45th Rattray's Sikhs
Encyclopedia
The 45th Rattray's Sikhs was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army
. They could trace their origins to the 1st Bengal Military Police Battalion raised in April 1856, at Lahore
, by Captain Thomas Rattray originally consisting of a troop of 100 cavalry and 500 infantry. The initial class composition of the troops was 50% Sikhs and 50% Dogras, Rajputs and Mussulmans (Muslims) from the Punjab and the North-West Frontier
. It is said that he went through the villages challenging men to wrestle with him on the condition that they had to join up. Whatever the case, the regiment was raised and trained and developed as an elite corps, which soon saw action in Bihar (then part of Eastern Bengal
) in the Sonthal 'purghanas'. After sterling service in Bihar, Bengal and Assam, and during the 1857 Mutiny/Rebellion, the cavalry portion was eventually disbanded in 1864 and the infantry section was taken into the line of Bengal Native Infantry as the '45th (Rattray's Sikh) Native Regiment of Infantry'.
After World War I the Indian government reformed the army moving from single battalion regiments to multi battalion regiments. In 1922, the 45th Rattray's Sikhs became the 3rd Battalion, 11th Sikh Regiment
. The regiment was allocated to the new India
on independence and is now the 3rd Battalion, the Sikh Regiment, with its headquarters at Ramgarh
, Jharkhand
(formerly part of Bihar
state), India.
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...
. They could trace their origins to the 1st Bengal Military Police Battalion raised in April 1856, at Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
, by Captain Thomas Rattray originally consisting of a troop of 100 cavalry and 500 infantry. The initial class composition of the troops was 50% Sikhs and 50% Dogras, Rajputs and Mussulmans (Muslims) from the Punjab and the North-West Frontier
North-West Frontier (military history)
The North-West Frontier was the most difficult area, from a military point of view, of the former British India in the Indian sub-continent. It remains the frontier of present-day Pakistan, extending from the Pamir Knot in the north to the Koh-i-Malik Siah in the west, and separating the...
. It is said that he went through the villages challenging men to wrestle with him on the condition that they had to join up. Whatever the case, the regiment was raised and trained and developed as an elite corps, which soon saw action in Bihar (then part of Eastern Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
) in the Sonthal 'purghanas'. After sterling service in Bihar, Bengal and Assam, and during the 1857 Mutiny/Rebellion, the cavalry portion was eventually disbanded in 1864 and the infantry section was taken into the line of Bengal Native Infantry as the '45th (Rattray's Sikh) Native Regiment of Infantry'.
After World War I the Indian government reformed the army moving from single battalion regiments to multi battalion regiments. In 1922, the 45th Rattray's Sikhs became the 3rd Battalion, 11th Sikh Regiment
11th Sikh Regiment
The 11th Sikh Regiment were 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....
. The regiment was allocated to the new India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
on independence and is now the 3rd Battalion, the Sikh Regiment, with its headquarters at Ramgarh
Ramgarh
Ramgarh Raj was a major Zamindari in the era of the British Raj.The areas that would later comprise the Ramgarh Raj had initially belonged to the Raja of Chhota Nagpur. Around the year AD 1368, the area witnessed unrest for reasons not now known. The Raja deputed two brothers by name Baghdeo and...
, Jharkhand
Jharkhand
Jharkhand is a state in eastern India. It was carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of Bihar to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the west, Orissa to the south, and West Bengal to the east...
(formerly part of Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
state), India.
Predecessor names
- 1856-63: 1st Bengal Military Police Battalion (Rattray's)
- 1864: 45th (Rattray’s Sikh) Regiment, BNI
- 1901: 45th Rattray’s Sikh Infantry