Maiwand - History Repeats itself?

"Lt Gen Richards, who says British forces have been involved in some of the fiercest fighting since Korea, has now decided to withdraw from outlying positions, which will be taken over by the Afghan forces. It is a decision that some have questioned...

An officer who has served in Helmand said... "We did not expect the ferocity of the engagements. We also expected the Taliban to carry out hit and run raids. Instead we have often been fighting toe to toe, endless close-quarters combat. It has been exhausting. I remember when we had to extract a Danish recce group which was getting attacked on all sides; it was bedlam. We have greater firepower, so we tend to win, but, of course, they can take their losses while our casualties will invariably lead to concern back home.You also have to think that each time we kill one, how many more enemies we are creating. And, of course, the lack of security means hardly any reconstruction is taking place now, so we are not exactly winning hearts and minds.""

- Kim Sengupta, The Independent, 13th September 2006

" The unknown factor was the number of tribesmen and Ghazis (religious fanatics who fought like fiends)... when the Ghazis with their banners attacked our right flank they ran into a blizzard of Martini-Henry rounds and case shot and were mown down in scores. However the superior numbers of the enemy despite their heavy losses had effectively turned both our flanks "
- Captain Mosley Mayne, of the 3rd Cavalry at Maiwand, 27th July 1880

Picture: http://www.britishempire.co.uk/

THE COST OF THE SHRUB WAR

The costs in military dead so far for Petrolica and its allies in Arbusto's adventure in Iraq are given by Iraq Coalition Casualty Count as (upto 31st August):

The number of dead Iraqi lascoreens employed as policemen and army troops is not quite so accurate. However, they are given as:

Up to Dec 2004....1,300
After Jan 2005.....4,016
Total...................5,316

Here in graphical form is the 'progress' of the war in terms of military dead for the US and its allies:

The Light Infantry: Proud history besmirched

The history of the Light Infantry (LI) goes back to the colonial war in North America (the 'French and Indian War') that preceded and then ran concurrently with the 'Seven Years War'. Groups of skilled North American skirmishers were recruited to fight the French colonists and their Native American allies.

Napoleon later used such skirmishers in front of his own main lines and the British Army (notably Sir John Moore) trained and deployed troops as 'light infantry' to fight these 'tirraileurs'. These soldiers were considered elite and the title 'Light Infantry' had considerable prestige.

The LI Regiment of the British Army was formed in the 1960s and 1970s from old LI Regiments: Somerset and Cornwall Light Infantry, Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, King’s Shropshire Light Infantry, Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry, Durham Light Infantry, Herefordshire Light Infantry and the Light Infantry Volunteers.

Click here for the Light Infantry's official website.

The Battle honours of the regiment include:
Gibraltar 1704-1705
Minden 1759
Salamanca 1812
Jellalabad 1842
Inkerman 1854
Lucknow 1857-1858
Anzio 1944
Hill 112 - 1944

Now the Battle Dishonours include: Basra 2006.

Dani Hamilton-Bing, whose 18-year-old son, Pte James Hamilton-Bing, of the 1st Battalion, The Light Infantry, tried to quell rioters in Basra after the downing of a Lynx helicopter in May that killed five British soldiers, has attacked Tony Blair for putting the lives of over-stretched troops in Iraq and Afghanistan at risk.

Mrs Hamilton-Bing said that anger at seeing her son sent to fight a dishonest war had driven her to take action, adding that many other military families shared her views. She said: "My son joined to fight legal wars, not wars based on lies and deception."

"I am not against war, just an illegal war, she says I can't understand why we are there," she says "I can't understand why we are there."

"Does Tony Blair really value what these men are going through? Does he really understand the sacrifices these men and women are making?" she asked. "Nobody believes what the Government says," she added.

Mrs Hamilton-Bing insists that she is part of a majority vehemently against the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, who believe the forces have been over-stretched, and treated like "mercenaries" for hire by a dishonest Prime Minister. She believes that she is only reflecting the views of the servicemen and women who say nothing because they acknowledge that they relinquished that right when they signed up and "took the Queen's shilling".

"Nine out of 10 agree with me… there doesn't seem to be any end in sight."

From Terri Judd, 'Why did Blair send my son to fight an illegal and dishonest war?', The Independent, 2nd September 2006.