Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles

[VeeWalker]

 

     As in the final verse from dear Rudyard in "The Young Soldier"   I believe his verse was influenced by the British defeat at Maiwand in 1880.

 

When you're wounded and left on Afghanistan's plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An' go to your Gawd like a soldier.

 

     

Very apt I suspect!  The small piece of info I have omitted from the thread below is that the tiny letter (no bigger than the palm of my hand) is clearly postmarked Patiala - big province I know, but he was definitely not anywhere near Assam still. I dearly love a family mystery. Thank you everyone so much for your interest and help (if you have read Major Tom's War, just out in paperback I am glad to say, you'll see where I am heading with this book: working title Brother Joe).

[VeeWalker]

1 hour ago, squirrel said:

From Arithmetic on the Frontier - Kipling

 

A scrimmage in a Border Station —
  A canter down some dark defile —
Two thousand pounds of education
  Drops to a ten-rupee jezail —
The Crammer's boast, the Squadron's pride,
Shot like a rabbit in a ride!
 

How strange, I was reading this just yesterday! And any reading of frontier warfare can only leave the reader horrified by the grim waste of young brave lives on both sides. Thank you!

[MaureenE]

20 minutes ago, VeeWalker said:

Very apt I suspect!  The small piece of info I have omitted from the thread below is that the tiny letter (no bigger than the palm of my hand) is clearly postmarked Patiala - big province I know, but he was definitely not anywhere near Assam still. 

There is of course the possibility that he received an individual posting, i.e. specific to him,  unconnected with the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles. However, as I understand the situation, he would still be regarded as part of the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles. When you say "Since posting evidence has come to light that Joe may have been killed or wounded on military service with NBMF in early 1919, between January and May" what does "with NBMF" specifically mean?

[FROGSMILE]

10 minutes ago, Maureene said:

There is of course the possibility that he received an individual posting, i.e. specific to him,  unconnected with the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles. However, as I understand the situation, he would still be regarded as part of the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles. When you say "Since posting evidence has come to light that Joe may have been killed or wounded on military service with NBMF in early 1919, between January and May" what does "with NBMF" specifically mean?

Yes, that’s the key point Maureen, you’re right.  He might have gone elsewhere from his parent unit as a staff officer, or in those days even be attached for political duties.  Such postings were called ERE - meaning Extra-Regimentally-Employed.  Like you I don’t think that the North Bengal reserve regiment would have been deployed anywhere near the NWF (nor Patiala) as a discrete unit.

Edited 30 November , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[VeeWalker]

7 minutes ago, Maureene said:

There is of course the possibility that he received an individual posting, i.e. specific to him,  unconnected with the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles. However, as I understand the situation, he would still be regarded as part of the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles. When you say "Since posting evidence has come to light that Joe may have been killed or wounded on military service with NBMF in early 1919, between January and May" what does "with NBMF" specifically mean?

We know he was training with NBMF in 1917 from letters written at the time but not for where. Then there is a total absence of letters until this final letter in 1919. Family memory (and Joe is my uncle, not an earlier ancestor believe it or not!) has his end rooted in the North West Frontier but this could of course have become a useful umbrella term for any frontier conflict - it was a phrase to latch on to. He is very young, just 19 or 20, poor lad. Perhaps I should be disconnecting his training with the NBMF with his demise further north and west? Two years is a long time. He indicates dissatisfaction with his position at the tea plantation so perhaps he decided to move on.

[VeeWalker]

4 minutes ago, FROGSMILE said:

Yes, that’s the key point Maureen, you’re right.  He might have gone elsewhere from his parent unit as a staff officer, or in those days even be attached for political duties.  Such postings were called ERE - meaning Extra-Regimentally-Employed.  Like you I don’t think that the North Bengal reserve regiment would have been deployed anywhere near the NWF (nor Patiala) as a discrete unit.

That is very helpful. I will disconnect the two and find an alternative reason for his move northwest then - any thoughts or suggestions welcome. What a friendly and positive group this is! Thank you.

[VeeWalker]

Just now, VeeWalker said:

That is very helpful. I will disconnect the two and find an alternative reason for his move northwest then - any thoughts or suggestions welcome. What a friendly and positive group this is! Thank you.

I am not quite sure if Joe was mature enough to be a staff officer. He was extremely good looking so might have been attached to a political deputation 'for show' perhaps!

 

One other word translated in the letter by the way is mirror - very odd - any thoughts? I did wonder about a heliograph.

[FROGSMILE]

22 minutes ago, VeeWalker said:

We know he was training with NBMF in 1917 from letters written at the time but not for where. Then there is a total absence of letters until this final letter in 1919. Family memory (and Joe is my uncle, not an earlier ancestor believe it or not!) has his end rooted in the North West Frontier but this could of course have become a useful umbrella term for any frontier conflict - it was a phrase to latch on to. He is very young, just 19 or 20, poor lad. Perhaps I should be disconnecting his training with the NBMF with his demise further north and west? Two years is a long time. He indicates dissatisfaction with his position at the tea plantation so perhaps he decided to move on.

1919 links specifically to the 3rd Anglo/Afghan War (after a ‘relatively’ quiet interlude in 1918 following the Mohmand insurrections).  A great amount of effort was expended to deal with Afghanistan so it’s not impossible that he might have been sent there individually for a specialised role.  Did he have any language or other professional skills that you know of?

 

NB.  With the bulk of regular army units deployed in Europe and only a very small rump left in India supported by Territorials from home, along with varying qualities of native units, it was a deeply worrisome time for both the British-Indian Army and the political authorities.  It’s also true that there was a shortage of political and staff officers too, so a keen young man might have been found a role, especially if he was fluent in any of the relevant regional dialects and languages.  I can only suggest that you do some reading on that campaign, there is plenty available online.

Edited 30 November , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[VeeWalker]

41 minutes ago, FROGSMILE said:

1919 links specifically to the 3rd Anglo/Afghan War (after a ‘relatively’ quiet interlude in 1918 following the Mohmand insurrections).  A great amount of effort was expended to deal with Afghanistan so it’s not impossible that he might have been sent there individually for a specialised role.  Did he have any language or other professional skills that you know of?

 

NB.  With the bulk of regular army units deployed in Europe and only a very small rump left in India supported by Territorials from home, along with varying qualities of native units, it was a deeply worrisome time for both the British-Indian Army and the political authorities.  It’s also true that there was a shortage of political and staff officers too, so a keen young man might have been found a role, especially if he was fluent in any of the relevant regional dialects and languages.  I can only suggest that you do some reading on that campaign, there is plenty available online.

Had already been reading Mark Simner's Pathan Rising - extraordinary. Thank you so much for your help.

 

[FROGSMILE]

1 hour ago, VeeWalker said:

I am not quite sure if Joe was mature enough to be a staff officer. He was extremely good looking so might have been attached to a political deputation 'for show' perhaps!

 

One other word translated in the letter by the way is mirror - very odd - any thoughts? I did wonder about a heliograph.

Mirror might relate to a heliograph as they were a principal means of communication from high ground on the NWF, both between Militia manned forts and sangars, and regular troops on flank protection during columns advances by bounds.  However it’s difficult to imagine why he’d want to mention that word in a last letter seeking help.  I wonder if it might also have another connotation in the native dialect that’s then been misinterpreted.

Edited 30 November , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[VeeWalker]

2 hours ago, FROGSMILE said:

Mirror might relate to a heliograph as they were a principal means of communication from high ground on the NWF, both between Militia manned forts and sangars, and regular troops on flank protection during columns advances by bounds.  However it’s difficult to imagine why he’d want to mention that word in a last letter seeking help.  I wonder if it might also have another connotation in the native dialect that’s then been misinterpreted.

I think you're spot on there.  Of course we don't know that he was seeking help (dash it). He may just have been dying, and saying goodbye to his mother, to whom the note is addressed. Given that she was in Canada it is a miracle it found her! Helpful thoughts, thank you again.

[FROGSMILE]

33 minutes ago, VeeWalker said:

I think you're spot on there.  Of course we don't know that he was seeking help (dash it). He may just have been dying, and saying goodbye to his mother, to whom the note is addressed. Given that she was in Canada it is a miracle it found her! Helpful thoughts, thank you again.

It’s sad to think that his last message is not understood.  I can only urge you not to give up and to seek out other scholars of oriental languages in your pursuit of a translation.  I strongly recommend that you try to contact William Dalrymple.  He would be interested by your story and has significant contacts in Indian academia who would be able to help I think. http://www.williamdalrymple.uk.com

Edited 30 November , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[VeeWalker]

Just now, FROGSMILE said:

It’s sad to think that his last message is not understood.  I can only urge you not to give up and to seek out other scholars of oriental languages in your pursuit of a translation.  I strongly recommend that you try to contact William Dalrymple.  He would be interested by your story and has significant contacts in Indian academia who would be able to help I think.

I haven't tried William personally although we have met, so that's a thought, but I have tried scholars in Delhi (I was there on a book tour in December), Lahore and at the British Museum. The issue is not that it is an obscure language - it's that it s really badly written. I have been trying to fathom this for years now - why is it written in this language and only signed and partially addressed by Joe? All I can think of is that he was very ill, possibly dying, and the only munshi present spoke/wrote no English, so he had to dictate in a language which would enable the message to be transmitted onwards by someone local whom he trusted. It worked, because somehow his mother received it. 

[FROGSMILE]

11 minutes ago, VeeWalker said:

I haven't tried William personally although we have met, so that's a thought, but I have tried scholars in Delhi (I was there on a book tour in December), Lahore and at the British Museum. The issue is not that it is an obscure language - it's that it s really badly written. I have been trying to fathom this for years now - why is it written in this language and only signed and partially addressed by Joe? All I can think of is that he was very ill, possibly dying, and the only munshi present spoke/wrote no English, so he had to dictate in a language which would enable the message to be transmitted onwards by someone local whom he trusted. It worked, because somehow his mother received it. 

Yes, what you have surmised does seem quite compelling even when tempered by the constraints of what you know for sure.  He might well have been weak if he was wounded and the munshi might have had difficulty understanding what was being said, as well as no doubt having one eye on the rupees/gold promised for his labours.  I still think that it would be worthwhile speaking to William though, as once he understands the circumstances he might well know the right niche expert to approach.

Edited 30 November , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[VeeWalker]

Righty-ho! I'll tweet him... Thanks for the suggestion.

[FROGSMILE]

34 minutes ago, VeeWalker said:

Righty-ho! I'll tweet him... Thanks for the suggestion.

I would suggest enclosing an image of the document.  It might well serve to pique his interest and engagement.  Good luck!

[MaureenE]

It's still not clear to me what information suggests he died on military service. Does his name appear on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission database? If not the chances are that he did not die on military service. If as you say  he had  expressed dissatisfaction with his position at the tea plantation, and had changed occupations, he may have obtained  employment in Patiala. Or perhaps he had gone there on holidays , for instance to hunt.

 

Patiala was a Princely State, not under direct British control, although there was an Agency system.  However, from the point of view of records, his death would most likely not be recorded in the places where you would expect to find deaths in British India.

 

Also , was he an officer in the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles? There are listings of officers, but if he was young, and not long a tea planter, perhaps he is unlikely to have been an officer.

[VeeWalker]

On 29/11/2020 at 22:01, Maureene said:

I don't have any specific knowledge, but I think it most unlikely they were going to the North West Frontier. Much more likely that it was some problem in the North EAST of India, where the Northern  Bengal Mounted Rifles were situated.

 

The only one I am aware of is the Kuki Rising,  also called  "Kuki Punitive Operations" but there were most likely other  operations.

Harry Fecitt ( I think bushfighter of this Forum) has written, as part of "Harry's Sideshows"

The Kuki Rising 1917-1919 : Insurrection in north-eastern India and Burma 

http://www.kaiserscross.com/304501/525801.html

There is mention of  the Surma Valley Light Horse, so I think this is the type of operations in which the Northern  Bengal Mounted Rifles would be involved, whether it be in some aspect of the Kuki Rising, or some other operations.

 

Another article "Breaking the spirit of the Kukis: launching the 'largest series of military operations' in the northeastern frontier of India" by T Haokip

https://www.academia.edu/40477117/Breaking_the_spirit_of_the_Kukis_launching_the_largest_series_of_military_operations_in_the_northeastern_frontier_of_India

 

This is a chapter from the book The Anglo-Kuki War 1917-1919: A Frontier Uprising against Imperialism during the First World War, 2019 edited by Jangkhomang Guite and Thongkholal Haokip 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anglo-Kuki-War-1917-1919-Frontier-Imperialism-ebook/dp/B07H44HFJ4 

Cheers

Maureen

This is marvellous, I shall read with great interest irrespective of whether or not it is where/when Joe met his maker. Thank you so much Maureen.

 

1 hour ago, Maureene said:

It's still not clear to me what information suggests he died on military service. Does his name appear on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission database? If not the chances are that he did not die on military service. If as you say  he had  expressed dissatisfaction with his position at the tea plantation, and had changed occupations, he may have obtained  employment in Patiala. Or perhaps he had gone there on holidays , for instance to hunt.

 

Patiala was a Princely State, not under direct British control, although there was an Agency system.  However, from the point of view of records, his death would most likely not be recorded in the places where you would expect to find deaths in British India.

 

Also , was he an officer in the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles? There are listings of officers, but if he was young, and not long a tea planter, perhaps he is unlikely to have been an officer.

I very much doubt he was an officer - no rank provided alas and no uniform pix. I will keep reading, and thinking. Thanks so much!

[VeeWalker]

20 minutes ago, VeeWalker said:

This is marvellous, I shall read with great interest irrespective of whether or not it is where/when Joe met his maker. Thank you so much Maureen.

 

I very much doubt he was an officer - no rank provided alas and no uniform pix. I will keep reading, and thinking. Thanks so much!

On another note, how much influence would the Government Agent have had in a state like Patiala where successive Maharajahs died young and rule was through a regency? Apologies if this is off piste.

 

[FROGSMILE]

1 hour ago, VeeWalker said:

This is marvellous, I shall read with great interest irrespective of whether or not it is where/when Joe met his maker. Thank you so much Maureen.

 

I very much doubt he was an officer - no rank provided alas and no uniform pix. I will keep reading, and thinking. Thanks so much!

If he wasn’t an officer then I’m afraid it blows this whole thing wide open.  Can you tell us exactly what you do know about him because to be honest it’s been a bit misleading.  I sense you need to read a bit more about British India because you seem to have a rather naive view of things.  If he didn’t hold a reserve commission then it’s extremely unlikely that he did anything at all of any military importance.  I suggest you spend a bit more time reading through the FIBISwiki links.

Edited 1 December , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[VeeWalker]

14 hours ago, FROGSMILE said:

If he wasn’t an officer then I’m afraid it blows this whole thing wide open.  Can you tell us exactly what you do know about him because to be honest it’s been a bit misleading.  I sense you need to read a bit more about British India because you seem to have a rather naive view of things.  If he didn’t hold a reserve commission then it’s extremely unlikely that he did anything at all of any military importance.  I suggest you spend a bit more time reading through the FIBISwiki links.

Goodness, Frogsmile, my intention was not to mislead anyone and if you read back up the thread I never suggested here that Joe was an officer or had done anything of military importance. He was very young (there is some dissent over his date of birth so hard to pinpoint).

 

As an author I try to undertake as much research as I can and this book is in the very early stages when I am feeling my way around my plot. I have told you almost as much as I know myself at present, but the Tea Planters group on Facebook is being most positive and helpful (I can't recall if it was yourself or MaureenE who suggested them, but thank you) so I hope to find out a little more about his life from them.

 

This is the approach I took with Major Tom's War, a prizewinner at the SAHR Military Fiction Awards 2019. It took me ten years to research and write but it is important to note that I am a novelist, not a historian.

 

If anything else of military significance emerges on Joe I will gladly report back.

 

 

[FROGSMILE]

1 hour ago, VeeWalker said:

Goodness, Frogsmile, my intention was not to mislead anyone and if you read back up the thread I never suggested here that Joe was an officer or had done anything of military importance. He was very young (there is some dissent over his date of birth so hard to pinpoint).

 

As an author I try to undertake as much research as I can and this book is in the very early stages when I am feeling my way around my plot. I have told you almost as much as I know myself at present, but the Tea Planters group on Facebook is being most positive and helpful (I can't recall if it was yourself or MaureenE who suggested them, but thank you) so I hope to find out a little more about his life from them.

 

This is the approach I took with Major Tom's War, a prizewinner at the SAHR Military Fiction Awards 2019. It took me ten years to research and write but it is important to note that I am a novelist, not a historian.

 

If anything else of military significance emerges on Joe I will gladly report back.

 

 

For thorough historical background on what went on in India, I earnestly recommend FIBISwiki resources to get a proper grounding in understanding the military undertakings, the civil administrative and political infrastructure, and to what degree they were interwoven.  
I don’t doubt for one moment your ability to write an engaging and prize winning yarn, but familiarising yourself will enable you to avoid fantasy.  Your suggestion that he was involved in the NWF military campaign, whilst still a tea planter (as a part-time reservist), immediately implied junior officer status as a minimum, and you would have known that had you been better enlightened in the subject of British-India at that time.  Good luck.

 

P.S.  For a single work that would assist you in relation to the NWF, I recommend “Soldier Sahibs” by Richard Allen.  It is a good read, informative, and not at all turgid.

Edited 1 December , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[VeeWalker]

Thanks again Frogsmile. I read Soldier Sahibs just before Charles Allen died, a sad loss. Have just finished Pathan Rising by Mark Simner, equally fascinating, reading around the place/times, as I always do (another strand of the book will touch on Afghanistan in the late 1800s). 

 

I have just dug through the scans of Joe's letters and found this page which I had missed earlier - so it does look like the NBMR may have headed for Afghanistan, doesn't it - even if Joe can't spell it? 

 

Many thanks for your help and kind encouragement.

 

 

 

[FROGSMILE]

It’s an interesting letter and paints a picture of its time I think.  My take is that his words convey the measures being taken by the Indian authorities during a period when almost all their regular and seasoned military resources were being taken away to deal with every military administration’s nightmare, a war on multiple fronts.  WW1 was requiring British-Indian and Imperial troops in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Macedonia and Italy, while at the same time there was unrest in more than one part of India.  There was significant demand on shrinking resources.  In such circumstances the most common resort was to ‘backfill’ with auxiliaries and that required mobilising the two categories in India, those exclusively European (all ranks), such as the NBMR, and those made up from natives and eurasian other ranks with European officers, often from the railways.  Young men were naturally excited by the whiff of gunsmoke, as they perceived it, and they speculated according to the rumour and counter rumour that swirled around the messes and drawing rooms.  In reality they almost always carried out garrison duty, relieving in place (i.e. backfilling) the regular and Territorial troops so that they could deploy into the field.  Unless they had a specific special skill required on the NWF, which I think is extremely unlikely, I cannot see that the NBMR (or similar units) were ever, realistically, likely to be posted to the NWF.  There was a great need for protection of the line of communication that was so vital to the troops operating in the forward area, but this was mostly carried out by Territorial and native (British-Indian) units.  Operations on the NWF were taken extremely seriously and it was unlikely that tea planters would ever be used in such a hostile and unforgiving environment.  Your young man comes across as pleasant, and enthusiastic (with all the bravery of youth), but typically ingenuous.  If he went up country individually I can only imagine that it would have been as a political aide, and he would have needed pertinent language skills to do that.

 

P.S.  did you not read the post  on the previous page?  Jalpaiguri is mentioned.

 

Northern Bengal Volunteer Rifle Corps, Bengal Army.

 

Northern Bengal Volunteer Rifle Corps, also known as Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles, was a former British Indian Infantry unit that functioned under the Volunteer Corps of the British Indian Army. An auxiliary regiment, it was a part of the Bengal Army of Bengal Presidency as well as the Bengal Command. The regiment was raised on 6th August 1873 by the British Empire in India. Later, on 5th August 1881, the regiment was merged with the Darjeeling Volunteer Rifle Corps.

It was later re-structured and re-designated as the Northern Bengal Mounted Rifles on 15th February 1889. The dress uniform of Northern Bengal Volunteer Rifle Corps was a scarlet tunic with white facings (collar and cuffs). The military badge included the image of a Bengal Tiger. The headquarters was established at Darjeeling. The armed force comprised of six companies that were stationed in Purnea, Alipur Duars, Nagrakot, Dam Dim, Jalpaiguri and Kurseong. It also had 3 companies of cadets, and one reserve company. Its total strength (1903-4) is 510 in all ranks.
“...all the British tea planters were members of the North Bengal Mounted Rifles....We were issued rifles and received an allowance to cover the expenses of maintaining a horse”.

 

[Guest]

 One aspect that has to be considered is the state of  Bengal before and during the war.  India was not at peace and there was a rumbling of violence before the war, largely dealt with as a police (armed) matter at the time. The notion that resistance to British rule only came along with Gandhi is false.  The promotion of Indian nationalism by Tilak and Gokhale before the war led to an increased situation of violence.  There is plenty on this in the records of the "Political" at the British Library  (The Political Department of the Government of India - a sort of mish-mash of Special Branch and Security Service-it's featured for a later date in "The Jewel in the Crown"-which I think is well worth watching as Paul Scott's fictions were acutely observed vis a vis the various outlooks of the Brits.  Thus, even without the Great War, the peacetime situation was lot edgier- perhaps closer to living in Northern Ireland during the Troubles in more recent times.