This sowar or trooper of the 2nd Royal Lancers (Gardner’s Horse) shows the uniform worn on campaign and on exercise shortly before WW2 when they were converted to an armoured car unit. He has a collarless twill shirt covered in straps that include an ammunition bandolier on his left shoulder, a thin strap for a water-bottle on his right shoulder, together with a canvas strap for his haversack and the strap for his Sam Browne belt. The sword is attached to the saddle. He has jodhpurs and puttees with ankle boots and spurs. His lungi or khaki turban has a fan shape which in modern times has developed into a significant pleated feature of military dress uniform. He is armed with a .303 Lee-Enfield rifle which would be slotted into a holster on the other side of his horse.
In 1940 the regiment consisted of Moslem Rajputs (Ranghars), Hindustani Moslems, Rajputs (United Provinces, Eastern Punjab and Rajputana) and Jats.
