National Reserve Regulations 1913

Courtesy of Graham Stewart, I re-publish here the National Reserve Regulations for 1913. Also see my post on the National Reserve Regulations for 1911.

Also see the article on Reserves and reservists on The Long, Long Trail website.

National Reserve Regulations 1911

Courtesy of Graham Stewart, I re-publish here the National Reserve Regulations for 1911.












Also see the article on Reserves and reservists on The Long, Long Trail website.

The Lincolnshire Regiment - 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion

Prior to the creation of the Special Reserve in 1908, the Lincolnshire Regiment had two militia battalions, the 3rd and 4th. The 3rd Battalion was converted into the 3rd (Special) Reserve Battalion and the 4th Battalion was disbanded.

Here are some army service numbers and corresponding joining dates for the 3rd Special Reserve Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment, (which continued with the numbering system previously used by the 3rd Militia Battalion).

6611 joined on 19th December 1908
6665 joined on 4th January 1909
6932 joined on 13th June 1910
7098 joined on 12th July 1911
7379 joined on 27th November 1912
7445 joined on 22nd March 1913
7534 joined on 16th April 1914
7679 joined on 8th August 1914
8338 joined on 1st September 1914
9353 joined on 1st October 1914

9474 is currently the last number on my database for the 3rd Lincolnshire Regiment, and this man joined on 29th October 1914.

Also see my other posts regarding the Lincolnshire Regiment:

The 1st & 2nd Battalions, The Lincolnshire Regiment
The 4th Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment
The 5th Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment
The Lincolnshire Regiment - Service Battalions
The Lincolnshire Regiment - 10th Battalion - Grimsby Chums
Donald Banks - A Lincolnshire Terrier

And also:

The Lincolnshire Yeomanry

View Lincolnshire Regiment service records, pension records and medal index cards on-line via the Ancestry.co.uk website.

HISTORY OF THE LINCOLNSHIRE REGIMENT 1914-1918

The Lincolnshire Regiment - 1st & 2nd Battalions

Prior to 1st July 1881, the Lincolnshire Regiment was the 10th Regiment of Foot.

Here are some sample army service numbers and corresponding joining dates for the (Regular) 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Lincolnshire Regiment.

124 joined on 13th October 1881
329 joined on 28th August 1882
584 joined on 2nd September 1883
918 joined on 5th November 1884
1364 joined on 18th October 1885
1620 joined on 15th October 1886
1959 joined on 15th June 1887
2168 joined on 9th May 1888
2362 joined on 14th June 1889
2480 joined on 8th January 1890
2700 joined on 12th February 1891
3129 joined on 16th June 1892
3490 joined on 23rd January 1893
3860 joined on 29th January 1894
4133 joined on 23rd March 1895
4506 joined on 30th January 1896
4720 joined on 1st May 1897
4916 joined on 4th January 1898
5305 joined on 24th March 1899
5584 joined on 26th January 1900
5839 joined on 15th February 1901
6078 joined on 27th January 1902
6310 joined on 19th January 1903
7030 joined on 16th May 1904
7561 joined on 31st May 1905
7700 joined on 20th February 1906
7886 joined on 7th January 1907
8411 joined on 27th January 1908
8615 joined on 13th January 1909
8902 joined on 9th April 1910
9198 joined on 9th August 1911
9455 joined on 12th October 1912
9607 joined on 23rd June 1913
9745 joined on July 6th 1914

As far as I can work out, the Lincolnshire Regiment had reached around 9762 by the time Britain declared war on Germany on 4th August 1914. The service battalions which began forming shortly afterwards, then followed the same numbering sequence that the regular battalions had maintained since 1881, and over the next four and a half years there was no distinction in numbering between men who enlisted for wartime service only and those who enlisted as career soldiers for Seven and Five.

Also see my other posts regarding the Lincolnshire Regiment:

The 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment
The 4th Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment
The 5th Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment
The Lincolnshire Regiment - Service Battalions
The Lincolnshire Regiment - 10th Battalion - Grimsby Chums
Donald Banks - A Lincolnshire Terrier

And also:

The Lincolnshire Yeomanry

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

HISTORY OF THE LINCOLNSHIRE REGIMENT 1914-1918

The Bedfordshire Regiment - 3rd & 4th Battalions

The 3rd (Special Reserve) and the 4th (Extra Reserve) Battalions of the Bedfordshire Regiment were the natural heirs of the 3rd and 4th Bedfordshire Militia Battalions and men transferring from the Bedfordshire Militia to the newly formed Bedfordshire Special and Extra Reserve Battalions in 1908, retained their old numbers.

Men attested with the Special Reserve on Army Form B.59: ARMY RESERVE (SPECIAL RESERVISTS) and they did so for six years' service. Question 11. of the attestation form asked:

"Have you ever served in the Army, the Marines, the Reserve Forces, the Territorial Force, the Militia, the Militia Reserve, The Imperial Yeomanry, or the Royal Navy. If so, state which and cause of discharge."

An asterisk against the question pointed towards a further note:

"If so, the Recruit is to be asked the particulars of his former service, and to produce, if possible, his Parchment Certificate of Discharge and Certificate of Character which should be returned to him conspicuously endorsed in red ink as follows: Name, Re-enlisted in the (Regiment), on the (Date)."

Men joining the Special Reserve or Extra Reserve straight from the Militia fell into none of the eight categories outlined in question 11. and so it is usual in their cases to see the answer given as, "No, except for the Militia in which I am still serving" or words along those lines.

Here are some Army Service numbers and corresponding joining dates for men attesting with the 3rd and 4th Battalions of the Bedfordshire Regiment:

The 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion, The Bedfordshire Regiment

4305 joined on 21st June 1908

As I mentioned earlier, men joining the 3rd & 4th Battalions of the Bedfordshire Regiment from the old Bedfordshire Militia battalions retained their old Militia numbers. Neither the 3rd nor the 4th Battalions of the Bedfordshire Regiment started numbering from 1 in 1908. Number 4305 was a 3rd Militia Battalion man who had originally been issued his number when he joined the Militia in September 1901. Certainly by the time the Militia ceased to exist, both the 3rd and the 4th Bedfordshire Militia battalions were numbering in the 5900s and possibly higher (although I don't currently have the data to prove that).

6086 joined on 30th June 1908 (no prior Militia service)
6170 joined on 5th January 1909
6518 joined on 25th April 1910
6835 joined on 8th August 1911
6994 joined on 29th January 1912
7258 joined on 11th February 1913
7486 joined on 6th July 1914
7511 joined on 8th August 1914
7932 joined on 10th September 1914
8608 joined on 2nd October 1914
8756 joined on 2nd November 1914

My data for the 3rd Battalion currently ends at this point.

4th (Extra Reserve) Battalion, The Bedfordshire Regiment

6092 joined on 2nd November 1908
6141 joined on 20th January 1909
6267 joined on 17th January 1910
6602 joined on 30th December 1911
6694 joined on 28th August 1912
6772 joined on 4th January 1913
6908 joined on 8th January 1914
7101 joined on 7th August 1914
7326 joined on 5th September 1914

My data for the 4th Battalion currently ends at this point.

Although I've not included prefixes in the numbers above, it was usual to prefix 3rd battalion numbers with a 3/ and 4th Battalion numbers with a 4/; usual but by no means universal.

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

Alf Webb - a Bedfordshire regular

Alf Webb sent this postcard to his sister in late September or early October 1914. On the reverse it reads:

Dear E

Will you let all of them know that we are moving from here Sunday 4th but don't know where. With love from Alf xxx

21st Brigade
7th Division
2nd Beds Reg, A Coy

and inside the card - the knapsack on the soldier's back - on the back of a series of humorous images, he had written an earlier note:

Dear E

Hope you are quite well as it leaves me. I suppose you are quite busy now aren't you. Give my love to all at Bedford and tell them I will write later, especially Lily as I haven't written to her for a long time but you see we are so busy now, we don't know when we are moving yet but it may be any time now. Hope you will like these views from

Loving brother Alf xxx

The 2nd Bedfords had been in South Africa when Britain went to war with Germany. The battalion was mobilized on the 10th August and embarked for England aboard HMT Kenilworth Castle at Cape Town on the 22nd August. It put into Table Bay the following day and sailed for England on the 27th.

After a short stop at St Helena, the battalion arrived in at Southampton on the 19th September and then moved to Lyndhurst where it joined the 21st Brigade in the 7th Division. As Alf wrote to his sister, the battalion moved in two trains to Southampton on the 4th October, half of the battalion then sailing to France the same day, the other half sailing the following day.

It's doubtful that Alf Webb ever saw his sister again. He was killed in action on the 20th September 1915. Soldiers Died in the Great War (SDGW) notes 10069 Corporal Alfred Webb of the 2nd Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment. He was born in Clavering, Essex and at the time of his enlistment at Bedford, was living at Newport in Essex.

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission notes that Alf was 21 years old, the son of Joseph and Susan Harriet Webb, of Wicken Rd, Newport, Essex. He is buried in Vermelles British Cemetery.

Finally, using the information that I posted the other day on army service numbers in the regular battalions of the Bedfordshire Regiment we can see that Alf must have joined up between 6th April 1912 and 28th June 1913. Actually, he must have joined up in 1912 because number 10111 was issued on 6th September 1912.

Thanks to his consideration in sending a postcard to his sister in 1914 I am able to commemorate Alfred Webb on this army service numbers blog.

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

The Bedfordshire Regiment - 1st & 2nd Battalions

Here are some army service numbers and corresponding joining dates for the regular, 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Bedfordshire Regiment.

19 joined on 7th September 1881
245 joined on 11th February 1882
732 joined on 15th May 1883
1001 joined on 20th May 1884
1391 joined on 6th February 1885
1904 joined on 25th February 1886
2342 joined on 25th May 1887
2580 joined on 12th January 1888
3085 joined on 1st March 1889
3462 joined on 14th January 1890
3753 joined on 20th January 1891
4034 joined on 20th March 1892
4663 joined on 26th September 1893
5015 joined on 1st September 1894
5249 joined on 28th January 1895
5671 joined on 23rd April 1896
6044 joined on 10th August 1897
6312 joined on 20th July 1898
6571 joined on 24th July 1899
6747 joined on 1st March 1900
6928 joined on 26th February 1901
7233 joined on 8th July 1902
7413 joined on 19th January 1903
7947 joined on 5th February 1904
8193 joined on 27th January 1905
8501 joined on 15th May 1906
8901 joined on 14th January 1907
9340 joined on 7th August 1908
9460 joined on 11th June 1909
9526 joined on 31st January 1910
9750 joined on 8th April 1911
9994 joined on 6th April 1912
10259 joined on 28th June 1913
10358 joined on 7th January 1914

The First World War

The 6th (Service) Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment, was formed in August 1914. Men joining this battalion were given numbers that followed the same sequence being used by the regular battalions. So, in theory, 10400 (to take a hypothetical example) could enlist with the 6th Battalion for the duration of the war whilst 10401 could enlist with the 1st or 2nd battalion for Seven years with the Colours and five years on the Reserve.

I have a gap in my regular army service number data between 10381 (joined 9th February 1914) and 10712 (joined 14th August 1914). Certainly numbers in the 104** and 106** range were issued to 6th Battalion men between the 10th and 13th August 1914 and, from the information I hold, it looks as though this "sharing" (for want of a better term) of numbers between the 6th Battalion and the 1st and 2nd Battalion continued into the 107**s.

At some point in August 1914 though, it looks as though a decision was taken to separate the numbering sequences of the regular battalions from that of the service battalions. Service battalion numbering leaps from the 107**s to the 120**s in August 1914 whilst numbers in the 107** series and above, continued to be issued to regular enlistments throughout the war.

Here then, are some more regular enlistment army service numbers and joining dates for Bedfordshire Regiment enlistments during the war years:

10766 joined on 2nd November 1914
10785 joined on 12th December 1914
10793 joined on 4th January 1915
10849 joined on 18th March 1915
10881 joined on 29th April 1915
10891 joined on 22nd May 1915
10955 joined on 26th September 1915
10972 joined on 25th October 1915
10983 joined on 9th November 1915
11011 joined on 25th February 1916
11057 joined on 20th October 1916
11110 joined on 18th October 1917
11116 joined on 24th January 1918

My data currently ends in January 1918, and if some of the foregoing information is confusing, here's a summary based on my examination of the Bedfordshire Regiment army service numbers on my database:

Number 1 - 10450 (approx)
Regular enlistments whose numbers were issued sequentially between 1st July 1881 and 3rd August 1914
Number 10451 (approx) to 10760 (approx)
Regular enlistments and war-time service enlistments who joined the Bedfordshire Regiment in August 1914
Number 10761 (approx) to 11200 (approx)
Regular enlistments between c October 1914 and November 1918

And finally, a word of caution.

It is wrong to assume that numbering sequences in battalions always followed a sequential pattern. As can be seen above, 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 example, Bedfordshire Regiment numbers in the 119** range, which one might reasonably expect to fall in between the August 1914 107** and 120** patterns mentioned above, do no such thing. They appear to have been issued in July 1917 to men serving in the Bedfordshire Regiment graduated battalions.

For chapter and verse on the Bedfordshire Regiment in the Great War, visit Steve Fuller's excellent website.

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!



This is a very good history by one who is also the author of several regimental histories of the Great War. Cyril Falls regarded the 7th Division as one of the greatest fighting formations Britain ever sent to war. It landed initially in Zeebrugge in October 1914 as part of a force intended to relieve Antwerp, but almost immediately moved down to Ypres where it joined the main BEF. It fought in many of the major battles on the Western Front before being sent to Italy at the end of 1917 where it saw out the war. There are a number of useful appendices giving order of battle information with all changes in units, commanders and staff. Tables of casualties by units are given in the text for each major battle in which the division was involved; altogether the division suffered 68,000 casualties, among the highest recorded for any division. No list of honours and awards other than VCs. Plenty of sketch maps are very helpful in illustrating the actions being described.

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

The Gloucestershire Regiment - 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion

Prior to 1908 the Gloucestershire Regiment had two Militia battalions, the 3rd and the 4th. When the Special Reserve was formed in 1908, the 4th Militia Battalion was disbanded and men from it and from the 3rd Militia Battalion were encouraged to transfer to the newly formed 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion.



Unlike many Special and Extra Reserve Battalions which, when they were formed, simply continued with the old militia series of numbers that had been in use, the 3rd Gloucestershire Regiment started numbering from 1.



Recruiting for the militia as a whole, ceased on 15th January 1908 and from the following day, all enlistments were for the Special Reserve. See my earlier posts on the creation of the Special Reserve and the Special Reserve appendices for the full detail.



The first number currently on my database for the 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment is number 57 who joined on 20th January 1908 having previously served with the 4th Militia Battalion. The last number on my database is currently 3279 who joined on 3rd November 1914.



In that first year, 1908, over 700 men enlisted with the 3rd Gloucesters (number 711 joined on 30th December 1908) but then recruitment slowed dramatically, averaging roughly 300 recruits a year (for instance, less than 800 men joined up between 1st January 1909 and 10th January 1912).



Here then, are some army service numbers and corresponding joining dates for the 3rd Gloucesters between 1908 and 1914.



57 joined on 20th January 1908
721 joined on 1st January 1909
1059 joined on 1st March 1910
1323 joined on 2nd May 1911
1517 joined on 10th Janaury 1912
1815 joined on 11th January 1913
2015 joined on 27th March 1914
2104 joined on 13th August 1914
2616 joined on 3rd September 1914
3219 joined on 15th October 1914
3271 joined on 3rd November 1914



Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

Also see my other posts on the Gloucestershire Regiment:

1st and 2nd (Regular) Battalions, The Gloucestershire Regiment

4th (Territorial Force) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment
5th (Territorial Force) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment
6th (Territorial Force) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment

The Service Battalions, The Gloucestershire Regiment

View Gloucestershire Regiment service records, pension records and medal index cards on-line.

The Gloucestershire Regiment - 1st and 2nd Battalions

The 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Gloucestershire were born on 1st July 1881 and were formed from the 28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot and the 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot, respectively. Visit the Soldiers of Gloucestershire website for more information on the regiment and to search for men who served with the 28th Regiment of Foot or during the Great War: Soldiers of Gloucestershire - soldier search.

The regiment started numbering from 1 from 1st July July 1881. Here are some sample army service numbers and corresponding joining dates for regular soldiers enlisting with the Gloucestershire Regiment between July 1881 and August 1914.

39 joined on 17th October 1881
134 joined on 25th March 1882
572 joined on 7th July 1883
704 joined on 6th March 1884
1287 joined on 5th March 1885
1528 joined on 22nd June 1886
2093 joined on 21st March 1887
2391 joined on 28th August 1888
2599 joined on 5th March 1889
3050 joined on 15th November 1890
3098 joined on 23rd January 1891
3598 joined on 15th June 1892
3988 joined on 9th June 1893
4268 joined on 24th January 1894
4641 joined on 13th August 1895
4852 joined on 14th August 1896
5129 joined on 21st October 1897
5256 joined on 9th March 1898
5502 joined on 13th January 1899
5752 joined on 3rd January 1900
6088 joined on 11th January 1901
6415 joined on 23rd April 1902
6737 joined on 9th February 1903
7480 joined on 12th March 1904
8070 joined on 24th November 1905
8266 joined on 21st August 1906
8484 joined on 8th April 1907
8686 joined on 20th January 1908
9231 joined on 13th October 1909
9259 joined on 24th January 1910
9501 joined on 21st April 1911
9697 joined on 17th August 1912
9808 joined on 13th March 1913
9937 joined on 17th February 1914
10044 joined on 9th August 1914

Although I have no documentary evidence to support this, looking at number patterns for the newly formed Gloucestershire Regiment service battalions in August and September 1914, it appears that men joining these battalions were - for the most part - allocated numbers in the 101** range and above. Certainly, men joining up for regular terms of enlistment post August 1914 and into early 1915 were given numbers which continued in the 100** range. Thus 10070 joined on 5th October 1914, 10090 on 25th November 1914 and 10094 on 1st December 1914.

The theory is not foolproof. 10027 Albert Elliott (a Boer War veteran with the 5th Warwickshire Militia Battalion) joined up for three years with the colours on 10th August 1914 and there are undoubtedly others too who confound my attempted logic above.

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

Also see my other posts on the Gloucestershire Regiment:

3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment

4th (Territorial Force) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment
5th (Territorial Force) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment
6th (Territorial Force) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment

The Service Battalions, The Gloucestershire Regiment

View Gloucestershire Regiment service records, pension records and medal index cards on-line.


The Naval and Military Press has re-published this work and has this to say about it:

"As the subtitle states these are the records of the 1st (28th Foot), 2nd (61st Foot)), 3rd (Special Reserve) and 4th, 5th and 6th (First-Line T.A.) Battalions, in other words this is the history of the battalions of the regiment which existed prior to the outbreak of war. The one appendix lists the twenty-four battalions that existed during the war, indicating the theatre of war in which they served and in which division. Eight of these battalions did not serve overseas, and of the rest only one (7th Service Battalion) did not serve on the Western Front, it went with 13th Division to Gallipoli, Mesopotamia and Persia. Total losses amounted to 8,100, 72 battle honours were awarded and in the appendix is shown which honours were awarded to which battalion.

"In August 1914 the 1st Battalion was stationed in Bordon, part of the 3rd Infantry Brigade, 1st Division, and was among the first British troops to disembark in Le Havre, on 13th August. The first quarter of this book is concerned with the doings of the 1st Battalion which saw action in the early battles of the war - Mons and the retreat, the Marne, the Aisne, First Ypres and Givenchy.

"The 2nd Battalion was in China when war broke out and came home to join the newly formed 81st Brigade, 27th Division which arrived in France in December 1914 and in November 1915 was transferred to Salonika, where it remained for the rest of the war. Three chapters of the book deal with the operations in that theatre of war.

"The three Territorial battalions were in the South Midland Division, later the 48th which crossed to France at the end of March 1915 and fought on theWestern front till November 1917, when it was sent to Italy where it remained till the armistice. The final chapter gives the account of operations in that theatre.

"The author, a well known military historian, was probably the most prolific among the writers of regimental and divisional histories, some thirteen in all, and this account reflects the skill of the writer in producing a very readable narrative, which draws on the Battalion Diary, on individual accounts of actions, some quite lengthy, and makes use of footnotes to give casualty details in addition to those contained in the text, various comments, and items of information from other sources to confirm or add to the main text. The maps are good. There is no Roll of Honour nor list of honours and awards."

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

With the 1/5th Essex in the east - Appendices

This is a little off topic I suppose, but having referred to With the 1/5th Essex in the east in Every number tells a story - 1/5th Essex case study, I thought I'd post the appendices here. Plenty of army service numbers here to digest and interrogate. See my post on 5th Essex Regiment numbering. Click on the images for readable versions.

Appendix I - 1. 1/5th Essex Casualties

Appendix I - 2. 1/5th Essex Wounded (see also previous scan)

Appendix II - 1/5th Essex Honours & Awards

Appendix III - 1/5th Essex officers

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!



The Naval and Military Press has re-published With The 1/5th Essex in the east and has this to say about the book:

"Unusually for a British service [actually it was a Territorial Force battalion] Battalion, the Fifth battalion of the Essex Regiment spent its entire Great War service in action against the Turks. The battalion had a bloody baptism of fire when it was thrown into the inferno of Gallipoli in 1915, fighting in the trenches near Anzac Cove. The rest of its war was spent in Egypt, guarding the Suez Canal, and then in Gaza and Palestine, where the battalion formed part of Allenby’s successful advance to capture Jerusalem and Damascus in 1918. Illustrated by photographs, maps and accompanied by a Roll of Honour, this is an unusually fine history of a unit that, though not on the western front, still saw savage fighting."

Every number tells a story - 5th Essex case study

I've copied the extract above from With the 1/5th Essex in the east by Lt Col T Gibbons. Many years ago I interviewed 2075 Private Bertie Murkin who'd served with the battalion, and he gave me his copy of Lt Col Gibbons's book.

The three appendices list officer and other rank casualties, officers and men wounded, decorations awarded and officers who served. As a reference source for anybody interested in the 1/5th Essex, the book is invaluable.

The extract above is taken from the roll of other ranks wounded and I post it here to illustrate the point about the importance of army service numbers in determining when a man joined a particular unit - in this case, the 1/5th Essex.

The six digit numbers are those numbers issued when the Territorial Force was re-numbered in 1917. These were issued sequentially and in order of seniority (length of service) with the battalion. Refer back to my post showing sample service numbers for the 5th Essex Regiment to get a clearer idea of exactly when these men enlisted.

The first man on the list above, 2500021 CSM H Frost, was almost certainly serving with the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, The Essex Regiment before he joined the 5th Essex when it was formed on 1st April 1908. 250060 Pte F W Goodey was also an early recruit, his number dating to 1909 or 1910.

Private Gowers, wounded twice, has two numbers; his original number: 2177 (wounded on 14th August 1915), and his new six digit number 250363 (wounded for a second time in March 1917). From my data, number 2184 joined up on 5th August, so it's a good bet that Private Gowers, with a number just seven digits lower, joined up at around the same time.

As for the four five-digit numbers beginning 36*** and 37***, they're all conscripts who were given regular army five digit service numbers on being posted to the 5th Essex.

Search British Army WW1 Records HERE!

Bertie Murkin, who gave me his book, must have joined up in April 1914. There appears to have been a recruiting drive around this time and his number indicates that he joined the Terriers on about the 27th April. He was later re-numbered 250319.



The Naval and Military Press has re-published With The 1/5th Essex in the east and has this to say about the book:

"Unusually for a British service [actually it was a Territorial Force battalion] Battalion, the Fifth battalion of the Essex Regiment spent its entire Great War service in action against the Turks. The battalion had a bloody baptism of fire when it was thrown into the inferno of Gallipoli in 1915, fighting in the trenches near Anzac Cove. The rest of its war was spent in Egypt, guarding the Suez Canal, and then in Gaza and Palestine, where the battalion formed part of Allenby’s successful advance to capture Jerusalem and Damascus in 1918. Illustrated by photographs, maps and accompanied by a Roll of Honour, this is an unusually fine history of a unit that, though not on the western front, still saw savage fighting."

6th Essex Regiment & 7th Essex Regiment

I've added significant additional army service number data and information to my post on Essex Regiment Territorial Force battalions, specifically the 7th Battalion, Essex Regiment and 8th (Cyclist) Battalion, Essex Regiment.

As with all the numbering information I'm posting on this blog, I am posting sample data only from a far larger database. If you have a specific army service number query, do contact me via links@chailey1914-1918.net or leave a comment on this blog. If I can help, I will.

Find your army ancestors on Ancestry. Click here.

Cavalry numbering 1906

In my post the other day concerning Queen's and King's Regulations and changes in regimental numbering, I drew attention to the Army Order 289 of December 1906 which changed the numbering as far as cavalry of the line was concerned.

Prior to this Army Order, all cavalry regiments had numbered individually by regiments. Now, line cavalry and household cavalry were differentiated, and each corps of line cavalry was to use a separate number series extending to 49,999.

The image above (click on it to see a readable version) illustrates this point nicely. Albert Beech joined the 8th Hussars on 30th October 1901 and was given the army service number 5494. He was posted to the 15th Hussars on 15th January 1903 and given a new number, 4372 (same Corps of Hussars, but different regiment, hence the new number). He then remained with the 15th Hussars until 1st November 1909 (picking up two good conduct stripes along the way - the first issued after two year's good conduct, the second issued after three years' good conduct). He was then transferred back to the 8th Hussars. By now, the numbering had changed to numbering by corps rather than regiment and so Albert was issued with the next number in use, 4840. (4822 had gone to a 20th Hussars man, 4837 to a 13th Hussars man).

4840 Corporal Albert Beech was discharged as medically unfit from the now demolished Netley Military Hospital on 21st April 1911. His service record survives in the WO 363 series at the National Archives. Click on the link below to view Albert's service record and thousands of other records like his.

British Army WW1 Records

Dating photographs by regimental numbers

Andy Spiller has kindly sent me a photograph of four of his great uncles, circa 1905. Two of the men are dressed in the uniform of the St Giles and St George’s (Bloomsbury) 19th Middlesex Volunteer Rifle Corps (or "Bloomsburys" for short). Men from this Volunteer Corps and the Victoria and St George's (1st Middlesex) Volunteer Rifle Corps would later form the nucleus of the 9th (County of London) Bn, The London Regiment (Queen Victoria's Rifles) and so I've also posted the photograph above on the 9th Londons' post.

So when was the photograph taken?

The two Bloomsbury men - Ted and Harry Spiller - are seated. Behind them, left to right, stand 8023 Private Walter Spiller of the 2nd Battalion, Duke of Wellington's (West Riding) Regiment and 9698 Guardsman Arthur Spiller of the 1st Battalion, Grenadier Guards.

Walter Spiller enlisted on 20th July 1904 and Arthur Spiller on July 4th 1901. Just visible on Arthur's lower left hand sleeve is what looks like part of a good conduct chevron, awarded after two year's service. In any event, in this instance, Arthur's joining date is something of a red herring because the photo can only have been taken after Walter joined up in July 1904.

The two men wear the "Broderick" cap which, Andy Spiller notes, was phased out in 1906/07 as being too Germanic. Andy knows for a fact that one of his Bloomsbury great uncles, Harry Spiller (seated right), served with the Bloomsburys from 9th March 1905 until 31st March 1908, and therefore 1905 (or just after) looks to be the likely year that this photograph was taken. (7095 Ted Spiller had joined the Bloomsburys in 1901).

Walter Spiller, who would have been on the Reserve when Britain went to war with Germany in August 1914, was an early casualty. He was killed in action with the West Riding Regiment on 25th October 1914 and is commemorated on the Le Touret Memorial.

My thanks to Andy Spiller for responding to my appeal for photographs and for telling me the story of his soldier great uncles. You can read more about his family at Family Spiller.

British Army WW1 Records

The Queen's & King's Regulations - Regimental Numbers

This post will look at Queen's and King's Regulations for the Army between 1889 and 1914, and how they dealt with regimental numbering during those years. Click on the images below to see a readable version!

The Queen's Regulations and Orders for the Army. Part II. 1889

The Queen's Regulations and orders for the Army. 1895

The King's Regulations and Orders for the Army. 1904.

The 1904 Regulations ushered in fundamental changes regarding number sequences. Infantry regiments which had previously had to apply to start a new series once they were approaching 9,999 were now permitted to extend their numbering up to 19,999. (Nevertheless, the change in regulations came too late for some regiments which, having reached 9,999, had already started a new series from 1. I've mentioned these regiments in an earlier post on Regimental Numbering Series).

The Royal Artillery was now differentiated as [1] Royal Horse Artillery and Royal Field Artillery and [2] Royal Garrison Artillery, both numbering up to 49,999 as opposed to the 99,999 which had been used prior to 1904 for the Royal Artillery as a whole.

The 1904 Regulations also specifically mentioned the cavalry regiments (numbering up to 9,999).

Army Order 289 - December 1906

Army Order 289 changed the numbering as far as the cavalry of the line was concerned. (The regiments of Household Cavalry retained their regimental numbering sequences but were to only number up to 9,999). Prior to this Army Order there had been no numbering differentiation between Household and Line cavalry, and each individual regiment had maintained a separate numbering series. Now, the line cavalry was to re-number by the three corps: Dragoons, Hussars and Lancers.

I am unsure of the precise date when this Order came into effect. The lowest numbers currently on my line cavalry databases are 30 (Dragoon Guards on 9th January 1907), 15 (Hussars - 1st January 1907), and 104 (Lancers on 12th February 1907). Men already serving with the cavalry line regiments were not re-numbered and so one assumes that there must have been duplicate numbers in the three corps.

For example, before the Order came into effect, most of the line cavalry were numbering in the high 5000s, 6000s and even 7000s in some regiments (7th Dragoon Guards, 7th Hussars and 5th Lancers to give three examples of the latter).

With the change in numbering, the Dragoons had again reached 5000 by August 1910, the Hussars by December 1909 and the Lancers (which had always had fewer regiments) by December 1913. This also presents today's researchers with another conundrum. Does my line cavalry ancestor's number belong to the pre 1906 series or the post 1906 series? I'll deal with the individual cavalry regiments and the corps of cavalry in future posts.

The King's Regulations and Orders for the Army. 1908.

The 1908 Army Order extended the numbering series in the RHA and RFA to 99,999 whilst the RGA maintained the 49,999 limit which had first been indicated in the 1904 King's Regulations.

The King's Regulations and Orders for the Army. 1912. Amended up to 1st August 1914.

The amended 1912 King's Regulations extended the numbering series in the Army Service Corps and Royal Engineers from 29,999 to 39,999; all other series remained unchanged. And when Britain went to war with Germany three days later, it was these regulations which were in force. There would be many more changes over the next four years.

My grateful thanks to joseph of the Great War Forum for the copy of the 1889 Queen's Regulations, and to Graham Stewart for all the others. View British Army WW1 Records here.

6th Battalion, The Essex Regiment

I've updated the data for the 6th Essex Regiment, giving further examples of army service numbers and joining dates up until 1916, explaining how men enlisting for local guard and supernumerary company duty were numbered (and then re-numbered) and giving sample numbers and joining dates from the six digit series allocated to the 6th Battalion in 1917.

View British Army WW1 Records on-line.

4th Battalion, The Essex Regiment

I'm re-visiting my earlier post on Essex Regiment Territorial Force battalions and have added additional data for the 4th Essex Regiment which was headquartered at Brentwood. Over the next few days I'll add further information for the 6th, 7th and 8th Battalions.

View pre 1914-1918 and British Army WW1 Records on-line. Click the link.

The exception to the rule

Just when you think you've got the whole army numbering logic sorted out for a particular battalion, along comes an attestation paper - or usually several attestation papers - which completely throws you of course.

Take for instance, the example of William Buchanan who attested for one year's service with the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders Special Reserve on 17th August 1914. His number - 4898 - belongs neither to the series being used by the 3rd and 4th Battalions at that time (they were numbering in the 7000s and 9000s respectively), nor for that matter, to the service battalions which had only just crossed 3000 by the end of August 1914.

In answer to question 10 on William's papers which reads, "Do you now belong to the Royal Navy, The Army...", the answer is written, "Yes, 13 years." Unhelpfully, the particular service to which William belonged is not recorded.

And so William Buchanan is a mystery to me. His service with the A&S Highlanders did not last long though: he was discharged from the 10th (Service) Battalion on 2nd October 1914 as medically unfit. "No teeth" is written on his attestation paper.

William's service record survives in the WO 364 (pension) series at the National Archives and although not much of it survives, what is there is interesting to read. He carried a number of tattoos on his arms: "Mrs Maybrick" on his left upper arm and "two pictures from Punch" on his left forearm. On his right arm was a "coat of arms, rose and one picture from Punch." You can almost hear the authorities checking him against the notes in the Distinctive Marks section: "Well it says here, two pictures from Punch, but I've definitely seen that in The Strand..."

Mrs Maybrick was probably Florence Maybrick (pictured on this post) who, in the late 1880s was found guilty of poisoning her husband and sentenced to death. There was a huge public outcry and she was finally released from prison after 15 years. William Buchanan appears to have been a fan.

British Army WW1 Records

Special Reserve - 1907 Army Order - Appendices

I am posting here, the appendices to the 23rd December 1907 Army Order for the "Scheme for the provision, organization, and training of the Special Reserve..." which I posted in full the other day. My grateful thanks again to Graham Stewart for sending me these.

APPENDIX I
Provisional establishment of a Training Brigade, Royal Field Artillery.







APPENDIX II
Stations of Training Brigades, Royal Field Artillery, showing Special Reserve units to be affiliated.








APPENDIX III
Establishments for Royal Engineers reserve companies.





APPENDIX IV
Tables showing the Militia battalions to be converted into Reserve battalions and the Militia battalions to be disbanded.

APPENDIX V
Establishment for a 3rd (5th or 6th in the case of regiments with four line battalions) reserve battalion in peace and on mobilization, and of an infantry depot when the reserve battalion is mobilized.





APPENDIX VI
Establishment laid down for each of the 27 Extra Reserve battalions.





APPENDIX VII
Establishment for Rifle depot (Winchester) and for four reserve rifle battalions at Woolwich; and establishment of depots at Winchester and Woolwich on mobilization.





APPENDIX VIII
Table showing periods of training for the Special Reserve.





APPENDIX IX
Terms of service and standrads of height and age.





APPENDIX X
Pay and allowances of NCOs and men of the Special Reserve (Artillery, Engineers and Infantry).





APPENDIX XI
Daily rates of pay and allowances...

The Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders - service battalion numbers

If at times the Territorial Force army service numbers for some battalions of the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders seem to confound logic, so too - at times - do those numbers issued to men joining the service battalions from August 1914.

By 8th June 1914, numbering in the 1st and 2nd (Regular) Battalions of the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders had reached 1377 and when Britain went to war with Germany two months later and the 10th (Service) Battalion of the A&S Highlanders was formed in August 1914, it (and later the other service battalions too), continued with the numbering series in use by the regular battalions. The 1st and 2nd still recruited men for regular periods of enlistment (seven years with the Colours and five on the Reserve) but whereas these men's numbers carried no prefix, those joining the service battalions for war-time enlistment only, had their numbers prefixed with S/.

So in theory, S/1600 would have been an August 1914 war-time enlistment, whereas 1601 enlisted at around the same time time but as a regular, career soldier.

I list below, sample army service numbers and joining dates or date ranges for the A&S Highlanders during the First World War. There are significant gaps as you will see, and the numbers that I have listed below could give the impression that they ran sequentially and consistently. They didn't. Treat these dates with caution as there are exceptions which I'll try to point out.

It is also worth pointing out that as far as I am aware there are no patterns within the general number series which would identify a man as belonging to a particular battalion. The numbers listed below will give a rough indication of when he was likely to have joined but they are of no help in determining a battalion. Furthermore whilst the 3rd (Special Reserve) and 4th (Extra Reserve) Battalions maintained their separate numbering series in the initial months of the war, these appear to have been abandoned later. My data for these battalions only extends to October 1914 and as the war progressed it was quite common to see an S/ prefix man with a number in the service/regular battalion series, joining what had once been the Special/Extra Reserve. I'd love to see an ACI or Army Order dealing with this.

Anyway, on with the numbering:

S/3033 joined on 31st August 1914
S/5422 joined on 23rd September 1914
S/6126 joined on 29th October 1914
S/6758 joined on 25th November 1914
S/7158 joined on 26th December 1914
S/7711 joined on 18th January 1915
S/8152 joined on 27th February 1915
S/8279 joined on 10th March 1915
S/8641 joined on 28th April 1915
S/9385 joined on 27th May 1915
S/9750 joined on 27th June 1915

S/9986 joined the 14th (Service) Battalion on the 12th July 1915, but by this time, numbers in the S/121* range had already begun to appear, thus S/12155 was issued on 5th July 1915. S/12198 on 10th July 1915, S/12250 on 17th July 1915 and so on. S/12483 was issued on the 27th July 1915.

NB - see also the section below headed The return of the S/10***s

S/13186 joined on 21st August 1915
S/13565 joined on 21st September 1915
S/14141 joined on 27th October 1915

In November and December 1915, the numbering goes awry and I think for the purposes of this post, I'll just pull additional data from my database to try and illustrate this. Battalion (or D for Depot) indicated in brackets. The 13th and 15th were local reserve battalions.

S/14062 - 17th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14100 - 8th Nov 1915 (D)
S/14109 - 24th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14125 - 15th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14246 - 8th Nov 1915 (13th)
S/14133 - 15th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14170 - 2nd Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14259 - 3rd Nov 1915 (D)
S/14324 - 9th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14352 - 9th Nov 1915 (14th)
S/14387 - 2nd Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14390 - 8th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14438 - 22nd Nov 1915 (15th)
S/14962 - 19th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/15057 - 23rd Nov 1915 (15th)
S/15260 - 24th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/15310 - 26th Nov 1915 (15th)
S/15439 - 16th Nov 1915 (15th)

S/15156 - 1st Dec 1915 (D)
S/15164 - 1st Dec 1915 (D)
S/15292 - 10th Dec 1915 (15th)
S/15350 - 10th Dec 1915 (D)

S/15477 joined on 24th January 1916
S/16083 joined on 15th February 1916

The return of the S/10***s

In June 1915, the numbering had appeared to leap from the 97**s to the 12***s. For me, this illustrates the point that it's generally advisable to be suspicious of unexplained gaps in numbering sequences. The Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders is a case in point as these "missing" S/10*** numbers start appearing in March 1916.

Army service number S/16204 was issued to a man joining the 4th Battalion on 2nd March 1916, but by the 8th of that month, S/10256 was issued to a man (who also joined the 4th Battalion).

Numbers from S/10256 were issued, largely sequentially, through March, April and into May 1916 before the numbering returned to the 16***s in June 1916, thus:

S/10526 joined on 28th March 1916
S/11606 joined on 26th April 1916
S/11909 joined on 31st May 1916

S/16329 joined on 13th June 1916
S/16674 joined on 24th June 1916
S/16934 joined on 25th July 1916
S/17161 joined on 12th August 1916
S/17477 joined on 4th September 1916
S/17747 joined on 25th October 1916
S/18237 joined on 27th November 1916 [and again, another large jump]
S/18583 joined on 21st January 1917
S/20419 joined on 30th April 1917
S/20838 joined on 15th May 1917 [another large jump]
S/21380 joined on 14th June 1917
S/21680 joined on 18th July 1917
S/21810 joined on 4th August 1917
S/22332 joined on 18th September 1917
S/22548 joined on 22nd October 1917

My data becomes decidedly patchier from here on in; to the point where it would probably be unhelpful, rather than helpful, to publish it. So for the time being I'm going to leave service battalion numbering in the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders at this point, and this also concludes my look at numbering patterns in the regiment as a whole. I will update posts with additional information as and when I have something useful to publish.

Find British Army WW1 Records by clicking this link. Also see my posts regarding army service numbers issued to men in the following Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders battalions:

1st & 2nd Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders 1881-1914
3rd (Special Reserve) & 4th (Extra Reserve) Battalion A&S Highlanders
5th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders (TF)
6th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders (TF)
7th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders (TF)
8th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders (TF)
9th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders (TF)

The Special Reserve - Army Order of 23rd December 1907

Thanks are due to Graham Stewart who has sent me much useful information in the form of Queen's and King's Regulations, Army Orders, and Army Council Instructions relating to army service numbers. I've re-published some of this information already, and my post concerning the creation of the Special Reserve in 1908 is now wonderfully augmented with a copy of the Army Order of 23rd December 1907 which dealt with the "Scheme for the provision, organization, and training of the Special Reserve required to supplement the Regular Army, and the application of the Scheme to the existing Militia".

Digging through some of my files, I also came across the image above which illustrates the choices which Militiamen were offered when the Special Reserve was created.

As can be seen, Militiamen were strongly encouraged to join the Special Reserve and a £2 bonus in 1908 would have probably been ample persuasion for many.