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The Berkshire Yeomanry was a part time regiment of the
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...
formed in 1794 to counter the threat of invasion during 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 France against Britain, Austria, Pruss ...
. It was the
Royal County of Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Ber ...
's senior volunteer unit with over 200 years of voluntary military service. After taking part in 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 So ...
, it saw action as mounted troops in the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
and as artillery (145th (Berkshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment, Royal Artillery) in the
Second World War 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 opposi ...
. Its lineage is maintained by 94 (Berkshire Yeomanry) Signal Squadron, part of
39 (Skinners) Signal Regiment 39th (Skinners) Signal Regiment is an Army Reserve regiment in the Royal Corps of Signals in the British Army. The regiment forms part of 1 Signal Brigade, providing military communications for national operations. The Lynx badge is a reminder ...
. The Headquarters of the Squadron is based in Windsor, Berkshire. The Berkshire Yeomanry had a number of battle honours won from Europe to the Far East and Private Frederick Potts was awarded a
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...
for service during the Gallipoli Campaign.


French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars

Under threat of invasion by the French Revolutionary government from 1793, and with insufficient military forces to repulse such an attack, the British government under William Pitt the Younger decided in 1794 to increase the Militia and to form corps of volunteers for the defence of the country. The mounted arm of the volunteers became known as the "Gentlemen and Yeomanry Cavalry". The first Troop raised in Berkshire was the Abingdon Yeomanry on 10 April 1794. Other corps followed so that eight were in existence by the end of 1800:Tylden, ''Yeomanry''.
/ref>Lord & Watson, pp. 187–9. * Abingdon Yeomanry, raised 10 April 1794 *
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spell ...
Cavalry, raised 3 July 1794 – ''probably absorbed by Woodley corps 1798'' * Newbury Association Cavalry ( Donnington), raised 23 April 1798 * Woodley Cavalry, raised 11 May 1798 – ''two troops, probably absorbing Reading corps; reduced to one troop 1799'' * Thatcham Association Cavalry, raised 24 May 1798 * Hungerford Association Cavalry, raised 1 June 1798 * Maidenhead United Cavalry Association, raised June 1798 * Loyal Windsor Cavalry, raised 30 September 1800 When the Fencible and Provisional cavalry regiments (full-time home defence troops) were disbanded in 1800, Sir Morris Ximenes of Bear Place, at Hare Hatch near Wargrave, and some of his fellow officers of the Windsor Foresters (5th Fencible Cavalry) offered to raise another part-time 'Troop of Gentlemen Cavalry' in Berkshire, which became the Wargrave Rangers on 21 March 1800.Cormack. The brief Peace of Amiens in 1802 saw a number of corps disbanding, to be re-raised in 1803 with the resumption of hostilities. * Abingdon Yeomanry, service renewed 31 August 1802 * Donnington and Newbury Cavalry, reformed 22 August 1803 * Woodley Cavalry, service renewed 8 October 1802 * Thatcham Volunteer Cavalry, reformed 24 February 1803 * Hungerford Yeomanry, reformed 30 September 1803 * Maidenhead Cavalry, reformed 13 October 1803 * Loyal Windsor Cavalry, service renewed 30 September 1802 * Wargrave Cavalry, reformed 22 March1803 *
Aldermaston Aldermaston is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. In the 2011 Census, the parish had a population of 1015. The village is in the Kennet Valley and bounds Hampshire to the south. It is approximately from Newbury, Basingstok ...
Cavalry, raised 13 August 1803 *
Vale of White Horse The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. It was historically a north-west projection of Berkshire. The area is commonly referred to as the 'Vale of ''the'' White Horse'. It is crossed by the Ridgeway Na ...
Cavalry, two troops raised 3 September 1803 Sir Morris Ximenes offered to raise and pay for an additional corps of volunteer infantry to be attached to the Wargrave troop, with wagons to travel in; it is not known if this proposal was taken up. In 1804, five troops in the north and west of the county – Abingdon, Donnington with Newbury, Hungerford, and the Vale of White Horse (two troops) – were regimented as the Western or 1st Berkshire Cavalry under the command of
Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...
the Hon Charles Dundas, MP, former commanding officer of the Berkshire Provisional Cavalry. An attempt the following year to regiment the Maidenhead, Windsor, Woodley (including Reading) and Wargrave troops was unsuccessful. The Aldermaston, Thatcham and Windsor Troops were disbanded in 1807, followed by the Maidenhead in 1809. In late 1813, with the war drawing to a close, the remaining independent troops were invited to amalgamate with the 1st Berkshire Cavalry; the Woodley Troop joined while the Wargrave Rangers disbanded early in 1814, the officers having retired. However, the 1st Berkshire Cavalry maintained a troop at Wargrave from 1817 to 1820, after which the Woodley and Wargrave troops joined the Eastern Berkshire Yeomanry Cavalry raised on 14 January 1820 by Major Payn of the new Maidenhead Troop.


19th Century

After the
Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armies of the Sevent ...
the Yeomanry were kept in being in 'for Military Service in aid of the Civil Power' in the absence of organised police forces, case of civil disorder. Government support for the Yeomanry was withdrawn in 1828 and many corps were disbanded; the 1st Berkshire Regiment was disbanded in January 1828 and the Eastern Regiment in April. However, just two years later a wave of unrest swept the country and the government restored Yeomanry pay for drills and periods of service in aid of the civil power. Four independent troops of yeomanry were re-formed in Berkshire in 1831: * Hungerford * Newbury with Welford Park * Vale of White Horse * Woolley These had dwindled to just the Hungerford Troop by 1838. This was increased to two troops by 1852, three in 1853 and four by 1874. About 1847 the unit adopted the title of Royal Berkshire Yeomanry Cavalry; although there is no evidence of official permission for the 'Royal' title, it remained in use until 1902. The official title was Berkshire Regiment of Yeomanry Cavalry (Hungerford). On 1 April 1893, the troops were reorganised into two squadrons. Following the Cardwell Reforms a mobilisation scheme began to appear in the ''Army List'' from December 1875. This assigned Regular and Yeomanry units 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 appointed. The Berkshire Yeomanry were assigned as 'divisional troops' to 1st Division of
II Corps 2nd Corps, Second Corps, or II Corps may refer to: France * 2nd Army Corps (France) * II Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * II Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French ...
based at Aldershot, alongside Regular units of infantry, artillery and engineers. This was never more than a paper organisation, but by 1899 the Berkshire Yeomanry together with the Middlesex Yeomanry formed the 1st Yeomanry Brigade. In the 1890s the regimental headquarters (RHQ) moved from Hungerford to Reading.''Army List'', various dates.


Imperial Yeomanry

Following a string of defeats during
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 ...
in early December 1899, the British government realised that it would need more troops than just the regular army to fight 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 So ...
. On 13 December, the decision to allow volunteer forces to serve in South Africa was made, and a Royal Warrant was issued on 24 December. This officially created the Imperial Yeomanry (IY). The force was organised as county service companies of approximately 115 men signed up for one year, and volunteers from the Yeomanry and civilians (usually middle and upper class) quickly filled the new force, which was equipped to operate as
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 speciall ...
. Although there were strict requirements, many volunteers were accepted with substandard horsemanship or marksmanship and had little time to train before arriving in South Africa.Dunlop, pp. 104–18.IY at Anglo Boer War.
/ref> The first contingent of recruits contained 550
officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fr ...
, 10,371 men in 20
battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions ...
s of 4 companies, which arrived in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
between February and April, 1900. The Berkshire Yeomanry raised the 39th and 58th (Berkshire) Companies, which landed in South Africa on 28 February and 4 April 1900 and served in 10th and 15th Battalions, IY, respectively, alongside Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire companies (10th Bn was commanded by Lord Chesham of the Buckinghamshire Yeomanry). Upon arrival, the battalions were sent throughout the zone of operations.Amery (1909), Appendix to Chapters I-XIV, pp. 503–14.Boer War Notes at Roll of Honour.
/ref>White, p. 7. Chesham's 10th Bn IY was attached to 1st Division under the command of Lord Methuen and Chesham became Brigadier-General of the division's mounted troops. On 5 April Methuen learned of the presence of a small Boer Commando led by the French Comte de Villebois-Mareuil and ordered Chesham's IY and other mounted troops to saddle up at once. The force caught the commando, pinned it with a few rounds of artillery fire, and then advanced by small rushes on both flanks, the IY taking the left flank. De Villebois-Mareuil was killed and his men surrendered. The
Battle of Boshof The Battle of Boshof was a battle fought during the Second Boer War on 5 April 1900 between British forces and mostly French volunteers of the Boer army.Jaques p. 155 Events Background Following the Battle of Paardeberg (18–27 February), th ...
was the first action for the new IY, but with little field training, only a brief musketry course, and few officers, they 'acted like veteran troops'. Methuen was 'much struck by the intelligent manner in which they carried out the attack and made use of cover'. By May 1900 both the 10th and 15th Bns IY were serving in Methuen's Column, which quickly became known as the 'Mobile Marvels'. On 14 May Methuen marched on Hoopstad and then continued into
Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( nl, Oranje Vrijstaat; af, Oranje-Vrystaat;) was an independent Boer sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeat ...
protecting the flank of Lord Roberts' main army. Methuen's column reached Bothaville on 24 May, but Roberts became concerned about his communications, so Methuen was switched to protecting the rear, and marched to Kroonstad, where the column arrived on 28 May, having completed a march of in 15 days over poor roads. On 30 May, Metheun was informed that the 13th (Irish) Bn IY was cut off at Lindley, and he rode with his own IY battalions to relieve them, covering in 24 hours. The mounted column had a five-hour fight to force its way past 3000 Boers led by Christiaan de Wet. Most of the force in Lindley had already surrendered, but 5th and 10th Bns IY under Lt-Col
George Younghusband Major General Sir George John Younghusband, (9 July 1859 – 30 September 1944) was a cavalry officer and major-general in the British Indian Army. Younghusband was commissioned into the 17th Foot in 1878. He later transferred to the British ...
were able to free a number of the prisoners. Methuen then pushed on to relieve 9th Division, which was besieged at Heilbron, completing a march of in under a month. Methuen's Column now took part in the pursuit of de Wet's force south down the railway towards Kroonstad, beginning with a sharp action at Rhenoster River on 24 June. The 'Great de Wet Hunt' began in earnest in August. On 6 August Methuen set out with 5th and !0th Bns IY, some infantry and artillery to catch the Boer commander at Scandinavia Drift, switching to Schoeman's Drift when better intelligence arrived. De Wet and half his force had got across the drift before Methuen arrived, but the rearguard was cleared and the column pressed forward. Methuen sent Chesham and the IY towards Frederikstad to cut off de Wet, but after their long march the day before the yeomanry could not keep up with the Boers. The Great de Wet Hunt by numerous British columns continued through August and September, with Methuen personally leading a column including the 1st Yeomanry Brigade under Chesham. Methuen drove his force on with little rest, to Welverdiend Pass and Taaibosch Spruit, then to Frederikstad. On 12 August the column engaged the Boers at Mooi River Bridge for four hours, capturing guns and wagons and freeing British prisoners. Methuen's column had covered in six days, driving de Wet towards the Olifant's Nek pass, which Methuen believed was blocked by other columns. On the night of 13/14 August his troops set out to catch the Boers, engaging them at Buffelshoek about from the pass. However, the Boers escaped through the pass, which had not been blocked. With his troops exhausted, Methuen had to call off the pursuit. Drives to catch the remaining commandos went on for almost another two years. The First Contingent of the Imperial Yeomanry completed their year's term of service in 1901 and were replaced by a Second Contingent. The two Berkshire companies, in which 600 men of all ranks of the Berkshire Yeomanry had served by the end of the war, earned the regiment its first Battle honour: South Africa 1900–01. The Imperial Yeomanry were trained and equipped as mounted infantry. The concept was considered a success and before the war ended the existing Yeomanry regiments at home were converted into Imperial Yeomanry, with an establishment of HQ and four squadrons with a machine gun section. This included the Berkshire (Hungerford) Imperial Yeomanry (Dragoons), renamed on 17 April 1901.


Territorial Force

On 1 April 1908, the regiment was renamed for the final time as the Berkshire (Hungerford) Yeomanry and transferred to the Territorial Force, trained and equipped as dragoons. Its organisation was: It was ranked as 26th (of 55) in the
order of precedence An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance and can be applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments, for very formal and state o ...
of the Yeomanry Regiments in the Army List of 1914.


First World War

In accordance with the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 (''
7 Edw. 7 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion, mythology, s ...
, c.9'') which brought the Territorial Force into being, the TF was intended to be a home defence force for service during wartime and members could not be compelled to serve outside the country. However, on the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, many members volunteered for Imperial Service. Therefore, TF units were split in August and September 1914 into 1st Line (liable for overseas service) and 2nd Line (home service for those unable or unwilling to serve overseas) units. Later, a 3rd Line was formed to act as a reserve, providing trained replacements for the 1st and 2nd Line regiments.


1/1st Berkshire Yeomanry

The regiment was mobilized with its brigade on 4 August 1914 upon the outbreak of the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. Initially, it concentrated in Berkshire and on 5 August 1914 joined the 1st Mounted Division. On 2 September it was transferred to the 2nd Mounted Division and in mid November 1914 it moved with its division to
Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...
on coastal defence duties. In April 1915, the 2nd Mounted Division moved to
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
arriving at
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
between 19 and 21 April and was posted to
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metr ...
by the middle of May. The regiment was dismounted in August 1915 and took part in the Gallipoli Campaign. It left a squadron headquarters and two troops (about 100 officers and men) in Egypt to look after the horses. They landed at "A" Beach,
Suvla Bay View of Suvla from Battleship Hill Suvla () is a bay on the Aegean coast of the Gallipoli peninsula in European Turkey, south of the Gulf of Saros. On 6 August 1915, it was the site for the Landing at Suvla Bay by the British IX Corps as par ...
on 18 August and moved into bivouacs at Lala Baba on 20 August. On 21 August it advanced to Chocolate Hill via Salt Lake and Hetman Chair and took part in the attack on Scimitar Hill. Due to losses during the Battle of Scimitar Hill and wastage during August 1915, the 2nd Mounted Division had to be reorganised. On 4 September 1915, the
1st Composite Mounted Brigade The 1st Composite Mounted BrigadeDespite the name, the brigade was dismouted throughout its existence. was a formation of the British Army in World War I. It was formed by the 2nd Mounted Division during the Gallipoli Campaign on 4 September 19 ...
was formed from the 1st (1st South Midland), 2nd (2nd South Midland) and 5th (Yeomanry) Mounted Brigades. Each brigade formed a battalion sized unit, for example, ''2nd South Midland Regiment'' and each regiment a sub-unit. The brigade embarked for Mudros on 31 October and returned to Egypt in December 1915 where its component units were reformed and remounted. The brigade left the 2nd Mounted Division on 17 January 1916 and was sent to the Western Frontier of Egypt as an independent formation. On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were numbered in a single sequence. As a consequence, the 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade was redesignated as
6th Mounted Brigade The 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade (later numbered as the 6th Mounted Brigade) was a yeomanry brigade of the British Army, formed as part of the Territorial Force in 1908. It served dismounted in the Gallipoli Campaign before being remount ...
. The brigade served with the
Western Frontier Force The Western Frontier Force was raised from British Empire troops during the Senussi Campaign from November 1915 to February 1917, under the command of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF). Orders for the formation of the force were issued on ...
from January to October 1916. It joined the newly formed
Imperial Mounted Division The Australian Mounted Division originally formed as the Imperial Mounted Division in January 1917, was a mounted infantry, light horse and yeomanry division. The division was formed in Egypt, and along with the Anzac Mounted Division formed pa ...
in January 1917 and took part in the First and Second Battles of Gaza. The complete brigade was transferred to the newly formed
Yeomanry Mounted Division The Yeomanry Mounted Division was a Territorial Force cavalry division formed at Khan Yunis in Palestine in June 1917 from three yeomanry mounted brigades. It served in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of the First World War, mostly as part of ...
on 27 June 1917, joining it at el Maraqeb. From 31 October it took part in the Third Battle of Gaza, including the Battle of Beersheba and the Capture of the Sheria Position. It took part in the Battle of Mughar Ridge on 13 and 14 November and the Battle of Nebi Samwil from 17 to 24 November. From 27 to 29 November, it withstood the Turkish counter-attacks during the Capture of Jerusalem. In March 1918, the 1st Indian Cavalry Division was broken up in France. The British units (notably 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons, 17th Lancers, 1/1st Queen's Own Yorkshire Dragoons and A, Q and U Batteries RHA) remained in France and the Indian elements were sent to Egypt. By an
Egyptian Expeditionary Force The Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) was a British Empire military formation, formed on 10 March 1916 under the command of General Archibald Murray from the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and the Force in Egypt (1914–15), at the beginning o ...
GHQ Order of 12 April 1918, the mounted troops of the EEF were reorganised when the Indian Army units arrived in
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...
. On 24 April 1918, the Yeomanry Mounted Division was ''indianized'' and its title was changed to 1st Mounted Division, the third distinct division to bear this title. On 24 April 1918, the 6th Mounted Brigade was merged with elements of the
5th (Mhow) Cavalry Brigade The 5th (Mhow) Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the Indian Army during the First World War. Formed in November 1914, it served on the Western Front as part of the 2nd and 1st Indian Ca ...
: the
Royal Buckinghamshire Hussars The Royal Buckinghamshire Yeomanry is an Operational Hygiene Squadron of the Royal Logistic Corps, originally formed as cavalry in 1794, and has also served in artillery and signals roles. The lineage is continued by 710 (Royal Buckinghamshire H ...
and the Berkshire Yeomanry left the brigade on 4 April and were merged to form C Battalion,
Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a Regiment, corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in the World War I, First World War. Th ...
. They were replaced by 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse) and
38th King George's Own Central India Horse The Central India Horse (formerly the 21st King George V's Own Horse, also known as Beatson's Horse) was a regular cavalry regiment of the British Indian Army and is presently part of the Indian Army Armoured Corps. Formation The regiment was ra ...
from 5th (Mhow) Cavalry Brigade. C Battalion, MGC was posted to France, arriving on 28 June 1918. In August 1918 it was renumbered as 101st (Bucks. & Berks. Yeo.) Battalion, Machine Gun Corps. They remained 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 maj ...
for the rest of the war. At the
Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...
, it was serving as Army Troops with the Second Army.


2/1st Berkshire Yeomanry

The 2nd Line regiment was formed at Reading in September 1914. By March 1915 it was with
2/2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade The slash is the oblique slanting line punctuation mark . Also known as a stroke, a solidus or several other historical or technical names including oblique and virgule. Once used to mark periods and commas, the slash is now used to represen ...
in
2/2nd Mounted Division The 3rd Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed on 6 March 1915 as the 2/2nd Mounted Division, a replacement/depot formation for the 2nd Mounted Division which was being sent abroad ...
and was at King's Lynn in
Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nor ...
. On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were ordered to be numbered in a single sequence; the brigade was numbered as
11th Mounted Brigade The 3rd Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed on 6 March 1915 as the 2/2nd Mounted Division, a replacement/depot formation for the 2nd Mounted Division which was being sent abroa ...
and the division as
3rd Mounted Division The 3rd Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed on 6 March 1915 as the 2/2nd Mounted Division, a replacement/depot formation for the 2nd Mounted Division which was being sent abroad ...
. In July 1916, the regiment was converted to a cyclist unit in 8th Cyclist Brigade, 2nd Cyclist Division, and was stationed in the Maidstone area of
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 ...
. In September 1916 it moved to the
Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...
area of
Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include ...
. In November 1916, the division was broken up and regiment was merged with the 2/1st Hampshire Yeomanry to form 11th (Hampshire and Berkshire) Yeomanry Cyclist Regiment in
4th Cyclist Brigade Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...
. In March 1917 it resumed its identity as 2/1st Berkshire Yeomanry and by July 1917 it was at Wivenhoe. About January 1918 it went to Ireland with the 4th Cyclist Brigade and was stationed at
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
and Dundalk until the end of the war.


3/1st Berkshire Yeomanry

The 3rd Line regiment was formed in 1915; in the summer it was affiliated to the 7th Reserve Cavalry Regiment at Tidworth. Early in 1917 it was absorbed into the 6th Reserve Cavalry Regiment at Tidworth.


Interwar

On 7 February 1920, the Regiment was reconstituted in the Territorial Army with HQ still at
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spell ...
. Following the experience of the war, it was decided that only the fourteen most senior yeomanry regiments would be retained as horsed cavalry, with the rest being transferred to other roles. As a result, on 22 June 1921, the Regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Buckinghamshire Yeomanry and simultaneously transferred to the
Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
to form 99th (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire) Brigade, RFA with HQ at Aylesbury. The two yeomanry regiments retained their own identities and badges within the amalgamated unit, with each providing two
batteries Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...
. The Berkshire Yeomanry formed 395 (Berkshire Yeomanry) Battery at Reading and 396 (Berkshire Yeomanry) Battery at Newbury. The brigade / regiment underwent a number of redesignations before the outbreak of the
Second World War 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 opposi ...
. In February 1922 it regained its yeomanry title as ''99th (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Yeomanry) Brigade, RFA''. Another title change came in June 1924 as the Royal Field Artillery was reamalgamated back into the
Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
and it became ''99th (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Yeomanry) (Army) Field Brigade, RA''. The final change came in November 1938 as artillery
brigades A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Br ...
became regiments, hence ''99th (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment, RA''.


Second World War

By 1939, it became clear that a new European war was likely to break out, and the doubling of the Territorial Army was authorised, with each unit forming a duplicate. The Berkshire and Buckinghamshire Yeomanry were separated on 25 August 1939, with each being reconstituted as field regiments of the Royal Artillery. The Buckinghamshire contingent became 99th (Buckinghamshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment, Royal Artillery and the Berkshire contingent became 145th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery.


145th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery

With the outbreak of war in September 1939, 145th Field Regiment, RA was mobilised at Newbury and assigned to 61st Infantry Division. Field regiments were organised in 1938 into two 12-gun batteries. The experience of the BEF in
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
1940 showed the problem with this organisation: field regiments were intended to support an infantry brigade of three battalions. This could not be managed without severe disruption to the regiment. As a result, field regiments were reorganised into three 8-gun batteries. The third battery (509) was formed in the regiment at Antrim on 14 January 1941. It gained its subtitle, initially as ''145th Field Regiment, RA (Buckinghamshire and Berkshire Yeomanry) (TA)'' from 17 February 1942, amended on 12 May 1942 to ''145th Field Regiment, RA (Berkshire Yeomanry) (TA)''. The regiment remained in the UK for most of the war, only moving to
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
in February 1945. There, it was successively assigned to 39th Indian Division at
Dehra Dun Dehradun () is the capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and is governed by the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, with the Uttarakhand Legislative ...
, 36th British Infantry Division at Poona,
26th Indian Infantry Division The 26th Indian Infantry Division, was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II. It fought in the Burma Campaign. History When the Japanese invaded Burma in 1942, the various units in training or stationed around Barrackpu ...
at
Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
, and
25th Indian Infantry Division The 25th Indian Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II which fought in the Burma Campaign. It was re-raised within the post-independence Indian Army in 1948. History Originally formed in Bangalore in ...
at
Cocanada Kakinada ( formerly called Kakinandiwada, Coringa, and Cocanada; ) is the sixth largest city of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and serves as the district headquarters of the Kakinada District. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Bengal. J. ...
. Post war, it moved to Malaya and
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mo ...
. The regiment was placed in suspended animation in ALFSEA on 1 June 1946.


Postwar

The regiment was reformed on 1 January 1947 as 345th (Berkshire Yeomanry) Medium Regiment, RA, with HQ at Newbury and a battery at Windsor. The Windsor battery was detached to form 662nd Medium Regiment, RA, which was shortly afterwards redesignated as ''346th (Berkshire Yeomanry) Medium Regiment, RA''. They were amalgamated on 16 August 1950 as 345th (Berkshire Yeomanry) Medium Regiment, RA. On 31 October 1956, the regiment was reduced to a single battery as ''R (Berkshire Yeomanry) Battery'' in 299th (Royal Buckinghamshire Yeomanry, Berkshire Yeomanry, and Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars) Field Regiment, RA. On 1 May 1961, the battery was amalgamated with the
Westminster Dragoons The Westminster Dragoons (WDs) was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army Army Reserve, located in central London. Its lineage is continued by one of the Royal Yeomanry's six squadrons. Formed in the aftermath of Second Boer War as part of th ...
to form ''C (Berkshire Yeomanry) Squadron, Berkshire and Westminster Dragoons, RAC'' and converted to armoured cars. This was a short lived arrangement: on 1 April 1967 the Berkshire and Westminster Dragoons was reconstituted as two units with the Berkshire elements forming ''A Company (Berkshire Yeomanry), The Royal Berkshire Territorials'' at Windsor. At the start of 1969 it once more changed role as 94 (Berkshire Yeomanry) Squadron in 71st Signal Regiment, Royal Signals. The squadron became independent in 1996, joined 31st Signal Regiment in 2003 and transferred to 39th Signal Regiment in 2006. A second squadron was formed from C Company, 2nd Battalion,
Wessex Regiment The Wessex Regiment was a Territorial Army infantry regiment of the British Army, in existence from 1967 to 1995. Initially consisting of a singular battalion, the regiment was later expanded to also have a second. Formation The regiment was fo ...
, in October 1995 as D (Berkshire Yeomanry) Squadron, Royal Yeomanry, at Slough. This was disbanded on 1 June 2000.


Victoria Cross

Trooper
Frederick William Owen Potts Frederick William Owen Potts, VC, (18 December 1892 – 2 November 1943), more commonly known as Trooper Fred Potts, was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy ...
, , 1/1st Berkshire Yeomanry, won the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...
, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. On 21 August 1915 in the attack on Hill 70, Private Potts (although wounded in the thigh) remained for over 48 hours under the Turkish trenches with another private from his regiment who was severely wounded, and unable to move. He finally fixed a shovel to the equipment of his wounded comrade and using this as a sledge, dragged the man back over 600 yards to safety, being under fire all the way.


Present role of the squadron

Today the squadron is a Army Reserve squadron of the Royal Corps of Signals, serving within both of the Royal Signals UK Brigades. The squadron supports
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...
's Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC), providing essential Combat Net Radio communications for the ARRC or international coalition force.


Battle honours

The Berkshire Yeomanry has been awarded the following battle honours: ;Second Boer War South Africa 1900–01 ;First World War
Arras 1918 Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the A ...
, Scarpe 1918,
Ypres 1918 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 sout ...
,
Courtrai Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It is the capital and large ...
,
France and Flanders 1918 France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, Suvla,
Scimitar Hill A scimitar ( or ) is a single-edged sword with a convex curved blade associated with Middle Eastern, South Asian, or North African cultures. A European term, ''scimitar'' does not refer to one specific sword type, but an assortment of different ...
,
Gallipoli 1915 The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...
, Egypt 1915–17, Gaza, El Mughar,
Nebi Samwil An-Nabi Samwil, also called al-Nabi Samuil ( ar, النبي صموئيل ''an-Nabi Samu'il'', translit: "the prophet Samuel"), is a Palestinian village of nearly 220 inhabitants in the Quds Governorate of the State of Palestine, located in the We ...
, Palestine 1917–18 ;Second World War The Royal Artillery was present in nearly all battles and would have earned most of the honours awarded to cavalry and infantry regiments. In 1833, William IV awarded the motto ''Ubique'' (meaning "everywhere") in place of all battle honours.


Badge

The regiment's badge features the Uffington White Horse in the
Vale of White Horse The Vale of White Horse is a local government district of Oxfordshire in England. It was historically a north-west projection of Berkshire. The area is commonly referred to as the 'Vale of ''the'' White Horse'. It is crossed by the Ridgeway Na ...
,
historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
in Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes when it was transferred to Oxfordshire.


See also

* Imperial Yeomanry * List of Yeomanry Regiments 1908 * Yeomanry *
Yeomanry order of precedence Precedence is the order in which the various corps of the British Army parade, from right to left, with the unit at the extreme right being highest. Precedence The British Army has frequently been the subject of amalgamation and re-organisation th ...
*
British yeomanry during the First World War The British yeomanry during the First World War were part of the British Army reserve Territorial Force. Initially, in 1914, there were fifty-seven regiments and fourteen mounted brigades. Soon after the declaration of war, second and third line ...
*
Second line yeomanry regiments of the British Army Yeomanry are part of the reserve for the British Army. At the start of First World War there were fifty-four yeomanry regiments in the British Army. Soon after the declaration of war, it was decided to increase the number of these volunteer mounte ...
*
List of British Army Yeomanry Regiments converted to Royal Artillery A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
* Royal Corps of Signals


Notes


References


Bibliography

* L.S. Amery (ed), ''The Times History of the War in South Africa 1899-1902'', London: Sampson Low, Marston, 6 Vols 1900–09. * * * Andrew Cormack, 'Captain Moses Ximenes and the Berkshire Fencible Cavalry', ''Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research'', Vol 97, No 389 (Summer 2019), pp. 109–19. * * Col John K. Dunlop, ''The Development of the British Army 1899–1914'', London: Methuen, 1938. * * * * * N.B. Leslie, ''Battle Honours of the British and Indian Armies 1695–1914'', London: Leo Cooper, 1970, . * Cliff Lord & Graham Watson, ''Royal Corps of Signals: Unit Histories of the Corps (1920–2001) and its Antecedents'', Solihull: Helion, 2003, . * * Stephen M. Miller, ''Lord Methuen and the British Army: Failure and Redemption in South Africa'', London: Cass, 1999, . * * * Col H.C.B. Rogers, ''The Mounted Troops of the British Army 1066–1945'', London: Seeley Service, 1959. * * * Edward M. Spiers, ''The Army and Society 1815–1914'', London: Longmans, 1980, .
Maj G.Tylden, 'The Yeomanry in Berkshire', ''Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research'', Vol 28, No 115 (Autumn 1950), p. 132.
* * * Steve White, ''Strike Home: The Royal Bucks Yeomanry 1794–1967'', Leicester?: Steve White, 1992, . *


External links


Anglo Boer War



The Long, Long Trail


* ttp://www.roll-of-honour.com/index.html Roll of Honour* * *
Berkshire Yeomanry Museum
{{British Cavalry Regiments World War I Military units and formations in Berkshire Berkshire Yeomanry regiments of the British Army in World War I Regiments of the British Army in World War II Organisations based in Berkshire Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead R Military units and formations established in 1794