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14 Feb 58 Julius Cawnpore Mother Hyde Park Place ______________________________________________________________________________________________

Camp 53rd Regt. Unoow

Nr. Cawnpore. 14th Feb'ry 1858. –

My dear Mother

Since I last wrote which was at Calcutta, I have made considerable progress in my travels. I was lucky enough to be sent up from Calcutta one of the first of the fresh arrivals.

27th Febry 1858. –

Camp 34th Regt. Genl. Grants Brigade

Mod Gaunge, Nr. Lucknow

I commenced this letter at the above date as you will perceive but was prevented continuing it. It being a halt today I will continue to do so & at the same time tell you of my doing since my last.

I came up country with 7 others. We came first by rail* for about 70 miles to Ranegunge which is the terminus. I must first tell you that I got orders to join my Regt. which was at that time guarding a Bridge at Bunnee on the road from Cawnpore to Lucknow. Well, we started from Calcutta on the evening of the 2nd Feb. From Ranegunge we were provided with small carriages called dawks containing 2 in each, by which we travelled as far as Benares, altogether 429 miles. We went on, night & day, stopping for nothing but to feed. We were 3 days & 4 nights doing this.

On arrival at Benares where, by the way, we were detained by the breaking of the bridge of boats across the Ganges & had to be ferried over. At Benares we arrived on 7th Febry. On reporting ourselves to the Brigade Major, we were told there were seven places in the dawks vacant: one that evening, 2 next morning, 3 next evening & 1 in two days time. We agreed to draw lots. I got one of the places for the next morning & after a night’s sleep, which we all began to need, I started off.

I must tell you that the dawks change horses about every 6 miles & sometimes (owing to the rebels having seized all the horses & the difficulty of procuring fresh ones) we were delayed considerably by the obstinacy or objections to start which most of them exhibited. However at last we got early the next morning to Allahabad (70 miles from Benares) where we certainly began to see traces of the mutiny, there being no houses about the place. The town had altogether disappeared. Luckily the authorities had some tents standing for the convenience of Officers passing through & to them we went.

There is a very large & very strong fort at Allahabad which was at one time besieged by the rebels. We were delayed here by the arrival of Sir Colin who came down for the conference with the Governor General. I saw him arrive & in the afternoon I saw him leave by the train which goes 50 miles in the direction of Cawnpore. There was some talk of the train being attacked & the rails shifted, however after he left there was nothing to keep us, so the next morning on we went again & at the end of the 50 miles we again got horse dawk which we kept till we arrived at Cawnpore, about 80 miles.

Here indeed was a city of ruins. I am not good at giving descriptions & if I was, I do not think I could describe my feelings at beholding such ruins. I of course saw the well in which so many unfortunate women & children had been thrown after having been tortured by these devils. Ruffians is too soft a name for them. I was shown places where Officers were slaughtered in their mess rooms & defenceless women murdered. Splendid buildings were one mass of blackened bricks.

The Church had of course been included in the number of buildings set fire to, but owing to the want of combustible matter, had pretty well escaped. Which ever way you looked you saw nothing but ruins. You will have read in the papers the accounts of Windhams affair when the Regt. lost all its baggage. It was then that the town was destroyed. After the force had to return into the fort, the Sepoys had their own way with the town.

I am spinning my yarn & must continue my travels. At Cawnpore we took up our Quarters at ‘the Hotel’ which is an old house & had not been occupied for some years & on that account left it.

This vacant house had been seized on by some man & I should think by the prices he charges, must be on a good way of making his fortune. He certainly runs considerable risk of his stores being seized by parties of rebels on the road. We were warned to have our revolvers always ready at hand all the way up as there are strong parties always hanging about to see what they can pick up.

Well, here we lived for some three days & provided ourselves with all necessaries for a camp life – namely mattress, bedstead, basins & a few other things. I got a sort of pony which I gave 70 Rupees (£7) for. He is very much out of condition but is a strong fellow & when he fills out which he is doing rapidly, will do very well until things get quiet & when I shall get a horse.

All sick men are left out at Cawnpore from whence they are drafted up to their Regts. as soon as they get convalescent. A Bt. Major of ours is in command & as I wanted someone to look after my cart, I asked him to let me have a man. Properly I require about 12 natives, but as good servants are not to be got for love or money, I have only one, a tent pitcher & I hardly thought it safe to send all my traps with him.

Jordan* said that he wanted to send 8 men up to the Regt. & if I would take them, of course they could look after the baggage so I agreed to take them on. I must tell you that the road from Cawnpore is considered very unsafe so I was to join the 53rd who had marched out that morning to join our brigade. We got in late at night to Unoow where I commenced this. We were to start the next morning for Bunnee where the 34th was. However late that night an order came for us to halt there until further orders, so there was I, stuck with 8 men, 12 miles from Cawnpore & about 20 from Bunnee. If it had not been for the men, I might have ridden on next day, but of course I was not allowed to leave the men. There we were kept two days when another sudden order came to move on to a place called Bussore Gunge, about 5 miles further on the road.

We got there about 11 o’clock & I had a bad ear ache & as soon as I could get my tent pitched laid down & went to sleep. I had slept about an hour when in marched someone to tell me that the 34th & 38th were just marching up. Of course up I got to see them & we were very soon seated under some trees hearing & giving all the news. Instead of the strong Regiment that I expected to see, there are left only about 500 men & short of Officers as there are several away sick. I met with a very civil reception from all the swells & a very cordial one from all my Equals. They all seem to think it would have been very unfair to have allowed Wyse to have cut me out of the appointment.

The next morning we marched off in a Brigade under Col. Grant of the 9th Lancers, the 34th, 38th, 53rd, 2 troops of the horse artillery, two heavy guns drawn by elephants, some of the 7th Hussars & 9th Lancers, as well as some Sikh Cavalry with them. We have been scouring the country in Oude. All the villagers are against us. They always desert their villages & if revenue has not been paid or if they have given supplies to the Sepoys the place is burnt. We started on the 16th & have been continually marching in the heat of the day (94° in the shade) blowing up all the forts. We were within 10 miles of Nana Sahib. He went out of a village one night & we entered next morning, but the idea is to allow him to collect troops in order that we may destroy all & every one of them.

We are under a very good General & one who keeps his own counsel. In the morning when we start, no one has the least idea in what direction we are to go, or where we shall be in the evening. Large bodies of the enemy have continually been near us but they always disappear on our approach. On the 25th, we marched as usual & suddenly an order came for the 34th to halt & immediately we heard bang, bang & whiz came a small round shot just over us.

We were the centre Regt. but being the weakest we were ordered to stay behind & guard the baggage. This was very disgusting but what should we do. We saw the big guns ordered up to the front & they opened at a fort & after firing about 60 rounds it was supposed that a breach had been made in the walls. The 53rd then advanced through it & divided into three parties & scoured the town.*

The enemy did not make any great opposition to their entrance as they were frightened by the big guns, but then commenced the street fighting. However to make a long story short, they overcame every resistance & shot & bayoneted about 300 of the enemy with the loss of 1 Officer mortally wounded who is, poor fellow dying although not dead, & only two men wounded. A captain of the Navy who is up here on leave & always goes with them was wounded likewise. When the 53rd entered the town of course the ns tried to get out of it. Unfortunately for them, that had been thought of by Genl. Grant & the Cavalry were in waiting to cut them down.

Word was brought that they were running fast & Col. Kelly sent off two Companies under Col. Simpson & two under Col. Gwilt. I was with the latter. We went to cut them off. We were going along pretty well, not seeing any of the enemy. Near us the Captains of course leading their Companies, the Subalterns in rear, when of a sudden I heard a clashing of swords & heard Col. Gwilt cry ‘bayonet him one of you’ & I saw a Sepoy start up out of a ditch which we were passing & run.

He had heard us coming & knowing that he must die, had determined to sell his life dearly. He had attacked Marsh, a Capt. of ours who had nearly trod on him as he lay concealed in his ditch & of course took him by surprise & luckily March stumbled & at the same time lifted his sword which guarded him & he only received a slight cut on the hand. The men were so surprised that about 8 rifles went off before he was shot & a man who had fired without effect rushed after him, caught him just as he had been wounded & after receiving a cut from his sword which he guarded with his rifle & unfortunately got the forefinger of his right hand cut through, ran his bayonet through him.

Gwilt then ordered me to take a section & clear the place all round as there were some high bushes. It was no joke however. I got well in front of my 12 men & scoured the country. In about 10 minutes we bayoneted & shot 7 of them who were hiding, not daring to run as the cavalry would have cut them down. We encamped that day & night outside the town. The loss of the enemy altogether cut down by the cavalry & all was over 500. Our own total loss 1 Officer wounded, 2 men killed & 25 wounded.

We marched yesterday to attack another place, but they would not stand. We would have been the storming party had they remained. We are now about 10 miles from Lucknow & can hear the guns. We expect to move on to be present at the capture.

There has just been an alarm that the enemy were coming down on us but it has all passed off again. They know better. We have our Camp in a large plain & could give them a splendid thrashing if necessary.

We have heard nothing at all that has been going on while we have been away. No news, no letters. They say there are three mails due for us. The last letter I have had & the only one is Dec 19th but I shall get some more when they arrive.

Thank Mary & Aunt Robert for their letters & tell them I shall hope to be able to answer them soon but now that I can only write one letter it must be ‘home’.

I am afraid there will be some difficulty in reading this. It is very long but I thought I would give you all I could to make up for so long a silence.

Lucknow must & will be taken but it will be a stubborn defence. They have no where else to go to & everyone that comes to our hands is hung. The other day a lot of men were caught, the day we took Meeangunge.

They were given over to some soldiers to be shot. They were shot certainly. I was strolling about the camp some time afterwards & I came on to the spot. Some were not dead & I would not have believed that Englishmen could have treated human beings, much less dogs, in the way they did these Sepoys. They jumped on them & hit them on the head with hatchets & at last one poor brute still groaned & they covered his head in the sand. I was nearly sick & turned away. I could not prevent them.

It was a terrible retribution. A short time ago one of our men was wounded & he lost sight of the Regt. He was seized by these fellows & tortured. First they pulled out his nails one by one, then cut off his toes in like manner, then his feet & legs, arms & last, head. The other day our war cry was ‘Remember McArthy’ & I can answer for it that they did.

I will write by the next opportunity in the mean while, with love to all.

Believe me,

Yr. affect. Son

J D Laurie

* we came first by rail – Although the first railway passengers in India were carried the 21 miles from Bombay to Thana in 1853, it was not until 1857 that proper planning and substantial investment were introduced, with the result that in 1866, Madras, Bombay, Calcutta and Delhi were linked by railways

On its journey to India, the 34th Regiment had landed at Calcutta on 17th October 1857 after a six week voyage from Portsmouth. The men were then conveyed by boat about 20 miles up the Hooghly River to Chinsurah, and 80 miles by rail to Raneegunge, before being carried the final 400 miles in covered carts to Cawnpore, arriving on 23rd November – in all, a three month journey

* Jordan - Capt. Joseph

* scoured the town – Meeangunge. His involvement at the capture of the town (on 23rd February 1858) is noted in his Army record