Territorial Service WW1

[CAPTAINZLOGG]

I hope there is someone out there that may be able to give a poor beginner some benefit of their experience and knowledge.

I am researching the men from my village(Wellesbourne, Warwicks) who signed up for WWI but have hit a couple of problems that I hope someone may be able to explain.

Firstly Percy Bettridge's Service(Pension) record indicates that he joined up on 25/4/1917 in Birmingham and because of ill health discharged on 21/8/1917 or about 118 days service. The Military History Sheet in the records for him however reads - Campaigns - Home 24/6/1916 to 21/8/1917 a period of service of 1 year 59 days. Can anyone tell me what the period from 24/6/1916 to his attestation on 25/4/1917 could be. Would it be service in a Territorial unit?

Secondly, I have a Charles Edward Begley who according to local newspapers was in the first batch of men from the village to enlist (early August 1914)(also first to die). He arrived in France 14 Aug 1914 and was at Mons. I have no record to suggest that he had previous military service in a regular army unit but would previous territorial service be sufficient to send him straight to the front line?

Any help - much appreciated.

[ss002d6252]

Home 24/6/1916 to 21/8/1917

The June date is probably when he became liable for service due to conscription - men would have been placed in to the army reserve from that date and then called up for service as and when required by the military.

I have no record to suggest that he had previous military service in a regular army unit but would previous territorial service be sufficient to send him straight to the front line?

Unless he had prior service he would be unlikely to have gone to the front that quick as he would have had to be attached to a regular unit ( There some odd cases of people being taken on as drivers and dispatch riders and being sent to France almost straight away).

Craig

[ss002d6252]

9778 Begley - 2nd Ox & Bucks LI ?

He had originally enlisted between

9775 joined on 11th October 1912
9838 joined on 3rd February 1913

http://armyservicenumbers.blogspot.co.uk/2009/10/ox-bucks-light-infantry-1st-2nd.html

He would either have been a serving regular in August 1914 or he was a special reservist.

Craig

[Philip Wilson]

The following is an extract from page 492 of The County of Warwickshire Roll of Honour 1914-2005 by Kenneth FOWLER.

BEGLEY, Charles 9778 Private, 2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. 5th Brigade, 2nd Division. Killed in action during the Battle of Festubert on Saturday 15 May 1915. Age 20. The son of Mrs Ann Jane Begley, of Wellesbourne. He was born in Free Forest, Glamorgan and he enlisted in Barry Dock, Glamorgan. He took part in the retreat from Mons. He was a member of the Wesleyan Church in Wellesbourne. He arrived in France on Friday 14th August 1914. Commemorated on the Le Touret Memorial, Pas de Calais, France. He is also commemorated on the Wellesbourne Church of England School Roll of Honour.

1914 Star and clasp, British War Medal, Victory Medal.

[Philip Wilson]

The following is an extract from page 493 of The County of Warwickshire Roll of Honour 1914-2005 by Kenneth FOWLER.

BETTERIDGE, Percy Albert 1833 Corporal, Oxfordshire Yeomanry. Died at home after illness contracted whilst on service in 1918. The youngest son of Mr and Mrs John Betteridge of Wellesbourne. Before the war he was employed as a butcher. He had been invalided home in 1917. He served overseas at some time after Saturday 1st June 1916. British War Medal, Victory Medal.

His medal index card should confirm date of entry into theatre.

[ss002d6252]

Percival Bettridge's medal card doesn't show the date of entry (which confirms it was after 1 Jan 1916).

Craig

[roughdiamond]

Looks like pages have been missed on Perct Betteridge's Pension Record, MIC records him as "Shoeing Smith, Queen's Own Oxforshire Hussars" The 1/1st Oxforshire Yeomanry (AKA Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars) went to France 19/09/1914, 2/1st and 3/1st stayed in the UK http://www.1914-1918.net/ox.htm

Sam

[CAPTAINZLOGG]

9778 Begley - 2nd Ox & Bucks LI ?

He had originally enlisted between

http://armyservicenumbers.blogspot.co.uk/2009/10/ox-bucks-light-infantry-1st-2nd.html

He would either have been a serving regular in August 1914 or he was a special reservist.

Craig

[CAPTAINZLOGG]

Thanks all for your contributions. I

Begley: I have a newspaper report of August 1914 that names a number of men from the village that had been accepted for Lord Kitchener's Army and assumed wrongly that they were entirely new recruits, Thanks Craig for the Ox and Bucks recruiting dates. Certainly clarifies the matter.

Betteridge: The information from Mr Fowlers brilliant book re Warwicks ROH had me fooled for a while. I unfortunately came eventually to the conclusion that Mr Fowlers information was not correct. I believe that Percy Bettridge was actually 28345 Percy Albert Bettridge of 8th Dorset Regt. The matching facts in his pension record are yes he was a butcher as village directories indicated, and his wife Ethel Annie Morris agrees with his marriage cert., He was invalided out shortly after joining up in 1917 and died the following year with colonic cancer .He is buried in the village churchyard.

The medal card for Percival Bettridge therefore doesn't match either as my guy was definately Percy Albert and baptised accordingly and his pension record shows that he never left these shores hence no medals,

However I think everyones input helps me put everything into perspective. Thanks

Grev

[IRC Kevin]

Wonder if the discrepancy with Percy Betteridge is due to him enlisting in 1916 under the Derby Sceme, but only being called forward in 1917? Does his attestation paper have a group number in a box in the upper right hand corner?