| South Lancashire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's Volunteers) |
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Badge of the South Lancashire Regiment |
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| Active | 1881–1958 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Role | Line Infantry |
| Size | 1–2 Regular Battalions 1 Militia and Special Reserve Battalion |
| Garrison/HQ | Warrington |
| Nickname | The Excellers[1] |
| Motto | Ich dien (I serve) |
The South Lancashire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's Volunteers) was a regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 1958. It was formed as part of the Childers reforms as the Prince of Wales's Volunteers Regiment (South Lancashire Regiment) by the amalgamation of the 40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot and the 82nd (Prince of Wales's Volunteers) Regiment of Foot. In 1938, it was renamed the South Lancashire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's Volunteers) and in 1958 was amalgamated with The East Lancashire Regiment to form The Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Volunteers).[2]
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The 1st Batallion was in Ranikhet, India, when the regiment was formed. It shipped to Aden in 1884 and to Britain in 1886 where it remained until the outbreak of the Second Boer War. After service in South Africa, it returned to India and garrison duty up to the outbreak of the First World War. The 2nd Battalion spent the years between 1881 and 1914 on garrison duty throughout the Empire, returning to England in 1903. The 3rd Battalion (previously the 4th Royal Lancashire Militia) was raised in 1899 for service in South Africa from 1900 to 1901, when it was disbanded.
The 1st Battalion spent the war on garrison duty in Quetta, Baluchistan, on the North-West Frontier. The 2nd Battalion spent the entire war on the Western Front. The 3rd (Reserve) Battalion was a depot and training battalion stationed in Lancashire thoroughout the war. The Territorial and war-service battalions fought on the Western Front, in Mesopotamia, Gallipoli and Macedonia.[3]
The 1st Battalion took part in Third Afghan War of 1919 before returning to Britain, where it remained (except for a brief period as part of the Army of Occupation of Germany in 1928) until the outbreak of the Second World War. The 2nd Battalion spent these years on garrison duty, from 1920 ro 1922 in the new British Mandate of Palestine, and thereafter in India and the North West Frontier.
The 1st Battalion was shipped to France on the outbreak of war as part of the 4th Infantry Division, British Expeditionary Force, returning to England via Dunkirk in 1940, when it became part of the 3rd Infantry Division. With this Division, it landed at Sword Beach on D-Day and fought its way through the Normandy, the Netherlands and later the invasion of Germany.
The 2nd Battalion was in Bombay in 1939, being transported back to England in July 1940 to defend Britain against the expected German invasion. In 1942, it was part of Force 121, which invaded Madagascar in order to prevent use of the island by the Japanese. From April 1944 until the end of the war, it fought in the recapture of Burma.
Immediately after the war, the 1st Battalion served in Egypt and Palestine before being reduced to a cadre and alamgamated with the 2nd Battalion at Trieste in 1948. The surviving 1st Batallion saw further service in the Sudan, England, Berlin and Hong Kong where, in 1958, it was amalgamated with 1st Battalion, The East Lancashire Regiment, to form 1st Battalion, The Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Volunteers).
The Regiment was awarded the following battle honours:
1. Awarded in error, and withdrawn in 1925
The following members of the Regiment were awarded the Victoria Cross:
The regimental museum is housed at Fulwood Barracks, Preston, Lancashire.
The Story of the South Lancashire Regiment in the Great War