The regiment then advanced with the rest of the British force, arriving at Peking (Beijing) in late September, which was captured on 6 October.

[1] In 1882, the regiment was dispatched to Egypt as part of an expeditionary force to suppress the revolt by Arabi Pasha against the Egyptian Government.

In a surprise dawn attack on 13 September, the Egyptian forces at Tel-el-Kebir were completely routed by the British.

The regiment, under the command by Lieutenant-Colonel (later Lieutenant-General) JB Woon, fought in a fierce engagement against a force of about 6,000 Mohmands at Shabkadr.

On 16 October 1914, the 20th Punjabis sailed for the Persian Gulf from Bombay as part of the 16th (Poona) Brigade of the Indian Expeditionary Force 'D'.

In April 1915, the regiment fought at the Battle of Shaiba, where the Turkish attempt to retake Basra was foiled.

The 20th Punjabis subsequently took part in the British advance northwards, which led to the capture of Kut-al-Amara in September 1915.

For the next two years, the regiment remained engaged in a number of actions against the Turks including the Battle of Istabulat.

In 1921-22, a major reorganization was undertaken in the British Indian Army leading to the formation of large infantry groups of four to six battalions.

[2] During the Second World War, the battalion was part of the British garrison of Hong Kong, where it fiercely resisted the Japanese invasion in December 1941.

However, after heroically resisting the enemy for 18 days, the outnumbered British garrison was forced to surrender on 25 December.