The Gurkha Welfare Trust bicentenary of Gurkha service to the British Crown. In recognition of this historic milestone, various commemorative events took place throughout the year to celebrate the Gurkhas’ contribution to the British Army and raise funds for The Gurkha Welfare Trust. A number of commemorative expeditions were planned in 2015. On 9 June, hundreds of serving soldiers took part in a fundraising Pageant organised by The Gurkha Welfare Trust, attended by the Queen and other members of the royal family. The Gurkha 200 campaign was supported by a number of celebrities, including Joanna Lumley and Dan Snow, who narrated at the Gurkha
Gurkha satisfied with their exertions". About 5,000 men entered British service in 1815, most of whom were not just Gorkhalis but Kumaonis, Garhwalis and other Himalayan hill men. These groups, eventually lumped together under the term "Gurkha", became the backbone of British Indian forces. As well as Ochterlony’s Gurkha battalions, Fraser and Lt. Frederick Young raised the Sirmoor battalion, later to become the 2nd King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles; an additional battalion--the Kumaon--was also raised, eventually becoming the 3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles. None of these men fought in the second campaign. Gurkhas served as troops under contract to