| Royal Pioneer Corps | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1917–1921 (as Labour Corps) 1939–1993 |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Role | Light engineering tasks |
| Garrison/HQ | Northampton |
| Nickname | Chunkies |
| Motto | Labor omnia vincit |
| Colors | Red and Green |
| March | Pioneer Corps |
TheRoyal Pioneer Corps was aBritish Army corps used for light engineering tasks. It was formed in 1939, and amalgamated into theRoyal Logistic Corps in 1993. Pioneer units performed a wide variety of tasks in all theatres of war, including Northern Ireland. They were used for full infantry, mine clearance, guarding bases, laying prefabricated track on beaches, and effecting various logistical operations. Many pioneer companies took part in theNormandy landings and after theSecond World War, the corps was given the designation "Royal".
The first record ofpioneers in a British army goes back to 1346 atCalais where the pay and muster rolls of the English garrison show pay records for pioneers.[1] Traditionally, there was a pioneer for eachcompany in aregiment; these were the ancestors of theassault pioneers. In about 1750, it was proposed that a Corps of Pioneers be formed. Nothing came of this for nearly one hundred years, until the Army Works Corps was established during theCrimean War in 1854.[1] TheLabour Corps was formed in 1917 during theFirst World War,[2] during which it employed 325,000 British troops, 98,000 Chinese, 10,000 Africans and at least 300,000 other labourers in units such as theChinese Labour Corps andMaltese Labour Corps.[1]
In September 1939, a number of infantry and cavalry reservists were formed into Works Labour Companies,[3] which became theAuxiliary Military Pioneer Corps (AMPC) on 17 October 1939;[4] a Labour Directorate was created to control all labour force matters.[3] The name "Pioneer" was chosen as it was thought to be more prestigious than the term "Labour" used in the previous war. The original establishment was six Group Headquarters, each of between 300 and 500 men. Most of the officers had retired from the infantry and cavalry, and had fought in the First World War.[4] The role of the AMPC included building military roads and railway lines, construction of airfields, camps, air-raid shelters and fortifications, and any other labouring tasks required.[5]
A large number of Pioneers served in France with theBritish Expeditionary Force. During theBattle of France in May 1940, No. 5 Group AMPC commanded byLieutenant ColonelDonald DeanVC, were engaged in labouring tasks in theDoullens area, nearAmiens, when the group were threatened by the advancing Germans. After requisitioning a train, and following a fire-fight with the leading German units, the Group were able to reachBoulogne-sur-Mer. Here Dean was ordered to help establish a defensive perimeter around the town.[6] On 23 May, the Germansattacked in earnest; in fierce fighting at their barricades, the pioneers destroyed one tank by igniting petrol underneath it. The pioneers were the last to fall back from the perimeter and most were evacuated from the harbour.[7] Further to the south, on 18 May, an infantrybrigade was improvised from several AMPC Companies under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel J. B. H. Diggle. Known as "Digforce", the brigade became part ofBeauman Division and fought in defence of theAndelle andBéthune rivers on 8 June 1940 against the5th and7th Panzer Divisions. Digforce and thousands of other BEF Pioneers were evacuated to England inOperation Aerial.[8] An unknown number of AMPC troops were killed when theHMT Lancastria was sunk offSt Nazaire on 17 June.[9]
During theBattle of Britain andthe Blitz, Pioneers worked with theRoyal Engineers inbomb disposal, and with the civilian services to rescue trapped people and clear rubble.[10] On 22 November 1940, the name AMPC was changed toPioneer Corps.[11] In March 1941,James Scully was awarded theGeorge Cross. Corps members have won thirteenGeorge Medals and many other lesser awards.[12]
A total of 23 pioneer companies took part in theNormandy landings.[13] The novelistAlexander Baron served in one of these Beach Groups and later included some of his experiences in his novelsFrom the City From the Plough andThe Human Kind; he also wrote a radio play about the experience of being stranded on a craft attempting to land supplies on the beaches ofNormandy. Nos. 85 and 149 Companies, Pioneer Corps served with the6th Beach Group assisting the units landing onSword Beach on D Day, 6 June 1944.[14]
The peak strength of the Pioneer Corps in 1944-45 was 444,591 all ranks: some 10,000 were killed.[10] On 28 November 1946, in recognition of their performance during theSecond World War,King George VI decreed that the Pioneer Corps should have the distinction "Royal" added to its title.[13]
In April 1993, following theOptions for Change review, the Royal Pioneer Corps was joined with theRoyal Corps of Transport, theRoyal Army Ordnance Corps, theArmy Catering Corps, and the Postal and Courier Service of theRoyal Engineers to form theRoyal Logistic Corps.[15]
The last unit to retain the "pioneer" title, 23 Pioneer Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps, which saw action in operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, was disbanded in 2014. A 'farewell' parade was held on 26 September at St David's Barracks,MoD Bicester inOxfordshire; it was attended byPrince Richard, Duke of Gloucester.[16] The regiment's ceremonialaxes continue to be used by the Royal Logistic Corps.[17]
The initial composition of the AMPC was of reservists who had been called back to service in infantry or cavalry units, but were not able to be placed, either because their unit was fully manned, or if they failed to meet the physical standard required.[10] Further recruitment was of older men from areas of high unemployment or conscripts who were found to be unfit for front-line service.[18] From 1941, Pioneer officers were dispatched around theBritish Empire to recruit and train volunteers from colonies and territories in the Mediterranean, Africa and Asia. A total of about 400,000 served in these units.[4]
It has wrongly been said at various times thatBritish conscientious objectors were sometimes ordered into the Pioneer Corps by Conscientious Objection Tribunals in the Second World War; the error may have arisen from a misunderstanding of a misleadingly drafted question in the House of Lords on 22 July 1941 and a reply byLord Croft, jointUnder-Secretary of State for War, that was not expressed with the clarity that might have been expected. The War Office was asked about "British conscientious objectors who have been ordered by the Tribunals to undertake service with the Pioneer Corps", whereas the Tribunals had no power to make such an order; the only power they had relating to conscientious objectors in the armed forces was to order non-combatant military service, meaning call-up in most cases to theNon-Combatant Corps, or occasionally to the Royal Army Medical Corps; the Pioneer Corps, as a combatant unit, was by definition excluded. In his reply, Lord Croft referred to "conscientious objectors ordered for attachment to the Pioneer Corps", only obliquely correcting the language of the question. To spell it out in full, what Lord Croft meant was "conscientious objectors ordered by the Tribunals to serve in the Non-Combatant Corps and then, as members of the NCC, attached at certain times and for certain purposes to the Pioneer Corps".[19]
In the early part of the Second World War, the Pioneer Corps was the only British military unit in whichenemy aliens could serve.[20] Thousands of German and Austrian nationals joined the Pioneer Corps to assist Allied war efforts and the liberation of their home countries, forming a total of fifteen companies.[10] They typically were Jews and political opponents of theNazi Regime who had fled to Britain, including film production designerKen Adam, writersGeorge Clare andArthur Koestler, and publisherRobert Maxwell.[21]
Later, some members of Pioneer Corps—often dubbed "The King's Most Loyal Enemy Aliens"—transferred to serve in various fighting units. Some were recruited by theSpecial Operations Executive (SOE) to serve as secret agents and were parachuted behind enemy lines.[22] Others were recruited intoNo. 3 Troop ("X" Troop) of No. 10 (Inter-Allied) Commando, a unit comprised entirely of German-speaking refugees, mostly Jewish, who operated in small teams with theCommando Forces.[23] Some two dozen German-speaking Pioneers were recruited into the21st Independent Parachute Company, a unit trained as pathfinders for major parachute assaults, and served with distinction inOperation Market Garden.[24]
Serving as a German or Austrian national in the British forces was especially dangerous because, in case of being taken captive, there was a high probability of being executed as a traitor by the Germans. Still, the number of German-born Jews joining the British forces was exceptionally high; by the end of the war, one in seven Jewish refugees from Germany had joined the British forces. Their knowledge of the German language and customs proved particularly useful; many served in the administration of the British occupation army in Germany and Austria after the war.[25]
German-speaking Pioneers were also recruited byMI19 as translators at interrogation centres forprisoners of war. These centres, most notably the "Cockfosters Cage" atTrent Park north of London, were fitted withcovert listening devices that could overhear conversations between high-ranking German officers, a source of much valuable intelligence. The British linguists initially employed to transcribe the Germans' speech were often found to be unable to understand their slang and jargon, so from late 1943, around one hundred well-educated native German speakers were recruited from the Pioneer Corps.[26]
The Pioneer Corps recruited from among Spanish exiles after theSpanish Civil War. No.1 Spanish Company was formed.[27] There was also one Indian and two Czech companies, recruited from expatriates living in Britain.[10]
Colonels Commandant of the corps were:[28]
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