Compared with the Sepoy of the Bengal Army, there is a marked difference in the address and manners of these Northern men, assimilating somewhat to the more manly bearing of our own Soldiers....I have never heard any officer accuse them of want of discipline or subordination, and I believe in no Native Army has a strict and ready obedience to the orders of their superiors been carried out with greater success....It was in this Force that the Pathan, Jatsikh and Dogra was first taught to serve in the ranks of the British Army; and it was in these Regiments that the Afreedees and other Afghan tribes were gradually reduced to obedience, and are now as well behaved as any of our Native Soldiery.

Wilde, when in command of the Regt., from 1853:[8]I....inhabitant of....son of....swear by the Gooroo Grunth Sahibjee (holy scripture of Sikhism) and if I tell a falsehood may the Gooroo Grunth Sahib cause misfortune to descend upon me, that I will never forsake or abandon my Colours, that I will march wherever I am directed whether within or beyond the Company's Territories, that I will implicitly obey all the orders of my Commanders, and in everything behave myself as becomes a good Soldier and faithful servant of the Company, and failing in any part of my duty as such I will submit to the penalties ascribed in the Articles of War, which have been read to me.

[9] The Regiment remained at Lahore until November 1850, the chief event of importance during this time being an inspection on 5 December 1849 by the Governor General, Lord Dalhousie.

Shortly after their arrival the regiment was inspected by Brigadier Hodgson,[10] commanding the Punjab Irregular Force.

[12] In 1857 the regiment was sent into action by John Lawrence, younger brother of Henry and Chief Commissioner of Punjab, as vital relief reinforcements during the Indian Mutiny.

Under the command of Wilde, it marched with the rest of the Transfrontier Force 1,000 miles in summer from Bannu on the NW Frontier to Delhi.

John Lawrence was hailed as the "Saviour of India" for his decisive action in sending the Punjab regiments to assist at Delhi.

The tribesmen in these regiments remained loyal to the British during the Mutiny, as they had no affection for the Indian Sepoy, against whom they had fought during the Sikh Wars.

Imagine had we carried out the orders of the Board and enlisted the men for service in the Punjab only agreeable to the wishes of poor Sir Henry Lawrence what a tree we should have been up for want of soldiers to take against these Pandies.

Denniss had been at the storming of Delhi, being with General John Nicholson when the latter fell, but as an officer in the 1st European Bengal Fusiliers, of which regiment he later became Lt. Col.[13] Sir Henry Lawrence, under whose orders Denniss had raised the regiment, had died from shell wounds on 4 July 1857 during the siege of Lucknow.

The 4th took the appellation "57th Wilde's Rifles (Frontier Force)" in honour of its gallant commanding officer at the siege of Delhi.

Jemadar Mir Dast was attached to the 57th Wilde's Rifles when he performed the service for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross on 26 April 1915 at Ypres.

He was injured during the battle and later taken to the Royal Pavilion military hospital in Brighton where he was presented the Victoria Cross.

From France, the regiment proceeded to German East Africa in 1916, and again distinguished itself in the long and difficult campaign.

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.

It then participated in the Syria-Lebanon Campaign against the Vichy French and fought in the Battle of Deir ez-Zor on 3 July 1941.

They still refer to themselves proudly as "Piffers" and are headquartered at Abbottabad, a city named after General James Abbott (1807–1896).

[16] Lieutenant Henry William Pitcher 4th Punjab Infantry was awarded the Victoria Cross on 30 October 1863, in North-West India, Lieutenant Pitcher led a party to recapture the Crag Picquet after its garrison had been driven in by the enemy and sixty of them killed.

He led the party up the narrow path to the last rock until he was knocked down and stunned by a large stone thrown from above.

On 16 November, the lieutenant displayed great courage in leading a party to the Crag Picquet when it had again fallen into enemy hands.