4th Highland (Mountain) Brigade, Royal Garrison Artillery

Numbering in the 4th Highland (Mountain) Brigade, RGA is complex to say the least, and this is because the Brigade was administered by three separate County Territorial Force Associations: the associations for Argyll, Bute, and Ross and Cromarty. In addition, responsibility for the 4th Highland Ammunition Column was also shared between the County Associations.  This means that there are at least four separate number series for this RGA Brigade; the only brigade of mountain artillery formed by the Territorial Force.

The Argyll Association administered the Argyllshire (Mountain) Battery and one sub-section of the 4th Highland Ammunition Column. The Bute Association administered the Bute Battery and one sub-section of the 4th Highland Ammunition Column. And the Ross and Cromarty Association administered the Ross and Cromarty Battery and one sub-section of the 4th Highland Ammunition Column.

Numbering for the Arygllshire Battery began at 1 in 1908; for Bute at 2000 and for Ross and Cromarty at 4000. Numbering in the ammunition column also began at 1 in 1908. Unlike the situation in some multi County-administered TF infantry battalions which later abandoned one or more of its separate number series, county-specific numbering in the 4th Highland (Mountain) Brigade continued until the Territorial Force was renumbered in 1917 and men were allocated numbers within the range 300001 to 360000 (and I haven't yet worked out whether there were separate allocations within this series to distinguish men from Argyll, Bute and Ross and Cromarty).

Service and pension records survive for all four number series in WO 363 and WO 364 and, not for the first time, I have been surprised at some of the number patterns that have survived.  There appear to be many surviving papers dating to 1911, for instance, and then fewer surviving papers as the years progress.  For the ammunition column in 1911 there is almost a complete sequential sequence: numbers 100, 105, 112, 114, 115, 117, 119, 121, 126 and 128 all survive.  There's a similar pattern for the Argyllshire Battery: 324, 325, 330, 336, 343; all of these numbers - the 100s and the 300s - dating to January 1911.  Coincidence? Perhaps, but I have seen this in many other number series as well. One day, perhaps, I'll get to the bottom of it.

For further reading on this unit, and its early formation, read Ray Westlake's The Territorial Force 1914 (if you can get hold of a copy), and the indispensable, "His Majesty's Territorial Force" by Walter Richards which, happily, is easily available as a four volume re-print from Naval & Military Press.

I've borrowed the photo on this post, one of Charles Sargeant Jagger's magnificent sculptures on the Royal Artillery Memorial at Hyde Park Corner, from this National Education Network site.

I also offer a comprehensive, fast and cost-effective military history research service. Follow the link for more information.

Rifle Brigade, 18th - 24th Battalions

This is a post which, I feel, will develop over time. It originates from correspondence with Jackie on another Rifle Brigade post in which she was enquiring about Ernest William Bush who was 571, later 200530 with the Rifle Brigade. Jackie's question was whether it was possible to identify his battalion and my answer was that my own data on these RB Battalions was not significant enough to hazard a guess.

Jackie has subsequently sent details of other men and I have also added to her list.  What follows is a very small sample but the obvious interest is in the alphabetical grouping of men.  It looks to me as though men were numbered in rough alphabetical order by battalion.

So in the examples below, 200505 to 200573 are, I would guess, all 18th Battalion men; 201497 to 201881 are all 19th Battalion men and so on. This would appear logical but this list does need to be expanded further.  It has been comprised from information on medal index cards and the silver war badge roll.  Note that the dates of enlistment given on the SWB roll are NOT the dates that the men joined the battalions they were being discharged from.

200505 ABBOTT, Henry; formerly 542
200510 ALDRIDGE, W. 18^th Bn
200516 BURCHALL, Bert; formerly 555
200517 BARRY, James; formerly 556
200518 BROWN, Eugene; formerly 557; arr India 25/11/1915
200520 BALLS, William G; formerly 559
200521 BIDGOOD, William; formerly 560
200525 BRADBEER, William; formerly 565
200528; formerly 569
200526 BROWN, Henry; formerly 567
200527 BATTLEY, John W; formerly 568
200528; formerly 569 [Assumption based on numbers either side]
200529 BUCK, Thomas; formerly 570
200530 BUSH, Ernest William; formerly 571
200531 BEALES, Charles W; formerly 572
200533; formerly 574
200534 Rfn BARBER, Albert F V; formerly 575. 18th Bn; enlisted 16.10.14; discharged 5.3.19 Sick aged 41 yrs
200567 BATTLEY, John W; formerly 568
200573 BOUSTEAD, Thomas; formerly 573
201497 Sgt PHILLIPS, William 19^th Bn; enlisted 2.12.14, discharged 31.7.19 Sick aged 38 yrs
201871 L/Cpl MORRISON, John 19^th Bn; enlisted 8.9.14, discharged 6.1.19 Sick aged 40 yrs
201881 Rfn THOMSON, David 19^th Bn; enlisted 17.9.14, discharged 17.3.19 Wnds aged 23 yrs
202569 Sgt LEVENY, James 20^th Bn; enlisted 7.9.14, discharged 23.1.19 Sick aged 51 yrs
202993 Cpl GARVIN, Peter 20^th Bn; enlisted 6.8.14, discharged 25.5.19 Sick aged 30 yrs
203150 Rfn BALL, Francis H 20^th Bn; enlisted 3.9.14, discharged 10.3.19 Wnds aged 24 yrs
203162 Sgt GRANT, Robert C 20^th Bn; enlisted 10.10.14, discharged 4.4.19 Wnds aged 22 yrs
203186 Rfn ROPER, Sydney C 20^th Bn; enlisted 27.5.15, discharged 18.3.19 Wnds aged 23 yrs
203188 Rfn PEARD, Richard C 20^th Bn; enlisted 19.9.14, discharged 17.7.19 Wnds aged 29 yrs
203533 ALLEN, William G; formerly 173
210977 Rfn MILLS, Albert C 20^th Bn; enlisted 2.2.16, discharged 9.8.19 aged 24 yrs
213047 Rfn RAWLINGS, Joseph W 20^th Bn; enlisted 12.1.15, discharged 31.7.19 Sick aged 24 yrs

The photograph I've used to illustrate this post shows men of the Royal Military Police, 24th (Home Counties) Battalion, Rifle Brigade, pictured in Agra in 1916.  Five of the men wear medal ribbons from the Boer War and the man standing in the middle is 502, later 206610 Thomas William Deadman of Chailey in Sussex who is noted on my Chailey blog.

The 24th (Home Counties) Rifle Brigade was a Territorial Force formation formed at Halton Camp West on 10th November 1915.  The Rifle Brigade had no pre-war TF battalions and the 18th through to the 24th Battalions were comprised of supernumerary TF companies from drafts men on the National Reserve who were used in guarding vulnerable points in Britain.  The 24th was composed of drafts from the Queens, Norfolk, Suffolk, Bedfordshire, Royal Sussex, East Surrey, Essex, Royal West Kent and Hertfordshire Regiments and was commanded throughout by Lieut-Col F.W. Burbury, a retired officer of the Royal West Kent Regiment. All seven of these Rifle Brigade battalions were posted overseas in late 1915 or early 1916 and the 18th, 23rd and 24th Battalions all served in India.

Jackie, thank you for stimulating this interesting - but as yet incomplete - snapshot of the men in these Rifle Brigade battalions.

I also offer a comprehensive, fast and cost-effective military history research service. Follow the link for more information.

5th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry

For no reason other than that I responded to a query about a 5th DLI man last night, here are some numbers and joining dates for the 5th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry, a Territorial Force battalion..

The battalion was headquartered in Stockton-on-Tees with A, B and C Companies also based there. D and E Companies were based in Darlington, F Company at Castle Eden (with a detachment at Trimdon), G Company at West Hartlepool and H Company at Darlington.  Knowing where the companies were situated is useful, particularly when looking at pre-war enlistments, the logic being that if Great Uncle Edgar served with "the Territorials" during the war, and you know that Great Uncle Edgar was born and bred in Castle Eden, the chances are that he served with the 5th DLI, and probably in F Company to boot (unless of course he joined the TF Engineers, ASC, Royal Artillery etc).  Anyway, here are some numbers and dates for the 5th DLI to the end of 1915.

341 joined on 4th April 1908
642 joined on 12th February 1909
1112 joined on 17th February 1910
1350 joined on 6th May 1911
1401 joined on 11th January 1912
1730 joined on 24th February 1913
1909 joined on 4th February 1914
2194 joined on 6th August 1914
2350 joined on 4th September 1914
2849 joined on 20th October 1914
2913 joined on 9th November 1914
3175 joined on 3rd December 1914
3282 joined on 4th January 1915
3387 joined on 1st February 1915
3422 joined on 4th March 1915
3523 joined on 15th April 1915
3568 joined on 5th May 1915
3658 joined on 20th June 1915
3718 joined on 7th July 1915
3814 joined on 3rd August 1915
4105 joined on 27th September 1915
4118 joined on 11th October 1915
4184 joined on 5th November 1915
4253 joined on 7th December 1915

When the TF was re-numbered in 1917, the 5th DLI was allocated the number block 200001 to 250000, the longest serving 5th DLI man on the battalion's books at that time being given the lowest number. 200010 is the lowest six digit number I have and that went to Fred Tuck who had formerly served with the 1st Volunteer Battalion, DLI and who joined the 5th DLI on 29th June 1908. Numbers 200001 to 200009 would have pre-dated Ted and in all probability would also have had former service with the Volunteer Force.

I've borrowed the image on this post from the Durham Light Infantry Association website.

I also offer a comprehensive, fast and cost-effective military history research service. Follow the link for more information.