OSPREY· MEN-AT-ARMS SERIES

Text by

ALAN SHEPPERD

Colour plates by

MICHAEL ROFFE

MEN-AT-ARMS SERIES

EDITOR: PHILIP WAR ER

Text by ALAN SHEPPERD

Colour plates by MICHAEL ROFFE

OSPREY PUBLISHING LIMITED

Published in 1973 byOsprey Publishing Ltd, P.O. Box 25,707 Oxford Road, Reading, Berkshire© Copyright 1973 Osprey Publishing Ltd

This book is copyrighted under the BerneConvention. All rights reserved. Apart from anyfair dealing for the purpose of private study,research, criticism or review, as permitted under theCopyright Act, 1956, no part of this publicationmay be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, ortransmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,electrical, chemical, mechanical, optical, photo­copying, recording or otherwise, without the priorpermission of the copyright owner. Enquiries shouldbe addressed to the Publishers.

ISBN 0 85045 120 5

Printed in Great Britain byJarrold & Sons Ltd, Norwich

'Princess~nesRegiment

Monmouth's attempt in the summer of 1685 tooverthrow James II ended in disaster, and hisdefeat at Sedgemoor was overshadowed by thesavage treatment of his supporters at the 'BloodyAssize'. Paradoxically, however, the ease withwhich the rebellion was crushed in a little overthree weeks led the King on to the path thatended in his exile.

James had increased the Army by twenty regi­ments. Of these one, armed with fusils and used toescort artillery, became the Royal Fusiliers, whilethe next in seniority was Princess Anne 'of Den­mark's Regiment, later numbered 8th of Foot, andnow the King's Regiment. The date was 20 June1685 and the command was given to Robert,Lord Ferrel's of Chartley, a courtier whose familyhad for many generations served the Crown. LordFerrel's himself raised a company in Hertfordshirewhile Lt.-Col. John Beaumont, a veteran of theCivil War, recruited around Derby. The tenthcompany was recruited in six days in London byJohn Innis, who was appointed Major, and theRegiment finally assembled at Hounslow. Here,on the King's orders, a large military camp hadbeen established and the Regiment, wearing theStuart colours with yellow facings to their redcoats, was twice reviewed by the King. Later agrenadier company was raised in York by SirJohn Reresby, Member of Parliament for thatcity. Meanwhile James Fitz James, the King'snatural son by Arabella Churchill, had been ap­pointed Colonel of the Regilllent. Aged seventeenhe had already distinguished himself fighting theTurks at the siege ofBuda. In 1687 he was createdDuke of Berwick and given command of the

Cflie~ngs Regiment

important fortress of Portsmouth, where the Regi­ment now joined the garrison.

For some time the King had pursued a policyof filling both civil and military offices withCatholics, and in Ireland his lord lieutenant, theEarl ofTyrconnel, had already dismissed well over4,000 Protestant soldiers including many officers.Now the temper of the English regiments was to betested. On an inspection of Lord Lichfield'sRegiment (the 12th Foot) the soldiers were toldthey must sign a pledge to carry out the royalpolicy of indulgence or be discharged. All but twoofficers and a handful of privates immediately

Officer, Princess Anne'sRegbnent, 1686.(National Army Museum)

grounded their arms. The King was utterly non­plussed but eventually countermanded the order,adding, 'Another time I shall not do you thehonour to consult you.'

It fell to the lot of Princess Anne's Regimentto be chosen for the next experiment. Lt.-Col.Beaumont was ordered to enlist some thirty Irishrecruits that had arrived in Portsmouth with Col.McEligott's Regiment. This regiment had beenserving in the Anglo-Dutch Brigade and, in fact,was paid by Louis XIV. Beaumont and five of hisofficers took the order as an insult and immediatelypetitioned the Duke of Berwick, pointing out thattheir companies had been raised at their ownexpense for the King's service and there was noshortage of English recruits. Indeed, rather thanhave strangers forced upon them they would begleave to resign their commissions. The King wasfurious. The six officers were arrested, taken toWindsor, court-martialled, and cashiered. Thistime James had gone too far. The patriotic standby the 'Portsmouth Captains' caught the imagina­tion of the public, whose sympathy and applause,as expressed in the ballads and portraits of the sixofficers soon on sale, reflected the feeling of manywho had stood by the King at the time of theRebellion. The new commanding officer nowfaced a wave of desertions which underlined thefeelings of the rank and file. Within weeks, how­ever, news came of the landing of the Prince ofOrange and soon King James was on his way toexile. On 31 December 1688, less than four monthsafter his arrest, Beaumont was appointed Colonelof the Regiment. A 'publique advertisement inthe Gazet' recalling absentees was published thesame day and Beaumont had already taken othersteps to fill the ranks in contacting Sir JohnReresby, who writes in his Memoirs: 'I sent toSheffield and Rotherham to make new recruits,and in two days' time, only by sending my servants,I raised near 60 young men without beat of drumand choosing the most likely sent them with anofficer to the quarter at Southampton.' Col.Walton, the Army's historian of this period, wrotein 1894: 'It may be reasonably asserted that to theconduct ofKingJames's Standing Army as citizenswe are indebted for the political and religiousfreedom enjoyed in so superlative a degree by ourcountry at this present moment.'

4

Within six months the Regiment was sent toIreland. Officially, as Walton records, the Regi­ment was in fair shape: 'Beaumont's, 8th, Majorvery assiduous but the Lieutenant Colonel neglectsthe Regiment; pretty well clothed', which was agood report compared with many other regiments.In reality the men were suffering terrible priva­tions. Nothing had been provided. Food was atfamine prices and no one had been paid formonths. In the fortified camp at Dundalk therewere neither hospital nor medicines, and men diedby the score. When the campaign was continuedthe following year Princess Anne's Regimentmustered barely 500 men. At the siege of Cork(September 1690) the Regiment landed from openboats in the face of the enemy. The assault was ledby the Earl of Marlborough, the man destined tocommand Queen Anne's armies in the long andbitter War of the Spanish Succession.

first c.Battle :7£OnoursBetween 1701 and 1714 the Regiment, which afterAnne's accession was entitled the Queen's Regi­ment, served continuously on the Continent. Undertheir Colonel, James Richmond Webb, it foughtwith distinction in Marlborough's eight campaignsin the Low Countries. Webb was one of Marl­borough's most trusted officers, and his professionalability and outstanding bravery brought earlyadvancement and high command.

Of the many battles in which the Regiment tookpart that of Oudenarde stands out, not only as anillustration of the brilliance of M::trlborough as atactical innovator but also because the decisiveblow was made by the infantry and not by thecavalry.

In 1708 the French made a tremendous effort torecover the Netherlands. Ghent and Bruges fellinto their lap through treachery, and 85,000 menwere advancing on Oudenarde. The Frenchcommanders, Burgundy and Vendome, convincedthat Marlborough would hold back to coverBrussels, saw no need for haste. Marlborough,however, reacted with speed and determination.Having arranged for Prince Eugene to sendreinforcements, he led 80,000 men rapidly south-

The Battle of Blenheim, 1704. (National Army Museum)

west, and after covering 50 miles in forty-eighthours, reached a point only 15 miles from Oude­narde, thereby cutting Vend6me's direct com­munications with France. Before dawn on I I JulyLord Cadogan marched on Oudenarde with astrong advance guard of all arms. While pontoonbridges were being laid across the Scheldt belowthe town, the French could be seen leisurely cros­sing the river some six miles downstream, quiteoblivious of the presence of the Allied troops. Bynoon Cadogan's force had crossed and were cover­ing the bridges, but it was another hour beforetheir presence was discovered by the French. Atthis moment a large body of Allied cavalry couldbe seen galloping towards the bridges and theFrench plans to launch their own cavalry againstCadogan were cancelled. Four Swiss battalions inthe little village of Eyne and a reserve brigade totheir rear were thus left unsupported. Cadoganimmediately advanced to the attack. The 8th hadthe place of honour on the right of the leadingbrigade. Taylor in The Wars of Marlborough des­cribes what followed. 'With bayonets fixed andfirelocks shouldered they moved proudly forward,as if to enter some citadel already fallen.' Thecharge was delivered at pistol range and with agreat shout the British stormed the village. Theaction was hand to hand and very brief. The Swiss,famous for their tenacity and courage, broke.Three battalions laid down their arms and thefourth, attempting to fall back, was cut off byCadogan's Hanoverian cavalry. The reserve bat­talions fled in panic and the Hanoverian squadronsdrove the French cavalry from the plain.

The French infantry now advanced into theenclosed uplands above Oudenarde, and no less

than twelve battalions were launched against thePrussian infantry holding the little village ofGroenewald. Soon the whole ofCadogan's infantrywere committed. All depended on their holdingout until Marlborough's main body could arrive,and again the 8th held the place of honour on theright flank. Twice they were thrown back andtwice they recovered their positions. Preciousminutes had been gained and, as the French withloud shouts of'Vive Ie Roi!' again surged forward,twenty fresh battalions under the Earl ofArgyle atlast reached the scene of action. By dusk Marl­borough's infantry were fighting on a front of4,500 yards, but a Dutch contingent had slippedround the French right flank and charged intotheir rear. In the growing darkness there wasincredible panic and confusion. Slowly the Alliedregiments closed in, until the volleys of Cadogan'sright and those of the Dutch crossed. The Frenchdefeat was crippling; in addition to the loss of 6,000killed and wounded and 9,000 prisoners the num­ber of deserters probably brought their totalcasualties to 20,000. The Allied losses were about3,000.

The Allies now advanced into France withEugene's army besieging the great fortress of

The Battle of Oudenarde, 1708 - the final assault. (NationalArmy Museum)

5

Lille while Marlborough provided the coveringforce. Soon all depended on speeding up thedelivery of ammunition and other supplies forthe siege. Ostend was opened as a base port and alarge supply column was made ready. The French,however, had assembled 22,000 men under Gen.LaMotte at Bruges with orders to intercept anddestroy the convoy at all costs. Marlboroughimmediately despatched Maj.-Gen. Webb withtwelve battalions, and Cadogan followed withsome squadrons of cavalry to supplement theescort. The situation was critical. If the convoywere lost the siege would have to be abandoned.Hard marching brought Webb's battalions to thelittle hamlet of Wynendeal. Here in the woodsflanking a defile leading up from the plain, Webb,only too conscious of his inferior numbers, postedeach battalion as it arrived in concealed positions.LaMotte's leading column, a mixed force of12,000 men with nineteen guns, hesitated to enterthe trap and for three hours the French artilleryfired into the woods with little effect. By late after­noon LaMotte decided to wait no longer for the re­mainder of his force and gave the order to attack.Three times the French advanced, intent onsettling the matter with the bayonet and sabre,and three times they were thrown back inconfusion by volley upon volley that cut into theflanks of their proud ranks. One observer, asTaylor records, reported how the Allied infantry'went out by platoons, and made a continual fireupon the enemy, in as good order as if they hadbeen exercising'. Within two hours LaMotte'swhole force was in retreat, having lost close on3,000 men. Cadogan had to be restrained byWebb from charging their rearguard as, althoughthe convoy had been saved, there were still manylong miles before it would reach Lille. The,Allied losses were 130 killed and 800 wounded.For his part in this remarkable action Webb wasagain promoted and received the thanks of bothHouses of Parliament. The following year at theBattle ofMalplaquet Webb was seriously woundedand the commanding officer of the 8th, Louis deRamsey, was killed and eight other officers werewounded. Queen Anne ordered medals to bestruck to commemorate each of Marlborough'sgreat victories, but it was not until 1882 thatanother great Queen ordered Blenheim, Ramillies,

6

Oudenarde and Malplaquet, together with Det­tingen, to be borne on the colours of the King'sRegiment.

Between 1745 and 1759 the Colonel of theRegiment was Edward Wolfe, who had comman­ded the 44th with distinction in the West Indiesand under King George II rose to the rank ofLieutenant-General. In the battles of Falkirk andCulloden and in the Netherlands at Roucoux andLauffeld, where they fought overwhelming odds,'Wolfe's boys' more than maintained the re­putation the Regiment had won under the greatDuke of Marlborough. In 175 I the title 'TheKing'S Regiment' became 'Eighth (The King'sRegiment)' .

Cjtie 'J11:st IndiesThe outbreak of the Seven Years War in 1756brought William Pitt to power and an expansionof the Army by twenty-five battalions. Some,including the 2/8th, were second battalions ofexisting regiments. Of the first seventy years of itsexistence the King's Regiment had served morethan fifty-four overseas. On 2 I April 1758 the 2/8thbecame a separate regiment numbered the 63rdFoot. Col. David Watson, an expert on forti­fications, was given command, but only weekslater joined an expedition to St-Malo. Muchresponsibility thus fell on Lt.-Col. Peter Desbrisay,and Maj. John Trollope. Desbrisay had survivedno less than thirteen wounds at the Battle ofRoucoux, where Trollope, then a captain in theKing's, had also been wounded. The remainingofficers down to the rank of ensign (with a singleexception) were transferred from the King's.By September the 63rd were under orders for'immediate foreign service' and on 13 Novembersailed for the West Indies.

The force (in sixty transports escorted by eightships of the line) was under the command ofMaj.-Gen. Peregrine Hopson, an officer of fifty­five years' service, whose health was unfortunatelyfailing. After fifty-one days at sea the expeditionreached Barbados and joined up with CommodoreMore and his squadron. The orders were toseize the French-occupied islands of Martinique

and Guadeloupe. When the fleet sailed forMartinique on 13 January 1759 the number ofsick from 'fever, flux, scurvy and smallpox' wasalready 1,500. A landing near Fort Royal waseffected, but the French were in such strength andthe forests so impenetrable that the attempt wasabandoned and the expedition sailed on toGuadeloupe, the richest of the Sugar Isles andhome of the French privateers. On 23 Januarythe naval guns opened fire on Basse-Terre, theprincipal town of Guadeloupe proper. In thewords of Fortescue in The History of the BritishAmry, 'In a few hours the town, crammed withthe sugar and rum of the past harvest, wasburning fiercely.' By nightfall the French bat­teries had been silenced. When the British troopslanded the following day they found the town inruins and the elaborate entrenchments abandoned.The garrison, however, now held an impregnableposition in the neighbouring mountains. Forover a month Hopson's force, which was underconstant harassing attacks, remained inactive,while Commodore More battered into surrenderFort Louis on Grand Terre near by, the smallerof the two islands. At the end of February Hopsondied and Maj.-Gen. Barrington took over com-

mand. He reported (as Fortescue records):losses by enemy action, 202; sick already sent toAntigua, 600, plus '1,649 sick which I proposesending to Fort Louis'. Undeterred by theselosses, Barrington acted quickly. The 63rd, with500 reinforcements, was left to hold Basse-Terreand the remainder of the force (under 2,000 allranks) was moved to Fort Louis, from whenceseaborne attacks were made on the isolatedsettlements. In six weeks the French, driven intothe mountains and cut off from supplies, capitu­lated.

Meanwhile, the 63rd had lost both Desbrisayand Trollope in an accid<;ntal explosion in theupper bastion of Fort Royal. Desbrisay had beenreconnoitring the enemy with a telescope whensome gun cartridges were ignited by the waddingof a 24-pounder. Five officers and five men werekilled or wounded, but the French attack, one ofmany, was beaten ofT. In June Barrington sailedfor England but the 63rd remained as part of thegarrison on Guadeloupe. Four years later, by theTreaty of Fontainebleau, Guadeloupe, Marti­nique and several other islands were handedback to the French and the 63rd sailed forGrenada under the command of the senior

View of Fort Royal, Guadeloupe, after its capture in 1759.(National Army Museum)

7

captain. Its strength was reduced to 423 allranks.

The King's themselves were also involved inthe West Indies. The Grenadier and LightCompanies formed part of a force under Gen.Grey that recaptured Martinique and Guadeloupein 1794. The following year the whole Regimentsailed for the West Indies. Owing to storms onlyfour companies arrived to assist in the capture ofSt Lucia and the suppression of a rebellion inGrenada. Later in 1809 both the 8th and 63rd,from Nova Scotia and Barbados respectively,took part in yet another assault on Martiniqueand this battle honour is the first shared by bothregiments. The 63rd remained in the WestIndies for nearly twelve years and, in a well-or­ganized nine-day campaign with light casualties,won a further battle honour, 'Guadeloupe 18io'.While losses from enemy action were negligible,disease and the dreaded fever took a heavy toll.In 1815, for instance, the Regiment was at halfstrength and still had to find no less than tendetachments on other islands. When the Regi­ment sailed for England in 1819 it left behind thescattered graves of nearly 1,500 officers and men.Of the first sixty-two years of its separate existencethe 63rd had served fifty-five overseas, of whichthirty-one had been spent in North America andthe West Indies.

C]lie~mrld

In the American War of Independence, while the63rd was serving under Gen. Clinton at BunkersHill and at the capture of New York and Charles­ton, the King's were stationed in Canada. Theyhad been there since 1768 and, some time beforethe outbreak ofwar in 1775, had moved up countryto guard the little settlements, cut out from theforest, around the shores of the Great Lakes. Else­where there were so few troops that Montreal hadto be abandoned and Quebec was besieged. Thefollowing spring British ships broke through theice to reach Quebec with reinforcements, and atthe same time detachments of the King's startedto move down from the Upper Lakes to take ahand in attacking the invaders. Capt. George

8

Forster commanded a blockhouse at Oswegatchiewith sixty men. Downstream on the St Lawrencewas Fort Cedars, set on a narrow promontorywithin a mile of the cascade above Montreal andheld by 400 Americans. After dark on 17 MayForster landed at Point-du-Diable, six miles fromFort Cedars. His force consisted of two officers andthirty-eight men of the King's, some Canadianvolunteers and about 200 Indians. Early the fol­lowing day some of the Indians slipped awaytowards the Falls and were just too late to ambushpart of the garrison returning with supplies. Mean­while, Forster led the rest of his force quietlythrough the forest and, surprise having been lost,called on the garrison to surrender. Maj. Butter­field, the American commander, attempted to laydown conditions, but Forster fortified his positionand attacked at first light on 19 May. By noonButterfield and 390 of the garrison were prisonersof war. The following day a relief party fromMontreal was ambushed and yet more prisonerswere crowded into the blockhouse. Leaving a fewmen on guard, Forster now set off to attack theblockhouse at Vaudreuil. At this point the re­doubtable Col. Arnold, commanding the garrisonat Montreal, decided to intervene. Having em­barked 700 men, he himselfled the flotilla of boatsupstream. Forster selected his ground with greatcare. On three points of land stretching into theriver he posted in turn, an Indian contingent, hisown thirty men, and a mixed party of Canadiansand Indians. Toiling upstream the Americansattempted to close the shore at each point, but theslow-moving boats were all too easy targets for themarksmen firing from concealed positions on theriver bank. Disparity in numbers counted for littleunder such conditions and each attempt to landwas driven off with heavy casualties. It is perhapsappropriate to remark here on the gallantry of thesmallest of Forster's detachments, the singleplatoon of the King's, who opposed the landing ofthis large force so successfully that the latter finally'retreated to St Ann's island dispirited andexhausted' .

Twenty-three years later, while Wellington waswinning his early victories in the Spanish Penin­sula, the King's returned to North America and,when war broke out in 1812, was again sent to holdthe frontier posts around Lakes Erie and Ontario.

The Battle of Alexandria, 1801. Pte. Lutz delivering thecaptured French Standard to Gen. Abercrolnby. (NationalArlnY Museuln)

The campaign lasted two years and the British andCanadian troops were seriously outnumbered. Ina successful raid, across the frozen St Lawrenceand in deep snow; Capt. Eustace's company cap­tur<;d two stands of colours for the loss of onesergeant killed and thirteen men wounded. In thedefence of York (Toronto), however, the twoKing's companies lost half their strength and atFort George, where the garrison was outnumberedten to one, five King's companies lost six officersand 196 other ranks. Much of the fighting tookplace around the Niagara Peninsula and the gallantconduct of the King's detachment under Maj.Evans and Capt. Campbell at Lundy's Lane, closeby the Falls themselves, was publicly acknowledgedin Lt.-Gen. Drummond's dispatches. Only six otherBritish line regiments share with the King's thebattle honour 'Niagara'. Mention must be madehere also ofthe 2/8th (embodied 1804-15). Six com­panies served in North America for over five yearsand their march from Fredericton, in New Bruns­wick, to Quebec, a distance of close on 400 miles,in March 1814 won high compliments from SirGeorge Prevost, the Commander-in-Chief. 'Thislong and painful winter march through regions ofsnow and ice, exposed to violent storms, andduring the most intense frost, was accomplishedwith little loss.'

CJfie Queens Own,

96thof.%otFrom the beginning of the Seven Years War,right through to 1815, there were constantdemands for more and more troops to serve over­seas. Over these sixty years no less than fourregiments numbered '96th' were raised and dis­patched to overseas stations, as far apart as Indiaand the West Indies. Then, when the crisis seemedto have passed, their fate was to be 'reduced',shipped home, and disbanded. We are, however,concerned here with yet another regiment that inits closing years was numbered '96th' and be­queathed its battle honours to the last Britishregiment to bear this number. When Brig. CharlesStuart captured Minorca in 1798 he found amongthe prisoners over a thousand Swiss who had beencaptured in Italy and sold to the Spaniards fortwo dollars a head. With a leavening of Englishofficers, these Swiss were formed into a regimentto fight once more against the French and twoyears later, as the Minorca Regiment, theyaccompanied Gen. Abercromby's expedition toEgypt.

9

Capt. Thomas Abbot, 96th Regiment, from a miniaturedated 1836. (National Army Museum)

The decisive Battle of Alexandria took place onthe narrow peninsula three miles east of the city.The French attack opened before dawn on 2 I

March 1801 with a demonstration by the Drome­dary Corps against the left of the British linealongside the canal. The Minorca Regiment waspart of a reserve brigade commanded by Brig.Stuart. At the first sound of shots the Regimentstood to and was about to move off when heavyfiring was heard from the direction of the oldRoman fort on the seaward flank. Col. Wilson, thechronicler of these events, tells how Maj.-Gen.John Moore, who had been visiting the pickets,shouted, 'this is the real attack', and galloped off,followed by Stuart's brigade at the best pace itcould make in the sand. In the dark two Frenchdivisions had crept up to the ruined fort, whichwas now under attack on three sides and obscuredin a pall of smoke. The Minorca Regiment wasonly just in time to fill a gap between the fort andthe Guards Brigade on a ridge near by. It was inthis shallow valley that the French dragoons madea last desperate charge. The Swiss, 'opening out tolet them pass, poured a shattering fire upon them

10

as they galloped by, and intercepting them asreadily when they tried to reform, practicallydestroyed them.' Shortly beforehand a standardcaptured by the 42nd had been recovered by aFrench officer, whereupon Private Antony Lutzrushed forward into the melee, shot the officer andseized the standard. At this moment the Frenchdragoons charged. Lutz, however, threw himselfon the ground and minutes later emerged throughthe smoke carrying the trophy and driving beforehim a dismounted dragoon whom he had madeprisoner. Col. Wilson writes, 'To Gen. Stuart'smovement the army was much indebted, as itcertainly decided the action.' But for being unableto write in English Lutz would have been pro­moted immediately to sergeant. As it was, hereceived a gratuity and a life pension of £20 perannum. He was presented with a finely-workedminiature of the trophy to wear on his uniformand an order was issued that a 'valuable badge'should be instituted for those of his comrades whohad 'distinguished themselves by acts of valour orby personal instances of meritorious service'.

On the Regiment's arrival in England it washonoured with the title, 'The Queen's GermanRegiment', and brought into the line as the 97th.Between 1808 and 181 I the Regiment served withdistinction under Wellington in the PeninsularArmy, but the casualties were such that it had tobe sent to England to re-form. Here a furtherhonour awaited the survivors. They now proudlywore the blue facings of a Royal Regiment and as'The Queen's Own' served in Canada on theNiagara frontier alongside the King's. Shortly

Cross-belt plate96th Regiment,worn between 1824and 1855. (NationalArmy Museum)

before the Regiment was disbanded in 1818, the96th was taken out of the line and The Queen'sOwn took over their number. Only five years laterregiments numbered 94 to 99 were re-formed.Maj.-Gen. Joseph Fuller was appointed Colonel ofthe 96th and John Herries Lieutenant-Colonel.The date was January 1824 and the Regimentformed at Salford Barracks, Manchester. In Juneit embarked for Nova Scotia. Exactly fifty yearslater Queen Victoria 'was graciously pleased topermit' the distinction won by The Queen's OwnRegiment - the Sphinx with the words 'Egypt'and 'Peninsula' - to be borne on the RegimentalColour of the new 96th Foot, soon destined to belinked with the 63rd to form the ManchesterRegiment.

~Ze(jl(jnd

Fvr nearly thirty-nine years, from Waterloo to theCrimean War, the British Army saw little fighting,but its resources were stretched to the limit. Three­quarters of the Army was spread in penny packetsover huge areas of Britain's overseas possessions.During this period the 8th and 63rd served over­seas for a total of thirty-two and twenty-nine yearsrespectively, and in the first thirty years after beingre-formed the 96th spent twenty-seven years over­seas. Between 1841 and 1849, when the Regimentwent to India, the 96th was stationed in NewSouth Wales. The transfer of 36 officers and 830other ranks from England took two years, as it wasmade in twenty-six separate vessels on which thesoldiers provided guards for convicts being de­ported to Australia. On arrival the men werelargely employed on police work, and in April1843 the Regiment was finding no less than twenty­two detachments spread from Adelaide to Perthand including Norfolk Island, way out in thePacific, and Van Diemen's Land. The previousautumn one company had been sent to NewZealand to reinforce the original garrison, whichwas only eighty strong.

Trade in firearms to the Maori by foreignadventurers had been going on for some time andwith the tribes constantly at ~ar among them­selves 'the chiefs would promise almost anything

Ueut. J. H. B. de Harris, the King's Regitnenl:, in fulldress, c. 1855. (National ArDlY MuseUDl)

in return for fircarms and ammunition'. Indeed,large tracks of land had been bought by someEnglish traders for a few muskets and barrels ofpowder. Under Maori law, however, any contractfor the sale of land needed the assent of each andevery member of the tribe. The inevitable disputesover land contracts soon brought the settlers andtribes into open conflict. In June 1843 fightingbroke out at Wairau. The half company of the'96th sent down to Wellington did not return toAuckland for nearly three years. Meanwhile inJuly, Lt.-Col. Hulme, with a company of the 96thand a detachment of the 90th with two guns,arrived from Australia and relieved the originalgarrison who were due for India. Trouble withHeke, a chief living on the Bay of Islands, hadbeen brewing for some time. In March 1845 Hekeattacked the township of Russell while the smallgarrison of the 96th was engaged in diggingentrenchments. The British losses at 36 wererelatively high and as the whole settlement wasevacuated by sea the Maori claimed a completevictory.

A strong contingent of the 58th had, how­ever, just sailed from Sydney and on 30 April a

II

composite force of four companies under Lt.-Col.Hulme landed in the Bay of Islands. Their objec­tive was the fort, or pa, at Okaihau occupied byHeke and Kawiti, another rebel chief, which wassome ten miles inland. No transport could befound and thc expedition was twice turned backby torrential rain, which ruined the five days'rations and reserve ammunition being carried inthe men's haversacks. On the eighth day, however,the columns reached their objective. A friendlychief had warned Hulme of the strength of thefort - three rows of stockading, each of tree trunksa foot in diameter, protected the defenders fromall but heavy artillery, while the interior washoneycombed with traverse trenches and dugouts.Furthermore, the Maori possessed a number ofgood American rifles. The situation was hopeless,Hulme had no artillery, and rockets proved uselessas the roofs of the huts had been covered withgreen flax. Hulme now decided to retire, but atthis moment an attack was launched from theforest by Kawiti's men, while Heke's warriorssallied out from the fort. Three times the waves ofMaori swept forward right up to the bayonets oftheir opponents and then suddenly they weregone, slipping away into the thick undergrowth.The Maori had suffered considerable casualties,but the British losses amounted to 52 and thewounded had to be carried back over miles ofwaterlogged ground. Heke slipped away to builda stronger pa in an even more inaccessible position,while Hulme reported that without transport andartillery his failure had been inevitable. The First

The trenches before Sevastopol on a winter's night 1854.(National Army Museum)

12

Maori War dragged on for more than two yearsand was ended only by the use of heavy mortarsand guns. As more reinforcements arrived, thecompanies of the 96th were eventually relievedand in January 1847 returned to Hobart Town inVan Diemen's Land. After two more years inAustralia and a tour in India the Regimentreturned to England in 1855, some nine monthsafter the 63rd had left for the Crimea.

CJlieGrimeaWhen the 63rd paraded at Phoenix Park in Dublinin May 1854 to receive new colours from MrsSwyny, the wife of the commanding officer, it wasseriously below strength, having twice been calledon for volunteers for other regiments under ordersfor the East. In The Invasion of the Crimea, Kinglakeindeed remarks that the Regiment, given less thansix weeks' warning to join the expeditionary force,'owed a great proportion of its numerical strengthto lads newly and hastily recruited in the city ofDublin, who, until they moved down to the portfor embarkation, had never executed so much aseven one march'. At the Alma, the 4th Divisionwas in reserve and the 63rd reached the battle­field only after thirteen hours' forced marching.Later, when the Russians advanced on Balaklava,SirJohn Cathcart's division was marched out ofthetrenches before Sevastopol towards the threatenedflank but saw no action. Much has been written ofthe hardships suffered during the first winter in theCrimea, but already during these early weeks ofthe campaign the spread of cholera, com binedwith the exhausting trench duty, was taking analarming toll. Medical and commissariat arrange­ments were practically non-existent and the firstissue of tents was only twenty-one for the wholebattalion.

On Sunday 5 November the trench reliefs hadas usual taken place before dawn. Rain had fallenfor more than sixteen hours and now a heavy mistfilled the valleys and hung like a shroud over thethe long ridge occupied by the divisional campsand ending at Mount Inkerman. Here about 6.00a.m. the pickets of the 2nd Division came underfire and for the next seven hours the fate of the

The battlefield of InkerlDan, a view froID near SandbagBattery, NovelDber 1854. (National ArlDY MuseulD)

Allied armies was in the balance. Mount Inker­man, occupied by one weak division, was about tobe attacked by 40,000 Russian infantry with 135guns while the Russian field army, 22,000 strong,stood by to administer the coup de guice. Throughthe mist, with the ever-increasing sounds of battleahead, parties from the near-by camps, from theGuards Brigade and the Light Division hurried upthe rough track towards Home Ridge. Here themen of the 2nd Division were fighting for everyfoot of the crest line. Each party, often a singleofficer or sergeant with a handful of men was fedinto the picket line by Gen. Penyfather. The latter'sorders, couched in typically picturesque language,pointed only one way, straight over the cresttowards the grey masses of Russian infantry strug­gling up through the scrub-filled gullies. About8.00 a.m. reinforcements from the 4th Divisionbegan to arrive. Wet through and half famished,many of the men had eome straight from thetrenches. Of these 2,200 welcome reinforcements,the 63rd and the 21st marching together totallednearly goo. Many units were thrown into thefight as they arrived at Home Ridge, others led byGen. Cathcart made a costly and abortive counter­attack towards the Sandbag Battery.

The 466 men of the 63rd, however, and a wingof the 2 I st, came into line on the near flank ofHome Ridge just as Gen. Scimonoff's columns

debouched from the Careenage Ravine. 'Let's seewhat metal the 63rd are made on' roared Gen.Penyfather. The answer was a volley, a cheer anda charge, and the two regiments drove the enemyback down the slope until they themselves werehalted by the Russian batteries on Shell Hill. Butthe main Russian attack was developing withfresh troops under Gen. Pavlov advancing upfrom the Quarry Ravine. Although a Frenchbattaiion was now in action on Home Ridge thesituation was critical and the moment had comefor desperate action - an immediate counter­attack against almost overwhelming odds. Thetwo regiments swept forward diagonally across thebattlefield and, striking the Post Road, fought onto reach the Barrier, a wall of heaped stones about500 yards north of the camp, which had been builtas a shelter for the main picket. Col. Swyny of the63rd and Ensign Clutterbuck, carrying the Queen'sColour, had already been killed, and EnsignTwysden with the Regimental Colour lay mor­tally wounded. For over four hours the fightingcontinued, with the Barrier remaining the mostadvanced position to hold out against the Russiancolumns. Faced with the destructive and accuratefire of two siege-guns that had been hauled upfrom the gun park, and with the arrival of Frenchreinforcements, the Russians finally withdrew.Their losses totalled about 12,000. Only just over

13

The House that Bowles built - Sevastapol. A sketch byCapt. V. H. Bowles, 63rd Regbnent, dated 18 Decelnber,1855. (National ArlnY Museuln)

8,000 British troops were engaged on MountInkerman and of these 2,500 were killed orwounded. The French casualties were a thousandless. In the 4th Division all the brigadiers andfour of the regimental commanders were killed orwounded. The 63rd, one of the strongest contin­gents to reach the battlefield, lost ten officers andover 100 men. The Colours were brought out byClr.-Sgt Brophy and Sgt Roberts. Sgt-Maj.Marson was shortly afterwards promoted Ensignwithout purchase and Brophy was among theseventeen recipients of the Silver Medal forDistinguished Conduct in the Field awarded afterthe battle.

Frederick Vieth, a young Canadian who joinedthe following autumn, recalls (in his Recollections)that he was a lieutenant after only five months'service, an indication of the casualties sufferedduring the prolonged siege operations. He arrivedin the Crimeajust before the abortive attack on theRedan and with justifiable pride records that atthe seabourne raid on Kinburn (on the DnieperEstuary) he was carrying the Queen's Colour and'jumped into the water and wading on shore drovethe end of the staff into the sand ... [it] was thefirst British flag on the soil ofRussia proper'. Whenthe armistice was signed, of the 63rd who had

14

landed in the Crimea two years previously thereremained only eight officers and forty-five men.Among those who received decorations from ourallies was Private McGowan, who at the Barrierhad displayed exceptional gallantry in clearing abreastwork single-handed. He received both theLegion of Honour and the French war medal,being the only private of the Regiment to receivetwo foreign awards.

CJfie Indianc3r(utinyBoth battalions of the 8th left Quebec for Englandin 1815 and on its arrival the 2nd Battalion wasdisbanded. In April 1846 the Regiment sailed forIndia. Of the intervening thirty-one years,twenty-four had been spent overseas and theRegiment now faced a tour in India that was tolast fourteen years. The half-yearly inspectionreports were invariably favourable: for instance,in 1853 the 8th Foot was reported as 'perfectlysatisfactory in all respects ... in admirable order,in every particular', and the Commander-in­Chief noted 'the very creditable fact' that EnsignBayly had passed his examinations in no less thanfive native languages. This was the year, in­cidentally, that Lt. Ingleby shot an exceptionallylarge tiger weighing 452 lb.

The following year the Regiment marched upinto Bengal. The distance from Deesa to Agrawas 463 miles. According to Cannon's Historical

Reinforcelnents arriving for the siege of Delhi, 1857.Froln a drawing by Capt. Atkinson. (National ArlnYMuseuln)

Record of the Regiment, 'The transit ofbaggage ...without calling for assistance from the nativestates, [was] highly creditable to Lt.-Col. Hartleyand the commissariat arrangements of the Regi­ment.' 'Discipline and interior economy [was]almost faultless' and His Excellency (of theBengal Presidency) was gratified to observe 'thatduring a period of upwards of seven monthsth.ere are recorded only 60 cases of minor punish­ments.' When the electric telegraph carried thenews of the outbreak of the mutiny at Meerut(10 May 18S,8) to Jullundur, Lt.-Col. Hartleyimmediately sent a strong detachment to relievethe native troops guarding Fort Pillour and theadjacent pontoon bridge over the River Sutlej.His initiative forestalled by a few hours thesepoys' plans to seize the fort. In J ullunduritself the native regiments seemed under control,but a number of his own officers were on leaveand many of the families had left for the hill­stations. Mrs Keith Young, wife of the JudgeAdvocate-General at Simla, records how sheand Mrs Greathed were left under the pro­tection of the Raja ofJoonug when their husbandswere recalled on 21 May. Shortly afterwards (7June) the sepoys at Jullundur mutinied. Foiledin an attempt to rush the gun lines, they thenmarched off to Delhi, one of the centres of theuprising.

The British commanders throughout Indiafaced considerable difficulties. Only in thePunjab were there sufficient European troopseven to contemplate offensive operations, andmany of the British regiments had to be hurriedlyrecalled from the hill-stations. Under peacetimeconditions there were administrative difficultiesthat proved almost disastrous: no military trans­port, no field medical supplies and in the Punjabafter the fall of Delhi, where 3,000 barrels ofpowder had passed intact into the hands of themutineers, practically no ammunition. For 'car­riages' and supplies of all kinds the Army wasentirely dependent on regimental contractors.Furthermore, many troops were required tosecure the long and tenuous lines of communi­cation.

When in mid-June the 8th was ordered tojoin the hastily-assembled force besieging Delhi,the Regiment marched off with 22 officers and

349 other ranks. Already 429 officers and menwere committed to guarding vital points. Fromthe Ridge outside Delhi Col. Young wrote to hiswife: 'The 8th I understand, are coming up oncamels so I dare say the attack will not be verylong delayed', and (on 28June): 'Greathed camein this morning with his regiment; four guns and alarge convoy of stores.... Hartley was also withthe corps; he is full of ardour but I fear a hardday's work on a hot sunny day will go far toquench it.' The besieging force now musteredsome 4,800 men with forty-four guns. In the citywere about 9,000 native troops and a further20,000 armed insurgents, well supplied withartillery and almost unlimited ammunition. Withindays Col. Hartley was invalided back to U mballaand his successor, Lt.-Col. Longfield, was givencommand of a brigade. Greathed now assumedcommand of the Regiment and Cannon recordsthat one of his first orders was for the white drilluniform to be dyed khaki or mud colour 'as usedby the Sikhs, [an] example soon followed byother regiments'. Determined to demonstratetheir military ardour, each body of mutineersreaching Delhi led a sortie against the camp onthe Ridge and the besieging force was underalmost daily attack.

During July the Regiment lost 3 officers and77 men killed and wounded and sustainedanother So losses from cholera. By the end ofAugust half the battalion was on the sick list.Meanwhile large reinforcements under Brig.Nicholson had arrived, with twenty-five siege-

The siege of Delhi. Storming the Delhi Gate. Showing theralnparts along which the King's advanced. (NationalArlnY MuseUln)

15

guns drawn by elephants. With the convoy camethe detachments from Jullundur and Pillour,bringing the regimental strength of the 8th up to14 officers and 308 other ranks. Within ten daysthe walls had been breached in three places andthe assault was ordered for 14 September. On theleft, close to the Jumna River, the 8th led theassault on the Water Bastion breach, supported bythe 2nd Bengal Fusiliers and the 4th Sikhs. Capt.Baynes led the storming party and gives hisaccount in full. 'Off we went at a trot up theglacis, the distance was about 150 yards. It wasnow broad daylight. I looked at the wall and sawit crammed with sepoys. The wall in perfectorder except just at the breach which was twelvefeet wide. I hope I may never see again a carnagelike that which followed.' At the edge of the ditchBaynes looked round to find that only three out ofthe eighteen ladders were still being carriedforward and at this moment he was knockedinsensible. When he recovered consciousness thefire from the walls had ceased. Staggering intothe bastion he found only Clr.-Sgt Walker and25 out of his original party of 4 officers and 75other ranks. Mistaking their direction in thesmoke and storm offire, the supports had rushed abreach near by that had been considered im­pregnable, but their losses had been very serious.The 8th was down to I go all ranks and the totalcasualties among the various columns amountedto 66 officers and over I, I 00 other ranks. Greathednow led the survivors of the Regiment along theramparts and down into the city at the KabulGate. The fighting in the narrow streets and fromhouse to house continued for six days. Then

Peiwar Kotal, the view (roDl the Afghan gun positionslooking down into the KurraDl Valley. (National ArDlYMuseuDl)

16

resistance crumbled - the old King and thousandsofhis followers had slipped away.

Four days later the 8th marched out of Delhi aspart of a flying column commanded by Brig.Greathed, with the task of relieving the isolatedgarrison at Agra and thence moving on toCawnpore. On 10 October the column reachedAgra, having fought three sharp actions and cover­ed the last forty-four miles in twenty-eight hours.As the Regiment marched across the bridge overthe Jumna in their ragged khaki uniforms a lady,quoted by Cannon, remarked: 'Those dreadfullooking men must be Afghans.' It was fortunatethat these 'worn sun-dried skeletons' were sea­soned disciplined troops, for within a couple ofhours the column, while setting up camp southof the fort, was suddenly attacked by 6,000 muti­neers. Greathed, galloping back from visiting thefort, quickly organized a counter-attack, duringwhich his cavalry squadrons captured twelveguns. The rebels broke and the pursuit was keptup for several hours.

Active operations, including the Relief ofLucknow, went on for a further eighteen months.The Regiment was almost continuously in thefield, fighting at least a dozen actions and makingmany forced marches of up to twenty miles a day.Greathed's brigade major was John Bannatyreand a recently discovered document, dated'Cawnpore 5 Dec 1857' (at present in the Sand­hurst Library), includes the following order:'The distinguishing colour of the 3rd Brigade forBaggage Flags will be "kakee". Officers Com­manding Regiments will be good enough to seethat flags are immediately provided for all bag­gage, dhoolies, etc., and broad bands bearing thenumber of the Regiment for all Elephants andCamels.' Brig. Greathed, Col. Longfield, and Capt.Hinde all received the C.B.; Bannatyre, six timesmentioned in dispatches, and Hinde, were pro­moted into the newly-formed 2nd Battalion. Thefirst commanding officer of the 2j8th was ThomasMaitland Wilson who had served twenty-fiveyears in the g6th and later became Colonel of the63rd. For a number ofyears the 2j8th was kept ongarrison duties in Ireland, the Mediterranean, andat home. Then in 1877 it was sent to India. Onthe march up to Rawalpindi the two battalionsmet and camped alongside each other. Having

handed over their transport and 'camp equipage',the I 18th continued down to Bombay to embarkfor England.

u1fghanistanIn the middle of 1878 a Russian mission per­suaded the Emir of Afghanistan to turn againstthe British government. Negotiations broke downon 20 November, and the following day Maj.-Gen.Roberts led a force of over 5,000 men withthirteen guns across the Kuram River intoAfghanistan. Their immediate task was to occupythe Kuram Valley at the head of which was thePeiwar Kotal massif dominating the direct routeto Kabul. The only British infantry availablewere the 2/8th and a wing of the 72nd High­landers. Three weeks previously Roberts hadridden out to see the Regiment marching in toKohat and was horrified to see the long line ofdoolies and ambulance carts. Not properlyacclimatized, many of the young soldiers weresuffering from fever and the intense heat of anunusually sticky autumn. Consequently, whenoperations started, two officers and 244 otherranks had to be left behind. After four days' march­ing the column reached Kuram, 2 I miles fromPeiwar Kotal. Here the Regiment was againreduced by 120 weak or sick men who were left togarrison the base camp. Only seven days' suppliesnow accompanied the force, and baggage scaleswere severely reduced. One small tent had tosuffice for three officers, and one mule wasallowed for two officers' baggage, but the numberof camp-followers still amounted to nearly3,000.

The Kuram Valley, except for the terracedorchards around the few impoverished villages,is a stony waste enclosed by high and denselywooded mountains. Across its head lies a spur ofthe great Sufed Koh range. Leading up to thecrossing-point at Peiwar Kotal (8,600 ft) was arough, narrow, steep track dominated by evenhigher peaks (of up to 9,400 ft) covered by denseforest. The only alternative route, a couple ofmiles to the east, and barely passable by troopswith guns, was by the Spin Gawai or White Cow

Peiwar Kotal, the frontal attack, December 1878.(National Army MuseUDl)

Pass. Three of the Emir's regiments with eighteenguns and several thousand tribesmen occupied afour-mile front covering Peiwar Kotal.

Roberts's force set up camp in the valley, 2,000ft below and two miles distant, on 29 November.The General took pains to reconnoitre as if for afrontal attack, but secretly planned to lead the bulkof his force in a night march over the Spin Gowai,so as to outflank the Afghans' main position. Noorders were issued until after dark and the troopswere not detailed until the camp-followers wereclear of the lines. The night was freezing cold andthere was no moon. Two hours later the assaultcolumns marched silently from camp, leavingtheir tents standing and fires burning brightly.Soon the troops were scrambling up the narrow,rock-strewn river-bed that led to the Spin GowaiKotal. Shortly before dawn the 5th Gurkhasrushed the breastwork of felled trees blocking thepass itself. Within minutes, guns in the valleybelow opened up on Peiwar Kotal and the 2/8th

17

Siege of LadysJnith, the view towards Caesar's Camp andWagon Hill, 1900. (Illustrated London News)

and the 5th Punjabis began a holding attackstraight up the valley, moving in skirmishing orderfrom ridge to ridge. By noon part of the turningforce, supported by additional guns carried on upby elephants, had started to outflank the enemy'smain position.

After Brig. Cobb was wounded, Col. BarryDrew of the 8th commanded the attack up thevalley. Sending the 5th Punjabis to move in closesupport of the flank attack, he led the five weakcompanies of the 8th to within 800 yards of thebatteries on Peiwar Kotal, and although theAfghan artillerymen continued to serve their gunswith great gallantry for a considerable time, theguns were at last silenced by the withering fire ofthe Martini-Henry rifles. Shortly afterwards theAfghans, realizing that their rear was threatened,began to pull out and were soon in full retreat.Leading his men forward across two deep ravinesand up the final steep ascent, Col. Drew was thefirst man on to the Peiwar Kotal. Less than ahundred men were lost in both assaults. Seventeenenemy guns were captured and, from the largequantity of ammunition and stores stacked in theposition, it was obvious that the Afghans hadexpected to hold the pass all winter. This task infact now fell to the four companies of the 8th. TheRegiment's first job was to construct log huts, asthe cold at night was intense. Later there was upto five feet of snow to contend with. The men'shealth, however, was excellent and in the twoworst winter months only four men died ofpneumonia. The Regiment served with the KuramField Force for another twenty-three months beforereturning to India, and later took part in the

18

Third Burmese War. The long overseas tour finallyended in 1892.

Gen. Roberts's victory at Kandahar, followingthe famous march from Kabul of 325 miles intwenty-two days, dramatically ended the war.Towards the end of August 1880 a second columnhad left Quetta to advance on Kandahar, andwhen the battle took place the 63rd were only twoforced marches away. The 63rd in fact garrisonedthe city until the following April and remained onthe frontier until the end of 188 I. In August 1880the Regiment, after twelve years in India, wassuddenly ordered to Egypt where an expeditionunder Gen. Wolseley was about to land. TheRegiment reached Ismailia on 4 September andtook over the defence of the town. The completerout of the Egyptian Army at Tell-el-Kebiroccurred ten days later, and within a month theRegiment, due to embark for the United Kingdom,moved by rail to Alexandria. Here the 2ndBattalion of the Manchester Regiment, formerlythe 96th, was guarding the Khedive's palace andit was at Ras-el-tin that the two battalions met forthe first time. Under the Cardwell Reforms thetitle of the 8th was changed to The King's (Liver­pool Regiment). Understandably the old tradi­tional numbers remained entrenched as part of theregimental lore of both Regiments.

cSouth~ica

When war broke out in South Africa in 1899, theBritish Army for the first time in over forty yearsfought a European (and particularly intelligent)enemy. The Boers, fine marksmen who were bornto the saddle and had an intimate knowledge ofthe terrain, quickly gained a tactical ascendancy.In the end over 450,000 British and Colonialtroops were needed to subjugate their adversaries,who from first to last had less than 90,000 armedmen fighting in their cause.

Just before war broke out, the 1st Manchestersunder Lt.-Col. Curran reached Durban fromGibraltar, as part of a force assembling under SirGeorge White for the protection of Natal. The 1stKing's, after more than six years overseas in theWest Indies and Nova Scotia, had already been

stationed in South Africa for nearly two years, andin Ladysmith itself for over a month. Marchingup to Ladysmith in intense heat with dust- andrain-storms, the Manchesters were suddenlyordered forward by rail. The journey overnightin bitter cold was made in open cattle-trucks. Nextday while the camp was being pitched news camethat war had been declared. Joining a brigadecommanded by Col. Ian Hamilton, the Man­chesters soon saw action. Boers, advancing fromthe Orange Free State under Gen. Koch, capturedthe railway station at Elandslaagte, only twelvemiles from Ladysmith, and cut communicationswith the hard-pressed garrison of the mining townof Dundee to the north.

Early on 21 October, Gen. French made areconnaissance in force and cavalry patrolsactually reached the railway station, but his 7­pounder guns were outranged and he withdrewto the Modder Spruit Halt and called for rein­forcements. More cavalry and several 15-pounderbatteries were quickly on the move and sixteencompanies of infantry, crowded in the inevitablecattle-trucks and led by a company ofManchestersin an armoured train, set off by rail. In the ensuingbattle the Manchesters and Gordons were sent tooutflank the Boers' main position. Drenched to theskin by a sudden rain-squall, with thunder andlightning crackling and crashing overhead, theydebouched on to an open plateau traversed by astrong wire fence. The Boers had the rangeexactly - 1,200 yards. The Manchesrers were lead­ing and officers with wire-cutters ran forward tocut the fence, but many men crowding together inthe gaps were hit and the two regiments becamemuch intermixed. On the left, the Devons, shel­tering on the line of a donga, engaged the Boers byvolley fire, and the flank attack now went forwardby section rushes. Within an hour the line reachedthe foot of the kopjes held by the Boers, just asthey were momentarily blotted from view by atorrential shower. Hamilton ordered the charge tobe sounded and against bitter short-range fire thecrest was carried with the bayonet.

It was now nearly dark and many Boers werealready in retreat. Close to their laager a whiteflag fluttered momentarily and the cease-fire wassounded. Suddenly from below the crest old Gen.Koch leapt forward, followed by fifty Boers in a

violent counter-attack. For several minutes all wasconfusion and the Gordons suffered heavily beforethis attack was beaten off, but Koch lay mortallywounded and many Boers were killed in a cavalrycharge that swept in from the flank. Elandslaagtewas a hollow victory. Fearing an attack on hisbase, Roberts withdrew and the troops at Dundee,slipping away by night, eventually reached Lady­smith by a cross-country route. At RietfonteinFarm (on 24 October) close by the Modder Spruitthe King's helped to cover this retreat. A weeklater the Boers had a 94-pounder 'Long Tom' inposition and Ladysmith was virtually surrounded.In a counter-attack, using his whole force, Gen.White lost nearly 1,300 men, of whom 950 weretaken prisoner. Three days later the Boer long­range artillery started their bombardment - thesiege of Ladysmith had begun.

The siege lasted four months. Within the peri­meter were 13,700 troops, 7,000 civilians and11,000 animals to be fed. Outside, the Boers,confident ofsuccess, mustered 27,000 men. Havinglost control of the high ground to the north, Gen.White was forced back to an inner defence line,14 miles in circumference, which had no depthand was overlooked at many points. In thenorthern sector where the King's were posted, andinto which the Boer guns could fire at will, therewere two lines of sangars or breastworks. Theywere connected by covered ways and had enor­mous stone traverses capable of resisting any shell­fire. The ground was very rocky and the exhaust­ing construction work went on all night. Each'night patrols went out and before dawn themounted infantry company rode forward to recon­noitre, while advance pickets stayed out all day infront of the outpost line. Col. Evans's commentsare quoted by Cannon: 'During the latter part ofthe siege the men ... who worked uninterruptedlythroughout and were never for a single night offoutpost duty were feeling the strain of the con­stant duty. Many men fainted from fatigue andweakness on the works but there was never acomplaint.'

To the south, overlooking the town by 600 feetand at a distance of only 3,000 yards, the defenceswere based on a broad ridge 21 miles long. At theeastern end was Caesar's Camp, a long flat-toppedhill held by the Manchesters. At the other end was

19

Wagon Hill held by detachments of the King'sRoyal Rifles and Imperial Light Horse. Shortlybefore 3.00 a.m. on 6 January the posts on WagonHill were attacked and almost overrun. A fewminutes earlier a party of Manchesters, engagedin building a new gun emplacement, had returnedto their bivouacs. Within minutes the whole bat­talion was under arms. Part of the reserve battalion(the Gordons), waiting to haul the heavy navalgun into position, were immediately drawn intothe struggle on Wagon Hill, but the remainder ofthe sector seemed quiet. Suddenly at 3.45 a.m. theleft-hand picket of the Manchesters was swept by avolley at short range and practically annihilated.Here the Boers were in Gonsiderable strength butsupports had already moved into the picket lineand this attempt to gain a hold on the plateau washalted. By dawn, however, Hamilton, command­ing the sector, had committed every man he had.From as far off as Observation Hill, four milesaway, Gen. White ordered forward every availableman. Both at Wagon Hill and Caesar's Camp thecrest line had to be cleared with the bayonet andthe point-blank fire from the Boers' Mauser riflesbrought heavy losses. All day the struggle lasted.Then in the failing light the Boers slipped away.Since before noon no less than eleven companies ofGordons and the Rifle Brigade, together with themounted infantry company of the King's, hadfought side by side with the Manchesters onCaesar's Camp. During the battle the Britishexpenditure of small-arms ammunition was over125,000 rounds, yet the Boer casualties (about200) were less than half those suffered by thedefence. On this day the Manchesters lost 6 officersand 68 men killed or wounded. Two privates,J. Pitts and R. Scott, who for fifteen hours held asangar only yards from the post first captured bythe Boers, were awarded the Victoria Cross.

Later in the year the King's and Manchestersmarched north with Redvers Buller to help clearthe eastern Transvaal. The mounted infantrycompanies of both Regiments were part of the8tb Brigade which included the King's. As thecolumn was nearing Belfast, the advance guard,attempting to occupy a ridge, became seriouslyinvolved. The Boers, strongly entrenched, stoodtheir ground. In this action at Van Wyk's Vlei twoN.C.O.s of the King's Mounted Infantry Com-

20

Liverpool Scottish l11achine-gun section, 1914. (Regi­l11ental Museul11, Liverpool)

pany won the Victoria Cross: Cpl Knight, whocovered the withdrawal of the company andbrought back two wounded men, one of whom hecarried for nearly two miles, and Sgt Hamptonwho, in spite of being twice wounded, held animportant position against heavy odds ';lnd finallyextricated his small party to safety. Two days latera bivouac area around Geluk Farm was chosenwhich, in fact, was only a mile and a half fromstrongly held Boer positions. The King's, asadvance guard, were detailed to cover the outpostline and moved on to a rocky ridge overlookingthe farm. This turned out to be a wide plateauwith the Boer entrenchments covering the farcrest. The leading company, moving too farahead, became isolated and two other companieswere sent to cover the flank. These latter suddenlyfound themselves within 500 yards of the Boertrenches and pinned to the ground by witheringfire. Owing to a roaring wind which swept theplateau, not a sound of this firing reached theremainder of the battalion and the situationbecame desperate. Private William Heaton, sentback with an urgent message for ammunitionand reinforcements, succeeded in reaching thebattalion headquarters, but neither reinforce­ments nor the men sent forward with ammunitionmanaged to reach their comrades. Heaton, how­ever, succeeded in getting through and, havingdelivered messages from the Colonel, rejoined thefiring line. The survivors were eventually extri­cated after dark and Heaton's remarkable courageearned him the award of the Victoria Cross.

After only a year at home the 2nd Manchesterswere mobilized as part of the 8th Division and

reached Port Elizabeth in April 1900. Within tendays the battalion was in action 400 miles away inthe south-east part of the Orange Free State. Herethe Boer hit-and-run tactics kept the columns busyand before this phase was over the battalion hadmarched over 2,600 miles and fough t many engage­ments against their elusive foe. In 1900 both theKing's and the Manchesters were chosen to raisetwo additional line battalions, of which only the3rd Manchesters served abroad. By 1906 all fourbattalions had been reduced. Both militia batta­lions of the King's Regiment, however, served forshort periods in South Africa guarding the lines ofcommunication. Towards the end of the war thisdull and tedious task of manning hundreds ofblockhouses absorbed practically every infantrybattalion in the country. Active operations, indeed,demanded more and more mounted infantry andmany men volunteered to serve in compositecompanies. The record of the King's in providingnearly four complete mounted infantry companiesand two additional machine-gun sections wasoutstanding.

CJlie (ireat WarThe years 19 I 4-18 involved Britain in continentalwarfare on a scale hitherto undreamt of. TheRegular Army, having learnt some unpalatablelessons in the Boer War, was well trained, par­ticularly in musketry, but it was small, 'a rapieramong scythes'. The Western Front dominated allstrategy. Soon there was stalemate, followed bysiege conditions and terrible battles of attrition. Inthe narrow ribbon of trenches stretching fromSwitzerland to the North Sea hundreds of thou­sands of men fought and died. Almost from thestart the need was seen to increase the size of theBritish Army and particularly to provide moreinfantry.

The response from the citizens of Lancashirewas immediate and, indeed, outstanding. The 1stKing's and 2nd Manchesters were part of theBritish Expeditionary Force and landed at LeHavre on 13 and 16 August respectively. The 1StManchesters was in India and soon on its way toFrance with the Indian Corps, while 2nd King's

17th King's on Parade, Belton Park, GranthaDl, June 1915.(RegiDlental MuseuDl, Liverpool)

was retained at Peshawar guarding the North­West Frontier. The 3rd and 4th (Special Reserve)Battalions and the whole of the Territorial Forcewere also called up immediately. Both Regimentsmobilized six territorial battalions. The 8th and10th King's were the Liverpool Irish and LiverpoolScottish respectively. The Manchesters' T.A.battalions were brigaded in the 42nd (East Lanes)Division and the King's were part of the 55th(West Lanes) Division. At the end of August theoriginal T.A. battalions were duplicated. The sixsecond-line battalions of the King's went to 57th(West Lanes) Division and the new Manchesters'battalions joined the 66th (East Lanes) Division.In November a third-line Territorial Force wasauthorized. The Territorial Force was thus raisedto three times its original size.

Meanwhile the call had gone out for 100,000volunteers for the first of Kitchener's New Armies.In Lancashire Lord Derby earned himself thename of 'England's best recruiting sergeant'.Before August was ended he had launched ascheme for recruiting complete battalions of menwho followed the same civilian occupation. Thefirst of these battalions was raised in a single hourat St George's Hall and Liverpool's four 'City'battalions of the King's Regiment were formedinto a complete brigade. Two brigades of Man­chesters (I 6th-23rd battalions) joined the newlyformed 30th Division which took for its divisionalbadge Lord Derby's family crest. The 23rdManchesters was one ofthe original three 'Bantam'battalions which later formed the nucleus of the35th Division whose sign was a bantam cock. Inall over ninety battalions (including home service

21

and dock battalions) were raised for the two Regi­ments and of these no less than twenty-six King'sand twenty-seven Mancheste~ battalions servedoverseas, mostly on the Western Front. On theSomme in 1916 fourteen King's and ten Man­chester battalions were committed, and in theautumn battles of 1918, despite appalling casual­ties that had forced the amalgamation of manyunits, there were fourteen King's and twelveManchester battalions in the final advance tovictory. But the war had spread to many fronts, onwhich the two regiments were again fully repre­sented. Of the hundreds of actions iIi which theKing's and the Manchesters took part, and thecountless acts of gallantry, only a few can find aplace in this brief account. Let each speak for allwho served during these four long and terribleyears.

CJfie'Western:frontIn the opening phase of the Battle of Mons theGermans, advancing in mass formation, were'shot flat' and an attack by four divisions failed tocross the canal. Against the Mons salient to theeast the Germans, however, made progress and inthe afternoon of 23 August the troops of 5thDivision on the canal were forced to fall back tothe line of the River Hainin, where the 2ndManchesters were entrenched. The battalion'stwo machine-guns, firing on the wrecked canalbridge, did considerable execution. Late thatnight the brigade was again ordered to withdraw,and the following morning the battalion founditself fighting a rearguard action. Orders to bothBritish corps to withdraw (which initially failed toreach the Manchesters) had gone out soon aftermidnight. The retreat had begun. Up to thismoment the 1st King's had been entrenching aposition near Givry, south of the salient, unawarethat the French on this flank had been defeatedand that the whole of the British ExpeditionaryForce was in danger of being cut off. Now theywere fighting alongside the Manchesters holdingopen the route to the south. Twelve days later thebattalion reached Chaumes. Since leaving therailhead on 21 August the King's had marched 236

22

miles in sixteen days with only one day's respite.The two corps had withdrawn side by side, butsoon after the retreat started Smith-Dorrien sawthat neither corps would escape unless his troopsmade a stand at Le Cateau. The 14th Brigadeheld a crucial sector on the right flank of theridge. The Germans attacked in strength on themorning of 26 August and a desperate fightcontinued with mounting fury for six hours. TheBritish field-guns, firing over open sights, sufferedterribly and the Manchesters, in Brigade Reserve,were sent forward in a last desperate attempt tohold the line. The ridge was swept by a storm offire, but somehow the line was reinforced. Thecost was heavy. In the next four or five hours theManchesters lost 14 officers and 339 men. Whenthe inevitable withdrawal toolc place overnight,the battalion mustered less than 350 all ranks.After crossing the River Aisne the King's also hada chance to hit back, putting in a counter-attackat Villers-Cotterets that saved two field-batteriesfrom being overrun. Day after day, under amerciless sun, often without food or water anddog-tired, the men marched on, some withswollen and bleeding feet bound up with puttees.The retreat ended on 5 September. The followingday both Regiments were marching back to­wards the Marne.

The positions overlooking the Aisne, to whichthe Germans withdrew, were of great naturalstrength and the Allies faced stalemate and theirfirst taste of trench warfare. An attempt was madeto work round the open flank and the B.E.F. wasredeployed between Bethune and Ypres, but theGermans had the same idea and had alreadylaunched two fresh armies in the 'race for the sea'.The clash came on 20 October. In holdingGivenehy, the 2nd Manchesters had over 200casualties and the same night took over a new lineat Festubert. The 1st Manchesters had justarrived from India; for several days, and for thefirst time for thirty-two years, the two regularbattalions of the Regiment were alongside eachother.

On 29 October the Germans made a desperateattempt to break the British line. In front ofFestubert the forward trenches were shelled forseveral hours and the Germans, advancing inoverwhelming strength, swept over the centre

2/7th Manchesters on the Menin Road, December 1917.(Imperial War MuseuJIl)

trenches of the Manchesters' line to within tenyards of the support line. Fighting continued atclose quarters for several hours and two attemptsto capture the lost ground failed. In the afternoon,2nd Lt Leach and Sgt Hogan crept up a com­munication trench and fighting from traverse totraverse gradualiy drove the Germans back,killing eight and capturing sixteen survivors whowere pinned in the last bay. Both were sub­sequently awarded the Victoria Cross.

Many miles further north, close to Ypresitself, the pressure of the German advance hadbeen mounting from the start of the offensive. On24 October, the 1st King's took over hastily-dugtrenches just north of Polygon Wood. In thisarea, later so notorious and ofsuch evil repu te, thebattalion spent the next thirty days. Onlyminutes after the takeover Col Bannatyne wasordered to attack the village of Molenaarelsthock,some 800 yards distant, as part of an attack byseveral brigades. The Germans were well pre­pared. Every building had been loopholed andmany contained concealed machine-guns. Onthe right the attack was halted by machine-gunfire, but two companies reached the stragglingvillage and drove the Germans from house tohouse. Snipers seemed to be everywhere andcasualties mounted. Col Bannatyne fell to a

sniper's bullet and the Adjutant was woundedbringing forward the reserve. The coinmandnow fell to Maj. Stephenson. Several chargesfailed to clear a nest of machine-guns on the farside of the village and the King's dug in. Unfor­tunately the position chosen in the darkness wasoverlooked from the next ridge. The Colonel'sdeath was a great loss to the battalion. He was aman of exceptional personal courage and hisfamily had served in the Regiment for generations.After four days' fighting the village had beencleared and two heavy counter-attacks beaten offand the battalion was relieved.

The following day, however, the Germansstruck at Gheluvelt down the Menin road, andfor eighteen days the King's, now at half strength,held the southern edge of Polygon Wood. Therewere no reserves, only some 450 riflemen inshallow two-man 'holes' on a front of 1,400 yards.In places the German saps were only 80 yardsaway. On 10 November and throughout thenight the shelling was very heavy. The followingmorning at 7.00 a.m., when it was still pitch-dark,a sudden shout brought an immediate reactionfrom the tired and overstrained men and rapidfire broke out all along the edge of the wood,described by Wyrall as 'an almosl continuoussheet of flame which continued for about 15

23

minutes'. Shortly before dawn there was anotheralarm. Again the King's men, trained in the'mad minute', opened rapid fire. In the growinglight, however, what had seemed like a line ofmen advancing was seen to be 'a continuous wallof dead and wounded some 25-70 yards away,stretching right along the edge of the wood'.Within the week the King's were relieved; theattack by the Prussian Guards had, as by amiracle, been halted. Winter had now set in, withrain turning to snow and water rising daily in thefilthy, muddy holes that were the only cover. Inthe seventy-five days that had passed since theopening of the Battle of Mons, the battalion hadlost 33 officers and 814 N.C.O.s and men.

In November, the Indian Corps, holding thesector around Festubert, was driven back and the1St Manchesters was called on to recapture thevillage of Givenchy and the trenches beyond. Inhand-to-hand fighting, which lasted until afterdark, the village was eventually cleared. Beforedawn the following day the attack was resumed.The advancing Manchesters, however, foundthemselves shown up by the blaze of two hay­stacks that had caught fire and werc met by astorm of shells and well-aimed small-arms fire.The struggle continued for nearly eight hours.

Twice the Germans counter-attacked and weredriven back. Then by a splendid rush the originaltrenches were reoccupied. Soon afterwards, how­ever, the Germans attacked in even greaterstrength and began to work round the flanks.Withdrawal was now inevitable. The Man­chesters had suffered nearly 250 casualties andwere utterly spent. 'The retirement was conductedwith the greatest steadiness', but was achievedonly after furious hand-to-hand fighting.Reinforcements, however, were beginning toarrive and a most critical situation had beenaverted. Congratulating the battalion in person,Gen. Willcocks, the corps commander, is reportedby Wylly as saying: 'By your gallant conduct inholding on [at Givenchy] you rendered greaterservice than you probably realized.' i\. few dayslater the commanding officer, Col Strickland,was given command of the brigade.

CJfieVineyardThe East Lancashire Division sailed for Egyptonly eight weeks after the outbreak of war andwas the first T.A. division to proceed overseas.

Party of King's Dlen halted for a Dleal near Ypres, 1917.(IDlperial War MuseuDl)

24

MICHAEl ROFFE

1

1 Musketeer, Princess Anne of Denmark'sReghnent, 1685

2 Grenadier, Eighth or The King's Reg!­Dlent,1751

3 Grenadier, 63rd RegiDlent, 1768

A

B

1

1 Officer, Eighth or The King's Regiment,1792

2 Private, Line Company, 63rd Regiment,1792

3 Officer, 96th Queen's Own (Royal)Regiment, 1816

3

MICHAEl ROFFE

MICHAEl ROFFE

I Officer, Eighth or The King's Regiment,1840 .

2 Private, Eighth or The King's Regiment,1857

3 Sergeant, 96th Regiment of Foot, 1875

3

c

D

1 Officer, The Manchester Regiment, 1890S2 Officer, The Manchester Regiment,

Ladysmith, 18993 Private, The King's (Liverpool Regiment),

France, 1916

MICHAEL ROFFE

MICHAEL ROFFE

1 Lance-Corporal, The Manchester Reg!­~ent,France,1917

2 Officer, The King's (Liverpool Regi~ent),France, 1917

3 C.Q.M.S. The Manchester Regi~ent,Western Desert, 1936

E

F

1 Private, The ManchesterRegintent, Italy, 1944

2 Private, The King's Regintent,Burnta, 1943

3 Private, The Manchester Regintent,North-West Europe, 1944

MICHAEL ROFFE

1 Private, The ManchesterRegiment, Malaya, 1952

2 Private, The King's Regiment,Korea, 1952

3 Officer, The King's Regiment(Manchester and Liverpool),Berlin, 1964

MICHAEL ROFFE

3

G

H

I

I Sergeant, ntess kit, The King's Regintent,1972

2 Drununer, full dress, The King's Regi­ntent,1972

3 Corporal, battle order, The King'sRegintent, 1972

MICHAEL ROFFE

The following May it landed at Gallipoli, close to'Lancashire Landing', near Helles. The situationwas critical and Allied casualties already ex­ceeded 380,000 men. The djvision immediatelytook over the British sector while the 10thManchesters was temporarily split up as rein­forcements for 29th Division. Conditions in thebeachhead, for it was nothing else, were ex­tremely difficult. Except in the lee of the cliffs thewhole area was dominated by Achi Baba, and theonly approach to the front line not under thedirect fire of the Turkish artillery and machine­guns was up the bed of one of the three nullahs, orstreams. Snipers took a daily toll.

A general attack was planned for { ] une andpreparations were doggedly pressed forward,advance trenches were dug and bombing-partiestrained in using 'jampot' bombs. With few gunsand inadequate supplies of ammunition, the four­hour barrage failed to cut the wire in many places.As for the home-made bombs, there were only 225for the whole division. The Manchester (I 27th)Brigade led the attack straight .towards Krithiavillage which was covered by four lines of trenches.At noon, with a rush and straight into the smokeand bank of yellow fog thrown up by the bom­bardment, went the first waves of Manchesters, tobe met by devastating rifle and machine-gun fire.The nearest trench line was captured within fiveminutes, the second thirty minutes later. Duringthe afternoon the 6th Manchesters broke clearthrough the fourth line to within half a mile ofKrithia. Elsewhere, however, the attack had beenchecked and on the right thrown back. Hunter­Weston, the corps commander, sent his reserves tohelp the French and the remnants of the RoyalNaval Division on this flank. It was a fatal deci­sion. The French would not renew the attack.Rhodes]ames wri tes: 'The Lancashire Territorials,without reinforcements, and uncomfortably iso­lated, were obliged to withdraw and consolidatenew positions some 500 yards in front of thosethey had left at noon.' In the {2nd Division thelosses were very great. Of 770 men of the 6thManchesters, only 160 answered roll-call thatnight. Every officer of the 8th battalion was killedor wounded and one of the companies musteredonly eighteen men. The Turks, so near to defeat,counter-attacked again and again, and the area

around a small vineyard, close to the Krithianullah, was the scene of bitter fighting. It was here,in early August, that an offensive was mounted todivert the Turkish reserves away from the SuvlaBay landing.

The attack on 6 August was made by the 5thand 7th Manchesters, and the following day theremainder of the division was thrown in, but theTurks themselves had massed for an attack. Onlya few square yards of the vineyard were capturedand tl)ese changed hands three times in the nextfew days. On the first day the three brigades lost3,500 officers and men. In a corner of the vine­yard, on two successive nights, 'A' Company, 9thManchesters, commanded by Lt Forshaw, beatoff repeated counter-attacks by swarms of Turkswho converged from three directions. Forshaw,who had led the bombing attacks throughout,even throwing back the enemy's bombs beforethey exploded, had at one point led a charge torecapture a barricade, shooting three Turks withhis revolver. Forshaw's award of the VictoriaCross was the first won by the division, and menof his company won two M.C.s and two D.C.M.s.On 13 August the division was pulled out intoreserve, having been in the firing line for threemonths without relief.

I/sth King's in the trenches near Givenchy, March 1918.The third officer from the left is the battalion's medicalofficer. (Imperial War Museum)

25

U£CJ3loodycS10ggingc3r(atch'

By March 19 I 5 all six T.A. battalions of the King'sin 55th Division had been sent to France as rein­forcement units and the Division was not re­formed until early in 19 I 6. In May 1915, in theBattle of Festubert the, 5th and 7th King's werealongside the 1st Battalion in 6 Brigade. In a nightattack 7th King's reached the German second line,but in daylight German machine-guns, holdingout on the flanks, dominated the flat, waterloggedground between the original front lines. The fightcontinued for four days and in abortive attacksagainst a fortified farmstead, known as Cour deAvoue, both the 1st and 5th Battalions sufferedvery heavily. At one point 4th King's (from theLahore Division) was alongside the other batta­lions, but finally the 6th Brigade was pulled out.At Festubert in five days the Regiment suffered1,450 casualties and gained its first V.C. of thewar. This was awarded to L/Cpl J. Tombs, whoon four separate occasions on 16 May, utterlyregardless of his own safety, crawled out into thefire-swept no-man's-land to bring in severelywounded men.

The Battle of the Somme in 19 I 6 lasted for over140 days. It was planned as an Allied offensivewhich should end the war. It became a 'bloodyslogging match', a terrible battle of attrition. Itstarted with lines of infantry advancing in theopen and being mown down by machine-gun fire.It saw the birth of the tank in battle. It resulted inan Allied advance of 7 miles on a 20-mile front andthe loss (on both sides) of 1,200,000 casualties.There were eleven major battles. In six of theseKing's and Manchester battalions attacked sideby side, as at Delville Wood and Guillemont; inaddition the King's can proudly claim Ginchy,Morval and the Ancre and the ManchestersThiepval and the Ancre Heights as battle honours.On the ridge overlooking the British sector northof the River Somme was the village of Guillemont.It was strongly fortified with large, deep dugoutsand an intricate network of tunnels, which gave

26

shelter from the barrage and rapid access to vitalstrongpoints. Unfortunately this extensive under­ground system was only discovered too late.

In an attack on 30 July by the 30th Division,New Army battalions of the King's and Man­chesters advanced in thick fog and reached theoutskirts of the village. Here they were caught onuncut wire by machine-guns in concealed strong­points; the 18th Manchesters captured a number ofprisoners in the German front line, but now cameunder cross-fire, and the 16th and 17th Man­chesters met the same fate. On the right, the 17thand 20th King's reached the road leading out ofthe village and part of the 19th Kings' foughttheir way into an orchard on its outskirts. Com­munications had virtually broken down. Visualsignalling was impossible and German shellinghad cut the cables; only a few pigeons got back.C.S.M. G. Evans, 18th Manchesters, who wasawarded the V.C. for his gallant services as arunner, came back under fire, delivered his mes­sage and then, although wounded, rejoined hiscompany. That evening, however, when consoli­dation was ordered, only 300 yards oppositethe village had been gained at terrible cost. Thenext day, 55th Division took over and attackedearly on 8 August through a heavy Germanbarrage. In the dawn mist-, dust- and smoke­covered battlefield, 5th King's made some groundand the Liverpool Irish, with 1st King's (from 2ndDivision) alongside, fought their way into the vil­lage, only to be cut off and crushed by counter­attacks. Col Goff, commanding the 1st Battalion,was killed and the battalion reduced to 180 all

The Liverpool Irish entering Lille, October 1918. (ImperialWar Museum)

ranks. Fighting continued around a quarry forover thirty-six hours but only one or two of theLiverpool Irish got back safely. The remainingsurvivors were marched next day up the slope infull view of their comrades, on the other side of thevalley, powerless to help them.

On 9 August the Liverpool Scottish and 7thKing's attacked, but the barrage had fail~c to cutthe wire. The price was heavy casualties andanother bitter failure. The Liverpool Scottish wentforward five times before the survivors werebrought out by a subaltern, 2nd Lt G. D. Morton.That night the Medical Officer of the LiverpoolScottish, Capt. Chavasse, brought in twenty badlywounded men from within yards of the Germantrenches, and when all the officers had been hit,helped to rally the firing line. A bar to the V.C.won by this gallant and devoted officer at theBattle of Guillemont was awarded posthumously ayear later under almost identical circumstances.Eventually Guillemont, now a pile of rubble, wastaken by the 20th Division, with 12th King'scovering the road to Ginchy. For two days andnights Sgt D. Jones, with a handful of men, twoLewis guns and neither food nor water, beat offrepeated counter-attacks. He was subsequentlyawarded the V.C., but was killed in action amonth later.

On the Western Front the bitter struggle con­tinued for two long years and in practically everymajor battle the King's and Manchesters werefighting side by side, as at Ypres and Arras, theScarpe and Cambrai, the Somme and the Hinden­burg Line in 19 I8. Elsewhere yet more honours

Pack transport of :znd Manchesters, Trirnulgherry, 1930.(Photo: Lt.-Col. Woolsey)

were being won at Kut and rlaghdad, with Allenbyat Megiddo, on the Piave in northern Italy and inMacedonia, and even further afield at Archangeland in Afghanistan. This summary would beincomplete without paying tribute also to all thosenot already mentioned who were awarded theVictoria Cross.:Cpl I. Smith, I Manch., nr Ypres, 26.iv.ISPte G. Stringer, I Manch., Mesopotamia, 8.iii. I62nd Lt E. F. Baxter, 1/8 King's, nr Blainville,

I7/ I8.iV.I6Pte A. H. Proctor, I/S King's, nr Ficheux, 4.vi.I6Capt. O. A. Reid, 2 King's atL N. Lanes, Mesopo­

tamia, 8/ lO.iii. 17Sgt H. Coverdale, I I Mancil., nr Poelcapelle,

4·X • I 7Pte W. Mills, 1/10 Manch., Givenchy, 10/1 Lxii.I7Lt-Col W. Elstob D.S.O. M.C., 16 Manch.,

Manchester Redoubt, nr St-Quentin, 2I.iii.I8Pte]. T. Counter, I King's, nr Boisleaux, I6.iv.I8Pte A. Wilkinson, I/S Manch., Marou, 20.X.I82nd Lt J. Kirk, 10 Manch. att. 2nd Bn, nr Ors,

4·xi. I8Capt. G. S. Henderson, D.S.O. M.C., 2 Manch.,

Hillah, Mesopotamia, 24.vii.2o

CJ!ie 'lWenty lears'~mistice

KING'S

1St Bn(thirteen years overseas)1919-26 Channel Isles, Ireland, Aldershot.1927-39 Sudan, Egypt, India and N.W. Frontier.

2nd Bn(nine years overseas)19 I9-26 Afghanistan, Sudan, Hong Kong, India,

Iraq.1927-39 Home stations, Gibraltar (1938).

MANCHESTERS

IStBn(twelve years overseas)1919-26 Palestine, Ireland, Channel Isles, Ger­

many.

27

1st King's emplaning at Heliopolis for Cyprus, 1931.(Regimental Museum, Liverpool)

1927-39 Home stations, West Indies, Egypt,Palestine, Singapore.

2nd Bn(fourteen years overseas)1919-26 Ireland, Mesopotamia, India, Burma.1927-39 Burma, India, Sudan, home stations

(1934)'

H.M. King George V became Colonel-in-Chief ofthe King's in 1926 and of the Manchesters in 1929.The first meeting of the regular battalions of theKing's since 1861 was in Malta in 1927, and theRegiment celebrated its 250th anniversary in1935. The following year the two regular battalionsof the Manchesters converted to machine-gun bat­talions. At the A.R.A. Meeting at Bisley in 1933the 1st Battalion 'swept the board', winning sevenmajor trophies. The Army Rifle Championshipand three other individual competitions were wonby Lt C. L. Archdale, who later commanded the2nd Manchesters in Burma.

A growing realization of the threat of aerialbombardment and the development of armouredforces resulted, in the 1930s, in hesitant steps toreorganize the Territorial Army. In 1936,6 King'sconverted to anti-aircraft and the following yearthe 6/7th Manchesters followed suit and theloth Manchesters converted to the RoyalArmoured Corps. In 1938, the 6th, 7th and2/9th Manchesters, the Liverpool Irish (8thKing's), and 9th King's were all re-formed, while7th King's converted to the Royal ArmouredCorps in 1939. Thus at the outbreak of war therewere three King's T.A. battalions (including theoriginal 5th battalion) and the Manchesters

28

embodied their 5th, 8th and 9th battalions aswell as the three newly-formed second-linebattalions. After the fall of France five additionalKing's battalions, numbered 10-15, were formed,as well as home defence and training units. Ofthese new battalions only the 13th King's servedright through the war, the remainder beingconverted to the Royal Armoured Corps, lightanti-aircraft, or were used to provide infantryreinforcements. On returning from Dunkirk,the 5th Manchesters converted to the RoyalArmoured Corps (but finished up as infantry) andthe 2/9th Battalion became anti-tank gunners in1941. So 'the age of oil' had become the age ofspecialists, but in the end the trained infantryman,whether rifleman or machine-gunner, remainedthe most valuable specialist of all.

CJfiecSecondWorldWarManstein's Yellow Plan, involving ninety-onedivisions, was launched on 10 May 1940 north ofthe Siegfried Line. Ten days later German tanksreached the English Channel at Abbeville,cutting off the Allied forces that had advancedinto Belgium. Lured forward to the line of theRiver Dyle, the B.E.F. was already pulling backto the River Scheidt, where the 2nd Manchesters,the machine-gun battalion of 2nd Division, washeavily engaged. Away to the south, 9th Man­chesters were in the thick of the fighting aroundArras, which was virtually surrounded and later

Lewis-gun squad, 2nd Manchesters at Gibeit in the Sudan,1933. (Photo: Lt-CoI"Woolsey)

abandoned. The B.E.F. was now fighting on twofronts, but the main threat was of encirclementfrom the south. The 2nd Division was nowswitched across the narrowing corridor and sentto hold a I5-mile sector along the La BasseeCanal, close to the old battlefields of Festubertand Givenchy. Refugees blocking every mainroad, strafing from the air, and a shortage ofmaps, considerably hindered the move (on24-25 May), and meanwhile the Germans had abridgehead over the canal at St-Venant and heldcrossings as far east as Bethune, where Germantanks were already massing. The difficulties ofco-ordinating the defence were appalling. Theground was flat and under observation fromacross the canal and the weary infantry, thinlyspread, were unable to check the numerousinfiltrations that foretold the imminence of amajor attack. On 27 May four German divisions,three of them armoured, preceded by dive­bombers and a sharp artillery bombardment,attacked the 2nd Division's sector.

The stand by 'D' Company, who were sup­porting the Royal Norfolks around the Bois dePaqueant, is only one example of the manner inwhich thl'" Manchesters on that day fought to theend. By late afternoon 13th Platoon, down to twoguns under the command of Sgt W. Graves, wascompletely outflanked but still firing at almostpoint-blank range. The six survivors of theplatoon successfully beat off attack after attackuntil the position was finally crushed by shell-fire.That night the remnants of the 2nd Division,reduced to less than one-third of its strength,

- ,.

Machine-gun section, 1st Manchesters, in the WesternDesert, 1936. (Photo: Lt-Col Woolsey)

Private 1st Manchesters using rangefinder during train­ing in Singapore, October 1941. (bnperial War Museum)

assembled on the line of the Lys Canal. AtEpenette, Capt. Jack Churchill, with a handful of'D' Company and elements from four otherregiments, some eighty men with two machine­guns and two anti-tank guns, had successfullyfought off every attack throughout the day. Inthe late evening the Germans, however, even­tually broke into the village and the defenderswere forced to withdraw. In paying tribute toCapt. Churchill's leadership, the brigade wardiary omits to mention that during the with­drawal he and Lt Holt recovered an abandoned25-pounder gun, complete with Quod andlimber, and brought it back across the bridge atEstaires. The decision to evacuate the B.E.F. had,however, already been taken on 26 May. Thestand of the 2nd Division in fact enabled bothI and II Corps to reach the perimeter at Dunkirk,and none should forget the sacrifices that were·made and the gallantry of those who fought at LaBassee against overwhelming odds.

cJingaporeThe Japanese captured Malaya and Singaporeitself in seventy days, but the battle was lostyears before it started. The fact that the Japaneseachieved air supremacy in a matter of days, andthat not a single tank was available to thedefence, again demonstrated the suicidal weak­ness of peacetime policies and the disastrousimbalance of the Allied force, attempting to holda jungle-covered peninsula with a thousand

29

Building beach defences, Singapore Island, Decetnber1941. (Itnperial War Museutn)

miles of coastline and an imagined 'fortress' on aflat island divided from the mainland by aninsignificant strip of water. In 1937 Gen. Dobbiehad predicted the Japanese sweep south from alanding in the Gulf of Siam. Four years later thispossibility was hardly discussed at the conferenceheld in September 1941 by Duff Cooper. Ninemonths previously, however, hand-picked andexperienced Japanese divisions were rehearsingtheir assault role for the capture of Singaporebase, a prize ofimmense value.

The 1st Manchesters reached Singapore inOctober 1938 on the ebb-tide of the Munichcrisis. After many months of mobile operations inPalestine, as a machine-gun battalion their newrole was beach defence. Their sector stretched fornine miles on the eastern side of the island fromSinglap Drain to beyond the boom at Changi. Tocover the numerous beaches the four companieswere in line, manning a series of pill-boxes, eachwith two Vickers guns, a searchlight and ananti-tank rifle manned by an N.C.O. and eightmen. One platoorr from each company was inclose support and the total number of Vickersguns was 104. On the outbreak of war there weremanning exercises, but little could be done on thebeach defences as they were on private property,and it was not until July 1940 that coolies andcontractors started clearing fields of fire anderecting wire fences on the beaches themselves.Meanwhile every position had been developed

30

and wired in, and thousands of coconut stumpsdug in to form anti-tank obstacles. A tremendouseffort went to making anti-boat obstacles, madeof bamboo-pole structures which had to be dug inat night when the tide was at its lowest. It was animmense task and in the battalion's sector onlythree miles had been completed when theJapanese invaded the island itself on 8 February1942.

By that date Gen. Percival had lost one-thirdof his total force and of the 85,000 servicemenconcentrated on the island a high proportionwere base personnel or non-combatants. Thelast fighter aircraft had been withdrawn and thenaval base evacuated. Despite Gen. Dobbie'spredictions, orders to construct defences on thenorth shore of Singapore Island were issued onlydays before the Japanese reached the Straits ofJohore. Here 'B' Company of the Manchestershad been moved to support 28th Indian Brigade,holding a five-mile front between the abandonednaval base and the causeway. They were shelledand mortared day and night for a week, but thenight before the Japanese attacked they had beensent off to the north-east corner of the island,which was believed to be the danger-point. By themorning of 12 February the Japanese were incontrol of the northern and western parts of theisland to within 9,000 yards of the waterfront ofSingapore itself. That afternoon Col Holmes wasordered to withdraw the battalion to a position onthe perimeter covering the eastern approaches toSingapore, from Kallang Airport up towards PayaLebar on the left. Both 'D' and 'B' Companies werenow part of James Force and heavily engagedwith the 4th Guards Regiment. During the nextforty-eight hours both companies were graduallyforced back and some positions were overrun.When firing ceased the survivors were hold­ing positions around Kallang, alongside theremainder of the battalion. Battle casualties hadbeen light, but half of those who were madeprisoners of war died in captivity. In December1941 the battalion's strength had been over 1,000all ranks; only 460 returned at the end of the warand the cruelty and privations that each hadsuffered beggar description. The full story willnever be told. For many to have survived wasenough; as La Rochefoucauld has written,

'Perfect courage means doing unwitnessed whatone would be capable of doing before the wholeworld.'

The role of the fortress in war was furtherdemonstrated by the Allied defence of Gibraltarand Malta, the one intimately linked with thesurvival of Great Britain after the fall of Franceand both vital to Allied strategy in the Mediter­ranean. The 2nd King's remained part of theGibraltar garrison until late in 1943 and the8th Manchesters, rushed from France to Malta inMay 1940, served throughout the whole of thesiege. Both battalions reached Egypt late in 1943.

CJhe GhinditsMeanwhile early in 1942, the 13th King'sreached India where 1st King's were still held oninternal security duties in Ferozepore. Withinmonths of arrival 13th King's were chosen tojoin Wingate's long-range penetration brigadewhich was just being formed. The battalionprovided a group headquarters and the nucleus ofthree columns which were commanded by Maj.B. Fergusson, Black Watch, and Majors K. Gilkesand W. A. Scott of the King'S. After six months'intensive training the Chindit force moved toImphal, preparatory to crossing the Chindwinwith the object of cutting the two railway linesrunning north from Mandalay. Each column wasbased on an infantry company and supportgroup, with a platoon of the Burmese Rifles andseveral specialist sections added - R.A.F., Medical,Signals, and Sabotage. The transport consisted of15 horses and 100 mules. The average load foreveryone was 60 lb with five days' special lightrations, and the force was to be supplied byair­drop. The force totalled 3,000 and there wereseven columns, each ofover 300 men.

On the map the furthest objective was 150 milesfrom the Chindwin, but the advance had to bemade across the grain of the country throughthick jungle and over high, steeply-ridged, denselyforested mountains, broken by deep gorges andwatercourses and swampy malaria-infested valleys.The Chindwin itself was half a mile wide and theIrrawaddy an even more formidable obstacle

which moreover was deep in the heart ofJapanese­occupied territory. The story of 5 Column, com­manded by Maj. (now Sir Bernard) Fergusson,which had the task of destroying the railway linein the Bonchaung Gorge has been told in Beyondthe Chindwin. In his introduction to BernardFergusson's book, Lord Wavell pays tribute to themen of the 13th King's: 'Not specially picked dare­devils ... but mostly men of an ordinary linebattalion, sent originally to India for garrison duty.Yet as a tale of toughness and good comradeshipin adversity their story will be hard to beat.'

After the railway to Myitkyina had been cutthe whole force crossed the Irrawaddy but founditself much constricted, both by the numerousriver lines and by the unexpected strength of theJapanese. With almost no room to manceuvre andincreasing difficulties of air supply, owing to thevigilance of the enemy, the decision was eventuallytaken to withdraw. A large supply-drop wasordered for 25 March, near a village on the bankof the River Shweli, but the Japanese spotted thepreparations and took up strong positions near thevillage. An attack was put in by two of the King'scolumns (7 and 8) which, although it failed todrive the Japanese back, enabled the supply-dropto be completed. Two days later the columns dis­persed and started to march back. By mid-Junethe last party of gaunt, bearded, emaciated menhad reached India. Of the force that had left fourmonths earlier, 1,182 returned and many hadmarched as much as 1,500 miles. Maj. Gilkes with

The crossing of the Irrawaddy, the Battalion OrderGroup, 2nd Manchesters, February 1945. (Photo: Lt-ColKing-Clark)

7 Column had marched in the other direction,through the enemy lines into China, from whencethey were flown back by the U.S. Air Force toIndia. It is fashionable to decry the value ofprivate armies, but much was learnt from thefirst Wingate expedition and the experiencegained in jungle warfare and air-supply was laterto prove invaluable; but, most important, thejapanese were jolted out of their purely defensivestrategy in Burma and were led towards policiesthat later brought them disaster.

In March of the following year Wingate'sChindits returned, this time a force of six brigades(twenty-four battalions, each providing twocolumns) which would all be air-supplied and,with one exception, flown in. The task was toattack in rear the japanese resisting Stilwell'sChinese-American Army driving down from thenorth on Myitkyina. The 1st King's, taking theplace of the 13th Battalion in 77th IndianBrigade, was chosen for the most critical part ofthe whole operation. The two columns underLt-Col Scott and Maj. Gaitley respectively infifty-four gliders were to seize two clearings (named'Piccadilly' and 'Broadway') and help engineersprepare landing-strips for the Dakotas flying inthe remaining columns. At the last minute'Piccadilly' was seen to have been obstructed, soon the evening of 5 March 1944 the tugs andgliders all took off for 'Broadway'. Of the thirty­four gliders that reached the clearing, manycrashed on landing as aerial photographs had notshown up deep ruts hidden by undergrowth. Fortymen were killed and the overall strength of theassault troops seriously reduced. Fortunately thelanding was unopposed and the first Dakota wasable to touch down on the evening of 6 Marchand the strip was completed by midnight. Lt-ColScott received an immediate award of the D.S.O.and both Lord Mountbatten and Gen. Wingatesent their congratulations to the Regiment ontheir fine performance.

As operations progressed to harass the japaneseand cut their communications, the King's becameincreasingly involved with the protection and re­inforcement of the various strongholds, foundnecessary to provide bases for the large numberof Chindit columns. Detachments were constantlyon the move and both at 'Broadway' and at

32

'Blackpool', another strongpoint, the King's wereinstrumental in beating offheavy japanese attacks.Stilwell's advance on Myitkyina and Mogaung,however, met with fierce japanese resistance and77th Brigade was ordered to attack the latter placefrom the south. Only an improvised company,commanded by Capt. Morrow was available. Thefighting lasted for three weeks before the townwas taken, by which time the company was re­duced to a platoon. One attack in which King'smen figured prominently was carried out withsuch gallantry that it earned the special praise ofBrig. Calvert, commanding the brigade, on whoserecommendation one D.C.M. and two M.M.swere awarded to members of the detachment.After the capture of Myitkyina towards the end ofjuly, all the Chindit columns were withdrawn andflown back to India. By this date the effectivestrength of 77th Brigade was under 350 all ranks.For four months the battalion had successfullyfought the japanese on their own ground. Casual­ties had been heavy, but on this occasion sick andwounded men could bc evacuated by air and manylater rejoined their regiments.

GJV!hima to c:.Jr(andalayEarly in 1942 the 2nd Manchesters arrived inIndia. Training for jungle and mountain warfarewas followed by combined operations exercises asthe 2nd Division had become the assault division.In March 1944, only twenty-four hours after theKing's . landed at 'Broadway', the japaneselaunched their own offensive, 'The March onDelhi'. Their immediate objectives were the Alliedbases at Imphal and Kohima. For three monthsImphal held out against all attacks, but furthernorth the battle for Kohima proved to be theturning-point of the whole campaign in Burma.When the japanese 3 I st Division made a surpriseadvance across the Chindwin only a scratch forcewas available for the defence of Kohima. The siegein early April was 'an epic to rival Lucknow orHazebrouck'. The 2nd Division was rushed by sea,land and air 2,200 miles from the Deccan. Onlythree companies of Manchesters were available.On I I April, 'B' Company was in actio~ near

COnlpany headquarters during the advance to Mandalay,March 1945. (Lt-Col King-Clark)

Zubza some ten miles from Kohima four daysbefore the battalion's concentration could be com­pleted. just over a week later the garrison wasrelieved, but apart from Garrison Hill itself thejapanese held Kohima ridge and the hills to thenorth to beyond aga village. Only the completedefeat of Gen. Sato's division would open the passand road to Imphal. The pass itself is set betweenformidable tree-covered mountains with precipi­tous slopes and dense subtropical forests at thelower altitudes. May brings the monsoon rain, theheaviest in the world, and giant mosquitoes andmyriads of other insects bring disease to man andbeast alike. It was across these 'hellish junglemountains' that two outflanking brigade columnsnow set off. A machine-gun platoon of the Man­ehesters, 'a tough magnificent body of men', asone officer records in his diary (quoted bySwinson), marched with each column; the rest ofthe battalion under the command of Maj. King­Clark covering the gun line, dug in on LoneTree Hill within a hundred yards of a japaneseoutpost. Soon the rains began; streams becametorrents and tracks rivers of mud. To carry theVickers guns and heavy equipment through thejungle was a herculean task.

By about 5 May the flank brigades had foughttheir way into the Naga village and on to thesouthern end of Kohima ridge but here, as in thecentre around Garrison Hill, only a precarious toe­hold had been won at heavy cost. In one attackby the Royal Norfolks two platoons overran theirobjective and were in danger of annihilation but,as Arthur Swinson writes: 'Fortunately some ofthe Manchesters were available with their mediummachine-guns and they put down such a volumeof fire that rescue operations were able to goahead.' The Manchesters, in fact, had alreadyearned a considerable reputation for the accuracyof their dose-support fire in attack and the speedwith which they consolidated on the objective.Additional troops of the 7th Indian Division nowarrived. In the rain and mud the attacks con­tinued against ferocious japanese resistance, andthe Manchesters were involved in bitter fightingaround Garrison Hill.

Towards the end of the month, the 4/ISt Gur­khas, under their young commanding officer,Derek Horsford (who later became Colonel of theKing's), had a brilliant success through infiltratingthe japanese positions on Hunter's Hill. Sato'stroops were beginning to crack. 0 supplies or

33

ammunition had reached them since the operationbegan. Few other troops could have fought onunder such conditions. The battle had lasted forsixty-four days and now they were beaten. By 22June elements of the 2nd Division reached Imphaland a month later the Japanese XV Army was inretreat. Before the Japanese surrender came theManchesters had added four more battle honours:Penwe, Shwebo, Myinmu Bridgehead and theIrrawaddy. Particular mention must also be madeof'D' Company, which for two years supported29th Brigade in the Arakan and the Chinesearmies in the long drive south, from the Myitkyinaarea to within a few miles of Mandalay. In Burmathe task of Fourteenth Army was over. Its triumphagainst every adversity has a dramatic qualityall its own, and the men who recaptured Burmahave a special place in the history of our times.

ItalyIn March 1944, the 2nd King's joined the 4thDivision in Italy, and the 8th Manchesters landedat Naples with the 10th Indian Division. Fourmonths later 9th Manchesters became themachine-gun battalion of 46th Division. It wasthe King's, however, that was immediately in­volved in Alexander's dramatic spring offensiveDIADEM. For four months the Germans had heldMonte Cassino against every attack. To the northwere great mountains; to the south the Liri Valley,overlooked by the monastery itself. Across themouth of the valley, ran the River Rapido. Earlierthe 36th (Texan) Division, attempting to crossnear St Angelo, had been thrown back withghastly loss. Now the Polish Corps was to attackthe monastery, while four complete corps, con­centrated with great secrecy, would be launchedinto the valley to reach the Via Castelina and theroad to Rome. The 4th Division had the unenvi­able task ofattacking just north ofSt Angelo underthe lee of Monte Cassino itself. The King's werethe leading battalion of the left-hand brigade andat this point the river was sixty feet wide, aboutsix feet deep, and flowing at seven knots. Bothbanks had been heavily mined and the Germandefences on the far side, reinforced with steel and

34

concrete, were strongly wired in and cleverlyconcealed in hedgerows and hummocks to a con­siderable depth.

At 23.00 hours on II May, on the Eighth Armyfront, over 1,000 guns opened counter-batteryfire. Forty-five minutes later the barrage wouldstart and the assault boats would be launched.Unfortunately the King's were late in getting theboats to the launching-point and the moment thebarrage started the Germans brought downdefensive fire with everything they had. Manyboats were holed before they could be launchedand others sunk in the swift-flowing river. Bothsides were using smoke, but the Germans hadcanisters with trip-wires dug into the river bank.The assault troops were soon enveloped in dense

clouds of black smoke into which the Germanmortars and machine-guns fired with devastatingeffect. For two and a half days the remnants ofthe King's fought on without rations or waterand with ammunition running out. By the nightof 13 May, the first Bailey bridge was completed,a mile upstream. Within twenty-four hours theGermans, outflanked at St Angelo, startedpulling back and the survivors of the King's werewithdrawn into reserve. Shortly before theseorders were received, an attack led by Maj. Touhyreached one of the battalion's objectives. But forhis inspired leadership the bridgehead itselfmight not have been held.

After the fall of Rome, the 2nd King's tookpart in the attack on the Trasimene Line, cap­turing the village of Gioiella. East of the lake,attacking up the valley of the Tiber was the8th Manchesters with the loth Indian Division.The next German stop line was on the RiverArno, where 2nd King's captured Tuori againststrong resistance. It was about this time that CplHorsfield of the Manchesters, an explosivesexpert serving with the S.A.S. at Derna, gave hislife attempting to put out a fire in an ammunitionstore. Kenneth Horsfield's self-sacrifice, throughpersistent efforts to save his trapped comrades,earned the posthumous award of the GeorgeCross. At the end of August the whole of EighthArmy was switched to the Adriatic Front withthe object of breaking through along the narrowcoastal plain into the Romagna. By mid-Septem­ber both the 2nd King's and the '9th Man<;:hesters

were fighting on the Rimini Line and as thebattle moved on the weather broke. By earlyNovember, with the rivers in spate and mudeverywhere, operations were almost halted. Whilethe loth Indian Division advanced into themountains, 46th Division was fighting in thefoothills and six further battle honours were wonby the Manchesters. At the capture of Forli the2nd King's and the 9th Manchesters again foughtside by side. Casualties had been heavy and bothdivisions were due for relief. By early December,however, the King's were in action in Athens,where civil war had broken out. The 46th

Division was also sent to Greece, but not beforethe crossing of the River Lamone, where the9th Manchesters helped to hold the bridgeheadsagainst a violent counter-attack which was re­pulsed with great skill and determination. InItaly the Allies, fighting battles of constraint andattrition, faced endless river-crossings and for­midable mountain strongholds defended by acourageous and determined enemy. A recenttribute (The Italian Campaign 1943-45) to those whofought in this campaign comments, 'There wereno glittering prizes . . . only the knowledge ofhaving played a vital part in the final victory.'

~mandyand

Victory in the 'WestThe beach organization for OVERLORD wasbased on experience gained during the Sicilylandings, the largest amphibious assault in thewhole war. On D-Day itself 75,000 men, 6,000vehicles and 4,000 tons of stores were landed onthe British sector in Normandy. On two of thefive beaches the Beach Group was built aroundKing's battalions. For a year, the 5th and 8thKing's had been specially trained for this role thatwas vital to the whole campaign. The twocommanding officers, Lt-Cols Board and Hum­phrey, found themselves commanding also manyspecialist units concerned with the whole complexproblem of clearing and unloading on to an openbeach, the formation of dumps and developmentof beach exits, together with traffic control, the

Vickers gun firing on Gerntan positions in the factoryarea of Antwerp. This photo was taken by Lt-ColHarington (now Lt·Gen. Sir Charles Harington), CheshireRegintent, who contntanded 1st Manchesters front Aprilto Septentber 1944

salvage of vehicles and opening of field dressingstati,ons. The two battalions not only had to mopup enemy resistance in their area, but providetrained manpower to work with the specialistunits. Elements of the 5th Battalion landed on'Sword' beach with the grd British Division; ofthe 8th Battalion, on 'Juno' with the grd CanadianDivision. Mopping up near-by strongpoints con­tinued for two days and the casualties on 6 Juneincluded Col Board. At the end of June, 'Sword'beach was closed down owing to persistent heavyshelling, but all this time the unloading hadcontinued for eighteen hours a day. By the end ofJuly, ports and base areas were fully operationaland the task of the King's was over. Many menwere drafted as reinforcements and the 8th King'swas broken up. Only the 5th King's was kept inbeing for guard duties and operations aroundDunkirk and finally as 'T' Force. This had thespecial task of seizing and safeguarding importantinstallations, papers and even persons as soon asenemy country had been entered. When the6th Guards Brigade entered Kiel on 8 May 1945,two King's companies had already taken over anumber of valuable installations together with thecruiser Hipper two days previously.

After the fall of Singapore, the 1st Manchesterswas re-formed in England from the 6th Battalionand, as the machine-gun battalion of 5grd (Welsh)Division, landed at Arromanches on 26June 1944,during the battle for the Odon Bridgehead. The7th Manchesters, the machine-gun battalion of

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Manchesters on a training exercise in the Jordan Valley,March 1942. (Imperial War Museum)

52nd (Lowland) Division, landed much later, asthe division, originally trained for snow andmountain warfare and later for airborne andcombined operations, was held back in reserve.These two divisions played a major part in sixout of the eight great battles that opened with thecapture of Caen and carried 21 st Army Group tothe very heart of Germany. The two Manchesterbattalions in fact added a further twenty battlehonours to those awarded to the Regiment. Themachine-gun companies were normally allotted tothe infantry brigades, and the first occasion whenthe whole fire power of the 1st Manchesters wasused in a single operation was shortly before theBattle of Falaise, in support of a raid by theRoyal Welch Fusiliers on Mont Pinc;on. Someindication of the scale of this kind of harassing firecan be gauged from the fact that, two nights later,338,000 rounds of machine-gun ammunition and5,700 4 '2-inch mortar bombs were fired insupport of patrols probing a suspected Germanwithdrawal.

After the German defeat at Falaise, the Alliesswept forward into Belgium and during theBattle of Arnhem the 1st Manchesters was in­volved in confused and fierce fighting aroundTurnhout on the western side of the corridor. Toopen Antwerp was now vital and the 7th Man­chesters was soon in the thick of the fight for thecauseway on Walcheren. Whether in conditions offlood, snow and icc, or deep mud, the guns werekept in action. In one counter-attack in the

36

Ardennes the guns and mortars of the 1 st Battalionwere the only supporting weapons available,having been manhandled through deep snow. Inthe last few months of the war the two battalionswere often side by side, as during the Battle ofthe Rhineland when the 7th relieved the 1stBattalion. This phase opened with the assault ofthe Reichwald Forest defences. The preliminarybombardment lasted for 4t hours, during whichthe 1st Manchesters, together with every availabletank, anti-tank and light anti-aircraft gun keptthe German p'ositions to the front and flank underheavy and prolonged fire. This 'pepperpot' firesupport was co-ordinated by Lt-Col Crozier whohad been second in command when the battalionwas re-formed.

After the crossing of the Rhine there was morehard fighting, but the end was in sight. Bothbattalions were engaged at Bremen, which fell on26 April 1945, and the I st Battalion reachedHamburg on 4 May

Brig. Barclay, one of the brigade commandersand author of The History oj the 53rd Division, haspaid tribute to the machine-gunner as 'thebackroom boy of the fire plan', whose weapon incertain circumstances, as in 19 14-18, 'was themost deadly of all'. Of the achievements of thefour 'specialist' infantry battalions, whose pro­gress we have followed on the Normandy beachesand through the long months of fighting that ledinto the heart of Germany, the Regiment canindeed be proud.

The thrust to the Gothic Line, 8th Manchesters in thetown of Soci, September 1944. (Imperial War Museum)

C]/ieWhite :HOrseand:Fleur-de-1JJ

Soon after the war ended came the inevitablecutting back of the Regular Army and in 1948both regiments were reduced to a single battalion.Sent to Malaya in 195 I, the Manchesters spentthree years in successful operations against theCommunist guerillas, while in 1952 the King'swere in the front line in Korea. The followingMay this battalion played a distinguished part inthe Battle of the Hook. This battle honour,together with 'Korea 1952-3', is now borne onthe Regimental Colour. During these turbulentpostwar years, a diminishing number of regular

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHYREGIMENTAL HISTORIES

Bell, Lieut.-Cdr. A. C., History of the AlanchesterRegiment, First and Second Battalions 1922-1948 (JohnSherratt, 1954).

Burke-Gaffney, Lieut.-Col. J. J., The Story of The King'sRegiment 1914-1948 (Sharpe and Kellet, 1954).

Cannon, Historical Record of The King's, or LiverpoolRegiment of Foot (3rd edition, Wm. Trimble, 1905).

Macdonald, Lieut.-Col. R. P., A Short History of TheKing's Regiment (Regular Battalions) (Gale and Polden,197 I).

Threlfall, T. R., The Story of The King's (LiverpoolRegiment) formerly the Eighth Foot (Country Life,1917)·

Wylly, Col. H. C., History of The Manchester Regiment(late the 63rd and 96th Foot) (2 vols., Forster Groom,192 3-5).

A Short History of The Manchester Regiment (4th edition,Gale and Polden, 1950).

Wyrall, E., The History of The King's Regiment (Liverpool)1914-1919 (3 vols., Edward Arnold, 1928-35).

Among numerous other authorities consulted, includ­ing the official histories of the two world wars and Sir

battalions were kept almost continuously abroadand the full story is told in Gregory Blaxland'sThe Regiments Depart. Here, away from thecontext of policies and politicians, our postscriptrecords the uniting of the White Horse and theFleur-de-Lis. In 1958 the amalgamation of theKing's and the Manchester Regiment took placeand Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The QueenMother (Colonel-in-Chief, the Manchester Regi­ment since 1947) graciously consented to remainColonel-in-Chiefof the Regiment.

Our story has been that of a Regiment that hasexisted for very nearly three centuries; of thegallant deeds of the men of thc 8th, 63rd and 96thand their successors; of great expansion andsacrifices in times of national emergency; of linksforged by common traditions and. cementedby comradeship.

John Fortescue's History of the British Army, specificreferences have been included from the following:Barclay, Brig., The History of the 53rd (Welsh) Division

in the Second World War (Wm. Clowes, 1956).James, R. Rhodes, Gallipoli (Batsford, 1965)'Kinglake, A. W., The Invasion of the Crimea (8 vols.,

Blackwood, 1863-87)Norman, Gen. Sir H. and Mrs Keith Young, Delhi­

1857 (Chambers, 1902).Reresby, Sir John, ed. A. Browning, Memoirs of Sir

John Reresby (Jackson, 1936).Shepperd, G. A.: The Italian Campaign 1943-45, a'

political and military re-assessment (Arthur Barker,1968).

Swinson, A.: Defeat in Malaya, the fall of Singapore(Macdonald, 1970), and Kohima (Cassell, 1966).

Taylor, F.: The Wars ofMarlborough (2 vols., Blackwell,1921 ).

Vieth, F. H. D., Recollections of the Crimean Campaign andthe Expedition to Kinbum in 1855 (Lovell, Montreal,190 7).

Walton, Col. C., History of the British Standing Army,AD 1660-1700 (Harrison, 1894)

Wilson, Lieut.-Col. R. T., History oj the British Expedi­tion to Egypt (2 vols., Egerton, 1803).

37

Cjtie 'PlatesAI Alusketeer, Princess Anne oj Denmark's Regiment,

1685The Stuart colours are brought out in the yellowfacings to the red coat. Note also the yellow ribbonon the felt hat, knee-breeches and shoes. Each cuffhas four large buttons, and the flap pockets twosmaller ones. The wooden cartridge-cases alsohang down the back to make twelve in all. otethe canvas ball-bag and polished wooden powderflask hanging bclow the right arm.

A2 Grenadier, Eighth or The King's Regiment, 17YThe royal blue facings were authorized in 1751,and a wavy blue strip on the white lace has beenreplaced by a yellow edging. The top of the waist­coat is worn unbuttoned. The motto 'Nec AsperaTerrent' appears on the cap, the back of which isred. The wearing of the White Horse badge datesfrom 1716, being granted by George I, the firstHanoverian king of Great Britain.

A3 Grenadier, 6Jrd Regiment, 1768The facings authorized were dark green withwhite lace. The grenadier cap is mitre-shaped butcovered in bearskin. On the back of the cap is acircular red cloth patch bearing a white grenadeand '63'. The front plate is black metal embellishedin white. The coat buttons are cast pewter with'63' on an eight-pointed star. The musket is theI746-pattern Long Land Musket.

BI Officer, Eighth or The King's Regiment, 1792On the front facings of the coat there are ten goldloops and four on each cuff. Note also the redpiping on the collar. All buttons are gilt, in thecentre the White Horse, with the Crown aboveand '8' below, surrounded by the Garter. Thegaiters button at the top with six bone buttons.The cross-belt plate is gilt, bearing the Garter andCrown within the centre, the White Horse insilver.

B2 Private, Line Company, 63rd Regiment, 1792The dark green regimental facings on the coatfrom the collar to waist are 3 inches wide, with

38

ten white loops. The buttons are white metalembossed (same design as A3). The white ducktrousers button on the outside of the knee withfour white bone buttons (also used on gaiters). Thebrass cross-belt plate has '63' within the Garterand Crown.

B3 Officer, 96th Queen's Own (Royal) Regiment, 1816The blue facings and silver lace were authorizedwhen the Regiment received its new title duringthe Peninsular War. The capture of the 'Invin­cibles' standard is commemorated on the buttons,cross-belt and chaco plate, on all of which appearsa Sphinx with a French flag over the left shoulder.The chaco plate is silver, mounted on gold lacewith a crimson line.

Cl Officer, Eighth or The King's Regiment, 1840This plate is based on a contemporary engravingof Capt. E. H. Greathed. The coatee is double­breasted and has two rows of nine gilt regimentalbuttons. The loops of gold lace are all square­ended. The cross-belt plate is of gilt. In the centreis the White Horse in silver against a red velvetbac~ground, surrounded by the Garter and Crownalso in silver. The sword has a slightly curved 32­inch blade and the grip is fish-skin bound withbrass wire.

C2 Private, Eighth or The King's Regiment, 1857During the Indian Mutiny the King's was one ofthe first regiments to use khaki dye. This soldierwears a cotton shirt and duck trousers and a cover(with voluminous flap) over his Killmanoch cap.He carries the minimum of equipment and a

Issuing kit in Korea, 1952. (RegiDlental MuseuDl, Liver­pool)

water-bottle on a leather strap. The rifle is theEnfield 1853 pattern and the pocket on the cross­belt holds percussion caps.

C3 Sergeant, 96th Regiment of Foot, 1875The regimental number '96' appears on the chacoplate, belt buckle and shoulder-straps. The yellowfacings date from 1824. The wearing of the 'Sphinxwith Egypt' dates from 1874 when the battlehonours of the 96th (Queen's Own) were addedto the Regimental Colour. The rifle is the Martini­Henry, 1871 pattern.

D1 Officer, The Manchester Regiment, 1890SWhite facings are now common to English infantryregiments. The silver Fleur-de-Lis badge on theforage-cap shows that this officer is serving withthe 1st Battalion. The cap badge in other orders ofdress (after 188 I) was the arms of the city ofManchester. The wearing of the 'Fleur-de-Lis' bythe 63rd dates from the earliest day of the Regi­ment and the capture of French standards atGuadeloupe and elsewhere in the West Indies.

D2 Officer, The Manchester Regiment, Ladysmith 1899This officer wears a khaki drill tunic and breechesand strapped leggings. The canvas haversack andwater-bottle are slung under the Sam Browne belt.The revolver is a '45 Webley. The Manchestersinsisted on wearing the Fleur-de-Lis on the helmetin addition to the regulation red flash with title,worn on the left side. The collar of the tunic is Iiinches high and only the breast pockets havebuttons.

BattaUon exerclse, Korea, 1953, showing the front andback view of a 'parka'. (Regimental Museum, Liverpool)

D3 Private, The King's (Liverpool Regiment), France1916

This King's man wears only the equipment neededto carry his bayonet, ammunition and entrenchingtool. The gas mask is worn slung. All badges andtitles were removed before going into the frontline. His rifle is protected by a canvas cover and hecarries iron screw-pickets for constructing abarbed-wire fence.

£1 Lance-Corporal, The Manchester Regiment, France

1917This lance-corporal wears 'fighting order'. Hisgas-mask is in the 'ready' position and worn overhis equipment. Note the distinctive outlines of themetal canister alongside the compartment holdingthe face-mask. A heavy pair of wire-cutters hangsfrom his belt. The loose-fitting leather jerkin islined with rough woollen material and can bebuttoned to the neck.

£2 O.fficer, The King's (Liverpool Regiment), France

1917This officer has just returned from a trench raid.He wears a soldier's tunic and issue puttees. All hetook on the raid was his revolver and ammunition,a gas mask and prismatic compass, slung on anarrow strap. The thick cord breeches and heavywoollen sweater give some protection against thecold. The whistle lanyard is worn in an unortho­dox but practical manner.

£3 C. Q. M.S. The Manchester Regiment, WesternDesert, 1936

This is the dress worn during winter months ­serge tunic and khaki-drill shorts. The collarbadges and shoulder-titles are brass, but all thebuckles on the web equipment have been painteda dull finish. The green hose-tops are the samedark green colour as the regimental facings of the63rd. The bayonet scabbard has a khaki clothcover.

F1 Private, The Manchester Regiment, Italy 1944This soldier is cleaning one of the battalion'sVickers guns. He wears a beret, with the Fleur-de­Lis badge on the left side, a khaki-drill shirt, and awoollen jersey with battle-dress trousers. Several

39

men would be engaged in cleaning the gun andevery part is carefully oiled before reassembly.Note the canvas cover on the water-jacket.

F2 Private, The King's Regiment, Burma 1943This 'Chindit' wears a flannel shirt dyed green anddenim trousers. His felt jungle hat originally hada pugaree of a lighter colour. Extra pouches havebeen sewn on to the sides of his pack. Below thepack is a bed-roll with a proofed canvas ground­sheet and mosquito net. The bren-gun is ready forinstant action.

F3 Private, The Manchester Regiment, North- WestEurope 1944

This shows one of the two 'spare numbers' of amachine-gun team of the 1st Battalion in thewinter of 1944. He is carrying two boxes of .303ammunition (called 'liners'); each containing abelt of 250 rounds. A pickaxe is fitted to the backofhis pack. Note the regimental title and divisionalflash of the 53rd Division. When manhandling thegun across country, the gun itself and the tripodare each a full load. The NO.3 of the team carriesthe aiming post, condenser can, an ammunitionbox and a shovel.

Gl Private, The Manchester Regiment, Malaya 1952He wears a cellular shirt and battle-dress trousersof drill material. His jungle boots have composi­tion soles and canvas uppers that fit high over theankle. The band round the jungle hat has slots totake camouflage. Below the pack is strapped arubber-proofed poncho, rolled round a nylon

A three-inch mortar in action in Korea, 1953. (RegilnentalMuseum, Liverpool)

40

hammock. On the back of the belt are pouchesholding a water-bottle and mess tin.

G2 Private, The King's Regiment, Korea 1952This King's man is resting in a dugout while offduty. He wears a knitted Balaclava cap-comforter,flannel shirt and thick jersey which laces up atthe neck. His trousers are of heavy cotton materialtreated to resist water. His steel helmet is keptclose by, together with his rifle and equipmentwhich would be within reach.

G3 Officer, The King's Regiment (Manchester andLiverpool), Berlin 1964

This officer is dressed in shirt-sleeve duty order.The cap badge is that of the Lancastrian Brigade,since replaced by the new regimental badge. Theblue-grey shirt is a regimental distinction and theshoulder-badge and King's titles are brass. Theregimental-pattern stable belt is green webbedcanvas 2t inches wide, with a i-inch marooncentre stripe woven in.

HI Sergeant, mess kit, The King's Regiment, 1972The plain scarlet jacket is worn with a deep greenwaistcoat. The collar badges have a deep greenbacking, showing i-inch border. The regimentalside-cap is worn straight on the head and ismaroon with a deep green inlet top and piping tothe front and rear folds. The regimental cap badge(worn on the left side) is also backed with deepgreen cloth.

H2 Drummer, full dress, The King's Regiment, 1972The scarlet jacket is the .1913 infantry pattern withroyal blue facings and regimental buttons. Thewhite braid (with red crowns) is sewn on the frontand rear sleeve seams, round the collar, down theback seams to the tail and on the centre backseam from waist to collar. The helmet plate IS

gilt with the regimental badge in the centre.

H3 Corporal, battle order, The King's Regiment 1972This order ofdress is as for fighting order, with theaddition of rear pouches and cape. The equipmentis the 1958 pattern. The web anklets are cleanedwith black shoe polish. Note the scrim on thesteel helmet to complete the camouflage effect.The corporal's personal weapon in this instanceis a Stirling machine-gun.

Men-at-Arms Series

TITLES ALREADY PUBLISHED

THE STONEWALL BRIGADE John Selby

THE BLACK V. ATCH Charles Grant

FRE CH FOREIGN LEGIO Martin Windrow

GEORGE WASHINGTON'S ARMYPeter Young

THE BUFFS Gregory Blaxland

LUFfWAFFE AIRBORNE AND FIELDFOOT GRENADIERS OF THE IMPERIAL UNITS Martin Windrow

GUARD Charles Grant

THE IRON BRIGADE John &lby

CHASSEURS OF THE GUARD Peter Young

WA}o'}o'EN·SS Marti'l Willdrow

THE GOLDSTREAM GUARDS Charus Grant

U.S. CAVALRY John Selby

THE ARAB LEGION Peler Young

ROYAL SCOTS GREYS Charles Grant

ARGYLL A D SUTHERLAND HIGH-LANDERS William McElwee

THE CONNAUGHT RA GERS Alan Shepperd

3(}rn PUNJABIS James Lawford

THE SOVIET ARMY Albert Seaton

UNITED STATES MARINE CORPSJOh'1 Selby

THE COSSACKS Albert Seaton

BLUCHER'S ARMY Peter Young

ROYAL ARTILLERY W. Y. Carman

THE PANZER DIVISIONS Marti'l Windrow

JAPANESE ARMY OF WORLD WAR IIPhilip Warner

THE RUSSIAN ARMY OF THE CRIMEAAlbert Seato'l

MONTCALM'S ARMY Alartill Willdrow

THE RUSSI{\N ARMY OF THENAPOLEO IC WARS Albert Seatoll

FUTURE TITLES INCLUDE

THE E GUSH CIVIL WAR ARMIESPeter YOWlg

WELLINGTO 'S PE 'INSULAR ARMYJames Lawford

AUSTRO-HUNGARIA T ARMY OF THENAPOLEONIC WARS Albert&atoll

THE BLACK BRUNSWICKERS OUo VO'I PivluJ.

THE AMERICAN PROVINCIAL CORPS1775-1784 Philip Katcher

}o'REDERICK THE GREAT'S ARMYAlbert Seatoll

THE KING'S GERMAN LEGIOOtto VOIl Pivka

ARMIES OF THE AMERICAN WAR1812-1814 Philip Kaleher

THE AUSTRO-HU. '(iARIAN ARMY OFTHE SEVEN YEARS WAR Alb"t Seatoll

WOLFE'S ARMY Gerald Embletoll

THE ROMAN IMPERIAL ARMYMichael Simkins

THE GERMAN ARMY OF THE NEWEMPIRE 1870-1888 Albert/)'eato.ll

LIEUTENANT-COLONEL ALAN SHEPPERD (Retd.) was educated atMagdakn· College School and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, andserved as a regular officer during the years 1931-47. Since 1947 he has beenSenior Librarian at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Among hipublished works are The Italian Campaign 1943-5 and Arms and Armour 1660-19as well as his contributions to The History of the British AT71!'y, Battle s ofEurope, Vol. 2 and Purnell's histories t First and Second World Wars.

£1·25 net (in U.K. only) ~BN ° 85045 120 5