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servilevocation -> RE: What the hell is a Gurkha? I keep hearing a lot nowadays about them. (2/17/2017 4:19:38 AM)
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I took some dudes advice and keyed in this Google thing. I then keyed in the work Gurkha and got far too many websites. Anyway to help the OP I found lots of info about the little dwarfs from the Himalayas that also work as Sherpas taking expeditions to Everest and other tall mountains.
They can run really fast going uphill at high altitude with wicker baskets on their head. They are mostly rural subsistence farmers but there are a few town boys among them. They are very polite folks but homicidal maniacs when involved in a fight. They now get the same pay and allowances and conditions of service as their British Equivalent ranks. They also serve for shit money in the Indian Army and the Singapore Police Force.
One fellow got a medal a couple of years ago that would normally have warranted a V.C. in past times. Their last VC was a Lance Corporal R Limbu, Later Captain QGO of the now defunct, 10th Princess Mary's own Royal Gurkha Rifles in Sarawak, Borneo 1965. His son joined up and later became a Major QGO in another Gurkha Infantry Regiment.
'BETTER TO DIE THAN TO LIVE AND BE A COWARD!'
It is better to die than to live and be a coward.
Said by the Gurkhali, the mentality behind the call is true to it’s vocabulary.
In 1815, the Gurkhas were established in Nepal after the East Indian Company attempted an expansion into Nepal. The legends are countless as to exactly how the British Army went about it, but the recurring theme is that the strength and battle ethic of the Nepali mountain warriors was attractive to the British. For a number of years, the British pushed with all of the might of their empire but it was futile. For every Nepali that they killed, 50 British would be as well. The two sides made remarkable allies.
The battle for Gorkha is the prime example of the fierceness that the British grew to admire in the little Nepali warriors.
During the Anglo-Nepali War of 1814, 20000 British foot soldiers were sent to the kingdom like town of Gorkha, of which they wished to capture and coerce into a business relationship.
Gorkha is set high on a hill top, steeply laden with trees and rocks. When the British arrived, they were met first with the previously mentioned problem. The next was that they weren’t knowledgeable of their enemy. The Gurkhas were a surprise. The battle lasted weeks and when it came down to hand to hand situations, the British retreated on numerous accounts. Only a few hours before the battle was concluded, a British soldier wrote, “Out of the fog of our dreary battle came a Nepali man running; his hands grasping his cheek. The man had been shot in the face and appeared to be surrendering as our medical men treated his wounds upon the young warrior’s request. But to our surprise, the Gurkha up and left our battle lines, returning to his own to resume combat.”
When all was said and over with, the British lost over 5000 of their own. The Gurkhas; 400. The Gurkhas abandoned their city, but by no means was it a victory for the Europeans.
After the British botched attempt to expand their company into Nepal, they extended their hand to the Gurkha community. The British were attracted to the Gurkha fierceness.
Throughout history, numerous Gurkha’s have been the recipient of the Victoria Cross and other commendations. The Gurkha’s were utilized heavily on the battlefields of World War One, World War Two, Vietnam. They were first into Kosovo during the 1999 conflict. They took part Falklands conflict in the 1980’s.
Today, to be a member of the Gurkhali is the ultimate honor in Nepal. It means being the strongest of many, most fearless, and hold a large amount of loyalty to their masters in both Nepal and the UK.
The training pipeline is revered as arguably the hardest to endure, with an attrition rate of over 97 percent.
Once selected for Gurkha training, they are sent to Britain for 42 weeks of rigorous combat and scenario training. They are then sent to the front lines where their battle cries can be heard from miles away.
Once a Gurkha has completed 4 years of service, they are granted citizenship in the UK, along with that of their families as well where they can benefit from western offerings.
The motto, “Better to die than to be a coward!” has been traced back for decades and remains true today.
It is also said that where Gurkhas go, peace shortly follows. During times of war, those can be lifted by their battle cry. Others will run.
“Ayo Gurkhali!”
“Here come the Gurkhas”
ast year, we celebrated two hundred years of Gurkha service to the British Crown. Serving loyally and bravely in many conflicts around the world, Gurkha soldiers are a key part of the British Army. And I should know, as I was one myself.
I served with the Brigade of Gurkhas from 1998 to 2012, and my new book, Light & Life in the Middle Hills, documents the land, the lives and the experiences of Nepal's inhabitants through a lens.
G
CREDIT: ALAMY
There is always more to be learned about the Gurkhas. Even now, when soldiers from 2nd Battalion, the Royal Gurkha Rifles, are on operational duty in Afghanistan, many don't know some of the most interesting facts about this incredible institution.
1. We used to be enemies
Until 200 years ago, the British were at war with Nepal in the Anglo-Nepal wars. However, we joined forces after being so impressed with the fighting spirit of Nepalese hill-soldiers of Nepal.
All Gurkhas, to this day, live an incredibly austere life before they sign up. And this hardiness, from living in the Himalayan homelands, is key to what makes these soldiers key members of the British Army.
2. You should never try to 'out-robust' a Gurkha
Gurkhas have grown up in an extremely difficult environment in the hills of Nepal and, as a result, their bodies are simply on a different plane to our own.
Watch | The Queen leads tributes to 200 years of Gurkha service
01:57
There is an annual race across the South Downs called the Trailwalker 100km, and the quickest a British team can hope to complete it in is around 12 or 13 hours. Gurkhas, who win it every year, can do it in 8 and a half.
As I said, robust.
3. Gurkhas have special weaponry
We each get given a special type of knife, or 'Khukuri', when we join the Gurkhas. These knifes are incredibly sharp - and Gurkhas use them for everything.
Gurkha
CREDIT: GETTY
I first realised how handy my Khukuri was when I used it to hack through the jungles of Borneo - but most of the Nepalese Gurkhas have grown up sharpening sticks and killing animals with their Khukuris. Some of the hardest earned Gurkha Victoria Crosses (of which there are many!) could not have been won without the aid of the trusty Khukuri.
One thing's for sure, you don't want to be the enemy when the Khukuris are out of their sheaths!
4. All Gurkhas can speak fluent Nepalese - even the Britons
Gurkha
CREDIT: ALAMY
Even as a junior officer, I spoke Nepalese - as the British recruits get sent on a three month course to learn the language. Due to the tribal nature of Nepal, Nepali is usually the second language of most Nepalese Gurkhas after their main caste language.
But they can also speak English, and probably Hindi as well. So most Nepalese Gurkhas, as well as being extremely skilled in combat and survival techniques, are also fluent in at least four languages.
5. Gurkhas are incredible hosts
As well as being fearsome fighters, Gurkhas are also incredible hosts. They really are desperate to make sure that you never, ever go without. It would be unusual for a British Gurkha Officer - who is also known as a Saheb - or another guest of the Nepalese soldiers to ever get to the bottom of their glass before it is refilled. Sometimes I didn't even notice my glass being topped up!
6. There are frequent animal sacrifices
As Gurkhas are usually Hindu, or Buddhist, or occasionally both, religion is very important. And, part of that religiosity is the sacrificing of animals.
Getty
CREDIT: GETTY/AW
I was aware that this was going to happen, but the first time I saw a sacrifice I was a little shocked. We were all sitting in a line, both British and Nepalese Gurkhas, all wearing suits and all drinking beer out of silver goblets. Then, one of the junior Gurkha soldiers stood up, walked over to a post to which goats were tied, and cut off their heads with his Khukuri.
There was blood everywhere. And then he walked the head - which was still blinking - around the post three times to complete the ritual. It was, as you can imagine, a little surreal.
7. The Queen has two personal Gurkha officers
There are two Gurkha officers who directly attend official state and key events with the Queen. They are called the Queen's Gurkha Orderly Officers, and they've been present at all state affairs since the Gurkha's introduction during Queen Victoria's reign.
They are appointed as Members of the Royal Victorian Order, or MVO, on relinquishing the appointment - a little-known and very rare post-nominal abbreviation!
8. There are Gurkha engineers and logisticians
Although Gurkhas are most commonly associated with the Infantry, the British Army also has Gurkha Engineers, Signallers, and Logisticians.
Gurkha
CREDIT: ALAMY
All Gurkhas train for 39 weeks after coming over from Nepal, so those who go into specialist trades have an extra 29 weeks under their belts than regular British specialists, who only do 10 weeks infantry training before specialising.
And this can come in very helpful. In 2003, I was in command of a Gurkha Logistics Regiment in Iraq. We finished the task we were deployed to do in six months but, because these men had done the full 39-week infantry training, we could stay on for an extra four months to quell the fuel riots in Basra. A British regiment couldn't have done that.
9. Gurkhas can eat a huge amount of rice
Most meals are still based on the Nepalese 'Dal Bhat' - a national rice and lentil soup - which is accompanied by intensely hot chillis which are eaten raw - the effects of which can be very amusing, if a little painful!
The first time I was out in Brunei, we had just finished playing basketball with some locals and the Gurkhas started up a barbecue. I ate a huge amount of chicken legs and pork, and was stuffed, but then realised that the barbecue had only been the first course, and that there was a massive curry to come! But it would've been considered rude not to have seconds!
Almost all Gurkhas are good butchers. Do not befriend the goat that has been brought into the lines by one of the Gurkhas. He is not - like the Royal Welch - the new mascot. He is the accompaniment to the rice and chillis!
10. Gurkha Selection is tougher than selection for British Soldiers
It is well known that selection for the Parachute Regiment or the Royal Marines is very tough but, if a Nepalese man wants to join the Gurkhas, they have to go through a process before they even get to come to Britain - and only 200 are selected at the end of each cycle.
Watch | The race to be a Gurkha
02:32
And this process is very tough, and it culminates in the fearful 'Doko race' - a 5 mile run, uphill, where the soldiers have to carry 25 kilograms in a basket on their backs that is attached only by a head-strap. So they must find basic training in Britain much easier than most of us!
In fact, it is incredibly rare for a Gurkha to fail basic training in Britain, whereas a percentage of Britons fail every time. Five years ago, one Gurkha broke his leg, so he had to finish his training alongside the Coldstream Guards - and he ended up finishing top of that group.
So let me finish with a quote from Sir Ralph Turner MC; a Gurkha Officer during the First World War: “Bravest of the brave, most generous of the generous, never had a country more faithful friends than you.”
“As I write these last words, my thoughts return to you who were my comrades, the stubborn and indomitable peasants of Nepal. Once more I hear the laughter with which you greeted every hardship. Once more I see you in your bivouacs or about your fires, on forced march or in the trenches, now shivering with wet and cold, now scorched by a pitiless and burning sun. Uncomplaining you endure hunger and thirst and wounds; and at the last your unwavering lines disappear into the smoke and wrath of battle. Bravest of the brave, most generous of the generous, never had country more faithful friends than you“ Words that have stood tru the test of time for 202 years. The Gurkha and the Tommy are very much alike in attitude despite their cultural differences and both are natural warriors.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gurkha-Better-than-Coward-Gurkhas/dp/1408705354
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8mXWxLfB94
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x35WRUl4pzg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jMM5YgwLjQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_3jWgPkySo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87QAjcJvXsw&t=
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzhjbAMRJYw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYcqrT0nU0I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JpRF-pVIg8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-KHIoyBnnE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzTbDlWefMc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JN6YtsG8QY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL5tCVwKZFw&t=35s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_qmO8EONJw&t=347s
Trivia of the day: Gurkha Regiment was Hitler’s favourite
Not everyone gets to be one’s enemy’s favourite – but with Gorakha/Gurkha regiment, things were different. On one hand they gave a tough fight to Germans during World War II and on the other, won Adolf Hitler’s admiration for their fighting spirit.
The East India Company tried to invade Nepal but in return, they suffered heavy casualties. Gurkhas trashed the British invaders hard, making them return without having achieved anything. The little Nepali fighters were, as if, born to win. With a motto – ‘It is better to die than be a coward’, each one, before dying, killed several of the opponent’s force by their conventional guns and khukris (a small Nepali knife); and yet, they were calm, simple people with a peaceful expression on their faces.
The British were startled by their abilities and valour, and signed a peace deal with Gurkhas in 1815, thus including a Gurkha regiment in the British Army. The regiments stood by their British counterparts in every hour of their need and won 13 Victoria Crosses between them, the highest British award for bravery. More than 200,000 of them fought in the two world wars and have served in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Borneo, Cyprus, the Falklands, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. Even today England has a separate Gurkha regiment by the name of “Royal Gurkha Rifles” comprising people only from Nepal despite not being a dependent territory of England or a member of the commonwealth.
The Gurkhas were especially invincible in close-quarter fights. Their slender body gave them unbeatable agility, enough to surprise the enemy and offer him a fatal blow in no time. Gurkhas gave Hitler’s German forces such a hard time during the World War II that he said in admiration, “If I had Gurkha, I can win the whole world.” He used to call them ‘Black Devils’. Though unconfirmed, it is said that as a token of his admiration, Hitler sent many gifts to Nepali kings. Apparently, the first Mercedes Car to the Nepali land was sent by Hitler.
Even in the Indian Army, the tales of Gurkha valour are aplenty. According to a popular story, during 1965 Indo-Pakistani war, Gurkha regiment was in combat at Tanot Mata border. Pakistani army had tall, hefty pathans recruited as soldiers. In an instance, a tall Pathan ridiculed the little Gurkha saying that the latter won’t even reach his waist. The Gorkha charged the laughing pathan and swung his small khukri. The pathan roared, “you can’t even reach me, midget”. After this, the Gurkha asked the Pathan to turn his head and the moment Pathan did so, his head dropped off. The Gurkha had sliced the Pathan in the blink of an eye, and the giant was lifeless even before he realized.
Such are our Gurkhas and their breathtaking tales of courage and gallantry. The Gurkhas fight for their prestige, people and their nation, with absolute disregard for their life or safety. Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw had rightly said, “If a man says he is not afraid of dying, he is either lying or is a Gurkha.”
Lachhiman Gurung:
Gurung was born in the village of Dakhani, in the Tanahu District of Nepal, the son of Partiman Gurung.[3] He joined the British Indian Army in December 1940, permitted to enlist in wartime although he was only 4'11" tall and so below the peacetime minimum height. He was 27 years old, and a Rifleman in the 4th Battalion, 8th Gurkha Rifles, in the Indian Army during World War II when the following deed took place in May 1945 for which he was awarded the VC.
His Battalion was part of the 89th Indian Infantry Brigade of 7th Indian Infantry Division, which was ordered to cross the Irrawaddy River and attack Japanese forces to the north of the road from Prome to Taungup. The Japanese withdrew towards Taungdaw, where Gurung was part of the two companies of the 4th Battalion, 8th Gurkha Rifles, waiting when the Japanese attacked in force in the early morning.[3]
On 12/13 May 1945 at Taungdaw, Burma [now Myanmar], Rifleman Lachhiman Gurung was manning the most forward post of his platoon which bore the brunt of an attack by at least 200 of the Japanese enemy. Twice he hurled back grenades which had fallen on his trench, but the third exploded in his right hand, blowing off his fingers, shattering his arm and severely wounding him in the face, body and right leg. His two comrades were also badly wounded but the rifleman, now alone and disregarding his wounds, loaded and fired his rifle with his left hand for four hours, calmly waiting for each attack which he met with fire at point blank range.
His citation in the London Gazette ends with:
...Of the 87 enemy dead counted in the immediate vicinity of the Company locality, 31 lay in front of this Rifleman's section, the key to the whole position. Had the enemy succeeded in over-running and occupying Rifleman Lachhiman Gurung's trench, the whole of the reverse slope position would have been completely dominated and turned.
This Rifleman, by his magnificent example, so inspired his comrades to resist the enemy to the last, that, although surrounded and cut off for three days and two nights, they held and smashed every attack.
His outstanding gallantry and extreme devotion to duty, in the face of almost overwhelming odds, were the main factors in the defeat of the enemy.[1]
He received his Victoria Cross from the Viceroy of India, Field Marshal Lord Wavell at the Red Fort in Delhi on 19 December 1945.[4]
Ganju Lama:
Ganju Lama VC MM (22 July 1924 – 1 July 2000) was a Sikkim Indian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.
Ganju Lama was nineteen years old, and a rifleman in the 1st Battalion, 7th Gurkha Rifles, in the Indian Army during World War II when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross:
On 12 June 1944, near Ningthoukhong, India , 'B' Company was attempting to stem the enemy's advance when it came under heavy machine-gun and tank machine-gun fire. Rifleman Ganju Lama, with complete disregard for his own safety, took his PIAT gun and, crawling forward, succeeded in bringing the gun into action within 30 yards of the enemy tanks, knocking out two of them. Despite a broken wrist and two other serious wounds to his right and left hands he then moved forward and engaged the tank crew who were trying to escape. Not until he had accounted for all of them did he consent to leave to his wounds dressed.[2]
A month earlier, during operations on the Tiddim Road, Ganju Lama's regiment had surprised a party of Japanese and killed several of them. He was awarded the Military Medal for his part in the action.[3] Strangely though, this award was actually announced in the London Gazette after his Victoria Cross, appearing on 3 October 1944, almost a month later.[4]
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