Guest JWS Posted 3 March , 2006 Share Posted 3 March , 2006 Can anyone please advise me on a service number. My great uncle Rifleman Geroge Wilkinson Z/2166 died of wounds 25/8/1916, what does the Z/ stand for, as I notice that some are just straight numbers, others have an (S/) or (B/) or (6/). TIA. JWS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stiletto_33853 Posted 3 March , 2006 Share Posted 3 March , 2006 JWS The Z prefix in the Rifle Brigade denoted men enlisting as special reservists (one year) or men enlisting for 3 year short service enlistments. Numbers ranged between Z/1 through to Z/2997. The other prefixes have different meanings such as the S for New Army men. Hope this helps a little. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JWS Posted 3 March , 2006 Share Posted 3 March , 2006 Andy. Thanks for the answer to my question, it all helps to build up a picture of ones ancestor that did'nt make it home. JWS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stiletto_33853 Posted 3 March , 2006 Share Posted 3 March , 2006 Hi JWS, His medal rolls tells us that he died of wounds on 25/8/16, was in the 3rd Battalion and disembarked on 15/1/15. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JWS Posted 3 March , 2006 Share Posted 3 March , 2006 Andy. I note that your grandfather was in the Life Guards (machine gun corps) so was my great uncle Abel Sadler , Trooper 3612 (machine gun corps No 3775). Both Abel and his brother (my grandfather J W Sadler Gunner RGA ) survived the conflict. The National Archive Medal section had Abel recorded wrongly and have corrected his details now, but I have often wondered where he enlisted, because he does not show the National Roll of the Great War (Salford section) yet they all lived in the same street in Salford. I am now beginning to think he may have enlisted before the war started?. JWS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JWS Posted 3 March , 2006 Share Posted 3 March , 2006 Andy. Yes correct, he volunteered in Sept 1914 and went to France in Jan 1915, fought at Neuve Chappelle and Hill 60, was also severly wounded at Ypres and after recovery returned to his unit. JWS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stiletto_33853 Posted 4 March , 2006 Share Posted 4 March , 2006 Hi JWS, Do you know if your great uncle was injured on the attack of the 18th or the attack of the 21st. Yes my grandfather was brothered into the 2nd Life Guards as my great uncle (his brother) was already serving with them. They both joined the Guards Machine Gun Regiment in 1918 and both survived the war. However my great uncle died of illness a few months after the war and is buried in Brompton Cemetery in London, he was one of the first winners of the Military Medal in early 1916. My grandfather never really got over his death after serving the whole war alongside one another, my father and uncle are named after him. He found it difficult going back to the Life Guards after the war and transferred to the Scots Guards as soon as he could. Dont worry about The National Roll, as this was a subscription book where I believe an entry would be put in the Roll for 2/6d, a lot of money in those days, so some families took the subscription and some could not afford to do so. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now