This article is about 18th Infantry and will help you to research the Regiment and soldiers who served with it during the First World War. I have written a separate article about the 2nd Battalion 18th Infantry and a series of guides to help you to research soldiers who served in the Indian Army during the First World War. To view the guides click on the blue links below:
The 18th Infantry in the First World War
Lineage: Raised at Calcutta by Captain H. DeCastro in 1795 as The Calcutta Native Militia. In 1859 it became the Alipore Regiment and then in 1861 the 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Regiment and the 18th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry. Then the 18th (The Alipore) Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry in 1864 and the 18th Regiment of Bengal in 1885. Then the 18th Musalman Rajput Infantry in 1902, the 18th Infantry in 1903 and the 4th Battalion, 9th Jat Regiment in 1922.
Class Composition of Battalion in 1914: 8 Companies of Musalmans of the Eastern Punjab and Hindustan. April 1919: 4 Companies Musalmans of the Eastern Punjab and Hindustan. July 1921: 2 Companies Jats from the Punjab, 1 Company of Punjabi Musalmans and 1 Company of Musalman Rajputs.
Location in August 1914: The 18th Infantry was stationed at Dera Ismail Khan (Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan), having arrived from Aden (Yemen), on 17th October 1913.
The 18th Infantry served in India, Hong Kong, and China during the First World War. Despite not serving in a theatre of war, the 18th Infantry sent drafts to other regiments including a large draft to the 9th Bhopal Infantry while they were serving in France. The 18th Infantry was part of the Derajat Brigade when war was declared and spent the first part of the war on the North West Frontier (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan). In 1915, the Regiment moved to Hong Kong and also served in China. In the April 1920 Indian Army List, the 18th Infantry was stationed at Tientsin (Tianjin, China) with its Depot at Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh, India). In the July 1921 edition, the 18th Infantry was at Fort Sandeman (Zhob, Pakistan). In 1922 the 18th Infantry became the 4th Battalion, 9th Jat Regiment. The extract below was taken from the October 1914 Indian Army List and recorded British officers serving with the 18th Infantry.
War Diaries of the 18th Infantry
Unfortunately, there are no war diaries for the 18th Infantry.
Further Sources for the 18th Infantry
For information concerning the British and Indian officers who served with the 18th Infantry, the Indian Army List can be consulted. The confidential reports for the 18th Infantry are held at the British Library: Confidential Reports. These reports also contain the annual reports of the British officers serving with the Regiment.