| Commanding Officers of the 17th Battalion | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In March 1918 new formations first called “Garrison Guard Battalions,” (Presumably because they were intended to guard the neighbourhood of their
garrisons) were formed. After long weeks in the rear defences it was found that the “Garrison Guard” battalions were neither as smart nor as trustworthy as could be desired, and, presumably in the hope of improving their morale, they were given fresh titles as numbered “Garrison” battalions of different Line Regiments. For no apparent reason the 1st “Garrison Guard” Battalion, then commanded by Lieut.-Col. T. W. T. Isaac of the Gloucestershire Regiment, was allotted to the Worcestershire Regiment (It does not appear that any of the officers of the new Battalion belonged previously to the Regiment), and became the 17th (Garrison) Battalion of the Worcestershire Regiment. Orders to that effect were issued on the 25th May 1918. Later, when the check to the German onrush made the manning of these reserve defences unnecessary, it was decided to convert some of those battalions of half-fit men into Pioneer Battalions. The 40th Division had been broken up, after losing heavily in March and April 1918; but the Divisional Staff had been retained, and several of the “G.G.” battalions were grouped under their command. The 17th Worcestershire were employed at first in manning the reserve defences around Hazebrouck (The Battalion had marched from Clarques to Salperwick on the 18th June and then moved by bus from Salperwick to Le Noir Trou west of Wallon-Cappel on June 23rd). It was decided to reconstitute the 40th Division as an effective field unit, and to convert the 17th Worcestershire into the Pioneer Battalion of the reconstituted Division. At the same time, an existing Pioneer Battalion, the 12th Green Howards (Yorkshire Regiment), was ordered to be amalgamated into the reconstituted 17th Worcestershire Battalion. The battalion was finally disbanded in September 1919 and on the 8th October 1919 a tiny cadre (Officially termed an “Equipment Guard.” )—one officer and thirteen men with the King’s Colour of the Battalion—embarked at Havre for England. |
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Below is a list of all the officers who have
commanded the 17th Battalion Worcestershire Regiment from 1918 to 1919. |
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MORE
DETAILS ABOUT EACH OFFICER MY BE OBTAINED BY CLICKING ON THE INDIVIDUAL
SURNAME |
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