A guide to abbreviations in the British Army, Honourable Artillery Company records
The British Army, Honourable Artillery Company records have a large amount of abbreviations and military jargon. To help you get the most from the records we have created a list of abbreviations for you to consult. The following guide might help with those most commonly found.
Abbreviation | Definition |
---|---|
* | (In front of name) Went overseas with the HAC |
§ | Awarded 1914 Star or 1914/15 Star |
† | (In front of name) Went overseas with another unit of the armed forces (usually because of receiving a commission) |
101 or 104 | 101st Provisional Battalion or 104th Provisional Battalion |
1 or 2 or 3 | 1st Battalion, 2nd Battalion or 3rd [Reserve] Battalion [HAC]. Note that Each of the three infantry battalions had four numbered companies (Nos 1-4 Company) and these are sometimes referred to as corresponding lettered companies (A-D Company) in HAC records (or histories) |
1/1 or 2/1 or 3/1 | 1st Battalion, No. 1 [or A] Company [similar for 2nd and 3rd Bns] [HAC] |
1/2 or 2/2 or 3/2 (or 1-2 and so on) | 1st Battalion, No. 2 [or B] Company [similar for 2nd and 3rd Bns] [HAC] |
1/3 or 2/3 or 3/3 (or 1-3 and so on) | 1st Battalion, No. 3 [or C] Company [similar for 2nd and 3rd Bns] [HAC] |
1/4 or 2/4 or 3/4 (or 1-4 and so on) | 1st Battalion, No. 4 [or D] Company [similar for 2nd and 3rd Bns] [HAC] |
18 9 14 or 1 10 16 (Dates in columnar form) | These represent dates written in columnar form; sometimes two days might be represented as '24 27 10 17'; these dates usually accompany information on going overseas, wounding, to hospital etc. |
1-A or 1/A or 1/a | A Battery [HAC] |
1-B or 1/B or 1/b | B Battery [HAC] |
1st Reserve Bn | 3rd [or Reserve] Battalion [HAC] |
2/Lt | Second Lieutenant |
20 5 17 lf 29 5 17 [with columnar dates] | Reports from hospital on 20 May 1917 and given leave until 29 May 1917 |
20 Man. R | 20th Bn, Manchester Regt |
24.9.14 [as a 'long' date] | Dates written straight across at the beginning of a man's entry in the RNRs represent the date at which he joined the HAC and was assigned his regimental number; this 'long' date might also have extra day and month numbers below or above it |
2-A or 2/A or 2/a | 2/A Battery [HAC] |
2-B or 2/B or 2/b | 2/B Battery [HAC] |
2nd ic | Second in Command |
392 XVI | Discharged in consequence of being no longer physically fit for War Service' (paragraph 392 XVI King's Regulations) |
3A or 3a | 3/A Battery [later the Reserve Battery] [HAC] |
3B or 3b | 3/B Battery [later the Reserve Battery] [HAC] |
A | A Battery [HAC] |
A/ | Acting [with rank] |
A/Capt. | Acting Captain |
Adjt | Adjutant |
adm. | Admitted [to the HAC civil side] |
Amb. | Ambulance |
AO no. | Army Order no. |
APM | Acting Provost Marshal |
Art. | Artillery |
atd or attd | Attached |
B | B Battery [HAC] |
Bapt. | Baptist |
Bde | Brigade |
Bdr | Bombardier |
BEF | British Expeditionary Force |
Bn | Battalion |
Bomb. Sch. | Bombing School |
Bright. | Brighton |
Btty | Battery |
Bty | Battery |
C | Corporal |
C de G | Croix de Guerre |
C of E | Church of England |
Cad. S. Kildare | Cadet School, Kildare [Ireland] |
Calthorp [in columnar form] | Calthorpe Steet Depot |
Cam. | Cambridge |
Capt. | Captain |
Cav. | Cavalry |
CE | Church of England |
Chris. Sc. | Christian Scientist |
Col | Colonel |
Com. | Commissioned [into an HAC unit or another unit] |
Cong. | Congregationalist |
Corp. | Corporal |
Coy | Company |
Cpl | Corporal |
'Crossed swords' symbol [with or without a columnar date] | Went with original unit to Front; see also 'F' below |
CS | Cadet School |
CSM | Company Sergeant Major |
CU | Cadet Unit |
D | Draft |
DAG | Deputy Adjutant-General |
DCM | Distinguished Conduct Medal |
Dem | Demobilised |
Dep. | Depot |
DFC | Distinguished Flying Cross |
Dis. | Discharged |
Dis. Com. | Discharged to commission in another regiment/unit |
DoW | Died of Wounds |
DSO | Distinguished Service Order |
Dvr | Driver |
E | England |
ECU [sometimes with date in columnar form] | To Cadet School or Unit in England, as in '16 3 17 ECU'= 'to England 16 March 1917 to join Cadet School' |
Exp. | Expeditionary |
F | Father - as next of kin with religion, e.g. F CofE - 'father is next of kin, religion is Church of England' |
F | Field [as in regiment] |
F [with columnar date] | Was drafted overseas from an HAC reserve unit to to join an HAC operational unit serving at the Front |
Fce | Force |
gaz. | Gazetted, i.e. commission published in the London Gazette |
Gen. | General |
Gnr | Gunner |
Gr | Gunner |
GSW | Gun-shot wounds |
H [sometimes with date in columnar form] | To hospital |
HA | Horse Artillery [HAC] |
HAC | Honourable Artillery Company |
HB | Household Brigade |
HE [sometimes with date in columnar form] | To hospital, England |
Hon. | Honourable |
Howr | Howitzer |
HQ | Headquarters |
I | Invalided |
IE [sometimes with date in columnar form] | Invalided, to England |
Imp. Camel Corps | Imperial Camel Corps |
Inf. | Infantry |
Instr | Instructor |
K | Dead or missing |
KCB | Knight Commander of the Bath |
KiA | Killed in Action |
KRRC | King's Royal Rifle Corps |
Ks 392 | See 392 XVI |
KSLI | King's Shropshire Light Infantry |
L/ | Lance [as in rank] |
L/Bdr | Lance/Bombardier |
L/Cpl | Lance Corporal |
L/Sgt | Lance/Sergeant |
LC | Lance Corporal |
LCD Seaf. | London Command Depot at Seaford [Sussex] |
LD | London District |
LDLC | London District Labour Centre |
LEE | London Electrical Engineers |
LG | London Gazette |
LHE [in columnar form] | In hospital whilst on leave in England |
Lt | Lieutenant |
Lt-Col | Lieutenant-Colonel |
Lt-Gen. | Lieutenant-General |
M | Mother - as next of kin with religion, e.g. 'M CofE' - 'mother is next of kin, religion is Church of England' |
M [sometimes with date in columnar form] | Missing |
M. in Desp. | Mentioned in Despatches |
Maj. | Major |
Maj.-Gen. | Major-General |
Man. R. | Manchester Regiment |
MBE | Member of the Order of the British Empire |
MC | Military Cross |
Meth. | Methodist |
MGC Bisley [or other locations] | Machine Gun School at Bisley [or other locations] |
MiD | Mentioned in Despatches |
MinD | Mentioned in Despatches |
MM | Military Medal |
MMB | ‘Major Mayhew’s Book’ [HAC’s 1st Bn Register] |
NCO | Non-Commissioned Officer |
No. | Number |
Nr | Near |
OC | Officer Cadet |
OCB | Officer Cadet Battalion |
Offr | Officer |
Plat. | Platoon |
POW [in columnar form] | Prisoner of War |
Presby or Pres. | Presbyterian |
Pte | Private |
QM | Quartermaster [officer rank] |
R Berks. | Royal Berkshire Regiment |
R W Kent R | Royal West Kent Regt |
R War. R | Royal Warickshire Regt |
R W Surrey R | Royal West Surrey Regt |
R. Welsh Fus. | Regiment of Royal Welsh Fusiliers |
RA Exeter | Officers Royal Artillery School, Exeter |
RA Select. St JWd | Royal Artillery Officers Selection, St John's Wood |
RB | Reserve Battery [HAC] |
RC | Roman Catholic |
Rd | Road |
RDC [in columnar form] | Royal Defence Corps |
RE | Royal Engineers |
RE Signals | Royal Engineers Signals |
Regt | Regiment |
RFA | Royal Field Artillery |
RFC | Royal Flying Corps |
RFC Denh. | Royal Flying Corps, Denham |
RGA | Royal Garrison Artillery |
RN | Royal Navy |
RS [in columnar form] | Royal Scots |
Ry | Railway |
S | Sick |
S | Sergeant |
S Wales Bdrs | South Wales Borderers |
S/Sgt or S/Sjt | Staff Sergeant |
SB | 309th (HAC) Siege Battery RGA [HAC] |
SE | South East |
SE [sometimes with date in columnar form] | Sick, to England |
Sgt | Sergeant |
Sh sh | Shell shock |
Sherwood For. | Sherwood Foresters |
sic | Thus' [Latin] |
Sjt | Serjeant |
Sp. Res. | Special Reserve [of officers] |
Spr | Sapper |
SS | Signal Section [?] |
St | Saint |
St JWd | St John's Wood |
Sub.-Lt | Subordinate Lieutenant [junior naval rank] |
T/ | Temporary [with rank] |
Tanks [in columnar form] | Tank Regiment |
TD | Territorial Decoration |
Temp. | Temporary |
TM or TMB or TM By | Trench Mortar Battery |
TR | Training Reserve |
VC | Victoria Cross |
W | Wife [as next of kin with religion], e.g. 'W RC' - 'wife is next of kin, religion is Roman Catholic' |
W [sometimes with date in columnar form] | Wounded |
WE [sometimes with date in columnar form] | Wounded, to England |
Wes or Wesly | Wesleyan |
WH [sometimes with date in columnar form] | Wounded and in hospital |
WO 1st Class | Warrant Officer First Class |
WO List | War Office List |