servicenumbers
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Any idea why the servicenumbers of each battery are often similar. For example Bty C has many numbers starting with 119 or 120; bty B has many numbers beginning with 25, 26, 28 and 29.
Posted
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Not sure about this Erik, maybe the Batteries were allocated certain numbers. Moderators may know.
Veering away from that question here are 2 links regarding prefixes to service numbers:
As you can see L = Royal Field Artillery.
http://armyservicenumbers.blogspot.co.uk/p/number-prefixes.html
Posted
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by
ral104
moderator, scientist
I'd imagine each battery was allocated a block of numbers, Erik.
Posted
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by
David_Underdown
moderator
L wasn't only used used by the artillery, but in the context of the artillery it was used for local enlistments. That is to say for units equivalent to the better known Pals battalions in the infantry. Their official RFA numbers would have been assigned when the War Office officially took the units on strength from which ever organisation had originally raised them. Per http://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/regiments-and-corps/the-royal-artillery-in-the-first-world-war/royal-field-artillery-brigades/ 168 Bde (aka CLVIII in Roman numerals) was raised in Accrington and Burnley, probably by the local mayor and corporation or whatever the local government unit was at the time.
L was also used by the country infantry regiments of the Home Counties (which is to say those counties immediately around London), ie the two Surrey regiments, the two Kent regiemtns, Middlesex Regiment and Royal Fusiliers (and possibly Royal Sussex Regiment too) to indicate soldiers on regular terms of enlistment. This usage pre-dated the war (and wasn't always applied every time a number was given). In war time it contrasts with GS - General Service enlistment who enlisted for war service only, and pre-war used SR for special reserve and T for Territorial.
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