THE 3/4TH AND 4/4TH BATTALIONS AT HOME
At home 1915 and 1916 were two years of hard work in developing the
organisation of the Regiment to enable it to provide the reinforcements
necessary for the maintenance in the field of its overseas battalions.
Prior to the war the 4th London Regiment--like all other Territorial
formations--had no reserve cadre which was capable of being expanded
into a reserve unit on mobilisation; and when therefore the 2/4th
Battalion followed the 1/4th Battalion overseas in December 1914 the
need of providing means of "feeding" the fighting battalions with fresh
personnel became pressing. The records of the home battalions are
necessarily lacking in the exciting incidents with which those of the
service battalions are crowded; but they represent an enormous amount
of labour carried out under conditions of great difficulty, and as a
rule with very little recognition of their vital importance to the
continued existence of the Regiment during the War.
Reference has already been made in Chapter II to the steps taken
to raise a third line battalion under Major E. H. Stillwell on the
departure of the 2/4th Battalion for Malta. This new Battalion,
the 3/4th London Regiment, secured recruits rapidly, and, like its
predecessor, very quickly outgrew the limits of Headquarters at Hoxton.
It was therefore moved early in January to Littlegrove and Beech Hill,
the two houses at Barnet which had previously been occupied by the
battalion raised by Col. Dunfee. A slight stiffening of the ranks was
supplied by a few members of the overseas battalions who had received
a good deal of training with them but had been found medically unfit
to accompany them abroad; but the vast majority of the officers,
non-commissioned officers and men had but recently joined, most of
them without any previous experience of soldiering. No member of the
new Battalion, moreover, had seen service in the War, and the magnitude
of the task imposed on the officers and warrant officers of instilling
the rudiments of discipline into so unwieldy a mass of men was no light
one. The enthusiasm of the early days of the War, had, however, by no
means subsided, and all ranks worked with a will; and before long the
Battalion, now about 600 strong, began to find its feet.
On the 8th February 1915 Capt. P. S. Cookson (late Royal Sussex
Regiment) was appointed to command the Battalion with the temporary
rank of Lieut.-Col. with Major W. H. Hamilton as second in command, and
Major E. V. Wellby as Adjutant. The company commanders were Capts. A.
A. N. Hayne, S. W. J. Limpenny, E. D. Wilson and A. E. Wood.
The training facilities which had been extended to the 2/4th Battalion
by local residents at Barnet were accorded to the 3/4th Battalion also,
and the training of recruits under company arrangements proceeded as
rapidly as possible and as efficiently as the circumstances permitted.
No time indeed was to be lost for the 1/4th Londons were now in France,
and as already described began to suffer battle casualties early in
March 1915; so that it was clear that the 3/4th Battalion might at any
time be called upon to make up its deficiencies. Towards the end of
April it was in fact called on to supply the first reinforcement, and
accordingly despatched 2 officers and 50 other ranks who, as referred
to in Chapter IV, joined the 1/4th Londons in the Ypres Salient.
Third line battalions had also been formed by the other regiments of
the 1st London Brigade, and hitherto these had been distributed over
a wide area on the outskirts of London; but in the last week of April
the four new battalions were concentrated under canvas at Tadworth
(Surrey) as the 3/1st London Brigade, under the command of Col. H. C.
Cholmondely, C.B. The 3/4th Battalion joined the Brigade on the 26th
April.
On the 5th May the Adjutancy was taken over by Capt. E. E. Spicer with
Lieut S. H. Stedman as Assistant Adjutant, Major E. V. Wellby having
transferred to the 1st London Regiment.
Early in June 1915 a general reconstruction was effected in the reserve
and training cadres at home; and a number of fresh battalions were
formed composed largely of personnel who were not medically fit to
serve overseas. To this end a composite Battalion, known as the 100th
Provisional Battalion, was formed of officers, N.C.O.'s and men of the
3/1st London Brigade. On the 2nd June Capt. A. E. Wood, and 2/Lieuts.
E. J. Bennet and J. S. B. Gathergood and about 100 N.C.O.'s and men
left the 3/4th Battalion at Tadworth to join the 100th Provisional
Battalion which was stationed at Aldeburgh. On the same day Major W. H.
Hamilton was appointed to raise, equip and train a new Battalion, to be
known as the 4/4th London Regiment.
Concurrently with this development the 3/1st London Brigade moved from
Tadworth to billets at Bury St Edmunds. Here training was proceeded
with, and the battalions of the Brigade were again opened for
recruiting to make good the gaps in their ranks caused by the formation
of the Provisional Battalion.
In the following month a further move took place, and the 3/1st London
Brigade took over billets in Ipswich. A further step was now made in
the organisation of the Home Forces and towards the end of August
all personnel of the Provisional Battalion except "home-service" men
were returned to their units. The 2/2nd and 2/3rd London Infantry
Brigades had also been concentrated in the Ipswich area, and a new
Division--the 58th--was now formed as a Service Division; and the duty
of "draft-finding" for the whole Regiment henceforth devolved solely on
the 4/4th Battalion under Major Hamilton.
The composition of the 58th Division was as follows:
58TH (LONDON) DIVISION
Brig.-Gen. E. J. COOPER, C.B., M.V.O., D.S.O.
DIVISIONAL CAVALRY.
Hampshire Yeomanry (Carabineers).
ARTILLERY.
290th, 291st, 292nd, 293rd Brigades, R.F.A.
58th Division Ammunition Column.
ROYAL ENGINEERS.
2/1st Wessex}
2/2nd " } Field Companies.
1/5th London}
58th Divisional Signal Company.
173RD INFANTRY BRIGADE.
3/1st London Regiment}
3/2nd " " } (Royal Fusiliers).
3/3rd " " }
3/4th " " }
174TH INFANTRY BRIGADE.
2/5th London Regiment (London Rifle Brigade).
2/6th " " (Rifles).
2/7th " "
2/8th " " (Post Office Rifles).
175TH INFANTRY BRIGADE.
2/9th London Regiment (Queen Victoria Rifles).
2/10th " " (Hackney).
2/11th " " (Finsbury Rifles).
2/12th " " (Rangers).
1/1st Wessex Divisional Cyclists.
509th, 510th, 511th, 512th S. and T. Companies, A.S.C.
The duties of second in command were now taken by Major E. D. Wilson,
who continued to occupy this appointment for some months till he
was appointed to Brigade Staff and subsequently to Southern Command
Headquarters. He was succeeded as second in command by Capt. A. A. N.
Hayne.
The constant changes of station to which the 3/4th Battalion had
been subjected during its short existence had, as will be readily
appreciated, a somewhat deleterious effect on its training and
general discipline. Prolonged life in billets is, moreover, highly
unsuitable for young troops under training, and the general effect
of the Division's stay in Ipswich was not altogether beneficial. All
units were similarly affected. The dispatch of the Division overseas
was in consequence delayed, and the troops began to become stale with
"over-training." Throughout 1915 and the early months of 1916 this
unsatisfactory state of affairs continued, and the routine of training,
now become wearying through its monotonous repetition, was broken only
by the occasional passing excitement of air raids, of which the eastern
counties saw a good deal.
During February 1916, recruits called up under the "Derby" scheme to
the number of 359 were posted to the Battalion and their training
proceeded with all possible speed. Owing, however, to the need for
bringing them into line with the remainder of the Battalion in view
of the possibility of its being sent to the front during 1916, the
training of these men was expedited by temporarily attaching a part of
the Battalion to the 4/4th Battalion in order to ease the duties of the
training staff.
In June the billets in Ipswich were vacated, and the Division removed
to quarters under canvas at Blackrock Camp outside the town, where the
former routine was resumed.
In these somewhat unhappy circumstances we may leave the 3/4th
Battalion and return to trace the growth of the 4/4th Battalion which
had sprung from it at Tadworth a year previously.
The following officers accompanied Major Hamilton to Headquarters and
were posted to the 4/4th Battalion: Capt. and Adjt. W. G. Hayward,
Lieut. H. E. Miller, and 2/Lieuts. W. H. Vernon and H. J. M. Williams.
Hon. Lieut. J. S. Fullalove (late Devonshire Regiment) was appointed
Quartermaster, and Coy. Sergt.-Major Potton (late 1/4th Londons) to
be Regimental Sergt.-Major. The Commanding Officer was fortunate in
enlisting into the Battalion as Warrant Officers and senior N.C.O.'s
several ex-Guardsmen and members of the City Police Force, including
Coy. Sergt.-Majors H. W. Dennis and J. Pearson, and C.Q.M.-Sergts. A.
Reed and F. Milne. These experienced soldiers formed the nucleus of
what afterwards became a very fine staff of instructors.
The new Battalion shortly after its inception became the draft-finding
unit for the first and second line battalions in the field, and also
the unit by which wounded and invalided officers, N.C.O.'s and men
of the regiment from the front were re-equipped and passed through a
"refresher" course of training, pending their return to the front as
reinforcements.
The Battalion was accordingly organised in three Companies, A and B
(respectively under Capts. W. Moore and F. C. Grimwade) being for the
reception and training of recruits; and C (under Lieut. D. C. Cooke)
being the "expeditionary" Company, the personnel being all N.C.O.'s and
men returned from the B.E.F. Lieut. F. A. Coffin succeeded Capt Hayward
as Adjutant, the latter taking over the duties of President of the
Regimental Institutes.
Just previously to the formation of the Battalion the forces in the
field had suffered immense casualties at Ypres and on the Gallipoli
Peninsula; and the full weight of the German offensive on the Eastern
Front where the Russians were steadily giving ground was making itself
felt. Earl Kitchener had issued his second call for more men, and
recruiting was proceeding rapidly for all branches of the Service; and
within a month of its formation some 600 recruits had been posted to
the 4/4th Battalion, while the ranks of the Expeditionary Company were
rapidly swelling with returning casualties from Neuve Chapelle and
Ypres.
It being obviously impossible to cope with the task of dealing with
such great numbers in the cramped accommodation at Headquarters
arrangements were made for taking over the billets at New Barnet,
previously occupied by the 2/4th and 3/4th Battalions; and the
Battalion moved to its new quarters on the 12th July, Headquarters and
A Company being billeted at Littlegrove and B and C Companies at Beech
Hill.
A vigorous programme of training was at once put in hand, the work
being carried out at Folly Farm and, by the kindness of Sir Philip
Sassoon, in Trent Park. Through the generosity of the Club Committee
the full resources of the Enfield Rifle Club were again placed at the
disposal of the Battalion, and it is hard to overestimate the value of
the assistance rendered in the musketry training of the recruits by the
many public-spirited members of the Club who volunteered their services
as instructors.
Owing to the continued influx of recruits, the training companies
having now each a strength of about 380, it was necessary to take over
additional billets at Oakhill which were allotted to the Expeditionary
Company.
Early in August, almost before the recruit training was under way,
orders were received to prepare a draft of 400 other ranks to proceed,
at three days' notice, to Malta to join the 2/4th Battalion. After
considerable exertion the draft was equipped, fitted with khaki drill
uniforms and sun-helmets, and in due course proceeded to Southampton,
where it actually embarked on the transport. The orders for its
departure were, however, cancelled, and the draft returned to Barnet to
resume its training in the 4/4th Battalion, much to the disappointment
of the N.C.O.'s and men concerned.
The supplies of webbing equipment having proved inadequate, the troops
were now being provided with leather equipment of the 1915 pattern; and
were armed with the long pattern charger-loading Lee-Enfield rifle. At
this date the training of recruits proceeded under no efficient system
such as was evolved at a later date. No set period was allowed for
the preparation of the drafts, and very few facilities were provided
for improving or speeding-up training beyond such as emanated from
the brains of the officers and N.C.O.'s immediately concerned, with
the inevitable result that a good deal of unnecessary delay and a
certain lack of uniformity in the training ensued. Thanks, however, to
the devoted efforts of the instructors, the recruits soon passed the
initial stages and were passed as "trained" men on a syllabus which
included drill, musketry, marching, physical training and bayonet
fighting, entrenching, field work and the rudiments of bomb-throwing.
The first draft of N.C.O.'s and men supplied by the Battalion
consisting of 40 other ranks under Lieut. N. L. Thomas and 2/Lieuts. S.
Davis, J. W. Price and C. S. G. Blows proceeded to the Dardanelles to
join the 2/4th Battalion at the beginning of November 1915.
Recruiting had continued at a great speed during the months of
July, August and September, and the training companies had assumed
such unmanageable proportions that they were subdivided and a new
training company, C, under Major H. J. Duncan-Teape, was formed, the
Expeditionary Company being renamed D.
On the 29th August 1915 the Battalion was visited by the following
ex-officers of the Regiment:
Lieut.-Col. E. T. Rodney Wilde, V.D.
Lieut.-Col. Harry Dade, V.D.
Lieut.-Col. A. H. Lock, V.D.
Major P. Lynch, and
Major W. Stevens.
On this occasion Church Parade was held at Folly Farm, after which
the Battalion marched past the ex-officers, the salute being taken by
Lieut.-Col. Dade.
On the 13th November an inter-company relief took place, A Company
moving to Beech Hill, and its billets at Littlegrove being occupied by
B Company.
At Christmas 48 hours' leave was granted to every member of the
Battalion, two leave parties being formed for the purpose.
During this period the Reserve Battalions of the 1st London Division
were stationed in all parts of the Home Counties, and the supervision
of training by those responsible was naturally extremely difficult; and
it was consequently decided to bring together all these battalions into
one Divisional camp, the site selected being near Salisbury Plain.
The move to Salisbury took place in January 1916, the 4/4th Battalion
proceeding on the 11th to No. 7 Camp, Hurdcott (between Salisbury and
Shaftesbury), where it found itself for the first time in company with
the 4/1st, 4/2nd, and 4/3rd Battalions, the remainder of the Division
being quartered at Hurdcott and Fovant.
No troops of the 4th London Regiment were after this date quartered at
Barnet, but before finally saying farewell to this the first station
of so many hundreds of the members of the Regiment, we must once more
express the indebtedness of the Regiment not only to those gentlemen
who so generously afforded the Battalion the use of such excellent
training grounds, but also to Mr Kingwell and Mr W. H. Vernon, the
owners respectively of Beech Hill and Littlegrove, for the pains taken
by them to render these houses comfortable for the troops, and to
the many local residents who extended kindness and hospitality to the
Battalion, among whom Mr Eldred of Cockfosters must not be forgotten.
About this time the designation of the Battalion was changed to the 4th
(Reserve) Battalion London Regiment, a corresponding alteration being
made in the titles of the other 4th and 3rd line battalions of the
Division.
Major H. J. Duncan-Teape assumed the duties of second in command in
January 1916.
The immediate result of the move to Salisbury Plain was an immense
strengthening of the _esprit-de-corps_ of the Battalion which now found
itself for the first time together in one camp, and a considerable
increase of efficiency and improvement in discipline followed. The
Hurdcott camps were arranged on suitably designed principles with well
ventilated sleeping huts and roomy messing and recreation rooms which
contributed in no small degree to the comfort and physical welfare of
the troops. The 4th (Reserve) Battalion was, moreover, exceptionally
fortunate in becoming the possessor of an excellent training and sports
ground some 5 acres in extent. Work was immediately set in hand to
construct a bayonet fighting assault course and a bombing ground, and
considerable improvements were made in the practice trenches which had
been left in a half-completed condition by the former occupants of the
camp.
The 3rd line Division now came under the command of Col. Williams, C.B.
(late Somerset Light Infantry), who was succeeded in the command in May
by Col. S. H. Godman, D.S.O. (Scots Guards), whose kindly personality
will be held in grateful remembrance by all who came into personal
touch with him.
Voluntary recruiting had come almost to a standstill during the
preceding December, and the training of all the N.C.O.'s and men who
had joined the Battalion previously was now practically completed.
Numerous drafts had been sent out to the 1/4th Battalion in France, and
the activities of the training staff of the Battalion were therefore
somewhat restricted. But in March the whole of the training reserve
camps in England became veritable hives of activity; for in that month
the first groups of men enlisted under the "Derby" scheme of recruiting
were called up, and were posted to their respective home training
battalions.
The recruits allotted to the Regiment under this scheme were clothed
at Headquarters (though not equipped or armed) and drafted straight to
Hurdcott, and within the space of a week no fewer than 650 were posted
to the 4th (Reserve) Battalion. In the following week a party of 220
N.C.O.'s and men of the 3/4th Battalion were sent to the 4th (Reserve)
Battalion for the completion of their training, which was found on
examination to be in a variety of stages of advancement.
It will be readily appreciated that the sudden advent of so large a
body of totally untrained men strained the instructional facilities of
the Battalion to the utmost, and it was deemed advisable somewhat to
modify the system of training which had proved sufficient hitherto.
The recruits were posted to companies as usual, an extra company, E
(under Lieut. Miller), being now formed, but the company staffs assumed
responsibility only for clothing, equipment, messing, pay and other
administrative and disciplinary duties, the whole of the training
being entrusted to a specially selected staff of officers and N.C.O.
instructors, who were as far as possible relieved of company and
battalion duties. It is believed that the Battalions of the London
Reserve Division were among the first to adopt this system of coping
with the problem of draft-production which, in modified and improved
forms, gradually became recognised as the most efficient and was
generally adopted.
It should be understood that the brief description which follows of the
work of the Reserve Battalion is somewhat anticipatory. The scheme of
training which was in force in the last year of the War was obviously
not evolved in a day, but was the fruit of three years' experience. But
it is thought that the present is perhaps the most suitable juncture
for the inclusion in this history of these notes, as the period now
under review saw the inception of the great training scheme whereby the
country produced its citizen soldiers who fought the great battles of
1916, 1917 and 1918.
The system as originally evolved in the 4th Battalion was intended to
apply to "barrack-square" instruction in drill only, but as training
proceeded, it was found desirable not only to ensure uniformity of
instruction, but also for economy of instructors and the avoidance of
delay in the completion of training, to apply it to all branches of
training. "Specialist" officers and N.C.O.'s were therefore appointed
to take charge of each different subject of instruction, such as drill,
musketry, bombing, Lewis Gun, physical training and bayonet fighting,
entrenching and wiring, and "anti-gas" measures; the whole training
school being under the executive control of an "officer in charge of
training."
This development was made the more desirable inasmuch as the War Office
now was tightening up the whole system of training, in view of the
continued heavy casualties at the front which rendered necessary not
only the fullest and quickest possible development of the untrained
man-power of the Empire, but also the regular and rapid filling up of
deficiencies in the ranks of the fighting troops. Under the War Office
scheme (the wisdom of which is demonstrated by the fact that in broad
principle it remained unaltered until the Armistice, modification only
being found desirable in matters of detail) the period allowed for the
conversion of the recruit into a trained soldier was fourteen weeks.
This period was subdivided with considerable skill and foresight, the
first two weeks being occupied in completing the equipment of the
recruit, coupled with light drill and physical training, together
with lectures on a few general subjects with the object of gradually
settling him into his new conditions of life, and to allow for his
complete recovery from the effects of "anti-typhoid" inoculation. The
serious training of the recruit therefore lasted twelve weeks, which
in the 1st London (Reserve) Brigade were subdivided into two distinct
periods. The first of these concerned the "individual" training of the
recruit in the subjects to which reference has been made above, and
which lasted for ten weeks. It was proceeded with in accordance with
War Office instructions, which laid down the number of hours to be
devoted weekly to each subject. During this period also the recruit was
put through a special table of musketry practices on the open range,
and it concluded with a series of tests of individual proficiency in
each subject, the passing of which decided the recruit's claim to be
classed as a trained soldier.
Throughout these three months the training proceeded by platoons, each
platoon of recruits living, messing and working together, with the
object of impressing on them, from the earliest days of their service,
the importance of the platoon as a unit in action. The latter part of
the "individual" training period saw the sub-division of each platoon
into Lewis Gun and bombing sections, training being arranged for in
accordance with the particular requirements of each. The "individual"
training having been completed, the final fortnight was devoted to
platoon "combined training" in field work as a properly organised
platoon, the men working in full marching order, loaded to the weight
which they would be called upon to carry in the field. The physical
strain of the last fourteen days was undoubtedly considerable, but the
results attained by it were amply justified, not only from the point of
actual instruction imparted, but also from that of the highly important
question of selection of N.C.O.'s, for each section of the platoon in
"combined training" was in charge of a recruit N.C.O., the specialist
instructor being attached merely for the purpose of supervision.
On completion of this final and most interesting period in the
recruit's training, he proceeded on "draft-leave" for four clear days,
on return from which he was reported as ready to proceed overseas, was
medically inspected and finally fitted out; and as a rule his departure
overseas ensued within a few days.
Such was the course of life in a Reserve Battalion, and it will not
be disputed that the duties of an instructor were both multifarious
and exceedingly onerous, while the degree of personal application
and physical endurance which the recruit himself was called upon
to display was severe to a degree. Owing to the frequent changes of
personnel among the N.C.O. instructors, it is impossible to record
the names of all those who were in turn employed in this manner, but
it would be unjust not to acknowledge the splendid devotion of the
training staffs or to recognise with gratitude the extreme importance
of the rôle played by them in the War. Neither can we refrain from
remarking that, however complete the scheme of training, and however
efficient the instructors, it would have been nearly impossible to
carry it into effect in the short period allowed but for the intense
keenness and willingness to learn displayed by the vast majority of the
many thousands of recruits who were trained in accordance with it.
The instructors themselves were drawn entirely from N.C.O.'s who had
served with the 1st or 2nd line battalions overseas, and had either
been invalided to the United Kingdom or were sent home for six months
"on exchange." In order to avoid staleness no instructor who was fit
for overseas service was permitted to retain his appointment for more
than one year, at the end of which period he himself returned to the
front as a reinforcement, his place on the training staff being taken
by one more recently returned to England.
Officer instructors were selected and retained on a similar principle,
the period of appointment to the establishment of a training reserve
unit being (in the case of physical fitness for service overseas) a
maximum of six months.
The officers of the first training staff appointed in the 4th (Reserve)
Battalion were:
Capt. F. C. Grimwade, in charge of training.
2/Lieut. E. G. Dew, Assistant to Training Officer.
2/Lieut. A. G. Croll;} Musketry Instructors.
" G. H. Hetley}
2/Lieut. R. K. Caparn, Physical Training Instructor.
2/Lieut. L. A. Allen, Lewis Gun "
2/Lieut. L. C. Haycraft, Bombing and Anti-gas "
Signalling instruction was provided under Brigade arrangements, the
first Brigade Signalling Officer, 2/Lieut. R. C. Hunt, being supplied
by the 4th (Reserve) Battalion.
Early in February 1916 the 4th (Reserve) Battalion received a very
welcome reinforcement in the shape of 50 men of the Second Trinidad
Contingent, and the honour done to the Regiment in selecting it for the
training of this draft, representative of one of the smallest and yet
most ancient and loyal outposts of the Empire, was much appreciated.
About the same time four Trinidad officers, 2/Lieuts. L. Farfan, H.
Dow, R. L. Fabien and J. MacDonald, were gazetted to the Battalion. It
was rapidly realised that the difference of climate between the West
Indies and the snow-laden winds of the "Plain" was too severe, and it
became evident that this keen and efficient platoon must be transferred
to a more suitable environment. After about six weeks with the 4th
(Reserve) Battalion, therefore, they were sent to complete their
training with the 7th Royal Fusiliers at Falmouth and later attached to
the 3/4th Devonshire Regiment in India.
In April Major H. J. Duncan-Teape rejoined the 1/4th Battalion in
France, the duties of second in command being assumed by Major G. H. M.
Vine.
During May the Battalion was inspected by Col. S. H. Godman, D.S.O.,
commanding the Division, who presented C. S. M. Risley, D.C.M., with
his medal. The Battalion also received a visit from Lieut.-Col. E.
T. Rodney Wilde, V.D. At the end of May the Division was reviewed by
Field-Marshal Earl French, commanding the Home Forces.
Although the whole of the Battalions at Hurdcott and Fovant Camps
existed for the training of recruits and were in no way formations
which were likely to be sent overseas as units, they were included in
the scheme which had been prepared for the defence of Great Britain in
the event of an attempt at landing by the Germans.
This scheme provided for the maintenance of a permanent defence force
on the East Coast and at other points where it was deemed likely that
any attempt at invasion would be put into effect. In addition to this,
arrangements were made for the rapid concentration from other sources
of a mobile force for use, in the event of active operations taking
place, as a general reserve. To this general reserve the units of the
3rd line groups of the 1st London Division contributed a quota of
officers, N.C.O.'s and men varying from time to time with the numbers
of men who were sufficiently advanced in their course of training to
render their inclusion in the force useful.
During the period at Hurdcott frequent test concentrations took place,
in several instances the parade being followed by a test route march.
These parades were always attended by the platoons of the 4th (Reserve)
Battalion detailed for the time being to this duty and passed off
satisfactorily.
On the 2nd June 1916 Major W. H. Hamilton, who had commanded the
Battalion since its formation, was gazetted to the 4th Battalion Duke
of Cornwall's Light Infantry and almost immediately proceeded to join
his new Battalion at Meerut.[4] He was succeeded in temporary command
of the Battalion by Major G. H. M. Vine. On the occasion of Major
Hamilton's departure the troops testified to their appreciation of his
unfailing kindness and sympathy with all ranks throughout the period of
his command by lining the camp road and heartily cheering him as his
car passed down it.
[4] Major Hamilton remained with the 4th D.C.L.I. until the following
year when he was attached to the 4th Hants Regiment. With this
Battalion he proceeded to Mesopotamia and took part in the victorious
advance which culminated in the occupation of Baghdad. He was later
appointed to command the detachment of the Hants Regiment which
accompanied the gallant little force led by General Dunsterville to
endeavour to secure the oilfield of Baku on the Caspian Sea.
In the latter part of July command of the Battalion was assumed by Col.
Vickers Dunfee, Major Vine resuming the duties of second in command.
On the 1st July 1916 began the great series of battles on the Somme,
the Regiment's part in which will be described, and almost immediately
calls were made for drafts of all ranks to fill the very serious
gaps caused by the heavy casualties sustained by the 1/4th Battalion
during the battle of Gommecourt; and between this date and the middle
of October when the 56th Division was finally withdrawn from the
Somme battles a total of some 30 officers and 400 other ranks were
despatched. These very heavy calls naturally depleted the ranks of the
home Battalion very seriously and took nearly all the "Derby" recruits
who had joined in the previous March.
With the object, apparently, of effecting an ultimate economy in staff,
a reorganisation of considerable importance took place on the 1st
September 1916 among the whole of the 3rd line units of the Division.
So far as the Fusilier Brigade was concerned this took the form of
amalgamation of the four existing battalions into two, the 1st and
2nd Battalions becoming the 1st (Reserve) Battalion, and the 3rd and
4th Battalions becoming the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion. Each of these
new battalions for the time being retained a double establishment of
officers, warrant officers and N.C.O.'s and were organised in eight
companies till the despatch of personnel on draft permitted a reduction
to be made. The composite battalion was made responsible for the
provision of reinforcements and for the reception of ranks returned
from overseas for each of the two Regiments of which it was composed.
These amalgamations of necessity involved extensive repostings of
officers, in particular among those of senior rank. Command of the
new 3rd (Reserve) Battalion was assumed by Lieut.-Col. T. Montgomerie
Webb, formerly commanding the old 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Major G.
H. M. Vine being appointed second in command. The duties of Adjutant,
Quartermaster and Training Officer respectively were also assumed by
officers of the old 3rd (Reserve) Battalion (namely, Capt. McGlashan,
Capt. Coombe and Major H. Moore, M.C.), the officers who had previously
held the corresponding appointments in the old 4th (Reserve) Battalion
being posted as follows:--
Capt, F. A. Coffin (Adjt.) to Brigade Staff.
Lieut. Fullalove (Q.M.) to new 6th (Reserve) Battalion.
Capt. F. C. Grimwade (Training Officer) to command A Company new
3rd (Reserve) Battalion.
Col. Vickers Dunfee was appointed to command the new 1st (Reserve)
Battalion, an appointment which he retained until his demobilisation in
December 1918.
It must be confessed that the immediate result of this amalgamation,
involving as it did the extinction as a separate entity of the 4th
(Reserve) Battalion, was a heavy blow to the _esprit de corps_ of all
ranks, which was in the circumstances at least comprehensible. The rank
and file at a critical stage of their training came under the command
of officers and N.C.O. instructors who were unknown to them, while the
instructors of the old 4th (Reserve) Battalion experienced a natural
and very keen disappointment at not being permitted to complete the
task to which they had applied themselves with such devotion for many
weeks past.
A closer acquaintance with the new surroundings, however, resulted in
a gradual disappearance of these feelings of regret, and in due course
a new _esprit de corps_ and a closer bond of union between the two
Regiments concerned took their place. At the end of its existence in
November 1918 the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion had become an extremely happy
one, in which no sort of distinction existed between the 3rd and 4th
London Regiments, and each worked for the welfare of all.