Berkshire and The War: the "Reading Standard" pictorial record. Volume 4. p 938

Return of the 2nd Batt. Royal Berkshires - €”continued.

... County Association), L. W. Birt, C. H. Williams (O.B.L.I.), J. H. Simonds (1/4th Berks), C. Turner (late 1st Battalion), L. W. Bird (C.O. 1st Battalion 1915), M. L. Porter, M.B.E., the Rev. F. J. C. Gillmor and E. M. Slaughter (Yeomanry), Captains L. E. Rutherford (Garrison Adjutant), R. D. H. Norman (Adjutant, Depot Royal Berks), F. Russell (Labour Corps), J. Woodward (5th Battalion), H. C. Blyde, M.C. (Yeomanry), F. Grubbe (Yeomanry), Quartermaster F. Boshell, C. M. Morgan, W. H. Wood (2/4th Batt., late 2nd), J. S. Henderson (Chief Constable of Reading), R. M. Guthrie (Adjutant, Berks Volunteers), and J. T. R. Holden (M.O., Berks Volunteers), Mr. W. M. Colebrook, Mr. F. C. Bullingham, Mr. J. E. Bradbury, Lieuts. J. H. Oldridge (2nd Batt.), H. Churchill (8th Batt.) and C. H. Sharp (8th Batt.), Second Lieut. A. C. Rees (2nd Batt.).

The band of the 1st Berks, under Bandmaster C. White, were in attendance, and the 2nd Battalion brought their own band home with them. The total numbers arriving were five officers and 86 men of the 2nd Battalion Royal Berks Regiment, while the Yeomanry were made up of two officers and 24 m en .

The Lord Lieutenant'€™s Welcome.

The train was only a few minutes late, and as it steamed alongside the platform the band struck up a lively refrain. The officers of the cadre were Lieut.-Colonel A. G. F. Isaacs (in command), Capt. Quick, M.C., Lieut. W. C. Weston, M.C., Lieut. F. T. Wedge and the Adjutant, Lieut. S. J. Kydd. Lieut.-Col. Isaacs is a Berkshire man, hailing from Abingdon, while Captain Quick has been with the regiment for 22 years. After much hand-shaking and congratulations on the platform the troops were marched out into the square, where the Lord Lieutenant spoke the official word of welcome.

He said that, as His Majesty's Lord Lieutenant for the County he was very glad to welcome the battalion on their return from foreign service, and to congratulate them on the name the Berkshire Regiment had won for itself in the war. He assured them that the people of Berkshire had followed the doings of the Berkshire Regiment with the very greatest interest and pride, and on behalf of the County he congratulated and thanked them for the work they had done for humanity and their country. He would also like to include the Yeomanry, who had served in Egypt, Gallipoli and Palestine, and as machine gunners in France, and he thanked them also for what they had done.

Lieut.-Colonel ISAACS, in reply, thanked the Lord Lieutenant and the County of Berkshire for that great reception and welcome home. It was 21 years since the Battalion had served in England and they had taken part in two campaigns, but despite the heavy demands made on the county's fighting material they still found that it was as good, if not better, than any material to be found in England. During the past four and a half years they had, together with the other battalions, endeavoured to uphold the great reputation and traditions handed down to them, and of which they were so justly proud.

[photo, group, exterior] THE LORD LIEUTENANT'€™S CONGRATULATIONS. [Photo by C. E. & A. May.]

Captain H. C. BLYDE, M.C., replied on behalf of the Yeomanry, Major Strange being unavoidably absent. He said all ranks were looking forward to the time when they might be formed up again as the Berkshire Yeomanry.

From the station the men marched by way of Station Road, Friar Street, West Street, Broad Street, Butter Market and Market Place to the Town Hall, where the Mayor and Corporation received them in civic state. The streets were lined by Boy Scouts and gaily bedecked with flags. One flag in Broad Street bore the inscription, "We are proud of you old Contemptibles". Cries of "Welcome home" and "Well done 66th" were to be heard on all sides, and another large crowd had assembled a t the Town Hall.

The Mayor, Alderman S. Hayward, waited on the steps, and among those present, not already mentioned as being at the station, were Aldermen J. W. Martin and A. H. Bull, Councillors F. A. Sarjeant (Deputy Mayor), E. O. Farrer, W. E. Butler and L. E. Quelch, Canon the Rev. R. P. Newhouse (Rural Dean of Reading), the Rev. W. Priestley, Mr. A. H. Sherwood (Clerk of the Peace), and Mr. Dodd (Inspector of Nuisances).

After shaking hands with Colonel Isaacs, the MAYOR said:

"Colonel Isaacs, Captain Blyde, Warrant Officers, N.C.O.'s and men of the 2nd Batt. Royal Berkshire Regiment and the Berkshire Yeomanry. As Mayor of the Borough it is my privilege to speak on behalf of the Town Council and the inhabitants of Reading, and to welcome you on your return from active service. We have read with pride and interest of your valour and endurance in the face of the enemy, and, on behalf of all, I tender to you our heartfelt gratitude for your share in the mighty struggle which at last compelled the strongest military power of our time to acknowledge defeat. You of the Berkshire Regiment have fought throughout the war on the Western front, and we recall your efforts at Neuve Chapelle, on the Somme and elsewhere, and in the great offensive of last year, which culminated in the rout of the enemy. All your feats of arms in this, the greatest of wars, have shown that you still live up to the fine traditions of the Battalion, and that you possess in your hearts the loyalty which Gen. Primrose described in his despatch after the battle of Maiwand, during the Afghan campaign, and which is described on the pedestal of the Lion in the Forbury Gardens, when he said, "History does not afford any grander or finer instance of gallantry and devotion to Queen and country than that displayed by the 66th Regiment at the battle of Maiwand on 27th July, 1880".

"You of the 1st Berkshire Yeomanry have fought in other parts of the world - Egypt, Gallipoli and Palestine - and you took part in the campaign which resulted in the fall of Jerusalem and the break-up of the Turkish Empire. Afterwards you went to France and, changing your role, became machine gunners and took your place in the fighting line in ...