Buckam Singh (December 5, 1893 – August 27, 1919) was a Canadian Sikh soldier 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 early Sikh pioneer to

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Early life

Buckam Singh was born on December 5, 1893, in the farming town of

Mahilpur Mahilpur is a city and a Nagar Panchayat in Hoshiarpur district in the Indian state Punjab. It is situated on Hoshiarpur to Garhshankar stretch of State Highway 24. It is famous for the game of football in the region. Mahilpur is connected by ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

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 ...

, to Badan Singh and Chandi Kaur, into a

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 ...

family, In March 1903, at age 10, the young Buckam Singh was married to Pritam Kaur of Jamsher in an

arranged marriage Arranged marriage is a type of marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures a professional matchmaker may be us ...

. At the time, India was still under British control, and as such, many Sikhs enlisted in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

due to their warrior tradition that dated back to the time of

Guru Hargobind Gurū Hargobind (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿਗੋਬਿੰਦ, pronunciation: l 19 June 1595 – 28 February 1644), revered as the ''sixth Nānak'', was the sixth of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion. He had become Guru at the young age of e ...

in the 17th century. In 1887, some Sikh soldiers travelled from India (Punjab) to reach Britain to celebrate

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

Diamond Jubilee A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th annivers ...

. They traveled by train across Canada and fell in love with the landscape of British Columbia. Upon their return to Punjab, word about Canada spread and the 14-year-old Singh left for

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

in 1907.Private Buckam Singh: Discovering a Canadian Hero
Sikhmuseum.com. Retrieved May 23, 2009.CTV.ca
/ref> At the time of Buckam Singh's immigration to Canada there was a labour shortage in British Columbia, and while the Canadians did not like to give jobs to foreigners, they had no choice. Later in 1907, riots in Vancouver prompted the Canadian government to institute racist laws which required all South Asian immigrants to come from their homeland to Canada in one continuous journey, a feat impossible for the Sikhs as there was no direct route from India to Canada. Additionally, all new immigrants had to have $250 in savings, ten times the amount European immigrants had to have. This was quite a large amount as at the time wages were just cents a week. Because of these discriminatory conditions, Singh moved to

and began working for a farmer in Rosebank.

Wartime

On August 5, 1914, Canada entered the

as a member of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

. On April 23 the next year, Buckam Singh enlisted in the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force and became one out of the nine Canadian Sikhs allowed to fight for Canada in the war. He was then sent to Barriefield Camp near

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Toro ...

, and joined the 59th Battalion. On his attestation papers he just recorded as of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

religion, as there was no option for

.Toronto Star: Grave confirms early Sikh 'fought for Canada'
Retrieved May 23, 2009. Because of the need to deploy troops to the Western Front as quickly as possible, Buckam Singh received training and was shipped out in the first of two contingents of 250 men aboard the S.S. ''Scandinavian 2'' on August 27, 1915, arriving in England on September 5. There, Buckam Singh was transferred to the 39th Reserve Battalion to await deployment to a combat battalion. On January 21, 1916, Buckam Singh arrived in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and joined the 20th Battalion. While fighting, he was hit on the head with shrapnel on June 2, 1916, and sent to hospital until the end of the month, when he rejoined his battalion. He was again wounded at St. Eloi on July 24 and sent to a hospital run by

John McCrae Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae (November 30, 1872 – January 28, 1918) was a Canadian poet, physician, author, artist and soldier during World War I, and a surgeon during the Second Battle of Ypres, in Belgium. He is best known for writing the ...

and then crossed the English Channel to make his recovery in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. On March 11, 1917, Singh was considered fit enough to rejoin active combat and was sent to the Central Ontario Regimental Depot and waited to be sent to France again. However, he developed severe

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

and was sent back to Canada in May. He was discharged on August 1, 1918, and spent the remainder of his days at

Freeport Military Hospital Freeport, a variant of free port, may refer to: Places United States * Freeport, California * Freeport, Florida *Freeport, Illinois * Freeport, Indiana * Freeport, Iowa * Freeport, Kansas *Freeport, Maine, a New England town ** Freeport (CDP), Main ...

, where he died on August 27, 1919. He is buried at Mount Hope Cemetery in

Kitchener, Ontario ) , image_flag = Flag of Kitchener, Ontario.svg , image_seal = Seal of Kitchener, Canada.svg , image_shield=Coat of arms of Kitchener, Canada.svg , image_blank_emblem = Logo of Kitchener, Ontario.svg , blank_emblem_type = ...

. His grave is the only known military grave in Canada of a Sikh soldier from the World Wars.

References

External links

SikhMuseum.com Exhibit: Private Buckam Singh, Discovering a Canadian Hero

Annual Sikh Remembrance Day ceremony at Pvt. Buckam Singh's grave

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Buckam 1893 births 1919 deaths Canadian Expeditionary Force soldiers Canadian Sikhs Emigrants from British India to Canada Canadian people of Indian descent Canadian people of Punjabi descent 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis Punjabi people Tuberculosis deaths in Ontario