Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

I must begin by expressing my thanks to my collaborator, Frank Wilson, who has illustrated this book. It is largely as a result of his enthusiasm and encouragement that I have undertaken the editing of these memoirs. He has the advantage over me, having served in the pre-1947 Indian Army, but together we share a deep affection for India and a profound admiration for that splendid fighting man, the Indian soldier.

I have received much assistance from Mr D. W. King and the Staff of the Ministry of Defence Library, the Librarian and Staff of the Royal United Service Institution, and also from Mrs Archer of the India Office Library, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and Mr W. Y. Carman. I am most grateful to them.

When first I checked through the manuscript to obtain the exact English rendering of the many words in Hindi, I was greatly helped by Captain H. I. S. Kanwar of New Delhi, himself a keen military historian. Major-General K. C. Khanna, Indian Army (retired), a friend of many years’ standing, has also assisted me. I am grateful to them both.

I have also to thank Corporal William Davis, RAF, who has spent long hours typing the manuscript, and whose assistance has been invaluable.

This has really been a labour of love, whatever its shortcomings, and I was fortunate in being able to start the writing of it while serving on the staff of the British High Commissioner in India in 1968. My main acknowledgement must therefore be to India, that fascinating land, and to my many Indian friends who made me feel so welcome wherever I went.