The 16th (Service) Battalion, Rifle Brigade (St Pancras) (16th RB) was an infantry unit recruited in St Pancras, London, as part of 'Kitchener's Army' in World War I. It served on the Western Front, including the battles of the Somme and the Ancre, the Ypres offensive and the German spring offensives. After its losses the battalion was reduced to a training cadre for the rest of the war, helping to prepare newly-arrived US troops and others for Trench warfare. It was disbanded in 1919.

Recruitment and training

On 6 August 1914, less than 48 hours after Britain's declaration of war, Parliament sanctioned an increase of 500,000 men for the Regular British Army. The newly-appointed Secretary of State for War, Earl Kitchener of Khartoum, issued his famous call to arms: 'Your King and Country Need You', urging the first 100,000 volunteers to come forward. Men flooded into the recruiting offices and the 'first hundred thousand' were enlisted within days. This group of six divisions with supporting arms became known as Kitchener's First New Army, or 'K1'. K2, K3 and K4 followed shortly afterwards.War Office Instructions No 32 (6 August) and No 37 (7 August).Becke, Pt 3a, pp. 2 & 8.

But the flood of volunteers overwhelmed the ability of the Army to absorb them, and the K5 units were largely raised by local initiative rather than at regimental depots, often from men from particular localities or backgrounds who wished to serve together: these were known as 'Pals battalions'. The 'Pals' phenomenon quickly spread across the country, as local recruiting committees offered complete units to the War Office (WO). Encouraged by this response, in February 1915 Kitchener approached the 28 Metropolitan Borough Councils in the County of London, and the 'Great Metropolitan Recruiting Campaign' went ahead, with each mayor asked to raise a unit of local men.McCue, pp. 10–1. Even though the Borough of St Pancras already supported the 19th Battalion, London Regiment (St Pancras) of the Territorial Force, which had expanded to three battalions, the St Pancras Parliamentary Recruiting Committee agreed to raise a Kitchener battalion as well. This was authorised on 2 April 1915 as the 16th (Service) Battalion, Rifle Brigade (St Pancras) (16th RB).Frederick, p. 248.James, p. 111.Rifle Brigade at Long, Long Trail.War Office Instruction No 56 of September 1915, Appendix IX.

16th RB formally became part of 117th Brigade when that was formed on 15 July 1915 in 39th Division. It was brigaded with the 16th (Chatsworth Rifles) and 17th (Welbeck Rangers) Service Battalions of the Sherwood Foresters (SF) and the 17th (Service) Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps (British Empire League) (17th KRRC). On 16 August the battalion was the first infantry unit to arrive at Hursley Park, near Winchester, where the division was to form. On 29 September 117th Bde moved to Marlborough Lines at Aldershot, and then in November to Witley Camp in Surrey. Apart from a brief spell back at Aldershot in January 1916 to carry out its musketry course with newly-issued rifles, 16th RB remained at Witley for the rest of its training.Becke, Pt 3b, pp. 91–100.39th Division at Long, Long Trail.

Mobilisation orders were received during February for 39th Division to join the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) on the Western Front , but entrainment for the embarkation ports was repeatedly postponed. Eventually, 16th RB (34 officers and 969 other ranks (ORs) under Lieutenant-Colonel Harry Darell) boarded trains at Milford on 7 March bound for Southampton Docks. There it embarked on HM Transport Viper, with the transport loaded aboard HMT Maidan. It disembarked at Le Havre next morning.16th RB War Diary March 1916–June 1919, The National Archives (TNA), Kew, file WO 95/2586/1.

17th (Reserve) Battalion The depot companies of 16th RB were formed into 17th (Reserve) Battalion, Rifle Brigade, on 15 October 1915 at West Minster, Kent. By January 1916 it was part of 26th Reserve Brigade at Banbury, Oxfordshire, which moved to Wimbledon Common in April. On 1 September 1916 the Training Reserve was established following the introduction of conscription, and 17th (R) Bn RB became 112th Training Reserve Battalion, though the training staff retained their KRRC badges. The brigade continued to provide reinforcement drafts for the KRRC and the Rifle Brigade. The battalion was disbanded at Wimbledon on 2 March 1918.Seymour, Vol II, p. 376.Training Reserve at Long, Long Trail.

Service

By 11 March 39th Division had concentrated round Blaringhem in First Army area, with 16th RB in 117th Bde's concentration area at Steenbecque. 117th Brigade was attached to the experienced 25th Brigade of 8th Division for its introduction to Trench warfare, 16th RB going to Sailly-sur-la-Lys, where A and B Companies were attached to the 2nd RB and then C and D Companies went to 1st Royal Irish Rifles. Here the battalion suffered its first few casualties. On completion of this attachment on 27 March the battalion marched to billets at Estaires, where 117th Bde was attached to 98th Bde of 33rd Division for further trench instruction. This time the companies took over their own sections of trench in the Annequin North sector, A and C with 1st Middlesex Regiment, B and D with 4th King's Regiment. Finally, on 2 April the whole of 16th RB took over 1st Middlesex's sector in 'Harley Street' trench. By mid-April 39th Division had relieved 33rd Division in the Givenchy–Festubert sector.Berkeley, p. 151.

The battalion began a routine of spells in the line interspersed with spells in billets at La Pannerie, when working parties were constantly required. There was a trickle of casualties both in the line and among working parties from shellfire and rifle grenade exchanges with the enemy. 16th RB usually alternated with 17th SF. In May there was increased activity on the Givenchy–Festubert front and 16th RB's casualties amounted to 40 in the month. After a spell in divisional reserve the battalion took over at Festubert village in June. While the BEF prepared for that summer's 'Big Push (the Battle of the Somme) further south, 39th Division kept up a series of diversionary trench raids. 16th RB was called upon to carry out a large one on the night of 4/5 July, directed against a small salient of enemy trench known as the 'Pope's Nose'. Lieutenant-Col Darell detailed eight separate parties to this raid, totalling 10 officers and 270 ORs under the second-in-command, Major H.C. Bridges. The barbed wire in front of the enemy trenches was cut two nights before the raid, and on the night of the raid the artillery began a diversionary bombardment on 'Orchard Trench' before laying a Box barrage to seal off the 'Pope's Nose' at 00.35. One of the raiding parties was tasked with laying three footbridges over a water-filled ditch; the next ditch was known to be bridged. However, the Germans had anticipated the raid: the gaps in the wire were filled by loose coils of barbed wire hidden in the long grass, and when the raiders reached this they were met by a shower of grenades. They did get into the German front trench in a disjointed fight with bombs and bayonets ('swords' in Rifle parlance), but three officers had been killed, four wounded and two were missing, as was the Royal Engineers (RE) officer in charge of the demolition party. At least 100 of the men were already out of action. It had been intended to penetrate to the German second line, but this had to be abandoned; the RE party blew up a machine gun emplacement and a pumping installation, and Maj Bridges, the only remaining officer, withdrew the men under cover of the artillery barrage. Casualties were probably heavier than those inflicted on the enemy.Berkeley, pp. 153, 155, 180–1.

Somme

The Somme Offensive had been launched on 1 July, and on 11 August 39th Division was ordered to march south to join in. 16th RB reached Vauchelles-lès-Authie, near Doullens, on 25 August. From 29 August the battalion stood by at 'Y' Camp at Bertrancourt, awaiting orders from Reserve Army to go up to the front. Reserve Army began a series of minor operations along the River Ancre in early September. On 3 September 39th Division was ordered to secure a few hundred yards of high ground north-west of St Pierre-Divion, to cover the flank of 49th (West Riding) Division advancing up the river valley. The left attack was made by 117th Bde, with 16th RB (right) and 17th SF (left) leading, 17th KRRC in support. All three battalions were much understrength, not having replaced the losses of recent months. The first wave of 16th RB consisted of 3 platoons of B Company and 1 of C Company, the second of 3 platoons of A Company and 2 of C, and the third wave of 3 platoons of D Company and the HQ Lewis guns, with an RE section, a Vickers gun section from 117th Machine Gun Company, and two mortar teams from 117th Light Trench Mortar Battery. The three waves had the first, second and third German trench lines as their respective objectives. The first two waves were to 'jump off' from 'Gordon Trench', their carrying parties from 'Bedford Street', and the third wave would advance over the top from 'Roberts Trench'. Darell ordered that 'magazines should be loaded but all work to be done with the sword', the men were to keep their 'nose right under the barrage' and to 'work by time, don't wait for troops on right or left'. Zero was at 05.10 and the waves set off behind the Creeping barrage in good order. Unfortunately, the barrage had little effect on the enemy, and as soon as it lifted off the first line they manned the parapet and threw grenades as the first wave attackers closed in. The first wave entered the enemy trenches at the extreme right and left and in the centre, but defenders held on in between. Some of the second wave got over and even got into the second line of trenches but were met by intense machine gun and shell fire. The third wave got no further than the German front line. By 05.40 the attack had clearly failed, most of the surviving attackers retired to their own trenches, leaving a couple of small parties holding out in the German trenches. Although the third wave had shiny metal discs on their backs, the smoke and mist made observation impossible, and runners had great difficulty making their way back across the shell-swept No man's land. Hearing the enemy machine gun fire die down, Darell thought that the attack had succeeded, but the bad news reached him at 06.35 and he joined his men in Gordon Trench. After reorganisation, he launched a second attack at 11.05 with 3 officers and about 100 men, about 30 of whom reached the enemy trench and bombed dugouts before being ejected. Apart from one officer's party that had linked up with the neighbouring 14th Hampshire Regiment (116th Bde) the remaining small parties were bombed out of the German front trench. None of those who had reached the second line got back. 49th (WR) Division's attack had also failed, so 39th Division called off any further attacks.16th RB was relieved that evening and returned to 'X' Camp at Bertrancourt. It had lost 7 officers and 30 ORs killed, 7 officers and 235 ORs wounded, 2 officers and 176 ORs missing.Hare, pp. 156–8.Berkeley, pp. 194–5.Miles, 1916, Vol II, pp. 278–82, Sketch 35.