The Chin-Lushai Expedition of 1889–90 was a British punitive expedition in Burma and India against the tribes of the Chin Hills and Lushai Hills.
Background Lushai Following the Lushai Expedition of 1871–72, the border regions of Burma and India remained relatively peaceful with few raids occurring.
Murder of Captain Stewart Lieutenant J.F Stewart of the 1st Battalion, Leinster Regiment accompanied by J.Mc.D Baird of the 2nd Battalion, Derbyshire Regiment was making a survey to the south-east of Rangamati for the building of a new road to be constructed. Stewart was to work southwards from Rangamati where Baird from Demagiri would meet up with him.
Stewart was accompanied by two men of his own regiment, Lance-Corporal McCormik and Private Owens along with a corporal and ten Gurkha sepoys of the border police. He departed from Rangamati on 16 January. On 18 January, a friendly chief named Saipuialal warned C.S Murray, who relayed to Stewart of movements of war parties in the area. Stewart did not heed the warning due to several 'wolf' cries of war parties around Demagiri before. On the 2nd of February he received news while encamped of a second impending raid but did not regard it seriously; he even declined to post a sentry. Furthermore, five of his sepoys had been sent to bring elephants, letters and logistics.
In the early morning, most of the sepoys were awake with two asleep. Stewart got ready and dressed before a volley was shot. The two sleeping corporals were stabbed in their sleep. The shot which was fired hit a sepoy in the thigh breaking his bone. Two more shots followed in which one wounded an escort on the arm. Stewart's servants and coolies ran away along with one sepoy. Stewart was made to fight with two European soldiers, Commander Naick Kali Sing and Sepoy Gaja Ram. The two European soldiers failed to defend due to the ammunition of their rifles being taken with the escaping coolies. The party was outnumbered as there were an estimated 200-300 Lushais surrounding the encampment. Hausata father-in-law, Jahoota had also provided men in the raid.
Stewart fired shots at the attackers after emerging from the hut with his revolver and breech-loading gun. The Lushais were said to have numbered 300 and armed with a mix of muskets, spears and daos. The commander and sepoy aided him in returning shots to the attackers. Stewart retired to the hillside and continued shooting. However, Stewart was wounded in the chest by a bullet and died instantly. The two sepoys escaped after Stewart's death. The Lushais took the guns of the camp as a result. The Commissioner to Chittagong placed a reward of Rs. 200 to find Stewart's body, which a party of hillmen found and reported on the 25th of February. Stewart was found headless similar to other victims of the attack. Stewart's body which fell off the edge of the ravine had been tightly bound in bamboo and difficult to release from.
An investigation revealed that the motive was not an anti-British one, but a Lushai custom. The chief responsible, Hausata had been obligated by his father-in-law Zahuata to bring him heads to prove himself as a son-in-law after a marital dispute. It was deduced that the war party had come upon Stewart's camp by chance, which was unguarded.
Murder of Pakuma Chieftainess Pakuma Rani was a British ally and chieftainess on the border near the Chittagong Hill Tracts. Within 10 days of the murder of Captain Stewart, the Lushais made a raid on Pakuma's settlement. They took away fifteen captives and thirteen heads of the slain inhabitants. In the course of the raid, Pakuma was also killed by the raiders. Pakuma had actually been under the protection of the British. She had moved her settlement of 150 households within the jurisdiction of British territory out of fear of Sailo chiefs wishing to raid.
Lieutenant Widdicombe urged for punishment of this raid. The Government of Bengal believed that Khalkam was responsible for the raid on Pakuma Rani. An enquiry made by Rai Bahadur Haricharan Sharma led to the conclusion that Khalkam was not responsible. The sons of the Eastern Lushai chief Vûta were responsible, such as Nikama, Lungliana and possibly Kairûma. The government decided that, instead of a simple punitive expedition, the new circumstances of the annexation of Upper Burma in 1886 exposed that the Lushai Hills and Chin Hills on all sides must be considered. Hence an objective for annexation and pacification of the chiefdoms was decided.
Chengri Valley raid In January 1888, the Government of Bengal received reports of a raid on Chengri Valley. The raid saw 24 villages consisting of 545 houses burnt down. The raid killed 101 inhabitants and captured 91 individuals in total. Most of the captives consisted of children and mothers who were killed as they were unable to walk with their captors. The British attributed the raid to Lianphunga and Zahrâwka, two sons of Suakpuilala. John Edgar, Bengal's chief secretary, outlined that the Shendus (Southern Mizos referring to Lai and Mara) needed to be reduced to submission.
Chin Hills Following the Third Anglo-Burmese War, in 1886 the possessions of the King of Burma were transferred to the British. This included the tributes from the Kale, Kabaw and Yay valleys which were semi-independent. The Shan State of Kale was in a civil war between Maung Yit and his nephew Maung Pa Gyi. The British deposed Maung Yit and appointed Maung Pa Gyi in January 1887. Knowing the Chin were raiding the Shans, the British sent Captain Raikes, the Deputy Commissioner of Upper Chindwin, to open negotiations with the Chins.
Captain Raike met with Sizang representatives and explained the need for cessation of raids. Captain Raikes warned of no future raids and allowed for the slaves from recent raids to be retained as it had occurred before British authority took over the Shan state of Kale. The Chins were assured of friendly intentions and to cease raids. During negotiations with Haka and Zokhua tensions began to boil. A messenger of Captain Eyre sent Shwe Hlaing, an illegitimate chief's son, to open negotiations. He proclaimed that with the British he would be installed as Chief of Zokhua. This led to arrests of three messenger with two dying and Hlaing escaping. The Haka then made two raids killing eight and capturing 28 into slavery. The Sizang attacked a party of Shan at Kale killing one and capturing four. The Tlaisun made two serious raids in Kale in early 1888. This was followed by another in October 1888. The Sizang made five raids and the Kamhau made one raid. The CHins captured 122 Shans, killed 12 and wounded 14 in a span of 12 days.
The matter escalated when in October 1887, a Burmese pretender, Shwe Gyo Byu Mintha, raised a rebellion against the British in the Chindwin, Mingyan and Pagan districts. British officers Captain Beville and Major Kennedy were killed. Mintha fled into the Chin Hills and made asylum under a Tlaisun chief. The British sent an ultimatum to give up Mintha and sent similar orders to the Sizang to free their captives. The Chins refused all orders and requests.
Order of Battle
+ Burma Field Force Column Regiment Number of Men Northern Column Col. Charles McD. Skene DSO 1st Battalion, Cheshire Regiment 300 42nd Gurkha Light Infantry 477 5th Company, Queen's Own Madras Sappers and Miners 95 10th Bengal Infantry 460 38th Bengal Infantry 290 Southern Column Gen. William P. Symons 1st Battalion, King's Own Scottish Borderers 500 1st Bengal Mountain Artillery 84 6th Company, Queen's Own Madras Sappers and Miners 151 2nd Battalion, 4th Gurkhas 410 2nd Madras Native Infantry 630
+ Chittagong Field Force Column Regiment Number of Men Chittagong Column Col. V.W. Tregear 2nd Battalion, 2nd Gurkhas 300 3rd Bengal Infantry 250 Detachment, 9th Bengal Infantry 28th Bombay Pioneers 102 2nd Company, Bengal Sappers and Miners 80 Detachment, Chittagong Frontier Police 50
Lushai Campaign The Chin-Lushai Expedition consisted of two expeditions. The expedition of 1889 focussed on the prevention of Lushai raids and punishing Hausata's killing of Lt Stewart. The Chin-Lushai Expedition of 1889-90 was focused on the punishment of chiefs, releasing the captives taken in 1883 of a Lushai village and recovering weapons from the tribes and specifically focussed on freeing captives from the Chengri Valley raid.
Hausata's Punitive Expedition General Treager assembled a column known as the "Lushai Expeditionary Force," in Demagiri. Three objectives were outlined for the Lushai column. To construct a road in the direction of Shendu country. To punish Hausata and Zahuata for the murder of Lieutenant Stewart. To establish an advanced post to be garrisoned during the season. The original order didn't sanction a punitive expedition on Hausata but this was modified by telegram on 12 March. The troops were assisted by 2,500 Chakma and Bengali coolies. They had been hired for the construction of a road from Demagiri to Lungleh. The Chakma coolies were originally intended to build encampments and huts for the sepoys until this task was delegated to the column directly. The construction of the road began on 16 January and was completed to Fort Lungleh on 11 March 1889. The path allowed for elephants to cross the terrain and for logistics to arrive smoothly. C.S Murray was allied with a local Lushai chief known as Saipuialal who supplied the column and auxiliaries with guides to his elder brother Vandula's village. The officers met with Vandula who supplied information about Shendu preparations in defending themselves which turned out to be false.
Another British ally was a friendly chieftess known as Darbilhi. Darbilhi supplied guides to nearby villages for C.S Murray to gather intelligence on Hausata. During these investigations reports surfaced that Hausata had already died and had been buried with Stewart's gun. Furthermore, the heads taken during the attack on Stewart and his party had been sent to a chief named Paona for safekeeping. Paona was one of the five chiefs implicated in the raid alongside Hausata, his two sons and Zahuata. Two chiefs known as Dahuta and Zakapa sent delegates in an offer for submission during the column's activities. The delegates were informed that Colonel General Tregear would make the terms of peace. The reasoning for the submission of the two chiefs were described as the spreading of news of the Chin column's activities in destroying the Chin tribes.
The column was divided into two parties who encamped around Hausata's village. The original plan for a nighttime ambush was aborted on account of Darbilhi's guides being unable to navigate the terrain in the dark. The force arrived at Hausata's village on the 20th. The Lushais in Hausata's village fired a signalling shot to burn down the houses. The force, in return, fired a few volleys and shots to halt the burning of the settlement. The village was deserted on arrival, with only two undefended stockades smeared with the blood of a dog to deter the advance. The guides identified the largest building as the chief's house and located Hausata's grave. Hausata was found dressed in robes and a turban. His grave was filled with his weapons, a power flask and some food for his journey in Pialrâl. Underneath Hausata, the column located Stewart's double-barreled gun. The column left his village and burned down Zahuata's village on its way to Lungleh.