Indian Soldiers Convalescing in England Over 130,000 Indian soldiers served on the western front during the Great War, mostly during the first year of battle before being transferred to the Middle East to fight at Gallipoli and in the Mesopotamian campaign. Wounded Indian troops convalesced at the Royal Pavilion at Brighton, a former royal residence built in a faux-Oriental style that drew on several elements of Indian and Islamic architecture. In this posed piece, one of a series of photos of the Indian “martial races” distributed as postcards and used for slide-show lectures, some men sit playing cards, while others watch. Such photos reassured British and Indians alike that Britain took good care of its loyal imperial soldiers. (© Mary Evans Picture Library/The Image Works)