The Queen's Westminsters were an infantryregiment of the Territorial Army, part of the British Army. Originally formed from Rifle Volunteer Corps, which were established after a French invasion scare of 1859. The unit became part of the newly established London Regiment on the formation of the Territorial Force in 1908. It was subsequently amalgamated in 1921 with the Civil Service Rifles, and became a territorial Battalion of the King's Royal Rifle Corps in 1937. It ceased to exist as separate entity after it was amalgamated in 1961.
History
Rifle Volunteers
Sir Charles Howard Vincent, Commanding Officer of the Queen's Westminster Rifle Volunteers, 1884-1904. Pictured in 1896Group of the 13th Middlesex Rifle Volunteers (Queen's Westminsters), c1895
The regiment was founded on the formation of the Volunteer Force, raised by the Duke of Westminster and named in honour of Queen Victoria in 1860.[1] Initially it was known as the Pimlico Rifle Volunteer Corps. A year later it amalgamated with the Westminster Rifle Volunteers and became known as the Queen's Westminsters.[2]
In 1880 most London volunteer units were re-numbered. As a result the unit became the 13th Middlesex (Queen's Westminster) Volunteer Rifle Corps and were attached to the King's Royal Rifle Corps as a Volunteer Battalion.[3] In 1886 the battalion established its headquarters at 58 Buckingham Gate, Westminster.[4] and by 1902 it was the largest volunteer rifle corps battalion in London.[5]
First World War
Under the Haldane Reforms that created the Territorial Force in 1908, the battalion was included in the new all-Territorial London Regiment, taking its place as the 16th (County of London) Battalion, The London Regiment (Queen's Westminsters).[6]
Memorial in St Cassian's Church in Chaddesley Corbett, Worcestershire, to C. F. D. Fitch of the Queen's Westminster Rifles, killed in the Battle of the Somme in 1916
During the war the unit raised a 2nd and 3rd Battalion.The battalions were also redesignated, becoming, for example, '1/16th' Londons (for the 1st Line) to differentiate them from the 2nd Line units, which were redesignated '2/16th' Londons (for the 2nd Line).[8]
The original Westminsters became the 1st Battalion after a duplicate battalion was raised in 1939. The following year, it was converted to a motor battalion. In 1941, the 1st Battalion was re-titled as the 11th (Queen's Westminsters) Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps,[10] and the 2nd, the 12th (Queen's Westminsters) Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps.[11]
The 11th Westminsters moved to Sicily the following year, taking part in the campaign on the Italian island, which began on 10 July 1943. It later moved to the Italian Front, remaining there into 1944. In December 1944, the Westminsters took part in the operations to quell a Communist uprising in the Greek capital of Athens; this mission was successful and a cease-fire was signed on 11 January 1945.[13]
The 12th Westminsters, having remained in the United Kingdom since the war began, took part in the Battle of Normandy in 1944, forming part of the 8th Armoured Brigade. It saw extensive service in France, including action at Rauray on 26 June and at Mont Pincon in Operation Epsom and during the advance east to the Seine, which was crossed in late August. The battalion subsequently crossed the Somme river, a scene of carnage during the Great War, which the Westminsters predecessors had experienced. It later took part in the liberation of Lille in early September, experiencing a welcoming reception by the inhabitants of the large town. Shortly afterwards, the 12th took part in the advance into Belgium, taking part in, among others, the capture of Oostham. The 12th Westminsters saw further service in the Netherlands and when Victory in Europe Day came on 8 May, were in Germany itself.[14]
Shortly after the war, the Territorial Army was reconstituted and the 11th and 12th amalgamated to form, simply, The Queen's Westminsters. On 1 May 1961, it was amalgamated with the Queen Victoria's Rifles to form the Queen's Royal Rifles.[10]
Battle honours
The regiment's battle honours were as follows:[10][17]
^Osborne, Mike, 2006. Always Ready: The Drill Halls of Britain's Volunteer Forces, Partizan Press, p. 247
^"Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36801. London. 23 June 1902. p. 6.
^ ab"The Queen's Westminster Rifles". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 4 January 2006. Retrieved 28 May 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^ abcde"The Queen's Westminsters". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 4 January 2006. Retrieved 28 May 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^"The King's Royal Rifle Corps". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 3 January 2006. Retrieved 29 May 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
Joslen, Lt-Col H.F. (2003). Orders of Battle, United Kingdom and Colonial Formations and Units in the Second World War, 1939–1945. Uckfield: Naval & Military. ISBN1-84342-474-6.
Further reading
Beckett, Ian F.W., (1982) Riflemen Form: A Study of the Rifle Volunteer Movement 1859–1908, Aldershot, The Ogilby Trusts, ISBN0-85936-271-X.
Standing orders of the Queen’s Westminster Rifles : 16th (County of London) Battalion, The London Regiment, London, Queen's Westminster Rifles (1912)
