Sam

Manekshaw Biography
Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw was the first Indian Army Officer
to become the Field Marshal. This biography of Field Marshal
Sam Manekshaw provides detailed information about his
childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.
Quick Facts
Nick Name

Sam Bahadur

Also Known As

Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw

Nationality

Indian

Born on

03 April 1914 AD

Zodiac Sign

Aries

Born in

Amritsar, Punjab

Died on

27 June 2008 AD

Place of death

Wellington, Tamil Nadu

Father

Hormusji Manekshaw

Mother

Heerabai

Spouse:

Silloo
Padma Vibhushan (1972)

Awards

Padma Bhushan (1968)

Military Cross (1942)

Indias first ever Field Marshal, Sam Manekshaw was a

distinguished military man with a glorious career spanning over
four decades. The very name Sam Manekshaw is enough to
inspire respect and admiration in the minds of Indians even
today. Given his achievements in the army and his prowess on
the war front, it seems easy to assume that the man was always
destined for a military career. But the weird fact is that it was
just a quirk of fate that he joined the army! A brilliant student at
school, the boy set his aspirations on becoming a doctor. He
asked his father to send him to England to study medicine which
the older man refused. In an act of rebellion, the young Sam
decided to sit for enrollment at the Indian Military Academy. He
got selected and thus embarked on what was to become his
rightful fate. His long and productive career started during the
British era and continued for 40 years over which he witnessed
several major wars like the World War II and the 1971 IndoPakistan war. He was a very bold man not at all shy about
making politically incorrect statements.
Childhood & Early Life
Sam was born to Parsi parents in Amritsar. His father,
Hormusji Manekshaw was a doctor. His mother s name
was Heerabai and he had three brothers and two sisters.
Sams father had been a Captain in the Royal British Army
and had come to Amritsar from Bombay where he had
started a medical practice and pharmacy.
He was educated at the Sherwood College in Nainital. He
was a brilliant student and achieved a distinction in the

School Certificate examination of the Cambridge Board.

Setting his eyes on becoming a doctor, he asked his
father to send him to England to study medicine. His
father felt Sam was too young to be on his own and
refused to send him until he was older.
T he teenager was upset that his father refused and in
rebellion he decided to appear for the entrance
examination for enrollment into the Indian Military
Academy (IMA).
Care e r
His entrance test went off well and he soon became a part
of the intake of 40 cadets at IMA in 1932. He graduated
from the institution two years later on 4 February 1934
and was immediately commissioned as a second
lieutenant in the British Indian Army.
After he completed his attachment with a British Infantry
Battalion, the 2nd Battalion the Royal Scots, he joined the
4th Battalion, 12 Frontier Force Regiment.
He served in Burma during the World War II in 1942 where
he was on the campaign on the Sittang River with the 4/12
Frontier Force Regiment. He was a Captain at that time.
It was a very difficult time for the Indian Army as they
faced the invading Japanese Army while fighting around
Pagoda Hill. In spite of all the challenges they captured
the hill though Manekshaw was gravely wounded. Ever
the gritty man, he soon recovered and resumed his duties.
He attended the 8th Staff Course at Staff College, Quetta
from August to December 1943 after which he was posted
as the Brigade Major of the Razmak brigade. He served
there till October 1944.
He was sent to serve on General Daisys staff in IndoChina towards the end of the World War II. T here he
helped to repatriate over 10, 000 former Prisoners of War
(PoW).
After independence, he was reassigned to the 16th Punjab

Regiment

where

he

was

retained

at

the Army

Headquarters as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Military

Operations Directorate. He was later promoted to the rank
of brigadier.
He was posted to the Infantry School at Mhow as the
schools commandant. Later on he commanded a division
in Jammu & Kashmir and also a corps in the North East.
He succeeded General Kumaramangalam as the eight
COAS (Chief Of Army Staff) in June, 1969 and in 1971
went to the historic war against Pakistan. T he Indian Army
emerged victorious under Manekshaws direction and the
war ended with the surrender of Pakistans eastern half.
He was elevated to the rank of Filed Marshall on 1
January 1973 and he retired from active service on 15
January 1973.
After retirement went on to serve as the director and
chairman of several companies, taking forward his legacy
of discipline and hard work.
Major Battle s
He led India to a famous military victory over Pakistan in
the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971 that led to the liberation of
Bangladesh..
Aw ards & Achie v e m e nts
He was honored with the Padma Vibhushan, the second
highest civilian award in the Republic of India in 1972 for
his services towards the country.
T he President of India conferred upon him the rank of
Field Marshal on 1 January, 1973.
Pe rsonal Life & Le gacy
He met Silloo Bode at a social gathering in Lahore in 1937
and the two fell in love. T he couple got married in April
1939 and had two daughters.
Sam Manekshaw lived a long and happy life. He died of
pneumonia in 2008 at the ripe old age of 94 years.