The Queens regiment

[Guest waterloo]

This is a photograph of my grand father, taken prior to the first world war on

gibralter.

His Details: No 9231, private F Rendell

2nd Batt'n, The Queen's regiment.

As anyone any idea where he wouls have served during the first years of the war, i know he was captured some time in 1917 and was a POW until 1919.

[Geoff Reeves]

Hi: my Grandfather was 2nd Queen's as well and would have served with him at Gibraltar before the war (my Granfather joined in 1906). Don't know if you're interested in what they were doing before the war but I'll add that in too. The 2nd Battalion left Southampton for Gibraltar on New Year's Day 1910 and remained there for 2 years. During that time they provided guards for the Royal Family of Portugal who fled to Gibraltar following a revolution, and trooped the King's Colour on the occasion of George V's coronation. From Gibraltar they took up garrison duties in Bermuda for 2 years and then were sent, in January 1914, to South Africa. They had been there barely 7 months when the order was given for them to return to Britain as war had broken out.

The reached Southampton on September 19th and were marched to camp in the New Forest where they formed part of the 22nd Brigade of the 7th Division. On October 4th the order came to march to Southampton for embarkation to the Continent. They arrived in Zeebrugge on October 7th. The next week was a tiring one as the Battalion was marched endlessly towards the front - which was extremely elastic at the time. Finally on the 14th they arrived in the Ypres area and were soon in action. They participated in the First Battle of Ypres - then were taken out of the line - to return for Second Ypres and the Battle of Loos. The Battalion also fought on the Somme - they were in the Mametz Wood area on July 1st. After two months of fighting they left the Somme and fought in the Battles of Arras and Passchendale (3rd Ypres).

After Passchendale (end of October 1917) the Battalion moved on to Italy where they fought out the rest of the War.

That's basically what the 2nd Battalion was doing during this time - I've checked the Regimental history and your Grandfather is not mentioned, but that's hardly surprising as usually only officer's are mentioned. Still, you might want to pick up a copy if you're interested in the regiment during the war:

"History of the Queen's Royal (West Surrey) Regiment in the Great War" by Col. H.C. Wylly, CB. It's been reprinted and is available at the Naval and Military Press for GBP22.00. Item code is 6724.

http://www.naval-military-press.com/FMPro?...ameset.htm&-new

Hope this helps! Funny that our Grandfather's probably knew each other...

[john w.]

Any details on the 3rd Queens around Oct 1912 - Feb 1913?

John

[Geoff Reeves]

John: unfortunately not. Unlike the 1st and 2nd Battalions (where the book details what they were doing in the lead up to the war), the 3rd Battalion is mentioned only at the end of the book in a Chapter on home-serving battalions that did not go overseas. It just says that the 3rd became the Special Reserve Battalion and was mobilized on August 8, 1914. It then goes to mention where they were stationed in England during the war and what their function was.

What you're looking for is probably covered in "History of The Queen’s Royal Regiment - Vol VII 1905-1923", also by Wylly. It's out of print and I've never been able to find a copy - but someone's got to have one...somewhere!