Subedar is a rank of junior commissioned officer in the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the Land warfare, land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Arm ...

; a senior non-commissioned officer in the Pakistan Army, and formerly a Viceroy's commissioned officer in the

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which cou ...

History

''Subedar'' or ''subadar'' was the second-highest rank of Indian officer in the military forces of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, ranking below "British Commissioned Officers" and above "Local Non-Commissioned Officers". Indian officers were promoted to this rank on the basis of both lengths of service and individual merit. Under British rule, a

Risaldar Risaldar, meaning the commander of a ''risala'' or ''risalah'' (a body of horse, regardless if troop or regiment) in Persian, is a mid-level rank in cavalry and armoured units of the Indian and Pakistan Army. In other arms, such as the infantry, t ...

was the cavalry equivalent of a Subedar. A Subedar /

was ranked senior to a Jemadar and junior to a Subedar Major / Risaldar Major in an infantry / cavalry regiment of the Indian Army. Both Subedars and Risaldars wore two stars as rank insignia. The rank was introduced in the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sou ...

's presidency armies (the Bengal Army, the Madras Army and the

Bombay Army The Bombay Army was the army of the Bombay Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India. It was established in 1662 and governed by the East India Company until the Government of India Act 1858 transferred all presidencies to the ...

) to make it easier for British officers to communicate with Indian troops. It was thus important for subedars to have some competence in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

. In an order dated November 1755 the structure of an infantry company in the HEIC's newly raised infantry regiments provided for one subedar, four jemadars, 16

NCOs A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...

and 90 sepoys (private soldiers). This was to remain the approximate proportion until the number of British junior officers in a regiment increased later in the 18th century. Until 1866, the rank was the highest an Indian soldier could achieve in the army of

. A subedar's authority was confined to other Indian troops, and he could not command British troops. Promoted from the ranks and usually advanced through seniority based on long service; the typical subedar of this period was a relatively elderly veteran with limited English, whose extensive regimental experience and practical knowledge was not matched by formal education or training. Before the Partition of India, subedars were known as Viceroy's commissioned officers (VCOs). After 1947, this term was changed to junior commissioned officers. It was not until the 1930s that significant numbers of Indian cadets began to be appointed as King's Commissioned Officers (KCOs) from either Sandhurst or the Indian Military Academy at Dehra Dun. Until 1858, subedars wore two epaulettes with small bullion fringes on each shoulder. After 1858, they wore two crossed golden swords, or, in the Gurkha regiments, two crossed golden kukris, on each side of the collar of the tunic or on the right breast of the kurta. After 1900, subedars wore two pips on each shoulder. A red-yellow-red ribbon was introduced under each pip after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, this ribbon was moved to lie between the shoulder title and the rank insignia (two brass stars on both shoulders). During the period of British rule, subedars and other VCOs wore distinctive uniforms that combined features of both British and Indian military dress.

After Independence

After independence, which came in 1947 with the Partition of India, the former Indian Army was divided between

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Indian Army

In the

the rank has been promoted to second senior-most JCO with ribbon band on the shoulder strap two gold stars with a gold-red-gold stripe below. The

Junior Commissioned Officers Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) is a term used for a group of military ranks which is higher than havildar ( non commissioned officer) and lower than lieutenant (commissioned officer). The term is only used by Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Sen ...

of the Indian Army is equivalent to Group-B Gazetted Officers in

Pakistan Army

In the Pakistan Army, the rank has been retained as a senior JCO, but the distinguishing ribbon band on the shoulder strap is now red-green-red.

References

{{reflist

External links

www.Bharat-Rakshak.com/Army/Ranks.html
- Illustration of various military insignias including three subedar insignia designs. Hindi words and phrases Military ranks of British India Military ranks of Pakistan Military ranks of the Indian Army