The British Indian Army And Its Role in Furthering The Raj

The British ruled India for close to 200 years and their hold over the sub continent was enforced by the British Indian Army. This army was basically a volunteer force consisting of enlisted men, but the officers were all Britishers. In addition this army also served British interests outside the sub continent and its sepoys saw duty in Singapore and hong Kong.  They even served in the Middle East and the adage ‘The Sun never sets on the British empire’ held true to great extent because of the British Indian army.

The British Indian army though primarily serving British interests was paid out the taxes raised by the Indian Government. No finances were generated from London and the British had an Army at their beck and call without being burdened about how to finance this force, which served British interests and the furtherance of their imperialist aspirations all over the globe, more particularly its grip over India. Perhaps they would never have been able to rule India without this army at their side.

Changes after 1857

The Indian mutiny 1857–1858 was a watershed in Indian history and had far-reaching consequences.  The British who had relied on the sepoys from Bengal and Utter Pradesh, felt let down. These races were disbanded and replaced by Sikhs, Gurkhas, Rajputs and Pathans who had remained loyal to the British during the mutiny.  Most preferential treatment was given to the Sikhs who also earned an extra promotion compared to other races.

The Use of the Revamped Army

This revamped army was used to put down internal dissent and was also used to cow the Indian population. It was also used as a mercenary army against Indians as well like the Jallianwala massacre at Amritsar, when Indian troops under General Dyer had fired on unarmed civilians and hundreds were shot dead.

The post 1857 Indian army now became a trusted component of the Raj and was used for action against the Afghans during the Anglo-Afghan wars. They were also used to enforce the British writ in the North West frontier province. In one famous battle at Saragrahi in 1897, 21 Sikh soldiers faced a Muslim horde of 10,000 all for the Raj and empire.

The Indian army was also used to defeat Tibet with the YoungHusband expedition in 1903-04. The British Indian army thus became an essential element of the Raj. There is no doubt that it was a mercenary army and did everything that its British masters desired.

Epilogue

In 1947 the Raj came to an end and an era ended. The British Indian Army became the Indian army and was divided between India and Pakistan the two successor states. But now in hindsight we can look back and appreciate that the British would never have ruled the seven seas and India without the British Indian army.