The Staffordshire Militia was an auxiliary military force in

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

in the

West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

of England. From their formal organisation as Trained Bands in 1572 and their reorganisation in 1662 and 1777, the

Militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

regiments of Staffordshire served during times of international tension and all of Britain's major wars. They provided internal security and home defence but in the Crimean War were stationed in the Mediterranean relieving regular troops from routine garrison duties. They also acted as a source of trained officers and men for the

Regular Army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregulars, irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenary, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the ...

. By the later 19th Century there were four battalions, assigned to the

South South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

and

North Staffordshire Regiment The North Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was in existence between 1881 and 1959. The 64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot was created on 21 April 1758 from the 2nd Battali ...

s. All the battalions went on 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 ...

and all served as

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 ...

training units in

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 ...

, with two battalions seeing considerable action on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

. After 1921 the militia had only a shadowy existence until its final abolition in 1953.

Early History

The

English militia The Militia of England were the principal military reserve forces of the Kingdom of England from the 10th-18th century. For the period following the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707, see Militia (Great Britain). Origins The origin ...

was descended from the

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

Fyrd A fyrd () was a type of early Anglo-Saxon army that was mobilised from freemen or paid men to defend their Shire's lords estate, or from selected representatives to join a royal expedition. Service in the fyrd was usually of short duration and ...

'', the military force raised from the freemen of the

shire Shire is a traditional term for an administrative division of land in Great Britain and some other English-speaking countries such as Australia and New Zealand. It is generally synonymous with county. It was first used in Wessex from the beginn ...

s under command of their

Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

. It continued under the Norman kings, notably at the

Battle of the Standard The Battle of the Standard, sometimes called the Battle of Northallerton, took place on 22 August 1138 on Cowton Moor near Northallerton in Yorkshire, England. English forces under William of Aumale repelled a Scottish army led by King David ...

(1138). The force was reorganised under the Assizes of Arms of 1181 and

1252 Year 1252 ( MCCLII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * April 6 – Saint Peter of Verona is assassinated by Carino of Balsamo. * May 15 – P ...

, and again by

King Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...

Statute of Winchester The Statute of Winchester of 1285 (13 Edw. I, St. 2; Law French: '), also known as the Statute of Winton, was a statute enacted by King Edward I of England that reformed the system of Watch and Ward (watchmen) of the Assize of Arms of 1252, and rev ...

of 1285.Grierson, pp. 6–7. Under this statute 'Commissioners of Array' would levy the required number of men from each shire. The usual shire contingent was 1000 infantry commanded by a ''millenar'', divided into companies of 100 commanded by ''centenars'' or ''ductores'', and subdivided into platoons of 20 led by ''vintenars''. Edward I regularly summoned the men of the nearest shires, including Staffordshire, to fight in his

Welsh Wars This is an incomplete list of the wars and battles between the Anglo-Saxons who later formed into the Kingdom of England and the Britons (the pre-existing Brythonic population of Britain south of the Antonine Wall who came to be known later by the ...

and for his Scottish campaign of 1300, when 216 Staffordshire men in two companies were present at the

Siege of Caerlaverock Caerlaverock Castle is a moated triangular castle first built in the 13th century. It is located on the southern coast of Scotland, south of Dumfries, on the edge of the Caerlaverock National Nature Reserve. Caerlaverock was a stronghold of th ...

. This procedure was continued for border campaigns under later kings, with the shire levies of Staffordshire and other northern counties being called out in 1327 during the campaign that ended in the

Battle of Stanhope Park The Weardale campaign, part of the First War of Scottish Independence, occurred during July and August 1327 in Weardale, England. A Scottish force under James, Lord of Douglas, and the earls of Moray and Mar faced an English army commande ...

. By now the infantry were mainly equipped with the

English longbow The English longbow was a powerful medieval type of bow, about long. While it is debated whether it originated in England or in Wales from the Welsh bow, by the 14th century the longbow was being used by both the English and the Welsh as a ...

Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring r ...

called out the Staffordshire levies in 1333, when they served at the Siege of Berwick and the

Battle of Halidon Hill The Battle of Halidon Hill took place on 19 July 1333 when a Scottish army under Sir Archibald Douglas attacked an English army commanded by King Edward III of England () and was heavily defeated. The year before, Edward Balliol had seized ...

. In 1335, 247 Staffordshire archers (57 of them

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 ...

) served under two ductores and 10 vintenars.

King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disag ...

strengthened the military capability of the country and in 1539 he called out a 'Great Muster' across the country, when armed men in the various hundreds of Staffordshire ranged from 300 to 1100.Hay, pp. 348–50.

Staffordshire Trained Bands

The legal basis of the militia was updated by two Acts of 1557 covering musters and the maintenance of horses and armour. The county militia was now under the

Lord Lieutenant A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ...

, assisted by the Deputy Lieutenants and

Justices of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

(JPs). The entry into force of these Acts in 1558 is seen as the starting date for the organised county militia in England. Although the militia obligation was universal, it was clearly impractical to train and equip every able-bodied man, so after 1572 the practice was to select a proportion of men for 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 ...

, who were mustered for regular training. The government aimed for 10 days' training a year, with a two-day 'general muster' at

Michaelmas Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September, a ...

, and two 'special musters' lasting four days for detailed training at

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

and

Whitsun Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian High Holy Day of Pentecost. It is the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the Ho ...

. Staffordshire offered to train 300 out of 1500 able men. The government progressively stepped up the organisation and training: in 1580 the Earls of

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

and

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

and

Sir Christopher Hatton Sir Christopher Hatton KG (1540 – 20 November 1591) was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England. He was one of the judges who found Mary, Queen of Scots guilty of treason. Early years Sir ...

were assigned a group of shires (including Staffordshire) to oversee and reinforce the work of the county commissioners for horses. When war broke out with Spain training and equipping the militia became a priority. From 1583 counties were organised into groups for training purposes, with emphasis on the invasion-threatened 'maritime' counties. Staffordshire was in the second group of 'inland' counties organised from May 1585 onwards. When the counties levied troops for overseas expeditions they usually conscripted the unemployed and criminals rather than the Trained Bandsmen. The Armada Crisis in 1588 led to the mobilisation of the trained bands. Staffordshire was assessed at 400 trained men, but actually furnished 100 trained and 200 untrained (or pioneers) with 28 lancers, 50 light horsemen and 26 armed with 'petronelles' (the

Petronel A petronel is a 16th and 17th century black powder muzzle-loading firearm, defined by Robert Barret (''Theorike and Practike of Modern Warres'', 1598) as a '' horsemans peece''. It was the muzzle-loading firearm which developed on the one hand in ...

was an early cavalry firearm). With the passing of the threat of invasion, the trained bands declined in the early 17th Century. Later, King Charles I attempted to reform them into a national force or 'Perfect Militia' answering to the king rather than local control. In 1638 the King's

Sergeant major general Sergeant major general is a now mostly extinct name of military rank. A prominent example was Philip Skippon in the English New Model Army as organized by Oliver Cromwell. Over the course of the 17th century, the increasing professionalisation o ...

of infantry, Sir Jacob Astley, and his officers reviewed the TBs in several counties, when the Staffordshire contingent comprised 400 foot (with 248 muskets and 152 '

corslet A corslet is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "a piece of defensive armour covering the body." In ancient Egypt, Ramesses II is said to have worn a similar device in some battle(s). In Ancient Greek armies, the " hoplite", or heavy in ...

s' or pikemen with armour), together with 73

cuirassiers Cuirassiers (; ) were cavalry equipped with a cuirass, sword, and pistols. Cuirassiers first appeared in mid-to-late 16th century Europe as a result of armoured cavalry, such as men-at-arms and demi-lancers, discarding their lances and adop ...

and 30 light horse. The TBs were called out in 1639 and 1640 for the

Bishops' Wars The 1639 and 1640 Bishops' Wars () were the first of the conflicts known collectively as the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which took place in Scotland, England and Ireland. Others include the Irish Confederate Wars, the First and ...

, though many of the men who actually went were untrained hired substitutes. Staffordshire was ordered to send 300 men for the 1640 expedition.Kenyon, p. 42.Staffordshire TBs at BCW Project.
/ref> When the Staffordshire contingent returned to be discharged after the 1639 campaign, some of the men took the opportunity to destroy the hated

Enclosure Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

fences of the

Royal forest A royal forest, occasionally known as a kingswood (), is an area of land with different definitions in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The term ''forest'' in the ordinary modern understanding refers to an area of wooded land; however, the ...

s, and the riots were repeated when they were mustered for the 1640 campaign.

Civil War

Control of the trained bands was one of the major points of dispute between 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 ...

. However, with a few exceptions neither side made much use of the trained bands during the war beyond securing the county armouries for their own full-time troops. Nevertheless, the Stafford TBs (Horse and Foot) under

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 ...

William Comberford were part of the Royalist garrison of

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in t ...

when the town was besieged in February 1643. The threat to Stafford was raised after the

Battle of Hopton Heath The battle of Hopton Heath was a battle of the First English Civil War, fought on Sunday 19 March 1643 between Parliamentarian forces led by Sir John Gell and Sir William Brereton and a Royalist force under Spencer Compton, 2nd Earl of N ...

in March. During the Royalist uprising of 1648 (the

Second English Civil War The Second English Civil War took place between February to August 1648 in Kingdom of England, England and Wales. It forms part of the series of conflicts known collectively as the 1639-1651 Wars of the Three Kingdoms, which include the 1641� ...

) the Staffordshire Militia (two troops of Horse and a regiment of Foot) provided the garrison of

Leek The leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of ''Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek ( syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a stem or stalk. The genus ''Alli ...

.Wylly, pp. 5–6. Once Parliament had established full control it passed a new Militia Act on 2 December 1648 that replaced lords lieutenant with its own county commissioners (at the same time the term 'Trained Band' began to disappear in most counties). The first name on the list of commissioners for Staffordshire and the

City of Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of ...

was Sir William Brereton, who had commanded the Parliamentarian forces in the area during the First Civil War. But he declined to sit as one of the King's judges a few weeks later and retired from public life. In 1650 the Staffordshire Militia were commanded by Col Henry Danvers (Foot) and Col John Ashenhurst (Horse, with Danvers as major).Hay, pp. 99–104. Under the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

and

Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over m ...

the militia received pay when called out, and operated alongside the

New Model Army The New Model Army was a standing army formed in 1645 by the Parliamentarians during the First English Civil War, then disbanded after the Stuart Restoration in 1660. It differed from other armies employed in the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Th ...

to control the country. During the Scottish invasion in the

Third English Civil War Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hig ...

in 1651, the Cheshire and Staffordshire Militia (Horse and Foot) joined Major-Generals Thomas Harrison and

John Lambert John Lambert may refer to: *John Lambert (martyr) (died 1538), English Protestant martyred during the reign of Henry VIII *John Lambert (general) (1619–1684), Parliamentary general in the English Civil War *John Lambert of Creg Clare (''fl.'' c. ...

's cavalry in trying to halt the invaders. At the skirmish known as the Battle of Warrington Bridge (16 August) they tried to hold the bridge, but the country was unsuitable for cavalry action and the foot were outnumbered and forced to fall back.Rogers, pp. 302–3. On 24 August

Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

joined Harrison and Lambert with the main army and the Staffordshire Militia were engaged at the subsequent

Battle of Worcester The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell def ...

that destroyed the Scottish Royalist army. The Staffordshire Militia were called out following the death of Cromwell in 1659 to help deal with

Booth's Uprising Booth's Uprising, also known as Booth's Rebellion or the Cheshire Rising of 1659, was an unsuccessful attempt in August 1659 to restore Charles II of England. Centred on North West England and led by George Booth, it took place during the politi ...

in neighbouring Cheshire. They were not present at

Sir George Booth George Booth, 1st Baron Delamer (18 December 16228 August 1684), was an English landowner and politician from Cheshire, who served as an MP from 1646 to 1661, when he was elevated to the House of Lords as Baron Delamer. A member of the moder ...

's defeat at the

Battle of Winnington Bridge The Battle of Winnington Bridge, often described as the last battle of the Civil War, took place on 19 August 1659 during Booth's Uprising, a Royalist rebellion in north-west England and Wales. During the battle a Parliamentary army of around 5, ...

. At the time the regiment comprised 490 foot in six companies under the command of Col Crompton, and a troop of 67 horsemen. At the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, Col John Bowyer of

Knypersley Hall Knypersley Hall is an 18th-century Georgian style country mansion at Biddulph, Staffordshire, England. It is protected as a Grade II* Listed building. After falling into a state of disrepair it was partially subdivided into residential apartments, ...

commanding the Staffordshire Militia arrested Maj-Gen Harrison as one of the

Regicides of Charles I Following the trial of Charles I in January 1649, 59 commissioners (judges) signed his death warrant. They, along with several key associates and numerous court officials, were the subject of punishment following the restoration of the monarch ...

. Harrison was living in retirement in Staffordshire and made no attempt to escape. Bowyer was created a

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

shortly afterwards.

Staffordshire Militia

After the Restoration,

The King's Sole Right over the Militia Act 1661 The King's Sole Right over the Militia Act 1661 was an Act of the Parliament of England (13 Car. II. c. 6), long title "An Act declaring the sole Right of the Militia to be in King and for the present ordering & disposing the same." Following the ...

and the Militia Act of 1662 re-established the English Militia under the control of the king's lords-lieutenant, the men to be selected by ballot. This was popularly seen as the 'Constitutional Force' to counterbalance a 'Standing Army' tainted by association with the New Model Army that had supported Cromwell's military dictatorship. During the

Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War or the Second Dutch War (4 March 1665 – 31 July 1667; nl, Tweede Engelse Oorlog "Second English War") was a conflict between Kingdom of England, England and the Dutch Republic partly for control over the seas a ...

of 1666 the Militia were called out, with the cavalry of the inland counties, including the Staffordshire Militia Horse, moving up towards the East Coast. They were stood down on 6 August after the naval victory of the

St. James's Day Battle St James' Day Battle (also known as St James' Day Fight, the Battle of the North Foreland and the Battle of Orfordness) took place on 25 July 1666 — St James' day in the Julian calendar then in use in England (4 August 1666 in the Gregoria ...

when the threat of invasion receded. Training for the militia was usually perfunctory, so when the

Duke of Monmouth Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

became

Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire This is a list of people who have served as lord lieutenant for Staffordshire. Since 1828, all lord lieutenants have also been custos rotulorum of Staffordshire. Lord Lieutenants of Staffordshire *Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford 1559 *George ...

in 1677, he ordered that there should not only be an annual muster of the whole county force in May, but that each captain of a company or

troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troop Ro ...

should hold local musters as often as he conveniently could. The Staffordshire Militia consisted of five companies of foot (500 men) and two troops of horse (120 men) in 1697, but the militia was allowed to decline thereafter, especially after the Peace of Utrecht in 1713. There was a half-hearted attempt to raise a force in Staffordshire during the Jacobite Uprising of 1715, but generally the militia disappeared thereafter. 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 re-established county militia regiments, the men being conscripted by means of parish ballots (paid substitutes were permitted) to serve for three years. There was a property qualification for officers, who were commissioned by the lord lieutenant. The Midland counties were generally apathetic: Staffordshire was given a quota of 560 men to raise, but the county leaders failed to do so, and paid a fine instead.Holmes, pp. 94–100.Western, Appendices A & B.Staffordshire Militia at School of Mars.
/ref>

American War of Independence

Staffordshire remained a defaulter county liable for militia fines throughout the 1760s. It was not until 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 ...

, when Britain was threatened with invasion by the Americans' allies, France and Spain, that the Staffordshire Militia was reformed. It was embodied for full-time duty on 31 March 1778. The regiment was disembodied in 1783 after the end of the war.Frederick, p. 309.1st Staffs Militia at Regiments.org.
/ref> From 1784 to 1792 the militia were supposed to assemble for 28 days' annual training, even though to save money only two-thirds of the men were actually called out each year. However, the Staffordshire Militia only trained in two of those years.

French Revolutionary War

The

French Revolutionary Wars 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 ...

saw a new phase for the English militia: they 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, while their traditional local defence duties were taken over by the

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 ...

and mounted

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 ...

. The Staffordshire Militia was embodied in 1793 and spent 1794–5 quartered in

Weymouth, Dorset Weymouth is a seaside town in Dorset, on the English Channel coast of England. Situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey, south of the county town of Dorchester, Weymouth had a population of 53,427 in 2021. It is the third l ...

, where it came to the notice of

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

who holidayed there. It served at Weymouth again in 1797, after which the king requested that it should carry out Royal duties at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original cast ...

. Until the

Treaty of Amiens The Treaty of Amiens (french: la paix d'Amiens, ) temporarily ended hostilities between France and the United Kingdom at the end of the War of the Second Coalition The War of the Second Coalition (1798/9 – 1801/2, depending on perio ...

in 1802 the regiment spent most its time on duty at Windsor and Weymouth.

Supplementary Militia

In a fresh attempt to have as many men as possible under arms for home defence in order to release regulars, the Government created the Supplementary Militia, a compulsory levy of men to be trained in their spare time, and to be incorporated in the Militia in emergency. Staffordshire's quota was fixed at 2095 men, and two new regiments were formed from them by 1798, so that the original regiment was numbered 1st. The 2nd Regiment, of 10 companies, including grenadier and light companies, was commanded by Lord Granville Leveson-Gower, previously a captain in the 1st Regiment, who was commissioned on 5 April 1797. The 3rd Regiment, of 6 companies, was commanded by

Francis Perceval Eliot Francis Perceval Eliot (September 1755 – 23 August 1818) was an English soldier, auditor, and man of letters. In 1814 he succeeded his half-brother as Count Eliot, however he did not feel it was proper to assume the title.Marshall, John, ''Ro ...

, Colonel of the Staffordshire Yeomanry Cavalry commissioned on 25 April 1798. However, the 2nd and 3rd were disbanded the following year when the militia quotas were reduced, and their remaining men were incorporated into the 1st. The Staffordshire Militia was disembodied on 26 April 1802 after the Treaty of Amiens.Hay, pp. 150–52.

King's Own Staffordshire Militia

The Peace of Amiens was short-lived, and the Staffordshire Militia was embodied again on 30 March 1803. A new 2nd Regiment was raised on 28 June. The 1st Regiment was ready for duty by 17 May and was immediately ordered to Windsor, where the King rode at its head when it marched into Windsor Barracks. It accompanied him to Weymouth in the summer of 1804, returning with him to Windsor in the autumn. In 1805 George III commanded that the regiment should become the King's Own Staffordshire Militia, and it was augmented by 200 men from the 2nd Regiment, which was disbanded. The regiment was on service at Windsor,

St James's Palace St James's Palace is the most senior royal palace in London, the capital of the United Kingdom. The palace gives its name to the Court of St James's, which is the monarch's royal court, and is located in the City of Westminster in London. Altho ...

and

Kew Palace Kew Palace is a British royal palace within the grounds of Kew Gardens on the banks of the River Thames. Originally a large complex, few elements of it survive. Dating to 1631 but built atop the undercroft of an earlier building, the main surv ...

almost continuously until it was disembodied in 1814 at the end of the

Napoleonic War 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 ...

. When

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

escaped from

Elba Elba ( it, isola d'Elba, ; la, Ilva) is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano National ...

in 1815, the regiment was re-embodied while the regular army was serving in the

Waterloo campaign The Waterloo campaign (15 June – 8 July 1815) was fought between the French Army of the North (France), Army of the North and two Seventh Coalition armies, an Anglo-allied army and a Prussian army. Initially the French army was commanded by ...

. It was finally disembodied in April 1816.

Local Militia

While the Militia were the mainstay of national defence during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, they were supplemented from 1808 by the Local Militia, which were part-time and only to be used within their own districts. These were raised to counter the declining numbers of Volunteers. Staffordshire had five regiments of local militia: * Eastern Regiment at Cheadle, Lt-Col Commandant Thomas Wilson, commissioned 24 September 1808 * Western Regiment at

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...

, Lt-Col Commandant Sir John Wrottesley, 9th Baronet, commissioned 1 March 1809, retired major, 32nd Foot * Northern Regiment at

Newcastle-under-Lyme Newcastle-under-Lyme ( RP: , ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. The 2011 census population of the town was 75,082, whilst the wider borough had a population of 1 ...

, Lt-Col Commandant

Walter Sneyd Lieutenant-Colonel Walter Sneyd (11 February 1752 – 23 June 1829), of Keele Hall was an English politician who served in the Parliament of Great Britain and as High Sheriff of Staffordshire. Early life Sneyd was born on 11 February 1752 in ...

, commissioned 1 March 1809, previously Lt-Col, Staffordshire Militia * Southern Regiment at Tamworth (moved to

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of B ...

1810), Lt-Col Commandant

Sir John Boughey, 2nd Baronet Sir John Boughey, 2nd Baronet (1 May 1784 – 27 June 1823), of Betley Court, Staffordshire, was an English Member of Parliament for Newcastle-under-Lyme (UK Parliament constituency) in 1812–1818 and Staffordshire (UK Parliament constituency) i ...

, commissioned 1 March 1809, previously Capt-Commandant, Betley and Audley Volunteers * Central Regiment at Lichfield, Lt-Col Commandant

George Chetwynd Sir George Roland Chetwynd, (14 May 1916 – 2 September 1982) was a British lecturer, politician and public servant. He defeated Harold Macmillan to get elected as a member of parliament, but later left Parliament to become Director of the N ...

, commissioned 9 April 1810

1852 Reforms

After Waterloo there was another long peace. Although officers continued to be commissioned into the militia and ballots were still held, the regiments were rarely assembled for training and the permanent staffs of sergeants and drummers were progressively reduced. The Militia of the United Kingdom was revived by the Militia Act of 1852, enacted during a renewed 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 home defence service in three circumstances:Dunlop, pp. 42–5. * 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'. Under this Act, two new regiments of King's Own Staffordshire Militia were raised in 1853. Thereafter the county's militia was organised as follows: *

King's Own (1st Staffordshire) Militia The King's Own (1st Staffordshire) Militia, later the 3rd and 4th Battalions, South Staffordshire Regiment was an auxiliary regiment in Staffordshire in the West Midlands of England. From 1662, and again after 1777, the regiment's primary role wa ...

at Lichfield *

King's Own (2nd Staffordshire) Light Infantry Militia The King's Own (2nd Staffordshire) Light Infantry Militia, later the 3rd Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment was an auxiliary regiment raised in Staffordshire in the West Midlands of England in 1853. Under the Cardwell and Childers Reforms it ...

raised 5 January 1853, based at

Frederick, p. 312.Hay, pp. 397–8.2nd Staffs Militia at Regiments.org.
/ref> *

King's Own (3rd Staffordshire) Rifle Militia The King's Own (3rd Staffordshire) Rifle Militia, later the 4th Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment was an auxiliary regiment raised in Staffordshire in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England in 1853. Under the Cardwell Reforms, ...

, raised 5 April 1853, based at

Hay, pp. 399–401.3rd Staffs Militia at regiments.org.
/ref>

Crimea and Indian Mutiny

War having broken out with Russia in 1854 and an expeditionary force sent to the Crimea, the militia were called out for home defence and service in overseas garrisons: * King's Own (1st Staffordshire) Militia: embodied from May 1854 to October 1856; volunteered for overseas service and stationed in the Ionian Islands (then a British protectorate) from April 1855 to August 1856, losing a number of men and families dead from sickness; 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 ...

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

. * King's Own (2nd Staffordshire) Light Infantry Militia: embodied from 19 December 1854 to 16 June 1856 * King's Own (3rd Staffordshire) Rifle Militia: embodied from 19 December 1854 to 26 May 1856 Part of the militia was called out again to release regulars for service in suppressing the

Indian Mutiny The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

in 1857: * King's Own (1st Staffordshire) Militia: embodied from 3 November 1857 to 30 November 1860 * King's Own (2nd Staffordshire) Light Infantry Militia: embodied from 28 September 1857 to 31 July 1860 Militia battalions now had a large

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 ...

of permanent staff (about 30). Around a third of the recruits and many young officers went on to join the Regular Army. The Militia Reserve introduced in 1867 consisted of present and former militiamen who undertook to serve overseas in case of war.

Cardwell and Childers 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 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 ...

battalions in a regimental district sharing a permanent depot at a suitable county town. 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. Two pairs of regular battalions were assigned to Staffordshire:

38th (1st Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot The 38th (1st Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1705. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 80th Regiment of Foot (Staffordshire Volunteers) to form the South Staffordshire Regime ...

and the

80th Regiment of Foot (Staffordshire Volunteers) The 80th Regiment of Foot (Staffordshire Volunteers) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 38th (1st Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot to form the South Staffordshire Regim ...

in Sub-District No 19;

64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot The 64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was created as the 2nd Battalion, 11th Regiment of Foot in 1756, redesignated as the 64th Regiment of Foot in 1758, and took a county title ...

and 98th (The Prince of Wales's) Regiment of Foot in Sub-District No 20. The 1st Staffordshire Militia was attached to the first pair (38th/80th), the 2nd and 3rd Staffordshire Militia to the second pair (64th/98th). It was intended that each sub-district would have two regular and two militia battalions, and so the 1st Staffordshire Militia raised a 2nd Battalion on 22 August 1874.2nd Bn 1st Staffs Militia at Regiments.org.
/ref>Hay, pp 351–2. All these battalions eventually shared a depot at

Whittington Barracks DMS Whittington, otherwise known as Defence Medical Services Whittington (formerly Whittington Barracks), is a military base in Whittington, Staffordshire, near Lichfield in England. It is home to the Staffordshire Regiment Museum, the Headquarte ...

, outside Lichfield, completed in 1881. Although often referred to as brigades, the sub-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 1st, 2nd and 3rd Staffordshire Militia formed 2nd Brigade of 2nd Division,

VI Corps 6 Corps, 6th Corps, Sixth Corps, or VI Corps may refer to: France * VI Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry formation of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars * VI Corps (Grande Armée), a formation of the Imperial French army du ...

. The brigade would have mustered at

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 ...

in time of war.''Army List'', various dates. 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 ...

of 1881 completed the Cardwell process by converting the linked regular regiments into county regiments and incorporating the militia battalions into them: * King's Own (1st Staffordshire) Militia became 3rd and 4th Bns,

South Staffordshire Regiment The South Staffordshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for only 68 years. The regiment was created in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 38th (1st Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot an ...

(38th/80th) * King's Own (2nd Staffordshire) Light Infantry Militia: became 3rd Bn,

Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment) The North Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was in existence between 1881 and 1959. The 64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot was created on 21 April 1758 from the 2nd Battal ...

(64th/98th) * King's Own (3rd Staffordshire) Rifle Militia became 4th Bn, Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment Although Cardwell's army corps scheme had been abandoned, the

Stanhope Memorandum The Stanhope Memorandum was a document written by Edward Stanhope, the Secretary of State for War of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, on 8 December 1888. It set out the overall strategic aims of the British Empire, and the way the Br ...

of 1888 proposed that the home defence army should consist of three corps, of which the first two would be regular, and the bulk of the third would be militia, while the rest of the militia and the volunteers would be assigned to fixed defences round London and the seaports.

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. All four militia battalions of Staffordshire regiments served a tour of duty in South Africa. Their embodiments were as follows: * South Staffordshire Regiment ** 3rd Bn: 3 May to 4 December 1900 and 6 May 1901 to 19 July 1902; served in South Africa from 10 July 1901 to 2 July 1902, guarding Boer

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

and

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 ...

lines ** 4th Bn: 5 December 1899 to 12 August 1901; served in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and then with 20th Brigade in South Africa defending Lindley against attack and then participating in the attack on Leeuw Kop. Later guarded convoys and blockhouses before returning home on 11 August * North Staffordshire Regiment ** 3rd Bn: 2 May to 15 October 1900 and 10 February to 23 September 1902; served in South Africa from 26 March 1902, guarding blockhouses and participating in 'drives' to round up Boer guerrillas ** 4th Bn: 24 January 1900 to 11 June 1902; served in South Africa from 29 March 1900 to 13 JUne 1902, guarding prisoners and defending

Fraserburg Fraserburg is a town in the Karoo region of South Africa's Northern Cape province. It is located in the Karoo Hoogland Local Municipality. The town has some of the coldest winters in South Africa. The nearest towns are Williston, Sutherland, Lo ...

against a heavy attack

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

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 ...

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 ...

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

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 ...

of 1908, the Militia was replaced by the

(SR), a semi-professional force whose role was to provide reinforcement drafts for regular units serving overseas in wartime, rather like the earlier Militia Reserve. All four Staffordshire militia battalions transferred to the SR, the 3rd battalions being designated 'Reserve' and the 4th battalions 'Extra Reserve'.

World War I

The SR was mobilised on 4 August 1914 at the outbreak of

and the four Staffordshire battalions proceeded from Whittington Barracks to their war stations. For the 3rd (Reserve) Battalions of the South and North Staffs this was at

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

, where they combined defence responsibilities with training and forming drafts of reservists, special reservists, recruits and returning wounded for the regular battalions of the two regiments. They also assisted in the formation of reserve battalions for the New Army (

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 ...

) battalions of their regiments. Both battalions moved to the

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

area in November 1916 and remained there in the Tyne Garrison for the rest of the war.James, p. 80.South Staffs at Long, Long Trail.
/ref>James, pp. 98–9.North Staffs at Long, Long Trail.
/ref> The war stations for the two 4th (Extra Reserve) battalions were in the

Channel Isles The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

, the South Staffs on

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...

and the North Staffs on

Guernsey Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency. It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...

, and they also helped to form New Army reserve battalions of their respective regiments. In September 1916 they both moved to

Marske-by-the-Sea Marske-by-the-Sea is a village in the unitary authority of Redcar and Cleveland and the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. It is located on the coast, between the seaside resorts of Redcar and Saltburn-by-the-Sea, although it is not ...

in the Tees Garrison. Until June 1917 their training and defence role was the same as the 3rd battalions'; however at that point they were sent to

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

to join

67th (2nd Home Counties) Division The 2nd Home Counties Division was a 2nd Line Territorial Force division of the British Army in World War I. The division was formed as a duplicate of the 44th (Home Counties) Division in November 1914. As the name suggests, the division recruit ...

of 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 ...

(TF). The division was being prepared for active service, but this was cancelled, and the two Staffordshire battalions were sent to the

independently. They were thus among the few SR units (mainly 'Extra Reserve' battalions) actually to see overseas service in the war.Becke, Pt 2b, pp. 75–82.

4th (Extra Reserve) Bn, South Staffordshires

In October 1917 this battalion joined 25th Division, a Kitchener formation. It was in reserve when the Germans launched their Spring Offensive on 21 March 1918. They held off several attacks but suffered heavy casualties while extricating themselves as Third Army fell back. Reinforced with raw 19-year-olds, the division was moved to the quieter Flanders front, where the Germans chose to launch the second phase of their offensive (the Battle of the Lys). 4th South Staffs held a salient at

Ploegsteert Ploegsteert ( pcd, Ploster) is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Comines-Warneton, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It is the most westerly settlement of Wallonia. It is approximately north of the French bor ...

('Plugstreet') Wood and was virtually destroyed, losing its commanding officer captured. It fought on as part of a composite battalion until the division was withdrawn. After receiving a few reinforcements, the battalion was involved in a counter-attack at the Second Battle of Kemmel that the Official Historian described as a 'useless waste of life'.Becke, Pt 3a, pp. 135–42.25th Division at Long, Long Trail.
/ref> 25th Division was now sent to the 'quiet'

Chemin des Dames In France, the Chemin des Dames (; literally, the "ladies' path") is part of the route départementale (local road) D18 and runs east and west in the Aisne department, between in the west, the Route Nationale 2 (Laon to Soissons), and in the eas ...

ridge sector of the French front to recover and to absorb young recruits. Unfortunately, it was once more placed exactly where the next phase of the German offensive would fall: the

Third Battle of the Aisne The Third Battle of the Aisne (french: 3e Bataille de l'Aisne) was a battle of the German spring offensive during World War I that focused on capturing the Chemin des Dames Ridge before the American Expeditionary Forces arrived completely in ...

. The attack opened with the heaviest bombardment so far, which overwhelmed the front line troops; soon 25th Division in reserve remained as the only intact formation. For a while it held on, then was swept back in the retreat. Soon the division could only provide a composite brigade, with 4th South Staffs temporarily combined with 11th

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 ...

as one of its battalions, sent to help

50th (Northumbrian) Division The Northumbrian Division was an infantry division of the British Army, formed in 1908 as part of the Territorial Force with units drawn from the north-east of England, notably Northumberland, Durham and the North and East Ridings of Yorkshire ...

. After the battle, the rest of 25th Division went back to the UK to be reconstructed with recruits. 4th South Staffs remained in France as a training

with 39th Division, running training courses for newly arrived US Army divisions before they went into the line. It was demobilised on 6 November, just before 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 ...

.Becke, Pt 3b, pp. 97–100.

4th (Extra Reserve) Bn, North Staffordshires

In October 1917 4th North Staffs was attached to 56th (1/1st London) Division (TF) for training in

Trench warfare Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied lines largely comprising military trenches, in which troops are well-protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery. Trench warfare became a ...

, then joined 35th Division, another Kitchener formation. The division was in GHQ Reserve when the Spring Offensive opened, and was sent south as reinforcements. The battalion went into action on 24 March in a counter-attack to clear Maricourt Wood. On 26 March the division was withdrawn across the

River Ancre The Ancre (; ) is a river of Picardy, France. Rising at Miraumont, a hamlet near the town of Albert, it flows into the Somme at Corbie. It is long. For most of its length it flows through the department of Somme. For a short stretch near Puis ...

, but due to a misunderstanding the 4th North Staffs was sent back across the river, and found itself isolated. It was not until 01.30 the following morning that it extricated itself from its dangerous position. The battalion then successfully defended its position on the Ancre.Becke, Pt 3b, pp. 51–9.35th Division at Long, Long Trail.
/ref>Davson, Appendix VIII. 35th Division spent the summer engaged in trench warfare at Aveluy Wood, then it was moved to the

Ypres Salient The Ypres Salient around Ypres in Belgium was the scene of several battles and an extremely important part of the Western front during the First World War. Ypres district Ypres lies at the junction of the Ypres–Comines Canal and the Ieperlee. ...

. As the Allied

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allies of World War I, Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (1918), Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Wester ...

got under way further south, the Germans on this front began to withdraw. Second Army began to follow up (the

Fifth Battle of Ypres The Fifth Battle of Ypres, also called the Advance in Flanders and the Battle of the Peaks of Flanders (french: Bataille des Crêtes de Flandres) is an informal name used to identify a series of World War I battles in northern France and southe ...

). By late October the situation had changed to open warfare, as 35th Division advanced along the

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

. On 9 November 4 South Staffs was among the units that scrambled across the river by any means possible, and was pursuing eastwards when the Armistice came into force on 11 November. In January 1919 the division was used to quell disturbances among men awaiting

demobilisation Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and militar ...

in camps at

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. Th ...

. The battalion itself went home in April and was disembodied on 28 April 1919.Edmonds & Maxwell-Hyslop, ''1918'', Vol V, pp. 59, 67–8, 77–9, 286–91, 428–32, 446–50, 548–9, 556.

Postwar

The SR resumed its old title of Militia in 1921 but like most militia battalions the Staffordshires remained in abeyance after World War I. By the outbreak of

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 ...

in 1939, the only officer remaining listed for any of the four battalions was the Honorary Colonel of the 3rd South Staffs. The Militia was formally disbanded in April 1953.

Precedence

In the early days militia regiments serving together drew lots for their relative precedence. From 1778 the counties were given an order of precedence determined by ballot each year; for Staffordshire the positions drawn were:Baldry.
/ref>Parkyn.
/ref> * 40th on 1 June 1778 * 31st on 12 May 1779 * 23rd on 6 May 1780 * 19th on 28 April 1781 * 10th on 7 May 1782 However, when the militia were re-embodied in 1793, the order of precedence balloted for that year (when Staffordshire was 27th) remained in force throughout the French Revolutionary War: this covered all the regiments formed in the county. Another ballot for precedence took place at the start of the Napoleonic War, when Staffordshire was 2nd. This list continued until 1833. In that year the King drew the lots for individual regiments: those raised before the peace of 1763 took the first 47 places, followed by the regiments raised between 1763 and 1783, with the Staffordshires at 66th. This permanent list was revised in 1855: * King's Own (1st Staffordshire): 66th * King's Own (2nd Staffordshire): 58th * King's Own (3rd Staffordshire): 78th In line with most other militia regiments the Staffordshires paid little attention to the additional number.

Footnotes

Notes

References

W.Y. Baldry, 'Order of Precedence of Militia Regiments', ''Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research'', Vol 15, No 57 (Spring 1936), pp. 5–16.
* Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2b: The 2nd-Line Territorial Force Divisions (57th–69th), with the Home-Service Divisions (71st–73rd) and 74th and 75th Divisions,'' London: HM Stationery Office, 1937/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 3a: New Army Divisions (9–26)'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1938/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 3b: New Army Divisions (30–41) and 63rd (R.N.) Division'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1939/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Ian F.W. Beckett, ''The Amateur Military Tradition 1558–1945'', Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1991, . * Lindsay Boynton, ''The Elizabethan Militia 1558–1638'', London: Routledge & Keegan Paul, 1967. * C.G. Cruickshank, ''Elizabeth's Army'', 2nd Edn, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1966. * Lt-Col H.M. Davson, ''The History of the 35th Division in the Great War'', London: Sifton Praed, 1926/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2003, . * Col John K. Dunlop, ''The Development of the British Army 1899–1914'', London: Methuen, 1938. * Brig-Gen Sir

James E. Edmonds Brigadier (United Kingdom), Brigadier-General Sir James Edward Edmonds (25 December 1861 – 2 August 1956) was an commissioned officer, officer of the Royal Engineers in the late-Victorian era British Army who worked in the Intelligence Corps ...

, ''History of the Great War: Military Operations, France and Belgium 1918'', Vol I, ''The German March Offensive and its Preliminaries'', London: Macmillan, 1935/Imperial War Museum and Battery Press, 1995, /Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2009, . * Brig-Gen Sir James E. Edmonds, ''History of the Great War: Military Operations, France and Belgium 1918'', Vol II, ''March–April: Continuation of the German Offensives'', London: Macmillan, 1937/Imperial War Museum and Battery Press, 1995, /Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2009, . * Brig-Gen Sir James E. Edmonds & Lt-Col R. Maxwell-Hyslop, ''History of the Great War: Military Operations, France and Belgium 1918'', Vol V, ''26th September–11th November, The Advance to Victory'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1947/Imperial War Museum and Battery Press, 1993, .
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* Mark Charles Fissell, ''The Bishops' Wars: Charles I's campaigns against Scotland 1638–1640'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994, . *

Sir John Fortescue John Fortescue may refer to: * Sir John Fortescue (judge) (c. 1394–1479), English lawyer and judge, MP for Tavistock, Totnes, Plympton Erle and Wiltshire * Sir John Fortescue of Salden (1531/1533–1607), third Chancellor of the Exchequer of Engl ...

, ''A History of the British Army'', Vol I, 2nd Edn, London: Macmillan, 1910. * Sir John Fortescue, ''A History of the British Army'', Vol II, London: Macmillan, 1899. * Sir John Fortescue, ''A History of the British Army'', Vol III, 2nd Edn, London: Macmillan, 1911. * Sir John Fortescue, ''A History of the British Army'', Vol VI, ''1807–1809'', London: Macmillan, 1910. * Sir John Fortescue, ''A History of the British Army'', Vol VII, ''1809–1810'', London: Macmillan, 1912. * J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol I, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, . * S.R. Gardiner, ''History of the Commonwealth and Protectorate'', Vol I, ''1649–1650'', London: Longmans, 1903/Adlestrop: Windrush Press, 1988, . * S.R. Gardiner, ''History of the Commonwealth and Protectorate'', Vol II, ''1651–1653'', London: Longmans, 1903/Adlestrop: Windrush Press, 1988, . * 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, .
Col George Jackson Hay, ''An Epitomized History of the Militia (The Constitutional Force)'', London:United Service Gazette, 1905.
* Richard Holmes, ''Soldiers: Army Lives and Loyalties from Redcoats to Dusty Warriors'', London: HarperPress, 2011, . * Brig E.A. James, ''British Regiments 1914–18'', London: Samson Books, 1978/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2001, . * John Kenyon, ''The Civil Wars of England'', London" Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1988, . * Roger Knight, ''Britain Against Napoleon: The Organization of Victory 1793–1815'', London: Allen Lane, 2013/Penguin, 2014, . *

F. W. Maitland Frederic William Maitland (28 May 1850 – ) was an English historian and lawyer who is regarded as the modern father of English legal history. Early life and education, 1850–72 Frederic William Maitland was born at 53 Guilford Street, Lo ...

, ''The Constitutional History of England'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1931. * John E. Morris, ''The Welsh Wars of Edward I'', Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1901 (1968 reprint). * Ranald Nicholson, Edward III and the Scots'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1965. * Sir

Charles Oman Sir Charles William Chadwick Oman, (12 January 1860 – 23 June 1946) was a British Military history, military historian. His reconstructions of medieval battles from the fragmentary and distorted accounts left by chroniclers were pioneering. ...

, ''A History of the Art of War in the Middle Ages'', Vol I, ''378–1278AD'', London: Methuen, 1924/Greenhill 1991, .
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.
* Stuart Reid, ''All the King's Armies: A Military History of the English Civil War 164–1651'', Staplehurst: Spelmount, 1998, . * 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, . * J.R. Western, ''The English Militia in the Eighteenth Century'', London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1965. * Capt C.H. Wylly, Col .Charrington and Capt .A.E.Bulwer, ''Historical Records of the 1st King's Own Stafford Militia, now 3rd & 4th Battalions South Staffordshire Regiment'', Lichfield: The Johnson's Head, 1902/London: Forgotten Books, 2015, .

External sources

British Civil War Project

History of Parliament Online

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

Richard A. Warren, ''This Re-illuminated School of Mars: Auxiliary forces and other aspects of Albion under Arms in the Great War against France''
{{British Militia Regiments

Military units and formations in Staffordshire