Collar badge, Bangalore Battalion, 1920-1947

White metal badge, one of a pair, in the form of a monogram, 'BR'.

Bangalore, now the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka, was a British garrison town in the former princely state of Mysore. The Bangalore Battalion was an auxiliary regiment, originally raised in 1868 as the Bangalore Volunteer Rifles. The Auxiliary Force unit came under the control of the Madras Army of the Madras Presidency. By 1884, some detached companies separated to establish the Coorg and Mysore Rifle Corps. In 1903 a detachment separated to become the Kolar Gold Fields Rifle Volunteers. The unit amalgamated with the Coorg and Mysore Rifles in 1917 to become the 6th Bangalore, Coorg and Mysore Battalion. The unit's title was shortened to Bangalore Battalion in 1920. The Motto of the battalion was, 'Defence not Defiance'.

From the Field Marshal Sir John Chapple Indian Army Collection.