Forgotten by the British because they were Indian.
And by the Indians because they fought for the British.

Memorial Gates Memorial, Britain In November 2002, the British Monarch Queen Elizabeth unveiled the palely-gleaming Memorial Gates in the heart of London at the top of Constitution Hill near Hyde Park Corner. The memorial marks the enormous sacrifices made by nearly five million volunteers from the Indian Sub-Continent, Africa and the Caribbean who served with the British Empire Armed Forces during the First and Second World Wars. The names of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Africa, Caribbean and Kingdom of Nepal are carved into the sides. More than 2.5 million Indian soldiers gallantly served, bled and died for the King and the Empire during the Second World War. The Indian-born-and-bred British peer, Baroness Sheila Flather, who campaigned in military style for the Memorial Gates, says it is a long overdue acknowledgement. Flather, who raised nearly three-million pounds to build the Gates, believes the contribution of millions of soldiers from Africa, the Caribbean and the Indian subcontinent has "somehow been erased from the memory of people here. We need to inform the young ethnic minority children about this contribution. We need to inform everybody else as well". Indian war veterans say it is the final act in a battle to inform Britain that for its future, they gave their past. Kranji War Memorial & Cemetery, Singapore. The Kranji War Memorial was built to honour the thousands of Indian and Allied troops who died in the defence and fall of Singapore during World War II. More than 24,000 names of those who died are inscribed on the walls and a register is available from the custodian for viewing. The memorial stands in the Kranji War Cemetery where 4,500 Indian and Allied troops are buried. Neuve Chapelle Memorial, France. The Neuve Chapelle Memorial was built for the Indian and Allied forces who died defending the Neuve Chapelle village from the Germans during World War I. The Indians fiercely held their ground from late 1914 till April 1918. More than 5,000 Indians soldiers were killed during this time. Designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield, the memorial is circular in plan, with the names of the missing, and the regimental crests of Indian Army units, on the interior panels. The memorial has many Indian features and motifs. Menin Gate Memorial, Belgium. The Menin Gate Memorial was built for the thousands of Commonwealth soldiers who went missing in the Ypres Salient while defending the Belgium town of Ypres from the Germans during World War I. Ypres was the most fought over town of WW I, it never fell. The names of more than 54,000 "missing" soldiers, who had no known grave, are inscribed around the memorial. Designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield construction of this monument was begun in June 1921 under a grant of £150,000 from the British Cabinet and was completed in July 1927. Blomfield, who was classically influenced, planned a great triumphal arch in the Roman tradition. At the summit of the monument is a British lion designed by Sir William Reid Dick, which was intended to look "not fierce and truculent, but patient and enduring, looking outward" along the Menin road. Indian Auxiliaries Memorial, Johannesburg, South Africa The memorial was built by the Indian community in South Africa in memory of the Indian soldiers and volunteers who took part in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902. India contributed more soldiers and ambulance workers than any of the other British colonies and was a major source of supplies for the British army during the war. The inscription on the memorial at Steyn Street, Observatory, Johannesburg, reads: To the memory of British Officers Native NCO's and men Veterinary assistants Nalbands and followers of the Indian Army who died in South Africa 1899-1902 Inscribed on the four sides are the words: "Christian Zoroastrian Hindu Sikh Musalman". Read more here.

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