The Lancashire Hussars was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

unit originally formed in 1798. It saw action in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

, the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1969, the regiment reduced to a cadre and the Yeomanry lineage discontinued.

History

Formation and early history

The regiment was originally formed in 1798 as independent troops. It became the Lancashire Yeomanry Cavalry in 1828. After being disbanded in 1832, it was re-formed as the Lancashire Hussars in 1848. It went on to become the Lancashire Hussars Imperial Yeomanry in 1901 and the Lancashire Hussars Yeomanry in 1908.

Second Boer War

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 Black Week refers to the week of 10–17 December 1899 during the Second Boer War, when the British Army suffered three devastating defeats by the Boer Republics at the battles of Stormberg, Magersfontein and Colenso. In total, 2,776 British ...

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 Imperial Yeomanry was a volunteer mounted force of the British Army that mainly saw action during the Second Boer War. Created on 2 January 1900, the force was initially recruited from the middle classes and traditional yeomanry sources, but su ...

. 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. Together with the

Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry The Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry (DLOY) was a yeomanry unit of the British Army from 1798 to 1992. Originally raised as part-time cavalry for home defence and internal security, the regiment sent mounted infantry to serve in the Second Boer ...

the regiment co-sponsored the 23rd and 32nd (Lancashire) Companies, and the Hussars also sponsored the 77th (Manchester) Company, which served in the 8th Battalion, IY. The Imperial Yeomanry was equipped and trained as

Mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "Mounted rifles are half cavalry, mounted infantry merely specially m ...

. This experiment was considered a success, and all the existing Yeomanry regiments were converted into IY in 1901, the Hussars becoming the Lancashire Hussars Imperial Yeomanry. When the Yeomanry were subsumed into the

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry i ...

in 1908, the 'Imperial' part of the title was dropped. The regiment was based at Prince Albert Road in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

at this time (since demolished).

First World War

In accordance with the

Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 The Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 ('' 7 Edw. 7, c.9'') was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the auxiliary forces of the British Army by transferring existing Volunteer and Yeomanry units into a new Territori ...

('' 7 Edw. 7, c.9'') which brought the

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.

1/1st Lancashire Hussars

The 1/1st was formed in

in August 1914 and attached to the

Welsh Border Mounted Brigade The Welsh Border Mounted Brigade was a formation of the Territorial Force of the British Army, organised in 1908. After home defence service, it was posted to Egypt, where it was absorbed into the 4th Dismounted Brigade in March 1916. Formatio ...

. In 1915, the regiment was split up, the regimental headquarters and B Squadron joining the 31st Division and, after moving to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, being briefly attached to the

2nd Indian Cavalry Division The 2nd Indian Cavalry Division was a division of the British Indian Army formed at the outbreak of World War I. It served on the Western Front, being renamed as 5th Cavalry Division on 26 November 1916. In March 1918, the 5th Cavalry Divisio ...

. The rest of the regiment was attached to 35th Division, (C Squadron) and 30th Division, (D Squadron). The regiment was re-formed in May 1916 to form the

VIII Corps 8th Corps, Eighth Corps, or VIII Corps may refer to: * VIII Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars * VIII Army Corps (German Confederation) * VIII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Ar ...

Cavalry Regiment. In July 1917, the regiment was dismounted and dispatched for training as infantry. This was completed in September 1917, when the men joined a battalion of the King's, which was redesignated as the 18th (Lancashire Hussars Yeomanry) Battalion, the

King's (Liverpool) Regiment The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which we ...

2/1st Lancashire Hussars

The 2nd line regiment was formed in September 1914. By July 1915, it was under the command of the

2/1st Western Mounted Brigade The W21 was an hydrogen bomb design for the US military. It would have used the physics package of the TX-21 bomb. The TX-21 was a weaponized version of the "Shrimp" device tested in the Bravo shot of Operation Castle. A TX-21C was tested as the ...

(along with 2/1st Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry, and the

2/1st Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry The Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry was a Yeomanry Cavalry regiment of the British Army with its origins in 1798. The regiment provided troops for the Imperial Yeomanry during the Second Boer War and served on the Western Front in World War ...

) and in March 1916 was at

Cupar Cupar ( ; gd, Cùbar) is a town, former royal burgh and parish in Fife, Scotland. It lies between Dundee and Glenrothes. According to a 2011 population estimate, Cupar had a population around 9,000, making it the ninth-largest settlement in Fif ...

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

. On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were numbered in a single sequence and the brigade became 21st Mounted Brigade, still at Cupar under

Scottish Command Scottish Command or Army Headquarters Scotland (from 1972) is a command of the British Army. History Early history Great Britain was divided into military districts on the outbreak of war with France in 1793. The Scottish District was comman ...

. In July 1916 there was a major reorganisation of 2nd line yeomanry units in the UK. All but 12 regiments were converted to

cyclists Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of Bicycle, cycles for transport, recreation, Physical exercise, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", ...

and as a consequence the regiment was dismounted and the brigade converted to

14th Cyclist Brigade 14 (fourteen) is a natural number following 13 (number), 13 and preceding 15 (number), 15. In relation to the word "four" (4), 14 is spelled "fourteen". In mathematics * 14 is a composite number. * 14 is a square pyramidal number. * 14 is a s ...

. Further reorganisation in October and November 1916 saw the brigade redesignated as

10th Cyclist Brigade The 21st Mounted Brigade previously known as the 2/1st Western 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 Bicycle infantry, cyclist formation as 14th Cyclist ...

in October 1916, still at Cupar. The regiment moved to

St Andrews St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fou ...

in July 1917. By January 1918, 10th Cyclist Brigade had moved to

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

with the regiment at

Skegness Skegness ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, England. On the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, the town is east of Lincoln and north-east of Boston. With a population of 19,579 as of 2011, i ...

. About May 1918 the Brigade moved to Ireland and the regiment was stationed at Bandon and

Buttevant Buttevant ( or ''Ecclesia Tumulorum'' in the Latin) is a medieval market town, incorporated by charter of Edward III of England, Edward III, situated in North County Cork, Ireland. While there may be reason to suggest that the town may occup ...

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...

. There were no further changes before the end of the war.

3/1st Lancashire Hussars

The 3rd Line regiment was formed in 1915 and in the summer it was affiliated to a Reserve Cavalry Regiment at

The Curragh The Curragh ( ; ga, An Currach ) is a flat open plain of almost of common land in County Kildare. This area is well known for Irish horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is located on the edge of Kildare town, beside the f ...

. In the summer of 1916 it was affiliated to the

10th Reserve Cavalry Regiment Seventeen Cavalry Reserve Regiments were formed by the British Army on the outbreak of the Great War in August, 1914. These were affiliated with one or more active cavalry regiments, their purpose being to train replacement drafts for the active r ...

, also at The Curragh. It was absorbed by the 2nd Reserve Cavalry Regiment, still at The Curragh, in early 1917. By 1918 it had left the 2nd Reserve Cavalry Regiment when the 1st Line regiment was converted to infantry and joined 5th (Reserve) Battalion of the

King's (Liverpool Regiment) The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which were ...

Oswestry Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483 and A495 roads. The town was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...

Inter-War Years

In 1920, in common with many other Yeomanry regiments, the Lancashire Hussars were converted to a

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of t ...

(RFA) role and was redesignated as the 2nd (Lancashire) Army Brigade, RFA, at

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. In 1921, it was redesignated as the 106th (Lancashire Yeomanry) Brigade, RFA, and then when the RFA was subsumed into the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

(RA) in 1924, as the 106th (Lancashire Yeomanry) Field Brigade, RA, with HQ returning to

. It served as 'Army Troops' in 55th (West Lancashire) Divisional Area. In 1938 it was retitled as the 106th (Lancashire Yeomanry) Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery.Litchfield, pp. 129–30.

Second World War

106th (Lancashire Hussars) Regiment, RHA

At the start of the

, the hussars comprised 423rd and 424th Batteries, based in

. By November 1939, it was part of the UK-based 1st Cavalry Division and was equipped with 4.5 inch Howitzers (424 Bty) and 18 pdr Field Guns (423 Bty). In January 1940, the regiment moved to

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

. It moved to North Africa in August 1940, by which time 424 Bty had become No. 1 and No. 2 Batteries (Anti-tank) and 423 Bty had become No. 3 and No. 4 Batteries (Anti-aircraft), known as 1/106 Bty, 1/102, Bty, etc. The former two were equipped with

Bofors 37 mm The Bofors 37 mm anti-tank gun was an anti-tank gun designed by Swedish manufacturer Bofors in the early 1930s originally for Swedish use. It was exported to several countries during the 1930s of which several bought licences to produce it ...

anti-tank guns on Portees, and the latter two with captured Italian 20mm

Breda Model 35 The Breda 20/65 mod.35 (''"Breda 20 mm L/65 model 1935"''), also simply known as 20 mm Breda or Breda Model 35, among other variations, was an Italian anti-aircraft gun produced by the Società Italiana Ernesto Breda of Brescia company ...

AA/AT guns. Each new battery consisted of only two troops, A and B (No. 1 Bty), C and D (No. 2 Bty), E and F (No. 3 Bty) and G and H (No.4 Bty). It served with the 7th Armoured Division during many of the early battles in North Africa. At the end of February 1941, the regiment was advised that it was to become a Light Anti Aircraft (L.A.A) regiment of just three batteries (comprising 36 x 20mm Breda guns

Operation Lustre Operation Lustre was an action during the Second World War: the movement of British and other Allied troops (Australian, New Zealand and Polish) from Egypt to Greece in March and April 1941, in response to the failed Italian invasion and the loom ...

aid to Greece – file ref WO 106/3132) and was then later known as 106th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, RA (Lancashire Hussars). In March 1941, the regiment deployed to Greece via

as part of W Force. Upon disembarking at Piraeus, the regiment deployed to

Glyfada Glyfada ( el, Γλυφάδα, ) is a suburb in South Athens located in the Athens Riviera along the Athens coast. It is situated in the southern parts of the Athens' Urban Area. The area stretches from the foot of the Hymettus mountain to the Sar ...

for 2 weeks training. Thereafter, the regiment was sent to defend the airstrip at

Larissa Larissa (; el, Λάρισα, , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 144,651 according to the 2011 census. It is also capital of the Larissa regiona ...

. The German advance forced the British to retreat to the town of

Nauplion Nafplio ( ell, Ναύπλιο) is a coastal city located in the Peloponnese in Greece and it is the capital of the regional unit of Argolis and an important touristic destination. Founded in antiquity, the city became an important seaport in the ...

, where the 106th were the only AA defence. After destroying their Breda guns, the regiment was evacuated to Crete on board . Most of the regiment ended the campaign in the defence of Suda Bay in the

Battle of Crete The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...

, becoming prisoners of war in the process. It was placed in suspended animation in July the same year, with many of its men going to reinforce the 102nd (

Northumberland Hussars The Northumberland Hussars was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army, transferred to the Royal Artillery for the duration of the Second World War. It was disbanded as an independent Territorial Army unit in 1967, a time when the strength of t ...

) Regiment RA, which were being strengthened and re-equipped after being evacuated from Greece and Crete.

149th (Lancashire Hussars) Regiment, RHA

The regiment was converted to a field regiment on 1 June 1940. It was sent to Egypt in March 1941 and arrived there on 20 June 1941. It was converted to 149th Anti-Tank Regiment on 1 July 1941 at Mena Camp with 432nd, 433rd, ‘X’/432nd, and ‘Z’/433rd Batteries and 36 2-pounders. It was under command of BTE from July to November 1941. It entered Tobruk in November 1941 and fought at El Duda during the breakout through 9 December. It then served with 8th Army in the desert until 12 July 1942. In January 1942, Z/433rd Battery was retitled 513th Anti-Tank Battery. The regiment was converted to a field regiment on 30 May 1942 and X/432nd Battery was interspersed throughout the regiment. It was reconverted to an anti-tank regiment on 4 July 1942. It came under command of 5th Indian Infantry Division in Egypt from 12 July until 9 September 1942. ‘S’ Anti-Tank Battery joined on 24 September 1942. The regiment served under command of 4th Indian Infantry Division from 9 September 1942 until 31 August 1945. It was in North Africa until 8 September 1943, in Palestine until 16 October 1943, in Syria until 9 November 1943, in Egypt until 2 December 1943, at sea until 9 December 1943, in Italy until 10 December 1944 and then Greece. ‘S’ Battery was numbered 318th on 1 May 1943 and 320th Battery joined on being formed on 10 May 1943. 318th Battery left on 26 May 1943.

Postwar

When the TA was re-formed in 1947, the regiment was renamed the 306th (Lancashire Hussars) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, RA, before being amalgamated with the 390th (King's Own) LAA Regiment, RA in 1950. Later, in 1956, it became 'P' (Lancashire Hussars) Battery of 287th (1st West Lancashire) Medium Regiment, RA and, by 1967, it was just 'A' Troop (Lancashire Hussars), P (1st West Lancashire) Battery, The West Lancashire Regiment, RA (Territorial). In 1969, the regiment was reduced to a

cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...

(absorbed into 208 (3rd West Lancashire) Battery of 103 (Lancashire Artillery Volunteers) Regiment Royal Artillery in 1973) and the Yeomanry lineage discontinued.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * Norman E.H. Litchfield, ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, . * * * ''Titles and Designations of Formations and Units of the Territorial Army'', London: War Office, 7 November 1927 (RA sections also summarised in Litchfield, Appendix IV).

External links

Land Forces of Britain, the Empire and Commonwealth – Regiments.org (archive site)

The Long, Long Trail

Desert Rat escaped PoW camp three times

The 106th (Lancashire Hussars) of Shaw Street remembered

{{Royal Horse Artillery Yeomanry regiments of the British Army Yeomanry regiments of the British Army in World War I Military units and formations in Lancashire Military units and formations in Liverpool Military units and formations established in 1798 1798 establishments in Great Britain Regiments of the British Army in World War II