Arthur took a sharp breath. ‘Not just the French, sir. You’ve read the reports.Tipoo is building up his forces. I can’t believe he won’t be tempted to wage war on us before too long. And if we send men to take Manila, then we’re offering him a grand opportunity to attack us when we’ll be at our weakest. In the present circumstances the last thing we should be doing is spreading ourselves too thinly.’
Sir John nodded. ‘I agree with you, Wesley. But those are my instructions from London.’
‘But they don’t know the situation here, sir. They don’t understand the risk.’
‘And you do? You’re what, twenty-seven, and a colonel. Do you really think you know better than far older and wiser heads?’
‘I am here on the ground, sir. They are ten thousand miles away. I believe my view of conditions is somewhat better than theirs.’
‘Perhaps.’ Sir John shrugged. ‘Nevertheless, we have our instructions. I’d like you to take charge of planning the operation.’
‘Me?’
‘You have a good head for detail and a flair for organisation. I’ve seen how you run the 33rd, and I’ve read your report on making greater use of the brinjarris and their bullocks. A fine piece of work, that.’ Sir John eased himself back in his chair and continued. ‘You’ll take the 33rd and two battalions of the Company’s sepoys. That’s over two thousand men. Should be more than enough to overcome the dago garrison in Manila.The Company will provide the transports and all supplies.’
Arthur made a wry smile. ‘Then I take it I will be seizing Manila in the name of the East India Company?’
‘That’s right. Now would you like the job, or not?’
‘Let us be clear, sir.You’d like me to organise the operation.’
‘Yes.’
‘Then who is to command it? Me?’
‘I haven’t decided yet.’ Sir John’s gaze flickered away from Arthur and out through the window on to the gardens below. ‘I certainly think you would be as fit a man for this command as any senior officer in India. But I will need to consult with the senior officer in the presidency, General St Leger. If we agree, then the command is yours. In the meantime, I’d be grateful if you took charge of organising the operation.’
‘Very well, sir.’ Arthur felt a surge of pride at being given such a responsibility, mingled with anxiety that he would be superseded before he was given the chance to wield the force once it was put together. He cleared his throat as he rose from his chair. ‘Thank you, sir. I promise I won’t let you down.’
Sir John nodded, without shifting his gaze from the gardens. ‘Do your duty, Colonel. That’s all anyone can ask of you.’
‘I will, sir.’
Throughout the hot months of June and July, Arthur made preparations for the capture of Manila. The Indiamen assigned to the assault force were anchored opposite the fort and their boats made available for training the 33rd in landing procedures. The redcoats sweated in the searing sunlight as they were rowed from the ships to the river bank where they disembarked as quickly as possible and formed up in their companies on the shore, ready for action. Then they were drilled for an orderly withdrawal to the boats in the event that their attack on Manila might fail. After that, the boats were rowed back to the Indiamen and the soldiers clambered up the sides of the ships, only for the entire performance to be gone through again.
As the men went about their drills, Arthur and his small staff drew up lists of all the supplies and equipment that would be required for the voyage to Manila, the assault, and then a subsequent two months’ rations in case the Spanish launched a counter-attack.Training and hygiene schedules had to be worked out for each vessel, since Arthur was adamant that his soldiers were not going to suffer the same debilitating conditions that had dulled their edge of the voyage from England.
When the first packet of letters from Kitty arrived, Arthur read through them again and again, briefly taking in her notes on the social life in Dublin before concentrating on the sections where she spoke of her feelings for him. Every nuance of every word was carefully weighed before he allowed himself to believe she still loved him as strongly as ever. He held the letters in his hand tenderly, as if they were an extension of her body, and then carefully put them away in his writing box before turning his mind back to his duties.
Then, at the start of August, when the preparations were complete, Arthur was summoned to Sir John’s office early one morning. As he strode from his house up the track that led to the fort he glanced out across the river to where the flotilla lay serenely at anchor. Even at this distance the red coats of his men were visible on the ships they had finished boarding the day before. The expedition would be able to sail this very day, if Sir John gave the order.
For the first time in his life in uniform Arthur felt pleasure at the prospect of an independent command. With the capture of Manila, he would surely be granted ever greater responsibilities, and the beginnings of a reputation that would free him from the shadow of his oldest brother. Even Tom Pakenham would be forced to sit up and take notice of the name Arthur Wesley. And Kitty would surely be thrilled at his success. The brief flight of fancy ended abruptly as he reminded himself that the expedition had not even weighed anchor yet. He was fantasising like a young fool, he reflected bitterly. He must learn to control his feelings and thoughts more thoroughly.
Arthur entered headquarters and made his way up the stairs to Sir John’s office. The Governor General was not alone. Seated in one of the chairs on the far side of his desk was the slight, dapper figure of General St Leger.
Sir John smiled warmly as he waved Arthur towards a spare seat. ‘Wesley, I have some news for you! An overland dispatch arrived yesterday.Your brother, the Earl of Mornington, has been offered the post of Governor General.’
‘Has he accepted, sir?’ Arthur asked eagerly.
‘The dispatch didn’t say. But he’d be a damn fool not to, eh?’ Sir John grinned for a moment, and then the expression faded quickly as his gaze transferred to the other officer present. ‘There is one further piece of news. General, would you be so good as to explain.’
General St Leger nodded and turned to Arthur with a kindly smile that immediately made Arthur’s heart sink as he guessed what was coming.
‘The thing of it is,Wesley, that I’m going to assume command of the expedition.’
‘Oh . . .’
‘Now I realise that you’ve put a lot of work into this. The 33rd’s a damned fine regiment, and so’s their colonel. Everyone in Calcutta says as much. No one doubts that you’ve a fine career ahead of you, and you would have made a fine job of leading this operation.’
Arthur did not want to hear any more platitudes. His first big opportunity to make a name for himself was being taken away and he had to know the cause. ‘Why are you taking command, sir?’
‘Ah, well, I don’t suppose you are unaware of the fact that the destination of your - my flotilla has become common knowledge in Calcutta. Moreover, a Danish merchant ship arrived a week ago and left yesterday, for Manila.’
Arthur felt cold rage course through his veins as he turned to the Governor General. ‘Then why wasn’t the order given to impound the ship until after the expedition sailed, sir?’
‘I have no legal right to do that, Colonel.’
‘But we are at war, sir!’
‘Not with Denmark,’ Sir John said firmly. ‘Not yet, and I have no desire to go down in history as the man who provoked the Danes into fighting alongside France. I had to let the vessel sail.’
Arthur pressed his lips tightly together before he made another angry comment, and there was silence for a moment. Then General St Leger spoke.
‘I think it’s safe to assume that the Spanish will know we are coming. They might have had a little time to improve their defences, but given that they are Spanish that should not worry us unduly.’
His attempt at lightening the mood failed. Arthur continued to glare at him, and St Leger continued in a flat tone. ‘G
iven that the odds have shifted somewhat in the enemy’s favour I thought it was important the expedition be commanded by a senior officer with some experience, and I accept that responsibility.The Governor General is of the same mind, is that not so, Sir John?’
‘Yes,’ Shore replied with a guilty glance at Arthur. ‘It makes sense.’
‘So,’ the general opened one of his hands towards Arthur, ‘I’d like you to assume the role of my second in command. As I said, you’re a fine officer and what’s more you know the men and you know the plan better than anyone else in Calcutta. Do please do me the honour of serving with me on this expedition.’
For a moment Arthur was tempted by some churlish spirit to turn the offer down. If they were so keen to take the expedition away from him, then let them suffer the consequences of a last-minute change of command. But it would not be these officials who suffered if things went badly. It would be the ordinary men once again. Arthur knew that he must accept this latest humiliation. He owed the men of the 33rd that much at least for all the loyal service they had shown him.
‘I’d be pleased to accept, sir.’ He forced himself to smile.
General St Leger slapped his hand down on his thigh. ‘Good man! I knew you’d see the sense of it.There’ll be another chance for you, Wesley. Take my word for it, this war against France has the makings of another Iliad.’
‘I hope that Manila falls more quickly than Troy did, sir.’
‘What? Oh yes, of course.’ St Leger frowned as his conceit was pricked. ‘Now then, you can brief me fully on the plan and then we will set sail at once.’ He turned to Sir John. ‘Of course, that’s once you give the order, sir.’
‘Go,’ Sir John replied eagerly. ‘Go at once, by all means. God speed to you both, and come back with Manila in your pocket!’
Chapter 26
As the ships raised their anchors and were carried slowly downriver with the Hoogley’s current the sailors went aloft and lowered the sails to catch the light breeze blowing across the river. There was just enough wind to provide steerage way and the Indiamen glided gracefully past the battlements of Fort William and the seething slums and warehouses of Calcutta. Fortunately the breeze was from the other shore and so those on board were spared the stench that had greeted them when they had arrived in Calcutta at the start of the year.
Arthur was standing at the stern of his transport, arms folded as he stared at the fort, still furious with Sir John for taking away his command. After all the hard work he had done to make sure that the expedition stood every chance of success, another man had stepped in to reap all the credit. It stuck in his throat like a stone, yet he knew he must not reveal his frustration and anger, and must do his utmost to help General St Leger win his victory.
Footsteps approached from behind and a moment later Captain Fitzroy was beside him, leaning on the stern rail.
‘Action at last, sir. I can hardly wait to reach Manila.’
‘We should be there soon enough, Fitzroy,’ Arthur replied quietly. ‘Provided the weather holds. It’s late in the season. We don’t want to be caught out when the monsoons start.’
For a while they watched the city give way to irrigated field systems, dotted with occasional water buffaloes and small clusters of huts. Then Fitzroy stirred. ‘Do you think we’ll be able to take Manila?’
‘Of course,’ Arthur replied automatically. ‘You heard what the general said. The last report from our agent in Manila was that the garrison consisted of two battalions of veterans and the cannon in the forts are old and decrepit.They’ll be no match for us.’
‘If the agent is right.’
‘He’d better be. We paid him enough.’ Arthur smiled. ‘Rest easy. We’ll be back at Fort William before the year is out, and we’ll have given the men a victory to celebrate.’
‘Aye, and we’ll be the heroes of the Manila campaign when word gets back to London.’ Fitzroy smiled at the thought of the social capital he would be able to make out of his part in the expedition.
‘Calling it a campaign is stretching the truth a bit,’ Arthur countered.
‘You know that, and I know that, but none of the debutantes in Dublin and London will be any the wiser.’
Arthur shook his head pityingly.‘You are a scoundrel, Captain Fitzroy.’
‘Did you ever see a lady’s man who wasn’t, sir?’
For a moment Arthur pictured Kitty gazing adoringly up at a beau such as Fitzroy as he related to her how he had scaled the walls of Manila’s defences, flag in one hand and sword in the other, laying into the Spaniards with heroic abandon until he had taken the city virtually single-handed. How could a woman resist such a hero? The thought made him angry and he was suddenly tired of Fitzroy and his self-centredness.
‘Captain, the first company is scheduled to exercise this morning. Please see to it.’
Fitzroy was surprised by the sudden cooling in tone, then stood stiffly to attention and saluted. ‘Yes, sir.’
‘Carry on then.’
Once Fitzroy had left him alone, Arthur turned back to watch the landscape passing slowly by as the flotilla edged down the Hoogley, until at noon the river merged with the great expanse of the Ganges river which carried the transports out into the Bay of Bengal and the ocean beyond.
Arthur had made it clear to his officers that they were responsible for the well-being of their men. During the voyage hammocks were scrubbed down every ten days, fitness training was taken daily and a number of dumb-bells had been allocated to each vessel to ensure that the men were able to do strengthening exercises. Twice a week, the men were given live firing practice at empty barrels deposited in the sea from one of the ship’s boats, while the sailors looked on from vantage points in the rigging and jeered poor shots, and grudgingly cheered each time the target was hit.
The flotilla from Calcutta was the first to arrive at Penang and anchored a safe distance offshore to wait for the transports from Madras. Arthur took the opportunity to hone the skills of his men with plenty of drilling on the sand. General St Leger remained on his vessel for most of the time, only making for the shore once in a while, to take a stroll in the dense forest that grew on the slopes of the hills a short distance inland. He usually took a pistol with him to obliterate any parrot or small mammal that strayed across his path.
Eleven days after the flotilla had arrived off Penang a lookout sighted sails approaching from the south-west. As word of the sighting spread from ship to ship the men on the decks scanned the horizon, shading their eyes against the glare coming off the surface of the sea.There was a tense atmosphere as the ships crept into view.The crews and soldiers aboard the transports had good reason to be nervous. Although the French navy had ceased to be much of a threat in the East Indies there were still plenty of privateers in these waters, a handful of which preferred to operate in small squadrons that would be more than a match for the Company vessels.Then the lookout aloft positively identified them as Indiamen and the tension was relieved, some of the men even cheering as the Madras squadron approached the flotilla and reduced sail. Even before the leading ship had dropped anchor a boat was launched and rowed hurriedly across to the transport carrying the general and his staff.
‘Now, what do you suppose that is all about?’ Fitzroy asked languidly.
Arthur shrugged. ‘We’ll know soon enough, I imagine. Someone’s in a pressing hurry to tell St Leger some news.’
‘I wonder what kind of news, sir?’ Fitzroy asked with a tinge of alarm. ‘Nothing that will stop us taking Manila, I trust. I sincerely hope the bloody Spanish haven’t gone and changed sides again.’
‘I wouldn’t be too concerned,’ Arthur responded easily.‘There are more than enough enemies of England in this part of the world. You’ll still get your chance to fight, and win that glory you’ve set your heart on. Trust me.’
He turned away from the side rail and called down the gangway for his steward to fetch his coat, hat and sword. As he checked his appearance in the small mirro
r held out by his steward a string of flags broke from the halyard of St Leger’s vessel.
The first mate of the Indiaman translated the signal. ‘Officer commanding to captains and senior army officers, repair aboard immediately.’
The heat in the cabin was stifling, even though the stern windows stood open and the vents on the skylight had been raised to admit whatever breeze was wafting over the anchored vessel. General St Leger, wearing a loose shirt, raised the dispatch he had received.
‘Bad news, I’m afraid, gentlemen. A French army, commanded by General Bonaparte, has knocked Austria out of the war. They’ve agreed preliminary terms and by now it is likely that the treaty is signed and sealed. The War Office in London has sent warnings to all our forces to expect increased French activity, now that they are free to concentrate their efforts outside Europe. A squadron of warships left Toulon back in April, and our spies claim that it was bound for Mauritius. If that is the case then they will be ready to operate against our naval and commercial shipping as early as September, a mere few weeks from now.’
THE GENERALS Page 22
