Where to find information on the British Indian Army in the 20th Century

Question

Hi All

I am looking for pointers to records for my Grandfather James L Ruddock who I have been informed by his daughter-in-law had "served out in India for years. I think about 25 years" to quote he died in 1967.

Any pointers would be met with grateful thanks.  I have yet to enter any of this information onto his profile as I cannot prove it.

regards

jackie

Comments

This is a puzzler... it seems very odd that there's no military record of him but serving in India for 25 years isn't the sort of thing you'd invent. Could he have used a different first name? Is there any documentation from that period that you could inspect?

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So I finally got a reply back from my Uncle who said his father was in the Military Police and Served out in Calcutta, Palastine, with the Gurkas and REME  Joined at 18 (1928) and served 22-25 years. his war service was in the UK and he reached the rank of Sgt Major.  Any clues as to where to look next.

Regards

Jackie

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Hi Jackie,

So James would have been in the British Army. His service records may still be closed and you may have to provide proof of kinship. See this link to the government website with details on how to apply for a copy of someone else's army records.

https://www.gov.uk/get-copy-military-service-records/apply-for-someone-elses-records

Regards

Valmay

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On a technical point, sergeant major is not a rank but an appointment - at least in the British and related commonwealth armies of the time.  

The rank was WO1 for the appointment of Regimental Sergeant Major and WO2 for Company / Battery / Squadron Sergeant Major.  In practical usage, the appointment was treated like a rank.  In a signature block you may find WO1 / WO2 followed by the name and on a line below the appointments of Sergeant Major with unit.

Answer 1

Hi Jackie,

The British Library India Office Family Search has no records for a James Ruddock or a James L. Ruddock. See http://indiafamily.bl.uk/ui/NonTabBriefDisplay.aspx?SearchType=QuickSearch

There is a Find My Past record for a James Ruddock in the British India Office Army & Navy Pensions records, but he was born in Mallow, County Cork.

Best of luck in your search.

Answer 2

Hi Jackie,

It all depends on whether he served in the British Army in India or the Indian Army. Do you know which regiment he served in? You may find these two articles in the families in British India Society wiki useful. For British Army see https://wiki.fibis.org/w/British_Army For Indian Army see https://wiki.fibis.org/w/Indian_Army