Special Service

I´m here again!

I have really busy with my real life work and other things, so I have been unable to work in this really interesting  period. But, at last, I have been able to do something. I painted these figures from Empress Miniatures some time ago; they are wonderful miniatures sculpted by the GREAT Paul Hicks that are now part of my platoon of Gordon´s. Because I have not found any reference about the presence of Scottish units in the ORBATs of the Third Afghan War, I have decided , finally, to use them as member of one of the Special Service Battalions raised for the war.

Despite the fact that the British Indian Army was in a not very good shape at the begining of the Third Afghan War, there was a really fortunate respect. A large number of personnel coming from Mesopotamia en route to England for demobilization were awaiting in India due to a shortage of ships, so they were called to meet the crisis.

The Infantry were formed inot Special Service Battalions and those numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4 were made into a Brigade at Rawalpindi for further deployment but, in June, they were finally split up to provide reinforcements for existing British units. The Special Service Battalions Nos. 6, 12, 15, 16 and 18 were employed, on the other hand, as internal security troops in India while No. 17 was used in the Baluchistan area. Artizan and mechanics were drafted to technical corps where they rendered an ivaluable service.

So these tired and home sicked soldiers were called for a last fight.

Well, my Gordon´s are going to be part of one of these internal security detachment posted in the Northwest Frontier. They are going to provide an escort for a certain Mr. Flashman in his very important mission...

The Drum is beating II

I have read in a forum that Empress Miniatures is going to base their new "Jazz Age" range in this very nice movie, "The Drum". A great idea, because it is a classic and really good film full of interesting "frontier" characters and adventure.

I expect they have also plans for the Afghan regular army!

Well, here is my first pack of British troops:

They are the command group from Empress´ Highlanders; very nice miniatures, another great sculpting work from Paul Hicks and a true pleasure to paint.

I have painted the khaki uniform with a Coat d´arms triad (designed by Steve Dean himself), "Khaki Triad" , very easy to apply. Of course, there are a lot of other brown colours in the minis and I have need a lot of time to paint them as Gordons! 

Sadly, I have not found references to this regiment in the Third Afghan War, but my my idea is to use them as part of one of the Special Service units sent to the Frontier.

I have, at last, opponents for my Afghan tribesmen, and another ruleset to use with them, "Setting the East Ablaze" from Partizan Press.

After reading and using "TM&B" and other rulesets based in the Great War, and thinking in the limited gaming time I have, I have decided to look for an easy-to-learn and easy-to-use ruleset with enough flavour of the period in it. I think this one can be very good because this is a ruleset based in the warfare in the "back of beyond", in Central Asia, something perfect for me. This is also a "big-skirmish" game, with 10 to 20 figures to a unit and this is card-driven; another very good point.

The playshet (one of its two faces) and a sample of the good quality of the printing. 

Now, I need to test it and play a game, at last. Perhaps an small patrol of Highlanders looking for problems?

Paul Hicks is moving in the Right Direction!!!!

HMS Berwick off Norway...

I have been following with great interest the last work of Paul Hicks as a creator of wonderful 28mm figures because I´m a true fanatic of his models and I have been waiting for more model useful for the Third Afghan War, British Indian Army this time. I have left this blog forgoten for a long time because I was unabe to find figures of quality to represent the British forces. In fact, I was thinking about to buy some of the Musketeer Miniatures models and put them heads with pith helmets from Woodline Designs, or use the new German revolutionary sailors from Tsuba Miniatures as a band of mercenaries in the north frontier of Afghanistan...

Fortunately, Paul Hicks has come to my rescue:

I have found these pictures in "The Lead Adventure Forum". The British Army, at last, from Mutton Chop Miniatures. I have read in Paul´s entry that they are for the BEF, so quite useful for me, because they have light kit and soft caps. Fortunately, Brigade Games/Company B has spare Lewis guns for them.

Link to the Forum

I expect to begin the painting of the 1/25th London Regiment soon!

To finish this entry, something I have received today for my basing system. This product from Tajima1 Miniatures can be very useful with my bases of Afghanistan:

The British Indian Army, 1919

Finally, it is time to write about the British Empire forces for this war. It is going to be a short entry, because it is a really complex topic. My idea is to write here an introduction to the British Indian forces and then, in other entries, write about single topics such as the machine guns, the armoured cars, etc.

In meeting the threat of the Third Afghan War, the British could call a really large force. In May 1919, the British Indian Army comprised eight divisions, not including frontier militia, and five independent brigades of infantry and three of cavalry. The North-West Frontier province had three infantry divisions and two cavalry brigades and there were also three frontier brigades and a number of frontier militia and irregular corps.

 

An Infantry division consisted of  three infantry brigades (each with one British and three Indian battalions), one squadron of Indian cavalry, one RFA field artillery brigade (two batteries of 18-pdrs. and one battery of 4.5-inch howitzers) and an Indian mountain brigade with two batteries of 2.75-inch mountain guns. Finally, there were two companies of machine guns with 16 guns each and the usual service units.

A Cavalry brigade was composed of one RHA battery with 13-pdrs. and one British and two Indian cavalry regiments, one squadron of machine guns (12 guns) and service units.

To these units forming the powerful Field Army for service in the North-West Frontier were added armoured cars and RAF detachments that increased the British firepower and reach.

 

 The main problem for the British was manpower, but it was not really apparent in a first glance. Although many of the pre-war units of the Indian Army were still overseas, being repatriated, or on long delayed leave, there was still the equivalent of the pre-war army available in India. But here laid the problem; the quality of these troops, especially the infantry, was very low. The Indian Army had been heavily commited to the Great War, and had suffered a large number of casualties. With the depots empty, many of the new battalions had been raised in 1917 or 1918 with recruits of a lower standard.

 

Only two cavalry regiments and eight infantry battalions of British troops remained in India from a pre-war establishment of 61 units. They were, of course, true "Old Contemptibles", long service regulars that had maintained a high standard of training and efficiency. There were also units of the Territorial Army, part-time soldiers who had volunteered for overseas service and had been sent in order to release regular units for the fighting in Europe. After four years of mundane and boring garrison duty, away from their homes, most of them were only interested in demobilization and returning to Britain. In fact, many of the British personnel were in the transit camps, awaiting repatriation and demobilization. They were not prepared to fight a hard campaing on the Frontier.

 

In adition to all these disadvantages, both British and Indian units were short of  experienced junior officers and NCOs because the pre-war cadres were greatly diluited due to the high loses and the many new units raised.





Fifth Sikhs in Mardan, 1895



In accordance with the principles laid down by Lord Curzon in 1899, the trans-border tracts of the North-West Frontier were held by irregulars, with the exception of the garrisons of Chitral, the Malakand and Dardoni in the Tochi.

The duty of policing independent tribal territories fell on Militia and Levies, giving employment to the turbulent trans-frontier men. In case of actual hostilities, they would act as outposts behind which the Field Army could concentrate ready to strike.

The Militia was organized in battalions like the regular army, and were commanded by selected officers of the Indian Army. Their uniform was the same as that of the Indian Army, with white metal buttons and shoulder numerals. They were armed with low velocity .303 rifles and bayonets.

Along the line of the Administrative Border there were a number of small posts manned by the Frontier Constabulary, a force of armed civil police who had been raised in 1913. The Constabulary had a quasi-military organization, being formed into battalions under selected civil police officers. They were armed also with .303 rifles.

There were also other minor forces, local levies beyond the border, armed with Martini-Henry, employed by political officers to garrison mud towers and to provide escorts. They had little military value.

Whislt the organization of the fighting forces was carefully arranged, the means of maintaining the army in the field were not adequate to meet the situation. As a result of the drain of resources of India since 1914, stocks of any type had been reduced to the lowest ebb and many of them could not be replaced. Animal transport had been exploited to the uttermost and the reserve of animals left in the country was very low. There was not supply of mules and there was also a shortage of camels due to heavy shipments overseas and to the ravages of surra (disease of vertebrate animals).

 

The Field Army attempted to meet the new situation encountered on the Frontier by the advent of the modern, small-bore, magazine rifle to the hands of the tribesmen. One way, the most obvious, was the deployment of the modern technology developed on the Western Front, as was the Lewis LMG and the hand grenade. The heavy machine gun was a powerful weapon but the climate and topographical conditions on the Frontier made difficult  its use and supply, so it brought into a great prominence the use of the Lewis gun. The grenade, in the form of the hand thrown and the dischraged by rifle, had become the infantry most useful weapon (in fact, the tribesmen used it too after having captured  a significant stock in the early stages of the war). But the hand grenade had a downside since excessive reliance on it tended to diminish reliance on the rifle, a serious error on the Frontier.

There was a surprising omission in the use of the trench mortar that would seem yo have been well suited to tactical requeriments.

The most important development in military technology, and a major factor in frontier warfare by 1919, was the motor transport in the form of the ubiquitous Ford, the armoured car and the aeroplane.

Motorised transport greatly increased the mobility of troops and weapons but its main importance laid in the speeding up and easing of the supply. Armoured cars proved useful in patrolling the lines of communication and in escorting convoys. About the aeroplane, I have written already an entry, but it was another very useful new "toy" for the British.

 

Summing up, the British Indian Army was not ready for another war in such a short space of time, but it was perfectly able to fight and defeat the Afghan forces... if the tribes didn´t take part in the fight. In the end, they were lucky.

 

To finish this entry, here is my last painted figure for this project, Orde Wingate from Warlord Games. I have painted him as a British Officer, perhaps an Intelligence or Political one, because I like a lot the figure (it has been sculpted by Paul Hicks).

Yes, "Chain of Command" in Waziristan

Bengal Sapper and Miners bastion in Sherpur cantonment, Kabul, Second Afghan War

Yes, the picture is about the Second Afghan War, but I like it a lot.

About this entry, I have, finally, written a pair of Army Lists for the Third Afghan War to use with my new rulebook, "Chain of Command". I have read some very interesting AAR´s in different blogs that are not based in the WWII, and I have seen that the rules works very well. So I have prepared a List for the British Indian Army and another for the Afghan Forces.

Empress Miniatures Afghan Tribesmen

First one, the Afghan Forces. I have written a list to use with the Afghan regular troops and also the tribesmen. I have used the information I have and, also, a pair of Army Lists for the Spanish Civil War there are in the Too Fat Lardies Yahoo Group. They are very useful for anyone interested in the first months of that conflict. 

Afghan Army List 1919

Woodbine Design Miniatures Indian Troops

Second one, the British Indian Army List. I have also used some ideas from those Spanish Civil War lists. I think this list is very useful to represent small patrols or garrisons.

 British-Indian Army List 1919

Both lists are, in this moment, "work in progress", but I expect to use them as soon as I have some more Indian models. I don´t like these from Woodbine, and I´m awaiting the new models from Empress, but, probably, I will buy another section from Woodbine, to have a solid patrol, at least.

On the other hand, I am reading a new book about this war:

A very nice book, really, really useful for me.Highly recomendable, IMHO.







The RAF in the North-West Frontier, 1919

 

Although limited in number and quality, airpower played a key role during the Third Afghan War.

The RAF had arrived to the Frontier in 1916, for the Mohmand campaing and also against the Mahsuds in 1917. In 1919, the only aircraft available on the Frontier was 31 Squadron at Risalpur, east of Peshawar, that was equipped with BE2C of limited performance, and a flight of 114 Squadron at Quetta, also equipped with BE2C.

These machines were obsolete and worn out airplanes with so a low climbing power that they could be shot from the hill tops as they passed along the valleys. On the other hand, their moral effect was great and the bombing of Dakka, Jalalabad and especially Kabul, were factors that "help" the Amir Amanullah to decide about to sue for peace.

BE2C

There were a total of five RAF squadrons deployed in the war, equipped with BE2C, Bristol F2B, De Haviland DH9A and De Haviland DH bombers. They allowed the British to extend their reach well beyond the border, bombing Kabul itself but also harassing the retreating and defeated Afghan regulars and breaking up tribesmen forming larger groups prior the launching of an attack.

 

They proved the value of the modern air-power in long range reconnaisance missions, in the bombing concentrations of tribesmen, supply depots and transport columns, but they were not really useful in the short range, tactical, reconnaisance, in which the enemy could hide in hearing their aproach, so bodies of the enemy were difficult to locate and negative information about them must be regarded with suspicion.

 

It can be said that the most important element was their moral effect over the Afghan hearts and minds. For example, the single-plane raid on the Amir´s palace that took place on 24 May 1919 caused little real damage but greatly impacted the morale of the Afghan people and of Amanullah himself, helping him to go to the negotiating table.

The raid over Kabul

During the course of the war, British aircraft losses were of one plane crashed and two shot down. A not small price against a primitive foe.

 

I have an 1/48 BE2C that I bought a lot of years ago for my "Back of Beyond" games; it can be a good moment to prepare it for another war...

The Afghan Regular Army, 1919

Kabul 2009; a friendly Afghan regular and his camel

I have received recently mi pre-order of "Chain of Command", so I have had not enought time for my "only" project, but I think it is an old problem of all of us...

 

Well. This time, I am going to write something about the Afghan Regular Army of 1919, a true "back of beyond" organization.

The real military strength of Afghanistan depended on the armed population rather than on the regular forces because, on the whole, the Afghan troops were ill-trained and lacked manoeuvrability. They could not be considered, by any standard, first class troops, although they had a great level of courage and endurance. There was not weapons training nor tactical exercises, so these troops were more liable to await than to initiate an attack.

 

At the begining of hostilities, the Afghan Regular Army comprised 21 regiments of Cavalry, 78 battalions of infantry and around 280 breech-loading guns and an equal number of muzzle-loaders chiefly posted on the Russian and Persian frontiers. The effectives totalled about 38,000 rifles, 8,000 sabres and 4,000 artillerymen and just half of these forces were stationed on the frontier with India.

 

There was no staff, nor attempt at a brigade organization except in Kabul, whose garrison of 17 battalions of infantry, 7 regiments of cavalry and 108 guns was in fact the strategy reserve of the Army. There were four mixed brigades in Kabul, every one with one regiment of cavalry, one battery of field and another of pack artillery, three battalions of infantry and three machine guns.

 

The Infantry varied considerably in armament and equipment; less than half the battalions were armed with small-bore rifles whilst the remaining units had Martini-Henrys or Sniders. The infantry wore also a bayonted, sometimes with an sword also, but there was no instruction in its use. The Officers and NCO´s were ignorant and deficient in everything.

When war broke out, no battalion had more than 75 percent of effectives, and many of them made up their numbers by drafting in armed tribesmen... adding a new problem to the discipline issue.

 

Only the Kabul units had a service dress consisted of a suit of khaki, puttes and ankle boots. The equipment was a leather belt with leather braces and three big pouches. The headdress was a round, black lambskin cap with, sometimes, a metal badge representing a mosque on a crescent. Men of other units frequently wore their local and everyday costume: a sheepskin coat, wide trousers and native shoes.

Afghan infantryman

The Cavalry were mounted in small but sturdy ponies, unsuited to shock action; they were armed with rifle and sword, but were little better than mounted infantry. The regiments in Kabul had lances, but they were seldom carried.

 

The Artillery in 1919 consisted on 10cm Krupp howitzers, 75mm Krupp pack guns and older 7-pounder mountain guns. There were also really old Gardner machine guns with multiple barrels, obsolete for more than twenty years in the British Army.

The field artillery was under-horsed and badly trained. Drills were infrequent, range practices were seldom carried out and field practices and calibration were unknown.

 

There was only an arsenal in Afghanistan, in Kabul, able to produce guns, rifles, shells, small-arms ammunition, clothes and general equipment. In Bawali, near Jalalabad, existed a factory for making black powder for the Sniders and Martini-Henrys. There was not a vehicular transport service, but there were plenty of camels available for military use in the country.

To facilitate the movement of troops, state granaries existed in the fortified post which marked the stages every 12 miles along the main roads.

Afghan Regular Cavalry

The Afghan Regular Army looked a rag-tag bunch, a true "Pancho Villa´s Army", but they could be expected to fight stoulty, and the rugged country and debilitated state of the Indian Army favoured them, in the sort term at least.

 

Finally, in adition to the regular troops, there were around 10,000 Khassadar (tribal militia) who wore not uniform, carried Snider rifles and were used on road protection, police work and general custom duties.

Waziri Khassadar at Miranshah

So this is the Afghan Regular Army, the enemy of the Imperial forces. I would like to have painted already some figures to represent them but... the time, the never abundant time.

I have though about to use Turkish or Arab in Turk service as Afghan regulars, but my hope is that Mr Hicks sculpt some of them soon.

 

In this moment I´m awaiting some terrain elements I have bought in E-Bay, and others I have ordered from Wargames News and Terrain. I´m also thinking about to adapt the new rulebook from Too Fat Lardies, "Chain of Command" and test it in a game; after playing a game of "Mud and Blood" I think it can be unnecessary complex for this period...





Frontier Tribesmen

Group of Afridi fighters, 1878

Now, it is the time to write something about the Afghan tribesmen.

 

At the begining of the war, the Amir´s call to a Holy War had not been received with general enthusiasm by the tribes of the Frontier. The Afghan Pathans between Jalalabad and Dakka were eager for war whilst the Afridi and Mohmands of the British side of the Durand Line were not so actively hostile; and this was a problem for Amanullah Khan because the true strong of Afghanistan lies in the armed tribesmen rather than in the regular army raised by a form of conscription which took a man in eight for life service. Of course, they were not the pick of the country...

 

The most warlike of the inhabitants of Afghanistan were the Pathan tribes of Eastern Afghanistan, precisely those situated in front of the British forces. All these Pathans were serious Mohammedans, susceptible to be called to a religious war by the Amir or by the many mullahs that hated the British and also overwhelmingly hard hillmen in contrast with the Afghan, that were mainly plains dwellers. They were first-class fighters, and the best armed and more warlike of them lived in the area between the Durand Line and the Administrative Border.
There was, in fact, an order among the tribes in terms of their fighting quality. The Mahsuds were the most formidable adversaries followed nearly by the Afridis and Mobmands but all of them shared the same broad characteristics: hardy, implacable in their vengeances, tactically sophisticated, fiercely Muslim and independent and hostile to ALL authority. They lived under a common and rigid code of behaviour, Pakhtunwali, based in badal (blood vengeance), malmastia (hospitality) and nanawati (asylum). Living in a hill country of low fertility, the tribesmen had for centuries been accustomed to raiding down into the plains of India or levying tolls on travellers through their lands

There were, probably, half a million Pathan fighting men, many of them armed with more or less modern rifles and all of them very expert in mountain guerrilla war. Although British subjects and receivers of annual allowances of money from the British Government, all of them enjoyed an almost complete independence in their tribal areas and didn´t think they were subjects of the Crown.

 

The Pathans were expert in guerrilla warfare; were full of Muslim fanatism and, also, love of plunder. They were quick to rally under the Amir´s standard if it suited their interest or it was not too dangerous, but they rarely fougth at any great distance from their homes. Each man carried his rifle, ammunition, a knife and a supply of flour in a bag of undressed sheepskin. Because this flour was easily spoiled by the action of rain or perspiration, or when it was consumed, the men went of at any moment to their homes for more.

 

The brave tribesmen made an effective use  of the rugged terrain and could be very aggresive if the prospects of exit were good but they could not compete with the weaponry and discipline of the British forces in set-piece actions, so sniping at columns on the march was more effective (and safe) for them; also, the attack against picquets or rearguard units.

 

By this time, the tribesmen had replaced their old jezzails with breech-loading rifles such as the Martini-Henry or the Lee-Metford. In adition, the tribesmen carried tulwars (curved swords) and chora (heavy knives) for the close combat. Tribes that were not sustained by the British (or Afghan) subsidies made do with older weapons, but those tribes who could afford them, bought European rifles. From 1908, most tribesmen carried Martini-Henry and the luckier - or more skilled thieves of them - carried Lee-Metford or Lee-Enfield. The tribal craftmen were also really skillful at reproducing European weapons so these tribesmen were now the most dangerous adversary of the British forces.

 

The Pathan were tall and lean men dressed in a coarse home-spun angarka (shirt), loose white trousers, sandals ans a cummerbund holding a knife. The common headdress was a pointed cap (kullah) rounded with a strip of material (lungi) to form a medium-size turban.

The headmen (maliks) had a more ornate costume, with, by example, crimson waistcoats covered with gold lace.

The turban could be of a bright red, white, blue, etc. and the lungi (sash) could have solid colours or narrow stripes of black, yellow, red or blue.

Although white was the most common colour used for the angarka, red, blue and grey were also worn. To counter the bitter Afghan winter, tribesmen wore a poshteen, a shepskin coat with hair on the inside. Its ammount of embroidery depended of wealth and status.

 

The clothing worn by the Pathans varied from tribe to tribe but the basic garment was that indicated here. The Waziris, by example, tended to favour a dark-red or indigo turban and a dark-red or pink waist sash; the Kurram Valley tribes wore an angarka of dark blue and the Khyber Pass Afridis usually wore a grey or blue angarka with off-white trousers.

 

For this entry I would like to have had the command group of the Empress Miniatures Afghan tribesmen painted, but it has been not possible; some painting commissions and this horrible hot have prevented it.

In their place, I have this figure from Scarab Miniatures, a downed pilot in the middle of a very delicate moment that I´m thinking about to use in a "Rescue the Pilot" game, perhaps in the middle of the Kabul valley...

 

I like a lot the figures from Scarab Miniatures; they are not anatomically perfect, and are, in fact, a bit "chunkies" but they have a lot of character in them and I like to paint them!

20th Duke of Cambridge´s Own Infantry (Brownlow´s Punjabis)

20th Duke of Cambridge´s Own Infantry in Egypt, 1882

I have chosen this British Indian Army regiment as the first one of my own collection of units for my project... but it didn´t participate in the Third Afghan War!

No problem; all of them are very similar.

 

This regiment was raised in 1857 as the 8th Regiment of Punjab Infantry and was designated as the 20th Duke of Cambridge´s Own Infantry in 1904. Today, it is the 6th Battalion, The Punjab Regiment in the modern Pakistan Army.

 

The regiment was raised on August 1857 by Lieutenant Charles Henry Brownlow from drafts of the 4th and 5th Punjab Infantry as a part of the army raised to suppress the Great Indian Mutiny. After this bitter war, the Regiment took part in the Second Opium War against China, taking part in the assault to the Taku Forts in 1860. In 1861, the regiment become part of the line as the 24th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry but was renumbered as the 20th Regiment later in the year.

In 1863, it took part in the Umbeyla Campaing in the North-West Frontier, in the first of its many engagement against the Pathan tribes. In 1864, the regiment was designed as the 20th (Punjab) Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry and took part in the Black Mountain Expedition.

 

Painting by Walter Fane, 1868

The regiment took part in the Second Afghan War, advancing into the Khyber Pass to clear Afghan forces at Ali Masjid fortress. In 1882, the regiment was dispatched to Egypt as part of the expeditionary force to suppress the revolt of Arabi Pasha, taking part in the battle of Tel-el-Kebir. In honour of its service in Egypt, the Duke of Cambridge was appointed as its honorary colonel in 1883 and the regiment was retitled (again) as the 20th (Duke of Cambridge´s Own) (Punjab) Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry.

In 1891 and 1897, the regiment took part in new expeditions in the North-West Frontier and in 1900 was sent to China to suppress the Boxer Rebellion.

 

After the reforms brought about in the Indian Army by Lord Kitchener, the regiment received a new designation, 20th Duke of Cambridge´s Own Punjabis in 1903 and then 20th Duke of Cambridge´s Own Infantry (Brownlow´s Punjabis) in 1904.

 

During the Great War, the regiment saw active service in Mesopotamia and Palestine, taking part in the capture of Kut-al-Amara in September 1915. In May 1918 it returned finally to India.

30rd Punjabis and 2oth Duke of Cambridge

In 1921-22 there was a major reorganization in the British Indian Army, grouping four to six battalions in a same regiment. In this way, the 14th Punjab Regiment was formed by grouping the 20th Punjabis with the 19th, 21th, 22th and 24th Punjabis and the 40th Pathans. The new designation of the battalion was 2nd Battalion (Duke of Cambridge´s Own) 14th Punjab Regiment. During the Second World War, the battalion was part of the British garrison of Hong Kong but, after a siege of 18 days, the battalion surrendered and spent the rest of the war in Japanese captivity.

In 1947 the battalion was allocated to Pakistan Army and fought, in 1948, in the war with India in Kashmir and in the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965.

 

And this is the history of this interesting Regiment.

 

I like a lot the green touch in the kullahs, and perhaps it is the main reason to choose this unit for painting my first Indian Army figures. I have painted some more figures for this unit:

 

 

They are, again, from Woodbine Design and this time I have painted the LMG team and one of the British officers.

 

I have also painted another of my old Foundry figures from the North-West Frontier range:

 

 

It is an Afghan regular soldier for the Second Afghan War. Perhaps I will use him as a Khassadar militiaman, or an "old timer"...

 

The Road to War (UPDATED)

Amanullah Khan

It´s time to begin with the history of the war. I pretend to write some entries dedicated to the first steps to the war and the war itself. I am reliing principally in Brian Robson´s book "Crisis on the Frontier", but I have found (or am waiting) some other sources. My idea is to update these entries with the new information, in blue letters.

As we have seen, the Amanullah´s attack against India could be perfectly a dangerous gamble, but it had some elements in his favour.

In that moment, there was in India an intense Muslim feeling aroused by the defeat of Turkey in the Great War, a dangerous one, because the 40% of the Indian Army had a Muslim component. There was also a difficult internal situation because of the shortages of food and other goods caused by the war-time mobilization and the enlistment of so many men in the Indian Army, something that had led to a massive increases in prices. These wartime sacrifices had increased also the pressures for an Indian self-government.
At the begining of 1919, these factors combined finally to produce a wave of riotings and destruction, particularly extreme in the Punjab, that led to the tragedy of Amristar. Amanullah was very well informed on all this, but some of his information was a bit exaggerated, as the likelihood of an uprising in India, where "there were thousands of Hindus and Muslims ready to give their lives for the Amir".
Como ya hemos visto, el ataque de Amanullah contra la India podía ser perfectamente una apuesta peligrosa, pero tenía algunos elementos a su favor.
En ese momento, había en la India un intenso sentimiento pro-musulmán debido a la derrota de Turquía en la Gran Guerra, y que podía ser peligroso al tener el Ejército Indio un componente musulmán del 40%. Había también una situación interna muy difícil debida a las privaciones de comida y otros bienes causadas por la movilización para la guerra y el alistamiento de tantos hombres en el Ejército Indio, algo que había llevado a un incremento masivo de los precios. Los sacrificios debidos a la guerra habían incrementado también los deseos de la India de tener su propio gobierno.
A principios de 1919 estos factores se combinaron finalmente para producir una oleada de manifestaciones violentas y de destrucción, particularmente extremas en el Punjab, que llevaron a la tragedia de Amristar. Amanullah estaba muy bien informado de todos esos hechos, aunque parte de dicha información era un tanto exagerada, como la de la posibilidad de un levantamiento en la India donde " había miles de hindúes y musulmanes listos para dar sus vidas por el Emir".

With his own forces totally inadequated for the task of defeating the Indian Army, the most important element for Amanullah Khan to attack India was the attitude of the cis-border tribes. They were really annoyed by the defeat of Turkey in the war against the angrezi, and were also better armed than before, so they were really a powder keg and very dangerous if properly coordinated. But the tribes were notorious for their independence and unreliability. It was impossible to organize and coordinate an uprising of all the tribes in the Frontier, so Amanullah could only hope that a declaration of war followed by some initial success would ignite a general tribal uprising.
Con sus propias fuerzas totalmente inadecuadas para la tarea de derrotar al Ejército Indio, el elemento más importante en el plan de ataque de Amanullah era la actitud de las tribus situadas a ambos lados de la frontera. Éstas estaban realmente molestas por la derrota de Turquía a manos de los ingleses, y estaban también mejor armadas que nunca antes, por lo que eran en realidad un inestable barril de pólvora, muy peligrosas si se conseguía coordinarlas. Pero las tribus eran famosas por su independencia y poca fiablidad. Era imposible organizar y coordinar un levantamiento de todas las tribus de la Frontera, por lo que Amanullah sólo podía confiar en que una declaración de guerra y algunos éxitos iniciales precipitaría un levantamiento general espontáneo.

In the early part of 1919, Amanullah issued a firman to the tribes of both sides of the border, calling on them to be ready to support an uprising in India; in spite of his many presents of weapons and ammunition, the result would prove disappointing due to the opportunistic nature of the tribes, except in Waziristan.
En la primera parte de 1919, Amanullah convocó a todas las tribus de ambos lados de la frontera para que estuvieran listas para apoyar un levantamiento en la India; a pesar de muchos regalos de armas y municiones, el resultado iba a ser decepcionante debido a la oportunista naturaleza de las tribus, excepto en Waziristán.

Hill tribesmen

Amanullah and his advisers never formulated a clear-cut set of objetives, and too much depended upon success in raising the tribes and upon the development of the situation in India (an armed rising). It had neccessarily to be a war of limited objetives. Three of them had been inherited by Amanullah from his father and grandfather and were witihin the bounds of practicality:
The first one was the rectification of the Durand Line, traced by Sir Henry Mortimer Durand in 1893, in Afghanistan´s favour this time.
Amanullah y sus asesores nunca llegaron a formular una clara lista de objetivos para la guerra, y demasiado se dejó en manos de un posible levantamiento de las tribus y del desarrollo de la situación en la India. Tenía que ser por necesidad una guerra de objetivos limitados y tres de ellos habían sido heredados por Amanullah de su padre y su abuelo, estando además dentro de los límites de lo práctico.
El primero era la rectificación de la Línea Durand, trazada por Sir Henry Mortimer Durand en 1893, en favor de Afganistán esta vez.

The second was the recovery of territory and influence over areas in which Afghanistan had exercised sway before the Second Afghan War of 1878. But the main objetive, the one that had the heart of Amanullah, was regaining control of Afghan external affairs, to make the country fully independent from the British influence. Besides, nothing could be better calculated to unite all sections of Afghan society. For the national regeneration, both social and economic of Afghanistan, Amanullah would need the help from other countries, and he need to be able to negiotiate with completely free hands.
El segundo era la recuperación de territorio e influencia en áreas en las que Afganistán había ejercido su voluntad antes de la Segunda Guerra Afgana de 1878. Pero el objetivo principal, el que tenía todo el apoyo de Amunallah, era la recuperación del control de los asuntos externos del pais para hacer que Afganistán fuera totalmente independiente de la influencia británica. Además, nada podía estar mejor calculado para unir a todos los sectores de la sociedad afgana. Para la regeneración social y económica de Afganistán Amanullah iba a necesitar la ayuda de otros paises, y necesitaba ser capaz de negociar con ellos con sus manos totalmente libres.

Amanullah had also some hope of Bolshevik support, but it was not in place before the begining (and the end) of the conflict, because the war came, finally, with a remarkable speed and caught not only the Bolsheviks, but also the Indian authorities napping. Lord Chelmsford (Jr), Viceroy of India, did not expect troubles with Afghanistan and the Army was not taking precautions for it (in fact, it was demobilizing units from the war establishment).
At the begining of May, Amanullah issued a public firman saying that he believed that the peoples of India had been badly rewarded for their loyalty during the Great War and were justified in rising against the British. On the other hand, because he was afraid that those disturbances might spread into Afghanistan, he sent his Commander in Chief, Saleh Muhammad, with troops to the eastern frontier. On 2 May, Chelmsford reported that Saleh Muhammad, "on a frontier tour", had arrived at Dakka (Afghan territory) with two companies of Infantry and two guns, and was quickly followed by another 2,000 regular troops; 1,500 men were despatched to Kandahar and 2,000 to Khost to join there Nadir Shah, the old Commander in Chief under Habibullah, probably the best Afghan General.
Amanullah también tenía cierta esperanza de ayuda por parte de los Bolcheviques, pero esto no pudo cuajarse antes del comienzo (y el final) del conflicto, debido a que la guerra llegó, finalmente, con notoria rapidez y cogió por sorpresa no sólo a los bolcheviques, sino también a las autoridades de la India. Lord Chelmsford (hijo del famoso), Virrey de la India, no esperaba problemas con Afganistán y el Ejército no estaba tomando precauciones (de hecho, estaba desmovilizando a sus fuerzas del nivel de guerra).
A comienzos de mayo, Amanullah declaró publicamente que creía que los pueblos de la India habían sido malamente recompensados por su lealtad durante la Gran Guerra y que estaban justificados en alzarse contra los británicos. Pero, como le preocupaba que tales disturbios se extendieran dentro de Afganistán, envió a su Comandante en Jefe, Saleh Muhammad, con tropas a la frontera oriental.
El 2 de mayo, Chelmsford informó que Saleh Muhammad había llegado a Dakka, en territorio afgano, con dos compañías de Infantería y dos cañones, y que fue rapidamente seguido por otros 2000 hombres; 1500 fueron enviados a Kandahar y 2000 a Khost para reunirse con Nadir Shah, anterior Comandante en Jefe bajo  Habibullah, probablemente el mejor General afgano.

Dakka, 1919

From Dakka, Saleh Muhammad moved on to Bagh, in what the Indian Government considered as Indian territory (it was a point that the Durand Line had never formally demarcated), to made a personal inspection of the springs... that provided the water supply for the British post at Landi Kotal. On 4th May, his Afghan troops took up their positions in the area.

Desde Dakka, Saleh Muhammad avanzó hacia Bagh, en lo que el Gobierno de la India consideraba territorio propio (éste era un punto en el que la Línea Durand no había sido formalmente demarcada), para realizar una inspección personal de los pozos... que proporcionaban agua al puesto militar británico en Landi Kotal.

On 3rd May, a party of Khyber Rifles detailed to escort a caravan through the Khyber Pass, was met and turned back by picquets of armed tribesmen under the command of a notorious raider, Zar Shah. Then, 150 Afghan regulars occupied Kafir Kot ridge and Bagh village, on the British side of the frontier. On the 4th May, further reinforcements of Khassadars and Shinwaris reached Bagh and cut the water supply of Landi Kotal. On the 5th May, further reinforcements of Afghan regulars arrived at Bagh whilst a column of two Indian infantry companies, a section of mountain artillery and one section of sappers and miners reached Landi Kotal as reinforcements.
El 3 de mayo, un grupo de los Khyber Rifles enviado a escoltar una caravana por el Paso de Khyber fue detenido y rechazado por piquetes de guererros tribales bajo el mando de un notorio bandido, Zar Shah. 150 regulares afganos ocuparon entonces Kafir Kot y la aldea de Bagh, ambos en el lado británico de la frontera. El 4 de mayo, nuevos refuerzos de Khassadar y Shinwaris llegaron a Bagh y cortaron el suministro de agua a Landi Kotal. El día 5 llegaron aun más refuerzos a Bagh mientras una pequeña columna formada por dos compañías de infantería India, una sección de artillería de montaña y una sección de zapadores llegarona Landi Kotal también como refuerzo de la guarnición.

In the Kurram, Jafis and Afghan regulars had commenced to build fortifications on the Peiwar Kotal, so British regular troops were asked to protect the Turi inhabitants, and a column left Thal on the 5th of May.
The next day, general mobilization was ordered and war was declared on Afghanistan.
En el Kurram, Jafis y tropas regulares afganas habían comenzado a construir fortificaciones en el Peiwar Kotal, por lo que se solicitó la presencia de tropas británicas para proteger a los Turi locales, y una columna dejó Thal el día 5 de mayo.
El siguiente día, se ordenó una movilización general, y se declaró la guerra a Afganistán.

About the figures, in spite of this terrible summer, I have painted some more of them:

Indian Army figures from Woodbine Design



Afghan Tribesmen from Empress Miniatures

I need to paint other 30 Indian troops for the scenario, the mountain gun and the mules and the command group for the Afghan side; then, some civilians, more tribesmen for the possible reinforcements and some terrain elements... It never ends!!!