"1913-1914 British Infantry Company organisation" Topic

I recently considered looking at researching small unit organisation for the British Army in the Great War – now before I go running back to the 1939-45 era where I can kid myself I know someting, I was hoping someone could answer a question that will otherwise continue to annoy me!

I signed up with the Great War forum, and a couple of the contributors have very kindly transcribed and posted details of the pre-war eight Company and early war four Company British Infantry Battalion establishments.

In the eight Company format, each Company was authorised three officers, one colour-sergeant, four sergeants, five corporals and 100 privates, plus two drummers, three batmen and two wagon drivers. My understanding is that this Company could be sub-divided into four sections. Confusingly, it seems that signallers, pioneers and stretcher bearers were counted in the Company totals so when removed would reduce the privates to around 92.

In the four Company format, each Company was authorised six officers, two colour-sergeants, eight sergeants, ten corporals and 188 privates, plus four drummers, six batmen and three wagon drivers. This Company was sub-divided into four Platoons.

The question most people on the GW forum (including myself) had was how the odd number of sergeants and corporals was arrived at? I was looking through the Osprey "British Redcoats 1793-1815" and was struck by the fact it gave a Company three officers, four sergeants and five corporals. A carry on of traditional appointments or pure coincidence?

In a Company subdivided into four sections, then four sergeants makes sense – but why five corporals? Likewise in a Company of four Platoons, why ten corporals? Eight sergeants sounds right if each Platoon could be handled as two equal sections, but I don't know if that was the case.

I should stress this is a purely paper exercise on my part as I'm well aware that units would have operated well below strength for the most part. I'm just curious if anyone knows the 'parade ground' look for these units so to speak.

Thanks,

Gary

Just a thought (no Knowledge) Could the odd NCOs be with the signallers. Pioneers etc.?

x42

Then answers actually lay within your question. I'll give you the quick version and maybe when I get home I'll look up my refs.

The individual company size of the 8 company was much smaller, around 100 men. One officer was Company OC, two subalterns lead a half company, which in turn was divided into 2 sections, each in turn led by a sergeant, assisted by a corporal. Hence 3 Officers, 4 Sgts.

Now this bit is a bit reliant on a failing memory but I think the extra corporal I think was a bandsman/ stretcher bearer held on the comany rolls. At any rate he would have been either a member of or attached to Coy HQ. If you look at the raw numbers in platoons of the new orgs you will soon realise there are plenty of spare bods. Remember that bandsmen stretcher bearers and various other odds and sods were nominally held on the company rolls. There was no HQ coy in these battalions

The reason they changed to the 4 coy organisation was that 25 men was regarded as too unwieldy to be handled by the section commanders and that the 4 platoon org gave more flexibility.

I definitely picked up the impression that there was a pool of personnel in companies, rather than a well defined section-platoon-company system as I'm more used to. The 1914 establishment lists all the stretcher bearers (previously spread out with the eight Companies (two each)) as forming a sixteen strong element in Bn HQ. Likewise the pioneers in a section of ten (plus a sergeant).

As for corporals, the eight company org states of the forty-two there was one signaller, one with the MG section leaving five per company. The four company org has the same total of forty-two in the same roles, now with ten per company. There are also specialists sergeants for transport, signals, cooks, drummers, and so on, exactly the same in the two Bn formats.

Keep the suggestions coming, the truth is out there (maybe)!