Description
A group representative of the Imperial Service Troops maintained by the feudatory Princes of India, and including men of many of the races and tribes already touched upon in these notes. These troops are held at the disposal of the King-Emperor in case of need, and, when called upon, take their place with the British-Indian Army. The total of this force is very considerable. aggregating approximately fifteen regiments of cavalry and twelve battalions of infantry, to which must be added mountain batteries. some companies of sappers, and valuable transport corps (both mule and camel). The Imperial Service Troops thus form not only a notable and splendid testimony to the loyalty of the feudatory Princes and peoples. but also a fighting force of great value. This illustration shows men of various Rajput regiments. The Gujars, who are shown to the left, belong to a race believed to be of Scythian origin (like the Jats), who settled on the banks of the Indus and spread to Gujarat, Rajputana, and New Delhi In the Punjab they ultimately adopted the Mohammedan religion. The establishment of British dominion time in India has no parallel in the history of the world. The great Empires of ancient and modern times have been built up by conquests, successively consolidated and carried out overland from the source of central power.