What is a Service Battalion, WW1?

[crozier]

Found David MacKenzie via Ancestry Pension Records, as Middlesex Regiment/ 1st Service Battalion, Royal Fusiliers.
Therefore did he serve in two different regiments or were they connected?
National Archives has medal cards for David MacKenzie in Army Service Corps and another in Labour Corps. Is this the same thing?
Eeek! I'm way out of my depth...

[genechaser]

Hi

A Service Battalion is one that provides combat service support to a brigade group and its elements.
It is able to fight in a defensive role as well as provide the vital logistical support to sustain the operations of the other units within the brigade group.

[themonsstar]

In Aug 1914 the Country asked for more men to fight, by Sept half a million men had enlisted.

The new army consisted of over 500 battalions and was known at the time as Kitchener's Army, the new battalions were raised as additional battalions of the regiments of the Infantry, sharing their regimental traditions.

They were numbered consecutively after the existing battalions of their regiment and were distinguished by the word "service .

eg; 1st Battalion(reg Bn) 2nd Battalion(reg Bn) the 5th TF Battalion, 7th (Service) Battalion.



In your case he joined the Middlesex Regt then moved/posted to the 1st (service) Bn Royal Fusiliers, you could not have two battalions in the same regiment called the 1st battalion, so the 1st (service) Bn Royal Fusiliers was re-name to the 8th (service) Bn RF.

[bernard_lewis]

As I understand it a 'service' battalion was intended only to serve for the duration of the war. The Swansea Battalion was the 14th (Service) Battalion of the Welsh Regiment. It was disbanded in 1919 and was not re-designated in WW2.

Bernard

http://swanseabattalion.net/