25th Motor Machine Gun Battery (Calcutta Volunteers)
Charles Nida, in his autobiography Chota Sahib... You've Had a Busy Day provides an account of the establishment and training the Battery received, but no details of its subsequent deployments.[1]
The 25th Motor Machine Gun Battery (Calcutta Volunteers) was raised in Calcutta c 1916, due to the efforts of the commandant Captain Heilgers, head of a well-known Calcutta merchant house, with a compliment of sixty six officers and men.
It took some time for the numbers to be reached and there was more publicity, via the Calcutta papers and larger businesses.
There were engineers, planters, banking and insurance men, shipping clerks, and to make up the numbers, three time-serving privates from the regular Army.
There was a week’s initial training at Rawalpindi followed by training at the newly established Machine Gun School at Campbellpur. It was here that their guns were changed from Maxims, weighing 60 pounds, and water- cooled, to Vickers, weighing 45 pound, and air-cooled. They were at Campbellpur until the commandant of the Gunnery School deemed them fit for posting to a battle zone.
Subsequently
25 Battery, Machine Gun Corps (Motors), was established in India, in May 1917. Moved to Egypt July 1917. Disbanded January 1918.[2] Note , this was a British Army regiment.
There is one Medal Index Card reference where the regiment is "25th Calcutta Motor Machine Gun Battery" [3] and five seen where the regiment is "Volunteer Machine Gun Corps", including that of Charles Nida, some of which indicate Indian Army.[4]The available information is therefore sometimes indicating British Army, and sometimes Indian Army.
References
- ↑ Chota Sahib... You've Had a Busy Day, pages 156 onwards. Google Books. There is an implication that the author may subsequently have become involved with aircraft, and it appears he became an officer in the RAF, National Archives catalogue reference AIR 76 - Air Ministry: Department of the Master-General of Personnel: Officers' Service Records AIR 76/374/21 - Name Nida, Charles Henry George 1918-1919
- ↑ The MGC Motor Machine Gun units of 1914-1918 "The Long, Long Trail"
- ↑ Medal card of Ainslie, C A Corps: 25th Calcutta Motor Machine Gun Battery
- ↑ WO 372/14/227845 Medal card of Nida, Charles H G Corps: Bombay Volunteer Rifles 8153, Volunteer Machine Gun Corps 96334 Gunner , also WO 372/2/200259 Medal card of Bolst, Bertram Sydney, WO 372/5/136998 Medal card: Indian Army: Curtis, P H, WO 372/28/1399 Medal card of Rann, P H, WO 372/17/58151 Medal card of Roblin, M L
