The 7th Manchester Regiment

The 7th Manchesters was a Territorial Force battalion which, prior to 1908, had been the 4th Volunteer Battalion, the Manchester Regiment.

Here are some sample army service numbers and corresponding joining dates for the 7th Manchester Regiment. Please note the caveat at the end of this post.

62 joined on 1st April 1908
884 joined on 15th March 1909
1135 joined on 11th January 1910
1275 joined on 4th January 1911
1468 joined on 2nd February 1912
1632 joined on 25th February 1913
2032 joined on 28th January 1914
2209 joined on 8th August 1914
2366 joined on 1st September 1914
2661 joined on 1st October 1914
2903 joined on 5th November 1914
3247 joined on 2nd December 1914
3294 joined on 4th January 1915
3417 joined on 8th February 1915
3460 joined on 18th March 1915
3489 joined on 5th April 1915
3761 joined on 8th May 1915
4022 joined on 1st June 1915
4135 joined on 3rd July 1915
4165 joined on 3rd August 1915
4280 joined on 20th September 1915
4341 joined on 5th October 1915
4461 joined on 1st November 1915
4668 joined on 4th January 1916
4997 joined on 10th February 1916
5140 joined on 7th March 1916
5274 joined on 14th April 1916
5673 joined on 26th June 1916
5830 joined on 7th August 1916
6791 joined on 11th September 1916

When the Territorial Force was re-numbered in 1917, the block of numbers allocated to the 7th Manchesters ran from to 275001 to 300000.

Read my other posts on the Manchester Regiment:

The Manchester Regiment, The Regular Battalions 1881-1914
The Manchester Regiment, Special & Extra Reserve Battalions 1908-1914

5th Bn, The Manchester Regiment (TF)
6th Bn, Manchester Regiment (TF)
8th Bn, Manchester Regiment (TF)
9th Bn, Manchester Regiment (TF)
10th Bn, Manchester Regiment (TF)

Manchester Regiment Service Battalion numbers 1914-1916
16th, 17th & 18th Manchesters (1st, 2nd and 3rd City Battalions)
19th, 20th & 21st Manchesters (4th, 5th and 6th City Battalions)
22nd, 23rd & 24th Manchesters (7th & 8th City Battalions and the Oldham Pioneers)

A Manchester Pal's War - 9814 Pte Harry Bardsley, 18th Manchesters

Caveat
It is wrong to assume that numbering sequences in battalions always followed a sequential pattern. They didn't. As the war progressed and casualties grew, large numbers of men were often transferred from one battalion to another and allocated numbers within blocks which did not fit the sequential patterning seen to date. This becomes particularly evident in most battalions from 1916 onwards. For an example of this, see my post on the 23rd London Regiment.


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