1st Ayrshire and Galloway Artillery Volunteers


The 1st Ayrshire and Galloway Artillery Volunteer Corps was formed in 1859 as a response to a French invasion threat. It transferred to the Territorial Force in 1908 and Its successor units fought with the 52nd Infantry Division in Palestine during World War I, and in and Burma during World War II. It continued in the Territorial Army until amalgamation in 1967.

Artillery Volunteers

The enthusiasm for the Volunteer movement following an invasion scare in 1859 saw the creation of many Rifle and Artillery Volunteer Corps composed of part-time soldiers eager to supplement the Regular British Army in time of need. The 1st Administrative Brigade of Ayrshire Artillery Volunteers was formed with its headquarters at Irvine, North Ayrshire, in November 1860. It comprised the following Ayrshire Artillery Volunteer Corps :
In 1863, the following corps were added to the brigade:
The first commanding officer of the administrative brigade was Major Sir Edward Hunt-Blair, 4th Baronet of Dunskey, Wigtown, appointed on 8 May 1861, who was replaced on 17 July 1863 by Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon Greville Vernon, whose his second-in-command was Captain John Eglinton Montgomerie, Royal Navy. Hunter-Blair was reappointed on 4 September 1866.
In 1863, brigade HQ moved from Irvine to Ayr, and in May 1880 the brigade was consolidated as the 1st Ayrshire & Galloway Artillery Volunteers, with headquarters at Ayr and 11 batteries as follows:
The AVCs were intended to serve as garrison artillery manning fixed defences, but a number of the early units manned semi-mobile 'position batteries' of smooth-bore field guns pulled by agricultural horses. At that time they were not officially supported by the War Office. The concept was revived in 1888 when some Volunteer batteries were reorganised as position artillery to work alongside the Volunteer infantry brigades. In 1889, a position battery of 16-pounder Rifled Muzzle Loading guns was issued to the 1st Ayrshire & Galloway and manned by the two Kilmarnock batteries. In that year the HQ moved to Kilmarnock.
In 1892, the existing position battery took the number 1, absorbing the 6th and 7th Companies. In 1901, two more batteries of 9 Pounder Rifled Muzzle Loading guns were issued to the corps, which took the numbers 2 and 3 and absorbed the Irvine and Ayr Companies, and an extra personnel formed as a 6th Company at Kilmarnock. The 8th to 11th Companies took the numbers 7 to 10.

Royal Garrison Artillery

In 1882 all the AVCs were affiliated to one of the territorial garrison divisions of the Royal Artillery and the 1st Ayrshire & Galloway AVC became part of the Scottish Division. In 1889 the structure was altered, and the corps joined the Southern Division. In 1899 the RA was divided into separate field and garrison branches, and the artillery volunteers were all assigned to the Royal Garrison Artillery. In 1902 their titles were changed, the unit becoming the 1st Ayrshire and Galloway Royal Garrison Artillery , with its HQ at Kilmarnock. The following year the position batteries were redesignated as heavy batteries.
In 1903, 4.7-inch Quick Firing guns replaced the RML armament of all three heavy batteries. The final organisation of the unit until 1908 was as follows:
The corps carried out its gun practice at Irvine. It used the Ayrshire Rifle Association range at Irvine for musketry, except the 7th to 10th Companies, which had ranges near their own headquarters.
In 1900, over 600 men of the unit volunteered to serve in the Second Boer War, but as artillery men were not required they were not accepted. Twenty-eight men served in South Africa during the war with other units.

Territorial Force

When the Volunteers were subsumed into the new Territorial Force in 1908 under the Haldane Reforms, the 1st Ayrshire and Galloway RGA formed the II Lowland Brigade in the Royal Field Artillery. It also provided a nucleus for the Lowland Mounted Brigade Transport & Supply Column, Army Service Corps. The new unit had the following organisation:
II Lowland Brigade, RFA
The II Lowland Brigade was part of the TF's Lowland Division. The batteries were each issued with four 15-pounder guns.

World War I

Mobilisation

The Lowland Division had been attending annual camp on the Ayrshire coast when the order to mobilise was received at 17.25 on Tuesday August 1914. Mobilisation began the following day at unit drill halls. On 12 August the division was ordered to concentrate at Bedford and entrainment began on 15 August. Concentration was completed by 17 August and the division formed part of First Army in Central Force.
On the outbreak of war, units of the TF were invited to volunteer for Overseas Service. On 15 August the WO issued instructions to separate those men who had signed up for Home Service only, and form these into reserve units. Then on 31 August the formation of a reserve or 2nd Line unit was authorised for each 1st Line unit where 60 per cent or more of the men had volunteered for Overseas Service. The titles of these 2nd Line units would be the same as the original, but distinguished by a '2/' prefix. In this way duplicate batteries, brigades and divisions were created, mirroring those TF formations being sent overseas.

1/II Lowland Brigade

1/II Lowland Brigade embarked with the rest of the division for the Mediterranean in May 1915, and landed at Alexandria the following month. However, it was not employed in the Gallipoli Campaign and remained in Egypt. It rejoined the rest of the division at El Qantara in March 1916 and the following month it was re-armed with 18-pounder guns. It was redesignated CCLX Brigade, RFA, on 25 May 1916, and renumbered CCLXI Brigade on 15 September. It transferred to 7th Division when the 52nd left for the Western Front in April 1918 and served with this Indian Army formation in Palestine until the end of the war. It was placed in suspended animation in 1919.

2/II Lowland Brigade

2/II Lowland Brigade served with the 2nd Lowland Division in Scotland and England. It was redesignated CCCXXVI Brigade, RFA, in May 1916. Early in 1917 the division was sent to Ireland. It was broken up in early 1918, but 326 Bde remained at Kildare until 27 October 1919 when it completed its disbandment.

Interwar years

The 2nd Lowland Brigade reformed in 1920, and was redesignated as the 79th Brigade, RFA, the following year when the TF was reconstituted as the Territorial Army. It became a 'Field Brigade, RA', when the RFA was subsumed into the Royal Artillery in 1924. It continued to be part of 52nd Division and had the following organisation:
Field Brigades were termed Field Regiments from 1938 onwards.

World War II

Mobilisation

The TA was doubled in size following the Munich Crisis of 1938, with existing units splitting to form duplicates before the outbreak of World War II. 79th Field Regiment reorganised as follows:
79th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery
130th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery
The establishment of a field battery was increased to 12 guns organised into three Troops.

79th (Lowland) Field Regiment

79th Field Regiment mobilised in 52nd Infantry Division. Apart from a period in June 1940 when the rest of the division was briefly deployed to France, the regiment served with the 52nd Division throughout the war, including the from October 1944 to VE Day. It was placed in suspended animation in 1946
in Burma, February 1945.

130th (Lowland) Field Regiment

130th Field Regiment mobilised in 15th Infantry Division and served with it through the early years of war. The regiment received its 'Lowland' subtitle in 1942. It left the 15th Division on 4 January 1942 and sailed to India, where it joined first 14th Indian Infantry Division and later 36th Indian Division, with which it served in the Burma Campaign. 36th Indian Division became 36th British Division in September 1944 and continued fighting in Burma.

Postwar

When the TA was reconstituted in 1947, the 79th reformed at Ayr as 279th Field Rgt, while 130th reformed at Troon as 330th Medium Rgt. Both were in 85 Army Group Royal Artillery, which was redesignated HQ RA 52nd Division in 1950.
In 1961 the TA was reduced, and most of 279th Fd Rgt amalgamated with 280th Medium Rgt to form 279th Fd Rgt with the following organisation:
Surplus personnel of 279th Fd Rgt were transferred to 576 Company, Royal Army Service Corps.
When the TA was reduced to the Territorial and Army Volunteer Reserve in 1967, the regiment merged with 277th Field Rgt and 278th Field Rgt to form 'S ' and 'T ' Btys in the Glasgow-based Lowland Regiment, RA. The Lowland Regiment was reduced to a cadre in 1969 and disbanded in 1975, but in 1986 105 Air Defence Regiment was designated as its successor unit.

Uniforms

The original uniform of the 1st and 2nd Ayrshire AVCs was blue tunics with red collars, cuffs, and piping, edged all round with black braid and with four rows of black braid across the chest. Blue trousers with black stripe with red piping were also worn, along with blue peaked caps with a black lace band, scarlet piping, and a silver grenade in front. Black waist-belts were worn. The original uniform of the 1st Wigtown was blue with scarlet facings, white belts, and silver badges.

Commanding officers

The commanding officers of the unit included:
The following served as Honorary Colonel of the unit: