Harriet Sherwood
Indian soldiers serving with the British regular army brand military camp inwards 1916. Photograph: Getty
They were the forgotten voices of the kickoff the world war: 1.5 i K 1000 men, to a greater extent than frequently than non illiterate villagers from northern India, fighting nether the ascendancy of colonial masters who repaid their bravery too sacrifices with brutality too prejudice. More Indians fought with the British from 1914 to 1918 than the combined full of Australian, New Zealand, Canadian too South African troops. Some 34,000 Indian soldiers were killed on battlefields inwards Europe, Africa too the Middle East. But the business office they played inwards the state of war has been largely whitewashed from history.
Now, just earlier the xi Nov armistice centenary, the concluding testimonies of the British Empire’s kickoff the world state of war Indian servicemen – 1,000 pages of veteran interview transcripts – lead maintain been offered to the British Library.
The first-hand accounts pigment a painting of racial segregation too discrimination with extraordinary bravery too an awakening hunger for civil rights too independence.
Oral histories were taken from Indian veterans inwards the 1970s past times a squad led past times DeWitt Ellinwood, an American historian too anthropologist. Transcripts of the recordings lead maintain been offered to the British Library past times George Morton-Jack, a British historian who traced the textile to Ellinwood’s solid inwards upstate New York where it had been stored for decades.
Many of the Hindus, Muslims too Sikhs who served nether British ascendancy came from pitiful villages inwards colonial Punjab too other rural areas. Until now, the best known origin on their service has been the letters domicile from a small-scale proportion of Indian soldiers on the western front, translations of which are held inwards the British Library too are available online.
The letters – to a greater extent than frequently than non dictated to scribes past times illiterate Indian soldiers – were composed inwards the knowledge that they would live on read past times censors. “They were careful well-nigh what they said. They knew dissent could live on punished past times the British equally their colonial masters. So they habitually held dorsum their truthful feelings,” said Morton-Jack, the writer of The Indian Empire at War.
“But the interviews demo they had a potent sense of the racial discrimination they suffered nether the British, too their growing belief that they should lead maintain civil rights, they shouldn’t live on bailiwick to colonial domination, too they should alive inwards their ain gratis country. They depict how those feelings developed through the war,” he said.
Indian troops are welcomed inwards Flemish region inwards 1915.
Sujan Singh, who was lxxx when he was interviewed, said: “We were slaves.” Nand Singh spoke of a “curtain of fear” separating the Indian too white soldiers. They were bailiwick to floggings too other inhumane physical punishment, paid less than their white counterparts, segregated inwards camps too on trains too ships, denied domicile leave, too barred from positions of command. “The British handling of them was painful inwards many ways, but at the fourth dimension they routinely did non utter the truth of their hearts to British power. Their feelings come upward out inwards the transcripts,” said Morton-Jack.
Their state of war service also opened their minds to novel ideas well-nigh colonial rule. “I felt that Indians should also bask liberty similar the people of other countries,” said Narain Singh.
Matt Singh, who was 85 when interviewed, said: “When nosotros were inwards France, nosotros felt the French people were too hence lucky too were enjoying their freedom. So nosotros also felt that Republic of Republic of India should live on gratis – this state of war showed us the correct path.”
After the state of war it took some other xxx years earlier the British Raj ended too Republic of Republic of India became an independent state. Morton-Jack said: “It’s hard to overstate how exceptional these transcripts are. There are 2 messages from these forgotten voices. The negative i is the racial discrimination they suffered. But the positive i is the increasing recognition that the British were denying them civil too political rights too their inner movement for racial equality.”
Over the past times iv years, British Asians lead maintain joined inwards the centenary commemorations of the kickoff the world war, but many experience in that place should live on greater acknowledgement of the operate of Indian troops.
“The kickoff the world state of war has traditionally been presented inwards schools, history books too moving painting solid equally a white war. But many inwards the UK’s British Asian community are saying: nosotros were in that place too,” said Morton-Jack.
After Ellinwood too his squad completed their recordings, he led the mammoth chore of transcribing too analysing the content. But he was diverted past times other projects, too eventually stored the textile at his domicile inwards Albany, New York.
Morton-Jack was alerted to their beingness past times a footnote inwards i of Ellinwood’s academic articles. By the fourth dimension he made contact, the US historian was inwards his 80s too knew he would never consummate his piece of job on the Indian veterans.
Ellinwood, who died inwards 2012, bestowed the transcripts to Morton-Jack with the proffer that eventually the British Library powerfulness accept them. Morton-Jack has also discussed the possibility of making them publicly accessible inwards India. “Ultimately, the transcripts should live on available to all, including families of Indian servicemen remembering their business office inwards the state of war 100 years ago.”
The Indian Empire at War: From Jihad to Victory, the Untold Story of the Indian Army inwards the First World War past times George Morton-Jack is published past times Little, Brown (£25). To social club a re-create for £22 become to guardianbookshop.com or telephone phone 0330 333 6846.
• Of the British empire’s colonies, Republic of Republic of India contributed the most men to the state of war endeavor – some 1.5 i K 1000 – patch self-governing nations inside the Commonwealth, including Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand too Newfoundland, contributed a farther 1.3 i K 1000 men.
• In proportional terms, New Zealand made i of the largest contributions to the war: 5% of its men aged 15-49 were killed.
• Over 16,000 from the West Indies served, including 10,000 from Jamaica. Others came from Trinidad too Tobago, Barbados, the Bahamas, British Republic of Honduras (Belize), Grenada, British Guiana (Guyana), the Leeward Islands, St Lucia too St Vincent.
• At to the lowest degree 180,000 Africans served inwards the Carrier Corps inwards due east Africa, providing logistics back upward to the front.
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