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Rajendrasinhji Jadeja

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Not to be confused withRajendrasinh Jadeja.

GeneralMaharajShri
Rajendrasinhji Jadeja
DSO
1stChief of the Army Staff
In office
1 April 1955 – 14 May 1955
PresidentRajendra Prasad
Prime MinisterJawaharlal Nehru
Preceded byOffice Established
Succeeded byGeneral SM Shrinagesh
3rdCommander-in-Chief, Indian Army (later COAS)
In office
14 January 1953 – 1 April 1955
Preceded byField Marshal K M Cariappa
Succeeded byOffice Replaced by office ofChief of the Army Staff (India)
Personal details
Born(1899-06-15)15 June 1899
Sarodar,Kathiawar,Nawanagar State
Died1 January 1964(1964-01-01)(aged 64)
Military career
AllegianceBritish India
India
Service/branchBritish Indian Army
Indian Army
Years of service1921–1955
RankGeneral
Service numberIA-35[1]
Unit2nd Lancers
Commands heldSouthern Army
Eastern Army
Western Army(then called 'Delhi and East Punjab Command')
2nd Lancers
Battles/warsWorld War II
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Operation Polo
AwardsDistinguished Service Order
Spouse(s)Maya Kunwarba

GeneralMaharajShriRajendrasinhji Jadeja,DSO(15 June 1899 – 1 January 1964), also known asK.S. Rajendrasinhji,was the firstChief of Army Staffof theIndian army,and the secondIndian,afterField MarshalK. M. Cariappa,to becomeCommander-in-Chiefof theIndian Army.

Personal life[edit]

Rajendrasinhji was born on 15 June 1899, at Sarodar in theKathiawarregion of what is now the westernIndianstate ofGujarat.[2]The family belonged to the rulingJadeja Rajputdynasty ofNawanagar State(nowJamnagar).[3]K.S. Ranjitsinhji,uncle ofK.S.Duleepsinhji,are two othercricketingluminaries produced by that family.[4]In 1928, Rajendrasinh wed Maya Kunwarba. The couple became the parents of three children. His son,Sukhdevsinhji,married the daughter of the ruler of Masuda, Rajkumari Vijaylakshmi Masuda. His youngest daughter was married to theRajaSahibof the erstwhile princely state ofKhairagarhin thenMadhya Pradesh(present dayChhattisgarh). She was anMPof theLok Sabhaand a popular leader in her constituency.[5]

Career[edit]

Rajendrasinhji attendedRajkumar College, Rajkot,then atMalvern College.Having resolved upon pursuing a military career, he joined theRoyal Military College, Sandhurst.In 1921, he was commissioned as aSecond lieutenantonto the Unattached List for the Indian Army. He spent a year attached to the 3rd battalion theKing's Royal Rifle Corpsand then joined the Indian Army and was posted to the2nd Royal Lancers.As aKing's Commissioned Indian Officer,he held various ranks and offices in theBritish Indian Armyand served with distinction during theSecond World War.[6]

General Rajendrasinhji became the first Indian to be deputed to serve asMilitary AttachétoWashington DCin 1945–46.

Second World War[edit]

In 1941, Rajendrasinhji was sent to theMediterranean and Middle East Theatreas a squadron commander of the 2nd Lancers. In April 1941, hisbrigade,the3rd Indian Motor Brigade,was surrounded atMechiliby numerically superior Axis forces. Being encircled, the allied forces were left with no option but to hazard a headlong foray through the enemy forces, into the desert. Rajendrasinhji's squadron took the rearguard position during this operation. While the vanguard suffered much loss of life by a German tank attack, Rajendrasinhji's squadron was not seriously impacted. He led his squadron in a charge through the enemy ranks, and they gained respite in the safety of some nearby hills. The squadron essayed further action on the enemy forces after nightfall and achieved considerable success; indeed, it returned to base with sixty prisoners of war.[7][8]

For his courageous leadership and determined action, Rajendrasinhji was awarded theDistinguished Service Order(DSO) in 1941.[9]He was the first Indian to be honoured with this decoration during the Second World War.

Returning to India in October 1942, Rajendrasinhji was appointed commandant of 2 Royal Lancers in 1943.[10]In May 1945, he was appointed the army's Deputy Director of Public Relations and posted to Washington, with a further appointment as military attache there from June.[10]He was promoted to brigadier in September 1946 and assigned to command the Piska sub-area. He was then appointed the first Indian director of the Indian Armoured Corps, and shortly before Independence was promoted actingMajor Generalon 30 July 1947.[10]

In India[edit]

ThePartition of Indiain 1947 caused an upheaval in both the security situation and the dynamics of the Indian army. The partition meant the division of the Indian army, which was concurrently called upon to deal with several critical security situations arising from the partition of the country and the anticipated integration of theprincely states.Also during this period, British officers who held most of the senior ranks in the Indian army were gradually disengaged, being replaced with Indian officers. During this critical period, Rajendrasinhji was called upon to shoulder many onerous responsibilities and received rapid promotion in rank commensurately. As a new major-general, he was appointed to command the Delhi sub-area after Independence in August 1947, serving until 1948 asGeneral Officer Commanding(GOC) of the redesignatedDelhi and East Punjab Command(1947–48).[10]He was promoted actingLieutenant Generalon 16 January 1948 and appointed GOC-in-CEastern Command.[11]He was then appointed GOC-in-CSouthern Command(1948–53), following the retirement ofLt. General E. N. Goddard.Operation Polo,which resulted in the integration ofHyderabad Statewith India, was executed during his term in office as GOC-in-C (South).[12]

As the senior-most serving officer in the army, Gen. Rajendrasinhji was appointed Commander-in-Chief, Indian Army on 14 January 1953, following the retirement ofGeneral(laterField Marshal)K. M. Cariappa.Rajendrasinhji received the rank of General on the same day. With effect from 1 April 1955, thePresident of Indiawas constitutionally designated the Commander-in-chief of theIndian Armed Forces.Rajendrasinhji then became the first head of the Indian army to be designatedChief of Army Staff.He held that office until his retirement from service on 14 May 1955 and was succeeded byGen. S.M. Srinagesh.[13]

Death[edit]

General Maharaj Shri Rajendrasinhji died on 1 January 1964, aged 65 years.[14]

Awards and decorations[edit]

Distinguished Service Order(1941)
(First Indian to be awarded in WW2) 		India General Service Medal (1936–39) 1939-1945 Star Africa Star
Burma Star War Medal 1939-1945(with oak leaf forMID1941) Defence Medal(1945) Indian Independence Medal(1947)
King George V Silver Jubilee Medal(1935) King George VI Coronation Medal(1937) Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal(1953) Legion of Merit(1948)
(Degree of an Officer)

Others[edit]

  • Order of Yugoslavia Army Class I

Dates of rank[edit]

Insignia Rank Component Date of rank
Second Lieutenant British Indian Army 14 July 1921[15]
Lieutenant British Indian Army 14 October 1923[16]
Captain British Indian Army 14 July 1929[17]
Major British Indian Army 1 January 1937 (brevet)[18]
1 August 1938 (substantive)[19]
Lieutenant-Colonel British Indian Army 29 November 1943 (acting)
29 February 1944 (temporary)[20]
14 July 1947 (substantive)[21]
Colonel British Indian Army 11 May 1945 (acting)[20]
Brigadier British Indian Army 1946
Lieutenant-Colonel Indian Army 15 August 1947[note 1][22]
Major-General Indian Army 30 July 1947[note 1][10]
Lieutenant-General Indian Army 16 January 1948 (acting)[11][note 1]
Lieutenant-General Indian Army 26 January 1950 (acting, recommissioning and change in insignia)[22][23][24]
General
(C-in-C, IA)		 Indian Army 15 January 1953[25]
General
(COAS)		 Indian Army 3 May 1955[25]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^abcUpon independence in 1947, India became aDominionwithin the BritishCommonwealth of Nations.As a result, the rank insignia of theBritish Army,incorporating theTudor Crownand four-pointedBath Star( "pip" ), was retained, asGeorge VIremained Commander-in-Chief of theIndian Armed Forces.After 26 January 1950, when India became arepublic,thePresident of Indiabecame Commander-in-Chief, and theAshoka Lionreplaced the crown, with a five-pointed star being substituted for the "pip."

References[edit]

  1. ^"Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 27 May 1950. p. 41.
  2. ^Nawanagar
  3. ^Gazette of India.1953. p. 1475.Major General M. S. Pratapsinhji; 2. Major General M. S. Himatsinhji; 3. Maharaj Shri Duleepsinhji; and 4. Lieutenant General M. S. Rajendrasinhji; members of the family of the Ruler of Nawanagar for the purposes...
  4. ^India at a glance: a comprehensive reference book on India 1954 - Page 1725
  5. ^Sen, Satadru (2012).Disciplined Natives: Race, Freedom and Confinement in Colonial India.Primus Books.ISBN978-93-80607-31-3.
  6. ^Board 2014,p. 21.
  7. ^"DR. RAJENDRASINH JADEJA".Marwadi University.Retrieved18 September2020.
  8. ^"Who was the first Indian Chief of Army Staff of the".examveda.Retrieved18 September2020.
  9. ^London Gazette 9 September 1941
  10. ^abcde"Press Communique"(PDF).Press Information Bureau of India - Archive.Retrieved26 January2019.
  11. ^ab"Changes in Army Commands"(PDF).Press Information Bureau of India - Archive.20 January 1948.Retrieved26 January2020.
  12. ^"Who was Field Marshal KM Cariappa?".The Indian Express.20 January 2020.Retrieved18 September2020.
  13. ^Grewal, Kairvy (15 May 2020)."Field Marshal KM Cariappa, the man who told Pakistan not to release his captured son".ThePrint.Retrieved18 September2020.
  14. ^"Pin by Examlover on Today In History June 2018 | Indian army, Army, Indian".Pinterest.Retrieved18 September2020.
  15. ^"No. 32804".The London Gazette.9 March 1923. p. 1915.
  16. ^"No. 32999".The London Gazette.5 December 1924. p. 8866.
  17. ^"No. 33530".The London Gazette.30 August 1929. p. 5648.
  18. ^"No. 34356".The London Gazette.1 January 1937. p. 14.
  19. ^"No. 34608".The London Gazette.17 March 1939. p. 1851.
  20. ^abIndian Army List for October 1945 (Part I).Government of India Press. 1945. p. 131.
  21. ^"No. 38118".The London Gazette.7 November 1947. p. 5248.
  22. ^ab"New Designs of Crests and Badges in the Services"(PDF).Press Information Bureau of India - Archive.Archived(PDF)from the original on 8 August 2017.
  23. ^"Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 11 February 1950. p. 227.
  24. ^"Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 27 May 1950. p. 41.
  25. ^ab"Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 11 June 1955. p. 113.

Bibliography[edit]

External links[edit]

Military offices
Preceded by General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Command
1948-1948 		Succeeded by
Preceded by General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Southern Command
1948-1953 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief, Indian Army
1953-1955 		Office abolished
New title
New Office
 Chief of the Army Staff
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