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Some Questions about British India & The British Army in India; And other related queries
Topic Started: Oct 2 2011, 11:37 PM (438 Views)
Krys
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Hi everyone! I'm Matt's younger sister (I played Bavaria on the World Imperialism game from a couple of years ago), just by way of a general introduction.

I am currently doing preliminary research for a story I intend to write next month, and I have some questions for which I am in need of answers. Matt suggested that I ask you fellows. As such, I am here.

Part of the background of my story is roughly speaking, this:

The story is set in Great Britain and India from 1855 to 1859 or so, the parts in India are more or less to do with the Indian Mutiny in 1857. Several of my characters are soldiers (two officers and one private, for now) in the British Army in India, part of the 30,000 or so troop stationed there before the Mutiny broke out. They obviously take part in it somehow, just where and when I have not quite figured out. I at the moment do not feel knowledgable enough to comment on the causes of the Mutiny, and whether or not the reactions of everyone involved were justified, and perhaps as such I am getting myself into a sticky mess that ought to be left to wiser minds than I. As such, for the moment I think I would only like to focus on a fictional few of the soldiers themselves that took part in the action and whatnot, and not exactly attempt to reach any conclusions about the whys and wherefores (although perhaps the two are inseperable and you cannot have one without the other).

My main questions pertain to some of the more minute aspects. For instance, if it took three to six months to sail from Britain to India (on a steamship, I presume), is that also how long it would take for letters, general mail, and communications to go back and forth between the two places, also by ship? The telegraph was around and used in the 1850s, but was there any cable going straight from Britain to India (I have not come across any information on one such if there actually was a line going all that way, but I somehow doubt the possibility of a line traversing that distance if they had not even laid a cable across the Atlantic until 1858, and that was short lived)? I recall reading that the telegraph itself was in India at the time, is that correct? If so, how much would it have been used?

I need the above information primarily because I do not want my characters to receive letters from the home country more quickly than possible, and also because at one point one of the officers receives news that his elder brother died, and as such he is the heir to the estate. Would he somehow receive this information quicker than three months, or no? It should not matter if he cannot get the news quicker, I just want to know to be accurate.

And that paragraph brings me to my next set of questions. What was the general policy in the British Army for letting officers (or any soldier) go who had suddenly found that they had come into some sort of inheritance (especially if these officers were second sons not normally due to inherit in the first place)? Especially in the time of unrest and war, would the chap just be allowed to sail off for home? What it make a difference if there was some sort of dispute over the inheritance, and he was integral to the solving of it?
Is there anything else that may be useful?

Thank you for your help! :D I think the above are all the questions I have for now, or at least the most pertinent ones.
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Matthew
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Krys
Oct 2 2011, 11:37 PM
part of the 30,000 or so troop stationed there before the Mutiny broke out. ...

For instance, if it took three to six months to sail from Britain to India (on a steamship, I presume)
I should just say that when I gave those answers they were very rough guestimates from the top of my head, as a minimum number.
Simon will know better, and be able to give you something more accurate, or it can be found out, so just be ready to revise numbers.

As for mail, I know that even though the canal was not yet constructed, they did have an overland connection for mail and passengers where they would cross Egypt on land and get back on the other side. Going around the cape would be longer, of course. I was thinking by sail, when I answered, as well.
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Krys
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Okay, thanks for the clarifications. I read somewhere else the number 35,000, but the number itself shouldn't matter too much for the actual outline of the story. I just needed to know for background info.

Interesting about the overland connection, I'll have to check that out. Did it have a name?

Re sailing times: Okay, good to know. I found somewhere that said it was about three months (presumably by steam), but was steam predominantly used in the 1850s, or was it still sail?
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Petar
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Krys
Oct 2 2011, 11:50 PM
Okay, thanks for the clarifications. I read somewhere else the number 35,000, but the number itself shouldn't matter too much for the actual outline of the story. I just needed to know for background info.

Interesting about the overland connection, I'll have to check that out. Did it have a name?

Re sailing times: Okay, good to know. I found somewhere that said it was about three months (presumably by steam), but was steam predominantly used in the 1850s, or was it still sail?
It was still predominantly sail.
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Basil Fawlty
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I recall Sherlock Holmes mentioning something about it taking 3 months to get to Australia in one of his stories.
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Krys
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Petar
 
It was still predominantly sail.


Something like a combination steam and sail, or simply sail?

Augustus
 
I recall Sherlock Holmes mentioning something about it taking 3 months to get to Australia in one of his stories.


Since the Holmes stories were set post 1870s or so, travellers en route to Australia would have gone by the Suez canal, right? That would have considerably cut down the sailing time from what it previously was (if it was three to six months by sail to get to India around the Cape, no doubt it was that much longer to Australia by the same route), I think.
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Simon Darkshade
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Combination of steam and sail was used, depending on the urgency.

Communications occured via the Suez route, as suggested.

Crown troops numbered around 30-35000, depending on the time of year and the relative availability of men for active duty.

I have an 1860s book on the Indian Mutiny and will try to dig it out for precise details.

In times of active service, it was not really possible to head home, even for property disputes. There were mechanisms to buy oneself out or resign one's commission in more peaceful times and depending on the rank of the officer, leave could be granted.
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Krys
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Thanks for the info. Duly noted.

At present, one more question:

This may be somewhat of an ambiguous question (and for that I apologise), but, how much action would it have been reasonable for a captain in the infantry to have seen during the Mutiny, or something thereabouts? I am writing out the plot outline, and I'm not entirely sure just how involved I should make my one character be. Obviously I want to keep in mind logistics- the fact that to travel from one place to another took time, not even factoring in any delays, yet I am unsure of just how much this officer could actually do without it being physically impossible, let alone, for the time period, inaccurate. I already have him, at the moment, in one excursion.

ETA:

How long did it take for communications to reach those in India via the overland route as mentioned above?
Edited by Krys, Oct 5 2011, 03:41 PM.
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Simon Darkshade
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If the captain in question was based in Bengal, he could likely see quite a bit of action; even those in other regions would be part of the punitive response and operations that put down the rebellion.

For non-urgent basic mail, it would take around 5-6 weeks.

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Krys
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Thanks for the info.

In my readings & research siege trains have been mentioned several times. What were they, generally speaking? What comprised them? Thanks!
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Simon Darkshade
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Heavy artillery and supplies such as ammunition. I'll dig out my copy of Victoria's Wars over the weekend, but I do remember mention of 8" howitzers that took a lot to transport.
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Krys
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Okay good, thanks so much!
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Krys
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I have a couple more questions, which I perhaps ought to have researched before I began my novel, but no matter.

Firstly, does anyone have any images (paintings, drawings, etc) of important Indian cities such as Delhi, Calcutta, Cawnpore, etc? I have maps, some from the 1857 campaigns, of these places, but I wouldn't mind have paintings or drawings done at the time or thereabouts just to get a better idea of what the cities looked like. I've discovered I'm a visual learner, so while text descriptions are good, images help too. If there is nothing for the specific cities, ones of other Indian cities or towns would be welcome as well.

Secondly, when on the march, how would a Captain in an infantry regiment travel? I know the privates more or less marched, but would the officers travel on horseback? (Or elephants, maybe?)

Thirdly, how would a sepoy have addressed an officer? Would they have used the term "sahib" for anyone of British/European extraction, including military officers?

Fourthly, do you know of any good sites with information on the hill stations? I've got some resources found through personal research, but they were not entirely as detailed as I would have liked.

Thanks for your help!
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