Issuing of uniform, webbing and arms

[Mangoman]

Somewhat of an odd request I know but when did a man receive his uniform, webbing and arms?

On most of my family's Attestation Papers the men, having sworn the oath of allegiance, were generally sent home to await mobilization. Would the man have received his uniform following attestation or when he was ordered to attend the Battalion's HQ upon being mobilized? 

 

[Moonraker]

I would have said at the regimental depot when he arrived to start his training. But ...

Early in the war there was a shortage of uniform and equipment and Kitchener recruits might have had to wait several weeks or longer into their training before they could dispense with their civvies. 

Recruits who signed up in town halls and the like might well have been sent home to await a summons (by telegram? or letter?) to the depot. Such halls would not have the capacity for a stock of uniforms, kitbags etc. However, what about a man who signed on at the regimental depot - perhaps he would have been sent immediately to the stores to be kitted out?

And it became increasingly common for a soldier to sign up in his locality and then be allocated to a regiment with a county affiliation and depot hundreds of miles away. I presume that he would travel there in his civvies.

I suspect others will be able to cite a variety of experiences and practices.

Moonraker

 

 

 

[FROGSMILE]

On 27/07/2021 at 17:02, Mangoman said:

Somewhat of an odd request I know but when did a man receive his uniform, webbing and arms?

On most of my family's Attestation Papers the men, having sworn the oath of allegiance, were generally sent home to await mobilization. Would the man have received his uniform following attestation or when he was ordered to attend the Battalion's HQ upon being mobilized? 

 

In principle it has been traditional in the British (and Commonwealth) services for a soldier to be first issued with uniform by the unit where he undergoes his basic training.

With that principle in mind there were broadly three types of soldier at the beginning of WW1 (important caveat as things evolved subsequently) with each being issued his uniform under slightly different circumstances.

First was the regular soldier who joined at his local regimental depot, where he was issued with war office supplied (i.e. taxpayer funded) uniform and insignia soon after arrival.  This was done under the initial administrative period that all soldiers underwent (often referred to as kitting out, or kit issue).  On completion of all stages of training he would be sent to one of the regular battalions of his regiment.  The system was efficient but on a small scale and unable to cope with mass mobilisation of the population.

Second was the auxiliary (part-time) soldier of the Territorial Force (TF).  He would commonly join at his local drill hall, not far from where he lived.  The drill halls usually contained one or two companies of the TF battalion that he joined.  Just as for a regular the TF soldier underwent initial administration that involved the issue of a uniform, usually by his company’s quarter-master-sergeant, who was responsible for such matters.  Each soldier received a basic kit, with anything more extensive or special (i.e. tropical kit) issued subsequently and not necessarily at his drill hall.  Unlike his regular counterpart, although usually of the same or similar pattern, his uniform was administered separately by the local TF County Association, as opposed to directly by the war office.

Third was the war-raised Kitchener volunteer, who was initially administered entirely separately from the regular and the Territorial.  Formed because it was realised that neither the regulars nor the Territorials were properly established to cope with the mass mobilisation of citizen volunteers, these so-called New Armies were raised and initially equipped with rough and ready uniform by local committees formed by cities, groups of towns, trade and sports groups, the professions, and various members of the aristocracy.  Initial uniform was issued by these groups until such time as they became formally adopted by the war office, at which point they received publicly funded khaki uniform and were gradually furnished with arms and ancillary equipment.  Before that formal adoption, the uniform provided ranged in the earliest units from simple armbands to lapel badges, with the men otherwise dressed and drilled in their civilian clothes.  Later units received a blue uniform furnished from post office stocks and some wealthy cities provided much smarter, purpose designed uniform, especially those Northern conurbations associated with the cloth trade.  All these units became known officially as [War] ‘Service Battalions’ and unofficially as ‘Pals Battalions’, and once adopted by the war office they received arms, and regular styles of drab khaki uniform, including sometimes a simplified jacket that was easier to manufacture quickly at scale. 

In summary then all soldiers received some degree of uniform from the unit that trained them, but the extent and quality of this was determined by the type of unit that they joined.  The early part of the war was much more hand to mouth, but by the end of 1916 and into early 1917 a much more efficient and professional approach had been adopted that was well set up to equip and sustain the largest Army that Britain had ever put into the field.

 

 

 

Edited 29 July , 2021 by FROGSMILE

[Mangoman]

Many thanks for your most interesting reply to my inquiry which I find very enlightening. Thank you so much.

[FROGSMILE]

23 hours ago, Mangoman said:

Many thanks for your most interesting reply to my inquiry which I find very enlightening. Thank you so much.

I'm glad that it was of interest.  I see that you are an author, may I ask what it is that you published?

Edited 29 July , 2021 by FROGSMILE

[Moonraker]

First, congratulations to Frogsmile for his reply, that was excellent even before he added the photos. I had started to compose something on the same lines, but was unsure how accurate the final effort would have been!

Some more examples of recruits not being kitted out in "modern" uniforms here and

which I'm sure that I've posted previously but I can't locate it.

[Mangoman]

3 hours ago, FROGSMILE said:

I'm glad that it was of interest.  I see that you are an author, may I ask what it is that you published?

I don't know about being an author Friogsmile. I do write write monthly articles for out local free monthly magazine and have supplied WW1 articles for our local council and other web sires but have never published a book of any sort. Having said that I have a book in mind but a might pop my clogs before that goes into print.

[FROGSMILE]

11 minutes ago, Mangoman said:

I don't know about being an author Friogsmile. I do write write monthly articles for out local free monthly magazine and have supplied WW1 articles for our local council and other web sires but have never published a book of any sort. Having said that I have a book in mind but a might pop my clogs before that goes into print.

Well I wish you well with all your writings.  I asked because at top right of all your posts when I view them on my desktop computer there’s a little notation: “author”.

Edited 29 July , 2021 by FROGSMILE

[Steven Broomfield]

22 minutes ago, FROGSMILE said:

Well I wish you well with all your writings.  I asked because at top right of all your posts when I view them on my desktop computer there’s a little notation: “author”.

I thought that referred to what we would call 'the OP' (i.e. author of the thread). Seems to have appeared in the latest upgrade. 

[FROGSMILE]

3 minutes ago, Steven Broomfield said:

I thought that referred to what we would call 'the OP' (i.e. author of the thread). Seems to have appeared in the latest upgrade. 

Ah I see.  Thank you Steven, that makes sense.