The Pirates Own Book (6 page)

On the sailing of the fleet from hence, the forces were augmented by a
body of troops belonging to the Imaun of Muscat, destined to assist in
the recovery of a place called Shenaz, on the coast, taken by the
Joassamees. On their arrival at this place, a summons was sent,
commanding the fort to surrender, which being refused, a bombardment was
opened from the ships and boats, but without producing much effect. On
the following morning, the whole of the troops were landed, and a
regular encampment formed on the shore, with sand batteries, and other
necessary works for a siege. After several days bombardment, in which
about four thousand shot and shells were discharged against the
fortress, to which the people had fled for refuge after burning down the
town, a breach was reported to be practicable, and the castle was
accordingly stormed. The resistance still made was desperate; the Arabs
fighting as long as they could wield the sword, and even thrusting
their spears up through the fragments of towers, in whose ruins they
remained irrevocably buried. The loss in killed and wounded was upwards
of a thousand men. Notwithstanding that the object of this expedition
might be said to be incomplete, inasmuch as nothing less than a
total
extirpation of their race could secure the tranquility of these seas,
yet the effect produced by this expedition was such, as to make them
reverence or dread the British flag for several years afterwards.

At length in 1815, their boats began to infest the entrance to the Red
Sea; and in 1816, their numbers had so increased on that coast, that a
squadron of them commanded by a chief called Ameer Ibrahim, captured
within sight of Mocha, four vessels bound from Surat to that port,
richly laden and navigating under the British flag, and the crews were
massacred.

A squadron consisting of His Majesty's ship Challenger, Captain Brydges,
and the East India Company's cruisers, Mercury, Ariel, and Vestal, were
despatched to the chief port of the Joassamees, Ras-el-Khyma. Mr.
Buckingham the Great Oriental traveller, accompanied the expedition from
Bushire. Upon their arrival at Ras-el-Khyma, a demand was made for the
restoration of the four Surat vessels and their cargoes; or in lieu
thereof twelve lacks of rupees. Also that the commander of the piratical
squadron, Ameer Ibrahim, should be delivered up for punishment. The
demand was made by letter, and answer being received, Captain Brydges
determined to go on shore and have an interview with the Pirate
Chieftain. Mr. Buckingham (says,) He requested me to accompany him on
shore as an interpreter. I readily assented. We quitted the ship
together about 9 o'clock, and pulled straight to the shore, sounding all
the way as we went, and gradually shoaling our water from six to two
fathoms, within a quarter of a mile of the beach, where four large dows
lay at anchor, ranged in a line, with their heads seaward, each of them
mounting several pieces of cannon, and being full of men. On landing on
the beach, we found its whole length guarded by a line of armed men,
some bearing muskets, but the greater part armed with swords, shields,
and spears; most of them were negroes, whom the Joassamees spare in
their wars, looking on them rather as property and merchandise, than in
the light of enemies. We were permitted to pass this line, and upon our
communicating our wish to see the chief, we were conducted to the gate
of the principal building, nearly in the centre of the town, and were
met by the Pirate Chieftain attended by fifty armed men. I offered him
the Mahometan salutation of peace, which he returned without hesitation.

The chief, Hassan ben Rahma, whom we had seen, was a small man,
apparently about forty years of age, with an expression of cunning in
his looks, and something particularly sarcastic in his smile. He was
dressed in the usual Arab garments, with a cashmeer shawl, turban, and a
scarlet benish, of the Persian form, to distinguish him from his
followers. There were habited in the plainest garments. One of his eyes
had been wounded, but his other features were good, his teeth
beautifully white and regular, and his complexion very dark.

The town of Ras-el-Khyma stands on a narrow tongue of sandy land,
pointing to the northeastward, presenting its northwest edge to the open
sea, and its southeast one to a creek, which runs up within it to the
southwestward, and affords a safe harbor for boats. There appeared to be
no continued wall of defence around it, though round towers and portions
of walls were seen in several parts, probably once connected in line,
but not yet repaired since their destruction. The strongest points of
defence appear to be in a fortress at the northeast angle, and a double
round tower, near the centre of the town; in each of which, guns are
mounted; but all the other towers appear to afford only shelter for
musketeers. The rest of the town is composed of ordinary buildings of
unhewn stone, and huts of rushes and long grass, with narrow avenues
winding between them. The present number of inhabitants may be computed
at ten thousand at least. They are thought to have at present (1816),
sixty large boats out from their own port, manned with crews of from
eighty, to three hundred men each, and forty other boats that belong to
other ports. Their force concentrated, would probably amount to at
least one hundred boats and eight thousand fighting men. After several
fruitless negociations, the signal was now made to weigh, and stand
closer in towards the town. It was then followed by the signal to engage
the enemy. The squadron bore down nearly in line, under easy sail, and
with the wind right aft, or on shore; the Mercury being on the starboard
bow, the Challenger next in order, in the centre, the Vestal following
in the same line, and the Ariel completing the division.

A large fleet of small boats were seen standing in from Cape Mussundum,
at the same time; but these escaped by keeping closer along shore, and
at length passing over the bar and getting into the back water behind
the town. The squadron continued to stand on in a direct line towards
the four anchored dows, gradually shoaling from the depth of our
anchorage to two and a half fathoms, where stream anchors were dropped
under foot, with springs on the cables, so that each vessel lay with her
broadside to the shore. A fire was now opened by the whole squadron,
directed to the four dows. These boats were full of men, brandishing
their weapons in the air, their whole number exceeding, probably, six
hundred. Some of the shot from the few long guns of the squadron reached
the shore, and were buried in the sand; others fell across the bows and
near the hulls of the dows to which they were directed; but the
cannonades all fell short, as we were then fully a mile from the beach.

The Arab colors were displayed on all the forts; crowds of armed men
were assembled on the beach, bearing large banners on poles, and dancing
around them with their arms, as if rallying around a sacred standard, so
that no sign of submission or conquest was witnessed throughout. The
Ariel continued to discharge about fifty shot after all the others had
desisted, but with as little avail as before, and thus ended this wordy
negociation, and the bloodless battle to which it eventually led.

In 1818, these pirates grew so daring that they made an irruption into
the Indian Ocean, and plundered vessels and towns on the islands and
coasts. A fleet was sent against them, and intercepted them off Ashlola
Island, proceeding to the westward in three divisions; and drove them
back into the gulf. The Eden and Psyche fell in with two trankies, and
these were so closely pursued that they were obliged to drop a small
captured boat they had in tow. The Thetes one day kept in close chase of
seventeen vessels, but they were enabled to get away owing to their
superior sailing. The cruisers met with the Joassamees seventeen times
and were constantly employed in hunting them from place to place.

At length, in 1819, they became such a scourge to commerce that a
formidable expedition under the command of Major General Sir W. Grant
Keir, sailed against them. It arrived before the chief town in December,
and commenced operations. In his despatches Gen. Keir says—

I have the satisfaction to report the town of Ras-el Khyma, after a
resistance of six days, was taken possession of this morning by the
force under my command.

On the 18th, after completing my arrangements at Muscat, the Liverpool
sailed for the rendezvous at Kishme; on the 21st, we fell in with the
fleet of the Persian Gulf and anchored off the island of Larrack on the
24th November.

As it appeared probable that a considerable period would elapse before
the junction of the ships which were detained at Bombay, I conceived it
would prove highly advantageous to avail myself of all the information
that could be procured respecting the strength and resources of the
pirates we had to deal with.

No time was lost in making the necessary preparations for landing, which
was effected the following morning without opposition, at a spot which
had been previously selected for that purpose, about two miles to the
westward of the town. The troops were formed across the isthmus
connecting the peninsula on which the town is situated with the
neighboring country, and the whole of the day was occupied in getting
the tents on shore, to shelter the men from rain, landing engineers,
tools, sand bags, &c., and making arrangements preparatory to commencing
our approaches the next day. On the morning of the 4th, our light troops
were ordered in advance, supported by the pickets, to dislodge the
enemy from a bank within nine hundred yards of the outer fort, which was
expected to afford good cover for the men. The whole of the light
companies of the force under Capt. Backhouse, moved forward, and drove
the Arabs with great gallantry from a date grove, and over the bank
close under the walls of the fort, followed by the pickets under Major
Molesworth, who took post at the sand banks, whilst the European light
troops were skirmishing in front. The enemy kept up a sharp fire of
musketry and cannon; during these movements, Major Molesworth, a gallant
officer was here killed. The troops kept their position during the day,
and in the night effected a lodgment within three hundred yards of the
southernmost tower, and erected a battery of four guns, together with a
mortar battery.

The weather having become rather unfavorable for the disembarkation of
the stores required for the siege, but this important object being
effected on the morning of the 6th, we were enabled to open three
eighteen pounders on the fort, a couple of howitzers, and six pounders
were also placed in the battery on the right, which played on the
defences of the towers and nearly silenced the enemy's fire, who, during
the whole of our progress exhibited a considerable degree of resolution
in withstanding, and ingenuity in counteracting our attacks, sallied out
at 8 o'clock this evening along the whole front of our entrenchments,
crept close up to the mortar battery without being perceived, and
entered it over the parapet, after spearing the advance sentries. The
party which occupied it were obliged to retire, but being immediately
reinforced charged the assailants, who were driven out of the battery
with great loss. The enemy repeated his attacks towards morning but was
vigorously repulsed. During the seventh every exertion was made to land
and bring up the remaining guns and mortars, which was accomplished
during the night. They were immediately placed in the battery, together
with two twenty-four pounders which were landed from the Liverpool, and
in the morning the whole of the ordnance opened on the fort and fired
with scarcely any intermission till sunset, when the breach on the
curtain was reported nearly practicable and the towers almost untenable.
Immediate arrangements were made for the assault, and the troops ordered
to move down to the entrenchments by daylight the next morning. The
party moved forward about 8 o'clock, and entered the fort through the
breaches without firing a shot, and it soon appeared the enemy had
evacuated the place. The town was taken possession of and found almost
entirely deserted, only eighteen or twenty men, and a few women
remaining in their houses.

The expedition next proceeded against Rumps, a piratical town, eight
miles north of Ras-el-Khyma, but the inhabitants abandoned the town and
took refuge in the hill fort of Zyah, which is situated at the head of a
navigable creek nearly two miles from the sea coast. This place was the
residence of Hussein Bin Alley, a sheikh of considerable importance
among the Joassamee tribes, and a person who from his talents and
lawless habits, as well as from the strength and advantageous situation
of the fort, was likely to attempt the revival of the piratical system
upon the first occasion. It became a desirable object to reduce the
power of this chieftain.

On the 18th December, the troops embarked at Ras-el-Khyma, at day break
in the boats of the fleet under command of Major Warren, with the 65th
regiment and the flank companies of the first and second regiment, and
at noon arrived within four miles of their destination. This operation
was attended with considerable difficulty and risk, owing to the heavy
surf that beat on the shore; and which was the occasion of some loss of
ammunition, and of a few boats being upset and stove in.

At half past three P.M., having refreshed the men, (says Major Warren)
we commenced our march, and fording the creek or back water, took up our
position at sunset, to the northeastward of the fort, the enemy firing
at us as we passed, notwithstanding that our messenger, whom we had
previously sent in to summon the Sheikh, was still in the place; and I
lost no time in pushing our riflemen and pickets as far forward as I
could without exposing them too much to the firing of the enemy, whom I
found strongly posted under secure cover in the date tree groves in
front of the town. Captain Cocke, with the light company of his
battalion, was at the same time sent to the westward, to cut off the
retreat of the enemy on that side.