2nd Bn Northamptonshire Regiment -1911 Census

[Stebie9173]

Having compiled the 1911 Census schedules of the 2nd Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment from printouts from the National Archives onto a spreadsheet I thought I would post some statistical charts to show the make-up of the battalion, and its feed into the Great War. The battalion embarked to Malta in January 1911 and stayed there until the outbreak of war returning in September/October 1914 to join 8th Division. Its sister battalion, the 1st Battalion had been in India from 1892 to 1911 and scooped up the Reservists when it was mobilised in August 1914 many of whom are the older men (mid- to late-20s) on this census.


The Census represents 931 other ranks of the Northamptonshire Regiment, 1 AOC Armourer-Sergeant, and 21 officers. There are 44 wives (2 of officers, and 42 of the men) and 89 children. There are 57 married men shown, with the remaining 13 wives (and families) being presumably in the UK.

The 931 other ranks are split by rank as follows:

Boys, 16
Drummers, 5
Privates, 828
Corporals, 25
Lance-Sergeants, 10
Sergeants, 32
Quartermaster Sergeants, 1
Colour Sergeants, 9
Sergeant Major, 1
Sergeant Drummer, 1
Bandmaster, 1
Army Schoolmasters, 2

I note that there are no Lance-Corporals shown, and bandsmen other than drummers are presumably shown within the other ranks. Of the other ranks, 55 are married (5.9%), and 876 are single (94.1%)

Regimental trades are shown as follows:

Cooks, 13
Tailors, 4
Clerks, 6
Schoolmasters, 2
Carpenters, 1
Printers, 1
Shoemakers, 2
Grooms, 3
Armourers assistants, 1
Plumber and painters, 1
Butchers, 1


Absent from the main barracks are:

Furlough at Cairo, 1
In hospital, 21

Presumably the number of men in hospital may have been influenced by the major change in climate conditions that all the men coming from England would have experienced.



Charts to follow....



The years of enlistment are roughly what you would expect for men on 7 year standard active service terms of enlistment. The 2nd Battalion is VERY new to overseas duty at this point having been overseas for three months. It has been bolstered by men returning from India from the 1st Battalion (where the latter had been since 1892).

[Stebie9173]

Of more relevance to the Great War Period are the battalions where these men (first) served during the Great War:

Obviously predominantly 2nd Battalion men, these being mainly the men enlisted after 1906, with those before being Reservists recalled to the 1st Battalion that was in the UK at the outbreak of war. At the moment there are still a lot of men to trace - I can't find a bigger percentage than I was really expecting. The "No overseas service" % is tiny, but there will be plenty in the "Not Yet Found" group that should be "No overseas"

[Stebie9173]

Also of interest are the birthplaces of those that are on the Census (though they were of course not necessarily living there at the time they enlisted, nor in the Great War period...)

Being a county Regiment the recruiting area is pretty well focussed around Northampton. Northampton, the county and the surrounding counties of Buckinghamshire, Huntingdonshire, Cambridgeshire, Rutland, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and east Warwickshire account for 60.1% of the men on the Census. London is well represented, as are the East Anglian counties.

I hope this is of interest.

Steve.

[andy1400]

A very interesting collection of information Steve. Thanks for putting it on the forum.

Andy