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were able only slowly to make good their progress; but on the morning of the 20th they got possession of the Lahore Gate, and then advanced upon the other bastions and gates until the whole of the external defences of Delhi were in our hands. To quote the narrative of Brigadier-General Wilson in his despatch to the Indian Government, "from the time of our first entering the city, an uninterrupted and vigorous fire from our guns and mortars was kept up on the Palace, Jumma Musjid, and important posts in possession of the rebels; and as we took up our various positions in advance, our light guns and mortars were brought forward, and used with effect on the streets and houses in their neighbourhood."

The result of this heavy and unceasing bombardment, and of the steady and persevering advance of our troops, was the evacuation of the palace by the king, the entire desertion of the city by the inhabitants, and the precipitate flight of the rebel troops who, abandoning their camp, property, many of their sick and wounded, and the greater part of their field artillery, fled in utter disorganization; some 4000 or 5000 across the bridge of boats into the Doab (the country between the Jumna and the Ganges), the remainder down the right bank of the Jumna.

The gate of the palace was at last blown in, and it was occupied by our troops at about noon on the 20th, and the head-quarters of General Wilson established in it on the same day.*

A letter from an eye-witness thus describes the state of the Palace of the last King of Delhi:

And thus Delhi at last was ours. "Delhi" as was well said by General Wilson in his despatch, "the focus of rebellion and insurrection, and the scene of so much horrible cruelty, taken and made desolate; the king a prisoner in our hands; and the mutineers, notwithstanding their great numerical superiority, and their vast resources in ordnance, and all the munitions and appliances of war, defeated on every occasion of engagement with our troops, driven with slaughter in confusion and dismay from their boasted stronghold."

He did not forget to eulogize the services rendered during the siege by the Rajah of Putteeala, whose active assistance in the Umballa district we have already noticed, and by the Jheend Rajah, who with his troops took part in the siege, and afforded us the most efficient aid. In his despatch announcing the final capture of the place, General Wilson said,Of the loyal services rendered

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"On the 21st I rode down to see the Palace; the wall and entrance are the finest part. The interior is dirty, filthy, and in great disorder, Pandy having revelled in its cool archways. The hall of justice and the king's throne are entirely built of white marble; the latter is inlaid with stones and mosaics. I went all over the state apartments and the harem. The latter is a curious place, and had a remarkable appearance; its floor covered with guitars, bangles, &c., and redolent of sandal wood. The fair daughters of Cashmere had their swing in the centre of the room. They had left in a great hurry; dresses, silks, slippers, were lying on all

sides.

"On leaving the Palace I met a doolie, surrounded by some cavalry and a few natives on foot. Its inmate was a thinfaced, anxious-looking old man. This was the King of Hindostan, the descendant of the Great Moguls, entering his Palace in the hands of his enemies."

to the State by the Rajah of Putteeala, which must be so well known to the Government, it may not be considered necessary for me to speak; but it is incumbent on me, in my capacity as commander of this force, to acknowledge officially the great assistance the Rajah's troops have afforded me in enabling the numerous convoys of ammunition and stores to travel in security and safety to my camp under their escort and protection.

"Equally is it my duty to bring prominently to the notice of Government the admirable service performed by the Jheend Rajah and his troops, under command of Lieut.-Col. H. F. Dunsford. They have not only had very harassing duties to carry out in the constant escort of convoys of sick and wounded men, ammunition, &c.; but they have also aided me in the field on more than one occasion, and finally participated in the assault of the city."

And the Governor-General in Council publicly thanked these faithful chieftains in a proclamation dated Fort William, Nov. 5.

"The loyal and constant co-operation of the Maharajah of Putteeala and his troops; the steady support of the Rajah of Jheend, whose forces shared in the assault; and the assistance given to the British arms by Jan Fishan Khan and Sirdar Meer Khan Sahib, well call for the marked thanks of the Governor-General in Council.

"These true-hearted chiefs, faithful to their engagements, have shown trust in the power, honour, and friendship of the British Government, and they will not repent it."

It is right to place these sentiments on record, for the time may come when it will be necessary to remember them.

When the news of the capture of Delhi reached Calcutta, the Governor-General in Council issued a public "notification" in

which he said :·

"Whatever may be the motives and passions by which the mutinous soldiery, and those who are leagued with them, have been instigated to faithlessness, rebellion, and crimes at which the heart sickens, it is certain that they have found encouragement in the delusive belief that India was weakly guarded by England, and that before the Government.could gather its strength against them, their ends would be gained.

"They are now undeceived.

"Before a single soldier, of the many thousands who are hastening from England to uphold the supremacy of the British power has set foot on these shores, the rebel force where it was strongest and most united, and where it had the command of unbounded military appliances, has been destroyed or scattered by an army collected within the limits of the NorthWestern Provinces and the Punjab alone.

"The work has been done before the support of those battalions which have been collected in Bengal from the forces of the Queen in China, and in Her Majesty's eastern colonies, could reach Major-General Wilson's army; and it is by the courage and endurance of that gallant army alone; by the skill, sound judgment, and steady resolution of its brave commander; and by the aid of some native chiefs, true to their allegiance, that, under the blessing of God,

the head of rebellion has been crushed, and the cause of loyalty, humanity, and rightful authority vindicated.

"To Sir John Lawrence, K.C.B., it is owing, that the army before Delhi, long ago cut off from all direct support from the Lower Provinces, has been constantly recruited and strengthened effectually as to enable its commander not only to hold his position unshaken, but to achieve a complete success."

SO

The next event of importance was the capture of the old king of Delhi and two of his sons, who had fled from the city when the victorious troops took possession of the palace.* Lieutenant Hodson obtained permission to follow in pursuit, and he received information from a member of the royal family, named Mirza Elahie Buksh, that the king would be willing to surrender himself if his life were spared. Lieutenant Hodson took a small body of horsemen and came up to the place where the king was, and having, through Mirza Elahie Buksh, given a promise of personal safety, obtained possession of the king's person, and brought him back into Delhi. Early next morning Lieut. Hodson, at the head of 100 men, again set off from the city, and proceeded to the Tomb of the Mogul Emperor, Humagoon, an immense pile of buildings at some distance from Delhi, where he had received information that two of the king's sons had taken refuge and were concealed. When he

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reached the place he sent in two natives, one of them an illegitimate member of the royal family, and after two anxious hours induced them to come out, when they were immediately put into a carriage and sent off under a small guard towards Delhi. He then, having first taken care to prevent all egress from the building, entered with a body of his men into the mausoleum, and found there a rabble assembled of between 5000 and 6000 persons armed with all kinds of weapons. He sternly commanded them to surrender and lay down their arms, and, awed by his bearing, they complied. Having collected the arms he returned to the city, and overtook the carriage containing the two princes not far from the walls. It had been stopped and was surrounded by a disorderly body of men, who showed an evident design to attempt a rescue. Lieut. Hodson dashed up, and according to what we believe an authentic account of what happened, cried out, "These are the men who have not only rebelled against the Government, but ordered and witnessed the massacre and shameful exposure of innocent women and children; and thus therefore the Government punishes such traitors, taken in open resistance." He then shot them both on the spot. The effect was instantaneous. The Mahommedans of the troop and some influential Moulvies among the bystanders exclaimed, "Well, and rightly done! Their crime has met with its just penalty. These were they who gave the signal for the death of helpless women and children, and now a righteous judgment has fallen on them. God is great!" The re

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maining weapons were then laid down, and the crowd slowly and quietly dispersed. The bodies were carried into the city and thrown out in front of the Kotwallee, on the very spot where the blood of their innocent victims had stained the earth.

Soon afterwards two others of the king's sons were tried before a military commission, condemned to death, and executed.

No time was lost in organizing a pursuit after the rebels; and on the morning of the 23rd of September flying column under the

command of Colonel Greathed, and consisting of H.M.'s 8th and 75th Regiments, 2nd and 4th Punjab Infantry, 9th Lancers, 200 Hodson's horse, with some Punjab Cavalry and Horse Artillery, set out from Delhi to march in a south-east direction upon Boolundshuhur and Allyghur, and if possible cut off the rebels on the right bank of the Jumna in their attempt to cross the river into the Doab. We shall subsequently recur to the operations of this force, which was known as Greathed's column.

CHAPTER XIV.

INDIA. HISTORY OF THE MUTINY CONTINUED.-Arrival of General Outram at Cawnpore with reinforcements - Advance of General Havelock upon Lucknow -Relief of the Garrison at the Residency — Account of the Siege of Lucknow-March of Colonel Greathed's column-Defeat of the rebels at Agra-Arrival of reinforcements from England-The Naval Brigade under Captain Peel-Sir Colin Campbell, the Commander-in-Chief, advances on Lucknow - The Residency relieved by him a second time-Removal of the women and children of the garrison-Death of General Havelock-Successful attack by the rebels on General Windham's position at CawnporeSir Colin Campbell comes to the rescue— -Complete defeat of the enemy -Subsequent operations-Assistance rendered by the Nepaulese troops -Mutiny at Chittagong and Dacca-Measures taken by the Indian Government during the Revolt-Acts passed-Arrest of the ex-King of Oude-Suppression of the Liberty of the Press-Promulgation of Resolution on the mode of dealing with natives charged with Mutiny -Defence of this Resolution by Governor-General in Council-Mode of transport of troops to the Upper Provinces-Loss of Revenue from the Mutiny-Position of Affairs at the Close of the Year.

N the meantime, General Sir

Cawnpore on the 16th of September, with the reinforcements for which General Havelock had been obliged to wait, and as the superior officer he was entitled to take the command of the whole body of troops there assembled, but with chivalrous generosity he determined that on General Havelock should devolve the honour of relieving the garrison at Lucknow. He therefore said that "in gratitude for and admiration of the brilliant deeds of arms achieved by General Havelock and his gallant troops," he would waive his rank and accompany the force to Lucknow in his civil capacity as Chief Com

missioner of Oude, tendering his

On the 19th and 20th, the relieving force under General Havelock crossed the Ganges. It consisted of two Infantry and one Artillery Brigades, with a few Cavalry, amounting altogether to about 2500 men and 17 guns.

The first Infantry Brigade was made up of the 5th Fusileers, 84th Regiment, detachments 64th Foot and 1st Madras Fusileers, Brigadier-General Neill commanding; the second of H.M.'s 78th Highlanders, H.M.'s 90th Light Inf., and the Sikh Regiment of Ferozepore, Brigadier Hamilton commanding; the Artillery Brigade, of Capt. Maude's battery, Capt. Oli

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