When the 3rd (The East Kent) Regiment of Foot became the Buffs (East Kent Regiment) in 1881 under the Cardwell-Childers reforms of the British Armed Forces, four pre-existent militia and volunteer battalions of Kent were integrated into the structure of the regiment. Volunteer battalions had been created in reaction to a perceived threat of invasion by France in the late 1850s. Organised as "rifle volunteer corps", they were independent of the British Army and composed primarily of the middle class. The only change to the regiment's structure during the period of 1881-1908 occurred in 1888, when the two militia battalions of the regiment amalgamated.[1]
5th Kent (The Weald of Kent) Rifle Volunteer Corps[3]
Reorganisationedit
The Territorial Force (later Territorial Army) was formed in 1908, which the volunteer battalions joined, while the militia battalions transferred to the "Special Reserve". All volunteer battalions were renumbered to create a single sequential order.[1]
The Buffs fielded 15 battalions and lost over 6,000 officers and other ranks during the course of the war.[6] The regiment's territorial components formed duplicate second and third line battalions. As an example, the three-line battalions of the 4th Buffs were numbered as the 1/4th, 2/4th, and 3/4th respectively. Many battalions of the regiment were formed as part of Secretary of State for War Lord Kitchener's appeal for an initial 100,000 men volunteers in 1914. They were referred to as the New Army or Kitchener's Army.[1][7] The Volunteer Training Corps were raised with overage or reserved occupation men early in the war, and were initially self-organised into many small corps, with a wide variety of names. Recognition of the corps by the authorities brought regulation and as the war continued the small corps were formed into battalion sized units of the county Volunteer Regiment. In 1918 these were linked to county regiments.[8]
1st Battalion (Cinque Ports) Kent Volunteer Regiment later the 1st Volunteer Battalion, Buffs (East Kent Regiment)
Hythe
Disbanded post war
2nd Battalion (St. Augustine's) Kent Volunteer Regiment later the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, Buffs (East Kent Regiment)
Canterbury
Disbanded post war
4th Battalion (Thanet) Kent Volunteer Regiment later the 3rd Volunteer Battalion, Buffs (East Kent Regiment)
Thanet
Disbanded post war
Inter-Waredit
By 1920, all of the regiment's war-raised battalions had disbanded. The Special Reserve reverted to its militia designation in 1921, then to the Supplementary Reserve in 1924; however, its battalions were effectively placed in 'suspended animation'. As World War II approached, the Territorial Army was reorganised in the mid-1930s, many of its infantry battalions were converted to other roles, especially anti-aircraft.[1]
Battalion
Fate
4th
Absorbed 5th (The Weald of Kent) Battalion, without a change in title on 26 August 1921[12]
The Buff's expansion during the Second World War was modest compared to 1914–1918. National Defence Companies were combined to create a new "Home Defence" battalion, In addition to this, 12 of the 39 Kent battalions of the Home Guard were affiliated to the regiment, wearing its cap badge.[1]
In the immediate post-war period, the army was significantly reduced: nearly all infantry regiments had their first and second battalions amalgamated and the Supplementary Reserve disbanded.[1]
Battalion
Fate
1st
Amalgamated with 2nd Battalion on the 23 September 1949, without a change in title[22]
2nd
Amalgamated with 1st Battalion on the 23 September 1949[23]
4th
Redesignated the 4th/5th Battalion on 1 January 1947[12]
5th
Redesignated the 4th/5th Battalion on 1 January 1947[12]
^ abcde"Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment) - Queen's Regimental Association" (PDF). queensregimentalassociation.org. p. 4. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"History of the Home Guard". Retrieved 18 October 2015.
^. regiments.org. Archived from the original on 28 May 2006. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^. regiments.org. Archived from the original on 15 May 2006. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
Sourcesedit
J.B.M. Frederick, Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978, Vol I, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, ISBN1-85117-007-3.
Brig E.A. James, British Regiments 1914–18, London: Samson Books, 1978/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2001, ISBN978-1-84342-197-9.
Joslen, Lt-Col H.F. (2003). Orders of Battle, United Kingdom and Colonial Formations and Units in the Second World War, 1939–1945. Uckfield: Naval & Military. ISBN1843424746.
The Long, Long Trail
March 13, 2024
list, battalions, buffs, royal, east, kent, regiment, this, list, battalions, buffs, royal, east, kent, regiment, which, existed, infantry, regiment, british, army, from, 1881, 1961, contents, original, composition, reorganisation, first, world, inter, second,. This is a list of battalions of the Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment which existed as an infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 1961 Contents 1 Original composition 2 Reorganisation 3 First World War 4 Inter War 5 Second World War 6 Post World War II 7 Amalgamation 8 References 9 SourcesOriginal composition editWhen the 3rd The East Kent Regiment of Foot became the Buffs East Kent Regiment in 1881 under the Cardwell Childers reforms of the British Armed Forces four pre existent militia and volunteer battalions of Kent were integrated into the structure of the regiment Volunteer battalions had been created in reaction to a perceived threat of invasion by France in the late 1850s Organised as rifle volunteer corps they were independent of the British Army and composed primarily of the middle class The only change to the regiment s structure during the period of 1881 1908 occurred in 1888 when the two militia battalions of the regiment amalgamated 1 Battalion Formed FormerlyRegular1st 1572 1st Battalion 3rd Regiment of Foot2nd 1857 2nd Battalion 3rd Regiment of FootMilitia3rd Militia 1760 1st Battalion East Kent Militia 2 4th Militia 1876 2nd Battalion East Kent Militia 2 Volunteers1st Volunteer 1859 2nd Kent East Kent Rifle Volunteer Corps 3 2nd The Weald of Kent Volunteer 1860 5th Kent The Weald of Kent Rifle Volunteer Corps 3 Reorganisation editThe Territorial Force later Territorial Army was formed in 1908 which the volunteer battalions joined while the militia battalions transferred to the Special Reserve All volunteer battalions were renumbered to create a single sequential order 1 Battalion Formerly4th 1st Volunteer Battalion 4 5th The Weald of Kent 2nd The Weald of Kent Volunteer Battalion 5 First World War editThe Buffs fielded 15 battalions and lost over 6 000 officers and other ranks during the course of the war 6 The regiment s territorial components formed duplicate second and third line battalions As an example the three line battalions of the 4th Buffs were numbered as the 1 4th 2 4th and 3 4th respectively Many battalions of the regiment were formed as part of Secretary of State for War Lord Kitchener s appeal for an initial 100 000 men volunteers in 1914 They were referred to as the New Army or Kitchener s Army 1 7 The Volunteer Training Corps were raised with overage or reserved occupation men early in the war and were initially self organised into many small corps with a wide variety of names Recognition of the corps by the authorities brought regulation and as the war continued the small corps were formed into battalion sized units of the county Volunteer Regiment In 1918 these were linked to county regiments 8 Battalion Formed Served FateRegular 9 10 1st 1572 Western Front2nd 1857 Western Front SalonikaSpecial Reserve 9 10 3rd Reserve 1760 BritainTerritorial Force 9 10 1 4th 1859 India Aden See Inter War1 5th The Weald of Kent 1860 India Mesopotamian See Inter War2 4th Canterbury September 1914 Britain Disbanded in November 19172 5th The Weald of Kent Ashford September 1914 Britain Disbanded in November 19173 4th 4th Reserve from 8 April 1916 Canterbury July 1915 Britain Disbanded in 19193 5th The Weald of Kent 5th The Weald of Kent Reserve from 8 April 1916 Ashford March 1915 Britain Absorbed into the 4th Reserve Battalion on 1 September 191610th Royal East Kent amp West Kent Yeomanry Sollum 1 February 1917 from the 1 1st Royal East Kent Yeomanry and 1 1st Queen s Own West Kent Yeomanry Western Front Disembodied 1919New Army 9 10 6th Service Canterbury August 1914 Western Front Disbanded in 19197th Service Canterbury September 1914 Western Front Disbanded in 19198th Service Canterbury September 1914 Western Front Disbanded on 13 February 19189th Reserve Dover October 1914 Britain Became the 29th Training Reserve Battalion of the 7th Reserve Brigade on 1 September 1916Others 9 10 1st Home Service Garrison Dover 29 April 1916 Britain Became 2nd Battalion Royal Defence CorpsVolunteer Training Corps 11 1st Battalion Cinque Ports Kent Volunteer Regimentlater the 1st Volunteer Battalion Buffs East Kent Regiment Hythe Disbanded post war2nd Battalion St Augustine s Kent Volunteer Regimentlater the 2nd Volunteer Battalion Buffs East Kent Regiment Canterbury Disbanded post war4th Battalion Thanet Kent Volunteer Regimentlater the 3rd Volunteer Battalion Buffs East Kent Regiment Thanet Disbanded post warInter War editBy 1920 all of the regiment s war raised battalions had disbanded The Special Reserve reverted to its militia designation in 1921 then to the Supplementary Reserve in 1924 however its battalions were effectively placed in suspended animation As World War II approached the Territorial Army was reorganised in the mid 1930s many of its infantry battalions were converted to other roles especially anti aircraft 1 Battalion Fate4th Absorbed 5th The Weald of Kent Battalion without a change in title on 26 August 1921 12 5th The Weald of Kent Absorbed by 4th Battalion on 26 August 1921 13 Second World War editThe Buff s expansion during the Second World War was modest compared to 1914 1918 National Defence Companies were combined to create a new Home Defence battalion In addition to this 12 of the 39 Kent battalions of the Home Guard were affiliated to the regiment wearing its cap badge 1 Battalion Formed Served FateRegular1st 1572 North Africa Italy 14 See Post World War II2nd 1857 France North Africa Burma 15 See Post World War IISupplementary Reserve3rd 1760 See Post World War IITerritorial Army4th redesignation of 4th 5th Battalion 1859 France Malta Greece 16 See Post World War II5th The Weald of Kent 31 March 1939 as a duplicate of 4th Battalion France North Africa Sicily Italy 17 Disbanded on 1 January 19476th Home Defence November 1939 Britain Redesignated as 30th Battalion in December 1941 18 7th July 1940 Britain Converted to 141st Regiment Royal Armoured Corps in November 1941 19 8th July 1940 from a cadre of The Duke of Cornwall s Light Infantry Britain Converted to 9th Medium Regiment Royal Artillery in November 1942 20 9th July 1940 from a cadre of the Northamptonshire Regiment 20 Britain Disbanded 194610th July 1940 Britain Disbanded in October 1943 20 11th October 1940 as a redesignation of the 50th Holding Battalion Britain Converted to 89th Light Anti Aircraft Regiment Royal Artillery in November 1940 20 30th December 1941 as a redesignation of the 6th Home Defence Battalion Britain Disbanded in March 1943 20 Others70th Young Soldiers September 1940 Britain Disbanded January 1943Home Guard 21 Battalion Headquarters Formation Sign dark blue on khaki Battalion Headquarters Formation Sign dark blue on khaki 1st Ashford KT 1 2nd Charing KT 23rd Canterbury KT 3 4th St Augustine s Canterbury KT 45th Wingham KT 5 6th Thanet Margate KT 67th Lyminge KT 7 8th Cinque Ports Folkestone KT 89th Faversham KT 9 10th Sittingbourne KT1023rd Hawkhurst KT 23 30th Sheppey Sheerness KT 30Post World War II editIn the immediate post war period the army was significantly reduced nearly all infantry regiments had their first and second battalions amalgamated and the Supplementary Reserve disbanded 1 Battalion Fate1st Amalgamated with 2nd Battalion on the 23 September 1949 without a change in title 22 2nd Amalgamated with 1st Battalion on the 23 September 1949 23 4th Redesignated the 4th 5th Battalion on 1 January 1947 12 5th Redesignated the 4th 5th Battalion on 1 January 1947 12 Amalgamation editIn 1956 the 5th Battalion was reformed leading to the 4th 5th Battalion being redesignated as the 4th Battalion The 1957 Defence White Paper stated that the Buffs was due to amalgamated with the Queen s Own Royal West Kent Regiment to form the Queen s Own Buffs The Royal Kent Regiment on the 1 March 1961 1 Battalion Fate1st Amalgamated with 1st Battalion The Queen s Own Royal West Kent Regiment to form 1st Battalion The Queen s Own Buffs The Royal Kent Regiment4th Transferred to the Queen s Own Buffs The Royal Kent Regiment without a change in title5th Transferred to the Queen s Own Buffs The Royal Kent Regiment without a change in titleReferences edit a b c d e f g Frederick pp 203 5 a b The Buffs East Kent Regiment PDF kentfallen com p 3 Retrieved 10 May 2020 a b Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment Queen s Regimental Association PDF queensregimentalassociation org p 2 Retrieved 10 May 2020 The Buffs East Kent Regiment 4th Battalion armyservicenumbers blogspot com 10 January 2020 Retrieved 10 May 2020 The Buffs East Kent Regiment 5th Battalion armyservicenumbers blogspot com 11 January 2020 Retrieved 10 May 2020 The Buffs East Kent Regt 1st amp 2nd Battalions armyservicenumbers blogspot com 15 November 2009 Retrieved 10 May 2020 James pp 44 5 Westlake Ray 2020 Guide to the Volunteer Training Corps 1914 1918 Uckfield Naval and Military Press pp 4 7 ISBN 9781783315390 a b c d e Buffs East Kent Regiment Retrieved 10 May 2020 a b c d e Unit History Buffs East Kent Regiment Retrieved 10 May 2020 Westlake p 119 a b c 4th Battalion The Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment regiments org Archived from the original on 25 May 2006 Retrieved 10 May 2020 5th The Weald of Kent Battalion The Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment regiments org Archived from the original on 27 December 2005 Retrieved 10 May 2020 1st Battalion Royal East Kent Regiment during the Second World War wartimememoriesproject com Retrieved 10 May 2020 2nd Battalion Royal East Kent Regiment during the Second World War wartimememoriesproject com Retrieved 10 May 2020 4th Battalion Royal East Kent Regiment during the Second World War wartimememoriesproject com Retrieved 10 May 2020 5th Battalion Royal East Kent Regiment during the Second World War wartimememoriesproject com Retrieved 10 May 2020 Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment Queen s Regimental Association PDF queensregimentalassociation org p 3 Retrieved 10 May 2020 Joslen p 372 a b c d e Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment Queen s Regimental Association PDF queensregimentalassociation org p 4 Retrieved 10 May 2020 History of the Home Guard Retrieved 18 October 2015 1st Battalion 3rd Regiment of Foot 1665 1881 1st Battalion The Buffs 1881 1961 regiments org Archived from the original on 28 May 2006 Retrieved 10 May 2020 2nd Battalion 3rd Regiment of Foot 1803 1815 1857 1881 2nd Battalion The Buffs 1881 1949 regiments org Archived from the original on 15 May 2006 Retrieved 10 May 2020 Sources editJ B M Frederick Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660 1978 Vol I Wakefield Microform Academic 1984 ISBN 1 85117 007 3 Brig E A James British Regiments 1914 18 London Samson Books 1978 Uckfield Naval amp Military Press 2001 ISBN 978 1 84342 197 9 Joslen Lt Col H F 2003 Orders of Battle United Kingdom and Colonial Formations and Units in the Second World War 1939 1945 Uckfield Naval amp Military ISBN 1843424746 The Long Long Trail Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title List of battalions of the Buffs Royal East Kent Regiment amp oldid 1185439103, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
