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His pride in the Battalion was expressed by Major-General C.E. Pereira, C.B., C.M.G., on the occasion of the presentation of the King's Color at Niederaussem, Germany, on January 24, 1919.
"First of all," said Major-General Pereira, "I will tell you how highly I esteem the privilege of presenting these colors to-day.
"For two years," he went on, "I have had the honor to command the 2nd Division, and I have been proud of your work in the Field and out of it, and of the fine spirit which you have always shown.
"These colors are given you as a mark of the magnificent service you have rendered in the campaign during the last four years.
"The record of the Regiment during the whole of its service will compare with the services of any battalion in the British Army, whether in the Somme fighting, 1916, Courcelette, Vimy Ridge, and Bourlon Wood in 1917, the retirement from the Cambrai salient in March, 1918, or the recent victorious advance which culminated in the overthrow of the Germans. In all these operations, in spite of mud, heat or cold, or desperate resistance, you have always shown the dogged
determination to win.
"It is a fine tribute to the British race that a newly-raised battalion, without any previous traditions, which are such assets to regular battalions, should have outfought the German battalions, trained to war for generations.
"Perhaps your finest record is that of March, 1918, when along a great part of our front detached Divisions fought their way slowly back from position to position, facing overwhelming numbers, and an enemy drunk with the idea that the final victory was theirs; it was then, when short of food, without rest, short of men, that you showed what you were made of, and after successive days of retirement you turned and held the Germans.
"It is fitting that the work of this Battalion should be crowned by the victorious march to the Rhine, and that your colors should make their first appearance in a conquered country—a country which has taken us four and a half years to reach."
23rd Battalion
The 23 (Service) Battalion Royal Fusiliers, 1920 |
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