Units in the British Army have always had some wonderful names. E.g. 65th (2nd Yorkshire North Riding) Regiment of Foot. E.g. 84th (York & Lancaster) Regiment of Foot. In 1881, Hugh Childers, the Secretary of State for War, implemented a series of reforms for the infantry regiments. Each regiment was to have two regular battalions…
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More on the Militia
Patrick’s enlistment paperwork provides a range of detailed information. He was 5ft 5 1/2 in tall (166cm) and 125lb (57kg). This gives him a BMI of 20 which is considered healthy by today’s standards. The Army said that he had blue eyes. My father (Patrick’s son) disagreed. He said that they were more brown than…
Joining the Militia
Following his birth in Roscommon in 1883, Patrick Stanley seems to have left no trace on official records until August 1902. On 19th August 1902, Patrick joined the 3rd Battalion of the Yorks & Lancs Regiment. His regimental number was 9988. This was a militia unit. He signed up for a period of six years.…
What sort of place is Roscommon (2)?
I need to reiterate that I am referring to County Roscommon in the middle of Ireland, and not the one in the USA. On a visit in May 2014 I took a lot of photographs. Many of these will appear in these blogs in due course. One is shown below. In the earlier blog “What…
Yorkshire and Lancashire – history
Patrick’s military record shows that he signed up for the Manchester Regiment in Pontefract in October 1902. Those unfamiliar with English geography and history may not regard this as strange. A short history lesson The emblem of Lancashire is a red rose. For Yorkshire it is a white rose. Between 1455 and 1485 a series…
Yorkshire & Lancashire geography
Patrick’s military record shows that he signed up for the Manchester Regiment in Pontefract on 2nd October 1902. He is then shown as being at the regimental headquarters on 4th October. Those unfamiliar with English geography and history may not regard this as strange. A short geography lesson. The Headquarters of the Manchester Regiment were…
From Yorkshire to Lancashire (2)
Patrick signed up for the army in Pontefract, Yorkshire. Once he had joined the army they would have made arrangements for him to travel to Regimental Headquarters in Ashton-under-Lyne. I do not know how Patrick travelled from Yorkshire to Lancashire. The most likely option would have been by rail. Rail travel meant steam locomotives in…
From Yorkshire to Lancashire
Patrick signed up for the army in Pontefract, Yorkshire. At the time (1902) he was living in Dewsbury. The two towns are 16 miles apart. A route planner will tell you to allow 39 minutes for the journey. This assumes that you have access to a modern vehicle. I don’t know what means of transport…
What sort of place is Roscommon?
The first thing to establish is that I am referring to County Roscommon in the middle of Ireland. There is another one in Michigan, USA. County Roscommon has an area of 1022 square miles. The population (2016) was 64,544. I live in Staffordshire in the middle of England. It has an area of 1047 square…
Irish miles
Kilbride RC church features on the Stanley family history. The church has a sizeable car park. There are very few houses nearby. Attendees are unlikely to walk there. It is located at Four Mile House. This is on the N61 heading north out of Roscommon town. Four Mile House is five miles from Roscommon. Is…