Читать книгу The Egyptian campaigns, 1882 to 1885 - Charles Royle - Страница 24

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On the 7th August the Khedive issued a Proclamation against Arabi and the rebels generally.

The same day the Khedive addressed a letter to the President of the Council of Ministers, announcing his intention to indemnify the sufferers by the recent events.

At this period the European population was flocking back to Alexandria in such numbers that Mr. Cartwright, the British Consul-General, deemed it necessary to make strong representations on the subject to the representatives in Egypt of the several Powers. A system of examination of passports was now established, and people of suspicious character, or who were unable to show that they had some employment, or other means of subsistence, were forced by the authorities to re-embark.

Alexandria was now fast filling with British troops, and fresh detachments were disembarking daily. On the 10th August, Sir John Adye, Chief of the Staff, arrived at Alexandria with the Duke of Connaught. The whole of the Brigade of Guards arrived two days later, and astonished the people by their size and martial appearance as they marched through the town to Ramleh. The Duke of Connaught rode at their head. Egypt in the present generation had never seen such soldiers before, and loud were the expressions of admiration on all sides. The stalwart pipers particularly impressed the natives.

The brigade consisted of the 2nd battalions of the Grenadier and Coldstream Guards, and the 1st battalion of the Scots Guards. The force was encamped on a piece of desert land at Ramleh, near the sea, between the stations of Bulkeley and Fleming on the Ramleh Railway.

Sir Garnet Wolseley reached Egypt on the 15th in the Calabria. He had made the voyage by sea on account of his health.

Major-General Sir Evelyn Wood arrived the same day. Transports were coming in rapidly, and everything pointed to an immediate advance upon Kinje Osman and Kafr Dowar. The following is a list of the principal officers in the expeditionary force:—

General-Commanding-in-Chief: Sir Garnet J. Wolseley.

Chief of the Staff: General Sir John Adye.

Officer Commanding Royal Artillery: Brigadier-General W. H. Goodenough.

Officer Commanding Royal Engineers: Brigadier-General C. B. P. N. H. Nugent.

Command of Base and Lines of Communication: Major-General W. Earle.

1st Division: Lieutenant-General G. H. S. Willis.

1st Brigade: Major-General H.R.H. the Duke of Connaught.

2nd Brigade: Major-General G. Graham.

2nd Division: Lieutenant-General Sir E. B. Hamley.

3rd Brigade: Major-General Sir Archibald Alison.

4th Brigade: Major-General Sir H. Evelyn Wood.

Garrison of Alexandria: Major-General G. B. Harman. Cavalry Division: Major-General Drury-Lowe.

Sir Garnet Wolseley lost but little time after landing. He made a hasty inspection of the position at Ramleh, and gave his orders.

On the 18th August the Guards Division, the Household Cavalry, the 60th Rifles, and the 46th Regiment marched in from Ramleh and commenced embarking, the troops of the Second Division taking their places at Ramleh. The Manchester Regiment landed and took over police duty in the town, relieving the Berkshire Regiment, which joined General Wood's Division at Ramleh.

At 11.15 a.m. the greater part of the British force was embarking. The troops selected were the First Division under General Willis. Several transports the same day steamed out of harbour and anchored off the Boghaz Pass. The following day, the 19th, the transports, escorted by the ironclads Alexandra, Inflexible, Minotaur, Superb, and Temeraire, steamed away in a stately procession to the eastward. Both Sir Garnet Wolseley and Admiral Seymour accompanied the force.

It was given out that Aboukir was to be the place of attack, and at 3.30 p.m., on arriving off the bay, the ships, with the exception of the Alexandra, Euphrates, Rhosina, and Nerissa, which pushed on to Port Saïd, anchored in regular lines according to a prearranged plan, the men-of-war being nearest the shore. The ironclads struck their topmasts, and made other preparations for an attack. Every facility had been given to newspaper correspondents to obtain such details as might prudently be made public without exciting too much suspicion of a ruse de guerre. It succeeded perfectly. Not only the Europeans, but the enemy, were completely deceived. The gunners in the forts at Aboukir stood to their guns, expecting every moment the fleet would open fire. After dark the troopships moved off to the east, followed later on by the men-of-war. When day broke the whole fleet had disappeared.

As rapidly as possible the fleet steamed for Port Saïd. The transports Rhosina and Nerissa had singularly bad luck, the last two breaking down en route. The delay was not serious, for their escort the Alexandra towed the Nerissa at the rate of twelve knots an hour, whilst the Euphrates helped the Rhosina.

The next morning the whole fleet arrived at Port Saïd, when they found the entire Maritime Canal in the hands of the British Navy.

It may now be convenient to refer to what had in the meantime been taking place on the Canal.

On the 9th July, Mr. J. E. Wallis, the British Consul at Port Saïd, received instructions to warn British subjects to embark. Next morning a large number of Europeans took refuge in vessels in the harbour. A report was spread of troops being ordered from Damietta, and some alarm prevailing, the Governor issued a circular assuring everybody that there was no danger.

On the 11th, whilst the bombardment was going on at Alexandria, the Port Saïd refugees remained on board ship. The town was quiet and orderly. The British despatch vessel Iris acted as guardship during this period. The Egyptian corvette Sakha had arrived from Alexandria a day or two previous to the bombardment. Her captain was an Arabist of the most pronounced type. Immediately after her arrival telegraphic information reached the authorities and the Canal Company's officials that the Sakha had a considerable quantity of dynamite on board, intended to be used against vessels entering the Canal. The Iris, which had taken up a berth inside the harbour, shifted berth, and her commander, Captain Seymour, moored his ship opposite the Sakha, the better to watch her movements. A great noise was observed on board the Egyptian vessel at night, the men moving up and down as if transporting heavy cases. The next morning Captain Seymour called on her captain, and on inquiring the reason of the commotion, was informed that the men were "practising." Captain Seymour replied that, considering the troubled state of the country, practising at such an unusual hour was calculated to create an alarm on shore, and expressed a hope that it would be discontinued. "I am the only master on board my own ship," was the Egyptian Commander's reply. "In that case," Captain Seymour replied, "I shall be under the painful necessity of either seizing your ship or of sinking her." From that moment no further night exercise was indulged in, and hostilities were avoided, though both ships remained with their guns pointed at each other. The commander of the Iris took the further precaution of placing a torpedo in a position which would enable him to blow up the Egyptian vessel at any moment. After this, nothing of importance occurred for some days.

The naval force at Port Saïd was strengthened by the arrival of the Penelope—the flagship of Admiral Hoskins—and the Monarch, Agincourt, and Achilles.

On the 13th July the British Government notified that British merchant ships might go through the Canal if clear. On the 14th British gunboats commenced to convoy vessels. On the 15th the French Government authorized their gunboats to be employed on similar service. This was followed by the like arrangements on the part of Germany and Italy.

The English ironclad Orion, Captain R. O. B. Fitz-Roy, arrived from Alexandria, en route to Ismailia, on the 26th, and at once attempted to enter the Canal. Several objections were made by the Canal Company to her doing so. More than once she got under way, and was stopped under various pretexts. The last objection was that the Coquette being already in Lake Timsah, there was no room for another vessel of war. Eventually, having embarked 142 officers and men from the Agincourt, the Orion entered the Canal, ostensibly bound for Suez, and at 3 p.m. on the 27th she reached Lake Timsah. Captain Fitz-Roy took his ship out of the hands of the pilot, and anchored her about 800 yards from the town of Ismailia.

On the 28th the Governor and Sub-Governor of Port Saïd, fearing that their lives were in danger from the military party, took refuge on board the P. and O. s.s. Poonah. The town of Port Saïd was, in consequence, left completely in the hands of the supporters of Arabi. Nevertheless, though considerable anxiety prevailed, no outbreak took place.

On the 29th the German gunboat Move was ordered to take part in the patrolling of the Canal.

On the 31st July Admiral Hoskins telegraphed that the French Admiral at Port Saïd was ordered to suspend action, and the French ironclad Thétis was to leave Ismailia. Rigid neutrality was to be observed.

On the 3rd August Admiral Hoskins was directed for the present to confine his operations on the Suez Canal to maintaining the status quo, and not to land except for the protection of British subjects, or in the event of any attempt being made to block the Canal, as to which he was allowed discretion. This reservation, he was informed, was only temporary, and was contingent upon future military requirements.

On the 5th the ships of war off Port Saïd comprised the Penelope, Agincourt, Monarch, and Northumberland armoured ships, the Tourmaline and Carysfort sloops, and the Ready and Beacon gun-vessels. The Don and Dee, river gunboats, arrived a day or two later.

What had been taking place at Suez was reported in a letter from Mr. West, the British Consul, to Lord Granville, from which the following are extracts:—

"The whole of the British residents, with one or two exceptions, had taken refuge afloat, and were living in discomfort on board boats, barges, and lighters in the open roadstead. Her Majesty's ship Euryalus arrived on the 29th.

"Admiral Sir William Hewett, who, on the 2nd August, had under his command in the Suez Roads the following ships of Her Majesty's fleet, viz., the Euryalus, Eclipse, Ruby, Dragon, Mosquito, and Beacon, then decided to act, and I went on shore with a Proclamation to be delivered to the Acting Governor, informing him that the place had been occupied by British forces, which occupation was effected without opposition or resistance on the part of the native soldiers. The town was then occupied by the marines and bluejackets, about 500 men in all. The few native soldiers in the place got away in the train that was about to leave Suez with more fugitives. The Governor's dwelling and public offices were guarded by marines; the Victoria Hospital, and commanding positions in the environs of Suez, were also held by the British forces."

To return to Ismailia, where, as above stated, the Orion had arrived on the 27th July. The place was found perfectly tranquil, but the telegraph being in the hands of Arabi's people, Captain Fitz-Roy could get no news or telegrams. The Coquette was anchored, by Captain Fitz-Roy's orders, off the lock-gates of the Fresh Water Canal, with orders to report everything going in and coming out. By this means information was obtained that Arabi was receiving daily several boat-loads of coal. On the 29th H.M.S. Carysfort arrived from Port Saïd. Lake Timsah was patrolled at night by a steam-launch with an armed crew, which moved about twice in every watch. The Orion's electric light was also used during the first and middle watches of the night, and turned on the Arab guardhouse outside Ismailia.

On the 2nd August Egyptian troops, estimated at about 800, arrived at Nefiché Junction, and encamped outside the railway station. From the 6th, torpedo and picket-boats were employed to keep up communication with Suez and Port Saïd. The guns of the different vessels were cleared for action every night, and the marines and small-arms men kept in readiness to land.

On the 16th the Egyptian force at Nefiché was largely reinforced. Several refugees came off to the ships.

On the 19th, with a view to assist in the contemplated landing, the compass-bearing and distance of the camp at Nefiché were taken during the day from the masthead of the Carysfort, and one of the Orion's 25-ton guns was laid accordingly. To secure sufficient elevation to carry the projectile over the intervening sand-hills, the vessel's port boilers were emptied and shot removed, so as to give the ship a strong list to starboard. The same night the crews of the vessels were mustered at 8 o'clock in working dress, with ammunition and provisions all ready for landing.

The foregoing narrative brings the history of events down to the eve of the British forces taking possession of the Canal.