The Madras Regiment
Mandeep Singh Bajwa

v.1.0, dated 2003

The following article is copyrighted by Manjeet Singh Bajwa and cannot be reproduced in any form without permission from him and ordersofbattle. You are welcome to use it for non-profit purposes after getting permission.

In the Army List the Madras Regiment should actually be the seniormost infantry Regiment as these were the first troops to be organised into regular battalions. But their senior battalions were converted to Punjabis in 1903 and the Madras Regiment itself became third in the order of seniority after it's own battalions. The Regiment now consists of South Indians, i.e., all classes from Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and Goa. The Urdu-speaking Muslims of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are classified as Dekhani Mussalmans and are recruited into the Maratha Light Infantry

The South Indian soldier, or Madrasi as the British called him, has proved his mettle on many a battlefield. Nonetheless, he has also been the victim of narrow prejudices, which have denied him the glory and recognition rightfully due to him. We have already given the example about the conversion of a number of Madras battalions to North Indian classes. In spite of a good record in World War I, the Madras Regiment had to suffer the ignominy of being struck off the Army List with the disbandment of it's only surviving battalion, the 1^st, in 1928.

The Regiment was only resurrected in 1942 due largely to the efforts of Capt Sir Arthur Hope, KCIE, MC, Governor of Madras. The class composition of the Regiment was fixed at:-

1. Harijans and Christians 40%

2. Tamils 20%

3. Malayalis 15%

4. Telegus 12.5%

5. Muslims 12.5%

This has now been made more broad-based as discussed above.

Battalions	Traditional Name or Nickname
2^nd Battalion	75^th Carnatic Infantry
3^rd Battalion	79^th Carnatic Infantry
4^th Battalion	83^rd Wallajahbad
5^th Battalion
6^th Battalion	Basantar, after 1971 Battle Honor
7^th Battalion	Shandaar Saat (loosely, Glorious Seventh)
8^th Battalion
9^th Battalion	1^st Travancore Nayar Infantry
11^th Battalion
12^th Battalion
16^th Battalion	2nd Travancore Nayar Infantry -- Basantar
17^th Battalion	Cochin State Infantry
18^th Battalion	Mysore Infantry
19^th Battalion
25^th Battalion
26^th Battalion	Siramani (after 1971 Battle Honor)
27^th Battalion
28^th Battalion
29^th Battalion

The Regimental Centre is the old 86th Carnatic Infantry. It was re-raised at Madukarai in July 1942 and moved to it's present location at Wellington in February 1947. The Regiment has 2 Territorial Army battalions affiliated to it.

Unfortunately the senior-most battalion, the 1st with nearly 225 years of history behind it having been raised in 1776 at Madras as the 13th Carnatic Battalion, was transferred to the Mechanised Infantry Regiment in 1980 where it serves as its 1st Bn. Its class composition in line with the other battalions of the Mechanized Infantry Regiment is now All India All Class in place of the familiar 'Thammudu', Telugu for younger brother.

Battle Honours

Before Independence

Amboor, Carnatic, Sholinghur, Mysore, Seringapatam, Assaye, Cochin, Bourbon,

Seetabuldee, Nagpore, Meheidpore, Kemmendine, Ava, China(1840-2), Pegu,

Lucknow, China(1857-60), Central India, Afghanistan(1879-80), Burma, Malakand, Tirah-Punjab Frontier, China(1900), North-West Frontier(1914-5), Killimanjaro, East Africa, Baghdad, Mesopotamia, North-West Frontier(1917), Kut-al Amara, Aden, Persia, Baluchistan, Afghanistan(1919), Mount Popa, Tamu Road, Ukhrul, Ava and Kama.

After Independence

Tithwal, Poonch, Kalidhar, Maharajke, Basantar River, and Siramani.

The motto of the Madras Regiment,suggested by Sh. C Rajagopalachari,former Governor General of India and adopted in 1955 is 'Swadharme Nidhanam Shreyaha' -- It is glory to die doing one's duty.

The badge of the Regiment is an Assaye elephant mounted on crossed Malabar swords with a shield at the crossing. Beneath this is a scroll bearing the words,'THE MADRAS REGIMENT'.

Despite all the vicissitudes in it's fortunes and prejudice against it the Madras Regiment continues to give of it's best in the service of the nation, assuring the country that the Thambi (Tamil for younger brother) will forever spring to it's defence with his war cry ringing out on the battlefield, 'Veer Madrasi,Adi Kollu! Adi Kollu!'