Thank you for your reply Ken, This man or men do pose a puzzle, I can find no birth or baptism record for either, and no mention in any census, in fact there are only two leadsdales in any census and can find no link. I understand that william from Durham married in Glassgow while in tha 25th. , father Edwin was a shoe maker, He marries my OH's gt. grand mother as a widow, after leaving the 25th father is now Robert shoe maker. He then goes to sea and no further record of him. William of York apart from his army record, I have nothing.
Regards the branding of the letter B this was mentioned on the discharge from the 25th and that was his last post in the army so could they not have done the branding then, he had already left the 59th, and may be they did not brand him then, I had asumed he had got his tattoos when he joined the 25th.