Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1913.djvu/174

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52 THE BRITISH EMPIRE: — UNITED KINGDOM

4 battalions each, 4 field artillery brigades (1 Howitzers), 1 heavy battery, 1 ammunition column, 2 companies of engineers, 1 signal company, 2 mounted infantry companies, 1 divisional train, 3 field ambulances ; total establishment, 618 officers, 19,935 other ranks, 6,152 horses, 76 guns.

  • Army troops ' include 2 ' mounted brigades ' each consisting of either

1 cavalry regiment and 2 mounted infantry battalions, or of 2 cavalry regiments and 1 mounted infantry battalion, with 1 horse artillery battery, 1 ammunition column, 1 signal troop, 1 train and 1 ambulance. All batteries have 6 guns except the heavy batteries which have only 4. The war establishment of a cavalry regiment is 25 oflicers, 537 other ranks, 562 horses, in three squadrons. The war establishment of a battalion of infantry is 29 officers, 995 other ranks, in eight companies.

The Territorial Army is intended for home defence, although nearly 20,000 officers and men have accepted liability for service abroad in war. The terms of service are for four years. The age-limits for enlistment are from 17 to 35 inclusive. The requirements of training are a fortnight in camp and a certain number of drills, the number varying in different branches, also a musketry course for arms in which it is necessary ; unless exempted, the soldier must attend camp for eight days and make himself efficient, subject to a penalty of £5. All officers in the Territorial Arm}' except certain of the generals and staff are non-professional. The Territorial • Army is confined to Great Britain — theie is none in Ireland.

The Territorial Army consists of 36 i-egiments of yeomanry, 14 horse artillery batteries, 57 'brigades' of field artillery, 14 heavy batteries, 89 companies of garrison aitillery, 103 companies of engineers, a railway battalion,' 194 battalions of infantry, 13 cyclist battalions, Avith depart- mental troops. The bulk of it is organised so as to form 14 mounted brigades, and 14 divisions. The establishment is practically the same in peace and Avar, and these brigades and divisions are complete war units in so far as establishment is concerned. Batteries in the Territorial Army have only 4 guns, otherwise the divisions correspond very nearly in their com- position to the Regular Army on a war footing ; the mounted brigades each include a horse artillery battery besides their three yeomanry regiments. On mobilisation of the Regular Army, the Territorial Army is embodied, practically automatically.

For purposes of command the United Kingdom is divided up into seven 'commands' and the London district. The commands are (1) Aldershot of very limited area, (2) Eastern including the eastern and southern counties, (3) Irish, (4) Northern, including the northern midlands and north-eastern counties, (5) Scottish, (6) Southern, including the southern midlands and south-western counties, (7) Western, including Wales, Lancashire and north-western counties. These commands (except the Aldershot command) are divided up into Territorial Recruiting districts for the Regular Army. The Eastern, Northern, Scottish, Southern, and Western commands, and the London District each include from 1 to 4 Territorial mounted brigades, and 2 or 3 Territorial divisions. The regular Army, being for the most part quartered in the south of England or in Ireland, is somewhat irregularly distributed amongst the commands ; there are two nearly complete divisions each in the Aldershot and the Irish com- mand, one complete division in the Eastern and one in the Southern com- mand. At the head of each command is a general officer (styled the general-officer commanding-in-chief.) He is assisted by a general-officer of lower rank who is responsible for questions of administration apart from training and defence questions.

The land forces are administered by an Army Council which is composed