ok these are my Grandfather's records

[Keinnaf]

I have left out the glowing reference he got given but I think everything else is here

https://www.flickr.com/photos/einnaf/

a few questions.

what sort of things did a soldier who never left the UK actually DO? He was in Ireland for a while, Litchfield and Wales.

once he became a driver the records are a bit more self explanatory but before that what could he have been doing?

medical wise - annoyingly a sticker has been placed over his initial ratings so we don't know what he was originally.  he was very fit and healthy before the war, he did a manual job, he was very fit and healthy after the war and again did a manual job, he did a lot of boxing and was asked to turn professional, he just said he had an extra bone in his foot so had to be transferred to being a driver. Looking up the medical categories I am not sure I understand the differences between A B and C. the sub categories seem the same. How could someone be suitable only for sedentary work but be ok to be sent overseas? I don't understand that.

[Keinnaf]

and anyone know what they were doing in Norther Ireland? What could he have been disembarking from when he failed to check arms and was court marshalled?

[ScouseBoy]

There may have been a POW camp for crew of U boats.

They may have been required to search German sailors for concealed weapons.

The Armed services require vast quantities of supplies, and they need to stockpile some warlike stores.

[ShaunJ]

What could he have been disembarking from when he failed to check arms and was court marshalled?

As I read it he was Guard Commander on 10 May 1941 and was charged with:

1. being improperly dressed (guilty)
2. allowing members of his guard to be improperly dressed (not guilty)
3. failing to post his sentry at the appointed time (guilty)
4. failing to inspect the arms of his guard before dismounting (guilty)

I am guessing but I think "dismounting" here may be in the sense of standing down: as you would mount a guard, so you would dismount it.

Possibly there had been some sort of incident involving the accidental discharge of a firearm by one of the soldiers under his command.

and anyone know what they were doing in Northern Ireland?

There were many army bases and training camps in Northern Ireland. See http://ww2ni.webs.com/countydownpart4.htm for information on Killyleagh Castle where the court-martial took place.

[Keinnaf]

thank you

standing down the guard makes more sense. interestingly he always said he had been court marshalled but said it was for falling asleep on sentry duty - perhaps he got away with that one!!!

Oddly (given how many internet searches I have done) I hadn't looked up Killyleagh Castle, it looks beautiful. Just seems strange to me they went over to Northern Ireland when they had loads of England/Wales/Scotland they could have used which surely would have been easier to get to?

[IMBER]

 "Just seems strange to me they went over to Northern Ireland when they had loads of England/Wales/Scotland they could have used which surely would have been easier to get to?"

Easier to get to from where? That's a very anglocentric viewpoint. The UK armed forces are deployed throughout the UK both in war and peace. Apart from that there were other considerations:

http://www.irishcentral.com/news/nazi-plans-to-invade-ireland-revealed-97376329-237361631.html

Imber

[Keinnaf]

Imber, thank you - yes I suppose it is but I didn't really mean it like that. I was thinking from the point of view that travel was expensive and fuel was rationed so I had just assumed they would have kept RWF troops near where they were based if they weren't actually NEEDED somewhere else. Does that make sense? Also surely travel by rail or road is easier logistically than ship? obviously not and I suppose you get more people on one vessel.

I hadn't realised they were quite so concerned about Ireland.

Mind a historian in the Hebrides has just told me that there were lots of unrecorded troops in the Hebrides because of concerns about invasion from Norway (My Grandfather said he was in Benbecula but this is not in his record anywhere). He said he has had contact from other people with similar stories of people being up in the Hebrides and locals obviously confirm there were troops there but nothing is officially recorded as they weren't permanent bases, I suppose this could just have come under "field" in records.