Bombay Army

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The Bombay Army was one of the three Presidency Armies of the East India Company. In 1859, following the Indian Mutiny, the armies were restructured when India was brought under the control of the British Government. The Bombay Army ceased to exist when the official Indian Army was formed in 1895.

A list of Bombay Army regiments can either be found in the Bombay Army Category or alphabetically, by type, in Bombay Army Regiments.

Divisions

FIBIS Resources

Gopal Drooge is identified as the modern Kabbal Durga. The murders took place in September 1783 when thirteen officers from the Bombay Army, including Captain Richardson of the 3rd Bombay Sepoys and four officers from the British Army were killed on the orders of Tipu Sultan.
  • "The Memoirs of John Norton of the Bombay Mint" by Joan Harrison FIBIS Journal Number 34 (Autumn 2015) pages 18-26.
John Norton left England in November 1819 for Bombay, as an artilleryman in the Bombay Artillery. He was appointed to the Gun Carriage Manufactory and subsequently became a Sub Conductor of Ordnance. He was subsequently appointed to the Bombay Mint, where he was required to resign from the Army.
For details of how to access these articles, see FIBIS Journals.

Records

Main article: East India Company Army

British Library

Please note that the records Registers of Bombay Army European Soldiers IOR/L/MIL/12/109-116 1795-1862 commenced in 1831 and only contain men still serving in the Army at that date. These records have been transcribed by FIBIS, refer above. If a man left the Army prior to 1831 for any reason, including death, he will not appear in these records. The Muster records are an alternative source of information.
FamilySearch (LDS (Mormons)) have filmed many of these records, most of which are now available as digitised microfilm. Search the Microfilm catalogue by entering keywords such as Bombay Army. In particular, "Bombay Army muster rolls and casualty returns, 1708-1865" catalogue entry are available.
Note: Microfilm ordering services ceased September 2017, however selected microfilms have been digitised and are currently available for viewing on a FamilySearch computer at a FamilySearch Centre or FamilySearch Affiliate Library. Locate these records through the FamilySearch catalogue. It is expected that in time all microfilms will be similarly available in this format. See FamilySearch Centres for viewing details.
At least some of the records in the series Miscellaneous Bombay Army officers' marriage notifications IOR/L/MIL/12/108 have been transcribed by the British Library and are available on India Office Family History Search
  • Soldiers’ and Officers’ Wills IOR/L/AG/34/30 1825-1881 (varies according to Presidency and whether a soldier or an officer). These records are available on findmypast

Other sources

The National Army Museum holds a card index detailing officer's services. This index is unpublished and not available elsewhere. See the NAM article for details.

External links

"From Westmorland to India – William Lambert of the Bombay Army" 4 December 2018. British Library Untold Lives Blog

Historical books online

Indian Army Uniforms by W Y Carman 1969. Full title: Indian Army Uniforms under the British from the 18th century to 1947 : Artillery, Engineers and Infantry. Archive.org version, mirror from Digital Library of India. Note: Original colour plates are in black and white and most illustrations are of poor quality.