11th Field Company 1919-1938

11th Field Company

1919-1938

There are no records of 11 Fd Coy since its return to the UK after the Great War, until June 1921 when archives state that the Coy was disbanded. In April 1922 the 11th Field Company was represented by a Cadre consisting of one NCO and two Sappers. It was decided to reform the Coy as part of 2 Division, and the first draft of two Lance Sergeants, three Corporals and fifteen Sappers arrived in May. 11 Field Company was reformed at Gibraltar Barracks, Aldershot, on May 5th 1922.

In the second half of 1923 the peace and war establishments of an Fd Coy RE were changed. The most important of these alterations were the omission of all bridging equipment (to be held by the Field Park Company) and the omission of four section Lewis guns.

From 1922 onwards, 11 Coy spent most of its time engaged in musketry, Field Works (bridging, roads, demolitions, etc.), individual training, trade training, pontoon bridging, Works Services, Manoeuvre Camp construction and manoeuvres.

The Coy was very proficient at sport and, at the conclusion of the Annual Musketry Course in 1923, was the best shooting Unit in the 2nd Division. They were runners up in the Aldershot Command Inter-Company Association Football Competition, also in 1923, for which they were awarded a shield. The Coy was represented in mounted and dismounted athletics, shooting, cricket, tug-of-war, tent-pegging, cross-country running, football, hockey, billiards, boxing and mounted events. 11 Coy won the inter-unit challenge shield for the best all round unit at sport and games for the year 1926-7, and attended the RE Sports Competition most years.

During April and May 1925 the Coy undertook the construction of the whole of the scenery for the Aldershot Searchlight Tattoo. The new pontoon equipment was used for the first time in a bridging camp at Cosham in June. Brigade and Divisional training took place at Basingstoke from Jul-Sep, followed by Army

Manoeuvres, and the Coy returned to Aldershot on Oct 1st.

In 1928 the Coy was reduced to four officers and 128 men, organized in two half-companies, each commanded by a Lieutenant...As well as the OC, 2ic, CSM, CQMS and Mounted Sergeant, the Coy had MT, consisting of a motorbike and horse-drawn wagons.

In 1929 the motor boat was allotted to 11 Coy for trial whilst on their annual bridging camp. Experiments were later carried out with the new Folding Boat Equipment and included testing a worn out boat against machine gun fire. Records state that it was easily sunk

In June 1932 the Coy marched to Wyke Regis for the bridging camp. The march took eight days. The Mounted Section ceased to exist in August 1932 when all horses, with the exception of the Officers' Chargers, were returned to the Remount Depot. The first motor vehicles arrived in the same period, with

complete motorization of the Coy being achieved in February 1933.

In 1935, an Iraqi Army Major was attached to the Coy for two months, and in 1937 a Lieutenant of the Chinese National Army attended the Coy bridging camp. The Coy was deployed to Norfolk in April 1937 to "save" the Fenlands, for which they were gratefully thanked by the River Great Ouse Catchments

Board.

In March 1939 the Coy carried out trials for the RE Board to determine the limiting gradient for ramps on and off military bridges.

To 1939-1945