This Day in History: 1911-12-02

Extract from the letters of Major Alec Lindsay, serving with the 1st Battalion on the Abor Expedition: “Early on 2 December 1911 I sent off a strong Advance Party to make good a very steep hill in front of us and the same routine was followed i.e. scouting and making a road for the coolies [The Expedition was supported by five corps each of 600 Naga coolies].  On that hill we came on seven of the best ‘rock shoots’ that I have ever seen but they were deserted and so we had no trouble once we had outflanked them [A ‘rock shoot’ is a place where the Abor tribesmen could roll down large rocks on Expedition troops.  In a previous letter Lindsay wrote ‘the enemy were in a stockade above us and fired off two stone shoots towards us.  I glued myself to the khudside hoping the horrid rocks would miss me.’].  At 14.00hrs we got into Rotung and in front of the GOC’s camp some 600 of the enemy were holding a very strong position on the river bank.  The path ran along the face of a cliff called the Kekyar Monying for about 300 yards. The cliff above was filled with rock shoots and behind the enemy had built a strong stockade.  It  could not be taken frontally.’   The stockade eventually fell on 4th December to a combined force of 1st Battalion 8th Gurkha Rifles and a company of the 1st Battalion 2nd Goorkhas which outflanked the position.  Two 2nd Goorkhas Riflemen were killed.