British Indian Army

Transformation of British Indian Army Military: Pre-1857 Diversity to British-Imposed Unity #

Before 1857, the British Indian Army was diverse and reflected the rich military traditions and structures of the various regions and ruling powers across the subcontinent. But with the arrival of the British East India Company and subsequent colonization, the existing military systems in India underwent significant changes. The British introduced modern military techniques, organizational structures, and weaponry. The British Indian Army, established under British control, eventually replaced the diverse and decentralized military systems that existed before 1857.

Pre-1857 British Indian Army Evolution: Company’s Administration in India #

Prime motive of the company is expansion of its Indian empire for which the prerequisite is well defined and developed army system, and this led to the evolution of British Indian Army.

• As the evolution of the Company’s army was inextricably linked to the expansion of its Indian empire. In the eighteenth century, Royal forces, particularly the navy, were frequently dispatched to India on lease to the Company to assist it in times of trouble.
• However, this created complications, particularly in the relationship between the King’s army officers and the Company’s civilian authorities. So an early attempt was to raise a permanent Company British Indian Army.

Recruitment in British Indian Army: Evolution and Influence #

• The Nawab of Awadh and the Raja of Banaras, two rulers of north Indian successor kingdoms, improved this recruiting technique and established highly trained peasant armies apart from civilian populations in the eighteenth century.
• The East India Company appropriated this tradition when it began recruiting its army, which became known as the sepoy (from sipahi or soldier) army.
• In 1721-29, the French established the practice of recruiting an Indian army.
• After defeating the Nawab of Bengal in 1757, Lord Clive revived the sepoy army. This British Indian Army was to be trained and disciplined according to European military standards, and European officers were to command it on the battlefield.
• Some of these officers, including the commander-in-chief, were appointed by the King, while the vast majority were appointed by the Company directors as a means of distributing patronage.

British Indian Army System: Key Rule-Making Apparatus in Company’s Administration #

• Twenty thousand Royal troops were ordered to be stationed in India by law at the beginning of the nineteenth century, and their costs were to be covered by the Company, presumably as a way to support Britain’s post-Napoleonic defensive budget.
• The Company’s British Indian Army also progressively increased in size, and as its domain outside of Bengal grew, so did the military workforce pool from which it hired.
• The army not only conquered lands but also fended off internal challenges, both real and imagined; it put down peasant uprisings against demands for high taxes; and it made partnerships with Indian elites.
• It was thus regarded as the most important rule-making apparatus for the Company’s administration in India.

Impact of British Indian Army Reforms: Prelude to the 1857 Mutiny #

• However, to a large extent, this sense of importance was created by the army itself. As the empire grew, the Company’s army came to include a wide range of social groups and military traditions, which had to be accommodated in a delicate balancing game, and power had to be shared with the local elites.
• Attempts were made in the following decade to streamline army administration, with the main goal of having more stringent control over sepoys and their families.
• The reforms of the 1830s, which aimed to level the playing field and promote a universal military culture, sowed discontent among the sepoys.
• The discontent was especially apparent in the Bengal army, where the reforms infringed on the sepoys’ high caste status and disrupted the power structures in which they were enmeshed.
• As a result, discontent among Indian troops found articulate expression in the 1840s, and these incidents laid the groundwork for the mutiny in the Bengal army in 1857.

Conclusion #

The army system in India before 1857 was a tapestry of diversity, reflecting the rich military traditions of the various kingdoms and empires across the subcontinent. The armies were composed of professional soldiers, mercenaries, and feudal levies, and they utilized a mix of traditional and evolving weaponry. The organization and administration of the armies varied, but they played a crucial role in maintaining territorial control, defending against external threats, and expanding the empires’ boundaries.