Royal West Kent Regiment - 5th Battalion

This post will look at regimental numbering in the 5th Battalion, Royal West Kent Regiment (TF) between 1908 and 1914. 

The 5th Battalion was formed on the 1st April 1908 and prior to this had been the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, the Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment). In 1908, as The Territorial Year Book for 1909 records, the battalion strength comprised 23 officers and 619 men. 200 men attended camp in 1908 for 8 days and 392 attended for 15 days. 

The following year, The Territorial Year Book for 1910 recorded that the strength of the battalion in 1909 stood at 21 officers and 710 men. At the annual camp at Dover that year, 140 officers and men attended for eight days whilst 551 officers and men attended for 15 days. Best shots in the battalion were Lt E Mannington (for the officers) and Pte B E Tyrrell on behalf of the NCOs and men. This is almost certainly 645 Pte B Tyrrell who would later serve during the First World War. 

The battalion was headquartered at Bromley and recruited in the following parts of the county: 

A Company: Bromley 
B Company: Bromley 
C Company: Dartford 
D Company: Beckenham 
E Company: Sidcup, with a drill station at Dartford 
F Company: Chatham, with a drill station at Cliffe-at-Hoo 
G Company: Ditto 
H Company: Swanley 

The above information about company distribution is particularly useful if your ancestor enlisted with the 5th Royal West Kent Regiment prior to August 1914. For argument's sake, if he lived in Swanley he would have been most likely to have joined H Company; if he was in the immediate vicinity of Beckenham, D Company would have been the most likely company he served with. 

Here are some sample regimental numbers and joining dates for the the 5th Royal West Kent Regiment. 

10 joined from the 2nd Volunteer Force Battalion on the 2nd April 1908 
226 joined on the 22nd March 1909 
1115 joined on the 21st September 1910 
1138 joined on the 13th January 1911 
1270 joined on the 24th February 1912 
1602 joined on the 7th April 1913 
1836 joined on the 4th May 1914 
1897 joined on the 8th August 1914 

Use the regimental numbers above to estimate when a man would have joined this battalion between 1908 and August 1914. For example 645 Pte B Tyrrell would have joined the regiment between March 1909 and September 1910 and in his case, he was winning prizes for shooting well before then. 

Remember. I research soldiers!

Drop me a line 

To search for photos of your Royal West Kent Regiment ancestors, check my British Army Ancestors website.

Royal West Kent Regiment - 4th Battalion

This post will look at regimental numbering in the 4th Battalion, Royal West Kent Regiment (TF) between 1908 and 1914.

The 4th Battalion was formed on the 1st April 1908 and prior to this had been the 1st Volunteer Battalion, the Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment). In 1907, prior to the advent of the Territorial Force, the 1st Volunteer Battalion had a strength of 869 out of an establishment of 1,280. The following year, in 1908, as The Territorial Year Book for 1909 records, the battalion strength comprised 18 officers and 508 men. 179 men attended camp at Walmer in 1908 for 8 days and 250 attended for 15 days.

The following year, The Territorial Year Book for 1910 recorded that the strength of the battalion in 1909 stood at 22 officers and 766 men. At the annual camp at Dover that year, 305 officers and men attended for eight days whilst 388 officers and men attended for 15 days. Camp in 1910 was scheduled to take place from the 23rd July at Dover.

By August 1914 the battalion was headquartered at Tonbridge, and recruiting in the following parts of the county:  

A Company: Maidstone
B Company: Maidstone, with a drill station at West Malling
C Company: Tonbridge, with a drill station at Hadlow
D Company: Tunbridge Wells
E Company: Tunbridge Wells
F Company: Orpington
G Company: Sevenoaks
H Company: Westerham, with drill stations at Edenbridge

The above information about company distribution is particularly useful if your ancestor enlisted with the 4th Royal West Kent Regiment prior to August 1914. For argument's sake, if he lived in Orpington he would have been most likely to have joined F Company; if he was in the immediate vicinity of Sevenoaks, G Company would have been the most likely company he served with.

Here are some sample regimental numbers and joining dates for the the 4th Royal West Kent Regiment.

61 joined from the 1st Volunteer Force Battalion on the 6th April 1908
549 joined on the 4th February 1909

974 joined on the 21st March 1910
1174 joined on the 2nd May 1911
1293 joined on the 1st April 1912
1461 joined on the 26th February 1913
1720 joined on the 21st May 1914
1981 joined on the 14th 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's number was 1000 and he lived in Westerham, he would have joined the battalion some time after 21st March 1910 but before May 1911. Furthermore, he probably served with H Company.

Remember. I research soldiers!

Drop me a line 

To search for photos of your Royal West Kent Regiment ancestors, check my British Army Ancestors website.

Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment - PoW Other Ranks 1914

The roll-call below is of men who were serving with Royal West Kent Regiment when they became prisoners of war of the Germans on or before Christmas Day 1914. There are 158 names in this list; significantly fewer losses sustained by some other regiments but still representing a serious loss of trained soldiers. They were all men that that British Army could ill-afford to lose. You can read more about this Prisoner of War data source on my 1914 PoWs page.

This data has been transcribed from a single source held at the Imperial War Museum:

B.O.2 1/132 is 4-page, typed list sent by No 2 Infantry Record Office, Staines Road, Hounslow, dated 14th January 1919  

My full transcription of this Royal West Kent Regiment Prisoners of War roll call of other ranks (not reproduced here) also contains the men's home addresses.

I have transcribed the records as they were written at the time. Note that the majority of the numbers should correctly have been prefixed with the letter L/ indicating regular enlistment. The one obvious exception is John Bailey whose three-digit number, 522, stood out like a sore thumb. On checking, I realised that his correct number was S/522, indicating that he was a member of the Special Reserve.

As far as the other men are concerned, the longest serving man here is L/4493 William Cridland whose number dates to November 1895. The newest recruit is 10243 Private F C Thomas whose regimental number indicates that he joined eighteen years later than William Cridland, in November 1913. I shall be pleased to receive for publication on this post, any other additional information or photographs of any of these men.

The full transcription of this roll is available for sale as a download or CD for £20. Contact me if you would like to purchase a copy.

7953 Private J Allen
10079 Private J Allen
9748 Private J T Arnold
10002 Private J Ashton
5819 Private A J Bailey
L/9480 Private James Mackie Bain (does not appear on the Princess Mary tin list but was a 1914 Pow).
10031 Private E Baker
6132 Private H Baldwin
S/522 Private John Baldwin
7780 Private A R Bashford
8779 Lance-Corporal D Beeshahan
8064 Lance-Corporal H C Bellfield
7752 Private T Bishop
8050 Private P Bramble
10021 Private W Bridger
5733 Private G Bristow
9305 Private T Brockwell
10066 Lance-Corporal E W Brown
9654 Private F H Bull
5918 Private H Bullard
8030 Private W Carden
6098 Corporal H Chapman
9815 Private W Christie
8069 Private H Clark
9144 Private A P Clarke
8760 Bandsman H J Claxton
5540 Private W A Cole
10012 Private A A E Collins
6651 Private B Cook
9899 Private H Cooksay
8076 Private E Cousins
8282 Private H Coveney
6801 Private J Cox
6309 Private H Coxhead
4493 Private W Cridland
10056 Private J J Curtis
6571 Private J H Dinsdale
7350 Private J W Dodd
9770 Private C Donald
7661 Corporal H Donaldson
6806 Private J Donovan
7688 Private T L Dow
9752 Private W C Dyke
7855 Private G J Ely
7287 Private A Etherington
7712 Lance-Corporal H Farbridge
6724 Sergeant W T Fermer
10090 Lance-Corporal A E Field
9379 Private H Fife
10150 Private R Fitzgerald
8006 Private H Fletcher
5879 Private J T Foster
8254 Private A Friend
8173 Private J Goldsmith
6729 Private J Grady
7873 Private A W Graham
6799 Private F Haigh
8371 Private W H Hall
8986 Private J Handyside
5824 Private C Harden
7945 Private W Harris
8116 Private J W Harrison
9811 Lance-Corporal W F C Harrison
7639 Private J Hart
7899 Private W G Hay
9888 Private J F Hemmings
7962 Private A Higgins
9546 Private H Hilton
7353 Private G Homewood
7275 Private M Hopkins
7383 Private T E Hunt
8024 Colour-Sergeant A H Hutchings
10017 Private T Jackson
10016 Private J Jobson
6686 Private G Johnson
9859 Private G Johnson
9723 Private J Jupp
9674 Private T Kensett
8931 Private H Kent
8965 Private H Woods
9755 Private F A King
8742 Lance-Corporal W Kitchen
7542 Private W Langridge
6499 Private W Little
9956 Private W G Long
9065 Private W Longhurst
7139 Private C G Lovell
8150 Private W Ludlow
7784 Private R D Mantell
10019 Private W Marchant
7272 Private F J Marshal
9122 Private J McCarthy
9483 Private F W Mercer
6684 Private W J Miles
8367 Private A F Moody
4690 Private F Morris
6757 Private T Murphy
8434 Private W Needham
9563 Private J W Newland
5548 Private J W Organ
7285 Private J Packham
7136 Private H Pass
6186 Private P E Pay
8003 Private J T Pearson
10054 Corporal E J Peill
5562 Private A Perkins
7268 Private F Pike
5698 Private H F Pope
6074 Lance-Corporal A J Price
7490 Private A R Price
7189 Private F Pryer
10059 Private J V Pryer
7964 Private T Pryer
8730 Private H F Quinn
8468 Private W H Rigby
6658 Private W Riley
7486 Private T Ritfield
7697 Private J V Rowe
9932 Private E Russell
6388 Private G T Samuels
7887 Private A Savage
9767 Private E G Scott
9724 Driver R W Seager
8312 Sergeant R Sewell
8107 Lance-Corporal A Sheppard
6688 Private W Sipthorpe
5397 Private A Smith
10205 Private E Smith
9695 Lance-Corporal H G Smith
7384 Private J J Spicer
9920 Private C Spreadborough
10215 Private T E Standen
8638 Private W Standen
8848 Sergeant J H Sterry
7907 Private G W Stewart
8664 Corporal F J Strong
7295 Private J Sullivan
9649 Private R Sweet
10243 Private F C Thomas
9734 Private G T Thomas
10046 Private A Thompson
10224 Private C A Tong
10055 Private A W Towns
10013 Private W Trice
7460 Private A Tucker
6489 Sergeant E W Turmer
7481 Private J Tyler
7352 Private A Waghorne
7795 Private H Wallace
9999 Private F J Wallis
5680 Private C Warner
10113 Private G J Webb
9463 Private H Wells
5830 Private J Westlake
8238 Private J S Whitehead
8773 Private J T Wilkins
5092 Private H G Williams
9739 Private J Woolhead
8160 Private J J Worsell

For help with your own regimental numbering or military research conundrums, check out my military research service.

Royal West Kent Regiment - 1st & 2nd Battalions

This post will look at army service numbers issued to men joining the regular battalions - the 1st and 2nd Battalions - of the Royal West Kent Regiment between 1881 and 1917.

The regiment was formed in July 1881 from the 50th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Foot and the 97th (Earl of Ulster's) Regiment of Foot.

I've compiled the list below as a result of looking at service records in the WO 363 and WO 364 series and as usual this is a snapshot of Royal West Kent Regiment army numbers - one per year from 1881 until 1913 - from a far larger database. Service and pension records for all of the numbers listed below are held at the National Archives on microfilm and are also available on-line through a FREE 14 day trial via the Ancestry.co.uk website.

In fact, there are over 43,000 Royal West Kent Regiment pension and service 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 West Kent Regiment ancestor would have joined up. Note though that these numbers are only for regular enlistments. Special Reserve and Territorial Force battalions operated completely separate regimental number sequences.

The L/ prefix was used inconsistently for regular enlistments and I've omitted it - on those numbers where it appeared - in the list below.

61 joined on 5th September 1881
328 joined on 25th January 1882
627 joined on 22nd January 1883
848 joined on 25th January 1884
1122 joined on 29th April 1885
1410 joined on 20th February 1886
1893 joined on 5th May 1887
2310 joined on 28th February 1888
2456 joined on 15th January 1889
2751 joined on 11th March 1890
2909 joined on 2nd January 1891
3246 joined on 5th February 1892
3697 joined on 6th January 1893
4077 joined on 8th January 1894
4228 joined on 11th January 1895
4683 joined on 3rd February 1896
4859 joined on 13th February 1897
5105 joined on 12th January 1898
5483 joined on 18th April 1899
5819 joined on 24th February 1900
6211 joined on 25th June 1901
6485 joined on 9th April 1902
6586 joined on 19th August 1903
7509 joined on 27th January 1904
8009 joined on 14th January 1905
8228 joined on 3rd January 1906
8689 joined on 15th July 1907
8897 joined on 27th January 1908
9240 joined on 11th January 1909
9368 joined on 3rd February 1910
9523 joined on 9th January 1911
9790 joined on 17th January 1912
10031 joined on 1st January 1913
10398 joined on 2nd July 1914

When Britain went to war with Germany a month later, the Royal West Kent Regiment started a new number series for men joining the service battalions for war-time service only. In common with some other regiments like the Buffs (East Kent Regiment) the Middlesex Regiment and The Royal Sussex Regiment, it continued with the series above for men who, during war-time, wished to enlist as career soldiers for regular 7&5 terms of enlistment.

Service battalion recruits were issued with numbers from a new series beginning with 1 and prefixed with G/ or GS/. Regular enlistment service numbers were prefixed with L/.

L/10456 joined on 26th August 1914
L/10491 joined on 3rd September 1914
L/10542 joined on 22nd October 1914
L/10550 joined on 5th November 1914
L/10600 joined on 5th December 1914
L/10709 joined on 21st March 1915
L/10730 joined on 12th April 1915
L/10758 joined on 1st May 1915
L/10899 joined on 21st June 1915
L/10923 joined on 7th July 1915
L/10976 joined on 10th August 1915
L/11043 joined on 19th September 1915
L/11067 joined on 2nd October 1915
L/11128 joined on 8th November 1915
L/11161 joined on 21st December 1915
L/11171 joined on 11th January 1916
L/11180 joined on 1st February 1916
L/11200 joined on 9th March 1916
L/11320 joined on 11th July 1916
L/11394 joined on 2nd September 1916
L/11448 joined on 9th January 1917

Pictured above, L/9457 Corporal Horace Frank Wood of the 8th Royal West Kent, bearing two wound stripes on his left cuff; the result of wounds at Loos in 1915 and Arras in 1917. His number indicates that he must have joined as a regular in May or June 1910. His story appears on my Chailey 1914-1918 website.


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

Royal West Kent Regiment literature from The Naval & Military Press:


INVICTA: With the First Battalion The Queen’s Own Royal West Kent Regiment in the Great War. Click the image for more information.

History of the 50th (or the Queen's Own) Regiment from the earliest date to the year 1881
A little earlier than the scope of this blog but nevertheless a widely researched history. Contains 40 plates (some of these in colour) and ten maps.

Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment 1881-1914
Picking up from where the previous volume left off. This first part of a 3-volume history of the Royal West Kents takes the regiment from its formation out of the 50th and the 97th Regiments of Foot. The regiment fought against Pashtun tribesmen on the North-West frontier of the Punjab in 1897-98, and in South Africa during the Boer War from 1900-1902.

Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment 1914-1919
The second volume of the three volume series details the regiment’s part in the Great War from 1914-1919. The regiment lost 6,866 killed out of a total of 21,000 casualties. Click on the link for more information about this volume.

Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment 1920-1950
The third and final volume of the three volume history. Again, beyond the scope of this site but a volume which tells the story of the Queen’s Own Royal West Kent Regiment from the aftermath of the Great War in 1920 down to the wake of the Second World War in 1950. Click the link for more information.