Pouch badge, 3rd Regiment of Sikh Infantry Punjab Frontier Force, 1882-1901
Gilt badge with the regimental number, in Roman numerals, 'III', at the centre, within a circlet bearing the title, 'Sikh Infantry' surmounted by an Imperial Crown; within a wreath with scrolls bearing the battle honours, 'Kabul' and 'Kandahar'; with the battle honour, 'Afghanistan 1879-80', below; a scroll below bears the title, 'Punjab Frontier Force'.
The 3rd Regiment of Infantry, Frontier Brigade, was raised in the winter of 1846/1847. It was quickly redesignated the 3rd Regiment of Sikh Local Infantry, and became part of the Punjab Irregular Force (The Piffers) in 1851. In 1857 the unit became the 3rd Regiment of Sikh Infantry. The regiment fought in the 2nd Afghan War (1878-1880) and in the Tirah expedition (1897-1898).
The regiment was renamed the 53rd Sikhs (Frontier Force) in 1903 as part of Lord Kitchener's reforms of the Indian Army. During World War One (1914-1918) the unit fought in Mesopotamia and Palestine. In 1922, with the further reorganisation of the Indian Army, the unit became the 3rd Battalion (Sikhs) of the 12th Frontier Force Regiment. With the Partition of India in 1947, the Frontier Force Regiment became part of the Pakistan Army.
From the Field Marshal Sir John Chapple Indian Army Collection.
NAM Accession Number
NAM. 2013-10-20-38-64
Copyright/Ownership
National Army Museum Copyright
Location
National Army Museum, Study collection
Object URL
https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=2013-10-20-38-64
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