The Battle of Gheluvelt October 31st 1914 "The Worcesters save the Empire"
The first shock of the German invasion came near to defeating the combined French and British Armies. The British Army stood to fight at Ypres. After ten days’ hard fighting, the 2nd Battalion, 350 strong, was the only reserve for the Gheluvelt sector. The Battalion was then resting in Polygon Wood. The line at Gheluvelt, […]
The Battle of Busaco 29th September 1810
In May 1810 Marshal Massena took command of the Army of Portugal, with orders from the Emperor Napoleon to capture Lisbon and drive Wellington and his British army out of the Peninsular. During the winter of 1809/10 Wellington’s engineers had built fortifications across the Lisbon isthmus, known as the Lines of Torres Vedras. As Massena […]
Malayan Gift Tin
The 1st Battalion, Worcestershire Regiment, fought in the Malayan Emergency of 1950-53. Many National Servicemen and volunteers spent weeks and months in patrolling the dense jungle, tracking down Communist-led bandits. These tins were sent out to the members of the Battalion at Christmas 1952. They were paid for by the Sergeant’s Mess Reunion, and contained […]
The Black Drummers
In 1759 ten slaves captured from the French were presented to the 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot for use as drummers, and started a tradition which would last nearly a century.Over the next 84 years nearly 50 black men were actively recruited to serve as drummers in the 29th. Each man was a volunteer, and […]
First World War Body Armour
This is a set of First World War body armour, used by the British Army. It has curved metal plates for the chest and the back, and was supposed to protect snipers and other vulnerable soldiers by stopping or deflecting bullets. Unfortunately, the metal is very thin, and probably would not have stopped a direct […]
The Sikh Wars, 1845-49
In the 1840’s the 29th Regiment of Foot were on garrison duty in India, and took part in both Sikh Wars. Despite being outnumbered and against some of the best troops in the world, the British fought two bloody and successful campaigns against the Sikhs, with the 29th in the thick of the action. The […]
Hitler's Clock
Hitler’s Clock – This electric clock was removed from the wall behind Hitler’s desk in his Conference Room, above the door into his ante-room, by Major H. F. Boddington on 26th July 1945. He was an officer of the Worcestershire Regiment, but had worked in the British Intelligence Service for most of the war. That […]
A new acquisition reminds us of the Indian Mutiny
Pierced with bullet holes and stained with blood from a brutal exchange that should have seen its wearer fatally wounded, the National Army Museum’s latest acquisition is a rare survivor from a bloody conflict. It is a unique 156-year-old military tunic that belonged to Lieutenant Campbell Clark, who was caught up in one of the many bloody […]
