Читать книгу Famous Fights of Indian Native Regiments (Reginald Hodder) (Literary Thoughts Edition) - Reginald Hodder - Страница 7

There are three great classes of Sikhs: the Sikh by race, the Sikh by religious sect, and the Sikh by political conviction. They are, however, divided tribally as follows:—

The Jat Sikhs,

The Khattri Sikhs,

The Kamboh Sikhs,

The Lobana Sikhs,

The Sikh Chuhras or Mazhbis,

The Sikh Tarkhans,

The Kalal Sikhs.

The Jat Sikhs.—Our Jat recruits are drawn from the Eastern Jats, a race of hardy husbandmen. They are, so to speak, a clan of Indian agricultural peasantry. They came originally from the highlands of Scythia. These men possess the necessary instincts of the soldier, and their history has been marked by stern, hard fighting.

The Khattri Sikhs.—These are the merchant caste of the Punjabis.

The Kamboh Sikhs.—These make excellent soldiers, being of very fine physique and possessing great courage. They have always been noted for their cunning strategy, which now, being far less "slim" than in former times, has developed into the permissible strategy of war.

The Lobana Sikhs.—These are the social equals of the Jats.

The Sikh Chuhras or Mazhbis.—The term "Mazhbis" has now come to be applied to all Chuhras who have adopted Sikhism as their religion. The true Mazhbis are descendants of certain Chuhras, who rescued in a heroic fashion the body of Gurai Teg Bahadur from the Mahomedans, thus saving it from being dishonoured. In return for this, Gurai's son, Govind Singh, bestowed upon them the title of "Mazhbis Rangreeta" ("Chosen Brave"), and invited them into the fold of Sikhism. Therefore the name Mazhbis belongs properly to the descendants of these particular Chuhras' families. Inspired as they are by the glorious history and traditions of Khalsa, these men make excellent soldiers.

Sikh Tarkhans.—Tarkhans are carpenters by caste and profession. They are intelligent and industrious men, of whom about 20 per cent. are Sikhs by religion, the rest being Hindu or Mahomedan. Sikh Tarkhans, if carefully recruited, could supply a fair number of good soldiers.

Kalal Sikhs.—The Kalals are by caste and profession distillers and wine merchants on a small scale. Twenty-five per cent. of these have now embraced Sikhism, the rest being Hindu or Mahomedan; the Hindus being about 50 per cent. of the whole, and the Mahomedans about 25 per cent. Sikh Kalals are often styled Alhuwalias, from the fact that the famous and important Alhuwalia Misb was founded by the Kalal convert to Sikhism. The Chiefs of Kapurthala have always been Kalals by descent, and, since the rise of the Sikh Kalals to political prominence, they have largely given up their original profession to take to the more respectable avocations of merchandise and agriculture. The Kalals have a reputation for "enterprise, mercy and obstinacy"; and the Sikh Kalals make good soldiers, being of good physique and great hardihood.

The stately, manly Sikh has a character all his own. He has the manly virtues of honesty, industry, and tenacity well developed. He is independent, patient, and full of methodical, laborious energy; and, of all the Sikh tribes of whom this description is more or less true, the Jat may be particularly mentioned.

The Sikh race is drawn from the Punjab tribes, such as the Jat and Khattri, who from time immemorial have been renowned for their sturdy grit and independence. It may perhaps be said that the Jat-Sikh combines especially the best qualities of the Pathan races with those of the Sikh tribes.

All the Punjab races are, as a rule, impatient of control, but the Jat is particularly so, exercising in his impatience a fine quality of individual freedom. This, together with the fact that he is neither truculent nor turbulent, provides him with one of the finest qualities of a well-disciplined soldier, in contradistinction to the machine-made soldier. Well understood, he can be, and has been, well managed. Encouraged to continue in his own peaceful agricultural ways, he is reasonable and contented in doing his work; but if he is roused by what he considers unjust aggression, or any unsolicited interference, he is a dangerous man to deal with.

These salient characteristics of the Jat, combined with other qualities cultivated by British rule and example, have tinctured practically the whole Sikh race.

Respect of self and pride of race have now improved from the Sikh character the early intolerance and ungovernable spirit emanating from the Jats. Even the Sikh religion, as taught by its founder Nanak, has modified the hard-and-fast prejudices of the Hindu on the one hand, and on the other has eliminated the baser rancour and fanaticism of the more exoteric Mahomedanism.

The Sikh of to-day is a level-headed, sober-minded, tolerant man, keenly alive to practical issues. And from this may be judged his valour as a soldier. In the thick of battle the Sikh is cool and resolute. He is possessed of grim determination and tenacity. Just as in any emergency of social life he will keep his head with admirable self-restraint, so in the clash of battle he can be relied upon to do the right thing at the right moment in the right way. While not possessing quite so much élan as some other tribes, he more than compensates for that lack by his immunity from any tendency to panic.

The high-class Sikh may always be known by his stately bearing and lofty courtesy. His every movement is graceful, and the general impression one would get on the approach of a real Sikh is simply this: "Here comes one who is a prince in his own country." This dignity of bearing extends even to the lower classes, especially among our Sepoys, who carry themselves with an easy elegance, much of which is attributable to their splendid physique and the due consciousness of it.

It is not too much to say that of all the fine races of the East there is no type of man superior to the Sikh. In innate breeding he can tread the razor-edge between independence and insolence, between firm resolution and unreasoning obstinacy, between the present value of tradition and the dead husk of the glorified past. In his respect of himself he commands respect from others, and, combining the essential instinct of the soldier with the acquired love of practical ideals he can see with a single eye what the doubleheaded vulture of Prussia cannot see with four.

Constant fighting and an iron discipline had kept the Sikhs in order during the lifetime of Ranjit Singh, but after his death the army became unmanageable.

The history of the Sikh War is too well known to need more than passing reference. The troops of the Khalsa were defeated after a series of hard-fought battles, in which they showed soldierly qualities of the highest order. In the decade which followed the conquest of the Punjab, the British Government, impressed with the fighting capacity of their former opponents, determined to employ them as soldiers in their own army.

On the outbreak of the Mutiny, which from the first was identified with the restoration of the Moghul power, there was an immense revival of Sikhism. Hundreds of Sikhs who had turned their swords into ploughshares flocked to Lahore, and eagerly took service in the regiments there being raised by Lord Lawrence. All were filled with an intense longing to range themselves on the side of justice and right. All were anxious to assist in the capture of Delhi—a city associated in their minds with the heroic struggles and reverses of their forefathers. The spirit of the Khalsa, which had suffered greatly by the defeats on the Sutlej, was aroused at the thought of a conflict between Sikhism and Islam—a conflict the memory of which is now not only nobly forgotten, but to be blotted out for ever by heroism and sacrifice; for both Sikh and Mahomedan of India have joined hands in common cause against the enemy of all human progress. Both have espoused our cause with a devotion and loyalty which is almost without parallel in history.

THE SIKH REGIMENTS, WITH THEIR BATTLE HONOURS

Cavalry

The following regiments contain squadrons of Sikhs:—

2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse).

3rd Skinner's Horse.

4th Cavalry.

6th King Edward's Own Cavalry.

7th Hariana Lancers.

9th Hodson's Horse.

10th Duke of Cambridge's Own Lancers (Hodson's Horse).

11th King Edward's Own Lancers (Probyn's Horse).

12th Cavalry.

13th Duke of Connaught's Lancers.

16th Cavalry.

18th King George's Own Lancers.

19th Lancers (Fane's Horse).

20th Deccan Horse.

21st Prince Albert Victor's Own Cavalry (Frontier Force) (Daly's Horse).

22nd Sam Browne's Cavalry (Frontier Force).

23rd Cavalry (Frontier Force).

25th Cavalry (Frontier Force).

29th Lancers (Deccan Horse).

30th Lancers (Gordon's Horse).

31st Duke of Connaught's Own Lancers.

32nd Lancers.

33rd Queen Victoria's Own Light Cavalry.

36th Jacob's Horse.

37th Lancers (Baluch Horse).

38th King George's Own Central India Horse.

39th King George's Own Central India Horse.

Infantry

The following regiments are composed exclusively of Sikhs:—

14th King George's Own Ferozepore Sikhs. Raised July 30th, 1846.

Consists of 8 companies of Sikhs.

Badges.—The Plume of the Prince of Wales. The Royal and Imperial Cypher.

Battle Honours.—"Lucknow," "Ali Masjid," "Afghanistan 1878/79," "Defence of Chitral," "China 1900."

Uniform.—Scarlet, facings yellow.

15th Ludhiana Sikhs. Raised 1846.

Consists of 8 companies of Sikhs.

Battle Honours.—"China 1860/62," "Ahmad Khel," "Kandahar 1880," "Afghanistan 1878/80," "Suakim 1885," "Tofrek," "Chitral," "Punjab Frontier," "Tirah."

Uniform.—Scarlet, facings emerald green.

23rd Sikh Pioneers. Raised 1857.

Consists of 8 companies of Mazhbi Sikhs.

Battle Honours.—"Taku Forts," "Pekin," "Abyssinia," "Peiwar Kotal," "Charasiah," "Kabul 1879," "Kandahar 1880," "Afghanistan 1878/80," "Chitral."

Uniform.—Drab, facings chocolate.

32nd Sikh Pioneers. Raised 1857.

Consists of 8 companies of Mazhbi Sikhs.

Motto.—"Aut viam inveniam aut faciam."

Battle Honours.—"Delhi," "Lucknow," "Afghanistan 1878/80," "Chitral."

Uniform.—Scarlet, facings blue.

34th Sikh Pioneers. Raised 1887.

Consists of 8 companies of Mazhbi Sikhs.

Battle Honours.—"Chitral," "Punjab Frontier," "China 1900."

Uniform.—Scarlet, facings blue.

35th Sikhs. Raised 1798, disbanded 1882, reformed 1887.

Consists of 8 companies of Sikhs.

Battle Honours.—"Punjab Frontier," "Malakand."

Uniform.—Scarlet, facings yellow.

36th Sikhs. Raised 1858, disbanded 1882, reformed 1887.

Consists of 8 companies of Sikhs.

Battle Honours.—"Punjab Frontier," "Samara," "Tirah."

Uniform.—Scarlet, facings yellow.

47th Sikhs. Raised 1901.

Consists of 8 companies of Sikhs.

Uniform.—Scarlet, facings yellow.

The 48th Pioneers, 51st Sikhs (Frontier Force), 52nd Sikhs (Frontier Force), 53rd Sikhs (Frontier Force), and 54th Sikhs (Frontier Force) are Sikh regiments with other tribes intermixed.