• 10.00am - 5.30pm
  • FREE
  • Chelsea, London
  • 10.00am - 5.30pm
  • FREE
  • Chelsea, London

Indian Army

Explore Indian Army stories

Jacket worn by Captain John Malcolmson VC, c1860

Wool, wax and whalebone: Preparing a uniform for display

Our conservation team describes some of the essential work required to get one of the highlights of the Global Role gallery ready for display.

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Cap badge, 2nd King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles), c1920

2nd King Edward VII’s Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles)

This infantry unit was raised by the East India Company in 1815. It later served with distinction as part of the Indian Army until 1948, when it transferred to British Army service. In 1994, it was merged into The Royal Gurkha Rifles.

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Cap badge, 6th Gurkha Rifles, c1940

6th Queen Elizabeth’s Own Gurkha Rifles

Originally raised in 1817 as part of the East India Company's forces, this infantry regiment transferred to the British Army in 1948. After several decades of distinguished service, it was amalgamated into The Royal Gurkha Rifles in 1994.

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Cap badge, 10th Gurkha Rifles, c1940

10th Princess Mary’s Own Gurkha Rifles

Originally raised in 1890 as part of the Indian Army, this infantry regiment transferred to the British Army in 1948. After several decades of distinguished service, it was amalgamated into The Royal Gurkha Rifles in 1994.

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Cap badge, 7th Duke of of Edinburgh’s Own Gurkha Rifles, c1990

7th Duke of Edinburgh’s Own Gurkha Rifles

Originally raised in 1902 as part of the Indian Army, this infantry regiment transferred to the British Army in 1948. After several decades of distinguished service, it was amalgamated into the Royal Gurkha Rifles in 1994.

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Sir John Chapple, 1987

Field Marshal Sir John Chapple

Field Marshal Sir John Chapple had a most distinguished military career. He was also passionate about military heritage and history, and a steadfast supporter of the National Army Museum.

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‘Amar Singh - fait a Orléans’, 16 October 1914

Paul Sarrut: Interpreting the Army on the Western Front

Paul Sarrut was a French soldier who was posted to the British Army as a military liaison officer and interpreter during the First World War. Trained as an artist, Sarrut created an important visual record of the 3rd (Lahore) Division in France.

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Bengal Army Troops, 1785

Armies of the East India Company

Originally formed to trade in Asia, the East India Company came to rule large areas of the Indian subcontinent, exercising military power through its formidable armed forces.

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The Battle of Chillianwala, 13 January 1849

Second Sikh War

In 1848-49, British-Indian forces were once again at war with the Sikh Empire. The campaign that raged across the Punjab eventually led to the region's full annexation by the British and the removal of one of the last Indian powers able to challenge British control of the subcontinent.

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2nd Battalion 5th Gurkha Rifles at Ahnai Tangi in Waziristan, 14 January 1920

The North-West Frontier

Between 1849 and 1947, British and Indian soldiers undertook a series of punitive expeditions against the fiercely independent tribesmen of this wild and mountainous region.

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The last British troops to leave India, 1948

Independence and Partition, 1947

The birth of India and Pakistan as independent states in 1947 was a key moment in the history of Britain’s Empire and its army. But the process of partition was attended by mass migration and ethnic violence that has left a bitter legacy to this day.

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Gurkhas at Peiwar Kotal, 1878

The Gurkhas

Nepalese soldiers known as Gurkhas have fought for Britain since 1815. Here we explore their history and find out why they have long been regarded among the finest and fiercest soldiers.

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Explore Indian Army events

School students getting to grips with the handling collection
Secondary workshop

8 January - 19 July 2024

FREE

World at War: Soldiers of Empire

Discover more about the contributions of soldiers from the British Empire in the First and Second World Wars.

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A graphical composite image representing the event
Talk At Museum

20 April 2024, 12.00pm

FREE

The Jungle War

Hannah Watson speaks to Robert Lyman about her new book for young readers set in the jungles of Burma in 1942-43.

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A graphical composite image representing the event
Sold Out
Talk At Museum

20 April 2024, 12.00pm

FREE

The Transformation of the Indian Army

Dr Alan Jeffreys examines the transformation of the Indian Army over the course of the Second World War.

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Explore Indian Army learning resources

'The Divided Dominion', poster, published 21 June 1947
Video

KS3-KS4 (Ages 11 to 16)

The Partition of India: A Poetic Retelling

Discover more about the Partition of India and the events leading up to it through this poetry film, featuring archival images and original epic poetry.

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Indian Army troops travelling upstream on a barge, Mesopotamia, c1916
Timeline

KS3-KS5 (Ages 11+)

India, Empire and the Army: Interactive Timeline

Explore the history of the British Army in India and the British Empire's Indian armies through this interactive timeline packed with over 200 sources.

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