Rissaldar of the 11th Bengal Lancers, with a young man, 1865 (c)

Photograph, India, 1865 (c).

A rissaldar was an Indian cavalry officer. The term comes from the Persian word 'risala' (mounted troop). This veteran wears the Indian Order of Merit and the Indian Mutiny Medal. The 11th Bengal Lancers traced their origins to the raising of two units of Sikh irregular cavalry by Sir John Lawrence in 1857 after the outbreak of the Indian Mutiny (1857-1859).

From an album owned by General Sir Sam Browne VC, 1857-1870 (c).