It was fortunate, in these circumstances, that the divisional commanders had so plain a task before them. On receiving the order, the Second and Light Divisions had at once begun their advance ; but Evans's being delayed by the burning village, and having to pass round both ends of it to the river, Brown's, forming the left of our line, was the first to attack. Passing the low wall of the vineyards which occupied this bank, pushing before it the Russian skirmishers, and losing some men as it went, it made its way, much disordered by the tangling vines, to the stream, whose clear current was in most places shallow, but in others formed pools where the men were in water to their necks. Wading through, they found themselves, at a very few yards from the stream, standing beneath an almost perpendicular bank about six feet high, in which the long slope abruptly ended, and where they were for the moment out of the view of the enemy's battery above them on the hill. A pause was made here, ended by Sir George Brown himself riding up the bank and calling on his regiments to follow. The whole division thereupon gained the slope, and began the attack — not
56 The Light and Second Divisions.
in orderly lines, for, besides insufficiency of space, it was impossible under such a fire as now assailed it to form these, but with such attempts at lines as the men themselves, instinctively seeking their own- companies, succeeded in making, that is to say, a line chiefly of groups and masses. But, whenever they were able to form, our regiments attacked in a two-deep line, according to our custom, and were met by the Russians in deep columns, formed of two or more battalions, so that the front of a British line was of greater extent than that of the double or quadruple force in the enemy's column engaged with it. Three regiments of the Light Division, with one of the Second Division, gallantly led by General Codrington, went straight up the slope, their too dense front torn by the great heavy battery, only three hundred yards in front of them, and firing down a smooth natural glacis. On our right of that battery the 7th regiment had become engaged with a Russian column formed by the left wing of the Kazan regiment, and numbering 1500 men ; while the two left regiments of our Light Division had been halted on the slope near the river, because General Buller, perceiving a formation and advance of infantry and cavalry on his left front, formed a corresponding front to meet it. The regiment of the Second Division (95th) which had joined Codrington was one of four led by Evans himself across the river near the bridge, and which then, bearing considerably to their left, partly prolonged and partly supported the Light Division, while his other two battalions (415! and 49th), under General Adams,
The Russian Heavy Guns withdrawn. 57
passing round the right of the burning village, crossed by a ford below into the hollow space, garnished with knolls, between the Telegraph and Kourgane Hills, where stood part of the Russian left.
The First Division, formed in second line to the Light, embraced much more ground, so that the brigade of Guards extended from near the post-road to quite beyond the rear of Codrington's brigade, while the Highlanders, forming abreast of them, were prolonging the front of the army. After remaining for some time, lying down in line during the advance of the Light Division, the First Division followed it through the vineyards and across the Alma.