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Organisation of the Infantry of the British Army and

The Herefordshire Regiment 1914 - 1918

Pre-War Regular, Reserve and Territorial Force Infantry Battalions.

Immediately prior to the outbreak of the Great War, the Regular Infantry of the British Army consisted of four Guards Regiments and sixty-nine Infantry Regiments.   The Regular Infantry Regiments normally consisted of two active Battalions, with one Battalion serving overseas and one in the UK.   Each Regiment would normally have one Reserve Battalion, based at the Regimental Depot, which trained new soldiers to combat readiness and supplied reinforcing drafts to the two active Battalions.   The active Battalions of the Regular Infantry Regiments were usually numbered the 1st and 2nd, whilst the Reserve Battalion was numbered the 3rd (Reserve).

The Herefordshire Regiment were part of the Territorial Force (TF).   The TF were made up of part-time officers and soldiers who had signed up for Imperial or Home Service, and each of these Battalion trained its own personnel so there was therefore no requirement for the TF to be established with Reserve Battalions.   If the TF Battalions were part of a Regular Infantry Regiment, it was usually the case that these battalions were usually numbered after the Regular and Reserve Battalions of the Regiment and often had a second title linking them with their home city or town.   In the case of the Herefordshire Regiment, who were not part of a Regular Infantry Regiment, the infantry battalion was organised as follows:

• 1st Battalion.   Based at Hereford, part of the Welsh Border Brigade/Welsh Division (TF).

The Re-Organisation at the Outbreak of War.

In late August/early September 1914 in all Territorial Force (TF) Battalions, those personnel who had signed up for Imperial Service were formed into the First Line of the these TF Battalions for overseas service.   In the Herefordshire Regiment, the first line battalion was designated the1/1st Battalion.   Those who had signed for Home Service only (and could not or would not sign up for Imperial Service) were formed up into the Second Line of the Battalion designated the 2/1st Battalion.   The Regiment continued to recruit and train their own personnel.  Order of battle was now:

• 1/1st Battalion

• 2/1st Battalion

Further Re-Organisations.

By early 1915 most of the First Line Battalions of the TF had been deployed to active service locations overseas and the Second Line Battalions were preparing for future overseas or UK home defence service and so a Third Line Battalion was formed to perform UK Home Service duties and to train and supply reinforcements to the First Line and Second Line Battalions.    In the Herefordshire Regiment, the third line battalion was designated 3/1st Battalion.   Those Home Service only personnel and those not fit for overseas service were transferred from the 2/1st and 3/1st Battalions to the non-Regimentally affiliated Provisional Battalions TF.  Herefordshire Regiment personnel, along with Monmouthshire Regiment men were posted to the 48th Provisional Battalion TF.   Order of battle was now:

• 1/1st Battalion

• 2/1st Battalion

• 3/1st Battalion