EMPIRE, FAITH & WAR

Introduction

The story of the Sikh involvement in the First World War and their relationship with the British Empire is told in the following sections:

• Empire

  How did the First World War affect people throughout the British Empire?

• Faith

  The loyalty of Punjab, the traditional homeland of the Sikhs, was important to the British Empire

• War

  At the outbreak of war Sikhs were 18% of the Indian Army's combat force soldiers yet made up just 1% of the total Indian population

• Sikhs at War

  The timely arrival and bravery of Indian reinforcements probably saved the Allies from an early defeat

• Encounters

  The relative freedom of women and availability of free education in Europe had a powerful effect on many Sikhs

• Experiences

  All soldiers in Europe were affected by the wet and freezing conditions in the trenches and food shortages

• Indian Home Front

  Increasing grain prices due to poor harvests and fears that the war would drag on affected many

• Politics & Propaganda

  Soldiers were instructed to write home cheerful letters encouraging others to volunteer

• After the War

  They came home to a country on the verge of famine and bankruptcy, and saw as many as 17 million die from the flu pandemic