Border Regiment War Diaries: Difference between revisions

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The '''Border Regiment War Diaries''' are military handwritten and typed documents that were usually written by junior officers each evening on the standard Army Form C.2118 to provide an account of the day's activities, even if very little occurred. These accounts, often associated as reports and intelligence summaries were regulation in the British Army since 1907. The commanding officer of each unit was ultimately the person responsible for ensuring the war diaries were written up and, therefore, accountable if they were not. Each war diary had to kept up to date, a day by day account for each single-month period throughout a unit's active service. Active service would continue until a time a unit was no longer required for active service overseas. This also included if a unit was disbanded (the unit ceased to exist) or it was amalgamated into another unit (also ceases to exist and partially absorbed into another unit). War diaries also included other relevant attached files, namely in the form of appendices containing operational orders, operational reports, sketches and maps to name a few. The war diaries would be signed off by the commanding officer and then passed on to higher ranking officers. These documented records of events were used extensively by the British Army's senior commanders to a) learn about the enemy, their movements, weaknesses and, wherever possible, to use this intelligence against them and b) as a historical reference of events that could be used in any future planning that would ultimately help win the war.

{{BRPortal}}The '''Border Regiment War Diaries''' are military handwritten and typed documents that were usually written by junior officers each evening on the standard Army Form C.2118 to provide an account of the day's activities, even if very little occurred. These accounts, often associated as reports and intelligence summaries were regulation in the British Army since 1907. The commanding officer of each unit was ultimately the person responsible for ensuring the war diaries were written up and, therefore, accountable if they were not. Each war diary had to kept up to date, a day by day account for each single-month period throughout a unit's active service. Active service would continue until a time a unit was no longer required for active service overseas. This also included if a unit was disbanded (the unit ceased to exist) or it was amalgamated into another unit (also ceases to exist and partially absorbed into another unit). War diaries also included other relevant attached files, namely in the form of appendices containing operational orders, operational reports, sketches and maps to name a few. The war diaries would be signed off by the commanding officer and then passed on to higher ranking officers. These documented records of events were used extensively by the British Army's senior commanders to a) learn about the enemy, their movements, weaknesses and, wherever possible, to use this intelligence against them and b) as a historical reference of events that could be used in any future planning that would ultimately help win the war.

All war dairies are historical records preserving the actions of many units across several different theatres of war: France and Flanders, Italy, Gallipoli, Salonika, Palestine, Mesopotamia and Russia. They were instrumental towards learning about the enemy and strategic planning for offensives and counter-offisives but they were also, at times, accounts of awards, honours and of the sad losses that were witnessed on a daily basis. Other ranks were recorded simply as numbers against 'killed,' 'wounded,' 'missing,' whilst officers were listed by name. There were days when major battles took place, some in the space of a few hours, and this is most obvious where the accounts of the unit's actions have been recorded on multiple pages of extremely detailed information, recounted by the hand of the junior officer with precise and astute attention. Other days where very little happened were recorded merely as one line accounts of something uneventful, maybe along the lines of attending a Sunday Service, bayonet practice, providing fatigues<ref>A group of soldiers (or prisoners) that are assigned to perform manual tasks or duties, for their own or other units.</ref> for the Royal Engineers or minor sniper activity. In any event, war diaries were used extensively every day by a variety of different officers for one main purpose, to accurately record each unit's actions for the purpose of using the information in the fight against the enemy.

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	The '''Border Regiment War Diaries''' are military handwritten and typed documents that were usually written by junior officers each evening on the standard Army Form C.2118 to provide an account of the day's activities, even if very little occurred. These accounts, often associated as reports and intelligence summaries were regulation in the British Army since 1907. The commanding officer of each unit was ultimately the person responsible for ensuring the war diaries were written up and, therefore, accountable if they were not. Each war diary had to kept up to date, a day by day account for each single-month period throughout a unit's active service. Active service would continue until a time a unit was no longer required for active service overseas. This also included if a unit was disbanded (the unit ceased to exist) or it was amalgamated into another unit (also ceases to exist and partially absorbed into another unit). War diaries also included other relevant attached files, namely in the form of appendices containing operational orders, operational reports, sketches and maps to name a few. The war diaries would be signed off by the commanding officer and then passed on to higher ranking officers. These documented records of events were used extensively by the British Army's senior commanders to a) learn about the enemy, their movements, weaknesses and, wherever possible, to use this intelligence against them and b) as a historical reference of events that could be used in any future planning that would ultimately help win the war.		{{BRPortal}}The '''Border Regiment War Diaries''' are military handwritten and typed documents that were usually written by junior officers each evening on the standard Army Form C.2118 to provide an account of the day's activities, even if very little occurred. These accounts, often associated as reports and intelligence summaries were regulation in the British Army since 1907. The commanding officer of each unit was ultimately the person responsible for ensuring the war diaries were written up and, therefore, accountable if they were not. Each war diary had to kept up to date, a day by day account for each single-month period throughout a unit's active service. Active service would continue until a time a unit was no longer required for active service overseas. This also included if a unit was disbanded (the unit ceased to exist) or it was amalgamated into another unit (also ceases to exist and partially absorbed into another unit). War diaries also included other relevant attached files, namely in the form of appendices containing operational orders, operational reports, sketches and maps to name a few. The war diaries would be signed off by the commanding officer and then passed on to higher ranking officers. These documented records of events were used extensively by the British Army's senior commanders to a) learn about the enemy, their movements, weaknesses and, wherever possible, to use this intelligence against them and b) as a historical reference of events that could be used in any future planning that would ultimately help win the war.

	All war dairies are historical records preserving the actions of many units across several different theatres of war: France and Flanders, Italy, Gallipoli, Salonika, Palestine, Mesopotamia and Russia. They were instrumental towards learning about the enemy and strategic planning for offensives and counter-offisives but they were also, at times, accounts of awards, honours and of the sad losses that were witnessed on a daily basis. Other ranks were recorded simply as numbers against 'killed,' 'wounded,' 'missing,' whilst officers were listed by name. There were days when major battles took place, some in the space of a few hours, and this is most obvious where the accounts of the unit's actions have been recorded on multiple pages of extremely detailed information, recounted by the hand of the junior officer with precise and astute attention. Other days where very little happened were recorded merely as one line accounts of something uneventful, maybe along the lines of attending a Sunday Service, bayonet practice, providing fatigues<ref>A group of soldiers (or prisoners) that are assigned to perform manual tasks or duties, for their own or other units.</ref> for the Royal Engineers or minor sniper activity. In any event, war diaries were used extensively every day by a variety of different officers for one main purpose, to accurately record each unit's actions for the purpose of using the information in the fight against the enemy.		All war dairies are historical records preserving the actions of many units across several different theatres of war: France and Flanders, Italy, Gallipoli, Salonika, Palestine, Mesopotamia and Russia. They were instrumental towards learning about the enemy and strategic planning for offensives and counter-offisives but they were also, at times, accounts of awards, honours and of the sad losses that were witnessed on a daily basis. Other ranks were recorded simply as numbers against 'killed,' 'wounded,' 'missing,' whilst officers were listed by name. There were days when major battles took place, some in the space of a few hours, and this is most obvious where the accounts of the unit's actions have been recorded on multiple pages of extremely detailed information, recounted by the hand of the junior officer with precise and astute attention. Other days where very little happened were recorded merely as one line accounts of something uneventful, maybe along the lines of attending a Sunday Service, bayonet practice, providing fatigues<ref>A group of soldiers (or prisoners) that are assigned to perform manual tasks or duties, for their own or other units.</ref> for the Royal Engineers or minor sniper activity. In any event, war diaries were used extensively every day by a variety of different officers for one main purpose, to accurately record each unit's actions for the purpose of using the information in the fight against the enemy.