|
 |
Regiment of Artillery
Indian Army
|
|
| Indian Arty Crest |
|
|
Regiment of Artillery
|
(Gunnners in Action)
|
The Regiment of Artillery constitutes a formidable operational arm of Indian Army. Historically it takes its lineage from Moghul Emperor Babur who is popularly credited with introduction of Artillery in India, in the Battle of Panipat in 1526. However evidence of earlier use of gun by Bahmani Kings in the Battle of Adoni in 1368 and King Mohammed Shah of Gujrat in fifteenth century have been recorded.
The crest of the Regiment of Artillery is largely a legacy of the Royal Artillery. Their crest depicted a gun with a crown above it, separated by the world UBIQUE (Latin for everywhere). Below the gun was emblazoned the motto; Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducant; "where right and glory lead". In the Royal Indian Artillery, the crown was replaced by a star - representing the Star of India and instead of UBIQUE the crest carried the world India to distinguish the Royal Indian Artillery from the Royal Artillery. The motto below was also changed to IZZAT-O-IQBAL. After independence, the word INDIA was dropped from the regimental crest and replaced with SARVATRA.
|
Regimental Motto
The motto, Izzat-o-Iqbal, was retained but not without controversy. In 1954, as part of the process of Indianisation of the armed forces, the government ordered that regimental mottos be changed to Hindi or Sanskrit. The final decision was, however, left with the then Chief of the Army Staff, General Rajendra Sinhji. The Regiment of Artillery made a forceful case for retaining its motto as it was felt the most suitable in content and meaning. It was finally decided to retain the motto though it was in Persian.
Regimental Flag
A distinctive red and navy blue background the official colours of the Artillery flag forms an ideal setting for the golden gun (the Gunner crest) which forms the centerpiece of the flag. Gunner folklore had it, that the red and blue represents the flash and the smoke of the gun, though this is not quite true. Red has been traditionally common to all combat arms - Infantry, Armour and Artillery. The blue in the Artillery flag was taken from the ribbon of the 'Star of India' which had been incorporated into the Artillery crest. The original colour was light blue but since a similar shade was adopted by the Crops of Signals, it was changed to navy blue to avoid confusion.
|
 |
 |
 |
|
