Indian troops in the firing line, Mesopotamia, January 1915

The 120th Rajputana Infantry were an infantry regiment of 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 co ...

. The regiment traces their origins to 1817, when they were raised as the 2nd Battalion, 10th Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry. The regiments first action was during the

Anglo-Persian War The Anglo-Persian War or the Anglo-Iranian War () lasted between 1 November 1856 and 4 April 1857, and was fought between the United Kingdom and Iran, which was ruled by the Qajar dynasty. The war had the British oppose an attempt by Iran to ...

in 1856, for which they were awarded the battle honours of ''Persia'', ''Reshire'', ''Bushire'' and ''Koosh-ah''. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

they were attached to the

6th (Poona) Division The 6th (Poona) Division was a division of the British Indian Army. It was formed in 1903, following the Kitchener reforms of the Indian Army. World War I The 6th (Poona) Division served in the Mesopotamian campaign. Led by Major General Barr ...

and served in the

Mesopotamian campaign The Mesopotamian campaign was a campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I fought between the Allies represented by the British Empire, troops from Britain, Australia and the vast majority from British India, against the Central Powe ...

. They fought in the Battle of Basra, the

Battle of Qurna The Battle of Qurna, (3 to 9 December 1914) was between British forces and Ottoman forces that had retreated from Basra, which they lost at the Battle of Basra (1914) during the Mesopotamian campaign of World War I. Background By capturing ...

, the

Battle of Es Sinn The Battle of Es Sinn was a World War I military engagement between Anglo-Indian and Ottoman forces. It took place on 28 September 1915, during the Mesopotamian Campaign. The sides fought to determine control of the lower Tigres and Euphrates riv ...

before being delivered a setback at the Battle of Ctesiphon. Following this engagement, they withdrew to

Kut Kūt ( ar, ٱلْكُوت, al-Kūt), officially Al-Kut, also spelled Kutulamare or Kut al-Imara, is a city in eastern Iraq, on the left bank of the Tigris River, about south east of Baghdad. the estimated population is about 389,400 people. It ...

. Trapped in the city during the

Siege of Kut The siege of Kut Al Amara (7 December 1915 – 29 April 1916), also known as the first battle of Kut, was the besieging of an 8,000 strong British Army garrison in the town of Kut, south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army. In 1915, its population ...

they were forced to surrender after 147 days. A second battalion was raised from men on leave and reinforcements and sent to Mesopotamia. After World War I the Indian government reformed the army moving from single battalion regiments to multi battalion regiments. In 1922, the 120th Rajputana Infantry became the 2nd (Prince of Wales's Own),

6th Rajputana Rifles The 6th Rajputana Rifles were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They were formed in 1922, after the Indian government reformed the army. They moved away from single battalion regiments to multi battalion regiments. The regiment se ...

.Sharma,p.159 After independence they were one of the regiments allocated to the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

Predecessor names

*2nd Battalion, 10th Regiment of Bombay Native infantry - 1817 *20th Bombay Native infantry - 1824 *20th Bombay infantry - 1885 *120th Rajputana Infantry - 1903

References

Sources

* *Moberly, F.J. (1923). ''Official History of the War: Mesopotamia Campaign'', Imperial War Museum. * * * * British Indian Army infantry regiments Bombay Presidency Military units and formations established in 1817 Military units and formations disestablished in 1922 {{WWI-stub