1916 Easter Uprising - British Service Records

[paulseamus]

A question for the Brits with knowledge of the U.K. Service records.

Not a Milsurp question, but I am wanting to find out more about my Grandfather, who taught me the skills that I use to restore my Milsurps.

Is there a place were you can search historical British Army Service records?

I am wanting to locate my Grandfathers records. All I have is his personal details.

George Charles CHAMP
Born Islington 4 October 1895
Parents Charles Champ and Kate White

He served during WW1 but rather than going to the Western Front he was sent to Ireland during the Easter uprisings.

The online searches that I have made to date, do not seem to include records for this internal conflict.

There appears to be serveral commercial sites that happily promise results, but once you pay their small fee you find that they have little information.

Any direction that can be given will be appreciated.

Cheers

Paul

Information

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[30Three]

A few years ago I got copies of the full service records of my wife's Grandfather, who served with the BEF in 1914 and who was wounded at Ypres in November 1914. It was very easy because I had his regiment details and his number. He was in the Irish Guards. I contacted them and they have a special records department; they supplied photocopies of all documents for 25 pounds. It was a lot of stuff. For example we did not know he was a reserve in 1910 and joined full time in 1912; We found details of his injury, details of hospitals and even a fine for being late on parade! plus seeing his signature on the sign up papers etc. All this was presented to my wife's Father along with a trip to Ypres.
If you have some more details you should be able to get some info. Try asking family for old photos of him in uniform that may identify regiment etc. I think you need to contact the regiment, so that's really the info you need to get first.

[Gil Boyd]

Paul Seamus,
Could he be 54741 Gunner G.C. Champ of the Royal Field Artillery perchance?

If so you can access his new record via: https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk...eld-artillery/

Best of luck

PS. You might also like to try Glasgow where Infantry & Manning have their central database now via this link. Because you are out of the UK it may take a bit longer but they will respond within a couple of months once the application form has been filled in correctly and you haveshown correctly to be one of his next of kin using a utility bill etc.They will send you absolutely everything known about him serving HM Forces Get a copy of military service records - GOV.UK

[Peter Laidler]

While you're there Gil, did service in Ireland during the 1916 - 1922 'earlier nastiness' warrant a GSM of sorts as in our time of 'unpleasantness'?

[Gil Boyd]

Peter,
Absolutely right and an interesting period in BRITISH military history.

British soldiers sent to Ireland during the unrest period of 1916 were not given a medal per se, but the Irish Freedom fighters were.

The British soldier was adorned with his "normal" honours of battle, such as in the Dublin Easter Rebellion of 1916, a Distinquished Conduct Medal given for example to CSM KING of the 8th Battalion Notts and Derbys Regiment in storming the various buildings in the centre of Dublin for "Gallantry", when in fact all the Republican's were given was an Easter Rebellion Medal for being part of their own uprising, as Free State Freedom fighters from English rule, but NO GSM as we know it today as a General Service Medal.

The General Service Medal issued to the British Tommy which we are all familiar with in our service such as the pre 1962 or after 1962, with the relevant reversal of colours on the mauve and green ribbon was not in place at that time, with a Northern Ireland type bar attached to it.

If you read the detail in this uprising, the Republican's came very close to massacreing many more British soldiers, had they been led correctly, and had the rebel masses turned up like they should have done and was forecast, but instead confusion ruled within the Irish heirachy, it would have been a massacre with unbelievable consequences and even impacted the British Army of the day, and probably re written the history books and Northern Ireland as we knew it in our lifetime, which would not probably of occurrred IMHO.

What a strange beast history is. It is like life itself, one strays to a path to the right for one fleeting second, instead of the left and the whole of your life is changed forever!!
Sorry to ramble
Had these small but important changes occurred the Irish people would have had the whole of Ireland back in their hands, and there would have been no unecessary loss of British Soldiers lives from 1970 onwards again IMHO, but as I say, politics is a strange beast and always seems to win the day with total disregard to the soldiers life!!