Untold Tales, Restored Truth.

When the British Government declared war on Germany, both in August 1914 and in September 1939, it was not just the soldiers, sailors and airmen of the British Isles that they were committing to war but all military troops of what was then known as the British Empire.  This included the Dominions of Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa, and the many British territories scattered across the globe including, of course, India from where many of the Muslim soldiers were recruited. Read More

The total number of Indian Army troops who served in World War I was 1,440,437.  Of these, some 238,000 were Muslims.  Precise figures for the Royal Indian Marine are more difficult to determine but they crewed 13 principal vessels, some 40 smaller vessels and a sizeable number of shallow-draught rivercraft for use in Mesopotamia.  All were volunteers, though there are stories of pressure being brought to bear to enlist. Read more

The principal area of recruitment was the then undivided Punjab, now formed of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and that part of Western Punjab now in Pakistan. The principal groups or classes recruited included Punjabi and other Muslims as shown in the table below, as well as Sikhs, Jats, Pathans, Rajputs, Dogras, Garhwalis and Gurkhas. Read more

Yes, and there were some mutinies among and desertions of Muslim soldiers, as there were of other classes, but on the whole the concerns were largely unfounded. 

Turkey did not immediately enter World War I on the side of Germany in August 1914, but the prospect of her doing so did cause considerable concern in India, particularly since Turkey was seen by Muslims as the last true Muslim empire. Read more

This is difficult to define but essentially was used by British authorities in India to define those they considered suitable for recruitment into the Indian Army. Read more

As with the British Army it was organised into divisions, brigades, cavalry regiments and infantry battalions and supporting arms and services such as artillery, engineers, medical and veterinary. Read more

Although the East India Company had originally maintained an armed naval capability, responsibility for warlike duties was transferred to the Royal Navy in 1863, leaving the Indian Marine to man dockyards and transport vessels.  In 1892 it became the Royal Indian Marine and, while continuing to convey troops and stores between Indian ports and further afield, it also provided station vessels for Aden, Port Blair and Rangoon.  Its vessels were usually unarmed, though the Troopships “Hardinge” and “Dufferin” had been constructed for their use as Auxiliary Cruisers should the need arise, although in the event of war they would be transferred to the Royal Navy. Read more

The Indian Air Force expanded from an October 1939 position of One Army Co-operation Squadron numbering 285 officers and airmen to a July 1945 strength (by which time it was the Royal Indian Air Force) of 3 Fighter Recce Squadrons, 2 Ground Attack Squadrons, 2 Light Bomber Squadrons and 2 Fighter Squadrons with a total of 43,750 officers, men, enrolled followers and technical non-combatants. By August 1947, when India and Pakistan gained their independence and by which time the 1945 wartime strengths had been considerably reduced, 224 officers, 2189 airmen and 407 technical non-combatants, all of whom were obviously Muslim, transferred to the fledgling Pakistan Air Force. Read more

Artillery, Engineers and Sappers & Miners have already been referred to previously. The Indian Army, however, deployed vast numbers of support personnel, many of whom were classed as non-combatants though in effect they saw as much action as those of the ‘teeth’ arms. A reference to just two of these will demonstrate their front line service as well as their essential rear echelon support roles. Read more

It was not until World War I that Indians became eligible for King’s commissions – see Did any Indians receive commissions and serve as officers? so the following table applies to the majority of Indian troops. Read more

Indians received commissions from the Honourable East India Company as Native Officers, and after 1857 from the Viceroy as Viceroy’s Commissioned Officers, though the date on which this designation was introduced is subject to debate. Read more

World War I - Of the total number who served, including followers, 58,379 were killed or died of wounds or disease,  65,208 were wounded while 1,238 were recorded as missing or prisoners, a grand total of 124,825. Read more

World War 2 - 87,031 named on memorials, and a further 2,350 unknown, a total of 89,381. These numbers include the Royal Indian Navy and Royal Indian Air Force. [5] Read more

From an historical perspective, for over two hundred years tens of thousands of Muslim soldiers served the British Empire in her armies, and particularly in the British Indian Army.  Their service and sacrifice often merits little more than a footnote in military histories of the period although their names are commemorated on other memorials in different parts of the world.  Various events focussing on the centenary of the end of World War I and the seventy fifth anniversary of the end of World War 2 served to highlight the contribution of many Empire and Colonial forces.  Other communities, such as the Sikhs and the Gurkhas, have erected memorials to their participation.  This one focusses on the contribution of the Muslim soldier. Read more

Indian soldiers only became eligible for the Victoria Cross in 1911.  Until that time they had their own distinctive reward for gallantry known as the Indian Order of Merit. Read more

On 20th February 1947 the new Labour Prime Minister, Clement Attlee, announced in the House of Commons that Lord Mountbatten had been appointed to replace Lord Wavell as Viceroy, that the British would withdraw from India and power would be transferred to the Indians by June 1948 at the latest. Read more

Yes, though numbers are difficult to determine since declaration of religion is not mandatory for Armed Forces personnel.  From those who have declared a religion as at 1 October 2021 (the latest available information), Muslims account for 0.4 per cent of UK Regular Armed Forces. Read more

Yes.  From 1 August 1945 to 31 December 2021 (the latest data available), there were 45 deaths among UK armed forces personnel where their religion was recorded as either Muslim or Mohammedan on the Armed Forces Memorial database. Read more

Dr Irfan Malik

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An iron cannon cast in Scotland two centuries ago stands proudly in the centre of the Pakistani village of Dulmial – a testament to the community’s remarkable military tradition and its old ties with Britain. Its fame is such that Dulmial is known across Pakistan as the “village with the gun”. Read more

All history sources and links page. Read more