2nd (Rawalpindi) Division

[barney5042]

Does anyone have information on what the 2nd (Rawalpindi) Division did during WW1?  I know that they served on the North West Frontier for at least the first couple of years of the war.

 

[MaureenE]

There are war diaries at the National Archives for the period " 1/01/19 to 31/01/1922" for theatre of war "India and East Persia" on the webpage "2nd Indian Division" 

UK (TNA): WO 95/5408-5411, most of which are for the period of the 3rd Afghan War

http://collaborativecollections.org/WorldWarOne/2nd_Indian_Division 

 

The lack of war diaries for other periods would suggest they weren't in a war zone, which again suggests they remained in India, but there may be war diaries which did not survive.

 

Cheers

Maureen

[Heid the Ba]

The division spent the war in India, in and around the NWF. 

[pjwmacro]

My understanding is effectively they formed the "response force" - in the language of the day the "Strike Force". See The Official History of the Third Afghan War and Brian Robson's "Crisis on the Frontier". In the event of trouble on the frontier (tribes rising or Afghan invasion) the troops immediately to hand, normally the militia, would act as a block / initial containment, while the striking force was assembled and then moved to put down the rebellion or destroy the incursion. I don't think it operated at Divisional level - brigade was more common.

 

I have a particular interest in the Division's Motor Machine Gun battery - 22nd Battery, which my grandfather was a member of.  See:

Also see Long Long Trail: http://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/order-of-battle-of-divisions/2nd-rawalpindi-division/ Wise to check the information within this for yourself - for example 22 Bty MMG formed in UK in late 1915, and joined the division in Apr 1916. They were not formed in India.

 

Hope this helps. Regards

 

Paul