The existence of the Voluntary Training Corps came about as a result of combination of
- early war enthusiasm of existing rifle clubs and similar associations to “do their bit”, even if their members were too old, too young or medically unfit to serve in the armed forces, and the creation of new volunteer organisations of a similar type in the first weeks of the conflict;
- the departure of the units of the Territorial Force from their normal local recruiting bases to pre-arranged “war stations” (and ultimately, to service overseas), leaving a perceived gap in the nation’s ability to defend itself at a local level.
A good example of one of the new organisations was the Volunteer League, raised in Blackpool:
The Central Association of the Voluntary Training Corps, to which local clubs and associations would affiliate, had existed since 1910 but essentially began its life on 27 September 1914 with the appointment of Lord Desborough as President and public Trustee Treasurer, along with military adviser General Sir O’Moore Creagh. Its purpose was essentially one of co-ordination rather than command of the movement, but it did attempt to introduce certain controls.
Local organisations that would be affiliated would be told to encourage men not of age for service in the ranks of the regular army or Territorial Force, or somehow otherwise disqualified from service, to drill and learn the elements of mustketry in their spare time. Typically this would be for two or three evenings per week. Proper military discipline was expected during training, which would often be conducted by retired Colour-Sergeants or other ex-army NCOs.
The Army Council would recognise a local VTC as long as it only engaged men who met the criteria, and that there would be no attestation involving an oath; that it would place no demand on the public purse for arms, ammunition or clothing; that no badges of rank would be worn and the uniform would be distinguishable from regular or Territorial units; that a red armlet with the letters GR” would be worn; and that it would be open to inspection at any time by army recruiting officers who might enlist any member whose presence in the VTC was not accounted for by a good and sufficient reason.
That there would be no central funding meant that in most cases the volunteer would have to pay to cover the cost of uniform, rifle and equipment – inevitable restriction on attractiveness and ruling out most men of the working class.
The units raised originally had no consistency of naming … Town Guards, Civic Guards, Home Guards, Defence League, Defence Corps and many other forms appeared. They would, in general, drop these names when they affiliated to the Central Association.
The movements was generally successful, with reportedly more than 1000 organisations eventually in existence, and some with in excess of 500 members. By mid-1916 it was generally said that there were more than a million men enrollled.
The question of the VTCs having no badges of rank was raised in Parliament on 28 November 1914, with the government’s response being, “The object of the prohibition against badges of rank was to avoid confusion. There would be no objection, should necessity arise, to distinctive badges being worn to differentiate those who exercise authority.” (Hansard)
In the parliamentary debates concerning the Military Service Act, 1916 which introduced conscription and tribunals to rule on appeals for exemption, it was suggested that service with a VTC could be a condition of exemption. By 1918 about a third of all those serving had been placed there by the tribunals.
Members of the Irish Association VTC played an active part in the suppression of the nationalist declaration of a republic in Dublin at Easter 1916. The men in Ireland are often referred to by what appears to be a local nickname: the “Gorgeous Wrecks”, after the meaning of the “GR” on their brassards.
April 1916: new regulations and a significant change
The War Office issued new regulations that came into effect on 29 April 1916, at which point VTC became a recognised adjunct to the regular army and with privileges and responsibilities originally defined in the Volunteer Act of 1863. It would be called the Volunteer Force. Administration would now come under the Territorial Force Associations. The new regulations included that
- No alien could be enrolled
- Minimum age of 17
- No medical examination needed to enrol
- Enrolment would required a prescribed oath (essentially, to the King and for faithful service in defence of Great Britain against all “enemies and opposers”) and for man to sign a muster roll of his VTC
- Service would in no way affect a man’s liability for service in the regular army or Territorial Force
There was also an attempt to standardise the organisation of a unit, although it was recognised that there were widely differing local circumstances. A battalion would total 600 to 1000 men, organised into four companies each of 150 to 250. The company would be organised into four platoons of 40 to 70, and each platoon into four sections of 10 to 20.
The existing grey-green uniform would be recognised and the red “GR” brassard would no longer be used, except on plain clothes by a recently enrolled volunteer while he awaited uniform.
A subsequent Volunteer Act 1916 committed volunteers to serve for the duration of the war (whereas up to this point they could leave after giving two weeks’ notice.)
In July 1918, the battalions were affiliated with their local regular infantry regiment and given numbers
Researching the VTC/VF
This is, sad to say, most difficult. There is no central or even substantial local collection of personnel or organisational records. Newspapers are a good source for list of early volunteers and on occasion where a tribunal ruled that a man should serve in a VTC as part of exemption from conscription. Local archives are more likely to be a source of information, due to the decentralised way in which the VTC units were raised.
The late Ray Westlake’s “Guide to the Volunteer Training Corps 1914-1918” is a good source of photographs of uniform, insignia and other details. ISBN 9781783315390 Naval & Military Press.