Guest pshevlin Posted 13 November , 2003 Share Posted 13 November , 2003 I've just found some letters from my grandfathers commanding officer and his company sergeant which confirm that he was at Prescot camp in March 1917 as battallion postman (23rd Kings Liverpool).He was being posted to a B2 unit and was being made up to full corporal. I know he served in France at the front but not where and ended the war as a sergeant. Can anyone please give any more information about where he might have been sent as part of that battalion and enlighten me as to what a B2(2 in Roman Numerals) might be, and the duties of a postman? Thank you. Peter Shevlin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will O'Brien Posted 13 November , 2003 Share Posted 13 November , 2003 He was being posted to a B2 unit and was being made up to full corporal. Peter B2 would indicate his medical rating. B2 would mean he was only fit for Home Service duties rather than Front line Service (A). Therefore I assume a B2 unit would be one that only served within the UK rather than out in France. Some other PALS may be able to provide a better or more concise explanation Will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pshevlin Posted 13 November , 2003 Share Posted 13 November , 2003 Thanks for being so prompt Will. I do know that he was slightly wounded with shrapnel and did serve in France. He also had both War medals which would lead to the conclusion that he served in a theatre of war.. Also his seargent in the letter states that he may well be going out to France following others in the unit that had gone already.Any other ideas? The history of the 23rd Liverpool seems a bit cloudy. I also don't really uderstand why he wasn't in the Manchesters as he came from Ashton-u Lyne! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivor Lee Posted 14 November , 2003 Share Posted 14 November , 2003 Peter The 23rd Battalion King's Liverpool Regiment was a Works Battalion. As such it would have been made up of menlike your grandfather who were not fit for front line service. In April 1917 the Labour Corps was formed and the 23rd KLR became the 1st Labour Battalion of the Labour Corps. However this Battalion was only in existence for about a month before the men were transferred toother Labour Corps companies. Men in the Labour Corps were frequently subjected to reviews of their medical category and if they were upgraded were moved to other units. Also as the war went on more B ii men were sent to work overseas. In your grandfather's case this must have been what happened to him. If you can visit the National Archives at Kew the medal index cards will tell you which regiments he served in and his regimental numbers. Incidentally if you find his Labour Corps number was in the group 128641 - 132640 then he was in the 1st Labour Battalion. If you are lucky you will also find his service record has survived. If you cannot visit Kew personally one of the Pals in the London area may well have a look for you. If you do manage to get his Labour Corps number do get in touch as I amy be able to help with where he served. Regarding why he was in the KLR rather than the Manchesters? I think the answer to this comes down to what happened when the War Office started forming Works and Labour units in 1916. Initially there was one formed in each Home Command area. As the number increased they tended to be added to regiments that already had units of this type. In the North West of England these were the KLR and the Cheshire Regiment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pshevlin Posted 24 November , 2003 Share Posted 24 November , 2003 Thank you very much Ivor for your comments. I've been doing a bit of digging and my Mother tells me that my Grandfather was born with the use of only one eye which he didn't even realise himself. Would this have been enough to disqualify him from active service in 1916? As I said earlier he did end the war as a sergeant and his service medals both state that he was in the Kings Liverpool Regiment. Had he stayed in the 23rd he would surely have been incorporated into the 1st Labour Corps and maybe that would have been the inscription round the medals so is it at all likely that he was sent abroad to an active service battallion? I have attached a jpeg of him in his sergeants uniform and would be most grateful if anyone could identify the cap badge. I do have a Kings Liverpool blazer badge of his that he used to wear but this is not the same. Once again many thanks to Ivor and all others who take the trouble to reply Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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