The 39th Garhwal Rifles 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 cou ...

History

The regiment was first raised in 1887 as the Aligarh Levy but was disbanded after disgracing itself at the Rawalpindi Review in 1888. In 1891, the 39th (The Garhwali) Regiment of Bengal Infantry was formed from the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Gurkha Rifles. In 1892, they were given the title of "Rifles". A second battalion was raised in 1901, making the regiment the only two battalion regiment in the Indian Army, except for the Gurkhas. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

both battalions were assigned to the Garhwal Brigade, which formed part of the

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, ...

. Initially they were sent to Europe and in the early part of the war, suffered heavy casualties on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers * Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a maj ...

. The regiment was then sent to the Middle East take part in the Mesopotamia Campaign. Two more battalions were raised during the war. The regiment was next in action during the Waziristan campaign 1919–1920. In 1921, the regiment was renamed as the "39th Royal Garhwal Rifles". During this time, the Indian government reorganized the structure of its infantry regiments, moving from single battalion regiments to multi-battalion regiments. In 1922, the 39th RGR was the only non-Gurkha Indian infantry regiment to remain intact and not be amalgamated. They were subsequently renumbered the 18th Royal Garhwal Rifles, consisting of three active battalions.

Victoria Cross recipients

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 previousl ...

(VC) is the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Indian troops only became eligible for the award in 1911. Three members of the regiment won the award: * Darwan Singh Negi was among the earliest

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

n recipients of the Victoria Cross. A Naik in the 1st Battalion, 39th Garhwal Rifles during World War I when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC, the citation was published in a supplement to the '' London Gazette'' of 4 December 1914 (dated 7 December 1914) and read: :His award was gazetted on the same date as that of Sepoy Khudadad Khan, But Negi considered the first Indian VC winner. * Gabar Singh Negi was a Rifleman in the 2nd Battalion, 39th Garhwal Rifles, during World War I and was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions on 10 March 1915 at the Battle of Neuve Chapelle,

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 ...

. * William David Kenny was a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the 4th Battalion, 39th Garhwal Rifles during the Waziristan Campaign when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC. The citation was published in a supplement to the ''London Gazette'' of 7 September 1920 (dated 9 September 1920):

Predecessor names

* 2nd Battalion, 3rd (Kamaon) Gurkha Regiment – 1887 * 39th (Garhwali) Bengal Infantry – 1890 * 39th (Garhwal Rifles) Bengal Infantry – 1892 * 39th Garhwal Rifles – 1903

References

Sources

* * * * * *

External links