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Module - III Revolt of 1857 and Reforms in the Indian Army

Military History of the
infantry, cavalry and artillery. Indian officers were recruited to lead the battle. The
Colonial Era
native Indian army was now called the British Indian army and the soldiers were
professional, honest men with a sense of unity. The organisation of the army was also
strengthened The professionalism of Indian soldiers and officers would be put to test
during World Wars I & II. During these wars they showed the world how brave and
disciplined they were. Many battles were won in both the wars because of the Indians.
The reforms in the army that were carried out were as follows:-
Note
(a) Organisation of Infantry : Just as companies have managers, supervisors, an
army also has a rank structure which essentially gives levels of responsibilities
to capable persons. A battalion of infantry had 600 sepoys with Subedar,
Jamadar, Havildars and Naiks. The officers were British initially, with 6 officers
in a battalion. Later, Indian officers were commissioned and given responsibility
to lead the men. They were called the King's Commissioned Officers or KCO
in short. The first batch of KCOs included, Commander-in-Chief Tripura
Forces and Colonel Rana Jodha Jung Bahadur, Amar Singh,
Major General A A Rudra, K A D Naoroji (grandson of Dadabhai Naoroji),
Field Marshal K M Cariappa and C B Ponnappa.
(b) Organisation of Cavalry : Similar reorganization was made in Cavalry too. In
1861 it was decided that each regiment of the Native cavalry in Bengal would
consist of 420 sowars (sepoys), divided into six troops with, making a total of
499 of all ranks. They would have Risaldars (same as Subedars in Infantry),
Wardi Major, Jamadars, Dafadars (same as Havildars in infantry) and
Trumpeters. Each regiment had One British Commandant and 5 British officers.
A Native Cavalry regiment was divided into three squadrons. Each Squadron
had 152 men and 152 horses. These in later years would be converted to tanks.
After the 1857, young British Officers were posted to Native regiments only
after they had been thoroughly trained in the British regiment. They were
compulsorily required to learn the Indian languages so that they could
establish rapport with their men and also ensure that orders and instructions
were explained to the sepoys in the local language. The Native soldiers were
deliberately armed with inferior weapons to those given to the British privates,
due to a fear that Indians could revolt anytime.

What You Have Learnt

 We clearly understood main causes, which led to the first war of independence.
 The after effects brought in many changes in the military organizations.

 The British Indian army was now organized into a professional army on the lines of
the British model. They had a proper rank structure and responsibilities.

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MILITARY HISTORY