Indian War Cemetery in Greece

[Kensai]

There are some 520 Indians in a war cemetery near Salonica. It is embarassing, but not even many Greeks know about it, I've never been personally. It is quite amazing if you think about these poor souls, coming from rural India to serve on the Royal Navy's operations in the First World War.



http://parallaximag.gr/thessaloniki/o-hartis-tis-polis-indika-koimitiria

[DrPostman]

Give imgur a try. They have unlimited storage for images:
http://drpostman.imgur.com/all/

[DrPostman]

I watched a BBC program on the Commonwealth troops that fought for
both the UK and France. Some of the Indians had it very rough, facing
cold weather they had never had to deal with before. It's amazing what
they went through, and how heroic they were for their colonial overlords.

[Kensai]

Indeed. In Thessaloniki (Salonica) we had soldiers from India (Great Britain) and Indochina (France). Imagine what they were thinking, so far away from home, fighting for their colonial master a war that made no sense to them...

And let's not forget all those New Zealanders and Aussies, especially active in Greece again, that left their far away paradise to fight for King and Country!

[Shri]

BRITISH had divided the Brit-Indian Army (Indian men and Junior officers lorded by Scot/Irish General Staff) into- Hindu/Muslim/Sikh regiments + Gurkhas so as to prevent any revolt. Now, when war was declared; they asked for "volunteers", in theory most were volunteers, in practice it was forced-voluntary army.
What the Brits basically did was gave quotas to various districts in the "Martial races homeland" (British had divided/mapped the entire Indian sub-continent into martial/non-martial races category). Now to escape the war, the richer parents simply "purchased" poorer village lads to represent their kids.

But the worst was not Greek due to the malaria/dysentery or the French/Flanders region due to the unknown cold; the worst was MESAPOTAMIA, then as now it was 'hell', the British Officers mostly escaped in siege at KUT and left the INDIANS to starve in Turkish Camps.

[Kensai]

But the worst was not Greek due to the malaria/dysentery or the French/Flanders region due to the unknown cold; the worst was MESAPOTAMIA, then as now it was 'hell', the British Officers mostly escaped in siege at KUT and left the INDIANS to starve in Turkish Camps.

Ouch, that was ugly!

[Shri]

Sorry, got a bit carried away, as i had commented on another topic in the forum, my great-grandfather ( a young junior Officer) was one of the 25000-30000 Indians who 'disappeared' at KUT, they were officially- MIA but most went to the horrible Turkish Camps, a few thousand came out in the end looking like- Holocaust Prisoners.
The Grouse mainly comes from the fact that- Gen. Townsend who got out-foxed by the cunning Von Der Goltz Pasha and surrendered at KUT, spent his days in Constantinople drinking champagne and enjoying the Bosporus and Fraternizing with several senior German Officers who were on deputation to the Ottoman Empire.

[Kensai]

No problem whatsoever, no need to apologize! The "ugly" I said went to this horrible treating, not your post. I am pretty sure the Generals always have a better time than the simple soldiers, especially in custody.