Battalion Tailors

[Rachel Neal]

Dear All,

I am doing some research into clothing during the First World War and I have seen ‘Battalion Tailors’ mentioned on the forum a few times. I am interested to learn more about them.

Could anyone tell me if the Battalion Tailor was an official military role or just someone who was a tailor prior to the war and provided tailoring skills to the rest of the battalion?

Did they have official work to carry out such as general repairs and/or extra jobs such as alterations requested by individual soldiers?

Could anyone point me in the direction of where I could find out more?

Many thanks in advance

Rachel

[6RRF]

Tailor was an official role which could be assigned to a soldier within a unit. The intention was that he should properly fit/alter uniforms although he was no doubt persuaded to do private work in his spare time. Highland regiments also had kiltmakers 

[Rachel Neal]

Fantastic, thank you!

 

[DavidOwen]

If you search the Medal Index Cards you will find many such as the example below (although you will have to filter out all the ones whose surname is Tailor!). [courtesy FMP]

Welcome to the Forum too

Here's a British example [FMP]

[Rachel Neal]

Hi David, Thank you, that's great! thank you for the welcome message too.

[kenf48]

2 hours ago, Rachel Neal said:

I am doing some research into clothing during the First World War

If you have not seen it you may find this Ph.D Thesis by Jane Tynan (2009) of interest "Representations of soldiering:British army uniform and the male body during the First World War"

It was turned into a book which as usual with academic texts is frighteningly expensive https://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/id/eprint/3843/

Among many illustrations there is this one under the heading "Tailoring in the Trenches" from the Tailor and Cutter magazine April 5 1916 together with an accompanying article.

 

[FROGSMILE]

Each infantry battalion was established for a sergeant with the appoint of sergeant master tailor**.  He was assisted by some soldiers appointed from the service companies and also some of the Boy Entrants, aged 14 to 17, enlisted from soldiers sons, orphans and board school inmates, with the written permission of their parents.  The master tailor received a stipend for each individual boy that he coached sufficiently to pass the relevant trade test.  Boys from industrial board schools had often already completed elementary sewing work before enlistment. 

However, the Boys were given the opportunity to leave the workshop and join a ‘service company’ once they reached the age of 18.   All the battalion tailors, including the master tailor himself, were first and foremost infantry soldiers, and required to complete their annual classification shoot (marksmanship) plus any other individual military training routinely required.  They were, however, generally excused duties connected with the domestic routine of the battalion (cookhouse fatigue, etc.), including barracks guard.#

Overall the tailors trade training for the army as a whole was governed and run by the Army Service Corps (ASC), whose principal ‘services’ trade training school (less cooking and baking) was at Woolwich (Cambridge Bks), in South London.  The tailoring wing of the school maintained a close relationship with the large Royal Army Clothing Department (RACD) factory at Pimlico, close by the River Thames embankment, until the latter closed in 1928.

For units that did not have individual tailors, services were provided by ASC tailors at garrison and formation level, the latter when in the field.  Infantry, cavalry and artillery tailors completed a training course at Woolwich and Pimlico to receive the certificate that then qualified them for promotion to sergeant (note Bombardier Richards’s and Sergeant O’Hare’s [from the equivalent Indian Establishment clothing depot, Alipore] certificates below).

1.https://bodminkeep.org.uk/the-master-military-tailor/

2.https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/Collections-Research/Collection/Soliders-Chiefs-online-gallery/Artefact/Military-Tailor-s-Book/cf000db1-d1b4-479e-9c42-6e1e2e6faeee

3.https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/308315-royal-army-clothing-factory-pimlico/

#Here below is the relevant extract from Royal Welsh Fusiliers Standing Orders 1910.

**this appointment was one of several employed as specialist sergeants on the staff of battalion headquarters collectively known as staff sergeants of the regimental staff.

Edited 27 January by FROGSMILE

[Allan1892]

@FROGSMILE - cracking images, I like the one of the soldier perched on tin cans writing a letter

[FROGSMILE]

18 minutes ago, Allan1892 said:

@FROGSMILE - cracking images, I like the one of the soldier perched on tin cans writing a letter

Yes not much tailoring getting done there Allan!

[Rachel Neal]

3 hours ago, FROGSMILE said:

Each infantry battalion was established for a sergeant with the appoint of sergeant master tailor**.  He was assisted by some soldiers appointed from the service companies and also some of the Boy Entrants, aged 14 to 17, enlisted from soldiers sons, orphans and board school inmates, with the written permission of their parents.  The master tailor received a stipend for each individual boy that he coached sufficiently to pass the relevant trade test.  Boys from industrial board schools had often already completed elementary sewing work before enlistment. A 

However, the Boys were given the opportunity to leave the workshop and join a ‘service company’ once they reached the age of 18.   All the battalion tailors, including the master tailor himself, were first and foremost infantry soldiers, and required to complete their annual classification shoot (marksmanship) plus any other individual military training routinely required.  They were however, generally excused duties connected with the domestic routine of the battalion, including barracks guard.

Overall trade training for the army as a whole was governed and run by the Army Service Corps (ASC), whose trades training school was at Red Barracks, Woolwich, in South London.  The tailoring wing of the school maintained a close relationship with the large Royal Army Clothing Department (RACD) factory at Pimlico, close by the River Thames embankment, until the latter closed in 1928.  For units that did not have individual tailors, services were provided by ASC tailors at garrison and formation levels, the latter when in the field.  Infantry tailors completed a training course at Woolwich and Pimlico to receive the certificate that then qualified them for promotion to sergeant (note Bombardier Richards’s certificate below).

1.https://bodminkeep.org.uk/the-master-military-tailor/

2.https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/Collections-Research/Collection/Soliders-Chiefs-online-gallery/Artefact/Military-Tailor-s-Book/cf000db1-d1b4-479e-9c42-6e1e2e6faeee

3.https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/308315-royal-army-clothing-factory-pimlico/

 

Here below is the relevant extract from Royal Welsh Fusiliers Standing Orders 1910.

**this appointment was one of several employed as specialist sergeants on the staff of battalion headquarters and collectively known as staff sergeants of the regimental staff.

Thank you so much @FROGSMILE, that is so helpful and interesting, fascinating images!

3 hours ago, kenf48 said:

If you have not seen it you may find this Ph.D Thesis by Jane Tynan (2009) of interest "Representations of soldiering:British army uniform and the male body during the First World War"

It was turned into a book which as usual with academic texts is frighteningly expensive https://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/id/eprint/3843/

Among many illustrations there is this one under the heading "Tailoring in the Trenches" from the Tailor and Cutter magazine April 5 1916 together with an accompanying article.

 

Thank you @kenf48, fantastic image from the Tailor and Cutter!