The 7th Royal Lancashire Militia (Rifles) (7th RLM) was an auxiliary regiment raised in the county of

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...

just before 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 de ...

. It later became part of the

Lancashire Fusiliers The Lancashire Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that saw distinguished service through many years and wars, including the Second Boer War, the First and Second World Wars, and had many different titles throughout its 28 ...

. Although primarily intended for home defence, its battalions saw active service during 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 ...

. Following conversion to the

Special Reserve The Special Reserve was established on 1 April 1908 with the function of maintaining a reservoir of manpower for the British Army and training replacement drafts in times of war. Its formation was part of the Haldane Reforms, military reforms im ...

(SR) under the

Haldane Reforms The Haldane Reforms were a series of far-ranging reforms of the British Army made from 1906 to 1912, and named after the Secretary of State for War, Richard Burdon Haldane. They were the first major reforms since the " Childers Reforms" of the ...

it supplied reinforcements to the fighting battalions during

World War I 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 ...

. After a shadowy postwar existence the unit was finally disbanded in 1953.

Background

The universal obligation to military service in the

Shire levy A shire levy was a means of military recruitment in medieval England and Scotland. As opposed to a levy of noble families, a shire levy was effected within a geographical administrative area (a shire), entailing the mobilisation of able-bodied men ...

was long established in England and its legal basis was updated by two Acts of 1557, which placed selected men, the '

Trained Bands Trained Bands were companies of part-time militia in England and Wales. Organised by county, they were supposed to drill on a regular basis, although this was rarely the case in practice. The regular army was formed from the Trained Bands in the ev ...

', under the command of Lords Lieutenant appointed by the monarch. This is seen as the starting date for the organised county militia in England. It was an important element in the country's defence at the time of the

Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (a.k.a. the Enterprise of England, es, Grande y Felicísima Armada, links=no, lit=Great and Most Fortunate Navy) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an aris ...

in the 1580s, and control of the militia was one of the areas of dispute between King Charles I and

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

that led to the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

. The English Militia was re-established under local control in 1662 after the Restoration of the monarchy, and the Lancashire Militia fought in King William III's campaign in Ireland in 1690–91, and against the Jacobite Risings in

1715 Events For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire i ...

and

1745 Events January–March * January 7 – War of the Austrian Succession: The Austrian Army, under the command of Field Marshal Károly József Batthyány, makes a surprise attack at Amberg and the winter quarters of the Bavaria ...

. However, between periods of national emergency the militia was regularly allowed to decline.Grierson, pp. 6–7.LRO, ''Handlist 72''.
/ref>Militia at Museum of the Manchester Regiment.
/ref> Under threat of French invasion during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

a series of Militia Acts from 1757 reorganised the county militia regiments, the men being conscripted by means of parish ballots (paid substitutes were permitted) to serve for three years. In peacetime they assembled for 28 days' annual training. Lancashire's quota was one regiment, which received the title Royal Lancashire Militia in 1761.Frederick, p. 119.Holmes, pp. 94–100. These reformed regiments were 'embodied' for permanent service in home defence during the Seven Years' War, the

War of American Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, the

French Revolutionary War The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

and the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

. By 1800 the Royal Lancashire Militia had expanded to three regiments. During the French wars, the militia were embodied for a whole generation, and became regiments of full-time professional soldiers (though restricted to service in the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

), which the regular army increasingly saw as a prime source of recruits. They served in coast defences, manning garrisons, guarding prisoners of war, and for internal security, such as the time of the

Luddite The Luddites were a secret oath-based organisation of English textile workers in the 19th century who formed a radical faction which destroyed textile machinery. The group is believed to have taken its name from Ned Ludd, a legendary weaver s ...

disturbances. However, in the years of the long peace after the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

the militia was allowed to decline again, the ballot and annual training being suspended.

7th Royal Lancashire Militia (Rifles)

The long-standing

Militia of the United Kingdom The Militia of the United Kingdom were the military reserve forces of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Union in 1801 of the former Kingdom of Great Britain and Kingdom of Ireland. The militia was transformed into the Speci ...

was revived by the Militia Act of 1852, enacted during a period of international tension. As before, units were raised and administered on a county basis, and filled by voluntary enlistment (although conscription by means of the militia ballot might be used if the counties failed to meet their quotas). Training was for 56 days on enlistment, then for 21–28 days per year, during which the men received full army pay. Under the Act, militia units could be embodied by Royal Proclamation for full-time service in three circumstances:Dunlop, pp. 42–52. * 1. 'Whenever a state of war exists between Her Majesty and any foreign power'. * 2. 'In all cases of invasion or upon imminent danger thereof'. * 3. 'In all cases of rebellion or insurrection'. With the threat of war against Russia, the three Lancashire regiments were ordered to recruit up to their full establishments of 1200 men. When war broke out in 1854 an expeditionary force was sent to the

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

and the militia were embodied for home defence and service in overseas garrisons. Additional infantry and artillery militia regiments were also formed in Lancashire at this time including the 7th Lancashire Militia (Rifles) raised at

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

on 21 February 1855.Frederick, p. 290.Hay, pp. 299–302. The Hon Charles James Fox Stanley, younger son of the

Earl of Derby Earl of Derby ( ) is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby, under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the end ...

and a former

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

in the

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

, was commissioned as

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

of the new regiment, with John Edward Madocks, former

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the

13th Light Dragoons The 13th Hussars (previously the 13th Light Dragoons) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army established in 1715. It saw service for three centuries including the Napoleonic Wars, the Crimean War and the First World War but then amalgamated w ...

, as Lieutenant-Colonel Commandant and John Hardy Thursby, former

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

in the

90th Foot The 90th Perthshire Light Infantry was a Scottish light infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1794. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 26th (Cameronian) Regiment of Foot to form the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in ...

, as the senior

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

.''Hart's'', various dates.''Army List'', various dates.Parkyn.
/ref> The seven militia infantry regiments in Lancashire divided the county up, with the 7th at Bury recruiting from the

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 ...

and

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

area. The newly raised regiment was not embodied for the Crimean War but began the round of peacetime annual training. On 15 November 1864 it received the 'Royal' title held by the senior Lancashire regiments, becoming the 7th Royal Lancashire Militia (Rifles) (7th RLM). The Militia Reserve introduced in 1867 consisted of present and former militiamen who undertook to serve overseas in case of war.Spiers, ''Late Victorian Army'', pp. 97, 102, 126–7.

Cardwell reforms

Under the 'Localisation of the Forces' scheme introduced by the

Cardwell Reforms The Cardwell Reforms were a series of reforms of the British Army undertaken by Secretary of State for War Edward Cardwell between 1868 and 1874 with the support of Liberal prime minister William Ewart Gladstone. Gladstone paid little attention ...

of 1872, Militia regiments were brigaded with regular and Volunteer battalions in a regimental district sharing a permanent depot at a suitable county town. Seven double-battalion or paired single-battalion regular regiments were assigned to Lancashire, and each was linked with one of the militia regiments. The militia now came under the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

rather than their county lords lieutenant, and officers' commissions were signed by the Queen. The 7th RLM was linked with the double-battalion

20th (East Devonshire) Regiment of Foot The Lancashire Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that saw distinguished service through many years and wars, including the Second Boer War, the First and Second World Wars, and had many different titles throughout its 280 ...

in Sub-District No 17 (Lancashire), with the depot at Wellington Barracks, Bury. The intention was for the 7th RLM to form its own 2nd Battalion, but this did not happen for a number of years. Although often referred to as brigades, the regimental districts were purely administrative organisations, but in a continuation of the Cardwell Reforms a mobilisation scheme began to appear in the ''Army List'' from December 1875. This assigned regular and militia units to places in an order of battle of corps, divisions and brigades for the 'Active Army', even though these formations were entirely theoretical, with no staff or services assigned. The 5th, 6th and 7th Royal Lancashire Militia formed 2nd Brigade of 3rd Division,

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 ...

Melrose, Scottish Borders Melrose ( gd, Maolros, "bald moor") is a small town and civil parish in the Scottish Borders, historically in Roxburghshire. It lies within the Eildon committee area of Scottish Borders Council. History The original Melrose was ''Mailros'', mean ...

3rd and 4th Battalions, Lancashire Fusiliers

The

Childers Reforms The Childers Reforms of 1881 reorganised the infantry regiments of the British Army. The reforms were done by Secretary of State for War Hugh Childers during 1881, and were a continuation of the earlier Cardwell Reforms. The reorganisation was ...

completed the Cardwell process by incorporating the militia battalions into the expanded county regiments. On 1 July 1881 the 20th Foot became the

at Bury with the 7th RLM as its 3rd Battalion. The second militia battalion was finally formed as the 4th Battalion on 1 April 1891, the 3rd and 4th being administered as a double-battalion regiment until 1 August 1900. In April 1898 the Lancashire Fusiliers began forming two additional regular battalions, which took the 3rd and 4th places, causing the militia to be renumbered 5th and 6th Battalions.

Second Boer War

After the disasters of

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 ...

at the start of the

in December 1899, most of the regular army was sent to South Africa, followed by many militia reservists as reinforcements. Militia units were embodied to replace them for home defence and a number volunteered for active service or to garrison overseas stations. The 6th Battalion was one of the first militia units embodied, on 13 December 1899, and immediately volunteered for overseas service, embarking for South Africa with a strength of 20 officers and 659 ORs under the command of Lt-Col F.C. Romer. On arrival at

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

on 7 March 1900 its orders for

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, a ...

were countermanded and it was sent to the

Orange River Colony The Orange River Colony was the British colony created after Britain first occupied (1900) and then annexed (1902) the independent Orange Free State in the Second Boer War. The colony ceased to exist in 1910, when it was absorbed into the Unio ...

where a Boer resurgence was threatened. Detachments from the battalion guarded the

Orange River The Orange River (from Afrikaans/Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibia to the north ...

bridge on the Kimberley railway and numerous other posts, including Christiana. These detachments were engaged in constant patrolling and convoy escort, and skirmishes with the Boers were frequent. The Christiana detachment was there for over a year, with shots exchanged every day and 19 separate minor engagements recorded. On 25 November 1900 the main body of 6th Battalion was ordered to join Maj-Gen Henry Settle's column operating against

J.B.M. Hertzog General James Barry Munnik Hertzog (3 April 1866 – 21 November 1942), better known as Barry Hertzog or J. B. M. Hertzog, was a South African politician and soldier. He was a Boer general during the Second Boer War who served ...

Commando Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin">40_Commando.html" ;"title="Royal Marines from 40 Commando">Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin area of Afghanistan are pictured A commando is a combatant, or operativ ...

. On 28 November the column attacked Hertzog who was holding a strong position at

Luckhoff Lückhoff is a small merino sheep farming town in the Free State province of South Africa. It was established on the farm Koffiekuil in 1892 and named after a Dutch Reformed Church minister Reverend HJ Luckhoff. Nowadays the bulk of the sheep f ...

, deployed along a semi-circle of

Kopje An inselberg or monadnock () is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. In Southern Africa a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie, a ...

s. The Boers held on for five hours under artillery fire. They were then cleared from their position by the 6th Lancashire Fusiliers at the point of the bayonet, a rare example of offensive action by militia, who were usually relegated to garrison and escort duties. On 7 January 1901 the battalion took over the Carnarvon district, where it was actively involved in patrolling, escorting guns and convoys, and in operations against Commandant Maritz's Commando. On 26 July the battalion was moved to Hanover Road and later to

Beaufort West Beaufort West (Afrikaans: ''Beaufort-Wes''; Xhosa: ''eBhofolo'') is a town in the Western Cape province in South Africa. It is the largest town in the arid Great Karoo region, and is known as the "Capital of the Karoo". It forms part of the Beauf ...

, providing detachments to build defensive posts and forts around

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Englan ...

. On 19 September the battalion entrained for Cape Town where it embarked for home. It was disembodied on 14 October 1901, having lost 18 other ranks (ORs) killed or died of disease. It was awarded the

Battle Honour A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...

South Africa 1900–01 and the participants received the

Queen's South Africa Medal The Queen's South Africa Medal is a British campaign medal awarded to British and Colonial military personnel, and to civilians employed in an official capacity, who served in the Second Boer War in South Africa. Altogether twenty-six clasps wer ...

with clasps for 'Cape Colony', 'Orange Free State', and 'Transvaal'. The 5th Lancashire Fusiliers was embodied from 19 February to 17 October 1900. It was re-embodied on 6 May 1901 and volunteered for overseas service. It embarked for South Africa on 4 June under the command of Lt-Col F.F. Mackenzie with a strength of 903 of all ranks, having already sent 300 militia reservists to reinforce the regulars. On arrival at Cape Town on 23 June the battalion proceeded in two wings to

Springfontein Springfontein is a small mixed farming town in the Free State province of South Africa. History The town was established in 1904 on the farm Hartleydale, which was part of the farm Springfontein. The name Springfontein, which is Afrikaans for "j ...

and was then was split into detachments at various places, while battalion headquarters (HQ) went to

Naauwpoort Noupoort is a small town in the eastern Karoo region of South Africa. The town lies 54 km south of Colesberg and 45 km north of Rosmead Junction on the N9 National Route. It was laid out on a portion of the farm Caroluspoort, was adm ...

. On 28 December the battalion was redeployed, HQ and the main body going to

Colesberg Colesberg is a town with 17,354 inhabitants in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, located on the main N1 road from Cape Town to Johannesburg. In a sheep-farming area spread over half-a-million hectares, greater Colesberg breeds many ...

where it was employed on

blockhouse A blockhouse is a small fortification, usually consisting of one or more rooms with loopholes, allowing its defenders to fire in various directions. It is usually an isolated fort in the form of a single building, serving as a defensive stro ...

duty, while two companies garrisoned

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

and one was at Cradock. Detachments from the battalion manned No 13 Armoured Train, which took part in operations against the remaining

Boer Commando The Boer Commandos or "Kommandos" were volunteer military units of guerilla militia organized by the Boer people of South Africa. From this came the term "commando" into the English language during the Second Boer War of 1899-1902 as per Costica ...

s. The battalion went home after the

Treaty of Vereeniging The Treaty of Vereeniging was a peace treaty, signed on 31 May 1902, that ended the Second Boer War between the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, on the one side, and the United Kingdom on the other. This settlement provided f ...

and was disembodied on 25 July 1902, having lost 15 ORs killed or died of disease. It received the South Africa 1901–02 battle honour and the medal with clasps for 'Orange Free State', 'Cape Colony', and 'South Africa 1901 and 1902'. Lieutenant-Col Romer was awarded the CMG.

Special Reserve

After the Boer War, the future of the Militia was called into question. There were moves to reform the Auxiliary Forces (Militia,

Yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army, British Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Army Reserve, descended from volunteer British Cavalry, cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of ...

and

Volunteers Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

) to take their place in the six army corps proposed by

St John Brodrick William St John Fremantle Brodrick, 1st Earl of Midleton, KP, PC, DL (14 December 185613 February 1942), styled as St John Brodrick until 1907 and as Viscount Midleton between 1907 and 1920, was a British Conservative and Irish Unionist Alli ...

Secretary of State for War The Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The Secretary of State for War headed the War Office and ...

. However, little of Brodrick's scheme was carried out. Under the sweeping

of 1908, the Militia was replaced by the

, a semi-professional force similar to the previous Militia Reserve, whose role was to provide reinforcement drafts for regular units serving overseas in wartime.Frederick, pp. vi–vii. The two militia battalions of the Lancashire Fusiliers became the 3rd (Reserve) and 4th (Extra Reserve) Battalions on 2 August 1908 (the 3rd and 4th regular battalions having been disbanded in 1906).

World War I

The Special Reserve was embodied at the outbreak of

on 4 August 1914 and on 8 August the 3rd and 4th Lancashire Fusiliers proceeded from Bury to their war stations. For the 3rd Bn this was in the

Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between th ...

Garrison, first at Hull, then from November 1916 at

Withernsea Withernsea is a seaside resort and civil parish in Holderness, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Its white inland lighthouse, rising around above Hull Road, now houses a museum to 1950s actress Kay Kendall, who was born in the town. The Pr ...

. In December 1914 the 3rd Bn probably assisted in the formation of 13th (Reserve) Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers, at Hull from

Kitchener's Army The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, as Kitchener's Mob, was an (initially) all-volunteer portion of the British Army formed in the United Kingdom from 1914 onwards following the outbreak of hostilities in the Fi ...

volunteers. The 4th Bn went to

Barrow-in-Furness Barrow-in-Furness is a port town in Cumbria, England. Historically in Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1867 and merged with Dalton-in-Furness Urban District in 1974 to form the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness. In 2023 the ...

until October 1916 when it moved to

Barry, South Wales Barry ( cy, Y Barri; ) is a town in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, on the north coast of the Bristol Channel approximately south-southwest of Cardiff. Barry is a seaside resort, with attractions including several beaches and the resurrected Bar ...

, in the

Severn , name_etymology = , image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG , image_size = 288 , image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle , map = RiverSevernMap.jpg , map_size = 288 , map_c ...

Garrison. They carried out the dual tasks of garrison duties and preparing reinforcement drafts of regular reservists, special reservists, recruits and returning wounded for the two regular battalions, the 1st serving at

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

and then on the Western Front, the 2nd on the Western Front for the whole war. 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 ...

the 4th Bn was disembodied on 16 April 1919 and the 3rd Bn on 26 July 1919 when the remaining personnel were drafted to the 1st Bn.

Postwar

The SR resumed its old title of Militia in 1921 and then became the Supplementary Reserve in 1924, but almost all militia battalions remained in abeyance after World War I. Until 1939 they continued to appear in the ''Army List'', but they were not activated during

World War II 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 ...

and were all formally disbanded in April 1953.

Commanders

The following served as

Colonel of the Regiment Colonel (Col) is a rank of the British Army and Royal Marines, ranking below brigadier, and above lieutenant colonel. British colonels are not usually field commanders; typically they serve as staff officers between field commands at battalion ...

or later as Honorary Colonel of the regiment: * Hon Charles James Fox Stanley, former lt-col,

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

, appointed 21 February 1855 * Thomas Hale, former captain, 88th Foot, appointed 2 July 1892 The following served as

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

Commandant: * John Edward Madocks, former captain,

, appointed 22 March 1855 * James Ashton, promoted 2 March 1871 * Thomas Hale, promoted 7 November 1885 * Thomas Brindley, promoted 18 July 1892 * Frederick Finch Mackenzie, promoted 20 November 1895 After the battalions were administered separately from 1900:
''5th, later 3rd Battalion
Hon Col; *

Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener, (; 24 June 1850 – 5 June 1916) was a senior British Army officer and colonial administrator. Kitchener came to prominence for his imperial campaigns, his scorched earth policy against the Boers, h ...

, appointed 11 June 1902''London Gazette'', 10 June 1902.
/ref> Lt-Col: * Charles L. Robinson, retired major, appointed 30 May 1907 * Herbert R. Cobbett, promoted 6 August 1911 ''6th, later 4th Battalion''
Hon Col: *

John Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll John George Edward Henry Douglas Sutherland Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll, (6 August 1845 – 2 May 1914), usually better known by the courtesy title Marquess of Lorne, by which he was known between 1847 and 1900, was a British nobleman who wa ...

, appointed 16 January 1901 * Frederick Charles Romer, CB, CMG, appointed 30 January 1909 Lt-Col: * Frederick Charles Romer, retired captain, appointed 18 December 1895 * Francis Lee Sanders, appointed 2 August 1908 * James Aspinall Turner, promoted 6 September 1911

Uniforms & Insignia

The uniform of the 7th RLM was

Rifle green Shades of chartreuse are listed below. Historically, many of these colors have gone under the name of either yellow or green, as the specifics of their color composition was not known until later. Wrapping the spectrum into a color wheel In a ...

with black

facings A facing colour is a common tailoring technique for European military uniforms where the visible inside lining of a standard military jacket, coat or tunic is of a different colour to that of the garment itself.René Chartrand, William Younghusba ...

in the style of the

Rifle Brigade The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

. The badge on the officers' pouch belt was a silver

Maltese cross The Maltese cross is a cross symbol, consisting of four " V" or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles, two tips pointing outward symmetrically. It is a heraldic cross variant which developed f ...

surmounted by a crown; in the centre of the cross was the number 'VII' between the strings of a bugle horn. The ORs'

Forage cap Forage cap is the designation given to various types of military undress, fatigue or working headwear. These varied widely in form, according to country or period. The coloured peaked cap worn by the modern British Army for parade and other dress o ...

badge of 1874–81 had a shield displaying a lion beneath a

Fleur-de-lis The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol. The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...

; suspended from the shield was a bugle horn with a rose between the strings; above and round the shield was a scroll bearing the title 'VII Royal Lancashire Militia'. When the 7th RLM joined the Lancashire Fusiliers in 1881, it adopted that regiment's scarlet uniform with white facings and its insignia.

Footnotes

Notes

References

* Col John K. Dunlop, ''The Development of the British Army 1899–1914'', London: Methuen, 1938. * J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol I, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, . * H.G. Hart, ''The New Annual Army List, and Militia List''.
Col George Jackson Hay, ''An Epitomized History of the Militia (The Constitutional Force)'', London:United Service Gazette, 1905/Ray Westlake Military Books, 1987
. * Richard Holmes, ''Soldiers: Army Lives and Loyalties from Redcoats to Dusty Warriors'', London: HarperPress, 2011, . * Lt-Col James Moncrieff Grierson (Col Peter S. Walton, ed.), ''Scarlet into Khaki: The British Army on the Eve of the Boer War'', London: Sampson Low, 1899/London: Greenhill, 1988, . * Brig E.A. James, ''British Regiments 1914–18'', London: Samson Books, 1978/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2001, . * Roger Knight, ''Britain Against Napoleon: The Organization of Victory 1793–1815', London: Allen Lane, 2013/Penguin, 2014, .
H.G. Parkyn, 'English Militia Regiments 1757–1935: Their Badges and Buttons', ''Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research'', Vol 15, No 60 (Winter 1936), pp. 216–248.
* Edward M. Spiers, ''The Army and Society 1815–1914'', London: Longmans, 1980, . * Edward M. Spiers, ''The Late Victorian Army 1868–1902'', Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1992/Sandpiper Books, 1999, .
Maj R.J.T. Williamson & Col J. Lawson Whalley, ''History of the Old County Regiment of Lancashire Militia'', London: Simpkin, Marshall, 1888.

External sources

Lancashire Record Office, ''Handlist 72''

Chris Baker, ''The Long, Long Trail''

Museum of the Manchester Regiment
{{refend Lancashire Militia

Military units and formations in Lancashire Military units and formations in Bury, Greater Manchester Military units and formations established in 1855 Military units and formations disestablished in 1881

Background

7th Royal Lancashire Militia (Rifles)

Cardwell reforms

3rd and 4th Battalions, Lancashire Fusiliers

Second Boer War

Special Reserve

World War I

Postwar

Commanders

Uniforms & Insignia

See also

Footnotes

Notes

References

External sources