Chelsea School of Instruction

[Waddell]

I am researching a Sergeant in the AIF who was appointed Temporary Company Sergeant Major just prior to leaving Egypt for England in 1916.

When he landed in England he went straight to the Engineers Training Depot. Whilst at the Engineers Training Depot he proceeded to the Chelsea School of Instruction for a period of three weeks before being taken on strength again by the Engineers Training Depot.

There are no further details. Could I assume that he was receiving further training relevant to his temporary rank of Company Sergeant Major?

From what I can glean the School of Instruction was for officer training, did they also train NCOs there?

Scott

[FROGSMILE]

On 04/04/2015 at 05:44, Waddell said:

I am researching a Sergeant in the AIF who was appointed Temporary Company Sergeant Major just prior to leaving Egypt for England in 1916.

When he landed in England he went straight to the Engineers Training Depot. Whilst at the Engineers Training Depot he proceeded to the Chelsea School of Instruction for a period of three weeks before being taken on strength again by the Engineers Training Depot.

There are no further details. Could I assume that he was receiving further training relevant to his temporary rank of Company Sergeant Major?

From what I can glean the School of Instruction was for officer training, did they also train NCOs there?

Scott

I’ve only just spotted this, but yes they did.  This school seems to have run a range of different syllabi, but I’ve not yet been able to find a comprehensive list of the various courses run.  An important point is that the school belonged to HQ London ‘District’.  Other regional headquarters were designated as ‘Commands’, each of which established schools of musketry, bombing, and gas, to mention just the principal subjects.

London District was a smaller headquarters that kept its unique, discrete identity and, as with today, was always commanded by a Guards officer of general rank. The Chelsea School of Instruction was constructed from quickly erected Armstrong Huts on 200 acres of commandeered Wimbledon Common land and, given its mention in a variety of accounts, had a number of training purposes.  Although construction had begun in 1915, it wasn’t ready for use until 1916 and was dismantled in the early 1920s.

“Accommodation huts were built and the land was a training base for the first recruits to “Kitchener’s Army”. The bayoneting grounds, firing ranges and varied terrain enabled soldiers to practice their combat skills before departing for active service.  The largest influx of troops arrived at the camp in 1916.”

“It included huts used for accommodation and health and welfare, as well as recreation huts. Voluntary organisations raised money to provide the structure and contents of the recreation huts.”

NB.  There were apparently 192 Armstrong Huts in total that housed between 5 and 6,000 men.  There was also a small RFC airfield close by.  The local borough surveyor was tasked with planning the drainage and sewerage at the site, as well as a road layout surfaced utilising gravel dug up from other parts of the common.  It became a Dispersal Centre (demobilisation camp) at the end of the war and was still in use in 1919 as several of the traditional London Bks were unfit for accommodation pending repair. 

 

 

 

Edited 21 February by FROGSMILE

[Waddell]

Thanks Frogsmile. It was a long time ago I asked that question, however, it is good to have a detailed reply for others researching the place in the future.

Scott

 

[FROGSMILE]

8 hours ago, Waddell said:

Thanks Frogsmile. It was a long time ago I asked that question, however, it is good to have a detailed reply for others researching the place in the future.

Scott

 

Yes it was a long time ago and I wasn’t sure if you ever got your answer by some other means.  Reading your query I think that the AIF Sergeant you were researching would have been sent to the school to qualify for the new job (status) that he was taking up at the Engineering School.

Incidentally, I learned recently of two categories of temporary rank mentioned in one of the AIF accounts regarding training battalions located on Salisbury Plain (Codford and surrounds).  One was the rank prefix ER standing for Extra Regimental (i.e. over and above unit establishment) and the other was the rank prefix EDP meaning Extra Duty Pay (i.e. a role with greater duty demands and associated cash remuneration).  In each case the men returned to their substantive rank upon completion of the role and unit that they were assigned to whilst engaged in training.

Edited 21 February by FROGSMILE