- The Robin Hood Battalion
The Robin Hood (T) Battalion was a unit of the British
Territorial Army .History
It was formed as the 1st Nottinghamshire (Robin Hood) Volunteer Rifle Corps by Adjutant Jonathan White on
15 November 1859 . It was one of many such 'corps' to be formed at a time of increased fear of war with France which created a flurry of interest in establishing such volunteer corps by the more affluent classes of British society. The unit was, also, simply known as the Robin Hood Rifles; the title's name being in honour of the legendaryRobin Hood .After the culmination of the Cardwell-Childers reforms on
1 July 1881 , the Sherwood Foresters (Derbyshire Regiment) was formed (later the Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) and the Robin Hood Rifles became its 3rd Volunteer Battalion.In 1900, due to the
Second Boer War , the Rifles expexierenced a substantial increase in size. Men of the battalion volunteered for service in the war -- which had been raging since 1899 -- and returned home when it ended in 1902, gaining the Robin Hood Rifles its firstBattle Honour "South Africa 1900-02". In 1908, reserve forces of the British Army were reorganised, and the battalion was transferred to theTerritorial Force , as the 7th Battalion (TF). In the following year, they were redesignated as the 7th (Robin Hood) Battalion.First World War
When the
First World War began in August 1914 the Robin Hood Rifles were part of the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Brigade (later the 139th Brigade (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire)), North Midland Division (later the 46th (North Midland) Division).On
19 September a duplicate battalion of the Robin Hoods was formed, the original becoming the 1/7th. It joined the 2nd Notts and Derby Brigade, 2nd North Midland Division which later became the 59th (2nd North Midland) Division. Another duplicate battalion, the 3/7th, was formed in March 1915 and remained in Britain for the duration of the war.The 1/7th landed in France in February 1915 with the rest of the 46th Division. The Battalion saw heavy fighting at the Hohenzollern Redoubt -- a subsidiary action of the
Battle of Loos -- which was their first major action of the war. The battalion received itsVictoria Cross (VC) when Temporary CaptainCharles Geoffrey Vickers was awarded the VC -- the highest award for bravery in the face of the enemy -- for his actions at Hohenzollern on14 October . The battalion was involved in theFirst Day of the Somme on1 July 1916 and the brigade they were part of sustained very severe casualties in the attack on theGommecourt Salient . The day ended as bloodiest in theBritish Army 's history, with 60,000 casualties being incurred.In the home front the 2/7th Robin Hoods had, meanwhile, been sent to
Ireland with the rest of the 59th Division to help suppress the 1916Easter Uprising inDublin . The division return toEngland in January 1917 and then moved to France in February. The 2/7th took part in many actions, including at 'Third Ypres' and Cambrai. The battalion was absorbed by the 1/7th on31 January 1918 and the Robin Hoods reverted to their original name, the 7th (Robin Hood) Battalion. On7 May the 7th Robin Hoods were reduced tocadre strength. The First World War ended on11 November 1918. On14 June 1919 the Battalion was disbanded. The following year, the Territorial Force was reformed as the "Territorial Army", and on7 February the 7th (Robin Hood) Battalion (TA) was reraised.During WWI, Captain
Albert Ball -- a prominentRoyal Flying Corps (RFC) pilot -- had been awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions in 1917 and had previously served with the Robin Hoods.econd World War
With the advent of air power and the reduced need for so much infantry, the Robin Hoods were one of many units to be converted to the
anti-aircraft role. The battalion re-roled on10 December 1936 and became the 42nd (The Robin Hoods, Sherwood Foresters) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, RE. It joined the 32nd (Midland) Anti-Aircraft Brigade, 2nd Anti-Aircraft Division and was based in the West Riding region.The
Second World War began on3 September 1939 . In August 1940 it became the 42nd (Robin Hoods, Sherwood Foresters) Search-Light Regiment, RA. The regiment was involved in the German Blitz against British cities, the Robin Hoods serving inDerby ,East Midlands . After the Allied invasion of Normandy on6 June 1944 , the regiment landed in France and undertook similar duties during the North-West Europe campaign. It was awarded theCroix de Guerre byBelgium for their defence of the port ofAntwerp against German V1 and V2 rockets. When the war inEurope ended in May 1945 the Robin Hoods were inGermany .Post-War
In 1946 the Robin Hoods were placed in 'suspended animation' when it was still in Germany. The following year they were reconstituted into the TA as the 577th (The Robin Hoods, Sherwood Foresters) Searchlight Regiment, RA. Further name changes took place throughout the 1940s and 1950s. On
10 March 1955 the Robin Hoods amalgamated with the350th (The South Nottinghamshire Hussars Yeomanry) Heavy Regiment and528th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment (West Nottinghamshire) to form the 350th (The Robin Hood Foresters) Heavy Regiment, RA. The following year Heavy was changed to Light.In 1961 the regiment converted to engineers and re-titled as the 350 (The Robin Hood Foresters) Field Squadron. In 1967, with reforms of the Armed Forces it left the RE, returning to the Sherwood Foresters as the The Robin Hood (Territorial) Battalion, a
TAVR III (Territorial and Army Volunteer Reserve) unit. In 1969 the Robin Hoods were reduced to cadre strength when they became the Robin Hood (T) Battalion, The Sherwood Foresters, RE. The Robin Hoods were sponsored by72 Engineer Regiment, RE . In 1971, with further defence reforms, the Robin Hoods became D (Robin Hood Foresters) Company, 3rd (V) Battalion of the newly-formedWorcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment .In 1992 the Robin Hood lineage was discontinued upon D Company becoming the HQ Company; the company was disbanded in 1999. The name is presently (as of 2005) maintained by A (Robin Hood Rifles) Company,
Nottinghamshire Army Cadet Force of theArmy Cadet Force . It is affiliated with theRoyal Green Jackets .References
* [http://www.1914-1918.net/notts.htm The Long, Long Trail - The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment)]
* [http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/volmil-england/vinf-mi/drnt-7.htm Regiments.org - The Robin Hood Battalion]ee also
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