| 2nd Battalion (Guides) The Frontier Force Regiment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1846 - Present |
| Country |  British India Pakistan |
| Branch |  British Indian Army Pakistan Army |
| Type | Mechanized Infantry |
| Size | Battalion |
| Nickname | Guides Paltan |
| Mottos | Rough & Ready |
| Uniform | Drab; faced scarlet red |
| March | Advance Khaki |
| Mascot | CG |
| Anniversaries | 14 December |
| Engagements | North West Frontier of India Second Sikh War 1848-49 India Mutiny 1857-58 Second Afghan War 1878-80 First World War 1914-18 Third Afghan War 1919 Second World War 1939-45 Kashmir War 1948 Indo-Pakistan War 1965 Indo-Pakistan War 1971 Operation Zarb-e-Azb |
| Commanders | |
| Colonel of the Regiment | Lt Gen Muhammad Aqeel, HI(M) |
| Notable commanders | Lt Gen SirHarry Lumsden, KCSI, CB Gen SirSam Browne, VC, GCB, KCSI Gen SirHenry Daly, GCB, CIE GenM Iqbal Khan, NI (M), SBt Maj Gen Mustafa Anwar Hussain Maj Gen Waheed Arshad Gejial Maj Gen Bilal Ahmed Lt Gen Mumtaz Gul, HI(M) Brig Yasub Ali Dogar, SI(M), S Bt, Lt Gen Syed Sabahat Husain, HI(M) Lt Gen Hassan Azhar Hayat, HI(M) Lt Gen Inayat Husain, HI(M) Maj Gen Aneeq Malik, HI(M) Maj Gen Mazhar Nazir, HI(M) Maj Gen Ali Ejaz Rafi Brig Nadeem Rahmatullah Khan, SI(M) |
The Guides Infantry, or2nd Battalion (Guides) TheFrontier Force Regiment, is an infantry battalion of thePakistan Army. It was raised in 1846 as part of the famousCorps of Guides, a highly mobile force to act as guides to troops in the field and gather intelligence beyond the borders of British India. The corps recruited men from various backgrounds, withPathans,Punjabi Muslims,Sikhs, andDogras forming the majority of their manpower. Under the leadership of LieutenantHarry Burnett Lumsden, the Guides gained a formidable reputation and introduced the dust-colored "khaki" uniforms, later adopted by the British Army in India. The corps became part of the Punjab Frontier Force, known as Piffers, which maintained order on the Punjab Frontier for fifty years.
The Guides participated in numerous frontier operations, earning recognition for their gallantry and resilience. They fought in theSecond Sikh War, played a crucial role in the suppression of theIndian Mutiny in Delhi, and served in theSecond Afghan War, where they defended the British Residency in Kabul. DuringWorld War I, the Guides raised additional battalions and fought inMesopotamia andPalestine. Following the war, the Corps of Guides was reorganized, with the cavalry and infantry becoming separate units. In theSecond World War, the Guides Infantry served in Iraq and Iran.
The Guides Infantry demonstrated their valor in theIndo-Pakistan wars of1948 and1965. In 1948, they defended the Kishenganga Valley in Kashmir, and in 1965, they established a bridgehead for the 1st Armored Division across the India-Pakistan border. The Guides Infantry also participated in theRann of Kutch Conflict in 1965, capturing Indian positions and earning several awards for their bravery. Throughout their history, the Guides Infantry played a vital role in frontier operations and earned a reputation as a brave and dependable force.
The Corps of Guides was raised atPeshawar on 14 December 1846 by LieutenantHarry Burnett Lumsden on the orders of SirHenry Lawrence, the British Resident atLahore, capital of theSikh Empire. Initially composed of a troop of cavalry and two companies of infantry mounted oncamels, the Guides were organized as a highly mobile force. The corps was ordered to recruit
Although the corps recruited men from all over the country and even beyond theFrontier ofIndia,Pathans, Punjabi Muslims,Sikhs andDogras later formed the bulk of their manpower.[2]
Harry Lumsden was chosen to train and lead the force:
Lumsden left a lasting imprint on the Guides, who first fought in numerous frontier operations. Believing that fighting troops were for service and not for show, Lumsden introduced loose and comfortable dust-coloured uniforms for the first time, which would soon become famous as "khaki"[3] and within decades would be adopted by the British Army for service in India. In 1851, the Guides established themselves atMardan, which would remain their home until 1938.[1]
In 1851, the Corps of Guides became part of thePunjab Irregular Force, which later became famous as thePunjab Frontier Force orPiffers. The Piffers consisted of five regiments of cavalry, eleven regiments of infantry and five batteries of artillery besides the Corps of Guides. Their mission was to maintain order on the Punjab Frontier;[4] a task they performed efficiently during the next fifty years.[5]
In 1876,Queen Victoria rewarded the Guides by granting them the use of theRoyal Cypher and they became theQueen's Own Corps of Guides with thePrince of Wales as their Colonel. During theFirst World War, the cavalry and infantry of the Guides fought separately. During the war, the Guides Infantry raised three more battalions. The 3rd and 4th Guides Infantry were disbanded after the war. In 1921, the cavalry and infantry components were formally separated; the cavalry becoming the 10th Queen Victoria's Own Corps of Guides Cavalry (Frontier Force), while the infantry joined the newly formed12th Frontier Force Regiment to make up the 5th and 10th (Queen Victoria's Own Corps of Guides) Battalions of the new infantry regiment. The 10th became the Training Battalion of the regiment. Their new class composition was one company each of Punjabi Muslims, Pathans, Sikhs and Dogras. The regiment adopted the drab uniform with red facings of the Corps of Guides. In 1943, the 10th (Training) Battalion was converted into the 12th Frontier Force Regimental Centre, while in 1945, '12' was dropped from the regiment's designation, changing it to The Frontier Force Regiment.[6]
On thePartition of India in 1947, the Frontier Force Regiment was allotted toPakistan. The Sikhs and Dogras were transferred toIndia and the new class composition of the regiment became Punjabi Muslims and Pathans in equal proportion. In 1956, theFrontier Force Rifles andPathan Regiment were merged with the Frontier Force Regiment and all the battalions were re-numbered. At the same time, since Pakistan had become a republic, all titles pertaining to British royalty were dropped. Consequently, the Guides Infantry was redesignated as the2nd Battalion (Guides) The Frontier Force Regiment or2 FF (Guides).[7][8]
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The intrepid Guides quickly made a name for themselves on theNorth West Frontier ofIndia in numerous operations against the turbulent frontier tribes. Between 1847 and 1878, the corps participated in fifteen major frontier expeditions and operations.[5] Their formidable reputation soon spread far and wide, and was immortalized byRudyard Kipling in several of his works such asThe Ballad of East and West. By around the start of the 20th century, the Guides had acquired such a legendary status that whenRobert Baden-Powell, the founder ofBoy Scouts, decided to form a similar organization for girls in 1909, he named themGirl Guides after the Corps of Guides.How Girls Can Help to Build Up the Empire, the Girl Guides' handbook has this to say about the Corps of Guides:
Following their victory in theFirst Sikh War of 1845–1846, the British posted aResident at the Sikh Durbar at Lahore to control the affairs of the Sikh state. However, the Sikhs resented British interference in their affairs and began planning a revolt. Early in 1848, Lumsden and his Guides were summoned to Lahore to gather evidence of the planned Sikh insurrection - a mission that they successfully carried out. However, British counter-measures were unable to prevent the revolt, which broke out atMultan in April 1848 and soon spread to the rest of the country. The Guides served at theSiege of Multan and then participated in theBattle of Gujrat on 21 February 1849, where the Sikh Army was decisively defeated. TheSecond Sikh War resulted in the dissolution of the Sikh state and annexation of the Punjab by the British.[1]
In May 1857, when the mutiny broke out, Lumsden was on a mission atKandahar and CaptainHenry Daly led the Guides to join the Delhi Field Force then besieging the ancient capital city. They left Hoti Mardan on 13 May and arrived atDelhi on 9 June after marching 580 miles in twenty-six days and fourteen hours in the searing Indian summer.[1][5]
The Guides went into action the same day and by evening, all of their officers were killed or wounded.[citation needed] They continued to fight gallantly throughout the summer and took part in thefinal assault and capture of Delhi. By the time they returned home, they had suffered 350 casualties out of the 600 men who had set out in May.[1] For their gallant conduct at Delhi, they were awarded the distinction of red piping on their tunic collars; an honour shared with the60th Foot and theSirmoor Rifles, who fought alongside them at Delhi.[2][7]
During theSecond Afghan War of 1878–1880, the Guides joined the Peshawar Field Force under General SirSam Browne and took part in the capture ofAli Masjid, the advance toJalalabad and the cavalry action atFatehabad, where LieutenantWalter Hamilton won theVictoria Cross for gallantry. Following theTreaty of Gandamak in May 1879, the Afghan King agreed to the presence of a British Mission inKabul. The mission, led by SirLouis Cavagnari, arrived in Kabul on 24 July 1879, escorted by a detachment of 76 Guides under Lieutenant Hamilton, VC. However, on 3 September, a disgruntled regiment of the Afghan Army attacked the BritishResidency. Although the Afghans offered quarter to the Indian ranks, the Guides chose to fight to the death. The Residency finally fell after twelve hours of fierce resistance by the Guides, who perished to the last man along with 600 of their foes. The sacrifice of these gallant men is commemorated in the impressive Guides Memorial at Mardan with the following words:
The epic stand of the Guides at Kabul Residency was immortalized byMM Kaye[10] in her bestselling novelThe Far Pavilions and in the 1984 motion picture of the same name.
The massacre at Kabul led to the resumption of hostilities and in December 1879, the Guides were dispatched to join theKabul Field Force under General SirFrederick Roberts atSherpur Cantonment near Kabul. They participated in the attacks on Takht-i-Shah andAsmai Heights, where CaptainArthur Hammond won theVictoria Cross for conspicuous gallantry.[1][5]
After the Second Afghan War, the Guides were involved in a number of actions along theNorth West Frontier including theRelief of Chitral in 1895, as part of Malakand and Buner Field Forces during the Frontier Uprising of 1897-98, and in the Mohmand Expedition of 1908. In 1906, the Corps of Guides was reorganized into separates units of cavalry and infantry within the corps.[5]
At the outbreak ofWorld War I, the Corps of Guides initially remained in India for service on the Frontier; both Guides Infantry and Cavalry participating in theMohmand Blockade in 1915. In January 1917, a second battalion of Guides Infantry was raised by Captain RCG Pollock at Mardan. In October, the 3rd Guides Infantry was raised by Colonel GP Villiers Stuart, also at Mardan, while the 4th Guides Infantry was raised in October 1918 by Lieutenant ND Douglas atNowshera. In 1917, the 1st Guides Infantry joined the7th (Meerut) Division inMesopotamia and fought in the action of Tikrit. In 1918, both 1st and 2nd Guides Infantry served inPalestine and took part in theBattle of Megiddo, which led to the annihilation of Turkish Army in Palestine. The 3rd Guides Infantry served in theThird Afghan War of 1919. It was disbanded in August 1921. The 4th Guides Infantry was disbanded in December 1918.[5]
The end of the war also spelt the end of the Corps of Guides as a unit. In the post-war reorganization of the Indian Army in 1921, the corps was broken up and the cavalry and infantry became separate units, with the two battalions of Guides Infantry joining the12th Frontier Force Regiment as its 5th and 10th Battalions.[6]
During theSecond World War, the Guides Infantry or 5th Battalion (QVO Corps of Guides) 12th FF Regiment, served throughout inIraq andIran, guarding against the German threat from the north. They were not engaged in any fighting.[11]
The Guides Infantry made up for its lack of action during the Second World War by giving an excellent account of itself inKashmir in 1948. The battalion was instrumental in checking the Indian offensive in the Kishenganga Valley, where it fought with great gallantry atTithwal and foiled all enemy efforts at advance. Jemadar Dost Muhammad's platoon of the Guides were defending Richmar Gali, nearTithwal. Coming under attack from approximately 700 Indian soldiers, he ordered a bayonet charge as a last ditch effort, leading to his death and the capture of Richmar Gali by the Indians. His actions delayed the Indian army, long enough for the 10th Brigade of7th Infantry Division to prepare defences along the Panjkot Nullah, preventing their advance.[12] The Guides suffered casualties of 37 killed and 105 wounded, and were awarded eleven gallantry awards.[7][8][13]
In 1965 the Guides Infantry (2FF) was camping at Kasur where A and D companies of the battalion were carrying watermanship training at Thaman Distributary near Luliani after they had moved from the Rann of Katch area. The battalion was assigned the task of establishing a bridge head on Rohhi Nullah for launching of 1 Armoured Division across the India – Pakistan border. A and D companies joined the Paltan at about 1230 hrs. The Guides moved out from the camp to cross the border. The battalion crossed the Rohi Nullah on foot and entered the enemy territory on night 6/7 Sep 1965 and established a bridge head for the armoured division. After the launching of the division, the battalion was put under 21 Bde which was part of 11th Infantry Division. On 12 September the Guides Infantry and 5 Frontier Force captured the Indian town of Khem Karan. The battalion advanced up to Bhura Khana a small village in the north of the Khem Karan. On 17 Sep 1965 it was ordered to come back and take defence positions in front of Khem Kharan. On the night 21/22 September 1965 C company position was shelled heavily and was attacked by Indian troops who succeeded in overrunning part of a forward platoon. A counter-attack was launched by C company which recovered the position. During the conflict, the Guides Infantry were awarded one Tamgha-i-Jurat and two C-in-C Commendation cards.[7][8][13][14]
Rann of Kutch Conflict – April 1965.
The trouble began in March 1965 when India started interfering with Pakistan Rangers patrol in Kanger Kot area. Immediately they took a further step and laid their claim on the Kanger Kot Fort. To back it with force they started amassing troops in the Rann of Kutch. Consequently, some troops of Pakistan Army including the Guides Infantry were promptly dispatched to deal with the situation. The Guides Infantry attacked and captured the strong points of the Indian Army atBiarbet and captured the position being defended by famous Indian PARA Brigade (Guides Infantry marks 12 April as Biarbet day). An area of approx five to six miles was captured and cleared of the Indians immediately. In this small battle the battalion was awarded two Tamgha-e-Jurat, Four Imtiazi Sanads and one C-in-C Commendation Card.
Honours
Tamgh-e-Jurat
Imtiazi Sanad
Commendation Card
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On 3 October 1971 during thewar, the battalion was deployed to theChakothi area to defend the Sirinager-to-Muzaffarabad road in the Uri section. C Company was sent to defend the Lipa valley, joined by elements of the Tochi Scouts. Lipa was defended under second-in-command Abdul Hamid Afridi. On 8 November, Indian forces attacked two patrols of C Company at Shisha Ladi with the intent of capturing the Lipa valley. The final attack was repulsed at 04:15. At 08:00 the second attack began with heavy artillery fire, incurring many casualties by 10:30. Major Aziz Ahmed, Samandar Shah and threejawans held Shahadat. Members of the battalion received aSitara-e-Jurat, aTamgha-i-Jurat and anImtiazi Sanad. (This entire description needs re-visiting. 2 FF was deployed in Chakothi sector, with battalion HQ at Chakothi, a company deployed on Sugna-Ziarat ridge, A company at Parat and another company which repulsed the Indian infiltration of Ziarat ridge under the command of Captain Gulzar Ahmed Wazir. The fourth company under Major Aziz Ahmed was detached to Lipa Valley where it fought a glorious action on Shisha Ladi ridge, "R" battery of 25 Composite Mountain Regiment (Artillery) was in support. It was commanded by Lt Col Abdul Hameed Khan in 1971.)
Mooltan, Goojerat, Punjaub, Delhi 1857, Ali Masjid, Kabul 1879, Afghanistan 1878-80, Chitral, Punjab Frontier, Malakand, Mesopotamia 1917-18, Megiddo, Sharon, Palestine 1918, NW Frontier, India 1914-15, Afghanistan 1919, Kashmir 1948, Rann of Kutch 1965, Khem Karan 1965.[15]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)| Azad Kashmir Regiment |
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| Baloch Regiment |
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| Frontier Force Regiment |
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| Northern Light Infantry |
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| Punjab Regiment |
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| Sindh Regiment |
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| Special Forces | ||||
| Former regiments | ||||