6 Lesser Known Facts about The Genadiers - Sarvada Shaktishali!

The Grenadiers is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army, formerly part of the Bombay Army and later the pre-independence British Indian Army, when the regiment was known as the 4th Bombay Grenadiers. It has distinguished itself during the two world wars and also since the Independence of India.
We all know how brave and badass our Grenadiers are but in this article, we are going to discuss some facts that you probably do not know about them.

1. The Grenadiers is the most decorated regiment of the Indian Army post-Independence.

They have won 3 Param Vir Chakras, 3 Ashok Chakras, 11 Maha Vir Chakras, 20 Kirti Chakras, 53 Vir Chakras, 78 Shaurya Chakras and 1000s of many other medals.

2. It was formed in 1779 and it is also the oldest grenadier regiment in all of the Commonwealth countries and the entire British Empire.

This regiment was formed 36 years before the British formally formed their own grenadier regiment known as Grenadier Guards after the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.

3. It is the longest continuous serving regiment in any Commonwealth country.

This regiment has the distinguished record of remaining in unbroken service since the time of its formation. It has been serving for over 240 years now.

4. Subedar Major Yogendra Singh Yadav is the only living PVC awardee from the Regiment and the youngest to have ever been decorated with the honour.

He was just 19 years old when he received the honour and till date is the youngest recipient of the award. The Param Vir Chakra was announced for him posthumously, but it was soon discovered that he was alive and was recovering in a hospital, and he was mistaken for another soldier of the same name who was killed in battle. Read more about him here.

5. Even before independence, they participated in every major war within Indian sub-continent and outside fought by the British.

The foreign wars include Afghan wars, Burmese wars, Yemen war, Palestine campaign, wars in Africa and China, and both the World Wars. They have participated in all the major wars fought after independence.

6. The Grenadiers were the first Regiment of the Indian Army to take part in Moscow Victory Day Parade

In 2015, the Grenadiers participated in the Moscow Victory Day Parade which was held to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the victory in Europe ending World War II.

Hi, I am Pranjay Varshney. I am pursuing my B.Sc. (Hons) in Electronic Science from University of Delhi. My dream is to join the Indian Army as an officer and I am very passionate about it. I like to write articles about Indian Armed Forces and various political and economic affairs. I spend my free time doing gymnastics, listening to music or watching movies.