The 40th Pathans were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1780 as Bengal Native infantry and then again in 1858 as the Shahjehanpur Levy. It was designated as the 40th Pathans in 1903 and became 5th Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was allocated to the Pakistan Army, where it continues to exist as 16th Battalion The Punjab Regiment.
Early history
The regiment was reraised by Lieutenant Edward Dandridge at Shahjahanpur in 1858, during the upheaval of the Indian Mutiny, as the Shahjahanpur Levy. It was initially composed of Hindus from North India and some Sikhs. In 1888, the regiment participated in the Black Mountain Expedition, while in 1890, it dispatched a detachment to Lushai Hills. In 1890, it was reconstituted with Trans-frontier Pathans to become the only all-Pathan regiment in the Indian Army; acquiring in the process, the nickname of "Forty Thieves". In 1901, it lost its exclusively Pathan character, when two companies each of Punjabi Muslims and Dogras were included.
40th Pathans
Subsequent to the reforms brought about in the Indian Army by Lord Kitchener in 1903, the regiment's designation was changed to 40th Pathans. In 1904, the 40th Pathans proceeded to Tibet as reinforcements for the Tibet Mission Force. On the outbreak of the First World War the regiment was stationed in Hong Kong. It arrived in France on 2 April 1915, and within days, was on the frontlines. The 40th Pathans fought with great gallantry in the Second Battle of Ypres, where they suffered 320 casualties on 26 April, and in the Battles of Aubers Ridge and Loos. In December, the regiment left for East Africa, where they served till February 1918, and again distinguished themselves in the long and bitter campaign. The 40th Pathans suffered a total of 800 casualties during the war, while 1066 officers and men were invalided out of service due to sickness. In 1919, the 40th Pathans participated in the Third Afghan War.
In 1921-22, a major reorganization was undertaken in the British Indian Army leading to the formation of large infantry groups of four to six battalions. Among these was the 14th Punjab Regiment, formed by grouping the 40th Pathans with 19th, 20th, 21st, 22nd and 24th Punjabis. The battalion's new designation was 5th Battalion 14th Punjab Regiment. During the Second World War, the battalion fought in the Malayan Campaign and was taken prisoner by the Japanese on Singapore Island following the British surrender on 15 February 1942.
Post-1947 partition
The battalion was re-raised in 1952. In the meantime, the 14th Punjab Regiment had been allocated to the Pakistan Army following the independence in 1947. In 1956, the 14th Punjab Regiment was merged with the 1st, 15th and 16th Punjab Regiments to form one large Punjab Regiment, and 5/14th Punjab was redesignated as 16 Punjab. During the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistan Wars, the battalion fought on the Lahore Front.
