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 ...

that formed part of the

Indian Army during the First World War The Indian Army, also called the British Indian Army, was involved in World War I as part of the British Empire. More than one million Indian troops served overseas, of whom more than 60,000 died during the war. In World War I the Indian Army ...

. It was formed in April 1917 to replace the original Garhwal Brigade that had been mobilized in August 1914 as the

20th (Garhwal) Brigade The Garhwal Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army 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 as part of the 7th (Meerut) Division ...

for service on the Western Front. It remained in India throughout the war.

History

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 part of the

7th (Meerut) Division 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. Pre-1857 The Meerut Division first appeared in the Indian Army List in 1829, under the comman ...

. It was mobilized in August 1914 with the division as the

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. The

7th Meerut Divisional Area The 7th Meerut Divisional Area was an infantry Division (military), division of the British Indian Army that formed part of the Indian Army during the First World War. It was formed in September 1914 to replace the original 7th (Meerut) Divisi ...

was formed in September 1914 to take over the area responsibilities of the 7th (Meerut) Division. It was not until April 1917 that a new Garhwal Brigade was formed in 7th Meerut Divisional Area to replace the original brigade. It mainly commanded

Gurkha The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with the endonym Gorkhali ( Nepali: गोर्खाली ), are soldiers native to the Indian subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of North India. The Gurkha units consist of Nepali and ...

and

Garhwal Garhwal may refer to the following topics associated with Uttarakhand, India: Places *Garhwal Himalaya, a sub-range of the Himalayas *Garhwal Kingdom, a former kingdom *Garhwal District (British Garhwal), a former district of British India * Ga ...

depots, particularly at Lansdowne. The brigade served with the division in India throughout the war. The brigade continued to exist after the end of the war. It was designated as 70th Indian Infantry Brigade from May to September 1920 and 17th Indian Infantry Brigade from September 1920 when it was based at Dehra Dun. It was broken up thereafter.

Order of battle

The brigade commanded the following units during the

. * 3rd Battalion,

39th Garhwal Rifles The 39th Garhwal Rifles 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 figh ...

''(joined in April 1917 from

Dehra Dun Dehradun (), also known as Dehra Doon, is the winter capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and is governed by the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, ...

; left in November 1917 for

4th (Rawalpindi) Brigade 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 actio ...

)'' * 3rd Battalion,

8th Gurkha Rifles The 8th Gorkha Rifles is a Gorkha regiment of the Indian Army. It was raised in 1824 as part of the British East India Company and later transferred to the British Indian Army after the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The regiment served in World War I ...

''(formed in July 1917; left in April 1918 for

Kohat Brigade The Kohat Brigade (now 101 Infantry Brigade, Sialkot, Pakistan) was formed after the 1903 reforms of the British Indian Army by Herbert Kitchener when he was Commander-in-Chief, India. The brigade was part of the Northern Army and deployed along the ...

)''

Commanders

The Garhwal Brigade / 70th Indian Brigade / 17th Indian Brigade had the following commanders:

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* {{webarchive , url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517084750/http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_divs/7_ind_div_area.htm , date=17 May 2008 , title=7th Meerut Divisional Area on ''The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918'' by PB Chappell Brigades of India in World War I Military units and formations established in 1917