The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment (known as The Bedfordshire Regiment until 1919) was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army from 1881 to 1958. It was formed under the Childers reforms by a merger of the 16th Regiment of Foot (first raised in 1688) with the militia regiments and rifle volunteer corps of Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire. The regiment was merged with The Essex Regiment to form the 3rd East Anglian Regiment in 1958. The regiment's lineage is continued by The Royal Anglian Regiment. Infantry of the Royal Irish Rifles during the Battle of the Somme in World War I. Infantry are soldiers who fight primarily on foot with small arms in organized military units, though they may be transported to the battlefield by horses, ships, automobiles, skis, or other means. ... British regiment A regiment is a military unit, consisting of a variable number of battalions - commanded by a colonel. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... The Childers Reforms were undertaken by Secretary of State for War Hugh Childers in 1881. ... Lexington Minuteman representing militia minuteman John Parker. ... Bedfordshire (abbreviated Beds) is a county in England that forms part of the East of England region. ... Hertfordshire (pronounced Hartfordshire and abbreviated as Herts) is an inland county in the United Kingdom and part of the East of England Government Office region. ... The Essex Regiemnt was an infantry regiment of the British Army. ... The 3rd East Anglian Regiment (16th/44th Foot) was an infantry regiment of the British Army. ... The Royal Anglian Regiment is an infantry regiment of the British Army. ...

Battalions

1881 - 1908

When the Bedfordshire Regiment was formed on July 1, 1881 it consisted of two regular, two militia and three volunteer battalions: July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1881 (MDCCCLXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ...

• 1st Battalion (formerly 1st Battalion, 16th (Bedfordshire) Regiment of Foot raised 1688)
• 2nd Battalion (formerly 2nd Battalion, 16th (Bedfordshire) Regiment of Foot raised 1688)
• 3rd (Militia) Battalion (formerly Bedfordshire Light Infantry Militia)
• 4th (Militia) battalion (formerly Hertfordshire Militia)
• 1st Hertfordshire Rifle Volunteer Corps: redesignated 1st (Hertfordshire) Volunteer Battalion in 1887
• 2nd Hertfordshire Rifle Volunteer Corps: redesignated 2nd (Hertfordshire) Volunteer Battalion in 1887
• 1st Bedfordshire Rifle volunteer Corps: redesignated 3rd Volunteer Battalion in 1887

In 1900 the 4th (Huntingdonshire) Volunteer Battalion was raised.

1908 - 1914

Under the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 the reserve battalions were reorganised in 1908: The Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 (7 Edw. ...

• The two militia battalions were renamed as the 3rd and 4th (Special Reserve) Battalions.
• The 1st and 2nd Volunteer Battalions were merged to form The Hertfordshire Battalion (Territorial Force)
• The 3rd and 4th VBs became the 5th Battalion (TF)

The following year the Hertfordshire Battalion left the regiment to become the 1st Battalion The Hertfordshire Regiment. In the United Kingdom the Territorial Army is a part of the British Army composed of reserve units, or part-time soldiers. ...

1914 - 1918

The regiment was greatly expanded during the First World War. In addition to the regular and special reserve battalions the following were formed: Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ...

• The 5th territorial Battalion was redesignated as the 1/5th in August 1914 with the formation of a duplicate 2/5th Battalion. A 3/5th Battalion was raised in 1915.
• The 6th to 11th (Service) Battalions were raised in 1914
• The 12th and 13th (Transport Workers) Battalions were raised in 1916 in 1917
• The 1st to 3rd Garrison Battalions served in India and Burma

1918 - 1939

On July 29, 1919 the regiment was renamed the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment in recognition of the contribution of men from Hertfordshire during the Great War. During 1919 the war-formed batalions were disbanded, and the special reserve battalions were placed in "suspended animation". In 1920 the Territorial Force was reconstituted as the Territorial Army. The inter-war batttalions were: July 29 is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... The Territorial Army (TA) is a part of the British Army, the land armed forces of the United Kingdom, and composed mostly of part-time soldiers paid at the same rate, while engaged on military activities, as their Regular equivalents. ...

• 1st Battalion
• 2nd Battalion
• 5th Battalion (TA)

1939 - 1947

The regiment was expanded for the duration of the Second World War: Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ...

• The 5th Battalion (TA) formed a duplicate 6th Battalion in 1939
• The 7th, 2/7th, 8th, 9th and 10th Battalions were raised

1947 - 1958

Following the disbanding of the war-formed units and the reconstitution of the territorial Army in 1947, the regiment had the following battalions up to amalgamation:

• 1st Battalion
• 2nd Battalion: absorbed by 1st Battalion in 1948
• 5th Battalion (TA)

Territorial units after amalgamation

Although the regular battalion was merged into the 3rd East Anglian Regiment in 1958, the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment name continued in the Territorial Army for a further fourteen years. On formation of the 3rd East Anglians the territorial battalion was redesignated as the 5th Battalion, The Bedfordshire Regiment (TA). A reduction in the size of the Territorial Army in May 1961 saw the 5th Bedfords merge with the 1st Battalion, The Hertfordshire Regiment to form The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment (TA). This regiment was disbanded in 1967, with its successor units in the new Territorial Army and Volunteer Reserve being the 5th (Volunteer) Battalion, the Royal Anglian Regiment and The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment (Territorials). The latter unit was a home defence unit, reduced to an eight-man cadre in 1969 and eventually forming part of the 7th (Volunteer) Battalion, Royal Anglian Regiment in 1971.

Badges and dress distinctions

When the regiment was formed in 1881 the badges of the 16th Foot and Hertfordshire Militia were combined. The badge for the full dress helmet plate featured a Maltese cross superimposed on an eight-pointed star, in the centre of which was a hart crossing a ford. A similar design was used for the cap badge adopted in 1898, with the addition of a representation of the Garter around the central device, and a scroll with the regiment's title. The collar badge was also the hart in a ford.^{[1] [2]} Maltese cross The insignia of a Serving Brother of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem The Maltese Cross is featured on the badge of the Bermuda Regiment, heir to the BVRC. Typical St. ... The insignia of a knight of the Order of the Garter. ...

The regiment wore a black and primrose lanyard on the battle-dress blouse. The lanyard was later worn by territorial units of the Royal Anglian Regiment based in the former regimental area.^[3]

Battle honours

When the regiment was formed in 1881, it was unique in having no battle honours to display on its colours, as the 16th Foot had never received such an award in spite of having served for nearly two hundred years. A committee assembled in 1882 under the chairmanship of Major General Sir Archibald Alison to review the award of honours, and the Bedfordshire Regiment received honours for four battles under the command of the Duke of Marlborough fought at the beginning of the eighteenth century.^{[4] [5]} The regiment subsequently received awards for past services in 1897 (for Surinam in 1804) and 1910 (for Namur in 1695). To these were added contemporary honours for fighting in the North West Frontier Province and the Second Boer War. John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough (1650-1722) was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reigns of five monarchs throughout the late 17th and early 18th centuries. ... North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) is geographically the smallest of the four provinces of Pakistan. ... Combatants British Empire Orange Free State South African Republic Commanders Sir Redvers Buller Lord Kitchener Lord Roberts Paul Kruger Louis Botha Koos de la Rey Martinus Steyn Christiaan de Wet Casualties 5000 - 6000 Battlefield casualties, 15,000 disease related. ...

The regiment was awarded more than seventy honours for service in the Great War in 1925, and eighteen for the Second World War in 1957.^[6] In common with other regiments, ten honours from each war were selected to be borne on the queen's colour. Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ...

The honours borne on the colours were:

• On the regimental colours:

Namur 1695, Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, Malplaquet, Surinam, Chitral, South Africa 1900-02 Namur is the name of a city in Belgium, capital of Wallonia, as well as a province and a diocese named after it. ... Combatants England,[1] Austria, Dutch Republic, Prussia, Denmark, Hesse, Hanover France, Bavaria Commanders Duke of Marlborough, Eugene of Savoy Duc de Tallard, Maximilian II Emanuel, Ferdinand de Marsin Strength 52,000, 60 guns[2] 56,000, 90 guns Casualties 4,542 killed, 7,942 wounded 20,000 killed, drowned, or... The Battle of Ramillies was a major battle in the War of Spanish Succession, May 23, 1706. ... Combatants Great Britain United Provinces Holy Roman Empire France Commanders Duke of Marlborough Prince Eugene of Savoy Louis, duc de Bourgogne Duc de Vendôme Strength 105,000 100,000 Casualties 3,000 15,000 The Battle of Oudenarde (or Oudenaarde) was a key battle in the War of the... The Battle of Malplaquet was a battle of the War of the Spanish Succession that took place on September 11, 1709 between France and a British–Austrian alliance (known as the Allies). ...

• On the Queen's colours:

Ten selected honours for The Great War: Mons, Marne 1914, Ypres 1914 '15 '17, Loos, Somme 1916 '18, Arras 1917 '18, Cambrai 1917 and 1918, Sambre, Suvla, Gaza. Combatants United Kingdom German Empire Commanders Sir John French Alexander von Kluck Strength 4 divisions 8 divisions Casualties 1,600 5,000 (estimate) The Battle of Mons (Dutch name for Mons is Bergen) was the first major action of the British Expeditionary Force in World War I. // Following the surrender... Combatants France United Kingdom German Empire Commanders Joseph Joffre John French Helmuth von Moltke Karl von Bülow Alexander von Kluck Strength 1,071,000 1,485,000 Casualties Approximately 263,000: 250,000 French casualties (80,000 dead) 13,000 British casualties (1,700 dead) Approximately 250,000 total... Combatants United Kingdom France German Empire Commanders John French Ferdinand Foch Erich von Falkenhayn Strength UK: 7 infantry divisions, 3 cavalry divisions France: ? Fourth and Sixth Armies Casualties UK: 58,000 France: 50,000 130,000 The First Battle of Ypres, also called the Battle of Flanders, was the last... This article or section is incomplete and may require expansion and/or cleanup. ... Passchendaele village, before and after the Battle of Passchendaele The Battle of Passchendaele, otherwise known as the Third Battle of Ypres, was one of the major battles of World War I, fought by British, ANZAC, and Canadian soldiers against the German army near Ypres (Ieper in Flemish) in West Flanders... The Battle of Loos was one of the major British offensives mounted on the Western Front in 1915 during World War I. The battle was the British component of the combined Anglo-French offensive known as the Second Battle of Artois. ... Combatants British Empire United Kingdom Australia Canada New Zealand Newfoundland South Africa France German Empire Commanders Douglas Haig Joseph Joffre Max von Gallwitz Fritz von Below Strength 13 British and 11 French divisions (initial) 51 British and 48 French divisions (final) 10½ divisions (initial) 50 divisions (final) Casualties 419,654... During the First World War, the Second Battle of the Somme of 1918 was fought on the Western Front from the end of the summer, in the basin of the Somme River. ... The Battle of Arras took place from 9 April to 16 May 1917. ... During the First World War, the Second Battle of the Somme of 1918 was fought on the Western Front from the end of the summer, in the basin of the Somme River. ... Combatants United Kingdom Newfoundland German Empire Commanders Julian Byng Georg von der Marwitz Strength 2 Corps 1 Corps Casualties 44,207 Casualties 179 tanks out of action 45,000 Casualties (British estimates) The Battle of Cambrai (20 November - 3 December 1917) was a British campaign of World War I. Noted... Combatants Canadian Corps British First Army British Third Army British Fourth Army American Corps German Empire Casualties light The 1918 Battle of Cambrai was an engagement fought between troops of the Canadian Corps, British First, Third, and Fourth Armies, the American Corps, and German Empire forces. ... The Second Battle of the Sambre (November 4, 1918) was part of the final European Allied offensives of World War I. At the front German resistance was falling away, unprecedented numbers of prisoners were taken in the Battle of the Selle, and a new attack was quickly prepared. ... Landing at Suvla Bay Conflict First World War Date 6–15 August 1915 Place Suvla, Gallipoli peninsula, Turkey Result Turkish victory The landing at Suvla Bay was an amphibious landing made at Suvla on the Aegean coast of Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey as part of the August Offensive, the... Third Battle of Gaza Conflict First World War Date 31 October–7 November 1917 Place Gaza, southern Palestine Result Allied victory The Third Battle of Gaza was fought in 1917 in southern Palestine during World War I. The British forces under the command of General Edmund Allenby successfully broke...

Ten selected honours for the Second World War: Dunkirk 1940, N W Europe 1940, Tobruk Sortie, Belhamed, Tunis, North Africa 1941 '43, Cassino II, Trasimene Line, Italy 1944-45, Chindits 1944.

References

1. ^ A L Kipling and H L King, Head-dress badges of the British Army, Volume I, London, 1979
2. ^ Colin Churchill History of the British Infantry collar Badge, Uckfield, 2001
3. ^ Symbols, (The Royal Anglian Regiment Museum)
4. ^ Naval and Military Intelligence, The Times, June 12, 1882
5. ^ Ian Sumner, British Colours and Standards 1747 - 1881 (2) Infantry, Oxford, 2001
6. ^ New list of battle honours, The Times, 23 May 1957

• Mills, T.F.. The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment. regiments.org. Retrieved on February 05, 2007. Includes chronological index of titles.