British Indian Army | |
---|---|
Allegiance | British Empire |
Type | Army |
Size | 2.5 million men (1945) |
Engagements | Second Afghan War Third Afghan War Second Burmese War Third Burmese War Second Opium War 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War 1868 Expedition to Abyssinia First Mohmand Campaign Boxer Rebellion Tirah Campaign British expedition to Tibet Sudan Campaign World War I Waziristan campaign 1919–1920 Waziristan campaign 1936–1939 World War II North West Frontier |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener William Slim, 1st Viscount Slim Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell Claude Auchinleck |
The Commander-in-Chief of India, Lord Kitchener carried out a reform of the British Indian Army in 1903. These reforms were intended to improve the Army, which had been formed from the separate Bengal, Bombay and Madras presidency armies in 1895 to be replaced by the Bengal, Bombay, Madras and Punjab commands. The localisation of regiments was abolished, and in future every regiment was to have the opportunity of experiencing service on the Frontier. A new method of numbering and designating regiments was introduced. The renumbering went as follows:
By 1903, the total strength of the Indian Army was 240,000 men. [2] They served in 39 cavalry regiments, 135 infantry battalions (including 17 Gurkha), [2] a joint cavalry-infantry unit the Corps of Guides, three sapper regiments and 12 mountain artillery batteries. [3] In addition to the regular Indian Army, the armies of the Princely states, and regiments of the Auxiliary force (European volunteers) could also be called on to assist in an emergency. [3] The Princely states had 22,613 men in 20 cavalry regiments and 14 infantry battalions. [4] The Auxiliary force could field another 40,000 men in 11 regiments of horse and 42 volunteer infantry battalions. [2] Also available were the Frontier Militia and the Military Police, which could field 34,000 men between them. [2]
(mostly former Bengal Regiments)
The Third Anglo-Afghan War began on 6 May 1919 when the Emirate of Afghanistan invaded British India and ended with an armistice on 8 August 1919. The Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919 resulted in the Afghans gaining control of foreign affairs from Britain and the British recognizing the Durand Line as the border between Afghanistan and British India.
The North-West Frontier was a region of the British Indian Empire. It remains the western frontier of present-day Pakistan, extending from the Pamir Knot in the north to the Koh-i-Malik Siah in the west, and separating the modern Pakistani frontier regions of North-West Frontier Province, Federally Administered Tribal Areas and Balochistan from neighbouring Afghanistan in the west. The borderline between is officially known as the Durand Line and divides Pashtun inhabitants of these provinces from Pashtuns in eastern Afghanistan.
5th Gorkha Rifles, also abbreviated as 5 GR(FF) is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army comprising Gurkha soldiers of Nepalese origin. It was formed in 1858 as part of the British Indian Army. The regiment's battalions served in the First World War (Mesopotamia) and Second World War.
The Indian Army, also called the British Indian Army, was involved in World War I as part of the British Empire. Over one million Indian troops served overseas, of whom 62,000 died and another 67,000 were wounded. In total at least 74,187 Indian soldiers died during the war.
The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire.
The 15th Indian Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the First World War. It served in the Mesopotamian Campaign on the Euphrates Front throughout its existence. It did not serve in the Second World War, but was reformed at Dehradun in 1964 as part of the post-independence Indian Army.
The 7th (Meerut) Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army and before 1895, the Bengal Army, that saw active service during World War I.
The 3rd (Lahore) Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army and before 1895, the Bengal Army, first organised in 1852. It saw service during World War I as part of the Indian Corps in France before being moved to the Middle East where it fought against troops of the Ottoman Empire.
The 1st (Peshawar) Division was a Regular Division of the British Indian Army formed as a result of the Kitchener reforms of the Indian Army in 1903. During World War I, the Division remained in India for local defense, but was mobilized for action on the North West Frontier on several occasions.
The 2nd (Rawalpindi) Division was a regular army division of the British Indian Army. It was formed in 1903 after the Kitchener reforms of the Indian Army. During World War I it remained in India for local defence but it was mobilised for action on the North West Frontier on several occasions during the period. The Division was mobilised in 1919 for service during the Third Afghan War.
The 14th Indian Division was formed during World War I, for service in the Mesopotamian Campaign. It was composed of battalions of the Regular British Army, the British Territorial Force and the British Indian Army.
The Peshawar Valley Field Force was a British field force. It was the largest of three military columns created in November 1878 at the start of the Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878-1880), each of which invaded Afghanistan by a different route. The Peshawar force initially consisted of around 16,000 men, a mix of both British and Indian Army regiments, under the command of Lieutenant General Sir Samuel J. Browne.
The 16th Indian Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during the First World War. It was formed in December 1916, during the First World War. It was the only war formed division of the British Indian Army that was not sent overseas, instead it was sent to guard the North West Frontier. The division took over the responsibilities of the 3rd Lahore Divisional Area when it was disbanded in May 1917.
The Rawalpindi Parade 1905 was a parade by the British Indian Army held in Rawalpindi on 8 December 1905 to honour the Prince and Princess of Wales. The troops were under the Command of Horatio Herbert, Viscount Kitchener of Khartoum, G.C.B., O.M., G.C.M.G., Commander-in-Chief India. The Royal party arrived at the parade ground escorted by a Field Officer's escort of 1st Skinner's Horse. They then received a Royal salute and inspected the troops, accompanied by the Commander-in-chief. On conclusion of the inspection, the troops on parade marched past in the following order.
The 1st (Risalpur) Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1906 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It remained in India during the First World War but took an active part in the Third Anglo-Afghan War in 1919.
The 11th Gurkha Rifles was a Gurkha regiment of the British Indian Army. It was formed in Mesopotamia and Palestine in May 1918, saw active service in the First World War and the Third Anglo-Afghan War, and was disbanded in April 1922.
The Force in Egypt was a British Army formation established in August 1914 to administer garrisoning armed forces in Egypt at the beginning of the First World War. The force had the objective of protecting the Suez Canal and was originally commanded by Major General Julian Byng, but he was replaced by General J. Maxwell, who took command on 8 September 1914. Initially, the main threat to the Suez came from Germany and throughout the early months several of the force's elements were sent to Europe to take part in the fighting on the Western Front. On 5 November 1914, Britain and France declared war on the Ottoman Empire, after which the Force in Egypt faced a direct threat from Ottoman forces, which was realised in February 1915 with a raid on the Suez Canal. This threat remained until 1916 when the British forces went on the offensive.
The 151st Sikh Infantry – also designated 151st Punjabi Rifles, see nomenclature (below) – was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was formed in Mesopotamia and Palestine in May 1918, saw active service in the First World War and the Third Anglo-Afghan War, and was disbanded in May 1921.
The Structure of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force over the course of the First World War is shown below.