The 7th Signals Regiment was a regiment of the Royal Corps of Signals within the

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 ...

. The unit and its predecessors supported 1st (British) Corps from 1911 until the end of the Cold War. Afterwards the regiment supported the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps until its disbandment in 2012.

Royal Engineers

When the

Electrical telegraph Electrical telegraphs were point-to-point text messaging systems, primarily used from the 1840s until the late 20th century. It was the first electrical telecommunications system and the most widely used of a number of early messaging systems ...

was brought into use by the

during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...

it became the responsibility of the Royal Engineers (RE). In 1884 the RE established a Telegraph Battalion, organised into two 'divisions', of which 2nd Division in London handled communications for the higher levels of command in conjunction with the General Post Office. In 1907 2nd Division was split into a number of separate companies, including 1st Airline and 1st Cable Companies at

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

. These merged in 1911 to form 'A' Signal Company at Aldershot to provide communications for

I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...

in the event of mobilisation of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF).Lord & Watson, pp. 36–9.

World War I

On the outbreak of war in August 1914, 'A' Company embarked for France as I Corps Signals as part of I Corps Troops, Royal Engineers. It consisted of K, L, G and M Sections, under the command of Major M.G.E. Bowman-Manifold as Assistant-Director of Signals.Becke, pp. 131–6.Nalder, p. 609.Watson & Rinaldi, p. 22. I Corps fought in the Battle of Mons and the subsequent retreat, the Battle of the Aisne and the

First Battle of Ypres The First Battle of Ypres (french: Première Bataille des Flandres; german: Erste Flandernschlacht – was a battle of the First World War, fought on the Western Front around Ypres, in West Flanders, Belgium. The battle was part of the Firs ...

. On 26 December 1914 the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of I Corps,

Sir Douglas Haig Field Marshal Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig, (; 19 June 1861 – 29 January 1928) was a senior officer of the British Army. During the First World War, he commanded the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) on the Western Front from late 1915 until ...

was promoted to command a new First Army and began to form his headquarters (HQ). I Corps Signals was split up to provide signals for both HQs. I Corps continued to serve with the BEF on the Western Front for the rest of the war, including the early battles of 1915, the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used poison gas and the first mass engagement of New Army units. Th ...

, the capture of

Vimy ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of ...

and

Hill 70 The Battle of Hill 70 took place in the First World War between the Canadian Corps and five divisions of the German 6th Army. The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France ...

, the German spring offensive and the Allied Hundred Days Offensive. On the outbreak of war an Airline Section had the following composition: * 1 Officer and 57 other ranks (ORs), 37 horses, 5 wagons, 1 car, 1 bicycle A Cable Section was composed as follows: * 1 Officer and 35 ORs, 30 horses, 4 wagons, 1 bicycle As the war progressed, horsedrawn airline sections were progressively replaced by motorised sections. Sub-units were moved between formations as required: by the end of the war L and M Cable Sections were serving with

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 ...

Lord & Watson, p. 234. and GHQ Italy respectively. At the

Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...

on 11 November 1918 I Corps Signals were organised as follows: * 'A' Corps Signal Company ** No 5 (Motor) Airline Section ** No 85 (Motor) Airline Section ** K and AN Cable Sections AN Cable Section had embarked for France on 3 December 1915, and most of the Motor Airline Sections during 1916. I Corps HQ and RE staff was disbanded shortly after the

Armistice with Germany The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...

, and I Corps Signals 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 ...

Royal Corps of Signals

'A' Corps Signals was reconstituted at Aldershot in 1923, now as part of the new Royal Corps of Signals, and was raised to a lieutenant-colonel's command the following year. Until Supplementary Reserve units were raised in the 1920s to take over, 'A' Corps Signals was also responsible for GHQ communications. In 1939, the organisation of Corps Signals was as follows:Lord & Watson, p. 262. * HQ * 1 Company - for construction ** 4 line-laying sections ** 1 line maintenance section * 2 Company – operating ** 3 operating sections ** 3 wireless sections ** 2 messenger sections (each of 1 Sergeant and 24 despatch riders) * 3 Company – corps artillery ** 1 section for each artillery regiment

World War II

Battle of France

In 1939 the unit went to France again with I Corps as part of the new British Expeditionary Force. After establishing defences along the French frontier during the

Phoney War The Phoney War (french: Drôle de guerre; german: Sitzkrieg) was an eight-month period at the start of World War II, during which there was only one limited military land operation on the Western Front, when French troops invaded Germa ...

period, the BEF advanced into Belgium in accordance with 'Plan D' initiated after the German offensive in the west opened on 10 May 1940. However, the German Army broke through the Ardennes to the east, forcing the BEF to withdraw again, and by 19 May the whole force was back across the

Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

and then went back to the so-called 'Canal Line'. By 26 May the BEF was cut off and the decision was made to evacuate it through Dunkirk (

Operation Dynamo Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

). I Corps acted as rearguard, forming a defensive perimeter around the port while the evacuation went on, the last troops that could be rescued leaving on 4 June.

Home defence

After the evacuation, I Corps was reassembled in Northern Command, becoming responsible for both field forces and coast defence artillery on the Yorkshire and Lincolnshire coast. In 1941 corps signal units were reorganised so that 1 Company supported Main HQ and 2 Company supported Rear HQ. In April 1942 a large part of I Corps Signals was used to reform No 1 Line of Communication Signals (later sent to North Africa in Operation Torch). I Corps Signals was restored to full strength in 1943 as the corps began training for the planned Allied invasion of Normandy ( Operation Overlord). By now corps signal units had disbanded their third company and divided its duties between signal troops assigned to individual artillery regiments and the new Army Groups Royal Artillery (AGRAs). At this point I Corps Signals HQ commanded the following units: I Corps

* I Corps Artillery Signal Section * 13 Cipher Section * 5 & 58 Despatch Rider Sections * 1 Line Maintenance Section * 41, 82, 91 Line Sections * 60 & 63 Operating Sections * 44 Signal Park * 108 Special Wireless Section * 43 Technical Maintenance Section * 10 HQ Section (with eight carrier pigeon lofts) *

Inns of Court Regiment The Inns of Court Regiment (ICR) was a British Army regiment that existed under that name between May 1932 and May 1961. However, the unit traces its lineage back much further, to at least 1584, and its name lives on today within 68 (Inns of Cour ...

Signal Section * 86 Field Regiment Signal Section * 62 Anti-Tank Regiment Signal Detachment * 102 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Signal Section * Light Aid Detachment, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers In 1944 corps signal regiments organised their sub-units into 1 & 2 Companies supporting Main HQ, a new 3 Company for line construction, and a new 4 Company supporting rear HQ.

Normandy

I Corps was an assault formation for

D Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

, attacking with 3rd Division at

Sword Beach Sword, commonly known as Sword Beach, was the code name given to one of the five main landing areas along the Normandy coast during the initial assault phase, Operation Neptune, of Operation Overlord. The Allied invasion of German-occupied Fr ...

and

3rd Canadian Division The 3rd Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for the command and mobilization of all army units in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, as well as all units extending westwards from th ...

at Juno Beach. Although the GOC, Lieutenant-General

John Crocker General Sir John Tredinnick Crocker, (4 January 1896 – 9 March 1963) was a senior British Army officer who fought in both world wars. He served as both a private soldier and a junior officer in the First World War, and as a distinguished br ...

, landed during the day to visit his divisions, I Corps HQ remained afloat on the HQ ship HMS ''Hilary'' to maintain good signal communications until D + 1. Having failed to seize Caen on D Day, I Corps was engaged in heavy fighting in the area for several weeks. After the liberation of Caen, the corps continued to hold the left flank of the bridgehead, supporting

Operation Goodwood Operation Goodwood was a British offensive during the Second World War, which took place between 18 and 20 July 1944 as part of the larger battle for Caen in Normandy, France. The objective of the operation was a limited attack to the south, ...

, and coming under First Canadian Army as the forces ashore were built up. It continued to support the left while the Canadians advanced on

Falaise Falaise may refer to: Places * Falaise, Ardennes, France * Falaise, Calvados, France ** The Falaise pocket was the site of a battle in the Second World War * La Falaise, in the Yvelines ''département'', France * The Falaise escarpment in Quebe ...

, and then advanced eastwards along the coast after the breakout from Normandy in late August.

Clearing the ports

First Canadian Army's' next task was to liberate the Channel ports and make them available to supply 21st Army Group. I Corps took

St Valery-en-Caux Saint-Valery-en-Caux (, literally ''Saint-Valery in Caux'') is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. The addition of an acute accent on the "e" (Valéry) is incorrect. Geography The town is loca ...

on 4 September and

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...

, in

Operation Astonia Operation Astonia was the codename for an Allied attack on the German-held Channel port of Le Havre in France, during the Second World War. The city had been declared a ''Festung'' (fortress) by Hitler, to be held to the last man. Fought from ...

, 10–12 September. It then moved on to Antwerp: the city had quickly fallen to 21st Army Group's advanced elements, but there was a prolonged campaign to clear the approaches to the port, after which I Corps held the line of the

River Maas The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a t ...

for the winter. In March 1945 21st Army Group stormed across the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

and advanced rapidly across Germany. I Corps' role was limited to liberating the Netherlands and securing the lines of communication for 21st Army Group.

Postwar

After

VE Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the official end of World War II in Europe in the Easter ...

I Corps took over administration of a very wide area of occupied Germany and the unit became 1st Corps District Signal Regiment of nine

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

s, including one composed of

Auxiliary Territorial Service The Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS; often pronounced as an acronym) was the women's branch of the British Army during the Second World War. It was formed on 9 September 1938, initially as a women's voluntary service, and existed until 1 Februa ...

(ATS) women, and two from captured ''

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

'' signal companies. The regiment disbanded in 1947. The regiment reformed in 1950 at Harewood Barracks at

Herford Herford (; nds, Hiarwede) is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the lowlands between the hill chains of the Wiehen Hills and the Teutoburg Forest. It is the capital of the district of Herford. Geography Geographic locat ...

in West Germany to support the newly-formed 1st (British) Corps in

British Army of the Rhine There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located ...

. Its initial organisation was HQ Squadron, with A. B. C1, C2, D1, D2, O1, O2, O3, P, Z1 and Z2 Troops. It moved to Maresfiedl Barracks in 1952. In 1956 the regiment (temporarily titled 2nd Corps Signal Rgt) provided a detachment for the Suez operation in 1956. The familiar name came in 1959 as the regiment adopted the title 7th (Corps) Signal Regiment By now was organised into seven squadrons, comprising over 1000 personnel, providing facilities for 1 (BR) Corps' Main HQ and 'Step Up' (intermediate) HQ. The corps had three divisional HQs and eight brigade HQs under its command, and also had to liaise with adjacent Dutch, Belgian, and West German Corps. The burden was such that in 1962 22 Signal Regiment was re-roled from air support to handle communications for 1 (BR) Corps' Rear HQ, the two regiments working together as the Communications Support Group. Plans to involve a third Signals regiment to provide a full regiment for each of Forward, Step-up and Rear HQs was abandoned in 1967; instead, both regiments were re-organised on a three-squadron basis. 7 Signal Rgt's 6 Sqn left in 1978 to become Bravo Troop in 1st Armoured Division HQ and Signal Regiment. After the end of the Cold War 1st British Corps was converted into a new multi-national Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC). As a result 7 Signals Rgt joined the new 1st Signal Brigade and became the main signals regiment for the ARRC. In September 1991 its 1 Squadron deployed to

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

to reinforce 1st Armoured Division HQ and Signal Rgt in the

1st Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

. In 2002 the regiment moved to Elmpt and officially joined the Multi-National Division Headquarters in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Eventually, in 2012 as a result of the Future Army Structure (Next Steps) the regiment was disbanded. The following was the structure of the regiment from 1993 until disbandment: * 229 (

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

) Signal Squadron * 230 ( Malaya) Signal Squadron – moved to

16 Signal Regiment The Royal Corps of Signals (often simply known as the Royal Signals – abbreviated to R SIGNALS or R SIGS) is one of the combat support arms of the British Army. Signals units are among the first into action, providing the battlefield communi ...

1994 * 231 Signal Squadron * 232 Signal Squadron

Commanding officers

Former commanding officers (COs) of the unit include the following: Assistant-Director of Signals, I Corps * Maj M.G.E. Bowman-Manifold, 5 August 1914Nalder, Appendix 3, p. 579. * Maj D.C. Jones, 20 March 1915 * Maj W.L DeM. Carey, 6 February 1916 (promoted to lt-col 20 November 1916) * Lt-Col E.F.W. Barker, 26 November 1916 * Lt-Col M.T. Porter, 30 December 1917 * Lt-Col H.G. Gilchrist, 12 December 1918 CO, 'A' Corps Signals * Maj H.A.B. Salmond, 1923 * Lt-Col R.M. Powell, DSO, 1924 * Lt-Col J.P.G. Worlledge, OBE, 1928 * Maj M.V.G. Fuge,

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

, 1929 * Lt-Col A.E. Meredith, MC, 1930 * Lt-Col R. Elsdale, OBE, MC, 1934 * Lt-Col M.V. Smelt, 1938 CO, 1st Corps Signals * Lt-Col M.V. Smelt, 1939 * Lt-Col R.H. Hooper, MBE, 1940 * Lt-Col F.S. Whiteway-Wilkinson, 1941 * Lt-Col R. Baron, OBE, TD, 1942 * Lt-Col R.W. Morgan, 1942 * Lt-Col A.F. Freeman, MC, 1944 CO, 1st Corps District Signal Regiment * Lt-Col D.N. Deakin, 1945 * Lt-Col A.S. Milner, OBE, 1946–47 CO 1st Corps Signal Regiment * Lt-Col G.D.B. MacKean, 1950 * Lt-Col P.E.M. Bradley, DSO, MBE, 1952 * Lt-Col F.P. Johnson, OBE, 1953

Insignia

In 1995 7 Signal Rgt adopted a regimental shoulder flash consisting of a white spear on a red diamond (the old I Corps formation sign) superimposed on a square of ARRC's colours of light blue, dark blue and green.

Alliances

In September 1972 the regiment was awarded the Freedom of the City of Herford and in 1997 of

Krefeld Krefeld ( , ; li, Krieëvel ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, i ...

, strengthening its ties with the western German areas. The unit had the following alliances: * -1st Divisional Signal Regiment,

Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals The Royal New Zealand Signals Corps (RNZSigs) provides, co-ordinates and operates the communications networks of the New Zealand Army. The role of RNZSigs is to support other Arms by providing Communication Information System required for Comman ...

* - 4th Troupes de Transmissions Battalion, Belgian Signal Battalion * - 51^e Régiment de Transmissions,

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

* - 310 Fernmeldebataillon, German Army * - 17th Signal Battalion,

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

Footnotes

Notes

References

* Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 4: The Army Council, GHQs, Armies, and Corps 1914–1918'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1944/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, .
Basil Collier, ''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Defence of the United Kingdom'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1957.
* Brig-Gen Sir James E. Edmonds, ''History of the Great War: Military Operations, France and Belgium, 1914'', Vol I, 3rd Edn, London: Macmillan,1933/Woking: Shearer, 1986, .
Maj L.F. Ellis, ''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The War in France and Flanders 1939–1940'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1954/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004.
* Cliff Lord & Graham Watson, ''Royal Corps of Signals: Unit Histories of the Corps (1920–2001) and its Antecedents'', Solihull: Helion, 2003, . * Maj-Gen R.F.H. Nalder, ''The Royal Corps of Signals: A History of its Antecedents and Developments (Circa 1800–1955)'', London: Royal Signals Institution, 1958. * Graham E. Watson & Richard A. Rinaldi, ''The Corps of Royal Engineers: Organization and Units 1889–2018'', Tiger Lily Books, 2018, {{ISBN, 978-171790180-4.

External sources

British Army units from 1945 on
Regiments of the Royal Corps of Signals Military units and formations established in 1959 Military units and formations disestablished in 2012