Military Identities: The Regimental System, the British Army, and the British People, c.1870-2000

415 Pages·2005·1.61 MB·English

by  David French

Military Identities
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Military Identities
The Regimental System, the British Army,
1870 2000
and the British People, c. –
DAVID FRENCH
1
3
GreatClarendonStreet,Oxfordox26dp
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Acknowledgements
Ihaveamassedaconsiderablenumberofintellectualdebtsinthecourse
ofwritingthisbook.Iwouldespeciallylike tothankChristine Bielecki,
Nicholas Black, Dr Tim Bowman, Simon Fowler, and Peter Hart for
makingmaterial availabletome, andMajor-GeneralDavidTyackeand
Lieutenant-ColonelR.J.Binksforcorrespondingwithmeaboutsomeof
theissuesdiscussedinthisbook.
ThestaffsoftheBedfordshireRecordOffice,theEssexRecordOffice,
theImperialWarMuseum(boththeDepartmentofDocumentsandthe
Sound Archive), the Public Record Office, the Liddell Hart Centre for
Military Archives at King’s College London, the National Army Mu-
seum, the Suffolk Record Office (Bury St Edmunds Branch) gave me
every possible assistance. Ian Hook and the staff of the Essex Regiment
Museum, and Kate Thaxton and her colleagues at the Royal Norfolk
Regiment Museum, not only allowed me to consult their archives, but
also supplied me with numerous cups of tea and biscuits while I did so.
Working in all of these institutions was a pleasure. For the fifth time,
ProfessorKeithNeilsonhasplacedmeinhisdebtbytakingthetimeand
troubletoreadadraftofmymanuscript,andtogivemethebenefitofhis
suggestions. Professor Richard Holmes also read the manuscript and
thus saved me from committing many solecisms. None of the above is
responsibleforwhatappearshere,butIamgratefultothemall.Ialone
am responsible for any errors of fact or interpretation. I am also most
gratefultomyeditorsatOxfordUniversityPress,AnneGellingandRuth
Parr,andtotheircolleaguesfortheirpatienceandassistance.
The following institutions and individuals have kindly given me per-
mission to quote from material to which they own the copyright: the
BedfordshireandLutonArchivesandRecordServices;theEssexRecord
Office; the Trustees of the Essex Regiment Museum; the Trustees of the
Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives, King’s College London; the
Trustees of the National Army Museum; the Trustees of the Royal
Norfolk Regiment Collection and Norfolk Museums and Archaeology
Service; the Department of Documents and the Department of Sound
Archives of the Imperial War Museum; the Suffolk Record Office, Bury
St Edmunds Branch; Mrs Lionel Baker; Mrs Elizabeth Fletcher;
vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Mr Douglas Gill; Mr H. Glasby; Mr Andrew Phillips, Secretary,
ColchesterRecalled;MrsRosemaryPhilips;MrLenWaller;MrDunkin
Wedd; Major Neil Wimberley. Lt.-Col. Miles Templer gave permission
formetoquotefromhisfather’slettertoColonelHamilton.Despitemy
best efforts I was unable to contact the holders of the copyrights to the
papersoftheEarlofCavan,Col.K.C.Weldon,E.Lye,andA.R.Gaskin.
I apologize to them and to anyone else whose copyright I have unwit-
tinglyinfringed.
Finally, this book is dedicated to my goddaughter, Elizabeth Anne
Russell,becausesheaskedforit.
D.F.
29August2004
Contents
Abbreviations viii
Introduction 1
1 TheCardwell–ChildersReformsandtheRe-creationofthe
RegimentalSystem 10
2 RecruitingfortheRegiments 31
3 BasicTraining 61
4 TheConstructionoftheIdeaof‘theRegiment’ 76
5 BarrackLife 99
6 TheLeadershipoftheRegimentalSystem:OfficersandNCOs 145
7 DeviancyandDisciplineintheRegimentalSystem 180
8 TheAuxiliaryRegiments 203
9 CiviliansandtheirRegiments 232
10 TheRegimentalSystemandtheBattlefield 259
11 TheCreationofthePost-modernRegimentalSystem,
c.1945–1970 290
Conclusion 334
Bibliography 353
Index 384
Abbreviations
ACI ArmyCouncilInstruction
Adj.-Gen. Adjutant-General
ASC ArmyServiceCorps
AWOL absentwithoutleave
BAOR BritishArmyoftheRhine
BSM BatterySergeant-Major
Capt. Captain
CB ConfinementtoBarracks
CCC ChurchillCollegeCambridge
CDS ChiefofDefenceStaff
CIGS ChiefoftheImperialGeneralStaff
C-in-C Commander-in-Chief
CO CommandingOfficer
Col. Colonel
CPGB CommunistPartyofGreatBritain
Cpl. Corporal
CQMS CompanyQuarter-MasterSergeant
CSM CompanySergeant-Major
DCGS DeputyChiefoftheGeneralStaff
DCIGS DeputyChiefoftheImperialGeneralStaff
DCLI DukeofCornwall’sLightInfantry
DGAMS DirectorGeneraloftheArmyMedicalServices
DGMT DirectorGeneralofMilitaryTraining
DGTA DirectorGeneraloftheTerritorialArmy
DMT DirectorofMilitaryTraining
DPS DirectorofPersonnelServices
DSD DirectorofStaffDuties
DTA DirectorTerritorialArmy
ECAB ExecutiveCommitteeoftheArmyBoard
ECAC ExecutiveCommitteeoftheArmyCouncil
ERM EssexRegimentMuseum
ERO EssexRecordOffice
Gen. General
GOC GeneralOfficerCommanding
GSO GeneralStaffOfficer
HQ Headquarters
ABBREVIATIONS ix
IWM ImperialWarMuseum
IWMSA ImperialWarMuseumSoundArchives
KR King’sRegulationsandOrdersfortheArmy
KRRC King’sRoyalRifleCorps
l/cpl. lance-corporal
LHCMA LiddellHartCentreforMilitaryArchives
Lt. Lieutenant
Lt.-Col. Lieutenant-Colonel
Lt.-Gen. Lieutenant-General
Maj. Major
Maj.-Gen. Major-General
MML ManualofMilitaryLaw
MOD MinistryofDefence
NAM NationalArmyMuseum
NCO non-commissionedofficer
PBI PoorBloodyInfantry
PRO PublicRecordOffice
PSC passedstaffcollege
PSI PermanentStaffInstructor
Pte. Private
PUS PermanentUnder-Secretary
QMG Quarter-MasterGeneral
QR Queen’sRegulationsandOrdersfortheArmy
RA RoyalArtillery
RAC RoyalArmouredCorps
RAEC RoyalArmyEducationCorps
RAMC RoyalArmyMedicalCorps
RAOC RoyalArmyOrdnanceCorps
RAPC RoyalArmyPayCorps
RASC RoyalArmyServiceCorps
RCS RoyalCorpsofSignals
RE RoyalEngineers
REME RoyalElectricalandMechanicalEngineers
RFA RoyalFieldArtillery
RGA RoyalGarrisonArtillery
RHA RoyalHorseArtillery
RMAS RoyalMilitaryAcademySandhurst
RNRM RoyalNorfolkRegimentMuseum
RQMS RegimentalQuartermasterSergeant
RSM RegimentalSergeant-Major
RTC RoyalTankCorps
RTR RoyalTankRegiment
RUR RoyalUlsterRifles