The 8th Mountain Division was raised as the 8th Indian Infantry

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

of the British Indian Army. It is now part 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- ...

and specialises in mountain warfare. The 8th Indian Infantry Division was formed as 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 mar ...

division in

Meerut Meerut (, IAST: ''Meraṭh'') is a city in Meerut district of the western part of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city lies northeast of the national capital New Delhi, within the National Capital Region and west of the state capital ...

on 25 October 1940 under

Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Charles Harvey, a British Indian Army

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

, as part of 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, ...

. It served in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

in the garrisoning of Iraq and then the invasion of Persia to secure the oil fields of the area for the Allies. A

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. B ...

was detached to the Western Desert to reinforce the

British Eighth Army The Eighth Army was an Allied field army formation of the British Army during the Second World War, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns. Units came from Australia, British India, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Free French Forces ...

as it withdrew before the

Axis forces The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...

. Following training in the Near East, the division entered the Italian Campaign landing at Taranto on mainland Italy. The division was disbanded at the end of World War II in 1946, but re-formed again in 1963 as a specialist mountain division of the Indian Army.

History

Despite its relatively late introduction into the mainstream of battle, its members won nearly 600 awards and honours including 4

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 ...

es, 26 DSOs and 149 MCs. During the war the 8th Indian Division sustained casualties totalling 2,012 dead, 8,189 wounded and 749 missing.

Iraq, Syria and Iran

When originally formed, the division's main fighting formations were 17th, 18th and 19th Indian Infantry Brigades. On 9 June 1941, 17th Brigade arrived in

Basra Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is han ...

and joined Iraqforce, which had fought the

Anglo-Iraqi War The Anglo-Iraqi War was a British-led Allied military campaign during the Second World War against the Kingdom of Iraq under Rashid Gaylani, who had seized power in the 1941 Iraqi coup d'état, with assistance from Germany and Italy. The ca ...

to secure the British-owned oilfields during May. These oilfields were perceived to be threatened when a coup d'état brought into power

Rashid Ali al-Kaylani Rashid Ali al-Gaylaniin Arab standard pronunciation Rashid Aali al-Kaylani; also transliterated as Sayyid Rashid Aali al-Gillani, Sayyid Rashid Ali al-Gailani or sometimes Sayyad Rashid Ali el Keilany (" Sayyad" serves to address higher standing ...

who was sympathetic to the

Axis powers The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...

. By the second half of June the brigade had moved to

Mosul Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second larg ...

to defend British-owned oilfields from an anticipated thrust by Axis forces south through the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...

. At the end of 1 June, 1/ 12th Frontier Force Regiment and 5/

13th Frontier Force Rifles The 13th Frontier Force Rifles was part of the British Indian Army, and after 1947, Pakistan Army. It was formed in 1922 by amalgamation of five existing regiments and consisted of five regular battalions. History The 13th Frontier Force Rifles' ...

were detached from 17th Brigade to join two battalions from

20th Indian Infantry Brigade The 20th Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. History The brigade was formed in September 1940, by the conversion of the Khojak Brigade and assigned to the 9th Indian Infantry Divisi ...

(part of 10th Indian Infantry Division) to take part in the Syria-Lebanon campaign and capture the Duck's Bill area in north east Syria and secure the Mosul to Aleppo railway. This was achieved without a shot being fired as the

Vichy French Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...

forces retired westwards. On 17 July,

Charles Harvey and the divisional HQ arrived in Basra and had 24th Indian Infantry Brigade (which had arrived on 16 June) assigned to the division. 18th Indian Infantry Brigade arrived in Iraq on 26 July. The British, having secured first the Iraqi oilfields and then Syria, now focused their concern on Persia (now

Iran 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 ...

) where it had been estimated there were some 3,000 German nationals working as technicians, commercial agents and advisors. The division first saw shots fired in anger during the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran in August 1941 when 24th Brigade made a night-time amphibious assault across the

Shatt al Arab Shatt may refer to: *the Shatt people *the Shatt language *the Shatt al-Arab river, which empties into the Persian Gulf *Chott In geology, a chott, shott, or shatt (; ar, شط, šaṭṭ, lit=bank, coast) is a salt lake in Africa's Maghreb that ...

to capture the oil refinery at Abadan in South

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 ...

. Meanwhile, 18th Brigade had crossed into Persia between Basra and Abadan to take

Khorramshahr Khorramshahr ( fa, خرمشهر , also Romanization, romanized as ''Khurramshahr'', ar, المحمرة, romanized as ''Al-Muhammerah'') is a city and capital of Khorramshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2016 census, its population wa ...

and became part of a three brigade advance (with '' Hazelforce'') towards

Ahwaz Ahvaz ( fa, اهواز, Ahvâz ) is a city in the southwest of Iran and the capital of Khuzestan province. Ahvaz's population is about 1,300,000 and its built-up area with the nearby town of Sheybani is home to 1,136,989 inhabitants. It is hom ...

, 75 miles north east of Basra. The fighting ended on 28 August when the

Shah Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...

ordered his forces to cease hostilities. The 19th Indian Infantry Brigade arrived in Iraq in August, replacing 24th Brigade (which transferred to 6th Indian Infantry Division), and by 17 October, 18th and 19th Brigades had concentrated at Kirkuk in northern Iraq and moved north of the oilfields where they were joined by the

6th Duke of Connaught's Own Lancers (Watson's Horse) The 6th Lancers is an armoured regiment of the Pakistan Army. Previously, it was known as the 6th Duke of Connaught's Own Lancers (Watson's Horse), and was a regular cavalry regiment in the British Indian Army. It was formed in 1921 by amalgamati ...

(6th DCO Lancers), the division's reconnaissance regiment.

North Africa

In June 1942 the 18th Brigade, having been rushed over to

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 ...

from Mosul, and with only two days to prepare defensive positions, was overrun by Erwin Rommel's tanks at Deir el Shein in front of the Ruweisat Ridge. In the process, however, they gained valuable time for the

to organise the defences for what was to be the

First Battle of El Alamein The First Battle of El Alamein (1–27 July 1942) was a battle of the Western Desert campaign of the Second World War, fought in Egypt between Axis (German and Italian) forces of the Panzer Army Africa—which included the under Field Marsha ...

, halting Rommel's advance towards Egypt. The brigade was never re-formed.

Iraq and Syria

From August 1942 the division, still a brigade short, became part of

Paiforce Iraqforce was a British and Commonwealth formation that came together in the Kingdom of Iraq. The formation fought in the Middle East during World War II. Background During World War I, the British Army defeated the Ottoman Army in the Middl ...

when Persia and Iraq became a separate command under

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Sir Henry Maitland Wilson in

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon. I ...

, ( Lieutenant-General

Edward Quinan General Sir Edward Pellew Quinan (9 January 1885 – 13 November 1960) was a British Army commander during the Second World War. In the early part of his career, he was involved in Indian Army campaigns in Afghanistan and Waziristan on the N ...

's Tenth Army in Iraq and Persia having previously come under Middle East Command in

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...

). As the threat from the north faded following the Axis defeats at Alamein and Stalingrad the division withdrew in October 1942 to

Kifri Kifri ( ar, کفري; ku, کفری, translit=Kifrî; tr, Kifri) is the central town of Kifri District in Diyala Governorate, Iraq. It has a Kurdish majority and a Turkmen and Arab minority. It is administered by Kurdistan Region but remains a ...

near Baghdad where it was joined by 21st Indian Infantry Brigade and the 3rd, 52nd and 53rd Field regiments of the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

. It spent the winter in intensive training. In January 1943 command of the 8th Indian Division passed to Major-General Dudley Russell (The Pasha), promoted after 15 months commanding the

5th Indian Infantry Brigade The 5th Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. It was converted from the 9th Indian Infantry Brigade in September 1939, and assigned to the 4th Indian Infantry Division. The brigade firs ...

, part of the excellent "Red Eagles"

4th Indian Infantry Division The 4th Indian Infantry Division, also known as the Red Eagle Division, is an infantry division of the Indian Army. This division of the British Indian Army was formed in Egypt in 1939 during the Second World War. During the Second World War, ...

. The 8th Indian Division moved in March 1943 to Damascus and continued to spend much of its time training, notably in

mountain warfare Mountain warfare (also known as alpine warfare) is warfare in mountains or similarly rough terrain. Mountain ranges are of strategic importance since they often act as a natural border, and may also be the origin of a water source (for example, ...

and combined operations. In June 1943 the division was selected to participate in the anticipated Dodecanese Campaign (" Operation Accolade"), and seize the Italian-occupied island of

Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...

, the chief Axis stronghold in the

Dodecanese Islands The Dodecanese (, ; el, Δωδεκάνησα, ''Dodekánisa'' , ) are a group of 15 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Turkey's Anatolia, of which 26 are inhabited. ...

. After frantic preparation and having loaded the first wave of ships, the division's participation was canceled when the Italian government surrendered and it was redirected to Italy which the German Army had continued to occupy.

Italy

On 24 September 1943 the 8th Indian Division landed in

Taranto Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label= Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important com ...

, to take its part in the Italian Campaign. The division landed 21 days after the initial invasion, as part of

V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to: France * 5th Army Corps (France) * V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Ar ...

, commanded by Lieutenant-General Charles Allfrey, serving alongside British 4th Armoured Brigade and the British 78th Infantry Division. For 19 months the division was almost continuously in action, advancing through mountainous country, crossing river after river. The formation later adopted the motto "One more river". A Universal Carrier and mortar team of the Indian 6th Royal Frontier Force in Italy, 13 December 1943

A Universal Carrier and mortar team of the Indian 6th Royal Frontier Force in Italy, 13 December 1943

From October 1943 to April 1944 the 8th Indian Division was part of the Allied thrust by the

, under General Sir Bernard Law Montgomery, up the Adriatic front on the Eastern side of Italy. This involved opposed river crossings of the Biferno, Trigno (October 1943), Sangro (November 1943) and Moro (December 1943). The following three months proved almost as arduous for, although there was no formal offensive, the period was characterised by patrolling and vicious skirmishes in very difficult terrain and abominable winter weather, which proved to be extremely demanding, both physically and mentally, and very stressful.

Cassino

When the spring came the 8th Indian Division was switched in great secrecy (along with the bulk of the British Eighth Army, now commanded by Lieutenant-General Sir Oliver Leese) 60 miles west across the Apennine Mountains to concentrate as part of Lieutenant-General Sidney C. Kirkmans

British XIII Corps XIII Corps was a corps-sized formation of the British Army that fought on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First World War and was reformed for service during the World War II, Second World War, serving in ...

, serving alongside the British 4th and 78th Infantry Division, 6th Armoured Divisions, as well as the

1st Canadian Armoured Brigade The 1st Canadian Army Tank Brigade, later known as 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade, was an armoured brigade of the Canadian Army, raised during the Second World War. The brigade was composed of the 11th, 12th and 14th Canadian Armoured regiments ...

, along the River Garigliano at a part of the river better known as the

Gari Gari may refer to: Places *Gari, Tombouctou Region, Mali, a village *Gari, Russia, several inhabited localities * Gari, Kruševac, Serbia, a village *Gari (river), Monte Cassino, Lazio, Italy *Gari, an Indigenous name for Fraser Island in Queens ...

. Their heavily opposed night crossing of the Gari in May 1944, supported by Canadian tanks (1st Canadian Armoured Brigade) with which the division had formed a particularly close fighting relationship over the previous six months, was critical to the Allies' success in this, the fourth and final Battle of Monte Cassino. Following this, the division advanced some 240 miles in June across mountainous country, fighting many actions against rearguards and defended strongpoints. In late June they had reached Assisi and the division was rested. It was during the fighting on the Gari that Kamal Ram of the 3rd Battalion,

8th Punjab Regiment The 8th Punjab Regiment was a regiment of the British Indian Army from 1922 to 1947. It was transferred to Pakistan Army on Partition of India in 1947 and merged with the Baluch Regiment in 1956. History Madras Infantry The 8th Punjab Regimen ...

was awarded his

. At 19 years of age, he was one of the youngest recipients of the VC during the Second World War.

Florence and the Gothic Line

By the end of July 1944, after a few weeks out of the line, the 8th Indian Division was back in the line with

in front of

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

pushing towards the River Arno. Florence was occupied by the 21st Indian Infantry Brigade on 12 August where they had the unusual task to recover some of the world's greatest art treasures and arrange safe custody. By mid-September the division was in the mountains again, breaking through the Gothic Line and then spending two months of grim (and ultimately unsuccessful) battling in foul weather towards the plains of Northern Italy, together with the British 1st Infantry, 78th Infantry and 6th Armoured Divisions, alongside the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade, forming

. XIII Corps had now become the right wing of the U.S. Fifth Army, commanded by

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 ...

Mark W. Clark Mark Wayne Clark (May 1, 1896 – April 17, 1984) was a United States Army officer who saw service during World War I, World War II, and the Korean War. He was the youngest four-star general in the US Army during World War II. During World War I ...

. It was during this time that Thaman Gurung of the 1st Battalion,

5th Royal Gurkha Rifles 5th Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force), also abbreviated as 5 GR(FF) is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army comprising Gurkha soldiers of Nepalese origin. It was formed in 1858 as part of the British Indian Army. The regiment's battalions serve ...

was awarded the Victoria Cross. In December 1944 the 2nd New Zealand Division, advancing from the Adriatic on the division's right along the Romagna plain, took Faenza and the resistance on the 8th Indian Division's front weakened as the Germans withdrew to shorten their front. In late December 1944,

19th 19 (nineteen) is the natural number following 18 and preceding 20. It is a prime number. Mathematics 19 is the eighth prime number, and forms a sexy prime with 13, a twin prime with 17, and a cousin prime with 23. It is the third full re ...

and 21st Brigades were rapidly switched across the Apennines to reinforce the U.S. 92nd Infantry Division on the Fifth Army's left flank in front of

Lucca Lucca ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its province has a population of 383,957. Lucca is known as one ...

. By the time they had arrived the Germans had broken through but decisive action by Major-General Russell halted their advance and the situation was stabilised by the New Year. The 8th Indian Division then moved to Pisa for a period of rest.

Spring offensive 1945

In mid-February 1945 the division was back in the line on the Adriatic front, this time as part of

, in front of the River

Senio The Senio is a river of Romagna in Italy, the final right-sided tributary of the river Reno. The source of the river is in the province of Florence in the Appennino Tosco-Emiliano mountains. The river flows northeast into the province of Ravenna ...

. The main assault on the Senio started on 9 April. In desperate fighting two members of the division, Namdeo Jadav and Ali Haidar, were awarded the

. By 11 April the division reached and crossed the River

Santerno The Santerno is a river in Romagna in northern Italy. It is a major tributary of the river Reno. In Roman times, it was known as the ''Vatrenus'' (small ''Renus''), although, in the Tabula Peutingeriana, it was already identified as the ''Santer ...

breaking open a hole in the German line for the British 78th Division and elements of British 56th Division to engage the enemy and defeat them in the Argenta Gap. This opened the way to Ferrara and the Po River and for the British 6th Armoured Division to pass through, veer left and race westward across country to link with the advancing U.S. Fifth Army, now commanded by

Lucian Truscott General Lucian King Truscott Jr. (January 9, 1895 – September 12, 1965) was a highly decorated senior United States Army officer, who saw distinguished active service during World War II. Between 1943–1945, he successively commanded the 3rd ...

, and complete the encirclement of the divisions of the German

10th 10 (ten) is the even natural number following 9 and preceding 11. Ten is the base of the decimal numeral system, by far the most common system of denoting numbers in both spoken and written language. It is the first double-digit number. The re ...

and 14th Armies defending

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

. In the aftermath of the Argenta fighting, the 8th Indian Division drove on rapidly through to Ferrara and across the Po and shortly thereafter to their last river crossing of the war, the

Adige The Adige (; german: Etsch ; vec, Àdexe ; rm, Adisch ; lld, Adesc; la, Athesis; grc, Ἄθεσις, Áthesis, or , ''Átagis'') is the second-longest river in Italy, after the Po. It rises near the Reschen Pass in the Vinschgau in the pro ...

. The campaign ended on 2 May 1945. The 6th DCO Lancers marked the occasion with a special mission, sending an officer and nine men far up the road towards Austria and arranged the surrender of 11,000 men of their old enemy, the German 1st Parachute Division.

Formation and order of battle during World War II

General Officer Commanding: *Major-General Charles Harvey (Oct 1940 – Dec 1942) *Major-General Dudley Russell (Jan 1943 – Aug 1945) *Brigadier T. S. Dobree (acting) (18 Feb – 11 March 1945) *Brigadier T. S. Dobree (acting) (3–18 Jun 1945)

Headquarters

(Div Reconnaissance Reg) *

*Divisional artillery: :Brigadier R.V.M. Garry (Oct 1940 – Sep 1942) :Brigadier M.W. Dewing (Sep 1942 – Sep 1944) :Brigadier F.C. Bull (Sep 1944 – Jul 1945) :Brigadier T.S. Dobree (Jul 1945 – Aug 1945) **HQ **3 Field Regt, RA ** 52 (Manchester) Field Regt, RA ** 53 (Bolton) Field Regt, RA **26 Light Anti-Aircraft Regt RA ** 4 Mahratta Anti-Tank Regt *Indian Engineers: Sappers & Miners **7, 66 69 Field Coys.

King George V's Own Bengal Sappers and Miners The Bengal Engineer Group (BEG) (informally the Bengal Sappers or Bengal Engineers) is a military engineering regiment in the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army. The unit was originally part of the Bengal Army of the East India Company's B ...

**43 Field Park Coy.

*8 Indian Div Signals *5th Royal Battalion Machine Gun

5th Mahratta Light Infantry The 5th Mahratta Light Infantry was a regiment of the British Indian Army. It was formed in 1922, when the Indian government reformed the army moving from single battalion regiments to multi battalion regiments. The regiment fought in World Wa ...

17th Indian Infantry Brigade

Commanders: *Brigadier John Geoffrey Bruce (Nov 1940 – May 1941) *Brigadier

Douglas Gracey General Sir Douglas David Gracey & Bar (3 September 1894 – 5 June 1964) was a British Indian Army officer who fought in both the First and Second World Wars. He also fought in French Indochina and was the second Commander-in-Chief of the P ...

(May 1941 – Mar 1942) *Brigadier F.A.M.B. Jenkins (Mar 1942 – Oct 1943) *Brigadier H.L. Wyndham (Oct 1943 – Nov 1943) *Brigadier J. Scott-Elliot (Nov 1943 – Jan 1944) *Brigadier Charles Boucher (Feb 1944 – Jan 1945) *Brigadier P.R. Macnamara (Jan 1945 – Aug 1945) **HQ **1st Battalion, Royal Fusiliers **1st Battalion, 12th Frontier Force Regiment **1st Battalion, 5th Royal Gurkha Rifles (Frontier Force) **1st Battalion,

Jaipur Infantry Jaipur (; Hindi Language, Hindi: ''Jayapura''), formerly Jeypore, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Rajasthan. , the city had a pop ...

, Indian States Forces (Nov 1944 to Apr 1945)

18th Indian Infantry Brigade (up to June 1942)

Commanders: *Brigadier Rupert Lochner (Oct 1940 – Aug 1942) **HQ **2/5th Battalion,

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

(from Dec 1941) **4th Battalion,

11th Sikh Regiment The 11th Sikh Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1922, when after World War I the Indian government reformed the army moving from single battalion regiments to multi battalion regiments.S ...

(from Apr 1942) **2nd Battalion,

3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles The 3rd Gorkha Rifles or Third Gorkha Rifles, abbreviated as 3 GR is an Indian Army infantry regiment. It was originally a Gurkha regiment of the British Indian Army formed in 1815. This regiment recruit mainly Magars and Khas/Chhetri tribes. T ...

**1st Battalion, 2nd King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles (until Apr 1942) **3rd Battalion,

10th Baluch Regiment The 10th Baluch or Baluch Regiment was a regiment of the British Indian Army from 1922 to 1947. After independence, it was transferred to the Pakistan Army. In 1956, it was amalgamated with the 8th Punjab and Bahawalpur Regiments. During more ...

(until Oct 1941)

19th Indian Infantry Brigade

Commanders: *Brigadier C.W.W. Ford (Oct 1940 – Feb 1943) *Brigadier T.S. Dobree (Feb 1943 – Jul 1945) *Brigadier W. Sandison (Jul 1945 – Aug 1945) **HQ **1/5th Battalion,

(up to March 1944) **1st Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (from Feb 1944) **3rd Battalion,

**6th Battalion,

21st Indian Infantry Brigade (from October 1942)

Commanders: *Brigadier C.J. Weld (Sep 1940 – May 1942) *Brigadier J.J. Purves (May 1942 – Mar 1943) *Brigadier B.S. Mould (Mar 1943 – Aug 1945) **HQ **5th Battalion,

Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army based in the county of Kent in existence from 1881 to 1961. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, originally as the Queen' ...

(Nov 1942 to Jun 1945) **1st Battalion,

(from Nov 1942) **3rd Battalion, 15th Punjab Regiment (from Apr 1943) **1st Battalion, Jaipur Infantry, Indian State Forces (from Apr 1945) **2nd Battalion,

8th Gurkha Rifles The 8th Gorkha Rifles is a Gorkha regiment of the Indian Army. It was raised in 1824 as part of the British East India Company and later transferred to the British Indian Army after the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The regiment served in World War I ...

(Jun 1942 to Jan 1943)

Support units

*Royal Indian Army Service Corps **8 Ind Div Troops Tpt Coy **17, 19 & 21 Brigade Tpt Coys **Div Supply Units *Medical Services **I.M.S-R.A.M.C-I.M.D-I.H.C-I.A.M.C **29, 31,& 33 Indian Field Ambulances *8 Indian Div Provost Unit *Indian Army Ordnance Corps **8 Indian Div Ordnance FD Park *Indian Electrical & Mechanical Engineers **120,121 & 122 Infantry Workshop Coys **8 Indian Div Recovery Coy

Assigned brigades

All these brigades were assigned or attached to the division at some time during World War II * 24th Indian Infantry Brigade *

25th Indian Infantry Brigade The 25th Indian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the Indian Army during World War II. It was formed in February, 1941 at Ahmednagar in India and assigned to the 10th Indian Infantry Division. The brigade was attached to the 8 ...

* 2nd British Parachute Brigade *

* 12th British Infantry Brigade * 21st British Army Tank Brigade * Palestine Infantry Brigade/

Jewish Brigade The Jewish Infantry Brigade Group, more commonly known as the Jewish Brigade Group or Jewish Brigade, was a military formation of the British Army in the World War II, Second World War. It was formed in late 1944 and was recruited among Yishuv, Y ...

Post re-raising

The division was re-raised on 01 August 1963 at Ranchi with Major General KP Candeth as the first General Officer Commanding (GOC). The division differs from more conventional

divisions in the emphasis that is placed on infantry tactics and the limited role that armour can be expected to take in operations in mountainous terrain. The armour that is used may differ from that used by other infantry divisions, for example, specialised mountain guns are required in many areas where the division might be expected to operate. The division has been constantly involved in operations since its creation, earning the sobriquet Forever in Operations Division. It was initially created for operations against insurgents fighting for a separate 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 ...

and headquartered at Zakhama (near

Kohima Kohima (; Angami Naga: ''Kewhira'' ()), is the capital of the Northeastern Indian state of Nagaland. With a resident population of almost 100,000, it is the second largest city in the state. Originally known as ''Kewhira'', Kohima was founded ...

). As part of ''Operation Orchid'', it was deployed in the hills of Nagaland,

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 ...

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", the self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo language means "lan ...

and

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 ...

for counter insurgency operations.

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

The division took part in the liberation of

East Pakistan East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wi ...

, (now

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

) in the North Eastern Sector. The division was commanded by Major General K. V. Krishna Rao. The order of battle for the division was as follows - 8 Mountain Division (Major General K.V. Krishna Rao) *5 ad hoc Independent Armoured Squadron *84 BSF *85 BSF *93 BSF *104 BSF 59 Mountain Brigade (Brigadier C.A. Quinn) *9 Guards *6

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

*4/

5 Gorkha Rifles 5th Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force), also abbreviated as 5 GR(FF) is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army comprising Gurkha soldiers of Nepalese origin. It was formed in 1858 as part of the British Indian Army. The regiment's battalions serve ...

East Bengal Regiment The East Bengal Regiment ( bn, ইস্ট বেঙ্গল রেজিমেন্ট) is an infantry regiment ( regimental system type) and the largest military formation of the Bangladesh Army. History The East Bengal Regiment was for ...

81 Mountain Brigade (Brigadier Raja C.V. Apte) *3

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 a ...

Kumaon Kumaon or Kumaun may refer to: * Kumaon division, a region in Uttarakhand, India * Kumaon Kingdom, a former country in Uttarakhand, India * Kumaon, Iran, a village in Isfahan Province, Iran * , a ship of the Royal Indian Navy during WWII See also ...

*10

Mahar Mahar, meaning "original inhabitants of Maharashtra" (in various languages), is an Indian caste found largely in the state of Maharashtra and neighbouring areas. Most of the Mahar community followed B. R. Ambedkar in converting to Buddhism i ...

*99 Mountain Regiment Echo Sector (Brigadier M.B. Wadke) *5/

*86 BSF *3 East Bengal Regiment BSF Sector (Brigadier Kulwant Singh) *87 BSF The division was to advance along the line

Dharmanagar Dharmanagar or (''Dhôrmônôgôr'') is a town with a municipal council in the northeast of India. It is the administrative center for North Tripura district, located in the northernmost region of the state near the Assam border on the west and ...

Kulaura Kulaura ( bn, কুলাউড়া) is the biggest upazila (subdistrict) of the Moulvibazar District in north-eastern Bangladesh. The total area of this upazila is 545 km2. Hakaluki Haor, the largest marsh wetland in Sylhet and one of the ...

- Maulvi Bazar securing Shamshernagar Airport and Maulvi Bazar and thereafter head for Sylhet. The Sylhet area was surrounded on three sides by Indian territory and was defended by the 202 and 313 Pakistani brigades of 14 Division. The plans for the various brigades was as follows- *59 Mountain Brigade - Dharmanagar - Sylhet axis *81 Mountain Brigade - to capture Shamshernagar and Maulvi Bazar and advance to Sylhet *Echo Sector - Jaintiapur - Sylhet axis *BSF Sector -

Karimganj Karimganj is a city in the Karimganj District of the Indian state of Assam. It is the administrative headquarters of the district. Karimganj city is located at . The area of Karimganj city is 16.09 km2. It has an average elevation of 13 ...

- Charkai axis 81 Mountain Brigade secured the Shamshernagar complex on the midday of 2 December 1971 against stiff resistance. 59 Mountain Brigade reached Kulaura on same day, but took till 6 December for it to be captured. 81 Mountain Brigade resumed its advance and secured Munshi Bazaar by 5 December. 4/5 Gorkha Rifles was air-lifted using

Mi-8 The Mil Mi-8 (russian: Ми-8, NATO reporting name: Hip) is a medium twin-turbine helicopter, originally designed by the Soviet Union in the 1960s and introduced into the Soviet Air Force in 1968. It is now produced by Russia. In addition t ...

helicopters to the southeast of Sylhet. 81 Mountain Brigade entered Maulvi Bazar on 9 December without meeting much opposition. It secured the ferries at Saidpur and Sherpur. Having met it assigned objectives, the brigade was pulled out to Agartala airfield as corps reserve. 59 Mountain Brigade advanced towards Sylhet and captured Fenchuganj on 11 December. 5/5 Gorkha Rifles captured Chandghat, surrounding Sylhet from the north-east. From 13 December onwards, Sylhet fortress was surrounded from all directions and the garrison surrendered on 17 December. Echo sector captured Jaintiapur, but got held up at Sarighat on 7 December, as the bridge there was blown off. By 10 December, Echo sector advanced up to Hemu, capturing it on the same night. It captured Chandighat on 12 December and Khadim Nagar on 15 December.

Relocation

The formation was moved to the state of Jammu and Kashmir in March 1990 in response to conflict there. It was concentrated in the Kashmir valley and tasked for counter insurgency operations. It was put under the Northern Command and also served as its reserve division. In addition to counter insurgency operations ''(Operation Rakshak)'', the division helped in the conduct of the 1996 parliamentary elections in Srinagar and

Baramulla district Baramulla district or Varmul (in Kashmiri) is one of the 20 districts in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Baramulla town is the administrative headquarters of this district. The district covered an area of in 2001, but it wa ...

s. Prior to the

Kargil War The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referr ...

, the division had the following brigades- *56 Mountain Brigade at Wusan in

Ganderbal district The Ganderbal district, or more formally District Ganderdal, is a district in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Ganderbal town is administrative headquarters of district. It was formed in 2007 and has 6 subdistricts (tehsils): ...

*192 Mountain Brigade in the northern parts of the valley, including

Sopore Sopore, known as Suyyapur in antiquity, is a city in the Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is north-west of Srinagar, and north-east from the city of Baramulla. Sopore Town has Asia's second largest fruit mandi (wholesale ...

*81 Mountain Brigade *8 Mountain Artillery Brigade in Tangmarg *11 Sector

Rashtriya Rifles The Rashtriya Rifles (RR; ) is a counter-insurgency force in India, formed in 1990, to specifically serve in the Jammu and Kashmir region. They also maintain public order by drawing powers from the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Po ...

in southern Kashmir

Kargil War (Operation Vijay)

The 8th was shifted 1 June 1999 to

XV Corps 15th Corps, Fifteenth Corps, or XV Corps may refer to: *XV Corps (British India) * XV Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I * 15th Army Corps (Russian Empire), a unit in World War I *XV Royal Bav ...

for the Kargil conflict, taking over vacant positions formerly held by 28th Mountain Division. The division under command of Major General Mohinder Puri moved north to take over the Dras- Mushkoh sector in the Kargil District. It augmented the beleaguered 3rd Infantry Division, which was based in Leh. The soldiers had to face the twin challenges of being moved to a high altitude environment and a frigid climate, without the benefit of acclimatization and adequate winter supplies. Following initial reversals, units from the division went on to dislodge the Pakistani infiltrators and capture back Indian territories by using the strategy of preliminary artillery bombardment, followed by climbing near-vertical cliffs during night time in high altitude, multi-directional attacks with overwhelming force and close combat. Prominent battles fought by the division during the war include

Battle of Tololing The Battle of Tololing was a pivotal battle in the Kargil War between India's 2nd Rajputana Rifles's and troops from one full bn of Pakistan’s Northern Light Infantry who were aided by Pakistani irregulars in 1999. The Tololing peak is a dom ...

, Battle of Point 5140, Battle of Black Rock, Battle of Point 4700,

Battle of Tiger Hill The Battle of Tiger Hill encompasses the battles fought in and around the peak of Tiger Hill between the Indian Army and Pakistan from the final week of May till second week of June 1999, during the Kargil War. The battle, with the concomita ...

, Battle of Point 4875 (Gun Hill) and the capture of Twin Bumps. The brigades under the division during the Kargil war were as follows. (The full order of battle (ORBAT) can be found here- '' Kargil order of battle'') *56 Mountain Brigade (Brigadier Amar Aul) *192 Mountain Brigade (Brigadier M.P.S. Bajwa) *8 Mountain Artillery Brigade (Brigadier Lakhwinder Singh) Additional brigades under the division- * 50 Parachute Brigade *79 Mountain Brigade (XV Corps reserve) (Brigadier RK Kakkar) *121 (Independent) Infantry Brigade (Brigadier O.P. Nandrajog) Drasswarmemorial

The division won the bulk of the gallantry awards during the Kargil war. Prominent among them include-

Param Vir Chakra The Param Vir Chakra (PVC) is India's highest military decoration, awarded for displaying distinguished acts of valour during wartime. Param Vir Chakra translates as the "Wheel of the Ultimate Brave", and the award is granted for "most conspicu ...

* Captain Vikram Batra, 13 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles * Rifleman Sanjay Kumar, 13 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles * Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav, 18 Grenadiers

Maha Vir Chakra The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) () is the second highest military decoration in India, after the Param Vir Chakra, and is awarded for acts of conspicuous gallantry in the presence of the enemy, whether on land, at sea or in the air. It replaced the B ...

* Major Rajesh Singh Adhikari, 18 Grenadiers * Major Vivek Gupta, 2 Rajputana Rifles * Major Padmapani Acharya, 2 Rajputana Rifles * Captain Anuj Nayyar, 17 Jat * Captain Neikezhakuo Kenguruse, 2 Rajputana Rifles * Lieutenant Balwan Singh, 18 Grenadiers * Naik Digendra Kumar, 2 Rajputana Rifles *Naik Imliakum Ao, 2 Naga

The present

The division is headquartered at Khumbathang,

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu ...

and is now part of

XIV Corps 14 Corps, 14th Corps, Fourteenth Corps, or XIV Corps may refer to: * XIV Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * XIV Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World ...

. It is tasked to look after the Line of Control.

Badge

During World War II the insignia of the division was a yellow four-leafed clover (some versions appear as three-leafed -see images) flanked on each side by a yellow three-leafed clover, their stalks forming a "V", all on a red background. The division and its members were thus referred to as "clovers". During the period the Scotsmen of the 1st Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders served in the division, in the 19th Indian Infantry Brigade, the Jock soldiers fondly referred to the division insignia as "the three wee floo'ers" (the three little flowers). In its second incarnation, the formation sign of the division depicts a red dagger superimposed on two overlapping gold circles on a black background.

Notes

References

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External links

*http://www.orbat.info/cimh/divisions/Indian%208th%20Division.pdf {{DEFAULTSORT:08 Indian Infantry Division Indian World War II divisions Divisions of the Indian Army British Indian Army divisions Military units and formations established in 1940 Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 Military units and formations established in 1962 History of the Bengal Sappers Military units and formations of the British Empire in World War II