We were There - West Indians in the British Armed Forces
The West India Regiment
|
We were There - West Indians in the British Armed Forces
On 31St January 1927 the West India Regiment was disbanded after parading for the last time at Up Park Camp in Kingston, Jamaica. the ceremony marked the end of over 130 years of continuous service of West Indian troops in the British Army.Raised in 1795 from among the slave population of the West Indies these soldiers proved invaluable to the British cause during the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815). There were a maximum of 12 Regiments with a fascinating, but at times sad and disturbing history.
World War 1
By start of World War 1, 4th August 1914, two battalions of the West India Regiment had been fighting in Africa for over 2 1/2 years (Cameroons and Sierra Leone,).The soldiers remained in Africa but, some of their white Officers returned to the Caribbean to set up the new British West Indies Regiment.
After the outbreak of World War 1 in 1914, West Indian men made numerous unsuccessful attempts to join the British Army. By April 1915 due to the heavy loss of men and after an intervention by King George V, West Indians were allowed to take part in the war and, by October that year the new British West Indies Regiment was formed. Over 16,000 men were recruited, but over 13,000 were rejected.
Regimental Head Quarters was at Up Park Camp, Jamaica. The Regiment served on all major battle fronts but was only used as Labour battalions in Europe because, Army rules at that time forbid black troops from fighting alongside whites in Europe while fighting a European enemy. In fact, there is evidence that the West Indians did fight in Europe. Two battlions of the British West Indies Regiment fought alongside the Australian Light Horse in Palestine and Mesopotamia (Iraq), defeating the seventh Turkish Army. In total eighty-six (86) metals were won for gallantry on the battlefield and 49 men were mentioned in dispatches.
Spoken Tales of History
At the end of World war1, the men of The British West Indies Regiment were leading an extraordinary mutiny, in protest at the way they were treated by the white officer elite.
After the mutiny, the British government feared the unrest that the veterans might cause on their return to the Caribbean colonies. There was no heroes welcome for them and three cruisers with machine guns were docked at Barbados, jamaica and Trinidad as a precaution. Over 4,000 former soldiers found themselves displaced to Cuba where many would spent their final days.
There is documentary evidence of Clifford Powell (aged 110), Eugent Clarke (aged 106) and Gershom Brown (aged 101) speaking of their service with the British West Indies Regiment during World War I. After the Mutiny at Taranto, Italy, the Caribbean League was formed with it's main objectives being to fight for civil rights in the West Indies and to bring about black rule in the islands.
World War 11
The West Indian contribution to World War 11 is an overlooked chapter in the Allied war effort. Very little or nothing is every written or spoken about the heroics, sacrifices and harsh treatment endured by men and wormen from the Caribbean who were serving what was then the ' mother Country'.
Over 16,000 men and women from the caribbean served in the armed forces during world war 2, including over 400 pilots and aircrew. In addition there were the munitions workers who came to keep the factories going and the Honduras forestry units who were employed cutting trees in scotland. Around 7,000 men and women joined the RAF.
This site is currently under construction
World War 1
By start of World War 1, 4th August 1914, two battalions of the West India Regiment had been fighting in Africa for over 2 1/2 years (Cameroons and Sierra Leone,).The soldiers remained in Africa but, some of their white Officers returned to the Caribbean to set up the new British West Indies Regiment.
After the outbreak of World War 1 in 1914, West Indian men made numerous unsuccessful attempts to join the British Army. By April 1915 due to the heavy loss of men and after an intervention by King George V, West Indians were allowed to take part in the war and, by October that year the new British West Indies Regiment was formed. Over 16,000 men were recruited, but over 13,000 were rejected.
Regimental Head Quarters was at Up Park Camp, Jamaica. The Regiment served on all major battle fronts but was only used as Labour battalions in Europe because, Army rules at that time forbid black troops from fighting alongside whites in Europe while fighting a European enemy. In fact, there is evidence that the West Indians did fight in Europe. Two battlions of the British West Indies Regiment fought alongside the Australian Light Horse in Palestine and Mesopotamia (Iraq), defeating the seventh Turkish Army. In total eighty-six (86) metals were won for gallantry on the battlefield and 49 men were mentioned in dispatches.
Spoken Tales of History
At the end of World war1, the men of The British West Indies Regiment were leading an extraordinary mutiny, in protest at the way they were treated by the white officer elite.
After the mutiny, the British government feared the unrest that the veterans might cause on their return to the Caribbean colonies. There was no heroes welcome for them and three cruisers with machine guns were docked at Barbados, jamaica and Trinidad as a precaution. Over 4,000 former soldiers found themselves displaced to Cuba where many would spent their final days.
There is documentary evidence of Clifford Powell (aged 110), Eugent Clarke (aged 106) and Gershom Brown (aged 101) speaking of their service with the British West Indies Regiment during World War I. After the Mutiny at Taranto, Italy, the Caribbean League was formed with it's main objectives being to fight for civil rights in the West Indies and to bring about black rule in the islands.
World War 11
The West Indian contribution to World War 11 is an overlooked chapter in the Allied war effort. Very little or nothing is every written or spoken about the heroics, sacrifices and harsh treatment endured by men and wormen from the Caribbean who were serving what was then the ' mother Country'.
Over 16,000 men and women from the caribbean served in the armed forces during world war 2, including over 400 pilots and aircrew. In addition there were the munitions workers who came to keep the factories going and the Honduras forestry units who were employed cutting trees in scotland. Around 7,000 men and women joined the RAF.
This site is currently under construction
The remarkable legacy of
Squadron Leader Ulric Cross Published: 30 September 2024
To mark Black History Month 2024, we are honouring the life and legacy of Squadron Leader Ulric Cross, DFC, DSO. His exceptional bravery and skill in the RAF during the Second World War earned him recognition as a Trinidadian war hero and one of the most decorated Caribbean airmen of the era.
Philip Louis Ulric Cross DFC DSO, known as Ulric, was born on 1 May 1917, in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. Ulric arrived in Britain in November 1941 and began his training as a navigator in the RAF. After completing his training, he was commissioned as an officer and assigned to 139 (Jamaica) Squadron, based at RAF Marham.
Ulric distinguished himself as a skilled navigator and was selected to join the Pathfinder Force, a prestigious unit tasked with the dangerous responsibility of marking targets for bombing raids with precision.
His outstanding performance earned him a promotion to Flying Officer, and in June 1944, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC).
The following year, he received the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his ‘exceptional navigational ability’ and dedication to duty. Despite the risks, Ulric declined the option to take a break from flying completing 80 missions over occupied Europe and Germany.
Speaking on his service, Ulric said: “I did almost eighty operations. I was lucky... I crash landed I think five or six, seven times... the strange thing is that when you’re really young you feel immortal. You knew that obviously the possibility existed, that every time you got up in an aeroplane and flew over Germany you wouldn’t come back.”
He continued: “I never felt I was going to the aid of the mother country. Some people did but I would say the majority of us didn’t. Reasons differ, but certainly for myself, you’re young, this was a tremendous adventure and you were doing it for the right reasons.”
After leaving the RAF as a Squadron Leader in 1947, Ulric pursued a legal career, practicing law in Ghana and Tanzania. He later returned to Trinidad, where he became a High Court Judge. In 1990, he was appointed Trinidad and Tobago's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
Ulric passed away on October 4, 2013, at the age of 96, leaving behind a legacy of courage and service both in the skies and in his contributions to law and diplomacy
Squadron Leader Ulric Cross Published: 30 September 2024
To mark Black History Month 2024, we are honouring the life and legacy of Squadron Leader Ulric Cross, DFC, DSO. His exceptional bravery and skill in the RAF during the Second World War earned him recognition as a Trinidadian war hero and one of the most decorated Caribbean airmen of the era.
Philip Louis Ulric Cross DFC DSO, known as Ulric, was born on 1 May 1917, in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. Ulric arrived in Britain in November 1941 and began his training as a navigator in the RAF. After completing his training, he was commissioned as an officer and assigned to 139 (Jamaica) Squadron, based at RAF Marham.
Ulric distinguished himself as a skilled navigator and was selected to join the Pathfinder Force, a prestigious unit tasked with the dangerous responsibility of marking targets for bombing raids with precision.
His outstanding performance earned him a promotion to Flying Officer, and in June 1944, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC).
The following year, he received the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his ‘exceptional navigational ability’ and dedication to duty. Despite the risks, Ulric declined the option to take a break from flying completing 80 missions over occupied Europe and Germany.
Speaking on his service, Ulric said: “I did almost eighty operations. I was lucky... I crash landed I think five or six, seven times... the strange thing is that when you’re really young you feel immortal. You knew that obviously the possibility existed, that every time you got up in an aeroplane and flew over Germany you wouldn’t come back.”
He continued: “I never felt I was going to the aid of the mother country. Some people did but I would say the majority of us didn’t. Reasons differ, but certainly for myself, you’re young, this was a tremendous adventure and you were doing it for the right reasons.”
After leaving the RAF as a Squadron Leader in 1947, Ulric pursued a legal career, practicing law in Ghana and Tanzania. He later returned to Trinidad, where he became a High Court Judge. In 1990, he was appointed Trinidad and Tobago's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
Ulric passed away on October 4, 2013, at the age of 96, leaving behind a legacy of courage and service both in the skies and in his contributions to law and diplomacy
