UK to Have its First Statue to Mark Sacrifices of Indian Soldiers in WWI

By Little India Desk | November 3, 2018

The United Kingdom is going to have its first statue to honor over 1.5 million Indian soldiers, who fought for Britain in the First World War. The huge ‘Lions of the Great War’ statue will be unveiled in Smethwick, Sandwell on Nov.4.

The 10-feet high bronze statue of a First World War Sikh soldier is to commemorate 100 years since the end of the first world war in 1918. The statue is sculptured by internationally renowned Black Country artist Luke Perry, who is also behind the idea of this sculpture.

Guru Nanak Gurudwara Smethwick, which funded the construction of the statue said in its Facebook post, “The Lions of the Great War statue, which stands on a six-foot granite plinth, is the first full statue of a South Asian First World War soldier in the UK.”

A new public space has been created for the statue by the Sandwell Council. Guru Nanak Gurudwara Smethwick has also shared a video invite of unveiling ceremony on Facebook.

The invitation that was sent out says a parade will be organized on that day followed by a ceremony including a one-minute silence and the unveiling.

According to a report in Metro.co.uk, over 5,000 people are expected to attend the unveiling.

The publication quoted Luke Perry as saying, “When I realized more than 1.5 million Indian soldiers had been sent to WWI I just could not understand why their contribution had been ignored for so long in this country.”

“The names of those who died were not put on any special memorial over here and there was not the money over there (India) to build a memorial so it just got left,” he added.

He further said that it was very annoying to see such devoted people being overlooked by history.

“The memorial opposite Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Smethwick will honor the sacrifice of all those brave men who traveled thousands of miles to fight for a country that wasn’t their own,” said Jatinder Singh, President of Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick, according to the report.

Sandwell government’s website quoted Sandwell Council leader Councilor Steve Eling as saying earlier, “I am very proud that Smethwick – a place where many people from the Indian subcontinent have made their home – is paying such a striking tribute to the very important role played by South Asian service personnel during times of conflict. I hope this contributes to the growing recognition of the sacrifices that servicemen from Commonwealth countries have made for our country.”

Millions of men from Indian subcontinent took part in the two world wars on the behalf of British Indian Army. Over 74,000 Indian soldiers lost their lives in the First World War.