Uniform

[Guest]

Hello,

hope someone can help with this. This is a picture of my Grandad, I think, taken in 1915/ 1916. He was in the 1st Battalion, Duke of Cornwall, and was gassed in the 2nd Ypres in April 1915. He survived but was invalided out to the Army Ordnance Corps. In this picture he is wearing the uniform of the Dorsetshires. Is it possible that soldiers were briefly seconded to  other regiments? Why,otherwise, would he be wearing another regiments uniform?

Thanks

[Mark1959]

Welcome Geoff.

It may help to find an answer if you could provide some details of your Grandfather. Full name, date of birth, where he lived etc. 

In the mean time I would recommend having a look at the hint etc here:

 

http://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/soldiers/

[Guest]

Thanks, his name was Charles Pettitt, born in Hackney in 1878. Enlisted in March 1915, service number 18477/ 18677?.

[Mark1959]

There is a Medal Index Card for a Charles Pettitt 18477. This shows service in the DCLI and the Labour Corps. His number in the Labour Corps was 520073. The Labour Corps was often a posting for men no longer fit enough for front line service. It shows a discharge date of 21/6/18.

The card also reveals he first went to France on 21st May 1915. edit - as 2nd Ypres is deemed to have finished 25/5/15 it seems unlikely he was gassed there. 

The discharge date made me look at the SIlver War Badge lists - given to chap discharged unfit. 520073 has a SWB. This shows an enlistment date of 16/2/15. Says discharge due to sickness rather than wounds. Says WCLC ex DCLI. WCLC stands for Western Command Labour Centre. 

I agree he is wearing Dorsetshire insignia. So probably attached at some point or he was only in the Dorsets in the UK.

Edited 26 March , 2018 by Mark1959

[Steven Broomfield]

The picture is almost certainly post-GW: collar dogs on an other rank are a post-war thing. The cap, too, has a post-war 'feel' about it.

[DCLI]

My grandfather was 7th DCLI and he was seriously wounded during the Guards assault on Lesbeufs, September 16th, 1916.. After he recovered he was posted to the 156 Agricultural Company in the UK.