Royal Artillery

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History

Chronology

  • 1716 two companies of field artillery raised at Woolwich
  • 1720 first called Royal Artillery
  • 1748 Presidential Artilleries of Bengal, Madras and Bombay formed
  • 1793 Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) raised to provide fire support for the cavalry
  • 1862 absorbed artillery of the British East India Company (21 horse batteries & 48 field batteries) bringing its strength to 29 horse batteries, 73 field batteries and 88 heavy batteries
  • 1899 divided into Royal Horse Artillery, Royal Field Artillery and Royal Garrison Artillery
  • 1924 amalgamated again into one regiment Royal Artillery
  • Today Royal Regiment of Artillery comprised of Royal Horse Artillery (King's Troop & 3 regiments) and Royal Artillery (18 regiments)

Service in India

The first company of the Royal Artillery to serve in India sailed in November 1747. During the 1800s the service in the East Indies was mainly in Ceylon, until the Indian Mutiny in 1857. In 1859, the companies of the Royal Artillery in India were formed into the 11th, 13th and 14th Brigades.[1]

Absorbing the Company artillery regiments

In December 1861, General Orders were issued concerning the amalgamation of the Bengal, Madras and Bombay Artillery with the Royal Artillery.

“In accordance with the instructions of her Majesty's Government, the Bengal, Madras, and Bombay Regiments of Artillery will be formed into the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Royal Horse Brigades, and the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 25th brigades of Royal Artillery.

The 2nd Royal Horse Brigade will be formed of seven troops of Bengal Horse Artillery, the 3rd brigade of the four troops of Madras Horse Artillery, the 4th brigade of the four troops of Bombay Horse Artillery, and the 5th brigade of six troops of Bengal Horse Artillery.

The brigades of Royal Artillery will be formed:—16th of 5 companies of Bengal Artillery ; 17th of 6 companies of Madras Artillery; 18th of 6 companies of Bombay Artillery ; 19th of 5 companies of Bengal Artillery; 20th of 5 companies of Madras Artillery ; 21st of six companies of Bombay Artillery ; 22nd of 5 companies of Bombay Artillery; 23rd of 5 companies of Madras Artillery ; 24th of 5 companies of Bengal Artillery; 25th of 4 companies of Bengal Artillery".[2]

1861 onwards

History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery Duncan, vol 2, (1873) lists the batteries in existence in 1872. The names of the Horse Artillery Brigades have changed since 1861, and the 24th and 25th Brigades are no longer in existence.

For information for the period 1863-1911, refer Stations of Royal Artillery in India

First World War

The British artillery of 1914-1918 from "The Long, Long Trail The British Army in the Great War", which indicates there were some Regular Army Brigades in India throughout the War , examples being

  • 6 (Howitzer) Brigade (regular, VI (How))
Comprising only number 77 Battery and based at Jhansi, this brigade came under command of the 7th (Meerut) Division of the Indian Army. It remained in India throughout the war, leaving the Division when it went to France. In 1915-6 it was under the 1st (Peshawar) Division.
  • 7 Brigade (regular, VII)
Comprising numbers 4, 38 and 78 Batteries RFA plus 68 and 84 Companies RGA and 104 Battery RGA and based at Rawalpindi, this brigade came under command of the 2nd (Rawalpindi) Division of the Indian Army. It remained in India throughout the war.

See also

Records

FIBIS resources

The National Archives

The most accessible soldiers’ records, including for soldiers of the Royal Artillery, are the WO 97 series Royal Hospital Chelsea pension records, many of which are available online.

Muster rolls (effectively a pay list register of soldiers in a company) can provide excellent information, however it must be noted that there are almost no muster rolls for the Royal Artillery in India, except a few in very early years.[3] However, checking the rolls for the period before and after an artilleryman is in India can be very useful. The National Archives has an online guide covering British Army muster rolls and pay lists. Be sure to know the brigade and battery of your man before you attempt to find the muster roll and be aware that name changes did occur. Law's Tables can be useful for sorting out the correct titles.

Also refer to the guide produced by Firepower, The Royal Artillery Museum called "Is There A Gunner In Your Family Tree?", see below.

The main record series, with catalogue entries, are:

The records for WO 69/1-177 together with WO 69/589-597 are available on LDS microfilm, with this catalogue entry

Online Resources

WO 116/125 1 November 1833-08 February 1837 to WO 116/165 3 January 1893 to 26 December 1893. Note the latest dates are listed first in the Digital Microfilms listing.
These are stated to be large pdf files, which need a broadband internet connection
  • The findmypast website holds two nominal rolls for Royal Artillery soldiers. One is a list of men who were awarded the Military Medal between 1916-1993. The other reveals the officers and men who were decorated for Gallantry during the Second World War. Searching is free but charges apply for examination of the record.

Firepower, The Royal Artillery Museum

Firepower, The Royal Artillery Museum has a Library and Archive with extensive holdings including battery records. A research service is available. Note that charges apply to consult records in the Reading Room.

Firepower has produced a guide for family history researchers called "Is There A Gunner In Your Family Tree?" The sixteen page guide outlines how the Museum's extensive archives can help researchers. It also details the other main UK sources and archives to explore when researching army service. Available from the Firepower Museum Shop.

British Library

For items in the India Office Records refer India Office military records at the British Library.

Published histories in the catalogue include:

  • The History of the Royal Artillery, Crimean period by Colonel Julian RJ Jocelyn (1911)
  • The History of the Royal and Indian Artillery in the Mutiny of 1857 by Julian RJ Jocelyn (1915). Available from the FIBIS Amazon Shop
  • The History of the Royal Artillery : from the Indian Mutiny to the Great War by Sir Charles Callwell and Sir John Headlam (1931, 1940)
Volume 1, 1860-1899, Volume 2, 1899-1914, Volume 3, Campaigns 1860-1914. Available from the FIBIS Shop Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3.
  • History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery : Western Front 1914-18 by Sir Martin Farndale (1986)
  • History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery : the Forgotten Fronts and the Home Base 1914-18 by Sir Martin Farndale (1988)
  • History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery : Between the Wars, 1919-39 edited by BP Hughes (1992) (Nb: the catalogue entry does not use the subtitle)
  • History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: The years of defeat Europe and North Africa, 1939-41 by Sir Martin Farndale 1996
  • History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery. The Far East Theatre, 1941-1946 by Sir Martin Farndale (2000), revised ed The Far East Theatre, 1939-1946, Farndale (2002).

In addition to the books available through the FIBIS Shop, some of the Histories have been reprinted by the Naval and Military Press.

Other books in the catalogue:

  • Battery Records of the Royal Artillery compiled by M. E. S. Laws. Volume 1, 1716-1859 and Volume 2, 1859-1877 published in 1950 and 1970 . Also known as ‘Laws Tables’.
  • Minutes of Proceedings of the Royal Artillery Institution. Volume 1 (1858) -Volume 32, no. 3 (June 1905). Volume 12 is missing. The name then changed to
  • The Journal of the Royal Artillery, Vol 32, no. 4 (July 1905). This was published monthly, 1905-July 1924; quarterly Oct 1924-1958; 3 times a year, 1959-1961; half-yearly, 1962-.
  • General Report of the Practice in the Royal Artillery, Poona Circle (Annual Report on Royal Artillery Practice, Bombay Command) for the season of 1894-95 (1896-97-1899-1900)

Royal Artillery Historical Society

The Royal Artillery Historical Society has meetings four time a year. In 2003 they held a presentation "The History of 10 Assaye Battery, Royal Artillery", which was originally part of the Bombay Artillery. The paper may be accessed on the RAHS site.

Regimental journals

The Gunner has been published monthly since 1919. Its aims include providing a record of regimental history, social affairs, sporting activities, equipment, dress etc

The Royal Artillery Journal is published twice annually, and offers a more in-depth, scientific look at continuing operations and lessons that can be learned from previous campaigns, as well as features on memorable moments and characters from the Gunners' 300 year history.[4] Originally published from 1858 as Minutes of Proceedings of the Royal Artillery Institution, the name was changed in 1905. Both series of journals are available at the British Library.

Garrison Gunners' life in India

An Officer’s wife wrote

"Yesterday the Captain Sahib was on a board to award prizes to the gunners’ gardens at the Fish Market Fort [Lucknow] The men are given seeds and encouraged to grow vegetables and flowers, as the life of a garrison gunner in an Indian Fort is a very dull one."[5]

References

  1. ↑ "The Royal Artillery in the East Indies" provides more details
  2. ↑ "The New Artillery Amalgamation", pages 606-607 (December 1861) from Colburn’s United Service Magazine, Volume 97, 1861 Part 3 Google Books
  3. ↑ TNA Catalogue description
  4. ↑ Gunner Magazine British Army website.
  5. ↑ My Garden in the City of Gardens: A Memory, page 86 by Edith E Cuthell 1905 Archive.org. She was married to Army Officer Thomas G Cuthell, possibly in the Royal Artillery

External Links

Individuals

  • Photographs from Soldiers of the Queen: The Jewel in the Crown
  • Colonel James William Howard Fitzmayer , born 1813, with his wife spent nearly six years in India from 1864, first in command of the Artillery at Meerut until January 1866, then at Benares, and in command of an army division at Oude until April 1867, during which time he was promoted to the rank of Major-General. Photo-sleuth,blogspot.com
  • Henry Frederick Leake joined the Royal Artillery 18 September 1859. He sailed almost immediately for Madras and remained in India until he was discharged in 1881. Family website.
  • Photographs by Francis William Downs “A Bty., 218th Bde., R.F.A. Calcutta c 1916 (Picasa Web Albums) mentioned in a Great War Forum thread for India
  • Charles George Thomas Barnes was in the 1/2nd Sussex, Royal Field Artillery (Territorial Force) in Mhow, Central India from 1915-1917, when the Brigade was sent to Mesopotamia where it joined the 17th (Indian) Division. Two photographs taken in Mhow may be seen here, and service details may be seen here Barnes Family History website.

Historical Books on-line

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