This is a list of battalions of the Cheshire Regiment, which existed as an infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 2007.
Original composition When the 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment of Foot became The Cheshire Regiment in 1881 under the Cardwell-Childers reforms of the British Armed Forces, seven pre-existent militia and volunteer battalions of Cheshire were integrated into the structure of the regiment. Volunteer battalions had been created in reaction to a perceived threat of invasion by France in the late 1850s. Organised as "rifle volunteer corps", they were independent of the British Army and composed primarily of the middle class.
BattalionFormedFormerlyRegular1st16881st Battalion, 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment of Foot2nd18582nd Battalion, 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment of FootMilitia3rd (Militia)18531st Royal Cheshire Light Infantry MilitiaParkyn p.2204th (Militia)18532nd Royal Cheshire MilitiaVolunteers1st Volunteer18601st Cheshire Rifle Volunteer CorpsWestlake p.392nd (Earl of Chester's) Volunteer18602nd Cheshire Rifle Volunteer CorpsWestlake p.403rd Volunteer18603rd Cheshire Rifle Volunteer Corps4th Volunteer18604th Cheshire Rifle Volunteer CorpsWestlake p.415th Volunteer18605th Cheshire Rifle Volunteer CorpsWestlake p.42
Reorganisation The Territorial Force (later Territorial Army) was formed in 1908, which the volunteer battalions joined, while the militia battalions transferred to the "Special Reserve". All volunteer battalions were renumbered to create a single sequential order. Also in 1908, the 4th (Militia) Battalion was one of the 23 infantry militia battalions to disband.
BattalionFormerly4th1st Volunteer Battalion5th (Earl of Chester's)Amalgamation of 2nd (Earl of Chester's) and 3rd Volunteer Battalions6th4th Volunteer7th5th Volunteer
First World War The Cheshires fielded 38 battalions and lost 8,413 officers and other ranks during the course of the war. The regiment's territorial components formed duplicate second and third line battalions. As an example, the three-line battalions of the 4th Cheshires were numbered as the 1/4th, 2/4th, and 3/4th respectively, with the third line battalions, being redesignated reserve battalions in 1916. Many battalions of the regiment were formed as part of Secretary of State for War Lord Kitchener's appeal for an initial 100,000 men volunteers in 1914. They were referred to as the New Army or Kitchener's Army. The 13th, 15th, 16th, and 17th, New Army battalions, was referred to as a "Pals" battalion because it was predominantly composed of colleagues. The Volunteer Training Corps were raised with overage or reserved occupation men early in the war, and were initially self-organised into many small corps, with a wide variety of names. Recognition of the corps by the authorities brought regulation and as the war continued the small corps were formed into battalion sized units of the county Volunteer Regiment. In 1918 these were linked to county regiments.
BattalionFormedServedFateRegular1st1688Western Front2nd1858Western Front, SalonikaSpecial Reserve3rd (Reserve)1853BritainTerritorial Force1/4th1860Gallipoli, Western FrontSee Inter-War1/5th (Earl of Chester's)1860Western FrontSee Inter-War1/6th1860Western FrontSee Inter-War1/7th1860Gallipoli, Western Front2/4thBirkenhead, September 1914BritainAbsorbed by 2/7th Battalion, in December 19152/5th (Earl of Chester's)Chester, November 1914BritainDisbanded, in April 19182/6thStockport, September 1914BritainDisbanded, in September 19172/7thMacclesfield, October 1914BritainDisbanded, in March 19183/4th4th (Reserve) Battalion, from April 1916Birkenhead, March 1915BritainDisbanded, in 19193/5th (Earl of Chester's)5th (Reserve) Battalion, from April 1916Chester, March 1915BritainAbsorbed by the 4th (Reserve) Battalion, in September 19163/6th6th (Reserve) Battalion, from April 1916Stockport, March 1915BritainAbsorbed by the 4th (Reserve) Battalion, in September 19163/7th7th (Reserve) Battalion, from April 1916Macclesfield, March 1915BritainAbsorbed by the 4th (Reserve) Battalion, in September 191623rdHappisburgh, January 1917from 46th Provisional Battalion (Territorial Force)Western FrontDisbanded, in 1919New Army8th (Service)Chester, August 1914Gallipoli, MesopotamiaDisbanded, in 19199th (Service)Chester, September 1914Western FrontDisbanded, in 191910th (Service)Chester, September 1914BritainAbsorbed by 15th Battalion, South Wales Borderers, in July 191811th (Service)Chester, September 1914Western FrontDisbanded, in August 191812th (Service)Chester, September 1914Western Front, SalonikaDisbanded, in 191913th (Service)Port Sunlight, September 1914Western FrontDisbanded, in February 191814th (Reserve)Birkenhead, October 1914BritainConverted to 50th Training Reserve Battalion, in September 191615th (Service) (1st Birkenhead)Birkenhead, November 1914Western FrontBantam battalion; disbanded, in 191916th (Service) (2nd Birkenhead)Birkenhead, December 1914Western FrontBantam battalion; disbanded, in February 191817th (Reserve)Bebington, August 1915Western FrontBantam battalion formed from depot companies of 16th and 17th (S) Bns; converted to 74th Reserve Bn, in September 1916Others18th (Labour)Oldham, March 1916Western FrontBecame Nos. 56 and 57 Companies, Labour Corps, in April 191719th (Labour)Oldham, April 1916Western FrontBecame Nos. 58 and 59 Companies, Labour Corps, in April 191720th (Labour)Chester, June 1916Western FrontBecame Nos. 60 and 61 Companies, Labour Corps, in April 191721st (Labour)Chester, August 1916Western FrontBecame Nos. 62 and 63 Companies, Labour Corps, in May 191722nd (Labour)Chester, December 1916Western FrontBecame Nos. 64 and 65 Companies, Labour Corps, in April 191724th (Home Service)Mundesley, April 1918BritainDisbanded, in 19191st GarrisonChester, August 1915GibraltarDisbanded, in 19192nd GarrisonBebington, October 1915Egypt & PalestineDisbanded, in 19193rd (Home Service) GarrisonRamsey, November 1915BritainConverted to 11th Battalion, Royal Defence Corps, in August 191751st (Graduated)October 1917from 213th Graduated BattalionIrelandDisbanded, in 191952nd (Graduated)October 1917from 221st Graduated BattalionIrelandDisbanded, in 191953rd (Young Soldier)October 1917from 62nd Training Reserve BattalionBritain & GermanyConverted to service battalion, then absorbed into 9th Bn, in 1919Volunteer Training CorpsWestlake pp. 110-1111st Battalion (Altrincham) Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 1st Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentHaleDisbanded post war2nd Battalion Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentBirkenheadDisbanded post war3rd Battalion (Chester and Eddisbury) Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 3rd Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentChesterDisbanded post war4th Battalion Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 4th Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentCreweDisbanded post war5th Battalion (East Cheshire) Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 5th Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentStalybridgeDisbanded post war6th Battalion (Knutsford) Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 6th Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentWilmslowDisbanded post war7th Battalion Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 7th Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentMacclesfieldDisbanded post war8th Battalion Cheshire Volunteer RegimentNorthwichDisbanded 19189th Battalion Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 8th Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentStockportDisbanded post war10th Battalion (Wirral) Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 9th Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentHeswallDisbanded post war11th Battalion Cheshire Volunteer Regimentlater the 10th Volunteer Battalion, Cheshire RegimentWallaseyDisbanded post war
Inter-War By 1920, all of the regiment's war-raised battalions had disbanded. The Special Reserve reverted to its militia designation in 1921, then to the Supplementary Reserve in 1924; however, its battalions were effectively placed in 'suspended animation'. As World War II approached, the Territorial Army was reorganised in the mid-1930s, many of its infantry battalions were converted to other roles, especially anti-aircraft.
BattalionFate4thAmalgamated with the 5th (Earl of Chester's) Battalion, to create the 4th/5th (Earl of Chester's) Battalion, in 19215th (Earl of Chester's)Amalgamated with the 4th Battalion, to create the 4th/5th (Earl of Chester's) Battalion, in 19216thAmalgamated with the Cheshire Brigade, RFA and Shropshire Battery, RHA, to form 6th Cheshire & Shropshire Medium Brigade, RGA, in February 1920.
Second World War The regiment's expansion during the Second World War was modest compared to 1914–1918. National Defence Companies were combined to create a new "Home Defence" battalion, In addition to this, 26 battalions of the Home Guard were affiliated to the regiment, wearing its cap badge,Whittaker p. 141 and also by 1944 one Heavy Anti Aircraft (HAA) battery, and three rocket batteries (Z Battery) forming the whole of the 22nd Anti Aircraft Regiment (Home Guard).Whittaker p. 108 Due to the daytime (or shift working) occupations of these men, the batteries required eight times the manpower of an equivalent regular battery.Whittaker p. 23 A number of Light Anti-Aircraft (LAA) troops were formed from the local battalions to defend specific points, such as factories.Whittaker pps. 116-117
BattalionFormedServedFateRegular1st1688North Africa, Malta, North West EuropeSee Post-World War II2nd1858France, North Africa, Sicily, North West EuropeSee Post-World War IISupplementary Reserve3rd1853See Post-World War IITerritorial Army4thas a duplicate of 5th (Earl of Chester's) Battalion1939France, Britain5th (Earl of Chester's)redesignation of 4th/5th (Earl of Chester's)1921BritainSee Post-World War II6thas a duplicate of 7th Battalion1939North Africa, Italy, North West EuropeSee Post-World War II7th1860France, Sicily, Italy30th (Home Defence)8th, from 19411939ItalyDisbanded, in 1946 Home GuardBattalionHeadquartersFormation Sign (dark blue on khaki)BattalionHeadquartersFormation Sign (dark blue on khaki)1st AltrinchamCH 12nd AltrinchamCH 23rd KnutsfordCH 34th BirkenheadCH 45th BroxtonCH 56th ChesterCH 67th CreweCH 78th CongletonCH 89th MacclesfieldCH 910th WilmslowCH 1011th MiddlewichCH 1112thNorthwichCH 1213th SandiwayCH 1314th TarporleyCH 1415th RuncornCH 1516th WallaseyCH 1617th HaswellCH 1718th Ellesmere PortCH 1819th ShottonCH 1920th Great SuttonCH 2021st BebingtonCH 2122nd (28 G.P.O.)ChesterCH 2223rd SaleCH 2324th NantwichCH 2435th Staley BridgeCH 3536th HydeCH 3637th RomileyCH 3738th StockportCH 3839th CheadleCH 39Home Guard Anti-Aircraft unitsFormation Sign (dark blue on khaki)Headquarters or LocationAA Formation and DesignationFormation Sign (dark blue on khaki)Headquarters or LocationAA Formation and DesignationCH 71 Birkenhead71st Battery, 22nd Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Home Guard) (HAA)CH 101 South Birkenhead132nd Battery, 22nd Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Home Guard) (Z battery)CH 102 Birkenhead214th Battery, 22nd Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Home Guard) (Z battery)CH 103 Wallasey104th Battery, 22nd Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Home Guard) (Z battery)CH 1 Ringway, (Fairy Aviation Co. Ltd)A Troop LAACH 2 Altrinchan, (Churchill Machine Tool Co. Ltd)A Troop LAACH 7Crewe, (Rolls-Royce Ltd)A Troop LAACH 10Woodford (A.V. Roe & Co. Ltd)A, B Troops LAACH 10Ringway (A.V. Roe & Co. Ltd)C Troop LAACH 11Radway Green, (Royal Ordnance Factory)A, B Troops LAACH 12Plumley, Northwich, (British Ethyl Corporation Ltd)A Troop LAACH 12Wade, Northwich, (Ministry of Supply Factory)B Troop LAACH 18Ellesmere PortA Troop LAACH 38Stockport, (Fairy Aviation Co. Ltd)A Troop LAA
Post-World War II In the immediate post-war period, the army was significantly reduced: nearly all infantry regiments had their first and second battalions amalgamated and the Supplementary Reserve disbanded.