India — Delhi War Cemetery, Delhi Cantonment, New Delhi, Delhi 110010, India

Visiting Delhi War Cemetery

May 2016

When travelling, I always try to visit any local Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemeteries. And while in Delhi, I visited the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Delhi War Cemetery.

The Indian Army participated in the First (1914–1918) and Second (1939–1945) World Wars. At the time, the Indian Army was the second-largest Commonwealth army and the largest voluntary army in the world.

During the World Wars, India sent forces across the globe to fight.

In the First World War, around 700,000 men of the Indian Army fought in Iraq, 144,000 in the Middle East, and about 140,000 went to France and Belgium. In France, the arrival of the Indian Army in October 1914 enabled the Allies to hold the German advance.

In the Second World War, the Indian Army fought in North and East Africa and Italy. But, the Army’s biggest and most successful campaign was in Burma from 1942 to 1945. Initially, the Indian Army was defending the eastern frontier, but it went on to win a great victory against the Japanese.

The Indian Army’s role in the Middle East was vital in both World Wars, as it helped keep critical supply routes open between the East and West by protecting the Suez Canal. In 1914–1915 this was against Turkish attacks from the east, and in 1940–1942 against Italian and German attacks from…