The 40th Pathans were an infantry regiment 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 ...

. It was raised in 1858 as the Shahjehanpur Levy. It was designated as the 40th Pathans in 1903 and became 5th Battalion (Pathans)

14th Punjab Regiment The 14th Punjab Regiment was a regiment of the British Indian Army from 1922 to 1947. It was transferred to the Pakistan Army on Partition of India, independence in 1947, and amalgamated with the 1st Punjab Regiment, 1st, 15th Punjab Regiment, 15 ...

in 1922. In 1947, it was allocated to the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

, where it continues to exist as 16th Battalion The

Punjab Regiment Punjab Regiment may refer to the following existing units: *Punjab Regiment (India) *Punjab Regiment (Pakistan) From 1922 to 1947, the British Indian Army included 6 numbered Punjab Regiments: *1st Punjab Regiment * 2nd Punjab Regiment *8th Punj ...

.Rizvi, Brig SHA. (1984). ''Veteran Campaigners – A History of the Punjab Regiment 1759-1981''. Lahore: Wajidalis.Waters, Maj RS. (1936). ''History of the 5th Battalion (Pathans), 14th Punjab Regiment formerly 40th Pathans ("The Forty Thieves”)''. London: James Bain Ltd.

Early history

Regiment was raised in 1780 as Bengal Infantry and redesigned as Native Bengal Infantry in 1784. Regiment was disband in 1857 war of Independence being revoked again British. Later it was reraised by Lieutenant Edward Dandridge at

Shahjahanpur Shahjahanpur () is a municipal corporation, town and district headquarters of Shahjahanpur District in Western Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located between Bareilly and Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh. History Shahjahanpur was establi ...

in 1858, during the upheaval of the

Indian Mutiny The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the form ...

, as the Shahjahanpur Levy. It was initially composed of Hindus from North India and some

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

s. In 1888, the regiment participated in the Black Mountain Expedition, while in 1890, it dispatched a detachment to Lushai Hills. In 1890, it was reconstituted with Trans-frontier

Pathan Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

s to become the only all-Pathan regiment in the Indian Army; acquiring in the process, the nickname of "Forty Thieves". In 1901, it lost its exclusively Pathan character, when two companies each of

Punjabi Muslims Punjabi Muslims are Punjabis who are adherents of Islam. With a population of more than 112 million, they are the third-largest predominantly Islam-adhering Muslims, Muslim ethnicity in the world, after Arab Muslims, Arabs and Bengali Muslims, ...

and

Dogra __NOTOC__ Dogras, or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic community of Pakistan and India. Dogra, Dogras or Dogri may also refer to: * Dogra dynasty, a Hindu dynasty of Kashmir * Dogri language, a language spoken by Dogras and other ethnic commu ...

s were included.

40th Pathans

Subsequent to the

reforms Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

brought about in the Indian Army by Lord Kitchener in 1903, the regiment's designation was changed to 40th Pathans. In 1904, the 40th Pathans proceeded to

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

as reinforcements for the Tibet Mission Force. On 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 regiment was stationed in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

. It arrived in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

on 2 April 1915, and within days, was on the frontlines. The 40th Pathans fought with great gallantry in the

Second Battle of Ypres The Second Battle of Ypres was fought from 22 April – 25 May 1915, during the First World War, for control of the tactically-important high ground to the east and the south of the Flanders, Flemish town of Ypres, in western Belgium. The ...

, where they suffered 320 casualties on 26 April, and in the Battles of

Aubers Ridge The Battle of Aubers (Battle of Aubers Ridge) was a British offensive on the Western Front on 9 May 1915 during the First World War. The battle was part of the British contribution to the Second Battle of Artois, a Franco-British offensive int ...

and Loos. In December, the regiment left for

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

, where they served till February 1918, and again distinguished themselves in the long and bitter campaign. The 40th Pathans suffered a total of 800 casualties (killed or wounded) during the war, while 1066 officers and men were invalided out of service due to sickness. In 1919, the 40th Pathans participated in the

Third Afghan War The Third Anglo-Afghan War was a short war which began on 3 May and ended on 8 August 1919. The new Amir of the Emirate of Afghanistan Amanullah Khan declared a Jihad against the British in the hope to proclaim full independence, as well as ...

British and Indian officers who died in World War I

European campaign *Lt Col F. Rennik *BT Lt Col A.G. Stuart *Maj G.D. Campbell (while attached to

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (Princess Louise's) is a light infantry company (military unit), company (designated as Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland) and was a line infantry regiment of the British Army tha ...

) *Maj Ac.E.C. Perking *Capt J.F.C. Dalmahoy *Capt L.de.L Christopher *2nd Lt E.G. Hodgson *Sub Jehandad Khan Bahadur *Jemadar Lehar Khan *Jemadar Saida Khan *Jemadar Kaka Khan East African campaign *Maj H.A. Carter *Maj E.C. Irwin *Maj R.N. Maepherson *2nd Lt F.G. Gardiner *2nd Lt J.T.G. Humphreys *2nd Lt N.O. Burne *Sub Gulodu *Sub Mainu *Jemadar Shiraz *Jemadar Darjhodah * Sub Major Habib Ullah Khan

Pre-1947 partition

In 1921-22, a major reorganization was undertaken in the British Indian Army leading to the formation of large infantry groups of four to six battalions. Among these was the 14th Punjab Regiment, formed by grouping the 40th Pathans with

19th 19 (nineteen) is the natural number following 18 and preceding 20. It is a prime number. Mathematics Nineteen is the eighth prime number. Number theory 19 forms a twin prime with 17, a cousin prime with 23, and a sexy prime with 13. ...

, 20th, 21st, 22nd and 24th Punjabis. The battalion's new designation was 5th Battalion (Pathans) 14th Punjab Regiment. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the battalion fought in the

Malayan Campaign The Malayan campaign, referred to by Japanese sources as the , was a military campaign fought by Allies of World War II, Allied and Axis powers, Axis forces in British Malaya, Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 15 February 1942 during the World War ...

and was taken prisoner by the Japanese on

Singapore Island Singapore Island, also known as mainland Singapore and Pulau Ujong, is the main constituent island of the sovereign island country and city-state of the Republic of Singapore. It is located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, between th ...

following the British surrender on 15 February 1942.Haig, Brodie. ''Fourteenth Punjab Regiment 1939-1945''. London: Lund Humphries.

Post-1947 partition

The battalion was re-raised in 1952. In the meantime, the 14th Punjab Regiment had been allocated to the Pakistan Army following the

independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

in 1947. In 1956, the 14th Punjab Regiment was merged with the

1st First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

, 15th and

16th Punjab Regiment The 16th Punjab Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army from 1922 to 1947. Upon the Partition of India, it was transferred to the newly-raised Pakistan Army. It ceased to exist in this form in 1956, when it was amalgamated ...

s to form one large

, and 5/14th Punjab was redesignated as 16 Punjab. During the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistan Wars, the battalion fought on the

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

Front.

Genealogy

*1780 Raised as Bengal Native Infantry *1858 Shahjahanpur Levy *1861 44th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry *1861 40th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry *1864 40th (Shahjahanpur) Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry *1885 40th Regiment of Bengal Infantry *1890 40th (Baluch) Regiment of Bengal Infantry *1892 40th (Pathan) Regiment of Bengal Infantry *1901 40th Punjab Infantry *1903 40th Pathans *1922 5th Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment *1934 5th Battalion (Pathans) 14th Punjab Regiment *1942 Captured by the Japanese at Singapore *1952 Re-raised *1956 16th Battalion The Punjab Regiment

References

External links

* {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Punjab Regiment (Pakistan) British Indian Army infantry regiments Military units and formations established in 1858 1858 establishments in India