It was formed in 1881 through the amalgamation of two other regiments:
65th (2nd Yorkshire North Riding) Regiment
84th (York and Lancaster) Regiment
The title of the regiment was derived not from the cities of York and Lancaster, or from the counties. Instead, the name came from the fact that it recruited from, amongst other places, landed properties owned by the Duchy of York and the Duchy of Lancaster. The regiment's recruiting area was in fact wholly within South Yorkshire (an area known as Hallamshire). Indeed, the regiment's TA battalion dropped its number and was known simply as The Hallamshire Battalion from 1924.
Other units of the regiment saw service in Europe - the 1st Battalion was involved in the Norwegian Campaign, and was carried to and from Norway by HMS Sheffield; this led to a bond of friendship between the regiment and the ship, and meant that when the Sheffield was adopted by its namesake city, the Yorks and Lancs was awarded the freedom of Sheffield soon after. This Battalion served in the 15th Infantry Brigade , part of the 5th Infantry Division
The 2nd Battalion (part of the 14th Infantry Brigade), before becoming Chindits, was involved in the defense of Heraklion, during the Battle of Crete in 1941 . Most of their casualties in this battle were suffered in the withdrawal by the Royal Navy which came under heavy air attack from the GermanLuftwaffe. On returning to Egypt they became part of the British 70th Infantry Division used in the breakout from Tobruk, where they suffered heavy casulties as one of the lead battalions. They were transferred, along with the rest of the 70th Infantry Division, to India and Burma where they took part in the 2nd Chindit Campaign and the Arakan offensive toward the end of the war.
Post World War II
Following the Second World War, the regiment saw service around the world, including participation in the Suez Crisis of 1956. With the reorganisation of the army in 1968, the Yorks and Lancs was one of two infantry regiments that chose to be disbanded rather than amalgamated with another regiment. However, although the 1st Battalion was disbanded in 1968, with the Regimental HQ closing in 1987, the traditions of the regiment were continued through the descendents of the Hallamshire Battalion, which was constituted as two companies in the Yorkshire Volunteers. This was reduced to a single company in 1992 before the Hallamshire lineage was ended in 1999.
Honours and Affiliations
Battle honours
combined battle honours of 65th Regiment and 84th Regiment1, plus:
*Guadeloupe 17592, Martinique 17942, Tel-el-Kebir, Egypt 1882 '84, Relief of Ladysmith, South Africa 1899-1902
*The Great War [22 battalions]: Aisne 1914, Armentières 1914, Ypres 1915 '17 '18, Gravenstafel, St. Julien, Frezenberg, Bellewaarde, Hooge 1915, Loos, Somme 1916 '18, Albert 1916, Pozières, Flers-Courcelette, Morval, Thiepval, Le Transloy, Ancre Heights, Ancre 1916, Arras 1917 '18, Scarpe 1917 '18, Arleux, Oppy, Messines 1917 '18, Langemarck 1917, Menin Road, Polygon Wood, Broodseinde, Poelcappelle, Passchendaele, Cambrai 1917 '18, St. Quentin, Bapaume 1918, Lys, Hazebrouck, Bailleul, Kemmel, Scherpenberg, Marne 1918, Tardenois, Drocourt-Quéant, Hindenburg Line, Havrincourt, Épéhy, Canal du Nord, Selle, Valenciennes, Sambre, France and Flanders 1914-18, Piave, Vittorio Veneto, Italy 1917-18, Struma, Doiran 1917, Macedonia 1915-18, Suvla, Landing at Suvla, Scimitar Hill, Gallipoli 1915, Egypt 1916
*The Second World War: Norway 1940, Odon, Fontenay Le Pesnil, Caen, La Vie Crossing, La Touques Crossing, Forêt de Bretonne, Le Havre, Antwerp-Turnhout Canal, Scheldt, Lower Maas, Arnhem 1945, North-West Europe 1940 '44-45, Tobruk 1941, Tobruk Sortie 1941, Mine de Sedjenane, Djebel Kournine, North Africa 1941 '43, Landing in Sicily, Simeto Bridgehead, Pursuit to Messina, Sicily 1943, Salerno, Vietri Pass, Capture of Naples, Cava di Terreni, Volturno Crossing, Monte Camino, Calabritto, Colle Cedro, Garigliano Crossing, Minturno, Monte Tuga, Anzio, Advance to Tiber, Gothic Line, Coriano, San Clemente, Gemmano Ridge, Carpineta, Lamone Crossing, Defence of Lamone Bridgehead, Rimini Line, San Marino, Italy 1943-45, Crete, Heraklion, Middle East 1941, North Arakan, Maungdaw, Rangoon Road, Toungoo, Arakan Beaches, Chindits 1944, Burma 1943-45
1. the honour India of the 84th Regt was modified to India 1796-1819 in 1912 to differentiate it from the "India" Tiger badge of the 65th Regt
2. awarded 1909 for services of 65th Regiment
