to defend their own lives with the sword, long after all systematic opposition had ceased. An officer of the 14th M.N.I. had a sword combat with three Tartars who rushed out upon him sword in hand, and by retreating so as to endeavour to take them singly, he was able to cut down two of them just at the moment when a fatal blow was about to be aimed at him by the third, who was fortunately shot at the very critical moment, by a soldier who was coming up to his officer's assistance.

It is impossible to calculate the number of victims to the barbarous practice of self-immolation and wholesale murder. Chin-keang-foo was a Tartar stronghold considered by them as impregnable; they could not brook defeat, or the desecration of their hearths, by the tread of the unknown but thoroughly-hated barbarian; every house had its victims; and to add to the horrors of the day, and the desolation of the city, the Chinese plunderers flocked in from the country in multitudes, pillaging in all directions. They even set fire to the streets in some parts, to enable them to carry on their work with less interruption in others.

On our side, although the place had been taken by storm, and not without heavy loss, the strictest orders were given to prevent the pillage of the town as much as possible. Measures were taken, not only to control our own men, (who, according to European custom, might have expected to be allowed to pillage a town taken by assault,) but also to arrest the violent proceedings of the Chinese rabble, who, in this as in other instances, were the worst enemies of their own countrymen.

The authorities and nearly all the respectable inhabitants had fled; and the Tartar general (who had complained bitterly to the Emperor of insufficient means for defence) had set fire to his own house, and buried himself and part of his family in its ashes.

Notwithstanding all the attempts to prevent the destruction of property, it was impossible altogether to arrest it in so large a city. Plunder was sometimes taken from the Chinese thieves outside the town, and occasionally articles of value were thrown over the walls, because they were not allowed to be carried through the gates. In this way, plunder was sometimes obtained, and many ingenious devices were adopted to endeavour to secure a few valuables; but nearly all the mischief was done by the Chinese themselves.

The public offices were taken possession of by our troops, and all the arms and warlike stores which were found were destroyed. Only sixty thousand dollars, worth of Sycee silver was found in the public coffers; but a little addition was made to the prize fund by the sale of articles which were taken from plunderers, when they were discovered trying to carry property out of the gates. The waste and destruction of property was, however, enormous. When more valuable objects were discovered, those of smaller value were left in the streets; costly furs lay strewed in all directions; silks and satins lay about in such profusion that the only difficulty was to choose among them. So little had the inhabitants expected that their stronghold would fall, that valuables of all kinds, gems, and gold ornaments, and curiosities of every description, and in some instances even money, were left in the wardrobes of the best houses, at the mercy of the first comers. Under these circumstances, it is surprising that so little plunder was carried away from a city taken by assault.

Terrible as was the downfall of Chin-keang-foo in the eyes of the Chinese, and great as was the desolation throughout the city in every direction, it cannot be doubted that the loss of this important Tartar stronghold, and the panic created by it, (the whole trade of the country being at the same time suspended,) tended very materially to produce in the mind of the Emperor and of his ministers the conviction that a speedy peace, on any terms, was preferable to a continuance of the war.70

CHAPTER XXXVI

Although the Tartar troops had proved themselves a formidable enemy at Chin-keang-foo, and the loss sustained on our side had been much greater than in any previous encounter, a far more dangerous enemy soon began to show itself. Cholera and low marsh fever now made their appearance, and carried off a great many men, particularly among the new comers. The 98th regiment, recently arrived from England, suffered perhaps more severely than the rest; but, in reality, every ship, whether a man-of-war, or belonging to the transport service, had numerous sick on board; and some of the transport ships were at length scarcely manageable, owing to the shortness of hands. Nor was the sickness limited to one part of the river more than another; for the North Star, and the French frigate, Erigone, which were at anchor at Woosung, were quite as much afflicted by it as the rest of the squadron higher up the river. Nor did it begin to diminish until cool weather set in, and the fleet gradually withdrew out of the river, after the peace. Many a brave man, too, suffered from its effects for months after leaving the country; and the officers were not more exempt than the men.

We may next proceed to inquire what was being done elsewhere by the naval branch of the expedition, particularly by the advanced squadron higher up the river, during these operations at Chin-keang-foo. The great object in view was to stop the entire trade through that part of the country, which, having numerous branches of the Grand Canal passing through it, or at all events being intersected by several canals having communications with the great one, may be considered as a centre of commercial intercourse with some of the most important provinces of China. The annual grain-junks had already passed up the canal towards Pekin; but the importance of this great commercial highway (if a canal may so be called in a country where the only means of transport is by water) may be estimated from the fact, that in the course even of a few days no less than seven hundred trading-junks were stopped; by which means no less panic was created throughout the country, far and near, than by the successes of our arms.

There are at least three principal communications between the Yangtze-Keang and the southern portion of the Grand Canal, of which, perhaps, the largest passes along the western side of the walls of Chin-keang-foo, through the suburbs of that city. It runs very near the west and south gates, where it is crossed by stone bridges, which, of course, impede the navigation for large junks. In its narrowest part, where it is contracted by stone buttresses, it is about twenty feet broad; but, in other parts, it varies from seventy to eighty feet in breadth, with very high, steep banks, and with a depth of water varying from nine to fifteen feet. These observations were made by Captain Grey, of the Endymion.

The communications on the northern side of the Yangtze-Keang are much more numerous, and the main canal becomes much larger and finer. The principal branch of communication opens about a mile above Golden Island; but there are, in fact, so many openings, and such numerous cross-lines running from one branch to the other, that the whole of this part of the country resembles a network of water-courses. It is in reality, so little above the level of the river, that it is entirely laid out in paddy-swamps, which are only separated from the various canals by embankments artificially made, and which form the only roads or footways.

The main canal itself, on that side, varies from eighty to one hundred yards in width, and has a fine towing-path, running along upon the top of the embankment by which its waters are confined. A few junks had been sunk at its entrance, and barriers had also been formed in other branches, in order to impede the navigation, in case our small steamers should attempt to ascend them. At the time our forces were in the neighbourhood, the waters were evidently much higher than usual; the paddy-fields were deeply inundated, although the rice was being cut; and some of the villages and courts of the joss-houses were flooded. Shortly afterwards, while our squadron was lying off Nankin, the river overflowed its banks so extensively, that the Chinamen were obliged to move about in boats from house to house in the suburbs; and great distress arose, both from this cause, and from the entire stoppage of trade in the river.

A country so subject to inundations, and intersected as it is by canals in all directions, cannot but be at times extremely unhealthy; and it is not to be wondered at that sickness should have broken out extensively, among a body of foreigners long confined on board ship. We shall presently allude to the sickness prevailing among the Chinese themselves in the neighbourhood of Nankin, which may, in some degree, account for the great falling off in its population.

From what has been said of the numerous openings and communications of the Grand Canal, it is evident that it would require a considerable force to establish an efficient blockade. But not only was it necessary to stop the trade, but also to take measures, at the same time, to prevent the panic among the people from reaching such a pitch as to drive them away from their homes, and leave the country at the mercy of the rabble, and of the lawless plunderers who flock into the towns from all parts, causing uneasiness even to the government.

The Blonde and Modeste, together with the Proserpine, were placed so as to blockade the two principal entrances of the canal immediately above Chin-keang-foo, two or three days before the town was taken; while the Nemesis and the Queen steamers, having the Plenipotentiary and Captain Bourchier on board, proceeded some miles higher up the river, until they suddenly discovered a large fleet of not less than three hundred trading-junks. These were all ordered to drop down immediately to Chin-keang, where they could more easily be prevented from making their escape. A number of papers written in Chinese were distributed among the captains of the junks, telling them that no harm would be done to them, but their vessels must be detained. The Plenipotentiary immediately returned to Chin-keang-foo, and the Nemesis was left to hasten the departure of the junks, which were made to get under way at once. A grand scene of confusion followed, as they were crowded together, and all were glad to be allowed to get away from the steamer without molestation. They were afterwards brought-to, in one of the branches of the southern canal, just above Golden Island, and, for some time, were under the charge of the Proserpine steamer, Commander Hough.

A few miles up the branch of the canal near the mouth of which this large fleet of junks was discovered, was situated the third-class town called Esching, distant about twelve or fourteen miles from Chin-keang. The approach of the Nemesis, and the detention of the junks, caused so much consternation, that in the evening a respectably-dressed Chinaman, who, from the authority he was afterwards found to possess, must have been a mandarin of some rank, came down to the steamer, bringing a few trifling presents of tea &c., as a means of introduction. His object evidently was to ascertain whether there was any intention of taking possession of the town; and, if so, to endeavour to avert the calamity by the offer of a ransom.

Supplies of fresh provisions were at this time greatly wanted in the fleet. Many ships, particularly transports, had not been able to procure fresh meat or vegetables for a considerable time, and the sick were, consequently, deprived of what was most essential to their recovery. This opportunity of procuring supplies was not to be neglected. The Chinese gentleman and his attendants were conducted over every part of the steamer, with which they were evidently much surprised, but above all with the engines. He was soon made to understand that if he promised to send down abundant supplies, all of which would be equitably paid for, no harm whatever would be done to the town or its inhabitants; but that no trading-junks could on any account be permitted to pass up the river, or through that branch of the canal.

A demand for twenty bullocks was made, and they were to be delivered on the following day. This was declared to be impossible – so many could not be found; however, he was quietly told that they must be forthcoming, and that ten dollars would be paid for each of them. Late in the evening the party of Chinamen returned to the town, apparently quite satisfied with the civility they had received, and equally convinced of the formidable character of their new visiter.