1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry

This article is about the 1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry and will help you to research both the Battalion and soldiers who served with it. I have written separate articles for the 1st and 3rd Battalions and a series of guides to help you research soldiers who served in the Indian Army during the First World War:

The 1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry

Lineage: The Battalion was raised in 1918 and disbanded in 1919.

Class Composition of Battalion in 1919: 2 1/4 Companies of Rajputs, 3/4 of a Company Jats and 1 Company of Ahirs.

The 1st Battalion 154th Infantry Infantry was a war-raised infantry battalion formed in the Middle East in 1918. Unfortunately, there’s a paucity of sources when it comes to this short-lived Battalion. The 2nd and 3rd Battalions 154th Indian Infantry were formed in Mesopotamia (Iraq) in May 1918 and it is likely that the 1st Battalion was as well. In total, eighteen new Indian Infantry Battalions were formed in the field to replace British battalions leaving the Middle East for the Western Front. This was in consequence of the German Spring Offensive which began in March 1918 and the large number of casualties sustained by the British Army.

Based on the lack of resources for the Battalion, it is likely that it was withdrawn to India shortly after its creation. 200 rifles of the Battalion served in the Third Anglo-Afghan War as part of Waziristan Force. The 1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry was disbanded in 1919.

Below is an extract from the April 1919 Indian Army List recording the British officers who were serving with the 1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry. The Indian Army List is a great resource to use when researching both units and officers of the Indian Army and I have a page to help you decipher the jargon: Indian Army Abbreviations and Acronyms.

1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry

War Diaries of the 1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry

Unfortunately, there are no war diaries for the Battalion.

Further Sources for the 1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry

For information regarding the British and Indian officers who served with the 1st Battalion 154th Indian Infantry, the Indian Army List should be consulted. No regimental history was produced for the 154th Indian Infantry and there are no confidential reports for the 1st Battalion.

Guides to Researching a Soldier who Served with the Indian Army

Guides to Researching a Soldier who Served with the British Army