11th Gurkha Rifles
| 11th Gurkha Rifles | |
|---|---|
| Active | 18 May 1918 – 12 April 1922 |
| Country |
 British India
|
| Allegiance | British Crown |
| Branch |
 British Indian Army
|
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Four battalions |
| Part of |
1st (Peshawar) Division 53rd (Welsh) Division |
| Engagements | Third Anglo-Afghan War |
| Battle Honours | Afghanistan 1919 |
The 11th Gurkha Rifles was a Gurkha regiment of the British Indian Army. It was formed in Mesopotamia and Palestine in May 1918, saw active service in the First World War and the Third Anglo-Afghan War, and was disbanded in April 1922.
Heavy losses suffered by the British Expeditionary Force on the Western Front following the German Spring Offensive in March 1918 resulted in a major reorganization of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force:
In fact, the 75th Division already had four Indian battalions assigned, so of the 36 battalions needed to reform the divisions, 22 were improvised by taking whole companies from existing units already on active service in Mesopotamia and Palestine to form the 150th Infantry (3 battalions), 151st Sikh Infantry (3), 152nd Punjabis (3), 153rd Punjabis (3), 154th Infantry (3), 155th Pioneers (2), 156th Infantry (1) and the 11th Gurkha Rifles (4). The donor units were then brought back up to strength by drafts. In the event, just 13 of the battalions were assigned to the divisions and the remaining nine were transferred from Mesopotamia to India in June 1918.
The regiment formed four battalions. The first three were formed in Mesopotamia in May 1918 with companies posted from Gurkha battalions (and the 39th Garhwal Rifles) serving in the 14th, 15th, 17th, and 18th Indian Divisions. They were transferred to Bombay (Mumbai) in June 1918. All three later took part in the Third Anglo-Afghan War in 1919 as part of the 1st (Peshawar) Division. They were disbanded in India in 1921 and 1922 with personnel transferred to various regular Gurkha battalions.
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Wikipedia