1969
A Fixture
Hey Richie good luck with the search mate, Glad that members are pointing you in the right direction.
All the best
Steve
All the best
Steve
Appeal For Help To Trace Ww1.......
- Thread starter Richie
- Start date
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billyturnip
A Fixture
Stick with it Richie, it took me about three years to find a bloke on a local WWI memorial I was researching died in 1935!
Roger
Roger
Richie
A Fixture
Hi Steve and Roger - Thanks for the support.
I have just joined the The Great War Forum and put up a post so hopefully I might get a lot of feedback, I will keep you all updated with anything that is uncovered.
cheers
Richie
I have just joined the The Great War Forum and put up a post so hopefully I might get a lot of feedback, I will keep you all updated with anything that is uncovered.
cheers
Richie
Richie
A Fixture
Hi All,
I have been passed some more information and this just pushes to do a load more research.
cheers
Richie
97th Company of the RGA who were at Simon's Town, Cape of Good Hope District. They were involved in the South African rebellion 26th October to 8th December 1914. They returned to Cape Colony between 9th December and 20th December 1914. Then took part in the campaign in German South West Africa until 26th July 1915. They returned to Cape Colony on July 27th 1915 until 18th July 1916. On 18th July 1916 the 97th Company RGA was re-designated the 185th Siege Battery RGA and returned to the UK.
185th(Siege)Bty, R.G.A. was a Regular Army unit formed at Aldershot, Hampshire on the 18th July 1916 from 97th Company, R.G.A., which was also a Regular Army unit. 185 Siege Battery did first go to France in Oct 1916.
Siege Batteries RGA were equipped with heavy howitzers, sending large calibre high explosive shells in high trajectory, plunging fire.The usual armaments were 6 inch, 8 inch and 9.2 inch howitzers, although some had huge railway- or road-mounted 12 inch howitzers. As British artillery tactics developed, the Siege Batteries were most often employed in destroying or neutralising the enemy artillery, as well as putting destructive fire down on strongpoints, dumps, store, roads and railways behind enemy lines.
The battery moved to quite a number of HAGs during the war. They are;
to 51st HAG 23/10/1916
to II Anzac HA 12th to 17/11/1916
to VIII Corp HA 20/11/1916
to 51st HAG 8/12/1916
to 5th HAG 11/1/1917
to 24th HAG 24/1/1917
to 76th HAG 30/1/1917
to 51st HAG 12/2/1917
to 53rd HAG 20/5/1917
to 51st HAG 3/6/1917
to 65th HAG 16/6/1917
to 56th HAG 3/8/1917
to rest 30th Aug - 5th Sept 1917
to 79th HAG 18/12/1917
to 72nd HAG 28/1/1918
to 79th HAG 26/2/1918 no further change.
You will see why it is difficult to research, and the time needed, a batteries progress during the war.
The battery was with either 65th HAG or 56th HAG at the time he would have been awarded the MM. It may have been for services some months before being published in the LG. 65th HAGs diary may be found at the NA using ref. WO 99/322. 56th HAGs diary under WO 99/392. You can search for the other diaries using http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/search.asp (http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/search.asp), use just the number and Brigade (like 65 brigade), 1914 to 1920 and WO in the Series code.
I have been passed some more information and this just pushes to do a load more research.
cheers
Richie
97th Company of the RGA who were at Simon's Town, Cape of Good Hope District. They were involved in the South African rebellion 26th October to 8th December 1914. They returned to Cape Colony between 9th December and 20th December 1914. Then took part in the campaign in German South West Africa until 26th July 1915. They returned to Cape Colony on July 27th 1915 until 18th July 1916. On 18th July 1916 the 97th Company RGA was re-designated the 185th Siege Battery RGA and returned to the UK.
185th(Siege)Bty, R.G.A. was a Regular Army unit formed at Aldershot, Hampshire on the 18th July 1916 from 97th Company, R.G.A., which was also a Regular Army unit. 185 Siege Battery did first go to France in Oct 1916.
Siege Batteries RGA were equipped with heavy howitzers, sending large calibre high explosive shells in high trajectory, plunging fire.The usual armaments were 6 inch, 8 inch and 9.2 inch howitzers, although some had huge railway- or road-mounted 12 inch howitzers. As British artillery tactics developed, the Siege Batteries were most often employed in destroying or neutralising the enemy artillery, as well as putting destructive fire down on strongpoints, dumps, store, roads and railways behind enemy lines.
The battery moved to quite a number of HAGs during the war. They are;
to 51st HAG 23/10/1916
to II Anzac HA 12th to 17/11/1916
to VIII Corp HA 20/11/1916
to 51st HAG 8/12/1916
to 5th HAG 11/1/1917
to 24th HAG 24/1/1917
to 76th HAG 30/1/1917
to 51st HAG 12/2/1917
to 53rd HAG 20/5/1917
to 51st HAG 3/6/1917
to 65th HAG 16/6/1917
to 56th HAG 3/8/1917
to rest 30th Aug - 5th Sept 1917
to 79th HAG 18/12/1917
to 72nd HAG 28/1/1918
to 79th HAG 26/2/1918 no further change.
You will see why it is difficult to research, and the time needed, a batteries progress during the war.
The battery was with either 65th HAG or 56th HAG at the time he would have been awarded the MM. It may have been for services some months before being published in the LG. 65th HAGs diary may be found at the NA using ref. WO 99/322. 56th HAGs diary under WO 99/392. You can search for the other diaries using http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/search.asp (http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/search.asp), use just the number and Brigade (like 65 brigade), 1914 to 1920 and WO in the Series code.
Richie
A Fixture
Hi Steve,
The 185th Siege Battery certainly had a few moves (16 by the list). This alone will be a monumental battle trying to find what engagements they were involved in. I may concentrate firstly on the two stated at the time he won his MM. I'm not getting any time for modelling at the minute and now this,it just keeps pushing my W.I.P. farther away.
cheers
Richie
The 185th Siege Battery certainly had a few moves (16 by the list). This alone will be a monumental battle trying to find what engagements they were involved in. I may concentrate firstly on the two stated at the time he won his MM. I'm not getting any time for modelling at the minute and now this,it just keeps pushing my W.I.P. farther away.
cheers
Richie
Richie
A Fixture
Hi All,
For anyone who is interested in WW1 (not only that covered here), this might be of some use, I stummbled across this site.
cheers
Richie
http://marksrussianmilitaryhistory.info
For anyone who is interested in WW1 (not only that covered here), this might be of some use, I stummbled across this site.
cheers
Richie
http://marksrussianmilitaryhistory.info
Colin_Fraser
PlanetFigure Supporter
The other issue is that MM's, while important and admirable, were not that rare and did not always warrant a specific mention in the war diary, particularly if the war dairy was of a higher parent formation. After the Spring of 1918 MM ciations weren't even recorded any more apparently.
Colin
Colin
billyturnip
A Fixture
Richie, have a look at www.naval-military-press.com there might be a published history of the units you are researching.
Roger.
Roger.
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