WW2 Regiments

[JoeM100]

Good morning all,

I was hoping somebody is able to help me, my Great grandfather fought in WW2 I have a picture of what I believe to be his cap badge as I found it recently with a box of his old things (see attached)

He was born and lived most of his life in Guildford in Surrey so I was surprised to see that his cap badge is from the Sherwood foresters. how Common was it for soldiers to join regiments that are miles away ?

I would have thought that he would have been placed in a more local regiment ?

I should add that for all I know this might not even be his cap badge but I assume it is as it was with his things and what this regiment did in the war matches up with what I have been told he did.

unfortunaly he is no longer with us and died when I was 3 so I never had chance to speak to him, my grandad has now also passed away so he cant help either.

any help would be much appreciated.

[MaxD]

Very common, in essence the army put people where they were needed, those who were not regular soldiers were, essentially, all conscripts.
Although it may be that he began in one regiment and was transferred, that also occurred often.

Have you considered applying for his service record?

MaxD

[JoeM100]

Thank you for your reply MaxD, that explains it then.

Yes it is something that I am looking to do this week, heard many stories about what he got up to so hoping that these can be validated with his actual records.

Thanks again for your help

Joe

[Regorian]

There's more to it. In WWI with the huge number of volunteers between 1914 and conscription, men liked to be in local regiments, taken to the extreme in 'pals battalions'. It resulted in whole towns being depopulated of fit men of military age. The Newfoundland (Canada) battalion was such a victim.

I thought the Army tried to avoid this in WWII but 18th Division from East Anglia was captured entire in Singapore. 7 out of 9 battalions were from East Anglia.

However, in WWI mygrandfathers sisters stepson and son were in 7/N Staffs and 7/S Staffs Regiments respectively. The family were Forest of Dean but living in Newport, Shropshire pre WWI. Both were killed and they are recorded on the war memorial in Lydney, Glos. Son is also on the Newport war memorial. Stepson was master at a school in Kent, started the school corps and presumably lived there.   

[JoeM100]

Thank you for the Extra info Regorian.

thinking about what you have said it makes more sense now.

Joe

[alan o]

He was not actually in the Nottingham & Sherwood Foresters regiment in WW2 because by WW2 the Robin Hoods Rifles were no longer an infantry regt at all.  They had become a searchlight unit in the Royal Engineers and later the Royal Artillery.  In peacetime they would still have recruited locally in Nottingham as any other TA unit did.  However once war was underway all such things went away and people were sent to fill gaps.  Depending on when he joined the army he may well have worn the RE or RA cap badge as well.

The Robin Hoods spent much of the war in the Midlands and then in 1944 went into Normandy and then Antwerp - all in the searchlight role.  If this matches his reminiscences then its his badge.  The WW2 unit were recorded as wearing white metal cap badges so it may be a WW1 badge and therefore not his.
Alan

[JoeM100]

Thank you for your reply Alan

I have been looking into this myself and was also wondering if it was ww1 but my great grandad got called up just before the end of the war at the age of 47 and joined the RAMC but I don’t even think he finished all his training before the war ended. So I doubt it would be his but I could be wrong,  What do you think ?

The storys I have been told is up that he landed on D-day + 6 and went across the Rhine with the 51st highlanders and went to All the way to Hamburg.

That’s what he told my dad anyway.

I’ve sent off for his ww2 records so hoping that will shed more light, however I did put on it Sherwood foresters so if that info was incorrect it might ruin the search.

[alan o]

Well if he was a Robin Hood then it was not D+6 as they were in the UK until mid Sept.  They did cross the Rhine and end up in Hamburg at the end of the war.

However if he was in searchlights then it probably is his.

[JoeM100]

Thank you for all the Info Alan

I will know more when his records come back fingers crossed.

Maybe he exaggerated a little when he told his story’s he was well known for being a very good talker.