East Yorkshire Regiment - 5th (Cyclist) Bn (TF)

This post will look at numbering in the 4th (Territorial Force) Battalion of the East Yorkshire Regiment between 1908 and 1914. Information on this post has been compiled as a result of looking at service records in the WO 363 and WO 364 series at the National Archives; now also widely available online from various providers.

The 5th East Yorkshire Regiment had no Volunteer Force predecessor although it got off to a flying start in April 1908 when 90 NCOs and men who had formerly served with the Cyclist Company of the 1st Volunteer Battalion signed up to the newly formed 5th (Cyclist) Battalion. The newly formed 5th Battalion, which was headquartered at Park Street, Hull commenced a new number series from 1 in April 1908 and drew its men from the following areas:

A, B, C & D Companies: Hull

E Company: Howden, with drill stations at North Cave and Staddlethorpe

F Company: Beverley, with drill stations at Hessle, Market Weighton and Pocklington

G Company: Bridlington, with drill stations Driffield, Hunmanby and Filey

H Company: Hornsea, with drill stations at Hedon and Withernsea

The battalion was attached to Northern Command.

440 joined on 16th November 1908
468 joined on 1st March 1909
618 joined on 23rd August 1910
633 joined on 23rd January 1911
704 joined on 18th March 1912
836 joined on 27th May 1913
882 joined on 2nd January 1914
1042 joined on 17th August 1914

Use the regimental numbers above to estimate when a man would have joined this battalion between 1908 and August 1914. For example, if your man had the number 800 and lived in Hull, he would probably have joined the battalion in 1913 and would have served with one of the Hull companies (A to D). 

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To search for photos of your East Yorkshire Regiment ancestors, check my British Army Ancestors website.

East Yorkshire Regiment - 1st and 2nd Battalions

There are over 35,000 East Yorkshire Regiment serviceand pension records (for this regiment - and its antecedents) in various War Office series held at the National Archives. Clicking on the link will take you to the results on Findmypast but you will need a subscription or Pay-Per-View credits to actually view the records. Some of these records can also be viewed on-line on Ancestry although Findmypast has by far the most comprehensive service record collection.

The East Yorkshire Regiment was formed from the 15th (the Yorkshire East Riding) Regiment of Foot. 

The newly formed regiment was established as the county regiment for East Riding and started numbering from 1 in 1881.

28 joined on 16th September 1881
187 joined on 22nd June 1882
400 joined on 17th January 1883
910 joined on 1st February 1884
1428 joined on 11th March 1885
1972 joined on 15th January 1886
2656 joined on 26th April 1887
2794 joined on 18th January 1888
2845 joined on 10th January 1889
3035 joined on 7th June 1890
3116 joined on 13th January 1891
3588 joined on 11th February 1892
4105 joined on 13th January 1893
4583 joined on 15th January 1894
4908 joined on 8th January 1895
5232 joined on 10th January 1896
5431 joined on 15th March 1897
5642 joined on 22nd January 1898
5978 joined on 6th January 1899
6344 joined on 17th April 1900

The East Yorkshire Regiment raised one volunteer service company during the South African War.  The 1st VSC was raised in early 1900, men being issued with numbers in the range 7000-7116. 7055, for example, was issued to a serving member of the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment on the 20th March 1900.

The company sailed for South Africa aboard SS Pembroke Castle on the 21st April 1900.

6645 joined on 5th March 1901
6846 joined on 20th January 1902
7236 joined on 2nd January 1903
7674 joined on 27th February 1904
8082 joined on 13th January 1905
8268 joined on 1st January 1906
8488 joined on 4th March 1907
8989 joined on 25th August 1908
9088 joined on 2nd February 1909
9425 joined on 14th March 1910
9685 joined on 29th August 1911
9803 joined on 22nd January 1912
10032 joined on 7th April 1913
10152 joined on 9th January 1914

The First World War

When Britain went to war in August 1914, men joining the new service battalions were issued with numbers from the same series being used by the two regular battalions.

Recruitment rates 1881-1911

Between 1st July 1881 and 13th January 1891, The East Yorkshire Regiment recruited 3,116 men, a below average rate of 325 men a year and one which placed the regiment in the forty-fourth position out of sixty-nine infantry recruiting regiments.

Recruitment in the 1890s improved somewhat and by March 1901, the regiment was issuing number 6645 to its latest recruit; an improved recruitment rate for the decade of 347 men on average per annum.

Between January 1901 and August 1911, the regiment added a further 3000 men to its ranks, an average of 292 men per year and the regiment’s worst recruiting period between 1881 and 1911. 

Image courtesy Wikipedia.

Further Reading

The East Yorkshire Regiment in the Great war 1914-1918
The Roll of Honour lists the officers alphabetically by ranks without indicating the battalion or date of death; the other ranks are shown by battalions and by ranks within each battalion. Honours and Awards are listed in three groups: British awards, Mentioned in Despatches and Foreign awards.

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Yorkshire Regiment 1881-1914 - 1st & 2nd Battalions

There are nearly 28,000 pre-First World War service and pension records, and over 8,000 Yorkshire Regiment service and pension records covering the First World War which have been digitised and published online.  Clicking on the links above will take you to the results on Findmypast but you will need a subscription or Pay-Per-View credits to actually view the records. Some of these records can also be viewed on-line on Ancestry although Findmypast has by far the most comprehensive service record collection.

This post will look at numbering in the two regular battalions of the Yorkshire Regiment (the 1st and 2nd battalions) between 1881 and 1914. Service number information comes primarily from WO 97 and from WO 363 and WO 364. Battalion locations are taken from the now sadly defunct www.regiments.org.

The Princess of Wales’s Own (Yorkshire Regiment) was formed from the 19th (The 1st Yorkshire North Riding – Princess of Wales’s Own) Regiment of Foot. The naming for the Princess Alexandra, Princess of Wales, had taken place in October 1875.

The newly formed regiment was established as the county regiment for the Yorkshire North Riding and started numbering from 1 in 1881.

22 joined on 20th July 1881
334 joined on 8th March 1882
776 joined on 5th October 1883
934 joined on 3rd March 1884
1333 joined on 3rd February 1885
1868 joined on 10th January 1886
2194 joined on 1st July 1887
2446 joined on 13th March 1888
2919 joined on 17th August 1889
3158 joined on 31st July 1890
3489 joined on 21st August 1891
3605 joined on 16th April 1892
4157 joined on 1st June 1893
4438 joined on 8th March 1894
4830 joined on 7th January 1895
5214 joined on 10th June 1896
5449 joined on 10th June 1897
5689 joined on 14th February 1898
5978 joined on 3rd January 1899
6260 joined on 17th January 1900

During the South African War, the Yorkshire Regiment raised two volunteer service companies and allocated numbers as follows:

1st VSC: numbers within the range 7235 to 7350
2nd VSC: numbers within the range 7353 to 7384

On 17th February 1900 the 1st VSC departed for South Africa aboard the SS Guelph. It comprised Captain Bell, lieutenant R W T Ewart, Lieutenant F C Houseman and 113 men. The 2nd VSC departed six days later. It departed aboard the SS Avondale Castle on the 23rd February 1900 with Captain T W Simpson, Lieutenant F Head, and 113 men.

6469 joined on 31st January 1901

In 1902 the regiment became Alexandra, Princess of Wales’s Own (Yorkshire Regiment). Numbering was unaffected by the name change.

6838 joined on 5th April 1902
7127 joined on 15th January 1903
7778 joined on 4th July 1904
8060 joined on 23rd February 1905
8355 joined on 28th May 1906
8648 joined on 1st January 1907
9242 joined on 5th May 1908
9375 joined on 30th November 1909
9423 joined on 21st March 1910
9701 joined on 30th June 1911
9973 joined on 22nd January 1912
10159 joined on 3rd April 1913
10421 joined on 22nd February 1914

The First World War
When Britain went to war in August 1914, men joining the new service battalions were issued with numbers from the same series in use by the two regular battalions.

Recruitment rates 1881 – 1911

The years 1881 to 1891 were the most effect recruiting years as far as the regiment was concerned. Between 1st July 1881 and 21st August 1891 The Princess of Wales’s Own recruited 3,489 men, a rate which saw the regiment fall within the top fifty per cent of infantry recruiting regiments for the decade.

Between August 1891 and January 1901 however, the regiment recruited fewer than 3000 men and fell to forty-ninth position in the recruitment league stakes. It was the same story in the early 1900s. The regiment had recruited 316 men per annum in the 1890s and in the 1900s this fell slightly to 314. By September 1911, the regiment was issuing number 9821 to its latest recruit.

1st Battalion stations 1881-1914
1881 Halifax, Nova Scotia
1885 Malta
1885 Sudan
1888 Cyprus
1889 Portsmouth
1892 Jersey
1895 Curragh
1897 Dublin
1898 Gibraltar
1899 South Africa
1902 Sheffield
1904 Aldershot
1908 Egypt
1910 Sudan
1912 Sialkot
1914 Rawalpindi (remained in India throughout WW1)


2nd Battalion stations 1881-1914
1881 Belfast
1882 Curragh
1885 Buttevant
1886 Aldershot
1890 Bangalore
1892 Burma
1897 Rhaniket & Jullunder
1897 Tirah
1898 India
1899 Dagshai
1902 Cawnpore
1904 Bombay
1906 South Africa
1909 York
1911 Blackdown
1913 Guernsey
1914 France & Flanders (from September)

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

Further Reading

A History of the 19th Regiment
Covering the period from formation in 1688 until Khartoum in 1885.

Green Howards in the Great War

East Yorkshire Regiment - 4th Battalion

This post will look at numbering in the 4th (Territorial Force) Battalion of the East Yorkshire Regiment between 1908 and December 1914. Information on this post has been compiled as a result of trawling through service records in the WO 363 and WO 364 series at the National Archives. 

Prior to April 1908, the 4th East Yorkshire Regiment was the 1st Volunteer Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment and numbering in that battalion had reached the 7000s by March 1908. The newly formed 4th Battalion commenced a new number series from 1 in April 1908.

209 joined on 8th April 1908
804 joined on 10th May 1909
1072 joined on 4th April 1910
1210 joined on 23rd March 1911
1386 joined on 30th May 1912
1517 joined on 15th April 1913
1768 joined on 24th March 1914
2084 joined on 5th August 1914

A second, reserve battalion was formed in September 1914. The 4th Battalion now became the 1/4th Battalion whilst the reserve battalion became the 2/4th. The same series of numbers was used for both battalions and would continue to be used when a 3/4th Battalion was formed in June 1915.

2567 joined on 21st September 1914
2679 joined on 6th October 1914
2858 joined on 2nd November 1914
3181 joined on 2nd December 1914

The battalion originally consisted of eight companies. Headquarters and companies A to F were located at Londesborough Barracks, Hull. Companies G and H recruited from East Hull. In August 1914 the battalion formed part of the York and Durham Light Infantry Brigade with the Northumbrian Division.

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