In order to officially address the issue of underage boys serving overseas, War Office letter 9/Gen. No./5388D. (A.G. 2B) of 6th September, 1915 was issued followed by Army Council Instruction 1186 of 1916 which collectively laid out the appropriate rules and regulations to be followed. This was followed on October 6, 1916 by Army Council Instruction 1905 which replaced and cancelled the previous two sets of instructions.
Army Council Order 1186 of 1916
13th JUNE.
1186. Disposal of soldiers whose discharge is applied for on account of being under age.
The following amended instructions are notified for the guidance of all concerned in dealing with the cases of soldiers whose discharge, or transfer to a Home Service unit, is applied for by their parents or legal guardians on the ground that the man is too young to serve under his present circumstances and conditions:-
1. When the soldier is serving at Home.
(a) If under 17 years of age. – His discharge will be carried out by his C.O. under para. 392 (vi) (a) King’s Regulations. His documents will be sent to the Officer i/c Records, who will notify the Recruiting Officer nearest the place at which the man resides of his discharge.
(b) over 17 but under 18 years of age. – He will be transferred, if he be willing in the case of a Regular soldier, to Class W., Army Reserve, and in the case of a T.F. soldier to Class W. (T.), T.F. Reserve. The Officer i/c Records will recall the man to the Colours on attaining the age of 18 years, but in no case is the man to be recalled to the Colours before he has been in the Reserve for a period of three months after his transfer has taken place.
(c) If over 18 but under 19 years of age. – He will be posted to a Reserve unit until such time as he attains the age of 19 years.
2. When the soldier is serving with an Expeditionary Force.
(a) If under 18 years of age. – He will be sent home, if he be willing, and dealt with as in para. 1. If not sent home, he will be dealt with as in section (b) of this paragraph.
(b) If over 18 but under 19 years of age. – He will not be sent home but will be posted to a Training or other unit behind the firing line, under arrangements to be made by the G.O.C.-in-C.
In all cases to be dealt with as above, notification will be sent by the Officer i/c Records to the D.A.G., 3rd Echelon, G.H.Q.
3. When the soldier is serving abroad but not with an Expeditionary Force.
(a) If under 18 years of age. – He will be sent home, if he be willing, and dealt with as in para. 1. If not sent home, he will be dealt with as in section (b) of this paragraph.
(b) If over 18 but under 19 years of age. – He will not be sent home but will be trained under local arrangements.
In all cases to be dealt with as above, notification will be sent by the Officer i/c Records to the C.-in-C. or G.O.C. as the case may be.
4. Any applications received from parents or guardians by Os.C. units should be at once forwarded to the Officer i/c Records concerned, who will take the initial action in each case in conformity with paras. 1, 2 and 3, and inform the applicant.
5. Before any action is taken, the real age of the soldier will be verified by reference to his birth certificate.
6. The instructions contained in W.O. Circular Letter 9/Gen. No./5388 D. (A.G. 2B) of 6th Sept., 1915, are hereby cancelled.
9/Gen. No./5388 (A.G. 2B (s).)
Army Council Order 1905 of 1916
6th OCTOBER.
1905. Disposal of soldiers whose release from the Service is applied for on account of being under age.
The following revised instructions are notified for the guidance of all concerned in dealing with the case of a soldier whose release from the Service, or transfer to a Home Service unit, is applied for on the ground that he is too young to serve :-
1. When the soldier is serving at Home.
(a) If under 18 years of age. – He will be dealt with under authority of the G.O.C.-in-C. of the Command in which he is serving, as follows:-
If serving with a unit affiliated to the :-
He will be posted to a unit of the :-
Scottish Command …
Northern Command …
Western Command …
Southern Command …
Eastern Command … }
London District … }
64th Division.
65th Division.
68th Division.
67th Division.
69th Division
Note.-In posting it should be arranged, so far as possible, that:-
A man of Scotch Nationality be sent to the 64th or 65th Division, and
A man of Welsh Nationality to a Welsh Unit of the 68th Division, but
A man of Irish Nationality who wishes to join an Irish regiment will be sent to the depôt of the regiment he selects, and will be posted accordingly.
(b) If over 18 1/2 but under 19 years of age. – He will be posted to a Reserve unit.
In the case of postings under (a) and (b) the following entry will be made on the soldier’s attestation or record of service paper :-
“Posted, under A.C.I. 1905 of 1916, to ….. Date ……”
The posting will be notified in Part II of Orders.
2. When the soldier is serving with an Expeditionary Force.
(a) If under 17 years of age. – He will be sent home and dealt with as in para. 1 (a).
(b) If over 17 but under 18 1/2 years of age. – He will be sent home, if he be willing, and dealt with as in para. 1 (a). If not willing to be sent home, his services will be utilized either behind the firing line, or he will be sent home at the discretion of the G.O.C.-in-C. and dealt with as in para. 1 (a).
(c) If over 18 1/2 but under 19 years of age. – He will not be sent home but will be posted to a Training or other unit behind the firing line, under arrangements to be made by the G.O.C.-in-C.
In all cases to be dealt with as above, notification will be sent by the Officer i/c Records to the D.A.G., G.H.Q., 3rd Echelon.
3. When the soldier is serving abroad but not with an Expeditionary Force.
(a) If under 18 years of age – He will be sent home and dealt with as in para. 1 (a).
(b) If over 18 but under 19 years of age. – He will not be sent home but will be trained under local arrangements.
In all cases to be dealt with as above, notification will be sent by the Officer i/c Records to the C.-in-C. or G.O.C., as the case may be.
4. Applications for the release of a soldier received by Os.C. units will be dealt with as follows:-
(a) When serving at home. – If the soldier is over 17 years of age, a report will be rendered to the G.O.C.-in-C. through the usual channels.
(b) When serving with an Expeditionary Force. – The application will be dealt with under the orders of the Commander of the Force.
(c) When serving abroad but not with an Expeditionary Force – The application will be dealt with under the orders of the C.-in-C. or G.O.C. as the case may be.
5. Applications received through any channel other than those mentioned above will be forwarded to the Officer i/c Records concerned, who will take the initial action in each case in conformity with paras. 1, 2 and 3 of this Instruction, and inform the applicant.
6. Before any action is taken, the real age of the soldier will be verified by reference to his birth certificate.
7. The instructions contained in W.O. letter 9/Gen. No./5388D. (A.G. 2B) of 6th September, 1915, and A.C.I. 1186 of 1916 are hereby cancelled.
On August 14, 1914 the ‘Reporter’ group of local newspapers published the nominal roll of men in the 1/9th Battalion Manchester Regiment. We know that this list was not one hundred percent accurate since it has some obvious typos and one or two slightly out of date ranks. Additionally, it does not provide any service numbers which 110 years later presents some challenges in corroborating all of the men listed. Nevertheless, it does provide a strong basis for understanding the organization and constitution of the companies and their Non-Commissioned Officers who deployed to Chesham Fold Camp in September 1914 and subsequently to Egypt and then Gallipoli in 1915.
Over 100 men joined the battalion in late August and early September before they departed for Egypt, and some of those men, such as 2117 Titus Cropper, became NCOs by the time the battalion landed at Gallipoli on May 9, 1915. Many of the men who enlisted during this period had prior military service and so were natural potential additions to the ranks of the NCOs.
On September 5, 1914 the men were asked to volunteer for overseas service, which was not a requirement under the terms of enlistment for the Territorial Force, and after some initial hesitation the overwhelming majority of them signed the required Army Form E.624 paperwork.
From the list published on August 14 we can identify with some certainty the NCOs who deployed to Egypt and then Gallipoli. However, when the battalion landed in Egypt, they switched from the old pre-war eight company formation to the new four company formation. In a four-company battalion, each company was made up of approximately 250 men in 4 platoons with each platoon consisting of 4 sections. At full strength, the battalion had a Regimental Sergeant Major and Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant. Additionally, each company had a Company Sergeant Major, a Company Quartermaster Sergeant, 8 sergeants and 10 Corporals. The companies were labeled ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’ and ‘D’ and were formed by combining two of the old companies, thus the old ‘A’ and ‘B’ companies were combined to form the new ‘A’ company, the old ‘C’ and ‘D’ companies were combined to form the new ‘B’ company, and so on. In each new company, one of the two Colour Sergeants of the old company was appointed Company Sergeant Major and the other was appointed Company Quartermaster Sergeant.
And just to further complicate matters, on 28 January 1915, Army Order 70 of 1915 was published creating the new rank of Warrant Officer Class II, (WO II), becoming the rank from which a man would typically be appointed to become Regimental Sergeant Major which was a Warrant Officer Class I rank. Company Quartermaster Sergeants did not carry the WO II rank but Regimental Quartermaster Sergeants did. Thus, Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant Boocock was variously referenced in military records and newspaper reports as Q.M.S., Colour Sergeant and C.Q.M.S. all of which were effectively the same rank.
Nevertheless, by reviewing the published nominal roll of August 14th we know which new companies each of the NCOs and men belonged to – at least before the expediencies of combat caused some men to be moved around.
In the lists below, ranks are those held in August 1914. Men whose names are struck out with no service number did not travel overseas. Except otherwise noted, those men whose names are struck out but with service numbers traveled to Egypt in September 1914 but did not serve in Gallipoli.
Permanent Staff
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
Sgt Major
2716
Joseph
Fowler
Col Sgt
2673
James
Holt
Sgt
228
James
Craig
Notes:
Two out of the three members of the permanent staff deployed overseas but only one deployed to Gallipoli.
Sgt. James Craig
Prior to joining the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment as Sergeant on the permanent staff, James Craig spent 12 years in the Regular Army serving in South Africa, the Channel Islands and Ireland (with brief interspersed spells in England) with the 2nd Battalion Manchester Regiment.
Company Sergeant Major Craig
He did not serve in Egypt or Gallipoli, instead he remained in the UK serving with the 2/9th Manchesters as Company Sergeant Major throughout 1915 and until at least August 1916. He later transferred back to his former regiment, but this time with the 1st Battalion, as Quartermaster Sergeant, deploying to Mesopotamia where he died from heat stroke and gastritis in Baghdad on July 14, 1917 leaving a wife and four young children.
Col. Sgt. James Holt
Colour Sergeant Instructor James Holt deployed to Egypt with the battalion but was invalided back to the UK from Egypt in March 1915, arriving in Ashton in early April, where he was treated at Whitworth St, Hospital.
He did not serve in Gallipoli and spent the remainder of the war on home service. He was later commissioned into the Labour Corps on May 12, 1917. The departure of Colour Sergeant Instructor Holt in Egypt left a serious gap in the battalion’s operational effectiveness and efficiency, consequently Sergeant Instructor John Alexander Christie of the 5th East Lancs Regiment was permanently attached to the 1/9th Manchesters and provided exemplary service.
Cpl 1551 Fred Jones was actually a Sergeant by August 4, 1914. He was commissioned on September 30, 1914 and landed at Gallipoli as one of the battalion’s officers where he was killed in action.
L/Cpl 1307 Robert Constantine chose to revert to Private while in Egypt in 1914 and continued to serve as private.
D Company NCOs:
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
Col Sgt
108
Robert
Jackson
Col Sgt
266
Albert
Green
Sgt
–
T
Grimshaw
Sgt
31
Thomas
Lomas
Sgt
341
John
Lee
Sgt
136
Henry
Harrison
Sgt
58
Arthur
Bashforth
Sgt
806
Cornelius
Finch
Sgt
680
Thomas
Hargreaves
Sgt
1151
John
Lawler
Cpl
400
James
Chapman
Cpl
724
Joseph
Edward
Appleby
Cpl
1484
John
William
Hughes
Cpl
–
S
Spruce
Cpl
1457
Thomas
Goley
L/Cpl
109
Samuel
Charles
Whitton
L/Cpl
447
Ernest
Eyres
L/Cpl
885
Frank
Goddard
L/Cpl
553
Albert
Bromley
L/Cpl
1119
Percy
Borsey
L/Cpl
1112
William
Emmanuel
Hawley
L/Cpl
–
S
Ingham
L/Cpl
1120
Thomas
Forrest
L/Cpl
–
E
Abbott
L/Cpl
1920
William
Mitcheson
L/Cpl
–
T
Lee
L/Cpl
–
S
Stevenson
L/Cpl
1286
William
Bennison
Notes:
Sgt 58 Arthur Bashforth was a Pioneer Sergeant.
L/Cpl 553 Albert Bromley was discharged due to sickness on November 2, 1914 and did not travel overseas.
L/Cpl 1112 William Hawley was deprived of his stripe at Chesham Fold Camp for being drunk.
L/Cpl 1120 Thomas Forrest was promoted to Corporal on January 11, 1915.
Machine Gun Section:
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
Sgt
526
Thomas
Moss
Cpl
1364
Frank
Howard
Signallers:
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
Sgt
136
Henry
Harrison
L/Cpl
447
Ernest
Eyres
Senior NCOs of the 1/9th Manchesters
The two most senior NCOs of a four-company battalion were the Regimental Sergeant Major and the Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant.
Regimental Sergeant Major:
Colour Sergeant Joseph Fowler of the permanent staff was appointed Acting Regimental Sergeant-Major (A/RSM) on September 1, 1911. On April 8, 1915 he was appointed 1st Class Warrant Officer by Divisional Orders confirming his A/RSM appointment. On July 21, 1915 he reverted back to Colour Sergeant when he left Gallipoli for good upon being wounded. He was eventually medically evacuated to the UK, after spending several weeks at Mudros, finally arriving back in Ashton in October 1915. In England he joined the 3/9th (Reserve) Battalion, Manchester Regiment and was appointed Company Sergeant Major (CSM) of the “Additional (Overseas) Company, 9th (Reserve) Battalion” March 28, 1916, (vice CSM Buckley who had just left to rejoin the battalion in Egypt). He was discharged on July 3, 1916 being no Longer Physically Fit for military service after 26 years 280 days service.
Regimental Sergeant Major Fowler
Sergeant Instructor John Alexander Christie (attached) was promoted to Company Sergeant Major (WO Class II) and simultaneously appointed Acting Regimental Sergeant Major (WO Class I) in June 1915 when RSM Fowler was wounded. He was confirmed Acting Regimental Sergeant Major on July 21, 1915 when RSM Fowler was medically evacuated to the UK. Christie remained as A/RSM until August 3, 1915 when he was himself medically evacuated to Alexandria suffering from pneumonia. On August 4, 1915 CSM Albert Green (D Company) was appointed A/RSM (vice Christie) and remained in this position until October 20, 1915 when Christie returned to Gallipoli and assumed the Acting Regimental Sergeant Major position. Christie retained this position until the evacuation of the Peninsula and remained with the battalion until late 1918.
Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant:
Colour Sergeant George Boocock was appointed Acting Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant (RQMS) when the battalion disembarked in Egypt on September 27, 1914 and converted to the new four-company organizational structure. As such he reported directly to Major Connery, the battalion’s Quartermaster, and there is ample anecdotal evidence that the two men, the oldest of the battalion that deployed to Gallipoli, had a close and highly effective working relationship. On July 13, 1915 RQMS Boocock was wounded in the foot by a stray bullet and medically evacuated to England. Company Quartermaster Sergeant Henry Stringer, formerly of C Company, was immediately promoted to Acting Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant (A/RQMS) and was confirmed in the position of RQMS (WO Class II) on August 13, 1915. RQMS Stringer, (2/Lt. Ned Stringer’s cousin), remained in this position for the remainder of the battalion’s time in Gallipoli. In fact, he retained this position until he left the battalion in early 1918.
Colour Sergeants:
All 10 Colour Sergeants on the August 14, 1914 Nominal Roll served overseas and, not surprisingly, all 10 were Old Volunteers, (men who had served with the Volunteer Force before April 1, 1908).
Colour Sergeant and QMS Thomas Burgess deployed to Egypt with the battalion in September 1914 and served with them until he contracted nephritis in early 1915. He was treated at the Citadel Hospital, Cairo and subsequently at the 2nd Western General Hospital, Manchester. He was discharged on June 11, 1915 being no longer physically fit, at age 51. Remarkably, he re-joined the 3/9th Battalion the following day for home service, light duty, until he was once again, this time permanently, discharged on May 4, 1917.
When the eight-company battalion was converted into a four-company battalion, one of the two Colour Sergeants forming each of the new companies was appointed Company Sergeant Major (CSM) while the other was appointed Company Quartermaster Sergeant CQMS). The following table shows which Colour Sergeant was holding which role in the new companies when the battalion landed in Gallipoli.
A Company:
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
CQMS
257
John
Williamson
CSM
344
Joseph
Chadderton
B Company:
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
CQMS
540
William
Birchall
CSM
339
Mathew
James
Buckley
C Company:
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
CQMS
154
George
Newton
CSM
1773
Alfred
Binns
D Company:
Rank
No.
First
Middle
Surname
CQMS
108
Robert
Jackson
CSM
266
Albert
Green
Discussion
By reviewing the Medal Rolls of the battalion’s NCOs we can see the highest rank they achieved and consequently we know which of them made the rank of Colour Sergeant or Warrant Officer Class II. These men were then “candidates” to be appointed Company Sergeant Major or Company Quartermaster Sergeant to either temporarily or permanently replace the original holders of the positions. The Medal Roll however, does not provide a date of achieving and holding the rank and consequently the data does not necessarily apply to their time in Gallipoli.
However, the several surviving service records and references from the Ashton Reporter allow us to construct, with a reasonable degree of certainty, the likely holders of the top NCO positions in each Company during the battalion’s time in Egypt and then Gallipoli. Those sections below that involve a certain amount of speculation are presented in italic font.
A Company CSM:
When the battalion landed in Egypt on September 27, 1914 Colour Sergeant Joseph Chadderton was appointed Company Sergeant Major (CSM) of A Company. On January 30, 1915 he was promoted to Warrant Officer Class II (WOII) and confirmed as CSM. He remained with the battalion in this role until he was medically evacuated to England on October 8, 1915 possibly having left the peninsula some time before. He remained in the UK for the remainder of the war serving as Regimental Sergeant Major of the Command Depot from where he was discharged on March 5, 1918.
CSM Chadderton’s enforced absence left a gap which needed to be filled. There were only two possible candidates in A Company: Sgt 27 James Nolan and Sgt 64 Alfred Smith. There are no surviving service records for these men. However, Sergeant Nolan was the battalion’s Master Cook and so we can reasonably presume that taking care of the men’s stomachs took precedence over any other appointment. That only left Sgt 64 Alfred Smith and so the assumption is that he was appointed Acting CSM and promoted to Acting WO II.
A Company CQMS:
Colour Sergeant John Williamson was appointed CQMS of A Company when the battalion landed in Egypt in 1914. He deployed to Gallipoli but was wounded and medically evacuated to England on July 5, 1915. The Ashton Reported published an interview with him upon his arrival in Ashton and indicated that he was the first man of the 9th Manchesters that served in Gallipoli to arrive home.
CQMS Williamson’s enforced absence left a gap which needed to be filled. There were only three possible candidates in A Company: Sgt 313 George Grayson Mellor, Sgt 164 Alfred Scott and Sgt 83 Thomas McDermott. There are no surviving service records for these men. However, the August 14, 1915 edition of the Ashton Reporter published a letter from the Sergeants of A company to the fiancé of Sgt 1271 James Taylor who died of wounds on July 12, 1915. The names of Thomas McDermott and George Mellor are both missing from the list of signatories. The implication is that they were temporarily or permanently absent from Gallipoli which leaves only Sgt 164 Alfred Scott as the possible candidate. Consequently, the assumption is that Sgt 164 Alfred Scott was appointed Acting CQMS.
Regardless of who temporarily filled the CQMS role for A Company after CQMS Williamson departed, on November 6, 1915 Sgt 1244 Walter Steuart Eaton was appointed acting CQMS. He held this role for approximately six weeks before being promoted to CQMS on December 6, 1915. He then held this position until May 24, 1917 when he left the battalion prior to being awarded a commission.
B Company CSM:
When the battalion landed in Egypt in 1914, Colour Sergeant Mathew James Buckley was appointed Company Sergeant Major of B Company. On January 30, 1915 he was promoted to WO II, retaining the position of CSM. He deployed to Gallipoli and served in this position until he reported sick on June 17, 1915 suffering from a Ventral Hernia and was subsequently medically evacuated to Alexandria, and then to England on July 2nd. Sergeant 65 Joseph Ferns was reported to be acting CSM right after the June 18th bayonet charge confirming that he at least temporarily replaced CSM Buckley. Sergeant Ferns was himself wounded on September 15, 1915 and subsequently repatriated to England.
On November 25, 1915 CSM Alfred Binns was admitted to HMHS Assaye and was listed in the admission register as being in “B” Company. It is possible that he temporarily transferred to B Company upon Sgt Ferns absence and remained CSM of B Company until he became ill.
On November 25, 1915 Sergeant Thomas Hargreaves was appointed acting CSM. On Christmas day 1915 he was promoted to Warrant Officer Class II and confirmed in the position of CSM. A position he held until he left the battalion in August 1916 upon being awarded a commission.
B Company CQMS:
When the battalion landed in Egypt in 1914 Colour Sergeant William Birchall was appointed Company Quartermaster Sergeant of B Company. CQMS Birchall was reported to have been slightly wounded in the chest but remained with the battalion throughout their entire time in Gallipoli. He died of wounds on September 25, 1917 in France while serving with the battalion.
C Company CSM:
When the battalion landed in Egypt in 1914 Colour Sergeant Henry Stringer was appointed Company Sergeant Major of C Company. But on January 30, 1915 instead of being promoted to WO II, as the other CSMs were, Henry Stringer relinquished the CSM position and was instead appointed CQMS. It is likely that this was to fill the gap created by QMS Thomas Burgess’s illness and consequently his responsibilities would have been primarily to support RQMS Boocock’s section. After the battalion landed in Gallipoli, CQMS Stringer was appointed acting RQMS on July 13, 1915 when George Boocock was wounded and repatriated. He was subsequently promoted to RQMS, and promoted to WO II, on August 13, 1915.
It is likely that L/Cpl. 1773 Alfred Binns was appointed CSM of C Company on January 30, 1915 (vice Henry Stringer) and remained in this position until May 4, 1916 when he reported sick to hospital. Prior to joining the Territorials, Alfred Binns served 12 years in the Regular Army as an NCO with the 1st Derbyshire Regiment and the 10th and 18th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales’s Own). He was a Boer War veteran and joined the 9th Manchesters at the February 14, 1914 recruiting night when he was 31 years old. Eminently qualified, he was rapidly promoted in Egypt as the battalion went through training and was clearly the best candidate to replace Henry Stringer as CSM in late January 1915.
C Company CQMS:
Colour Sergeant George Newton was appointed CQMS of C Company when the battalion landed in Egypt in 1914 and remained in the CQMS position until May 4, 1916 when he was appointed acting Company Sergeant Major, (and promoted to acting Warrant Officer Class II), when CSM Alfred Binns reported sick. He was confirmed in the position and formally promoted when CSM Binns was medically evacuated to England on June 20, 1916. CSM Newton retained this rank until he left the battalion upon being awarded a commission.
D Company CSM:
Albert Green was one of those lucky few that survived Gallipoli unscathed. He was appointed CSM of D Company when the battalion landed in Egypt in September 1914 and served in that capacity in Gallipoli. On August 4, 1915 he was appointed acting Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) temporarily replacing RSM John Alexander Christie who had been medically evacuated to Alexandria with pneumonia the day before. CSM Green retained the RSM position until RSM Christie returned on October 20, 1915. In order to fill the gap in D Company, Sergeant Cornelius Finch was appointed acting CSM on August 4, 1915, (vice CSM Albert Green). Sgt Finch retained this position for seven weeks until Sept 27, 1915 when he too was medically evacuated, in his case to the UK via Malta suffering from dysentery. Albert Green resumed his position as CSM of ‘D’ Company approximately 3 weeks later on October 20, 1915 upon the return of RSM Christie.
It’s worth noting that when Sgt Cornelius Finch was medically evacuated from Gallipoli he effectively relinquished the acting rank of CSM and reverted back to the rank of Sergeant when he boarded the ship home but administratively this reversion of rank did not occur until much later. Back in the UK, in 1916, he was still considered to be holding the rank of (acting ) CSM and consequently was referred to as such by the local newspapers.
D Company CQMS:
Colour Sergeant Robert Jackson was appointed CQMS when the battalion landed in Egypt in 1914 and remained in the CQMS position until he was medically evacuated from Gallipoli, arriving in Ashton in late October 1915. The only viable candidate from D Company available to replace him was Sergeant 341 John Lee. And indeed the Ashton Reporter referred to him as CQMS Lee when he returned home on furlough in 1916.
The oldest other ranks member of the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment to serve in Gallipoli was 57 years old Quartermaster Sergeant (Q.M.S.) George Boocock, a 32-year veteran and Old Volunteer. At the other end of the spectrum, a number of very young men enlisted and found themselves deployed overseas to Egypt in September 1914 and then to Gallipoli in May 1915. Two of them were Alfred and James Boocock, the only surviving sons of Q.M.S. Boocock, who were treated as the battalion’s “mascots” and proudly and regularly promoted in local newspapers as possibly the youngest territorials in the North of England. In fact, at least seven members of the battalion were younger than James Boocock and both Richard Stott and Fred Finucane were younger than Alfred, making Richard the youngest member of the battalion by five months.
At least 28 members of the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment were, (or would have been), under the age of 17 when they landed in Gallipoli on May 9, 1915 and incredibly three of them were just 14 years old when they landed in Egypt on September 27, 1914.
No.
Forename
Surname
DoB
Gallipoli Landing Age
1652
RICHARD
STOTT
19-Mar-1900
15.08
1845
FREDERICK
FINUCANE
22-Oct-1899
15.50
2069
ALFRED
BOOCOCK
14-Oct-1899
15.50
3368
LEONARD
BROADHURST
08-Mar-1900
15.58
1682
ERNEST
PEPPER
20-Mar-1899
16.08
3181
JOSEPH
WEST
29-Mar-1899
16.25
1570
WILLIAM
ANDREWS
24-Dec-1898
16.33
1801
WILLIAM
BARFIELD
14-Dec-1898
16.33
2320
EDWARD
LEWIS
04-Mar-1899
16.42
1711
SIDNEY
OGDEN
04-Nov-1898
16.50
1930
JAMES
THWAITES
15-Oct-1898
16.50
1966
NORMAN
JACKSON
15-Sep-1898
16.58
2742
JAMES
SPEDDINGS
20-Dec-1898
16.58
3314
JAMES
CUNCAR
02-Mar-1899
16.58
1741
ARTHUR
BANTON
10-Aug-1898
16.67
1674
CHARLES
MIDDLETON
31-Aug-1898
16.67
2070
JAMES
BOOCOCK
19-Aug-1898
16.67
1817
JOHN
COFFEY
10-Aug-1898
16.67
1933
ROBERT
GATER
10-Aug-1898
16.67
1887
MARK
ROBINSON
02-Aug-1898
16.75
1675
ALFRED
SUMNER
26-Jul-1898
16.75
1609
ROBERT
MacCORMACK
18-Jul-1898
16.75
3097
FRED
BROMLEY
30-Sep-1898
16.75
2063
THOMAS
PORTINGTON
28-Jun-1898
16.83
2691
FRED
WARD
03-Sep-1898
16.83
1583
NORMAN
LEIGH
02-Jun-1898
16.92
1656
EDWARD
HENNESSEY
20-May-1898
16.92
1745
WILLIAM
HALL
22-May-1898
16.92
Youngest 9th Manchesters and their Ages when they landed in Gallipoli
In 1914, it was considered perfectly legitimate to attest such boy soldiers and many were sent overseas at the outbreak of hostilities. The prevailing standard was that although boys could attest at 17 any such boys under the age of 19 should not serve in combat but were nevertheless eligible to serve in ancillary roles in a combat zone. The Reverend J. K. Best held Enlisted Boys Classes at Heliopolis Camp in early 1915 with at least 31 attendees from just those battalions of the East Lancs Division who were then present. However, there were only 3 named attendees from the 9th Manchesters; the Boocock boys and their friend and workmate James Hoke.
In order to officially address the issue of underage boys serving overseas, War Office letter 9/Gen. No./5388D. (A.G. 2B) of 6th September, 1915 was issued followed by Army Council Instruction 1186 of 1916 which collectively laid out the appropriate rules and regulations to be followed. This was followed on October 6, 1916 by Army Council Instruction 1905 of 1916 which replaced and cancelled the previous two instructions.
The Army Council Instructions of 1916 stipulated that boys under the age of 17 currently serving with an overseas expeditionary force must be sent home and instead would serve with a reserve unit in the UK until such time as they attained 19 years of age. Boys between the ages of 17 and 18 ½ were asked if they were willing to be sent home and if so, were treated as above, but if not, were allowed to remain and serve behind the firing line, (at the discretion of the General Officer Commander in Chief). Boys between the ages of 18 1/2 and 19 were not asked but simply posted to a unit behind the firing line while remaining overseas.
These rules and regulations were all well and good to prevent young men who were still in the UK from being prematurely sent overseas but for those who had already deployed overseas it’s not clear that the military authorities did anything but turn a blind eye to it. This attitude prompted questions to be asked in Parliament by parents of underage boys and, in the case of Pte. 1966 Norman Jackson, letters written to the Prime Minister. By the end of the war, every young man eligible for military service was attested shortly after their 18th birthday and then underwent basic training in the UK before being deployed overseas, potentially into combat, shortly after their 19th birthday.
Below we examine how these particular young men were able to attest at such a tender age and how did the Army discharge their duty of care towards them?
How Did They Attest?
In 1914, the stated minimum age in recruitment campaigns for the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment was 17 years. On February 14, 1914 the 9th Manchesters held a very successful recruiting night at Ashton Town Hall which resulted in over 150 men attesting. In fact, it was so successful that men were attesting both in the days shortly before the event, based solely on the advertisement, and shortly after the event as the recruiters were overwhelmed with willing men and boys.
Feb 14, 1914 Smoking Concert at Ashton Townhall
Eight of our 28 young men attested on the night of the February Recruiting Drive and over half of the 28 joined during January and February 1914. The next surge of recruits occurred upon the outbreak of war and an additional three youngsters, (including the Boocock brothers), attested on or around August 4, 1914.
A total of 7 young men enlisted after the battalion left for Egypt on September 10 and all of them deployed to Gallipoli in the July, August and October drafts.
No.
Forename
Surname
Enlistment Age
Stated Age
1652
RICHARD
STOTT
13.83
17.00
2069
ALFRED
BOOCOCK
14.75
14.83
3368
LEONARD
BROADHURST
14.83
19.00
1682
ERNEST
PEPPER
14.83
17.00
1570
WILLIAM
ANDREWS
15.00
17.00
1801
WILLIAM
BARFIELD
15.17
17.00
1930
JAMES
THWAITES
15.50
17.42
1966
NORMAN
JACKSON
15.67
17.67
1674
CHARLES
MIDDLETON
15.42
17.00
2070
JAMES
BOOCOCK
15.92
16.00
1741
ARTHUR
BANTON
15.50
17.00
1817
JOHN
COFFEY
15.50
17.00
1933
ROBERT
GATER
15.67
17.67
1887
MARK
ROBINSON
15.50
17.00
1675
ALFRED
SUMNER
15.50
17.50
1609
ROBERT
MacCORMACK
15.50
16.67
2063
THOMAS
PORTINGTON
16.08
16.50
1583
NORMAN
LEIGH
15.58
17.58
1745
WILLIAM
HALL
15.67
17.00
1656
EDWARD
HENNESSEY
15.67
18.67
Actual Age versus Stated Attestation Age for those with Surviving Service Records
Contemporaneous newspaper reports indicate that Richard Stott’s family tacitly supported their son’s attestation, his mother noting that “he had always wanted to be a soldier.” And although his immediate family did not provide any military role models, by 1915 he is reported to have had no fewer than six uncles serving in the military, both overseas and in England. Richard was one of four great friends who joined the 9th Manchesters within days of each other.
We also know from contemporaneous newspaper reports that Fred Finucane attested with his father’s permission, coming as he did from a family with a very strong military background.
Alfred and James Boocock both attested with the full and complete support of their father QMS George Boocock. But why was George Boocock willing to risk the lives of his children when war broke out in August 1914? He was a long serving and totally committed member of the battalion having served in the Volunteers and Territorials most of his adult life and had already brought the boys along to several of the battalion’s summer camps. Additionally, he was a very senior NCO with a strong relationship with the battalion’s Quartermaster Major W.H. Connery, himself a former boy soldier and so no doubt sympathetically disposed. So, he likely felt quite confident that he could keep them out of harm’s way. Nevertheless, history does not record exactly what Mrs. Boocock felt about her husband taking her only two surviving sons off to war in September 1914.
It’s interesting to note that another young man, James Hoke, (not on our shortlist of the very youngest boys above), joined the battalion on Tuesday February 10, 1914 when he was 16 years old. However, he gave his correct age and like the Boococks was assigned the rank of “Boy”. His attestation papers show that he was employed as a joiner for Hadfield Brothers, of Ashton, the same firm of builders that Q.M.S. George Boocock worked for as a joiner foreman. Both the Boocock boys also worked for Hadfield Bros as apprentices and the three boys would have likely been good friends and no doubt wanted to serve together.
Leonard Broadhurst attested on January 11, 1915 a few days after a good friend of his, Jim Fernley had joined. Jim was also underage and was destined not to return from Gallipoli. Leonard was still only 14 years old when he was medically examined and signed his enlistment papers but professed to be 19 years old. We know from letters that his mother sent to him that she certainly did not approve but his father was perhaps more willing to accept his son’s patriotism since he enlisted 3 months later and deployed to France shortly after Leonard landed in Gallipoli.
Ernest Pepper attested on Saturday February 14, 1914 and provided an age that was 2 years in advance of his actual age. We don’t know if his family approved and supported his actions but we do know that his older brother Philip Pepper attested 3 months later and was also somewhat parsimonious with the truth regarding his real age, since he too was not yet 17 years old at the time.
William Barfield was one of four boys, (William Taylor, Edward Green and Richard Stott being the other three), who were great friends and all joined the 9th Manchesters within days of each other. Taylor and Green were neighbours in Hurst, Ashton under Lyne living within yards of each other. Taylor, Green and Barfield all worked as piecers at the Cedar Mill in Hurst and Barfield and Stott lived within 100 yards of each other.
Drummer 1635 William Henry Taylor was the first to join on Tuesday February 10, 1914 in the week of the Smoking Concert. He gave his correct age of 16 years and 8 months since he was close to the required age. Pte 1641 Edward Lewis Green was the next to join, attesting the day after, also giving his correct age of 19 years. Richard Stott, although ridiculously underage, quickly followed his two friends by enlisting four days later on the evening of Saturday February 14th but of course gave a false stated age of 17 years old. Not to be left behind, William Barfield enlisted the following Monday along with all those at the Smoking concert who wanted to enlist but ran out of time.
Sidney Ogden also attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 and since he was only 15 at the time it’s reasonable to assume that he too lied about his age. Unfortunately, his service record is not available to confirm but it seems to be a reasonable assumption. Whether or not his parents approved we don’t know but one week later Sidney’s older brother Harry Ogden also attested and at 17 years and nine months old was destined to land in Gallipoli shortly before his 19th birthday. The oldest Ogden brother, William Ogden, attested during the week on November 16th, joining the 2/9th Battalion who were at the time undergoing pre-deployment training in Southport.
It appears that Norman Jackson attested without his father’s permission and over-stated his age by 2 years in order to be accepted. Although there was tolerance of his enlistment before the outbreak of war, thereafter his father spent the next two years lobbying the military and civil authorities to get his son out of the firing line and only succeeded with the issuing of Army Council Instruction 1186, of 1916 which he invoked to good effect.
Charles Arthur Middleton and Arthur Banton also both attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 and since they were both only 15 at the time they lied about their ages and stated that they were exactly 17 years old.
Alfred Sumner also attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 and like Middleton and Banton was just 15 years old. However, Alfred showed a little originality and overstated his age by exactly 2 years stating that he was 17 years and six months old. Alfred Sumner and Charles Middleton must have been processed at the same time as they received consecutive service numbers.
Robert Daniel MacCormack attested on February 4, 1914, 10 days before the smoking concert. He gave his correct age and his attestation papers show that he was initially given the appropriate rank of “Boy” rather than private. Robert’s older brother Pte. 1285 Albert McCormack was already a member of the battalion having joined almost 2 years earlier in March 1912.
Thomas William Preston Portington attested two days after the outbreak of war embellishing his age by a few months but nevertheless stating that he was still six months under the requisite age of 17. At this time, the battalion was desperately looking to add numbers but was initially selective of the men they added, many of whom had prior military service. Thomas was by all accounts a big lad for his age and worked as a collier at the New Moss Colliery. At least 22 men from the Colliery were already members of the battalion by the time Thomas attested and that perhaps aided his application.
William Henry Hall was among the men who attested on February 14, 1914 and erroneously gave his age as exactly 17 years even though he was still a few months shy of his 16th birthday.
Edward Hennessey also attested on February 14, 1914 and decided to add exactly two years to his actual age when asked. He too was a collier at New Moss Colliery and was one of at least 12 from the colliery who attested that night, including two of our underage boys; Charles Middleton and Ernest Pepper.
What Happened to Them?
Even though the Boocock boys were kept out of the firing line in Gallipoli, the other were not. Consequently, a quarter of them lost their lives while serving their country; one in Egypt, four in the Gallipoli campaign and two more in France in 1918.
Ten more were wounded in Gallipoli, (William Barfield and William Andrews were both wounded twice), and another two were medically evacuated to England after becoming sick on the peninsula. One of those wounded boys survived but received life changing injuries and one of the sick evacuees suffered from post-war combat stress. Four of the wounded were subsequently discharged due to their wounds. Another was discharged as underage while the youngest Boocock brother spent the remainder of the war re-assigned to Home Service.
Although the rate of death and wounded for these 28 boys was broadly in line with that for the battalion as a whole that would have been of little consolation to their parents.
No.
Forename
Surname
Event
Date
1652
RICHARD
STOTT
DoW
13-Jun-15
1845
FREDERICK
FINUCANE
Died
27-Nov-14
2069
ALFRED
BOOCOCK
Demobed
21-Mar-19
3368
LEONARD
BROADHURST
Discharged
25-May-16
1682
ERNEST
PEPPER
Discharged
22-Nov-16
3181
JOSEPH
WEST
Discharged
05-May-16
1570
WILLIAM
ANDREWS
Discharged
10-Dec-15
1801
WILLIAM
BARFIELD
Discharged
06-Feb-19
2320
EDWARD
LEWIS
Demobed
07-May-19
1711
SIDNEY
OGDEN
DoW
20-Jun-15
1930
JAMES
THWAITES
Demobed
15-Mar-19
2742
JAMES
SPEDDINGS
KiA
08-Aug-15
3314
JAMES
CUNCAR
Demobed
27-Apr-19
1966
NORMAN
JACKSON
Commissioned
10-Sep-18
1674
CHARLES
MIDDLETON
Demobed
10-Jan-19
2070
JAMES
BOOCOCK
Demobed
08-May-19
1741
ARTHUR
BANTON
Discharged
27-Mar-19
1817
JOHN
COFFEY
KiA
24-Sep-18
1933
ROBERT
GATER
Demobed
11-Mar-19
1887
MARK
ROBINSON
Demobed
27-Mar-19
1675
ALFRED
SUMNER
Demobed
03-Mar-19
1609
ROBERT
MacCORMACK
Demobed
–
3097
FRED
BROMLEY
KiA
19-Aug-18
2063
THOMAS
PORTINGTON
KiA
03-Sep-15
2691
FRED
WARD
Demobed
16-Apr-19
1583
NORMAN
LEIGH
Demobed
24-Mar-19
1745
WILLIAM
HALL
Demobed
01-May-19
1656
EDWARD
HENNESSEY
Demobed
16-Jan-19
Military Outcomes of the Youngest Members of the Battalion
Pte. 1652 Richard Stott
Richard Stott died of wounds on June 13, 1915 at sea and is commemorated on the Helles Memorial. He was the oldest son of John and Betsy Stott (née Wright) and lived on Wrigley Street, just off Turner Lane which provided many Territorials to the 9th Manchesters. He attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 and was reported to be only 5ft 2” tall with a 33 ½ inch chest. At just 13 years of age, it seems incredible to believe that anyone actually believed that he was old enough to serve.
Pte. 1652 Richard Stott
From the Saturday June 26, 1915 Ashton Reporter:
SIX UNCLES SERVING
Ashton Territorial Gives His Life for His Country
“He always said he would be a soldier,” declared Mrs. Stott of Wrigley-street, Ashton, in lamenting the death of her son, Private Richard Stott, of the 9th Batt. Manchester Regiment (Territorials), in respect of whom an official intimation had been received that he had died as the result of wounds received in action at the Dardanelles. Although in his teens he had a strong desire to join the Territorials, and his father, Mr. John Stott, an Ashton Corporation employee, decided not to place any obstacles in the way. He joined the Ashton Batt. Territorials, and volunteered for foreign service. By doing so he has kept up the traditions of the family, for he has no fewer than six uncles serving with the King’s colours, three of them with the Territorials at the Dardanelles, and the others in Kitchener’s Army in France and England. He formerly attended Holy Trinity School.
The family suffered a further loss on July 24, 1918 when Richard’s father died of Dysentery in Basra, Iraq. He was deployed there as a private with the 2nd Garrison Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers and died when he was 45 years old.
Pte. 1845 Frederick Thorley Finucane
Frederick Thorley Finucane died of dysentery in Cairo on November 27, 1914 just two months after landing in Egypt. He died in the Citadel Hospital, Cairo having been admitted just the day before. He was given a full military funeral and is buried at the Cairo War Memorial Cemetery. In a rather stunning coincidence, his older brother John (“Jack”) Finucane died on the same day one year later of complications from an operation for dysentery and enteric fever at Netley Military Hospital.
Pte. 1845 Frederick Thorley Finucane
From the Saturday December 5, 1914 Ashton Reporter:
PRIVATE FINUCANE
News has been received in Ashton of the death through, dysentery, in Egypt, of Private Fred Finucane, one of the Ashton Territorials. He was probably the youngest in the battalion, being only 15 years of age, but standing 5ft 8in. Born of a military family, be enlisted with his father’s written authority in March, and after going into camp at Bury sailed with his battalion to Egypt. His heart and soul were in his work, and in all his letters home he was always cheerful and happy. Only last week he mentioned having visited the Pyramids and other sights, and also that he had been on night manoeuvres. Several parcels are now on their way to him from home, he having been very popular among his various friends, as much for his pluck as a youngster as his quiet, unassuming ways. It came as a terrible shock to all who knew him when his parents, who live at The Brow, Bardsley, received a telegram on Monday announcing his death. The blow has been a heavy one, both to them and his brother, also a Territorial, to whom he was devotedly attached. They are now anxiously awaiting further news, and in the meantime try to console themselves with the thought that he never flinched from duty, and when the call came be stepped forward and offered to take his share in battling for his King and country.
He has answered the ” last roll call.” During the week many friends have called to offer their sympathy to the deeply grieved parents, and they were much touched by such expressions of feeling in their great trouble.
It was always a source of pride to him to know his grandfather, who is living in Manchester, was in the Army 15 months before Lord Roberts, and his father has an autograph letter from “Bob” thanking him for birthday congratulations on his 80th birthday, they having first met in India in 1851.
The Bardsley Defence Corps will attend the morning service at Bardsley Church on Sunday, and the village band is also expected to be present, in honour of the late Private Finucane.
Notes:
The Bardsley Defence Corps was co-founded and organized by Fred’s father Mr. Theodore Finucane.
At the request of the family, the interment of John Finucane at Gorton Cemetery was not of a military character.
Boy 2069 Alfred and Boy 2070 James Boocock
Both of the Boocock boys survived the war and were demobilised in 1919. During their time in Gallipoli, they were employed with their father, the Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant, and were responsible for bringing supplies up from the ships up to the regimental base. They were not issued with rifles and stayed in the reserve but were still subject to the incessant shelling. Alfred contracted dysentery in July 1915 and was medically evacuated to the UK, via Malta. On July 13, 1915 R.Q.M.S. Boocock was wounded in the foot by a stray bullet and medically evacuated to England. At this point, James Boocock would likely have been taken under the wing of Major Connery the battalion Quartermaster, a long-time colleague of R.Q.M.S. Boocock.
Alfred Boocock turned 19 years old in October 1918 and so he should have spent the remainder of the war on home service. After the war he remained single living with two of his sisters, Emma and Nellie, in Ashton under Lyne as a plumber. He died in 1975 having outlived all of his siblings. He was 75 years old.
James Boocock survived Gallipoli and deployed with the battalion to Egypt in 1916. He turned 19 in August 1917 and at some point, after March 1917, he was transferred to the 2nd Battalion Manchester Regiment and remained with them for the duration of the war. He died in Ashton in 1933 and was buried at St. Michaels and All Angels Church where his father joined him a year later.
Pte. 3368 Leonard Broadhurst
Len Broadhurst deployed to Gallipoli on October 22, 1915 as part of a draft of reinforcements sent out from England. Despite driving his mother frantic with worry he survived unscathed until he was forced to return to the UK on March 25, 1916 upon the military authorities discovering his true age. He was medically examined and then discharged for being underage providing false information in his attestation papers. Undeterred, he later joined the Royal Marines as soon as he was legitimately old enough to do so.
His mother’s letters provide a glimpse of the anguish young Leonard put her through:
December 10, 1915
My Dear Leonard,
How is it you have not sent any letters, it’s now over 4 weeks since I had one. And that was wrote on the 26th October. I hope you are well. I have sent 3 parcels and 2 letters and had no reply. I hope there is nothing wrong with you. They have all had letters round about, 2 and 3 some of them. Mrs Fernley [h]as had a telegram saying that Jim [h]as been dangerously wounded. Write back at once and let me know how you are. I am looking out for the post every day. Your father is in France. I am very sorry about Jim [Fernley] but you ought not to have gone out. You are both too young and you are younger than him.
Auntie & our Eddie send their best love. Accept the same from me. And god bless you and spare you is my fervent wish and bring you safely home soon. Your Mother
Dear Len,
I have had a postcard from J. Smethurst asking how you was. I told him I had had no letters for a long time and I told him about Fernley. You see his father has stopped him from going out and he was willing to stop. You see he has more sense than you. It would be alright if you was old enough but you are so young. You see there are big men [who] won’t go until they are made and you throw yourself away at 15 years of age. But I hope you will get your discharge until you are 19. That will be soon enough. Write back as soon as you can and let me know how you are as I am very anxious to know. So I think this will be all this time. With best love from Mother xxx God Bless You xxx
Pte. 1682 Ernest Pepper
Ernest Pepper was seriously wounded on August 2, 1915 with a gunshot, (probably shrapnel), wound to the spine. He was medically evacuated from Gallipoli and just over a month later, on September 7, boarded a hospital ship for England. 14 months later, he was discharged being no longer fit for military service due to his wounds. The 1939 National Roll indicates that 24 years after being wounded in Gallipoli he was unmarried and living with his father, permanently incapacitated. Ernest’s older brother Philip fared slightly better; he was medically evacuated from Egypt in early May 1915 having likely never deployed to Gallipoli.
Pte. 1801 William Barfield
William Barfield was one of four close friends who joined the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment three of whom made our list of underage boys. Two of them lost their lives in Gallipoli and both of the other two were wounded.
Pte. 1801 William Barfield
William wrote to his mother telling her of his wound and the letter was published in the Saturday July 10, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper:
“DON’T WORRY, MOTHER.”
Cheerful Letter From Wounded Ashton Territorial,
Private William Barfield, of the Ashton Territorials, writes from a hospital in Alexandria to his mother, Mrs. Barfield 132, Turner-lane, Ashton, telling her that he has been wounded. But he is very cheerful, says he will soon be all right again, and tells her she has not to worry. He writes:-
“I am very sorry to tell you that I have been wounded in the left leg and the right foot, but I am expecting to be all right again in a few weeks so don’t you worry, for I am all right. It is a fortnight to-day since it was done, and they are going on fine. We are getting plenty of food, as much as we can eat. I am in a Greek Hospital, and the nurses are very kind to us.”
A little more clarity on William’s wounds was provided by his good friend Drummer W. H. Taylor in the same edition of the Ashton Reporter:
A HURST DRUMMER
Received a Bullet Wound in the Left Forearm,
“Billy Barfield has been wounded in the bayonet charge. He fell with a bullet through his left leg, and whilst crawling away he got another through his left foot. Teddy Green bandaged the wounds with his field dressing. Teddy Green was all right when I got winged, and I think he will be all right, although they stayed in the trench over-night.”
The fates of the four friends was laid out in a letter published in the Saturday December 18, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper:
FOUR CHUMS HIT
Mrs. Green, of 2, Spring Bank Cottages, Broadoak-road, Hurst, on Saturday received an official intimation that her son, Private Edward Green, 1/9th Manchester Regiment, had died from wounds on November 13th, at the Dardanelles. Private Green, who was 21 years of age, was formerly employed as a little piecer at the Cedar Mill.
A chum of his, Drummer W. H. Taylor, also of the 1/9th Manchester Regiment, writing to his mother. Mrs. Taylor, also of Spring Bank Cottages, pays a fine tribute to his dead comrade as follows:
“It is with the deepest regret that I inform you that my old chum Edward Green passed away on Saturday afternoon, November 13th, at 4-30. He got hit in the side of the head and lost consciousness almost instantaneously, and it will perhaps ease your mind to know he did not suffer much pain He was well liked by everyone in his company, and although one of the smallest, he was one of the pluckiest lads in the regiment, as any one of them will tell you.”
“There were, as you know, four of us who came out, all chums, and every one of us have been hit. Dick Stott was hit three times in the head, and died from his wounds. Billy Barfield was hit through the leg and foot on June 7th. and I was hit in the same charge, and now Teddy has been killed, and I am the only one who is back out of the four. It was a very curious thing that Teddy’s cousin Willie, who only came out three weeks ago, was the first one to find him. It must have been a great shock to him. Jim (Pte James Elliot, a brother-in-law of Drummer Taylor, of the 1/9th Manchester Regiment) is all right, and as for myself, I am in the pink at present.”
Unfortunately, this was not the end of William Barfield’s Gallipoli troubles as the February 12, 1916 edition of the Ashton Reporter conveyed:
TWICE WOUNDED. Ashton Territorial Hit on Eve of the Evacuation.
For the second time Private Wm. Barfield, 1/9th Manchester Regiment, of 132, Turner-lane, Ashton, has been wounded during the fighting at the Dardanelles. In a letter from him he says:
“I am sorry to tell you I have been wounded again by shrapnel in the right thigh. This happened on the 28th of last month (December). It is going on fine so you need not worry about me, for I am all right. I hope it will not be long before I see you all.” He is now in Hospital at Malta.
In June last he was wounded in the left leg and right foot during an engagement on the Gallipoli Peninsula.
His father, Private Barfield, is also in the Army, having enlisted in the Middlesex Regiment. He is stationed at a military camp in Sussex and engaged in trench digging.
And coincidentally, his good friend Drummer W. H. Taylor was also wounded for a second time as reported in the Ashton Reporter the following week:
Ashton Territorial in Hospital With Fractured Skull,
Drummer W H. Taylor, C. Company, 1/9th Manchesters, writes from Western General Hospital, Leaf Square, Pendleton, Manchester, to the Editor of the Reporter:-
“I am suffering from a fractured skull and paralysis of the left foot, and this is the second time wounded, as I was wounded in the arm on June 7th, 1915, in the same engagements as Private W. Barfield.”
Pte. 1711 Sidney Ogden
Sidney Ogden was born and raised in Ashton under Lyne and was working as a scavenger at the Guide Bridge Spinning Company, Ashton before the war along with his older brother Harry. He attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 his brother Harry attesting a few days later.
Pte. 1711 Sidney Ogden
Sidney was assigned to Number 2 platoon, A Company and his platoon commander was 2/Lt. Charles Earsham Cooke, himself only 18 years old when he landed in Gallipoli. Sidney’s death is rather graphically described in 2/Lt. Cooke’s personal diary:
June 19. Saturday. We stood-to from 3am till about 8am our machine-gun, and in fact all of us, had been told that when the last attack came off we were to fire like hell at the trench in front to stop reinforcements. This the machine gun did. This drew shell fire at our trench. The trench is really in a most difficult position to describe, suffice it to say that it was on a hill, sheer down and the trench was hardly dug into the ground at all but was chiefly made of sand-bags thereby rendering a most magnificent target to the Turk’s shell fire. One shell actually landed on the parapet (front) as well as many on the back and blew the lot, making a huge gap. Previously, young Ogden, (16 years old), was badly shot through the head, brains out, I bandaged him up but the RAMC said no hope, however he still lives. Well the shell that blew the parapet in wounded 2 and knocked the remaining 3 down.
The Saturday July 3, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper reported the death of Sidney’s older brother:
IF THEY COULD ONLY SEE
All the Lads in Ashton Would Join.
TERRITORIAL’S DEATH.
Wounded an Hour After Getting Letter From Home.
News has been officially received by Mr. Arnold Ogden, of Hill-street, Ashton, that his son, Private Harry Ogden, 1/9 Battalion Manchester Regiment (Territorials) has died from wounds received on June 6th in action at the Dardanelles. Prior to the mobilisation in August last he worked as piecer at the Guide Bridge Spinning Co. He was formerly a member of St. Peter’s Boys’ Brigade. A letter dated June 12th, from the Egyptian Hospital, Port Said, which was received from him by his parents, states :-
“About an hour after I had read your letter I got wounded in the neck, and I was removed to hospital. I am being well looked after, and I could not expect better treatment. The wound is not a very bad one. Will you tell Jack (his minder at the Guide Bridge Spinning Co.) that I received his letter and tabs, and that I hope to be working for him again before very long.”
Referring to the recruiting efforts in Ashton he states :-
“If they were out here, and saw what we have seen, all the lads in Ashton would join.”
A brother, Private Sidney Ogden, is also serving with the Territorials at the Dardanelles, and another brother, Private William Ogden, is serving with the 2/9th Battalion Manchester Regiment (Territorials) at Haywards Heath.
And the Saturday July 10, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper reported the sad news of Sidney’s death:
TWO BROTHERS KILLED
Both Belonged to the Ashton Territorials
News was received on Wednesday by Mr. and Mrs. Arnold Ogden, of 84, Hill Street, Ashton, that their son, Private Sidney Ogden, 1/9th Battalion, Manchester Regiment, Territorials, had died from wounds received on June 20th.
The sadness of the news was heightened by the fact that Mr. and Mrs. Ogden had only just recovered from the shock which they experienced on receiving the official intimation that their son, Private Harry Ogden, in the same battalion, had died from wounds on June 6th.
Both youths, for Sidney was only 16 years of age, and Harry, a year or two older, worked as piecers at the Guide Bridge Spinning Company.
Another brother, Private William Ogden, is serving in the 2/9th Battalion at Hayward’s Heath.
Pte. 1966 Norman Jackson
Norman Jackson’s surviving service record provides a detailed account of the lengths his father, Eli Jackson, took to ensure that he was kept out of the firing line. Shortly after his son was mobilised, Eli contacted the battalion while they were still in England and informed them that Norman Jackson was underage. He was informed that they were only going to be assigned Garrison (i.e., non-combat) duty and that any age discrepancy would be uncovered during that period. Norman deployed to Egypt and then to Gallipoli. However, in Gallipoli he was employed as a telephone operator and was not given a combat role. After going through the Gallipoli campaign unscathed he deployed to Egypt with the battalion in January 1916. Back in Ashton, despite contacting the military authorities in September and October 1915 Eli had made no progress in his quest to protect his son. In an apparent act of desperation, in July 1916, after the issuing of Army Council Instruction 1186 of 1916, he wrote to the Prime Minster, David Lloyd George, asking for his help. Remarkably, this seemed to do the trick and in August 1916 Norman Jackson was removed to the 42nd Division Base Depot prior to being transferred to the UK to serve with a reserve unit until his 19th birthday. He left Egypt on September 3, 1916 onboard the H.T. Royal George, 12 days before his 18th birthday.
Sgt. Norman Jackson, Australian Army Medical Corps (WW2)
He was commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant in the East Lancashire Regiment on September 11, 1918 and promoted to Lieutenant on March 11, 19120. He resigned his commission on September 23, 1921 retaining the rank of Lieutenant. After the war he traveled extensively to South Africa, Mauritius, Australia and New Zealand eventually settling in Gracemere, Queensland where he married. In May 1940 he joined the Australian Army Medical Corps, ironically incorrectly reporting his age to appear 2 years younger than he actually was. He served as a Sergeant in World War 2 from 1940-42 when he was discharged on compassionate grounds at his own request. He died in 1976 in Brisbane, Queensland; he was 77 years old.
Pte. 1674 Charles Arthur Middleton
Before the outbreak of war, Charles Middleton was a miner at New Moss Colliery. He was born in Golborne, just south of Wigan, and by 1911 was living with his family in Dukinfield and attending school. He attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 with around a dozen of his work colleagues and, perhaps coincidentally, was assigned consecutive service numbers with Alfred Sumner.
He does not appear in any newspaper reports and there is no surviving service record other than the very sparse record of his attestation but there are some other things we know. He was one of a number of enlisted men who attended bible class with the Reverend J. K. Best at Heliopolis camp in early 1915 before the battalion deployed to Gallipoli. While he was at Gallipoli he was wounded and listed on the Times Casualty List of July 20, 1915. This means that he was likely wounded in June 1915. There is no record of him being medically evacuated to the UK and we know from his medal roll that he served the remainder of his time in the war with the Manchester Regiment. He was disembodied on January 10, 1919 and applied for a war related disability pension which he received.
Pte. 1741 Arthur Banton
Arthur Banton was born and raised in Ashton under Lyne and before the outbreak of war was working as a packer at the Park Road Spinning Company, Dukinfield. He attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 and was one of two employees of that particular Cotton Mill to attest that night. He deployed to Egypt and then Gallipoli with the 9th Manchesters and apparently came through the first four months unscathed but on September 5, 1915 he reported sick and was medically evacuated to the UK just over a week later. In England he was discharged from hospital on October 26th but was left with a medical diagnosis of “Disordered Action of the Heart” (D.A.H.). Today this is recognized as a long-term post combat medical disorder and although shell shock was the quintessential war syndrome of 1914–1918, soldier’s heart or D.A.H. was, in fact, equally common.1
After his post hospital stay furlough, he joined the 8th (Reserve) Battalion, Manchester Regiment and there spent some weeks performing military police duties. He applied for a transfer to the military police but was apparently rejected, perhaps because of his age. On July 25, 1916 Arthur was transferred to Class “W (T)” per Army Council Instruction 1186 of June 13, 1916, Paragraph 1(b) since he was still under 18 years of age. After spending the minimum period of 3 months in this manner he rejoined the 8th (Reserve) Battalion on October 23rd having now celebrated his 18th birthday. Still under the requisite age of 19 years to return to combat he was transferred to an agricultural company of the KOSB and 3 months later to the Labour Corps.
In November 1917, having now passed his 19th birthday, he was deployed overseas to the Divisional Supply Depot at Boulogne. In May 1918 he was posted to the 87th Company of the Labour Corps in the field. On August 27, 1918 he suffered the indignity of a Field General Court Martial for being absent without leave for a week. Found guilty, he was sentenced to 28 days of Field Punishment Number 1, remitted to 7 days. A few weeks later he was sentenced to be deprived of 14 days pay for being absent without leave for almost a day, remitted to 1 day’s pay.
He was repatriated to the UK in early 1919 and discharged on March 27th of that year due to sickness and awarded the silver war badge. After the war he married Mary Alice Nelson in late 1919 and together they emigrated to Canada in 1922.
Jones E. Historical approaches to post-combat disorders. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2006 Apr 29;361(1468):533-42. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2006.1814. PMID: 16687259; PMCID: PMC1569621.
Pte. 1675 Alfred Sumner
Alfred Sumner was born and raised in Ashton under Lyne and was working as an engineer at Nellison & Hayton Company in Ashton when he attested on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914. He remained with the Manchester Regiment throughout the war and was demobilised on March 3, 1919.
The only account we have of Alfred’s time in Gallipoli is from the Saturday July 24, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper:
SIX WEEKS WITHOUT A REST
Ashton Territorial Who Bandaged Wounded Comrade.
Mrs. Sumner, of 53, Burlington-street, Ashton, has received a letter from her son, Private Alfred Sumner, of the Ashton Territorials, in which he says:-
“I am still able to tell you I am in the land of the living. At the present time I am feeling done up after six weeks without a rest, and seldom out of the firing line. On June 18th we stormed an enemy’s trench, and Ryder got shot through the eye [particulars of Private Ryder’s death appeared in the “Reporter” last week], and I believe he died in about two minutes. He was with a party of 25, including myself and Littleford, and it was just as we reached the enemy’s trench that he got shot.”
“Littleford and I, with some of the party, managed to get back to our own trench, and then it was like hell let loose. We were only 20 yards from the enemy, and every man had to fight for all he was worth. Somehow I got hit in the forehead. I can’t tell what it was, because it blinded me for the minute, and then I went out of the firing line, and they have put me on a hospital ship. It is not much of a wound that I have, but my right eye is still sore. Our division has done good work out here, but they have paid for it.”
According to a letter from a comrade, Private Sumner tied his field bandage round poor Ryder’s head after he was hit, and it was just after this incident that he himself was wounded.
Pte. 1609 Robert Daniel MacCormack
Robert Daniel MacCormack was the younger brother of Albert MacCormack who joined the 9th Manchesters on March 28, 1912. Born and raised in Ashton under Lyne Robert was employed as a piecer at Thomas Mason and Son’s Oxford Mill in Ashton. He attested on February 4, 1914 giving his correct age and was at least initially given the rank of Boy. There is no surviving service record (other than the sparse account of his attestation) and no contemporaneous newspaper reports to draw from. He was not shown on any casualty lists and so the assumption is that he made it safely through the Gallipoli campaign unscathed. His medal roll indicates that he was allocated a six-digit service number assigned to the 9th Manchesters in early 1917 and continued to serve with them throughout the remainder of the war. There are no surviving pension records to indicate any disability claims.
Pte 2063 Thomas William Preston Portington
Thomas William Preston Portington deployed to Egypt and then Gallipoli. On the evening of September 2, he was one of 14 other ranks assigned to a digging party under the command of 2nd Lieut. Arthur Claude Vyvyan-Robinson of the 10th South Lancs Regiment and attached to the 9th Manchesters. Their orders were to extend a sap joining the current Firing Line with the Northern Barricade. Unfortunately, as they made their way in the dark, they lost their bearings, going too far East, and were discovered by the Turks and probably caught in the cross-fire between the Turks and the Royal Naval Division, who were not aware of their presence. 2/Lt. Vyvyan-Robinson and three men were wounded and 17-year-old Pte. Portington was reported missing. Thomas’ body was never found and he was not officially declared Killed in Action until January 1916.
From the Saturday 29 January 1916 Ashton Reporter:
17th BIRTHDAY IN TRENCHES,
Ashton Territorial Who Was Killed in Gallipoli.
An official intimation has now been received by Mr. and Mrs. Portington, of 46, Dale-street, Ashton, that their son, Private Tom Portington of the Ashton Territorials, has been killed in action. He had previously been reported “missing” on September 3rd, 1915. Naturally, Mr. and Mrs. Portington had clung to the shred of hope that their son had not been killed, but had been taken prisoner, and were buoyed up in their belief by letters from his comrades, who also believed he had been captured.
From various accounts it seems that Private Portington went out with some of the others to dig themselves in nearer the Turkish lines, but the Turks became suspicious, and threw a searchlight on them. When they saw what was happening they opened fire, and our men beat a hasty retreat.
Private Portington, who was the oldest of seven children, worked at the New Moss Pit. He was a fine lad for his age, and easily passed as over 18, but he was only 16 years old when he joined. He celebrated his 17th birthday in the trenches.
Many of his comrades have written expressing their sympathy with Mr. and Mrs. Portington and testifying to the pluck and popularity of Private Portington He was liked by both officers and men.
Pte. 1745 William Henry Hall
Like Arthur Banton, William Henry Hall was employed at the Park Road Spinning Company but when he attested on February 14, 1914 he was employed at the River Cotton Mill, Dukinfield. He appears to have survived Gallipoli mostly unscathed except for a mysterious accident with a pick axe.
From the Saturday July 31, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper:
ASHTON TERRITORIAL WOUNDED WITH A “PICK”
Private WILLIAM HENRY HALL, of 48, Hill Street, Ashton, has been wounded in a peculiar manner while fighting with the Ashton Territorials in the Dardanelles. Writing from the hospital at Alexandria to his father, who is employed at the New Moss Colliery, he states that he was wounded by a “pick”. He does not explain how the affair happened. But his injuries are not regarded as serious. He joined the Ashton Territorials during the recruiting boom at the beginning of last year, and at the time was employed as a piecer at Park Road Mill.
William remained with the 9th Manchesters in Egypt during 1916 and then deployed with them to France in March 1917. At some point he transferred to the Welch Regiment (Royal Welch Fusiliers) from where he was disembodied on May 1, 1919.
Immediately after the war he married Nellie Jones in Ashton in 1919 but then rejoined the 1st Battalion, Welch Regiment and was deployed to India. He remained with them until he was discharged on February 15, 1924 and was now entitled to the India General Service Medal with Waziristan 1921-24 clasp.
Pte. 1656 Edward Hennessey
Born and raised in Ashton under Lyne, Edward Hennessey worked at the New Moss Colliery and was one of three of our underage boys to attest on the evening of Saturday February 14, 1914 and list the Colliery as their employer. He was wounded in Gallipoli at the Battle of Krithia Vineyard and was treated in Hospital at Mudros. He returned to the peninsula in September and apparently saw out the remainder of his time there without incident.
From the Saturday September 18, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper:
MISSED HIS CHUM.
The First Parting Since Leaving Home.
TERRITORIAL OF 17 WOUNDED
Says It is the Only Chance of Getting Some Rest,
Private Edward Hennessey 1/9th Manchester Regiment, whose home is at 32, Wellington-street, Ashton, was wounded on August 7th during the big attack in which the Ashton men distinguished themselves. He is the only son of his mother, who is a widow. Mrs. Hennessey has received the following letter, dated August 18th, from her son:-
“Dear Mother, I am at present in hospital with a bullet in my leg, but it is not worrying me a bit. It is just a rest for me. I don’t want you to think that it is much, because it is not. They don’t know where to send us yet, because every place is full up with the wounded. The only place where there seems to be room for us is at home in England. I may get a chance of seeing it with a bit of luck.”
“I was attached to the R.E. with the miners We were practically in the firing line, going under and making listening galleries and mines. Then I was an officer’s orderly, and used to take the notes for him. I got hit during the night. I thought it was a horse that had kicked me. They have not got the bullet out yet. It’s the only chance you have of having a rest. It is the first time I have seen a doctor since I left England. It is also the first time that Teddy (Private Edward Kershaw, of the Ashton Territorials, also of Wellington-street, his companion) and I have been parted since we left home. I feel lonely without him. Tell them all at home I shall be all right in a week or two.”
Private Hennessey who was only 17 years old last May, had been in the Territorials about a year before the outbreak of hostilities. He was with the first batch to go out, and formerly worked at New Moss Colliery.
The Saturday September 25, 1915 Ashton Reporter newspaper wrapped-up the story:
BACK TO THE TRENCHES,
Ashton Territorial Glad to See the Boys Again.
On Monday Mrs. Hennesey, of 82, Wellington-street, Ashton, a widow, received the following letter from her only son, Private Edward Hennesey, of the 1/9th Manchester Regiment, who, as reported in last week’s “Reporter,” was wounded during the fighting at Gallipoli:-
“I shall soon be all right and going back to the battalion. I dare say by the time you get this letter I shall be back and I shall be glad to see my battalion again. I had a nice rest and a good bed for the last five weeks, and it has done me a world of good.”
“I had the bullet taken out about two weeks ago, and I am going to keep it. It did not go right through my leg. It stopped in the bone, and the doctor had a job to take it out. I have been stationed at Mudros. It is an island about 30 miles from the Peninsula, and there are a lot of grapes here. I can get about very well now, so I shall soon be fit for duty. I shall be glad to see Teddy (Private Edward Kershaw, of the Ashton Territorials, and of Wellington street, his chum).”
Edward Hennessey remained with the 9th Manchesters during their subsequent deployed to Egypt in 1916 and then to France in 1917. Early in 1918 he transferred to the Machine Gun Corps and remained with them until he was demobilised on January 16, 1919.
After he left the Army, he almost immediately married Mabel Eileen McGarry and they later had two sons. Edward Hennessey died in October 1960 and is buried in Hurst Cemetery, Ashton under Lyne.
Summary of the 9th Manchesters Boy Soldiers
More than 250 boys were, (or would have been), under the age of 19 when they landed in Gallipoli. The names of the 129 who would have landed before their 18th birthday are provided below ranked by their Gallipoli landing age. Note that since some of them arrived as drafts after the original landing on May 9, 1915 it is not ordered by their date of birth.
1647 Harry Cooke and 1943 Phillip Pepper were part of a group of 19 men who embarked HT City of Benares at Alexandria on May 12, 1915 bound for England. Although these men deployed to Egypt in 1914 none of them served in Gallipoli. Consequently, their landing dates are struck out in the table below along with that of 1845 Fred Finucane.
Service No.
Forename
Surname
Gallipoli Landing Age
1652
RICHARD
STOTT
15.15
1845
FREDERICK
FINUCANE
15.56
2069
ALFRED
BOOCOCK
15.58
3368
LEONARD
BROADHURST
15.63
1682
ERNEST
PEPPER
16.15
3181
JOSEPH
WEST
16.33
1570
WILLIAM
ANDREWS
16.38
1801
WILLIAM
BARFIELD
16.41
2320
EDWARD
LEWIS
16.48
1711
SIDNEY
OGDEN
16.52
1930
JAMES
THWAITES
16.58
2742
JAMES
SPEDDINGS
16.60
3314
JAMES
CUNCAR
16.65
1966
NORMAN
JACKSON
16.66
1674
CHARLES
MIDDLETON
16.70
2070
JAMES
BOOCOCK
16.73
1741
ARTHUR
BANTON
16.76
1817
JOHN
COFFEY
16.76
1933
ROBERT
GATER
16.76
1887
MARK
ROBINSON
16.78
1675
ALFRED
SUMNER
16.80
1609
ROBERT
MacCORMACK
16.82
3097
FRED
BROMLEY
16.82
2063
THOMAS
PORTINGTON
16.87
2691
FRED
WARD
16.90
1583
NORMAN
LEIGH
16.95
1745
WILLIAM
HALL
16.98
1656
EDWARD
HENNESSEY
16.98
3218
JOHN
NEWTON
17.02
1549
JOHN
CUNNINGHAM
17.04
1545
NORMAN
TAYLOR
17.07
1746
JOHN
CHAPMAN
17.07
1638
WILLIAM
HAZELL
17.09
1540
WALTER
BRYAN
17.11
1673
RONALD
WATERS
17.14
3320
CAMPBELL
REECE
17.15
2689
FRANK
WRIGLEY
17.16
1626
HENRY
BENT
17.17
1748
WILLIAM
HIGGINBOTTOM
17.20
1697
ARCHIBALD
LATHAM
17.20
2730
NORMAN
SIMISTER
17.22
1888
HARRY
JACKSON
17.23
3322
JOSEPH
HOLT
17.23
2833
WILLIAM
RUSSELL
17.24
2704
BENJAMIN
WILCOCKSON
17.25
1391
GEORGE
HAUGHTON
17.25
1835
WILLIAM
HANDLEY
17.25
1546
JOHN
FINNIGAN
17.27
2110
THOMAS
BATES
17.28
1818
JAMES
CRUTCHLEY
17.29
1744
ANTHONY
SHERIDAN
17.30
1647
HARRY
COOKE
17.33
3295
EDMUND
LOMAX
17.35
1816
ALEXANDER
WHITTET
17.35
1767
WILLIAM
ROBERTSON
17.38
2794
WILLIAM
DIBSDALL
17.38
3258
ARTHUR
GREEN
17.39
2479
TOM
KILSHAW
17.42
1558
LAWRENCE
FINNERAN
17.42
2246
ALBERT
WOODWARD
17.45
1514
HARRY
SYKES
17.46
2687
THOMAS
MORRIS
17.47
2747
JOHN
MacKENZIE
17.47
1513
ALBERT
BURKE
17.49
1936
ARTHUR
GROSVENOR
17.50
1735
WILLIAM
BATKIN
17.50
1694
BEN
CUMMINGS
17.56
1943
PHILLIP
PEPPER
17.56
1561
ROBERT
KENWORTHY
17.60
3066
WILLIAM
WALKER
17.60
2227
THOMAS
ORMESHER
17.61
1891
JOSEPH
JACKSON
17.61
3398
WILLIAM
RUSSELL
17.64
1873
THOMAS
CARTER
17.65
1753
JOSEPH
SWINTON
17.66
1601
WALTER
CLEGG
17.68
1691
GEORGE
NEWTON
17.68
1316
WILLIAM
ADAMS
17.69
1642
ENOCH
WARHURST
17.70
1837
JOHN
NIELD
17.71
2971
ALBERT
HARLING
17.71
1637
HERBERT
FISH
17.72
1677
RUPERT
RYLANCE
17.72
2271
PERCY
HARROP
17.72
2985
ROBERT
THEWLIS
17.74
1874
JOHN
PURCER
17.75
1351
ROBERT
MELIA
17.76
1380
BERNARD
RAWLINGS
17.77
1789
NORMAN
RICHARDSON
17.77
1907
JOHN
DONALD
17.78
3132
SAMUEL
BENNETT
17.79
3355
SAMUEL
DAVENPORT
17.79
1408
JOSEPH
CROPPER
17.79
1578
THOMAS
GASKELL
17.80
1555
GEORGE
ELLIS
17.80
1951
JOHN
TINDALL
17.80
1836
JAMES
HAMPSON
17.80
2356
FRED
SMITH
17.81
2514
ALFRED
MOLYNEUX
17.82
1669
JOSEPH
WILDE
17.82
1863
WILLIAM
ADSHEAD
17.83
1496
JOHN
BULLOCK
17.84
1752
GEORGE
WILSON
17.85
3329
NORMAN
BRAMWELL
17.85
1635
WILLIAM
TAYLOR
17.86
3131
JOHN (JACK)
DAVENPORT
17.86
1539
MATTHEW
SHEA
17.87
1328
WILLIAM
BEACON
17.87
2297
SAM
MATHER
17.89
1634
JAMES
HOKE
17.90
1604
WILLIAM
CORLETT
17.90
1487
ERNEST
RIMINGTON
17.90
3357
FRANK
ROBERTS
17.90
1683
FRANK
HADFIELD
17.90
1371
ALBERT
NEALE
17.91
3005
JOSEPH
HOWARD
17.91
1676
TOM
LITTLEFORD
17.92
3423
ERNEST
BRADBURY
17.93
1946
MOSES
BIRCHENOUGH
17.94
1574
THOMAS
BOON
17.95
1655
RICHARD
BOON
17.95
1536
LEWIS
GRIMSHAW
17.95
1810
EDWARD
BORSEY
17.97
2037
ALBERT
FORD
17.97
2846
VICTOR
BRAMALL
17.98
1799
HAROLD
ABBOTT
17.99
1876
TOM
FIELDING
17.99
1833
JOSEPH
HAGUE
17.99
1481
CLIFFORD
HOLDEN
17.99
Of the 256 boys who landed at Gallipoli before their 19th birthday, 39 lost their lives during or just prior to the Gallipoli campaign and at least one more received life-changing wounds and became permanently incapacitated. The youngest boy from the battalion to die in the Gallipoli Campaign was Richard Stott who died of wounds at 15 years and just under 3 months but the youngest of them to die on overseas service was Fred Finucane who was just over 1 month past his 15th birthday when he died of dysentery in Egypt. In addition to the two 15-year-olds who died, another two 16-year-olds, ten 17-year-olds and twenty 18-year-olds also died in service.
That said, two of them, James Greenhalgh and Albert Davies, went on to win the Distinguished Conduct Medal in Gallipoli.
Several boys had relatives in the battalion; three boys serving with their father. In some cases, the influence of a parent or older brother already serving in the battalion may have been a factor in their decision to join but in many cases it was the boy that joined first and the older family member who joined later. And we should acknowledge the case of Richard and Thomas Boon, twins who joined the battalion within a month of each other. Thomas joining in January 1914, adding two years to his real age, and Richard on the night of the smoking concert more modestly stating that he was exactly 17 years old.
Some outcomes of the list members not previously mentioned are provided below:
Pte 1835 William Handley
William Handley deployed to Egypt and then Gallipoli as a private in A Company. His father, Cpl. Robert Handley, had himself joined the battalion in September 1915 while the battalion were in Camp at Bury and accompanied his son overseas. On June 7, 1915 C Company were involved in a bayonet charge against the Turkish trenches resulting in many casualties; Cpl. Robert Handley was killed in action that day. William remained in Gallipoli and in early August was involved in the Battle of Krithia Vineyard where Lt. William Thomas Forshaw won the Victoria Cross.
Pte 1835 William Handley
Shortly after, he was medically evacuated to England suffering from shellshock. He rejoined the battalion while they were in Egypt in December 1916 and deployed to France with them in March 1917. Pte. William Handley was killed in action, struck by a bullet on the night of May 6/7 during an advance. He was 19 years old having turned 19 one month before the battalion left Egypt.
From the Saturday May 26, 1917 Ashton Reporter:
FATHER AND SON.
Fought Side by Side and Both Killed.
“STILL TOGETHER.”
Major Howorth’s Touching Letter to Widowed Mother
Mrs. Handley, of 126, Cotton-street, Ashton, whose husband, Corporal Robert Handley, was killed during the glorious charge of the Ashton Territorials in Gallipoli on June 7th, 1915, which was led by Captain F. Hamer and Lieutenant A. E. Stringer, has received news of the death in France of her son, Private William Handley, who was also in the 1/9th Battalion, and went out to Egypt with his father, when he was but 15 years of age. Shortly after his father’s death, Pte. Handley was invalided home through shock, but not before he had fought nobly and well with Lieutenant W. T. Forshaw, when the latter won the V.C. in the vineyard. It was a fight against “the desperate” foe and fierce odds, and every man who came out counted himself lucky. Private Handley went back to Egypt for the second time last Christmas, and accompanied the battalion to France.
It is with deep sorrow I have to tell you of heavy loss you have to bear. I know that already you have been called upon to give your husband, and now I have to tell you that your son also has been called upon to make the supreme sacrifice. May strength be given you to bear this double sorrow. “The boy came out with me in September, 1914, and then rejoined us in Egypt. I knew him pretty well, and in the old days in Egypt it was nice to see father and son together (as they are now, although we cannot see them). Your son was with his company in an advance on the night of May 6-7th. During that advance he was struck by a bullet and instantly killed. I saw him afterwards. There was no disfigurement on his. face. His body was laid to rest alongside that of one of his friends, Lance-Corporal S. Green, (of Ryecroft House), in a British soldiers’ cemetery near here,”
Private William Handley was 19 years of age. He worked as a piecer at the Old Mill, Tame Valley, and received his education at the Parish Church Schools.
Cpl. 1669 Joseph Wilde
Joseph Wilde deployed to Egypt and then Gallipoli. In Gallipoli he twice assisted in bringing back wounded men under fire but received no official recognition for his acts of bravery. He survived Gallipoli intact, only picking up a slight wound to his face. He deployed to Egypt with the battalion in 1916 and then to France in March 1917.
Cpl. 1669 Joseph Wilde
On the evening on May 30, 1917 2/Lt. Philip Sydney Marsden and 3 other ranks were fired on during a reconnaissance, Lt. Marsden and Pte. 1876 (350454) Tom Fielding were both badly wounded. Cpl. Wilde volunteered to go out and carried Pte. Fielding on his back, 300 yards to safety. However, both 2/Lt. Marsden and Pte. Fielding died of their wounds within hours of their rescue. Four days later, Cpl. Joseph Wilde was killed in action on June 3, 1917 and was subsequently buried next to Pte. Fielding and 2/Lt. Marsden at the Neuville-Bourjonval British Cemetery. He was 19 years old; a few weeks shy of his 20th birthday.
From the Saturday July 7, 1917 Ashton Reporter:
“BRAVE WATERLOO YOUTH.”
Glowing Tribute to Fallen Soldier.
EXCELLENT WORK
The story which attaches to the death of Corpl. Joseph Wilde, 1/9th Manchester Regiment, son of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Wilde, of No. 10, Langham- street, Waterloo, constitutes an illuminating episode of bravery and devotion to duty, even unto death. This young soldier, who would have been 20 years of age on the 17th of this month, was killed on the 2nd of June, according to the official news received at the latter end of last week, and yet, though so young, he was spoken about by his officers as one bravest and best of non-commissioned officers
In Gallipoli and France he brought in wounded men under fire. In France a few days before he himself was killed he brought in a wounded soldier, Private Fielding, from 300 yards in advance of his own position. This private died, and Corporal Wilde was buried beside him. Corporal Wilde’s own brother helped to dig his grave, and he was buried next to a lance-corporal who went to fetch him in Such is the story of his death, told more fully and with a high appreciation of his worth, in letters which his parents have received from Capt. F. W. Kershaw and Second-Lieutenant Alfred Gray Captain Kershaw wrote:-
“I cannot too highly praise your son. He was a fine lad, and a splendid example of Lancashire pluck and grit. He was much thought of and respected in the company of his battalion. He did excellent work whilst in the Gallipoli Peninsula, and also whilst in France. Only a few days ago Lieutenant Marsden and Private Fielding were hit out in front of our lines, and your son volunteered to go out and assist in bringing them in. He carried Private Fielding back to our trenches, a distance of 300 yards, on his back. On two occasions in Gallipoli he also assisted in bringing in wounded under fire. He was a keen, capable, and very courageous non-commissioned officer, and is greatly missed by officers and men of his company, on whose behalf I beg to extend you our deepest sympathy in your terrible loss.
“Your son was brought in from the advanced trenches by some of his comrades, under difficult and dangerous circumstances. He was buried with fitting ceremony in a British soldiers’ cemetery, near to Lieutenant Marsden, Private Fielding, and Private Ashcroft, who were killed about the same time. A special wooden cross bas been erected on his grave.”
Corporal Wilde was the eldest of a family of nine children, and had been serving with the Ashton Territorials from the time they left England, being just over 16 years of age when he went to Egypt with them at first. At Gallipoli he was slightly wounded in the face, and when the peninsula was evacuated he went back to Egypt, and from there was sent to France last October. He was previously employed as a piecer at the Rock Mill, Waterloo, and was associated with the Waterloo Wesleyan Sunday School and Church, where a service in memory of him is to be held to-morrow (Sunday) night. He was also a playing member of the Wesleyan Football Club, and was very much esteemed by his comrades.
Sgt. 1634 James Hoke
James Hoke does not have a surviving service record and does not appear to have been mentioned in any local newspaper articles of the time. At some point after March 1917, he was transferred to the 2nd Battalion Manchester Regiment but ended the war as a Sergeant at the Manchester Regiment Depot. He was discharged, being no longer physically for military service, on January 18, 1919 and awarded the Silver War Badge. In 1939 he was still working as a Joiner and Woodcutter, and serving as a local Air Raid Warden, in Ashton. He died in 1978, in North Wales, at 81 years of age.
Pte. 1481 Clifford Holden
Clifford Holden survived Gallipoli and deployed with the battalion to Egypt in 1916. In March 1917 he deployed to France with the battalion. At some point after April 1917, he was transferred to the Tank Corps and in August 1918 was wounded, receiving a gunshot wound to the neck. After a short stay in hospital, he was assigned to the Royal Artillery and Tank Corps Command Depot at Catterick from where he was demobilised on January 25, 1919. His claim for a disability pension was denied. After the war he married and had two children, living on Park Road, Dukinfield. He died in November 1966; he was 69 years old.
Acknowledgements
The letters from Leonard Broadhurst’s mother are copyright of the Manchester Regiment Archive and are held at the Tameside Local Studies and Archive Centre. They are reproduced here with their kind permission.
Harry Grantham was born on March 10, 1890 in Ashton under Lyne to Joseph and Ellen Grantham (née Gaskell). He was the oldest of three boys, brothers William and Joseph, and the younger brother of Adelaide Grantham. His father was a cotton minder when Harry was born but later became a labourer on the railways.
On March 11, 1906, when he turned sixteen years old, he joined the 3rd Volunteer Battalion Manchester Regiment which was re-designated the 9th Battalion, Manchester Regiment, Territorial Force in 1908. Appointed Lance Corporal in May 1910 he was promoted to Corporal in July 1911, when he was 21 years old. In June he was one of the less than 30 men of the Ashton Territorials selected to attend King George V’s coronation in London as a member of the composite battalion representing the East Lancs Division. In his civilian life he was living with his family in Ashton and working as a piecer at a Cotton Mill.
By 1914 he had switched employers and was now working for Messrs. R.A. Barrett and Co. a mineral water business owned and run by the Makin family, two of the brothers being officers in the 9th Battalion. He was also a Primo of Victory Lodge, The Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes (R.A.O.B.) being one of the largest fraternal movements in the United Kingdom. In the Territorials, he was by now a Sergeant in A Company, one of whose officers was his employer, Lieutenant Frederick Arthur Makin.
Sgt. Harry Grantham, D.C.M.
At the outbreak of war, the 9th Battalion, Manchester Regiment was mobilised and on August 20, 1914 they marched into Chesham Fold Camp, Bury. Throughout August around 100 new recruits were added, many of whom had previously served with the battalion in the pre-war years. On September 1, 1914 another 100+ men were added, many of whom were friends and family of the existing members of the battalion. On Wednesday September 9 the battalion entrained to Southampton and at midnight the following day sailed for Egypt. In Egypt the men were drilled, trained and worked hard to build their fitness and endurance.
The battalion landed at Gallipoli under shell fire on Sunday May 9, 1915 and at that time Harry Grantham was a 24-year-old Sergeant in A Company.
On the evening of July 10, 1915 Lieut. Oliver Jepson Sutton, on his own initiative, conceived the idea to make a reconnaissance, and voluntarily undertook to carry out this highly dangerous duty. He was accompanied by Sergeant Harry Grantham. They discovered that the Turks were digging to the S.E. of trench G.12 and reported their findings. They were asked to repeat their reconnaissance the following night to verify their observations, which they duly did. In Harry’s own words:
“Lieut. Sutton and myself went out two nights in succession, July 10th and 11th. We each took a piece of rope with us, attached to our wrists and to the parapet of our trench. We pulled it along with us until we reached the Turkish trenches, and so were able to measure the distance between our trenches and theirs. The Turks saw us, but we ran about five or ten yards, and then lay flat on the ground among dead Turks. It was somewhat exciting, especially when they fired at us, but luckily we were missed. Both General Prendergast and General Douglas congratulated us.”
The September 15, 1915 London Gazette carried the following citation:
969 Sjt. H. GRANTHAM 1/9th Bn. Manchester Regiment, TF
For conspicuous gallantry and ability south of Krithia, Gallipoli Peninsula, on 10th and 11th July, 1915, when making a reconnaissance of the enemy’s new trenches under very dangerous circumstances. He gained valuable information and located the hostile positions.
On August 8, 1915 the battalion took part in the Battle of Krithia Vineyard. Lieut. W.T. Forshaw won the Victoria Cross and three N.C.O.s won the Distinguished Conduct Medal. As a Sergeant in “A” Company, Harry was necessarily involved in the Battle of Krithia Vineyard and the October 16, 1915 Ashton Reporter carried an interview which described what happened to him in the Vineyard Trench:
“Sergeant Grantham was shot in the neck by a bullet in the ‘Vineyard’. He can just remember being taken on a stretcher to a French hospital ship, and thence on another hospital ship to Alexandria, and from there to the New Zealand hospital at Port Said. Although the bullet was extracted soon after the injury, the poison from the bullet got into his gums, and caused a number of abscesses, and he had to undergo an operation and have the abscesses treated, and five teeth extracted. He arrived at Devonport last week. He was taken on to Birmingham, where he arrived on Wednesday night, and was given permission to return home on Saturday.”
The No. 1 New Zealand Stationary Hospital, New Zealand’s first overseas hospital in the war, arrived in Port Said on 1 July 1915. In mid-1915, there were no antibiotics and sepsis (also known as blood poisoning) was a significant post-surgical risk, especially with battlefield wounds. Treatment was rather basic; antiseptics were used to clean the wounds and deep surgical incisions were used to drain the pus from infected parts of the body. In Harry’s case, since he was hit in the neck the blood poisoning manifested in his mouth and the only viable treatment was to surgically remove the affected teeth and drain the abscesses. It cannot have been a pleasant experience.
He left Port Said for the UK on September 16, 1915 onboard the hospital ship Runic and by mid October he was back in Ashton. A few weeks later was sufficiently recovered from his wounds to attend the event at Ashton Town Hall when Lieut. W. T. Forshaw, V.C. was granted the freedom of Ashton. Sgt. Grantham subsequently spent time with the 3/9th Battalion at Codford camp for several weeks prior to rejoining the 1/9th Battalion in Egypt. embarking the H.T. Aragon at Devonport on April 4, 1916, rejoining the battalion at Suez on April 21st. After serving in Egypt for almost a year he deployed with the battalion to France in March 1917. On July 6, 1917 Company Sergeant Major (CSM) George Newton was accepted for a commission and left the battalion for officer cadet training in the UK. Harry was appointed acting CSM (Warrant Officer Class II) to fill the gap. He was promoted to WO II and appointed CSM a month later.
On August 1, 1918 he left for England as a candidate for a commission. Arriving in Ashton he did not waste any time and married his long-time fiancé Annie Victoria Norton on September 1st.
He then attended No 2 Officer Cadet Battalion at Cambridge commencing November 5, 1918. And, having been demobilised, on March 13, 1919 the April 26, 1919 London Gazette carried the following announcement regarding his commission:
The undermentioned Cadets to be temporary 2nd Lieutenants under the provisions of the Royal Warrant dated 30 December 1918, promulgated in Army Order 42 of January 1919: —
Manch. R.
17 Mar. 1919.
Harry Grantham, D.C.M
Although Harry was awarded a commission, he was attending his training course when the armistice occurred on November 11, 1918 and was consequently swept up in the terms of “Army Order 42 of January 1919”. This allowed the officer training cadets that successfully graduated to serve as officers but made it clear that these were not regular commissions since they carried with them no pay, allowances or pensions normally granted to officers.
Army Order 42 of 1919 states:
Whereas We deem it expedient to regulate further the future grant of commissions to officer cadets during the period of the present war, Our Will and Pleasure is that such cadets as, on or after January 1, 1919, have completed a satisfactory course of training, may be granted Special Reserve, Territorial Force, or temporary commissions, but that they shall not be entitled to any outfit allowance, gratuity, pay or any other emoluments as officers in respect of the grant of such commissions. On leaving the Army, or on being demobilised, they shall receive such gratuities as they would be eligible for as warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men had they not been granted a commission.
In February 1920, Harry was awarded the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal having more than surpassed the requirement of 12 years continuous service, (where embodied service counted double). And in October that same year, the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment was re-formed and many former Officers, NCOs and men of the 1/9th Battalion re-joined.
Outside the military, on August 1, 1921 his first son, Harry Grantham Jr., was born. Two years later on November 13, 1923 his second son, Joseph Grantham, was born and named after his grandfather, who sadly died three years later.
Having resigned his temporary commission, Harry rejoined the 9th Manchester as Sergeant on February 20, 1925 and was promoted to his old rank of Company Sergeant Major (WO Class II) on February 21, 1928. On May 16, 1930 a small contingent of officers, warrant officers and non-commissioned officers from every regular and territorial battalion of the Manchester Regiment paraded at Buckingham Palace to mark the appointment of His Majesty King George V as Colonel-in-Chief of the Manchester Regiment. Harry Grantham was selected to be one of the eight representatives of the 9th Battalion.
On March 20, 1934 he was appointed Regimental Quarter-Master-Sergeant (R.Q.M.S.) upon the retirement of R.Q.M.S. Lee. In 1937 he became eligible for the Territorial Efficiency Medal for another 12 years of continuous service and his medal group, held by the Museum of the Manchester Regiment, shows that he was awarded it.
During the inter-war years, Harry became heavily involved with the 9th Battalion, Manchester Regiment Old Comrades Association and on May 11, 1937 the London Gazette carried the following announcement concerning Harry with regard to an award for services to the Territorial Army:
The KING has been graciously pleased, on the occasion of His Majesty’s Coronation, to give orders for the following promotions in, and appointments to, the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. To be Additional Members of the Military Division of the said Most Excellent Order: —
No. 3520365 Warrant Officer Class II, Regimental Quarter-Master-Sergeant, Harry Grantham, D.C.M., 9th Battalion, The Manchester Regiment, Territorial Army.
He was now Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant Harry Grantham, M.B.E., D.C.M. and just entering his 32nd year of service with the Territorials. I January 1938 he was granted the right to continue in the Territorial Army up to the age of 50, under authority of the 42nd East Lancs Division. In June 1939 he was under canvas with the 9th Battalion again at their annual summer camp at Aldershot, one year short of his mandatory retirement from the service at 50 years of age.
At the outbreak of World War 2, Harry was mobilised with the battalion and deployed overseas with the British Expeditionary Force in France on April 15, 1940. 47 days later he was one of 68,014 men evacuated from Dunkirk on Friday May 31, 1940 at the peak of Operation Dynamo.
Dunkirk Evacuation. See page for author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Back in the UK he continued to serve in an operational role, thus earning the 1939-45 Star and associated WW2 medals, and the Defence Medal for non-operational home service. In fact he was posted to Ireland from April 3 to October 7, 1941 before returning to England. He was finally demobilised and discharged from service on September 8, 1943.
After the war, Harry continued his work with the Old Comrades Association. Harry Grantham, M.B.E., D.C.M. died in Ashton in 1959. He was 69 years old.
On October 30, 2000 a Blue Plaque commemorating him was unveiled in Ashton under Lyne by Joe Grantham. The plaque indicates that Harry wanted to be remembered for his commitment to the care of ex-serviceman.
Prior to the formation of the Territorial Force on April 1, 1908, (as specified by the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act, 1907), the NCOs and enlisted men of the Volunteers were entitled to the Volunteer Long Service Medal (VLSM) after 20 consecutive years of approved service. With the advent of the Territorial Force the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal (TFEM) replaced the Volunteer Long Service Medal under modified qualifying terms and conditions, the most notable of which was a reduction to 12 consecutive years of approved service. And in 1922, the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal was itself replaced by the Territorial Efficiency Medal (TEM).
Note: The designation “Card” above refers to a congratulatory card received from the General, at Gallipoli, denoting meritorious service.
Volunteer Long Service Medal
The following men of the 1/9th Battalion Manchester Regiment who deployed to Gallipoli in 1915 were holders of the Volunteer Long Service Medal.
Rank
Svc. No.
Forename
Middle
Surname
Q.M.S.
5
GEORGE
BOOCOCK
Cpl.
243
THOMAS
VALENTINE
C.S.M.
339
MATHEW
JAMES
BUCKLEY
Pte.
1182
JAMES
HOPWOOD
L/Cpl.
1484
JOHN
WILLIAM
HUGHES
Notes:
Quarter-Master Sergeant Boocock was also awarded the Territorial Efficiency Medal in 1922 for his 40+ years of continuous service.
Sgt. Boocock and Cpl. Valentine continuously served after the award of their respective VLSMs but Pte. Hopwood and L/Cpl. Hughes both left the service and then re-enlisted into the Territorial Force prior to the outbreak of war.
It would be remis not to mention Quarter-Master Sergeant 160 Thomas Burgess, an old Volunteer with 22 years 317 days prior service before he re-enlisted into the Territorial Force on April 11, 1908. Sgt. Burgess deployed to Egypt in September 1914 with the 9th Battalion but was invalided back to the UK with nephritis in March 1915 without deploying to Gallipoli. He was discharged from the Territorials on June 11, 1915 rejoining the 3/9th Manchester Regiment the following day. He continued to serve on light duty with the 3/9th and the 8th (Reserve) Battalion Manchester Regiment until he was once again discharged on May 4, 1917. His service record shows that he held the Volunteer Long Service Medal and the Territorial Efficiency Medal.
During the transition from the Volunteers to the Territorial Force, for a brief period of time, certain aspects of the rules governing qualification for the long service medals were changed and the eligible men could furthermore choose whether they received the Volunteer Long Service Medal or the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal.
The following announcement was published in the Ashton Reporter on Saturday 12 September, 1908:
It has been decided by the Army Council to allow soldiers of the Territorial Force, who, at the time of their transfer on the 31st March, 1908, had completed 16 years’ service, and were otherwise qualified for the volunteer long service medal, to be recommended to receive, at their individual option, either the volunteer long service medal or the Territorial Force efficiency medal.
It has been further decided with reference to section (b) paragraph 1 of army order 128 of 1908, that the past service of men who at the time of their transfer to the Territorial Force were serving in the volunteers may be reckoned towards the grant of the Territorial Force efficiency medal, whether such service has been continuous or not, provided that the last five years bare been continuously served in the volunteers or Territorial Force. (Sgd.) M. J. MINOGUE, Captain. Adjutant 9th Batt. Manchester Regt.
To illustrate the impact of these changes consider Cpl. 243 Thomas Valentine. His service record shows that his volunteer service actually began on May 13, 1890 and continued to December 2, 1896, a 6 1/2 year period. Approximately 16 months later he re-joined the Volunteers on April 15, 1898 and then served continuously until April 23, 1908 when he re-engaged with the newly formed Territorial Force. His service record also shows that he attended each of the Territorial Force summer camps from 1908-1913. Consequently, in April 1908 he only had 10 years of continuous eligible service and so was not able to apply for either the VLSM or TFEM. However, by September 1908 when the amended rules were promulgated his non-consecutive Volunteer service amounted to almost 17 years so we can deduce at this time that he applied for and was awarded the VLSM, (as confirmed in his service record). In Valentine’s particular case his break from the service was in excess of 12 months. Consequently, his commanding officer must have approved the overage.
Territorial Force Efficiency Medal
In the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment, Territorial Force the service numbers assigned to the men were allocated based upon the day and the order that their Territorial re-engagement (or enlistment) paperwork was processed. Consequently, it is not possible to simply look at the low numbered men and deduce when they originally enlisted in the Volunteers. All the Territorial Force service number tells us is when they re-enlisted into the Territorials (or enlisted for the first time).
Thus, Cpl. Thomas Valentine who, as we know, joined the 3rd Volunteer Battalion, Manchester Regiment on April 15, 1898 but did not re-engage with the Territorial Force until April 23, 1908, (22 days after the first group of men), was assigned a Territorial Force service number of 243. Whereas Sgt. Arthur Bashforth, who joined the Volunteers on March 20, 1903, (5 years after Valentine), was given a lower Territorial Force service number of 58 because he was part of the first batch of men who re-engaged with the Territorial Force on April 1, 1908.
So unraveling prior service with the Volunteers is difficult but by examining the TFEM rolls and applying the qualifying rules it is possible to at least identify many of the “old Volunteers” and infer at least something about their length of service. That said, the eligibility for the TFEM required men to have been “efficient” in each year of service which in this context meant that they had attended a minimum number of drills, fired a minimum number of shots at the Brushes rifle range in Stalybridge, and attended all of the required summer camps. Furthermore, it is worth noting that it was up to the men to submit their applications for the medal and it was not an automatic award.
The following men of the 1/9th Battalion Manchester Regiment who deployed to Gallipoli in 1915 were, or became, holders of the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal.
Rank
No.
Forename
Surname
Medal
Sgt
400
JAMES
CHAPMAN
TFEM 1909
Sgt
41
JAMES
STOPFORD
TFEM 1909
Sgt
83
THOMAS
MCDERMOTT
TFEM 1909
Cpl
124
SAMUEL
STEELE
TFEM 1909
Cpl
174
JOHN
SHAWCROSS
TFEM 1909
CSM
266
ALBERT
GREEN
TFEM 1909
Sgt
22
WALTER
HAWKINS
TFEM 1910
Pte
109
SAMUEL
WHITTON
TFEM 1910
L/Sgt.
236
GEORGE
TURNER
TFEM 1911
Col Sgt
344
JOSEPH
CHADDERTON
TFEM 1911
Col Sgt
108
ROBERT
JACKSON
TFEM 1912
Col Sgt
257
JOHN
WILLIAMSON
TFEM 1912
Sgt
445
JOHN
SIMCOX
TFEM 1912
Sgt
76
JAMES
LAWTON
TFEM 1913
Pte
379
THOMAS
GHENTY
TFEM 1913
C.S.M
540
WILLIAM
BIRCHALL
TFEM 1913
Sgt
156
JAMES
TOWNSEND
TFEM 1916
A/WOII
27
JAMES
NOLAN
TFEM 1918
Sgt
58
ARTHUR
BASHFORTH
TFEM 1918
Sgt
65
JOSEPH
FERNS
TFEM 1918
Sgt
136
HENRY
HARRISON
TFEM 1918
Sgt
164
ALFRED
SCOTT
TFEM 1918
Sgt
220
ALBERT
FLETCHER
TFEM 1918
Col Sgt
447
ERNEST
EYRES
TFEM 1919
Pte
998
HARRY
HOLDEN
TFEM 1919
Col Sgt
313
GEORGE
MELLOR
TFEM 1919
Sgt
845
ALBERT
ROYLE
TFEM 1919
Pte
972
SAMUEL
TAYLOR
TFEM 1919
WO II
1010
SIDNEY
WOOD
TFEM 1919
Col Sgt
341
JOHN
LEE
TFEM 1920
WO II
969
HARRY
GRANTHAM
TFEM 1920
Sgt
643
SQUIRE
ELLOR
TFEM 1920
CQMS
237
HENRY
STRINGER
TFEM 1920
Sgt
104
HARRY
INGHAM
TFEM 1920
Sgt
287
CHARLES
SPENCER
TFEM 1920
Pte
487
JOSEPH
TURNER
TFEM 1920
Sgt
1151
JOHN
LAWLER
TFEM 1920
Sgt
1190
JOSEPH
ROWBOTTOM
TFEM 1920
Pte
1225
JOSEPH
WHITTAKER
TFEM 1920
Cpl
1257
TOM
JACKSON
TFEM 1920
Pte
226
ALFRED
ASHWORTH
TFEM 1921
Pte
242
LEONARD
BROOKE
TFEM 1921
Sgt
526
THOMAS
MOSS
TFEM 1921
Pte
956
HAROLD
PYE
TFEM 1921
Pte
1209
LEONARD
WHITEHEAD
TFEM 1921
Pte
1262
GEORGE
ALLOTT
TFEM 1921
Pte
1292
GEORGE
HALL
TFEM 1921
Pte
1305
JAMES
WRIGHT
TFEM 1921
Pte
1325
JOSEPH
KENT
TFEM 1921
Pte
1327
GEORGE
BURGESS
TFEM 1921
Notes:
The eligibility rules dictate that all of the men awarded the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal prior to 1914 must have been Old Volunteers.
The six men awarded the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal in 1916 and 1918 were all Old Volunteers. Additionally, their 12 years eligible service was determined by the linear sum of their continuous service since Army Order 326 of November 1918, which allowed embodied service to count double, effectively post-dated their awards.
All but two of the men awarded the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal in 1920-21 re-enlisted in the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment on or after October 1920 when it was reformed.
Sgt. 136 Henry Harrison
Enlisted into the Volunteers on January 5, 1906
Re-engaged with the Territorial Force on April 7, 1908
Discharged June 11, 1918
Total Service: 12 years 158 days
Total Embodied Service: 3 years 311 days
Awarded the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal: May 1918
Died July 25, 1918. T.B.
Sgt. Harrison is an example of a man awarded the TFEM in 1918 based on his continuous service alone since Army Order 326 of November 1918, which allowed embodied service to count double, post-dated his award.
Sgt. 65 Joe Ferns
Enlisted into the Volunteers on June 6, 1906
Re-engaged with the Territorial Force on April 1, 1908 for 1 year
Re-enlisted on April 1, 1909 for 4 years
Re-enlisted on April 1, 1913 for 4 years
Disembodied January 30, 1919
Total Service: 12 years 238 days
Total Embodied Service: 4 years 179 days
Awarded the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal: December 1918
Awarded a Clasp to the Territorial Efficiency Medal: 1930
Sgt. Ferns is an example of a man awarded the TFEM in December 1918 based on his continuous service alone since Army Order 326 of November 1918, which allowed embodied service to count double, effectively post-dated his award (9th Manchester Regt. orders typically required men applying for the TFEM to submit their applications well in advance of the actual award).
Cpl. 1325 Joseph Kent
Enlisted in the Territorial Force June 15, 1912
Disembodied March 2, 1919
Total Service: 6 years 259 days
Total Embodied Service: 4 years 209 days
Service Before Embodiment: 2 years 50 days
Eligible Service at disembodiment: 11 Years 103 days
Re-Enlisted into the 9th Manchester in October 1920 (3515677)
Awarded the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal: November 1921.
Cpl. Kent is an example of a man who was just shy of the required 12 years eligible service when he was disembodied on March 2, 1919 even though Army Order 326 of November 1918 could be used to reckon his embodied service as double. Consequently, it was not until he re-enlisted in late 1920 and served another 262 days in the Territorials that he became eligible to apply for the TFEM.
Territorial Efficiency Medal
The following men of the 1/9th Battalion Manchester Regiment who deployed to Gallipoli in 1915 became holders of the Territorial Efficiency Medal. Most of these men re-enlisted into the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment in, or shortly after, 1920 when it was reformed.
Rank
No.
Forename
Surname
Medal
Pte.
1159
WILLIAM
WATSON
TEM
Q.M.S.
5
GEORGE
BOOCOCK
TEM 1922
Pte.
283
TIMOTHY
McDERMOTT
TEM 1922
Pte.
11
JOHN
FOSTER
TEM 1922
Sgt.
54
ARTHUR
BERESFORD
TEM 1922
Pte.
489
JAMES
EASTHAM
TEM 1922
Sgt.
680
THOMAS
HARGREAVES
TEM 1922
Pte.
787
GEORGE
STRINGER
TEM 1922
Pte.
839
WILLIAM
PASCOE
TEM 1922
Pte.
1287
WILLIAM
THORNTON
TEM 1922
Pte.
1290
JOHN
SMITH
TEM 1922
Col. Sgt.
1326
HAROLD
SHAW
TEM 1922
Pte.
1473
GEORGE
LAMB
TEM 1922
Cpl.
177
JOE
BRIDGE
TEM 1923
Dmr.
781
HARRY
TAYLOR
TEM 1923
A/Cpl.
29
ALBERT
HAGUE
TEM 1924
Sgt.
1199
THOMAS
RADCLIFFE
TEM 1924
Sgt.
1495
THOMAS
KNIGHT
TEM 1925
Dmr.
551
HAROLD
CRITCHLEY
TEM 1926
Pte.
1142
DAVID
SMITH
TEM 1926
WO II
969
HARRY
GRANTHAM
TEM 1937
Pte.
1057
JAMES
STOPFORD
TEM 1940
Notes:
Harry Grantham was awarded both the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal (1920) and the Territorial Efficiency Medal (1937) for his continued long service.
Joe Bridge was Royal Army Medical Corps, attached to the 9th Manchesters in Gallipoli and for most of the remainder of WW1.
ARMY ORDER, June, 1894. No. 85.
SPECIAL
WAR OFFICE,
26th May, 1894 THE VOLUNTEER LONG SERVICE MEDAL
1. Her Majesty the Queen has been graciously pleased to institute a medal for the Volunteer Force, which will be designated as-
“The Volunteer Long Service Medal.”
The following instructions, to form part of the Volunteer Regulations, are issued for the guidance of all concerned.
2. The medal will be granted to all Volunteers (including officers who have served in the ranks, but have not qualified for the Volunteer Officers’ Decoration) on completion of 20 years’ service in the Volunteer Force, provided that they were actually serving on the 1st January, 1893, and that they are recommended by their present, or former, commanding officers in the manner hereinafter prescribed.
3. In all cases, the commanding officer will be the medium through whom applications will be made, and retired Volunteers will apply through the officer commanding the corps in which they last served.
4. A Form of Application (Army Form E 593) which provides for a record and a Certificate of Meritorious Service, to be signed by the commanding officer, is given in Appendix I., page 23. This form will be submitted through the usual channel of correspondence to the general officer commanding the district, to whom a supply of the form, for distribution throughout the force, will shortly be issued.
5. The decision of the general officer commanding the district upon the validity, or otherwise, of any claim for the medal, will be absolutely final.
6. Service, whether as officer, non-commissioned officer, or private, must have been consecutive. Any officer who is subsequently awarded the “Volunteer Officers’ Decoration,” will surrender the medal.
7. The Volunteer Long Service Medal will be worn with the tunic only, and upon the left breast.
8. Commanding officers will forward with Army Form E 593 a nominal roll, arranged alphabetically, according to the form shown in Appendix II., page 24. This roll will be forwarded in duplicate, one copy being retained by the general officer commanding the district, and the other forwarded to the Adjutant-General with his recommendation.
9. General officers commanding districts will, on the 1st January, 1st April, 1st July or 1st October, submit these nominal rolls to the Adjutant-General.
10. Names of recipients will be promulgated quarterly in Army Orders, after the publication of which the original individual applications will be returned by general officers commanding to the head-quarters of the various Volunteer corps for record and retention.
By Command,
‘REDVERS BULLER, A.-G.’
This Army Order was amended by Orders 109 and 126 of 1894 and Order 34 of 1895.
ARMY ORDER, July, 1894. No. 109.
The following will be substituted for the first sentence of paragraph 6 of Army Order 85 of 1894:-
“The service of every applicant for the medal, whether as officer, non-com- missioned officer, or private, must have been consecutive, except when any interruption may have been caused in his service by change of residence, or by other circumstances of civil life, which may have forced him to quit his corps, provided that in such cases he shall have rejoined the Volunteer force as soon as practicable, and that no longer period than 12 months shall have elapsed in the interval.” [Cancelled.]’
ARMY ORDER, August, 1894. No. 126.
1. Army Order 85 of 1894 will be amended as under :-
“The following will be substituted for paragraph 2:-
“2. The medal will be granted to all Volunteers (including Volunteers who have retired, and officers who have served in the ranks but have not qualified for the Volunteer Officers’ Decoration) on completion of 20 years’ service in the Volunteer Force, provided that they are recommended by their present, or former, commanding officers in the manner hereinafter prescribed.”
The following will be added to paragraph 8:-
“The individual applications (Army Form E 593) will not be forwarded to the War Office.”
2. A reprint of Army Order 85 of 1894, as amended by Army Order 109 of 1894 and this Army Order, is issued herewith to all concerned.”
ARMY ORDER, February, 1895. No. 34.
Special.
WAR OFFICE, 17th January, 1895.
Amendments as under will be made in the Regulations for the Volunteer Force, 1894:-
1. The following will be substituted for paragraph 458 G:-
“458 G. The service rendered after the 25th May, 1894, by every applicant for the medal, whether as officer, non-commissioned officer, or private, must be continuous. When a break in service rendered prior to the 26th May, 1894, occurs, the case will be dealt with as follows:-
(1.) When the break does not exceed one year, the decision upon the validity or otherwise of a claim for the medal will be given by the general officer commanding the district, and will in such cases be final.
(2.) When the break exceeds one year, the general officer will investigate the case and submit it with his recommendation for the decision of the Secretary of State.
“2. In paragraph 458 H, the words ‘except as provided by paragraph 458 G (2)’ will be inserted in the last line but one, after the word ‘decision.'”
The Regulations on this subject are now included in Volunteer Regulations.
The institution of the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal was notified in Army Order 128 of June 1908. The award of Medals was published in Army Orders. The first awards described as “Territorial Force Efficiency Medal’ appear in Army Order 304 of December 1908.
Territorial Force Efficiency Medal. Hsq7278, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Grant of an Efficiency Medal to the Territorial Force.
1. His Majesty the King has been graciously pleased to approve of a medal for efficiency being granted to non-commissioned officers and men of the Territorial Force under the following conditions:-
(a) The medal may be granted to all men who enlist into the Territorial Force and who complete 12 years’ service with a minimum of 12 trainings.
(b) Past service in the Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteers will be admissible provided that the whole period of service upon which the claim is based has been continuous.
(c) The medal may also be granted to all non-commissioned officers and men of the Imperial Yeomanry serving on the 31st March, 1908, who join the Territorial Force and who complete 10 years’ service with a minimum of 10 trainings, under the conditions contained in paragraph 371, Imperial Yeomanry Regulations.
(d) The medal may further be granted to all non-commissioned officers and men of the Volunteer Force serving on the 31st March, 1908, who join the Territorial Force and who complete 12 years’ service with a minimum of 12 trainings.
2. The medal will bear on the obverse the effigy of His Majesty the King, and on the reverse the words ‘Territorial Force Efficiency Medal’.
3. The colour of the riband to be worn with the medal will be green, with a yellow stripe down the centre.
4. The form of application (Army Form E 562) which provides for a record and certificate of efficient service, will be signed by the commanding officer. This form will be submitted through the usual channel of correspondence to the general officer commanding-in-chief the command in which the unit is stationed.
5. Commanding officers will forward with Army Form E 562 a nominal roll, on Army Form E 563, arranged alphabetically. This roll will be forwarded in duplicate, one copy being retained by the general officer commanding-in-chief, and the other forwarded to the Secretary, War Office, with his recommendation.
6. The general officer commanding-in-chief will submit the nominal rolls to the Secretary, War Office, on the 1st March, 1st June, 1st September, and 1st December in each year.
7. The decision of the general officer commanding-in-chief upon the validity, or otherwise of any claim for the medal, will be final.
8. Names of recipients will be announced quarterly in Army Orders, after the publication of which, Army Form E 562 will be returned by the general officer commanding-in-chief to the headquarters of the various units of record and retention.
From its institution in 1908 until it was superseded by the Territorial Efficiency Medal, in 1922, there were a number of amendments, rulings or other decisions published in Army Orders:
A.O. 293 of August 1915:
Territorial Force Efficiency Medal. With reference to paragraph 523, Territorial Force Regulations, it has been decided that a period of embodied service of not less than two months in each calendar year shall be allowed to reckon as an equivalent of the ‘training’ for that year.
In no case, however, will more than one such qualifying period (whether ‘training’ or the alternative minimum period of embodiment) be allowed to count in any one calendar year for the purpose of this paragraph.
A.O. 470 of December 1915:
Territorial Force Regulations-Amendments.– 1. Paragraph 515 (i) add- ‘also periods of mobilized service whether on the active service list of the Territorial Force or on the general list of the Territorial Force Reserve which was instituted after the moblization of 1914’.
2. Insert new paragraph-
523A. As regards (d) and (e) of paragraph 523, if a soldier was actually serving in the Territorial Force Reserve on the date on which mobilization was ordered and he was called up and held to serve, the period of his service in the Territorial Force Reserve, although not counting towards the qualifying period, will not be considered to be a break in the continuity of the qualifying period.
A.O. 228 of June 1916: Territorial Force Efficiency Medal.-
The period during which a non-commissioned officer or man of the Territorial Force is released from military service for the purpose of being employed on munition work, during the continuance of the present war, will not be counted as qualifying service for the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal, but, on the other hand, it will not be considered to be a break in the continuity of the qualifying period.
A.O. 326 of November 1918:
Service to count as two-fold.
III.—Territorial Force Efficiency Medal.—
1. His Majesty the King has been graciously pleased to approve that warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men of the Territorial Force (including the Territorial Force Reserve) who were embodied under Army Order 31 of 1914 and who, either before or after the date of embodiment, signed an agreement to serve outside the United Kingdom, shall be allowed to count embodied service in the ranks (including service with the Royal Navy, Regular Army and Royal Air Force) two-fold as qualifying service for the award of the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal.
2. In the case of these warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men, service in the ranks with any of His Majesty’s forces during the present war, which is of not less than two months in each calendar year, shall be allowed to count as an equivalent of two annual ‘trainings’ but not more than two ‘trainings’ (including equivalent service), shall be reckoned in any one calendar year for the purpose of this Army Order.
3. Continuity of qualifying service shall be admitted in the case of any of these warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men who, having been discharged from the Territorial Force during the present war by reason of wounds or illness contracted on service, subsequently, during the present period of embodiment, re-enlisted into the Force voluntarily after recovery.
4. Sub-paragraphs (e) and (g) of paragraph 523, Territorial Force Regulations, as amended by Army Order 83 of 1915, will be modified accordingly as regards the references to service in the Regular Army.
A.O. 322 of September 1919:
3. For paragraphs 523 and 523A (promulgated by Army Order 470 of 1915) substitute-
Efficiency Medal.
523. A medal designated the ‘Territorial Force Efficiency Medal’ will be granted to warrant officers, N.C.Os. and men of the Territorial Force who complete 12 years’ continuous service,* with a minimum of 12 trainings, and who are recommended by their C.O., subject to the conditions mentioned
below:-
Qualifying service.
(a) Service in the Imperial Yeomanry or the Volunteer Force,† before the formation of the Territorial Force, will be admissible for every year in which a man was returned as efficient, provided that he was serving on the 31st March, 1908, and enlisted in the Territorial Force before the 30th June, 1908.
An Imperial Yeoman who enlisted into the same arm of the Territorial Force may be awarded the medal after 10 years’ service and 10 trainings in that arm.
(b) Men in the possession of the Imperial Yeomanry Long Service and Good Conduct Medal or the Volunteer Long Service Medal, in respect of their services in the Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer Force, may also be granted the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal, provided that they have fulfilled the required conditions for award of that medal, and that no particular period of service is counted for more than one medal.
Provision of clasp
(c) Men already in possession of the Efficiency Medal, who either received it in respect of their past Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer service on enlistment into the Territorial Force, or have earned it subsequent to such enlistment, and who have served for a further period which would qualify them for the award of a second Efficiency Medal, may be awarded a clasp to be worn with the original medal.
No particular period of service will be allowed to count as qualifying service for both medal and clasp.
(d) Service qualifying for the Colonial Auxiliary Forces, or the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve, Long Service Medals, will be admissible provided that the last 5 years have been served in the Territorial Force.
(e) Commissioned service will be admissible in the case of those men who were commissioned after service in the ranks of the Territorial Force during the period of embodiment of the force subsequent to the Royal Proclamation of the 4th August, 1914, and who within 3 months of the date of relinquishing their commissions re-enlist in the ranks of the Territorial Force. Such officers who relinquished their commissions owing to wounds, or sickness contracted on service during the above- mentioned period of embodiment, will also be allowed to count such commissioned service as qualifying service towards the award of the medal.
f) Service in a Cadet unit will not be admissible except when rendered in the ranks of a Cadet Corps or Cadet Battalion which belonged to the organization existing prior to the 21st May, 1910, and then only provided that a Cadet enlisted into the Territorial Force within 6 months of leaving his Cadet unit, and that no service rendered before the age of 15 or after the age of 17 is permitted to count.
Breaks in service.
(g) Continuity of service in the Imperial Yeomanry, Volunteer Force, Colonial Auxiliary Forces, or Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve must not have been broken for periods of more than 12 months at a time, and in the case of the Imperial Yeomanry and Volunteer Force such breaks must have been prior to the 31st March, 1908. (See sub-paragraph (l).)
(h) Men of the Territorial Force (including the Territorial Force Reserve) who were serving in the force on the 4th August, 1914, and were embodied under the Royal Proclamation of that date, and who before the 11th November, 1918, signed an agreement to serve outside the United Kingdom, will be allowed to count embodied service (including service specified in sub-paragraphs (e) and (j) double towards qualifying service.
Continuity of qualifying service will be admitted in the case of any of these men, who, having been discharged from the Territorial Force subsequent to the 4th August, 1914, by reason of wounds or illness contracted on service, subsequently during the period of embodiment re-enlisted into the force voluntarily after recovery.
(j) Men of the Territorial Force who are permitted to enlist in the Royal Navy, the Regular Army, or the Royal Air Force, for the period of a war may count such service as qualifying for the award of the medal, and if within 3 months of the date on which they ceased to be required for service with such force, these men re-enlist into the Territorial Force, their service will be deemed to be continuous.
Embodied service in lieu of trainings.
(k) A period of embodied service of not less than two months in each calendar year, reckoned from 1st January to 31st December, will be allowed to count as the equivalent of the training for that year, or, in the case of the men referred to in sub-paragraph (h), as the equivalent of two trainings. In no case, however, will more than one such qualifying period (whether training or the alternative minimum period of embodiment) be allowed to count in any one calendar year.
Inadmissible service.
(l) Service in the Regular Army will not be considered as qualifying service, except as provided for in sub-paragraph (j), but will not be reckoned in the breaks mentioned in sub-paragraph (g).
(m) Commissioned service is not admissible as qualifying service, except as specified in sub-paragraph (g).
(n) Service in the Territorial Force Reserve, the Technical Reserve or the National Reserve, is not admissible, but if a man were actually serving in the Territorial Force Reserve on the date on which embodiment was ordered and was called up and held to serve, the period of his service in the Territorial Force Reserve, although not counting towards the qualifying period, will not be considered to be a break in the continuity of the qualifying period.
(o) Men of the Territorial Force who are released from military service for the purpose of being employed on work of national importance* during the continuance of a war, will not count the period of such release as qualifying service for the medal, but they will not be considered to have broken their continuity of service.
*No break in service, however short, in the Territorial Force, is allowable except as provided in sub-paragraphs (h), (j) and (n).
† In the event of difficulty being experienced in obtaining the date of discharge of an applicant from the old Volunteer Forces, the officer submitting the claim should call upon him to produce for inspection the discharge certificate awarded to him under Army Order 130 of 1908.
A.O. 426 of November 1919:
Territorial Force Regulations-Amendments.-Paragraph 523 (as amended by Army Order 322 of 1919). For last line of sub-paragraph (f) substitute- ’15 or after the minimum age laid down at the time for enlistment in the Territorial Force is permitted to count.’.
For sub-paragraph (j) substitute-
(j) Men who enlist in the Royal Navy, the Regular Army or the Royal Air Force for the period of a war, including men of the Territorial Force who are permitted so to enlist, may count such service as qualifying for the award of the medal provided, in the case of men other than men of the Territorial Force, that they subsequently enlist in the Territorial Force without break in continuity of service.
Add new sub-paragraph-
(jj) Continuity of qualifying service will be admitted in the case of all men of the Territorial Force who serve in any of His Majesty’s Forces during a war, and of men who enlist in the Royal Navy, the Regular Army or the Royal Air Force for the period of a war, provided that they re-enlist (or enlist, as the case may be) in the Territorial Force within three months from the date of their discharge from any of the forces or from the date of the re-opening of recruiting for unembodied service in the Territorial Force, whichever is later.
A.O. 439 of December 1919:
Riband of the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal.-
1. His Majesty the King has been graciously pleased to approve of the design of the riband suspending the Territorial Force Efficiency medal being altered to green with yellow edges.
2. The new riband will be taken into wear by all officers, non-commissioned officers and men who are in possession of the medal and are now serving.
A.O. 241 of May 1921:
Territorial Force Regulations-Amendments.-
1. Paragraph 474, note (c), as amended by Army Order 77 of 1921. Delete ‘and’ and after ‘R.A.S.C.’ insert ‘and R.A.O.C.’.
2. Paragraph 523, as amended by Army Orders 322 and 426 of 1919 and 375 and 414 of 1920. Insert new sub-paragraph-
(p) Men of the Territorial Force will not count periods of desertion or absence without leave during embodiment or training either in camp or barracks towards the qualifying period for the award of the medal. They will not however be deemed to have broken their service, provided that they continue to serve after their offence has been dealt with.
A.O. 335 of July 1921:
For paragraph 523, as amended by Army Orders 322 and 426 of 1919; 173, 375 and 414 of 1920; and 187 and 241 of 1921, substitute-
Efficiency Medal.
523. A medal designated the ‘Territorial Force Efficiency Medal,’ will be granted to warrant officers, N.C.Os. and men of the Territorial Force provided that-
(i) They complete 12 years’ qualifying service, and
(ii) They attend a minimum of 12 trainings and are recommended by their C.O., and
(iii) There has been no break in the continuity of their service except between 4th August, 1914, and 31st December, 1921, and as specified in sub- paragraphs (A) (i) (b), (A) (ii), (A) (iv), and (F).
Imperial Yeomanry and Volunteer service.
(A) Other service as specified below only may be counted towards the qualifying period-
(i) Service in the Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer Force, before the formation of the Territorial Force, for every year during which a man was returned as efficient, provided that-
(a) He was serving on 31st March, 1908, and enlisted into the Territorial Force before 30th June, 1908; and,
(b) There was no break of service in the Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer Force of more than 12 months.
(c) None of the service has previously been counted as qualifying for the grant of the Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer Long Service Medal.
An Imperial Yeoman who enlisted into the same arm of the Territorial Force may be awarded the medal after 10 years’ service and 10 trainings in that arm.
Colonial and Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Service
(ii) Service qualifying for the Colonial Auxiliary Forces or the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Long Service Medals, provided that the last 5 years have been served in the Territorial Force, and that the former service has not been broken for periods of more than 12 months.
Commissioned service
(iii) Commissioned service in the case of those men who were commissioned after service in the ranks of the Territorial Force during the period of embodiment of the force consequent on the Royal Proclamation of 4th August, 1914, and who, having relinquished their commissions, re-enlist in the ranks of the Territorial Force prior to 1st January, 1922. Such officers as were compelled to relinquish their commissions owing to wounds or sickness contracted on service during the above-mentioned period of embodiment, will also be allowed to count such commissioned service as qualifying service towards the award of the medal without re-enlistment.
Cadet service
(iv) Service in a cadet unit, only when rendered in the ranks of a cadet corps or cadet battalion which belonged to the organization existing prior to 21st May, 1910, and then only provided that the cadet enlisted into the Territorial Force within 6 months of leaving his cadet unit, and that no service rendered before the age of 15 years or after the minimum age laid down at the time for enlistment in the Territorial Force is permitted to count.
(v) Service in the Royal Navy, the Army or the Royal Air Force, only during the period 4th August, 1914, to 31st December, 1921.
Embodied service counting double.
(B) Men of the Territorial Force (including the Territorial Force Reserve) who were serving in the force on 4th August, 1914, and were embodied under the an agreement to serve outside the United Kingdom, will be allowed to count Royal Proclamation of that date, and who before 11th November, 1918, signed embodied service, including service in sub-paragraphs (A) (iii) and (A) (v), double towards qualifying service.
Service in lieu of training.
(C) A period of embodied service of not less than 2 months in each calendar year, reckoned from 1st January to 31st December, will be allowed to count as the equivalent of the training for that year, or, in the case of men referred to in sub-paragraph (B), as the equivalent of two trainings. In no case, however, may more than one training (or two in the case of men referred to in sub- paragraph (B)) be allowed to count in any one calendar year.
Men in possession of Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer Long Service Medal
(D) Men in possession of the Imperial Yeomanry Long Service and Good possession of Conduct Medal or the Volunteer Long Service Medal in respect of their services in the Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer Force, may also be granted the Efficiency Medal, provided that they have fulfilled the required conditions for award of that medal, and that no particular period of service is counted for more than one medal.
Clasp.
(E) Men already in possession of the Efficiency Medal, who either received it in respect of their past Imperial Yeomanry or Volunteer service on enlistment into the Territorial Force, or have earned it subsequent to such enlistment, and who have served for a further period which would qualify them for the award of a second Efficiency Medal, may be awarded a clasp to be worn with the original medal. No particular period of service will be allowed to count as qualifying service for both medal and clasp.
Inadmissible as qualifying service but not counting in break of continuity of service.
(F) The following periods, although inadmissible as qualifying service, will not be reckoned as breaking continuity of service:-
(i) Service in the Royal Navy, the Army or Royal Air Force, otherwise than between 4th August, 1914, and 31st December, 1921.
(ii) Intervals in service in the Royal Navy, the Army, Royal Air Force or the Territorial Force during the period 4th August, 1914, to 31st December, 1921.
(iii) Service of men of the Territorial Force whilst released from military service for the purpose of being employed on work of national importance, which will be defined as occasion arises, during the period of embodiment.
(iv) Service in the Territorial Force Reserve, if a man is embodied whilst so serving and is held to serve with the Territorial Force.
(v) Periods of desertion or absence without leave of men of the Territorial Force during an embodiment or training either in camp or barracks, provided that they continue to serve after their offence has been dealt with.
Territorial Efficiency Medal
This Medal was the successor to the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal. By Army Order 396 of September 1921, the Territorial Force became the Territorial Army. The same conditions of award applied for the Territorial Efficiency Medal as for those on 1 October 1921, following the “Territorial Army and Militia Act, 1921′.
The award of Medals was published in Army Orders. The first awards described as “Territorial Efficiency Medal’ appear in Army Order 51 of February 1922.
General Annual Reports on The British Army (including the Territorial Force from the date of Embodiment) for the Period from 1st October 1913, to 30th September, 1919
During the period October 1913 to 4th August, 1914, recruiting had been proceeding in a normal manner, and the numbers taken into the Army indicate that if war had not broken out the number of recruits for the year would have been normal. On 4th August, 1914, however, war was declared, the Expeditionary Force was prepared forthwith for embarkation overseas, and the reserves and special reserves, amounting to about 200,000 men, were called up; the members of the Territorial Force, the majority of whom were then under canvas, were also mobilized to the extent of about 250,000.
An Army Order was issued on 4th August, authorizing the immediate enlistment of specialists for certain arms, such as artificers, motor cyclists, hospital subordinates, motor-car drivers, etc. The next step which was taken was the promulgation of an Army Order on 6th August, permitting ex-soldiers of the Regular Army to re-enlist in the Special Reserve for one year or for the duration of the war. On the same date another Army Order was issued authorizing civilians to be recruited for the Army for a period of three years or the duration of the war. The contract admitted of the soldier being discharged on the completion of his three years’ service or earlier if war had ceased, but this provision was subsequently cancelled by the Military Service Acts. Under the Army Order, the standards for physique were similar to those in existence for the Regular Army and the conditions of service were for service in any part of the world during the period. On 8th August, the Secretary of State for War announced that the minimum immediate requirements were 100,000 recruits who were required to form the first new army, and this number was easily obtained within a few days. Men, ready and anxious to serve their country, waited for hours, frequently all night, to obtain admission to the recruiting offices, and the machinery for dealing with the vast numbers of recruits proved to be totally inadequate. Steps were immediately taken to open recruiting offices all over the country whereby the congestion at the central offices was somewhat relieved. Local authorities placed at the disposal of the War Office public buildings, such as Town Halls, libraries, baths, etc., to enable the recruiting staff to carry out their functions with the least possible delay.
The next difficulty arose in the matter of training. The large numbers of men without military experience who were being placed in billets and camps throughout the Kingdom were without instructors or non-commissioned officers. Consequently, an Army Order was issued on 17th August, 1914, authorizing the re-enlistment of ex-non-commissioned officers of the Regular Army, upon the understanding that they would be utilized in any part of the world, that they would be promoted forthwith to the rank held upon their previous discharge, and, if possible, would be posted to a unit of their former corps.
Recruiting proceeded rapidly, and on more than one occasion the numbers attested in one day exceeded the total numbers attested annually under normal conditions.
Recruiting had, indeed, become so brisk that the difficulties of housing, feeding and clothing the men became unmanageable and it was deemed advisable that a “brake should be put on.” On 11th September, 1914, the standard of physique was raised, and this measure immediately had the effect of damming the stream.
The necessary re-organization having been completed, the restrictions in regard to standards of physique were removed. Once, however, the dam had been placed across the stream, the flow was very considerably reduced, and it became necessary to adopt special measures to stimulate recruiting.
A Parliamentary Recruiting Committee was accordingly established, and speakers were drawn from every class of the community, and included many officers who had been wounded overseas. The object of this Committee was to bring home clearly to the male population of the country the definite need of the nation to create as large an Army as possible, in order that the war might be brought to a speedy determination. By means of this Committee, some 20,000 speeches were delivered, and the horrors which were being suffered by the French and Belgian populations within the war areas were brought home as vividly as possible to those in this country who had suffered no inconvenience from the war in the shape of pillage, plunder or destruction, and who had hardly been affected by difficulties of food supply. As a consequence of this propaganda both municipalities and individuals came forward with offers to raise local battalions or units, notable among these being Newcastle, Manchester, Glasgow, Salford and Hull. Special battalions such as the Sportsmen’s and Public Schools’ were also formed.
Simultaneously during this recruiting campaign, the officers and men of the Territorial Force, who had no obligation to serve overseas, were asked to volunteer for general service, and the response was practically unanimous.
It must be remembered, however, that during the earlier period of the war, large numbers of men joined the Territorial Force for “home defence.” These were mostly men on whom dependents relied for support; at that period allowances were somewhat inadequate to meet the rising prices of the day, and many employers were unable to pay employees who had enlisted the half wages commonly paid by rich firms.
Recruiting for the Territorials had proceeded simultaneously with recruiting for the new armies, and by July 1915, more than two million volunteers had been enlisted for services in the Regular and Territorial Forces.
In June, 1915, however, the numbers of recruits began to diminish in proportion to the requirements, and the maximum age standard was raised from 38 to 40 years of age, and the minimum height standard for infantry was lowered to 5 feet 2 inches.
It must be remembered that considerable numbers of men who had offered their services to the country in the Army since the outbreak of war, had been rejected for either height or age, and had consequently sought work other than in their own profession, work in which they felt they would be doing good service to the country, by supplying the Army with its necessary munitions and equipment. Having settled into these occupations, however, it became difficult for them to be released for military service when the restrictions which had previously debarred them were removed. May of these men after a short period had become practically indispensable in their new occupation.
On 15th July, 1915, the National Registration Act passed through both Houses of Parliament and received the Royal Assent. This Act thenceforth formed the basis of organized recruiting throughout the country. The occupation of every male and female between the ages of 15 and 65 was recorded and it then became possible for the first time to ascertain the numbers of men of military age in the country, irrespective of their medical classification, and also to determine how many men were actually employed in occupations which were directly of military service or otherwise. From this registration, a proportion was quickly arrived at to enable the Government to ensure that none of the essential industries, i.e., coal mining, shipbuilding, munitions, etc., were depleted of the necessary numbers required to keep the ever-increasing Army fully supplied with all its requirements, to ensure that the Fleet was also maintained in a state of efficiency, and that the merchant shipping losses were repaired with the least possible delay.
On the completion of the registration, the cards of men between 18 and 40 years of age were handed over to the Recruiting Authorities and the Recruiting Committee undertook the work of canvasing all such men who were registered as being employed in occupations which were not considered “reserved occupations.” Subsequently cards were prepared for record purposes of all men who came within the ages laid down in the National Registration Act, viz. 15 and 65 years.
Every effort was made to recruit more men voluntarily during the latter part of 1915 by parades, recruiting marches, speeches, demonstrations, etc., but the need still being great, in October 1915, the Earl of Derby was appointed Director-General of Recruiting, and he at once instituted the system of group-recruiting, men so attested being commonly known as “Derby Recruits.” This system allowed men to attest and to be forthwith transferred to the Reserve, to be called up as and when their services were required. It had become evident, about this time, that conscription was probably inevitable, and the “Derby system” was instituted in the hope that such large numbers would become available that conscription could be avoided. The men attested under the scheme were classified into 46 groups, according to age and to their married or single state, and were called up by the War Office authorities, by groups, according to requirements. The scheme, however, was only in operation for a period of two months, during which time nearly two and a quarter million men were attested. Of this very large number, many were never called to the Colours for various reasons, one of the chief being that a large number who had attested were already in reserved occupations. As, however, on the closing of the recruiting campaign, it was found that a large number of single men, of military age, had neither attested nor enlisted, the Government introduced a measure called the Military Service Bill, 1916, rendering all single men between the ages of 18 and 41 Liable to compulsory service.
As the Government had originally aimed at a policy of winning the war by voluntary recruitment, the provisions of the Act were not put into force for a time, and the groups under the “Derby system” were re-opened, with the satisfactory result that there were few single men left to be brought into the Army compulsorily.
In June 1916, the powers under the Act were extended to apply to married men, and from that time forward all men of military age became liable to compulsory service.
The difficulties of compulsorily taking men from their occupations into the Army were very numerous, many businesses being run single-handed, and considerable hardship would have resulted had the Act been rigorously put into force without some form of appeal.
Local Tribunals were therefore set up throughout the country, to which all men who were called up were entitled to appeal, and the method adopted on a successful appeal was to place the man in a lower group, thus granting him temporary exemption from military service. During the period of exemption, he was required to either secure his business against the future or to make such arrangements as would enable him to join the military forces on the calling up of his new group. Appeals by employers were also allowed on behalf of men whom they considered it essential to retain in order to maintain their business. The organization of compulsory service in itself proved no small task, but the connection between the War Office and Local Tribunals was such that it was deemed advisable during 1917 to remove the calling up of recruits from the War Office to a branch of the Government created to deal with the man-power situation of the whole nation. Accordingly, the recruiting administration was reorganized, and from 1st November 1917, to 15th January 1919, was under the control of the Minister of National Service.
Recruiting was only one phase of the Ministry’s activities, the object being to obtain a maximum result from the man and woman power of the nation. In this connection, the Ministry had to hold the balance between the demands of the Army, the Navy and the Royal Air Force for men, munitions, ships, coal, etc., and to maintain the agencies of production, distribution and supply, upon which depended the daily life of the civilian population of the country. This task would have been difficult if the conditions had been fixed, but, as it was, the respective claims were constantly changing.
Detailed investigations were made from time to time into the state of industry and labour throughout the country, and, in view of the fact that the complexity of the problem of organizing resources increased as the amount of reserve in civil life decreased, these investigations called for constant additions in the details of information required.
The General Annual Report of the British Army 1913
From October 1, 1912 to September 30, 1913, 104 men were recruited into the 9th Battalion Manchester Regiment representing 77.6% of all recruits in Ashton. Of the 196 total recruits (Territorial and Regular Army), only 2 men were discharged within 3 months for medical disability. On October 1, 1913, 726 men of the 9th Battalion were born in the district.
The General Annual Report of the British Army 1913
Average total recruiting numbers (Territorial and Regular Army) over the five years were approximately 199 men each year, (standard deviation of 21.48).
An Act to provide for the reorganization of His Majesty’s military forces and for that purpose to authorize the establishment of County Associations, and the raising and maintenance of a Territorial Force, and for amending the Acts relating to the Reserve Forces. [2nd August, 1907]
Be it enacted by the King’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
Part I
County Associations
1. Establishment of associations.
1. For the purposes of the reorganization under this Act of His Majesty’s military forces other than the regulars and their reserves, and of the administration of those forces when so reorganized, and for such other purposes as are mentioned in this Act, an association may be established for any county in the United Kingdom, with such powers and duties in connection with the purposes aforesaid as may be conferred on it by or under this Act.
2. Associations shall be constituted, and the members thereof shall be appointed and hold office in accordance with schemes to be made by the Army Council.
3. Every such scheme shall provide –
a. For the date of the establishment of the association:
b. For the incorporation of the association by an appropriate name, with power to hold land for the purposes of this Act without license in mortmain:
c. For constituting the lieutenant of the county, or failing him such other person as the Army Council may think fit, president of the association:
d. For the appointment of such number of officers representative of all arms and branches of the Territorial Force raised under this Act within the county (not being less than one half of the whole number of the association) as may be specified in the scheme:
e. For the appointment by the Army Council, where it appears desirable, and after consultation with, and on the recommendation of, the authorities to be represented, of representatives of county and county borough councils and universities wholly or partly within the county:
f. For the appointment of such number of co-opted members as the scheme may prescribe, including, if thought desirable, representatives of the interests of employers and workmen:
g. For the appointment by the Army Council during the first three years after the passing of this Act, and subsequently for the election of a chairman and vice-chairman by the association, and for defining their powers and duties:
h. For the mode of appointment, term of office, and rotation of members of the association, and the filling of casual vacancies:
i. For the appointment by the association, subject to the approval of the Army Council, of a secretary and other officers of the association, and the accountability of such officers, and for the provision of offices:
j. For the procedure to be adopted, including the appointment of committees and the delegation to committees of any of the powers of or duties of the association:
k. For enabling such general officers of any part of His Majesty’s forces, and not being members of the association, as may be specified in the scheme, or officers deputed by them, to attend the meetings of the association and to speak, but not to vote:
l. For dividing the county, where on account of its size of population it seems desirable to do so, into two or more parts, and for constituting sub-associations for the several parts, and for apportioning amongst the several sub-associations all or any of the powers and duties of the association, and regulating the relations of sub-associations to the association and to one another.
4. A scheme may contain any consequential, supplemental, or transitory provisions which may appear to be necessary or proper for the purposes of the scheme, and also as respects any matter for which for which provision may be made by regulations under this Act and for which it appears desirable to make special provision affecting the association established by the scheme.
5. All schemes made in pursuance of this Part of this Act shall be laid before the Houses of Parliament.
6. Until an Order in Council has been made under this Act for transferring to the Territorial Force the units of the Yeomanry and Volunteers of any county, references in this section to the Territorial Force shall as respects that county be construed as including references to the Yeomanry and Volunteers.
2. Powers and Duties of associations.
1. It shall be the duty of an association when constituted to make itself acquainted with and conform to the plan of the Army Council for the organization of the Territorial Force within the county and to ascertain the military resources and capabilities of the county, and to render advice and assistance to the Army Council and to such officers as the Army Council may direct, and an association shall have, exercise, and discharge such powers and duties connected with the organization and administration of His Majesty’s military forces as may for the time being be transferred or assigned to it by order of His Majesty signified under the hand of a Secretary of State or, subject thereto, by regulations under this Act, but an association shall not have any powers of command or training over any part of His Majesty’s military forces.
2. The powers and duties so transferred or assigned may include any powers conferred on or vested in His Majesty, and any powers or duties conferred or imposed on the Army Council or a Secretary of State, by statute or otherwise, and in particular respecting the following matters:-
a. The organization of the units of the Territorial Force and their administration (including maintenance) at all times other than when they are called out for training or actual military service, or when embodied:
b. The recruiting for the Territorial Force both in peace and in war, and defining the limits of recruiting areas:
c. The provision and maintenance of rifle ranges, buildings, magazines, and sites of camps for the Territorial Force:
d. Facilitating the provision of areas to be used for manoeuvres:
e. Arranging with employers of labour as to holidays for training, and ascertaining the times of training best suited to the circumstances of civilian life:
f. Establishing or assisting cadet battalions and corps and also rifle clubs, provided that no financial assistance out of money voted by Parliament shall be given by an association in respect of any person in a battalion or corps in a school in receipt of a parliamentary grant until such person has attained the age of sixteen:
g. The provision of horses for the peace requirements of the Territorial Force:
h. Providing accommodation for the safe custody of arms and equipment:
i. The supply of the requirements on mobilisation of the units of the Territorial Force within the county, in so far as those requirements are directed by the Army Council to be met locally, such requirements where practicable to be embodied in regulations which shall be issued to county associations from time to time, and on the first occasion not later than the first day of January one thousand nine hundred and nine:
j. The payment of separation and other allowances to the families of men of the Territorial Force when embodied or called out on actual military service:
k. The registration in conjunction with the military authorities of horses for any of His Majesty’s forces:
l. The care of reservists and discharged soldiers.
3. Expenses of association.
1. The Army Council shall pay to an association, out of money voted by Parliament for army services, such sums as, in the opinion of the Army Council, are required to meet the necessary expenditure connected with the exercise and discharge by the association of its powers and duties.
2. An association shall submit to the Army Council annually, at the prescribed time, and may submit at any other time for any special purpose, in the prescribed form and manner, a statement of its necessary requirements, and all payments to an association by the Army Council shall be made upon the basis of such statements in so far as they are approved by the Army Council.
3. Subject to regulations under this Act, all money so paid to an association shall be applicable to any of the purposes specified in the approved statements in accordance with which the money has been granted, but not otherwise except with the written consent of the Army Council:
Provided that nothing in this section shall be construed as enabling the Army Council to give their consent to the application of money to any purpose to which, apart from this section, it could not lawfully be applied, or to give their consent, without the authority of the Treasury, in any case in which, apart from this section, the authority of the Treasury would be required.
4. All other money received by an association (except such money, if any, as may be received by it for special purposes) shall be available for the purposes of any of its powers and duties.
5. An association shall cause its accounts to be made up annually and audited in such manner as may be prescribed, and shall send copies of its accounts as audited, together with any report of the auditors thereon, to the Army Council.
6. Regulations made for the purposes of this section shall be subject to the consent of the Treasury.
7. The members of an association shall not be under any pecuniary liability for any act done by them in their capacity as members of such association in carrying out the provisions of this Act.
4. Regulations.
1. Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Army Council may make regulations for carrying this Part of this Act into effect, and may by those regulations, amongst other things, provide for the following matters:-
a. For regulating the manner in which powers are to be exercised and duties performed by associations, and for specifying the services to which money [aid by the Army Council is to be applicable:
b. For authorizing and regulating the acquisition by or on behalf of an association of land for the purposes of this Act and the disposal of any land so acquired:
c. For authorizing and regulating the borrowing of money by an association:
d. For authorizing the acceptance of any money or other property, and the taking over of any liability, by an association, and for regulating the administration of any money or property so acquired and the discharge of any liability so taken over:
e. For facilitating the co-operation of an association with any other association, or with any local authority or other body, and for providing by the constitution of joint committees or otherwise for co-operative action in the organization and administration of divisions, brigades, and other military bodies, and for the provision of assistance by one association to another:
f. For affiliating cadet corps and battalions, rifle clubs, and other bodies to the Territorial Force or any part thereof:
g. For or in respect of anything by this Part of this Act directed or authorized to be done or provided by regulations or to be done in the prescribed manner:
h. For the application for the purposes of this Part of this Act, as respects any matters to be dealt with by regulations, of any provision in any Act of Parliament dealing with the like matters, with the necessary modifications or adaptations, and in particular of any provisions as to the acquisition of land by on behalf of volunteer corps.
2. All regulations made in pursuance of this Part of this Act shall be applicable to all associations, except in so far as may be otherwise provided by the regulations or by any scheme made under this Part of this Act.
3. All regulations made under this Part of this Act shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament as soon as may be after they are made.
5. Joint committees of associations.
1. Any county associations may from time to time join in appointing out of their respective bodies a joint committee for any purpose in respect of which they are jointly interested.
2. Any association appointing a joint committee under this subsection may delegate to it any power which such association might exercise of the purpose for which the committee is appointed.
3. Subject to the terms of delegation any such joint committee shall be defrayed by the associations by whom it has been appointed, in such proportion as may be agreed between them, and the accounts of such joint committees and their officers shall for the purposes of the provisions of this Act be deemed to be accounts of the associations appointing them and of their officers.
Part II
TERRITORIAL FORCE
Raising and Maintenance of Force
6. Raising and number of Territorial Force.
It shall be lawful for His Majesty to raise and maintain a force, to be called the “Territorial Force”, consisting of such number of men as may from time to time be provided by Parliament.
7. Government, discipline, and pay of Territorial Force.
1. Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, it shall be lawful for His Majesty, by order signified under the hand of a Secretary of State, to make orders with respect to the government, discipline and pay and allowances of the Territorial Force, and with respect to all other matters and things relating to the Territorial Force, including any matter by this Part of this Act authorized to be prescribed or expressed to be subject to orders or regulations.
2. The said orders may provide for the formation of men of the Territorial Force into regiments, battalions, or other military bodies, and for the formation of such regiments, battalions, or other military bodies into corps, either alone or jointly with any other part of His Majesty’s forces, and for appointing, transferring, or attaching men of the Territorial Force to corps, and for posting, attaching, or otherwise dealing with such men within the corps; and may provide for the constitution of a permanent staff, including adjutants and staff sergeants who shall, except in special circumstances certified by the general officer commanding be members of His Majesty’s regular forces; and may regulate the appointment, rank, duties and numbers of officers and non-commissioned officers of the Territorial Force.
3. Subject to the provisions of any such order, the Army Council may make general or special regulations with respect to any matter with respect to which His Majesty may make orders under this section.
4. Provided that the said orders or regulations shall not –
a. affect or extend the term for which, or the area within which, a man of the Territorial Force is liable under this Part of this Act to serve; or
b. authorize a man of the Territorial Force when belonging to one corps to be transferred without his consent to another corps; or
c. when the corps of a man of the Territorial Force includes more than one unit, authorize him when not embodied to be posted, without his consent, to any unit other than that to which he was posted on enlistment; or
d. when a corps of a man if the Territorial Force includes any battalion or other body of the regular forces, authorize him to be posted without his consent to that battalion or body.
5. Where a man of the Territorial Force was enlisted or re-engaged before the date of any order or regulation under this Part of this Act, nothing in such order or regulation shall render him liable without his consent to be appointed, transferred or attached to any military body to which he could not without his consent have been appointed, transferred or attached if the said order or regulation had not been made.
6. Orders and regulations under this section may provide for the formation of a reserve division of the Territorial Force, and may relax or dispense with any of the provisions of this Act relating to the training of the men of the Territorial Force so far as regards their application to men in the reserve division, and may, notwithstanding anything in this section, authorize a man in the reserve division to be transferred from one corps to another, so, however that a man in the reserve division shall not, without his consent, be transferred to a corps of another arm.
7. All orders and general regulations made under this section shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament as soon as may be after they are made.
8. First appointments to lowest rank of officers of the Territorial Force.
Subject to any directions which may be given by His Majesty, first appointments to the lowest rank of officer in any unit of the Territorial Force shall be given to persons recommended by the president of the association for the county, if a person approved by His Majesty is recommended by the president for any such within thirty days after the notice of a vacancy for the appointment has been given to the president in the prescribed manner, provided he fulfils all the prescribed conditions as to age, physical fitness, and educational qualifications; and, where a unit comprises men of the Territorial Force of two or more counties the recommendations for such appointments shall be made by the presidents of the associations for the respective counties in such rotation or otherwise as may be prescribed.
9. Enlistment, term of service and discharge.
1. Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, all men of the Territorial Force shall be enlisted by such persons and in such manner and subject to such regulations as may be prescribed:
Provided that every man enlisted under this Part of this Act –
a. Shall be enlisted for a county for which an association has been established under this Act and shall be appointed to serve in such corps for that county or for an area comprising the whole or part of that county as he may select, and, if that corps comprises more than one unit within the county, shall be posted to such one of those units as he may select:
b. Shall be enlisted to serve for such a period as may be prescribed, not exceeding four years, reckoned from the date of his attestation:
c. May be re-engaged within twelve months before the end of his current term of service for such a period as may be prescribed not exceeding four years from the end of that term, and on re-engagement shall make the prescribed declaration before a justice of the peace or an officer, and so from time to time.
2. A man enlisted in the Territorial Force, until duly discharged in the prescribed manner, shall remain subject to this Part of this Act as a man of the Territorial Force.
3. Any man of the Territorial Force shall, except when a proclamation ordering the Army Reserve to be called out on permanent service is in force, be entitled to be discharged before the end of his current term of service on complying with the following conditions:-
i. Giving his commanding officer three months’ notice in writing, or such less notice as may be prescribed, of his desire to be discharged; and
ii. Paying for the use of the association of the county for which he was enlisted such sum as may be prescribed not exceeding five pounds; and
iii. Delivering up in good order, fair wear and tear only excepted, all arms, clothing, and appointments, being public property, issued to him, or, in cases where for any good and sufficient cause the delivery of the property aforesaid is impossible, on paying the value thereof:
Provided that it shall be lawful for the association for the county, or for any officer authorized by the association, in any case in which it appears that the reasons for which the discharge is claimed are of sufficient urgency or weight, to dispense either wholly or in part with all of the above conditions.
4. A man of the Territorial Force may be discharged by his commanding officer for disobedience to orders by him while doing any military duty, or for neglect of duty, or for misconduct by him as a man of the Territorial Force, or for other sufficient cause, the existence and sufficiency of such cause to be judged by the commanding officer:
Provided that any man so discharged shall be entitled to appeal to the Army Council who may give such direction in any such case as they may think just and proper.
5. Where the time at which a man of the Territorial Force would otherwise be entitled to be discharged occurs while a proclamation ordering the Army Reserve to be called out on permanent service is in force, he may be required to prolong his service for such further period, not exceeding twelve months, as the competent military authority may order.
10. Application of certain sections of the Army Act.
1. The following sections of the Army Act shall apply to the Territorial Force (that is to say):-
Section eighty (relating to the mode of enlistment and attestation);
Section ninety-six (relating to the claims of masters to apprentices);
Section ninety-eight (imposing a fine for unlawful recruiting);
Section ninety-nine (making recruits punishable for false answers);
So much of section one hundred as relates to the validity of attestation and enlistment re-engagement;
Section one hundred and one (relating to the competent military authority); and
So much of section one hundred and sixty-three as relates to attestation paper, or a copy thereof, or a declaration, being evidence.
And the said sections shall apply in like manner as if they were herein re-enacted, with substitution-
a) Of “Territorial Force” for “regular forces”, and of “man of the Territorial Force” for “soldier”; and
b) (In section one hundred) of “has not within three months claimed his discharge on any ground on which he is entitled under this subsection to do so” for “has received pay as a soldier of the regular forces during three months.”
2. A recruit may be attested by any lieutenant or deputy lieutenant of any county in the United Kingdom, or by an officer of the regular or Territorial forces, and the sections of the Army Act in this section mentioned, and also section thirty-three of the same Act, shall as applied to the Territorial Force be construed as if a justice of the peace in those sections included such lieutenant, deputy lieutenant or officer.
11. Enlistment of men discharged with disgrace from Army or Navy, or contrary to rules.
1. If a person-
a. Having been discharged with disgrace from any part of His Majesty’s forces, or having been dismissed with disgrace from the Navy, has afterwards enlisted in the Territorial Force without declaring the circumstances of his discharge or dismissal; or
b. Is concerned when subject to military law in the enlistment for service in the Territorial Force of any man, when he knows or has reasonable cause to believe such man to be so circumstanced that by enlisting he commits an offence against the Army Act or this Act; or
c. Willfully contravenes when subject to military law any enactments, orders, or regulations which relate to the enlistment or attestation of men in the Territorial Force.
he shall be guilty of an offence, and shall, whether otherwise subject to military law or not, be liable to be tried by court martial, and on conviction to suffer such punishment as is imposed for the like offence by section thirty-two or thirty-four of the Army Act, as the case may be, and may be taken into military custody.
2. For the purpose of this section the expression “discharged with disgrace” means discharged with ignominy, discharged as incorrigible and worthless, or discharged for misconduct, or discharged on account of a conviction for felony or a sentence of penal servitude.
12. Enlistment into army reserve.
If a man of the Territorial Force enlists into the army reserve without being discharged from the Territorial Force, the terms and conditions of his service whilst he remains in the army reserve shall be those applicable to him as a man belonging to the army reserve, and not those applicable to him as a man of the Territorial Force.
13. Area of service of Territorial Force.
1. Any part of the Territorial Force shall be liable to serve in any part of the United Kingdom, but no part of the Territorial Force shall be carried or ordered to go out of the United Kingdom.
2. Provided that it shall be lawful for His Majesty, if he thinks fit, to accept the offer of any part or men of the Territorial Force, signified through their commanding officer, to subject themselves to the liability-
a. To serve in any place outside the United Kingdom; or
b. To be called out for actual military service for purposes of defence at such places in the United Kingdom as may be specified in their agreement, whether the Territorial Force is embodied or not;
and, upon any such offer being accepted, they shall be liable, whenever required during the period to which the offer extends, to serve or be called out accordingly.
3. A person shall not be compelled to make such an offer, or be subjected to such liability as aforesaid, except by his own consent, and a commanding officer shall not certify any voluntary offer previously to his having explained to every person making the offer that the offer is to be purely voluntary on his part.
Training
14. Preliminary training of recruits of Territorial Force.
1. Every man of the Territorial Force shall, by way of preliminary training, during the first year of his original enlistment –
a. If so provided by Order in Council, be trained at such places within the United Kingdom, at such times, and for such periods, not exceeding in the whole the number of days specified by the Order in Council, as may be prescribed, and may for that purpose be called out once or oftener; and
b. Whether such an Order in Council has been made or not, attend the number of drills and fulfil the other conditions prescribed for a recruit of his arm or branch of the service.
2. The requirement to attend training and drills, and to fulfil conditions under this section, shall be in addition to the requirement to attend training and drills and to fulfil conditions for the purpose of annual training.
15. Annual training.
1. Subject to the provisions of this section, every man of the Territorial Force shall, by way of annual training –
a. Be trained for not less than eight nor more than fifteen, or in the case of the mounted branch eighteen, days every year at such times and at such places in any part of the United Kingdom as may be prescribed, and may for that purpose be called out once or oftener in every year:
b. Attend the number of drills and fulfil the other conditions relating to training prescribed for his arm or branch of the service:
Provided that the requirements of this section may be dispensed with in whole or in part –
i. as respects any unit, by the prescribed general officer; and
ii. as respects an individual man, by his commanding officer subject to any general directions by the prescribed general officer.
2. His Majesty in Council may-
a. Order that the period of annual training in any year of all or part of the Territorial Force be extended, but so that the whole period id annual training be not more than thirty days in any year; or
b. Order that the period of annual training in any year of all or part of the Territorial Force be reduced to such time as to His Majesty may seem fit; or
c. Order that in any year the annual training of all or part of the Territorial Force may be dispensed with.
3. Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing a man, with his own consent, in addition to annual training, being called up for the purpose of duty or instruction in accordance with orders and regulations under this Part of this Act.
16. Laying of draft Orders in Council relating to training before Parliament.
Before any Order in Council is made under this Act providing for preliminary training or extending the period of annual training the draft thereof shall be laid before each House of Parliament for a period of not less than forty days during the Session of Parliament, and, if either of those Houses before the expiration of forty days presents an address to His Majesty against the draft or any part thereof, no further proceedings shall be taken, without prejudice to the making of a new draft Order.
Embodiment
17. Embodiment of Territorial Force.
1. Immediately upon and by virtue of the issue of a proclamation ordering the Army Reserve to be called out on permanent service, it shall be lawful for His Majesty to order the Army Council from time to time to give, and when given to revoke or vary, such directions as may seem necessary or proper for embodying all or any part of the Territorial Force, and in particular to make such special arrangements as they think proper with regard to units or individuals whose services may be required in other than a military way.
Provided that, where under any such proclamation directions have been issued for calling out all the men belonging to the first class of Army Reserve, the Army Council shall, within one month after such directions have been issued, issue directions for embodying all the men belonging to the Territorial Force, unless an address has been presented to His Majesty by both Houses of Parliament praying that such directions as last foresaid be not issued, and such directions shall not, unless the emergency so requires, be given until Parliament has had an opportunity of presenting such an address.
2. Whenever, in consequence of the calling out of the whole of the first class of the Army Reserve, directions are required under this section to be given for embodying the Territorial Force, if Parliament be then separated by such adjournment or prorogation as will not expire within ten days, a proclamation shall be issued for the meeting of Parliament within ten days, and Parliament shall accordingly meet and sit upon the day appointed by such proclamation, and shall continue to sit and act in like manner as if it had stood adjourned or prorogated to the same day.
3. Every order and all directions given under this section shall be obeyed as if enacted in this Act, and, where such directions for the time being direct the embodiment of any part of the Territorial Force, every officer and man belonging to that part shall attend at the place and time fixed by those directions, and after that time shall be deemed to be embodied, and such officers and men are in this Act referred to as embodied or as the embodied part or parts of the Territorial Force.
18. Disembodying of Territorial Force.
1. It shall be lawful for His Majesty by proclamation to order that the Territorial Force be disembodied, and thereupon the Army Council shall give such directions as may seem necessary or proper for carrying the said proclamation into effect.
2. Until any such proclamation of His Majesty has been issued the Army Council may from time to time, as they may think expedient for the public service, give such directions as may seem necessary or proper for disembodying any embodied part of the Territorial Force, and for embodying any part of the Territorial Force not embodied, whether previously disembodied or otherwise.
3. After the date fixed by the directions of disembodiment of any part of the Territorial Force, the officers and men belonging to that part shall be in the position of officers and men of the Territorial Force not embodied.
Notices
19. Services and publication of notices.
Notices required in pursuance of this Part of this Act or of the orders and regulations in force thereunder to be given to men of the Territorial Force shall be served or published in such manner as may be prescribed, and, if so served or published, shall be deemed to be sufficient notice, and every constable and overseer shall, when so required by or on behalf of the Army Council, conform with the orders and regulations for the time being in force under this Part of this Act with respect to the publication and service of notices, and in default shall be liable on conviction under the Summary Jurisdiction Acts to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds.
Offences
20. Punishment for failure to attend on embodiment.
1. Any man of the Territorial Force who without leave lawfully granted, or such sickness or other reasonable excuse as may be allowed in the prescribed manner, fails to appear at the time and place appointed for assembling on embodiment, shall be guilty, according to the circumstances, of deserting within the meaning of section twelve, or of absenting himself without leave within the meaning of section fifteen, of the Army Act, and shall, whether otherwise subject to military law or not, be liable to be tried by court-martial, and convicted and punished accordingly, and may be taken into military custody.
2. Sections one hundred and fifty-three and one hundred and fifty-four of the Army Act shall apply with respect to deserters and desertion within the meaning of this section in like manner as they apply with respect to deserters and desertion within the meaning of those sections, and any person who, knowing any man of the Territorial Force to be a deserter within the meaning of this section or of the Army Act, employs or continues to employ him, shall be deemed to aid him on concealing himself within the meaning of the first-mentioned section.
3. Where a man of the Territorial Force commits the offence of desertion under this section the time which elapsed between the time of his committing the offence and the time of his apprehension or voluntary surrender shall not be taken into account in reckoning his service for the purpose of discharge.
21. Punishment for failure to fulfil training conditions.
Any man of the Territorial Force who without leave lawfully granted, or such sickness or other reasonable excuse as may be allowed in the prescribed manner, fails to appear at the time and place appointed for preliminary training, or for annual training, or fails to attend the number of drills and fulfil the other conditions relating to preliminary or annual training prescribed for his arm or branch of the service, shall be liable to forfeit to His Majesty a sum of money not exceeding five pounds recoverable on complaint to a court of summary jurisdiction by the prescribed officer, and any sums recovered by such officer shall be accounted for by him in the prescribed manner.
22. Wrongful sale, etc. of public property.
If any person designedly makes away with, sells or pawns, or wrongfully destroys or damages or negligently loses anything issued to him as an officer or man of the Territorial Force, or wrongfully refuses or neglects to deliver up on demand anything issued to him as an officer or man of the Territorial Force, the value thereof shall be recoverable from him on complaint to a court of summary jurisdiction by the county association; and he shall also, for any such offence of designedly making away with, selling or pawning, or wrongfully destroying as aforesaid, be liable on conviction under the Summary Jurisdiction Act to a fine not exceeding five pounds.
Civil Rights and Exemptions
23. Civil rights and exemptions.
1. The acceptance of a commission as an officer of the Territorial Force shall not vacate the seat of any member returned to serve in Parliament.
2. An officer or man of the Territorial Force shall not be liable to any penalty or punishment for or on account of his absence during the time he is voting at any election of a member to serve in Parliament, or during the time he is going to or returning from such voting.
3. If a sheriff is an officer of the Territorial Force, then during embodiment he shall be discharged from personally performing the office of sheriff, and the under sheriff shall be answerable for the execution of the said office in the name of the high sheriff; and the security given by the under sheriff and his pledges to the high sheriff shall stand as a security to the King and to all persons whomsoever for the due performance of the office of sheriff during such time.
4. An officer or man of the Territorial Force shall not be compelled to serve as a peace officer or parish officer, and shall be exempt from serving on any jury, and a field officer of the Territorial Army shall not be required to serve in the office of high sheriff.
Legal Proceedings
24. Trial of offences and application of penalties.
1. Any offence under this Part of this Act, and any offence under the Army Act if committed by a man of the Territorial Force when not embodied, which is cognizable by a court-martial shall also be cognizable by a court of summary jurisdiction, and on conviction by such a court shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or with a fine not exceeding twenty pounds, or with both such imprisonment and fine, but nothing in this provision shall affect the liability of a person charged with any such offence to be taken into military custody.
2. Any offence which under this Part of this Act is punishable on conviction by court-martial, shall for all purposes of and incidental to the arrest, trial and punishment if the offender, including the summary dealing with the case by his commanding officer, be deemed to be an offence under the Army Act, with this modification, that any reference in that Act to forfeiture and stoppages shall be construed to refer to such forfeitures and stoppages as may be prescribed.
3. Any offence which under this Part of this Act is punishable on conviction by a court of summary jurisdiction may be prosecuted, and any fine recoverable on such conviction may be recovered, in manner prescribed by sections one hundred and sixty-six, one hundred and sixty-seven and one hundred and sixty-eight of the Army Act, in like manner as if these sections were herein re-enacted and in terms made applicable to the Part of this Act, subject to the following modifications (namely) –
Every fine imposed under this Part of this Act on a man of the Territorial Force, or recovered on a prosecution instituted under this Part of this Act, shall, notwithstanding anything in any Act or charter or in the said sections to the contrary, be paid to the association of the county for which the man was enlisted.
4. Where a man of the Territorial Force is subject to military law and is illegally absent from his duty, a court of inquiry under section seventy-two of the Army Act may be assembled after the expiration of twenty-one days from the date of such absence, notwithstanding that the period during which he was subject to military law is less than twenty-one days or has expired before the expiration of twenty-one days.
25. Supplemental provisions as to trial of offences.
1. A person charged with an offence which under this Part of this Act is cognizable both by a court-martial and by a court of summary jurisdiction shall not be liable to be tried both by a court-martial and by a court of summary jurisdiction, but may be tried by either of them, as may be prescribed:
Provided that a man who has been dealt with summarily by his commanding officer shall be deemed to have been tried by court-martial.
2. Proceedings against an offender before either a court-martial or his commanding officer, or a court of summary jurisdiction, in respect of an offence punishable under this Part of this Act, and alleged to have been committed by him when a man of the Territorial Force, may be instituted whether the term of his service in the Territorial Force has or has not expired, and may, notwithstanding anything in any other Act, be instituted at any time within two months after the time at which the offence becomes known to his commanding officer if the alleged offender is then apprehended, or, if he is not then apprehended, then within two months after the time at which he is apprehended.
3. Where an offender has on several occasions been guilty of desertion, fraudulent enlistment, or making a false answer, he may for the purposes of any proceedings against him be deemed to belong to any one or more of the corps to which he has been appointed or transferred as well as to the corps to which he properly belongs, and it shall be lawful to charge the offender with any number of the above-mentioned offences at the same time, whether they are offences within the meaning of the Army Act or offences within the meaning of this Part of this Act, and to give evidence of such offences against him, and, if he has been convicted or more than one offence, to punish him accordingly as if he had been previously convicted of any such offence.
26. Evidence.
1. Section one hundred and sixty-four of the Army Act (which relates to evidence of the civil conviction or acquittal of a person subject to military law) shall apply to a man of the Territorial Force who is tried by a civil court, whether he is or is not at the time of such trial subject to military law.
2. Section one hundred and sixty-three of the Army Act (relating to evidence) shall apply to all proceedings under this Part of this Act.
Miscellaneous
27. Exercise of powers vested in holder of military office.
1. Any power or jurisdiction given to, and act or thing to be done by, to, or before any person holding any military office may, in relation to the Territorial Force, be exercised by or done by, to, or before any other person for the time being authorized in that behalf, according to the custom of the Service.
2. Where by this Part of this Act, or by any order or regulation in force under this Part of this Act, any order is authorized to be made by any military authority, such order may be signified by an order, instruction, or letter under the hand of any officer authorized to issue orders on behalf of such military authority, and an order, instruction, or letter purporting to be signed by any officer appearing therein to be so authorized shall be evidence of his being so authorized.
28. Application of enactments.
1. The Army Act shall apply to the Territorial Force and officers and men thereof in like manner as it applies to the Militia, and officers and men of the Militia, except that men of the Territorial Force shall, in addition, be subject to military law when called out on actual military service for purposes of defence, and shall be liable to dismissal as punishment, and for that purpose the amendments contained in the First Schedule to this Act shall be made in the Army Act.
2. For the purposes of section one hundred and forty-three of the Army Act and of all other enactments relating to such duties, tolls, and ferries as are in that section mentioned, officers and men belonging to the Territorial Force, when going to or returning from any place at which they are required to attend, and for non-attendance at which they are liable to be punished, shall be deemed to be officers and soldiers of the regular forces on duty.
3. His Majesty may by Order in Council apply, with the necessary adaptations, to the Territorial Force or the officers or men belonging to that force any enactment relating to the Militia, Yeomanry, or Volunteers, or officers or men of the Militia, Yeomanry, or Volunteers, other than enactments with respect to the raising, service, pay, discipline, or government of the Militia, Yeomanry, or Volunteers, and every such order in council shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament.
Transitory
29. Transitory provisions.
1. Where an association has been established under this Act for any county His Majesty may by Order in Council transfer to the Territorial Force such units of the Yeomanry and Volunteers or part thereof raised in the county as may be specified in the Order, and every such unit or part thereof shall from the date mentioned in the Order be deemed to have been lawfully formed under this Part of this Act as an unit of the Territorial Force as provided by the Order, and the provisions of this Part of this Act shall apply to it accordingly.
2. Every officer and man of an unit or part thereof mentioned in any such Order shall, from the date mentioned in that Order, be deemed to be an officer or man of the Territorial Force. Provided that nothing in this section or in any Order made thereunder shall, without his consent, affect the conditions or area of service of any person commissioned, enlisted, or enrolled before the passing of this Act.
3. An Order in Council under this section may provide –
a. For the application to officers and men who become subject thereto of the provisions of this Act as to conditions and area of service and for the continuance of the application to officers and men who remain subject thereto of the provisions as to conditions and area of service previously in force as respects those officers and men:
b. For transferring to the association any property vested in a Secretary of State for the purposes of any unit to which the Order relates:
c. For transferring to the association any property belonging to or held for the benefit of any such unit, so, however, that all property so transferred shall, as from the date of the transfer, be held by the association for the benefit in like manner of the corresponding unit of the Territorial Force or for other such purposes as the association, with the consent of such corresponding units, to be ascertained in the prescribed manner, shall direct; and any question which may arise as to whether any property is transferred to an association, or as to the trusts or purposes upon or for which it is or ought to be held, shall be referred for the decision of a Secretary of State whose decision shall be final. The corresponding unit of the Territorial Force shall, in the event of any such transfer, become entitled, notwithstanding the terms of any trust, limitation, or condition affecting the property so transferred to the estate or interest in such property of the unit to the property of which the order relates; but, subject to this provision, the interest of any beneficiary other than such unit shall not, without the consent of such beneficiary, be affected. The order may, if it be deemed proper, having regard to the special circumstances of any case, provide for the appointment of special trustees to act together with or to the exclusion of the association in regard to any such property and such special trustees may be the existing trustees of such property:
d. For transferring to the association any liabilities of any such unit which the association is willing to assume, and providing for the discharge of any such liabilities which are so transferred:
e. For transferring to the association any land or interest in land acquired by the council of a county or borough on behalf of any volunteer corps to which the order relates, and any outstanding liabilities of the council incurred in respect thereof, if the council and the association consent:
and may contain such supplemental, consequential, and incidental provisions as may appear necessary or proper for the purposes of the Order.
4. Every Order in Council made under this section shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament.
Part III
RESERVE FORCES
30. Enlistment and terms of service of special reservists, 45 & 46 Vict. C. 48.
1. The power of enlisting men into the first class of the army reserve under the Reserve Forces Act, 1882, shall extend to the enlistment of men who have not served in His Majesty’s regular forces, and men so enlisted who have not served in the regular forces are in the Part of this Act referred to as special reservists, and a special reservist may be re-engaged, and when re-engaged shall continue subject to the terms of service applicable to special reservists.
2. A special reservist may, in addition to being called out for annual training, be called out for a special course or special courses of training at such place or places within the United Kingdom at such time or times and for such period or periods, not exceeding in the whole six months, as may be prescribed, in like manner and subject to the like conditions as he may be called out for annual training, and may during any such course be attached to or trained with any body of His Majesty’s forces.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of section eleven of the Reserve Forces Act, 1882, any special reservists may be called out for annual training for such period or periods as may be prescribed by any order or regulations under the Reserve Forces Act, 1882.
4. Provided that where one of the conditions on which a man was enlisted or re-engaged is that he shall not be called out for training, whether special or annual, for a longer period than the period specified in his attestation paper, he shall not be liable under this section to be called out for any longer period.
5. Where a proclamation ordering the army reserve to be called out on permanent service has been issued, it shall be lawful for His Majesty at any time thereafter by proclamation to order that all special reservists shall cease to be so called out, and thereupon a Secretary of State shall give such directions as may seem necessary or proper for carrying the said proclamation into effect.
6. A special reservist who enlists into the regular forces shall upon such enlistment be deemed to be discharged from the army reserve.
31. Agreements as to extension of service.
A Secretary of State may, by regulations under the Reserve Forces Act, 1882, authorize any special reservist having the qualifications prescribed by those regulations to agree in writing that, if the time when he would otherwise be entitled to be discharged occurs whilst he is called out on permanent service, he will continue to serve until the expiration of a period, whether definite or indefinite, specified in the agreement, and, if any man who enters into such an agreement is so called out he shall be liable to be detained in service for the period specified in his agreement in the same manner in all respects as if he his term of service were still unexpired.
32. Liability of reservists to be called out.
1. A special reservist shall, if he so agrees in writing, be liable during the whole of his service in the army reserve, or during such part of that service as he so agrees, to be called out on permanent service without such proclamation or communication to Parliament as is mentioned in section twelve of the Reserve Forces Act, 1882, and the calling out of men under this section shall not involve the meeting of Parliament as required by section thirteen of that Act:
Provided that-
a. The number of men so liable shall not at any time exceed four thousand:
b. The power of calling out of men under this section shall not be exercised except when they are required for service outside the United Kingdom when war-like operations are in preparation or in progress:
c. Any agreement under this section may provide for the revocation thereof by such notice in writing as may be therein stated:
d. Any exercise of the power of calling out men under this section shall be reported to Parliament as soon as may be:
e. The number of men for the time being called out under this section shall not be reckoned in the number of the forces authorized by the Annual Army Act for the time being in force.
2. Six thousand shall be substituted for five thousand as the maximum number of men liable to be called out under section one of the Reserve Forces and Militia Act, 1898, and the liability to be called out under that section may, if so agreed, extend to the first two years of a man’s service in the first class of the army reserve.
3. In paragraph (5) of section one hundred and seventy-six of the Army Act the words “under His Majesty’s proclamation” shall be repealed.
33. Power to form battalions, etc. of reservists.
Orders and regulations under the Reserve Forces Act, 1882, may provide for the formation of special reservists into regiments, battalions or other military bodies, and for the formation of such regiments, battalions or other military bodies into corps, either alone or jointly with any other part of His Majesty’s forces, and for appointing, transferring, or attaching special reservists to such corps, and for posting, attaching, or otherwise dealing with special reservists within such corps.
34. Transfer of Militia battalions to reserve.
1. His Majesty may by Order in Council transfer to the Army Reserve such battalions of the Militia as may be specified in the order, and every battalion so transferred shall from the date mentioned in the order be deemed to have been lawfully formed under this Part of this Act as a battalion of special reservists.
2. As from the said date every officer of any battalion so transferred shall be deemed to be an officer in the reserve of officers, and every man in such battalion shall be deemed to be a special reservist, and the order may contain such provisions as may seem necessary for applying the provisions of the Reserve Forces Acts, 1882 to 1906, as amended by this Act, to those officers and men:
Provided that, unless any officer or man in any battalion so transferred indicates his assent to such transfer certified by his commanding officer, nothing in the order shall affect his existing conditions of service.
3. All Orders in Council made under this section shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament.
35. Amendment of 45 & 46 Vict. C. 48, s. 6 (4).
Subsection (4) of section six of the Reserve Forces Act, 1882, which makes a certificate purporting to be signed by an officer appointed to pay men belonging to the army reserve evidence in certain cases, shall, where a person other than an officer is appointed to pay men belonging to the army reserve, apply to certificates purporting to be signed by such person.
36. Commissions reserve of officers not to vacate seat in Parliament.
The acceptance of a commission as an officer in the reserve of officers shall not vacate the seat of any member returned to serve in Parliament.
Part IV
SUPPLEMENTAL
37. Provisions as to orders, schemes, and regulations.
1. Every Order in Council or scheme required by this Act to be laid before each House of Parliament shall be so laid within forty days next after it is made, if Parliament is then sitting, if not, within forty days after the commencement of the then next ensuing session; and, if an address is presented to His Majesty by either House of Parliament within the next subsequent forty days, praying that any such order or scheme may be annulled, His Majesty may thereupon by Order in Council annual the same, and the order or scheme so annulled shall thenceforth become void and of no effect, but without prejudice to the validity of any proceedings which may in the meantime have been taken under the same.
2. All Orders in Council, orders, schemes, and regulations made under this Act may be varied or revoked by subsequent Orders in Council, orders, schemes, and regulations made in the like manner and subject to the like conditions.
38. Definitions.
The expression “county” means a county or riding of a county for which a lieutenant is appointed, and includes the City of London; and each county of a city or county of a town mentioned in the first column of the Second Schedule to this Act shall be deemed to form part of the county set opposite thereto in the second column of that schedule;
The expression “man of the Territorial Force” includes a non-commissioned officer;
The expression “prescribed” means prescribed by orders or regulations;
Other expressions have the same meaning as in the Army Act.
39. Special provisions as to special places.
1. The Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports may ex-officio be a member of the association of the county of Kent or of the county of Sussex, or both, as may be provided by schemes under this Act.
2. The Warden of the Stannaries may ex-officio be a member of the association of the county of Cornwall or of the county of Devon, or of both, as may be provided by the schemes under this Act.
3. The Lord Mayor of the City of London shall ex-officio be president of the association of the City of London.
4. The Governor or Deputy Governor of the Isle of Wight shall ex-officio be a member of the association of the county of Southampton.
5. Nothing in this Act shall affect the raising and levying of the Trophy Tax as heretofore in the City of London, but the proceeds of the Tax so levied may be applied by His Majesty’s Commissioners of Lieutenancy for the City of London, if the Royal London Militia Battalion is re-constituted as a battalion of the Army Reserve, for any purposes connected with that battalion, and may also, if His Majesty’s Commissioners of Lieutenancy for the City of London is their discretion see fit, be applied for the purposes of any of the powers and duties of the association of the City of London under this Act.
40. Application to Scotland and the Isle of Man.
1. In the application of this Act to Scotland the following modifications shall be made:-
a. This Act shall apply to a county or a city in like manner as to any other county: Provided that on the representation or with the consent of the corporation of any county of a city it shall be lawful for His Majesty, by order signified under the hand of a Secretary of State, at any time after the passing of this Act, to declare that such county of a city shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to form part of the county set opposite thereto in the second column of the Third Schedule to this Act and to provide for all matters which may appear necessary or proper for giving full effect to the order;
b. The expression “county borough council” means the town council of a royal, parliamentary, or police burgh with a population of or exceeding twenty thousand according to the census for the time being last taken;
c. The expression “land” includes heritages;
d. The expression “overseer” means an inspector of poor.
2. This Act shall apply to the Isle of Man as if it formed part of, and were included in the expression the United Kingdom, subject to the following modifications:-
a. The Isle of Man shall be deemed to be a separate county;
b. References to the Governor of the Island shall be substituted for references to the lieutenant of a county;
c. References to a High Bailiff or two justices of the peace and to conviction by such Bailiff or justices shall be substituted for references to a court of summary jurisdiction and to conviction under the Summary Jurisdiction Acts;
d. References to the Tynwald Court shall be substituted for references to Parliament in the section of this Act relating to civil rights and exemptions.
41. Short title.
This Act may be cited as the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act, 1907, and so far as it relates to the reserve forces may be cited with the Reserve Forces Acts, 1882 to 1906, as the Reserve Forces Acts, 1882 to 1907.
SCHEDULES
FIRST SCHEDULE
AMENDMENT OF ARMY ACT
Section
Amendment
S. 13 (1) (a) and (b)
After the word “Militia” there shall be inserted the words “or Territorial Force.”
S. 115 (7)
After the words “whenever” there shall be inserted the words “a proclamation ordering the Army Reserve to be called out on permanent service or”
S. 115 (8)
After the words “then if” there shall be inserted the words “a proclamation ordering the Army Reserve to be called out on permanent service or”
S. 175
After paragraph (3) there shall be inserted the following paragraph :–
“(3a) Officers of the Territorial Force other than members of the permanent staff”
S. 176
After paragraph (6) there shall be inserted the following paragraph :-
“6(a) All non-commissioned officers and men belonging to the Territorial Force –
(a) When they are being trained or exercised, either alone or with any portion of the regular forces or otherwise; and
(b) When attached to or otherwise acting as part of or with any regular forces; and
(c) When embodied; and
(d) When called out for actual military service for purposes of defence in pursuance of any agreement.”
S. 181 (4)
The words “the unit if the Territorial Force” shall be inserted after the words “officer commanding,” where those words first occur, and the words “an unit of the Territorial Force,” shall be inserted after those words where they secondly occur, and the words “Territorial Force,” shall be inserted after the words “an officer, non-commissioned officer, or man of the”
S. 181 (4) (a)
After the word “any” there shall be inserted the words “man of the Territorial Force or”
S. 181 (4) (b) and (c)
The word “Militia” shall be repealed in both places where that word occurs and the words “of the Territorial Force or Militia” shall be inserted after the word “man” in both places where it occurs.
S. 181 (6)
After the word “Volunteers” there shall be inserted the words “of the Territorial Force.”
S. 181 (12)
After the word “means” there shall be inserted the words “the Territorial Force.”
The following is a transcription of a newspaper article describing the Turkish attack on the Allied Forces defending the Suez Canal on the night of February 2/3, 1915. All images have been added by the author and were not part of the original newspaper articles.
Ismailia on the Suez Canal. [Source: Australian War Memorial]
ON THE CANAL
THE FULL STORY OF THE FIGHTING
Al Mokattam publishes the following details on the German-Turkish expedition against Egypt, which, says our contemporary, fill in and complete the story as given in the official communiques.
It is now proved that the expedition which attacked the Canal in the first week of February wished to cross at all costs. The Turkish Army had camped in two places 40 miles east of the station of Serapeum, at Mon Dorat, and Makshid. Their base of operations was in a deep valley. When they advanced to the west, they divided into two columns, the smaller marching on Kantara and the larger on Serapeum by the way of Kataib El-Nakhl. This second column was 20,000 strong. British airmen scouts saw this column and informed their headquarters.
Aerial View of Kantara [Source: Australian War Memorial]
When this force was at a distance of seven miles from the canal it moved backward and forward for reasons which are still unknown, but as soon as the wind blew from the south the attacking army marched towards the canal.
Pontoon bridge across the Suez Canal at Serapeum. [Source: Australian War Memorial]
The influence of German generalship was evident in all the units of that force; one of the proofs of their vigilance is that an English flying machine which flew over the Turkish army was repeatedly shot at but without any effect.
Toussoum Station. [Source: Australian War Memorial]
The Turkish army continued to march forward during the whole night until it came near the canal where it divided into two parts; the larger stopped at a distance of two miles from the canal to wait in reserve and the second which was composed of a whole brigade marched forward to prepare a place on the bank of the canal for the troops to cross at. This force had a number of boats each of which was carried by 40 men. It began attacking about 3:30am at a point to the south of the station of Toussoum and at a mile from it. The night was dark and the enemy had chosen three points at which to cross the canal. On the east bank, opposite the station of Toussoum, some English sentries who were stationed there saw, on the night of 2-3 February last, shadows advancing which they knew must be the enemy. They therefore fired their rifles to warn the British forces that the enemy was advancing. Shortly after they began firing on the British forces, and thus both sides of the canal were as if on fire. The enemy made a great noise and was seen pushing the first boat into the water, and it was followed by the 2nd, 3rd and 4th.
The enemy placed three Maxim guns at that point to protect the boats crossing the Canal.
The Egyptian and territorial artillery took part in the battle, and the prow of the first boat was hit with a shrapnel shell which killed the soldiers and sank the boat. The second and third boats were then pushed from the shore and shot at, the shells smashing in their sides. They soon capsized and most of the troops in them were drowned a few only escaping with their lives. The rest of the boats met with the same fate with the exception of two which were not launched. About 20 men crossed to the west bank of the Canal by throwing themselves into the water to escape the fire which was poured on them, and surrendered to the British troops after having tried to dig holes in which to hide themselves until the battle was over, being afraid that the British troops would kill them if discovered. Being unable to dig these holes they sat where they were until discovered by British troops who took them prisoners.
Captured Turkish Pontoon Boats. [Source: Australian War Memorial]
From the shells of the enemy’s guns, it was evident that they had no guns of greater calibre than 6 inches. It appears that the enemy had a good supply of ammunition for it did not spare it but rained it over our trenches though without hitting them. A shell exploded close to one of the British guns but it killed no one and although the enemy tried to discover the position of our artillery they failed.
At dawn the battle raged over a distance of two and a half miles, that is to say between the stations of Serapeum and Toussuom. The enemy fought bravely against the Egyptian, Territorial, Indian and New Zealand troops. The greater part of the enemy’s forces were opposite the station of Toussuom where they outnumbered our troops by ten to one, and yet the British troops stood their ground and prevented the enemy from moving forward. This proves that the military authorities had taken all the necessary steps for defence and were aware of all the difficulties in the way of an invading force crossing the Canal.
Signs of disorder among the enemy began to appear, and they retreated behind the earthworks they had hastily thrown up on the eastern bank of the Canal. But the British artillery continued to shell them in their retreat and inflicted heavy losses upon them.
TERRITORIAL ARTILLERY IN ACTION
One of the territorial batteries, commanded by Major Dobson, particularly distinguished itself. It is worthy of note that the officer controlling fire of this battery climbed up a palm-tree close by to be able the better to guide the battery and remained at his post an hour and a half under heavy fire. At last when no longer able to maintain his position he came down and climbed another palm-tree and remained there till the battle was over.
The enemy tried to attack us again but the Indian troops repulsed them with heavy losses.
The British troops took many prisoners; one officer confessed that they wanted to take our troops by surprise, but admitted that they found them very much on the qui vive. [on the alert]
Turkish Prisoners at Kasr-el-Nil Barracks. [Source: Australian War Memorial]
The British and French cruisers and battleships fired on the enemy’s reserve – which was at a distance of two miles on the eastern bank of the Canal – obliging them to retreat at 6pm. Some of the enemy’s troops continued hiding on the night of Wednesday on the eastern bank of the Canal, and kept up a desultory fire on our troops.
On the following day (Thursday), a part of the enemy was seen entrenched on the eastern bank. Two companies of Indian troops then crossed the Canal and attacked them, and as soon as reinforcements arrived the enemy was surrounded and thus obliged to surrender. These soldiers were 250 in number and were among the enemy’s best troops.
It now appears that the name of the German officer who was found killed on the field of battle and had a white flag and some seditious writings in his possession was von der Hagen. He was buried on a height on the east bank, and the Turkish troops were buried lower down at the point at which they tried to cross the canal.
THE HARDINGE’S PILOT’S BRAVERY
The cruisers and battleships fired on the enemy from Lake Timsah. The pilot of one of them, the converted cruiser Hardinge, Captain Dario, had, while on the bridge his leg shattered and his arm badly wounded. Those who saw the conduct of this pilot said that it was worthy of the highest admiration, for when shot, he caught hold of the railing and looking at his leg to ascertain the amount of injury done to him, refused to be carried to his cabin and asked for a long chair to be brought him saying that he still had strength enough to take the ship to port. But the doctor ordered him to be taken to his cabin notwithstanding his protests.
The authorities estimate the force of the enemy which attacked the canal at nearer 30,000 than 20,000 men, and the number of the wounded and prisoners is 5,000.
The enemy has retired to the east and is beyond the scope of our aeroplanes which is 60 miles.
FIGHTING NEAR TOR
TURKISH FORCE ANNIHILATED
Cairo, Sunday
A small British force landed in the Sinai Peninsula north of Tor and surprised a body of 200 Turks who were preparing to attack Tor. The Turks were annihilated. We captured 100 prisoners and 60 dead were counted on the field. The enemy’s camp and stores were destroyed. Fifty Turks, commanded by two German officers, previously reconnoitered the position which they believed was undefended, but retired when they found it was garrisoned by 200 Egyptians.
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