(Author: Anthony N Pamm, Vol. 72, No. 3, Chanukah 2017)
At the time of the First World War, Indian Jewry1 comprised four basic component subgroups, two of them going back to ancient times and two of comparatively recent origin. The older groupings were the Marathi-speaking Bene Israel Jews, then mainly living in Bombay and other places in the Bombay Presidency, and the Jews of the Malabar Coast, mainly settled in the then Princely Cochin State and speaking Malayalam. More recent arrivals, dating from the late 1700s onwards, were Jews from Muslim lands, many of them from what is now Iraq and of whom a large proportion came from Bagdad. This grouping, which had spoken Hebrew, Arabic and Farsi on arrival, mainly settled in Calcutta in the Bengal Presidency and Bombay. A number of them, such as the Sassoons in Bombay and the Ezras in Calcutta, achieved considerable success as merchants and real estate developers, with some setting up multinational trading enterprises. For ease of reference, they will be referred to as Iraqi Jews, although not all originated from there. The fourth, and smallest, group comprised Europeans, not all of whom intended to, or would, settle permanently in India.
The geographical distribution of these groups was primarily between the Bombay Presidency, the Bengal Presidency, the Malabar Coast and British Burma. The entire Indian Jewish population at the outbreak of the war probably numbered in the region of 20 000. This very small number in comparison with the total population and the eventual massive wartime size of the Indian army should be born in mind when considering the scale of the Indian Jewish contribution to the war effort and what was possible for Indian Jewry at the time.
The Indian Jewish contribution has as its backdrop the socio-political happenings in India during the war. Some of these can be brief ly recorded as initial expressions of patriotic loyalty followed by, for some, increasing discontent as more and more men went overseas and casualty figures mounted, food shortages developed, prices rose and Indian nationalist feelings and activities increased. Some in the Moslem section of the population were also perturbed by India fighting a war against Muslim Turkey. Bombay, home to large numbers of the Bene Israel and Iraqi Jewish populations, became a major port of embarkation.
Before preceding to strictly military contributions, I will brief ly mention some civilian home front contributions towards the war effort. In Calcutta, D. Ezra was noted for providing hospitality to troops. In Bombay, the Sassoons turned their mills and factories over to the production of military supplies, and also increased exports of foodstuffs to the United Kingdom. The importance of these activities, which absorbed some of the available Jewish manpower, should be realised.
In the sphere of those in uniform, the largest numerical contribution came from the Bene Israel community, with smaller participation by Iraqi Jews and a sprinkling of British Jews serving in the Indian Army. The Bene Israel had had a distinguished record in the Bombay Presidency Army from the mid-18th Cent ur y onwards. A significant proportion served in the Bombay Regiments and the Indian Subordinate Medical Department, where many rose to the highest ranks (Jemadar, Subedar and Subedar Major) achievable by indigenous Indians. They remained loyal during the Indian Mutiny of 1857 and served in the various campaigns in which the Bombay Presidency Army participated. At least one was awarded the Indian Order of Merit (then the highest gallantry award available) and another received a rarely awarded Special Gold Medal. There were at least 34 admissions (13 into the first class and 21 into the second) into the numerically restricted Order of British India, which had a smaller-still sub-allocation to the Bombay Presidency Army, was only available to indigenous officers and carried with it the titles of Bahadur or Sardar Bahadur.
This was until the mid-1890s, when a reorganisation of the Indian Army took place and in which an emphasis was placed on companies and regiments being manned by indigenous officers and men of the same caste or race. This terminated career prospects for a group whose absolute numbers were too low to form separate companies or regiments. By 1908, there were only six Bene Israel Indian officers still serving (two in the 122ndRajputana Infantry and four in Military Police Battalions ), with another 28 in the Indian Subordinate Medical Department. Two of the latter would be decorated during World War I.
The reorganisation into caste and race-based companies and regiments hardened over the years in the presence of beliefs about some groups being more martial than others and with preferences developing for Northerners over Southerners. This is relevant to any consideration of the participation, or lack thereof, of minority groups in the Indian Army of World War I, when high casualty rates necessitated the availability, if possible, of replacement manpower of the same caste or race as those of the regiment which had suffered losses.
At the outbreak of the war, the Indian Army had a total manpower of around 150 000. This increased nearly tenfold during the war, with the increase being drawn from volunteers from a limited number of castes and races deemed martial and suitable. Some 1 300 000 million men ultimately served outside of India in various theatres.
As stated previously, the Indian Jewish contribution to these numbers must been seen against a background of a total Jewish population of around 20 000. The British Jewry Book of Honour 1914-1918 records, if I have counted correctly, 178 Jews of Indian origin or Indian Army affiliation as having served during the war. This total can be broken down into the following four groupings:
Cpl E. Moses and Pte S. Samson, India Defence Force
(i) Bombay Jews in various military units (27), including six (one Honorary Major and five Captains) with medical qualifications serving in the Indian Medical Service, four sub-assistant surgeons in the ISMD and eight Military Accountants, all with the rank of Sergeant
(ii) Bombay Jews in the Indian Defence Corps (82), of whom 38 were in the Bombay Battalion, 16 in the Sindh Battalion, nine in the Poona Rif les and nine in the Bombay Garrison Artillery. There were a few non-commissioned officers, with most holding the rank of Private. One of these died on active service. A few of the names listed are indicative of some belonging to groups other than Bene Israel
(iii) Bombay Jewish Division of the St: John Ambulance Brigade (39), comprising two ambulance officers, seven NCOs and 30 Privates.
(iv) Jews from various groups in various units (30), of whom 27 were officers and of whom four became casualties (one Bene Israel and three British Jews).
These numbers may well be incomplete.Honours and Awards to recipients identif ied as Jewish were as follows:
• Victoria Cross: Lieut. Frank Alexander de Pass 34th Poona Horse (whose home address was in London)
• Order of British India: E l i j a h Abraham ISMD (a Bene Israel)
• Officer of the Order of the British Empire: Captains E. Ezra and C.E. Montefiore, Indian Army
• Member of the Order of the British Empire: Captain N.C Myers, IARO
• Military Cross: Capt. C. Abraham, Indian Army
• Indian Distinguished Service Medal: Benjamin Reuben ISMD (a Bene Israel)
• Meritorious Service Medal: SSM S. Laventhal, Indian Army
• Mentioned in Despatches: ten recipients, viz. Captain L. Brilliant, Lieutenants F. De Pass, E. Ezra, G. Goldberg, D. Judah, R. Marks, F. Rappoport, H. Simons, Clerk J. Abraham IVC, Pte. R. Samson, and Khan Sahib, Head Clerk, Kirkee Arsenal.
These numbers might be incomplete as there are a few other names of recipients of awards still requiring checking t o establish whether or not they might have been Jewish (including one recipient of the Indian Order of Merit).
Additionally, at least nine of the Bene Israel community received Indian Titles and Title Badges during the period 1914-1919 (seven Khan Sahibs and two Khan Bahadurs).
Lieut. F A de Pass, the first person of the Jewish faith and the first officer of the Indian Army to receive the VC during World War I
It is not known how many were for wartime services.
Finally, mention should be made of an Indian Jewish diaspora in the UK. A partial Sassoon migration produced a younger generation which had grown up in the UK and whose members served in British units during the war. At least one was killed, a few wounded and three (including the war poet Siegfried Sassoon) decorated with the Military Cross. One of these additionally was appointed as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire. Sir Philip Sassoon served as Private Secretary to General Sir Douglas Haig. He was later appointed as a Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George and received a number of foreign awards for his war services. There may also be others from other families to record as well.
Anthony N Pamm is a Cape Town-based collector and researcher in the field of military decorations and awards. His publications include Honours and rewards in the British Empire and Commonwealth (two volumes, Aldershot, UK, 1995). This article has been adapted from his paper delivered on his behalf at the 2016 Inter Faith Week World War I Centenary event, presented by the Zoroastrian Trust Funds of Europe and the Golden Tours Foundation on 19 November 2016 at Harrow, UK.
NOTES
- I have used the terminology and place names of the time. I further wish to record that this presentation was researched and prepared under extreme time-constraints, hence it should be seen as an overview of a much larger subject.
