Tag Archives: Royal Welsh Fusiliers

On the Beach with the Boys

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Official wartime caption, 85 years ago today: “Men of the 1st Royal Welsh Fusiliers practice firing their .55 caliber Boys anti-tank rifles on the beach near Etaples, 6 February 1940.” At the time the unit of regulars was part of the 6th Infantry Brigade, assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division, of the British Expeditionary Force in France.

Kessell (Lt), War Office official photographer, IWM F 2441

An infantry unit formed in 1689, raised by Henry Herbert, 4th Baron Herbert of Chirbury, and primarily recruited in North Wales, the regiment was designated a fusilier regiment in 1702 and earned its “Royal” prefix in 1713 after honors at Blenheim (1704), Ramillies (1706) and Malplaquet (1709).

The Royal Welsh kept appearing on campaigns from Culloden to Minden, Bunker Hill to Yorktown (where it was the only British regiment not to surrender its colors, instead smuggled them out, tied around an ensign’s waist).

They fought the French in Haiti, Egypt, Martinique, the Peninsula, and Waterloo. They then fought alongside the French in the Crimea, Manchuria, and on the Western Front as well as in 1940, as seen above above.

The 1st Royal Welsh evacuated at Dunkirk– leaving their heavy Boys behind– then, after defending the British Isles from Mr. Hitler, moved to India and Burma to fight the Japanese, taking part in the defence of Kohima in 1944 with Bill Slim’s “Forgotten Fourteenth” Army.

1st Royal Welsh Fusiliers move forward on a jungle path near Pinbaw, Burma, December 1944. Note the mix of M1928 Thompson SMGs and No. 1 Mk III Enfields. Photo by No 9 Army Film & Photographic Unit, IWM SE2889

Postwar, the unit saw service in England, Germany, and Cyprus, combat in the Malayan Emergency, along with 13 tours in Northern Ireland, and continued service in Bosnia and Iraq.

On St David’s Day (1 March) 2006, the regiment amalgamated with The Royal Regiment of Wales to form The Royal Welsh and are known as the “Nanny Goats” after their mascot, a Persian goat enrolled as a lance corporal.

They are based at Hightown Barracks, Wrexham, serving in an armored infantry role.

Their motto is “Gwell angau na Chywilydd” (Welsh) (“Better Death than Dishonour”)

Joubert’s Welsh trench sword

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Thomas Scott-Ellis, 8th Lord Howard de Walden, was a polymath who had ridden with the 10th Hussars in the Boer War and was always ready for a fight.

From the National Trust

Tommy’s enormous range of interests included: documenting heraldry as a medieval historian, editing Burke’s Peerage, competing in the 1908 Olympics at speed boat racing (the only time this has ever been an Olympic event), horse racing, sailing, hawking, golfing, flying, model-boating, writing libretti for operas (with music by his friend Joseph Holbrooke) and writing both pageants and pantomimes for his six children and their friends – he did the lot!

When the Great War came, Lord Walden became involved with the 9th Batt., Royal Welsh Fusiliers, and as can be expected, began searching for a blade that set his Welshmen apart.

That’s where antiques dealer, arms collector and scholar Felix Joubert of Chelsea came in. The so-called Welsh sword was a trench dagger that Joubert said was based on the traditional “Welsh cleddyd” (or cledd), but this has been ruled out as just so much window dressing to appeal to Lord Walden.

Welsh Knife with scabbard (WEA 785) The ‘Welsh Knife’ was designed in 1916 by the sculptor and armourer Felix Joubert and patented by him, as a ‘new or improved trench knife’. It was allegedly based on an ancient Welsh weapon, although the existence of such a distinctly Welsh mediæval sword has since been disproved. An unknown, but limited, number of Welsh Knives were manufactured by the Wilkinson Sword Company, Copyright: © IWM. Original Source: http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30001257

The pommel is heavy and pointed, the hand guard folds flat against the blade for sheathing and the ricasso is inscribed “Dros Urddas Cymru”, Welsh for “For the honour of Wales”

The blade was some 17.6-inches long, leading to a two-foot long, 36-ounce weapon.

Joubert’s Welsh sword trench knife, patent drawing. Note the folding mechanism

He patented the blade in 1916 (GB108741) and it was produced by both Wilkinson (who apparently made 200) and locally in France by firm(s) unknown. Originally only for use by bombers (grenadiers), trench-pirates and machine gun crew, it was later issued to most officers and ranks of 9th RWF.

They were reportedly “used with great effect in a raid at Messines Ridge, 5 June 1917.”

From the Royal Armories

As noted by the Royal Armories, “The ‘Welsh knife’ inspired the design of the Smatchet fighting knife of The Second World War by the renowned hand-to-hand combat expert and innovator, Lieutenant-Colonel William E. Fairbairn.”

Behold, the famous Fairbairn Smatchet…or is it a Welsh cleddyd?

The Welsh trench swords are widely reproduced by Windlass in India as well as others, while the Smatchet is even more common.