A despatch rider (or dispatch) is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle (and occasionally in Egypt during World War I, on camels). [1]
In the UK 'despatch rider' is also a term used for a motorcycle courier.
Despatch riders were used by armed forces to deliver urgent orders and messages between headquarters and military units. They had a vital role at a time when telecommunications were limited and insecure. They were also used to deliver carrier pigeons.
In the British Army, motorcycle despatch riders were first used in World War I by the Royal Engineers Signal Service. When the War Department called for motorcyclists to volunteer with their machines for despatch work at the start of August 1914, the response was huge. [2] The London office had 2000 more applicants than places, and a similar response was reported in regional centres around the country. If a rider and machine were approved then £10 was paid immediately, £5 to be paid on discharge (unless due to misconduct), and pay was 35s per week. The motor cycle would be taken over at valuation price, or would be replaced with a new one at the close of operations. Enlistment was for one year or as long as the war might last. The preference was for 500cc single cylinder machines and the horizontally-opposed twin cylinder. All machines had to have a "change speed gear". The following list of spares was also required to be carried :
Recruitment was not just for the army; the Admiralty in Chatham bought 50 Triumphs in 1914 for despatch rider duties, and many unsuccessful applicants were accepted by Scotland Yard on different terms to patrol country districts and distribute royal proclamations. These bikes carried a plate on the front with the lettering "O.H.M.S.".
As the war progressed the wide variety of volunteered machinery presented maintenance and spares problems, and so were progressively replaced by a limited range of military models, and in specific regions of the world or parts of the service only one of these models might be found, for example the RAF (formerly the RFC) exclusively used P&M motorcycles by the later stages of the war (they also included female riders). [3]
In August 1914 it was reported that the despatch riders for the Belgian and Russian armies were equipped exclusively with F.N. motor cycles. [4] However, one month later the Belgian government ordered 50 3 hp Enfield motorcycles for despatch riders. At this time the French Army were still mobilising, but it was reported they had a squad of Triumphs as well as a variety of French makes. [2] Douglas supplied 100 machines to the Italian Government for despatch purposes in 1916, and by this time the French despatch riders were also using BSAs and Triumphs. [5]
The US Army entered the war in 1917, and their messengers were equipped principally with Indian and Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
A September 1914 account states that French despatch riders, like the British, are equipped with revolvers, whereas their German counterparts are equipped with Mausers. [6]
During World War II despatch riders were often referred to as Don Rs (from phonetic spelling for D in "DR") in Commonwealth forces. [7] In World War II, Royal Corps of Signals soldiers carried out the role and the Royal Signals Motorcycle Display Team was formed from their number. They were also used by the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy, where they maintained contact with land bases and some of the riders were members of the Women's Royal Naval Service. In the UK, Bletchley Park initially received transmissions from the listening stations (Y-stations) by despatch rider, but this was later switched to teleprinter transmission.
The British military often used Triumph, Norton, BSA, Matchless and Ariel for despatch riders, and although radio communications were much more advanced during WW II than WW I - huge numbers were produced (e.g. over 75,000 Norton 16H models).
The German army reintroduced despatch riders in 2019, equipped with the BMW F850GS, in order to be capable of communicating under heavy electronic warfare conditions. [8]
The Birmingham Small Arms Company Limited (BSA) was a major British industrial combine, a group of businesses manufacturing military and sporting firearms; bicycles; motorcycles; cars; buses and bodies; steel; iron castings; hand, power, and machine tools; coal cleaning and handling plants; sintered metals; and hard chrome process.
The Norton Motorcycle Company is a brand of motorcycles headquartered in Solihull, West Midlands,, England. For some years around 1990, the rights to use the name on motorcycles were owned by North American financiers. Currently it is owned by Indian motorcycle giant TVS Motor Company
Triumph Engineering Co Ltd was a British motorcycle manufacturing company, based originally in Coventry and then in Meriden. A new company, Triumph Motorcycles Ltd, based in Hinckley, gained the name rights after the end of the company in the 1980s and is now one of the world's major motorcycle manufacturers.
Royal Enfield was a brand name under which The Enfield Cycle Company Limited of Redditch, Worcestershire, England, sold motorcycles, bicycles, lawnmowers and stationary engines which it manufactured. Enfield Cycle Company also used the brand name "Enfield" without the "Royal". Later in 1994, Eicher Motors an Indian multinational automobile manufacturing company took over the company's full ownership.
The Scott Motorcycle Company was owned by Scott Motors (Saltaire) Limited, Saltaire, West Yorkshire, England and was a well-known producer of motorcycles and light engines for industry. Founded by Alfred Angas Scott in 1908 as the Scott Engineering Company in Bradford, Yorkshire, Scott motorcycles were produced until 1978.
Initially started in a rented workshop, Alfred moved the business to Hirstwood Works, Hirstwood Road, Saltaire. This building is still standing and has industrial use.
The Triumph Rocket III is a three-cylinder motorcycle made by Triumph Motorcycles Ltd. At 2,294 cc (140.0 cu in) it had the largest-displacement engine of any production motorcycle until 2019 when Triumph released the Triumph Rocket 3.
A motorcycle engine is an engine that powers a motorcycle. Motorcycle engines are typically two-stroke or four-stroke internal combustion engines, but other engine types, such as Wankels and electric motors, have been used.
The New Hudson Cycle Co. was originally started in 1890 by George Patterson, and manufactured 'safety' bicycles in Birmingham. In 1903 they produced their first motorcycle, but times became tough for Patterson after one of his sons died in WW1 and the other lost a leg. The family sold the factory to HJ Bructon after WW1, and in 1920 the company was reformed as New Hudson Ltd.
Associated Motor Cycles (AMC) was a British motorcycle manufacturer founded by the Collier brothers as a parent company for the Matchless and AJS motorcycle companies. It later absorbed Francis-Barnett, James, and Norton before incorporation into Norton-Villiers. Henry Herbert Collier founded Matchless as a cycle company in 1878. His sons Henry (Harry) and Charles (Charlie) joined him and the name was changed to H. Collier & Sons.
Blandford Camp is a military base comprising some 390 hectares of downland lying 2 miles north-east of Blandford Forum in the county of Dorset in southern England.
FN is a Belgian company established in 1889 to make arms and ammunition, and from 1901 to 1967 was also a motorcycle manufacturer. FN manufactured one of the world's first four-cylinder motorcycles, was famous for the use of shaft drive in all models from 1903 to 1923, achieved success in sprint and long-distance motorcycle racing, and after 1945, also in motocross.
The history of the motorcycle begins in the second half of the 19th century. Motorcycles are descended from the "safety bicycle," a bicycle with front and rear wheels of the same size and a pedal crank mechanism to drive the rear wheel. Despite some early landmarks in its development, the motorcycle lacks a rigid pedigree that can be traced back to a single idea or machine. Instead, the idea seems to have occurred to numerous engineers and inventors around Europe at around the same time.
The Matchless G3/L is a motorcycle developed for use by the British Army during the Second World War, when Matchless manufactured 80,000 G3 and G3/L models. The G3/L became one of the most popular motorcycles used during the war, as it was the first to replace the unforgiving "girder" front forks with a new technology, "Teledraulic" suspension. The Ministry of Defence continued to use the bikes into the 1960s.
The Vintage Motor Cycle Club (VMCC) is a UK-based vintage motorcycle club with over 10,000 members, which aims to promote and preserve all makes of motorcycles over 25 years old.
The BSA C15 was a 250 cc single-cylinder ohv motorcycle manufactured by the British company BSA from September 1958 until 1967, and was BSA's first four-stroke unit-construction bike. For most of that period, after the introduction of 'Learner Laws' in 1961, a 250 cc was the largest capacity solo machine that a learner could ride unaccompanied when displaying L-plates in the United Kingdom. A road-going Sports derivative was added in 1961, and off-road versions, for Trials and Scrambles, were also available in the range.
Marjorie Cottle was an English works supported motorcycle trials rider. She was one of Britain's best-known motorcyclists in the 1920s and 1930s. She competed regularly in reliability trials and was considered to be one of the best riders in the country, male or female. Her greatest success was the International Six Days Trial of 1927, in which the British Ladies' Team won the International Silver Vase. That year the trial was held in the Lake District, and attracted a large number of competitors. She was described as the "most famous girl rider in the world".
BSA motorcycles were made by the Birmingham Small Arms Company Limited (BSA), which was a major British industrial combine, a group of businesses manufacturing military and sporting firearms; bicycles; motorcycles; cars; buses and bodies; steel; iron castings; hand, power, and machine tools; coal cleaning and handling plants; sintered metals; and hard chrome process.
The BSA A10 series was a range of 646 cc (39.4 cu in) air-cooled parallel twin motorcycles designed by Bert Hopwood and produced by Birmingham Small Arms Company at Small Heath, Birmingham from 1950 to 1963. The series was succeeded by the A65 unit construction models.
The BSA B40 was a series of 350 cc (21 cu in) unit construction single-cylinder OHV four-stroke motorcycles made by the Birmingham Small Arms Company. Developed from the BSA C15, the machines were produced between 1961 and 1967 for civilian use. Military versions were manufactured from 1967 to 1970. Around 14,000 machines were built in total.
The Transatlantic Trophy was an annual series of motorcycle races between the United Kingdom and America held from 1971 to 1988 and again in 1991. They were mostly held over the Easter weekend at Brands Hatch, Mallory Park and Oulton Park, although some races were held at Donington Park and Snetterton. Three different specifications of motorcycles were used in the series at various times: AMA/F750, Superbike and GP.