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Convention Theme – July 26-29, 2007
India
“And in no campaign has this spirit been more constantly evinced,
and has its influence been demonstrated with such irresistible force,
as in that where the enemy was from strength of numbers and from the
peculiar conditions which prevailed the most formidable – the Indian Mutiny.”
– C. E. Callwell in Small Wars: their Principles and Practice, 1906 |
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By the time Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837, India was already the ‘Jewel in the crown of the Empire’. Britain ruled 1.6 million square miles of land that stretched from the Indus River in the west to Burma in the East, and encompassed high mountain ranges, baking lowland plains, and humid jungles. The Indian Mutiny was the last major campaign fought by the British on Indian soil until the Imphal-Kohima campaign in 1944. Yet the ‘Jewel in the Crown’ that they fought so hard for, was only governed by Britain for less than the century that following the Mutiny.
From the early Maratha Wars and Sikh Wars, through the Indian Mutiny, and in World War II and even modern times, India has been involved in military history, whether on the subcontinent or its soldiers fighting elsewhere. Yet India, and the battles and campaigns it has been involved in, is often overlooked by the historical miniature wargamer. This year’s convention theme will hopefully shed some new light on this for everyone’s interest.
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 In the mid-nineteenth century northern India, with its wild frontiers and populous native states and provinces, was in an almost constant state of turmoil. In the eight-year period from the annexation of the Punjab (1849) until the Indian Mutiny (1857-58), there were no less than twenty expeditions against frontier tribes, and Indian troops played a significant part in all of these.
But the most significant military conflict on the subcontinent was the Indian Mutiny, 1857-59. In no other conflict in the nineteenth century was there ever anything but confidence in the eventual triumph of British arms. However, in the first few months of the Mutiny there were grave concerns that Britain might loose not only the war, but all of India as well. It is important to remember that the Indian Mutiny was not a national revolution, nor an uprising of the entire Indian Army. Had it been either, the British would have been quickly been swept out of power with little chance of returning. Instead, it was essentially as it was called, "a mutiny," generally confined to the Bengal Army. |
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 The Indian Mutiny was a spectacular feat of British military arms (assisted by those Indian Army forces that stayed loyal): “Though the crisis was a grave one, the outlook gloomy, and the end doubtful, the excitement was great”. It was not until Delhi (20 Sept. 1857) and Lucknow (17 Nov. 1857) were retaken, that the British gained the upper hand and could breathe more easily. The rebel Indian troops (sepoys) – called mutineers – fought bravely, but generally lacked leaders in the officer corps. A few rebel commanders of note rose out of the mutiny – Nana Sahib, Tantia Tope, and the Rani of Jhansi (a woman, and one of the most capable of the rebel leaders).
The Indian Mutiny is remembered for events that have become legendary – the massacre (and well) at Cawnpore, storming the Kashmire Gate at Delhi, and the first and second relief of Lucknow. The mutiny was carried on with bestial ferocity on both sides: “a war of the most cruel and exterminating form, in which no quarter was given on either side”. Intense battles and sieges were fought in appalling heat – a triumph of military endurance and might – another great period for the historical miniature wargamer. |
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India became a battleground once again in the spring of 1944, as the Japanese launched a major attack designed to disrupt the supplies and troops that the British were gathering for the re-conquest of Burma. The Imphal-Kohima campaign was a bitterly fought struggle in which set-piece do-or-die assaults were the order of the day.
Since World War II, India and Pakistan have fought three wars (1947-48, 1965 and 1971) and one smaller conflict (1999), while tensions over the control Kashmir have remained to this day. These conflicts have seen large tank battles on open plains, as desperate infantry combat in the rugged Himalayas. Infantry combat was also the central feature of the war between India and China in 1962.
For a complete list of many of the battles, campaigns and wars that encompass this year’s theme, click on the following link: The Wars of South Asia, 1800-2007.
For more information on India, click on the following links:
The Maratha Wars
The Sikh Wars
The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58
India-Pakistani Wars
India’s Wars in Pictures
Sino-Indian War, 1962
The China Factor in the India-Pakistan Conflict
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