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Queen's Own Corps
of Guides (Punjab Frontier Force) - Sir Harry Lumsden, 1897
Lumsden was given the
task of raising the Corps of Guides which he did in 1846[after
the 1st Anglo-Sikh War] whilst still a young subaltern of
only eight years service. He had considerable experience
of service in the North-West, having fought in Afghanistan
with Pollock's avenging army and in the Sutlej campaign,
receiving a wound at Sobraon.
He had complete freedom to arm and dress his corps according
to his own wishes. He regarded the tight-fitting scarlet
uniforms of the British army to be totally unsuitable for
the Indian climate and set about dressing his officers and
men in loose fitting clothes that blended with the landscape.
He bought all the white cotton he could find locally and
had it taken to the river where it was soaked and impregnated
with mud. Lumsden is credited with being not only the founder
of the famous Corps of Guides but with the invention of
khaki. He commanded the regiment for 5 years with Major
W S R Hodson as his 2nd in command. He took part in 16 campaigns
in that time including the siege of Multan. For a while
he was on political duty in Kandahar, thus missing the start
of the Indian Mutiny. In 1860 he was put in command of the
Guides for the second time. At about this time he was wounded
when an assassin made an attempt on his life.
The photo, here shows him in his uniform as a Lieutenant-General.
He had been retired from actve service for twenty years
by this time. It is ironic that one of the last photos of
him should be of him wearing exactly the type of uniform
he had been instrumental in making obselete.
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