The 153rd Punjabisalso designated 153rd Rifles, see nomenclature (below)was an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

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 ...

. It was formed in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

and

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

in May 1918, saw service in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the

First World War 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 ...

, and was disbanded in June 1922.

Background

Heavy losses suffered by the British Expeditionary Force on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

following the German spring offensive in March 1918 resulted in a major reorganization of the

Egyptian Expeditionary Force The Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) was a British Empire military formation, formed on 10 March 1916 under the command of General Archibald Murray from the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and the Force in Egypt (1914–15), at the beginning of ...

: * two divisions 52nd (Lowland) and 74th (Yeomanry) were transferred to France in April; they were replaced by the 3rd (Lahore) and

7th (Meerut) Division The 7th (Meerut) Division was an infantry division of the British Indian 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 command of Sir Jasper Nicolls, ...

s from

; * nine

yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army, British Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Army Reserve, descended from volunteer British Cavalry, cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of ...

s were dismounted, converted to machine gunners and sent to France at the end of the same month; the

4th Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

and 5th Cavalry Divisions were reformed with Indian cavalry regiments withdrawn from France and the

15th (Imperial Service) Cavalry Brigade The 15th (Imperial Service) Cavalry Brigade was a brigade-sized formation that served alongside British Empire forces in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign, during World War I. Originally called the Imperial Service Cavalry Brigade it was formed ...

already in Egypt; * the 10th (Irish), 53rd (Welsh), 60th (2/2nd London), and 75th Divisions were reduced to a single British

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

per

brigade A brigade is a major tactical 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 a division. Br ...

. They were reformed with nine Indian infantry battalions and an Indian

pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and dev ...

battalion each. In fact, the 75th Division already had four Indian battalions assigned, so of the 36 battalions needed to reform the divisions, 22 were improvised by taking whole

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

from existing units already on active service in Mesopotamia and Palestine to form the 150th Infantry (3 battalions), 151st Sikh Infantry (3), 152nd Punjabis (3), 153rd Punjabis (3), 154th Infantry (3),

155th Pioneers The 155th Pioneers was a pioneer regiment of the British Indian Army. It was formed in Mesopotamia and Palestine in May and June 1918, saw service in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the First World War, and was disbanded in 1920. Backgro ...

(2), 156th Infantry (1) and the 11th Gurkha Rifles (4). The donor units were then brought back up to strength by drafts. In the event, just 13 of the battalions were assigned to the divisions and the remaining nine were transferred from Mesopotamia to India in June 1918.

History

The 153rd Punjabis was formed of three battalions in May 1918. The 1st Battalion was formed in Mesopotamia with companies posted from battalions serving in the

14th 14 (fourteen) is a natural number following 13 (number), 13 and preceding 15 (number), 15. In relation to the word "four" (4), 14 is spelled "fourteen". In mathematics * 14 is a composite number. * 14 is a square pyramidal number. * 14 is a s ...

15th 15 (fifteen) is the natural number following 14 (number), 14 and preceding 16 (number), 16. Mathematics 15 is: * A composite number, and the sixth semiprime; its proper divisors being , and . * A deficient number, a smooth number, a lucky ...

, and

18th Indian Division The 18th Indian Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and formed part of the occupation force for Iraq post-war. The division was n ...

s. It was transferred to Egypt during June and July 1918. In contrast, the 2nd and 3rd Battalions were formed in Palestine with companies posted from battalions already serving in the

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, particularly from the 3rd (Lahore) and 7th (Meerut) Divisions. All three battalions were assigned to the

53rd (Welsh) Division The 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that fought in both the First and Second World Wars. Originally raised in 1908 as the Welsh Division, part of the Territorial Force (TF), the division saw service in ...

in June and August and remained with the division for the rest of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign, taking part in the

Battle of Nablus The Battle of Nablus was fought from April 5 to April 8, 2002 in the Palestinian city of Nablus in the West Bank between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Palestinian forces, as part of Operation Defensive Shield in the Second Intifada. It re ...

(18–21 September 1918). At the end of the battle, the division was employed on salvage work and working on the

Nablus Nablus ( ; ar, نابلس, Nābulus ; he, שכם, Šəḵem, ISO 259-3: ; Samaritan Hebrew: , romanized: ; el, Νεάπολις, Νeápolis) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a populati ...

road. On 27 October, the division started moving to

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

even before the

Armistice of Mudros Concluded on 30 October 1918 and taking effect at noon the next day, the Armistice of Mudros ( tr, Mondros Mütarekesi) ended hostilities in the Middle Eastern theatre between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies of World War I. It was signed by th ...

came into effect on 31 October, thereby ending the war against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. It completed its concentration at Alexandria on 15 November. The division received demobilization instructions on 20 December 1918. The Indian infantry battalions returned to India as transports became available and 159th Brigade was reduced to cadre by 7 March 1919. The battalions were disbanded in India in 1921 and 1922.

Nomenclature

Oddly, the designation of the regiment varied between the battalions. The 1st and 2nd Battalions were 153rd Punjabis whereas the 3rd Battalion was 153rd Rifles, hence 1st Battalion, 153rd Punjabis, 2nd Battalion, 153rd Punjabis and 3rd Battalion, 153rd Rifles. Other sources designate all three battalions as 153rd Infantry.

1st Battalion

The 1st Battalion was formed at Diyala on 18 May 1918 by the transfer of complete companies from: *

82nd Punjabis The 82nd Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1788, as the 29th Madras Battalion. It was designated as the 82nd Punjabis in 1903 and became the 5th Battalion 1st Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was al ...

87th Punjabis The 87th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1798, when they were raised as the 1st Battalion, 14th Madras Native Infantry. The regiments first action was in the Battle of Mahidpur duri ...

89th Punjabis The 89th Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army raised in 1798 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 89th Punjabis in 1903 and became 1st Battalion 8th Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was allo ...

90th Punjabis The 90th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was raised in 1799 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 90th Punjabis in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 8th Punjab Regiment in 1922. ...

The battalion moved to Amara on 23 May and left for Egypt on 20 June. It disembarked at

Suez Suez ( ar, السويس '; ) is a seaport city (population of about 750,000 ) in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez (a branch of the Red Sea), near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boun ...

on 5 July and reached

Lydda Lod ( he, לוד, or fully vocalized ; ar, اللد, al-Lidd or ), also known as Lydda ( grc, Λύδδα), is a city southeast of Tel Aviv and northwest of Jerusalem in the Central District of Israel. It is situated between the lower Shephe ...

on 17 July. The battalion joined the 159th Brigade, 53rd (Welsh) Division on 2 August 1918 near

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. 1st Battalion, 153rd Punjabis was disbanded on 15 June 1921.

2nd Battalion

The 2nd Battalion was formed at

Sarafand Sarafand or Sarafend may refer to: Places * Sarafand, Lebanon, also spelled Sarafend ** Sarepta, an ancient Phoenician city at the location of the modern Lebanese town * Tzrifin, area in central Israel previously known as "Sarafand" or "Sarafend", ...

(now

Tzrifin Tzrifin ( he, צְרִיפִין) is an area in Gush Dan (Dan Region) in central Israel, located on the eastern side of Rishon LeZion and including parts of Be'er Ya'akov. The area proper is defined as an 'area without jurisdiction' between the two ...

) on 27 May 1918 by the transfer of complete companies from: *

74th Punjabis The 74th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1776, when they were raised as the 14th Carnatic Battalion. The regiment first saw action during the Carnatic Wars. This was followed by the ...

91st Punjabis (Light Infantry) The 91st Punjabis (Light Infantry) was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was raised in 1800 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 91st Punjabis in 1903 and became 3rd Battalion 8th Punjab ...

92nd Punjabis The 92nd Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was raised in 1800 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 92nd Punjabis in 1903 and became 4th Battalion (Prince of Wales's Own) 8th P ...

93rd Burma Infantry The 93rd Burma Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was raised in 1800 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 93rd Burma Infantry in 1903 and became the 5th (Burma) Battalion 8th Pu ...

The battalion joined the 159th Brigade, 53rd (Welsh) Division on 5 June 1918 near Ram Allah. 2nd Battalion, 153rd Punjabis was disbanded on 15 June 1921.

3rd Battalion

The 3rd Battalion was also formed at Sarafand on 24 May 1918 by the transfer of complete companies from: *

105th Mahratta Light Infantry The 105th Mahratta Light Infantry were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment traces their origins to 1768, when they were raised as the 3rd Battalion, Bombay Sepoys. The regiment's first action was during the Mysore Cam ...

123rd Outram's Rifles The 123rd Outram's Rifles was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. History It traced its origins to the 12th Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry, part of the British East India Company's Bombay Army. It fought in the Battle of Khadki ...

*2nd Battalion,

124th Duchess of Connaught's Own Baluchistan Infantry The 124th Duchess of Connaught's Own Baluchistan Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army raised in 1820 as the 2nd (Marine) Battalion 12th Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry. It was designated as the 124th Duchess of Connaught' ...

125th Napier's Rifles The 125th Napier's Rifles was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. At various points in history it was also known as the 1st Extra Battalion Bombay Native Infantry, the 25th Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry (1826–1889) and the 25th ...

The battalion joined the 158th Brigade, 53rd (Welsh) Division on 10 June 1918 at Et Taiyibe. 3rd Battalion, 153rd Rifles was disbanded on 24 June 1922.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * *

External links

* * {{cite web , url=http://orbat.com/site/history/open4/uk_eygptianexpeditionaryforce1918.pdf , title=Order of Battle of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, September 1918 , last=Hanafin , first=James , publisher=orbat.com , access-date=11 November 2011 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109153754/http://orbat.com/site/history/open4/uk_eygptianexpeditionaryforce1918.pdf , archive-date=9 January 2015 British Indian Army infantry regiments Military units and formations established in 1918 Military units and formations disestablished in 1922