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The Garhwal Brigade was an
infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...
brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...
of the
British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...
formed in 1902 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 20th (Garhwal) Brigade at the outbreak of the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
as part of the 7th (Meerut) Division and departed for France. It served on the Western Front until November 1915. It then moved to Egypt where it joined the 10th Indian Division, by now designated as 20th Indian Brigade. It left the division in March 1916 and thereafter served as an independent brigade in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. It was broken up in 1920.


History

The Kitchener Reforms, carried out during Lord Kitchener's tenure as
Commander-in-Chief, India During the period of the Company and Crown rule in India, the Commander-in-Chief, India (often "Commander-in-Chief ''in'' or ''of'' India") was the supreme commander of the Indian Army from 1833 to 1947. The Commander-in-Chief and most of his ...
(1902–09), completed the unification of the three former
Presidency armies The presidency armies were the armies of the three Presidencies of British India, presidencies of the East India Company's Company rule in India, rule in India, later the forces of the the Crown, British Crown in British Raj, India, composed pr ...
, the Punjab Frontier Force, the Hyderabad Contingent and other local forces into one
Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and 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 ...
. Kitchener identified the Indian Army's main task as the defence of the North-West Frontier against foreign aggression (particularly Russian expansion into Afghanistan) with
internal security Internal security is the act of keeping peace within the borders of a sovereign state or other Self-governance, self-governing territories, generally by upholding the national law and defending against internal security threats. This task and rol ...
relegated to a secondary role. The Army was organized into
divisions Division may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication * Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting of 10,000 t ...
and
brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...
s that would act as field formations but also included internal security troops. The Garhwal Brigade was formed in November 1902 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. The brigade formed part of the 7th (Meerut) Division.


Western Front

At the outbreak of the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the Garhwal Brigade was still part of the 7th (Meerut) Division. It was mobilized with the division in August 1914 as the 20th (Garhwal) Brigade and sailed from
Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...
on 20 September for the Western Front. It arrived in
Marseilles Marseille (; ; see below) is a city in southern France, the prefecture of the department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the Provence region, it is located on the coast of the Mediterranean S ...
on 12 – 14 October and moved up to the Front, entering the line on the night of 30/31 Octobertaking part in the Battle of La Bassée (10 October – 2 November). While in France, the brigade was known by its geographical rather than numerical designation so as to avoid confusion with the British 20th Brigade also serving on the Western Front at the same time. The brigade served with the division as part of the Indian Corps on the Western Front until the end of 1915. For the rest of 1914, the brigade took part in the
Defence of Festubert The Defence of Festubert was an engagement on the Western Front early in the First World War when Indian and British battalions of the 7th (Meerut) Division of the Indian Army defended the village of Festubert against a German attack from 23 ...
(23 – 24 November) and the Defence of Givenchy (20 – 21 December). In the former, Naik Darwan Singh Negi of the 1st Battalion, 39th Garhwal Rifles won the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...
(VC), the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
and
Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
forces. Indian troops only became eligible for the award in 1911. His award was gazetted on the same date as that of
Sepoy ''Sepoy'' () is a term related to ''sipahi'', denoting professional Indian infantrymen, traditionally armed with a musket, in the armies of the Mughal Empire and the Maratha. In the 18th century, the French East India Company and its Euro ...
Khudadad Khan, the first Indian VC winner. In 1915, the brigade took part in the Battle of Neuve Chapelle (10 – 13 March) where another two VCs were won:
Rifleman A rifleman is an infantry soldier armed with a rifling, rifled long gun. Although the rifleman role had its origin with 16th century hand cannoneers and 17th century musketeers, the term originated in the 18th century with the introduction o ...
Gabar Singh Negi (posthumous) of the 2nd Battalion, 39th Garhwal Rifles, and Private William Buckingham of the 2nd Battalion, Leicestershire Regiment. The brigade then took part in the battles of Aubers (9 May), Festubert (15 – 25 May) and Loos (25 September – 8 October) where Rifleman Kulbir Thapa of the 2nd Battalion,
3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles The 3rd Gorkha Rifles or Third Gorkha Rifles, abbreviated as 3 GR is an Indian Army infantry regiment. It was originally a Gurkha Gorkha regiments (India), regiment of the British Indian Army formed in 1815. This regiment recruit mainly Magars an ...
won the brigade's fourth VC. The losses suffered by the Indian Corps could not be adequately replaced as the reserve and replacement system essentially broke down. Consequently, on 31 October 1915 orders were received to transfer the 3rd (Lahore) and 7th (Meerut) Divisions to
Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...
. The last elements were relieved by 9 November and departed for Egypt en route to Mesopotamia. While in Egypt, the brigade left 7th (Meerut) Division in December 1915 and was replaced by 28th Indian Brigade.


Egypt and Palestine

The 10th Indian Division was re-formed on 7 January 1916 as part of the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
Defences with units and formations in Egypt: the 20th (Garwhal) Brigadeby now designated as 20th Indian Brigadejoined the division along with the 29th Indian Brigade returned from Gallipoli and
31st Indian Brigade The 31st Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It served in Egypt in 1915 before being broken up in February 1916. History The 11th Indian ...
formerly with 11th Indian Division. The new division was short lived: it was broken up again on 7 March 1916 as the need to reform depleted units from France made this plan unrealistic. The brigade became an independent formation and served as such for the rest of the war in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. The brigade continued to serve on the Suez Canal Defences under command of the
Egyptian Expeditionary Force The Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) was a military formation of the British Empire, formed on 10 March 1916 under the command of General Archibald Murray from the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and the Force in Egypt (1914–1915), at the ...
in 1916 and 1917. In April 1918, it was attached to the
Desert Mounted Corps The Desert Mounted Corps was an army corps of the British Army during the First World War, of three mounted divisions renamed in August 1917 by General Edmund Allenby, from Desert Column. These divisions which served in the Sinai and Palestine ...
and with it took part in the Second Transjordan attack (30 April – 4 May 1918). Two battalions of the brigade
Alwar Infantry Alwar (Rajasthani languages, Rajasthani Pronunciation: Help:IPA/Hindi and Urdu, �lʋəɾ is a city located in India's National Capital Region (India), National Capital Region (NCR) and the administrative headquarters of Alwar district, Alw ...
( I.S.) and 1st Battalion, Patiala Infantry (I.S.)were involved in the Battle of Abu Tulul on 15 July. It then helped to occupy the Jordan Valley. In August 1918, the brigade joined Chaytor's Force along with the Anzac Mounted Division and other units under the command of Major-General E.W.C. Chaytor. As part of the Final Offensive in Palestine, the Force operated in the Jordan Valley and hills to the east of the
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
. It took part in the Third Transjordan attack (19 – 25 September) leading to the capture of Amman (25 September). The brigade was broken up in 1920.


Orders of battle


Commanders

The Garhwal Brigade / 20th (Garhwal) Brigade / 20th Indian Brigade had the following commanders:


See also

* Garhwal Brigade formed in India to replace the original brigade when it was mobilized * Indian Expeditionary Force A


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * * * *


External links

* * *{{cite web, url=http://warpath.orbat.com/indian_divs/ind_ind_bdes.htm , title=Independent Indian Brigades on ''The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918'' by PB Chappell , access-date=2015-07-03 , url-status=dead , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120213201732/http://warpath.orbat.com/indian_divs/ind_ind_bdes.htm , archive-date=13 February 2012 , df=dmy Brigades of India in World War I Military units and formations established in 1902 Military units and formations disestablished in 1920