Welsh 38th RFA in India

[Guest]

I am researching my Grandfather whose name was William Henry Hurford, DOB 20/06/1896. He served in The RFA in WW1 and I have his medal and medal card. His number was W4455. I learnt this week that the W signifies a Welsh regimant, and probably he was in the 38th. I have a photograph of him in India, which I have just learnt shows him outside a hospital dressed in hospital blues. It does not seem that he served "actively" in a theatre of war, but was obviously in India. Can anyone help me research what he was doing there, where he was stationed and where the hospital could be please? I have no idea where to go from here. Many thanks.

[clive_hughes]

Dear Marianne,

You are correct in saying that he didn't serve in an active Theatre of War, as he was awarded the British War Medal only, which was granted for any overseas service (if he had landed in a War Theatre, he would have qualified for the Victory Medal as well).   India (excepting the North-west Frontier) was just such a non-active posting.  

 

The W-prefix RFA numbers were allocated to something like 6000 artillerymen who were enlisted for the RFA of the 38th Welsh Division in 1914-15.  Their own four artillery brigades would have needed about 1,000 men each, but there were also reserves raised.  In June 1915 the War Office refused to let these reserves be used as the basis for a second Welsh Division's artillery.   I suspect your grandfather was with these reserves, but certainly he did not proceed to France with the main body in December 1915.  

 

From the time where the authorities determined that the Welsh Div. reserves could be sent where they pleased, he would simply have been another unit of manpower to be slotted in to any vacancy, anywhere.  He would still have kept his original number (with or sometimes without the W prefix).  

 

If you happen to know where he lived during the war, it's possible you might find his unit mentioned on the Absent Voters List 1918 for that county/constituency.  These useful documents survive only patchily, but someone here may know the situation for the relevant area.  

 

His upper photo shows a service stripe on his left arm, meaning he had served at the time it was taken (without any substantial disciplinary infractions) for at least 2 years (a second stripe would not have been granted until 6 years). 

 

Clive

Edited 15 August , 2018 by clive_hughes

[Guest]

Thank you Clive. Have you any idea where these men were sent in India? I'm fascinated by this as he used to tell me some stories about his time there when I was a little girl. Just wish I'd taken more notice!

[Ron Clifton]

Hello Marianne, and welcome to the Forum!

 

38th Brigade RFA was a pre-war Regular unit, and had no connection with 38th (Welsh) Division. It served in France with 6th Division before it became an Army brigade (part of a general pool, and not attached to any division) at the beginning of 1917.

 

The brigades with 38th (Welsh) Division were 119, 120, 121 and 122 Brigades. These also served only in France.

 

Ron

[clive_hughes]

Marianne,

Sorry, but without an idea of his unit in India, it's not possible to say where exactly he might have been sent.  This is what the AVL 1918 above might just be able to tell us.  

 

Clive

[MaureenE]

Could Marianne's grandfather have been in  the 38th Battery? The Long, Long Trail says

 

7 Brigade (regular, VII)  Comprising numbers 4, 38 and 78 Batteries RFA plus 68 and 84 Companies RGA and 104 Battery RGA and based at Rawalpindi, this brigade came under command of the 2nd (Rawalpindi) Division of the Indian Army. It remained in India throughout the war.

 

Even if this is not the correct battery, I think the chances are that he would have been posted to one of the larger cantonments in the North West of India, such as Rawalpindi, Peshawar,  Nowshera,  to name a few. 

 

Pages from the FIBIS Fibiwiki:

https://wiki.fibis.org/w/Rawalpindi

https://wiki.fibis.org/w/Peshawar

https://wiki.fibis.org/w/Nowshera

 

Cheers

Maureen