Siege of the Sherpur Cantonment
{{Short description|1879 battle of the Second Anglo-Afghan War}}
{{Infobox Military Conflict
| conflict = The siege of the Sherpur Cantonment
| partof = Second Anglo-Afghan War
| image = 300px
| caption = Assault on the Sherpur Cantonment
| date = 15–23 December 1879
| place = Kabul, Afghanistan
| coordinates = {{coord|34|31|58|N|69|09|57|E|display=title,inline}}
| result = British victory
| combatant1 = {{flag|British Empire}}
- {{flag|British Raj}}
| combatant2 = {{flagicon image|Flag of Afghanistan (1919–1921).svg}} Afghanistan
| commander1 = {{flagicon|United Kingdom}} Frederick Roberts
| commander2 = {{flagicon image|Flag of Afghanistan (1919–1921).svg}} Mir Bacha Khan[https://www.afghanfun.com/shamali.net/heroes/mirbacha/]
{{flagicon image|Flag of Afghanistan (1919–1921).svg}} Mohammed Jan
| strength1 = 7,000 Anglo-Indian troops
| strength2 = 50,000 tribal warriors[http://www.britishbattles.com/second-afghan-war/kabul-1879.htm British Battles: The Second Anglo-Afghan War]. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
| casualties1 = 33 dead and wounded
| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Second Anglo-Afghan War}}
}}
The siege of the Sherpur Cantonment was a battle fought in December 1879, during the Second Anglo-Afghan War. British forces were besieged by Afghan troops, then repulsed an assault.
Background
On 3 September 1879 Sir Pierre Cavagnari, the British Resident in Kabul, and his escort were massacred by mutinous Afghan troops, initiating the second phase of the Second Anglo-Afghan War. A force was assembled and named the Kabul Field Force, under the command of Major-General Frederick Roberts. After defeating Afghan forces at Chariasab on 6 October, Roberts marched into Kabul on 13 October. With Kabul itself vulnerable to attack, Roberts based his force in the unfinished Sherpur Cantonment, a mile north of the city. A military commission was then set up to try those responsible for Cavagnari's death. While a strong response to the murders was considered necessary, the resultant public executions helped unite Afghan opposition against the British presence.{{cite ODNB |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/35768 |title= Roberts, Frederick Sleigh, first Earl Roberts (1832–1914) |access-date=25 February 2009 |last=Robson |first=Brian |year= 2008 |doi= 10.1093/ref:odnb/35768 }}
At the end of November, an army of tribesmen under the command of Mohammed Jan Khan Wardak, who had denounced Amir Mohammad Yaqub Khan as a British puppet and instead declared Musa Jan the new amir, gathered in the area north of Kabul. On 11 December a small detachment (c.170 men) of the 9th Queen's Royal Lancers and the 14th Bengal Lancers encountered a 10,000+ Afghan army advancing on Kabul.A Short History of the 9th Queen's Royal Lancers 1715–1949 In an attempt to delay the advance, the outnumbered Lancers charged the Afghans. Heavy casualties were suffered and the Afghans continued their advance. Anglican chaplain James Adams was awarded the Victoria Cross for rescuing wounded men.{{London Gazette|issue=25008|page=4393|date=26 August 1881}} Naik Kishanbir Nagarkoti of the 5th Gurkha Rifles was awarded his third Indian Order of Merit at this battle.{{Cite book |last=Weekes |first=H. E. |url=http://archive.org/details/historyof5throya0000week |title=History of the 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles : 1858 to 1928 |date=2011 |publisher=Luton : Andrews UK |others= |isbn=978-1-78149-333-5 |publication-date=2011 |pages=}}
The siege
On 15 December, the Afghan army began to besiege the British forces entrenched in the cantonment. As news of a relief column under the command of Brigadier General Charles Gough reached Mohammed Jan, he ordered his troops to storm the cantonment on 23 December. By midday, the assault had been repulsed, and the Afghan army dispersed. No quarter was given to Afghans found in the area with weapons.{{cite book |last=Forbes|first=Archibald|title=The Afghan Wars 1839–42 and 1878–80: Chapter IV: The December storm |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/8428|year=1912 |publisher=Gutenberg Project E-book}}
The Sherpur Cantonment is maintained as a British military cemetery.{{cite news |title=Afghanistan's 'graveyard of foreigners' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-18369101 |access-date=1 November 2024 |work=BBC News |date=9 June 2012}}
Order of battle
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
=British regiments=
=British Indian Army regiments=
- 12th Cavalry
- 14th Murray’s Lancers
- Queen’s Own Corps of Guides
- 5th Cavalry, Punjab Frontier Force
- 1st PWO Sappers and Miners
- 23rd Bengal Native Infantry (Pioneers)
- 28th Bengal Native Infantry (Punjabis)
- 3rd Sikh Infantry
- 5th Punjabis (Vaughan’s Rifles)
- 2nd Gurkha Rifles
- 4th Gurkha Rifles
- 5th Gurkha Rifles
- 22nd (Derajat) Mountain Battery (Frontier Force)
- 24th (Hazara) Mountain Battery (Frontier Force)
{{div col end}}
Gallery
File:Afghan charge at Sherpur Cantonment.jpg|The Afghan forces charge (illustration by Sidney Paget)
File:Bengal Sapper and Miners Bastion, in Sherpur cantonment, Kabul, Second Afghan War, c. 1879.jpg|Bengal Sapper and Miners Bastion, in Sherpur Cantonment circa 1879
File:British Cemetery (1 of 1)-8.jpg|View inside the Sherpur Cantonment in 2010
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Anglo-Afghan War}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sherpur Cantonment 1879}}
Category:Sieges involving Afghanistan
Category:Sieges involving the United Kingdom
Category:Battles of the Second Anglo-Afghan War
Category:19th century in Kabul
Category:Crimes against prisoners of war
Category:British war crimes in Afghanistan
Category:Attacks on military installations in Afghanistan