Sharpe's Triumph

Richard Sharpe and the Battle of Assaye, 1803

***

The second Sharpe book is complete. Another fast read, particularly when compared with Master & Commander. This tale takes place 4 years after the events of the Siege of Seringapatam. 

Sharpe has been a Sergeant all this time, working in the Seringapatam armory. In this capacity he travels with a small group of men to an outpost of the East India Company to collect some cannon shot. While Sharpe is at the outpost a former-East India Company officer-turned-traitor named Lieutenant Dodd arrives at the compound, posing as a British ally in good standing and leading a column of infantry. Dodd parades his men into the central square, then orders them to open fire on the fort's inhabitants. The result is a massacre. All of the fighting men are killed, except for Sharpe, who is wounded and feigns death to avoid the roving bands of cutthroats.

After Dodd and his men leave the fort, Sharpe makes his way back to the Seringapatam armory where he meets up with his old friend Colonel McCandless. The Colonel is very interested in hearing about the deserter at the center of the massacre, William Dodd. McCandless has been charged with bringing Dodd to justice, and the Colonel recruits Sergeant Sharpe to assist him. The pair travel north and join the army of Major General Arthur Wellesley in time to witness the daring British attack on the fortified city of Ahmednuggur.

Dodd is in the employ of another European deserter-turned warlord for the local princes, one Anthony Pohlmann. Pohlmann dresses in fancy silks, rides in silver plated elephant howdahs, and generally lives the high life. He is attempting to lure the two small British armies operating in the region into a trap. To this end, he collects more than 100,000 men and 100 cannon and digs into a defensive position near the village of Assaye.

Major General Wellesley arrives with his force of 4500 troops, 17 cannon, and 5000 cavalry. Wellesly resolves to attack at once, but from the eastern flank instead of the southern route. His quick action gives no time for his similarly sized second army, led by Colonel James Stevenson, to arrive. They were a day's march to the west.

By BarretBonden - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5976732

What follows was an impressive display of hardened infantry versus a large amount of artillery. The resolute British marched through the flying lead, killed the gun crews, then marched toward the enemy infantry (who vastly outnumbered them), also under heavy fire. The grim British soldiers then stopped, presented arms, delivered a devastating volley of musket fire, then charged with fixed bayonets. The enemy was not eager to join the battle and large sections of the vast army fled in disarray. The end result was a lopsided victory for the British.

Along the way, Richard Sharpe manages to save the life of Major General Wellesley, earning a very rare promotion from enlisted man to officer. Now Ensign Sharpe has a bright future ahead of him. The traitorous Dodd escapes the battle, perhaps to be seen again?