The King's Regiment (Men-at-Arms)

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They were active in the Second Afghan War (1878–1880) and then went on to serve during the Third Burmese War (1885), Second Boer War (1899-1902), and the two World Wars. As one of the oldest Regiments in the British army it took part in much of British Military History including the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714), fighting at Nijmegen, the capture of Huy and Limbourg, the capture of the Schellenberg fortress, the Battle of Blenheim, the Battle of Ramillies, the Battle of Oudenarde, the sieges of Ghent, Bruges and Lillie, the Siege of Tournai, and the Battle of Malplaquet. The Life Guards and The Grenadier Guards have been part of the Sovereign’s personal troops since before the Restoration of the Monarchy. Today, alongside the Royal Navy and the King’s Colour Squadron of the Royal Air Force, who also received new service Colours from The King, The Grenadier Guards and The Life Guards were the first Regiments in the British Army to receive precious ceremonial flags with the new King’s Cypher and Crown; Colours and Standards that will be borne proudly on ceremonial events for years to come. Within months, the regiment received notification that it would be stationed in Kenya, which was emerging from the Mau Mau Uprising and nearing independence. Arriving in 1959, 1 KINGS was accommodated in Gilgil, situated in the Rift Valley between Naivasha and Nakuru, until relocated to Muthaiga Camp, near Nairobi. Detached from the regiment at this time were elements of headquarters and two rifle companies ("A" and "D"), which became part of the Army's contribution to the Persian Gulf garrison in Bahrain for more than a year. [7] Subordinated to 24 Infantry Brigade, which Britain maintained in Kenya as part of the Strategic Reserve, 1 KINGS became liable for deployment to various locations in Africa and Asia. [7] The Ferret was operated by the regiment's reconnaissance platoon in West Germany before and after conversion to armoured infantry.

vi] With the digitisation of the records now being underway, the 'manual search' process is no longer available. Although our father's service histories would have been virtually identical, their medal inscriptions were different.The King's notably saw active service in the Second Boer War, the two world wars, and the Korean War. In the First World War, the regiment contributed dozens of battalions to the Western Front, Salonika, and the North West Frontier. More than 13,000 men were killed. In the Second World War, the 5th and 8th (Irish) battalions landed during Operation Overlord, the 1st and 13th fought as Chindits in the Burma campaign, and the 2nd Battalion served in Italy and Greece. The King's later fought in the Korean War, earning the regiment's last battle honour. I think, though I can't prove it, that the incident he described to me that evening is the one recorded in the battalion diary for April 28th 1918 four days after he stepped into the front line for the first time. If I'm correct, it's likely that my Dad was in "C" Company. The diary entry (Figure 16) reads:

It is however possible to make a crude estimate of the unrecorded casualties by using the Commonwealth War Graves Commission details of those who lost their lives. Figure 1: My father, Tom “Robbie” Robinson. Photo taken in New Brighton. The added blow-up shows his Kings Liverpool Regiment cap badge Most people seeking to trace the steps of a soldier who served in WW1 will run into the same dead end that I did when I was trying to follow my father's journey through that war. His service record, the document that would have provided the necessary details, no longer exists because most of them were destroyed in the London blitz of 1940 - and that brought the investigation to a halt before it had really begun.

Regimental museums

Became a battalion of the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders, retaining its Liverpool Scottish designation, 1937. The war diary provides no relevant information because names of ‘other ranks' are almost never given and, although the Norfolk Regiment Casualty Book (NRCB) is a unique source of information that has enabled me to put much of my father's experience of World War I into context, sadly the book itself is incomplete. Its last entries are from the first week in September 1918 - details from the last two months of the war are missing. [xxxi] Overall, the two-month 25 mile advance from Morlancourt to Epehy had cost the battalion 37 officers and 634 other ranks, about two thirds of its official peacetime strength. The 'Liverpool boys' had lost another six killed and at least 13 wounded. [xxi]

My Dad celebrated his 19th birthday in a frontline trench in Aveluy Wood, just north of Albert, relatively undisturbed. The war diary for 30th June 1918 reads :-The King's Regiment, officially abbreviated as KINGS, was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was formed on 1 September 1958 by the amalgamation of the King's Regiment (Liverpool) which had been raised in 1685 and the Manchester Regiment which traced its history to 1758. In existence for almost 50 years, the regular battalion, 1 KINGS, served in Kenya, Kuwait, British Guiana ( Guyana), West Germany, Northern Ireland, the Falkland Islands, Cyprus, and Iraq. Between 1972 and 1990, 15 Kingsmen died during military operations in Northern Ireland during a violent period in the province's history known as " The Troubles". In praise of a Colonel and a Lance Corporal. The Advance of 9th Battalion Cheshire Regiment (part of 19th [Western] Division) in the Battle of Messines 7 June 1917 by Peter Crook Commonwealth War Graves records confirm that one of them, 49070 Jim Littler from Northwich, was one of those killed, and at least seven were among the wounded [xii]