The Prince of Wales' Own Civil Service Rifles was an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

of the

Volunteer Force The Volunteer Force was a citizen army of part-time rifle, artillery and engineer corps, created as a popular movement throughout the British Empire in 1859. Originally highly autonomous, the units of volunteers became increasingly integrated ...

and

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 ...

of 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 ...

from 1798 to 1921; it saw active service in the

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 Sou ...

and

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 ...

as part of the London Regiment.

History

Early history

The regiment was originally formed as the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government of ...

Volunteers in 1798 but was disbanded in 1814 at the end of 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 ...

. The regiment was re-raised by

Viscount Bury A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

on the formation of the

as the 21st Middlesex Middlesex Rifle Volunteers (Civil Service Rifles) in 1860. By 1880 and the re-numbering of London Rifle Volunteers the unit was titled 12th Middlesex (Civil Service) Rifle Volunteer Corps and were linked as a Volunteer Battalion of the

King's Royal Rifle Corps The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United St ...

. On formation of the

in 1908 the Civil Service Rifles became part of the newly formed London Regiment and was titled 15th Battalion London Regiment (Civil Service Rifles).

First World War

The Official Visits To the Western Front, 1914-1918 Q633

At the start of 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 ...

the battalion established its headquarters at

Somerset House Somerset House is a large Neoclassical complex situated on the south side of the Strand in central London, overlooking the River Thames, just east of Waterloo Bridge. The Georgian era quadrangle was built on the site of a Tudor palace ("O ...

; the commanding officer, Lt Col RG Hays, refused to serve overseas, an example followed by most of the men of his battalion. During the war the regiment eventually expanded to two battalions, with the 1st Battalion arriving in France in March 1915 forming part of the 4th London Brigade, part of the 2nd London Division.

Inter-war

Following the war the Civil Service Rifles were amalgamated with the 16th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment in 1921.

Battle honours

The regiment's battle honours were as follows: * South Africa 1900-02 *

The Great 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 ...

(3 battalions): *

Festubert 1915 Festubert is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. The village was on the Western Front during the First World War and was largely destroyed in the May 1915 Battle of Festubert. Geography A farming vil ...

, Loos, Somme 1916 '18, Flers-Courcelette,

Le Transloy Le Transloy () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography Le Transloy is situated south of Arras, at the junction of the N17 and the D19 roads. Population Places of interest * The churc ...

Messines 1917 Messines may refer to: * Mesen (in French: Messines), a village in Belgium ** Battle of Messines (disambiguation), World War I battles * Messines, Quebec Messines is a municipality in the Canadian province of Quebec. It includes the population ...

Ypres 1917 Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality co ...

Cambrai 1917 Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the Esc ...

, St. Quentin, Ancre 1918,

Albert Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Alber ...

1918,

Bapaume Bapaume (original Dutch name Batpalmen) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. The inhabitants of this commune are known as ''Bapalmois'' or ''Bapalmoises''. Geography Bapaume is a farmi ...

1918,

Pursuit to Mons Pursuit may refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''Pursuit'' (1935 film), a 1935 American action film * ''Pursuit'' (1972 American film), a made-for-TV film directed by Michael Crichton * ''Pursuit'' (1972 Hong Kong film), a Shaw Brot ...

France and Flanders 1915-18 The Western Front was one of the main Theatre (warfare), theatres of war during the First World War. Following the outbreak of war in August 1914, the German Army (German Empire), German Army opened the Western Front by invading Luxembourg and B ...

Doiran 1917 Doyran, also spelled Doiran or Dojran, is a Macedonian place name that may refer to: Battles * Battle of Doiran refers to several battles that took place near Doiran Lake in Macedonia: ** Battle of Doiran (1913), during the Second Balkan War ** B ...

, Macedonia 1916-17, Gaza,

Nebi Samwil An-Nabi Samwil, also called al-Nabi Samuil ( ar, النبي صموئيل ''an-Nabi Samu'il'', translit: "the prophet Samuel"), is a Palestinian village of nearly 220 inhabitants in the Quds Governorate of the State of Palestine, located in the ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

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 ...

1917-18

Regimental motto

Ich Dien Ich may refer to: * Ich, a German pronoun meaning ''I'', also a Middle English form of ''I'' * The ego, one of the psychic apparatus defined in Sigmund Freud's structural model of the psyche * ''Ich'' (album), an album by German rapper Sido * ...

– (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

for "I serve", a contraction of ich diene), the motto of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

Memorial to the Civil Service Riflemen, Somerset House, London - geograph

Uniform

From 1863 until 1888 the regiment wore a dark grey uniforms with

royal blue Royal blue is a deep and vivid shade of blue. It is said to have been created by clothiers in Rode, Somerset, a consortium of whom won a competition to make a dress for Queen Charlotte, consort of King George III. Brightness The ''Oxford En ...

facings and a

shako A shako (, , or ) is a tall, cylindrical military cap, usually with a visor, and sometimes tapered at the top. It is usually adorned with an ornamental plate or badge on the front, metallic or otherwise; and often has a feather, plume (see hackle) ...

. In that year the

home service helmet The pith helmet, also known as the safari helmet, salacot, sola topee, sun helmet, topee, and topi) is a lightweight cloth-covered helmet made of sholapith. The pith helmet originates from the Spanish military adaptation of the native ''salakot'' ...

of the regular infantry was adopted as headdress. At a time when colourful uniforms were still the norm the sombre colour of this uniform was considered unattractive and blamed for a fall off in recruiting. Accordingly light grey was adopted in 1890, although royal blue was still retained for the facings in

full dress uniform Full dress uniform, also known as a ceremonial dress uniform or parade dress uniform, is the most formal type of uniforms used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for official parades, ceremonies, and receptions, inclu ...

until 1914. Khaki drill was worn in South Africa and the standard

khaki The color khaki (, ) is a light shade of tan with a slight yellowish tinge. Khaki has been used by many armies around the world for uniforms and equipment, particularly in arid or desert regions, where it provides camouflage relative to sandy ...

of the British Army in France during World War I.

Regimental memorial

The memorial for the Prince of Wales' Own Civil Service Rifles is situated at

, London. It was designed in 1923 by

Sir Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memoria ...

OM, KCIE, PRA.

References

Bibliography

* Beckett, Ian F.W. (1982) Riflemen Form: A study of the Rifle Volunteer Movement 1859–1908, Aldershot: Ogilby Trusts, . * The History of the Prince of Wales' Own Civil Service Rifles. London : Wyman & Sons Ltd., 1921. * Knight, Jill. (2004) The Civil Service Rifles in the Great War: all bloody gentlemen. Barnsley : Pen & Sword Military, * Merrick, Edward, Lt, (1891) A history of the Civil Service Rifle Volunteers (including the volunteers of the Bank of England), Sheppard and St John, London * 2/15th Battalion. County of London Regiment Prince of Wales Own Civil Service Rifles. London: printed by The Art Reproduction Co., 1920

External links

Civil Service Rifles at Regiments.org
{{LondonRegiment Battalions of the London Regiment (1908–1938) Military units and formations in London Military units and formations in Westminster