The Cambridgeshires 1914 to 1919

Originally The Cambridgeshires were a line regiment, 30th Foot, raised in 1702. Following the Cardwell Reforms it became, in 1881, 1st Battalion East Lancashire Regiment. However, it continued to exist as a Volunteer regiment till 1908 when, with the creation of the Territorial Force by Haldane, it became a TF Regiment. When war broke out it was stationed in Cambridge, with the East Midland Brigade, East Anglian Division – a TF formation. In February 1915 it left the division and went to France where it joined the 82nd Brigade, 27th Division, a regular army formation which had been created in November/December 1914 from battalions returning from India, Hong Kong and Tsientsin. In November 1915 it was transferred to VII Corps troops and then became Training Battalion for Third Army. At the end of February 1916 it moved again – to 118th Brigade, 37th Division, and finally, in May 1918, it was again transferred, this time to 35th Brigade, 12th Division with whom it saw out the war. All these moves are described in this history together with good accounts of the battles in which it fought – at Ypres, Somme, Passchendale, Hindenburg Line and the final advance. Appendices list 27 Battle Honours and give a summary of Honours awarded and of casualties. Approximately 10,000 of all ranks served in the battalion in France, 4,324 became casualties and of these 866 died. Finally there is a brief account of trhose units of the regiment that did not go overseas, including the Depot and the 2nd, 3rd and 4th line battalions.