| I am looking for a First World War history of the King's Own
Royal Lancaster Regiment.
The best history of the King's Own in the First World War is
the Third volume of the Regimental History, "The King's Own The
Story of a Royal Regiment" by Colonel Julia M Cowper, and published
in 1957 by the Regiment. This volume is long out of print but
is available second hand, from certain libraries but also from the
King's Own Museum on cd-rom to be viewed on a computer.
Volume Three is available for £12.75
including UK postage. |
| I am looking for a First World War history of a particular
battalion. Not
every battalion of the King's Own had it's own history written and
published. For most purposes the Third Volume of the
Regimental History, see above, will cover all you need to know.
There are however separate publications covering the
1st/4th King's Own; the
1st/5th King's Own; and the 11th
King's Own. Other publications are useful for information on
the 2nd/5th King's Own (the Diaries
of Private William Hodgson); the
9th King's Own (Captain Cumberland's
Diary) etc. More information can be found on the various
battalion pages on our website. The battalion's
War Diary may also be of use.
Our reading list may also be of
assistance. |
| I am looking for the most detailed account of a battalion in
the First World War.
The Commanding Officers Operational War Diary is the most
detailed source of information. We've digitised all the King's
Own Royal Lancaster Regiment War Diaries
and have made these available on cd-rom. |
| I am looking for information on a soldier who died in the
First World War.
Whilst we do hold information on King's
Own soldiers who died in the First World War, their place of burial
or commemoration etc, this information is also available on line and
free of charge from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission
www.cwgc.org |
| I am looking for a service record
of a King's Own Soldier from the First World War. The Museum
does not hold any service records. More than 60% of First
World War soldier service records were destroyed by enemy action in
the Second World War. Those which survive are held by The
National Archives at Kew (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk)
and can be accessed via their commercial partner, Ancestry.co.uk.
Records of soldiers who continued to serve beyond 1922 are retained
by the Ministry of Defence and can be accessed through the
Army Personnel Centre at Glasgow. |
| I have found a Medal Index Card, it
does not tell me as much as I thought.
The Medal Index Cards for the First
World War medal rolls are available from a few sources. They
contain only limited information as they provide an index to the
medal rolls which usually include a small amount of additional
information, usually the battalion with which a soldier served.
We do not usually refer to the Medal Index Cards as the museum holds
transcripts of the King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment medal rolls. |
| "SWB List" appears on a Medal Index Card, what does this
mean?
"SWB List" will mean the soldier received a
Silver War Badge as he was discharged prior to the end of the
war due to wounds or sickness. Usually the Silver War Badge
roll shows a soldiers date of enlistment as well as discharge.
We have a transcript of the Silver War Badge roll for the King's Own
Royal Lancaster Regiment. |
| I have seen in the media recently that some War Diaries are
now available, does this include the King's Own?
The King's Own Museum has held copies of First World War Diaries for
many years, these were transferred from the King's Own Regimental
Headquarters. The copies held by the museum are typed copies,
believed to have been produced in the 1920s from the original war
time hand-written copies. For a number of years the
King's Own war diaries have been
available in digital format on cd-rom.
|
| I would like to apply for my relative's First World War
medals.
Sadly the issue of First World War medals ceased many years ago. |
| Does the museum make a charge for its enquiry service.
No. The museum offers a free enquiry service, however
donations are vital in order that our work may continue. You
can donate here. |
| I would like to visit the museum and look at your records.
Whilst we warmly welcome visitors to look at our displays and
exhibitions, we simply do not have the capacity, time or space, to
accommodate all those who would wish to make an enquiry.
Enquiries can be answered by email quicker and more efficiently than
other means. Should we have material that is relevant to your
enquiry we would welcome you. We have spent a lot of time and
resources making things available on our website, or in digital
format, such as all of our First World
War photographs.
Many of our records are held in computer databases which are not
available for public access. |
| My relative served in the First World War and I cannot find
any trace of them.
This sometimes happens. A soldier of the King's Own who did
not serve overseas will not appear on any of the medal rolls which
is our main source of information. A soldier may well have
served for a period only at home, not appear on the medal rolls and
then was discharged and for what ever reason did not receive a
Silver War Badge, and therefore does not appear on that roll.
Some soldiers served at home throughout the entire war and never
received any medals and therefore have not appear in surviving
records. |
| Does the museum has a photograph of my relative?
The chances are we do not. We have many hundreds of
photographs, the majority of which are not identified. There
are many group photographs an no
names to go with the faces. If a photograph appears on our
website in general the caption is all the information we have.
There was no official process of taking a photograph of every
soldier in the First World War. |
| What does 1st/4th, 1st/5th or 2nd/5th mean in relation to a
First World War battalion?
From 1908 the King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment had two
Territorial Force Battalions, the 4th, with headquarters at
Ulverston and the 5th, with headquarters in Lancaster. On the
outbreak of the First World War both of these battalions were
mobilised, and both started recruiting for more men. The original
4th and 5th Battalion was then supplemented by a 4th (Reserve)
Battalion or a 5th (Reserve) Battalion, as more men were recruited.
By the start of 1915 the battalions had been re-designated into the
1st/4th and 1st/5th as being the first line battalions, and the
reserve battalions were re-designated into the 2nd/4th and the
2nd/5th as the second line battalions. Later third line battalions
were established, a short lived 3rd/4th Battalion and a longer
existing 3rd/5th Battalion are existed. Of these battalions the
1st/4th, 1st/5th and 2nd/5th served overseas on active service. The
2nd/4th did not itself serve overseas, but did provide drafts of men
in support of the 1st/4th Battalion and/or other units, as the war
continued. |
| What medals would a soldier have received for service in the
First World War?
Soldiers who served overseas on active service generally received
two medals, the British War Medal
and Allied Victory Medal. In
some circumstances a soldier who served in a place like India only,
only received the British War Medal. In addition soldiers who
served in the very first months of the war would received the
1914 Star, and those who served from
the end of November 1914 to the end of 1915 would received the
1914-15 Star. Some soldiers were
awarded medals for gallantry, and these included in the
Military Medal,
Distinguished Conduct Medal,
Military Cross, Distinguished Service
Order and the highest gallantry award, the
Victoria Cross. In some cases soldiers were awarded
foreign awards from allied nations, such as France, Belgium, Serbia,
Russia etc. Soldiers, or their next of kin, automatically
received any campaign medals to which they were entitled at the end
of the war, although officers had to apply for their medals.
The next of kin of soldiers who died also received memorial plaques
and commemorative scrolls to commemorate their service. |