Again for the description of the battle, we have James Grant, who drawsfrom eyewitness accounts present.

Battle of Tamai Large illustration (slow: 114K)

The Mounted Infantry now reported the enemy as 6,000 strong, a spy at 7,000. The fires in their camp could be seen burning luridly after nightfall, at the distance of a mile and half away. The bugles sounded at 8pm, and an allowance of grog was served round.

The moonlight was bright and clear. The men were at breakfast next morning, when General Stewart, with the Cavalry, came riding up from a zeriba in which they had passed the night, which, after the fires died out, proved a chilly one to all who were unprovided with blankets.

The Infantry formed in front of the zeriba at 8 o'clock on the morning of the 13th, and began their march in the same formation as that of the preceding day, by brigades, 1,000 yards apart in echelon, the Second Brigade leading. It was composed of the Black Watch, York and Lancaster Regiment, the Royal Marines, and Naval Brigade with Gardner and Gatling guns. In the First Brigade were the Royal Irish Fusiliers, the Gordon Highlanders, Royal Rifles, and more Royal Marines.

"The former moved to the left under General Davis, and with it were the General and his staff. As the squares advanced the Cavalry fell back, followed by the enemy, who in great force could be seen crowded beyond the bush in front, their bright weapons flashing, and their black skins standing boldly out in the glare of the sunshine. They were 1,200 yards distance, but the main body was a mile away".

The two oblong squares pushed steadily onward, over ground intersected by rough, dry watercourse, towards a deep hollow, full of great boulders and rugged rocks. From the left, General Stewart now sent forward two squadrons of Cavalry, together with the Abyssinian scouts, to skirmish, and a lively conflict soon ensued between them and the enemy, till a forward movement of the latter, led on by their wild and daring Sheikhs, compelled the former to fall back, and then the leading brigade - the 2nd pressed onward, firing steadily as it went.

"Our fire became inconceivably hot when the edge of the stony hollow was won, and despite orders and bugle calls, our men could not be got neither to reserve their ammunition nor expend it steadily. Their breechloaders filled the air with a stupendous roar, and the whole o the troops became enveloped in dense smoke, which there was no wind to carry away. Under cover of this, the active and stealthy foe crept up the side of the rough ravine, and like living waves made a succession of wild and furious dashes on the bayonets of the front ranks."

Square Tested

On the points of their weapons some forty or so literally hurled their bare breasts, and perished of the most dreadful wounds, in front of the Marines and York and Lancaster Regiment. And now, as the terrible tumult increased, and with it the pressure, the weak points of our unsteady square became tested.

"The companies of the 65th and Black Watch (or front face) swept forward against the foe," says an eye-witness, "but the remaining companies of those regiments, which formed the sides of the square, and were also expecting an attack, did not keep up with the rapid movements of those in front, and the consequence was the many gaps appeared in what should have been a solid wall of men".

[It appears, although no one is 100% certain, that General Graham having joined the 2nd Brigade square, ordered the Black Watch to charge towards the Khor. He himself states "For this disorder I am to some extent personally responsible, as the charge took place under my eyes, and with my approval".

What in fact took place was that the front facing companies of the Black Watch and the Yorks and Lancs advanced to the edge of the Knor, effectively taking the lid off the square. Officers of both regiments tried in vain to advance the companies on the side of the square, but due to the quickness of the front facing companies advance, and the general smoke and confusion, they were unable to do so. The Black Watch still suffering from taunts from other Battalions and Gen. Graham's rebuke, were not about to disobey another order to charge.

The Mahdist then poured in to this gap. Throwing back the 65th onto the Marines in the rear. The Naval Brigade, who were positioned in the centre of the square tried to bring up the Gardner guns to plug the gap, but were overrun. Ed.]

Cheering loudly and advancing rapidly at the double with bayonets charged, the front face, by its quickness of action, increased still more these gaps in the flank faces, at a moment when the Arabs were swooping down chiefly on the right face, the front of which was compelled to halt. Every effort was made by the officers to close up these most fatal gaps, and steady the men to withstand the onslaught, but the storm of rifle fire that burst from the front and other flank faces drowned their voices.

'The 65th gave way and fell back upon the Marines", says the Daily Telegraph, "throwing then into disorder, though many men disdained to turn their backs, but kept their faces to the foe, firing and thrusting with the bayonet; but both regiments were inextricably hurled together, and through the smoke at this dire crisis the dark and demon like figures of the foe could be seen rushing unchecked, even for a moment, by the hailstorm of bullets, and then the fight became hand to hand."

Collapse

In their collapse, the writer adds that the two broken English regiments threw even the Black Watch into disorder, and the square no longer existed.

Striking with the spear, or hewing with their hatchets and long cross hilted swords, the Arabs pressed on in wild melee, slaying many, and being slain in turn, for many went down under bayonet and bullet, when the Highlanders and Marines fought back to back.

The whole of this column now began to recoil, despite the vigorous efforts of its officers; and the Naval Brigade, wedged and jammed up by a mass of our soldiers, were unable to use their guns, and were compelled to abandon them, with the loss of three officers and many seamen, but not before the sights were removed, to prevent their use by the enemy.

"We came back about 800 yards." wrote the correspondent of the Telegraph, "moving in a more easterly direction than the line of advance.

[The 1st Brigade too was attacked, but as the Mahdist had some 500 yards to cover, the attack was cut down before anyone reached the square. The Cavalry squadrons dismounted and used their carbines to pour fire into the Dervish assault on the 2nd Brigade. Ed.]

"By this time the fire from the first brigade, on our tight as well as front, and the Cavalry on our left, held the Arabs; and the officers succeeded in checking the retreat, the Black Watch, who were fairly in hand, and a portion of the Marines, largely assisting in stopping what might have been a more serious disaster to the brigade.

It was re-formed, and the men who had got out their regiments were sent into their own lines again. I must revert again to the way in which several hundreds of Marines and Highlanders fought back to back, firing and retiring in excellent order. They were over two hundred yards to the brigade front when it was halted and re-formed, and to their great coolness and steadiness is largely due the final success of the day."

'All our officers fought like devils here", wrote a captain of the Black Watch. "The colonel is a splendid man. He shot two Arabs dead, and would have shot more, only the Government ammunition missed fire. An Arab threw a spear, and just missed the colonel, and then threw a stone and knocked his helmet off, and he was was bareheaded under a burning sun, till gallant Norman MacLeod (a Lieutenant) gave him his helmet and wrapped a cloth round his own head.

When we rallied and formed line, I imagined I must be the only officer left alive; but to my joy we all met only Charlie Eden, as cool as if on partridge shooting; little Brophy, lame, but pretending to be sound; Sandy Kennedy, with eye-glass in his eye and his wife's watch round his neck; Bald, a gigantic subaltern, perspiring, with a sailor's hat on, as he had lost his helmet; Sir John MacLeod's son, Duncan wounded; old Bob Coveny, smiling with confidence, and Norman MacLeod with his firm lips; Speid looking calm as a judge, and young Macrae of Argyllshire, cool, who had only joined us the day before, armed with a spear.

All our officers had hand to hand fights with the Arabs who pulled the kilts off our men. One of them tore the green ribbon of mine, but I killed him."

Two officers of the Black Watch, according to the Daily Telegraph, slew many of the enemy with their double-edged claymores, running the blades up to the hilt every time.

When the 2nd Brigade was re-formed, supplied with fresh ammunition, and returned to the point where it was broken to re-take the lost guns, the hour of nine had come, and a fresh force of the Arabs were seen issuing from the rocky ravine in which they had hither to been concealed.

Fresh Charge

Their charge was met with renewed confidence, and of those naked warriors, dark skinned and supple, who with loud yells, streaming hair, and gleaming blades, came storming and swarming down upon the square, few or none went back, the last survivors falling in front of the bayonets of the front ranks, under the withering fire poured in by those in rear.

The mass of the enemy now began to fall back, followed by a galling shell and rifle fire, to which they replied with coolness, facing about from time to time.

[They withdraw in a kind of "We tried our best" slow walk. Ed]

They had got one of our Gatlings into the ravine, where somehow its ammunition limber caught fire, and it hissed and blazed, sending shots perilously in every direction for half an hour after.

"General Buller's Brigade the 1st halted on the edge of the ravine, while forward, and across it, went the 2nd. Buller was in square; the Gordon Highlanders on the front and right face; the Royal Irish Fusiliers on the left; the Rifles in the rear, and nine 7-pounders under Major Gough in the centre.

Here the objective point was a second intervening ridge, 800 yards distant, and formed of sharp, hot, red granite rocks and boulders; but it was carried with a cheer, the men firing as they went on at the enemy's main body gathered on the opposite ridge, which was also carried, General Graham directing the advance in person and on the summit being gained, in the valley of Tamai Ghab, 180 feet below, could be seen the tents and huts of Osman Digna, with all the loot of his former victories."

The field of Tamai was now virtually won, and at half past ten General Graham re-formed the whole force prior to marching on the Wells, which were three miles distant, and where on different points of the horizon, several parties of the enemy were visible.

Among the scrub many wounded Arabs were lurking, refusing quarter, and shooting or stabbing wildly at all who came near them, till they were despatched like reptiles.

One attacked no less than six Hussars at once, and fought with such insane fury that he was not slain without incredible difficulty. This was when the Cavalry were clearing the bushes.

'The roll up,' as it was called of Davis's Brigade, resulted from the rapidity of its advance, and a momentary forgetfulness of the perilous nature of a movement in square, with an Arab rush on its flanks. "I passed over the battle-field," says the correspondent of the Standard, "and from what I saw there I should increase my estimate of killed to at least 3,000. The Arabs lay in heaps, as the Egptians did on General Baker's battle-field."

General Graham destroyed by fire the entire camp and stores of Osman Digna in the valley.

CASUALTIES

British

91 killed, 110 wounded and 19 missing presumed dead.

70 fell during the break of the 2nd Brigade square.

The figure killed is very high, but it is remarkable that it was not considerably higher due to the amount of support fire by the first Brigade and Cavalry during the melee, ie. losses due to friendly fire.

Mahdist

Estimates up to 2,000, which is a reasonably realistic figure. Some 600 bodies lay around the remains of the shattered square.

Battle of Tamai Jumbo Map (slow: 181K)

More Tamai

Tamai: Introduction
Tamai: The Battle
Tamai: Battle Profile (Analysis) and Wargaming

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