The March to Kandahar
Roberts in Afghanistan
by Rodney Atwood
The book describes the role of Frederick Roberts in the 2nd Afghan War, culminating in his famous march in 1880 with 10,000 picked British and Indian soldiers, 300 miles in twenty-three days, from Kabul to Kandahar, to defeat the Afghan army of Ayub Khan, pretender to the Amirship of Kabul. The march made Roberts one of late Victorian England's great military heroes, partly because of the achievement itself, partly because the victory restored British prestige after defeat, and finally because of Roberts' astute use of the press to puff his victory. This overcame the earlier damage done to his reputation by the political storm raised by his hanging over eighty Afghans in revenge for the massacre of a British envoy and his escort. It enabled the liberal Viceroy of India, Lord Ripon, to extract his forces from an Afghan imbroglio with prestige restored and an emir on the Afghan throne who for thirty-nine years maintained friendship with British India. Roberts (or `Bobs' as he was known) subsequently advanced to command the Indian Army, working closely with future Viceroys to influence Indian defence policy on the North-West Frontier, being hymned by Rudyard Kipling, poet of empire. His best-selling autobiography, Forty-One Years in India, established his image before the British public and he remains one of Britain's best known, if least understood, military figures.
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Maiwand
The Last Stand of the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment in Afghanistan 1880
by Richard J. Stacpoole-Ryding
On 27 July the 66th (Berkshire) Regiment fought a terrible battle on the dusty plains of Afghanistan. The battle went down in history as a massacre which effectively wiped out the regiment. They lost 10 officers and 276 men. Nonetheless, their valiant fighting was an inspiration to many, from Kipling to Conan Doyle, who based Dr Watson on the 66th medical officer Major Preston. Queen Victoria presented medals to the survivors, and it was Maiwand and the 66th's battle against the Zulus the year before which resulted in the British Army no longer carrying Colours into battle. This book tells the story of this fine Victorian regiment from 1870 when they went to India through Afghanistan and back to England in 1881, bringing the regiment to life and concentrating on the characters who made it what it was.
(Note: I was a contributor to this book, helping with research and notes, I also drew the maps and wrote the introduction, which you can read here).
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