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- 2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment during the Great War -


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World War 1 One ww1 wwII greatwar great 1914 1918 first battalion regiment

2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment



   2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment were in Curragh serving with 14th Brigade, 5th Division when war broke out in August 1914. They mobilised and proceeded to France landing at Le Harve on the 17th of August 1914 and entrained to La Cateau. They went into action on the 23rd forming a defensive line near Wasmes on the Mons-Conde canal at The Battle of Mons and the subsequent retreat. They were also in action at The Battle of Le Cateau, The Battle of the Marne, The Battle of the Aisne, at La Bassee, Messines and The First Battle of Ypres. In 1915 they were in action at The Second Battle of Ypres and the Capture of Hill 60. In autumn 1915, many units from 5th Division were exchanged with units from the newly arrived volunteer 32nd Division, to stiffen the inexperienced Division with regular army troops and the 2nd Manchesters moved with 14th Brigade to 32nd Division. In 1916 they were in action during the Battles of the Somme 1916, In 1917 they were involved in Operations on the Ancre and the pursuit of the German retreat to the Hindenburg Line. On the 6th of February 1918 the battalion transferred to 96th Brigade, still with 32nd Division. In 1918 they were in action on the Somme, in the Battles of the Hindenburg Line and the Final Advance in Picardy.

21st of August 1913 Lecture

9th of August 1914 At Southampton

13th of August 1914 Landing in France

13th of August 1914   Landing in France

14th of August 1914 Advance Party Leave

15th of August 1914  Arriving Busigny

16th of August 1914 Billets Organised

17th of August 1914  Brigades Pass Through

18th of August 1914 15th Bde Arrives

20th of August 1914 Preparing to March

21st of August 1914 March Instructions

22nd of August 1914  On the March

23rd Aug 1914 Patrols

23rd of August 1914 Holding the Line

24th Aug 1914 Entrenching

24th Aug 1914 Rear Guard

25th Aug 1914 Artillery in Action

25th Aug 1914 In Defence

26th Aug 1914 In Action

26th Aug 1914 Orders

26th Aug 1914 Under Fire

26th of August 1914  Holding Position

27th Aug 1914 Defensive line

27th of August 1914 Retirement in the Dark

28th Aug 1914 On the March

28th of August 1914 An Exhausting March

29th Aug 1914 Bivouack

29th of August 1914 Sleeping in the Streets

30th Aug 1914 On the March

31st Aug 1914 On the March

31st of August 1914  Pursued by Germans

1st of September 1914 A Delayed March

2nd of September 1914 An Early March

3rd of September 1914 Across the Marne

5th of September 1914 March Finished

6th of September 1914 Army Advances

7th of September 1914  Another March

8th of September 1914 An Early March

9th of September 1914 On the Move

10th of September 1914 Marching

11th of September 1914 Marching

12th of September 1914 A Wet March

13th of September 1914 A Showery March

14th of September 1914 Broken Bridges

15th of September 1914 An Attack Falters

16th of September 1914 Bad Roads

17th of September 1914 Artillery Reinforced

18th of September 1914 Some Enemy Firing

19th of September 1914 Trenches Fired Constantly

20th of September 1914 Sappers Make a Bridge

21st of September 1914  Missy on Fire

22nd of September 1914 Enemy Retiring?

23rd of September 1914 Heavy Shelling

25th of September 1914  Very Quiet

26th of September 1914 Moves Successful

27th of September 1914 A False Alarm

28th of September 1914 Shelling

29th of September 1914 Quiet

30th of September 1914 Astride the Aisne

1st of October 1914 A Withdrawal

2nd of October 1914 Moonlit Relief

3rd of October 1914 On the March

4th of October 1914 On the March

5th of October 1914 A New HQ

6th of October 1914 Orders to Move

7th of October 1914 A Train Ride

11th of October 1914 New Billets  location map

12th of October 1914 Orders to Advance  location map

13th of October 1914 Advance Resumed  location map

14th of October 1914 Supporting the French  location map

15th of October 1914 Advance Ordered to Continue  location map

16th of October 1914 Empty German Trenches  location map

17th of October 1914 An Advance  location map

18th of October 1914 Advance Resumed  location map

19th of October 1914  Slow Progress   location map

20th of October 1914 A Fluid Front  location map

22nd of October 1914 Our Line Attacked  location map

23rd of October 1914 Withdrawing to a New Line  location map

24th of October 1914 Germans Attack  location map

25th of October 1914 More Attacks  location map

26th of October 1914 Germans Repulsed  location map

27th of October 1914 A Counter Attack  location map

28th of October 1914 Counter Attack Falters   location map

29th of October 1914  Determined German Attack  location map

30th of October 1914 German Attack Fades  location map

31st of October 1914 A Counter Attack   location map

1st of November 1914 Dispositions  location map

2nd of November 1914 Three Groups Organised  location map

3rd of November 1914  Situation Report  location map

5th of November 1914  French Attack Falters

8th of November 1914 Half-hearted Attacks  location map

14th Nov 1914 Defences  location map

14th of November 1914 Reliefs

15th of November 1914  2nd Corps Reorganise

17th of November 1914 Relief  location map

18th of November 1914 Shell Fire

19th of November 1914 Movements   location map

22nd of November 1914 In the Line  location map

23rd of November 1914  Germans Digging In  location map

24th of November 1914  Our Artillery Effective  location map

25th of November 1914  Royal Scots Shelled

26th of November 1914 Quiet and Misty  location map

27th of November 1914 Relief Commences  location map

28th of November 1914  On the Move

29th of November 1914  Infantry Distribution  location map

2nd of December 1914  A Moonlit Night  location map

3rd of December 1914 Instructions

4th of December 1914 Reliefs  location map

4th of December 1914 Relief  location map

5th of December 1914  Relief Complete   location map

6th of December 1914 Frosty Night

8th of December 1914 Poor Conditions

9th of December 1914 Active Patrols  location map

10th of December 1914 Naval Victory Cheered

14th of December 1914  French on the Offensive  location map

15th of December 1914  Operations Resumed  location map

16th of December 1914  Instruction  location map

18th of December 1914 No Progress

21st of December 1914 Howitzers Silenced  location map

23rd of December 1914 Frosty Night

24th of December 1914 Heavies Silence Enemy  location map

26th of December 1914 Messines Square Targetted   location map

27th of December 1914 Some Shelling  location map

28th of December 1914 Report  location map

31st of December 1914 Message  location map

4th of January 1915 Trench Work  location map

7th of January 1915 Very Wet Weather  location map

8th of January 1915 Trenches Damaged   location map

10th of January 1915 Flooding and Baling  location map

12th of January 1915 Enemy Very Alert  location map

15th of January 1915 Germans Fire Slowly  location map

16th of January 1915 Squally Weather  location map

18th of January 1915 Artillery Active   location map

19th of January 1915  Thaw Sets In  location map

21st of January 1915 Wulverghem Shelled  location map

22nd of January 1915 Aeroplane-Aided Shelling  location map

26th of January 1915 Cheshire's Sniping Effective  location map

29th of January 1915  Artillery Intervenes  location map

1st of February 1915  No 7 Trench Hit

4th of February 1915 Chicken Sentries

7th of February 1915 Sectors Rearranged   location map

10th of February 1915 Artillery Redistribution  location map

13th of February 1915 Trenches Maintained  location map

14th of February 1915 Germans Plan an Attack?

15th of February 1915 Heavy Rain

16th of February 1915 Baling All Night  location map

21st of February 1915 8th Howitzers Leave  location map

22nd of February 1915 Cheering and Rockets  location map

23rd of February 1915  B Sector Shelled

24th of February 1915 Snipers Checked  location map

25th of February 1915  Trench Mortar Explodes  location map

28th of February 1915  Artillery Reorganised  location map

1st of March 1915  Quiet  location map

3rd of March 1915 Enemy Fire Silenced  location map

16th Mar 1915 Under Fire  location map

16th March 1915  Information

18th of March 1915 Trench Mortars

21st of March 1915 Intelligence

30th of March 1915  Hostile MG Damaged?   location map

31st March 1915  Working Parties  location map

31st of March 1915 Staff

1st of April 1915 Situation Normal  location map

2nd of April 1915 Quiet Day  location map

7th of April 1915 Mostly Quiet   location map

8th of April 1915 Another Quiet Day

11th of April 1915 Train Fired On  location map

12th of April 1915 German Planes Active   location map

17th of April 1915  Mines Exploded  location map

20th of May 1915 Gun Destroys Sap  location map

29th May 1915 Instruction  location map

23rd Jul 1915 Instruction  location map

30th of July 1915  Detrainment

1st Aug 1915 On the Move

2nd Aug 1915 At Rest

3rd Aug 1915 Inspection

4th Aug 1915 On the March

5th Aug 1915 In Billets

6th Aug 1915 In Billets

7th Aug 1915 On the March

8th Aug 1915 At Rest

9th Aug 1915 Reliefs

10th of August 1915  Relief of French  location map

10th Aug 1915 Holding the Line

11th Aug 1915 Holding the Line

15th of August 1915  3 Salvos Fired  location map

10th of September 1915  Enemy Hit Dummy Battery  location map

11th of September 1915 Changes of Command  location map

20th of December 1915 Deserter Taken

23rd Jun 1916 Reliefs  location map

1st July 1916 In Action  location map

8th July 1916 Reliefs Completed

3rd Aug 1916 Working Parties  location map

14th January 1917 Reliefs Complete

19th January 1917 Post

23rd Dec 1917 Reliefs

4th of September 1914 An Easier March

If you can provide any additional information, please add it here.





Want to know more about 2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment?


There are:5426 items tagged 2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment available in our Library

  These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Great War.


Those known to have served with

2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment

during the Great War 1914-1918.

  • Crawford John Hugh.
  • Deamer William James . Pte. (d.11th July 1916)
  • Farrell . Lance Corporal
  • Furnival Richard Edward. Pte. (d.16th Sep 1914)
  • Goldfish Solomon. Pte.
  • Haigh Harry Kershaw. Sgt.
  • Owen Edmond. Pte. (d.20th Oct 1914)
  • Rimmer Samuel Molloy. Pte. (d.18th Feb 1915)
  • Small John. Pte.
  • Woods William. Pte. (d.18th May 1918)

All names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed, please Add a Name to this List

Records of 2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment from other sources.


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  Pte. John Small 2nd Btn. Manchester Regiment

My grandfather, Private John Small, 2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment, was wounded in battle on 14th of April 1918. He was a patient at the 18th General Hospital, Chateau De la Haie, Camiers, France.







  Sgt. Harry Kershaw Haigh 3rd Btn. Manchester Regiment

My grandfather, Harry Haigh, was born in Rochdale on the 21st of September 1880, the youngest child of James Henry and Sarah. The family moved to live in Milnrow near Rochdale, the birthplace of his mother. Harry had been a soldier in the Manchester Regiment from 1902 until 1910 and was then in the National Army Reserve until he was called up at the outbreak of WW1. He had married in 1911 and had a daughter in 1912 and at the time they lived in Heywood near Rochdale

He rejoined on the 24th of September 1914 as a Lance Corporal in the 3rd Manchesters and on the 9th of November he was posted to the 1st Manchesters and was sent to France with them.

In December 1914 he was fighting in the Battle of Givenchy and in June 1915 he suffered a shell wound to his forehead and then a bout of enteric fever whilst with No. 2 Company of the 1st Manchesters, and was transferred to D on the 16th of July that year. He was sent to a war hospital in Preston, perhaps Dunstan House?, Lancashire.

He returned to service on the 6th of October 1915 and was posted to the 3rd Manchesters as an unpaid Lance Corporal, still serving in France and at some point in 1916 was posted B.S.O. to the 2nd Manchesters as a Lance Corporal and in September that year was again transferred, this time to the 21st Manchesters and by the 21st of September had been promoted to Corporal.

In 1917 he was at Mailly, France with the 21st Manchesters and on the 12th of January he was injured by a shell entering his forehead and he was sent to Bellhouston Red Cross Hospital in Glasgow on the 23rd of January 1917. His promotion to Sergeant came through before this attack and he rejoined the 3rd Manchesters as a Sergeant on the 10th of April 1917, remained in England and was posted to the 70th Training Reserve Battalion as an instructor. On the 14th May 1918 he was attached to the NCO's School as an instructor and was discharged from the Army on 31st of March 1920 having served 18 years 42 days.

He was awarded the 1914 Star, the Victory Medal and the British War Medal. He died in 1943 and is buried in Heywood Cemetery, Lancashire with his wife who had died a month earlier.

Dorothy Hargreaves






  Pte. Richard Edward Furnival 2nd Btn. Manchester Regiment (d.16th Sep 1914)

Richard Furnival served with the 2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment.







  Pte. Samuel Molloy Rimmer 2nd Btn. Manchester Regiment (d.18th Feb 1915)

Samuel Rimmer was my grandmother's Uncle. We knew nothing of him until we started our family tree journey. Samuel left a wife and 4 children.

Jacqui Anderson






  Lance Corporal Farrell 2nd Btn Manchester Regiment

The man on the right is L/Cpl Farrell of the Manchester Regiment, but I am not sure of his first name.

Jackie Dunn






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