OFFICER’S MESS IN HINDU RAO’S HOUSE

Painting (Oil on Canvas)

Artist – Jason Askew

During the Siege of Delhi in 1857, a key part of the British force’s fortifications was a repurposed building named Hindu Rao’s House, named after its owner, a wealthy Delhi merchant. This point was defended throughout the siege, from June to September, by units from the Corps of Guides, the 60th Rifles, the Bengal Artillery and the Sirmoor Battalion. This last unit was composed of Gurkhas and is the ancestor of 2nd Gurkha Rifles, itself an ancestor of the modern Royal Gurkha Rifles. As the weeks progressed, the officers of the units would dine together within Hindu Rao’s House when possible, and the soldiers of the units fought side-by-side, forming a close bond. At the conclusion of the siege the 60th Rifles requested that the Sirmoor Battalion be considered a Rifle Regiment, rather than a standard infantry unit, a designation which has carried on to today’s Royal Gurkha Rifles.