ROYAL MARINE ENGINEERS

[GRAZ]

Hi All

I recently picked up a nice 15 Star trio named up to a guy who was in the R.M Engineers, and later in the Royal Engineers. Could anybody tell me anything about the RME, as i can't find much about them, also he was a member of the Royal Naval Division Engineers and was wounded on 06.08.1915 which seems to suggest service in Gallipoli. Does anybody know if the RME were part of the RND during the Gallipoli.

Cheers

Graham

[horatio2]

The Royal Marine Engineers (RME) and the Royal Naval Division Engineers (RNDE) were two quite separate organisations. The RME were not formed until late 1917/early 1918 and were, essentially, a civil engineering unit. Your man was almost certainly not RME and they were not at Gallipoli. The RNDE were, as the name implies, the equivalent of the RE support for an Army division. Indeed, in early 1917, the whole of the RNDE was transferred to the RE, RM sappers becoming RE sappers.

The Medals would be named to XXXXX RME/***(S) for an RME man. For RNDE they would be named XXXX Deal/****(S). It is quite likely that the 1914-15 Star was issued by the Admiralty with his RM number and the other pair by the War Office with his RE number.

[GRAZ]

Hi Horatio 2

Thanks for the information, you've answered all of my questions. He was indeed a Royal Marine, and was later in the RND Engineers, his 15 Star shows that he was a Short Service entrant into the Deal Battalion. What puzzled me was he had a RM number, and his rank is Sapper on his star, and his RM papers also show him as only ever having the rank of Sapper. He left the RND the same year as the RME were being formed and joined the RE for the rest of the war.

Thanks again

Cheers

Graham

[horatio2]

Be aware, just because he was enlisted with a Deal/****(S) register number does NOT mean he was in Deal Battalion of the RND. In fact that number and the fact that he was a sapper positively excludes him from Deal Battalion. He was enlisted into the RNDE and transferred to the RE. RNDE and RE men were all sappers.