At length early in August I started for Constantinople, via Paris, and Marseilles. I had never been in France before, and although I had taken a high place in French at the Academy, had never had any practice in speaking that language. In the hope of one day getting to the Crimea and working alongside the French there, I had during 1854-5 at Woolwich, got a French master to give me lessons, but I was very shy at speaking.

In Paris I found the first French Universal Exhibition in full swing. The Palais de l'lndustrie, which was demolished for the great Exhibition of 1900, had been built for it, and Her Majesty Queen Victoria was expected to pay a visit to the Emperor and Empress to see the gallant show.

I stopped a day in Paris for the same purpose, and then sped on my way to the seat of war. Capt. Longley and Turabi Effendi were with me. We joined the "Euphrate", a vessel of the Messageries Imperials (now Maritimes), on which were several French and English officers and others going out to the Crimea. We touched at the Pireus where we remained several hours so that we were able to land, and drive up to Athens. Our first point was the Acropolis, which we explored as thoroughly as time permitted. We then drove into the City, and had some refreshment. The Acropolis and the ruins of temples around and in it were most interesting, and grand in the extreme, but the City was tame and uninviting, and we were not sorry to say good-bye to it, and to return to our ship. This voyage along the Greek coast and among the islands was very interesting, and the passage through the Dardanelles and the approach to Constantinople even more so. I took up my quarters at first, at Missirie's far famed hotel. Constantinople with all its sights and scenes, its variety of peoples &c was full o novelty and interest to me, but my all-absorbing thought was the Turkish Contingent and our prospect of taking part in the campaign.

Here I found Generals Vivian and Michel and their Staff. Their greeting naturally was "When will your Engineer Corps arrive?" That, of course, depended on the wind, and could not be looked for till the middle of September. It was decided to send up our Quarter Master General, Col. Wetherall, and me to the Crimea to consult with General Simpson, who then commanded the English Army, as to the co-operation of the Contingent in the siege of Sebastopol. We arrived two days before the final assault, ans our mission was dependent on the result.

I was most kindly received by General Simpson, whom I had met on a shooting party at Camer, when he was in command at Chatham a year or two before, and General Sir Harry Jones, who commanded the Royal Engineers and directed the siege operations. His A.D.C.~ Lieut. Cowell, afterwards Sir John Cowell, put me up in his hut. I dined with General Simpson the evening before the assault and he honoured me with a long confidential chat in the verandah after dinner. He was much depressed and evidently very doubtful as to the result. He was in truth too old for such a burden of responsibility as rested upon him, which had come to him by accident, so to speak, from Lord Raglan's death a few weeks before. Simpson had been sent out as Chief of the Staff, and being senior to the other officers out there, had been appointed to the command but he had had no experience to fit him for such a post, and was physically unequal to it.

I offered my services to Sir Harry Jones in the trenches for that day, but he declined them, thanking me, but pointing out that it would not be fair to those who had borne the burden and heat of the day in the trenches all those months, to allow me to take part and perhaps receive some reward to the detriment of one of them. I said that, of course, I fully understood and appreciated his reason, though it had been my duty to make the offer. There was therefore nothing for it, but to go with Wetherall to the best point for viewing the assault, where we also found the Commander of the Sardinian Army, General della Marmora. We were on high ground over-looking the Redan, and had the pain of seeing our men repulsed in their gallant efforts to storm the breach. Below us in the valley to our right was General Eyre's fine Division, which contained many old soldiers, not having been often put in the fore-front of the battles, as had been the case with the Guards and the Light Divisions, - whose young recruits we saw being driven back.

I have always wondered that this strong Division, held in reserve, was not sent in to retrieve our failure. However as the French attack on the MALAKHOFF was successful, the Russians had to evacuate the Redan, and during the night they withdrew all their forces to the north side, and the Allied Armies were left in possession of the fortifications before which they had lain for eleven months. This virtually finished the siege of Sebastopol, and there was very little serious fighting anywhere after it.

I fell a victim that night to the malady which attacked all new comers to the Crimea; as soon as I had descended the hill and reached Head-quarters, I was siezed with violent diarrhoea, and lay in much pain in Cowell's hut all night, unable to turn out and witness the magnificent sight of the explosions as the Russians destroyed their magazines whilst evacuating the South side. Two days later, when better, I rode into the place and saw some of the sickening sights of the wounded being brought out of the hospitals where they had been Iying almost untended for many hours. Sebastopol having fallen there was no longer any object in sending up the Turkish Contingent to the Crimea, and Wetherall and I were ordered back to Constantinople.

My Corps began to arrive soon after our return, and I was directed to take them up to Varna and there prepare for the Contingent, a small force of the Turks being sent with me, as the Advanced Guard. We were to prepare landing places, store houses &c. In doing this I soon found what a valuable man I had in Capt. Charles Hartley.

We were not left there many days before we received orders to move across to Kertch, in the Crimea. We had to re- embark the stores that we had landed from the "Lad) Anne" - the "William" had not arrived. My horses which had come out on the deck of the "Lady Anne" and had been landed in perfect health, were now shipped on board the "Resolute", the steamer that was to take us across to Kertch, and were stowed in her hold. This was a most unfortunate thing for me, as the heat after the fine sea-breezes to which they had been accustomed on deck for so many weeks, set up in the better of the two inflamation of the lungs of which the poor beast died the day we landed at Kertch. This was a very serious loss to me, for the other was not a horse to knock about on.

We did not stay in Kertch at that time but were ordered to Yenikale, an old Genoese fort, some 8 to 10 miles to the east of Kertch, commanding the Straits of that name leading into the Sea of Azoff. Here, as soon as the "Lady Anne" arrived, I formed a camp of my men. Lieut. General Conyngham soon arrived and took command of such troops of the Contingent as had come up from Constantinople. We found the 71st. Regt., commanded by Lt. Col. Ready, at Yenikale. He was a fine soldier and a very pleasant man from whom I received much kindness.

General Conyngham was naturally most anxious to secure our whole position both at Kertch and Yenikale against any possible attack of the Russian troops which we knew were not very far off, moreover, as winter would be soon coming on, he wished to provide shelter for the 20,000 men that would shortly be concentrated there. In all his schemes he naturally took me, his Chief Engineer, into his counsels, and my officers were busily engaged in making surveys, as well as in landing our stores, and in getting our men into shape, for it must be remembered that they had been hastily enlisted, and were nothing but a collection of artizans with but little training as soldiers. During this busy time I had another equine misfortune. I had bought a pony in Constantinople on which to knock about, and look after works not for speed. Having to accompany the General on a reconnaissance I was mounted on him, the General being on a long-legged fast horse; my poor pony knocked up, and died of inflamation of the lungs just as the other horse had done, so that in less than a fortnight I lost two out of my three horses. Happily I had the chance of buying two excellent nags from Lieut. Drake R.E., whom we found Iying desperately ill at Kertch. I persuaded him to go home, which saved his life, and I gladly bought his horses, which did me good service.

To enable me to put the men under cover for the winter, orders were sent to Constantinople for thousands of planks, and for Greek carpenters to come up and erect huts.

General Vivian, who commanded the force and Genl. Michel, the Chief of the Staff, who had introduced me to Lord Panmure, arrived shortly with the whole body of the Contingent, and took up their quarters in Kertch itself. I was ordered to join them there with my Corps, and several houses were allotted to us for quarters, store-houses, and work- shops.

My plans for the defence of the place, and for the hutting of the troops were now, of course, submitted to the superior Generals and met with their approbation.

A large number of men were told off to work daily under my orders and my of fixers were sent to different localities to superintend the extensive and urgent works of all kinds. Capt. Whitmore R.E. was left in charge at Yenikale, and Capt. Hartley at Fort Paul, also an important post, commanding the western extremity of the bay of Kertch, as Yenikale did the eastern out-let. We had taken out with us a field mess kit, so we at once formed a mess in the quarters assigned to us at Kertch, and in a short time made it quite comfortable. We found furniture in all the houses, from which the inhabitants had fled when the place was taken before our arrival.

Genl. Sir Collingwood Dickson R.A. arrived to take command of the Artillery of the Contingent, and was, with his A.D.C., a frequent and welcome guest at our mess.

After several weeks of hard work we were able to get all the troops under cover before the severe weather set in, and we covered the town of Kertch with a continuous line of entrenchments, defended at commanding points by heavy guns. Soon after their completion we fancied that the Russians were about to make the attack for which we had been preparing. There was a dense rolling fog, which caused the alarm to be given, for, seen through it, in the early morning, the rocks and other irregularities Iying some two or three hundred yards from our most advanced battery, looked like bodies of troops in movement. The Force was at once ordered to fall in and the regiments despatched to the posts to which they had been told off in the event of an attack. Genl. Vivian and his staff took up a reconnoitring position near the advanced battery, and for some time we expected the attack to develop, but alas! it never came, and we were obliged to admit that our hopes had led us too readily to believe what we so much wished for.

Christmas 1855 was duly observed by the Turkish Contingent Engineer Mess, and we had a merry party of as many English of fixers as we could stow away.

In January Genl. Vivian arrived at the conclusion that the scheme of my Engineer Corps could not be completed as I had intended by drawing Turkish artizans from the regiments; at the same time he expected that we should be employed in the spring in carrying the war into Mingrelia, and we believed that the companies ought to be at full strength. Even as skeleton companies they had done good work and given him every satisfaction, so the General decided to send me home with two officers to raise the necessary recruits and get them out in time for the Campaign of 1856. He wrote at the same time to Lord Panmure, urging that every assistance should be given to me. Accordingly towards the middle of February I started for England with Capt. Allen, my Adjt. and Capt. Hartley.

We embarked on the "Alice Jackson" for Constantinople, and had a terribly rough passage across the Black Sea. We were carried so much out of our course that, on approaching the south coast, the Captain made for what he thought was the Bosphorus, but it proved to be an indentation in the hills known as the "False Bosphorus".

Happily he found out his mistake in time, and put the ship's head about, and steered west. We saw a sailing vessel which had made the same mistake, in great difficulties.

On reaching Constantinople we embarked on the "Indiana", a fine chartered troop ship, which made Malta in fair time after a smooth passage. This was my first visit to Malta and I was much interested in it. My brother officer, Col. Sir William Reid. R.E., the Governor, one of our most distinguished scientific officers, gave me a warm reception and invited me to luncheon. We of course, visited S. John's Church, and were much interested in the mosaics of the floor, the tombs of the old Knights of Malta, and the beautiful picture of the Baptism of Christ over the altar. Our visit to Malta was a hurried one, for we suddenly heard that the French Mail Packet was leaving for Marseilles and we just managed to get on board with our traps. On reaching England I took my family entirely by surprise, as we generally travelled ahead of mails. Arriving at Tonbridge very late in the evening I knew that I could do nothing at the War Office till next day, so I hired a post chaise and drove across to Gravesend where I knocked them up soon after midnight. The servants refused to open the door, and called to their mistress, "He says he is the master, ma'am". My dear wife soon recognized my voice and bade them let me in. our delight at meeting again can easily be imagined. The next day on my return from Town, where I had been to the War Of fice to report my arrival, I went with my wife over to Cobham to see my aged Father and my Mother. The few weeks that passed before my leaving again for the Crimea in May, gave me frequent opportunities of seeing all my old friends in the neighbourhood of Cobham, and specially my dear brother, Edward, who had been very ill during the spring.

On reaching England we had found that negotiations for peace had begun. I was directed to put myself in communication with Sir Joseph Paxton, who had been instrumental in obtaining for the Government, the artizans and navvies sent out to lay the railway in the Crimea; but the negotiations went on prospering, and eventually Peace was signed, and there was no further occasion to increase my Corps of Engineers at Kertch. On the contrary, it was resolved to disband the Turkish Contingent.

In this interval General Vivian had also arrived in England. I was in constant communication with him and assisted him in drawing up his report on the operations that had been undertaken round Kertch. On his recommendation Lord Panmure, who on my return had given me a very warm reception, and his approval of the performances of my Corps, sent me back with full powers to disband the Turkish Contingent, with authority, under certain general instructions, to decide all points as to the conditions under which the various special officers who had been engaged were to be paid off; to sell all the stores that could not be sent home, and the horses, - both those of my own corps and of the whole Contingent.

In the middle of May I left for the Crimea with the two officers who had accompanied me home. We had a fine passage again, via Malta, Syra, and Smyrna to Constantinople. This visit to Malta was, like my first, a hurried one, so that I did not see very much more of the place, and I have never touched there since.

We speedily got passage from Constantinople to Kertch and this time on a very quick vessel, laden with cattle and sheep for the troops, so much laden that we had positively to walk on the backs of the sheep to get to our cabins. On reaching Kertch we found the whole place in a state of excitement over the impending departure of the force. After communicating to General Michel who commanded, the powers I had received from Lord Panmure, I made all the arrangements for the re-conveyance to England of the Engineer equipment of my Corps, (as that was not to be sold off) and then proceeded to Constantinople to attend to the special duties which had been assigned to me, which however, did not commence till the General had carried out all the necessary orders of the Government for the removal of the force and handing over the Turkish Troops to the Ottoman authorities.

My duties at Constantinople were of a very agreeable nature. Major Brett, the of ficer in charge of the Turkish Contingent affairs at that place, gave me every facility, and I had the support, in all I did, of Her Majesty's Ambassador, Lord Stratford de Redcliffe. It took me five or six weeks to complete all the arrangements. The sale of several thousand horses and the disposal of a vast quantity of stores, naturally entailed a great amount of anxiety and responsibility: whilst the compensation to be given to officers of various ranks, for which only general rules had been laid down for my guidance, involved a very considerable amount of labour. The sale of the horses, as I have said, was a matter of great anxiety to me. The British and French armies were at the same time selling off their horses, which were becoming a drug in the market. At first I got very fair prices but eventually I found that their keep cost more than I could possibly get for them, and at length, I sold the last lot at 5/- a piece. I was very thankful to find that on reporting my proceedings to Lord Panmure, he entirely approved of everything I had done, and I then asked permission to return to England. I was however, directed to remain until I received further orders.

Go back to the Chapter 4
Go forward to Chapter 6
Go to the Contents Page