Siege of Charikar
| Siege of Charikar | ||
|---|---|---|
| Part of 1st Afghan War 1839-42 | ||
| Date: | 4-13 November 1841 | |
| Location: | Charikar, Parwan Province, Afghanistan | |
| Presidency: | Bengal | |
| Co-ordinates: | 35.013059°N 69.16889°E | |
| Result: | British defeat | |
| Combatants | ||
| British | Kohistani tribesmen | |
| Commanders | ||
| Capt Codrington Lieut John Haughton |
Mir Masjidi | |
| Strength | ||
| Casualties | ||
Summary
Major Eldred Pottinger was at Lughmani, a fortifed residence 4 km south of Charikar, on 3 November when Kohistan tribesmen murdered Lieut Rattray and attacked the residence. The Afghan levies deserted and joined the rebels. Capt Codrington left reinforcements and supplies at Lughmani and returned to Charikar. The same day the Kohistan Rangers at Kardarrah, half way between Charikar and Kabul, murdered Lieuts Maule & Wheeler and their sergeant-major and quartermaster-sergeant and went over to the rebels. The road for any relief from Kabul was then cut off.
The next day Lieut Haughton with Ensign Salisbury, 200 Gurkhas and a 6-pounder gun attempted to relieve Lughmani but was forced to retreat by 7 or 800 Afghans. Many Gurkhas were killed and Salisbury and QM-Sgt Hanrahan were severely wounded. Later that night Pottinger and his Gurkhas managed to escape from Lughmani and get back to Charikar Fort.
The fort was then under siege with only seven days supply of food and their water supply cut off. Codrington was in chief command and Pottinger, a former artillery officer, commanded the guns. Salisbury was dying and Hanrahan Incapacitated. This left Haughton, Rose and Byrne as the only Europeans to keep the Gurkhas fighting. On 5 November Codringtonwas mortally wounded in the chest and Pottinger received a severe wound in the thigh. On 6 Novemebr Sgt-Maj Byrne was mortally wounded and Codrington died. The Gurkha numbers were badly reduced and all suffered from thirst and fatigue. The struggle continued on 7 November.
By 8 November the enemy had a complete cordon round the fort and the siege continued.
Garrison
Lughmani Ghari
- Major Eldred Pottinger (Political Agent)
- Lieut Rattray (Pottinger's assistant)
- Dr Grant
- One company of Gurkhas
- A number of Afghan levies
Charikar Fort
Shah Shuja's Gurkhas
- Capt Codrington (Commandant)
- Lieut Haughton (Adjutant)
- Ensign Salisbury (Quartermaster)
- Ensign Rose (Subaltern)
- Sgt-Maj Byrne
- QM-Sgt Hanrahan
Kardarrah
Kohistan Rangers
- Lieut Maule (Commandant)
- Lieut Wheeler (Adjutant)
Relief Column
Major Clibborn
- 464 Bayonets of 1st Bombay Grenadiers
- 34 Rank and file of Bombay Artillery
- Three 12 pounder howitzers
- 1200 camels
- 600 bullocks
Biographies
Entries in the Dictionary of Indian Biography 1906:
John Haughton (1817-1887)
Eldred Pottinger (1811-1843)
Spelling Variants
Modern name:Charikar
Variants: Chareekar
External Links
Google Books - Relief column and battle at Nuffoosk Pass
Google Books - Captain Brown's Journal