WAR SERVICE ROLL OF the Members of The ROYAL HOUSEHOLDS and Estates of THE KING and The QUEEN

This most interesting document contains the service records of some 650 members of the Household and Estates of the King and Queen who served in the forces during the Great War. The names are grouped under four headings: Killed, Wounded, Served in a Theatre of War or afloat and Served at Home. Of those who saw active service 89 were killed, 156 were wounded and the third category, i.e., those who served abroad or afloat but were not casualties, numbered 232. The names in each category are listed alphabetically and as well as giving name, unit, date of joining and theatres where served, the information on each entry includes nature and place of employment or department. Thus we have Gardeners, Stablemen, Lamplighters, Porters, Equerries, Extra Equerries, Gamekeepers, Footmen, Clerks, Cooks, Heralds, Gentlemen Ushers, Yeomen of the Guard and one splendidly entitled Thoroughbred Stallion Man, at the Sandringham stud. They came from Sandringham, Windsor Castle, Windsor Royal Gardens and Farm, Balmoral, the Royal Mews and the Lord Chamberlain’s Department/Office.
Of course the thing of particular interest with this nominal roll is how it matches up with the story of The Vanished Battalion (by Nigel Mcreery), the 1/5th Norfolks at Gallipoli, based on the BBC TV documentary All The King’s Men starring David Jason in the role of Capt Beck, commandng the Sandringham Company, which disappeared during an attack on the Turkish positions on 12 August 1915. The answer is it doesn’t. In Appendix I and II of the book the Roll of Honour of officers and men for 12 August is given; of the thirteen officers killed only one, Capt Beck, and of the 128 other ranks killed only eight are shown among the members of the Royal Household and Estates. At a rough count there were 180 Sandringham men out of the 650 listed in the War Service Roll, and they served in various regiments and corps as well as the Navy and RFC – not just the Norfolks. In fact I could find only fifty who most likely would have been serving in 1/5th Norfolks at Gallipoli in August 1915, and of these the only officer was Beck. This War Service Roll does not feature in the bibliography quoted in The Vanished Battalion.