By Ashvini Ranjan
The First World War took place between the Allied Forces (Britain, France and Russia) and the Axis Forces consisting of the Germans, Austrians and the Ottoman Empire. It lasted for four years from 1914 to 1918. India too being a colony of the British Empire participated in the war. However, the Battle of Haifa that took place on 23rd September 1918 was fought by the 15th Imperial Services consisting mainly of the Lancer Regiments of the Indian Princely States of Hyderabad, Jodhpur and Mysuru. The soldiers were the personal armies of the Indian Princes. The battle that was fought has been described by historians as one of the fiercest and most daring encounters during the First World War. My interest to learn about the event came about when our Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Israel in 2017, laid a wreath at the grave of Haifa where the historical battle had taken place. The Mysuru Lancers too were a part of the 15 Imperial Cavalry Regiment of the Allied Forces. The grave at Haifa has the mortal remains of the soldiers who sacrificed their lives during this war. There was a sudden burst of interest to report on the hundred-year-old event that had gathered decades of dust and almost forgotten. I was both surprised and conscience-stricken on how an event of such a magnitude is least mentioned or celebrated.The Lancer Regiment consisted of men of the very city we live who had displayed phenomenal valour in a place far from home which had a global significance. While as students we had read about various wars, campaigns, and invasions as part of our study of history, there was no record to enlighten us of the battle of Haifa, an event every Indian should feel proud of.
