The Indian Army on the Western Front
India's Expeditionary Force to France and Belgium in the First World War

This book recasts the role of the Indian Army on the Western Front, questioning why its performance was traditionally deemed a failure.

George Morton-Jack (Author)

9781107027466, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 7 April 2014

348 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.4 cm, 0.66 kg

'The Indian Army on the Western Front will certainly generate new debates and rejuvenate old debates … Morton-Jack's monograph will remain a benchmark work as regards the Indian Army's contribution to the imperial war effort in Western Europe.' Kaushik Roy, War in History

The Indian army fought on the western front with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) from 1914 to 1918. The traditional interpretations of its performance have been dominated by ideas that it was a failure. This book offers a radical reconsideration by revealing new answers to the debate's central questions, such as whether the Indian army 'saved' the BEF from defeat in 1914, or whether Indian troops were particularly prone to self-inflicting wounds and fleeing the trenches. It looks at the Indian army from top to bottom, from generals at headquarters to snipers in no man's land. It takes a global approach, exploring the links between the Indian army's 1914–18 campaigning in France and Belgium and its pre-1914 small wars in Asia and Africa, and comparing the performance of the Indian regiments on the western front to those in China, East Africa, Mesopotamia and elsewhere.

Introduction
1. The army in India
2. Small wars and regular warfare
3. Strengths
4. Weaknesses
5. To Flanders
6. 'Saving' the BEF
7. Climate, casualty replacements and departure
8. Self-inflicted wounds and flights
9. Old tactics
10. New tactics
11. Commanders and staff
12. Administration
Conclusion
Bibliography.

Subject Areas: Military history [HBW], 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000 [HBLW], Asian history [HBJF]