Shortly before this Surgeon-Major Robertson—now Sir George Robertson—had relieved Colonel Bruce in charge of the Gilgit Agency, and he now at once left for Chitral, taking with him some of the 4th Kashmir Rifles under Captain Townsend, Central India Horse, and the remainder of the 14th Sikhs from Mastuj—100 in all. Before he reached there, however, the Chitralis, who had at first evinced some intention of opposing Umra Khan, had been driven from a position they had taken up in front of Kila Drosh; while a fortnight later—on the 9th February—the fort of Drosh was surrendered, without any pretence of resistance, to Umra Khan, with all its rifles and stores. About the 18th the situation, already sufficiently complicated, was rendered even more so by the news that Sher Afzul, probably the most generally popular of all the claimants to the throne, had arrived at Drosh. He was at once joined by some of the lower class Chitralis, and by the end of February nearly all the Adamzadas (members of clans descended from the founder of the ruling family) had also gone over to him. On the 1st March the British Agent withdrew his escort—now numbering 100 of the 14th Sikhs and 320 of the 4th Kashmir Rifles—into the fort at Chitral; and on the following day in _durbar_, it being patent that Amir-ul-Mulk, listening to the promptings of ill-advisers, had been intriguing with Umra Khan, Amir was placed under surveillance, and his young brother, Shuja-ul-Mulk, was formally recognised as Mehtar, subject to the approval of the Government of India.
The number of followers with which Umra Khan had entered Chitral territory had been gradually increasing, as his star appeared to be in the ascendant, and his total strength was now estimated at between 5000 and 8000 men. On the afternoon of the 3rd March Sher Afzul reached the neighbourhood of Chitral at the head of an armed force, and took up a position in some villages about two miles to the south-west of the fort. At 4.15 two hundred men of the Kashmir Rifles were sent out, under Captains Campbell, Townsend and Baird, to check the enemy’s advance.
Captain Campbell proposed to attack the position in front, while fifty men under Captain Baird made a flank attack along some high ground to the west. The enemy were found to be well armed and strongly posted; the Kashmir troops were met with a very heavy fire, and the attempts to carry the position by assault failed. It was rapidly getting dark, and Captain Campbell commenced to retire, being followed up closely by the enemy. The main body sustained heavy losses, but gained the fort under cover of the fire of a party of the 14th Sikhs; Captain Baird’s detachment became, however, isolated, Baird himself was mortally wounded, being carried back by Surgeon Captain Whitchurch, and this party only made its way back to the fort after desperate fighting, in which several were killed and many wounded. On this day, out of 150 men actually engaged, twenty-five were killed and thirty wounded. Captain Campbell was severely wounded, and the command of the troops in Chitral fort now devolved upon Captain Townsend. On this day the siege of Chitral fort may be said to have commenced, and for many weeks no news of the garrison reached the outer world.
