09/11/2025
On this Remembrance Sunday, we remember the Muslims who gave their lives for Britain in the World Wars.
During the First World War, over 1.3 million soldiers were recruited from undivided India - and more than 74,000 lost their lives.
After the war,the Government of India decided to honour the villages that had given the greatest number of recruits.About 500 marble memorial tablets were sanctioned across the subcontinent-over 150 for Punjab alone,then the sword arm of the Empire & its largest recruiting ground.
Each tablet recorded how many men had: served and how many had fallen. The designs were standard throughout India, featuring a six-pointed star enclosing a lotus, symbolizing eternity across faiths.
They were set into stone pillars or mounted near schools, office of Union Councils or village squares. Some villages contributed hundreds - Dulmial in Chakwal sent 460 men, while smaller ones like Bhambar Tarar were recognized for the high proportion of men who enlisted.
Today, a century later, many of these tablets still survive - weathered, relocated, or forgotten - silent witnesses to Punjab's immense human contribution to the Great War.
World Wars Muslim Memorial Trust video. Narration by Maj Gen Syed Ali Hamid : https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQ1bCEpghFo/?igsh=ZTM1ZHRtd2I1dW5l
Support World Wars Muslim Memorial Trust in building a memorial to honour the bravery of the fallen Muslim solders of the World Wars, visit wwmmt.org to find out more.
