The 9th Bhopal Infantry was raised in 1859, and reconstituted and received its present title in 1903. It served in Afghanistan 1878–79, and consisted of two companies of Sikhs, two of Rajputs, two of Brahmins, and two of Musalmans. It was quartered in Fyzabad when war broke out, and I had inspected it early that year. It was under orders for Secunderabad in the next reliefs, but so keen were all ranks to go to the north of India, and so eagerly did they do their field work, that I recommended to the Commander-in-Chief they should be given a chance on the Frontiers. The battalion was not on the mobilisation list, but the Chief selected it to fill a gap, and hence it was sent to France. Later it went to Mesopotamia and took part in the fighting there. Sir John French, as he always did, acknowledged the good work done by all ranks, both before and on this day, in a telegram in which he said: “Please congratulate your Indian troops on their gallant conduct, and express my gratitude to them.” CHAPTER VI I have told the story of the Indian Corps up to the date of the arrival of the Meerut Division on the British Front. This Division began its experiences in the trenches on the 29th October, from which date the portion of the line allotted to the Corps came under my command. In place of the Sirhind Brigade detained in Egypt, and the Ferozepore Brigade still away in the north near Ypres, I was given two British Brigades of the Second Army Corps; in addition, two extra battalions were temporarily left with me. With the arrival of the Secunderabad Cavalry Brigade and Jodhpore Lancers, I was able to count on another 1000 men as long as this Brigade might be left at my disposal. In nearly all the accounts of our doings at this time I find it stated that two and a half Brigades were left to strengthen the Indian Corps; giving the impression that these were in addition to our own full numbers. This is of course entirely erroneous. As a matter of fact, even with the two and a half Brigades lent to us, the Corps was far under the strength of British Army Corps; while in the matter of guns we had nothing but the bare complement of field guns and two heavy batteries of four guns each. In consequence the Second Corps left us, to start with, a proportion of its Corps Artillery. Sir John French had said to me on the night of my arrival, “Are you prepared to take over the front of the Second Corps at once?” and I replied, “Certainly.” If it had been twice as long, and had we been half our strength, I should have made the same reply. We had arrived and were going to take on anything ordered, and I felt confident we were going to do it well; and looking back on it all, now that one can take an unbiassed retrospect, there is only one conclusion to which honest soldiers will come and that is that all ranks, British and Indians, did their duty nobly and deserve well of their King and our country.