22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry

22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry

22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry was formed as the 11th Regiment of Punjab Infantry on 1 August 1857 at Multan during the Indian Sepoy Mutiny.

The 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry was one of the major infantry battalions of the British East India Company that served from the year 1857 to 1922. It was a part of the Bengal Native Infantry under the Bengal Army during the commencement of the Great Revolt of 1857. The Bengal Army was the principal armed force of Bengal Presidency and was also spread over the northern India Himalayan Mountains and to the North West Frontier Province (currently known as the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa). The army unit was also incorporated as a part of the Bengal Command. King Edward VII acted as the Colonel-in-Chief of the battalion in the year 1904. The 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry was also known as the 22nd Punjabis unit.

History of 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry
The 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry was formed as the 11th Regiment of Punjab Infantry on 1 August 1857 at Multan during the Indian Sepoy Mutiny. The unit was formed by merging the troops of the 3rd Punjab Police Battalion and the 1st Sikh Infantry. The army unit was re-designated many times throughout its armed service, such as, 26th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry in 1861and the 3rd Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment in 1922, after the Kitchener reforms of the British Indian Army.

Military Operations of 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry In the year 1860, the 22nd Punjabis unit participated in the Second Opium War. The regiment later fought in the Lushai Expedition in 1871 and also the Second Afghan War from the year 1878 to 1880. The army unit was designated as the 22nd Punjabis regiment after the reforms of Lord Kitchener in the British Indian Army in 1903. The troops of the regiment also served during the First World War. The unit was stationed in the Campaign at Mesopotamia. The 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry also fought in the Battle of Ctesiphon in the year 1915. A second battalion of the 22nd Punjabis was established in the year 1917. The second battalion was disbanded after the war. The unit later took part in the Third Afghan War in the year 1919.

Development of 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry
The British Indian Army was extensively reorganised in 1921- 1922 and the single battalion infantry regiments were merged together to develop regiments of 4 to 6 battalions. The 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry was united with the 40th Pathans, the 19th Punjabis, 20th Punjabis, 21st Punjabis and 24th Punjabis unit. As a result of this, the 14th Punjab Regiment was formed. It was later renamed as the 3rd Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment. The troops participated in the Second World War and served in Burma, North Africa and Eritrea. After the Indian independence on 15th August 1947, the British Indian Army was divided amongst the Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan. The 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry was allocated to the modern army of Pakistan.

Designations of 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry
The regiment of the British Indian Army held a number of designations, which are listed as follows -
* 11th Regiment of Punjab Infantry- 1857
* 26th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry - 1861
* 22nd Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry - 1861
* 22nd (Punjab) Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry - 1864
* 22nd (Punjab) Regiment of Bengal Infantry - 1885
* 22nd Punjab Infantry - 1901
* 22nd Punjabis - 1903
* 1st Battalion 22nd Punjabis - 1917
* 3rd Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment - 1922

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