Beitang as the first city occupied by the coalition forces after landing, the coalition forces attached great importance to it, and the coalition headquarters paid enough attention to the robbery incidents that occurred in the city, after all, there were a large number of reporters accompanying the army, and the British and French commanders did not want the glorious image of their soldiers to be recorded by the other reporter.

Thousands of Nanyang and Indian coolies, most of whom were fierce hooligans and scoundrels, were mainly used to transport supplies, and because of their lax control, they robbed, killed, raped, and committed all kinds of evil in the city, committing atrocious crimes against the Qing people.

In addition, when the British soldiers went out to look for drinking water, they also found "strangled children and cut women to death, heads to the ground and feet to the sky" in the water tanks of some people's homes, presumably because their families wanted them to avoid the horrors of war and cut them off. The British consul, Pashali, estimated that about forty or fifty such women had died. Whether they want to or not, rather than being bullied by thieves, they should be freed by taking poison, hanging themselves, jumping into the river, and dying. Erison wrote indignantly: "It's a nightmare! In front of it, our dreams of poetic conquest and magical adventure were shattered. ”

In addition to the robbery habits, the coolies also smoked opium very strongly. For the sake of their health, they were expected to help, and the British and French officers in charge of management always tried to prohibit them from smoking as much as possible. But the more they are not allowed to smoke, the worse it gets. These coolies are completely controlled by the "magic pill", and once they lose their self-control, they become more difficult to manage. The coalition forces had no choice but to let it go......

Regarding the use of Nanyang and Indian coolies by the British and French, Count Lothur pointed out with annoyance: "The people of North China are very afraid of these coolies, and it is difficult for us to look at them. We can't stop those regrettable scenes. I don't think the gains outweigh the losses of bringing these people into the army......"

In fact. It was not only the coolies who robbed, the entire city of Beitang was sacked by the coalition forces. Some of the British soldiers behaved badly, but not as well as the French, and the Allied command allowed them to do as they pleased. In fact, everyone is dancing with their eyebrows!

The British consul in Shanghai, Xun He, even admitted that if the French soldiers and coolies could be called the champions of robbery, then the British army. The non-commissioned officers of the military police who are responsible for maintaining military discipline are even worse!

Colonel Armand of the French army witnessed the looters on both sides of the coalition army and blamed: "Our soldiers robbed very hard, although the artillery and light infantry basically did not participate. But some also grab a little, and some open the killing ring! And the coolies, even more frantically looting, the Sikh cavalry. It's the same! As for the British. They are notorious for being our masters, and they don't even leave a nail head wherever they go. The soldiers wore robes and hats and walked around. Stop them? So far away from the countryside, why not let them have a party! Besides, they managed to find a pawnshop full of all kinds of items. ”

Colonel Doupan accused the Sikh Punjabi regiment of being a barbaric force. As soon as he arrived, he invaded the house and rushed into the shop. Crazy looting. General Collino also confirmed that "Indian soldiers looted all shops, ransacked homes and raped women". Many women escaped from the Indian soldiers and hid in the French barracks. As soon as the French guns rang out, an Indian soldier fell to the ground wounded. On Chinese soil, the first fire was fought between the British and French forces! The matter was carefully covered up, and the coalition high command exercised restraint and silence.

In Pashali's view, it was difficult to manage affairs well because of the presence of French allies (referring to the occupation of Beitang, but also to the principle of joint "expedition" itself). He believed that as long as the British were working with them, it would certainly be impossible for things to be well organized! Pashali may have also let the hostility of France lead him away.

Sir Elgin agreed with Pashali, and in a letter to his home he anxiously asserted that, in view of the fact that the French had been witnessed, the capture of the Dagu Fort would be followed by a peace agreement. Of the French, he wrote: "I am convinced that they will commit all sorts of atrocities that will make us hated in every city and village we enter." Of course, their behavior also makes it difficult for our troops to enforce strict discipline. ”

As a result, the British and French blamed each other for the atrocities committed by the troops, and the British army was the first to expose the looting of the French army. In fact, neither side of the coalition realized that this was only the beginning of friction, and that two armies of different nationalities working together had inherent shortcomings, which was also a huge hidden danger in addition to the advantages of the coalition forces.

The Anglo-French troops could not bear to stay in Beitang, and it took several days for soldiers, horses, artillery, and quartermasters to land, and the causeway and road were repaired. Henry Lo, a British journalist who accompanied the army, believed that the hectic scene of the creek was "comparable to that of the Liverpool docks". General Collino also pointed out that the British had the best river banks and could easily transport men and supplies to land.

The French engineer captain Bezia also saw it this way, believing that the landing sites left by the British army to the French army were far from the best. "It is clear that the Allies have the largest and best share. Seeing that we lost, they probably didn't feel disappointed. They were reluctant to accept the help of our army, and felt that this help would not be of much benefit to them at this time, but would have a more favorable effect on the future of French maritime trade in China......"

On the other hand, Engineer Captain Bezia pointed out that the lack of unity in the command of the army and navy caused chaos within the French army and brought constant contradictions to the extremely slow landing. The 2,000 officers and soldiers who landed first did not have enough food, and the logistics could not keep up, so the French soldiers had to loot everywhere in Beitang City, which seemed to be the only legitimate reason.

The navy did not send supplies to the troops that had already landed, but simply continued to transport other troops to land, making the situation even more severe. He explained that all the disembarkation matters were completely disorderly and there were no follow-up arrangements. Items were littered everywhere on the river beach with no one to warn them. "Most people are scurrying around, at a loss, and no one is responsible for this inexplicable chaos. The consequences are not difficult to predict, and the lack of food and food for the soldiers is the real suffering...... It can be seen that General Montauban was not superfluous in worrying about the disadvantages of the separation of the command of the French army and sea forces.

The allied forces were going through a painful situation, and the logistics staff officers did not learn from the Taiping Army's deployment and plan for landing in Guangzhou, in their opinion, it was very unsafe to transport a large number of supplies ashore first, while the famous saying of the art of war that the Chinese have always believed in is "soldiers and horses go first before grain and grass are moved!" ”

Beitang is a small town and is now occupied. How can it accommodate more than 18,000 outsiders, not to mention the unprecedented ethnic mix. As Dr. Armand wrote: "The British had auxiliary Indian Sikh cavalry, while the French had North African Arab cavalry." There are also coolies and porters who transport or escort luggage and supplies. Such as black Indians, black Africans, Malays and Nanyang Chinese; There were other mestizos, such as the Manilan Tagalog, Spanish and Malay, most of whom were used as auxiliary sailors by the Indochinese Navy. It's inconceivable that they're speaking different languages and doing the same thing. ”

The confusion of the coalition forces may be explained in another way, that is, there are big problems with language communication, but the coalition high command still makes good use of the rank system. Both sides recognized each other's ranks, and junior soldiers, regardless of race and nationality, were required to obey the orders of higher-ranking officers. It's not perfect, but at least it reduces a lot of unnecessary trouble. It has also brought certain benefits to the coordinated operations of the coalition forces.

More than 4,000 mules and horses were temporarily locked up in the Beitang Fort, where there were firewood and mud houses, and the space was cramped. Save zài strict zhòng fire hazards. Fortunately, a spring rain fell, and the fear was alleviated. However, the whole city has become like a "stinking garbage dump", people walk in mud pits, and the streets and alleys are really impassable. In addition, Yan zhòng was short of water, and the drinking water stored in the vat was quickly used up. So the coalition forces have only one idea, to leave this garbage dump as much as possible! Especially in Lotour's memory. Beitang is "an extremely terrible and unbearable type"!

It's a pity that the more you want to escape, the more slow you become, and you're landing. The French again delayed. The French had only 7 gunboats to transport soldiers ashore, while the British had as many as 30. When the British army had already brought ashore some of its baggage, the French army had only half finished transporting it...... Of course, the British army came to help. After the naval capacity was solved, a new problem arose, and the French army lacked mules and horses to transport.

Although the city was chaotic and crowded, the two commanders of the coalition forces did not delay their military operations, and on the day of the landing, the coalition forces sent a reconnaissance brigade to find out the position of the Qing army on the road leading to the Dagu Fort (about 15 kilometers away from Beitang Town). Although the Qing army in the Beitang area was seized with the help of Neiying, Seng Lingqin still arranged a tight position on the flank of the Dagu Fort, with dense layers of horses, trenches, and walls.

After reconnaissance, Montauban and Grant were surprised, they originally thought that once Beitang broke through, the flank of the Dagukou Fort would be completely exposed, but the results of the reconnaissance were frustrating, the Qing army set up heavy troops and strong positions on the flanks and rear flanks of the Dagukou Fort, which was extremely inconsistent with the information that should have been sent by the Qing Dynasty before. The two commanders of the coalition forces began to realize that the landing of the coalition forces at Beitang Shun lì might be a conspiracy, but now the coalition forces could no longer return to the ship.

Originally, according to the intelligence of the Qing Dynasty, the intention of the coalition forces was to first capture the Dagu Fort after landing in Beitang. These forts, condescendingly commanded the Baihe River and the main road to Tianjin, from which, if necessary, could also go straight to Beijing. Although the individual firepower of the Qing army was very primitive, the large-caliber artillery on the fort could threaten the attacking infantry and cavalry.

The French thought that it would be a disaster for the attack if they could not suppress the fire of the batteries, but the stubborn British suggested that they should first conduct reconnaissance and tentative attacks, at least they would know how many guns on the batteries would threaten them.

After quarrels and compromises, it was decided to send a reconnaissance team, and this joint reconnaissance team was very strong, consisting of more than 1,000 infantry from both sides, under the command of Generals Sutton and Collinow. This is no longer a reconnaissance unit, but a purely light infantry assault unit.

The reconnaissance team began their reconnaissance operation on the seventh day of landing in Beitang, and the loose infantry line marched on a 7-meter-wide embankment that was paved with stone slabs and muddy through swamps and mud ponds, and they soon encountered a Qing army sentry horse team. After a battle between long-range rifled muskets and primitive bows and arrows, the Qing cavalry lost more than 50 knights, and the remaining Qing cavalry retreated to a position with a pheasant wall.

The coalition reconnaissance team then approached the position, and when General Collino commanded the guns, a burst of gunfire suddenly rang out, a smoothbore gun, mounted on a tripod and controlled by three brave men, which could catapult large particles up to 800 meters. The sudden blow wounded 8 British and French scouts each, but fortunately no one was killed.

When General Colino began to order the artillery to return fire, the roar of the artillery behind the Qing army's position in the distance came as promised, and the jumping huge cannonballs smashed hard among the soldiers, and the huge kinetic energy ploughed a bloody path in the crowd.

General Colino suddenly realized something, and he hissed and roared: "Everyone disperse and retreat at once!" The Qing people have already calibrated the range of artillery! They're already targeting us! (To be continued......)