53 Royal West Regiment

[Rae67]

My Great Grandad, Henry Thomas Phillips served in the 53 Royal West Regt during WW1. I don't have a service number, but I am pretty sure he was just a private. Does anyone know what is a Young Soldiers Battalion is? Did they serve abroad? Henry was born 1900 and married in 1919 finally succumbing to Lung cancer in 1943. So he survived the Great War. His Marriage certificate records him as a private 53 royal west.

Hid marriage certificate gives his regiment but not a service number, can I still locate his military service records?

Many thanks for any advice you can give.

Rae.

[liverpool annie]

Hi Rae and welcome to RootsChat 

I found this ... ! does that help with where he was before his marriage ??

53rd (Young Soldier) Battalion: 27th October 1917: At Kinmel Park, Flintshire, 59th (Young Soldier) Battalion was re-designated 53rd (Young Soldier) Battalion, South Wales Borderers. 22nd March 1919: Moved to Germany as part of Western Division of the Army of Occupation on the Rhine.

http://www.rrw.org.uk/museums/brecon/fact_sheets/17.htm

Annie 

[Wendi]

Nice one Annie!!!

Hi again Rae, it does not look like he went overseas.  Have you a birth certificate for the first child?  if so what does it say for his profession?

Wendi 

[themonsstar]

Hi
You will find most of the Infantry Regiments, had a 53rd (young soldier) Battalion:

Queens Royal West Surrey.
Northumberland Fusiliers.
Royal Warwickshire Regt.
Royal Fusiliers(City of London) Regt.
Kings(Liverpool) Regt.
Devonshire Regt.
West Yorkshire Regt.
Bedfordshire Regt.
Leicestershire Regt.
Cheshire Regt.
South Wales Borderers.
Royal Sussex Regt.
Hampshire Regt.
Welsh Regt.
Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire Regt.
Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry.
Middlesex Regt.
Kings Royal Rifle Corps.
Manchester Regt.
Durham Light Infantry.
Highland Light Infantry.
Gordon Highlanders
Rifle Brigade.


So as you can see a lot of units had a 53(YS) Battalion. In 1917 the Training Reserve was reorganized and the battalions became more specialized in their training. In May 1917, 14 TR Battalions, were designated Young Soldier Battalions which took in recruits aged 18 years and one month & after basic training they were posted in companies to a Graduated Battalion. There were 28 of these Battalions, linked in pairs to each Young Solier Battalion.

After the armistice some of the Graduated & Young Soldiers Battalions went to the Rhine Army to replace Regular & disbanded battalions.

[liverpool annie]

Thanks Roy !

I didn't know that !  .... good to know !!

Annie