A post is devoted to this shameful episode in Indian History because the man responsible, Reginald Dyer was not only an Old Lawrencian of Ghora Gali, Murree but also because the legendary Principal of Lawrence School Lovedale, Padfield was Principal of Lawrence Ghora Gali, albeit long after Dyer graduated. When Principal Padfield’s son William Lawrence Norton Padfield was born in 1905, the former was Principal in Ghora Gali.
Dyer, was, in fact born in Murree on the 9th of October 1864, a mere 6 years after the death of Laxmibhai, Rani of Jhansi, one of India’s bravest freedom fighters. When Dyer got married in 1888, he and his future wife were residents of Jhansi. Here are copies of Dyer’s birth and marriage certificates:
It is important to remember that Jhansi, now famous for its Queen Laxmibai who fought against the British in the First War of Independence, is where on 4 April 1858, British General Hugh Rose massacred the entire civilian population a mere 5 and a half years before Dyer was born. It is unlikely that Dyer would have had any compunction about murdering unarmed Indian women and children which he went on to do in 1919.
Contrary to popular belief that Dyer was a rouge soldier, truth is, he was highly decorated and highly regarded as is evidenced by the battle medals awarded: Here is Jitu with the medals awarded:
Here is a close up of some of the medals:
Principal of Lawrence Memorial Royal Military School Padfield was part of the British Community living in India that raised the then sum of £26000 (£1.15 million today) for the parting Dyer.
Kipling, who said in his book Kim ‘send him to Sanawar and make a man of him.” referring to Lawrence School Sanawar described Dyer as the man who saved India!
On Baisakhi Day, April 13, 1919, more than 25,000 unarmed men, women, and children gathered at Amritsar’s Jallianwala Bagh. Most had simply drifted into the park to relax after having attended the annual fair in the city; some had come to listen to protestors condemning the arrest and deportation to the Andaman Islands of nationalist leaders; very few people in the vast crowd were aware that the British colonialists had declared a ban on public gatherings in Punjab.
At around 4 pm, Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer, the head of the British Army’s 48 Infantry Brigade, was informed about a large crowd gathering in the park. Dyer led a handpicked force of 50 Baloch and Gorkha soldiers who “would have no compunction at shooting Punjabi civilians.” Just before 5 pm, Dyer gave the order to fire. “Havoc ensued. The crowd ran in terror in all directions but found few exits by which to escape. People crammed into the entrances to the narrow passageways, frantically seeking to force their way out.”
The troops were directed to fire on these, killing many and causing more to be trodden underfoot or crushed under the mounds of bodies that eventually built up ten or twelve deep
“The troops were directed to fire on these, killing many and causing more to be trodden underfoot or crushed under the mounds of bodies that eventually built up ten or twelve deep. Many tried to climb the walls and were picked off as they did so. Crowds huddled in the corners of the garden with no way out at all and were shot down where they stood. Retired soldiers in the crowd shouted out that people should lie on the ground to avoid the bullets, and many did so only to be shot as they lay.” Ironically, these were the same soldiers who had fought for Britain in World War I less than a year before.
The firing continued for 10-15 minutes. The noise in the Bagh was a cacophony of rifle cracks, bullets thumping into flesh and walls, ricochets screeching off the brickwork, the screams of 25,000 people in terror, and the cries of the wounded…The sight was one of horror. The vast crowd staggered aimlessly; the air filled with dust and blood; flesh flew everywhere; men and children fell with limbs broken, eyes shot out, and internal organs exposed. Amid this massacre, a British officer named Plomer remarked to Dyer that “he had taught the crowd a lesson it would never forget.”
When Dyer finally decided to stop firing, it was only when his troops had enough ammunition left to enable them to defend themselves during the march back to their barracks. But even as the soldiers exited, Crampton ordered the Gurkhas with khukris to check if anyone was hiding in the drains near the park. The British estimate was 397 dead; the Indian side claimed 1,600 died, including 44 children. The ‘unofficial official’ count was 1,800. The youngest among the dead was only eight years old; the oldest was 80.
Dyer neither inspected the destruction he had caused nor made any arrangement to care for the wounded. Worse, he ordered a curfew so that the dead and injured were left untended until the following morning. Piteous cries of the wounded asking for water rent the air throughout the night. Many died where they lay overnight.
During his close and prolonged examination by the Hunter Commission, Dyer remained defiant and brazen: “I had made up my mind. I was only wondering whether I should do it or whether I should not do it.” The fact is Dyer didn’t care. Historian S.R. Bakshi wrote about Jallianwala Bagh: “Unwarranted prejudice of the highest degree…It was a heinous crime, nay immoral as well as illegal.”
Here is a clip of Shashi Tharoor on the massacre:
Here is a link to an article about Horniman the journalist who exposed the massacre