16. British Intervention in Afghanistan Ends in Catastrophe
The British intervened in Afghanistan during the mid 19th century to depose one king and replace him with a friendlier puppet, backed up by British garrisons. However, the puppet ruler proved unpopular, and within a few years, an uprising forced the British to evacuate the Afghan capital. Setting out from Kabul on January 6th, 1842, amid falling snow, the British column of 16,500 soldiers and civilians was barely a mile beyond the city before it began to take sniper fire from the surrounding hills. By day’s end, emboldened parties of Afghan tribesmen were dashing in and out of the column to loot supplies and butcher whoever they could lay their hands on. That night, many froze to death as the column camped out amidst the snow, without tents.
The following day, the British resumed the march, but by then, many soldiers were too debilitated by the cold to fight. As they entered a narrow mountain pass, the column was fired upon by tribesmen concealed in the rocks above, losing 3000 casualties. Over the following days, Afghan chieftains shook down the British for money and hostages in exchange for empty promises to rein in the tribesmen. On January 11th, the British commander and his deputy were forced to surrender in exchange for yet another promise of safe passage. Soon thereafter, the British found their path barred, this time for good, by entrenched Afghans who had blocked and fortified a pass. A desperate charge was made to try and break through, but it was beaten back. On January 13th, British sentries in Jellalabad, on the lookout for the arrival of the Kabul garrison, saw a single rider approaching. It was Dr. Brydon, the sole survivor of the retreat from Kabul.