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{{Use British English|date=October 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name = 151st Sikh Infantry / 151st Punjabi Rifles
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| dates = May 1918 – 15 May 1921
| country = {{flag|British India|23px}}
| allegiance = [[British Crown]]
| branch = {{army|British India|23px}}
| type = [[Infantry]]
| role =
| size = Three [[battalion]]s
| command_structure = [[Kohat Brigade]]<br>[[10th (Irish) Division]]<br>[[60th (2/2nd London) Division]]
| garrison =
| garrison_label =
| nickname =
| patron =
| motto =
| march =
| mascot =
| anniversaries =
| equipment =
| equipment_label =
| battles = [[First World War]]
:[[Sinai and Palestine Campaign]]
::[[Battle of Nablus (1918)|Battle of Nablus]]
::[[Battle of Sharon]]
[[Third Anglo-Afghan War]]
| battles_label =
| decorations =
| battle_honours =
| battle_honours_label =
| disbanded =
| notable_commanders =
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}}
The '''151st Sikh Infantry'''{{snd}}also designated '''151st Punjabi Rifles''', see [[#Nomenclature|nomenclature (below)]]{{snd}}was an [[infantry]] [[regiment]] of the [[British Indian Army]]. It was formed in [[Mesopotamian campaign|Mesopotamia]] and [[Sinai and Palestine Campaign|Palestine]] in May 1918, saw active service in the [[Indian Army during World War I|First World War]] and the [[Third Anglo-Afghan War]], and was disbanded in May 1921.

==Background==
Heavy losses suffered by the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War I)|British Expeditionary Force]] on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] following the [[German spring offensive]] in March 1918 resulted in a major reorganization of the [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]]:
* two divisions{{snd}}[[52nd (Lowland) Division|52nd (Lowland)]]<ref name=Becke115>{{harvnb|Becke|1936|p=115}}</ref> and [[74th (Yeomanry) Division|74th (Yeomanry)]]<ref name=Becke121_2b>{{harvnb|Becke|1937|p=121}}</ref>{{snd}} were transferred to France in April; they were replaced by the [[3rd (Lahore) Division|3rd (Lahore)]]<ref name=Perry54>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=54}}</ref> and [[7th (Meerut) Division]]s<ref name=Perry90>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=90}}</ref> from [[Mesopotamian campaign|Mesopotamia]];
* nine [[yeomanry]] [[regiment]]s were dismounted, converted to machine gunners and sent to France at the end of the same month; the [[4th Cavalry Division (British Indian Army)|4th]]<ref name=Perry2124>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|pp=21–24}}</ref> and [[5th Cavalry Division (British Indian Army)|5th Cavalry Divisions]]<ref name=Perry2528>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|pp=25–28}}</ref> were reformed with Indian cavalry regiments withdrawn from France and the [[15th (Imperial Service) Cavalry Brigade]] already in Egypt;
* the [[10th (Irish) Division|10th (Irish)]],<ref name=Becke1516>{{harvnb|Becke|1938|pp=15–16}}</ref> [[53rd (Welsh) Division|53rd (Welsh)]],<ref name=Becke120121>{{harvnb|Becke|1936|pp=120–121}}</ref> [[60th (2/2nd London) Division|60th (2/2nd London)]],<ref name=Becke2930>{{harvnb|Becke|1937|pp=29–30}}</ref> and [[75th Division (United Kingdom)|75th Divisions]]<ref name=Becke126128>{{harvnb|Becke|1937|pp=126–128}}</ref> were reduced to a single British [[battalion]] per [[brigade]]. They were reformed with nine Indian infantry battalions and an Indian [[Pioneer (military)|pioneer]] battalion each.{{efn|The remaining infantry division in the [[Egyptian Expeditionary Force]] in March 1918{{snd}}the [[54th (East Anglian) Division]]{{snd}}remained unaffected by these changes.<ref name=Becke128129>{{harvnb|Becke|1936|pp=128–129}}</ref>}}
In fact, the 75th Division already had four Indian battalions assigned,{{efn|In March 1917, the Egyptian Expeditionary Force started forming the [[75th Division (United Kingdom)|75th Division]], originally to be made up of [[Territorial Force]] battalions arriving from India. In May 1917, to speed up the formation of the division, it was decided to incorporate Indian battalions.<ref name=Becke129>{{harvnb|Becke|1937|p=129}}</ref> To this end, the independent [[29th Indian Brigade]] was broken up in June 1917 and its battalions posted to 75th Division.<ref name=Perry167>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=167}}</ref>}} so of the 36 battalions needed to reform the divisions, 22 were improvised<ref name=Perry174>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=174}}</ref> by taking whole [[Company (military unit)|companies]] from existing units already on active service in Mesopotamia and Palestine to form the [[150th Infantry]] (3 battalions), '''151st Sikh Infantry''' (3), [[152nd Punjabis]] (3), [[153rd Punjabis]] (3), [[154th Infantry]] (3), [[155th Pioneers]] (2), [[156th Infantry]] (1) and the [[11th Gurkha Rifles]] (4).<ref name=Perry177178>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|pp=177–178}}</ref> The donor units were then brought back up to strength by drafts. In the event, just 13 of the battalions were assigned to the divisions<ref name=Hanafin>{{cite web |url=http://orbat.com/site/history/open4/uk_eygptianexpeditionaryforce1918.pdf |title=Order of Battle of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, September 1918 |last=Hanafin |first=James |publisher=orbat.com |access-date=11 November 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109153754/http://orbat.com/site/history/open4/uk_eygptianexpeditionaryforce1918.pdf | archive-date=9 January 2015}}</ref> and the remaining nine were transferred from Mesopotamia to India in June 1918.<ref name=PerryVar>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|pp=44,64,81,103,155}}</ref>

==History==

===Nomenclature===
Oddly, the designation of the regiment varied between the battalions. The 1st and 2nd Battalions were '''151st Sikh Infantry''' whereas the 3rd Battalion was '''151st Punjabi Rifles''', hence ''1st Battalion, 151st Sikh Infantry'', ''2nd Battalion, 151st Sikh Infantry'' and ''3rd Battalion, 151st Punjabi Rifles''.<ref name=Perry177>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=177}}</ref> Gaylor states that the 2nd Battalion was '''151st Indian Infantry''';<ref name=Gaylor346>{{harvnb|Gaylor|1996|p=346}}</ref> it is notable that no other Indian infantry regiment incorporated ''Indian'' in their titles [[List of regiments of the Indian Army (1903)|at this time]].{{efn|Later, two regiments incorporated ''Indian'' in their titles: the [[4th Bombay Grenadiers]] (formed on 1 March 1922) was designated as [[The Indian Grenadiers]] from October 1945<ref name=Gaylor144>{{harvnb|Gaylor|1996|p=144}}</ref> before being assigned to the [[Indian Army]] on [[Partition of India|Partition]] and being redesignated as [[The Grenadiers]];<ref name=Gaylor269>{{harvnb|Gaylor|1996|p=269}}</ref> and the [[Indian Parachute Regiment]] had a brief existence from 1 March 1945 to 26 October 1946<ref name=Gaylor206>{{harvnb|Gaylor|1996|p=206}}</ref> before being reformed on 15 April 1952 as the [[Parachute Regiment (India)|Parachute Regiment]].<ref name=Gaylor262>{{harvnb|Gaylor|1996|p=262}}</ref>}} Other sources designate both the 2nd and 3rd battalions as '''151st Infantry'''.<ref name=LLT_10Div>{{cite web | url=http://www.1914-1918.net/10div.htm | title=The 10th (Irish) Division in 1914–1918 | publisher=The Long, Long Trail | first=Chris | last=Baker | access-date=9 October 2015}}</ref><ref name=LLT_53Div>{{cite web | url=http://www.1914-1918.net/60div.htm | title=The 60th (2/2nd London) Division in 1914–1918 | publisher=The Long, Long Trail | first=Chris | last=Baker | access-date=9 October 2015}}</ref>

===Formation===
The 151st Sikh Infantry / 151st Punjabi Rifles was formed of three battalions in May 1918. The 1st Battalion was formed in Mesopotamia with companies posted from battalions serving in the [[17th Indian Division|17th]] and [[18th Indian Division]]s.<ref name=PerryVar2>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|pp=144,148}}</ref> It was transferred to India in June 1918 and later took part in the [[Third Anglo-Afghan War]] in 1919 as part of the [[Kohat Brigade]].<ref name=Perry156>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=156}}</ref>

In contrast, the 2nd and 3rd Battalions were formed in Palestine with companies posted from battalions serving in the [[Theater (warfare)|theatre]]<ref name=Becke16>{{harvnb|Becke|1938|p=16}}</ref><ref name=Becke30>{{harvnb|Becke|1937|p=30}}</ref> particularly from the 3rd (Lahore)<ref name=Perry51>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=51}}</ref> and 7th (Meerut) Divisions.<ref name=Perry87>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=87}}</ref> They were assigned to British divisions and took part in the final [[Allies of World War I|Allied]] offensive of the [[Sinai and Palestine Campaign]] (the [[Battle of Megiddo (1918)|Battles of Megiddo]]).<ref name=Becke18>{{harvnb|Becke|1938|p=18}}</ref><ref name=Becke32>{{harvnb|Becke|1937|p=32}}</ref>

==={{anchor|1}}1st Battalion===
The 1st Battalion was formed in Mesopotamia<ref name=Perry103>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=103}}</ref> in May 1918 by the transfer of complete companies from:<ref name=Perry177/>
*[[14th King George's Own Ferozepore Sikhs]]
*[[36th Sikhs]]
*[[45th Rattray's Sikhs]]
*[[52nd Sikhs (Frontier Force)]]

The battalion was transferred from Mesopotamia to India in June 1918 and joined the [[Allahabad Brigade]] in the [[8th (Lucknow) Division]] where it remained in until the end of the [[First World War]].<ref name=Perry103/> In May 1919, it mobilized with the [[Kohat Brigade]] and took part in the [[Third Anglo-Afghan War]].<ref name=Perry156/> The battalion was disbanded on 15 May 1921.<ref name=Gaylor346/>

==={{anchor|2}}2nd Battalion===
The 2nd Battalion was formed near [[Jaffa]] on 30 May 1918<ref name=Becke16/> by the transfer of complete companies from:<ref name=Perry177/>
*[[51st Sikhs (Frontier Force)]]
*[[53rd Sikhs (Frontier Force)]]
*[[54th Sikhs (Frontier Force)]]
*[[56th Punjabi Rifles (Frontier Force)]]

On 10 June, the battalion joined the [[29th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)|29th Brigade]], 10th (Irish) Division and remained with the division for the rest of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign,<ref name=Becke16/> taking part in the [[Battle of Nablus (1918)|Battle of Nablus]] (19–21 September 1918).<ref name=Becke18/>

The 10th (Irish) Division concentrated near [[Tul Karm]] in the middle of October and was there when the [[Armistice of Mudros]] came into effect at noon on 31 October. The division moved to [[Sarafand al-Amar|Sarafand]] (now [[Tzrifin]]) by 12 November and moved back to Egypt, concentrating in [[Cairo]] by 1 December. It was there when demobilization began in January 1919.<ref name=Becke18/> The battalion was disbanded on 31 July 1920.<ref name=Gaylor346/>

==={{anchor|3}}3rd Battalion===
The 3rd Battalion was formed at [[Latrun]] and [[Ein 'Arik|'Ain 'Ariq]] between 24 May and 27 June 1918<ref name=Becke30/> by the transfer of complete companies from:<ref name=Perry177/>
*1st Battalion, [[Guides Infantry]]
*[[38th Dogras]]
*[[58th Vaughan's Rifles (Frontier Force)]]
*[[59th Scinde Rifles (Frontier Force)]]

The battalion joined the [[179th (2/4th London) Brigade|179th Brigade]], 60th (2/2nd London) Division at 'Ain 'Ariq on 4 June. It remained with the division for the rest of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign,<ref name=Becke28>{{harvnb|Becke|1937|p=28}}</ref> taking part in the [[Battle of Sharon]] (19–21 September 1918).<ref name=Becke32/>

After the Armistice of Mudros, the 60th Division was withdrawn to [[Alexandria]] by 26 November 1918 where demobilization gradually took place. Three Indian battalions returned to India in February 1919 and the last had departed by 31 May 1919.<ref name=Becke32/> The battalion was disbanded on 15 May 1921.<ref name=Gaylor346/>

==See also==
{{portal|World War I}}
* [[Indian Army during World War I]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book
| last = Becke | first = Major A.F.
| year = 1936
| title = Order of Battle of Divisions Part 2A. The Territorial Force Mounted Divisions and the 1st-Line Territorial Force Divisions (42–56)
| publisher = [[His Majesty's Stationery Office]]
| location = London
| isbn = 1-871167-12-4
}}
* {{cite book
| last = Becke | first = Major A.F.
| year = 1937
| title = Order of Battle of Divisions Part 2B. The 2nd-Line Territorial Force Divisions (57th–69th) with The Home-Service Divisions (71st–73rd) and 74th and 75th Divisions
| publisher = [[His Majesty's Stationery Office]]
| location = London
| isbn = 1-871167-00-0
}}
* {{cite book
| last = Becke | first = Major A.F.
| year = 1938
| title = Order of Battle of Divisions Part 3A. New Army Divisions (9–26)
| publisher = [[His Majesty's Stationery Office]]
| location = London
| isbn = 1-871167-08-6
}}
* {{cite book
| last = Gaylor | first = John
| year = 1996
| edition = 2nd
| title = Sons of John Company: The Indian and Pakistan Armies 1903–1991
| publisher = Parapress
| location = Tunbridge Wells
| isbn = 1-898594-41-4
}}
* {{cite book
| last = Perry | first = F.W.
| year = 1993
| title = Order of Battle of Divisions Part 5B. Indian Army Divisions
| publisher = Ray Westlake Military Books
| location = Newport
| isbn = 1-871167-23-X
}}

==External links==
* {{cite web | url=http://www.1914-1918.net/10div.htm | title=The 10th (Irish) Division in 1914-1918 | publisher=The Long, Long Trail | first=Chris | last=Baker | access-date=1 August 2015}}
* {{cite web | url=http://www.1914-1918.net/60div.htm | title=The 60th (2/2nd London) Division in 1914–1918 | publisher=The Long, Long Trail | first=Chris | last=Baker | access-date=1 August 2015}}
* {{cite web |url=http://orbat.com/site/history/open4/uk_eygptianexpeditionaryforce1918.pdf |title=Order of Battle of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, September 1918 |last=Hanafin |first=James |publisher=orbat.com |access-date=11 November 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109153754/http://orbat.com/site/history/open4/uk_eygptianexpeditionaryforce1918.pdf | archive-date=9 January 2015}}

{{#seo:
|keywords=British Indian Army infantry regiments, Military units and formations established in 1918, Military units and formations disestablished in 1921
|description=
}}

[[Category:British Indian Army infantry regiments]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1918]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1921]]

151st Sikh Infantry - Revision history

CleanupBot at 04:20, 8 July 2023