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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

5th Volunteer Battalion,The Royal Scots


dycer

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My Father served with the above Battalion,at Home,from the 18th of June 1917 until 5th April 1919 and was never entitled to any WW1 Medals.

I have read, and understand, the differences,between the Regular,TF,Service and Training Reserve Battalions,of the Regiment,in WW1.

But,what was the role of the Volunteer Battalions in WW1 i.e.qualifications for a recruit to join,his subsequent training and,for War Service his future role(e.g. as a member of his personal Battalion or as a replacement serviceman for another Battalion),not necessarily Royal Scots.)?

George

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Briefly they're the Great War's equivalent of the Home Guard and the title 5th V.B.,Royal Scots didn't appear until July 1918. Prior to this it's title would have been something(?) Battalion, Lothian Volunteer Regiment, which in itself was a successor to the VTC. Apologies for not knowing exactly what it was, but I'm back in Saudi and all my notes are at home.

If I remember correctly it was mainly 'deferred enlistment', which was approved by local tribunals, which was the sole qualification for enlistment into the Volunteer Force. By 1916 all able bodied males who were fit for War Service could be sent to the Volunteer Force if required for War Work at home or due to personal domestic circumstances that required them at home i.e. a widower with the children to look after. Ex-service personnel could also enlist after their discharge, if fit medically fit enough for this type of home service, but not fit enough for War Service, which included Garrison duties.

Little remains of the War Service of these units, but many local newspapers do hold "Battalion Notes" regarding the comings and goings of these units, which were vital to Britains War effort. Ironically though I always believed their service records had been destroyed along with all other of their records, but recently Paul Nixon has pulled from Ancestry several examples of enlistment papers from the West Riding Volunteers for this period.

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Graham,

Thank you for your reply.

In my Father's case he was aged 16,when he enlisted in the Battalion and it is clear,from the employment reference,he received,that the Battalion was a part-time one.

Would it be correct to say.that for WW1 Research purposes. In addition to the Regular,TF,Service and Training Reserve Battalions Regiment's raised in WW1.Many,if not all,raised Volunteer Battalions,comprising of men who were either too young,or whose civilian employment was too important for them to join the "active service" Battalions.?

It follows from the above statement that my Father,and many other young men,joined their Volunteer Battalion,during WW1,in anticipation of being called-up when they reached age 18 and their previous military service would have assisted them, during their normal recruitment training.

George

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Hi George,

The fact is that until late 1916 both the War Office and Government had no part in the raising of the Volunteer Training Corps, which were were manned on a purely voluntary basis by many who were well over age and in all respects it was and remained a Home Guard. It was only after official recognition that the new 'Volunteer Force' took on aspects of a military organisation that we're more familiar with.

Special Regulations were brought into being which were not unlike Kings Regs, which helped the overall running of the the VF.These included details of who could actually be enlisted and their ages. Boys under 18 could be enlisted, but again I can't give details due to my stuff being at home. I do actually have a set of documents to a young lad who enlisted into the West Riding Volunteers who on reaching the age of 18years was eventually conscripted.

If I remember correctly all able bodied men were directed to serve with the Volunteer Force, but I'm unsure if it was compulsary. Those that did, did have the advantage of having proper military training which would have made the transition to war service much easier.

However and more importantly these VF units weren't part of the Army, although now recognised and it wasn't until July 1918 that all VF units were affiliated to units within the army and all of their titles were changed to show the affiliation. Administration was now switched locally to T.F.County Associations.So in reality the 'Royal Scots' had no association with them until 1918.

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Graham,

Your reply clears up another mystery. :D

I have two photographs of my Father in Uniform.

In the earliest he is wearing a General Service Cap Badge but in the later ones a Royal Scots one.

Thank you.

George

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George if you possibly can could you please reproduce them here. The GS cap badge was adopted in 1916 by the VF and in 1918 replaced by normal pattern cap badges, however the shoulder titles were usually woven into the shoulder strap in white worsted cotton and had a white letter 'V' above them.

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Hi George

I have some clipping about the Volunteers which I will try and dig up for you. They seem to have a mixture of over and under age men, similiar to the LDV / Home Guard of WW2, intended for local defence.

I can't comment on lads engaged on important war work within their ranks as I can't recall it being mentioned in the cuttings. The officers of my local Company included the Pit manager Mungo Mackay (Captain), and the local Headmaster Mr Fowler (Lieutenant).

They were drilled by an old RSM from the Boer War era, who took them for drill, route marching and the basics of musketry. I don't think they were seen as a pool of potential recruits, rather a resource to free up soldiers engaged in duties in the UK.

Graham here is a link to a picture of George's dad in uniform which George sent me for my website.

John

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Graham,

John's link is the earlier photo,of my Father(seated).I don't think John has a copy of the later one.I'd get tied up in knots trying to post the later one on the Forum,although if you look for an old Thread,entitled George,John and Charles Souness,you should find it.Alternatively p.m. me your e-mail address and I'll forward a copy.

John,

I wonder if the Battalion was organised similar to the 8th T.F.?If you look at the reference you'll note it is from Haddington and signed by the O.C. "A" Company.Presumably the cuttings you have found relate to the Company based in Newtongrange.It's a pity the O.C.'s signature,in the reference, is unclear.

George

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Hi George

I will have a check over the clipping tonight, in the meantime this is the earlier thread, you refer to.

John

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George / Graham

I think this series of clippings from the Winter 1916 through to the Spring of 1918 should shed some light.

John

post-12171-1244219369.jpg

post-12171-1244219446.jpg

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post-12171-1244219558.jpg

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