INTRODUCTION
I have not attempted to write a Military History of the Indian Army Corps in France. I lay no claim to describing the course of events on the British Front, as a whole, during 1914–15, except in as far as they concern the Corps. The excellent account written by Lieut.-Colonel Merewether, C.I.E., Indian Army, and Sir Frederick Smith, Bart. (The Indian Corps in France, published by John Murray), both of whom served on my Staff as Recording Officers on behalf of the India and War Offices, and who have had at their disposal all the official records, furnishes ample details of the movements and the doings of the Corps as forming an integral part of the British Army in Flanders.
I have not had the advantages of papers of reference, nor have I seen all the diaries of the various Commanders and others, and have had the handicap of writing most of my story far removed from England; but it must be borne in mind that a great part of their information was naturally derived from my own reports and correspondence, and of nearly all such I kept copies, and have used them. If, therefore, in some cases our descriptions of military events appear somewhat similar the reason will be readily understood. Also I kept a very careful Diary from day to day which has enabled me to write with certainty of the events recorded.
My object has been to deal with the Corps alone, only bringing in outside movements sufficiently to describe the operations it took part in. I have tried to bring before the public, and more especially my numerous friends in India, the inside of the story as opposed to its general aspect. Books on the war are already numerous, and will increase in large numbers, and to attempt to enter into competition with many brilliant writers would be foolish. I therefore only deal with the small portion of the war as it appeared to me, and as few if any have a better knowledge of the brave Indian soldiers and the deeds they performed than I have, I hope I may succeed in bringing before my readers a true statement of facts.
It must not be imagined that I have any illusions as to the part played by the Indians, as will be made clear throughout this book. No one knows better than I do how utterly impossible it would have been for them to do what they did, without the help and example of their illustrious comrades of the Scotch, Irish, and English battalions which formed part of each Brigade, or of the splendid Territorial units which later joined us, and the superb British Artillery which paved the way for all our efforts.
But of these History will assuredly furnish a brilliant account. It is not always so of Indian troops; their raconteurs are few and far between; the chief actors in the play, still living, will probably be counted by tens not thousands. The rank and file will furnish no writers to thrill the generations to come; they will just pass with the great masses of India, content that they have done their duty and been faithful to their salt.
It has not been possible to record all, or even many, of the deathless deeds performed by both British and Indian officers and men, but I have added an Appendix extracted from the official list of Promotions and Rewards of Officers, N.C.O.’s, and Men of all Arms of the Indian Army who served with the Army Corps or with other Indian troops or with British Corps in France prior to 1916; and there will be found under the heading of Staff, Units of all Arms and Departments, etc., what I presume is a complete roll of rewards.
It will be observed that the early fighting prior to the battle of Neuve Chapelle is described in far greater detail than the operations which took place subsequently. For this there are two reasons. First, I was able to keep very full notes of all occurrences as they took place, and for the first three months indeed all ordinary papers went no farther than my own Army Corps. But on the formation of the First and Second Armies the Indian Corps passed under the orders of the First Army, and the same opportunities did not offer as previously; hence it became much more difficult to retain copies of all correspondence. Secondly, I consider it far more interesting to record even the smallest fights, in which the Indians bore a share whilst they were still new to the game and had not become versed and seasoned in the intricacies of trench warfare.
I have considered it a sacred duty, and to the best of my ability I have endeavoured to place on record the loyalty, courage, and devotion of the King’s soldiers from Hindustan.
It has been impossible to write a book of this kind without entering into personal matters, but so intimately connected is a Commander of Indian troops with the whole being of his officers and men, that the doings of the one cannot be separated from the other, if their combined efforts are to be intelligently described. But putting this aside, so erroneous are many of the opinions and so ill-natured have been some of the criticisms of the part taken by the Indian Corps in Flanders, that it has been impracticable to avoid writing strongly when I considered it necessary, and hence I have not hesitated to do so. Moreover, it is due to India to be told the facts. The day is past when that great portion of our Empire could be kept in comparative darkness; the light is dawning, and the Great War has opened to her an opportunity which she never had before. Her sons have shared the glory of the Empire. From the boggy fields and trenches of Flanders and the desert sands of Egypt; from the immortal heights of Gallipoli; from the burning plains of Mesopotamia and the impenetrable jungles of East Africa, comes up with one voice, from the thousands who fought and bled for England:
I am indebted to many officers of the Army Corps for short stories and some details regarding their units, but I have avoided asking any of them for information which might raise controversial matters, and for anything contained in this book I take full responsibility. My thanks are due to Professor John Wardell, late Professor Modern History and Lecturer Military History, Trinity College, Dublin, for having furnished me with some interesting diaries of deceased and other officers as well as extracts of letters written from France.
In a few instances I have taken the liberty of copying the numbers of casualties suffered by the Corps, as well as the names of certain officers and men rewarded, from the semi-official history quoted above—The Indian Corps in France. Unfortunately many very useful manuscripts, notes, and returns on the way to me in Bermuda were lost in the Adana when that ship was torpedoed in the Atlantic.