The Royal Berkshire Militia was an auxiliary military regiment in the county of Berkshire in Southern England. From their formal organisation as Trained Bands, in 1572 and their service during the Armada Crisis and in the English Civil War, the Militia of Berkshire served during times of international tension and all of Britain's major wars. The regiment provided internal security and home defence but sometimes operated further afield, relieving regular troops from routine garrison duties and acting as a source of trained officers and men for the Regular Army. It later became a battalion of the Royal Berkshire Regiment, and prepared thousands of reinforcements for the fighting battalions of the regiment in World War I. After 1921 the militia had only a shadowy existence until its final abolition in 1953.
Early history
The English militia was descended from the Anglo-Saxon Fyrd, the military force raised from the freemen of the shires under command of their Sheriff. It continued under the Norman kings. The force was reorganised under the Assizes of Arms of 1181 and 1252, and again by King Edward I's Statute of Winchester of 1285. In addition to the ams and armour kept by householders under these statutes, there are records from 1488–89 of a 'Town Guard' of six men maintained by the Berkshire town of Reading. Reading provided a Troop of 24 horsemen on 12 September 1542 for King Henry VIII's campaign in Scotland that culminated in the Battle of Solway Moss on 24 November. Two years later the town sent 13 horsemen and 20 foot to serve in the Siege of Boulogne. Henry also issued orders for home defence: the county forces were to be mustered under the Lord Lieutenant, assisted by the Deputy Lieutenants and Justices of the Peace (JPs). On the death of King Edward VI Reading supplied a detachment of 10 men to support Queen Mary I against the rebellion of the Duke of Northumberland, and later to attend the coronation.
The legal basis of the militia was updated in Mary's reign with two Acts of 1557 covering musters and the maintenance of horses and armour. The entry into force of these Acts in 1558 is seen as the starting date for the organised county militia in England.
Berkshire Trained Bands
Although the militia obligation was universal, it was clearly impractical to train and equip every able-bodied man, so after 1572 the practice was to select a proportion of men for the Trained Bands (TBs), who were mustered for regular training. The Armada Crisis in 1588 led to the mobilisation of the trained bands on 23 July. The previous April Berkshire had mustered 3120 able-bodied men, of whom 1000 were trained and a further 930 untrained men were 'pioneers'. In addition the county fielded 10 'lances' (heavy cavalry), 180 light horse, and 35 'petronels' (the petronel was an early cavalry firearm). The Berkshire TBs were present at the camp at Tilbury where Queen Elizabeth I gave her Tilbury speech on 9 August. The Berkshire contingent of the Queen's bodyguard comprised 230 horsemen. After the defeat of the Armada, the army was dispersed to its counties to avoid supply problems, but the men were to hold themselves in readiness. A further Spanish invasion alert in 1599 led to a partial mobilisation, with Reading furnishing 140 men.
In the 16th Century little distinction was made between the militia and the troops levied by the counties for overseas expeditions, and Berkshire supplied levies almost every year from 1585: by 1602, 469 had been sent to Ireland, 480 to France, and 675 to the Netherlands. However, the counties usually conscripted the unemployed and criminals rather than the Trained Bandsmen – in 1585 the Privy Council had ordered the impressment of able-bodied unemployed men, and the Queen ordered 'none of her trayned-bands to be pressed'. Replacing the weapons issued to the levies from the militia armouries was a heavy cost on the counties.
Bishops' Wars
With the passing of the threat of invasion, the trained bands declined in the early 17th Century, though there was a great muster in 1614 and the Berkshire TBs continued to carry out annual exercises. Later, King Charles I attempted to reform them into a national force or 'Perfect Militia' answering to the king rather than local control. In 1638 the Berkshire Trained Band consisted of 1100 men, of whom 680 were musketeers and 420 'corslets' (armoured pikeman), while the Berkshire Trained Band Horse comprised 59 Cuirassiers (armoured men) and 31 Harquebusiers (armed with carbines).