 The Territorial Force (T.F.) were not liable for overseas service.
In time of national emergency, the troops of the regular army would leave for service overseas, and in their place, responsibility for Home Defence would fall to the men of the Territorial Force. The Government however, realised that with the larger conscription-generated armies amassing on the continent, that should a war come and the Army be called to Europe, that a reserve would be needed to supplement them and provide a pool of trained men to go and fight. Thus, in 1912, The "Imperial Service Obligation" was introduced for the T.F. By signing Army Form E.624, the T.F. soldier agreed to “subject himself to liability to serve in any place outside the United Kingdom in the event of National emergency.” It was a voluntary undertaking on the part of the Territorial Soldier, and in nearly every case, entire units signed-up to a man, to serve overseas if the need arose. In compensation, the volunteer received a white metal brooch bearing the words “IMPERIAL SERVICE” which he could wear above the right hand pocket of his service dress jacket, just like Sergeant Sydney Green, above, of 4th Suffolk whose badge can be seen above. Comments are closed.
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Welcome to our online 'chronicle' that charted the history of the many battalions of the Suffolk Regiment throughout their service during the Great War.
This record is now closed, but we have retained all our original posts here for you to search through and in the fullness of time, we hope to add to it as and where new stories come to light. It was at times, a challenging but rewarding endeavour which has helped many people in their research of the Regiment. If you know the specific month of an action of the Regiment, you can search for it in the list below: Archives
February 2025
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