Pack animal trunk, 2nd Afghan War, 1879 circa (wood and leather)

Pack animal trunk, 1879 circa. This pack animal trunk, which is made of wood and covered in leather, belonged to the 67th (the South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. Some of the 67th marched with Major-General Frederick Roberts from Kabul to Kandahar. The Controller General of Supply and Transport for the march observed: ‘The roads, frequently only narrow pathways, traversed a steep, ragged and barren country, and wound through defiles and over lofty mountain passes of a most formidable description. The only transport suitable, or even workable, was that comprised of pack-animals’. Despite the difficult terrain and the high temperatures Roberts’ men covered 280 miles (400km) in 20 days and hardly lost a man. On 1 September 1880 they defeated Ayub Khan outside Kandahar and relieved the besieged garrison.