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The Advent of the Volunteer Battalions and Linkages with Regular Regiments
  1. In the Cardwell reforms of 1873, regular infantry Regiments were paired together for alternate tours of home and foreign service. These new groupings were at first termed Brigades and given numbers; but in 1881 they were given new titles. Each pair was given a depot, and took the local militia under their wing. The two regular Battalions became 1st and 2nd Battalions, and the militia became 3rd , and in some cases 4th Battalions.
  2. At the same time, the Rifle Volunteer Corps became part of the new Regiments as Volunteer Battalions. Unlike the regular Battalions and the militia, however, the volunteer Battalions did not, at first, adopt the new Regimental titles.
  3. In 1881 the ancestors of The London Regiment stood as follows:
    1908 London Regiment Battalion The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment):
    22
    6th Surrey Rifle Volunteer Corps
    24
    8th Surrey Rifle Volunteer Corps
    The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment):
    1
    10th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps
    2
    23rd Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps
    The East Surrey Regiment:
    21
    1st Surrey (South London) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    23
    7th Surrey Rifle Volunteer Corps
    The Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment):
    20
    3rd Kent (West Kent) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    20
    4th Kent (Royal Arsenal) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    The Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment):
    3
    11th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps
    19
    17th Middlesex (North Middlesex) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    The King's Royal Rifle Corps:
    5
    1st City of London Volunteer Rifle Brigade
    6
    2nd London Rifle Volunteer Corps
    7
    3rd London Rifle Volunteer Corps
    9
    1st Middlesex (Victoria) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    13
    2nd Middlesex (South Middlesex) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    13
    4th Middlesex (West London) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    9
    6th Middlesex (St George's) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    15
    12th Middlesex (Civil Service) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    16
    13th Middlesex (Queen's) Rifle Volunteer Corps (Westminster)
    11
    21st Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (The Finsbury Rifle Volunteer Corps)
    12
    22nd Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (Central London Rangers)
    15
    25th Middlesex (Bank of England) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    The Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own):
    4
    1st Tower Hamlets Rifle Volunteer Corps
    17
    2nd Tower Hamlets Rifle Volunteer Corps
    14
    7th Middlesex (London Scottish) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    17
    15th Middlesex (The Customs and The Docks) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    18
    16th Middlesex (London Irish) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    10
    18th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps
    9
    19th Middlesex (St Giles's and St George's Bloomsbury) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    28
    20th Middlesex (Artists) Rifle Volunteer Corps
    8
    24th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps
  4. In 1883, six Rifle Volunteer Corps ( 6th and 8th Surrey, 10th and 23rd Middlesex, and 3rd and 4th Kent) adopted the titles of Volunteer Battalions of their parent regular Regiment; 7th Surrey followed in 1887. 11th Middlesex were transferred from The Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment) in 1890, and 1st Tower Hamlets from The Rifle Brigade in 1904, to become Volunteer Battalions of The Royal Fusiliers. Meanwhile, in 1888, an additional antecedent unit had been raised – 26th Middlesex (Cyclists).
  5. In 1904 the ancestors of The London Regiment stood as follows:
    1908 London Regiment Battalion
    (The number in square brackets after the title indicates the Regiment Volunteer Battalion number allotted in the 1880s by the parent regular Regiment but not used in the title)
    The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment):
    22
    3rd Volunteer Battalion
    24
    4th Volunteer Battalion
    The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment):
    1
    1st Volunteer Battalion
    2
    2nd Volunteer Battalion
    3
    3rd Volunteer Battalion
    4
    4th Volunteer Battalion
    The East Surrey Regiment:
    23
    4th Volunteer Battalion
    21
    1st Surrey (South London) Volunteer Rifle Corps [1VB]
    The Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment):
    20
    2nd Volunteer Battalion
    20
    3rd Volunteer Battalion
    The Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment):
    19
    17th Middlesex (North Middlesex) Volunteer Rifle Corps [4VB]
    The King's Royal Rifle Corps:
    5
    1st London Volunteer Rifle Corps (City of London Volunteer Rifle Brigade) [9VB]
    6
    2nd London Volunteer Rifle Corps [10VB]
    7
    3rd London Volunteer Rifle Corps [11VB]
    9
    1st Middlesex Volunteer Rifle Corps (The Victoria and St George's Rifles) [1VB]
    13
    2nd Middlesex (South Middlesex) Volunteer Rifle Corps [2VB]
    13
    4th Middlesex (West London) Volunteer Rifle Corps [3VB]
    15
    The Prince of Wales's Own 12th Middlesex (Civil Service) Volunteer Rifle Corps [5VB]
    16
    13th Middlesex (Queen's) Volunteer Rifle Corps (Westminster) [6VB]
    11
    21st Middlesex (Finsbury) Volunteer Rifle Corps [7VB]
    12
    22nd Middlesex Volunteer Rifle Corps (Central London Rangers) [8VB]
    The Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own):
    17
    2nd Tower Hamlets Volunteer Rifle Corps [9VB]
    14
    7th Middlesex (London Scottish) Volunteer Rifle Corps [1VB]
    17
    15th Middlesex (The Customs and The Docks) Volunteer Rifle Corps [2VB]
    18
    16th Middlesex (London Irish) Volunteer Rifle Corps [3VB]
    10
    18th Middlesex Volunteer Rifle Corps [4VB]
    9
    19th Middlesex (St Giles's and St George's Bloomsbury) Volunteer Rifle Corps [5VB]
    28
    20th Middlesex (Artists) Volunteer Rifle Corps [6VB]
    8
    24th Middlesex Volunteer Rifle Corps [7VB]
    Unattached:
    25
    26th Middlesex (Cyclist) Volunteer Rifle Corps
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