Royal Marines Historical Time Line, Volume One

Royal Marines Historical Time Line

© Copyright 2012 by Terry Aspinall

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means electronic, mechanical, photographic (photocopying) recording, or otherwise without prior permission in writing from the author.

ISBN: 9781370340576

Published by Terry Aspinall

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Dedication

I would like to dedicate this book to all Royal Marines both past and present.

We are all members of one big family and treat each other with great respect.

We are always ready to help each other, no matter what.

We have all helped shape the Corps into what it is today.

Having all contributed to our glorious 354 year history.

Terry Aspinall 2018.

...............................................

"As I enter my twilight years I remember my modest service with the Royal Marines with great affection. As they say; Once a Marine always a Marine. (RMV 202910 - 20/06/1956-Mne.)

In our compulsive, consumer - oriented society, which is fast losing its direction, the Green Beret of the Royal Marines Commandos stands alone as being a rare pearl of great price. It is a true symbol of excellence, dedication and professionalism; an accolade for those who push themselves beyond the limits of human endurance. In an age when standards are crumbling, the Green Beret is as British as the Union Jack, for it represents true grit and dogged individual determination. The Green Beret is not for sale -though some may have been won by more sweat and assiduity than others. Thousands have sought to attain it, but along the way many have wilted and failed. It is a classless symbol of fortitude and achievement."

Charles Lovelace RM 2018.

Acknowledgement

I would like to thank all who have sent material for me to add to this Time Line.

Cover photo from 'rpdefence.over.blog.com'

Anderson. (Andy) Edward

Edward. John

Archer. Dan

Bentinck. Mark

Burstow. Roger

Donald Alistair

Eaves. Jack

Forster. George

Gilbert. John

Gitsham. Sid

Goodwin. Graham

kaisercross.com

Leaney Roy

Little M.G

Pennell Ritchie

Rawlinson. John

Reece. Michael

Seed. Roger

Spiers. Bridget

Stevenson. Matt

Swales. Roy

Taylor. Mike

Tompitt.

Westwood Ann

Whitworth. Cleve

Introduction

Upon explaining to a fellow Royal Marine that my latest project was to try and put together an article about the Royal Marines history. His first response was to tell me that it's been done many many times before. His reply caught me off guard and made me even more determined to carry on with my project. I went on to explain that I believe I have something a little different. I then went on to explain that I was trying to record every single day of our 354 year history. As the Royal Marines have served in all parts of the world, something was happening every single day. While some Royal Marines were serving in Europe, others were serving in the Far East. I wanted to bring it all together on an enlarged 'Historical Time Line'. Although I do realise that this is a mammoth task and will probably take several years to complete. If in fact it can be completed. Here is the first Edition. I hope to publish up dated editions whenever possible, or at least on a yearly basis.

My first attempt was to build a website to start gathering as much information as possible. I will try and keep it running as long as possible. Although my long term idea was to try and hand it over to a Royal Marine organisation, which I still hope is possible?

www.royal-marines.net

www.terryaspinall.com

It’s a possibility that some of the early dates might be wrong owing to the changes made during the 1600's and early1700's.

The Old Style (O.S.) way of dating events and documents known as the Julian Year was changed in most Catholic countries in 1582. It was replaced with a New Style (NS) known as the Gregorian Year that was adjusted to start on the 1st January. This change was also implemented in Protestant and Orthodox countries some time later. In England, Wales, Ireland and the British colonies, the change of the start of the year and the changeover from the Julian calendar occurred in 1752 under the Calendar (New Style) Act of 1750. In Scotland, the legal start of the year had already been moved to 1st January (in 1600), although Scotland continued to use the Julian calendar until 1752. Many cultures and countries now using the Gregorian calendar have different old styles of dating, depending on the type of calendar they used before the change.

During the first couple of hundred years the use of the English Language was different from today. As most of our early history is gained from books and letters of the time, I have used quotes, please allow for that.

sic; The Latin word meaning thus, so, as such, or in such a manner. It is used when writing quoted material to indicate that an incorrect or unusual spelling, phrase, punctuation, or meaning in the quote has been reproduced verbatim from the original and is not a transcription error (that is, it appeared thus in the original). It is normally placed within the quoted material, in square brackets and often italicised [sic]. Alternatively, it can appear after the quote in parentheses (round brackets) (sic). Where the quoted material is a known error, and the correct word or phrase is known, it may be included, preceded by recte, Latin for rightly; this is common in palaeography.

Where possible I will use the (sic) at the end of a quote to show it’s an original quote. Although it might not happen overnight as I have already added over 250,000 words, and it will take time going through the complete article.

Reference Material

Bibliography of the Royal Marines.

A list of Reference books used in the making of this Time Line.

Having been a historic researcher for several years, I would just like to explain how hard it is to find the truth. About ten years ago I was honoured to be a member of a small group of five aviation historians from around the world. Our challenge was to try and prove that John Dickenson an Australian was the person who invented the modern day Hang Glider. The biggest problem we had was that every single book that had been wrote on the subject had all got it wrong. As with all researchers we rely on books to help us. However, when ever the early books were published with wrongful information. Other researchers use that wrongful information, and so all the readers of later books believe what they read. Although I can report that our little group were very lucky and were able to contact the actual people who helped the sport of Hang Gliding grow worldwide. We were also very lucky that most of them were still alive. The book on the subject is called 'Correcting History'.

Likewise, with the Royal Marines very early history, from the 1600's to the middle 1900's. All we have are several books on the subject, and we have to believe them as we have no other source of information? I have a lot more information and data on the Royal Marines that is sadly not dated. However, I do hope to add it to the Time Line at some time.

……………………………………………..

Front cover photo from 'rpdefence.over.blog.com'

A History of the Island of St. Helena by T. H. Brooke Esq Published in 1824.

An Historic Review of the Royal Marine Corps: from its original institution down to the present era, by Alexander Gillespie. Printed and Sold by M. Swinney Birmingham 15th November 1803.

A Heroic Record of the British Navy by Archibald Hurd and H. H. Bashford. A Short History of the Naval War during 1914-1918. Garden City New York Doubleday, Page and Company 1919.

A List of the Officers of the Army and of the Corps of Royal Marines. From the War office January 1826.

British Battles Volume I. by James Grant. Published by Cassell Petter & Galpin. London 1891.

Britain's Sea Soldiers: (Volume 1) A history of the Royal Marines and their predecessors and of their services in action, ashore and afloat, and upon sundry other occasions of moment, by Cyril Field RMLI, Foreword by Admiral of the fleet, Earl Beaty G.C.B. The Lyceum Press, Handover Street Liverpool 1924.

Britain's Sea Soldiers: (Volume 2) A history of the Royal Marines and their predecessors and of their services in action, ashore and afloat, and upon sundry other occasions of moment, by Cyril Field RMLI, Foreword by Admiral of the fleet, Earl Beaty G.C.B. The Lyceum Press, Handover Street Liverpool 1924.

Britain's Sea Soldiers: A record of the Royal Marines during the War 1914-1919, compiled by General Sir H.E. Blumberg K.C.B. Royal Marines. Devonport, Swiss & Co. Naval and Military Printers and Publishers. 111 and 112Fore Street. [1927).

Brother Surgeons by Garet Rogers, Transworld Publications 1957.

By Sea and Land, Some Naval Doings. By E. Hilton Young, MP, Lieutenant Commander R.N.V.R.T. C. & E.C. Jack Ltd. 25 &36 Paternoster Row, London, E.C. and Edinburgh.

Captain R.G.S. Lang’s Report, Plymouth Argyll box and Peter Dunstan’s documentation of both Royal Marine Detachments can be viewed by appointment at the Royal Marines Museum Archive, Southsea.

CLARET Operations and Confrontation, 1964-1966 by Raffi Gregorian.

Cleve Whitworth (RMAQ President) personal Royal Marine library.

Commando 1942 - 45, Britain's Secret Commando by Osprey Publishing.

Cyprus Crisis - 1955-56. The Story of 'B' Troop 45 Commando Royal Marines by Charles Hart. The Royal Marine Historical Society. Printed by Holbrook printers Norway Road Portsmouth Hants, PO3 5HX.

Dictionary of Battles by Thomas Benfield Harbottle. Published by Swan Sonnenschein & Co Ltd, London 1904.

Echoes of Old Wars. The personal and unofficial letters and accounts bygone Battles, both by land and on sea: by those that were there. 1513 – 1854. A Marine Anthology. Compiled and annotated by Colonel C. Field, R.M.L.I. Herbert Jenkins Ltd 2 York Street St. James’s London S.W.1.

'Globe & Laurel' the Royal Marines magazine.

'Grey Funnel Line' Face Book Page.

History of the Royal Marines 1837-1914. by H.E. Blumberg, with Minor Editing by Alaster Donald.

Historical Record of the Marine Corps. An account of their formation and service from 1664 to 1748. Cannon Richard 1779 – 1865.

Historical Records of the Royal Marine Forces; Volume 1 (1755 to 1805). By Paul Harris Nicolas Lieutenant Royal Marine. Published by Thomas and William Boone 29 New Bond Street London 1845.

Historical Record of the Royal Marine Forces by Nicolas Paul Harris Lieutenant Royal Marines Volume 1. London: Thomas and William Boone. 29 New Bond Street.

Historical Record of the Royal Marine Forces by Nicolas Paul Harris Lieutenant Royal Marines Volume 2. London: Thomas and William Boone. 29 New Bond Street.

Historical Record of the Thirty First or the Huntingdonshire Regiment of Foot. by Richard Cannon Esq,

In Many Parts Memoirs of a Marine. By Lieutenant Colonel W. P. Drury, C.B.E. Royal Marines. Joint author of ‘The Flag Lieutenant’, Author of the Peradventures of Private Pagett. By Fisher Unwin Ltd London: Adelphi Terrace, First Published in 1926.

Inside the Commandos by James D. Ladd.

Jack Wardle, formerly HMS Repulse, has produced a nominal roll of the HMS Repulse RM Detachment. 

John Nicol, 'Memoirs of John Nicol Mariner' (1822).

The Last Coleraine Militia www.ecohcoy.tripod.com

Malaya and Borneo, Counter Insurgency Operations:1 by E.D. Smith.

Memoirs. The Late Major General Andrew Burn, The Royal Marines, a collection from his journals. Second Edition. London Printed and sold by Messer’s W. Winchester and Son, 61 the Strand 1861.

Memorial Bunker Hill. By Oliver Wexdell Holmes (Grandmother’s Story of Bunker-Hill Battle.) Copyright, 1775 by James R. Osgood & Co. 'No Picnic' (The Falklands War) By Julian Thompson. Published in the UK in 1985 by Leo Cooper in Association with Secker and Warburg Ltd. ISBN: 0-436-5202-4.

Moon Over Malaya: A Tale of the Argyll's and Marines by Jonathan Moffatt and Audrey Holmes McCormick (revised edition published by Tempus Publications of Stroud October 2001).

'Nelson’s Marines at Malta' – RMHS 1995. by Brian N. Tarpey.

Nothing Impossible. General Editor Lieutenant Colonel Ewen Southby-Tailyour OBE RM Publication: October 2010, ISBN: 978 1 906507 237.

On Four Fronts with the Royal Navy: By Geoffrey Sparrow MC and J N MacBean Ross MC. (Surgeons RN). Published by Hodder and Stoughton, London, New York and Toronto 1918.

Per mare Per Terram, Reminiscences. Thirty two years military, Naval, and constabulary service. By Major W. H. Poyntz. Late Royal Marine Light Infantry. Chief Constable of Nottingham and County of Essex. The Economic Printing & Publishing Co. Ltd. 30 Bouverie Street. 1802.

Researchers on the 2nd Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders will find a wealth of material in the Regimental Museum and Archive, Stirling Castle. Particularly interesting is the Battalion Record Book of QMS Aitken.

Royal Marine Commando, the History of Britain's elite fighting force by James D. Ladd.

Royal Marine Commando 1950 - 83. From Korea to the Falklands by Will FowlerI. Published by Osprey 2009 SBN: 978-184603-372-8.

Royal Marines Historical Society. Royal Marines Museum.

Royal Marines History & Traditional Facts. Alpha Company Royal Marines Cadets website.

Royal Navy Exhibition 1891. The Official Catalogue and Guide. W.P. Griffith & Sons, Limited. Official Printers Prujean Square Old Bailey E, C,

Rupert Brooke, 'The Soldier', The Complete Poems of Rupert Brooke, London, 1933, p.148

S.B.S. The Invisible Raiders by James D. Ladd.

Telegraph Newspaper UK. Thursday 5th July 2016.

The British Commandos in the Second World War. In Defeat Defiance! By Alex Williams B.A.

The British Raid on Essex 1814. By Jerry Roberts, Executive Director, Connecticut River Museum.

The Leicester Chronicle Saturday 18th January 1812.

The Maidstone Journal and Kentish Advertiser.

The Maidstone Gazette and the Kentish Courier.

'The Royal Marines 1919-2000' by J.D. Ladd.

The Thin Red Line: 2nd Argyll's in Malaya by Brigadier I. M. Stewart (Thomas Nelson 1947).

The Filibusters, The Story of the Special Boat Service. By John Lodwick.

The Green Beret. The Story of the Commandos 1940 – 1945 by Hilary St. George Saunders.

The Historical Records of the Royal Marines. Compiled and edited by Major L. Edye RMLI Barrister at law. Middle Temple. Volume 1 1664 – 1701. London: Harrison and Sons 50 Pall Mall Book sellers to her Majesty and the Prince of Wales. 1892.

The Knife Man by Wendy Moore, Published by Broadway Books 2006.

The Leicester Chronicle Saturday 18th January 1812.

The Lobsters Are Entirely Unfit...... The Life of the Royal Marines Detachment of Somerset, Cape York Australia. By Cleve Whitworth 1996.

The London Gazette first report published of the Raid on the Medway16th June1667.

The London Gazette re Captain Halliday No. 27262. p. 3. 1st January 1901.

The London Gazette re Major Francis Hardy published September 1915.

The London Gazette re L/C Parker published on 22nd June 1917.

The London Gazette re Major Lumsden No30122 published September 1915.

The London Gazette re Captain Bamford published 23 July 1918.

The Marine Corps: An historical record of the Marine Corps, an account of their formation and services from 1664 to 1748. Compiled by Richard Cannon, Esq. (1779-1865).

The New Zealand Wars: A history of the Maori campaigns and the pioneering period by Cowan, James (1922). Volume I 1845–1864.

The Papers of Major C.D. Aylwin RM can be viewed at the Imperial War Museum Reading room by appointment. This includes a nominal roll of the Prince of Wales RM Detachment and a detailed captivity diary.

The Royal Marines 1956 - 84 (Osprey Men-At-Arms series) by William Fowler.

The Royal Marine Artillery 1804 – 1923 Volume 1 1804 – 1859. By Edwart Fraser and Charles L. G. Carr-Laughton. London the Royal United Service Institution Whitehall, S. W. 1930.

The Royal Marine Artillery 1804 – 1923 Volume 2 1859 – 1923. By Edwart Fraser and Charles L. G. Carr-Laughton. London the Royal United Service Institution Whitehall, S. W. 1930.

The Royal Marines Chronology 1664 - 2010.

The Royal Naval Catalogue for 1891.

The Royal Marines Band Service by John Ambler.

The Royal Marines by Sea by Land by John S. Murray. South African Military History Society.

The Royal Navy: A history from the earliest times to the present. Markham Clements R. (Clements Robert).

The SBS, The Full Story by Philip Warner.

The Skepton Mallett Home Words. January 1876 'Reminiscence of the Crimea Campaign' from S.G. Blacker.

'Who Dies Fighting' by Angus Rose (Jonathan Cape, London 1944).

Websites

www.anzacportal.dva.gov.au/history/conflicts/gallipoli-and-anzacs/events/bravery-awards-gallipoli/lance-corporal-walter-parker

www.archive.org/stream/cihm_48353/cihm_48353_djvu.txt

www.axfordsabode.org.uk/spirit.htm

www.axfordsabode.org.uk/spirit.htm

www.britishbattles.com

www.commandoveterans.org

www.devonheritage.org

www.ecohcoy.tripod.com

www.eliteukforces.info/special-boat-service/history/

www.en.wikipedia.org

www.exeterflotilla.org/history

www.flyingmarines.com

www.gmic.co.uk/topic/37275-the-royal-marines

www.history.com/news/what-was-operation-mincemeat

www.hmsrichmond.org/avast/customs.htm

www.maltaramc.com/regmltgar/roymarine.html