Minimum height for recruits

[PeterThorn]

I have just found some information on a relative enlisted in the Army (Royal Fusiliers) on 12 Dec 1915 which states he was only 5ft tall weighing 121 lbs and it gives his correct age of 33 yrs 2 months. I thought the minimum height was 5ft 3in. Could this be a wrong transcription of his height (I haven't seen the original record) or were recruits of this height accepted in Dec 1915?

Edited 2 August , 2018 by PeterThorn

[Scalyback]

Height requirements went up and down with needs. 5ft sounds like a Bantam man and date roughly correct. Will give you the height requirements at various dates later.

[PeterThorn]

Scalyback, I've done reading about Bantams. I don't think this applies to the above soldier as he enlisted in the Royal Fusiliers & I don't think they had a Bantum battalion. My understanding of the minimum height requirement for the British Army was that it was 5ft 3in at the start of the war but this was raised to 5ft 6in as a measure to cope with the huge influx of volunteers. As the war progressed & recruit grew less in numbers this was gradually reduced. I cannot find the final minimum height reached. I have found contradictory answers online a BBC page ( https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-31023270 ) states 5ft 2in while a Wikipedia article (   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bantam_(military) ) gives a minimum of 5ft. I can't find any dates for when these specific rules were applied. Bantum battalions required a minimum height of 4ft 10in.

 

If anyone can give me more reliable information I would appreciate it.

 

Thanks, Peter                               

[Jervis]

I was recently looking into a CWGC grave I had came across. The solider of the Royal Scots had died of influenza on home service. The solider's Service Records were on Ancestry and noted his height was 4ft 11 inches. The medical officers recorded that his physical development was "poor".  He enlisted in 1918. 

 

49382 Daniel O'Halloran - 2nd/10th Royal Scots. (Not a bantam unit)

Edited 5 August , 2018 by Jervis

[PeterThorn]

1 hour ago, Jervis said:

I was recently looking into a CWGC grave I had came across. The solider of the Royal Scots had died of influenza on home service. The solider's Service Records were on Ancestry and noted his height was 4ft 11 inches. The medical officers recorded that his physical development was "poor".  He enlisted in 1918. 

 

49382 Daniel O'Halloran - 2nd/10th Royal Scots. (Not a bantam unit)

Thank you Jervis, This suggests that some soldiers below minimum height were recruited and their correct measurements recorded accurately (i.e. they weren't asked to stand on their toes to increase height). I know by 1918 that average physical standards had reduced and have read that officers commented on the poorer physical standards. But 1915 seems a bit early for this to be happening. I would have thought if the rules said 5ft 2in than the recruits less than this wouldn't be accepted.