March 10 marks 100 years since allied troops launched a major offensive around the town of Neuve Chapelle.
Four divisions including those of the Indian Army, comprising 40,000 men, prepared to launch an attack which was preceded by a heavy bombardment.
The aim was to take the German-held village of Neuve Chapelle, and advance to the ridge beyond.
The three-day battle came at a huge cost, with 7,000 British and 4,200 Indian soldiers, killed or wounded. British gains were limited to an area two kilometres deep and three kilometres wide.
At least half of the attacking force was made up of troops from the Indian army - fighting alongside the British.
During the course of the war an estimated four million colonial soldiers, porters and labourers served the Allied cause.
One-and-a-half million volunteers came from India and it's thought around a million Africans were forced into being porters and carriers for the troops.
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