The Lancers of Bhurtpore

The first campaign in which British Army cavalry fought with the lance Napoleon’s light cavalry taught its enemies, in harshly learned lessons, that the lance was a highly effective weapon of first contact. Nevertheless, the British Army had not, to the close of the war with France in 1815, adopted it. This policy was soon changed and the 16th Light Dragoons, together with several other regiments, were converted to lancers. In 1822, the 16th Lancers set sail for service in India. From the citadel at Bharatpore (Bhurtpore) in eastern Rajasthan, the martial Jats dominated the region and in 1825 their maharajah died suddenly creating the opportunity for a usurper, Durgan Sal, to seize the throne and occupy the city which he held in defiance against all-comers. An army under Combermere, which included the 16th Lancers, was sent to restore order—the first occasion in which British lancers rode to war. This book contains a brief history of the ‘sixteenth’ during the Napoleonic Wars and the ‘Jat War’ together with a remarkable diary of an officer of the regiment, Lieutenant Arthur Lowe. It concludes with an account of the siege and assault of the fortress of Bharatpore by British and Hon. East India Company forces. This Leonaur edition contains maps and illustrations which did not accompany the original texts. Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket.