by Kiran Nirvan
An engraved insignia of the 36th Sikhs
After successfully conducting the responsible task of creating an efficient fighting force such as the 36th Sikhs, it was time for Lieutenant Colonel J. Cook to bid farewell to the regiment after seven arduous yet rewarding years. The first commanding officer of the regiment then relinquished his command on 25 June 1894. His farewell words as stated in the unit’s service digest were:
As the time approaches which concludes the term of my command of the 36th Sikhs, I feel impelled to place on record my sense of gratitude and keen appreciation of the cheerful assistance I have throughout received from the officers of the regiment and the ready obedience of all ranks, making the work a pleasure and a pride. The regiment being newly formed, coupled with the introduction of new drills from time to time, rendered the labours demanded more than ordinarily arduous. I can only express a hope that labours so honestly bestowed may bring its own reward by the advancement of those concerned and the selection of the Corps for Service. In the course of my career, the period I look back on with most pride is that I spent with the 36th Sikhs. I need hardly add that I bid you all farewell, Officers, Native-officers, Non-commissioned officers and men, with the deepest regret at having to relinquish a connection with which I have been so intimately wrapt [sic] up for the past seven years. I shall watch the onward course of the Corps with keen interest and hope that if it be my lot to be further employed, it may be my great fortune to be associated with my old Regiment, which ever has my best wishes for its welfare in peace or war.
Major General J. Cook, the first Commanding Officer of 36th Sikhs
~
After Cook’s departure in 1894, the command of the 36th Sikhs was taken over by Lieutenant Colonel John Haughton, an officer with less than 23 years of service. Prior to this he was a cognate appointment in one of the permanent wings of the 35th Sikhs, a regiment he had helped recruit for. A revered leader and a fine example of military traditions, history is replete with examples of his exemplary leadership and his competent command during the Tirah Campaign.
Lieutenant Colonel John Haughton
It is said that non-commissioned officers and troops constitute the basic skeleton of a regiment whereas adding flesh and skin to this skeleton is a commanding officer’s job. The significance of a commanding officer in shaping the structure of troops and carving them into the finest possible soldiers with high morale and military values, therefore, cannot be ruled out at this juncture. As stated before, there could be multiple reasons behind the choice of the 21 warriors of Saragarhi to stay behind and defend the fort on that fateful day in 1897, and one of these reasons could be their loyalty towards their commanding officer. In an attempt to understand why this could be so, it is important to brush upon certain traits of Lieutenant John Haughton that could explain the overwhelming interpersonal camaraderie that existed in that particular unit.
Haughton was born in August 1852 at Chota Nagpur in India to Lieutenant General John Colpoys Haughton who was at the time serving as an officer in the British Indian Army under the East India Company. After being educated in India until the age of 13 years, Haughton was sent to Britain for further schooling at Uppingham, where a memorial dedicated to him and his service as a soldier still exists. He entered the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst when he was only 17 years old and passed out from there as an officer in the year 1871. In his book, The Life of Lieutenant-Colonel John Haughton, Major A.C. Yate meticulously describes his distinct qualities as an officer and a leader and what made his men regard and respect him. A detailed study of this book and other accounts of the officer from other sources paints a picture of a six-foot-six-inches-tall Haughton, who stood even taller in his stature. The reason that his men followed him in battle regardless of consequences was only because he was a leader who led from the front, as opposed to some other officers serving at the frontier during that time. In one of the letters Colonel C.H. Palmer wrote in 1899, he said about Haughton that,2
How Jack [John Haughton] learnt to fight the frontier tribesmen I cannot tell you… [H]e was always reading useful accounts of campaigns, and I expect his father told him much of his experiences, and further, I think there is a sort of instinct in some men, as well as in mere animals, beyond the ordinary, or rather extra-ordinary human knowledge which makes one man ‘all there’ under certain circumstances, where another man of apparently equal mental caliber is an utter failure, and worse than useless, and I think Jack had this instinct; and further, Jack so thoroughly knew and studied the characters of all natives he came in contact with, and when you really know one native, or at any rate several of different castes and ‘Jats’ you can pretty well know what they will be likely to do in certain circumstances on service or otherwise.
It is said that war often reveals the truest character of a man, and at the time of the Tirah Campaign, Haughton’s exemplary conduct and his humility and empathy towards Indian soldiers made him esteemed, respected and beloved. His qualities were not overlooked by his seniors and that is why, after steadily and sincerely carrying out his tasks for a few years, he was appointed as a commanding officer only after 23 years of service, considered young at the time.
It was from his letters sent back home from Samana Hills during the Tirah Campaign that we could place together pieces of his mindset and thoughts, as well as his worth as a son, a husband, a friend and a soldier. His manner and stance as the commanding officer of the regiment and his approach towards his men could be identified from the words of one of his dear friends, Colonel C.H. Palmer3:
Haughton was kindly and courteous to everyone, but he would stand no nonsense, and could answer very curtly and brusquely to anyone who attempted to take any liberty with him. He had naturally a short and quick temper, but was so kind and tender-hearted that he would forgive and look over any fault or offence against himself, but he would do his duty in a matter of duty, however painful to himself.
Haughton married Margaretta Louisa Baker at St Bartholomew’s church at Barrackpore on 18 January 1883. Unfortunately, his wife died in November 1884, just after the birth of their son named Henry Lawrence who, after his mother’s death, was confined to the care of his maternal grandmother. In order to cope with the grief of this loss, Haughton decided to devote all his time to his career in the army. He was appointed to carry out recruitment for the 35th Sikhs in 1887 and, by September 1887, the regiment had recruited a total of 912 soldiers across all ranks. It was during this time that the telegraphic news of the demise of his father reached Haughton. It left him with deep regret since Haughton had not met his father since he was 15 years old and had been eagerly planning to visit him. Nevertheless, he devoted himself to his service once again, as is expected from soldiers. In September 1894, he married Miss Helen Barmby at Durham, and assumed the command of the 36th Sikhs in 1894, an unusually rapid promotion that made Haughton an extraordinary commanding officer of a regiment destined to perform extraordinary service. Just before Christmas of 1896, the 36th Sikhs moved from Peshawar to Kohat and, in 1897, the regiment was ordered to take over the defence of Samana forts. Here, war with the Pathans put his capabilities to test and he emerged with the highest credit and honour to himself. On 2 September 1897, he was blessed with a daughter named Helen Katherine.
His dedication towards his regiment and his persistent efforts to develop a sense of camaraderie were a result of his own detailed study of the history of the Sikhs. He had also learned a Punjabi dialect to mingle with the Sikh men over the numerous meals he shared with his men in field. By the time he took command of the 36th Sikhs, he knew the Sikh soldiers thoroughly which helped his men to put their faith in him as their commanding officer. They fought valiantly with him in the Tirah Campaign and didn’t leave his side even when their own lives were at stake.
An example of this is the battle that took place during this campaign on 29 January 1898. On that day, the 36th Sikhs was ordered to fall back for rest and to recoup after they had successfully driven
away some Afridis, securing the heights of Kotal. However, Haughton, followed by another officer and handful of his men, decided to cross over the Kotal to help a neighbouring unit that was engaged in battle against numerically superior tribesmen. We will now let an officer’s letter depict Haughton’s courageous actions until he breathed his last4:
He took a Lee-Metford rifle from a Yorkshireman, who was done up and kneeling down fired a few rounds to keep the Afridis off. About this time Turing was killed, and the few Sikhs with Haughton were either killed or wounded. He still held his ground to cover the retirement of the wounded. His hat was knocked off by a bullet, but he only said, ‘That was a near shave’, and turning to Major Barter, told him not to expose himself. Jack [Haughton] was absolutely fearless under fire, and would hardly ever condescend to take over. He then seems to have been left with very few men, for one of the survivors, a Yorkshireman, reported that Jack, seeing that there was very little hope of successfully retiring, said, ‘Now, my men, let us fire a few more shots, then charge the enemy and die like men.’ He fired some five more rounds, and then fell dead with a bullet in his brain.
Lieutenant Colonel John Haughton was buried on 31 January 1898 with full military honours in a cemetery in Peshawar. A monument in his memory was erected over his grave by his fellow officers of the 35th and 36th Sikhs.
The true legacy of Lieutenant Colonel Haughton is described in an 1899 letter written by Major Dillon, an officer who had been in Tirah guarding the frontier: ‘…[H]is name had become a Talisman, and to many, as he was to myself, he was a dear personal friend. His name is still revered in his regiment, where he is talked about in the native ranks as something quite beyond the ordinary Sahib.’
This brief account of their commanding officer and the camaraderie that existed in their regiment throws light on the fact that the 21 soldiers of Saragarhi had trained and served under someone who had led from the front and fought with honour. Hence, this could have been one of the reasons they decided to defend the Saragarhi post at all costs – to stay faithful to the task bestowed upon them by their commanding officer who, they must have known, would have done the same if he were in their place.
1General Orders by Commander-in-Chief.
2Yate, Major A.C., The Life of Lieutenant-Colonel John Haughton, London: John Murray, 1900.
3Ibid.
4Ibid.
7
The Twenty-One
Ram Singh lazily pulled the blanket up to his forehead, half asleep still, as morning sun rays fell on his face. Suddenly, the wooden door of Ram Singh’s house burst open as a middle-aged man entered in a rush. An agitated Ram Singh got up from his bed, half reluctantly, and asked the man the purpose of his early morning visit.
‘A telegraph has arrived in the district office. Your “paltan” [battalion] is moving to the Afghan border. You have been recalled,’ the man spoke hurriedly, catching his breath after each sentence.
Ram Singh smiled. As a sepoy in the 36th Sikhs, he rushed inside to pack his wooden trunk, unaware that his mother stood in a corner watching. ‘Why have you started packing? Your leave has just begun,’ she asked, concerned, to which Ram Singh replied, ‘O dear bibi [mother], we’re finally going to the frontier to fight Afghans.’
Worried and equally confused, his mother asked him the reason behind his cheerfulness. ‘Yes, I am happy, and why shouldn’t I be? It is time for us to avenge the massacre of our ancestors and not everyone gets this opportunity that ‘Waheguru’ has now bestowed upon us. It is all His hukam [order].’
In a futile attempt to reason with her son, she asked why he was endangering his life for the sake of British interests. ‘They gave me an ohda [position] in their fauj [army], bibi. Haughton Sahib believes in us Sikhs and treats us like his own. We eat and drink and fight together. We get food and clothes because they pay us. By staying behind, I cannot be the one to bite the hand that has fed me,’ replied a motivated Ram Singh.
‘We had finalized your marriage, son,’ her mother said with regret, breaking the news to him. Ram Singh paused in his actions, his hand reached for his regimental uniform hung on a hook. Caressing the fabric affectionately, he said, ‘A soldier is always married, bibi, and what better bride can there be for him than death in battle? Bless me so I do well, bless me so I do not falter, bless me and bid me farewell.’
His mother walked up to him, a drop of tear rolling down her cheek as she tenderly cupped her son’s face with both hands. ‘Blessed are the Guru’s true sons,’ she said. ‘And you, my son, are one of them.’
~
A nation stands on the graves of her dead soldiers; their blood furrows her fertile green fields. Out of the brave 21 soldiers, many were young, not more than 30 years old since many of them were still sepoys who would have been recruited in 1887 or afterwards with the age requirement for recruitment at that time being 17 to 20 years. Similarly, with the help of information provided by 4 Sikh (erstwhile the 36th Sikhs) and visits to the Saragarhi memorials in Amritsar and Ferozepur, such inferences were made for all 21 soldiers before we stumbled upon a well-researched piece written by Gurinderpal Singh Josan, author, filmmaker and founder of the Saragarhi foundation, which helped us collate and write this chapter. Before delving into the events of the battle, we must first know who the 21 bravehearts were, so that they can take their well-deserved place in our memories.
Havildar Ishar Singh
No. 165 Havildar Ishar Singh
In all of recorded history, one of the most consistent traits passed on from one generation to another is that we as humans have always needed a ‘leader’ to guide us as, inevitably, most of us are ‘followers’ by nature. Both are equally important but seldom interchangeable. In case of the military, a few characteristic qualities are necessary to make a good leader – namely courage, cooperation, stamina, determination, self-confidence, liveliness, effective intelligence, initiative, quick decision-making ability, social adaptability, the power of expression, the ability to inspire, reason, and organize, as well as a strong sense of responsibility. The soldiers at Saragarhi on 12 September 1897 were not short of a leader; rather, their leader was someone who was a fine example of a military man, with balanced qualities that had been forged in the heat of battle for most of his service. The 20 young men were led by non-commissioned officer Havildar Ishar Singh.
Born in the year 1858 in a village called Jhorarh near Jagraon, Punjab, Ishar Singh enrolled for service in the Punjab Frontier Force in 1876, and was later transferred to the 36th Sikhs in 1887. In the year 1893, he married Jiwani Kaur, little knowing that he would never see his wife again, since he left home a year after their marriage when his regiment moved to the North West Frontier to defend the border against Afghans. While Ishar Singh’s soldierly conduct and his decisions on the battlefield were sound, and the orders passed on to him via heliograph (see Chapter 9) by his senior officers – who were witnessing the battle of Saragarhi from the other two forts in close proximity – were faithfully executed, he was hardly one to blindly follow his superiors. In the words of the British military historian Major General James Lunt, ‘Ishar Singh was a somewhat turbulent character whose independent nature had brought him more than once into conflict with his military superiors. Thus, Ishar Singh, in camp – a nuisance, in the field – magnificent.’1
Ishar Singh, as we now know him, was a feisty and experienced soldier who sometimes preferred to march at the drum of his own beat, but was an exemplary soldier and inspiring leader. Such men, who cannot be fully tamed yet act within the restraints of righteousness, often change the course of history, immortalizing themselves and their deeds forever.
Naik Lal Singh
No. 332 Naik Lal Singh
Lal Singh, a 40-year-old naik at the time of the Battle of Saragarhi, was born in 1857 in Dhun, near Tarn Taran, Punjab. While there are no records that confirm this, it is likely that he was a part of the batch of soldiers transferred to the 36th Sikhs, taking into consideration his rank and age at the tim
e of the battle, since fresh young recruits enlisted only in 1887. He was married to Bibi Prem Kaur, who died at the age of 57.
Lance Naik Chanda Singh
No. 546 Lance Naik Chanda Singh
Chanda Singh was born in 1869 to Rattan Singh in village Sandhu, Patiala. Serving as a 28-year-old lance naik at the time of the battle, he must have been an excellent soldier to have earned a promotion at such a young age.
Sepoy Ram Singh
No. 163 Sepoy Ram Singh
Little or no information is available about Sepoy Ram Singh other than the fact that he was born to Sohan Singh in the year 1862. During the Battle of Saragarhi, this brave soldier was only 35 years old.
Sepoy Sahib Singh
No. 182 Sepoy Sahib Singh
Born in the year 1860, Sahib Singh was a 37-year-old sepoy at the time of the Battle of Saragarhi.
Sepoy Ram Singh
No. 287 Sepoy Ram Singh
Sepoy Ram Singh was born in 1869 to Bhagwan Singh in the village of Sadopur in Haryana. A 28-year-old sepoy during in 1897, he must have been recruited between the ages of 17 to 19.
Sepoy Hira Singh
No. 359 Sepoy Hira Singh