Gentlemen and Officers

An impressive work of research which is not so much a regimental history as a social study of the three battalions of the 5th (London Rifle Brigade) London Regiment: 1/5th, 2/5th and 3/5th. The first two served on the Western Front, the third (3/5th) did not leave the UK. LRB was a battalion which required an entrance fee from its members and excluded the labourers' class. It had a strong esprit de corps, a high morale and was not ashamed of its exclusiveness. These characteristics and the reason for them are examined in detail. The author describes the background of those who served in the unit at various stages of the war, their civilian occupation, where they lived how long they had been with the LRB and so forth. Appendices list casualties, COs and adjutants and those who obtained commissions. This record is all the more interesting for the unusual perspective from which it is written.