The 6th (Service) Battalion

The 6th Battalion was a “Service” Battalion raised specifically for the duration of the war in August 1914, as a part of 'K1' - Lord Kitcheners first call to arms for 100,000 men to fight for their country against the King’s enemies.

The Battalion was formed around a cadre of 200 experienced soldiers from the 3rd Reserve Battalion and attached to the 9th (Scottish) Division at Aldershot whilst training. When the 37th Division was formed in March 1915, the Battalion was moved to join them at Andover and trained on the Salisbury Plains where it was transferred into the 112th Brigade.

On the 21st April 1915, the Division moved to Cholderton on the south east boundary of the Salisbury plain and continued training in preparation for their entry into the war. By early June specialist training was in full swing and the troops realised they would not be waiting long before they got to grips with the enemy.

Finally, the Battalion boarded trains at Ludgershall Station, 7 miles north west of Andover, and eventually arrived at Southampton late that afternoon. They left English shores at 6.30pm on board the Empress Queen and landed at 7am at Le Havre in France on the 30th July 1915. Having gathered their supplies, the Division concentrated around St Omer before moving forward to the front line.

The 6th Battalion served entirely on the Western Front until disbanded in May 1918. Other than a brief spell attached to the 34th Division (7th July to 21st August 1916) following their horrendous losses on The Somme, the Brigade remained in the 37th Division for the entire war. During their service in France and Flanders the 37th Division was composed as follows:

• 110th Brigade - transferred to 21st Division in exchange for the 63rd Brigade on 7th July 1916
• 111th Brigade - attached to the 34th Division from 7th July to 21st August 1916.
• 112th Brigade - attached to the 34th Division from 7th July to 21st August 1916.

The 112th Brigade were made up of the following Battalions that fought together as a tactical unit until a major shake up in February 1918:

• 6th Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment.
• 8th Battalion of the East Lancashire Regiment.
• 10th Battalion of the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment.
• 11th Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment.

With the acute manpower shortage that had developed throughout 1917, the British Army reorganised itself into a smaller Army early in 1918, disbanding many of the Service Battalions and transferring the men into other units. As a result, the 112th Brigade became a three Battalion Brigade, having lost all its Battalions other than the Bedfords and gaining only two others in their place. The Brigade changed completely and included:

• 6th Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment.
• 1st Battalion of the Essex Regiment.
• 13th Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers.

The Battalion served in the new-look Brigade until it was finally disbanded itself in May 1918, during yet another reorganisation of the shrinking British Army. The men of the 6th Battalion were transferred into the 1st/1st Hertfordshire Battalion (known as "The Hert's Guards") and a small cadre were sent to train the newly arrived American Divisions for the summer. Finally, in August 1918, the cadre were disbanded and the 6th Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment ceased to exist.