The Defence of the Magazine at Delhi
The Defence of the Magazine at Delhi was an action during the Indian Mutiny on 11 May 1857.
The Defence
The Indian mutiny began in the Garrison town of Meerut in early May 1857, and the rampaging mutineers reached Delhi on the morning of 10 May, intent on capturing the great magazine and the vast amount of warlike stores. On 11 May Deputy Assistant Commissary John Buckley, Lieutenants Forrest, Willoughby and Raynor, Conductors Shaw and Scully, plus 3 others of the Bengal Ordnance Department defended the Magazine for more than five hours against thousands of rebels. After the mutineers had stormed the Palace, the gates of the Magazine were closed and barricaded. Inside the gates were placed 6 pounder Cannon, double charged with grape. For the further defence of the Gate and the Magazine, there was a 24 pounder Howitzer, which could be aimed at any part of the Magazine, which was operated by Buckley. The native Garrison was then armed, but it was clear that they too were on the verge of mutiny as the men refused to obey any orders issued by Europeans.The 9 Europeans decided to defend the Magazine for as long as possible in the hope that relief would come from Meerut, then, if all was lost, to blow up the Magazine and themselves, rather than allow the rebels to seize an Army’s worth of munitions. A train of gunpowder was laid by Buckley and Scully, ready to be fired on a pre—arranged signal, which was that of Buckley raising his hat from his head, on the order given by Willoughby. The gunpowder was to be fired by Scully, but not until the last round from the howitzer had been fired. When the mutineers placed scaling ladders against the wall the whole of the native establishment deserted by climbing up the sloped roofs on the inside of the Magazine and descending the ladders to the outside, after which the enemy appeared in great numbers on the top of the walls. The defenders kept up an incessant fire of grape on them, but it was clear that all was lost.
Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Buckley and his comrades took the decision to blow up the arsenal, and consequently themselves, to save the vast quantities of arms and ammunition from falling into rebel hands. On being directed by the severely wounded Lt Willoughby, Conductor Buckley raised his hat as the signal and Conductor Scully took a lighted fuse into the Magazine causing it to ignite. The resulting explosion was the largest ever known and was heard 40 miles away in Meerut. The Magazine simply disintegrated and around a thousand mutineers were killed in the devastating blast.