Did Veterans of Major 19th Century Wars Fight in WW2?

Marc

Donor
You do realise those Regiments continued after the First World War, right?

The “virtual destruction of the regulars” meant the death of the soldiers, not the discontinuation of the Regiments.

I remember talking with a lad in the Devon and Dorsets in the late ‘90s who claimed family lineage back to Waterloo.

Ah, yes, of course. My sidebar comment has to do with a fairly new multi-generational service tradition in the States that now encompasses the vast majority of enlistees. That is the forest, individuals, some units that have old traditions are the trees. The really germane question would be - what percentage of the ranks nowadays come from military families.
Oh, and technically, one of my brother-in-law's qualifies, his grandfather was career military; a longish genealogy of various men who signed for some war or another, a couple of West Pointers, all the way back to the 3rd North Carolina who did their best at shooting up as many British as they could...

 
My grandfather was in the 2nd South African War, went to France with the BEF in 1914 and served to the end then was a Staff Sergeant in the Home Guard on the east coast. He had medals from all three. Badly wounded in 1915 and the German bullet remained in his wrist for the rest of his life. Mostly I was fascinated by his fine waxed moustache.
One of my mothers Great Uncles was a boy seaman at the start of the Boer War, retired early in 1939 only to be recalled as a reservist when war were declared and served right through to the end.
 
Ah, yes, of course. My sidebar comment has to do with a fairly new multi-generational service tradition in the States that now encompasses the vast majority of enlistees. That is the forest, individuals, some units that have old traditions are the trees. The really germane question would be - what percentage of the ranks nowadays come from military families.
Oh, and technically, one of my brother-in-law's qualifies, his grandfather was career military; a longish genealogy of various men who signed for some war or another, a couple of West Pointers, all the way back to the 3rd North Carolina who did their best at shooting up as many British as they could...

I haven't been able to find a precise percentage but anecdotally I would say in the 70-80% range with the highest percentages in the line infantry regiments. You get people from any background wanting to be birdshit or bootnecks (aka Parachute Regiment or Royal Marine Commandos) to prove they're tough enough and you get people looking to gain a trade joining the REME or Signals but for the line infantry it's pretty much barrack rats and Fijian's plus a few confused souls who got lost on the way Dole Office.
 
One of my soldiers was from a warrior caste from Gujarat whose army lineage was traceable back to an ancestor who joined the HEIC infantry in the early 18th century but the caste meant that the family had been military for centuries before. IIRC he i now a successful lawyer in the Midlands whose services I dare say could not afford should I have need of them.
 

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I haven't been able to find a precise percentage but anecdotally I would say in the 70-80% range with the highest percentages in the line infantry regiments. You get people from any background wanting to be birdshit or bootnecks (aka Parachute Regiment or Royal Marine Commandos) to prove they're tough enough and you get people looking to gain a trade joining the REME or Signals but for the line infantry it's pretty much barrack rats and Fijian's plus a few confused souls who got lost on the way Dole Office.

Of course, everyone knows “ARMY” stands for “Airforce Rejected Me Yesterday”
 
Of course, everyone knows “ARMY” stands for “Airforce Rejected Me Yesterday”

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Obviously we can't all manage the five miles of death ;)
 
Thanks. I had let slip mentally how relatively large and important the British military was during the age of empire - and sans a draft, how local multi-generational recruitment would be popular; at least until the virtual destruction of the Regular's, and the carnage of the First World War . It's was a bit different in the States. Our regular military was actually fairly small through our history, relying on militias and limited term volunteers to augment during major conflicts (the Civil War being the great exception). Then, when we became the great hegemonic power, we heavily relied on the draft until 1973. So for us the idea of the military enlisted ranks as a family trade is a fairly new thing, and that 80+ percentage of how many would fall into that category is as I said before, a bit worrisome.
Do you all have any idea of what percentages held true for the British forces, past and/or present? Roughly how many men in the ranks came from military families?

I'm not sure how many would have followed father's footsteps to be honest. I'd imagine it's less common now than it would have been in the Empire days, given the extra opportunities children have these days compared to the kids of history, the increasing disconnect between the military and the public as units close and the ones that remain increasingly withdraw to remote super garrisons and an ever lowering morale problem that means the majority of soldiers now leave at their four year point. I still knew several in the Signals who were following parents (one was a Signaller in the same unit where his dad was the QM) and I'd assume it's more common in the infantry or cavalry where unit history means more than in CSS units.
 
I'm not sure how many would have followed father's footsteps to be honest. I'd imagine it's less common now than it would have been in the Empire days, given the extra opportunities children have these days compared to the kids of history, the increasing disconnect between the military and the public as units close and the ones that remain increasingly withdraw to remote super garrisons and an ever lowering morale problem that means the majority of soldiers now leave at their four year point. I still knew several in the Signals who were following parents (one was a Signaller in the same unit where his dad was the QM) and I'd assume it's more common in the infantry or cavalry where unit history means more than in CSS units.

I don't know for sure, I was never a Regular, only a weekend warrior but my Uncle and cousin were Regular Grenadiers and both the Mess and the ranks in those Regular units I encountered were dominated by people with Forces backgrounds. I would definitely say percentages are much lower in non-teeth arms and the TA but in the infantry it's a very comfortable majority.
 
On the theme of repeated family army service the tradition existed (exists?) of the right to 'call upon blood'. If one has a direct relative serving in the army one can claim this right to have them (with them also being willing) transferred to ones own regiment.
 
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