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Small and aggressive: How undersized patriots joined the Bantam battalions to fight the Kaiser

The Bantam battalions were named after the small aggressive fowl, which became their emblem.

They were first recruited in Cheshire following MP Alfred Bigland's petition, after he heard that a group of miners had been rejected from every recruiting office on account of their size.

The men, and others like them from similar industrial and coal-mining areas, were desperate to 'do their bit' and sign up - and got their wish after Bigland succeeded with a petition to the War Office. 

Above, a regiment of the Birkenhead Bantams, who were honoured for the service at Ypres and the Somme

Above, a regiment of the Birkenhead Bantams, who were honoured for the service at Ypres and the Somme

Although Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War, approved the idea of the short-sized fighting unit, his War Office refused to fund it, so Bigland raised his own company - 15th Battalion, 1st Birkenhead, The Cheshire Regiment.

And from there it grew. By November 1914, there were 3,000 recruits, leading to the formation of a second battalion, and the concept spread to Canada. 

Bantam battalions undertook gruelling training and served in some of the most hard-fought battles of the war including Ypres and The Somme.

During WWI, two whole divisions, the 35th and the 40th, were formed from Bantams and were almost annihilated during the Battle of Ypres.

Heavy casualties and the introduction of conscripted men of all heights eventually led to Bantam unit becoming indistinguishable from other regiments.

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