Monday October 28th, 1918
Route march about 15km – tired out.
Brigade Route March
The whole 199th Infantry Brigade seems to have gone on a long route march. They are clearly keeping fit for the battles ahead. Despite it being only a fortnight until the war will end, no-one knows it yet. Instead Foch’s Allies continue to advance on the German positions all along the front and the Germans put up a good rearguard fight.
Soldier’s Pay and Separation Allowance
One piece of good news (that the end of the war may well interrupt) is that the separation allowance for a soldier’s dependants is to be increased.
In addition to paying the soldiers directly (the lowest rank received a shilling a day at the beginning of the war), the government also pays a separation allowance directly to any dependants. For an earlier blog on this, click here.
These improved provisions were approved by the War Cabinet last week. They will cost the government an extra £16 million a year – a reasonable amount. But not when one considers the millions of servicemen in the Armed Forces by this point in the war.
Improved Pay for Soldiers
The article also provided details of increases and changes to the soldiers’ pay that were introduced a year ago:
‘It will be remembered that … the Government relieved the soldier of all compulsory allotment in October 1917, and raised the minimum payment of all ranks to 1s 6d a day in November of the same year, besides approving of the payment of proficiency pay after six months’ service, and 1d a day for each year’s service since the outbreak of hostilities. Hospital stoppages were also at this time abolished, similar increases being granted to the navy, including the issue of free kit. These increases added more than 3s 6d a week in every case to the pay of the lowest ranks of the services, and more than 7s a week when he had dependants.’¹
The photograph is of a pay parade of the 1/6th Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment in the field in 1916.*
Some of these recent changes seem only fair and long overdue.
9th Battalion War Diary – 28th October 1918 – Elincourt
Brigade Route March less transport.
References & Further Reading
¹ ‘Separation Allowance and Improved Pay for Soldiers’, The Guardian, October 19th, 1918, page 9
* Q 60491, copyright Imperial War Museums