Identifying part of uniform

[suesalter1]

Has anyone any clues what the cuffs on some of the men's left sleeves are? They all served as signallers in the 16th Battalion, Royal Welsh Fusiliers, if that helps?

 

Thanks,

Sue

[FROGSMILE]

The men on the right as we look are all qualified signallers (crossed flags on left forearm) so my guess is that the brassard/wristlet/armband is an indicator of a Battalion Signaller.  Qualified NCOs generally wore the badge above their stripes on the right arm, so we can't quite see, although there is the hint of a badge on at least one.  The intent of the arm band was to mark out men permanently employed as signallers, rather than qualified but employed in some other role.

Edited 28 January , 2020 by FROGSMILE

[Muerrisch]

Rather nice. Suggestion is that it is fairly late in the war but before the 1918 issue of Overseas badges. Several 2-year Good Conduct chevrons.

 

I can also see a hint of slip-on shoulder adornments: may also be signaller ID.

 

The senior signaller in the unit would normally be a sergeant, qualified as an instructor, but no reason why a corporal should not do it.

 

Is there a story behind the photo please?

[suesalter1]

My great-uncle, Tom Price, is pictured, standing second left. The others are his fellow signallers. I am now trying to trace what happened to them in the war. I know two died, Ianto Rowlands, standing first left next to Tom, was his best mate. Ianto (real name Evan David Rowlands) died of the Spanish flu on the 31st October 1918 and Herbert Pearce, sitting first left, died of wounds 24th August 1918. 

 

My great-uncle kept a diary, written in Welsh, but recently translated by his daughter (my cousin). She also sent me the English version and as so many people were mentioned, I am trying to see if they have any living relatives. Tom did tend to call his friends by nickname, so it is proving to be quite difficult to track them down, but then I do love a challenge!

 

Sue.

[Muerrisch]

Thank you. From memory [and I can check for you if it matters] a battalion "establishment" for signalling was constant in the war and comprised a junior officer [there is one in the photo], a sergeant, and about 16 trained men. Some would be retained in battalion HQ [perhaps these men] and the remainder belonged to each of four companies. The signallers were accepted as an elite: trustworthy, disciplined, numerate, literate [by the standards of the day] and intelligent. The training was demanding, and the duties very dangerous.

 

If you want an idea of the life of a signaller in a RWF battalion, get hold of a copy of Old Soldiers Never Die by Private Frank Richards DCM MM.

[FROGSMILE]

27 minutes ago, Muerrisch said:

Thank you. From memory [and I can check for you if it matters] a battalion "establishment" for signalling was constant in the war and comprised a junior officer [there is one in the photo], a sergeant, and about 16 trained men. Some would be retained in battalion HQ [perhaps these men] and the remainder belonged to each of four companies. The signallers were accepted as an elite: trustworthy, disciplined, numerate, literate [by the standards of the day] and intelligent. The training was demanding, and the duties very dangerous.

 

If you want an idea of the life of a signaller in a RWF battalion, get hold of a copy of Old Soldiers Never Die by Private Frank Richards DCM MM.

I agree with you that it appears as if this might be the battalion HQ detachment of signallers.  The man who at first glance might be thought a junior officer is just a signaller wearing his respirator case strap diagonally.

 It interests me just how different the RWF Service Battalions seemed to be to the regulars, being mostly men from North Wales.  They developed a very different culture and regular soldiers posted to a Service battalion must have experienced something of a shock, not least a language difference, as only a minority of regulars spoke Welsh as a proportion of the battalion strength.

Edited 28 January , 2020 by FROGSMILE