The 59 Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force) 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 ...

. The regiment was one of the most reputed outfits of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1843, as the Scinde Camel Corps. In 1856, it was incorporated into the

Punjab Irregular Force The Punjab Irregular Force (PIF) was created in 1851 to protect the NW frontier of British India. It was termed "Irregular" because it was outside the control of the Regular British East India Company Presidency armies of the three Presidencies o ...

(PIF). It was designated as the 59th Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force) in 1904 and became 6th Royal Battalion (Scinde) 13th Frontier Force Rifles in 1922. In 1947, it was allocated to the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

, where it continues to exist as 1st Battalion The

Frontier Force Regiment The Frontier Force Regiment is one of the six infantry regiments of the Pakistan Army. They are popularly known as the ''Piffers'' in reference to their military history as the PIF ( Punjab Irregular Force) of the British Indian Army, or as th ...

.Condon, Brig. W. E. H. (1953). ''The Frontier Force Rifles''. Aldershot: Gale & Polden Ltd.North, REFG. (1934). ''The Punjab Frontier Force: A Brief Record of Their Services 1846–1924''. DI Khan: Commercial Steam Press.

Early history

The regiment was raised on 1 December 1843 by Lieutenant Robert Fitzgerald at

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

as the Scinde Camel Corps. The corps consisting of camel-mounted infantry was entrusted with keeping the peace on the

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

frontier. In 1853, it was designated as the 6th Regiment of Punjab Infantry and became part of the Punjab Irregular Force, which later became famous as the Punjab Frontier Force or The Piffers. The Piffers consisted of five regiments of cavalry, eleven regiments of infantry and five batteries of artillery besides the Corps of Guides. Their mission was to maintain order on the Punjab Frontier; a task they performed with great aplomb. Over the next fifty years, the 6th Punjab Infantry took part in numerous frontier operations. It was also engaged in operations during 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 fo ...

of 1857–58.

59th Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force)

Subsequent to the

reforms Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement ...

brought about in the Indian Army by Lord Kitchener in 1903, the regiment's designation was changed to 59th Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force). In 1914, the regiment's class composition was three companies of

Pathans Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

, two companies each of

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

s and

Dogra The Dogras or Dogra people, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group in India and Pakistan consisting of the Dogri language speakers. They live predominantly in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, and in adjoining areas of Punjab, Himachal ...

s, and one company of Punjabi Muslims. During 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 ...

, the regiment served with great gallantry on the Western Front in 1914–15, fighting in the Battles of

Givenchy Givenchy (, ) is a French luxury fashion and perfume house. It hosts the brand of haute couture and ready-to-wear clothing, accessories, perfumes and cosmetics of Parfums Givenchy. The house of Givenchy was founded in 1952 by designer Hubert de ...

Neuve Chapelle Neuve-Chapelle ( vls, Nieuwkappel) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. It was the site of a First World War battle in 1915. Geography Neuve-Chapelle is situated some northeast of Béthune and ...

Aubers Ridge The Battle of Aubers (Battle of Aubers Ridge) was a British offensive on the Western Front (World War I), 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 ...

, the

Second Battle of Ypres During the First World War, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from for control of the tactically important high ground to the east and south of the Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium. The First Battle of Ypres had been fought the pre ...

and the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used poison gas and the first mass engagement of New Army units. Th ...

. Lieutenant William Bruce was awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

during the Battle of Givenchy. In 1916, the regiment 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 ...

. Here, it fought in the bloody battles for the Relief of Kut al Amara on the Tigris Front in 1916–17, the capture of Baghdad, and in operations north of Baghdad at Daur and Tikrit. For its gallant conduct during the war, it was made a "Royal" battalion in 1921. Soldiers of the 59th Scinde Rifles formed part of the command of Brigadier General

Reginald Dyer Colonel Reginald Edward Harry Dyer, CB (9 October 1864 – 23 July 1927) was an officer of the Bengal Army and later the newly constituted British Indian Army. His military career began serving briefly in the regular British Army before tra ...

which fired into the crowd at the

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, also known as the Amritsar massacre, took place on 13 April 1919. A large peaceful crowd had gathered at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, Punjab, to protest against the Rowlatt Act and arrest of pro-independence ...

Subsequent history

After the First World War, the 59th Royal Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force) was grouped with the 55th, 57th, 58th, and the two battalions of

56th Punjabi Rifles (Frontier Force) The 56th Punjabi Rifles (Frontier Force) was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1849 as the 2nd Regiment of Punjab Infantry. It was designated as the 56th Punjabi Rifles (Frontier Force) in 1906 and became 2nd Battal ...

to form the 13th Frontier Force Rifles in 1922. The 59th Royal Scinde Rifles became the 6th Battalion of the new regiment. During 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 ...

, the battalion again greatly distinguished itself, serving in the

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

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 ...

, and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Sepoy Ali Haider was awarded the Victoria Cross during the Battle of the Senio, in Italy in 1945. In 1947, the Frontier Force Rifles was allotted to Pakistan Army. In 1948, 6 Royal FF Rifles fought in the Kashmir War against

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. In 1956, the Frontier Force Rifles and the

Pathan Regiment The Pathan Regiment was an infantry regiment of Pakistan Army now merged into Frontier Force Regiment. It was raised after the independence of Pakistan on November 1, 1948 from the strength of 12th Frontier Force Regiment and 13th Frontier Force R ...

were merged with the

, and 6th Royal Battalion The Frontier Force Rifles was redesignated as 1st Battalion The Frontier Force Regiment. During the Indo-Pakistan War of 1965, the battalion fought in the Battle of

Khem Karan Khem Karan is a town and a nagar panchayat, just 56km from Tarn Taran Sahib in Tarn Taran district of Patti tehsil of the Majha region of Indian state of Punjab. It was the site of a major tank battle in 1965. The Battle of Asal Uttar was the ...

in the

Kasur Kasur (Urdu and pa, ; also Romanization of Urdu, romanized as Qasūr; from pluralized Arabic word ''Qasr'' meaning "palaces" or "forts") is a city to south of Lahore, in the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. The city serves as th ...

Sector.Attiqur Rahman, Lt Gen M. (1980). ''The Wardens of the Marches: A History of the Piffers 1947–71''. Lahore: Wajidalis. The unit got the nickname of "Garbar" given by a British general at

Karachi Harbour Karachi Harbour is a narrow bay and river estuary located west of the Indus River Delta in Karachi, Pakistan. The harbour lies between the Lyari River delta and Chinna Creek to the north, and the Arabian Sea to the south. Since 1886, sections of ...

in 1939.

Genealogy

*1843 Scinde Camel Corps *1853 Scinde Rifle Corps *1856 6th Punjab Infantry *1904 59 Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force) *1921 59th Royal Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force) *1922 6th Royal Battalion (Scinde) 13th Frontier Force Rifles *1945 6th Royal Battalion (Scinde) The Frontier Force Rifles *1956 1st Battalion (Scinde) The Frontier Force Regiment

Early history

59th Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force)

Subsequent history

Genealogy

See also

References

Further reading