A vigorous fire was directed against one of the strong points of the rebels as though the British were about to assault it. The fire was maintained until a practicable breach had been made and every thing was ready for the assault. Then at midnight on the 22d the English silently retired in the opposite direction, carrying away the entire garrison and all the valuable stores from the Residency. So completely were the rebels deceived that they kept up their fire on the Residency until daylight. General Havelock died of dysentery and exhaustion on the third day of the retreat from Lucknow.
When Delhi fell the government considered the rebellion broken, but it very soon learned its mistake. The relief of the garrison of Lucknow was simply a saving of life; the city was in the hands of the rebels, and nearly the whole of the province of Oude was controlled by then. While Sir Colin Campbell was retiring from Lucknow with the relieved garrison, he was called to disperse the "Gwalior Contingent" that had rebelled and was advancing in the direction of Cawnpore, near which place it had already defeated General Windham, who commanded the garrison there and marched out to meet them.
During December Cawnpore was attacked by a well-appointed army of rebels 25,000 strong, which was repulsed with heavy loss. To defeat it, Sir Colin was obliged to draw from near Lucknow a portion of the force with which he was preparing to besiege the place; the government had determined that the rebels in Oude must be crushed at all hazards, and were hurrying men and munitions to Sir Colin as fast as possible.
At the end of February, 1858, the total strength at Sir Colin Campbell's disposal for the siege of Lucknow amounted to 20,000 men, with 180 pieces of artillery. He had made a thoroughly scientific plan for the capture of Lucknow, and one which would spare as much as possible the blood and lives of his men. The city of
