77

Chapter 3

Military History of Gujarat

Introduction

1. The important events from the time of establishment of East India Company in 1600 A.D.

to the independence of India in 1947 are appended in Appendix F. The list shows the flow of

important happenings in India and the world at that time.

1.1 The territory of modern day Gujarat state resembled the Mughal Subah of Gujarat in 18th

century. Gujarat has had three major subdivisions based on distinctive cultures, namely mainlandGujarat, Saurashtra and Kutch. The mainland portion has three sub-parts namely North Gujaratcomprising of present day districts of Banaskantha1,Sabarkantha, Pattan, Mehsana, Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad; Central part consists of districtsof Kheda, Anand, Vadodara, Dahod, Panchmahal and Narmada; and the South Gujarat hasdistricts of Bharuch, Surat, Navsari, Valsad and Dangs. Our discussion in this chapter deals withthe mainland Gujarat and discusses Saurashtra and Kutch to the extent if they affected theGaekwad expeditions to collect tribute or positioning of armed units in those parts.1.2 This political turmoil led to emergence of reportedly 272 principalities. The Gujarat

mainland principalities continuously made efforts to control the Saurashtra and Kutch region.

The popular dynasties which made military assertions in Kutch were Vaghers, Solankies,

Nawabs of Palanpur and Gaekwads of Baroda.

1.3 The British East India Company had only some areas of Gujarat region under their

control in 18th century. It is only around the beginning of 19th century that British hegemony was

established in Ahmedabad, Bharuch and Surat. Gaekwad forces were located at Dhari near

Amreli in Junagadh sarkar and Okha Battalion in Dwarika pargana by the turn of 19th century.

The British East India Company ensured the overlordship of Gaekwads in the Saurashtra region.

The British officials collected tribute from Saurashtra since 1807 A.D. and from Mewasi areas of

North Gujarat from 1811-12. Kutch also accepted British subsidiary alliance in 1819 A.D.

Mercantile Ethos in Gujarat of 18 and 19th century

2,1 The role of merchants in the 18th century Gujarat has been widely researched. The

bankers played a major role in the political affairs of the state. The perennial want of resources

by the Mughal and Maratha rulers and lack of access to ready cash encouraged the direct

involvement of the Gujarati bankers and merchants (Batchu, 2009:8)2. It is said that bankers and

merchants used to collect cash and ornaments and handover to threatening Marathas to save their

towns from destruction. The soldiers were paid in cash by these bankers.

78

2.3 The decentralization after Mughal rule led to the emergence of a military market (Kolff,

Dirk H A, 1990)3. Mughal Empire in India was the biggest employer of martial elements. Many

groups organised on ethnic lines found employment as soldiers like Gosains, Arabs, Rohillas

(persons from Bareilly ,Rampur , Moradabad, Pilibhit and Shahjahanpur districts of Uttar

Pradesh and adjoining areas) and Sindhis ( areas now in Pakistan).

2.4 The British assumed the role of mediators between the smaller chieftains and the

Marathas in Gujarat for tribute payment that the Marathas were entitled to as overlords. This

ended the annual Mulkgiri or tribute collection expeditions undertaken by the Marathas. It has

been researched that the ganim Marathas were feared by the common people. Many garbas and

pavdas were written and sung describing the loot and depredations committed by the Marathas.

Such situations were saved by the intervention of Nagarsheths, Shroffs who paid the ransom

money to raiders to save the towns from loot and destruction.

2.5 The mansabdari system followed by Mughal rulers gave way to mercenary extraction of

tribute from the peasants by employing soldiers for this task. The soldiers were referred to as

sibandis and were controlled by Jamadars.The jamadars have been described by Dirk H.A. Kolff4 as jobbers or the persons who would get jobs to the young. Jamadars acquired lot of

importance. Arabs were the most sought after soldiers for sibandi tasks. The British East India

Company considered Arab sibandis as a threat to their rule and so dismissed them from their

service.

Militias/Mercenaries of Gujarat in 18th century

Nature of militias The individual soldier was called sibandi. In the Persian literature the

infantry (foot soldier) is referred to as sibandi pyadah and the cavalry (horse mounted soldier) as

sibandi sawar.

3. The local Gujarati chiefs maintained military contingents to ward off frequent attacks by

Marathas to extract annual tribute and raids by recalcitrant groups like the girasias, Kathis and

Kolis. In Dholka for example, the Girasia chief of Kounte had two thousand sibandis and 150

horsemen in his service. Arabs were employed as sibandis by the chieftains of the region. Bhils

who controlled Rajpipla during 1810-15 employed Arab and Sindhi sibandis (Walter Hamilton :

713)5.

3.1 The sibandis performed many duties during this period. They worked as soldiers in themilitia of various principalities. As various chiefs were constantly trying to expand theirauthority there was always a demand for the sibandis to be employed as soldiers. They weregiven paid employment for short durations and were dismissed after their need was over.

79

3.2 Sibandis were also employed to guard the town gates. Merchants employed the sibandis

to protect themselves against the harassment of the officials such as the faujdars and the Nazims

who tried to fleece merchants on the flimsiest of pretexts. Kapur Chand Bhansali, the

Nagarsheth6 of Ahmedabad around 1719-20 (Mirat : 398)7 and Kushal Chand, Nagarsheth

during around 1733 A.D. (Mirat : 516)8, according to the Mirat-i-Ahmadi employed sibandis to

protect themselves against the Naib-Nazim’s harassment.

Organisation

4. A contingent of sibandis was headed by a jamadar9. The jemadars were of various ethnic

groups: Arabs, Rohillas, Sindhis, and Sidis etc. However, it was not always necessary that the

contingent of a jamadar may also be composed of members of the same community. A jamadar

as head of the contingent was responsible for many things10. He negotiated the salary of the

sibandis and played a prominent role in the military labour market by deciding the tenure and the

terms and conditions of service of the sibandis. Thus he acted as the representative of the

sibandis and looked after their interests. The employer dealt with individual sibandis only

through him. The jamadar also ensured payment of salaries to the sibandis. A jamadar’s sibandi

contingent consisted of 100 to 150 men. The jamadars were inducted through the agency of the

Vakil of the princely state who would approach jamadar and enroll him by paying some amount

of money. The jamadar would then raise the contingent of the sibandis and report for duty.

Class Composition of Sibandi Contingents

5. The sibandis in the region were of heterogeneous groups11. They could be broadly

categorized into the local or indigenous, such as qasbatis (town guards), kolis, rabaris, jutts etc.,

and those who came from outside (non-indigenous) to seek employment in Gujarat such as

Arabs, Marwaris, Sindhis, Baluchis, Rohillas, Sidis, Purabiyas, Mavlas, Gosains etc. By the

middle of the 18 th century the non-indegenous groups seem to have outnumbered the locals as

they were recruited in all the major principalities of Gujarat in greater numbers. The local

sibandis were attached to their lands while the non-indigenous sibandis were mobile.

5.1 Amongst the non-indigenous sibandis the most popular ethnic group was that of the

Arabs who appeared to have made their appearance in Gujarat from the first quarter of the 18th

century12. The first mention of Arabs being employed as sibandis in our sources is in relation to

the contingent of Meher Ali Khan, a mansabdar. (Mirat : 402)13 Later, Shujaat Khan, the Naib

Nazim had in his service seven to eight thousand sawar and pyadah including such categories as

the Qasbatis, Arabs and Dakhanis. (Mirat : 417)14 Momin Khan I of Cambay had a party of Arab

and Rohilla soldiers. (Mirat :601)15 The Marathas too employed these sibandi groups. Shripat

Rao was said to have a contingent of Arab and Sindhi sibandis.

80

5.2 Towards the end of 18 th century some instances of Gosains being employed in Gujarat

are recorded. (HSBSR IV : 479)16 There was one instance of Pathans, 17 Afghans and Baluch

sibandis Tarikh-i-Sorath : 193)18 (there was one instance of Sikh sibandis) 19 finding employment

in Gujarat. Marwadi sibandis were employed in Kutch and Palanpur. (Burnes James, 1831

:183)20 The Marwadis are not reported in other areas of Gujarat besides Palanpur and Kutch

where they were found employed possibly because these two areas were close to Marwar region.

It appears that the non-indigenous sibandis were regarded to be more efficient than the local

ones. This was evidenced from the reply of Ali Mohammad Khan to his father’s query as to who

would win the war between Shujaat Khan and Hamid Khan. Ali Mohammad Khan had replied

that Shujaat Khan had an army consisting of Gujarati Qasbatis (locals) who would never form up

themselves in a war nor remain steady in their support and would run away when confronted

with the invaders.

5.3 The indigenous sibandis, called qasbatis, 21 in the region lacked organization and skills.

These Qasbatis were to be found in the whole of Gujarat but were most active in Saurashtra. In

the mainland Gujarat, the Qasbatis were employed from early in the century by Mughal faujdars.

Gradually, however, the non-indigenous sibandis replaced them and they were confined only to

the interiors of Saurashtra. They acted as manotidars in Dholka and Dhandhuka parganas, where

they were more powerful. Amongst the Qasbatis of Dholka was one Bawa Miah who extended

support to a Maratha force in 1800 A.D. with 200 followers to oust Aba Shelukar from

Ahmadabad. Baba Miah later helped the British army against Malhar Rao of Kadi in 1803 A.D.

(Forbes A.K. :66)22

5.4 The Qasbatis in Saurashtra were referred to as Patanis (Tarikh-i-Sorath:66) 23. Ranchodji

Amarji, the author of Tarikh-i-Sorath, has stated that the Qasbatis of the region of Somnath-

Patan were converted to Islam in some foregone times and since then they were called Patanis.

In the 18th century, these Patanis seemed to have spread within Saurashtra finding work as

sibandis in the various chieftaincies. Thus, they were to be found at Junagadh, Nawanagar

(Jamnagar area now), Bhavnagar, etc. The specific names of the Patani and Qasbati Jamadars

mentioned in several instances do not always indicate their religious affiliations. Names like

Attaji, Hansoji, Chand Chavda, etc only indicate their local origins. Perhaps these were one of

the many groups that were only partially assimilated into Islam during the medieval times.

5.5 Another term that is used in the context of the Qasbatis is Purabiya. Early in the century

historical sources make a mention of the Purabiyas as a martial group. Purabiyas implied

easterners or the people hailing from Oudh and Bengal region. Mirat also mentions Purbiyas

along with the Arabs and the Rohillas in generalized terms. Around 1725 A.D. Shujaat Khan and

81

Ibrahim Quli Khan both were mentioned as having a squadron of Purbiya Sibandis. However in

the course of the century the use of Purbiya as a distinct martial group in the sources was

replaced by its use in an ambiguous way. One Fakirchand Purbiya garrisoning the fort of Devra

in Nawanagar in Saurashtra was referred as Qasbati. Basant Rai Purbiya was again referred to as

a Qasbati of Junagadh. It was possible that the Jamadars referred to above were basically

Purbiyas having a Qasbati following. Anyway by the middle of 18th century the Purbiyas as a

distinct martial group was no more referred to in historical sources.

5.6 Besides the above-mentioned groups there were the local groups like Mhers and Rabaris

of Porbandar who survived on plunder. The Mher soldiers were given the charge of the defence

of villages in Porbandar along with the Rabaris. They could muster three to four thousand men in

times of need. Their area of operation was however confined to Porbandar only. The Patanwadia

Kolis of north Gujarat also worked as sibandis but otherwise frequently took to freebooting. The

early British officers found them to be ‘untamable plunderers’, mostly active in the Rann of

Kutch and on the banks of Mahi river.24 The Jhuts from the town of Warye in north Gujarat also

worked as sibandis and could muster from 800 to 1000 horsemen well mounted and with sabres

and spears.25 Their operated around the Dassada and Adriana stretch in North Gujarat. They

usually had to confront the Malliks of Dassada who had established a degree of sovereign

authority in that locality. Similarly, the Meenas and Sodhas plundering castes in Kutch were used

as sibandis in case of need. (Burnes James : 135)26. The Kolis of another plundering caste were

employed frequently by all the chieftains of Gujarat to increase the numbers in an army. The

kolis were generally not paid in cash but were allowed to plunder in lieu of remuneration.27

5.7 It is important here to take notice of a trend in the composition of the different categories

of sibandi groups. The categorization was done on the basis of the ethnicity of a group like Arab,

Sindhi, Qasbati, etc. However within the group there did not seem to be a water-tight regulation

regarding the sibandis enrolled. For instance, amongst the Arab sibandis discharged at Baroda in

1802 A.D., one-third of the sibandis were Hindustanis.28 Amongst the Arabs at Baroda the

Sibandi composition did not always consist only of the Arabs from Arabia. It also included such

Arabs who were said to have been migrated to India in some remote time and mingled with the

local population there. The Jamadar in the control of the Lehripura gate in Baroda was one such

Arab.29 We also find a greater differentiation being made within these categories in our sources

as the century proceeded. Earlier in the century the Arabs were referred to only as Arabs, while

by the end of the century the distinction between Masqati, Yemeni, etc is made. Similarly

amongst the Sindhis, the Makaranis are especially mentioned as a distinct category.

82

Warrior Castes of Gujarat

6. Prof K K Shashtri reputed Sanskrit and Indian culture expert has listed the Gujarati castes

as per four varnas of ‘Brahmins’, ‘Kshatriyas’, ‘Vaisya’ and ‘Sudras’ in his booklet “Gujarat

Darshan:Communities”. Although not referring to Kshatriyas as ‘martial castes’ in the sense that

it was used by British generals, he has described them as rulers of various principalities/states.

6.1 Prominent ruling castes included by the author as Rajput Kshatriyas are given

descriptively in the subsequent paragraphs (Shashtri, K.K., 1969:21-26)30.

Chavadas: Jayasekhara, the father of Vanaraja, the founder of Patan in 820 AD was a

Chavada. According to the Bombay Gazetteer, Chavadas belonged to the great Gujjars or

white Huna race. They were rulers of Mansa and Varsada in the Sabarkantha districts.

Chauhans: (1191 AD) Found in the districts of Banaskantha, Suigam, Vav in Palanpur and

Bariya and Chhota Udepur in the Vadodara Districts, there were smaller eight states in

the Sankheda sub division and one in Pandu Mehvas.

Chudasama: an offshoot of the Sama clan which was ruling at Nagar Tatha in Southern Sindh

on the northern border of the great Rann of Kutch in the 7th or 8th century AD. They were

rulers at Vanthali nearly 15 Km South West of Junagadh from 10th to 15th century AD.

They were overpowered by Gujarat ruler Mehmud Begda from Ahmedabad in 1472 AD.

Gohilas: Gohels or Guhilas also called Gehlots. They were descendants of Guharaja. They

were considered ancestors of Ranas of Mewar. Bapa Raval, the first ruler of Mewar, was

son of Guharaja.

Jadeja: rulers of Morbi

Jhalas: found in Surendranagar district at Dharangdhara, Wadhwan, Wankaner, Limdi, Chuda,

Lakhtar and Sayla. The area occupied by these areas is referred to as Jhalawad.

Parmars: Sodha Parmars of Sindh. They migrated to Saurashtra due to famine in Sindh.

They settled near Sayla in Surendranagar district. Parmars are also found in Tharad in

Banaskantha district. Kachchi Parmars are also of Sodha stock.

Rathods: found in Sabarkantha district. They built forts of Sametra near Kadi (now in

Mehsana district), Pal, Malpur, Magodi, Valasna and Vasna in the same district.

Rehvars They belonged to estates of Bolindra, Sohanpur, Ranasan, Rajal and Vadagam in

Sabarkantha district. The ancestor Jaspal Rehvar migrated in 1227AD from Chandravati

near the Mount Abu to Hadol in Sabarkantha district.

Sarvaiyas: found in Bhavnagar. They were off shoots of Chudasamas.

83

Sisodiyas: They were from erstwhile state of Dharampur in Valsad district.

Solankis: They were from erstwhile state of Lunawada, Sankheda Mehvas, Pandu Mehvas and

state of Vansda in Navsari district.

Vadhelas: They are found near Dwarika and they are of Rathod stock.

Vajas: Bhavnagar and Una

Vaghelas: Rulers from 1242 AD to 1304 AD, found in Tharad, Morwada,Diodar in the

Banaskantha district and at Pethapur in Gandhinagar

Princely States of Gujarat in Nineteenth Century

7. Seven million Indians lived under princely rule in Bombay presidency compared to 16

and a half millions under the rule of the British crown, a considerably higher proportion than for

the country as a whole (Copland Ian,1982 : 1) 31.

7.1 Generally speaking, the western Indian princely states of Bombay presidency were small

(Copland Ian, 1982: 3)32. The biggest of them-Baroda and Cutch were 8135 and 7,616 square

miles in area respectively, compared to Gwalior’s 36,000 square miles, Mysore’s 30,000 square

miles, and Hyderabad’s 83,000 square miles. Baroda with two and a half million population

ranked among the dozen most populous Indian states. Baroda state was entitled to 21 gun salute.

This status was enjoyed by only three Indian Princely states in whole of India. Baroda state

sprawled across much of mainland Gujarat and Kathiawar.

7.2 In Gujarat proper, dominant clans during the period of Rajput supremacy were the

Parmars, the Chauhans, the Sisodiyas, the Solankis and the Rathors, though by the nineteenth

century little remained of their former patrimony (Copland Ian,1982 : 7) 33. Collectively, the

Chauhans retained the largest share in the shape of Chhota Udaipur (890 square miles) and Baria

(813 square miles), both in Rewa Kantha, while the Rathors and Solankis were represented by

Idar (1,669 square miles) and Lunawada respectively. The remaining big states (Jasdan -283

square miles and Jetpur, both in Kathiawar, and Jawhar in southern Gujarat) were ruled by

Kathis and Kolis respectively.

7.3 The Mughal presence in Gujarat was confined to the towns, and to the triangle of territory

enclosed by the cities of Ahmedabad, Cambay and Surat (an area equivalent to the lowland parts

of mainland Gujarat). Elsewhere the country remained in the effective possession of its Rajput,

Kathi, and Koli chiefs. For revenue purposes, Mughal Gujarat was divided into 16 sarkars or

districts. But six of these ‘belonged’ to zamindars who paid up when it suited them, or when

84

forced to do so at the point of the sword. Nawanagar, Cutch, Lunawada and Rajpipla were

ranked as sarkars. Idar, Palitana, Porbandar and Jetpur were referred as parganas or sub districts.

7.4 The collapse of Muslim power in Gujarat ushered in a period of anarchy from which the

country was only slowly rescued by the arrival of the Marathas (Copland Ian,1982 : 15)34. The

Gaekwads had no trouble imposing their rule on the settled plains country between Surat and

Viramgam but Kathiawar and highland Gujarat proved a different prospect. Here they faced not

village zamindars but highly organised states ruled by dashing warriors like Nawab Muhammad

Bahadur of Junagadh (1730-1758 A.D.) and Maharaja Bhavsinhji of Bhavnagar (1703-1764

A.D.), whose forces included a detachment of Arab and Sindhi mercenaries over 3000 strong.

Against such opponents the Baroda troops could make little headway. Amreli and Lathi fell to

Gaekwads in 1742-3 A.D. and Seanagar (Sihor) in 1765 A.D.; but these were no more

substantial gains until Okhamandal was acquired in 1817 A.D.

7.5 The British government got the tribute collection rights for Kathiawar in 1820 A.D.,

Rewa Kantha areas in 1823 A.D. and Rajpipla in 1825-26 A.D. By the end of the first quarter of

the nineteenth century the period of Maratha supremacy in Gujarat was over; the British

paramountancy was about to begin (Copland Ian ,1982 :18)35. The distribution of British military

stations in 1826 can be seen from a letter giving out the distribution of meat rations to troops in

various locations. See Appendix G. The British East India Company had established its

supremacy in three presidencies of Bombay, Madras and Bengal. Each presidency maintained its

own standing armed force called by its name eg Bombay Army, Madras Army and Bengal

Army. We will study the class composition of Bombay Army and the main principalities of

Gujarat mainland as per records of 1911 census and later period viz Baroda (Maratha state), Idar

(Rajput state), Palanpur (a Nawab’s state) and Rajpipla (Rajput state). A detailed account of

these Indian states has been compiled by Richard W Head in 1987 under the common head of “A

History of Its Origins, Composition and Achievements” in respect of different princely states.

The source is available in Historical Division, Ministry of Defence, Government of India, New

Delhi. The account of Presidency armies has been researched at length and excerpts from books

by Indian and foreign authors have been included.

Organisation of Presidency Armies of the East India Company

8. The history of military participation of indigenous Gujarati youth can be studied by

reviewing the organisation of Bombay Presidency army and some of the significant Indian

Princely States of mainland Gujarat. The military department records of Bombay Presidency

have been compiled by historians with the help of Government Gazetteers. The military records

of most significant Princely state of Gujarat region i.e. Baroda which had an area of 8182 square

miles (HSBR)36 and two and a half million people (Copland Ian,1982 : 3)37 are available in

Baroda Archives. Indian state of Baroda ruled most parts of modern Gujarat state excluding

Kutch and Kathiawar. Our area of interest for this study is contemporary Gujarat mainland

85

region which has 17 administrative districts out of 25 as on date. The Baroda state controlled

areas in Kathiawar which correspond to present Amreli district (there was a Maratha Battalion

known as Dhari Battalion) and Okhamandal areas. Modern day areas of Baroda, Navsari, Kadi

(Dehgam, Mehsana, Unjha, Vadnagar, Visnagar, Sidhpur, and Palanpur) were part of Baroda

princely state for which Baroda state maintained demographic and revenue records. Ahmedabad,

Kaira, Mahikantha, Kutch and Surat were main British districts in the nineteenth century. “Surat

was swallowed up in 1800; Ahmedabad and Kaira in 1803 (Copland Ian ,1982: 2)”38 Baroda

state had its rule in Songadh area in Surat district.

Beginnings of Modern Indian Army

9. The Bombay Island was handed over to the East India Company by King Charles II on

16th March 1668 A.D. on a yearly rent of £ 10 in gold. The King’s troops stationed at Bombay

accepted their conversion to the service of the Company. The garrison consisted of 75 officers,

139 non-commissioned officers and men (all Europeans) and 54 Topazes besides two gunners

and 21 pieces of cannon. Certain increases were made in the Company’s forces, notably in 1683

A.D., when the Bombay garrison was supplemented by the enrolment of two companies of

Rajputs. Each company consisted of 100 men, commanded by their own Rajput officers; and this

small force may be regarded as the first beginning of the modern Indian Army.

9.1 The Bengal and Madras Presidencies followed suit in 1700 A.D. when they recruited

people of Buxar (in Bengal then) and Telengana (in Andhra Pradesh) in small numbers

respectively. By 1741A.D., the Bombay army alone besides some 700 so-called sepoys, who

attended on the civil servants of the Company in the capacity of peons, had a regular regiment

consisting of 26 British officers, 166 warrant, and non-commissioned officers, 1,276 rank and

file and 27 followers.

9.2 In 1744 A.D. war broke out between England and France. The Company started thinking

seriously to have a military organization in India to safeguard its trading interests and

possessions. As fresh European soldiers were not available for service, the Company recruited,

equipped and trained a large number of Indians to fight its battles against the French (French

colonies in India) who had also a fairly big army of natives under their command.

9.3 Some far reaching measures were adopted in 1748 A.D.. The Presidency armies were

reorganized on European lines. Each Presidency got one company of artillery consisting of five

British officers and 110 other ranks. Major Stringer Lawrence was named the first Commander-

in- Chief of all the Company’s forces in India, both European and Indian.

9.4 Shortly before the battle of Plassey in 1757A.D. Robert Clive reorganized the Indian

troops by giving them the shape of regular battalions. These battalions were commanded by the

86

British officers and were equipped on the European lines. The first battalion organized on these

lines was known as the ‘Lal Pultan’ and was composed of three British officers, (one captain,

two subalterns), several British non-commissioned officers (one sergeant-major and several

sergeants), 42 Indian officers (one commandant, one adjutant, 10 subedars and 30 jemadars) and

800 Indian rank and file, (50 havildars, 40 naiks, 10 buglers and 700 sepoys). The battalion was

divided into ten companies. Gradually many more battalions were raised on this pattern. Clive

first introduced the British officers into Indian army units. With the passage of the Pitts India Bill

of 1784 A.D. the British Government began to assume control of the affairs of the Company.

9.5 The strength of the British-Indian Army was 90,000.In 1786 A.D. a military department

was created which was the forerunner of the Ministry of Defence. By 1802 A.D. recruitment by

class or ethnic lines had begun. The British had a penchant for recruitment in terms of ‘martial’

and ‘non martial’ classes. With increase in their trade, the East India Company gradually

increased its armies in all the three Presidencies

9.6 As the British authority became predominant, further expansion was considered

necessary and in the process the Presidency armies were increased. In 1796 A.D. the company

had 17,956 Europeans and 84,232 Natives in its armies which increased to 30,423 Europeans and

246,125 Indians in 1825 A.D. and 36,409 Europeans and 187,067 Natives in 1830 A.D. (Bhatia

H.S, 1977 : 17)39

9.7 The irregular regiments were raised on the Silladar system. Under this system the

individual soldier supplied and maintained his horse, clothing, equipment and arms (other than

rifle) receiving in return a higher rate of pay than the non-Silladar soldier, whose needs were

furnished by the Government.

9.8 In course of time, the East India Company acquired more territories and for their

protection it increased the strength of the Army. The total strength of the Army on the eve of the

Great Uprising (1857) was 38,000 Europeans, 276 field guns and 348,000 Indian troops with 248

field guns. In 1863 the total strength of the Army reduced to 205,000 of which 65,000 were

British troops. (Bhatia H.S, 1977 : 18)40

Manpower of the Bombay Army

10. The strength of European and Native manpower of British Empire in the Bombay

presidency in the first part of nineteenth century is given in Table 3.1. The troops were deployed

in all three major regions of Cutch, Kathiawar and Guzerat and these areas constituted one third

of Bombay presidency (Bhatia H.S, 1977 : 35)41.

87

Table 3.1: Bombay Army Strength in 1813, 1820 and 1830

In 1813 In 1820 In 1830

BombayTroops

European Native European Native European Native

Cutch - - 59 3431 116 1135

Kattywar - - 19 420 32 1208

Guzerat 1053 5890 755 4070 1260 7938

Candeish andSurat

43 2205 919 3890 108 5042

BombayIsland

3383 6828 2474 5879 1441 3873

Northern andSouthernConkan

24 1197 72 4670 66 3997

Poonah andSattara

253 7836 1169 6789 3580 7889

SouthernMahrattaCountry

- - - - 861 1196

Malwa - - 18 1129 - -

Totals 4756 23956 5485 30271 7469 32278

10.1 The sepoys at Bombay continued long in independent companies, commanded by

subedars or Native captains. As the possessions and political relations of that settlement were

enlarged, its army increased. The companies were formed into battalions under European

officers; and during the war with the Mahrattas, in 1780 A.D., Bombay Presidency establishment

consisted of 15 battalions. These at the termination of war with Tippoo, 1783 A.D. were reduced

to six and one battalion of marines. In 1788 A.D. its numbers were augmented to 12 battalions.

In 1796 A.D. it was reformed into an establishment of four regiments, of two battalions each,

from which it was progressively raised, by the acquisition of territory and subsidiary alliances, to

its then establishment of nine regiments of Native infantry, of two battalions each, one battalion

of marines, and a small corps of Native cavalry.

10.2 In 1793 A.D. there were 3347 European and 19,265 Native and in 1803 A.D. there were

4548 European and 10,472 Native troops in the Bombay Presidency which included modern day

region of Gujarat.

88

Bombay Army Composed of All Classes

11. This army was indiscriminately composed of all classes, Mahomedans, Hindoos, Jews

and some Christians. Among the Hindoos, those of the lowest tribes of Mahratta and the

Purwarrie, Soortee and Frost sects were much more numerous than the Rajpoots and higher

castes (Bhatia H.S,1977 : 56)42. Jews were favourite soldiers in this army, and great numbers of

them attained the rank of commissioned officers. Native army soldier in the Bombay army was

patient, faithful and brave, and attached in a remarkable degree to his European officers. There

could not be a class of men more cheerful under privation and difficulties; but desertion in early

stages, was very frequent in recruits of this army.

11.1 In 1797 A.D. the Bombay army consisted of the following corps: viz. one European

regiment, eight Native infantry regiments of two battalions each, a Native marine battalion,

available for general service, with a battalion of artillery and corps of engineers amounting in the

whole to 18,000 men and upwards. The establishment thus possessed a respectable numerical

force when compared with its limited extent of territory, which was then confined to the

provinces of Malabar and Canara, the islands of Bombay and Selsette, and a small district in the

neighbourhood of Surat. The following appears to be the distribution of the army as seen in

Table 3.2.

Table 3.2 Distribution of Bombay army in 1797 A.D.

Stations Cavalry units Native Infantry Units

Poonah

Sattarah

Sholapore

Ahmednagar

One Regiment Five Regiments

Baroda One Regiment Three Regiments

Ahmadabad One Regiment

Deesa One Regiment

Kathiawar One Regiment Three regiments

89

Khandesh Three regiments

Konkan Two Regiments

Bombay Two regiments

Kutch One Regiment

New Recruitment Policy after Indian Mutiny

12. The end of the mutiny ushered in the beginning of a new recruitment policy in the armies

of the British Raj (Khalidi Omar, 2001)43. It began to favour those who stood by the British in

putting down the mutiny: Dogras, Garhwalis, Gurkhas, Pathans, and the Punjabis- whether

Hindu, Muslim, or Sikh- the so called “martial races”. The theory of martial castes holds that

some Indian “races” (actually ethno-religious groups) such as the Dogras, Garhwalis, Gurkhas,

Kumaonis, Marathas, Pathans and Punjabis (of all religious affiliation); Rajputs; Hindustani,

Deccani and Moplah Muslims(Malayalam Muslims) made good soldiers. The martial races were

supposedly tall, broad-shouldered; light skinned and capable of enduring hardship. Unlike the

martial races, the inhabitants of the hot, flat plains of the country were supposedly unwarlike,

flabby, and dark-skinned and therefore unfit for military services. Still others were excluded due

to their “ease of living” or branded as seditious agitators. Apart from their physique, the martial

races were regarded as politically subservient or docile to authority. The recruitment to the army

along ascribed military qualities of certain groups was pursued most vigorously between 1858

A.D. and 1939 A.D. The result was the evolution of the colonial army along ethnic lines with

Dogra, Garhwali, Gurkha, Jat, Kumaon, Mahar and Sikh regiments- to name only the most

famous; these the British called “one class’. Finally there was the “mixed class”, comprising

soldiers from different groups. This was how the army- mainly the cavalry and the infantry- was

denoted. The small combat support arms- artillery, engineers and signals and the logistic support

services such as service corps, ordnance corps and the like were composed of men from all

ethnic, caste and regional groups. Officers commanding the Raj’s army were British, while

Indians were admitted to the officers’ ranks only after World War I. The martial races theory did

not apply in the case of officer recruitment, which was based on social class and loyalty to the

Raj. The outbreak of World War II in 1939 A.D. prompted the relaxation of the martial races

theory and, consequently raised the recruitment of soldiers from non-martial races because of the

manpower shortage. After the end of war, there was some demobilization; shortly afterwards, the

policy reverted to old pattern.

90

12.1 Since 1891-92 A.D. with the object of more effectively obtaining the best men of the

most warlike classes, recruiting depots were established at various stations, and special officers

were appointed as recruiting officers for certain districts e.g. :-

Peshawar for Pathans

Amritsar for Sikhs

Sialkot for Dogras

Lucknow for Hindus

Gorakhpur for Gurkhas, and so on

12.2 The classes from which troops were enlisted in Bombay presidency were as follows-

Rajputs, Jats, Gujars, Mers, Mahrattas, Sikhs, Brahuis, Baluchis, Hazaras, Wazeris, Pathans and

Central India Mahomedans

12.3 It was observed that nearly all the fighting men in all four commands (Bengal, Punjab,

Madras and Bombay) came from the N.W. portion (Punjab region of modern times) of the

continent and from across the borders (Bhatia H. S, 1977 : 86) 44.

12.4 Ronald R Krebs45 has highlighted the case of “martial races” of India in his article

published in journal ‘Security Studies’(Krebs R.R, 2005 : 529).46 He has written a section titled

“Social structure: The Indian Army and the Martial Races” (Krebs R.R, 2005 : 555)47. He has

stated that the British government in India in the late nineteenth century recruited heavily among

“martial races” and this led to over-representation of Punjabis in general and Sikhs in particular.

Only in the late 1960s India began to create more representative armed forces.

12.5 On the aspect of Punjabisation of the Imperial Indian Army, Ronald Krebs(Krebs

R.R,2005 : 556)48 stated that by the 1890s the central organizing principle of Imperial Army was

“class”, a vague term that encompassed social divides ranging from caste to ethnicity to religion.

The army organised companies and regiments along class lines. Sikhs- a mere eight percent of

the population of Punjab, and a much smaller percentage of Indian population- furnished about

20 percent of the army’s soldiers. 70 percent of Indian troops during First World War were from

Punjab, Nepal and the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP).

12.6 “Martial Race” theory asserted that certain groups were by dint of geography, climate,

history, tradition, and perhaps genetics, unusually well suited to military service. Tan Tai Yong

(Gupta P.S & Deshpande, 2002 : 28)49 has quoted Lord Roberts of Kandhar, the commander-in-

chief of the Bengal Army between 1885 A.D. and 1893 A.D. as having said that “except

91

Gurkhas, Dogras, Sikhs, the pick of Punjabi Mohammedans, Hindustanis of the Jat and Ranghar

castes, and certain classes of Pathans, there are no native soldiers in our service whom we could

venture with safety to place in the field against the Russians”.

12.7 Ronald R Krebs has stated that Indian society had for long recognized Kshatriya

(warrior) castes.50 Highly selective recruitment was intended by the British colonial government

with an aim of fragmenting the subcontinent.

12.8 After partition of India, the Indian army remained class based with unequal communal

distribution. In 1962 A.D. six of the army’s lieutenant-generals were Sikh, as were 13 out of 28

major- generals and 30 out of 79 brigadiers. Sikhs in 1962 accounted for over 20 percent of the

ranks and even higher percentage of the officer corps.51 R.R.Krebs has stated that this inequality

was corrected and Punjab supplied only 7.6 percent and Uttar Pradesh supplied 20.6 percent of

the army’s total recruitment52 in 1996-97.

The difficulty of recruitment in Bombay Army

13. It had always been difficult to get sufficient recruits of a good stamp for the Bombay

army from within the territorial limits of that Presidency. Previous to the Maratha war of 1817-

18 A.D. and the Burmese war of 1824-25 A.D. the Bombay Army was mainly recruited from the

less soldierly races of the Deccan, the Konkan and lower Sind (Saxena K. M. L : 106)53. The

Hindustani element was small, not exceeding 4,000 during the Maratha War and 7,465 during

the Burmese War. During the Maratha War it naturally became difficult to recruit Marathas in

the Bombay Army. The Bengal sepoy was adverse to service in Burma because of the

inhospitable climate of that region and because service there involved the crossing of the sea,

which was repugnant to the religious beliefs of high-caste sepoys of the Bengal army. Regiments

of Bombay Army were mainly drafted for service in Burma. These two factors depleted the

strength of the Bombay army, leading consequently to recruitment from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

By 1835 A.D. the Hindustani element recruited in the Bombay Army from these areas became

preponderant, the following being its composition in that year:

Hindustanis (men of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar) 12,476

Konkanis (Mahrattas) 10,015

Deccanese 1,910

13.1 This increase of foreigners over the recruits from the territories of the Bombay Army was

contrary to the wishes of the Court of Directors who had directed, in 1821 A.D. that the

armies of three Presidencies should be kept as distinct as possible. In 1824 A.D. the Supreme

Government had prohibited recruiting for Bombay army from the Bengal provinces. But this rule

92

could not be enforced and, as the above figures for 1835 A.D. show, the Hindustani element

(12,476 men) predominated over the rest.

13.2 Indeed, the Bombay Government was often compelled to look around for ‘Pardesis’54

from the adjoining states, as in that Presidency the profession of the soldier was gradually getting

lost in that of the cultivator, and higher wages could be obtained elsewhere(other than Army).

The Bombay authorities desired Punjab to be thrown open to them as a recruiting ground.

Though this plea was not fully accepted, it seems that there was relaxation of restriction. For we

find that prior to 1857 A.D. recruiting for the Bombay Army in the northern provinces of

colonial India was considerable.

13.3 The Mutiny of 1857 A.D. emphasized the expediency of maintaining the separate

nationality of the Bombay Army. In 1857 A.D., Sir W Peel, therefore, stopped a party of Oudh

recruits proceeding to join the 27 th Bombay Native Infantry. In 1864 A.D. the Government of

India informed the provincial government of Bombay that it intended to maintain the prohibition

to recruit in Hindustan (United Provinces and Bihar).When in 1867 A.D. the Bombay

Government was hard pressed for more recruits in consequence of the great demand for the

Abyssinian expedition, the Bombay Army was allowed to recruit 150 additional men per

regiment. Sir A. Spencer, the new Commander-in-Chief of the Bombay Army, urged that

Rajputana should be thrown open to the Bombay recruiting parties. But the proposal “would only

result in introducing an additional body of Hindustanis into the Bombay regiments; and

considering the advisability of maintaining the separate nationality of that army…” the

application was rejected and Bombay was advised to “greater activity in searching out of the

proper territorial recruiting field of the Bombay Army.”

13.4 As many as 5,032 of its total infantry strength of 16,034 men, was made up of

‘foreigners’, recruited outside the Bombay Presidency in 1879 A.D. Since this system tended to

erode the separate character of the Bombay Army and militated against the political principle of

segregation of the armies and of the classes of which they were composed, it was one of the

principal recommendations of the 1879 A.D. Commission to localize Bombay recruiting. They

allotted to the Bombay Army the whole area of the Presidency itself, Rajputana, Central India,

Sind and the Central Provinces and recommended that its recruitment should henceforth be

entirely confined to these limits. Orders were issued in 1881 A.D. assigning certain areas of

Rajputana and Central India to the recruiting region of the Bombay Army. However, the 26

infantry battalions which the Bombay Army was asked to maintain after the reduction of 1882

A.D. still proved too much for its recruiting drives, and ‘poaching’ for recruits from northern

India (Hindustanis) did not cease. A request from the Bombay government to allow the Baroda

state to recruit Kolis form Mahi Kantha area explains the difficulties of recruitment. See

Appendix G. The correspondence about poaching drives is clear from the exchange of

correspondence between the Bombay Government and the Baroda state. See Appendix H and I.

If the Bombay Army strength was not further reduced in view of its recruiting difficulties, it was

93

mainly because Bombay Army was given, in Sind and Baluchistan frontier, a definite piece of

active service.

13.5 In the four regiments of cavalry in Bombay (the 1st and 2nd Bombay Lancers and the 3rd

and 4th Bombay Cavalry) about 1,000 men out of 2,500 belonged to the Deccan, and the rest

came from northern India. The 1st Bombay Lancers alone was organised as per class

troop or class squadron system, having two troops of Sikhs, two of Marathas, one of central India

Muslims, one of Ranghars and one of Pathans. The 2nd Bombay Lancers was mainly composed

of Deccani Muslims and ‘Pardesis’. The 3rd Bombay Cavalry was a mixed regiment, the

predominating classes being Hindustani Muslims and Hindus. The others were Marathas,

Deccani Muslims and Sikhs. The 4th Bombay Cavalry was composed of 270 Deccani Muslims.

Hindustanis constituted nearly a third of the regiment, among who Muslims were in larger

numbers. There were also some Marathas and a few Punjabis (Saxena K.M.L : 110).55

13.6 As stated above, the prospect of a war with Russia on the north-western frontier of India

inevitably focused attention on the need for improving the fighting qualities of all its armies. The

Bombay Army was the one nearest to the prospective scene of action; hence it received the

Government’s engaging attention. In order to secure better fighting material for this army, it was

suggested in 1886 A.D. that the portion of the Bombay Army stationed in Sind and Baluchistan

should be recruited from the frontier tribes. This, it was expected, would do away with the sepoy

of the Deccan who was averse to service in such localities. The troops so created would form a

force in line with the Punjab Frontier Force. While the scheme would furnish fighting material

capable of coping with a European enemy, the men would be happy and contended and would

come forward more willingly if given a chance to serve in the neighbourhood of their homes. For

these reasons, orders were issued in May 1891 for the localization of two Native battalions of the

Bombay Army in Baluchistan. Their composition was changed by the substitution of men

recruited from the border tribes inhabiting the country above the passes.56

13.7 The Mahabaleshwar Committee of 1893 A.D. studied the constitution of the Bombay

Army. Its recommendations became the basis of the reorganisation of the Bombay Army from

1893 A.D. onwards. This Committee found that the Bombay Native Army, though well trained

and disciplined, was largely composed of indifferent material. Marathas were 30 to 40 percent in

most of the infantry regiments and thus predominated. Purwarees, Mangs and Ramusis were also

largely represented. All these were low-caste men, and formed on an average 10 or 11 percent of

each battalion, while other low-class men amounted to five or six percent. There were about nine

percent Deccani Muslims who came from Hyderabad territory. Jews and Christians were about

three percent. Added to these were three or four percent of men from Central India and about

half of them were from Rajputana, amounting to about six and a half percent. All these classes

averaged 70 percent. The remaining 30 percent were ‘foreigners’ or ‘Pardesis’, who exceeded

the proportion laid down by regulation.

94

13.8 The general inferiority of material in the Bombay Army was attributed to two causes:-

(a) The comparatively small number of men of fighting classes in the Bombay area.

(b) Failure to make use of the good material actually existing, as a result of the

prevalent system of general mixture.

The first was a chronic complaint and had led to recruitment from areas outside the Bombay

Presidency. As, for the second, it was found that in its operation in the Bombay Army, the

general mixture system had resulted in all the battalions being very much alike. Composed of

varied elements, the good material was diluted with the inferior material. Under this system the

British officers could not know the characteristics of the men they had to deal with, and therefore

could not distinguish those possessing material instincts from those who sought enlistment

merely as a means of livelihood. A general mixture regiment was also not proof against mutiny

or disobedience of authority. Hence solution to the problem lay in the conversion of Bombay

regiments into class company or class regiments. In the class company regiments, the

Government of India represented to the Secretary of State, “a corps is composed of elements

which may be used against each other. Thus the Gurkha would fight against the Hindustani, or

the Sikh fight against the Purabiya, or the Pathans.” The Bombay infantry was, therefore,

organised on the class company system in 1893 A.D. and the cavalry on class troop and class

squadron system in 1895 A.D. The enlistment of low-caste men and non-fighting classes was

prohibited.

13.9 There were about 21, 000 men in cavalry and 98,000 in infantry; or a total of 1, 19,000 in

1864 A.D. against 2, 34,000 in 1857 A.D.

Relative Strength of the Armies of British Presidencies

14. The Bengal Army was the largest of all i.e. equal to the combined strength of the Madras

and Bombay armies. In the north the frontiers were long and extensive. The area of the territory

to be occupied and held in check was immense. Many sections of the people still retained a

warlike character. There were, besides, numerous Native states- some independent and some

acknowledging British suzerainty- which also had to be kept in check. On top of it all, diplomatic

relation with Afghanistan and the countries lying beyond had to be asserted. All this called for a

large force of all arms.

14.1 The conditions in the south (Madras Presidency) or the west (Bombay Presidency) were

far different. There were no hostile frontiers. The territories were not so vast and were well

intersected by railroads and other communications. Anti-British combinations between

principalities were part of history, especially in the south. Hence Madras and Bombay did not

need large military establishments. Their combined armies roughly equaled the Bengal Army.

95

14.2 These armies were composed of diverse elements and could be easily induced to oppose

one another. This was the only raison d’être of the Madras Army. That army was criticized for

the lack of martial instincts. But it was still maintained because it had opposed the Bengal Army

when the latter revolted in 1857A.D. and was expected again in future to perform the same role,

in cooperation with the Bombay Army. Thus, while the Native Armies of the several

presidencies, including the Punjab Frontier force, acted as a check upon one another, it must be

remembered that the British forces in India acted as a counterpoise to all of them.

14.3 The predominance of Brahmins and Rajputs in Bengal Army- a factor which spelt its

doom in 1857 A.D. was, in fact, the result of the predilection of the British Commanders

themselves for high caste soldiers, for they were generally smart and known to possess strong

combative spirit. The British officers did not make an attempt to find suitable recruits from other

classes, especially from the lower castes (Kolff Dirk H.A,1990 : 88)57.

14.4 A commission of enquiry set up after the Afghan War of 1878-80 A.D. recommended the

abolition of the Presidency Armies. But the main unification for a variety of reasons, did not take

place. More drastic measures were wanted to properly complete the unification of the Indian

Army. The great Lord Kitchner, who assumed the Commander-in-Chiefship in November 1902

A.D. wasted no time. On 1 Jan 1903 the regiments were renumbered consecutively on an all

India basis, all traces of the Presidency Armies deleted, save in the names of the regiments; the

Hyderabad contingent units were delocalised, and the Punjab Frontier Force as such abolished-

all units were to have experience of the North-West frontier. Troops were to be distributed and

trained together in peace in the formations to which they would belong in war. All ranks, officers

and men, were to belong to one corps, the Indian Army.

Tradition of Military Recruitment

15. Among the troops of the subedar of Gujarat in 1730-31 there were 4,000 infantrymen

consisting of musketeers from Buxar and Arabia. ‘Bakseriyas’ served under Clive in 1757 A.D.

We are told that in 1730-31, the ‘soldiers of the Buxar regiment’ plundered the houses of the

well to do citizens of Ahmadabad in Gujarat (Ali Muhammad Khan ‘Mirat- i- Ahmadi” pp 474)

(Kolff Dirk H.A, 1990 : 171)58 .

15.1 After their army years, the ‘Bakseriyas’ as well as the ‘Purabiyas’ traditionally returned

to their region of origin or, as their nineteenth century successors would do, to the family farms

they had left as young men of perhaps of only sixteen years of age. The enduring connection

with the rural society in the Bhojpur and Awadh regions would remain characteristic of the

British East India Company’s sepoys. This is not surprising for, we shall see, they represented a

96

continuation of a tradition of peasant soldiering that lasted for at least four centuries (Kolff Dirk

H.A,1990 :172)59.

15.2 The jobber-officers or jamadars were often of recognizable peasant origin themselves. In

Awadh (Oudh) after the battle of Buksar (Buxar in present day Bihar) in 1764 A.D. Nawab

Shujaud-daula disbanded most of the ‘iterant Persian and Durrani Afghan units’ his predecessors

had been in the habit of hiring wholesale from Persia and Afghanistan. They were replaced by

indigenous troops, mainly Rajputs and Brahmans. Under Asafud-daula who succeeded Shuja in

1775 A.D. this was followed up, as has been, recently shown, by the rise to influence, of a group

of newcomers ‘who had been peasant soldiers only a few years before’.

15.3 The name of Purabiyas, familiar to us from an earlier phase in the history of Hindustan

soldiering, was soon in general use in Bombay to denote these Northerns, thousands of whom

would serve the company in Western India especially after 1818 A.D. (Cadell, Bombay Army,

pp 9, 29, 33,161,200, 304 and Mac Munn, “Indian Mutiny”, p 220. See on Purabiya soldiers in

Western India about 1780 Bombay Gazetteer, XXVI, pp 425, 426).

15.4 The native officers of the regiment, no doubt well connected and highly respected in the

localities where they had left their families, brought along hopeful young men returning from

leave. Sometimes they were told to do so or were granted leave of absence to recruit men from

their native villages. The native officer took over from the old jobber-commander. (Kolff Dirk

H.A. 1990 : 180)60

Military Tradition in Folklore

16. The word naukari, though nowadays used for more menial kinds of services, seems in

traditional India generally referred it to long –distance service as a retainer, for instance in the

British East India Company’s army (Kolff Dirk H.A. 1990 : 71)61. The theme of the earnings of

the husband- vagabond that justify his absence from home is also found in the ‘Dhola Maru’, a

Marwari ballad. In this poem, the hero, in an attempt to persuade his wife to let him go, proposes

successively to go and serve the Idar raja, in present day Gujarat, where he would return with

jewels; to go and hire himself out as an archer in Multan and bring back horses and, lastly, to go

to Kutch and get hold of a camel of pure strain.

Princely State Forces of Gujarat

Baroda State Army The original army of Baroda state had between 1760A.D and 1800 A.D.

Sindhi and Makrani troops who later proved to be too assertive and troublesome and therefore

had to be dispensed with (Maharaja of Jaipur, 1967 : 6)62.

97

Halvad Dharangdhara Makhwanas, the rulers of the State, originally belonged to

Jhala clan of Sind. The state forces consisted of irregulars till 1909 A.D.

Idar Idar Sir Pratap Infantry This unit was raised in 1926 A.D. Being class B troops; its

services were never utilized overseas.

Junagadh This was originally a Rajput state. Its rulers belonged to Chudasama tribe. In 1472

A.D. it was conquered by Mohammad Begra of Ahmadabad, when the Mughal power began to

decline, Sher Khan Babi, a local noble established his own rule sometime in 1735 A.D.

Junagadh Lancers Raised in 1891 A.D. under the Imperial Service Forces Unit in 1921A.D.

Junagadh Mahabatkhanji Infantry was raised in 1924 A.D. and was reorganized in 1927 A.D. as

an Indian State Forces unit.

Palanpur The ruling family of the State had an Afghan origin. It belonged to Lohani stock,

who had established themselves in Rajputana in about fourteenth century. Their relations with

the British began in 1817A.D. when they entered into an alliance with the establishment of East

India Company.

Porbandar The old army of the State was of feudal type. It was only in 1923 A.D. that the

unit was raised and was further reorganized in 1925 A.D. It was mainly employed in internal

security duties. However a batch of signalers was sent to the Middle East for active service

during World War II.

Rajpipla It was founded in 1460 A.D as a first class state in the Rewa Kantha Agency with

an area 3,929 square kilometers; villages 927 and population 1, 17,175 (1901 census). Rulers had

the title ‘Maharana’. Guhel clan of Rajputs established this state. The state was founded by

Maharaja Nand Rai, a descendent of Parmar Kshatri Maharaja Vikram of Ujjain. Rajpipla State

Infantry-the unit was raised out of the old troops of the state in 1923 A.D. as an Indian State

Forces Unit.

Bhavnagar It was founded in 1240 A.D. by Gohil dynasty. It had an area of 7,669 square

kilometer and was entitled to 13 gun ceremonial salute.

18. The detailed account of state forces of only Baroda, Idar, Palanpur and Rajpipla, that is,

the areas which were part of mainland Gujarat will further be taken up. The state forces not

forming part of geographical region of Gujarat mainland have been left out purposely. The

account is in the form of strength of the manpower and caste composition to see if the

Gujaratis/locals were adequately represented or not.

98

The Baroda Army

A History of Its Origins, Composition and Achievements

19. It was Maharaja Khanderao Gaekwad (1856 to 1870A.D.), who created and organized a

regular force of infantry, cavalry and artillery and engaged the services of Europeans and Anglo-

Indians to train the men (Head R.W. 1987)63. The army which evolved from Maharaja’s efforts

consisted of two artillery batteries, a small cavalry unit and three regular infantry battalions plus

two officered local battalions. Apart from the new regular army a large force of irregulars, both

cavalry and infantry, was maintained including the Baroda Contingent. Units raised during this

period were the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Infantry and Light Battery and these were to survive as regular

units until the 1940s.

19.1 The British Government used to recruit from Narmada region. In one of the letters,

officiating Adjutant General requested the Baroda state to allow its recruiting parties to recruit

from the area around Mahikantha and from the castes of Kolis in 1880. See Appendix H.The

fact that Baroda army faced recruitment difficulty is expressed in a DO letter written by Baroda

based British Reagent to the Governor General on 20 Mar 1893 to Diwan Bahadur Manubhai

Jasbhai of Baroda state. See Appendix I. The reply of Diwan of Baroda to this letter has already

been appended as Appendix A.

19.2 In 1949, following the integration of Baroda State, the two principal units of the Army,

1st and 2nd Infantry, were absorbed into the Indian Army as the 20th and 21st Battalion, Maratha

Light Infantry. Subsequently the 20th and 21st Battalion were amalgamated as 20th Maratha Light

Infantry, subsequently the Battalion was re-designated 10th Battalion (Baroda), Mechanised

Infantry Regiment and it is in this unit that the traditions and history of the Baroda Army reside.

Class Composition

1st Infantry Battalion

1923-1940 2 Companies Marathas, 1 Muslims and 1 Mixed

1940-19444 Marathas and Muslims Mixed

January 1946 Marathas, Muslims, Rajputs, Ahirs

The number of State subjects and non- State subjects on the strength of the unit was as follows:-

102 State Subjects

631 Non-State subjects

733

99

Table 3.3 1st Baroda Infantry as on 1st January of

Caste 1940 1941 1942

Pathans 9 14 15

Punjabi Muslims 20 14 9

Hindustani Muslims 68 3 8

R & CI Muslims 16 25 10

Deccani Muslims 52 40 37

Madrassi Muslims 1 1 1

Other Muslims 25 25

Gurkhas 8 9 6

Rajputs 92 81 24

Jats 7 4 1

Brahmins 59 64 34

Marathas 350 320 371

Ahirs 28 26 46

Telegus 1

Other Hindus 18 11 2

Hazarwals 5 3 5

Totals 733 641 604

2nd Baroda Infantry

Strength

1923-1938 772

1938-1939 769

Class Composition

4 Companies Marathas and Muslims mixed 1923- 1946

The number of state subjects and non- State subjects on the strength of the unit was as follows:-

88 State subjects

669 Non-State subjects

757

100

Table 3.4 2 nd Baroda Infantry as on 1st January of

Caste 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942

Pathans 4 1 5 20 18

Punjabi Muslims 6 20 12 11 11

HindustaniMuslims

34 64 14 2 23

R & CI Muslims 2 35 41 4 7

DeccaniMuslims

4 19 19

MadrassiMuslims

22

Muslim Rajputs 3

Other Muslims 3 43 26

Gurkhas 32 33 33 30 28

Rajputs 69 81 81 62 61

Jats 4 6 6 6 6

Brahmins 25 26 26 10 5

Marathas 477 468 469 472 483

101

Ahirs 14 10 10

Telegus

Other Hindus

Hazarwals 6

Totals 700 746 755 694 696

The effectives (combatants) of the regular army consist of about 3,000 Hindus and about 800

Muhammadans. General Birdwood was General Officer Commanding, Baroda Army, with the

administrative powers of Senapati (Administrative Report, Baroda Army:10).64

1ST BARODA CAVALRY

History

20. It is believed that the regiment was originally formed as the Mothi Khas Cavalry (as

identified in the 1910 Administration Report) in 1885 A.D from men of the disabled Baroda

Contingent. Some time between 1915 and 1916 the regiment was re-designated as 1st Cavalry.

The entries of first 260 soldiers in the long roll of 1st Baroda Cavalry were obtained from Baroda

Records. The list of these soldiers gives details of their castes and the place of belonging. There

are only 16 names of soldiers out of first 260 who are from Gujarat. See Appendix H.

20.1 In 1941 the regiment was reduced to headquarter squadron. The regiment did not form

part of the Indian States Forces.

Class Composition As an Indian State Forces unit it recruited, in accordance with it’s laid

down composition (Head R.W, Baroda Army,1987:23).65

Jan 1940 2 Companies of Marathas, 1 Muslims and 1 mixed company

102

Jul 1940- Jan 1943 Marathas and Muslims Mixed

Jan 1946 Marathas, Muslims, Rajputs and Ahirs

Okha Battalion

22. In initiation of Colonel Outram’s successful attempt to raise a local corps of Kolis in the

Mahikantha, the Vaghers of Okhamandal were enrolled in a regiment that they might be weaned

from their predatory and lawless habits by adopting an honourable and legitimate profession.

(Head R.W, Baroda Army, 1987: 59) 66 But the experiment failed, and the Vaghers after a few

months service gave up their arms and returned to their homes. The Vagher corps had been under

a British officer since 1861, but in 1865, after it had been thrown open to Baluchis, Sindhis,

Rajputs and Maratha settlers, it became known as Okhamandal corps.

22.1 In 1928/29 the strength of the Battalion was reduced to 172 men and the Battalion re-

designated as the Okha Company. The surplus men were absorbed into the regular infantry

regiments.

THE BARODA CONTINGENT

23. A portion of the State army, termed the Contingent Force consisting of 3,000 horse, had

to be placed in an efficient condition by Article VIII of the treaty of the 6 November 1817.The

Gaekwad government also bound itself to maintain and hold at the disposal of the Company to

act with the subsidiary force wherever it may be employed and to be subject to the general

command of the officer commanding the British troops, a body of 3,000 effective cavalry to be

supported exclusively at the expense of His Highness the Gaekwad, and that His Highness would

conform to the advice and suggestions of the British Government relative to the formation and

equipment of the Contingent of horse, its regular monthly payment, the condition of its arms and

accoutrements, according to the custom of the Gaekwad government.

23.1 The Contingent was disbanded in 1884 A.D. the men being disposed off:-

Pensioned 122

Paid Gratuities 363

Drafted to British force 328

Drafted to state Police 77

Drafted to Cavalry Regiments 971

To be provided for (details not available) 289

103

EXTRACTS FROM ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS

BARODA ARMY CLASS COMPOSITION

24. The tables copied from Administrative Reports, give in tabulated form the class

composition of the Baroda regular army as on 31 July of each year. The administrative reports of

Baroda Army from 1882 to 1899 give out numerical details about the class composition of the

force. See Appendix K.

The Idar Army

25. The class composition of Idar Army compiled for the years 1911 to 1942 gives a fair idea

of the castes forming its part (Head R.W, Idar Army, 1987: 12).67 The same is appended as

Appendix F. It had Deccani Muslims six each in 1911 and 1912 along with 23 Rajputs in both

years. It also had a sprinkling of castes/communities such as Central India Muslims, Brahmins,

Pathans, Punjabi Muslims, Sikhs, Gurkhas, Gujars, and Marathas at different times. It maintained

company size strength from 1928 to 1942. The numerical details of class composition of this

force from 1911-1942 is given in Appendix L.

Idar Duty Platoon

Raised during the Second World War as an irregular unit maintained as a reserve for internal

security duties (Head R.W, Idar Army,1987: 12)68. It was instructed and trained by Sir Pratap

Infantry. According to Administrative Reports the strength was:-

1942/43 80

1943/44 80

1944/45 40

104

Palanpur Infantry

26. In 1911, the General Staff issued a series of notes covering the armed forces of the Native

States and the following is the Palanpur (Head R.W, Palanpur Infantry, 1987: 2) 69 reference:-

Imperial Service Troops Nil

Local Forces

Arty Men 7

Guns serviceable 17

Guns unserviceable 59

Armed Police Foot 440

Mounted 163

Total number of men 610

Notes on local forces

The police were nearly all Muhammadans, but there were a few Rajputs and other castes.

In addition to local forces, the state possessed an armed body of irregulars called the state

Sibandi numbering 511 of all ranks who collected land revenues, guard the palace and various

town gates, serving as attendants to the ruling family and also the Durbar officials.

Palanpur joined the Indian States Forces Scheme in 1922 providing a company known as Iqbal

Infantry and the Palanpur body guard of two troops.

Class Composition of Palanpur Bodyguard The number of State and non-State subjects

as on 1 April of each year on the strength of the unit was as given in Table 3.5

Table 3.5 State and Non – State Subjects Palanpur Body Guard

Year State Subjects Non –State Subjects Total

1923 32 20 52

1925 30 20 50

1926 32 18 50

1927 33 18 51

105

1928 31 16 47

1930 30 19 49

1931 29 22 51

1936 27 18 45

Caste Composition of Palanpur Body Guard Rajput Muslims, Rajputs, Rajasthan and

Central India Muslims and Deccani Muslims formed major part of Palanpur Body Guard.

Pathans, Punjabi Muslims and Meos were also part of the Guard. Ahir and Gujjars were also

represented in very small numbers. The details are covered in Table 3.6.

Table 3.6 Palanpur Body Guard: Extracts of castes as on 1 Jan of each year

Caste 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936

Pathans 2 2 1

Punjabi

Muslims

18 1 1

Muslim

Rajputs

5 6 5 27 6 8 5 13 13 11 11 11 10

Meos 3

R & CI

Muslims

1 28 25 3 2 30 25 25

Deccani

Muslims

26 86 30 31 28 24 25 27

Rajputs 19 14 18 7 10 8 8 8 9 8 8 8

Ahir 1

Gujjars 7

106

Other

Hindus

4

Hazarwals

Total 51 50 50 146 49 47 45 51 45 45 44 44 45

Palanpur Iqbal Infantry70 Raised in 1922 and reorganized as Indian States Force in

the same year. The company became an irregular unit in 1943 due to recruiting problems.

The number of State subjects and non-state subjects on the strength of the unit which was about

company strength are shown in Table 3.7.

Table 3.7 Palanpur Iqbal Infantry

Year State Subjects Non –State Subjects Total

1923 43 12 55

1925 81 69 150

1926 73 78 151

1927 86 70 156

1928 107 46 153

1930 104 49 153

1931 109 45 154

1936 111 52 163

1939 102 64 166

1940 103 65 168

Class Composition Basically a Muslim unit (Rajputana and Central India with Punjabis and

Rhangars). Rajputs were enlisted in small numbers increasing to 25 percent during the war.

Annual caste returns for the period from 1924 to 1942 are shown in Appendix M.

107

RAJPIPLA ARMY 71

27. Little information is available about the history of the Rajpipla Military but it can be

assumed that this very small state maintained only token forces.

The reference work for 1911 shows that Rajpipla had 85 infantry soldiers.

In April 1922 the State joined the Indian States Forces with a troop of cavalry and a company of

infantry. Table 3.8 has details.

Table 3.8 Rajpipla Army

Year Indian States Forces Irregulars

Cavalry Infantry Cavalry Infantry

1926 25 122 14 23

1927 25 122 14 23

1928 25 122 14 23

1929 25 127 14 23

1930 25 143 14 23

1931 25 146 28 23

1932 25 141

1933 25 152

1934 25 152

1935 25 155

1935/1938 25 160

1939/40 25 165

1940/41 25 219 27 19

108

Soon after the outbreak of the Second World War the State raised an infantry company for

garrison duties in British India and a training platoon.

The State also provided two trained signalers for the Indian Army Corps of Signals.

The conclusion of the war was to see the disbanding of the Garrison Company and the Training

Platoon leaving as the sole Indian States Forces unit the Infantry organised as a company of 165

strong, this being the organisation when India gained her Independence in 1947.

On 1 April 1949 the State Forces of Kutch, Baria, Rajpipla, Lunawada and Idar were

amalgamated as the Kutch State Force. On 25 January 1950 the Kutch State Force was

designated as 7th Battalion, The Grenadiers.

RAJPIPLA BODY GUARD

History

28. Rajpipla Body Guard was raised on 20 April 1922 as an Indian States Forces unit. When

the Indian States Forces Scheme 1939 was introduced the unit, being less than squadron strength,

became ineligible and the Durbar withdrew it from the State Forces. The Body Guard became

part of the Irregular Forces of the State.

Class composition

Rajputs, Sikhs and Meos were enlisted.

According to the Indian Forces Army Lists the class composition was as follows:-

July 1925-January 1940 Sikhs, Rangers, Rajputs

The number of State subjects and non-State subjects on the strength of the unit was as follows:-

State Subjects Non- State Subjects Total

1 April 1931 1 24 25

1940 2 23 25

Services

The unit did not serve outside the State

109

Rajpipla Body Guard: Extract from the annual caste returns

Table 3.9 Rajpipla Body Guard

Caste 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932

MuslimRajput

6

Meos 6 5 6 6 6 6

DeccaniMuslims

10

Sikhs 7 7 7 7 6 7 7 7

Rajputs 5 12 10 11 11 11 11

Jats 10

Totals 22 25 22 23 23 24 24 24

RAJPIPLA INFANTRY

29. The unit organisation of the Rajpipla infantry was Headquarter and 3 Platoons.

Class composition

Rajputs, Gurkhas and Muslims were enlisted.

The number of State and non-State subjects on the strength of the unit was as follows:-

State Subjects Non-State subjects Total

1 April 1931 14 144 1581940 31 124 155

Services

The unit did not serve ex-State.

Extracts from the annual Caste returns Gurkhas and Muslims were two distinct castecategories which were enrolled in Rajpipla Infantry. The third major group was of Hindus ofvarious caste denominations. The details for the period from 1925 to 1942 are tabulated inAppendix N.

110

Conclusion

30. This chapter on military history of Gujarat has covered the details of militias in 18th

century and princely state forces of 19th century. The history of militias has indicated that theindigenous rulers had mercenaries who were from ethnic groups like Arabs, Makaranis, Rohillas,and Sindhis. The princely states of Gujarat also had non-Gujarati soldiers in their forces.Although it was incumbent on the Bombay Presidency to enroll soldiers from its region but itwas unable to meet the recruitment targets of its presidency army. Similarly the largest Princelystate of Baroda was unable to recruit locally from Gujarat area. The problem of unavailability ofsoldiers in the Gujarat region has been commented upon in the correspondence between Dewanof Baroda and Political Reagent of the Bombay Government. The list of personnel posted on theestablishment of 1st Cavalry amply proves the point of very limited participation by localGujarati people in the early part of 20th century.

30.1 The next chapter on results and analysis will discuss the propensity (willingness to jointhe army) of respondents of the survey. It will also estimate the most significant explanatorypredictors of this propensity in the current times.

1 Kantha in Gujarati language means the bank of a river. Banaskantha means the area around the

Banas River and Sabarkantha means the area around Sabar River.

2 Rashmi R Batchu,2009, PhD Thesis “Socio Political Structure of Gujarat in the Eighteenth

Century” submitted to The Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara, p 8

3Dirk H.A. Kolff, 1990, “Naukar, Rajput & Sepoy, The Ethnohistory of the Military Labour Market in

Hindustan, 1450-1850”, CUP, Cambridge, 1990

4 Dirk H.A. Kolff, 1990,Naukar, Rajput & Sepoy

5 Walter Hamilton,1828, “The East India Gazetteer” p 713

6Town/City Merchant

7 Mirat, p 398

8 Ibid 516

9Rashmi R Batchu,2009, PhD Thesis “Socio Political Structure of Gujarat in the Eighteenth Century”

submitted to The Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara, p 182-183

10 He is called the ‘jobber-Commander’ by Kolff and Gommans who also trace the origin of the jamadarsas playing a prominent role in the military labour market since the time of Sher Shah. See Introduction inJos J. L. Gommans and Dirk H .A. Kolff (eds), Warfare and Weaponry in South Asia, Oxford, 2001, p 18

11 Rashmi R Batchu,2009, PhD Thesis “Socio Political Structure of Gujarat in the Eighteenth

Century” submitted to The Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara, p 184

111

12 Ibid p185

13 Mirat, p 402 Meher Ali Khan was a resident of Ahmedabad. With the appointment of Maharaja

Ajit Singh as the Nazim in 1717 he became unemployed. By this time we can see a trend where the

Nazims themselves appointed Faujdars and other officials of their own faction and mansabdars of other

factions were left to fend for themselves. Meher Ali Khan is said to have employed Arab sibandis against

the possible harassment by Bhandari, the Naib-Nazim.

14Ibid p 417

15 Ibid. p 601

16HSBSR IV, Lt. 16, p 479

17 GOB IV, p 326 The Pathans were 2000 in number

18Tarikh-i-Sorath, p193

19 GOB IV, p 198 while Baroda’s battle with Malhar Rao was proceeding 400 horsemen and 300

foot soldiers entered into Babaji’s service on the Arab Jamadars’ security.

20 James Burnes, 1831, “A Narrative of a visit to the court of Sinde; A Sketch of the History of Cutch”,

Edinburgh, p 183

21 There is some ambiguity as to the actual meaning of the term Qasbati. The 19th century British

sources translate the term Qasbatis as the ‘Muslim residents of the towns’. This would lead one to

conclude that the nature of the indigenous soldiery during this period was not rural as suggested by Dirk

Kolff but was urban. A qasba was wholesale market in a pargana. Surplus produce from the villages

were brought to qasba for sale and retailers from cities would come to buy it. Thus qasbas developed as

important centres in the surplus distribution system. But a qasba was essentially rural. Thus, it is possible

that the qasbati soldiers were also peasants. This explains why they were not mobile vis-a-vis the non-

indigenous sibandis. The qasbatis who worked as manotidars indicates that they were peasants with

resources and therefore invested in manotidari or standing surety for revenue payments from the ryots.

This suggests that the Qasbatis were peasants with greater resources.

22 A.K.Forbes, 1924, “The Ras Mala” (2 Volumes) ‘Hindoo Annals of The Province of Goozerat in

Western India’ p 66, latest edition 1997

23 Tarikh-i-Sorath p 66

24Bombay Presidency Gazeteer, Population-Hindus, pp 241-242

25 James MacMurdo, ‘Journal of a route through the peninsula of Guzerat in the year 1809- 1810’,

published by Suresh Chandra Ghosh (ed), The Peninsula of Gujarat in the early 19th century, New Delhi,

p 94

112

26 James Burnes, op.cit. Pp. 135-136.

27 Mirat Passim

28 GOB V, p 230

29 Ibid pp 170-171

30 Shashtri, K.K. 1969, “Gujarat Darshana- Communities”, published by Darshan Trust, Ahmedabad

31 Ian Copland, 1982, “The British Raj and Indian Princes”, Orient Longman Delhi, p1

32Ibid, p3

33 Ibid, p7

34 Ibid, p15

35 Ibid, p18

36According to census of 1911, Historical Selections from Baroda Records

37 Ian Copland, 1982, “The British Raj and Indian Princes”, Orient Longman Delhi, p3

38 Ibid, p2

39 HS Bhatia, 1977, “ The Mil History of British India 1607-1947”, Deep and Deep Publishers,

Delhi , p17

40 Ibid p 18

41 Ibid 35

42Ibid p 56

43 Dr Omar Khalidi, February 2001 “Ethnic Group Recruitment in the Indian Army: The

Contrasting Cases of Sikhs, Muslims, Gurkhas and others”, Massachusetts Institute of Technology,

Boston

44H S Bhatia p 86

45Ronald R Krebs is assistant professor of Political Science at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

46 Ronald R Krebs, 2005, “One Nation under Arms? Military Participation Policy and Politics of

Identity” “Security Studies” Volume 14 Number 3 pp 529-564

47Ibid pp 555-556

48Ibid p 556

113

49 Tan Tai Young, “Sepoys and the Colonial State: Punjab and the Military Base of the Indian Army, 1849-1900,” in

The British Raj and Its Indian Armed forces,1857-1960, ed. Partha Sarathi Gupta and Arindam Deshpande,2002,

New Delhi: Oxford University Press, p 28

50Stephen P Cohen, “The Military and Indian Democracy,” in “India’s Democracy: An Analysis of Changing

State-Society Relations, ed Atul Kohli,1988, Princeton University Press, p 105; and Stephen Cohen “Indian Army”,

pps 189-92, 210.

51Ibid p558

52 Ibid p 559

53 Dr K M L Saxena, “The Military System of India, Chapter- Social and Religious Divisions in The

Native Army” p 106

54 Pardesi means foreigner

55 Dr K M L Saxena “The Military System of India”, Chapter- Social and Religious Divisions in

The Native Army pp110

56 Military Department Proceedings, B, June 1893, No 2901 As an illustration of this change,

the new composition of the 24th Bombay Infantry reorganized as frontier (Baluchistan) regiment was as

follows:-

Ghilzai Hazaras 1 Company

Ghilzais 2 Company

Kakars 1 Company

Wazirs, Marwats 1 Company

Punjabi Muslims 1 company

57 Dirk H A Kolff, 1990,“Naukar, Sepoy , Rajput” p 88

58Ibid p 171

59 Ibid p 172

60 Ibid pp180-181

61 Ibid p 71

62H H The Maharaja of Jaipur,1967,“A History of Indian State Forces” p6

114

63 Head, Richard W, May 1987; “The Baroda Army- A History of Its Origins, Composition and

Achievements” This document is available in Historical Division, Ministry of Defence, Government of

India, New Delhi for reference purposes

64 Baroda Archives p 10

65Head, Richard W, May 1987, Baroda Army, p 23

66 Head, Richard W, May 1987, Baroda Army, p 59

67 Head, Richard W, May 1987, Idar Army, p12.

68Head, Richard W May 1987, Idar Army, p 12

69 Head, Richard W, May 1987, Palanpur Infantry, p 2.

70Head, Richard W, May 1987, Palanpur Infantry, p 9

71 Head, Richard W, May 1987, Rajpipla Army.