A soldier armed with a rifle grenade, 1917

Photograph, World War One (1914-1918), Mesopotamia, 1917.

Indian soldiers of the 7th (Meerut) Division man trenches in Mesopotamia. One of the sepoys is armed with a rifle grenade. Using a rifle as a launch mechanism greatly increased the effective range of the grenade. The Meerut Division had landed at Basra on 31 December 1915 and went on to join the attempt to relieve the besieged garrison at Kut al Amara before moving to Palestine in January 1918.

From an album compiled by Lieutenant Kindom relating to 7th Meerut Division.