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Bantam (military)
A bantam, in British Army usage, was a soldier of below the army's minimum regulation height of . During the First World War, the British Army raised battalions in which the normal minimum height requirement for recruits was reduced from to . This enabled shorter but healthy young men to enlist. Bantam units enlisted from industrial and coal-mining areas where short stature was no sign of weakness. The name derives from the town of Bantam in Indonesia, from which a breed of small domestic fowl allegedly originated. Bantamweight was a weight category in boxing that had originated in the 1880s and had produced many notable boxers. The first "bantam battalions" were recruited in Birkenhead, Cheshire, after Alfred Bigland, MP, heard of a group of miners who, rejected from every recruiting office, had made their way to the town. One of the miners, rejected on account of his size, offered to fight any man there as proof of his suitability as a soldier, and six men were eventuall ...
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Bantams Recruiting Poster WWI
Bantam or Bantams may refer to: * Bantam (poultry), any small variety of fowl, usually of chicken or duck Businesses * Bantam Books, an American publishing house * Bantam Cider, an American cider company * Bantam Press, a British publishing imprint * American Bantam, a 1935 car company, formerly American Austin Car Company Military * Bantam (military), a soldier shorter than 5'3" in the First World War **143rd Battalion (British Columbia Bantams), CEF **216th Battalion (Bantams), CEF * Bantam (missile), a Swedish 1950s anti-tank missile * BAT Bantam, a British 1920s biplane fighter aircraft * Northrop X-4 Bantam, an American prototype small twinjet aircraft * Douglas A-4 Skyhawk light attack aircraft, nicknamed Bantam Bomber Places * Banten (town), also written as Bantam, a port town in Java, Indonesia ** Banten Sultanate, or Bantam, 1527–1813 ** Banten, current province of Indonesia on territory of the former sultanate * Bantam, Cocos (Keeling) Islands * Bantam, Connecticu ...
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Battle Of Arras (1917)
The Battle of Arras (also known as the Second Battle of Arras) was a British Empire, British offensive on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the First World War. From 9 April to 16 May 1917, British troops attacked German Empire, German defences near the French Third Republic, French city of Arras on the Western Front. The British achieved the longest advance since trench warfare had begun, surpassing the record set by the French Sixth Army (France), Sixth Army on 1 July 1916. The British advance slowed in the next few days and the German defence recovered. The battle became a costly stalemate for both sides and by the end of the battle, the British Third Army (United Kingdom), Third Army and the First Army (United Kingdom), First Army had suffered about 160,000 casualties and the German 6th Army (German Empire), 6th Army about 125,000. For much of the war, the opposing armies on the Western Front were at stalemate, with a continuous line of Trench warfare, tre ...
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Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military war effort and sacrifice of Britain and British Empire, its Empire during the First World War. The museum's remit has since expanded to include all conflicts in which British or Commonwealth forces have been involved since 1914. As of 2012, the museum aims "to provide for, and to encourage, the study and understanding of the history of modern war and 'wartime experience'." Originally housed in the Crystal Palace at Sydenham Hill, the museum opened to the public in 1920. In 1924, the museum moved to space in the Imperial Institute in South Kensington, and finally in 1936, the museum acquired a permanent home that was previously the Bethlem Royal Hospital in Southwark. The outbreak of the Second World War saw the museum expand both its coll ...
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216th Battalion (Bantams), CEF
The 216th (Bantams) Battalion, CEF was a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the unit began recruiting in early 1916 throughout Military District 2. After sailing to England in April 1917, the battalion was absorbed into the 3rd Reserve Battalion on April 29, 1917. The 216th (Bantams) Battalion, CEF had one Officer Commanding: Lieut-Col. F. L. Burton. The 216th Battalion is perpetuated by The Governor General's Horse Guards The Governor General's Horse Guards is an armoured reconnaissance regiment in the Primary Reserve of the Canadian Army. The regiment is part of 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group and is based in Toronto, Ontario. It is the most se .... References *Meek, John F. ''Over the Top! The Canadian Infantry in the First World War.'' Orangeville, Ont.: The Author, 1971. {{DEFAULTSORT:216th Battalion (Bantams), Cef Battalions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Military units and formation ...
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143rd Battalion (British Columbia Bantams), CEF
The 143rd (B.C. Bantams) Battalion, CEF was a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. Based in Victoria, British Columbia, the unit began recruiting in 1916 throughout Western Canada. Bantam units were organized to recruit men who were shorter than the standard height required for joining the army. By the time they were fully formed, however, only about half of the men were under that standard height as they could not find enough short men to enlist. The battalion had barracks at Beacon Hill Park and trained for the months of July through October 1916 at Sidney Camp. After sailing to England in February 1917, the battalion was absorbed into the 1st and 24th Reserve Battalions, and the Canadian Railway Troops The Corps of Canadian Railway Troops were part of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) during World War I. Although Canadian railway units had been arriving in France since August 1915, it was not until March 1917 that the units were plac ...
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Pen & Sword Books
Pen and Sword Books, also stylised as Pen & Sword, is a British publisher which specialises in printing and distributing books in both hardback and softback on military history, militaria and other niche subjects; factual non-fiction, primarily focused on the United Kingdom (UK). Pen and Sword has over 6,000 titles available in print, and also available as ebook download. Releasing 500 new titles each year on a variety of subjects, it is part of the ''Barnsley Chronicle'' newspaper group. History The first books produced by the company were in response to public demand, following a series of articles first published weekly in the ''Barnsley Chronicle''. ''Dark Peak Aircraft Wrecks'' told the story of crash sites in the Dark Peak area of the Peak District National Park, and a further weekly feature on the history of two Kitchener battalions, known as the Barnsley Pals, aroused a public interest. Over the years these books have been reprinted a number of times. Following on ...
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Conscription
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day under various names. The modern system of near-universal national conscription for young men dates to the French Revolution in the 1790s, where it became the basis of a very large and powerful military. Most European nations later copied the system in peacetime, so that men at a certain age would serve 1–8 years on active duty and then transfer to the reserve force. Conscription is controversial for a range of reasons, including conscientious objection to military engagements on religious or philosophical grounds; political objection, for example to service for a disliked government or unpopular war; sexism, in that historically men have been subject to the draft in the most cases; and ideological objection, for example, to a perceived vio ...
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Battle Of Cambrai (1917)
The Battle of Cambrai (Battle of Cambrai, 1917, First Battle of Cambrai and ''Schlacht von Cambrai'') was a British attack in the First World War, followed by the biggest German counter-attack against the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) since 1914. The town of Cambrai, in the département of Nord, in France, was an important supply centre for the German (known to the British as the Hindenburg Line) and capture of the town and the nearby Bourlon Ridge would threaten the rear of the German line to the north. Major General Henry Tudor, Commander, Royal Artillery (CRA), of the 9th (Scottish) Division, advocated the use of new artillery-infantry tactics on his sector of the front. During preparations, J. F. C. Fuller, a staff officer with the Tank Corps, looked for places to use tanks for raids. General Julian Byng, commander of the Third Army, decided to combine both plans. The French and British armies had used tanks en masse earlier in 1917, although to considerably less ef ...
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40th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)
The 40th Division was an infantry division of the British Army active during the First World War, where it served on the Western Front. It was a division of Lord Kitchener's New Army volunteers, mostly " bantam" recruits of below regulation height. It was later briefly reformed as a deception formation in the Second World War, and during the early years of the Cold War was recreated a third time to garrison Hong Kong. History First World War The 40th Division was originally formed as a Kitchener's Army ' Bantam' division between September and December 1915 for service in the First World War. 'Bantam' personnel were those who were under the Army regulation height but otherwise fit for service. It comprised the 119th, 120th, and 121st Brigades. The 40th Division moved to the Western Front in June 1916 and served there throughout the First World War. The most notable action of the division may be its participation in the Battle of Cambrai in late 1917. By 22 November the B ...
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35th Division (United Kingdom)
The 35th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army, raised during World War I as part of General Kitchener's fourth New Army. Its infantry was originally composed of Bantams, that is soldiers who would otherwise be excluded from service due to their short stature. The division served on the Western Front from early 1916, and was disbanded in 1919. History Formation and training Originally authorised by the War Office for the Fifth New Army (K5) as the 42nd Division in December 1914, it was renumbered as the 35th Division of the Fourth New Army in April 1915 when the original Fourth New Army formations were repurposed to provide training and replacements for the first three Armies. The Bantam experiment had begun in late 1914, with short but strong men recruited from labour-intensive industries. Sufficient numbers were raised for the infantry of a division and part of another (the 40th Division). Other units were not bantams; the artillery was raised locall ...
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Gloucestershire Regiment
The Gloucestershire Regiment, commonly referred to as the Glosters, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 until 1994. It traced its origins to Colonel Gibson's Regiment of Foot, which was raised in 1694 and later became the 28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot. The regiment was formed by the merger of the 28th Regiment with the 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot. It inherited the unique distinction in the British Army of wearing a badge on the back of its headdress as well as the front, a tradition that originated with the 28th Regiment after it fought in two ranks back to back at the Battle of Alexandria in 1801. At its formation the regiment comprised two regular, two militia and two volunteer battalions, and saw its first action during the Second Boer War. Before the First World War, the regiment's four auxiliary battalions were converted to three Territorial Force battalions and a Special Reserve battalion, and a further 18 battalio ...
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Cheshire Regiment
The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence of over 300 years. The regiment was expanded in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the linking of the 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment of Foot and the militia and rifle volunteers of Cheshire. The title 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment continued to be used within the regiment. On 1 September 2007, the Cheshire Regiment was merged with the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment (29th/45th Foot) and the Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's) to form a new large regiment, the Mercian Regiment, becoming the 1st Battalion, Mercian Regiment. History Early wars Following the 1688 Glorious Revolution and the exile of James II, Henry Howard, Duke of Norfolk, raised a regiment at Chester on behalf of the new regime. The experience of the 1638-1652 Wars of t ...
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