Subadar-Major Santbir Gurung was the star of the King’s Indian Orderlies 1910, which probably prompted A. C. Lovett to paint this watercolour portrait. Unfortunately Santbir fell foul of the Maharaja of Kaski, Chandra Shamsher, who banished him from his caste and his country for travelling to England without the Maharaja’s permission. He was not permitted to return to Nepal until he was 83 years old.
The subadar-major has a gold and enamel decoration at his neck for the Order of British India, 1st Class, and a silver and enamel star on the left of his row of medals, being the Indian Order of Merit, 3rd Class. His other medals are, from the right: the India Medal 1895–1902 (green and crimson striped riband) with three clasps, including TIRAH 1897–98; the India Medal 1849–95 with a red and blue striped riband and two clasps; the bronze star for the march from Kabul to Kandahar, 1880; and the Afghanistan Medal with one clasp, its riband green with crimson edges. There is one more silver medal that is difficult to identify.
The uniform of the 2nd Gurkhas was distinguished by the red and black chequered pattern band around the rifle green pill-box cap. The dull metal badge is the Prince of Wales’s feathers and coronet with motto ICH DIEN and the numeral 2 beneath. His uniform is rifle green like the other Gurkha officers, but he has scarlet facings instead of black. The Prince of Wales’s badge was adopted by the 2nd Gurkhas in 1876 and continued to be worn after 1906 when the title changed to King Edward’s Own.
Kipling story about Subadar-Major Santbir Gurung Sardar Bahadur IOM OBI
