Grandfather's Medal Card At Last!

[keatley]

Hiya all,

I have finally found(after 5 years of searching) confirmation of my Grandfather's Regiment No., so I have been able to locate his medal card.

After I recieved so much help with my previous request, I am desperate to find as much info on this card as possible. This is the ultimate for me!....any help on this I would be eternally grateful.

Through his medal card(attached) I understand William Robertson Keatley served in the Highland Light Infantry, Labour Corps and The King's Own Scottish Borderers, was it common to serve 3 corps?....where and when did he see action, do you know when he left the army etc?

Thanks,

Paul

[birkettm]

From what i can see he did indeed serve in the HLI, then the Labour Corps and the KOSB - ive never seen anyone come from the labour corp back to a line regiment though.

The card also seems to indicate his pair will be issued to "5334 Pte. W. Keatley HIGH. L. I." It obviously also gives you the roll number for checking his pair at the PRO.

Ta

[Blackblue]

Hi Paul,

Yes it was common for a man to move between Corps. In this case infantry to Labour Corps and then back to infantry. Men often moved to the Labour Corps when they were medically downgraded due to wounds or sickness. In this case it looks as though he recovered sufficiently to return to the infantry. In this case he commenced his war service with the Highland Light Infantry after the start of 1916 (as he was not awarded a Star). Then then went to the Labour Corps for a period and then on to the KOSB.

You will have to identify the battalions of each regiment/corps he served in to trace his service. If his service papers have survived at the National Archives then you are in luck. Alternatively you should be able to obtain details of his KOSB battalion (in which he was serving when the rolls were compiled) from the Medal Rolls for his British War Medal and Victory Medal....number is listed on the Medal Index Card. The rolls are available from the National Archives...but not on line. After doing this you should be able to examine where his battalion served and with which division.

I am afraid that tracing his HLI service and LC service is far more problematic. Numbers for the regular and territorial battalions were initially issued by each battalion (so a man in each battalion could have the same number). The territorial battalions later moved to six digit numbers issued in blocks to each battalion (but this did not commence until 1916). The service battalions (raised for war service) often started in a particular number series and were issued in blocks of numbers to each service battalion....so a service battalion man is often easier to trace.

His HLI number is likely either territorial or regular (4 digits) which means that he could have served in one of 12 different battalions. As far as the LC goes I don't think that they were issued in blocks...men just got a number and went where they were needed....so tracing his LC company will also be very difficult.

Hope this helps.

Rgds

Tim

[gericht 1914]

In this case it looks as though he recovered sufficiently to return to the infantry.

Or the grading system "lowered the threshold" for "fit for frontline service" as what happened in 1918 when frontline infantrymen were needed in desperation.

dave.

[SMG65]

Paul

Moving from Labour Corps back to infantry happened frequently.

The reason could lie with the battalion he served with and the date he joined.

My great grandfather served with 18 Northumberland Fusiliers, then Labour Corps and then 43 Royal Fusiliers.

However 43 RF consisted of approximately 46 companies, which were all former Labour Corps companies. 43 RF were used for garrison guarding.

I see that the KOSB had a 9th battalion which became 10th service battalion and was used for garrison guarding.

With him being issued with a 4 digit territorial number and not being reissued with a 6 digit number, it is likely he left the battalion before the numbering changed. He is also not entitled to the 1914-15 Star so he served abroad in 1916 at the earliest.

The Medal Roll should tell you which Labour Corps company he served with. My experience shows that you can get an idea of when a soldier joined the corps by his service number. Have a look at SDGW and see when soldiers with a number near his were being killed. I would guess that he joined the Labour Corps in early 1917.

Sean

[keatley]

Thanks for all your help on this one, much appreciated.

Paul