Risaldar, meaning the commander of a risala or risalah (a body of horse,[1] regardless if troop or regiment[2]) in Persian, is a mid-level rank in cavalry and armoured units of the Indian and Pakistan Army. In other arms, such as the infantry, the equivalent rank is subedar.

Risaldar was also a Viceroy's commissioned officer's rank in the British Indian Army, until 1947.

Indian and Pakistan Armies

The Indian Army and Pakistan Army have a unique set of ranks, called junior commissioned officers (JCO). They stand between non-commissioned officers and commissioned officers. A risaldar ranks above a naib risaldar and below a risaldar major.[citation needed]

British Indian Army

The JCO evolved from the Viceroy's commissioned officers (VCO), established during the British Raj in 1885. The VCOs themselves succeeded the so called native officers holding a commission of the Governor General.[3]

In the late 19th century, the spelling risaldar was uncommon, and the rank was usually listed as ressaldar or russuldar (e.g. in the Bombay Cavalry).[4] During World War I, the spelling rissaldar became common.[5]

A rissaldar was roughly equivalent to a native captain and ranked between risaldar-major and ressaidar (later jemadar). But like all VCOs, they were always outranked by the most junior officer with a King's or Queen's commission.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ Francis Joseph Steingass (1892). A Comprehensive Persian-English Dictionary, Including the Arabic words and phrases to be met with in literature (5th [1963] ed.). London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 575. Retrieved 2022-07-06. Apparently there is a 2015 edition from Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers, New Delhi, ISBN 81-7304-669-7
  2. ^ Carman, W.(William) Y. (1961). Indian Army Uniforms Under the British from the 18th Century to 1947: cavalry. London: Leonard Hill. p. 226.
  3. ^ Stevenson, Richard (2015). Beatson's Mutiny. The Turbulent Career of a Victorian Soldier. London. New York: I.B.Tauris. p. 37. ISBN 978-1-784531-10-2.
  4. ^ H. G. Hart (Major General), The New Annual Army List, Militia List, and Indian Civil Service List, London 1878, p.430, p.522
  5. ^ Plumon, Eugène (1914). Vade-mecum for the Use of Officers and Interpreters in the Present Campaign: French and English Technical and Military Terms. London: Librairie Hachette & Cie. p. 10.
  6. ^ Stevenson, Richard (2015). Beatson's Mutiny. The Turbulent Career of a Victorian Soldier. London. New York: I.B.Tauris. p. 37. ISBN 978-1-784531-10-2.
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