> About the Army > The regiments of the infantry
The "Poor Bloody Infantry" had the deadliest role of all and also shouldered the burden of much carrying and labouring work. The history and affiliations of every battalion of every British infantry regiment can be found on the Long, Long Trail. All you need to do is find the regiment and click the link. In all of the following sections, the regiments are listed according to traditional army precedence as well as in alphabetical order. Tip: Click on the regimental title for a listing of all battalions and their histories
The Guards
Considered
to be the elite of the infantry of the Regular
Army,
the Guards had no battalions of the Territorial Force and raised none
for the New
Armies. In common with all other infantry regiments regiments they
eventually took in both volunteers and conscripts but the Guards took
care to maintain their pre-war standards of efficiency and were amongst
the infantry most feared by the enemy.
| Regiments by alphabet | Regiments by army precedence |
| Coldstream Guards | Grenadier Guards |
| Grenadier Guards | Coldstream Guards |
| Irish Guards | Scots Guards |
| Scots Guards | Irish Guards |
| Welsh Guards | Welsh Guards |
| The Guards also raised a Machine Gun Regiment | |
Infantry regiments of the Regular Army
The majority of
the line infantry was made up of regiments with county or other regional
affiliations. Most had two battalions of the Regular
Army in 1914: one was usually overseas, and the other trained recruits
in the United Kingdom. Most regiments also had two or more battalions
of the Territorial
Force. All raised battalions of the New
Armies.
Infantry of the Territorial Force
Some infantry regiments were exclusively composed of part-time volunteer soldiers of the Territorial Force and had no Regular or New Army battalions.
| Regiments by alphabet | Regiments by army precedence |
| Cambridgeshire | |
| Herefordshire | |
| Hertfordshire | |
| Highland Cyclist Battalion | |
| Honourable Artillery Company | |
| Huntingdonshire Cyclist Battalion | |
| Kent Cyclist Battalion | |
| London Regiment | |
| Monmouthshire | |
| Northern Cyclist Battalion |
Other infantry
Miscellaneous British infantry units that did not fit any of the other categories.
| The Royal Defence Corps |