This is a list of battalions of the King's Regiment (Liverpool), which existed as an infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 1958.
Original composition When the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot became The King's (Liverpool Regiment) in 1881 under the Cardwell-Childers reforms of the British Armed Forces, eight pre-existent militia and volunteer battalions of Lancashire and the Isle of Man were integrated into the structure of the King's Regiment.Frederick (1984 edn), pp. 126–30. 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.Westlake. The only change to the regiment's structure during the period of 1881-1908 occurred during the Second Boer War. During the conflict, the regiment formed two additional regular battalions in Ireland in 1900, which required the militia to be renumbered the 5th and 6th battalions to accommodate them. The new battalions disbanded in 1901 and the militia reverted to their original designations.
BattalionFormedFormerlyRegular1st16852nd1857Militia3rd (Militia)17971st Battalion, 2nd Royal Lancashire Militia (The Duke of Lancaster's Own Rifles)Frederick (1969 edn), pp. 107-9Hay, pp. 262–3.4th (Militia)18542nd Battalion, 2nd Royal Lancashire Militia (The Duke of Lancaster's Own Rifles)Volunteers1st Volunteer18591st Lancashire Rifle Volunteer CorpsWestlake, pp. 139–46.2nd Volunteer18595th (The Liverpool Rifle Volunteer Brigade) Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps3rd Volunteer185913th Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps4th Volunteer186015th Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps5th (Irish) Volunteer186018th (Liverpool Irish) Lancashire Rifle Volunteers Corps6th Volunteer186119th (Liverpool Press Guard) Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps7th (Isle of Man) Volunteer18601st Isle of Man Rifle VolunteersFrederick (1969 edn), p.111Westlake, p. 112.
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. Uniquely, the 7th (Isle of Man) Battalion did not join the Territorial Force, instead remaining a "volunteer" battalion.
BattalionFormerly5th1st Volunteer Battalion6th (Rifle)2nd Volunteer Battalion7thAmalgamation of 3rd and 4th Volunteer Battalions8th (Irish)5th (Irish) Volunteer Battalion9th6th Volunteer Battalion10th (Liverpool Scottish)8th (Scottish) Volunteer Battalion (formed 1900)Frederick (1984 edn) p. 148.Frederick (1969 edn), p. 128
First World War
The King's Regiment fielded 49 battalions and lost 13,795 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 5th King's were numbered as the 1/5th, 2/5th, and 3/5th respectively. Many battalions of the King's 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 17th to 20th King's, New Army "Service" battalions, were referred to as the Liverpool "Pals" because they were 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.
BattalionFormedServedFateRegular1st1685Western FrontMileham, pp. 240-1James, pp. 51–3.2nd1857India (NWF), AfghanistanSpecial Reserve3rd (Reserve)Britain, Ireland4th (Extra Reserve)Western FrontTerritorial Force1/5th1859Western FrontSee Inter-War1/6th (Rifle)1859Western FrontSee Inter-War1/7th1859/1860Western FrontSee Inter-War1/8th (Irish)1860Western FrontSee Inter-War1/9th1861Western FrontSee Inter-War1/10th (Scottish)1900Western FrontSee Inter-War2/5thLiverpool, September 1914Western FrontDisbanded 1 February 19182/6th (Rifle)Liverpool, September 1914Western FrontDisbanded May 19192/7thBootle, October 1914Western FrontDisbanded 15 May 19192/8th (Irish)Liverpool, October 1914Western FrontAbsorbed by 1/8th King's on 31 January 19182/9th BattalionLiverpool, October 1914Western FrontAbsorbed by 1/9th King's in February 19182/10 (Scottish)Liverpool, October 1914Western FrontAbsorbed by 1/10th King's in April 19183/5thLiverpool, May 1915BritainTransferred to West Lancashire Reserve Brigade (WLRB), 19163/6th (Rifle)Liverpool, May 1915BritainTransferred to WLRB, 19163/7thLiverpool, May 1915BritainTransferred to WLRB, 19163/8th (Irish)Liverpool, May 1915BritainTransferred WLRB, 19163/9thLiverpool, May 1915BritainTransferred to WLRB, 19163/10th (Scottish)Liverpool, May 1915BritainTransferred to WLRB, 191625th (Garrison)Sheringham, 1 January 1917, from 43rd Provisional Battalion (Territorial Force)Western FrontDisbanded March 192026thEssex, 1 January 1917, from 44th Provisional Battalion (Territorial Force)BritainDisbanded March 1918New Army11th (Service)Seaforth, 23 August 1914Western FrontAbsorbed by 15th Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, August 191812th (Service)Seaforth, September 1914Western FrontDisbanded June 191913th (Service)Seaforth, October 1914Western FrontDisbanded October 191914th (Service)Seaforth, October 1914Western Front, SalonikaAbsorbed by the 18th in August 191815th (Reserve)Formby, November 1914BritainBecame the 49th Training Reserve Battalion, September 191616th (Reserve)Hoylake, December 1914BritainAbsorbed by TR battalions of 11th Reserve Brigade, September 191617th (Service)Liverpool, 29 August 1914Western Front, RussiaDisbanded September 191918th (Service)Liverpool, 29 August 1914Western FrontDisbanded May 191919th (Service)Liverpool, 29 August 1914Western FrontAbsorbed by the 14th King's, 13 August 191820th (Service)Liverpool, 16 October 1914Western FrontDisbanded February 191821st (Reserve)Knowsley Park, August 1915BritainBecame 67th Training Reserve Battalion in 16th Reserve Brigade, September 191622nd (Reserve)Knowsley Park, August 1915 BritainBecame 68th Training Reserve Battalion, 16th Reserve Brigade, September 1916Others7th (Isle of Man) Volunteer Battalion1860Britain, Salonika (Service Company)Disbanded March 192023rd (Works)Prescot, May 1916BritainBecame the 1st Labour Battalion, March 191724th (Works)Birmingham, June 1916BritainPossibly redesignated as the 27th; became the 2nd Labour Battalion, April 191727th (Home Service)Sidestrand, 27 April 1918BritainDisbanded March 191928th (Home Service)Clacton-on-Sea, June 1918BritainAbsorbed by 17th King's, July 191829th (Service)Liverpool, May 1919France & FlandersDisbanded August 192030th (Service)May 1919France & FlandersDisbanded August 19201st GarrisonLiverpool, August 1915EgyptDisbanded September 19192nd GarrisonPembroke Dock, November 1915Egypt, SalonikaDisbanded January 19203rd (Home Service) GarrisonPembroke Dock, April 1916BritainBecame the 3rd Royal Defence Corps, August 19171st DockLiverpool, August 1915LiverpoolDisbanded November 19172nd DockLiverpool, August 1915LiverpoolDisbanded by 191851st (Graduated)Fermoy, 27 October 1917, formerly 20th Welch RegimentIreland, East AngliaDisbanded November 191952nd (Graduated)Herringfleet, 27 October 1917, formerly 12th East Lancashire RegimentEast AngliaConverted to Service battalion February 1919; disbanded February 192053rd (Young Soldier)Prees Heath Camp, 27 October 1917, formerly 21st Lancashire FusiliersKinmel Camp, RhylDisbanded June 1919Volunteer Training CorpsWestlake pp. 120-1215th Battalion Lancashire Volunteer Regimentlater the 1st Volunteer Battalion, King's (Liverpool) RegimentLiverpoolDisbanded post war6th Battalion Lancashire Volunteer Regimentlater the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, King's (Liverpool) RegimentLiverpoolDisbanded post war6th Battalion Lancashire Volunteer Regimentlater the 3rd Volunteer Battalion, King's (Liverpool) RegimentLiverpoolDisbanded post war
Inter-War By 1922, all of the regiment's war-raised battalions had disbanded. The King's Regiment did not, however, return to its original peacetime size; it lost the 8th (Liverpool Irish) and 9th battalions shortly after the war ended. 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.
BattalionFate5thRetained, though it became a "line infantry" battalion when its rifle distinctions were relinquished in 19376th (Rifle)Transferred to the Royal Engineers, becoming the 38th (The King's Regiment) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, 1936, later 38th (The King's Regiment) Searchlight Regiment, Royal Artillery7thBecame the 40th (The King's) Regiment, Royal Tank Corps, July 19388th (Irish)Disbanded 31 March 19229th Absorbed by the Royal Engineers, 1920Roberts, p. 127.10th (Liverpool Scottish)Became a battalion of the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders, retaining its Liverpool Scottish designation, 1937.
Second World War The King's expansion during the Second World War was modest compared to 1914-1918. Existing battalions formed duplicates as in the First World War, while National Defence Companies were combined to create a new "Home Defence" battalion. In addition to this, 16 battalions of the Home Guard were affiliated to the regiment.Whittaker pp. 65-57 These wore the 'WL' designation for West Lancashire,Whittaker p. 152 the remaining 7 wearing this patch were cap-badged to another regiment. By 1944 one anti-aircraft battery and three rocket batteries (Z Battery) were also part of the regiment, making up most of the 24th Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Home Guard).Whittaker p. 109 Due to the daytime (or shift working) occupations of the men the batteries required eight times the manpower of an equivalent regular unit.Whittaker p. 23