Royal Dublin Fusiliers - Other Rank PoWs 1914

There are 388 men on this list of men from the Royal Dublin Fusiliers who were captured by the Germans on or before Christmas Day 1914. I have transcribed this data from the following Imperial War Museum collection:
B.O.2 1/60: an 11-page listing of Royal Dublin Fusiliers taken PoW before 25th December 1914.  List submitted to Sir Ernest Goodhart on the 6th January 1919.

My full transcription of these men (not reproduced here) also contains the home address and/or next of kin address and date of capture of all of the men. 

The full transcription is available for sale for £25. Contact me if you would like to purchase a copy.

For more information about these so-called 'Princess Mary tin PoWs' see my 1914 PoWs page. The majority of these men will also have records published by the International Committee of the Red Cross. Searching is free; finding your man is another matter entirely.

I research soldiers! 

Contact me if you need help.

9512 Private C Alcock, 5844 Private R Andrew.

8958 Private P Babester, 8548 Private J Baird, 9467 Private M Baker, 11538 Private J Balance, 5655 Bandsman W Bardsell, 8811 Private T Behan, 7819 Private J Bell, 9033 Private J Bergin, 8807 Private W Bergin, 9084 Private C Berkley, 10423 Private P Berry, 10059 Private J Bogue, 11649 Private J Bollard, 5939 Private J Boulton, 9189 Private M Bowden, 10419 Sergeant J Bradley, 10540 Private W Bradshaw, 11443 Private M Brady, 11328 Private R Brayne, 9374 Private J Brennan, 7999 Private J Brennan, 8810 Private P Brennan, 11457 Private J Brien, 11287 Private J Brien, 11125 Private P Brindley, 10486 Corporal H Brown, 9118 Private M Bryan, 11498 Private P Bryan, 11546 Private J Buckley, 11438 Private H Burke, 7502 Private G Burns, 11472 Private J Byrne, 9480 Private J Byrne, 8292 Private L Byrne, 8516 Private M Byrne, 8802 Private M Byrne, 8883 Sergeant T Byrne, 11332 Private W Byrne.

8797 Private J Callaghan, 11412 Lance-Corporal J Campbell, 10083 Private R Cann, 11348 Sergeant F Carolan, 10643 Corporal S Carr, 9483 Private J Carroll, 10618 Private L Carroll, 11537 Private M Carroll, 9001 Private P Carty, 11643 Private M Casey, 7923 Private W Casey, 8664 Private T Cassin, 6731 Private J Cathcart, 11523 Private M Caulfield, 11316 Private A Chestnutt, 9309 Private J Clare, 11266 Private P Cleary, 8574 Private B Clinton, 7933 Private P Clinton, 8640 Private T Clitheroe, 9212 Private J Coad, 9292 Private J Colelough, 11166 Private W Colelough, 9624 Private J Collins, 8830 Private J Collins, 11613 Private T Collins, 10865 Private M Condron, 11491 Corporal J Connolly, 11611 Private J Connolly, 10223 Private T Connolly, 11505 Private T Connolly, 9606 Private J Conroy, 9120 Private P Convey, 11377 Lance-Corporal D Conway, 9567 Private E Cooper, 9817 Private W Copley, 9394 Bandsman Charles Cosgrove, 11477 Private H Costello, 9858 Private P Costello, 8900 Private P Couch, 8923 Private P Crampton, 8795 Private D Creedon, 9933 Private D Crimin, 8929 Private A Crossley, 11555 Private J Crowe, 9724 Private P Cunnigham, 11176 Private H Cunningham, 10552 Private H Curran, 11324 Private J Curry, 8544 Private J Cusack.

10734 Private P Dalton, 9003 Private J Daniels, 10184 Lance-Corporal C Darcy, 9518 Private G Davis, 8993 Private J Day, 8566 Private R Day, 8910 Private J Deane, 10803 Private P Delaney, 11303 Private G Desmond, 11296 Private M Devlin, 9635 Private W Devlin, 11599 Private J Dillon, 7706 Private P Doherty, 9816 Private J Dolan, 7330 Private J Donoghoe, 7576 Private N Donoghue, 9744 Private T Donoghue, 8738 Private P Donohue, 11282 Private T Donohue, 9452 Private W Doolin, 8630 Private J Doran, 11434 Private E Dorey, 6203 Private C Dowling, 9319 Private J Dowling, 7623 Private L Downey, 6683 Private F Doyle, 8965 Lance-Corporal J Doyle, 10317 Corporal J Doyle, 11662 Private J Doyle, 7528 Private J Doyle, 8876 Private M Doyle, 8888 Private W Dudley, 8953 Private M Duggan, 11420 Private T Duggan, 9552 Private J Dunne.

11619 Private J Egan, 9691 Private W Egan, 11364 Private T English, 11564 Pte Thomas English, 11487 Private B Ennis.

11311 Private E Farrell, 11270 Private P Fennelly, 8963 Private L Findlon, 9114 Private L Fitzpatrick, 9393 Private M Fitzpatrick, 11586 Private J Flood, 9805 Private J Foley, 8940 Private W Foley, 11299 Lance-Sergeant G Forster, 11433 Private J Foy, 9320 Private W Fry.

9400 Private L Gaffney, 10355 Drummer W Gamble, 4508 Private P Garry, 10465 Private H Gelshon, 7636 Private M Geoghegan, 7955 Private T Geoghegan, 10116 Private H Gibson, 9411 Private T Gillearan, 8879 Private G Glynn, 9311 Private J Graham, 9704 Private J Grahen, 7928 Private W Green, 11529 Private E Greene, 7007 Private J Griffin, 10343 Private J Griffin, 6351 Private A Gros, 11055 Private R Groves.

10426 Private S Hall, 11259 Private J Hanlon, 10521 Private T Hardy, 11292 Private G Harman, 8646 Private T Hart, 9259 Private P Harvey, 11289 Private P Hassin, 9437 Lance-Corporal F Hatfield, 11137 Private G Hatfield, 8961 Private R Hawe, 9270 Private J Hayden, 9935 Private W Hearne, 11620 Private J Heelihan, 7150 Private W Heffernan, 7497 Private P Hennessy, 9198 Private w Hennessy, 8984 Private C Hickey, 9602 Private T Higgins, 7628 Private W Higgins, 11081 Private F Hilton, 6680 Sergeant E Hoey, 9129 Private B Hogan, 9098 Private J Holden, 11271 Private W Holligan, 9629 Private P Holloran, 7964 Private J Hoystead, 11390 Private J Hughes, 9670 Private J Hunt, 9146 Private J Hynes, 9562 Private R Hynes.

10943 Private G Ives, 10158 Private M Ivory.

10258 Private S Jackson, 7201 Private W James, 11543 Private R Jenkinson, 11110 Private J Jennette, 8718 Private J Jennings, 11100 Sergeant J Jones, 11185 Private H Judge

11482 Private H Kain, 9224 Private C Kane, 10040 Private C Kavanagah, 6413 Private P Kavanagh, 7629 Private D Keegan, 11588 Private E Keegan, 7943 Private T Keegan, 11365 Private F Keeling, 10559 Sergeant H Keeling, 10649 Sergeant P Kehoe, 8703 Private T Kelleher, 9324 Private J Kelly, 9348 Private P Kelly, 5971 Private S Kelly, 9587 Private T Kelly, 9021 Private W Kelly, 8925 Private C Kennedy, 10240 Private P Kennedy, 11614 Private E Keogh, 10662 Private J Keogh, 11485 Private J Keogh, 8580 Private R King, 10752 Corporal E Kitchen

11659 Private M Lambe, 10509 Private T Lambert, 10036 Private W Leary, 8932 Private J Leonard, 7575 Private J Levey, 6396 Private A Loftus, 8565 Private P Lynch, 11566 Private S Lyttle

5869 Private T Mackey, 9206 Private M Maher, 11531 Private J Mahon, 11594 Private J Mahon, 11315 Private P Mahon, 8716 Private D Mahoney, 9623 Private J Mahony, 7615 Lance-Corporal J Martin, 11302 Private M Martin, 8816 Private W Martin, 10047 Private W Martin, 10663 Drummer J Masterson, 10505 Sergeant J Mathews, 8962 Private J McAsey, 10182 Corporal J McCabe, 7990 Private P McCabe, 7991 Private J McCann, 10981 Private J McCann, 11501 Private P McCann, 11427 Private P McCarthy, 11462 Private T McCarthy, 7947 Private F McCord, 9069 Private E McCormack, 7703 Private J McCue, 11385 Private J McDonagh, 11665 Private C McDonald, 11476 Private J McDonald, 9197 Private T McDonald, 9094 Private J McDonnell, 11223 Private J McDonnell, 8543 Private C McNamara, 7961 Private W McVeigh, 9616 Private J Meade, 10279 Private P Meaney, 9538 Private F Mitten, 7666 CQMS W Molloy, 11402 Private B Moore, 9141 Private J Moran, 11580 Private P Moran, 11720 Private P Morland, 8744 Private P Morrissey, 9231 Private P Mullady, 7650 Private R Mullen, 7898 Private H Murphy, 11526 Private J Murphy, 10183 Private L Murphy, 6733 Private M Murphy, 8661 Private P Murphy, 9128 Private J Murray, 7984 Private J Murray, 10106 Private J Murray.

7521 Private T Nelson, 10868 Sergeant R Nix, 11527 Private M Nolan, 8639 Private S Nolan, 9429 Private T Nolan, 11242 Private W Noonan, 7396 Private J Noone, 11606 Private J Noone, 9008 Private R Norris.

8735 Private P O'Brien, 11608 Private J O'Connor, 8827 Lance-Corporal W O'Connor, 11288 Private T O'Glesby, 11532 Private T O'Leary, 11234 Private C O'Loughlin, 11460 Private D O'Neill, 9035 Private H O'Neill, 11340 Private J O'Neill, 11285 Private P O'Neill, 11488 Corporal W O'Neill, 11237 Corporal W O'Neill, 11194 Private J O'Reilly, 9803 Private T O'Reilly, 5128 Corporal P O'Rourke, 10508 Private J O'Sullivan, 10009 Private J Oxberry.

16333 Private J Park, 7303 Private C Partridge, 10479 Private A Peake, 9194 Private P Pender, 11394 Corporal B Phelan, 8990 Private P Phillips, 9337 Private R Pielow, 11444 Private J Prendergast, 11560 Private M Prendergast, 8999 Private A Proctor, 11114 Private H Pugh.

9238 Private T Quail, 8761 Private M Quigley, 9108 Private J Quinlan, 11138 Corporal P Quinn.

8806 Private P Rafferty, 8875 Private J Redmond, 8713 Private C Reid, 11349 Private G Reilly, 5012 Private J Reilly, 10675 Private C Repley, 10016 Private P Rice, 5945 Lance-Corporal T Rice, 9183 Private M Roberts, 11378 Private R Rodgers, 11459 Private T Ronan, 8708 Private P Rooney, 9010 Private D Ryan, 9046 Private P Ryan, 11264 Private T Ryan, 9779 Private J Ryder.

7956 Sergeant G Sexton, 9783 Private M Shannon, 11454 Private R Sheeran, 8885 Corporal G Shepherd, 11338 Private J Sheridan, 6776 Private J Shine, 9517 Private W Short, 10679 Corporal F Smith, 8719 Private J Smith, 9366 Private T Smyth, 7895 Private J Stacey, 11470 Private F Stafford, 11573 Private E Stewart, 11511 Private W Stone, 10453 Corporal F Street, 9413 Private D Sullivan, 10891 Private W Sullivan, 9048 Private T Summer.

8826 Private P Taffe, 9152 Private T Taffe, 11304 Private T Talbot, 11245 Private M Tallon, 10277 Lance-Corporal J Thomas, 9610 Private P Tougher, 9417 Private P Tracey, 11164 Private T Tracey, 10826 Private M Traynor, 8926 Private M Tuite, 9404 Private E Tumey

11417 Private E Vaughan, 8829 Private E Vesey

9316 Private E Wade, 10791 Private G Walker, 11178 Private J Wall, 10134 Private F Walsh, 11195 Private J Walsh, 9614 Private L Walsh, 7667 Private W Walsh, 11507 Private P Walshe, 10984 Corporal B Watters, 7890 Private M Webster, 9345 Private J Weir, 8853 Private A Westwood, 16754 Private J Whelan, 10239 Private M Whelan, 5961 CSM C Williams, 11065 Private H Williams, 9471 Private W Willoughby, 6713 Private J Wilson, 11350 Private T Wilson, 10523 Sergeant E Winter, 9900 Corporal V Wright.

Irish regiments - enlistment registers 1920-1922

The National Army Museum has published the enlistment records of nearly 12,000 men who joined Irish regiments between 1920 and 1922. This from the NAM website:

"The Connaught Rangers, the Leinster Regiment, the Royal Dublin Fusiliers, the Royal Irish Regiment and the Royal Munster Fusiliers were units of the British Army, which were disbanded following the establishment of the independent Irish Free State in 1922. The enlistment books contain records of soldiers serving in these regiments in the period 1920-22."

To search the Irish Soldiers' Records, follow the link. Helpfully, the search box allows you to search on any indexed field, which means you can search on the man's home address, for instance, as well as his name or regimental number. Many of the men have prior service recorded but unfortunately this information has not been indexed. Now there's a potential project for someone...

Leinster Regiment Image taken from the NAM website.

11th Royal Dublin Fusiliers - Part II Orders 29th May 1917

Regimental Part II Orders are real gems; the sadness is that so few survive. I think I read somewhere that these were mostly destroyed during the same bombing of London's Docklands in September 1940 which also destroyed 60 per cent of the other rank service records. Some regiments may have copies still, but most do not.

Findmypast has the most comprehensive collection of British Army service records online, and their thoughtful indexing of lists of men found amongst papers in WO 363 has turned up some very useful documents.

The extract below is a transcription of 11th Durham Light Infantry men who proceeded overseas to France on the 28th May 1917 (see the image above which Crown Copyright, The National Archives). I thought I'd manipulate the data and place it in regimental number order to determine when the men had joined up. First though, here are the 86 men:

13538 Sgt Martin,  B Company
18256 Pte Scullion B Company 
20082 Pte Pannell B Company 
23961 Pte McDermot C Company 
24926 Pte Jones C Company 
24942 Pte Ashenhurst B Company 
25096 Pte Jackson A Company 
25102 Pte Reardon C Company 
25368 Pte Chandler B Company 
25434 Pte Ashenhurst C Company 
25611 Pte Ahern A Company 
25637 Pte Douglas B Company 
25962 Pte Hegarty A Company 
26043 Pte Cronin C Company 
26090 Pte Brown D Company 
26224 L/Cpl Conway D Company 
26297 Pte Scanlon B Company 
26354 Pte Kelly A Company 
26546 Pte Lalor A Company 
26596 Pte Jones B Company 
26772 Pte Holden C Company 
26973 Pte Wynne A Company 
26979 Pte Gough B Company 
26994 Pte Doyle D Company 
27023 Pte McDonagh B Company 
27370 Pte Kennedy B Company 
27385 Pte Lynch B Company 
27428 Pte Smalley A Company 
27452 L/Cpl Armstrong D Company 
27640 Pte De Lacy B Company 
27680 Pte Ennis A Company 
27729 Pte Doyle D Company 
27957 Pte Devine C Company 
28269 Pte Lyons A Company 
28270 Pte Murphy A Company 
28406 Pte Kelly C Company 
28407 Pte Byrne B Company 
28607 Pte Douch A Company 
28652 Pte Quinn B Company 
28655 Pte Burke A Company 
28673 Pte Cosgrove A Company 
28683 Pte Hernon A Company 
28684 Pte Cahill B Company 
28716 Pte Devine B Company 
28731 Pte Harte B Company 
28732 Pte Kearns B Company 
28733 Pte Tattersall C Company 
28734 Pte O'Hanlon C Company 
28738 Pte McDonald B Company 
28747 Pte Duff B Company 
28954 Pte Robinson A Company 
28965 Pte Rowe A Company 
28969 Pte Hunt B Company 
28971 Pte Byrne B Company 
29042 Pte Overend C Company 
29043 Pte Smith C Company 
29055 Pte Keatinge D Company 
29058 Pte Duff B Company 
29063 Pte Ryan C Company 
29075 Pte Connolly A Company 
29081 Pte McManus B Company 
29131 Pte McGovern B Company 
29133 Pte Buckley B Company 
29211 Pte Murphy A Company 
29215 Pte Osborne C Company 
29216 Pte Gillor B Company 
29220 Pte Cowell C Company 
29223 Pte Hughes B Company 
29243 Pte Oldfield C Company 
29245 Pte Metcalfe B Company 
29247 Pte Walmsley C Company 
29251 Pte Cullen B Company 
29252 Pte Willan C Company 
29270 Pte Byrne B Company 
29278 Pte Smith D Company 
29289 Pte Skinner D Company 
29291 Pte McDonough A Company 
29293 Pte Dean B Company 
29333 Pte Davidson A Company 
29335 Pte Flint A Company 
29717 Pte Gargan B Company 
29765 Pte McFarlane D Company 
29830 Pte Hepburn D Company 
29831 Pte Fay D Company 
29917 Pte Heffron D Company 
29939 Pte Lightbound B Company

Sergeant Martin is the longest-serving and most senior of the men here. His regimental number tells me that he joined up around the 8th September 1914, but he was certainly not overseas any earlier than 1st January 1916 and it is possible that this posting in May 1917 was his first time abroad.  He later served with the Labour Corps.

The rest of the men have numbers in the range 20082 to 29939. 20082 dates to around the 21st September 1914 whilst 29939 would have been issued over two years later in October 1916. For many of the men listed here, this scrap of information is now all that survives of their service records although First World War medal index cards and campaign medal rolls 1914-1920 have been publsihed online.

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Enlistment and Service in Queen Victoria's army

I want to use this post to talk a little about the enlistment and training process in the late Victorian British Army. I cover this in some of my military history talks and I think it’s useful in helping to understand the typical Victorian infantryman’s career path. I’m going to use some real examples in what follows, and for the purpose of this essay I’m going to assume an enlistment term of seven years with the colours and five on the reserve. The story begins with the man’s attestation, that is, his contract to serve with the British Army for a given period of time. This attestation could take place at regimental depots or it could take place during recruiting drives. This from, The Army Book for the British Empire, published in 1893:

“The enlistment of recruits is as free and as voluntary as possible. In large towns a house or room is hired, so that men desirous of enlisting can go there and obtain from the recruiters, pamphlets and leaflets giving authentic information as to the terms and conditions of service in all the branches of the army, without having to be seen talking with a recruiter in the street or in a public house… Recruiters are forbidden by statute to enlist men under the influence of drink, nor are they permitted to take recruits into public houses to entice them to drink.

“Certain corps being more difficult to provide with recruits than either the cavalry or infantry of the line, by reason of a special standard of physique or of technical qualifications, recruiting sergeants and others are instructed to adopt a regular sequence, so long as these special corps stand in need of men, in recommending corps etc to intending recruits, viz:

a) The Foot Guards, Royal Artillery, and Royal Engineers
b) The territorial regiment of the district
c) The regiments for which special exertions are required to obtain recruits
d) Any corps for which the regimental district is allowed to recruit, as notified from time to time
e) General Service Cavalry, and General Service Infantry ”

It was not uncommon for infantry regiments to recruit whilst they were en route from one station to another and I have highlighted, in another post on Border Regiment recruitment, just how many men were recruited into that regiment in 1906 from outside the regimental district. Having attested, the new recruit was told to report to the regimental depot where he was issued with his regimental number. He would then train at the depot for up to three months before being posted to the home battalion.

The regimental depot was the administrative heart of the regiment and comprised a small permanent strength of around four officers and 60 men who had been drawn from the two (in most cases) regular battalions. There were also around 28 NCOs and men who formed the permanent staff of each militia battalion (which also had its home at the regimental depot) as well as admin staff, Army Medical Corps and Army Service Corps to carry out duties connected with the regimental district.

It was at the regimental depot where the man was knocked into shape. The Army Book for the British Empire has this to say about the regimental depot:

“The chief work of the depot in peace time is to enlist recruits for the regiment to both the regular and militia battalions, and to enter them for training and discipline as soldiers. “many a high-spirited lad will resent being ordered about in military fashion when he first joins… it is therefore most desirable that the officers and non-commissioned officers who are to be their first instructors… will set them a good example, give them sound advice [and] cheerfully assist them in the work they are called upon to perform in the barrack-rooms…”

The italics are mine. Rudyard Kipling, in "The 'Eathen", written in 1895, had another version of events:

The young recruit is 'aughty - 'e draf's from Gawd knows where;
They bid 'im show 'is stockin's an' lay 'is mattress square;
‘E calls it bloomin' nonsense - 'e doesn't know no more -
An' then up comes 'is Company an kicks 'im round the floor.

The young recruit is 'ammered - 'e takes it very hard;
'E 'angs 'is 'ead an' mutters - 'e sulks about the yard;
'E talks o' "cruel tyrants" which 'e'll swing for by-an-by,
An 'the others 'ears an' mocks 'im, an' the boy goes orf to cry.

The young recruit is silly - 'e thinks o' suicide.
‘Es lost 'is gutter-devil; 'e 'asn't got 'is pride;
But day by day they kicks 'im, which 'elps 'im on a bit,
Till 'e finds 'isself one mornin' with a full an' proper kit .

I suspect that Kipling is probably closer to the mark.

The majority of British infantry of the line regiments had two battalions, one serving at home and one serving overseas. When the new recruit had successfully gone through his paces at the regimental of depot, he was posted to the home battalion. These postings happened eight times a year and all men posted as part of a detachment were enrolled in the same company of the home battalion to continue their training. With eight companies per battalion, this system ensured that new recruits were evenly spread throughout the battalion and that each company could expect a fresh intake of new recruits each year.

Transfers from the regimental depot to the home battalion were supposed to take place on the following dates: 7th January, 21st February, 7th April, 21st May, 7th July, 21st August, 15th October and 21st November . What then followed at the home battalion was a further twelve weeks’ regulated training programme of 20 hours a week. For instance, the first two weeks comprised 10 hours of gymnastics with appliances, 10 hours of gymnastics without appliances, 16 hours of individual marching drill, turning and saluting, and four hours’ oral instruction. Weeks three and four comprised 10 hours of gymnastics with appliances, 10 hours of gymnastics without appliances, 14 hours drilling in sections in single file, two hours fitting on accoutrements for marching order and kit inspections, and four hours’ oral instruction; and so on.

The typical recruit would spend between 18 months and two years with the home battalion before being posted to the overseas’ battalion, this posting taking place annually. Remember too, that many recruits joined the army at eighteen years old and men were not to be sent overseas until they were at least 20 years old. The intensive training initiated men into army life and ensured that were both efficient soldiers and old enough to serve overseas.

In the image above, we can see that this man (5089 Michael Hooper of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers) attested on 8th June 1894 and joined his regiment at Naas the same day. He remained with the regimental depot for three and a half months before being posted to the home battalion, in this case the 1st Battalion which was stationed at Sheffield. He then served with the home battalion for 18 months before being posted to the 2nd Battalion in Quetta.

Hooper enlisted for seven years with the colours and five on the reserve, although this period of colour service could be extended to eight years if the man was “beyond the seas” and the reserve service reduced by a year to four years.

In actual fact he served for a total of eight years and four months with the colours before being transferred to the Army Reserve in October 1902.

The Army Reserve was essentially a pool of trained men who, having been schooled in all things military, swapped their khaki for civilian dress and went back to Civvy Street. Rudyard Kipling puts this into context nicely in Back to the Army Again, published in 1894, with his reservist fraudulently re-enlisting after having served, in this case, six years with the colours:

I done my six years' service. 'Er Majesty sez: "Good day -
You'll please to come when you're rung for, an' 'ere's your 'ole back-pay:
An' fourpence a day for baccy - an' bloomin' gen'rous, too;
An' now you can make your fortune - the same as your orf'cers do."

Back to the army again, sergeant,
Back to the Army again;
‘Ow did I learn to do right-about turn?
I’m back to the Army again!

A man o' four-an'-twenty that 'asn't learned of a trade -
Beside "Reserve" agin' him - 'e'd better be never made.
I tried my luck for a quarter, an' that was enough for me,
An' I thought of 'Er Majesty's barricks, an' I thought I'd go an' see.

The man would be “rung for” if “so required by a proclamation from Her Majesty in case of imminent national danger or great emergency ” but in the meantime his “’ole back-pay” was deferred pay on transferring to the reserve whilst the “fourpence a day for baccy” was the man’s “bloomin’ gen’rous” daily pay as a reservist.

Although fourpence a day was hardly a fortune, it was still supplementary to whatever the man was earning in civilian employment and many men choose to extend their period on the reserve by signing up for a further four years as a Section D Army Reservist. Michael Hooper did so and so did Old Sildiers Never Die author, Frank Richards. Richards was on Section D when Britain went to war in August 1914 and as a result, found himself in France shortly afterwards.

Michael Hooper though, was finally discharged on 7th June 1910 having served exactly sixteen years in the British Army. The first twelve years had been a combination of colour and reserve service, and the last four years had been as a Section D Reservist. This last period of reserve service could not be further extended and so Michael Hooper was discharged from the army.

During his entire period of army service he retained his original number, 5089 which did not change whilst he was ay the regimental depot and serving with the 1st Battalion and with the 2nd Battalion. Had he been recalled to the army when he was on the reserve he would have been recalled as 5089 Private Michael Hooper. His regimental number would not have been re-issued and when he was discharged, his number became redundant.

I have often wondered whether the Michael Hooper who would later join the Royal Dublin Fusiliers in October 1914 in response to Lord Kitchener’s call was the same man who had previously seen 16 years’ service with the same regiment in England, India and South Africa.

The image at the top of this post shows men of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers at the time Michael Hooper would have served with them. Extracts from Hooper's attestation papers in WO 97 are Crown Copyright, The National Archives. The medal index card image is courtesy of Ancestry.

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Postings - regular battalions

Earlier, I wrote:

"The regular battalions, that is, the battalions populated by career soldiers, operate a single regimental number sequence. A new recruit is given his number at the Regimental Depot, spends up to three months training at the Depot and is then posted to the 1st Battalion which is stationed in the UK. After 18 months to two years he is then posted to the 2nd Battalion which is serving overseas in India. His posting from the Depot to the 1st Battalion, and then from the 1st Battalion to the 2nd Battalion does not affect his regimental number which remains unchanged."

Here's an example of what I meant - and you'll find similar examples awash in WO 97, WO 363 and WO 364.

 

Michael Hooper joined the Royal Dublin Fusiliers on 8th Jun 1894 and was given the regimental number 5089.  He was posted to the Depot and remained there until posted to the Home Battalion (in this case, the 1st Battalion) on the 23rd August 1894. He remained with the 1st Battalion, which was then stationed in Sheffield, until the 10th February 1896 when he was posted to the overseas battalion, the 2nd Battalion.  This battalion would have been stationed in Quetta when Michael Hooper joined it and his service record notes that he remained with the 2nd Battalion until September 1902 when he was posted back to the regimental Depot. In the intervening years, Hooper would have seen service in Bombay, Natal and South Africa, the battalion moving back to Ireland in 1902 (and becoming the Home Battalion) whilst the 1st Battalion, already overseas in South Africa as a result of the Boer War, moved on to Crete and Malta and took up the role of the overseas battalion.

 

Michael Hooper was transferred to the Army Reserve in October 1902 and on completing this period of reserve service elected to join Section D Reserve for a further four years.  He was finally discharged from Section D Reserve  on the 7th June 1910.

 

At no point during his army career, did Michael Hooper's number change.  Why would it?  He joined as a regularsoldier and moved freely between the two battalions during his army career.  Whilst on the reserve, had he been recalled to the Colours, he would have retained his service number.  However, from the moment he was discharged in 1910, his number would also have been discarded.  Even if he walked around the block and decided to re-enlist, that number would not have been re-issued to him. 

 

The image from Michael Hooper's service record in WO 363 (above) is Crown Copyright and reproduced by courtesy of the National Archives.  Interestingly, the same papers (but beautifully preserved) exist in WO 97, so here's another version of the same document:

 



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Royal Dublin Fusiliers - 1st & 2nd Battalions

The Royal Dublin Fusiliers was born on 1st July 1881. The 1st Battalion was created out of the old 102nd Regiment of Foot (Royal Madras Fusiliers) and the 2nd Battalion was created out of the old 103rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Bombay Fusiliers).

The regiment was garrisoned at Naas and served the counties of Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow and Carlow in Ireland.

There are over 24,000 Royal Dublin Fusiliers service and 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.

Use the regimental numbers and dates on which these were issued, below, to determine parameters for when your own Royal Dublin Fusiliers ancestor would have joined up. Note though that these numbers are only for regular enlistments. Special Reserve and Extra Reserve battalions operated completely separate regimental number sequences.

Here then, is a snapshot of sample army service numbers and corresponding joining dates for the two regular battalions of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers from 1881 until June 1914.

92 joined on 3rd September 1881
763 joined on 10th April 1882
1240 joined on 24th June 1883
1632 joined on 18th April 1884
1968 joined on 19th March 1885
2367 joined on 11th May 1886
2537 joined on 25th February 1887
2821 joined on 9th January 1888
3178 joined on 4th January 1889
3644 joined on 22nd May 1890
3953 joined on 17th January 1891
4436 joined on 16th June 1892
4761 joined on 2nd March 1893
5137 joined on 12th July 1894
5331 joined on 3rd January 1895
5764 joined on 19th May 1896
6043 joined on 24th February 1897
6322 joined on 6th June 1898
6599 joined on 21st January 1899
7166 joined on 14th June 1900
7356 joined on 26th January 1901
7999 joined on 9th October 1902
8823 joined on 15th September 1903
8939 joined on 19th February 1904
9227 joined on 27th February 1905
9599 joined on 6th October 1906
9683 joined on 22nd January 1907
10318 joined on 4th December 1908
10476 joined on 5th May 1909
10889 joined on 16th August 1910
11019 joined on 1oth April 1911
11286 joined on 8th July 1912
11518 joined on 24th April 1913
11738 joined on 27th June 1914

Service records for all of the men noted above survive in the WO 363 and WO 364 pension series held at The National Archives in Kew, London. They can also be viewed on-line via the Ancestry website. CLICK HERE for a FREE 14 day trial.

When Britain declared war on Germany five and a half weeks later and the Royal Dublin Fusiliers formed new service battalions, they continued with the same numbering series that was in use for the regular 1st and 2nd Battalions.

See also, the website (and forum) of The Royal Dublin Fusiliers and The Royal Dublin Fusiliers Association.


CROWN AND COMPANY 1911-1922. 2nd Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers



From: The Naval & Military Press:

"The title tells the origins of the battalion. It was raised in India in 1661 by the Hon East india Company as four companies to provide the garrison for Bombay. In 1862 it was transferred to the Crown as the 103rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Bombay Fusiliers). In the Cardwell reforms of 1881 it became the 2nd Battalion of the newly formed Royal Dublin Fusiliers (RDF); the 1st Battalion of the new regiment had been the Royal Madras Fusiliers.

"This volume is concerned principally with the battalion’s service in the Great War during which it fought on the Western Front in 10th Brigade, 4th Division till the end of 1916 when it was transferred to 48th Brigade of 16th(Irish) Division.

"At the end of the war the battalion went to Constantinople and from there to India (Multan) where it was when the order came for the disbandment of the five Southern Irish infantry regiments. The last part gives a very full and often moving description of the disbandment of the battalion.

"269 officers and 4508 WOs, NCOs and men of the Regiment died during the war and an appendix lists the names of the officers showing which battalion they were serving in. There is a full list of Honours and Awards including Mentions in Despatches and foreign awards for the whole regiment. Another appendix lists the officers of the 1st and 2nd battalions serving at the time of disbandment and shows which regiments they transferred to or whether they retired. One appendix is a copy of the Regiment’s entry in Army List of July 1922, the last published before disbandment."



The image on this post is borrowed from The Second Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers in The South African War by Cecil Francis Romer and Arthur Edward Mainwaring and shows RDF sergeants photographed after the Battle of Colenso in December 1899. Click on the link to read the text at Project Gutenberg.


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