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{{short description|Infantry regiment of the erstwhile British Indian Army}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{Cleanup|reason=poor structure|date=January 2021}}
{{More citations needed|date=January 2021}}
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{{Infobox military unit
|unit_name= 9th Bhopal Infantry / 17 Punjab Haidri
| image= 9th Bhopal Infantry Indian Army.jpg
| image_size =
|caption=
|dates=1859 - 1922
|country={{flag|British India}}
|branch=Army
|type=Infantry
|size=4 Battalions
|command_structure=
|garrison=
|ceremonial_chief=[[Nawab of Bhopal]]
|ceremonial_chief_label=Colonel-in-Chief
|colonel_of_the_regiment=
|nickname=Bo-Peeps; Haidris
|motto=
|colors=Drab; faced chocolate
|colors_label=Uniform
|march=
|mascot=
|battles=[[Indian Rebellion of 1857|Indian Mutiny]] 1857-58 <br>[[Second Afghan War]] 1878-80<br>[[First World War]] 1914-18
|notable_commanders=
|anniversaries=
}}
The '''9th Bhopal Infantry''' was an infantry regiment of the [[British Indian Army]].It was raised by Nawab of Bhopal in 1818 near Sehore. It was re-raised in 1859, as the Bhopal Levy. The regiment was disbanned for participating in war against British during 1857. It was designated as the 9th Bhopal Infantry in 1903 and became 4th Battalion (Bhopal) [[16th Punjab Regiment]] in 1922. In 1947, it was allocated to the [[Pakistan Army]], where it continues to exist as '''17th Battalion The [[Punjab Regiment(Pakistan)|Punjab Regiment / 17 Punjab Haidri]]'''.<ref name="Rizvi 1984">Rizvi, Brig SHA. (1984). ''Veteran Campaigners – A History of the Punjab Regiment 1759-1981''. Lahore: Wajidalis.</ref><ref name="Lawford 1967">Lawford, Lt Col JP, and Catto, Maj WE. (1967). ''Solah Punjab: The History of the 16th Punjab Regiment''. Aldershot: Gale & Polden.</ref>

== History ==

===Early history===
The 17 Punjab Haidri could trace its origins to 1818, when it was raised at [[Sehore]], as a mixed force of infantry and cavalry by the [[Bhopal (state)|State of Bhopal]] for service with the British. It was known as the Bhopal Contingent and was employed to keep peace in the lawless regions of Central India. Following the upheaval of the [[Indian Mutiny]], the contingent was reorganized by Lieutenant Colonel [[James Travers]], [[Victoria Cross|VC]], as the Bhopal Levy in May 1859. In 1865, it was redesignated as the Bhopal Battalion. In 1878, the battalion participated in the [[Second Afghan War]], where it operated on the Line of Communication.<ref name="Lawford 1967"/>
[[File:The Liberation of Rhodes, 1945 E30946.jpg|thumb|right|Men of the Bhopal Regiment disembarking at [[Rhodes]] following the unconditional surrender of German forces, 1945.]]

===9th Bhopal Infantry===
Subsequent to the [[Kitchener Reforms|reforms]] brought about in the Indian Army by [[Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener|Lord Kitchener]] in 1903, the Bhopal Battalion's designation was changed to 9th Bhopal Infantry. During the [[First World War]], the 9th Bhopal Infantry was dispatched to [[France]] in 1914. The regiment suffered heavy losses at the Battles of [[Battle of Neuve Chapelle|Neuve Chapelle]], [[Festubert]], [[Battle of Givenchy|Givenchy]] and the [[Second Ypres]]. In 1915, they arrived in [[Mesopotamia]], where they were engaged in fierce fighting on the [[Tigris]] Front. Sepoy [[Chattar Singh]] was awarded the [[Victoria Cross]]{{citation needed|date=January 2021}} for exceptional valour at the [[Battle of Wadi (1916)|Battle of Wadi]] on 13 January 1916. By the time the regiment returned home in March 1919, only fifteen men remained of those who had sailed for France in 1914. The 9th Bhopal Infantry raised three more battalions, which were disbanded after the war.<ref name="Lawford 1967"/><ref name="Gaylor 1991">{{cite book|last=Gaylor|first=John|title=Sons of John Company: The Indian and Pakistan Armies 1903–91|publisher=Stroud: Spellmount|year=1991}}</ref>

===Interwar period and World War II===
In 1921–22, a major reorganization was undertaken in the British Indian Army leading to the formation of large infantry groups of four to six battalions. Among these was the 16th Punjab Regiment, formed by grouping the 9th Bhopal Infantry with the [[30th Punjabis|30th]], [[31st Punjabis|31st]], [[33rd Punjabis|33rd]] and [[46th Punjabis]]. The battalion's new designation was 4th Battalion (Bhopal) 16th Punjab Regiment. During the [[Second World War]], the battalion again fought with great distinction in the [[Italian East Africa]], [[North Africa]] and [[Italy]]. It suffered 250 casualties in the [[Battle of Cassino]] alone.<ref name="Lawford 1967" /><ref name="Gaylor 1991" /> In February 1941 the battalion was placed under command of the [[7th Indian Infantry Brigade]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=HyperWar: East African Campaign, 1940-41 (Chapter 6)|url=https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/India/EAfrica/EAfrica-6.html|access-date=2021-07-20|website=www.ibiblio.org}}</ref> which was assigned to the [[4th Infantry Division (India)|4th Indian infantry division]], also known as the Red Eagle Division.

=== Post independence ===
In 1947, the 16th Punjab Regiment was allocated to Pakistan Army. In 1956, it was merged with the [[1st Punjab Regiment|1st]], [[14th Punjab Regiment|14th]] and [[15th Punjab Regiment]]s to form one large [[Punjab Regiment (Pakistan)|Punjab Regiment]], and 4/16th Punjab was redesignated as 17 Punjab. In 1948, the battalion fought in the war with India in [[Kashmir]], while during the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistan Wars, it again fought with great gallantry at [[Lahore]], where Major [[Raja Aziz Bhatti]] was awarded the [[Nishan-i-Haider]], [[Pakistan]]'s highest gallantry award in 1965.<ref name="Rizvi 1984" /> 17 Punjab Regiment was redesignated due to its outstanding performance by Chief Of Army, Gen M Zia ul Haq as 17 Punjab Haidri in 1979.

==Lineage==
[[File:Sub Sh Ali Mohammed, 9th Bhopal Infantry, 1910.jpg|thumb|right|Subedar Sheikh Ali Mohammed, 9th Bhopal Infantry. Sketch by Major AC Lovett, 1910.|240px]]
*1818-1859: The Bhopal Contingent
*1859-1965: Bhopal Levy
*1865-1903: Bhopal Battalion
*1903-1917: 9th Bhopal Infantry
*1917-1922: 1st Battalion 9th Bhopal Infantry
*1922-1956: 4th Battalion (Bhopal) 16th Punjab Regiment
*1956-1979: 17th Battalion The Punjab Regiment
*1979–present: 17 Punjab Haidri

==See also==
*[[16th Punjab Regiment]]
*[[Punjab Regiment (Pakistan)|Punjab Regiment]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
*Jackson, Maj CC, Martin, Lt Col GD, and Smith, Col H. (1931). ''Historical Record of the 4th Battalion, 16th Punjab Regiment''. Aldershot: Gale & Polden.
*Qureshi, Brig MI. (2003). ''The Haidris: 17 Punjab Regiment in Indo-Pak War, 1965''. Quetta: Command & Staff College.
*Lawford, Lt Col JP, and Catto, Maj WE. (1967). ''Solah Punjab: The History of the 16th Punjab Regiment''. Aldershot: Gale & Polden.
*Rizvi, Brig SHA. (1984). ''Veteran Campaigners – A History of the Punjab Regiment 1759-1981''. Lahore: Wajidalis.
*Cardew, Lt FG. (1903). ''A Sketch of the Services of the Bengal Native Army to the Year 1895''. Calcutta: Military Department.
*{{cite book|last=Gaylor|first=John|title=Sons of John Company: The Indian and Pakistan Armies 1903–91|publisher=Stroud: Spellmount|year=1991|isbn=978-0-946771-98-1}}
*{{cite book|last=Barthorp|first=Michael|last2=Burn|first2=Jeffrey|year=1979|title=Indian Infantry Regiments 1860-1914|publisher=London: Osprey|isbn=0-85045-307-0}}
*{{cite book|last=Sumner|first=Ian|title=The Indian Army 1914-1947|year=2001|publisher=London: Osprey|isbn=1-84176-196-6}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}

[[Category:British Indian Army infantry regiments]]
[[Category:Honourable East India Company regiments]]
[[Category:Punjab Regiment (Pakistan)]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1859]]
[[Category:1859 establishments in India]]
[[Category:1859 establishments in British India]]

9th Bhopal Infantry - Revision history

Delinker at 11:21, 31 July 2023