Welcome to the website of 2nd King Edward VII’s Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles)  

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The 2nd Goorkhas was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army before being transferred to the British Army on India’s independence in 1947.  At that time the 4th Battalion joined the Indian Army as the 5th Battalion, 8th Gurkha Rifles (Sirmoor Rifles), where it exists to this day.

As part of the British Army, the Regiment served in Malaya, Hong Kong, the UK, Brunei and many other locations worldwide until 1994 when it was amalgamated with the other three British Army Gurkha infantry Regiments to form the Royal Gurkha Rifles.

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On this day, 14th May, in....

1857 Three days after the outbreak of the Indian Mutiny, the Sirmoor Battalion marched out of its home barracks in Dehra Dun only four hours after the arrival of a camel sowar (messenger) bringing the news. After considerable skirmishing and fighting on the way, including the battle of Badle-ke-Serai, the Goorkhas reached Delhi on 8 June. Of great symbolic importance was the fact that the Sirmoor Battalion was the first local regiment to confront and open fire on the mutineers. Click here to read a description of the campaign.
 

1857 Major Reid, the Commandant, called for pensioners resident in Dehra Dun to guard the Battalion's Lines in Dehra Dun during the Battalion’s absence at the siege of Delhi. 50 volunteered. This was the second occasion that pensioners had responded so magnificently, the first being in 1841 when the Battalion under the command of Colonel Young had been ordered to take part in the First Afghan War.
 

1876 Field Marshal His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales became Honorary Colonel of the Regiment, serving in this capacity even after becoming King Edward VII in 1901 and then as Colonel-in-Chief until he died in 1910.

Use the box below to search the ‘On This Day’ database. Dates should be in the format YYYY-MM-DD (e.g. 1948-02-09 for 9th February 1948).