The 44th Merwara Infantry was an infantry regiment 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 ...

. They could trace their origins to 1824, when the Sylhet Light Infantry was raised. This first 44th eventually became the 44th Gurkhas and later 8th Gurkha Rifles. The Mhairwara Local Battalion became a civil unit in 1861, but returned to a military role as the Mhairwara Battalion in 1871. It became the 44th Merwara Infantry in 1903, after the

Kitchener reforms 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 cou ...

of the Indian Army. 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 ...

the regiment was part of the

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 ...

and took part in the

Battle of Shaiba The Battle of Shaiba (12–14 April 1915) was a battle of World War I fought between British and Ottoman forces, the latter trying to retake the city of Basra from the British. Background By capturing Basra, the British had taken an important ...

, the

Battle of Khafajiya A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

and the

Battle of Nasiriya A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

in the

Mesopotamia 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 Po ...

. Further reforms of the army were undertaken after World War I and nine single battalion regiments were disbanded. Being one of the nine, the 44th Merwara Infantry were disbanded on 20 June 1921.

Previous names

*The Mhairwara Local Battalion - 1822 *14th (Mhairwara) Local Battalion - 1823 *9th (Mhairwara) Local Battalion - 1826 *The Mhairwara Battalion - 1843 *The Ajmer and Mhairwara Police Corps - 1861 *The Mhairwara Battalion - 1871 *44th Merwara Infantry - 1903''Quarterly Indian Army List January 1919'', p. 1199

References

* * *''Quarterly Indian Army List January 1919''. Army Headquarters India. Calcutta, 1919. British Indian Army infantry regiments Military units and formations established in 1824 Bengal Presidency Military units and formations disestablished in 1921 1824 establishments in British India {{Mil-unit-stub