The 41st Indian Brigade 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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

that saw service with the

Indian Army during the First World War The Indian Army during World War I was involved World War I. Over one million Indian troops served overseas, of whom 62,000 died and another 67,000 were wounded. In total at least 74,187 Indian soldiers died during the war. In World War I the ...

. It 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 ...

on the Euphrates Front throughout its existence. It was not reformed for the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

History

The

Headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

41st Indian Brigade was formed in February 1916 and arrived 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 ...

in the following month where it served as an independent

formation Formation may refer to: Linguistics * Back-formation, the process of creating a new lexeme by removing or affixes * Word formation, the creation of a new word by adding affixes Mathematics and science * Cave formation or speleothem, a secondar ...

. On 15 September 1916, it was redesignated as 41st Brigade & H.Q. Euphrates Defences at which time it commanded the 1/4th Battalion,

Prince Albert's (Somerset Light Infantry) The Somerset Light Infantry (Prince Albert's) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army, which served under various titles from 1685 to 1959. In 1959, the regiment was amalgamated with the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry to form the Some ...

, the

6th Jat Light Infantry The6th Jat Light Infantry were an infantry regiment of the Bengal Army, later of the united British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1803, when they were the 1st Battalion, 22nd Bengal Native Infantry. Over the years they were known b ...

and the 1st Battalion,

10th Gurkha Rifles The 10th Princess Mary's Own Gurkha Rifles, (abbreviated to 10 GR), was originally a rifle regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was formed in 1890, taking its lineage from a police unit and over the course of its existence it had a ...

. On 19 March 1918, it was further redesignated as H.Q. Euphrates Defences

Order of battle

The brigade had the following composition 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 ...

: * 1st 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 ...

''(joined in March 1916 from

Ambala Brigade The Ambala Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that formed part of the Indian Army during World War I, Indian Army during the First World War. It was formed in November 1914 to replace the original Ambala Brigade that had ...

3rd Lahore Divisional Area The 3rd Lahore Divisional Area was an infantry 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 3rd (Lahore) Division that had been mobi ...

; transferred in April to

21st (Bareilly) Brigade 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, ...

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, ...

)'' * 1/4th Battalion, Devonshire Regiment ''(joined in April 1916 from

42nd Indian Brigade The 42nd 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 the Mesopotamian Campaign on the Euphrates Front throughout its existence. It was ...

15th Indian Division The 15th Indian Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the First World War. It served in the Mesopotamian Campaign on the Euphrates Front throughout its existence. It did not serve in the Second ...

; transferred in June to

37th Indian Brigade The 37th 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 took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was disbanded shortly after the end of the war. H ...

14th Indian Division The 14th Indian Division was formed during World War I, for service in the Mesopotamian Campaign. It was composed of battalions of the Regular British Army, the British Territorial Force and the British Indian Army. History The Division now pa ...

)'' * 2nd Battalion,

4th Gurkha Rifles The 4th Gorkha Rifles or the Fourth Gorkha Rifles, abbreviated as 4 GR, is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army comprising Gurkha soldiers of Nepalese nationality, especially Magars and Gurungs hill tribes of Nepal. The Fourth Gorkha Rifles h ...

''(joined in April 1916 from

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 ...

; transferred in June to

35th Indian Brigade The 35th 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 took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was disbanded shortly after the end of the war. It ...

, 14th Indian Division)'' *

45th Rattray's Sikhs The 45th Rattray's Sikhs was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to the 1st Bengal Military Police Battalion raised in April 1856, at Lahore, by Captain Thomas Rattray originally consisting of a troop ...

''(joined in April 1916 from

Derajat Brigade The Derajat Brigade 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 North West Frontier. The Derajat Brigade ...

; transferred in June to 37th Indian Brigade, 14th Indian Division)'' *

126th Baluchistan Infantry The 126th Baluchistan Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army raised in 1825 as the 2nd Extra Battalion of Bombay Native Infantry. It was designated as the 126th Baluchistan Infantry in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 10th Baluch ...

''(joined in April 1916 from

Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...

and

Muscat Muscat ( ar, مَسْقَط, ) is the capital and most populated city in Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is s ...

; transferred in June to

4th (Quetta) Division The 4th (Quetta) Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army. It was formed by General Kitchener while he was Commander-in-chief of India. During World War I the division remained in India. Its composition was: Formation 191 ...

)'' * 1/4th Battalion,

''(joined on 5 May 1916 from 37th Indian Brigade, 14th Indian Division; transferred in October to Euphrates Defences)'' *

''(joined in June 1916 from 21st (Bareilly) Brigade, 7th (Meerut) Division; transferred in October to Euphrates Defences)'' * 2nd Battalion, 103rd Mahratta Light Infantry ''(formed in June 1916 and transferred to Jubbulpore Brigade,

5th (Mhow) Division The 5th (Mhow) Division was a regular division of the British Indian Army and part of the Southern Army which was formed in 1903 after Lord Kitchener was appointed Commander-in-Chief, India between 1902 and 1909. He instituted large-scale re ...

)'' * 2nd Battalion,

''(joined in June 1916 from Egypt; transferred in July to

Burma Division The Burma Division was a static formation of the British Indian Army. It was created as part of the 1903 reforms of the Indian Army by Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener then Commander-in-Chief, India. The task of such formations was to over ...

)'' * 1st Battalion, 10th Gurkha Rifles ''(joined in September 1916 from Burma Division; transferred in October to Euphrates Defences)''

Commanders

The brigade had the following commanders:

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 1916 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918

History

Order of battle

Commanders

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links