Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw, , widely known as Sam Manekshaw and Sam Bahadur , was the Chief of the Army Staff of the Indian Army during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, and the first Indian Army officer to be promoted to the rank of field marshal. His military career spanned four decades and five wars, beginning with service in the British Indian Army in World War II.
Manekshaw joined the first intake of the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun in 1932. He was commissioned into the 4th Battalion, 12th Frontier Force Regiment. In World War II, he was awarded the Military Cross for gallantry. Following the partition of India in 1947, he was reassigned to the 8th Gorkha Rifles. Manekshaw was seconded to a planning role during the 1947 Indo-Pakistani War and the Hyderabad crisis, and as a result, he never commanded an infantry battalion. He was promoted to the rank of brigadier while serving at the Military Operations Directorate. He became commander of 167 Infantry Brigade in 1952 and served in this position until 1954 when he took over as the Director of Military Training at Army Headquarters.
After completing the higher command course at the Imperial Defence College, he was appointed General Officer Commanding the 26th Infantry Division. He also served as the Commandant of the Defence Services Staff College. In 1961, Manekshaw made derogatory comments about the political leadership which allowed his opponents to label him as unpatriotic, and he was charged with sedition. After being exonerated in the subsequent court of inquiry, he took command of IV Corps in November 1962. The next year, Manekshaw was promoted to the position of army commander and took over Western Command, transferring in 1964 to the Eastern Command.
Having already commanded troops at division, corps and regional levels, Manekshaw became the eighth chief of the army staff in 1969. Under his command, Indian forces conducted victorious campaigns against Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, which led to the creation of Bangladesh in December 1971. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan, the second and third highest civilian awards of India. In January 1973, Manekshaw was conferred with the rank of Field Marshal, the first army officer of independent India to be so honoured.
Wikipedia
“The status of the field marshal of the country or the equivalent has to be unique for the nation.”
His remark to A.P.J.Abdul Kalam during a meeting in 2007.[A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Turning Points, http://books.google.com/books?id=HykusumG6YkC&pg=PT26, HarperCollins Publishers, 978-93-5029-543-4, 26–]
His lecture on leadership quoted in "Field Marshal KM Kariappa Memorial Lectures, 1995-2000", page=26
“If a man says he is not afraid of dying, he is either lying or is a Gurkha.”
[PREMJI, A Nomad Repaints the Globe, http://books.google.com/books?id=BatAAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA70, PartridgeIndia, 978-1-4828-1337-1, 70–]
“Then I guess Pakistan would have won (the 1971 war).”
the 1971 war His quip when asked, if he had opted for Pakistan at the time of the partition in 1947.
Source: A soldier's general, 28 June 2008, 2 December 2013, Mumbai Mirror http://www.mumbaimirror.com/news/india/A-soldiers-general/articleshow/15824703.cms,
This was a reply he gave when Indira Gandhi called him to her chamber and confronted him with the question Are you trying to take over from me? [Jayakar, Pupul Jayakar, Indira Gandhi: A Biography, http://books.google.com/books?id=gm5JGkb2rhkC&pg=PA512, 27 November 1997, Penguin Books India, 978-0-14-011462-1, 215]
His lecture on leadership as part of the Field Marshal KM Kariappa Memorial Lectures.
Source: [Field Marshal KM Kariappa Memorial Lectures, 1995-2000, http://books.google.com/books?id=Eux31FCNj8MC&pg=PA21, 2001, Lancer Publishers, 978-81-7062-119-5, 21–]
During Speech at Passing Out Parade of Indian Military Academy A Soldier's Duty http://worldofdefense.blogspot.in/2011/05/soldiers-duty-field-marshal-sam.html
Quotations by 60 Greatest Indians, Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology http://resourcecentre.daiict.ac.in/eresources/iresources/quotations.html,
His view on the military knowledge of politicians quoted in NRIs irked by poor Manekshaw farewell, 7 July 2008, 2 December 2013, Diligent Media Corporation Ltd. http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-nris-irked-by-poor-manekshaw-farewell-1176337,
“There will be no withdrawal without written orders and these orders shall never be issued.”
His remark on assuming command of the retreating 4 Corps during the Sino-Indian War of 1962 quoted in Sam Manekshaw, soldier, died on June 27th, aged 94, 3 July 2008, 2 December 2013, The Economist http://www.economist.com/node/11661408?story_id=11661408,
His lecture on leadership quoted in "Field Marshal KM Kariappa Memorial Lectures, 1995-2000", page=28
During a lecture on leadership quoted in [Field Marshal KM Kariappa Memorial Lectures, 1995-2000, http://books.google.com/books?id=Eux31FCNj8MC&pg=PA21, 2001, Lancer Publishers, 978-81-7062-119-5, 21–]
“He was an extremely humane and approachable officer and was the epitome of a gentleman.”
Comment by Major General Shubi D Sood in “A soldier's general” in Mumbai Mirror.
To the hypothetical question where outside India I would like to stay, I said:
An Interview With The Field Marshal - Apr 03, 2016, https://swarajyamag.com/from-the-archives/an-interview-with-the-field-marshal
An Interview With The Field Marshal - Apr 03, 2016, https://swarajyamag.com/from-the-archives/an-interview-with-the-field-marshal
