Where would the British Army be without the Sikhs?

[dholki]

I've been rather surprised by all the media attention over the appearance of Guardsman Jatenderpal Bhullar on parade duty outside Buckingham Palace this week. For sure, Guardsman Bhullar, 25, has become the first Sikh to wear his turban on guard duty outside the palace. But it is not all that long ago that turban-wearing Sikhs were a familiar feature of Britain's military landscape, particularly when it came to fighting world wars.

During the glory days of the Indian Empire, Sikh soldiers were highly regarded by British officers for their martial prowess and never-say-die attitude. Sikh sepoys regularly fought alongside British soldiers during the frequent tribal revolts on the Afghan frontier in famous regiments such as Rattray's Sikhs, and the young Winston Churchill nearly lost his life rescuing a wounded Sikh when he fought in the Malakand campaign of 1897. At the Battle of Saragarhi on 12 September 1897, twenty-one Sikhs from the Indian Army's Sikh Regiment won awards for gallantry.

There were, of course, the occasional moments when the loyalty Britain's Sikh soldiers was called into question, most notably during the 1857 Indian Mutiny. But their bravery and courage became a mainstay of the British Army until Indian Independence, and thousands of Sikhs fought and died for Britain during two world wars.

Guardsman Bhullar, then, represents a long and distinguished tradition in the British Army, which today is still reflected in the traditional Sikh battle-cry, "Bole So Nihal, Sat Sri Akal" (Victory belongs to those who recite the name of God with a true heart).

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/concoughlin/100193886/where-would-the-british-army-be-without-the-sikhs/

[luckysingh99]

Sikhs were a great help in both world wars.

Infact, the sikhs were on the battlefield front line most of the time. The one time they were not put at the front, the german army pushed and pushed in for a a whole week until the sikhs were brought in and then saw the germans moving back within ONE Day!!!

Countries like Burma would not have been won over if it wasn't for the sikhs.

My grandfather was a famous sikh war veteran. It was because of his loyal services to the british army that he was welcomed and allowed to bring all family to reside in UK in the early 50's.

[Guest]

My grandfathers brother was in world war 2 and he told me many stories.Sadly he died in June.He was 100 years old.

[singh135]

Thank to above posters..very interesting. It woud be great to hear about other people's experiences. Does anyone else have any elders/family/friends who have been in the army. Which campaigns/wards/battles were they in and what were their experiences?

It would be great to build up a little collection of these stories before they get lost into history with elders passing away and taking their previous and invaluable memories/experiences with them. These are jewels of Sikh history and should be archived or at least spread and learnt about. We can start by sharing any memories/stories here in this thread.

[Mehtab Singh]

Question: Where would the British Army be without the Sikhs?

Answer: In the graveyard

Question: Where would the Indian Army be without the Sikhs?

Answer: In a PoW camp in Pakistan