| Royal East Kent Yeomanry | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1794 – 20 August 1920 |
| Country |  Kingdom of Great Britain (1794–1800) United Kingdom (1801–present) |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Yeomanry Infantry |
| Size | Regiment Three Regiments (First World War) |
| Peacetime HQ | Canterbury |
| Motto(s) | "Liberty, Loyalty, Property" |
| Engagements | South Africa 1900–01 First World War |
The Royal East Kent Yeomanry was a British Army regiment formed in 1794. It saw action in the Second Boer War and the First World War.
The regiment was formed in 1794, originally as a series of independent troops based in the important towns of Kent, England, as part of the response to the French Revolutionary Wars. In 1830 George Finch-Hatton, 10th Earl of Winchilsea, was appointed as lieutenant-colonel in command. In the middle years of the 19th century, the regiment frequently provided escorts for Queen Victoria and members of the Royal Family, and as a result, in 1856 the East Kent Yeomanry became the Royal East Kent Regiment of Mounted Rifles and, in 1873, the Royal East Kent Mounted Rifles (The Duke of Connaught's Own). [1]
On 13 December 1899, the decision to allow volunteer forces serve in the Second Boer War was made. Due to the string of defeats during Black Week in December 1899, the British government realised they were going to need more troops than just the regular army, thus issuing a Royal Warrant on 24 December 1899. This warrant officially created the Imperial Yeomanry. The Royal Warrant asked standing Yeomanry regiments to provide service companies of approximately 115 men each. In addition to this, many British citizens (usually mid-upper class) volunteered to join the new regiment. [2]
The first contingent of recruits contained 550 officers, 10,371 men with 20 battalions and 4 companies, [3] which arrived in South Africa between February and April, 1900. [4] Upon arrival, the regiment was sent throughout the zone of operations. The Royal East Kent Yeomanry provided troops for the 33rd and 53rd (East Kent) Companies, in the 11th and 14th Battalions respectively. [5]
The Imperial Yeomanry was equipped and trained as Mounted infantry. This experiment was considered a success, and all the existing Yeomnary regiments were converted into IY in 1901, the East Kent unit becoming the Royal East Kent Imperial Yeomanry (Duke of Connaught's Own). When the Yeomanry were subsumed into the Territorial Force in 1908, the 'Imperial' part of the title was dropped. [6]
The regiment was based at St Peter's Lane in Canterbury at this time. [7]
| South Eastern Mounted Brigade |
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| Organisation on 4 August 1914 |
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In accordance with the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 ( 7 Edw. 7, c.9) which brought the Territorial Force into being, the TF was intended to be a home defence force for service during wartime and members could not be compelled to serve outside the country. However, on the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, many members volunteered for Imperial Service. Therefore, TF units were split in August and September 1914 into 1st Line (liable for overseas service) and 2nd Line (home service for those unable or unwilling to serve overseas) units. Later, a 3rd Line was formed to act as a reserve, providing trained replacements for the 1st and 2nd Line regiments. [9]
The 1st Line regiment was mobilised on 4 August 1914 at the outbreak of the First World War and was in the Canterbury area (under Second Army of Central Force [10] ) until September 1915. [11] It was dismounted and left Kent for Liverpool; on 24 September it boarded RMS Olympic and sailed the next day. It arrived at Lemnos on 1 October. The regiment landed in Gallipoli on 8 October and was attached to the 42nd (East Lancashire) Division. [12] On 30 December it was evacuated to Mudros with 42nd Division; it left the Division at Mudros on 2 January 1916. [13]
The brigade, with the regiment, was withdrawn to Egypt in February 1916 [14] and formed part of the Suez Canal Defences. On 22 February, South Eastern Mounted Brigade was absorbed into the 3rd Dismounted Brigade (along with the Eastern Mounted Brigade). [13] The brigade served as part of the Suez Canal Defences from 14 March to 26 July attached to 42nd (East Lancashire) Division; [13] it then joined the Western Frontier Force. [15] By the end of the year, it was back on the Suez. [16]
The brigade was with the Suez Canal Defences when, on 14 January 1917, Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) Order No. 26 instructed that the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Dismounted Brigades be reorganized as the 229th, 230th and 231st Brigades. [16] The brigade units were reorganized in January and February 1917. As a result, the 1/1st Royal East Kent Yeomanry was amalgamated with 1/1st Queen's Own West Kent Yeomanry at Sollum [17] on 1 February 1917 and redesignated 10th (Royal East Kent and West Kent Yeomanry) Battalion, Buffs (East Kent Regiment). [18]
On 23 February, the GOC EEF (Lt-Gen Sir A.J. Murray) sought permission from the War Office to form the 229th, 230th and 231st Brigades into a new division. The War Office granted permission and the new 74th (Yeomanry) Division started to form. The 230th Brigade joined the division at Deir el Balah between 9 and 13 April. [16] The battalion remained with 230th Brigade in 74th (Yeomanry) Division for the rest of the war. [19]
With the 74th Division, the battalion took part in the invasion of Palestine in 1917 and 1918. It fought in the Second and Third Battles of Gaza (including the capture of Beersheba and the Sheria Position). At the end of 1917, it took part in the capture and defence of Jerusalem and in March 1918 in the Battle of Tell 'Asur. On 3 April 1918, the Division was warned that it would move to France and by 30 April 1918 had completed embarkation at Alexandria. [16]
In May 1918, the battalion landed at Marseilles, France with 74th (Yeomanry) Division. It served in France and Flanders with the division for the rest of the war. By 18 May, the division had concentrated around Rue in the Abbeville area. Here the dismounted Yeomanry underwent training for service on the Western Front, particularly gas defence. [19]
On 14 July 1918 the Yeomanry Division went into the line for the first time, near Merville on the right of XI Corps. From September 1918, as part of III Corps of Fourth Army, it took part in the Hundred Days Offensive including the Second Battle of the Somme (Second Battle of Bapaume) and the Battles of the Hindenburg Line (Battle of Épehy). In October and November 1918 it took part in the Final Advance in Artois and Flanders. By the Armistice it was near Tournai, Belgium, still with 74th (Yeomanry) Division. [19]
With the end of the war, the troops of 74th Division were engaged in railway repair work and education was undertaken while demobilisation began. The division and its subformations were disbanded on 10 July 1919. [19]
The 2nd Line regiment was formed in 1914 and in 1915 was in 2/1st South Eastern Mounted Brigade. In September 1915 it was at Canterbury. [14] On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were ordered to be numbered in a single sequence; [20] the brigade was numbered as 14th Mounted Brigade and joined 4th Mounted Division, still at Canterbury. [14]
In July 1916, the regiment was converted to a cyclist unit in 7th Cyclist Brigade, 2nd Cyclist Division in the Manningtree area. In November 1916 the division was broken up and the regiment was merged with the 2/1st Queen's Own West Kent Yeomanry to form 9th (East Kent and West Kent) Yeomanry Cyclist Regiment in 3rd Cyclist Brigade in the Ipswich area. In March 1917 it resumed its identity as 2/1st Royal East Kent Yeomanry at Woodbridge, still in 3rd Cyclist Brigade. In April 1918, the regiment moved with its brigade to Ireland and was stationed in County Mayo; there was no further change before the end of the war. [14]
The 3rd Line regiment was formed in 1915 and in the summer it was affiliated to a Reserve Cavalry Regiment in Eastern Command. In the summer of 1916 it was dismounted and attached to the 3rd Line Groups of the Home Counties Division at Crowborough as its 1st Line was serving as infantry. The regiment was disbanded in early 1917 with personnel transferring to the 2nd Line regiment or to the 4th (Reserve) Battalion of the Buffs (East Kent Regiment) at Crowborough. [14]
Following the experience of the First World War, it was decided that only the fourteen most senior yeomanry regiments would be retained as horsed cavalry, [21] with the rest being transferred to other roles. [22] As a result, on 20 August 1920, the Royal East Kent (The Duke of Connaught's Own) Yeomanry (Mounted Rifles) [1] was amalgamated with the West Kent Yeomanry (Queen's Own) [23] to form the Kent Yeomanry and simultaneously re-roled as field artillery to form 6th (Kent) Army Brigade, RFA . [24]
The Royal East Kent Yeomanry (The Duke of Connaught's Own) (Mounted Rifles) was awarded the following battle honours: [1]
Somme 1918, Bapaume 1918, Hindenburg Line, Épehy, Pursuit to Mons, France and Flanders 1918, Gallipoli 1915, Egypt 1916–17, Gaza, Jerusalem, Tell 'Asur, Palestine 1917–18
Designated as Mounted Rifles from 1856, the regiment achieved the unique destination amongst Yeomanry units of wearing rifle green uniforms. By the early 1900s this full dress had evolved into a close copy of that worn by the 60th Rifles. As such it included dark green tunics with red facings plus rifle green overalls (tight fitting trousers) with black and scarlet stripes. All ranks wore black hussar style braiding across the tunic front. The headdress was a scarlet peaked cap with black band, instead of the astrakhan busby of infantry rifles regiments. [25] From 1903 to 1920 the Royal East Kent Yeomanry wore the standard khaki field dress of the British Army for training, active service and ordinary duties, with regimental insignia. [26]
The 74th (Yeomanry) Division was a Territorial Force infantry division formed in Palestine in early 1917 from three dismounted yeomanry brigades. It served in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of the First World War, mostly as part of XX Corps. In May 1918 it was sent to the Western Front where it remained until the end of the war.
The Norfolk Yeomanry was a volunteer cavalry (Yeomanry) regiment of Britain's Territorial Army accepted onto the establishment of the British Army in 1794. After seeing action in the Second Boer War, it served dismounted at Gallipoli, in Palestine and on the Western Front during the First World War. Between the wars it converted to the Royal Artillery (TA), and served as an anti-tank regiment in France, the Western Desert, Italy and North West Europe during the Second World War. After the war it served as a TA air defence unit and then as an Army Air Corps unit.
The 3rd County of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters) was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army. It was raised in 1901 from Second Boer War veterans of the Imperial Yeomanry. During the First World War it served dismounted at Gallipoli, was remounted to serve in Macedonia, Egypt and Palestine, before being converted to machine gunners for service on the Western Front. 2nd and 3rd Line units remained in the United Kingdom throughout.
The Cheshire Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment that can trace its history back to 1797 when Sir John Leicester of Tabley raised a county regiment of light cavalry in response to the growing fears of invasion from Napoleonic France. Its lineage is maintained by C Squadron, the Queen's Own Yeomanry.
The Shropshire Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1795, which served as a cavalry and dismounted infantry regiment in the First World War and as a cavalry and an artillery regiment in the Second World War. It was then amalgamated with the Shropshire Royal Horse Artillery.
The 3rd Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed on 6 March 1915 as the 2/2nd Mounted Division, a replacement/depot formation for the 2nd Mounted Division which was being sent abroad on active service. In March 1916, it was renumbered as the 3rd Mounted Division and in July 1916 as the 1st Mounted Division. In September 1917, the division was reorganized as a cyclist formation and redesignated as The Cyclist Division. It remained in the United Kingdom throughout the war and was disbanded in June 1919.
The 1st Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed in August 1914 for the home defence of the United Kingdom from four existing mounted brigades of the Territorial Force, each of three regiments of Yeomanry. The divisional order of battle changed often, as the 1st Line brigades left for service overseas and were replaced by 2nd Line formations. It was converted to the 1st Cyclist Division in July 1916, and was broken up in November 1916 without being involved in active service. It remained in East Anglia throughout its existence.
The Denbighshire Hussars was a Welsh Yeomanry regiment of the British Army formed in 1794. It saw service in the First World War before being converted into a unit of the Royal Artillery. The lineage has been continued by 398 Squadron, Royal Logistic Corps.
The Sussex Yeomanry is a yeomanry regiment of the British Army dating from 1794. It was initially formed when there was a threat of French invasion during the Napoleonic Wars. After being reformed in the Second Boer War, it served in the First World War and the Second World War, when it served in the East African Campaign and the Siege of Tobruk. The lineage is maintained by 1 Field Troop, 579 Field Squadron (EOD), part of 101 (London) Engineer Regiment (Volunteers).
The Lincolnshire Yeomanry was a volunteer cavalry unit of the British Army formed in 1794. It saw action in the Second Boer War and the First World War before being disbanded in 1920.
The Queen's Own West Kent Yeomanry was a British Army regiment formed in 1794. It served in the Second Boer War and the First World War. It amalgamated with the Royal East Kent Yeomanry to form the Kent Yeomanry in 1920.
The West Somerset Yeomanry was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army. First raised in 1794, it participated in the Second Boer War and World War I before being converted to an artillery regiment. It served in World War II. Post-war it was gradually reduced in strength until the yeomanry lineage of the successor unit was discontinued on 9 November 1988.
The Welsh Horse Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army that served in the First World War. The regiment was raised shortly after the outbreak of the war. Initially it served in East Anglia on anti-invasion duties, before being dismounted in 1915 and sent to take part in the Gallipoli Campaign. After withdrawal to Egypt, it was amalgamated with the 1/1st Montgomeryshire Yeomanry as the 25th Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers and served as such throughout the rest of the war. It took part in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in 1917 and 1918, before being transferred to the Western Front where it remained until the end of the war. The regiment formed 2nd and 3rd Lines in 1914, but these never left the United Kingdom before being disbanded in 1916 and early 1917, respectively. The 1st Line was disbanded in 1919.
The Royal North Devon Yeomanry was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army. First raised in 1798, it participated in the Second Boer War and the First World War before being amalgamated with the Royal 1st Devon Yeomanry in 1920 to form the Royal Devon Yeomanry.
The 231st Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars. In each case it was formed by redesignation of existing formations. In the First World War, it fought in Palestine and on the Western Front, while during the Second World War it served in the Allied invasion of Sicily, Italy and the Normandy landings of 6 June 1944.
The 2nd Dismounted Brigade was a formation of the British Army in the First World War. It was formed in Egypt in February 1916 by absorbing the Highland Mounted Brigade and the 2nd South Western Mounted Brigade. In October it absorbed the remnants of the 1st Dismounted Brigade. The brigade served as part of the Western Frontier Force and the Suez Canal Defences.
The 3rd Dismounted Brigade was a formation of the British Army in the First World War. It was formed in Egypt in February 1916 by absorbing the Eastern Mounted Brigade and the South Eastern Mounted Brigade. The brigade served as part of the Western Frontier Force and the Suez Canal Defences.
The British yeomanry during the First World War were part of the British Army reserve Territorial Force. Initially, in 1914, there were fifty-seven regiments and fourteen mounted brigades. Soon after the declaration of war, second and third line regiments were formed. However, the third line regiments were soon absorbed into the Cavalry Reserve Regiments, to supply replacements for the cavalry and yeomanry. Other horsed regiments in the British Army, during the war, were the regular cavalry regiments and the three regiments belonging to the special reserve: the North Irish Horse, the South Irish Horse and the King Edward's Horse. The senior yeomanry regiments could trace their origins back over 100 years; the oldest regiment, the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, had been formed in 1794. The most junior regiment, the Welsh Horse, had only been formed on 18 August 1914, after the start of the war.
The Royal 1st Devon Yeomanry was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army. First raised in 1794, it participated in the Second Boer War and the First World War before being amalgamated with the Royal North Devon Yeomanry in 1920 to form the Royal Devon Yeomanry.
The 17th Mounted Brigade previously known as the 2/1st Welsh Border Mounted Brigade was a 2nd Line yeomanry brigade of the British Army during the First World War. In July 1916 it was converted to a cyclist formation as 10th Cyclist Brigade and in November 1916 was redesignated as 6th Cyclist Brigade. It was still in existence, in Ireland, at the end of the war.
