The Peshawar Valley Field Force was a British field force. It was the largest of three military columns created in November 1878 at the start of the Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878-1880), each of which invaded Afghanistan by a different route.[1][2] The Peshawar force initially consisted of around 16,000 men,[3] a mix of both British and Indian Army regiments, under the command of Lieutenant General Sir Samuel J. Browne.[4]

Browne's force crossed into Afghanistan from India in November 1878 and advanced up the Khyber Pass in the direction of Ali Masjid. Here, on 21 November 1878, the force gained victory at the Battle of Ali Masjid, the first battle of the war.[4] The Field Force then progressed further into Afghanistan towards Kabul, occupying Jalalabad on 20 December 1878. After camping here over the winter,[5] they advanced to Gandamak, 50 miles east of Kabul, in April 1879. The advance was however slow, given the difficulty in keeping communications open and the hostile attitude of the Afghan people. The Treaty of Gandamak in May 1879 marked the end of the first phase of the Afghan War and led to the withdrawal of the Peshawar Valley Field Force to India, where it was disbanded in mid–1879.[6]

Composition

At the start of the Second Anglo-Afghan War the Force was made up of the following:[7]

Sir Samuel J. Browne (Overall Command of the Peshawar Valley Field Force)

References

  1. ↑ Note: The other two were the Kandahar Field Force and the Kurram Valley Field Force
  2. ↑ Farwell, Byron (1973). Queen Victoria's Little Wars. London: Allen Lane. p. 203. ISBN 0713904577.
  3. ↑ Roberts, Frederick Sleigh (1896). Forty-One Years in India. London: Richard Bentley and Son. p. 346. ISBN 978-1402177422.
  4. 1 2 Hanna, H.B. (1899). The second Afghan war, 1878-79-80: its causes, its conduct and its consequences (PDF). London: Archibald Constable & Co.
  5. ↑ Forbes, Archibald (2008). "The Afghan Wars". Book Jungle (Reprint). p. Chapter 1. ISBN 9781605970202. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  6. ↑ Lunt, James. "Browne, Sir Samuel James". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  7. ↑ Joslin; Litherland; Simpkin (1988). British Battles and Medals. London: Spink & Son. p. 155. ISBN 0-907605-25-7.
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