York and Lancaster Regiment
York and Lancaster Regiment | |
---|---|
Volunteer and Territorial battalions Up to 12 hostilities-only battalions | |
Part of | Yorkshire Brigade |
Garrison/HQ | Pontefract Barracks, Pontefract |
Nickname(s) | The Tigers Cat and Cabbage Young and Lovelies |
Motto(s) | Honi soit qui mal y pense |
March | Quick: The York and Lancaster, The Jockey of York Slow: Regimental Slow March of the York and Lancaster |
Mascot(s) | Cat (unofficial) |
Commanders | |
Colonel of the Regiment | Herbert Plumer |
The York and Lancaster Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was created in the Childers Reforms of 1881 by the amalgamation of the 65th (2nd Yorkshire, North Riding) Regiment of Foot and the 84th (York and Lancaster) Regiment of Foot. The regiment saw service in many small conflicts and both World War I and World War II until 1968, when the regiment chose to be disbanded rather than amalgamated with another regiment, one of only two infantry regiments in the British Army to do so, with the other being the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles).
History
The regiment was formed on 1 July 1881 through the amalgamation of two regiments of foot and a militia regiment:[1]
- 65th (2nd Yorkshire) Regiment
- 84th (York and Lancaster) Regiment
- 3rd West York Light Infantry Militia (two battalions)
Under the original scheme of amalgamation announced in March 1881 the title of the new regiment was to be The Hallamshire Regiment.
Sudan, 1884
The 1st battalion of the new regiment had spent 11 years in India (as the 65th Reg) 1871–1882. They were moved to Aden to be held in reserve for the Egyptian Campaign. After 18 months, they shipped on the Serapis to Trinkitat, Sudan, arriving 28 February 1884. The next day they came under gun fire and made a bayonet charge, capturing two Krupp guns. Later that day seven were killed and 35 wounded at the
Second Boer War
The 1st battalion embarked for South Africa as part of the reinforcements for the Second Boer War in late 1899. It took part in the Relief of Ladysmith.[8]
Service in the Empire
Following the end of the war in South Africa in 1902, the 1st battalion was sent to British India, where it replaced the 2nd battalion in Mhow. The 2nd battalion returned home, for the first time since 1883.[9]
In 1908, the Volunteers and Militia were reorganised nationally, with the former becoming the
First World War
In total, 22 battalions of the regiment served during the Great War, losing 8,814 officers and men killed in action.[13]
The 22 battalions consisted of the two regular battalions, the depot battalion, six Territorial Force battalions, nine Service, two Reserve, one Transport and one Labour battalion. Of these battalions, 17 saw service overseas.[14]
During the Battle of the Somme, eight battalions of the Yorks and Lancs' went over the top on the first day, 1 July 1916, suffering huge casualties. Eleven battalions of the regiment fought during the Somme offensive.[14]
Regular Army
The
The
Territorial Force
The 1/4th (Hallamshire) Battalion and the 1/5th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 3rd West Riding Brigade in the West Riding Division in April 1915 for service on the Western Front.[15] The 2/4th (Hallamshire) Battalion and the 2/5th Battalion landed at Le Havre as part of the 187th Brigade in 62nd (2nd West Riding) Division in January 1917 also for service on the Western Front.[15]
New Armies
The 6th (Service) Battalion landed at Suvla Bay in Gallipoli as part of the 32nd Brigade in the 11th (Northern) Division; the battalion was evacuated in December 1915 and moved to Egypt before moving on to France in July 1916 for service on the Western Front.[15] The 7th (Service) Battalion (Pioneers) landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as pioneer battalion for the 17th (Northern) Division in July 1915 also for service on the Western Front.[15] The 8th and 9th (Service) Battalions landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 70th Brigade in the 23rd Division in August 1915 also for service on the Western Front and then moved to Italy in November 1917.[15] The 10th (Service) Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 63rd Brigade in the 21st Division in September 1915 also for service on the Western Front.[15]
The three Pals battalions, the 12th (Sheffield City) Battalion and the 13th and 14th Barnsley Battalions, landed in France as part of the 94th Brigade in the 31st Division in March 1916 for service on the Western Front.[15] They suffered particularly heavily during the Battle of the Somme.[14]
Second World War
Regular Army
The 1st Battalion was part of the
The
Territorial Army
The
The former 5th Battalion (Territorial Army), which had converted to anti-aircraft artillery in 1936, served in the
The 6th Battalion was a 2nd Line Territorial duplicate of the 4th Battalion, formed in 1939 when the TA was doubled in size. The battalion, part of the
Hostilities-only
Meanwhile, the 7th Battalion, which was raised in 1940, was in India (from December 1942), but served mainly on the
The 8th and 9th battalions, both raised in 1940, after being stationed in
The 10th Battalion was converted to tanks in India, becoming the 150th Regiment,
Post Second World War
Following the Second World War, the regiment saw service around the world, including participation in the Suez Crisis of 1956. With the reorganisation of the army in 1968, the York and Lancaster Regiment was one of two infantry regiments that chose to be disbanded rather than amalgamated with another regiment, the other regiment being the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles). However, although the 1st Battalion was disbanded in 1968, with the Regimental HQ closing in 1987, the traditions of the regiment were continued through the descendants of the Hallamshire Battalion, which was constituted as two companies in the Yorkshire Volunteers.[22]
On 6 June 2006, the platoon took its rightful place in the ORBAT of the newly formed 4th Battalion The
Regimental museum
The York and Lancaster Regimental Museum is based at
Battle honours
The regiment's battle honours were as follows:[12]
- combined battle honours of 65th Regiment and 84th Regiment1, plus:
- South Africa 1899–1902
- The Great War [22 battalions]: Gallipoli 1915, Egypt 1916
- The Second World War: Burma 1943–45
1. the honour "India" of the 84th Regt was modified to "India 1796–1819" in 1912 to differentiate it from the "India" Tiger badge of the 65th Regt
2. awarded 1909 for services of 65th Regiment
Victoria Cross awards
- 1st Battalion(29 September 1915)
- Private John Caffrey, 2nd Battalion (16 November 1915)
- Sergeant Frederick Charles Riggs, 6th (Service) Battalion (1 October 1918)
- Sergeant John Brunton Daykins, 2/4th Battalion (20 October 1918)
- Corporal John William Harper, Hallamshire Battalion (29 September 1944)
Affiliations
- Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal− 1968
- The Wellington Regiment (City of Wellington's Own) - 1913–1964[32]
- 7th Battalion (Hawke's Bay – City of Wellington's Own), Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment - 1964–1968
- 7th Battalion, Royal Malay Regiment − 1968
See also
- List of York and Lancaster Regiment battalions
- British 5th Infantry Division
- 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division
- British 70th Infantry Division
References
- ^ "No. 24992". The London Gazette. 1 July 1881. pp. 3300–3301.
- ^ "The Territorial Regiments". The Times. 7 March 1881. p. 13.
- ^ The regiment's Territorial Army battalion dropped its number and was known simply as the Hallamshire Battalion from 1924.
- ^ Raikes, George Alfred (1885). Roll of the officers of the York and Lancaster regiment. The Second Battalion. London: Richard Bentley and Son. p. xii-xv.
- ^ Mills, T F. "84th (York and Lancaster) Regiment of Foot". Regiments.org: Land Forces of Britain, The Empire and Commonwealth. Archived from the original on 9 January 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2011.
- Sir James Pulteney, Secretary at War, stating that "His Majesty has been pleased to order that the 84th Regiment of Foot... shall in future assume and bear the name of 'York and Lancaster' in addition to its present numerical title." Raikes, George Alfred (1885). Roll of the officers of the York and Lancaster regiment. The Second Battalion. London: Richard Bentley and Son. p. viii.
- ^ "Records on the 65th York and Lancaster Regiment". Wanganui Herald, New Zealand. 24 July 1884. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "York and Lancaster Regiment". Anglo-Boer War. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "Naval & Military intelligence - The Army in India". The Times. No. 36896. London. 11 October 1902. p. 12.
- ^ "Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 31 March 1908. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
- ^ These were the 3rd Battalion (Special Reserve), with the 4th (Hallamshire) Battalion at Endcliffe Hall in Sheffield and the 5th Battalion at Wharncliffe Street in Rotherham (since demolished) (both Territorial Force)
- ^ a b "York and Lancaster Regiment". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 8 January 2006. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "York and Lancaster Regiment History". Yorks and Lancs.org. Archived from the original on 2 July 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f "Regimental War Path". warpath.orbat.com. Archived from the original on 5 November 2006. Retrieved 5 October 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "York and Lancaster Regiment". Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "No. 29371". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 November 1915. p. 11449.
- ^ Wylly (1930). The York and Lancaster Regiment Volume 1.
- ^ Whatling, Frank Henry. "Frank Henry Whatling Memoirs". Great War Forum. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ^ "15 (North East) Brigade - A history" (PDF). Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ Dillon, John. "Battle of Crete, 1941". John Dillon. Archived from the original on 18 June 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2009.
- ^ Joslen, p. 267
- ^ a b Norton, Colonel I.G. "Yorkshire Volunteers". Yorkshire Volunteers Regimental Association. Retrieved 2 November 2009.
- ^ "67 (Yorks & Lancs) Heavy AA Regiment RA (TA)". Blue Yonder. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ Joslen, p. 324
- ^ "Units in Burma". Wolftree. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "51 Indian Infantry Brigade". Orders of Battle. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "53 Indian Infantry Brigade". Orders of Battle. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "Living conditions during the monsoon in the Arakan". Imperial War Museum. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ Forty, pp. 50–1.
- ^ "Yorkshire Regiment: Regimental Association". Ministry of Defence. Archived from the original on 27 March 2009. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ "York and Lancaster Regimental Museum". Clifton Park. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
- ^ "Defence Forces of New Zealand". Appendix to the Journal of the House of Representatives. 1913. p. 13.
Sources
- Forty, George (1998). British Army Handbook 1939–1945. Stoud: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 978-0753703328.
- Joslen, H. F. (2003) [1960]. Orders of Battle: Second World War, 1939–1945. Uckfield, East Sussex: Naval and Military Press. ISBN 978-1-84342-474-1.
Further reading
- Creighton-Williamson, Donald (1968). The York and Lancaster Regiment. Great Britain: Leo Cooper. ISBN 978-0850520002.