The III Corps is a formation of 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- ...

that was formed 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 ...

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 ...

during its respective campaign. Prior to the reorganization of the British and Indian forces in Mesopotamia, it was designated as the Tigris Corps. A new III Corps was formed by the

Indian Army during World War II The Indian Army during World War II, a British force also referred to as the British Indian Army, began the war, in 1939, numbering just under 200,000 men.Sumner, p.25 By the end of the war, it had become the largest volunteer army in history, ...

for service in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

. The corps fought in the

Battle of Singapore The Fall of Singapore, also known as the Battle of Singapore,; ta, சிங்கப்பூரின் வீழ்ச்சி; ja, シンガポールの戦い took place in the South–East Asian theatre of the Pacific War. The Empire of ...

where it surrendered in February 1942. It is located in the state of

Nagaland Nagaland () is a landlocked state in the northeastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south and the Sagaing Region of Myanmar to the east. Its capital cit ...

of India in the city of

Dimapur Dimapur () is the largest city in the Indian state of Nagaland. As of 2011, the municipality had a population of 122,834. The city is the main gateway and commercial centre of Nagaland. Located near the border with Assam along the banks of the ...

, at Rangapahar Military Station.

History

First World War

Initially formed in December 1915, it took part 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 ...

under the command of

Frederick Stanley Maude Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick Stanley Maude KCB CMG DSO (24 June 1864 – 18 November 1917) was a British Army officer. He is known for his operations in the Mesopotamian campaign during the First World War and for conquering Baghdad in 19 ...

. In November 1916, it was split in two to form the

I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...

and III Corps (also known as III (Tigris) Corps). Among its component divisions during World War I were the

Cavalry Division Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating a ...

3rd (Lahore) Division The 3rd (Lahore) Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army, first organised in 1852. It saw service during World War I as part of the Indian Corps in France before being moved to the Middle East where it fought against troops ...

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 ...

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, ...

12th Indian Division The 12th Indian Division was formed in March 1915 from units of the British Indian Army. It formed part of the Tigris Corps, for service during the Mesopotamia Campaign of World War I. The Division arrived in Mesopotamia in April 1915 and remai ...

, 13th (Western) Division, 14th Indian Division, 17th Indian Division, and 18th Indian Division.Brig-Gen F.J. Moberly, ''History of the Great War: The Campaign in Mesopotamia'', Vol III, London: HM Stationery Office, 1925/Imperial War Museum and Battery Press, 1997, ISBN 978-089839289-0, Appendix XXXVI. From 1 January until 3 March 1917 the corps also commanded

III (Tigris) Corps Cavalry Regiment The 1/1st Hertfordshire Yeomanry was the active service unit formed by the Hertfordshire Yeomanry during World War I. It was sent to garrison Sultanate of Egypt, Egypt and then served dismounted in the Gallipoli Campaign. On return to Egypt it wa ...

, a composite unit comprising squadrons drawn from 1/1st Hertfordshire Yeomanry, 10th Lancers and 32nd Lancers.

Second World War

The Indian III Corps was the primary ground formation that took part in the

Malayan Campaign The Malayan campaign, referred to by Japanese sources as the , was a military campaign fought by Allied and Axis forces in Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 15 February 1942 during the Second World War. It was dominated by land battles between ...

in 1942. It was commanded by Lieutenant-General Sir Lewis "Piggy" Heath. Indian III Corps was formed in mid-1941 as part of the

Malaya Command The Malaya Command was a Command (military formation), formation of the British Army formed in the 1920s for the coordination of the defences of British Malaya, which comprised the Straits Settlements, the Federated Malay States and the Unfederat ...

when the increase in tension in the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

necessitated the dispatch of large reinforcements to the area to deter

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. On 7 December 1941 the Corps consisted of the Indian 9th Infantry Division, commanded by Major-General

Arthur Edward Barstow Major-General Arthur Edward "Bustling Bill" Barstow, (17 March 1888 – 28 January 1942) was a British Indian Army officer who commanded the 9th Indian Division during the Battle of Malaya. He was killed by the Japanese on active service in 194 ...

, the

Indian 11th Infantry Division The 11th Indian Infantry Division was an infantry Division (military), division of the Indian Army during World War II. It formed part of Indian III Corps in the Malaya Command during the Battle of Malaya. The division was re-raised on 1 April 19 ...

, commanded by Major-General

David Murray-Lyon Major-general (United Kingdom), Major General David Murrey Murray-Lyon, (14 August 1890 – 4 February 1975) was an officer in the British Indian Army. His final appointment was as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 11th Infantry Div ...

, a

lines of communication A line of communication (or communications) is the route that connects an operating military unit with its supply base. Supplies and reinforcements are transported along the line of communication. Therefore, a secure and open line of communicati ...

Area, and the Penang Fortress. Due to the rapid expansion 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 ...

, many of the formations in the Indian divisions were ill-trained and lacked large enough

cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...

s of experienced troops. The British had plans – Operation Matador and

Operation Krohcol Operation Krohcol, or the Battle for The Ledge, was a British operation in December 1941 to invade southern Thailand following the Japanese invasion of Malaya and of Thailand during World War II. It was authorised by Lieutenant-General Arth ...

– to move forward into the south of

Siam Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 mi ...

to forestall Japanese advances. However, lack of forewarning, combined with caution over upsetting Japan needlessly with precipitate actions, prevented the plans from being implemented. This put the garrison on the defensive, a position from which it never recovered. III Corps was pushed down the Malayan peninsula by Japanese units, who employed novel tactics. When confronted with an

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

strong point on a road, the Japanese troops would leave a screen in front of the position, and then send infiltrators round through the jungle to outflank the position. Having been surrounded, positions were usually relatively easy to take. III Corps and the rest of the Allied land forces were pushed back to

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

itself by February 1942. There they endured a short siege before the island surrendered at the direction of

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Arthur Ernest Percival Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more wi ...

. Some of the prisoners taken from Indian III Corps subsequently joined the

Indian National Army The Indian National Army (INA; ''Azad Hind Fauj'' ; 'Free Indian Army') was a collaborationist armed force formed by Indian collaborators and Imperial Japan on 1 September 1942 in Southeast Asia during World War II. Its aim was to secure In ...

Post independence

After the independence of

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 ...

, a new III Corps was raised by the

on 4 February 1985 and is spread over the North Eastern States of

Manipur Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of Myanm ...

Mizoram Mizoram () is a state in Northeast India, with Aizawl as its seat of government and capital city. The name of the state is derived from "Mizo people, Mizo", the endonym, self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo ...

Tripura Tripura (, Bengali: ) is a state in Northeast India. The third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a population of 36.71 lakh ( 3.67 million). It is bordered by Assam and Mizoram to the east a ...

and

Meghalaya Meghalaya (, or , meaning "abode of clouds"; from Sanskrit , "cloud" + , "abode") is a states and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the state of As ...

. At the time of its formation, it consisted of 8 and 57 Mountain Divisions, under its command, in addition to troops of

Assam Rifles The Assam Rifles (AR) is a central paramilitary force responsible for border security, counter-insurgency, and maintaining law and order in Northeast India. It guards the Indo-Myanmar border. The Assam rifles is the oldest paramilitary force ...

. The 8 Mountain Division was moved out to

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

in 1990. The corps is presently based at

in north east India, and consists of three divisions being responsible for eastern

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares int ...

and the

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

border. It is tasked for use in any future Indian war against

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Structure

Jane's Jane's Information Group, now styled Janes, is a global open-source intelligence company specialising in military, national security, aerospace and transport topics, whose name derives from British author Fred T. Jane. History Jane's Informat ...

estimates that it consists of: * 2 Mountain Division (Dao Division) - The division joined III Corps in late 2000s and is headquartered at

Dinjan Dinjan (or Dinjoy gaon) is a small township in Dibrugarh district of Assam, India. It is located in the tea growing area of Assam. The closest town to it is Tinsukia. During World War II, nearby Dinjan Airfield was used by transport aircraft wh ...

Dibrugarh district Dibrugarh (Pron:ˌdɪbru:ˈgor:) is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters are located within the city of Dibrugarh, which the district itself is named for. The district occupies an area of 3381&nbs ...

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...

. * 56 Mountain Division - raised at Zakhama,

and presently at Likabali, north of the

Brahmaputra The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. It ...

. It includes 46 Brigade ( Dibang) and the 22 Brigade (

Lekhapani Lekhapani is a town in Tinsukia district, Assam, India. and it is also the last frontier of North Frontier Railway(but it is inoperative since 1993) Lekhapani railway station Geography It is located at an elevation of 150 m above MSL.

), though 22 Brigade may shift to 2nd Mountain Division. * 57 Mountain Division (Red Shield Division) - headquartered at

Leimakhong Leimakhong is a small town in the Kangpokpi district in Manipur, India .It is on Kangpokpi's border with the Imphal West district, approximately 30Km west of the Imphal city. It is on the bank of the Leimakhong River, a tributary of the Imphal ...

. Raised in 1966 for counterinsurgency operations in

. Until 1990, headquartered at

Aizawl Aizawl (; Mizo: ) is the capital of the state of Mizoram in India. Aizawl was officially established on 25 February 1890. With a population of 293,416, it is the largest city in the state. It is also the centre of administration containing all ...

with III Corps.Conboy, Elite Forces of India and Pakistan, p.8 Globalsecurity.org reports the 57 Mountain Division headquarters are at Masimpur near Silchar. The formation and units of 57 Mountain Division are deployed in some of the remotest corner of Manipur and Indo-Burmese border. 57th Mountain Division took part in the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Decem ...

as part of IV Corps. It also successfully conducted

Operation Golden Bird Operation Golden Bird was an Indian-Myanmar military operation conducted by the Indian Army in April–May 1995. The operation was initiated by the 57th Mountain Division of the Indian Army, which tracked down and decapitated a rebel column ...

in 1995 to eliminate rebels in Northeast India.

Commanders

Reference list

External links

Australian War Memorial: Remembering 1942 The fall of Singapore, 15 February 1942

III Indian Corps History & Personnel
*http://www.orbat.com (History; Niehorster) {{DEFAULTSORT:03 Corps

003 003, O03, 0O3, OO3 may refer to: *003, fictional British 00 Agent *003, former emergency telephone number for the Norwegian ambulance service (until 1986) *1990 OO3, the asteroid 6131 Towen * OO3 gauge model railway *''O03 (O2)'' and other related ...

Corps of India in World War II Corps of India in World War I Military units and formations of the British Empire in World War II Military units and formations established in 1915 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919 Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1942 Military units and formations established in 1980 Corps of British India