VISIT TO THE CRIMEA WITH CHARLES GORDON. REPORT ON THE CEMETERIES

In the autumn of 1872 I was sent by the Government to the Crimea, to report on the condition of the British cemeteries and monuments, and also as to their restoration and care for the future. Colonel Charles Gordon (of Khartoum), an old friend of mine, was associated with me in the work. He was at that time a member of the International Commission for improving the navigation at the mouth of the Danube. Travelling rapidly through Europe, I met him at Galatz at the end of August; and we embarked on board H.M.S. 'Antelope,' which had been sent from Constantinople to convey us across the Black Sea. Gordon's views about the work of the Danube Commission were, as usual, rather peculiar. He explained to me that, as the river had been adequately dredged and buoyed, and as the lighthouse at its mouth was completed, there was really nothing more to do; and that the Commission was practically useless. As I understood, he had written to the Foreign Office to that effect, adding also that his salary was too large. In the ordinary concerns of life he was actuated by one principle which is rare—namely, a contempt for the accumulation of money. In fact, he gave it away almost as fast as he received it. His experience in Eastern countries, also, had given him a distrust of pashas and men in high places; and all his sympathies were for the poor and friendless. Soon after our visit to the Crimea he was appointed Governor-General of the Soudan, and it is said that at an interview with Ismail Pasha before starting for Khartoum he objected to the large amount of his salary, as being more than necessary; and when he left, the Khedive remarked: 'What an extraordinary Englishman! He doesn't want money!'

On leaving Galatz, we went first of all to Odessa, to call on General Kotzebue, the Governor-General of Southern Russia, who, however, was unfortunately absent; but we had an opportunity of meeting, and of receiving assistance from him later on. Indeed, during the whole of our visit to the Crimea, every attention was paid to us by the authorities; and two Russian officers were specially detailed to accompany and assist us in our investigations. We arrived at Sebastopol on August 29, and found the city in ruins, and almost exactly in the same condition as when the allied armies had left it seventeen years before. The churches, barracks, theatres, and store-houses were all roofless; and the Malakoff, Redan, and other defences mere crumbling earthworks. All was so quiet and still, and such a contrast to the stirring times of the years gone by, in the hardships and vicissitudes of which Gordon and myself had shared. We seemed to know every inch of the ground, and for many days wandered about, taking notes of the various cemeteries, great and small, scattered over the country.

Although comparatively few officers and men remain of all those who took part in the great Crimean war of forty years ago, its reminiscences will still, no doubt, be of interest to many in the present day; and I will therefore quote some extracts from the report made by Gordon and myself on our return home:[99] 'From the day of our arrival until September 9, we were engaged many hours each day in making a careful inspection of every cemetery and memorial of the British Army in the vicinity of Sebastopol.' 'It will be remembered that after the battle of the Alma the Allies marched on Sebastopol, and in consequence of their long detention before that city the great body of the British Army did not move again during the war, but remained encamped on the plateau on the south side; consequently, with the exception of a few monuments at the Alma and at Kertch, the whole of the cemeteries, one hundred and thirty in number, are to be found on the ground which extends from Sebastopol to Balaclava, and from Kamiesch to the Tchernaya.' 'The cemeteries vary much both in their position and size. Some are in the rocky ravines leading down to the trenches, whilst others are on the hills and downs which surround Balaclava. Some lie in the sheltered valleys about Kadikoi and Karani; but by far the greater number extend along the bare plateau in front of the city, upon which the army so long remained encamped; and pre-eminent among them is that on Cathcart's Hill, distinguished alike by its commanding central position and by the numerous monuments it contains, many of them to officers of high rank and distinction.'[100]

'The cemeteries also differ considerably in the number of graves and monuments which they relatively contain. Some are large, with hundreds of graves, and many inscribed tablets and crosses; others in isolated spots with only a few. A considerable number contain no monuments whatever. The majority are those to officers; but there are also many to soldiers, and a few to women, nurses, or the wives of soldiers.' 'A small proportion of the monuments have been erected since the termination of the war. Some are of marble, but as a rule they are of the soft stone found upon the spot. They were for the most part hurriedly erected toward the end of the campaign, often by unskilful hands, without sufficient foundations, and with slightly cut inscriptions. Originally there were also a considerable number of wooden crosses. Under these circumstances, it is not surprising that, exposed to the vicissitudes of climate, especially to the rigour of Crimean winters, a large number of them have perished, and almost all of those remaining show signs of weather and decay.' 'The walls which enclose the cemeteries were in the first instance roughly built, without mortar or foundations, and of the loose uncut stones in the neighbourhood. Time and weather have led to their rapid decay, and the shepherds have occasionally hastened the destruction by making entrances for their flocks.' 'We endeavoured to visit every cemetery and memorial of which we could find a record; the total number in the neighbourhood of Sebastopol and Balaclava amounting to 130.[101] The farm-house which was so long the head-quarters of the British Army is well cared for, and in good preservation; and in the room in which Lord Raglan died a marble slab has been inserted in the wall, with the following inscription: "In this room died Field-Marshal Lord Raglan, G.C.B., Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in the Crimea, June 28, 1855."'

'The circumstances of the French Army were very similar to our own, and they had numerous cemeteries widely dispersed from Kamiesch to Baidar. Feeling the inconvenience and difficulty as regards their care and preservation which have so long perplexed ourselves, they determined to disinter the remains of their officers and men, and to remove them to one central spot near the former French head-quarters. This arrangement was carried out in 1863, each cemetery being denuded of its dead, and then abandoned. About 28,000 bodies are said to have been removed; those of the officers having been as far as possible identified.' ...

'Although a course similar to that followed by the French has been from time to time advocated, with regard to the remains of our officers and men, it does not appear to Colonel Gordon and myself that any general disinterment or removal is necessary or even desirable. Independently of the difficulty, it might almost be called impossibility, after the lapse of so many years, of collecting the remains or of in any way identifying them, we believe that it would be repugnant to the feelings of the Army and of the British public generally that any such plan should be attempted. Our officers and men were buried by their comrades on the ground where they fell; the whole scene is sacred and historical; and the remains of the dead should not be disturbed. As regards the cemeteries generally, our view is that those which contain no monuments should be covered with mounds of earth and turf, and that the ruined walls should be removed.' ... 'We are of opinion that the larger cemeteries, which contain numerous mementoes and tombstones, should be preserved, a substantial wall being built round them, and that all monuments, tablets, and crosses should be repaired and the inscriptions renewed. The three memorial obelisks at Inkerman, Balaclava, and the Redan, should be protected by a good wall, with a substantial railing....'

These extracts will probably suffice as a general view of the condition of the British cemeteries in the Crimea at the time of our visit, and of the proposals for their restoration, which were subsequently adopted and carried out by the Government. The cost was estimated at 5,000l.

Leaving Sebastopol in the 'Antelope,' we called at Yalta, and had an interview with General Kotzebue, who was much interested in our work, and anxious that the British memorials should be respected, at the same time pointing out the difficulty of adequately guarding so large a number. The late Empress of Russia was at the time residing at the Palace of Livadia at Yalta, and sent us a kind message, regretting her inability owing to illness to receive us, and wishing us bon voyage. Having paid a short visit to Kertch and Yenikale, at the entrance of the Sea of Azoff, we then returned to Constantinople, and were immediately, for some inscrutable reason, placed in quarantine for a week, although we were all perfectly well.

As soon as we were free, the British Ambassador, Sir Henry Elliot, kindly received us for a few days at his palace at Therapia, on the Bosphorus; and at his request, I paid a visit, accompanied by an interpreter, to the Grand Vizier, Midhat Pasha, who was anxious to discuss the Turkish armaments and defences. I had previously inspected the arsenal and manufacturing departments; and frankly told him that they were in considerable confusion, and that a great deal of money had apparently been wasted in the purchase of second-rate half-obsolete material, partly on the Continent and partly in America; and that, in view of the rapid advances in the science of artillery, and in small arms, I advised prudence and economy. He listened attentively, and his reply was 'Pekki,' which I found meant approbation (literally, 'Very good'); and went on to say, that the lavish expenditure had been incurred by his predecessors, but that he would be careful. He then alluded to the defence of Constantinople against naval attack; and I pointed out that, considering the comparative narrowness of the Bosphorus, it offered great facilities for the employment of ground torpedoes. Midhat Pasha was apparently ignorant on the subject, so I explained as lucidly as possible that a torpedo was a case of gunpowder, which, placed at the bottom of the channel, could be exploded by electricity as the enemy's vessel passed over it; and that such defence was simple, efficient, and cheap. This gave him much satisfaction, and he replied, 'Pekki, Pekki,' with great fervour. I heard afterwards that he had been pleased with the interview, and especially with my economical views. He had, however, no opportunity of acting on them, having been dismissed from office almost immediately afterwards.

Having taken leave of Gordon, who returned to his improvements on the Danube, I then proceeded to Smyrna, where a few British tombs and memorials of the war existed; and on my arrival called on the British Consul, who lived in a charming house overlooking the bay. On expressing my admiration of his residence, the Consul's wife explained that there was a difficulty in keeping it in order, on account of incessant earthquakes; although lately they had been more free from them. Hardly had I returned to the hotel than I heard a rumbling noise. Then the whole house commenced rocking violently to and fro, and it became evident that the overdue earthquake had arrived. Fortunately not much damage was done.

During my stay at Smyrna I paid a visit to Ephesus, meeting Mr. Wood, who had been sent out by the authorities of the British Museum, and was excavating the recently discovered ruins of the temple of Diana. My duties, however, required me to return home; and travelling through France, I took an opportunity, when at Paris, of sketching ruins of a very different character—those of the Tuileries, on which were inscribed in large letters, 'LibertÉ—EgalitÉ—FraternitÉ.'

On arriving in England I was invited by Mr. Lowe, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to call in Downing Street to discuss the purport of my report. The conversation began by his inquiring, somewhat abruptly, whether I considered it one of the duties of the British Government to keep in repair the cemeteries and monuments of the Army in all parts of the world. My reply was that I had never considered so wide and interesting a question, but had limited myself simply to those in the Crimea. He at once said, that the report was sensible enough, involved no great expenditure, and should be carried out; and so we amicably left the main problem unsolved.

ruins

Illustration: RUINS OF THE TUILERIES, NOVEMBER 1872
LibertÉ—EgalitÉ—FraternitÉ

Subsequently I sent a few copies of the report and some photographs to those who had assisted us at Sebastopol; and one of the Russian officers sent me a reply, which, although not altogether perfect in its English, is very friendly in its tone: 'My General,—I have the honour to accept your lovely letter, with the photographie of mitrailleuse, and I your transport my deep thanksgiving. I observe of your letter, that you forget not Sebastopol and cemetery, who to ask by repair. Your report of British Cemetery I have forward of General Kotzebue, and if you possess one copy, take my,' &c.