Joshua Hickford

Research Topic

'An Army of Cliques: Regimental Tradition and Culture in the British Army, 1881-1918', investigating regimental culture in Britain in this period.

Supervisor: Adrian Gregory

My research seeks to explore the implications of the regimental system for British military culture in the era of the First World War. The British Army has always been dominated by the regimental system, perhaps more so than any other army in the modern period. Regiments are administrative divisions of the army which provide a surrogate family and corporate identity, imbuing its members with a communal pride and a shared obligation to defend the reputation of their regiment. Whilst most armies used regiments to organise their forces at the turn of the 20th century, the British Army was particularly keen on entrenching regimental identities and loyalties, with no soldier being obliged to transfer out of their regiment before reaching the rank of colonel. 

It is for this reason that the regimental culture, which is often considered so vital to understanding the British Army at large, bears much closer inspection. I aim to use a mixture of War Office and Army documents, soldiers' memoirs and letters, and regimental publications to gain a deeper understanding of what effect this system had upon the culture of the British Army, and to what extent the supposed benefits of group loyalty were effectively fostered and maintained in this period. The Victorian and Edwardian Army was constituted by the very poorest and very richest in society, who would be serving for many years - how does this change when the First World War begins, and the military has to create such an identity so quickly, being filled with 'civilians in uniform' who are not professional soldiers? After comparing the pre-war army with the first volunteer wave, I then wish to understand how this transformed regimental culture reacted to the introduction of conscription in 1916. 

Previous Research Interests

Whilst studying my Masters at St. Hilda's College, Oxford, I investigated the culture of reform in the British Army, from 1899-1914. It is from this research that I was inspired to pursue my current doctoral research.

I completed my BA degree at Queen Mary University of London, with my final dissertation focussing on the British intervention in the Russian Civil War at Archangelsk and Murmansk. I was awarded an 'Outstanding Potential Award' as part of my undergraduate studies.