Is this a Cyclist Battalion Uniform (Northern)?

[natgazz]

Hello everyone,

I am currently in process of transcribing my great-grandfather's WW1 diaries. My subsequent research has led me to discover that his older Brother, Ernest, was killed at Gallipoli on 24 May 1915. Both brothers immigrated from Britain (Newcastle) in 1911 and served with the Australian Infantry.

I have been trying to track down a picture of Ernest and have had a distant branch of the family send me the attached photo. Clearly, it is NOT a photo of an Australian Solider, but I am wondering if it could still be Ernest.

The reason being is that Ernest's enlistment papers in his service records, under, prior military experience section, says that he had 2 1/2 years in the Northern Cyclist Battalion and 2 months in the Militia. In addition to this the address on the bottom of the photograph is 57 Shields Road, and there IS a Shields Road in Newcastle and it was an important area around the time my ancestors were living there.

I would really appreciate any advice from people out there.

THANK YOU!

Natalie

[johntanner]

The white belt, with the general shape of the belt clasp and the forage cap suggests pre-1914 but can't get it at sufficient resolution to say much else. John

[wainfleet]

Cyclists did sometimes wear this kind of fore-and-aft cap pre-war, plus he appears not to be wearing the dismounted pattern trousers, so it is possible that a cyclist is shown in the photo. It would help if you can post a larger image.

[natgazz]

Thanks to you both very much!

I struggled for about an hour to try and upload that photo because I was working from my mac and every file I had was just too big for this forum. But now am at work and on a PC and so I have been able to play with the sizing.

[wainfleet]

This looks like a prewar photo, because of the belt as has already been pointed out, plus he appears to have an earlier tunic with shoulder cords instead of shoulder straps. However it just might depict a 1914 Kitchener volunteer with blue sidecap. It's hard to be sure of the cap's colour.

He's wearing breeches or pantaloons with no spurs, so whilst it's not possible to say for certain, Cyclist is a very good call.

[johntanner]

Have a look at this for comparison purposes.

John

[natgazz]

Just wanted to say THANK YOU so much for your replies. Although I cannot be sure, I think it is more than likely that this is Ernest. It makes me really happy to have a photograph of him.

THANK YOU again!!

[FROGSMILE]

This looks like a prewar photo, because of the belt as has already been pointed out, plus he appears to have an earlier tunic with shoulder cords instead of shoulder straps. However it just might depict a 1914 Kitchener volunteer with blue sidecap. It's hard to be sure of the cap's colour.

He's wearing breeches or pantaloons with no spurs, so whilst it's not possible to say for certain, Cyclist is a very good call.

I think you are right that it is a blue serge Field Service Cap (side cap), but not the one briefly used with the Kitchener Blue uniform. The blue serge FSC was officially replaced by the Brodrick in 1902, but that would have been phased in, and as he is wearing the early 1902 pattern SD with shoulder cords and the Slade Wallace belt, I think that you are correct that the photo is well before WW1 and sometime shortly after the 2nd Boer War, perhaps 1903. Cyclist units were becoming quite popular at that time.