Both Regiments spent much of the nineteenth century was spent in the defence of the ever expanding British Empire. Many of the actions were small, local skirmishes but others were of greater importance. Between 1824 and 1826,the 38th took part in the First Burmese War. The 8oth spent much of 1836 aboard ship bound for Australia on convict escort duties, Upon arrival in the Colony they were to spend a further nine years on duty as a guard force and police service. During this period, The energetic second in command Major Bunbury, together with a detachment, was sent to the south Island of New Zealand and annexed it for the Queen. In 1844, on it's way from Australia to India part of the 80th was shipwrecked on the Andaman Islands and was stranded there for nearly two months.
Subsequently the 80th took part in the First Sikh War,1845-46, distinguishing itself at the battles of Moodkee, Freozeshah and SobraonIn In 1852 the regiment took part in the Second Burmese War, taking part in the storming of Rangoon, Pegu and Prome.
In 1853 Great Britain went to war with Russia to prevent her establishing herself at the expense of Turkey as the paramount power in the near East. This led to the campaign in the Crimea and the Siege of Sevastopol, in which the 38th were involved.
In 1856 the 64th fought against Persia in a successful little campaign, which was brought about by the fear of extended Russian influence. In 1857 the Bengal Army mutinied and the whole of Northern India was in turmoil. The 64th formed part of the original small British column which went up the Ganges and arrived just too late to prevent the massacre at Cawnpore. Part of the Regiment was in the first relief of Lucknow and remained to defend it until the second relief, in which another detachment of the Regiment was with the relieving column. The 38th fought at the final capture of Lucknow in 1858, and both the 38th and 64th were engaged in the final operations to suppress the mutineers, as was also the 80th, which was involved in the closing stages of the Central Indian Campaign. The first VC to the Regiment was awarded to Drummer T Flynn of the 64th for his gallantry at Cawnpore on the 28 November 1857
The Cardwell Reforms refer to a series of reforms of the British Army undertaken by the Secretary of State for War (and former soldier) Edward Cardwell between 1868 and 1874.
The starting point was a Royal Commission in 1858, established in the aftermath of the Crimean War, Under Sir Jonathan Peel the Then Secretary of State for War. Apart from the obvious instances of incompetence and mismanagement, it was evident that the provision for an Army of only 25,000 men in the Crimea had left Britain with almost no trained soldiers on the 'home front'. This was further illustrated by the Indian Mutiny which needed nearly every trained soldier to suppress.
The commission reported in 1862 but few of its recommendations were implemented immediately. The main obstacle was objections from the now defunct East India Company who wished to maintain there own military body, and 'die hard' officers who opposed the reforms in 'principle'.
Despite such opposition Cardwell pushed his reforms through the first reform was The Army Act(1870), The Act Restricted recruitment to an initial period of twelve years service. This superseded the Act of 1847 allowing a soldier to serve for ten years then either retire without a pension or reenlist for a further term and receiving a two month furlough, a reenlistment bounty and a pension at the end or their service. However the Act of 1870 allowed a soldier to elect to spend time in the reserves rather than regular service and be paid for their reserve service four pence a day in return for a short period of training each year and an obligation to serve when recalled to the colours thus providing a regular reserve of trained and competent soldiers.
Later in 1871 Lord Cardwell passed another Act “The Regularisation of the Forces Act (1871)”. Under this Act the country was divided into local regimental districts. This was based on county boundaries and population density. Then single battalion regiments were merged into two battalion regiments sharing Depot facilities and associated recruiting areas. The reasoning behind these reforms was that while one battalion was serving overseas the other battalion would be garrisoned at home for training. The Militia of that area would then usually become the third battalion of that particular regiment.
The other significant changes, of the Act of 1871 were the abolition of selling or buying a commission. The ranks of Cornet (Cavalry) and Ensign (Infantry) were replaced with the rank of Second Lieutenant.
In light of these reforms the local Regiments were reformed as follows; the 38th and the 80th were linked and the 64th and the 98th were also linked. This was later followed in 1881 by the 38th and 80th becoming the 1st and 2nd Battalions the South Staffordshire Regiment. While the 64th and 98th became 1st and 2nd Battalions the Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire) Regiment. This was later changed in 1920 to The North Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's). Each Regiment established a permanent Depot at Whittington Barracks Lichfield. The Kings Own Staffordshire Militia provided the 3rd and 4th Battalions to both Regiments.
The 80th was the last of the four Regiments to see action under its old number. It took part in the Zulu War, forming the front of the British square at the decisive Battle of Ulundi, and was also engaged in minor operations against a Kaffir chief named Sekukuni. Two VCs were won:
By Private S Wassall on 22 January 1879 when, under heavy fire, he saved the life of a comrade struggling in the Buffalo River.
By CSgt A Booth who, on 12 March 1879, fought his way to safety with the survivors from a detachment surprised by a Zulu night attack. |
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In 1882 there was an anti-foreign military revolt in Egypt led by Arabi Pasha. British troops, including the 1st South Staffords, were sent in to restore order. In taking over control of Egypt, Britain had also assumed responsibility for the Sudan. There, a rebellion led by the religious leader, the Mahdi, was in full swing. General Gordon was sent to Khartoum to extract the Egyptian garrison and was cut off there. An expedition, including the 1st South Staffords, was sent up the Nile in 1884 to relieve him, but unfortunately arrived too late. After the fall of Khartoum the Sudan was evacuated, but by 1896 it had been decided to re-establish Anglo-Egyptian authority there. A preliminary step was the seizure of the northernmost province of Dongola and in these operations the 1st North Staffords formed the British element of the force. The Battle Honour ‘Hafir’ commemorates this campaign.
In 1899 Britain became involved with the Boer Republics of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State in South Africa, in a war which was to go on for three years. The 1st South Staffords and the 2nd North Staffords fought in this campaign, while the militia Battalions of both Regiments also went out to South Africa, as did volunteers from all five Volunteer Battalions.
In 1882 the units of the Staffordshire Rifle Volunteers, most of which dated from 1860, became Volunteer Battalions of the two Regiments and in 1908 they were reorganised into the Territorial Force. The Staffordshire Territorials were the 5th and 6th Battalions of each Regiment.
WW1
During the 1914-18 War there was a tremendous expansion of the Army. A total of seventeen battalions wore the badge of the South Staffords, and eighteen that of the North Staffords. Not all of these saw active service, as many were employed as training units at home. Losses were tremendous and the total number killed in the two Staffordshire Regiments was approximately 10,000.
The 2nd South Staffords was the first of our battalions to see action, being present at the opening battle of Mons and serving throughout on the Western Front, where they fought in most of the major battles. The 1st South Staffords and 1st North Staffords also went to France in 1914, the former particularly distinguishing themselves at the first Battle of Ypres, and at the capture of Memetz on the opening day of the Battle of the Somme in 1916. They were later transferred to the Italian front. The 1st North Staffords spent the whole war in France and Flanders, their finest efforts being perhaps in the opening attack of the Third Battle of Ypres in 1917 and their stand against overwhelming odds in the big German offensive on 21 March 19118. At one stage of the Battle of the Somme both 1st Battalions fought alongside each other to hold Delville Wood, then the most forward part of the whole British line. The 2nd North Staffords was retained in India to defend the North West Frontier, where they saw some fighting in 1915.
The first line Territorial Battalions formed parts of the 46th (North Midland) Division, the first Territorial formation to go to France, in 1915, and their great day came in September 1918 when they crossed the St Quentin Canal to smash through the strongest sector of the Hindenburg Line. The second line Territorial Battalions helped to suppress the 1916 rebellion in Dublin before going to France. Both 4th Battalions and seven wartime Battalions of the two Regiments also served on the Western Front, one of them, the 7th South Staffords, having previously fought at Gallipoli, while the 9th South Staffords went on to Italy. The 7th North Staffords fought at Gallipoli and then in Mesopotamia finishing the war defending Baku in the Caucasus against the Turks.
Seven members of the Regiment were awarded the VC.
Capt JF Vallentin, 1st South Staffords – 7 November 1914 – Ypres
Capt AFG Kilby MC, 2nd South Staffords – 25 September 1915 – Loos.
Lt Col EED Henderson, North Staffords (Commanding 9th Royal Warwicks) – 25 Jan 1917 – Mesoptamia.
Pte T Barratt, 7th South Staffords – 27 July 1917 – Ypres.
Sgt J Carmichael, 9th North Staffords – 8 September 1917 – Ypres.
LCpl J Thomas, 2/5th North Staffords – 30 November 1917 – Cambrai.
LCpl WH Coltman DCM, MM, 1st/6th North Staffords – 5 October 1918 – Sequehart (France).
Between the Wars
In 1919 the Afghans launched an attack on India and the 2nd North Staffords took their part in driving them back. The 2nd South Staffords and the 1st and 2nd North Staffords were all involved in the troubles in Ireland which preceded the establishment of the Free State. The 1st North Staffords then went to Thrace, where they were engaged in keeping apart the Greeks and the Turks. The 2nd South Staffords saw service against the Arab rebels in Palestine in 1929, while the 2nd North Staffords and 1st South Staffords were engaged in the more serious rebellions of the 1930s. The 2nd South Staffords and 1st North Staffords were involved at various times in dealing with communal riots in India.
The South Staffords raised eleven extra battalions and the North Staffords six during the war, but it was only the Regular and Territorial battalions which actually saw action, some of the others being training units and a number being converted to other arms of the Service.
The 2nd North Staffords formed part of the original expeditionary force to France and fought with distinction during the retirement to Dunkirk. Later they served with the 1st Army in the North African campaign and then took part in the landings at Anzio in Italy, subsequently pushing on to the north of Florence.
The 1st South Staffords initially served in Egypt against the Italians, but were then transferred to India and formed part of the Chindit force which flew into Burma in 1944, taking part in the defence of the Henu (White City) block and the subsequent capture of Mogaung. Lt GA Cairns was posthumously awarded the VC for his gallantry at White City on 13 March 1944.
The 2nd South Staffords returned from India during the ‘invasion scare’ and were then converted into an airlanding battalion of the 1st Airborne Division. They took part in the Sicily landings, served briefly in Italy, and their final operation was the Battle of Arnhem, where they earned the distinction of being the only British battalion to gain two Victoria Crosses in one battle in the course of the war – Major RH Cain and (posthumously) LSgt JD Baskeyfield.
The 1st North Staffords served in Burma in 1943 in the Arakan, but otherwise were employed mainly on internal security duties in India. Of the Territorial battalions, the 1st/6th South Staffords were at Dunkirk, and five battalions saw action in the Normandy Campaign, with the 59th Staffordshire Division, having a share in the events leading up to the decisive victory at Falaise.
After the withdrawal from India in 1947, British Infantry Regiments were reduced to a single regular battalion and the two Staffordshire Regiments were grouped for drafting and cross posting purposes into the Mercian Brigade, together with the Cheshires and Worcesters.
The South Staffords were sent to Hong Kong in 1949, when it was thought that Colony might be attacked by the Chinese. Later, after service in Germany and in the Canal Zone in Egypt, they were in Nicosia in Cyprus during much of the trouble on that island. The North Staffords were in Palestine during the Jewish troubles and then moved to the Canal Zone in Egypt. Later, after a brief spell at home, they went to Trieste, which was then one of the flashpoints of Europe, before moving out East to Korea, where they arrived just too late for the actual fighting. A spell in Hong Kong preceded a return to Germany where, at Minden on 31 January 1959 there took place the amalgamation with the South Staffords, who were at Luneburg only a few miles away.
After the Amalgamation, the Regiment returned briefly to Lichfield and then went for a six-months’ tour to Kenya which, after another year at home, was followed by a further two years in Kenya. On that occasion they dealt very successfully with the mutiny in the Uganda Army, and were the last British unit to serve in East Africa. This was followed by a four year spell at Dover, during which they found a detachment for British Honduras for 18 months. They then served for two years in Berlin. After a brief stay at home, they were sent to Bahrain and Sharjah in the Persian Gulf, where they had again the melancholy task of hauling down the Union Jack for the last time.
From the Persian Gulf, the Battalion returned to Dover. In September 1972 they undertook a four month tour in Armagh in Northern Ireland, and then moved in October 1973 to Osnabruck in Germany. From there, they had a second Northern Ireland ‘emergency’ tour in Londonderry from July to November 1974, and a third in Belfast from April to August 1976.
The Battalion returned to the UK, at Colchester, in March 1977. However, in July, the greater part of the Battalion was flown out at short notice to reinforce the small permanent garrison in Belize, returning to Colchester in January 1978. In the meantime, those left at home were deployed for two months during the fireman’s strike, in East Anglia and the East Midlands. Whilst in Colchester the Battalion took part in exercises in Australia, Germany and, yet again, in Kenya.
In September 1979 the Battalion moved to Londonderry – this time for sixteen months, and accompanied by their families. A busy tour marked by frequent changes to the Battalions’ operational deployment, ended when they moved temporarily to Weeton in January 1981.
In July 1981 the Battalion and its families moved to Gibraltar for a two year tour. The effects of the Falkland War and the Spanish Elections, together with the reopening of the Border with Spain, meant the Battalion was unable to train off the Rock and subsequently the tour was reduced to 20 months. The highlight of the time in Gibraltar was undoubtedly the role played by the Battalion in the Services Assisted Evacuation of British Nationals from The Gambia which was executed without casualties.
An early return to Colchester in April 1983 allowed time for The Presentation of New Colours in May by HM Lord Lieutenant for Staffordshire. This was quickly followed by a training deployment to Canada designed to offset the loss of training deployments from Gibraltar. An operational tour in South Armagh took place February – June 1984 and was followed by deployment to Germany in the autumn on Exercise Lionheart – the biggest post-war exercise undertaken by the British Army.
Early 1985 saw the Battalion deploy to Seattle, USA for training and on its return it received the new Saxon Wheeled APC. By early summer courses were commencing to convert the Battalion to the 432 Tracked APC. The autumn was dominated by exercises; Exercise Brave Defender saw the Battalion deployed to Northern Scotland to defend key points and this was followed by Exercise Purple Warrior when the Battalion played enemy to 5 Airborne Brigade at Otterburn in a Services Protected Evacuation Exercise.
In January 1987 the Battalion deployed to Fallingbostel, West Germany as part of 7 Armoured Brigade. During the first three years of its tour it repeatedly trained at BATUS (British Army Training Unit Suffield) in Alberta Canada. By late 1988 it had re-equipped as an Armoured Infantry Battalion manning the new Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicle.
In April 1988 the 3rd (Volunteer) Battalion of the Staffordshire Regiment was formed from the 1 Mercian Volunteers who were disbanded. They therefore are the direct descendant of the old 5 South and5/index.htm6North Territorial Army battalions who were disbanded in the 1960s, to form the Mercian Volunteers.
On 21 April 1989 Her Majesty The Queen appointed her second son His Royal Highness The Duke of York as Colonel in Chief of the Regiment. A particular distinction as, apart from being the first Colonel in Chief of the Regiment or its predecessors, he is a naval aviator with combat experience. His first official function within the Regiment was a visit to the 1st Battalion in Fallingbostel on 10 July 1989. |
