Story of Gurkha Soldier Statue in London (UK)

Down on Horse Guards Avenue off Whitehall is the statue of a stoic figure, that of a Gurkha soldier. The monument, which sits right opposite the main entrance to the Ministry of Defence, was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II on 3 December 1997. These fighting men from the Nepal region first came to the attention of the British Empire in 1857, when they fought on the side of the British Indian Army during the Indian Rebellion. They continued to serve under the British throughout the conflicts of the nineteenth century and the First and Second World Wars, and they still form part of the British Army to this day. The Brigade of Gurkhas operates in a variety of roles, including as riflemen, in signals, engineering and logistics – many are currently serving in Afghanistan, for example.

 

Statue: Gurkha soldier 

Erection date: 3/12/1997

{On the front of the plinth:}
The Gurkha Soldier

“Bravest of the brave,   

Most generous of the generous 

Never had country 

More faithful friends 

Than you”

 Creator - Professor Sir Ralph Turner MC. 

Unveiled by the Queen. Modelled by Jackson on the 

1929 statue by Goulden in the Foreign Office.

 

{On the left of the plinth:}
Campaign Service

India 1816 - 1826
North East Frontier and Burma 1824 - 1939
First Sikh War 1845 - 1846
North West Frontier 1852 - 1947
Indian Mutiny 1857 - 1859
Bhutan 1864 - 1866
Malaya 1875 - 1876
Second Afghan War 1878 - 1880
Sikkim 1888
China 1900
Tibet 1904
Third Afghan War 1919
Kurdistan 1919
Iraq 1919 - 1920
North West Persia 1920
Malabar 1921 - 1922
Palestine 1945 - 1946
Java and Sumatra 1945 - 1946
Indo-China 1945 - 1946
Malaya 1948 - 1960
Brunei 1962
Borneo 1963 - 1966
Malay Peninsula 1964 - 1965
Falkland Islands 1982
The Gulf 1990 - 1991
Bosnia 1996

{On the back of the plinth:}

1st King George V's Own Gurkha Rifles (The Malaun Regiment)
2nd King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles (the Sirmoor Rifles)
3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles
4th Prince of Wales's Own Gurkha Rifles
5th Royal Gurkha Rifles (Frontier Force)
6th Queen Elizabeth's Own Gurkha Rifles
7th Duke of Edinburgh's Own Gurkha Rifles
8th Gurkha Rifles
9th Gurkha Rifles
10th Princess Mary's Own Gurkha Rifles
11th Gurkha Rifles
The Royal Gurkha Rifles
The Queen's Gurkha Engineers
Queen's Gurkha Signals
Gurkha Military Police
The Queen's Own Gurkha Transport Regiment
Other units in which Gurkha soldiers served after 1815 and also the

 units of the Royal Nepalese Army which, as Britain's allies, took part in 

the Indian Mutiny and the First and Second World Wars.

{On the right of the plinth:}

First World War, 1914 - 1918

France and Belgium
Gallipoli
Egypt and Palestine
Mesopotamia

Second World War, 1939 - 1945

North Africa
Italy
Greece
Persia, Iraq and Syria
Malaya and Singapore
Burma