The 23rd (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment was an auxiliary unit of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. Formed in 1908 from

Volunteer Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency ...

units in the

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

suburbs of London that dated back to 1859, it was part of the

London Regiment London Regiment may refer to two infantry regiments in the British Army: * London Regiment (1908–1938) The London Regiment was an infantry regiment in the British Army, part of the Territorial Force (renamed the Territorial Army in 1921). Th ...

in 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 in ...

(TF). Its battalions served on the Western Front, at

Salonika Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...

and in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. When the London Regiment was abolished the unit reverted to the

East Surrey Regiment The East Surrey Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot, the 70th ( ...

but just before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

it was converted to armour as two battalion of the

Royal Tank Regiment The Royal Tank Regiment (RTR) is the oldest tank unit in the world, being formed by the British Army in 1916 during the World War I, First World War. Today, it is an Armoured warfare, armoured regiment equipped with Challenger 2 main battle tanks ...

. In this role it fought in

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

, including the Battle of Alamein, and in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and

North West Europe North West Europe may refer to: * Northwestern Europe, a loosely defined subregion of Europe, overlapping Northern and Western Europe * North-West Europe 1940, World War II campaign also known as the Battle of France * North West Europe campaign, ...

. Postwar it reverted to infantry in 1956 and later was amalgamated with other Surrey battalions into the

Queen's Regiment The Queen's Regiment (QUEENS) was an infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1966 through the amalgamation of the four regiments of the Home Counties Brigade. Then, until 1971 the regiment remained one of the largest regiments in the ar ...

. Its successors continue in today's

London Guards The London Guards is an administrative formation within the British Army comprising the reserve companies of the Grenadier, Coldstream, Scots and Irish Guards. On formation, these companies drew their personnel from the London Regiment, which ...

Volunteer Force

The invasion scare of 1859 led to the creation of the

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

and huge enthusiasm for joining Rifle Volunteer Corps (RVCs). Among the RVCs raised in the county of

at this time was the 7th Surrey or Southwark Rifle Volunteers recruited from

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

in South London. It was formed on 30 November under the command of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Francis Marcus Beresford.Beckett, Appendix VII.Frederick, p. 202.Westlake, pp. 230–3.23rd Bn London Regiment at Queen's Royal Surreys.
/ref> The new corps obtained permission to use Bermondsey Grammar School as its depot, and to carry out live firing practice on Plumstead Marshes. By February 1860 it had six companies, and Captain-Commandant Beresford was promoted to Major-Commandant. A second RVC was raised in Southwark on 9 March 1861, by

George Cruikshank George Cruikshank or Cruickshank ( ; 27 September 1792 – 1 February 1878) was a British caricaturist and book illustrator, praised as the "modern William Hogarth, Hogarth" during his life. His book illustrations for his friend Charles Dicken ...

the cartoonist and vice-president of the National Temperance League. Numbered 24th it was known as 'Havelock's Own' after the hero of 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 form ...

Maj-Gen Sir

Henry Havelock Major-general (United Kingdom), Major-General Sir Henry Havelock (5 April 1795 – 24 November 1857) was a British general who is particularly associated with India and his recapture of Siege of Cawnpore, Cawnpore during the Indian Rebellion of ...

, a noted leader of the Temperance movement. Cruikshank intended his unit to be formed solely from sober artisans, but sufficient numbers were not forthcoming and he received little support from the

Earl of Lovelace Earl of Lovelace was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1838 for William King-Noel, 8th Baron King, a title created in 1725. History The King or Locke King family stems from the only known child of Jerome King, ...

, the

Lord Lieutenant of Surrey This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Surrey. Since 1737, all Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Surrey. Lord Lieutenants of Surrey * William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton 1551–1553? * William Howa ...

. When he sent a recruiting party into neighbouring

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...

, Cruikshank not only ran into opposition from the

Peace Society The Peace Society, International Peace Society or London Peace Society, originally known as the Society for the Promotion of Permanent and Universal Peace, was a British pacifist organisation that was active from 1816 until the 1930s. History Fo ...

, but he was rebuked by the

Lord Lieutenant of Kent This is a list of people who have served as Lord-Lieutenant of Kent. Since 1746, all Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Kent. Lords Lieutenant of Kent * Sir Thomas Cheney 1551 – 1558 * William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham 3 July ...

for recruiting across the Surrey border. There were moves to merge the weak unit into the 7th Surreys, with whom relations were not good. Cruikshank gave up in disgust, disbanded his corps in March 1862 and moved his efforts to

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

, where he succeeded in forming the 48th Middlesex (Havelock's Temperance Volunteers). The Earl of Lovelace, himself a

Militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

officer, was reluctant to support the volunteers, and insisted that only ex-Regular officers should be appointed to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. Nevertheless, Beresford was promoted to Lt-Col of the 7th Surrey RVC on 19 November 1864. 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 attentio ...

of 1872, Volunteers were grouped into county brigades with their local

Regular Regular may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * "Regular" (Badfinger song) * Regular tunings of stringed instruments, tunings with equal intervals between the paired notes of successive open strings Other uses * Regular character, ...

and

battalions – Sub-District No 47 (County of Surrey) for the 7th Surrey RVC, grouped with the 31st (Huntingdonshire) and 70th (Surrey) Regiments of Foot. By the 1870s some of the enthusiasm for volunteering had waned, and numbers fell. The 7th Surrey RVC lost the lease of its drill ground, and a number of officers resigned. Lieutenant-Col Beresford, by now Member of Parliament for

, retired from the command and was appointed the unit's first Honorary Colonel on 25 January 1873. The last new Surrey RVC to be formed was the 26th at Shaftesbury Park,

Lavender Hill The A3036 is an A roads in Great Britain, A road in London, England, running from Waterloo, London, Waterloo to Wandsworth. Route It starts at the southern tip of the County Hall roundabout where the A302 road, A302 Westminster Bridge, York ...

Clapham Clapham () is a district in south London, south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (including Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Ea ...

, on 28 April 1875. It soon had four companies enrolled. Volunteer corps were consolidated into larger units in 1880, when the 26th Surreys was absorbed into the 7th Surreys, giving the battalion 10 companies (six at Southwark and four at Clapham). 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 w ...

of 1881 took Cardwell's reforms further, and the Volunteers were formally affiliated to their local Regular regiment, the 7th Surrey RVC becoming a Volunteer Battalion of the new

, formed from the old 31st and 70th Foot. The 7th Surrey RVC changed its designation to 4th Volunteer Battalion, East Surrey Regiment''; on 1 December 1887. Right Half Battalion was based in spacious premises at 71 Upper Kennington Lane, Left Half Battalion in poor accommodation on St John's Hill in Clapham Junction. While the sub-districts were later referred to as 'brigades', they were purely administrative organisations and the Volunteers were excluded from the 'mobilisation' part of the Cardwell system. 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 B ...

of December 1888 proposed a more comprehensive Mobilisation Scheme for Volunteer units, which would assemble in their own brigades at key points in case of war. In peacetime these brigades provided a structure for collective training. Under this scheme the Volunteer Battalions of the

Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Arm ...

and the East Surreys formed the Surrey Brigade. The brigade initially shared the Kennington headquarters of the 4th VB, East Surreys, and its assembly point was at

Caterham Barracks Caterham Barracks was a military installation in Caterham, Surrey. History The barracks were built as a depot for the Foot Guards regiments in 1877. The construction reflected a more humane style of barrack design in the aftermath of the Crimea ...

, the

Brigade of Guards The Brigade of Guards was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1856 to 1968. It was commanded by the Major-General commanding the Household Division, Major-General commanding the Brigade of Guards and was responsible for administ ...

' depot conveniently situated for the

London Defence Positions The London Defence Positions were a late 19th-century scheme of earthworks (engineering), earthwork fortifications in the southeast of England, designed to protect London from foreign invasion landing on the south coast. The positions were a care ...

along the

North Downs The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. Much of the North Downs comprises two Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Areas of Outstanding Natural Be ...

. On 25 May 1889 the Rev Edward Talbot was appointed the battalion's

Chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

; while holding the position he became

Bishop of Rochester The Bishop of Rochester is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury. The town of Rochester, Kent, Rochester has the bishop's seat, at the Rochester Cathedral, Cathedral Chur ...

and later Bishop of Southwark. The 4th VB's CO, Lt-Col Arthur Bowen, was closely associated with the cadet movement in South London, and the 1st Cadet Battalion, East Surrey Regiment, of four companies existed at 71 Kennington Lane between 1890 and 1896. By 1901 the battalion had moved to a new HQ

Drill Hall A drill hall is a place such as a building or a hangar where soldiers practise and perform military drills. Description In the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, the term was used for the whole headquarters building of a military reserve unit, ...

at 27 St John's Hill, Clapham Junction, on land provided by the Hon Colonel, Lord Wandsworth.Wandsworth at Drill Hall Register, Stepping Forward London/
/ref> Saturday afternoon drills were held on

Wimbledon Common Wimbledon Common is a large open space in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, southwest London. There are three named areas: Wimbledon Common, Putney Heath, and Putney Lower Common, which together are managed under the name Wimbledon and Putney Co ...

, although the crowds of spectators made it difficult to carry out even simple manoeuvres.

Second Boer War

After

Black Week Black Week refers to the week of Sunday 10 December – Sunday 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 on Sunday 10 December, Mage ...

in December 1899, the Volunteers were invited to send active service units to assist the Regulars in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

. The

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

decided that one company 116 strong could be recruited from the volunteer battalions of any infantry regiment that had a regular battalion serving in South Africa. The 4th VB raised the East Surrey Volunteer Service Company, which sailed in March 1900 under the command of Capt George Collyer and saw service with 2nd Bn East Surreys as 'I Company'. It took part in the operations to clear the

Biggarsberg Biggarsberg is a series of hills in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, stretching south of Glencoe and Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year populati ...

, and in the actions at Inkweloane and at Almond's Nek, where the Boers were turned out of a strong position. In the last six months of its service from October 1900 to May 1901, the company was in a fortified position at

Van Reenen's Pass Van Reenen's Pass is a pass through the Drakensberg mountains in South Africa. The N3 freeway, the main road between Durban and Johannesburg, was constructed through the pass with the northern end of the pass lying at the border of the province ...

at the junction of the

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

and

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( ; ) was an independent Boer-ruled sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Em ...

Railways. The company returned to the East Surrey's depot at

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames, colloquially known as Kingston, is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, south-west London, England. It is situated on the River Thames, south-west of Charing Cross. It is an ancient market town, notable as ...

in June 1901. In addition the 4th VB supplied volunteers to the Regular Army, the

City Imperial Volunteers The City of London Imperial Volunteers (CIV) was a British corps of volunteers during the Second Boer War. History After the outbreak of the Second Boer War in October 1899, volunteer corps were established in most counties of the United Kingdom ...

, and to the

Sharpshooters A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with "marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" i ...

and other units of the

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

. In total, 13 officers and 235 other ranks (ORs) of the battalion served in the war and earned its first

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 Military operation, operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In ...

: South Africa 1900–02.Anon, ''23rd'', p. v. In the reorganisation after the end of the Boer War in 1902, the large Surrey Brigade was split into separate East and West Surrey Brigades, under command of the respective regimental districts.

Territorial Force

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 e ...

of 1908 the

Volunteers Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergenc ...

were subsumed into the new

(TF), administered by county Territorial Associations. The volunteers in rural Surrey came under the Surrey Territorial Association; however, because many of the North Surrey suburban parishes had been included in the new

County of London The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government A ...

since 1889, the battalions recruited in South London were included in a new all-TF

under the County of London TA. Consequently the 4th VB East Surreys became 23rd (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment.Money Barnes, Appendix IV.23rd Londons at Stepping Forward London.
/ref> The four former Surrey battalions of the London Regiment (now 21st–24th Londons) comprised the 6th London Brigade in the TF's

2nd London Division The 47th (1/2nd London) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, raised in 1908 as part of the Territorial Force. Formation The Territorial Force (TF) was formed on 1 April 1908 following the enactment of the Territorial and Res ...

.James, pp. 113–7.London Regiment at Long, Long Trail.
/ref>Becke, Pt 2a, pp. 69–75.47th (2nd London) Division at Long, Long Trail.
/ref> The St Thomas's (Wandsworth) Cadet Corps was affiliated to the battalion.

World War I

The 23rd Londons remained in training between the outbreak of the

until on 15 March it landed at

Le Havre Le Havre is a major port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the Seine, river Seine on the English Channel, Channe ...

as part of 6th London Brigade, 2nd London Division, which that May was renumbered 142nd Brigade in 47th (2nd London) Division. As such it fought in the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used Chemical weapons in World War I, ...

and

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

before spending the last three months of 1916 on the

Ypres Salient The Ypres Salient, around Ypres, in Belgium, was the scene of several battles and a major part of the Western Front during World War I. Location Ypres lies at the junction of the Ypres–Comines Canal and the Ieperlee. The city is overlooked b ...

. In 1917 the battalion was involved in the battles of Messines Ridge and the

Bourlon Wood The Bourlon Wood Memorial, near Bourlon, France, is a Canadian war memorial that commemorates the actions of the Canadian Corps during the final months of the First World War; a period also known as Canada's Hundred Days, part of the Hundred Day ...

. It also faced the

German Spring Offensive The German spring offensive, also known as ''Kaiserschlacht'' ("Kaiser's Battle") or the Ludendorff offensive, was a series of German Empire, German attacks along the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First Wor ...

of 1918 as well as taking part in the

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

and the liberation of

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

, before ending the war at Frasnes.

2nd and 3rd Battalions

After the outbreak of wr a 2/23rd Battalion London Regiment was raised, with the original battalion being renumbered 1/23rd Battalion. Part of 181st (2/6th London) Brigade in 2/2nd London Division (later renamed 60th (London) Division), the new battalion supplied drafts of men to 1/23rd Battalion until autumn 1915, landing in France for active service on 26 June 1916. It remained on the Western Front until October 1916, when it sailed for the

Macedonian front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of Germa ...

, where it spent six months. Its next theatre of war was

, where it remained until May 1918, when it returned to the Western Front for the remainder of the war. When 1/23rd Battalion sailed for France another draft-finding battalion was formed to free up 2/23rd Battalion for active service. This new battalion was numbered 3/23rd Battalion and remained in Britain throughout the war, including time on coastal defence duties in Norfolk and Suffolk whilst based at Benacre Park near

Wrentham, Suffolk Wrentham is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk district, in the north-east of the English county of Suffolk. It is located about from the North Sea coast on the A12 trunk road, about south-west of Lowestoft, north of Southwold ...

in early summer 1918.

Interwar

When the London Regiment was dissolved in 1938, the battalion became the

42nd Royal Tank Regiment The 42nd Royal Tank Regiment (42 RTR) was an armoured regiment of the British Army from 1938 until 1956. It was part of the Royal Tank Regiment, itself part of the Royal Armoured Corps. Mobilisation The unit was formed on 1 November 1938 by c ...

World War II

42nd Royal Tank Regiment and its wartime duplicate, 48th Royal Tank Regiment, fought in

, including the Battle of Alamein, and in

and

Postwar

Following the re-establishment of the Territorial Army in 1947 the Regiment remained as 42nd Royal Tank Regiment until 1956, when a reduction in Territorial Army armoured regiments meant the regiment became the 23rd London again. Further reductions in the size of the Territorial Army in 1961 saw the unit merged to become a Territorial battalion of the newly formed

Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment The Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army which existed from 1959 to 1966. In 1966, it was amalgamated with the Queen's Own Buffs, The Royal Kent Regiment, the Royal Sussex Regiment and the Middlesex Re ...

Heritage & ceremonial

Traditions & insignia

The 7th Surrey RVC, and later the 23rd Londons, claimed to be the lineal descendants of the Volunteer Associations raised in South East London in 1798 during an earlier invasion scare. These included the Newington Surry (''sic'') Volunteers of two companies totalling 120 men, the Loyal Southwark Volunteers recruited across several parishes, and the Associations of St George the Martyr and

St John Saint John or St. John usually refers to either John the Baptist or John the Apostle. Saint John or St. John may also refer to: People Saints * John the Baptist ( – ), preacher, ascetic, and baptizer of Jesus Christ * John the Evangelis ...

, which associated themselves with that of the outlying parish of St Mary Newington. The pair of

Colours Color (or colour in Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though color is not an inherent property of matter, color perception is related to an object's light absorpt ...

of the Newington Surry Volunteers, presented by Mrs Burne (wife of one of the captains), and the single colour of the St John's Association presented by Mrs Thornton (wife of the MP), were taken over by the 7th Surrey RVC on its formation and were paraded as late as 1872 before being hung in the officers' mess at Clapham Junction. One of the Newington colours bore the Bridge House Mark (a combination of the Greek letter X for Christ, with the triangle of the Trinity and the circle of eternity), the symbol of Southwark. This symbol (described heraldically as 'an annulet ensigned with a

cross pattée A cross pattée or cross patty (, ), also known as a cross formée or cross formy, or even a Templar cross, is a type of Christian cross with arms that are narrow at the centre and often flared in a curve or straight line shape to be broader at th ...

and interlaced with a

saltire A saltire, also called Saint Andrew's Cross or the crux decussata, is a Heraldry, heraldic symbol in the form of a diagonal cross. The word comes from the Middle French , Medieval Latin ("stirrup"). From its use as field sign, the saltire cam ...

conjoined in base') was incorporated into the regimental badge of the 23rd Londons, where it appeared in a crowned circle bearing the regimental title, a scroll underneath carrying the motto 'Loyalty Unites Us'. This insignia was incorporated into the Regimental Colour presented in 1909 and was engraved on the headstones erected by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) on the World War I graves of members of 23rd Londons. After its service with the Royal Tank Regiment the battalion was awarded the distinction of the RTR badge with the dates 1941–45, which appears in the corner of the Regimental colour of the 4th Queen's Royal Surreys, together with three scrolls for North West Europe, North Africa and Italy.

Uniforms

In 1870 the 7th Surrey RVC adopted a

Rifle green Varieties of the color green may differ in hue, chroma (also called saturation or intensity) or lightness (or value, tone, or brightness), or in two or three of these qualities. Variations in value are also called tints and shades, a tin ...

uniform with scarlet

facings A facing colour, also known as facings, 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 Char ...

, similar to the

60th Rifles 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 Sta ...

. After it became a VB of the East Surreys it adopted the scarlet uniform with white facings of that regiment. Until 1900 the band wore a white plume that gained them the nickname 'Kennington Guards'. Khaki service dress was issued to the TF battalion and after 1908 the scarlet tunic was reserved for ceremonial occasions.

Honorary Colonels

The following served as Honorary Colonel of the battalion: * Francis Marcus Beresford,MP, first CO, appointed 25 January 1873 *

Sydney Stern, 1st Baron Wandsworth Sydney James Stern, 1st Baron Wandsworth, (1844 – 10 February 1912) was a British banker, Liberal Member of Parliament, philanthropist and member of the Stern banking family. Background and education Stern was born in London in 1844, th ...

, appointed 16 February 1889, died 10 February 1912 * Col B.T.L. Thomson, VD, former CO, appointed wef 10 February 1912 * Maj Hon John Jacob Astor, MP, (later 1st Baron Astor of Hever) appointed 18 April 1928

Battle Honours

The battalion was awarded the following

s: ''Second Boer War'' (4th VB, East Surreys):
South Arica 1900–02
''World War I'' (1/23rd & 2/23rd Londons):
Festubert 1915, Loos, Somme 1916, '18, Flers-Courcelette, Le Transloy, Messines 1917, Cambrai 1917, St Quentin, Ancre 1918, Albert 1918, Bapaume 1918, Ypres 1918, Courtrai, France and Flanders 1915-18, Doiran 1917, Macedonia 1916-17, Gaza, El Mughar, Nebi Samwil, Jerusalem, Jericho, Jordan, Tell 'Asur, Palestine 1917-18
''World War II'' (42nd & 48th RTR):
North West Europe, North Africa, Italy The honours listed in bold were inscribed on the colours.

Memorials

The 23rd Bn London Regiment is listed on the City and County of London Troops Memorial in front of the Royal Exchange, with architectural design by

Sir Aston Webb Sir Aston Webb, (22 May 1849 – 21 August 1930) was a British architect who designed the principal facade of Buckingham Palace and the main building of the Victoria and Albert Museum, among other major works around England, many of them in par ...

and sculpture by

Alfred Drury Edward Alfred Briscoe Drury (11 November 1856 – 24 December 1944) was a British architectural sculptor and artist active in the New Sculpture movement. During a long career Drury created a great number of decorative figures such as busts an ...

. The right-hand (southern) bronze figure flanking this memorial depicts an infantryman representative of the various London infantry units. There is a World War I memorial to the 23rd Londons at

St Mary's Church, Battersea St Mary's Church, Battersea is an Anglican church in Greater London. It the oldest of the churches in Battersea, London Borough of Wandsworth, in the inner south-west of the UK's capital city. Its parish is shared by three Anglican churches is in ...

.Directory of unit memorials: Surrey units, at Stepping Forward London.
/ref> There are memorial boards to the 23rd Londons in World War I and to the 42nd RTR in World War II at the Army Reserve Centre, 27 St John's Hill. The regimental colours presented to the 23rd Londons at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

on 19 June 1909 are laid up in St Mary's Church, Battersea. The colours of the 4th Bn Queen’s Regiment presented at

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

in 1963 were laid up in

Southwark Cathedral Southwark Cathedral ( ), formally the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, is a Church of England cathedral in Southwark, London, near the south bank of the River Thames and close to London Bridge. It is the mother c ...

in 1980.Laid up colours: Surrey units, at Stepping Forward London.
/ref>

Notes

References

* Anon, ''The 23rd London Regiment 1798–1919'', London: Times Publishing, 1936/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2002, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2a: The Territorial Force Mounted Divisions and the 1st-Line Territorial Force Divisions (42–56)'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1935/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, ISBN 1-847347-39-8. * Ian F.W. Beckett, ''Riflemen Form: A Study of the Rifle Volunteer Movement 1859–1908'', Aldershot: Ogilby Trusts, 1982, ISBN 0 85936 271 X. * 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, ISBN 1-85117-007-3. * Brig E.A. James, ''British Regiments 1914–18'', London: Samson Books, 1978/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2001, ISBN 978-1-84342-197-9. * Edward M. Spiers, ''The Army and Society 1815–1914'', London: Longmans, 1980, ISBN 0-582-48565-7. * Ray Westlake, ''Tracing the Rifle Volunteers'', Barnsley: Pen and Sword, 2010, ISBN 978-1-84884-211-3.

External sources

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

Queen's Royal Surreys

* ttp://www.steppingforwardlondon.org Stepping Forward: A Tribute to the Volunteer Military Reservists and Supporting Auxiliaries of Greater London