File:The Crimea revisited, Graves of British Soldiers - ILN 1869.jpg

Volume: 54 , Issue: 1542

The Crimea revisited: (Mason Jackson?) In the late visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales to the Crimea they spent a pensive hour in the British officers' cemetery, on Cathcart Hill. While the allied armies yet remained before Sebastopol, in the spring months of 1866, care was taken to put up a wall around this and each of the many other burial-grounds where our gallant soldiers had been laid. In the second volume of Mr. W. H. Russell's History of the War, " from the death of Lord Raglan to the evacuation of the Crimea," he has given, in his last chapter, a minute account of what was done, up to the end of June, 1866, with an enumeration of the sepulchral monuments and tombstones, bearing the names of some of those brave men whose mortal remains lie dispersed in the numerous divisional graveyards all over this fatal tract of land. The same well-known writer, being one of those who were in the Crimea with the Prince of Wales and his party two months ago, thus relates their visit to Cathcart Hill, and comments on the present condition of the graves and monuments of our fallen countrymen; some Illustrations of which subject, from the sketches taken by our Special Artist at the same time, are now presented in this Journal:" The gate of the cemetery was closed, and the Princess ascended the steps, and, in company with her husband, walked slowly through the noiseless streets, reading the names inscribed on the stones, and stopping now and then to pick a flower or a weed from the side of a grave of one whose friends she knew. The Prince engaged himself in a similar way, and often called the Princess's attention to some name which recalled those at home. There was not one, perhaps, of the party who had not a friend or relative lying there, and nearly an hour was spent inside the inclosure before the anxiety of the Russian officers led them away to their horses again. It is plain enough that if steps be not taken to preserve this cemetery from decay and from wanton dilapidation, it, in common with every monument and memorial in the Crimea, will become a national disgrace-a sort of moral Redan. The fine slab and tablet over poor Newman, who fell at Inkerman, has just been chipped and broken at the base. The star on the Coldstream monument has been smashed into fragments, other stones are chipped and split, weeds and rank grass are growing up all over the stones. What a scandal this is we could appreciate to some degree as ter our visit to the Russian cemetery; but it was not until we had seen the French that we quite understood its enormity. The Russians are as anxious as we ought to be on the subject. They have done all they could, and more than could have been expected. The Czar has purchased the fee simple of the land occupied by our numberless graveyards-they are not numberless, for it is said they are nearly seventy, but I suspect there must be some exaggeration in that-and the Government can scarcely be called on to take care of the graveyards themselves. The sensible and practicable, as well as economical, plan would be to carefully collect all the remains which now lie broadcast over the land, preserving the identity as far as possible, convey away all memorial stones with them, and then place them all in some eligible spot, none, as it appears to me, being more suitable than Cathcart Hill itself, or the Traktir Farm, in which the English head-quarters' house stands. Pray turn public attention to this. Surely no British Parliament would grudge the money needed to save the national reputation ! " The following notes upon this subject are contributed by our Special Artist:"The burial-places of the Crimea are as much in ruins as Sebastopol itself. A siege of eleven months and a bombardment could not have made them worse. When one hears of the money spent in their preservation one wonders how it has been applied. The Russian cemetery on the French left attack, which endured some of the fiercest work of the siege, did not suffer so much as the British graves seem to have done in the course of a few years of careful and costly supervision. Of course, there is one great difficulty at the bottom of the whole case, and that is the number of these burial-grounds and the space they are spread over. No fewer than eighty-nine English burial-places were reported to me, extending over a space of about eighty square miles. Such a multiplicity and such extent of dispersion will defy almost any amount of guardianship. The Illustration given will convey a very correct idea of the general aspect of the British graves in the Crimea : there are many such as I have represented. This is one of the larger sort, such as those on the slopes of the valleys, between the ground where the camps stood and the trenches. These were the most quiet and retired spots while the siege went on, and were therefore selected for the purpose. There is a stone wall round each burial ground, about 4 ft. high, which prevents cattle or sheep from entering, and also prevents the Tartars from making tracks with their arabas or waggons over the ground. There is generally a gateway and steps, by which anyone wishing to enter may do so. These burial-grounds are of various sizes and shapes: some are only a few yards square, and inclose only one or two graves, while others must include as many hundreds; and some are in much better preservation than others. The burial-ground which surmounts Cathcart Hill is by far the one in the best condition; but even this one has suffered. General Cathcart's own monument, and those of Strangways, Seymour, and others of the Staff killed at Inkerman, are all in very good order. The star on the monument erected to eight officers of the Coldstream Guards who fell at Inkerman, which has been noticed in the papers, is in very good order; but it happened in this case, as it did with more than one of the monuments, that a second monument was put up. This second monument, if I recollect right, is of marble, and has not suffered; while the older monument, a horizontal stone, is now in such a state that only one knowing the star of the regiment could recognise what had once been sculptured upon it. The perpendicular monument of marble, which, I think, has also the star upon it, is still intact. Colonel Hunter Blair's monument is also in good order. General Goldie's and Sir John Campbell's monuments are here; these, and in fact all, with one or two marked exceptions, are in fair preservation. Sir Robert Newman's monument is a very handsome one, and has, no doubt, tempted some robber with the idea that valuable booty might be got from the grave below. In the burial-ground of the 2nd Brigade of the Light Division, near the Picket-house, which ground is a very large one, for the Light Division suffered more than the others, there are monuments in all states of decay. Still, this is a place the monuments in which have stood, perhaps, better than many of those elsewhere. Here is the grave of Hedley Vicars, of the 97th Regiment; and it will interest some readers to know that the very small stone which first marked his resting-place is still erect, and its inscription is yet legible. The 97th was the leading regiment in the last attack on the Redan. I looked for the graves of some whom I knew, and who fell on that day. Just behind that of Hedley Vicars is the grave of Colonel Handcock, with those of Major Welsford and Adjutant M'Gregor, of the 97th; all in tolerably good order. The stone put up by the regiment has been broken, and is mended with a piece of iron, and m this state it remains. There is a monument in the centre of this burial-ground "to the officers, non-commissioned officers, and men of the 2nd Brigade, Light Division." This was composed of the 19th, 77th, 88th, 90th, and 97th regiments; the monument is still in good repair. A stone to the memory of Egerton, of the 77th, who fell taking a rifle-pit known by his name during the siege, is also in good order. The burial-ground of the 1st Brigade of the Light Division is situated in a ravine nearer to the windmill. The principal monument here is one erected by General von Straubenzee to those of his brigade who fell, and "in testimony of heroic fortitude and valour." It consists of a pyramid formed of steps, and surmounted by an Iona cross; the whole is in good order. There is a monument to the officers and men of the 34th Regiment; and there is also a very fine monument in marble to Captain Hammond, which is likewise in good order. There is another monument, on which one can read the names of Colonel Blake, Captain Burke, Lieutenants Thistlewayte, Gough, Montague, Worthington, Thorold, Bennett, Heyland, Donovan, and Marsh, and Paymaster M'Grath. These were the officers of the 33rd, or Duke of Wellington's Regiment. In thus taking notes of the monuments, one's eye was attracted, of course, to those which were still in good order and readable; a multitude of fragments are passed over in which a cross, with 'Sacred to the memory,' was all that one could make out; or it might be that only the lower half of the stone was still in its position, and then all that was visible would be 'fell at Inkerman, on the 5th Nov., 1854,' or 'at the assault on the Redan,' or 'who fell while on duty in the trenches.' The question arises, ' Who fell?' But that is a question which the destruction of these stones renders it impossible to answer. In wandering over the hills, I visited a great many of the burial-grounds; at times to seek for flowers, at other times to look for the graves of friends, or to see if I knew anyone among the names on the stones. As the subject will have some interest for your readers, I continue to give you the notes which I made at the time. In a burial-ground near the windmill, on the west side of the ravine, is a monument to the sergeants, corporals, and privates of the Royal Sappers and Miners, with all their names. It stands in the centre of the burial-ground, and is still in good order. There are also monuments to Colonel Alexander, R.E.; Major Ranken, R.E.; and Captain Gordon of Pitluny, R.A. This cemetery has for an entrance a Gothic arch in wood, surmounted by a cross, painted black. This, no doubt, has been the work of the Sappers themselves ; it is still in good condition. Near this there are two small burial-grounds; the smallest contains but one grave, with a small headstone, which is so covered p with grass that the word ' sacred' and a cross, painted black, are that is visible. Near the first camping-ground of the Second Division at Inkerman I saw the names of Major Dalton, and Powell, and also Lieutenant Armstrong, of the 49th Regiment; and in a burial-ground near the Windmill I saw the name of 'Capt. Savage, R.A.; ' also 'John Sibbelds, Sch. Sus. Gds., Ink., 5th Nov.' Only two stones were left. Just behind the Quarries, in front of the Redan, are three burial-grounds, inclosed, as usual, with a white wall. There are no tombstones or inscriptions here. There is a small inclosure, near to the position of what was called ' Egerton's Pit,' in one of the advanced parallels, where Sergeant John Keefe is buried; also a stone erected by 'William and James Weir' to the memory of their brother, killed on July 12, 186655. These all belonged to the 47th Regiment. This small graveyard is very noticeable from its position in the very middle of the place where the war of rifle-pits went on, and no doubt the men who lie here are those who fell in that deadly strife. Upon the ridge leading down from Cathcart Hill to the trenches is a burial-ground devoted to the Sappers and Miners. The principal monument here is one erected by Lieutenant Brine, R.E., to the memory of 'Private Hugh Inglis, 10th Co. R. S. and M., died April 10, 1856.' It is some indication of worth when an officer erects a monument to a private soldier. The camp of the Naval Brigade can still be traced, with the ridges of stones with which they paved the way between the tents. I even thought that I could point to the very spot where the wonderful suspension bridge crossed the stream at their camp. The burial-ground on the other side of the ravine may be said to be neither better nor worse than its neighbours. Stones are falling, and some have fallen; but most of the monuments can still be made out. The one erected to Hughes D'Aeth, of the Sidon, is in good order, but sloping a little, like a vessel's sails when a strong breeze is blowing. The burial-ground of the artillery, between the Naval Brigade and Cathcart Hill, is a long, narrow strip, inclosed by the usual low wall. Nearly all the stones in this ground are smashed; only two are readable-namely, one inscribed to Captain Allix, who was A.D.C. to General Sir De Lacy Evans; and the other to Lieutenant D. G. Maclaughlan, R.A. This last is in very good order; and I have reason to remember the time when it was put up-in the winter of 1854. At that time Inkerman stone could not be got at; and this one, I suppose, owes its durability to the fact. The stone got from Inkerman is very brittle and does not stand the weather, so that all the stones and walls constructed from it are in a hopeless condition. As an instance of this, I found one stone in this burialground which had been carefully morticed into a foundation-stone in the ground; but the Inkerman stone is so fragile, that the whole had broken off within a few inches of the bottom. Below the Col, towards Balaklava, near the site where Mrs. Seacole hadher quarters, is a burial-ground of the Land Transport Corps. A hawthorn-bush has taken root near the centre of it, and is flourishing. There is a general memorial inscribed to 'The men of the British Land Transport Corps who died in the Crimea, 1855-6.' This ground also contains a stone to the 'Late Quartermaster-Sergeant of the 14th Battalion of the Land Transport Corps, died March 25, 1856." The ground here is now surrounded by corn-fields and vineyards, which are stretching up in this direction from Kadikoi. In this progress of cultivation is another source of the dangers to these cemeteries. I heard of one such case. A man has a field with a cemetery in it. He looks upon this cemetery as an obstacle in his way; he knocks over the stones and carries them off, as there is no supervision to prevent him; and at length he gets the monuments so far dismantled that, in the next ploughing season, he may carry off the last few stones, plough the field all over, and there is nothing to say that a burial-place had ever been there. I was informed that several of the graveyards had in this manner become undistinguishable. "In the consideration of any plan for a better arrangement of the burial-grounds of the British soldiers in the Crimea it will be advantageous to know what has been done by the French. They were, like ourselves, invaders; and at the end of the war they had to leave the ground, which was as thickly covered with the graves of their dead as it is covered with ours. Not far from the old Quartier General of the French army, and only about a mile distant from the English head-quarters, a piece of ground was selected. It has been inclosed by a wall of about 7 ft. or 8 ft. high. All round this wall is a series of low tomb-like buildings, each with a black painted door facing the centre of the square. These buildings were appointed to receive the dead of particular regiments and corps; one may here read the names of such and such regiments of infantry, cavalry, or artillery; of the intendance, the corps de g4nie, and all the various bodies composing an army. The whole of the square is tastefully laid out as a garden, with walks, trees, and flowers; and in the centre stands a building combining the character of the head-quarters' burial-place, with the additional purpose of a monument to the memory of all who fell. On its front is a slab, with the following inscription:-'A LA MEXOIRE DES MILITAIREB DE L'ARMBE PRANCAISE QUI ONT SUCCOMBE DEVANT SEBASTOPOL, 1864, 1866, 1856. Etat Major Gdndral, Corps d'Etat Major, Intendance, Aumoniers.' " This central erection has about thirty slabs containing the names of the officers of the head-quarters and staff of the army who died in the campaign. I noticed Vice's name, who died at Lord Raglan's head-quarters. There are seven of the smaller buildings on each side, and three on the south. On the north side there is only the gateway and house of a French official who has charge of the cdmetery. The whole square thus contains seventeen tombs, or eighteen, including the great central one. On each sepulchre are slabs of marble, upon which the names of all the officers are cut, with the regiment or corps they belonged to. My sketch of the cemetery will give a specimen of this arrangement, by which the whole can be understood. It may be worth while to point out where the French have succeeded and in what they have failed. Their example may be of use if our Government should attempt anything for the memorials of those who fell in the Crimea. " The French cemetery is all new and in good order, like a garden, or a Grande Place in a French town. It contrasts with the state of the English graves very much to their disadvantage, and is always mentioned by the Russians when talking of the disgraceful state of the latter. As a site for a monument, the French cemetery is better than one in the position of the English head-quarters would be; for they are situated in a hollow. But it is not to be compared with the site of Cathcart Hill; whence the ruined town of Sebastopol, with all its works of defence and attack, the battle-field of Inkerman, the position of Balaklava, and the whole ground of the allied camps, with Kamiesch and Kasatch, the north side of the harbour stretching away towards the Alma, and, in short, all the most interesting localities of the war, can be freely surveyed. This panorama of Crimean scenes is viewed better from Cathcart Hill than from any other point ; while a monument placed there would itself be the most prominent object in any distant view, and would catch the eye of men in ships miles out at sea. A good substantial structure on Cathcart Hill would become, from its situation, above all others pre-eminently the monument of the Crimean War. The number of small erections in the French cemetery detracts from its general effect; one massive building would have been better. Those erected by the French are built of Inkerman stone, of which the accounts say that it is wanting in durability; so that, twenty or thirty years hence, this place will be only another ruin added to the many already existing around Sebastopol. The marble slabs, with the names upon them, will be scaling off ; and will be found scattered about in fragments before many years are over. Should the present guardian leave his post, and should another French Government forget to appoint a new one, the ground will soon become a wretched jungle. Durability, something like Egyptian solidity, and not prettiness, is what is wanted for a monument so far from home and on a foreign soil. But we have small right to criticise the performance of our neighbours, with the English burial-grounds in their present condition."