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- 13th (3rd South Down) Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment during the Great War -


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

13th (3rd South Down) Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment



   13th (3rd South Down) Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment was raised at Bexhill on the 20th of November 1914 by Lieut-Col. Lowther, MP and Committee. After initial training close to home, they moved to Maidstone in July 1915 and were adopted by the War Office. They moved to Aldershot in September and then to Witley to join 116th Brigade, 39th Division in October. They proceeded to France, landed at Le Havre in March 1916, the division concentrating near Blaringhem and receiving five battalions from other divisions to replace those of 118th Brigade who had remained in England to complete their training. On the 30th June 1916 they were in action in an attack near Richebourg l'Avoue with the Sussex battalions suffered heavy casualties. They were in action during the Battles of the Somme, including, the fighting on the Ancre, The Battle of Thiepval Ridge, The Battle of the Ancre heights and the capture of Schwaben Reddoubt and Stuff Trench as well as The Battle of the Ancre. In 1917 they fought in The Battle of Pilkem Ridge, The Battle of Langemarck, The Battle of the Menin Road Ridge, The Battle of Polygon Wood and The Second Battle of Passchendaele. In 1918 they were in action at The Battle of St Quentin, The actions at the Somme crossings, The Battle of Bapaume and The Battle of Rosieres before moving to Flanders. They took part n The fighting on Wytschaete Ridge, The First and Second Battle of Kemmel and The Battle of the Scherpenberg. The Division had suffered heavy losses and were reduced to a cadre on the 23rd of May. On the 17th of June 1918 the 13th Sussex transferred to 118th Brigade still with 39th Division and on the 14th of August the abttalion was disbanded in France, with troops transferring to the 1/4th Sussex to bring that Battalion back to full strength.

16th Oct 1915 The Derby Scheme

1st Dec 1915 Derby Scheme Armlets

11th Sep 1915 Last day of Derby Scheme Recruitment

10th Jan 1916 Group System Reopens

9th February 1916 Call Ups

12th Mar 1916 Into the Trenches

1st Jun 1916 Recce

2nd Jun 1916 Working Parties

3rd Jun 1916 Working Party

4th Jun 1916 Heavy Shelling

5th Jun 1916 Raid Attempted

6th Jun 1916 Trench Raid

7th Jun 1916 Whizz Bangs

8th Jun 1916 Relief  location map

9th Jun 1916 Working Parties  location map

10th Jun 1916 Reliefs Completed  location map

11th Jun 1916 Parades & Training

12th Jun 1916 Kit Inspection

13th Jun 1916 Digging Trenches

14th Jun 1916 Trench Visit

15th Jun 1916 On the Range

16th Jun 1916 Reliefs Completed

17th Jun 1916 Patrols

18th Jun 1916 Loss

19th Jun 1916 Whizz Bangs

20th Jun 1916 Patrols

21st Jun 1916 Reliefs Completed  location map

22nd Jun 1916 Reliefs  location map

23rd Jun 1916 Plans

24th Jun 1916 Training and Baths  location map

25th Jun 1916 Training  location map

26th Jun 1916 Training  location map

27th Jun 1916 Wet Day

28th Jun 1916 Reliefs

29th Jun 1916 Preparations for Attack

30th Jun 1916 In Action

30th Jun 1916 Reliefs

3rd Sep 1916 In Action

30th Jul 1917 Orders  location map

31st Jul 1917 Attack Made  location map

21st Jan 1918 Reliefs

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





Want to know more about 13th (3rd South Down) Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment?


There are:5271 items tagged 13th (3rd South Down) Battalion, Royal Sussex 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

13th (3rd South Down) Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment

during the Great War 1914-1918.

  • Bashford Reuben Giles. Pte. (d.30th June 1916)
  • Burchell Percy Dudley. Pte. (d.23rd Mar 1918)
  • Field George Tilt. L/Cpl. (d.21st May 1918)
  • Toogood MM. Sidney Alfred. L/Cpl. (d.27th Sep 1917)

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 13th (3rd South Down) Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment from other sources.


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  Pte. Reuben Giles Bashford 13th Btn., 39th Div. Royal Sussex Rgt. (d.30th June 1916)

Reuben Bashford was living with his widowed mother Emily and sister Lucy at 16 Chapelfields (known as back of Portland Road) in a five-roomed house. He was a fisherman.

He has no known grave. He is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, which forms the side and back of the Dud Corner Cemetery, which stands on the site of a German strongpoint on the Lens Road redoubt, which was captured by the 15th (Scottish) Division on the first day of the Battle of Loos. It is located on the west of the village on the N43, the main Lens to Bethune Road. Reuben is commemorated on panel 69 to 73.

He is also in the book of remembrance in the Royal Sussex Regiment chapel in Chichester Cathedral. Reuben was born and enlisted in Worthing.







  L/Cpl. George Tilt Field 13th (3rd South Downs) Btn. Royal Sussex Regiment (d.21st May 1918)

George Field went missing in action on the 25th of April 1918 whilst with the 13th Royal Sussex Regiment. It is recorded in the Sussex Daily News on the 26th of June 1918 that he died as a POW on the 21st of May 1918.

Traci Eames






  Pte. Percy Dudley Burchell 13th Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment (d.23rd Mar 1918)

I know nothing more about my grandfather's cousin Percy Burchell but his details on the CWGC. Assume he died at the Battle of St Quentin as his battalion was involved in that Battle in 1918 on the date he died.

Katharine Dudley






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