Battle of Nalapani The Battle of Nalapani was the first battle of the Anglo - Nepalese War of 1814 – 1816 , fought between the forces of the British East India Company and Nepal , then ruled by the House of Gorkha . The battle took place around the Nalapani fort , near Dehradun , which was placed under siege by the British between 31 October and 30 November 1814 . The fort ' s garrison was commanded by Captain Balbhadra Kunwar , while Major - General Rollo Gillespie , who had previously fought at the Battle of Java , was in charge of the attacking British troops . The failure to obey the field orders by his men led Gillespie to be killed on the very first day of the siege while rallying his men . Despite considerable odds , both in terms of numbers and firepower , Balbhadra and his 600 - strong garrison successfully held out against more than 3 , 000 British troops for over a month . After two costly and unsuccessful attempts to seize the fort by direct attack , the British changed their approach and sought to force the garrison to surrender by cutting off the fort ' s external water supply . Having suffered three days of thirst , on the last day of the siege , Balbhadra , refusing to surrender , led the 70 surviving members of the garrison in a charge against the besieging force . Fighting their way out of the fort , the survivors escaped into the nearby hills . Considering the time , effort , and resources spent to capture the small fort , it was a Pyrrhic victory for the British . A number of later engagements , including the one at Jaithak , unfolded in a similar way , but more than any other battle of the war , the fighting around Nalapani established the Gorkhalis ' reputation as warriors . As a result , they were later recruited by the British to serve in their army . Background . Situation . In 1814 under the new and ambitious Governor - General Francis Edward Rawdon - Hastings , the Earl of Moira , the long - standing diplomatic disputes between British India and the Kingdom of Nepal , caused by expansionist policies of both parties , descended into open hostility . The British East India Company sought to invade Nepal not just to secure the border and to force the Nepali government to open trading routes to Tibet , but also for what Hastings saw as a geo - political necessity to secure the foothold of the Company in the Indian sub - continent . The initial British campaign plan was to attack on two fronts across a frontier stretching more than 1 , 500 km ( 930 miles ) , from the Sutlej river in the west to the Koshi river in the east . On the eastern front , Major - Generals Bennet Marley and John Sullivan Wood led their respective columns across the Tarai towards the heart of the Kathmandu Valley ; at the same time Major - General Rollo Gillespie and Colonel David Ochterlony led the columns on the western front . These two western columns faced the Gorkha army under the command of Amar Singh Thapa . Around the beginning of October 1814 , the British troops began to move towards their depots and the army was soon after formed into four divisions : one at Benares , one at Meerut , one at Dinapur , and one at Ludhiana . The division at Meerut was formed under Gillespie , and originally consisted of one British infantry regiment , the 53rd , which with artillery and a few dismounted dragoons , made up about 1 , 000 Europeans . In addition to this , there were about 2 , 500 native infantrymen ; this made up a total force of 3 , 513 men . Once assembled , it marched directly to Dehra Dun , which was the principal town in the Dun Valley . After having captured or destroyed the forts in the valley , the plan called for Gillespie to either move eastwards to expel Amar Singh Thapa ' s troops from Srinagar , or westwards to take Nahan , the largest town in the Sirmaur district , where Amar Singh ' s son , Ranjore Singh Thapa , controlled the government . Once completed , Gillespie was to sweep on towards the Sutlej in order to isolate Amar Singh , and force him to negotiate . Of the four British divisions mentioned above , Gillespie ' s was the first to penetrate the enemy ' s frontier . The Nepalese had anticipated that Dehra Dun would be the first place of assault , and had tasked Captain Balbhadra Kunwar with the fortification of the place . When Balbhadra Kunwar , commander of the Nepalese defence army at Dehradun , heard of the approach of the British Army and its size , he realised that it would be impossible to defend the city . He withdrew from Dehradun and moved his force of about 600 , including dependents , to a hill north - east of the city . He subsequently took up a position in the small fort of Nalapani , Khalanga . His force was ethnically diverse , consisting of Magar soldiers belonging to the Purano Gorakh Battalion and soldiers that had been recruited from Garhwal and nearby areas . On 22 October , well before the declaration of war , Gillespie seized the Keree Pass leading into the Dun Valley . He then proceeded to Dehra unchallenged . A letter was sent by the British to Balbhadra , summoning him to surrender the fort . Upon receiving the note , Balbhadra tore it up . The letter having been delivered to him at midnight , he observed that " it was not customary to receive or answer letters at such unseasonable hours " . Nevertheless , he responded by sending his " salaam " to the English " sirdar " , assuring him that he would soon visit him in his camp . Terrain and defences . The Nalapani fort was situated on a high hill that was covered in dense jungle . The approach to the fort was very steep in most directions and the top of the hill , which formed a tabletop feature , was about in length . Its highest point was to the south , where the town of Kalanga was located . The fort ' s construction was of an irregular shape , having been built to conform with the shape of the ground upon which it was situated . At the time the British entered the Dun Valley , the fortification was still incomplete and its walls had not been finished . Upon their arrival , the British found the Nepalese defenders working to improve the fort ' s defences and raising the height of the walls . By the time the first attack took place , the walls of the fort still had not been finished , although they had been raised somewhat . Nevertheless , as a result of the hasty construction work , it would be difficult , if not impossible , for the attackers to reach the top without ladders , even at the lowest part . Every point where the fort was approachable , or thought weak by its defenders , was bolstered by stockade s made out of stones and stakes that had been stuck into the ground , and which were covered by cannons that were placed where they could be most effective . A wicket gate that flanked a large part of the wall , was left open but cross - barred , so as to make it difficult for attacking soldiers to enter . A cannon was placed at the wicket gate so as to enfilade the approach to the gate with showers of grapeshot . Battle . First British attack . The British reconnoitered the place and plans were immediately made for the assault : parties were employed in preparing fascine s and gabion s for the erection of batteries ; two 12 - pounders , four 5 . 5 - inch howitzer s , and four six - pounders were carried up the hill on elephants . The table - land was taken possession of without any resistance on the part of the Nepalese ; and the batteries for the previously mentioned guns were ready to open on the fort on the morning of 31 October , at a distance of . The first British attack on Nalapani took place on 31 October , a day before the official declaration of war . Gillespie ' s plan was to storm the fort from four sides . The storming party was formed into four columns , and a reserve : the first , under Colonel Carpenter , consisted of 611 men ; the second , under Captain Fast , was 363 strong ; the third , under Major Kelly , was made up of 541 men ; the fourth , under Captain Campbell , of 283 men ; and the reserve , under Major Ludlow , possessed 939 men . It was intended for these columns to ascend , at a given signal ( a specific manner of firing of guns ) , from different points , and thus attack the Nepalese from different sides . It was purposed to divide the attention of the Nepalese from focusing on any one point , allowing the British to gain an upper hand . However , the execution was not equal to expectation . Only two columns under Carpenter and Ludlow managed to respond to Gillespie ' s signal to assault , which was given some hours earlier than was intended ; and which , probably from being unexpected , was not heeded by either Kelly , Campbell , or Fast . Under the cover of fire , pioneers twice swarmed up to the walls , only to be cut down by the enfilade fire of Bal Bhadra ' s cannon along a great part of the wall . A heavy fire was maintained from the walls by the garrison , and showers of arrows and of stones were discharged at the assailants . The women were also seen throwing the missiles , and undauntedly exposing themselves to enemy fire . Gillespie ' s men fell back . Seeing this , Gillespie , who until this time had stayed with the artillery battery , moved forward to personally rally his men . With three fresh companies of the 53rd Regiment , he reached a spot within of the wicket , where , " as he was cheering the men , waving his hat in one hand , and his sword in the other , " a Nepalese marksman shot him " through the heart , and he fell dead on the spot . " The death of the General forced the invaders to retreat . The total British casualties for the day was 32 dead and 228 wounded , some of whom subsequently died . Second British attack . Not having expected such a determined resistance from the Nepalese , Colonel Sebright Mawbey , who was next in command of the British troops at Nalapani , retired to Dehra until 24 November so that the heavy guns could arrive from Delhi . After the arrival of the reinforcements , the fighting resumed on 25 November and for three days the fort was bombarded until , by the noon of 27 November , a large section of northern wall finally gave away . The British forces , seeing their opportunity , twice tried to charge into the breach that same day , but were repelled and pinned to an exposed position just outside the wall . An attempt was then made to fire one of the light guns into the breach to provide obscuration with gun smoke to cover a further attack , but that too proved unsuccessful . The day ended with the British retreating after spending two hours pinned outside the wall , exposed to tremendous fire from the garrison , and having suffered significant losses . British casualties for the day amounted to 37 dead and over 443 wounded . Nepalese withdrawal . After these two failed attempts to capture the fort , the British changed their tactics . On 28 November , instead of launching another infantry assault , the fort was encircled from all sides and placed under siege . This prevented further reinforcement of Nepalese troops into the fort . Mawbey then instructed his , by now strongly reinforced , gunners to fire into the fort . He also sent scouts to discover and cut off the fort ' s external water source . To the dismay of the garrison , some of the shells that entered the fort smashed about a hundred earthen vessels kept in a portico stocked with water . The eastern and the northern walls of the fort were razed to the ground . The continuous bombardment caused three of the four cannons installed on the battlements of the fort to fall outside the fort , while one fell inside . The other cannons that the Nepalese possessed had been rendered unusable either by misfiring during previous attacks , or because they had been buried under large stones . The garrison was left without any cannons ; and the unilateral bombardment by the British was piling up Nepali casualties . Despite their stubborn resistance with gunfire and stones , the few people that remained in the fort became desperate and could not hold on anymore . That night , despite threats to their person and property , desertion became rampant . The next day , 29 November , the walls of the fort had all been demolished and the garrison was exposed , leading to further casualties amongst the Nepali troops . There was also no water to drink . Seeing the disheartened state of men , the Captain and other officers asked them to sign a pledge to fight to the last . Eighty - four soldiers signed . However , that same night the Mleccha Kalanala Company , which had arrived as reinforcements and which was stationed at a portico some distance towards the east of Nalapani , secretly abandoned their post , taking with them their arms and colours . Seeing this , some of the men who had signed the pledge also followed suit . The 50 or 60 men that remained , overcome by the hopelessness of the situation , felt that instead of confronting certain death by remaining in the fort , it was better to escape to the hills and hold their position there . Perhaps unable to convince their commanders with words , the escaping men caught hold of their Captain and other officers by their arms , and dragged them away from the fort . Learning of this new movement , the British renewed their fire ; but the Nepalese managed to cut through and make a successful escape . Thus after days of thirst and continuous bombardment , the Nepalese were forced to evacuate the fort on 30 November . Instead of surrendering , though , Bal Bhadra and about 70 of his surviving men were able to cut their way through the besieging force and escape into the hills . When the British troops entered the fort , it was found , as Prinsep writes , in a " shocking state , full of the remains of men and women killed by the shot shells of our batteries ; a number of wounded were likewise lying about , and the stench was intolerable . " Upwards of 90 dead bodies were found and cremated , while the wounded were sent to British hospitals ; the rest of the fort was then razed to the ground . Aftermath . Conduct during battle . As testified by the British accounts given earlier , the Nepalese exhibited fair conduct towards their enemies . This endeared them to the British , who were willing to reciprocate by giving medical aid to the wounded and captured Nepalese . The confidence the Nepalese exhibited in the British officers was significant : they not only accepted , but also solicited surgical aid , even while continuing to fight . This gave rise , on one occasion , to a scene , which was recounted by the Scottish traveler James Baillie Fraser : While the batteries were playing , a man was perceived on the breach , advancing and waving his hand . The guns ceased firing for a while , and the man came into the batteries : he proved to be a Ghoorkha , whose lower jaw had been shattered by a cannon shot , and who came thus frankly to solicit assistance from his enemy . < br > < br > It is unnecessary to add , that it was instantly afforded . He recovered ; and , when discharged from the hospital , signified his desired to return to his corps to combat us again : exhibiting thus , through the whole , a strong sense of the value of generosity and courtesy in warfare , and also of his duty to his country , – separating completely in his own mind private and national feelings from each other , – and his frank confidence in the individuals of our nation , from the duty he owed his own , to fight against us collectively . Legacy . This battle , more than any other , established the warrior reputation of the Gorkhalis , and won the admiration from their enemy . Balbhadra and his 600 had held against the might of the British and native troops for a month . General Gillespie had been killed . Even with only 70 remaining survivors after his water source had been cut off , Balbhadra refused to surrender , and instead charged out and successfully hacked his way through the siege . It set the tone for the rest of the campaign . Fraser writes in glowing terms : The determined resolution of the small party which held this small post for more than a month , against so comparatively large a force , must surely wring admiration from every voice , especially when the horrors of the latter portion of this time are considered ; the dismal spectacle of their slaughtered comrades , the sufferings of their women and children thus immured with themselves , and the hopelessness of relief , which destroyed any other motive for their obstinate defence they made , than that resulting from a high sense of duty , supported by unsubdued courage . This , and a generous spirit of courtesy towards their enemy , certainly marked the character of the garrison of Kalunga , during the period of its siege . < br > < br > Whatever the nature of the Ghoorkhas may have been found in other quarters , there was here no cruelty to wounded or to prisoners ; no poisoned arrows were used ; no wells or waters were poisoned ; no rancorous spirit of revenge seemed to animate them : they fought us in fair conflict , like men ; and , in intervals of actual combat , showed us a liberal courtesy worthy of a more enlightened people . < br > < br > So far from insulting the bodies of the dead and wounded , they permitted them to lie untouched , till carried away ; and none were stripped , as is too universally the case . The battle also had political repercussions . The confidence of the British army was shaken . It showed the vulnerabilities of the British forces , and encouraged the native Indian states – in particular the old Maratha Confederacy in central India – to launch further resistance against British imperialism in the hope that they could still be defeated . In the years following the battle , the British constructed two small obelisks that still stand in Nalapani to this day . One was made in honour of Gillespie , while another , in the highest traditions of the British Army , was dedicated with the inscription " Our brave adversary Bul Buddur and his gallant men " . In Nepal , this battle has taken a legendary status and has become an important part of the national narrative , while Balbhadra himself has become a national hero . The fighting spirit displayed by the Nepalese in this and other following battles of Anglo - Nepalese War ultimately paved the way for the Gurkha recruitment in the British Army . " Nalapanima " . The battle provides the setting to a Nepali musical drama written by Bal Krishna Sama and composed by Shiva Shankar called " Nalapanima " . In the drama , the patriotism of a Nepalese soldier is depicted when , after being wounded , the soldier seeks help from the British camp . Later he is grateful for the humanitarian assistance provided by the British but refuses an offer to defect to their army . References . < br >