Difference between revisions of "British units in World War I"

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'The battalion was the basic tactical unit of the infantry of the British Army in the Great War of 1914-1918. At full establishment it consisted of 1,007 men of whom 30 were officers. It comprised a Battalion Headquarters and four Companies.'[http://www.1914-1918.net/whatbatt.htm]
+
{{About|units mainly recruited in the United Kingdom from British subjects. For units recruited by the British Crown or colonial governments outside the UK, India and the major dominions, see [[British colonial units in World War I]]. For example, we class the [[Royal Newfoundland Regiment]], [[West India Regiment]] and [[British West Indies Regiment]] as colonial, not British, as this seems to agree with the definition in the [[Constitution of the Military Forces of the British Crown|Manual of Military Law]]. If you're not sure where to look for a specific unit, use the website search. This can also help you find specific units under variant names.}}
  
See '''[[How you can help|how you can help]]''' to find out how you can help collect experiences of those in the First World War in their own words; you can also help by filling in the battalions for each regiment. A good source is the Long, Long Trail's page for [http://www.1914-1918.net/regiments.htm the British infantry of 1914-1918] and on [http://www.1914-1918.net/britdivs.htm The British Divisions of 1914-1918]. Chris Baker, the site's owner, has kindly given permission to use information from the site, so populating this page from those is a high priority task. Please feel free to get stuck in if you spot a gap!
+
See '''[[How you can help|how you can help]]''' to find out how you can help collect experiences of those in the First World War in their own words; you can also help by filling in the battalions for each regiment. A good source is the Long, Long Trail's page for [http://www.1914-1918.net/regiments.htm the British infantry of 1914-1918] and on [http://www.1914-1918.net/britdivs.htm The British Divisions of 1914-1918]. Chris Baker, the site's owner, has kindly given permission to use information from the site. We now have pages for most infantry battalions, but please feel free to get stuck in if you spot a gap!
  
I'm working on a definitive list of British battalions and regiments from 1914-1918, starting with the infantry, but here's a list of [http://web.archive.org/web/20050404041821/http://regiments.org/regiments/uk/lists/ba1918.htm REGIMENTS and CORPS of the BRITISH ARMY in 1918] (via the Internet Archive as the site appears to have been down for some years). '''If you've got a diary you want to add now, please just click 'Edit' above, and add the name of the author's regiment.''' Add 'British infantry' or another appropriate label to help differentiate between units across different armies, then make it into a wiki link by putting two square brackets around the name of the regiment or battalion, like this:
+
Here's a list of [http://web.archive.org/web/20050404041821/http://regiments.org/regiments/uk/lists/ba1918.htm REGIMENTS and CORPS of the BRITISH ARMY in 1918] (via the Internet Archive as the site appears to have been down for some years).
  
<nowiki>[[Royal Warwickshire Regiment, British infantry]]</nowiki>
+
'''If you've got a diary, letters or other personal narratives you want to add now:'''
  
This makes it into a red link [[Royal Warwickshire Regiment, British infantry]]; you can click on any red-linked page name to create that page.
+
*if the page for the author's unit already exists, you can add it straight to the page. See below for which British units do and don't currently have pages.
 +
*if the page for the author's unit doesn't yet exist, you can create it.
 +
*if you don't want to create a page or you don't know which unit the author belonged to, you can add the narrative to [[Lists of personal diaries, letters, memoirs]].
  
=== Uncategorised and miscellaneous regiments ===
+
To create a new page:
This is a great place to add any units that aren't yet linked, so they can be slotted in later.
 
  
There is also a [[British divisions in World War I|list of British divisions in World War I]].
+
Type the name of the unit, add ", UK" to the end if it's a British unit, then make it into a wiki link by putting two square brackets around the name of the regiment or battalion, like this:
  
* [[Guards Machine Gun Regiment, British infantry]] (aka 6th or Machine Gun Regiment of Foot Guards)
+
<nowiki>[[1st Battalion Example Regiment, UK]]</nowiki>
* [[No 1 (1st Life Guards) Battalion, British infantry]]
 
* [[No 2 (2nd Life Guards) Battalion, British infantry]]
 
* [[No 3 (Royal Horse Guards) Battalion, British infantry]]
 
* [[4th (Foot Guards) Battalion, British infantry]] (formerly 4th Battalion Machine Gun Guards)
 
* [[The Household Battalion, British infantry]]
 
* [[Royal Militia of Jersey, British infantry]]
 
* [[Royal Guernsey Light Infantry, British infantry]]
 
* [[The British West Indies Regiment, British infantry]]
 
* [[Royal Newfoundland Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
Regiments and battalions below added from the listings on http://www.1914-1918.net/regiments.htm (with many thanks to Chris Baker)
+
This makes it into a red link [[1st Battalion Example Regiment, UK]]; you can click on any red-linked page name to create that page. You can also create a page by entering its name in the search box. If it doesn't already exist, you can click on the red link in the search results.
  
=== Coldstream Guards ===
+
See also [[naming conventions for British units]].
[[1st Battalion, Coldstream Guards, British infantry]]
 
  
[[2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards, British infantry]]
+
== British Army ==
  
[[3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards, British infantry]]
+
The British Army consisted of land forces raised in the United Kingdom apart from the Royal Marines and the Royal Naval Division. It had these branches:
  
[[4th Battalion (Pioneers), Coldstream Guards, British infantry]]
+
* Regular Army
Formed as Guards Pioneer Battalion, but soon redesignated.
+
* New Army
 +
* Territorial Force
 +
* Special Reserve
 +
* Volunteer Force
  
[[5th (Reserve) Battalion, Coldstream Guards, British infantry]]
+
Most regiments and corps included a mixture of units from each branch.
Formed as 4th (Reserve) Battalion; redesignated as 5th (Reserve) Battalion.
 
  
[[1st Provisional Battalion, Coldstream Guards, British infantry]]
+
Every British army unit that has a page on this site should be listed in [[:Category:All British Army units]].
  
=== Grenadier Guards ===
+
See also [[British Army Hierarchies]] for more information about the structure of the Army.
  
[[1st Battalion, Grenadier Guards, British infantry]]
+
=== Higher formations ===
  
[[2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards, British infantry]]
+
These are tactical formations above division level:
  
[[3rd Battalion, Grenadier Guards, British infantry]]
+
* [[:Category:British corps (tactical)]] has pages for every corps except and Tank Corps headquarters. These were the next level above divisions.
 +
* [[:Category:British armies]] has pages for all the armies on the Western Front and at Salonika and Gallipoli. These were the next level above corps.
 +
* [[:Category:British Empire GHQs]] contains expeditionary forces and other formations that had the general headquarters in a theatre of war. Some pages have been added but several theatres are still missing.
  
[[4th Battalion, Grenadier Guards, British infantry]]
+
=== Infantry ===
  
[[5th (Reserve) Battalion, Grenadier Guards, British infantry]]
+
==== Infantry regiments ====
  
[[1st Provisional Battalion, Grenadier Guards, British infantry]]
+
We now have a page for every infantry regiment of the British Army. The table below shows links to the pages and the regiments' full names. It can be sorted by names or order of precedence. The website search can also help you find specific units under variant names.
  
=== Irish Guards ===
+
{| class="wikitable sortable"
 +
!Page Name
 +
!Full Name
 +
!Precedence
 +
|-
 +
|[[Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, UK]]
 +
|Princess Louise's (Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders)
 +
|091
 +
|-
 +
|[[Bedfordshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Bedfordshire Regiment
 +
|016
 +
|-
 +
|[[Black Watch, UK]]
 +
|Black Watch (Royal Highlanders)
 +
|042
 +
|-
 +
|[[Border Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Border Regiment
 +
|034
 +
|-
 +
|[[Cambridgeshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Cambridgeshire Regiment
 +
|199 04
 +
|-
 +
|[[Cameron Highlanders, UK]]
 +
|Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders
 +
|079
 +
|-
 +
|[[Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), UK]]
 +
|Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)
 +
|026
 +
|-
 +
|[[Cheshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Cheshire Regiment
 +
|022
 +
|-
 +
|[[Coldstream Guards, UK]]
 +
|Coldstream Guards
 +
|000 02
 +
|-
 +
|[[Connaught Rangers, UK]]
 +
|Connaught Rangers
 +
|088
 +
|-
 +
|[[Devonshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Devonshire Regiment
 +
|011
 +
|-
 +
|[[Dorsetshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Dorsetshire Regiment
 +
|039
 +
|-
 +
|[[Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
|Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
 +
|032
 +
|-
 +
|[[Durham Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
|Durham Light Infantry
 +
|068
 +
|-
 +
|[[East Kent Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Buffs (East Kent Regiment)
 +
|003
 +
|-
 +
|[[East Lancashire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|East Lancashire Regiment
 +
|030
 +
|-
 +
|[[East Surrey Regiment, UK]]
 +
|East Surrey Regiment
 +
|031
 +
|-
 +
|[[East Yorkshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|East Yorkshire Regiment
 +
|015
 +
|-
 +
|[[Essex Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Essex Regiment
 +
|044
 +
|-
 +
|[[Gloucestershire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Gloucestershire Regiment
 +
|028
 +
|-
 +
|[[Gordon Highlanders, UK]]
 +
|Gordon Highlanders
 +
|075
 +
|-
 +
|[[Grenadier Guards, UK]]
 +
|Grenadier Guards
 +
|000 01
 +
|-
 +
|[[Hampshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Hampshire Regiment
 +
|037
 +
|-
 +
|[[Herefordshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Herefordshire Regiment
 +
|199 07
 +
|-
 +
|[[Hertfordshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Hertfordshire Regiment
 +
|199 06
 +
|-
 +
|[[Highland Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
 +
|Highland Cyclist Battalion
 +
|199 09
 +
|-
 +
|[[Highland Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
|Highland Light Infantry
 +
|071
 +
|-
 +
|[[Honourable Artillery Company (Infantry), UK]]
 +
|Honourable Artillery Company (Infantry)
 +
|199 02
 +
|-
 +
|[[Household Battalion, UK]]
 +
|Household Battalion
 +
|000 00
 +
|-
 +
|[[Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
 +
|Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion
 +
|199 11
 +
|-
 +
|[[Irish Guards, UK]]
 +
|Irish Guards
 +
|000 04
 +
|-
 +
|[[Kent Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
 +
|Kent Cyclist Battalion
 +
|199 10
 +
|-
 +
|[[King's Liverpool Regiment, UK]]
 +
|King's (Liverpool Regiment)
 +
|008
 +
|-
 +
|[[King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment, UK]]
 +
|King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment)
 +
|004
 +
|-
 +
|[[King's Own Scottish Borderers, UK]]
 +
|King's Own Scottish Borderers
 +
|025
 +
|-
 +
|[[King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
|King's Own (Yorkshire Light Infantry)
 +
|051
 +
|-
 +
|[[King's Royal Rifle Corps, UK]]
 +
|King's Royal Rifle Corps
 +
|060
 +
|-
 +
|[[King's Shropshire Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
|King's (Shropshire Light Infantry)
 +
|053
 +
|-
 +
|[[Lancashire Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Lancashire Fusiliers
 +
|020
 +
|-
 +
|[[Leicestershire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Leicestershire Regiment
 +
|017
 +
|-
 +
|[[Leinster Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians)
 +
|100
 +
|-
 +
|[[Lincolnshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Lincolnshire Regiment
 +
|010
 +
|-
 +
|[[London Regiment, UK]]
 +
|London Regiment
 +
|199 05
 +
|-
 +
|[[Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Loyal North Lancashire Regiment
 +
|047
 +
|-
 +
|[[Manchester Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Manchester Regiment
 +
|063
 +
|-
 +
|[[Middlesex Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment)
 +
|057
 +
|-
 +
|[[Monmouthshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Monmouthshire Regiment
 +
|199 03
 +
|-
 +
|[[Norfolk Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Norfolk Regiment
 +
|009
 +
|-
 +
|[[North Staffordshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment)
 +
|064
 +
|-
 +
|[[Northamptonshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Northamptonshire Regiment
 +
|048
 +
|-
 +
|[[Northern Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
 +
|Northern Cyclist Battalion
 +
|199 08
 +
|-
 +
|[[Northumberland Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Northumberland Fusiliers
 +
|005
 +
|-
 +
|[[Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
|Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
 +
|043
 +
|-
 +
|[[Rifle Brigade, UK]]
 +
|Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own)
 +
|199 01
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Berkshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment)
 +
|049
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Dublin Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Royal Dublin Fusiliers
 +
|102
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment)
 +
|007
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
 +
|027
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Irish Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Princess Victoria's (Royal Irish Fusiliers)
 +
|087
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Irish Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Royal Irish Regiment
 +
|018
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Irish Rifles, UK]]
 +
|Royal Irish Rifles
 +
|083
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Munster Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Royal Munster Fusiliers
 +
|101
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Scots Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Royal Scots Fusiliers
 +
|021
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Scots, UK]]
 +
|Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment)
 +
|001
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Sussex Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Royal Sussex Regiment
 +
|035
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Warwickshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Royal Warwickshire Regiment
 +
|006
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal Welsh Fusiliers, UK]]
 +
|Royal Welsh Fusiliers
 +
|023
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal West Kent Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment)
 +
|050
 +
|-
 +
|[[Royal West Surrey Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)
 +
|002
 +
|-
 +
|[[Scots Guards, UK]]
 +
|Scots Guards
 +
|000 03
 +
|-
 +
|[[Seaforth Highlanders, UK]]
 +
|Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's)
 +
|072
 +
|-
 +
|[[Sherwood Foresters, UK]]
 +
|Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment)
 +
|045
 +
|-
 +
|[[Somerset Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
|Prince Albert's (Somerset Light Infantry)
 +
|013
 +
|-
 +
|[[South Lancashire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Prince of Wales's Volunteers (South Lancashire Regiment)
 +
|040
 +
|-
 +
|[[South Staffordshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|South Staffordshire Regiment
 +
|038
 +
|-
 +
|[[South Wales Borderers, UK]]
 +
|South Wales Borderers
 +
|024
 +
|-
 +
|[[Suffolk Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Suffolk Regiment
 +
|012
 +
|-
 +
|[[Welsh Guards, UK]]
 +
|Welsh Guards
 +
|000 05
 +
|-
 +
|[[Welsh Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Welsh Regiment
 +
|041
 +
|-
 +
|[[West Riding Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment)
 +
|033
 +
|-
 +
|[[West Yorkshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Prince of Wales's Own (West Yorkshire Regiment)
 +
|014
 +
|-
 +
|[[Wiltshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Duke of Edinburgh's (Wiltshire Regiment)
 +
|062
 +
|-
 +
|[[Worcestershire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Worcestershire Regiment
 +
|029
 +
|-
 +
|[[York and Lancaster Regiment, UK]]
 +
|York and Lancaster Regiment
 +
|065
 +
|-
 +
|[[Yorkshire Regiment, UK]]
 +
|Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own (Yorkshire Regiment)
 +
|019
 +
|}
  
[[1st Battalion, Irish Guards, British infantry]]
+
Also administratively part of the infantry:
  
[[2nd Battalion, Irish Guards, British infantry]]
+
* [[Army Cyclist Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Royal Defence Corps, UK]]
  
[[3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Irish Guards, British infantry]]
+
Regiment pages show each regiment's parent record office. Record offices also have their own pages, listed in [[:Category:British Army record offices]].
  
=== Scots Guards ===
+
==== Infantry battalions ====
  
[[1st Battalion, Scots Guards, British infantry]]
+
'The battalion was the basic tactical unit of the infantry of the British Army in the Great War of 1914-1918. At full establishment it consisted of 1,007 men of whom 30 were officers. It comprised a Battalion Headquarters and four Companies.'[http://www.1914-1918.net/whatbatt.htm]
  
[[2nd Battalion, Scots Guards, British infantry]]
+
We now have pages for nearly every British infantry battalion known to have existed. There might be some provisional battalions and Royal Defence Corps battalions missing: these
 +
will need to be added manually if any can be identified.
  
[[3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Scots Guards, British infantry]]
+
We don't yet have any information about Royal Defence Corps protection companies.
  
=== Welsh Guards ===
+
See also [[#Volunteer Training Corps]] below.
  
[[1st Battalion, Welsh Guards, British infantry]]
+
There are too many battalions to list on this page (already more than 1,700), but there are several ways you can find them:
  
[[2nd (Reserve) Battalion, Welsh Guards, British infantry]]
+
The regiment pages shown in the table above should list all battalions known to have been part of a regiment.
  
=== Line Regiments ===
+
The following categories list British infantry battalions:
[[Argyll &amp; Sutherland Highlanders Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
[[Bedfordshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[:Category:British infantry battalions]]: all British infantry battalions that have pages, listed alphabetically by regiment, then in order of battalion numbers. Includes Army, Royal Navy and Royal Marines.
 +
** Also has sub-categories listing certain battalions by uniform distinctions and special roles, but these are not yet complete.
 +
* [[:Category:British Army infantry battalions by regimental precedence]]: British Army infantry battalions only, listed in order of regimental precedence as shown in the above table, then in order of battalion numbers.
  
[[Black Watch Regiment, British infantry]]
+
You can also use the search box to find battalions that already have pages. You don't always have to enter the name exactly as it appears in the page title: alternative names will often show up as redirects or part of the page text.
  
[[Border Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Infantry brigades ====
  
[[Buffs (East Kent) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
We now have a page for nearly every British infantry brigade that has war diaries. These pages are listed in [[:Category:British infantry brigades]].
  
[[Cameron Highlanders Regiment, British infantry]]
+
Please feel free to add any missing brigades.
  
[[Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Infantry divisions ====
  
[[Cheshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
We now have pages for every British infantry division, including the divisions of the original Fourth New Army that were broken up in April 1915. These pages are listed in [[:Category:British divisions]].
* [[6th Battalion, Cheshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
[[Connaught Rangers Regiment, British infantry]]
+
=== Cavalry  ===
  
[[Devonshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
We now have pages for more or less every British cavalry and yeomanry unit. You can find them in [[:Category:British mounted units]] and its sub-categories.
  
[[Dorsetshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Cavalry administrative units ====
  
[[Duke of Cornwalls Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
These are the administrative corps and record offices of the British cavalry, including regular, yeomanry and Special Reserve regiments:
  
[[Duke of Wellington's (West Riding) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
*[[Household Cavalry, UK]]
 +
** [[Hyde Park 1st Life Guards Record Office, UK]]
 +
** [[Windsor 2nd Life Guards Record Office, UK]]
 +
** [[Regents Park Royal Horse Guards Record Office, UK]]
 +
*[[Canterbury Cavalry Record Office, UK]]
 +
**[[Corps of Dragoons, UK]]
 +
**[[Corps of Lancers, UK]]
 +
*[[York Cavalry Record Office, UK]]
 +
**[[Corps of Hussars, UK]]
  
[[Durham Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Cavalry divisions and corps ====
  
[[East Lancashire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Cavalry Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[1st Cavalry Division, UK]]
 +
* [[2nd Cavalry Division, UK]]
 +
* [[3rd Cavalry Division, UK]]
 +
* the numbers 4th and 5th were used by Indian divisions
 +
* [[1st Mounted Division, UK]]
 +
* [[2nd Mounted Division, UK]]
 +
* [[3rd Mounted Division, UK]]
 +
* [[4th Mounted Division, UK]]
 +
* [[Yeomanry Mounted Division, UK]]
  
[[East Surrey Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Cavalry brigades ====
  
[[East Yorkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
See [[:Category:British cavalry and mounted brigades]] for regular cavalry and yeomanry mounted brigades.
  
[[Essex Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Cavalry and yeomanry regiments ====
  
[[Gloucestershire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
Cavalry and yeomanry (ie Territorial cavalry) regiments and independent squadrons are listed in these categories:
  
[[Gordon Highlanders Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[:Category:British cavalry units]] lists all cavalry regiments and squadrons that have pages alphabetically by regiment name, including regular cavalry, yeomanry, Special Reserve and corps cavalry regiments.
 +
* [[:Category:British cavalry by regimental precedence]] lists regular cavalry and yeomanry regiments by order of precedence.
 +
* [[:Category:British yeomanry by county]] lists yeomanry regiments alphabetically by county, which is not always the same as regiment name.
  
[[Hampshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
[[Highland Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Sources ====
  
[[King's (Liverpool) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
*{{Cite TLLT|http://www.1914-1918.net/cavalry.htm|The British cavalry regiments of 1914-1918}} lists British regular and special reserve cavalry regiments, with further reading.
 +
*{{Cite TLLT|http://www.1914-1918.net/yeomanry.htm|The British Yeomanry of 1914-1918}} lists British yeomanry regiments (these were the Territorial branch of the cavalry).
 +
*{{Cite TLLT|http://www.1914-1918.net/TF_renumbering_yeomanry.htm|Renumbering of the Territorial Force Yeomanry in 1917}} lists which administrative corps each regiment belonged to.
  
[[King's Own (Royal Lancaster) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Imperial Camel Corps ====
  
[[King's Own Scottish Borderers Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Imperial Camel Corps]]
 +
* [[Imperial Camel Brigade]]
 +
* [[2nd Battalion Imperial Camel Corps]]
  
[[King's (Shropshire Light Infantry) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
=== Machine Gun Units ===
  
[[King's Own (Yorkshire Light Infantry) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
We now have pages for all British machine gun units that have war diaries. Any that don't have war diaries will need to be added manually.
  
[[King's Royal Rifle Corps Regiment, British infantry]]
+
Most units belonged to [[Machine Gun Corps, UK]], consisting of:
  
[[Lancashire Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Machine Gun Corps (Infantry), UK]]:
 +
** independent machine gun companies attached to infantry brigades and divisions (1916-18): see [[:Category:British machine gun companies]]
 +
** machine gun battalions attached to divisions (1918): see [[:Category:British machine gun battalions]]
 +
* [[Machine Gun Corps (Cavalry), UK]]
 +
** machine gun squadrons attached to cavalry brigades: see [[:Category:British machine gun squadrons]]
 +
* [[Machine Gun Corps (Motors), UK]], formerly part of [[Royal Field Artillery, UK]] and known as the Motor Machine Gun Service.
 +
** see [[:Category:British motor machine gun batteries]] and [[:Category:British motor machine gun brigades]]
 +
* [[Machine Gun Corps (Heavy), UK]] operated the first tanks and became [[Tank Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Machine Gun Training Centre, UK]]
  
[[Leicestershire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
The Guards had their own machine gun units which were administratively separate from the Machine Gun Corps:
  
[[Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* machine gun companies:
*[[1st Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
** [[1st Guards Machine Gun Company, UK]]
*[[2nd Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
** [[2nd Guards Machine Gun Company, UK]]
*[[3rd (Reserve) Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
** [[3rd Guards Machine Gun Company, UK]]
*[[1/4th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Guards Machine Gun Regiment, UK]] (formerly Machine Gun Guards):
*[[2/4th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
** [[1st Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment, UK]]
*[[3/4th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
** [[2nd Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment, UK]]
*[[4th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
** [[3rd Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment, UK]]
*[[1/5th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
** [[4th Battalion Guards Machine Gun Regiment, UK]]
*[[2/5th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[3/5th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[6th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[7th (Service) Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[8th (Service) Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[9th (Reserve) Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[10th (Service) Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[11th (Reserve) Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[12th (Labour) Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[13th Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[1st Garrison Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[2nd (Home Service) Garrison Battalion Lincolnshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
[[Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
=== Artillery ===
  
[[Leinster Regiment, British infantry]]
+
[[Royal Artillery, UK]] was an arm of the British Army, divided into two corps:
  
[[Manchester Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Royal Horse Artillery and Royal Field Artillery, UK]]; divided into two distinct identities:
 +
** [[Royal Horse Artillery, UK]]
 +
** [[Royal Field Artillery, UK]]
 +
* [[Royal Garrison Artillery, UK]]
  
[[Middlesex Regiment, British infantry]]
+
The basic unit of the Royal Field Artillery was the brigade, which was roughly equivalent to an infantry battalion.
*[[1st Battalion Middlesex Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[2nd Battalion Middlesex Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[3rd Battalion Middlesex Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[4th Battalion Middlesex Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[5th (Reserve) Battalion Middlesex Regiment, British infantry]]
 
*[[6th (Reserve) Battalion Middlesex Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
[[Norfolk Regiment, British infantry]]
+
We now have pages for every Royal Horse Artillery unit that has war diaries. These are listed in [[:Category:British horse artillery units]].
  
[[Northamptonshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
=== Cyclists ===
  
[[North Staffordshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
See [[:Category:British cyclist battalions]] and [[:Category:British cyclist companies]] for cyclist units.
  
[[Northumberland Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
+
Most of these were administratively under [[Army Cyclist Corps, UK]] but there are some exceptions. The following independent units were also classed as infantry regiments:
  
[[Ox &amp; Bucks Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Highland Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Kent Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Northern Cyclist Battalion, UK]]
  
[[Queen's (Royal West Surrey) Regiment, British infantry]]
+
The Territorial battalions of some county infantry regiments were equipped as cyclists. All of these battalions have pages and are categorised as cyclist battalions as well as infantry battalions.
  
[[Rifle Brigade Regiment, British infantry]]
+
Some yeomanry cavalry regiments were converted into cyclists. We haven't yet catalogued these changes but all yeomanry regiments have pages.
  
[[Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]] (The Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment)
+
=== Other regiments, corps and departments ===
* [[1st Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
* [[2nd Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
This is a list of other regiments, corps and departments of the British Army.
  
* [[5th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Army Chaplains Department, UK]]
 +
* [[Army Ordnance Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Army Ordnance Department, UK]]
 +
* [[Army Pay Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Army Pay Department, UK]]
 +
* [[Army Service Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Army Veterinary Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Labour Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Military Police, UK]] divided into:
 +
** [[Military Foot Police, UK]]
 +
** [[Military Mounted Police, UK]]
 +
* [[Non-Combatant Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Royal Army Medical Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Royal Army Ordnance Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Royal Engineers, UK]]
 +
* [[Tank Corps, UK]]
  
* [[6th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Women's departments ====
  
* [[7th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service]]
 
+
* [[Territorial Force Nursing Service]]
* [[8th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Queen Mary's Army Auxiliary Corps]]
 
 
* [[9th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]] (37th Training Reserve Battalion)
 
 
 
* [[10th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[11th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[12th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[13th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[1/4th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[2/4th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[3/4th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Dublin Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Irish Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Irish Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Irish Rifles Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Munster Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Scots Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Scots Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Sussex Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Warwickshire Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal Welsh Fusiliers Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Royal West Kent Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Seaforth Highlanders Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Sherwood Foresters (Notts &amp; Derbys) Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
[[Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
* [[1st Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[2nd Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[1/4th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[1/5th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[2/4th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[2/5th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[3/4th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[3/5th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[11th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[12th (West Somerset Yeomanry) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[6th (Service) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[7th (Service) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
 
 
* [[8th (Service) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
* [[9th (Reserve) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
==== Officer Cadet Battalions ====
  
* [[10th (Home Service) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
These battalions were set up to train new officers. They all have pages, listed in [[:Category:British officer cadet battalions]].
  
* [[13th (Home Service) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
== Volunteer Training Corps and Volunteer Force ==
  
* [[1st Garrison Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry Regiment, British infantry]]
+
Home defence units similar to the Home Guard in WW2. Initially known as the Volunteer Training Corps and not officially recognised by the War Office. In June 1916, the British Crown declared that volunteer units could be accepted under the terms of the 1863 Volunteer Act, which had never been repealed but had not been used in practice since the old Volunteer Force was converted into the Territorial Force in 1908. From then on, volunteer units accepted by the Crown were part of the Volunteer Force and their names were listed in the official Army Orders when they were accepted.<ref>Units started to be recognised on 17 June 1916, {{Cite AO|203|1916}}</ref> Later in the war, probably in 1918, Volunteer battalions were integrated into British Army regiments. We're not yet sure how far they were administratively integrated, but at the very least they took the name and badge of the parent regiment.
  
[[South Lancashire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
For the purposes of data on this site, Volunteer units that were officially accepted by Army Orders will be treated as a branch of the British Army called "Volunteer Force". If we can identify any units that existed in the VTC but were not accepted by the Crown into the VF, they will be classed as a separate service called "Volunteer Training Corps".
  
[[South Staffordshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
We don't have a definitive list of units, but have started building a list of red links below. Please add any regiments or battalions that you know of. Page names will be based on pre-1918 Volunteer regiment names to disambiguate the units from pre-1908 Volunteer battalions. Ideally the canonical names will be taken from Army Orders listing accepted units.
  
[[South Wales Borderers Regiment, British infantry]]
+
More units are listed in Army Orders 206, 284, 323 and 374 of 1916. Links to these will be added later.
  
[[Suffolk Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [[Carnarvonshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[1st Battalion Carnarvonshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[2nd Battalion Carnarvonshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
* [[Cheshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[6th Battalion Cheshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[Bucklow Mounted Corps, UK]]
 +
* [[Dorsetshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
* [[Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[1st Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[2nd Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[3rd Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[4th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[5th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[6th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[7th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[8th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[9th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[10th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[11th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[12th Battalion Durham Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
* [[Forfarshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[1/1st Battalion Forfarshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[2/1st Battalion Forfarshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
* [[Hampshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[1st Battalion Hampshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[2nd Battalion Hampshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[3rd Battalion Hampshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[4th Battalion Hampshire Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
* [[Surrey Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
 +
** [[5th Battalion Surrey Volunteer Regiment, UK]]
  
[[Welsh Regiment, British infantry]]
 
  
[[West Yorkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
For more information see:
  
[[Wiltshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* [http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=229702 Great War Forum thread on Volunteer Battalions]
 +
* [https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/29910/supplement/815 London Gazette 2910/815] list commissions in a few Volunteer regiments in 1917
 +
* [[Wikipedia:Volunteer Training Corps (World War I)]]
  
[[Worcestershire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
== Royal Navy ==
  
[[York and Lancaster Regiment, British infantry]]
+
Branches:
  
[[Yorkshire Regiment, British infantry]]
+
* Regular Navy
 +
* Royal Naval Reserve
 +
* Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve
  
=== Territorial-only Regiments ===
+
Also included the [[Royal Naval Air Service, UK|Royal Naval Air Service]], which operated aircraft and armoured cars.
[[Cambridgeshire, British infantry]]
 
  
[[Herefordshire, British infantry]]
+
=== Royal Navy infantry ===
  
[[Hertfordshire, British infantry]]
+
These infantry units and formations were raised by the Royal Navy but fought on land under Army command.
  
[[Highland Cyclist Battalion, British infantry]]
+
* [[63rd (Royal Naval) Division, UK]]
 +
* [[1st Royal Naval Brigade, UK]]
 +
* [[188th Infantry Brigade, UK]]
 +
* [[189th Infantry Brigade, UK]]
 +
* [[Anson Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Benbow Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Collingwood Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Drake Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Hawke Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Hood Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Howe Battalion, UK]]
 +
* [[Nelson Battalion, UK]]
  
[[Honourable Artillery Company, British infantry]]
+
== Royal Marines ==
  
[[Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion, British infantry]]
+
* [[Royal Marine Light Infantry, UK]]
 +
** [[Royal Marine Brigade, UK]]
 +
** [[1st Battalion Royal Marines, UK]]
 +
** [[2nd Battalion Royal Marines, UK]]
 +
** [[Chatham Battalion Royal Marines, UK]]
 +
** [[Deal Battalion Royal Marines, UK]]
 +
** [[Plymouth Battalion Royal Marines, UK]]
 +
** [[Portsmouth Battalion Royal Marines, UK]]
 +
* [[Royal Marine Artillery, UK]]
 +
* [[Royal Marine Engineers, UK]]
  
[[Kent Cyclist Battalion, British infantry]]
+
RMLI units that were not part of the Royal Naval Division will need to be added manually if any can be identified.
  
[[London Regiment, British infantry]]
+
== Royal Air Force ==
  
[[Monmouthshire, British infantry]]
+
Formed in April 1918 from the Royal Flying Corps (part of the Army) and Royal Naval Air Service (part of the Royal Navy).
  
[[Northern Cyclist Battalion, British infantry]]
+
== Other organisations ==
  
=== Machine Gun Battalions ===
+
We need more information about the legal and administrative status of some of these organisations in relation to the British Army.
[[39 Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
 
  
[[101 Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
+
* [[Voluntary Aid Detachments]] included men's and women's units. Officially recognised by the War Office, but what was its relationship with the Army?
 +
* [[British Red Cross]]
 +
* [[Order of St John]]
 +
* [[Friends Ambulance Unit]]: set up by Quakers and operated with the British Red Cross and Order of St John. [http://fau.quaker.org.uk/ More information]. Was this a recognised Voluntary Aid Detachment or something else?
  
[[104 Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
 
  
[["A" Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
+
=== Women's organisations ===
  
[["B" Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
+
See also [[#Women's departments|women's departments of the British Army]] above.
  
[["C" Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
 
 
[["D" Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
 
 
[["E" Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
 
 
[["F" Machine Gun Battalion, British infantry]]
 
 
== [[Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC), British Army]] ==
 
 
== Women's organisations ==
 
* [[Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service]]
 
* [[Territorial Force Nursing Service]]
 
 
* [[Women's Hospital Corps]]
 
* [[Women's Hospital Corps]]
* [[Scottish Women's Hospitals]]
+
* [[Scottish Women's Hospitals]]: not officially recognised by the British War Office but served with other allied nations in several theatres.
 
* [[The Women's Volunteer Reserve]]
 
* [[The Women's Volunteer Reserve]]
 
* [[The Women's Legion]]
 
* [[The Women's Legion]]
* [[Queen Mary's Army Auxiliary Corps]] (originally the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps)
 
 
* [[Almeric Paget Military Massage Corps]]
 
* [[Almeric Paget Military Massage Corps]]
* [[First Aid Nursing Yeomanry]] (FANY, now the Princess Royal’s Volunteer Corps)
+
* [[First Aid Nursing Yeomanry]] (FANY, now the Princess Royal’s Volunteer Corps). Authorised by the British Crown but separate from the Army.
* [[The Voluntary Aid Detachments]]
 
 
* [[Women's Auxiliary Force]]
 
* [[Women's Auxiliary Force]]
 
* [[Women's Auxiliary Agricultural Corps]]
 
* [[Women's Auxiliary Agricultural Corps]]
Line 364: Line 699:
 
* [[Women's Forestry Corps]]
 
* [[Women's Forestry Corps]]
 
* [[Women's Land Army]]
 
* [[Women's Land Army]]
 +
 +
 +
 +
[[Category:United Kingdom]]
 +
[[Category:British Army]]
 +
[[Category:British Empire]]

Revision as of 03:48, 1 May 2017

This page is about units mainly recruited in the United Kingdom from British subjects. For units recruited by the British Crown or colonial governments outside the UK, India and the major dominions, see British colonial units in World War I. For example, we class the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, West India Regiment and British West Indies Regiment as colonial, not British, as this seems to agree with the definition in the Manual of Military Law. If you're not sure where to look for a specific unit, use the website search. This can also help you find specific units under variant names.

See how you can help to find out how you can help collect experiences of those in the First World War in their own words; you can also help by filling in the battalions for each regiment. A good source is the Long, Long Trail's page for the British infantry of 1914-1918 and on The British Divisions of 1914-1918. Chris Baker, the site's owner, has kindly given permission to use information from the site. We now have pages for most infantry battalions, but please feel free to get stuck in if you spot a gap!

Here's a list of REGIMENTS and CORPS of the BRITISH ARMY in 1918 (via the Internet Archive as the site appears to have been down for some years).

If you've got a diary, letters or other personal narratives you want to add now:

  • if the page for the author's unit already exists, you can add it straight to the page. See below for which British units do and don't currently have pages.
  • if the page for the author's unit doesn't yet exist, you can create it.
  • if you don't want to create a page or you don't know which unit the author belonged to, you can add the narrative to Lists of personal diaries, letters, memoirs.

To create a new page:

Type the name of the unit, add ", UK" to the end if it's a British unit, then make it into a wiki link by putting two square brackets around the name of the regiment or battalion, like this:

[[1st Battalion Example Regiment, UK]]

This makes it into a red link 1st Battalion Example Regiment, UK; you can click on any red-linked page name to create that page. You can also create a page by entering its name in the search box. If it doesn't already exist, you can click on the red link in the search results.

See also naming conventions for British units.

British Army

The British Army consisted of land forces raised in the United Kingdom apart from the Royal Marines and the Royal Naval Division. It had these branches:

  • Regular Army
  • New Army
  • Territorial Force
  • Special Reserve
  • Volunteer Force

Most regiments and corps included a mixture of units from each branch.

Every British army unit that has a page on this site should be listed in Category:All British Army units.

See also British Army Hierarchies for more information about the structure of the Army.

Higher formations

These are tactical formations above division level:

  • Category:British corps (tactical) has pages for every corps except and Tank Corps headquarters. These were the next level above divisions.
  • Category:British armies has pages for all the armies on the Western Front and at Salonika and Gallipoli. These were the next level above corps.
  • Category:British Empire GHQs contains expeditionary forces and other formations that had the general headquarters in a theatre of war. Some pages have been added but several theatres are still missing.

Infantry

Infantry regiments

We now have a page for every infantry regiment of the British Army. The table below shows links to the pages and the regiments' full names. It can be sorted by names or order of precedence. The website search can also help you find specific units under variant names.

Page Name Full Name Precedence
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, UK Princess Louise's (Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders) 091
Bedfordshire Regiment, UK Bedfordshire Regiment 016
Black Watch, UK Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) 042
Border Regiment, UK Border Regiment 034
Cambridgeshire Regiment, UK Cambridgeshire Regiment 199 04
Cameron Highlanders, UK Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders 079
Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), UK Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) 026
Cheshire Regiment, UK Cheshire Regiment 022
Coldstream Guards, UK Coldstream Guards 000 02
Connaught Rangers, UK Connaught Rangers 088
Devonshire Regiment, UK Devonshire Regiment 011
Dorsetshire Regiment, UK Dorsetshire Regiment 039
Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry, UK Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry 032
Durham Light Infantry, UK Durham Light Infantry 068
East Kent Regiment, UK Buffs (East Kent Regiment) 003
East Lancashire Regiment, UK East Lancashire Regiment 030
East Surrey Regiment, UK East Surrey Regiment 031
East Yorkshire Regiment, UK East Yorkshire Regiment 015
Essex Regiment, UK Essex Regiment 044
Gloucestershire Regiment, UK Gloucestershire Regiment 028
Gordon Highlanders, UK Gordon Highlanders 075
Grenadier Guards, UK Grenadier Guards 000 01
Hampshire Regiment, UK Hampshire Regiment 037
Herefordshire Regiment, UK Herefordshire Regiment 199 07
Hertfordshire Regiment, UK Hertfordshire Regiment 199 06
Highland Cyclist Battalion, UK Highland Cyclist Battalion 199 09
Highland Light Infantry, UK Highland Light Infantry 071
Honourable Artillery Company (Infantry), UK Honourable Artillery Company (Infantry) 199 02
Household Battalion, UK Household Battalion 000 00
Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion, UK Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion 199 11
Irish Guards, UK Irish Guards 000 04
Kent Cyclist Battalion, UK Kent Cyclist Battalion 199 10
King's Liverpool Regiment, UK King's (Liverpool Regiment) 008
King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment, UK King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment) 004
King's Own Scottish Borderers, UK King's Own Scottish Borderers 025
King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, UK King's Own (Yorkshire Light Infantry) 051
King's Royal Rifle Corps, UK King's Royal Rifle Corps 060
King's Shropshire Light Infantry, UK King's (Shropshire Light Infantry) 053
Lancashire Fusiliers, UK Lancashire Fusiliers 020
Leicestershire Regiment, UK Leicestershire Regiment 017
Leinster Regiment, UK Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians) 100
Lincolnshire Regiment, UK Lincolnshire Regiment 010
London Regiment, UK London Regiment 199 05
Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, UK Loyal North Lancashire Regiment 047
Manchester Regiment, UK Manchester Regiment 063
Middlesex Regiment, UK Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment) 057
Monmouthshire Regiment, UK Monmouthshire Regiment 199 03
Norfolk Regiment, UK Norfolk Regiment 009
North Staffordshire Regiment, UK Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment) 064
Northamptonshire Regiment, UK Northamptonshire Regiment 048
Northern Cyclist Battalion, UK Northern Cyclist Battalion 199 08
Northumberland Fusiliers, UK Northumberland Fusiliers 005
Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, UK Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry 043
Rifle Brigade, UK Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) 199 01
Royal Berkshire Regiment, UK Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment) 049
Royal Dublin Fusiliers, UK Royal Dublin Fusiliers 102
Royal Fusiliers, UK Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) 007
Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, UK Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers 027
Royal Irish Fusiliers, UK Princess Victoria's (Royal Irish Fusiliers) 087
Royal Irish Regiment, UK Royal Irish Regiment 018
Royal Irish Rifles, UK Royal Irish Rifles 083
Royal Munster Fusiliers, UK Royal Munster Fusiliers 101
Royal Scots Fusiliers, UK Royal Scots Fusiliers 021
Royal Scots, UK Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment) 001
Royal Sussex Regiment, UK Royal Sussex Regiment 035
Royal Warwickshire Regiment, UK Royal Warwickshire Regiment 006
Royal Welsh Fusiliers, UK Royal Welsh Fusiliers 023
Royal West Kent Regiment, UK Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment) 050
Royal West Surrey Regiment, UK Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment) 002
Scots Guards, UK Scots Guards 000 03
Seaforth Highlanders, UK Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) 072
Sherwood Foresters, UK Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) 045
Somerset Light Infantry, UK Prince Albert's (Somerset Light Infantry) 013
South Lancashire Regiment, UK Prince of Wales's Volunteers (South Lancashire Regiment) 040
South Staffordshire Regiment, UK South Staffordshire Regiment 038
South Wales Borderers, UK South Wales Borderers 024
Suffolk Regiment, UK Suffolk Regiment 012
Welsh Guards, UK Welsh Guards 000 05
Welsh Regiment, UK Welsh Regiment 041
West Riding Regiment, UK Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment) 033
West Yorkshire Regiment, UK Prince of Wales's Own (West Yorkshire Regiment) 014
Wiltshire Regiment, UK Duke of Edinburgh's (Wiltshire Regiment) 062
Worcestershire Regiment, UK Worcestershire Regiment 029
York and Lancaster Regiment, UK York and Lancaster Regiment 065
Yorkshire Regiment, UK Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own (Yorkshire Regiment) 019

Also administratively part of the infantry:

Regiment pages show each regiment's parent record office. Record offices also have their own pages, listed in Category:British Army record offices.

Infantry battalions

'The battalion was the basic tactical unit of the infantry of the British Army in the Great War of 1914-1918. At full establishment it consisted of 1,007 men of whom 30 were officers. It comprised a Battalion Headquarters and four Companies.'[1]

We now have pages for nearly every British infantry battalion known to have existed. There might be some provisional battalions and Royal Defence Corps battalions missing: these will need to be added manually if any can be identified.

We don't yet have any information about Royal Defence Corps protection companies.

See also #Volunteer Training Corps below.

There are too many battalions to list on this page (already more than 1,700), but there are several ways you can find them:

The regiment pages shown in the table above should list all battalions known to have been part of a regiment.

The following categories list British infantry battalions:

  • Category:British infantry battalions: all British infantry battalions that have pages, listed alphabetically by regiment, then in order of battalion numbers. Includes Army, Royal Navy and Royal Marines.
    • Also has sub-categories listing certain battalions by uniform distinctions and special roles, but these are not yet complete.
  • Category:British Army infantry battalions by regimental precedence: British Army infantry battalions only, listed in order of regimental precedence as shown in the above table, then in order of battalion numbers.

You can also use the search box to find battalions that already have pages. You don't always have to enter the name exactly as it appears in the page title: alternative names will often show up as redirects or part of the page text.

Infantry brigades

We now have a page for nearly every British infantry brigade that has war diaries. These pages are listed in Category:British infantry brigades.

Please feel free to add any missing brigades.

Infantry divisions

We now have pages for every British infantry division, including the divisions of the original Fourth New Army that were broken up in April 1915. These pages are listed in Category:British divisions.

Cavalry

We now have pages for more or less every British cavalry and yeomanry unit. You can find them in Category:British mounted units and its sub-categories.

Cavalry administrative units

These are the administrative corps and record offices of the British cavalry, including regular, yeomanry and Special Reserve regiments:

Cavalry divisions and corps

Cavalry brigades

See Category:British cavalry and mounted brigades for regular cavalry and yeomanry mounted brigades.

Cavalry and yeomanry regiments

Cavalry and yeomanry (ie Territorial cavalry) regiments and independent squadrons are listed in these categories:


Sources

Imperial Camel Corps

Machine Gun Units

We now have pages for all British machine gun units that have war diaries. Any that don't have war diaries will need to be added manually.

Most units belonged to Machine Gun Corps, UK, consisting of:

The Guards had their own machine gun units which were administratively separate from the Machine Gun Corps:

Artillery

Royal Artillery, UK was an arm of the British Army, divided into two corps:

The basic unit of the Royal Field Artillery was the brigade, which was roughly equivalent to an infantry battalion.

We now have pages for every Royal Horse Artillery unit that has war diaries. These are listed in Category:British horse artillery units.

Cyclists

See Category:British cyclist battalions and Category:British cyclist companies for cyclist units.

Most of these were administratively under Army Cyclist Corps, UK but there are some exceptions. The following independent units were also classed as infantry regiments:

The Territorial battalions of some county infantry regiments were equipped as cyclists. All of these battalions have pages and are categorised as cyclist battalions as well as infantry battalions.

Some yeomanry cavalry regiments were converted into cyclists. We haven't yet catalogued these changes but all yeomanry regiments have pages.

Other regiments, corps and departments

This is a list of other regiments, corps and departments of the British Army.

Women's departments

Officer Cadet Battalions

These battalions were set up to train new officers. They all have pages, listed in Category:British officer cadet battalions.

Volunteer Training Corps and Volunteer Force

Home defence units similar to the Home Guard in WW2. Initially known as the Volunteer Training Corps and not officially recognised by the War Office. In June 1916, the British Crown declared that volunteer units could be accepted under the terms of the 1863 Volunteer Act, which had never been repealed but had not been used in practice since the old Volunteer Force was converted into the Territorial Force in 1908. From then on, volunteer units accepted by the Crown were part of the Volunteer Force and their names were listed in the official Army Orders when they were accepted.[1] Later in the war, probably in 1918, Volunteer battalions were integrated into British Army regiments. We're not yet sure how far they were administratively integrated, but at the very least they took the name and badge of the parent regiment.

For the purposes of data on this site, Volunteer units that were officially accepted by Army Orders will be treated as a branch of the British Army called "Volunteer Force". If we can identify any units that existed in the VTC but were not accepted by the Crown into the VF, they will be classed as a separate service called "Volunteer Training Corps".

We don't have a definitive list of units, but have started building a list of red links below. Please add any regiments or battalions that you know of. Page names will be based on pre-1918 Volunteer regiment names to disambiguate the units from pre-1908 Volunteer battalions. Ideally the canonical names will be taken from Army Orders listing accepted units.

More units are listed in Army Orders 206, 284, 323 and 374 of 1916. Links to these will be added later.


For more information see:

Royal Navy

Branches:

  • Regular Navy
  • Royal Naval Reserve
  • Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve

Also included the Royal Naval Air Service, which operated aircraft and armoured cars.

Royal Navy infantry

These infantry units and formations were raised by the Royal Navy but fought on land under Army command.

Royal Marines

RMLI units that were not part of the Royal Naval Division will need to be added manually if any can be identified.

Royal Air Force

Formed in April 1918 from the Royal Flying Corps (part of the Army) and Royal Naval Air Service (part of the Royal Navy).

Other organisations

We need more information about the legal and administrative status of some of these organisations in relation to the British Army.


Women's organisations

See also women's departments of the British Army above.

  • Units started to be recognised on 17 June 1916, Army Order number 203 (1916)