194-759: World War II The Staffordshire Yeomanry (Queen's Own Royal Regiment) was a mounted auxiliary unit of the British Army raised in 1794 to defend Great Britain from foreign invasion. It continued in service after the Napoleonic Wars , frequently being called out in support of the civil powers. It first sent units overseas at the time of the Second Boer War and saw distinguished service in Egypt and Palestine in World War I . During World War II it gave up its horses and became
388-637: A Neutrality Pact in April 1941, and Japan adopted the doctrine of Nanshin-ron , promoted by the Navy, which took its focus southward and eventually led to war with the United States and the Western Allies. In Europe, Germany and Italy were becoming more aggressive. In March 1938, Germany annexed Austria , again provoking little response from other European powers. Encouraged, Hitler began pressing German claims on
582-564: A cautious French probe into the Saarland . The Western Allies also began a naval blockade of Germany , which aimed to damage the country's economy and war effort. Germany responded by ordering U-boat warfare against Allied merchant and warships, which would later escalate into the Battle of the Atlantic . On 8 September, German troops reached the suburbs of Warsaw . The Polish counter-offensive to
776-764: A lieutenant in the Uttoxeter Troop on 2 January 1820; he had left by the time he entered the Cabinet as Home Secretary in 1822, but several of his relatives served in the regiment. In 1823 the Bilston Troop was renamed the Sandwell Troop when Capt Yates succeeded Capt Bickley in command, but was disbanded in December 1826 due to lack of recruits. The Weston and Leek Trps were also disbanded in March 1827 and December 1829 respectively;
970-681: A cavalry carbine and sabre. In January 1900 the Staffordshire Yeomanry quickly raised 6th (Staffordshire) Company, IY , commanded by Capt William Bromley-Davenport , MP (son of the regiment's former colonel), comprising four officers and 64 yeomen, together with 50 civilians and members of the Volunteers, who were specially enlisted in the regiment. The company sailed from Liverpool on 21 February and on arrival in South Africa it formed part of 4th Battalion, IY, commanded by Col F.G. Blair of
1164-653: A consignment of corn at Radford Bridge on the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal ; the rioters were dispersed without bloodshed. In 1798 the Staffordshire Yeomanry was fully regimented, and the troops were no longer independent. By now the threat of invasion seemed more acute, and the government encouraged the formation of local armed associations of cavalry and infantry for purely local defence. A number of these volunteer associations were formed in Staffordshire and accepted: Other than their more limited obligations, there
1358-405: A few smoky sparrows; and for miles on miles a black waste spreads around, where furnaces continually smoke, steam engines thud and hiss, and long chains clank, while blind gin horses walk their doleful round. From time to time you pass a cluster of deserted roofless cottages of dingiest brick, half swallowed up in sinking pits or inclining to every point of the compass, while the timbers point up like
1552-797: A force of Volunteer Yeoman Cavalry ( Yeomanry ) that could be called on by the King to defend the country against invasion or by the Lord Lieutenant to subdue any civil disorder within the county. By the end of the year 27 counties had raised Yeomanry, including Staffordshire . The first Troop in the county was raised on 4 July 1794 at the Swan Inn, Stafford , as the Stafford Troop of the Staffordshire Volunteer Cavalry and gained official recognition on 21 August. The leading figure in raising it
1746-565: A full regiment of infantry) was attached to the Staffordshire Yeomanry, but was never called out and was disbanded in 1820. The Yeomanry generally declined in importance and strength after the end of the French wars, but this was not the case in industrial areas such as the Black Country and the Potteries where there was social unrest. The Staffordshire Yeomanry was regularly called out in support of
1940-826: A league". An alternative theory for the meaning of the name is proposed as having been caused by the darkening of the local soil due to the outcropping coal and the seam near the surface. It was however the American diplomat and travel writer Elihu Burritt who brought the term "the Black Country" into widespread common usage with the third, longest and most important of the travel books he wrote about Britain for American readers, his 1868 work Walks in The Black Country and its Green Borderland . Burritt had been appointed United States consul in Birmingham by Abraham Lincoln in 1864,
2134-587: A material suitable for making the pots in which glass was melted. In 1642 at the start of the Civil War , Charles I failed to capture the two arsenals of Portsmouth and Hull, which although in cities loyal to Parliament were located in counties loyal to him. As he had failed to capture the arsenals, Charles did not possess any supply of swords, pikes, guns, or shot; all these the Black Country could and did provide. From Stourbridge came shot, from Dudley cannon. Numerous small forges which then existed on every brook in
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#17328546355082328-405: A perpetual twilight reigns during the day, and during the night fires on all sides light up the dark landscape with a fiery glow. The pleasant green of pastures is almost unknown, the streams, in which no fishes swim, are black and unwholesome; the natural dead flat is often broken by high hills of cinders and spoil from the mines; the few trees are stunted and blasted; no birds are to be seen, except
2522-514: A pretext to initiate the invasion. The first German attack of the war came against the Polish defences at Westerplatte . The United Kingdom responded with an ultimatum for Germany to cease military operations, and on 3 September, after the ultimatum was ignored, Britain and France declared war on Germany. During the Phoney War period, the alliance provided no direct military support to Poland, outside of
2716-765: A pretext to worsen relations. On 29 August, Hitler demanded that a Polish plenipotentiary immediately travel to Berlin to negotiate the handover of Danzig , and to allow a plebiscite in the Polish Corridor in which the German minority would vote on secession. The Poles refused to comply with the German demands, and on the night of 30–31 August in a confrontational meeting with the British ambassador Nevile Henderson , Ribbentrop declared that Germany considered its claims rejected. On 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland after having staged several false flag border incidents as
2910-568: A reformed 1st Cavalry Division . There was clearly no role for cavalry in the mechanised warfare anticipated in Europe, so 1st Cavalry Division was sent to perform security duties in Mandatory Palestine , where they could still be effective, and would release other troops for the main fighting fronts. 6th Cavalry Bde arrived in Palestine on 9 January 1940, followed by the rest of the division. Over
3104-479: A role that required him to report regularly on "facts bearing upon the productive capacities, industrial character and natural resources of communities embraced in their Consulate Districts" and as a result travelled widely from his home in Harborne , largely on foot, to explore the local area. Burritt's association with Birmingham dated back 20 years and he was highly sympathetic to the industrial and political culture of
3298-465: A second contingent had been sent to South Africa to replace 6th Company, and a new 106th (Staffordshire) Company had also been sent out to join 4th Bn. However, the Second Contingent of yeomanry were generally not as well selected or trained as the first, and the battalions had to undergo much 'weeding' and reorganisation after their arrival in April before they were ready for service. 4th Battalion
3492-469: A secret protocol that defined German and Soviet "spheres of influence" (western Poland and Lithuania for Germany; eastern Poland , Finland, Estonia , Latvia and Bessarabia for the Soviet Union), and raised the question of continuing Polish independence. The pact neutralised the possibility of Soviet opposition to a campaign against Poland and assured that Germany would not have to face the prospect of
3686-695: A similar pact and rejected ceding part of its territory to the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union invaded Finland in November 1939, and was subsequently expelled from the League of Nations for this crime of aggression. Despite overwhelming numerical superiority, Soviet military success during the Winter War was modest, and the Finno-Soviet war ended in March 1940 with some Finnish concessions of territory . In June 1940,
3880-683: A tank regiment, serving in the Western Desert and landing in Normandy on D-Day . Postwar the Staffordshire Yeomanry became part of the Queen's Own Mercian Yeomanry with one of the squadrons being designated 'Staffordshire Yeomanry' until 2021. After Britain was drawn into the French Revolutionary Wars , Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger proposed on 14 March 1794 that the counties should form
4074-519: A two-front war, as it had in World War I. Immediately afterwards, Hitler ordered the attack to proceed on 26 August, but upon hearing that the United Kingdom had concluded a formal mutual assistance pact with Poland and that Italy would maintain neutrality, he decided to delay it. In response to British requests for direct negotiations to avoid war, Germany made demands on Poland, which served as
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#17328546355084268-597: A wide front to sweep up the Boers in his path as the army advanced on Bloemfontein . Over the following months the 6th (Staffordshire) Company carried out hard service. During the course of the campaign Capt Bromley-Davenport was promoted to command 4th Bn as acting Lt-Col and Capt T.A. Wight–Boycott of the Staffs Yeomanry became the battalion's major; both were awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). When
4462-705: A wider area than its common modern usage, however, devoting the first third of the book to Birmingham, which he described as "the capital, manufacturing centre, and growth of the Black Country", and writing "plant, in imagination, one foot of your compass at the Town Hall in Birmingham, and with the other sweep a circle of twenty miles [30 km] radius, and you will have, 'the Black Country" (this area includes Coventry , Kidderminster and Lichfield ). A few Black Country places such as Wolverhampton, Bilston and Wednesfield are mentioned in Anglo-Saxon charters and chronicles and
4656-404: Is the earliest documented working steam engine. An important milestone in the establishment of Black Country industry came when John Wilkinson set up an iron works at Bradley near Bilston. In 1757 he started making iron there by coke-smelting rather than using charcoal. His example was followed by others and iron making spread rapidly across the Black Country. Another important development of
4850-504: Is the fourth most deprived district in the West Midlands, and the 28th most deprived nationally. Walsall is the fifth most deprived district in the West Midlands region, and the 45th most deprived in the country. Dudley fares better, but still has pockets of deprivation. Overall, Dudley is the 100th most deprived district of the UK, but the second most affluent of the seven metropolitan districts of
5044-588: The Anglo-German Naval Agreement and the German–Polish declaration of non-aggression . The situation became a crisis in late August as German troops continued to mobilise against the Polish border. On 23 August the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact with Germany, after tripartite negotiations for a military alliance between France, the United Kingdom, and Soviet Union had stalled. This pact had
5238-591: The Battle of Megiddo . After the opening infantry assault the division broke through with little opposition, and took part in Chauvel's strategic cavalry 'bound', riding 70 miles (110 km) in 34 hours to participate in the Capture of Afulah and Beisan , taking hundreds of prisoners. After a few days' rest, 4th Cavalry Division set off again, linking up with the Arab Northern Army to capture Deraa and then advancing up
5432-684: The Battle of Mughar Ridge . At the Battle of Nebi Samwil and the subsequent Turkish counter-attacks during November 1917 men and horses suffered from the terrible conditions in the Judaean Hills . The 1/1st Staffs Yeomanry was detached to the Imperial Camel Brigade for operations in the Jordan Valley in April and May 1918 while the Yeomanry Mounted Division was reorganised into 4th Cavalry Division. 1/1st Staffordshire Yeomanry
5626-590: The Bentley Fault , to the north of which lies the Cannock Chase Coalfield . Around the exposed coalfield, separated by geological faults, lies a concealed coalfield where the coal lies at much greater depth. A mine was sunk between 1870 and 1874 over the eastern boundary of the then known coal field in Smethwick and coal was discovered at a depth of over 400 yards. In the last decade of the 19th century, coal
5820-662: The British Empire , with fighting in the Balkans , Mediterranean, and Middle East , the aerial Battle of Britain and the Blitz , and naval Battle of the Atlantic . Through a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany took control of much of continental Europe and formed the Axis alliance with Italy , Japan , and other countries. In June 1941, Germany led the European Axis in an invasion of
6014-774: The Gallipoli campaign , but the rest of the regiment was ordered to the Salonika Front , then finally was disembarked in Egypt. There 1/1st NMMB became 22nd Mounted Brigade and was sent to join the Western Frontier Force . In December 1916 the brigade joined the Yeomanry Mounted Division in the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) for the advance into Palestine . It fought in all three battles of Gaza and
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6208-566: The German Revolution of 1918–1919 , and a democratic government, later known as the Weimar Republic , was created. The interwar period saw strife between supporters of the new republic and hardline opponents on both the political right and left. Italy, as an Entente ally, had made some post-war territorial gains; however, Italian nationalists were angered that the promises made by the United Kingdom and France to secure Italian entrance into
6402-765: The German invasion of Poland and the United Kingdom and France 's declaration of war on Germany two days later on 3 September 1939. Dates for the beginning of the Pacific War include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or the earlier Japanese invasion of Manchuria , on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor , who stated that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously, and
6596-567: The Italian mainland , and Allied offensives in the Pacific—cost the Axis powers their initiative and forced them into strategic retreat on all fronts. In 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France at Normandy , while the Soviet Union regained its territorial losses and pushed Germany and its allies westward. At the same time, Japan suffered reversals in mainland Asia, while the Allies crippled
6790-421: The Japanese Navy and captured key islands . The war in Europe concluded with the liberation of German-occupied territories ; the invasion of Germany by the Western Allies and the Soviet Union, culminating in the fall of Berlin to Soviet troops; Hitler's suicide ; and the German unconditional surrender on 8 May 1945 . Following the refusal of Japan to surrender on the terms of the Potsdam Declaration ,
6984-535: The League of Nations as a force to preserve peace. Both Italy and Ethiopia were member nations, but the League did little when the former clearly violated Article X of the League's Covenant . The United Kingdom and France supported imposing sanctions on Italy for the invasion, but the sanctions were not fully enforced and failed to end the Italian invasion. Italy subsequently dropped its objections to Germany's goal of absorbing Austria . When civil war broke out in Spain, Hitler and Mussolini lent military support to
7178-429: The Leicestershire Yeomanry . On 4 March the 4th was sent with other IY battalions to Naauwpoort , and by 19 April it had joined Lieutenant-General Sir Leslie Rundle 's 8th Division ('Rundle's Column') concentrating at Rosendal in the Orange Free State . Next day Rundle advanced on Dewetsdorp with the 4th and other IY and MI battalions as a covering force, followed by the infantry and artillery. As they advanced
7372-473: The Merry Hill Shopping Centre and Waterfront commercial and leisure complex, while the Patent Shaft site was developed as an industrial estate. Unemployment in Brierley Hill peaked at more than 25% – around double the national average at the time – during the first half of the 1980s following the closure of Round Oak Steel Works, giving it one of the worst unemployment rates of any town in Britain. The Merry Hill development between 1985 and 1990 managed to reduce
7566-404: The Nationalist rebels , led by General Francisco Franco . Italy supported the Nationalists to a greater extent than the Nazis: Mussolini sent more than 70,000 ground troops, 6,000 aviation personnel, and 720 aircraft to Spain. The Soviet Union supported the existing government of the Spanish Republic . More than 30,000 foreign volunteers, known as the International Brigades , also fought against
7760-402: The Patent Shaft steel plant at Wednesbury. Unemployment rose drastically across the country during this period as a result of Conservative Prime Minister Thatcher's economic policies; later, in an implicit acknowledgement of the social problems this had caused, these areas were designated as Enterprise Zones, and some redevelopment occurred. Round Oak and the surrounding farmland was developed as
7954-510: The Rome–Berlin Axis . A month later, Germany and Japan signed the Anti-Comintern Pact , which Italy joined the following year. The Kuomintang (KMT) party in China launched a unification campaign against regional warlords and nominally unified China in the mid-1920s, but was soon embroiled in a civil war against its former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) allies and new regional warlords . In 1931, an increasingly militaristic Empire of Japan , which had long sought influence in China as
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8148-563: The Royal Armoured Corps from 12 April 1941. In April 1941, elements of 1st Cavalry Division were sent to fight in the short Anglo-Iraqi War ; the rest, including parts of 6th Cavalry Bde, were then sent to fight Vichy French forces in the Syria–Lebanon campaign in June and July. The Staffs Yeomanry were later awarded the Battle honour 'Syria 1941'. Back in Palestine, mechanisation continued: 1st Cavalry Division and 6th Cavalry Bde were redesignated 10th Armoured Division and 8th Armoured Bde respectively on 1 August 1941. In February 1942
8342-409: The Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact in April 1941. By contrast, the Germans were steadily making preparations for an attack on the Soviet Union, massing forces on the Soviet border. Hitler believed that the United Kingdom's refusal to end the war was based on the hope that the United States and the Soviet Union would enter the war against Germany sooner or later. On 31 July 1940, Hitler decided that
8536-405: The Staffordshire Advertiser . He describes going into the "black country" of Staffordshire – Wolverhampton, Bilston and Tipton. In published literature, the first reference dates from 1846 and occurs in the novel Colton Green: A Tale of the Black Country by the Reverend William Gresley , who was then a prebendary of Lichfield Cathedral . Gresley's opening paragraph starts "On the border of
8730-421: The Stresa Front in April 1935 in order to contain Germany, a key step towards military globalisation ; however, that June, the United Kingdom made an independent naval agreement with Germany, easing prior restrictions. The Soviet Union, concerned by Germany's goals of capturing vast areas of Eastern Europe , drafted a treaty of mutual assistance with France. Before taking effect, though, the Franco-Soviet pact
8924-523: The Sudetenland , an area of Czechoslovakia with a predominantly ethnic German population. Soon the United Kingdom and France followed the appeasement policy of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and conceded this territory to Germany in the Munich Agreement , which was made against the wishes of the Czechoslovak government, in exchange for a promise of no further territorial demands. Soon afterwards, Germany and Italy forced Czechoslovakia to cede additional territory to Hungary, and Poland annexed
9118-428: The Tanggu Truce was signed in 1933. Thereafter, Chinese volunteer forces continued the resistance to Japanese aggression in Manchuria , and Chahar and Suiyuan . After the 1936 Xi'an Incident , the Kuomintang and CCP forces agreed on a ceasefire to present a united front to oppose Japan. The Second Italo-Ethiopian War was a brief colonial war that began in October 1935 and ended in May 1936. The war began with
9312-474: The Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 ( 7 Edw. 7 , c.9 ) which brought the TF into being, it was intended to be a home defence force for service during wartime and members could not be compelled to serve outside the country. However, on 10 August 1914 the TF was invited to volunteer for overseas service. On 15 August the War Office issued instructions to separate those men who had signed up for Home Service only, and form these into reserve units. On 31 August,
9506-404: The Thick Coal , Heathen Coal , Stinking Coal , Bottom Coal and Singing Coal seams. Other seams also exist. The Thick Coal seam was also known as the "Thirty Foot" or "Ten Yard" seam and is made up of a number of beds that have come together to form one thick seam. Interspersed with the coal seams are deposits of iron ore and fireclay . The Black Country coal field is bounded on the north by
9700-466: The Trans-Olza region of Czechoslovakia. Although all of Germany's stated demands had been satisfied by the agreement, privately Hitler was furious that British interference had prevented him from seizing all of Czechoslovakia in one operation. In subsequent speeches Hitler attacked British and Jewish "war-mongers" and in January 1939 secretly ordered a major build-up of the German navy to challenge British naval supremacy. In March 1939, Germany invaded
9894-506: The Treaty of Craiova . The loss of one-third of Romania's 1939 territory caused a coup against King Carol II, turning Romania into a fascist dictatorship under Marshal Ion Antonescu , with a course set towards the Axis in the hopes of a German guarantee. Meanwhile, German-Soviet political relations and economic co-operation gradually stalled, and both states began preparations for war. In April 1940, Germany invaded Denmark and Norway to protect shipments of iron ore from Sweden , which
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#173285463550810088-401: The United Kingdom and France to declare war on Germany. Poland was divided between Germany and the Soviet Union under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact , in which they had agreed on " spheres of influence " in Eastern Europe. In 1940, the Soviets annexed the Baltic states and parts of Finland and Romania . After the fall of France in June 1940, the war continued mainly between Germany and
10282-426: The Wehrmacht rapidly advanced to the Channel and cut off the Allied forces in Belgium, trapping the bulk of the Allied armies in a cauldron on the Franco-Belgian border near Lille. The United Kingdom was able to evacuate a significant number of Allied troops from the continent by early June, although they had to abandon almost all their equipment. On 10 June, Italy invaded France , declaring war on both France and
10476-451: The aftermath of World War I and the rise of fascism in Europe and militarism in Japan . Key events leading up to the war included Japan's invasion of Manchuria , the Spanish Civil War , the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War , and Germany's annexations of Austria and the Sudetenland . World War II is generally considered to have begun on 1 September 1939, when Nazi Germany , under Adolf Hitler , invaded Poland , prompting
10670-404: The reunification of East and West Germany to take place and resolved most post–World War II issues. No formal peace treaty between Japan and the Soviet Union was ever signed, although the state of war between the two countries was terminated by the Soviet–Japanese Joint Declaration of 1956 , which also restored full diplomatic relations between them. World War I had radically altered
10864-420: The 1820s, and the Lye holloware industry is even more recent. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, coal and limestone were worked only on a modest scale for local consumption, but during the Industrial Revolution by the opening of canals, such as the Birmingham Canal Navigations , Stourbridge Canal and the Dudley Canal (the Dudley Canal Line No 1 and the Dudley Tunnel ) opened up the mineral wealth of
11058-419: The 18th century of shallow coal mines in Wolverhampton, however. Others have included areas slightly outside the coal field which were associated with heavy industry . Bilston-born Samuel Griffiths, in his 1876 Griffiths Guide to the Iron Trade of Great Britain , stated "The Black Country commences at Wolverhampton, extends a distance of sixteen miles to Stourbridge, eight miles to West Bromwich, penetrating
11252-545: The 18th century was the construction of canals to link the Black Country mines industries to the rest of the country. Between 1768 and 1772 a canal was constructed by James Brindley starting in Birmingham through the heart of the Black Country and eventually leading to the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal. In the middle of the 18th century, Bilston became well known for the craft of enamelling . Items produced included decorative containers such as patch-boxes, snuff boxes and bonbonnieres . The iron industry grew during
11446-399: The 19th century, peaking around 1850–1860. In 1863, there were 200 blast furnaces in the Black Country, of which 110 were in blast. Two years later it was recorded that there were 2,116 puddling furnaces, which converted pig-iron into wrought iron , in the Black Country. In 1864 the first Black Country plant capable of producing mild steel by the Bessemer process was constructed at
11640-414: The 300th anniversary of the erection of the first Newcomen atmospheric engine . Following this it was agreed by the museum and Black Country society for 14 July to be recognised as Black Country Day to celebrate the area's role in the Industrial Revolution. The day was marked by Department for Communities and Local Government in 2013 and following calls to do more in 2014 more events were planned around
11834-409: The Allies were attempting to cut off . Denmark capitulated after six hours , and despite Allied support , Norway was conquered within two months. British discontent over the Norwegian campaign led to the resignation of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain , who was replaced by Winston Churchill on 10 May 1940. On the same day, Germany launched an offensive against France . To circumvent
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#173285463550812028-400: The Axis war against the Soviet Union, in Romania's case partially to recapture territory ceded to the Soviet Union . In early June 1940, the Italian Regia Aeronautica attacked and besieged Malta , a British possession. From late summer to early autumn, Italy conquered British Somaliland and made an incursion into British-held Egypt . In October, Italy attacked Greece , but the attack
12222-486: The Black Country changed from one of the most prosperous industrial working-class regions in the country, to one of the most deprived. As the heavy industry that had named the region faded away, in the 1970s a museum, called the Black Country Living Museum started to take shape on derelict land near to Dudley. Today this museum demonstrates Black Country crafts and industry from days gone by and includes many original buildings which have been transported and reconstructed at
12416-408: The Black Country form part of the Birmingham metropolitan economy , the second largest in the UK. In 2011, the government announced the creation of the Black Country Enterprise Zone. The zone includes 5 sites in Wolverhampton and 14 in Darlaston . The i54 business park in Wolverhampton is the largest of the 19 sites; its tenants include Jaguar Land Rover . The largest site in Darlaston is that of
12610-403: The Black Country is no longer black. The area still maintains some manufacturing, but on a much smaller scale than historically. Chainmaking is still a viable industry in the Cradley Heath area where the majority of the chain for the Ministry of Defence and the Admiralty fleet is made in modern factories. Much but not all of the area now suffers from high unemployment and parts of it are amongst
12804-472: The Black Country's borders as the area on the thirty foot coal seam, regardless the depth of the seam. This definition includes West Bromwich and Oldbury, which had many deep pits, and Smethwick. The thick coal that underlies Smethwick was not mined until the 1870s and Smethwick has retained more Victorian character than most West Midland areas. Sandwell Park Colliery's pit was located in Smethwick and had 'thick coal' as shown in written accounts from 1878 and coal
12998-421: The Blitz , but largely ended in May 1941 after failing to significantly disrupt the British war effort. Using newly captured French ports, the German Navy enjoyed success against an over-extended Royal Navy , using U-boats against British shipping in the Atlantic . The British Home Fleet scored a significant victory on 27 May 1941 by sinking the German battleship Bismarck . In November 1939,
13192-412: The Boer scouts fell back to their main position on a Kopje to the north. The MI and guns attacked the kopje, while the IY tried to work round the flank, but the action ended inconclusively. Three days of desultory firing followed before reinforcements arrived, when the Boers fled. In the pursuit the IY were used fo wide turning movements. In the next operation Rundle's force was ordered to advance north on
13386-465: The Boers got away and the British column had to return for supplies. The two Staffordshire companies spent the rest of the war trekking over South Africa, taking part in 'drives' to round up Boers. After the Treaty of Vereeniging on 31 May 1902, they embarked for home in July, arriving in England in August. The service of these two companies earned the Staffordshire Yeomanry its first Battle honour : South Africa 1900–01 . The Imperial Yeomanry concept
13580-448: The DMC's final 200 miles (320 km) advance to Aleppo , which fell to the EEF on 26 October. Hostilities ended five days later with the Armistice of Mudros . The 1/1st Staffs Yeomanry remained as part of the Army of Occupation until 19 December 1919 when it was reduced to a cadre in Egypt and disembodied soon afterwards. The 2nd Line regiment was formed in 1914. In 1915, it joined the 2/1st North Midland Mounted Brigade . In October,
13774-428: The Earl of Lichfield in turn died in 1854. The regiment had been called out in 1848 during the great Chartist demonstration in London, but there were no disturbances at the meetings in Staffordshire. However, in March 1855 there were miners' riots in the Potteries and the regiment was deployed to suppress them. The regiment patrolled the streets of Wolverhampton in February 1867 during an Anti-Papist meeting, but there
13968-659: The European Axis declaring war on the US. Japan conquered much of coastal China and Southeast Asia , but its advances in the Pacific were halted in mid-1942 after its defeat in the naval Battle of Midway ; Germany and Italy were defeated in North Africa and at Stalingrad in the Soviet Union. Key setbacks in 1943—including German defeats on the Eastern Front, the Allied invasions of Sicily and
14162-675: The French possessions of Syria and Lebanon , assisted by the Free French . With the situation in Europe and Asia relatively stable, Germany, Japan, and the Soviet Union made preparations for war. With the Soviets wary of mounting tensions with Germany, and the Japanese planning to take advantage of the European War by seizing resource-rich European possessions in Southeast Asia , the two powers signed
14356-530: The Germans, and the last large operational unit of the Polish Army surrendered on 6 October . Despite the military defeat, Poland never surrendered; instead, it formed the Polish government-in-exile and a clandestine state apparatus remained in occupied Poland. A significant part of Polish military personnel evacuated to Romania and Latvia; many of them later fought against the Axis in other theatres of
14550-581: The Midlands Employers' Federation, a body founded by Dudley Docker , the Asquith Government's armaments programme was jeopardised, especially its procurement of naval equipment and other industrial essentials such as steel tubing, nuts and bolts, destroyer parts, etc. This was of national significance at a time when Britain and Germany were engaged in the Anglo-German naval arms race that preceded
14744-560: The Nationalists. Both Germany and the Soviet Union used this proxy war as an opportunity to test in combat their most advanced weapons and tactics. The Nationalists won the civil war in April 1939; Franco, now dictator, remained officially neutral during World War II but generally favoured the Axis . His greatest collaboration with Germany was the sending of volunteers to fight on the Eastern Front . In July 1937, Japan captured
14938-1077: The Old Park Works in Wednesbury . In 1882, another Bessemer-style steel works was constructed at Spring Vale in Bilston by the Staffordshire Steel and Ingot Iron Company, a development followed by the construction of an open-hearth steelworks at the Round Oak works of the Earl of Dudley in Brierley Hill , which produced its first steel in 1894. By the 19th century or early 20th century, many villages had their characteristic manufacture, but earlier occupations were less concentrated. Some of these concentrations are less ancient than sometimes supposed. For example, chain making in Cradley Heath seems only to have begun in about
15132-539: The Old Patent tube works of John Russell & Co. Ltd., and within weeks upwards of 40,000 workers across the Black Country had joined the dispute. Notable figures in the labour movement, including a key proponent of Syndicalism , Tom Mann , visited the area to support the workers and Jack Beard and Julia Varley of the Workers' Union were active in organising the strike. During this confrontation with employers represented by
15326-564: The Pilgrims' Road to take part in the DMC's encirclement and Capture of Damascus on 1 October. Since 15 September the 1/1st Staffs Yeomanry had marched 233 miles (375 km) and captured 3069 prisoners. Ravaged by malaria caught in the Jordan Valley (the 1/1st Staffs Yeomanry having been reduced to just 75 men, 200 of them having become casualties), 4th Cavalry Division was too exhausted to keep up in
15520-505: The Royal Navy putting three Italian battleships out of commission after a carrier attack at Taranto , and neutralising several more warships at the Battle of Cape Matapan . Italian defeats prompted Germany to deploy an expeditionary force to North Africa; at the end of March 1941, Rommel 's Afrika Korps launched an offensive which drove back Commonwealth forces. In less than a month, Axis forces advanced to western Egypt and besieged
15714-566: The Royalists had among their adherents Dud Dudley, now a Colonel in the Royalist army, who had experience in iron making, and who claimed he could turn out "all sorts of bar iron fit for making of muskets, carbines, and iron for great bolts", both more cheaply, more speedily and more excellent than could be done in any other way. In 1712, a Newcomen Engine was constructed near Dudley and used to pump water from coal mines belonging to Lord Dudley. This
15908-584: The Soviet Union occupied the entire territories of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, as well as the Romanian regions of Bessarabia, Northern Bukovina, and the Hertsa region . In August 1940, Hitler imposed the Second Vienna Award on Romania which led to the transfer of Northern Transylvania to Hungary. In September 1940, Bulgaria demanded Southern Dobruja from Romania with German and Italian support, leading to
16102-690: The Soviet Union , opening the Eastern Front and initially making large territorial gains. Japan aimed to dominate East Asia and the Asia-Pacific , and by 1937 was at war with the Republic of China . In December 1941, Japan attacked American and British territories in Southeast Asia and the Central Pacific , including Pearl Harbor in Hawaii , which resulted in the US and the UK declaring war against Japan, and
16296-520: The Soviet Union and Mongolia . The Japanese doctrine of Hokushin-ron , which emphasised Japan's expansion northward, was favoured by the Imperial Army during this time. This policy would prove difficult to maintain in light of the Japanese defeat at Khalkin Gol in 1939, the ongoing Second Sino-Japanese War and ally Nazi Germany pursuing neutrality with the Soviets. Japan and the Soviet Union eventually signed
16490-738: The Soviet Union should be eliminated and aimed for the conquest of Ukraine , the Baltic states and Byelorussia . However, other senior German officials like Ribbentrop saw an opportunity to create a Euro-Asian bloc against the British Empire by inviting the Soviet Union into the Tripartite Pact. In November 1940, negotiations took place to determine if the Soviet Union would join the pact. The Soviets showed some interest but asked for concessions from Finland, Bulgaria, Turkey, and Japan that Germany considered unacceptable. On 18 December 1940, Hitler issued
16684-759: The TA was at the bottom of the priority list for modern equipment, and this had still not been done for the Yeomanry when World War II broke out. Prior to World War II, the Staffs Yeomanry formed part of 6th Cavalry Brigade , a TA formation in Western Command , together with the Warwickshire Yeomanry and the Cheshire Yeomanry . The Staffordshire Yeomanry mobilised at its headquarters at Wolverhampton on 1 September 1939. On 31 October, 6th Cavalry Bde became part of
16878-451: The US dropped the first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August. Faced with an imminent invasion of the Japanese archipelago , the possibility of further atomic bombings, and the Soviet declaration of war against Japan and its invasion of Manchuria , Japan announced its unconditional surrender on 15 August and signed a surrender document on 2 September 1945 , marking
17072-568: The United Kingdom and France guaranteed their support for Polish independence ; when Italy conquered Albania in April 1939, the same guarantee was extended to the Kingdoms of Romania and Greece . Shortly after the Franco - British pledge to Poland, Germany and Italy formalised their own alliance with the Pact of Steel . Hitler accused the United Kingdom and Poland of trying to "encircle" Germany and renounced
17266-538: The United Kingdom attacked on 3 July in an attempt to prevent its seizure by Germany. The air Battle of Britain began in early July with Luftwaffe attacks on shipping and harbours . The German campaign for air superiority started in August but its failure to defeat RAF Fighter Command forced the indefinite postponement of the proposed German invasion of Britain . The German strategic bombing offensive intensified with night attacks on London and other cities in
17460-455: The United Kingdom. The Germans turned south against the weakened French army, and Paris fell to them on 14 June. Eight days later France signed an armistice with Germany ; it was divided into German and Italian occupation zones , and an unoccupied rump state under the Vichy Regime , which, though officially neutral, was generally aligned with Germany. France kept its fleet, which
17654-589: The United States was assisting China and the Western Allies, and had amended the Neutrality Act to allow "cash and carry" purchases by the Allies. In 1940, following the German capture of Paris, the size of the United States Navy was significantly increased . In September the United States further agreed to a trade of American destroyers for British bases . Still, a large majority of the American public continued to oppose any direct military intervention in
17848-656: The West Midlands, with Solihull coming top. It also benefits from tourism due to the popularity of the Black Country Living Museum , Dudley Zoo and Dudley Castle . As with many urban areas in the UK, there is also a significant ethnic minority population in parts: in Sandwell, 22.6 per cent of the population is from ethnic minorities, and in Wolverhampton the figure is 23.5 per cent. However, in Walsall 84.6 per cent of
18042-590: The Yellow River ; this manoeuvre bought time for the Chinese to prepare their defences at Wuhan , but the city was taken by October. Japanese military victories did not bring about the collapse of Chinese resistance that Japan had hoped to achieve; instead, the Chinese government relocated inland to Chongqing and continued the war. In the mid-to-late 1930s, Japanese forces in Manchukuo had sporadic border clashes with
18236-545: The Yeomanry regiment, and the Stone & Eccleshall, Uttoxeter and Tamworth Troops accepted. The war ended in 1814 and the Stone & Eccleshall Troop was disbanded shortly afterwards, having engaged only for the duration of the war; the Uttoxeter Troop also disbanded, except for 20 men who transferred to the Lichfield Troop. On 1 December 1814 the strength of the regiment was 428 men. The Newcastle-under-Lyme Volunteers (originally
18430-480: The accounts of the building of Henry VIII's Nonsuch Palace record that nails were supplied by Reynolde Warde of Dudley at a cost of 11s 4d per thousand. By the 1620s "Within ten miles [16 km] of Dudley Castle there were 20,000 smiths of all sorts". In the early 17th century, Dud Dudley , a natural son of the Baron of Dudley, experimented with making iron using coal rather than charcoal. Two patents were granted for
18624-470: The agricultural part of Staffordshire, just before you enter the dismal region of mines and forges, commonly called the 'Black Country', stands the pretty village of Oakthorpe", "commonly" implying that the term was already in use. He also writes that "the whole country is blackened with smoke by day, and glowing with fires by night", and that "the 'Black Country' ... is about twenty miles in length and five in bredth reaching from north to south". The phrase
18818-446: The anthem was raised in 2013 by James Stevens and Steven Edwards who wanted the region to have an official anthem to accompany the Black Country flag & Black Country Day. The heavy industry which once dominated the Black Country has now largely gone. The 20th century saw a decline in coal mining and the industry finally came to an end in 1968 with the closure of Baggeridge Colliery near Sedgley . Clean air legislation has meant that
19012-478: The area to exploitation. Advances in the use of coke for the production of iron enabled iron production (hitherto limited by the supply of charcoal ) to expand rapidly. By Victorian times, the Black Country was one of the most heavily industrialised areas in Britain, and it became known for its pollution, particularly from iron and coal industries and their many associated smaller businesses. Industrialisation led to
19206-572: The area's workforce had effectively eschewed trade unionism. The 20th century saw a decline in coal mining in the Black Country, with the last colliery in the region – Baggeridge Colliery near Sedgley – closing on 2 March 1968, marking the end of an era after some 300 years of mass coal mining in the region, though a small number of open cast mines remained in use for a few years afterwards. Other industries thrived, however. Manufacturers like Rubery Owen , Chance Bros , Wilkins and Mitchell , GKN , John Thompson (company) and many more prospered from
19400-412: The area. Areas around the canals (the cut) which had mines extracting mineral resources and heavy industry refining these are included in this definition. Cultural parameters include unique or characteristic foods such as groaty pudding , grey peas and bacon, faggots , gammon or pork hocks and pork scratchings ; Black Country humour; and the Black Country dialect. The Black Country Society defines
19594-629: The brigade attacked during the Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October–4 November) and then took part in the subsequent pursuit. World War II Asia-Pacific Mediterranean and Middle East Other campaigns Coups World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers . Nearly all
19788-508: The brigade moved to Egypt and began desert training with tanks. During the crisis of the Battle of Gazala in June the 8th Armoured Bde was sent up to join Eighth Army , but on arrival it was ordered to hand over its tanks to experienced units and return to Egypt. It was finally re-equipped and took its place in the line for the defensive Battle of Alam el Halfa on 30 August. After further training
19982-452: The brigade replaced the 1/1st NMMB in the 1st Mtd Division in Norfolk. On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were ordered to be numbered in a single sequence and the brigade became the 3rd Mounted Brigade . In July 1916, there was a major reorganization of 2nd Line yeomanry units in the United Kingdom. All but 12 regiments were converted to cyclists and as a consequence the regiment
20176-451: The capital Nanking in December 1937. After the fall of Nanking, tens or hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians and disarmed combatants were murdered by the Japanese . In March 1938, Nationalist Chinese forces won their first major victory at Taierzhuang , but then the city of Xuzhou was taken by the Japanese in May. In June 1938, Chinese forces stalled the Japanese advance by flooding
20370-471: The centre. The 14-mile (23 km) road between Wolverhampton and Birmingham was described as "one continuous town" in 1785. The area was one of the Industrial Revolution 's birthplaces. Either the 30-foot-thick coal seam close to the surface or the mix of coalworks , cokeworks , ironworks , glassworks , brickworks and steelworks (which produced high levels of soot and air pollution at
20564-427: The civil power twice in the years after the Battle of Waterloo , first on 14–18 November 1815 when Wolverhampton and Bilston ironworkers and coal miners rioted. The peacetime establishment of the Staffordshire Yeomanry was fixed at eight troops of 60 men in March 1816, and the regiment was re-clothed and re-equipped, 12 men per troop being issued with Light Dragoon pattern Carbines . While undergoing this reorganisation,
20758-430: The coalfield rather than the thick seam, running from Wolverhampton to Bloxwich, to West Bromwich, to Stourbridge and back to Wolverhampton again. A travelogue published in 1860 made the connection more explicit, calling the name "eminently descriptive, for blackness everywhere prevails; the ground is black, the atmosphere is black, and the underground is honeycombed by mining galleries stretching in utter blackness for many
20952-594: The coat-of-arms of the County Borough of Dudley. At a number of places, notably the Rowley Hills and at Barrow Hill , a hard igneous rock is found. The rock, known as dolerite, used to be quarried and used for road construction. In recent years the Black Country has seen the adoption of symbols and emblems with which to represent itself. The first of these to be registered was the Black Country tartan in 2009, designed by Philip Tibbetts from Halesowen. In 2008
21146-786: The command in 1874 and was appointed the regiment's first honorary colonel , Lt-Col William Bromley-Davenport , MP, succeeding to the command. Following the Cardwell Reforms a mobilisation scheme began to appear in the Army List from December 1875. This assigned Regular and Yeomanry units places in an order of battle of corps, divisions and brigades for the 'Active Army', even though these formations were entirely theoretical, with no staff or services assigned. The Staffordshire Yeomanry were assigned as 'divisional troops' to 1st Division of III Corps based at Croydon , Surrey , alongside Regular Army units of infantry, artillery and engineers. By now,
21340-503: The command in August 1833 when he became Chief Secretary for Ireland and the Earl of Lichfield was appointed Lt-Col Cmdt in his place. After Princess Victoria ascended the throne as Queen Victoria , the regiment was given the title of Queen's Own Royal Regiment of Staffordshire Yeomanry Cavalry (often referred to as the Queen's Own Royal Yeomanry (QORY)) on 12 February 1838 in commemoration of her earlier visit. In 1840 Lord Paget succeeded to
21534-574: The command of the Burton Trp and obtained permission for it to be renamed the Anglesey Troop in honour of his grandfather Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey . After the regiment's service in the disturbances of 1842 it was decided to raise an additional troop in the Moorland area of north-east Staffordshire: enthusiasm was so great that a full squadron was raised, with troops at Cheadle and Leek. In 1844
21728-623: The command. The Tamworth Trp had been disbanded in 1882 due to falling numbers; it was followed by the Leek Trp in 1889 (when 18 men over the age of 50 were forcibly retired) and the Cheadle Trp in 1892, leaving the regiment with nine troops, in addition to the band, ambulance and signal sections. Yeomanry regiments were reorganised into permanent squadrons in January 1893, when the Staffordshires adopted
21922-451: The company completed its service in May 1901, only half of the company was mustered, despite a draft of reinforcements having been received. Three members of the contingent had died from wounds received in action, and 11 from disease; one officer and 50 men had been invalided. Six yeomen had received commissions and four had joined the police in South Africa. Some 60 men embarked at Cape Town and arrived at Southampton on 8 June. Meanwhile,
22116-403: The conflict well into 1941. In December 1940, Roosevelt accused Hitler of planning world conquest and ruled out any negotiations as useless, calling for the United States to become an " arsenal of democracy " and promoting Lend-Lease programmes of military and humanitarian aid to support the British war effort; Lend-Lease was later extended to the other Allies, including the Soviet Union after it
22310-515: The creation of a " New Roman Empire ". Adolf Hitler , after an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the German government in 1923, eventually became the Chancellor of Germany in 1933 when Paul von Hindenburg and the Reichstag appointed him. Following Hindenburg's death in 1934, Hitler proclaimed himself Führer of Germany and abolished democracy, espousing a radical, racially motivated revision of
22504-556: The directive to prepare for an invasion of the Soviet Union. Black Country The Black Country is an area of England's West Midlands . It is mainly urban, covering most of the Dudley and Sandwell metropolitan boroughs , with the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall and the City of Wolverhampton sometimes included. The towns of Dudley and Tipton are generally considered to be
22698-789: The dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian, Ottoman, and Russian Empires. To prevent a future world war, the League of Nations was established in 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference . The organisation's primary goals were to prevent armed conflict through collective security, military, and naval disarmament , as well as settling international disputes through peaceful negotiations and arbitration. Despite strong pacifist sentiment after World War I , irredentist and revanchist nationalism had emerged in several European states. These sentiments were especially marked in Germany because of
22892-511: The east and west of the geologically defined Black Country are therefore excluded by this definition because the coal here is too deep down and does not outcrop. The seam outcrop definition excludes areas in North Worcestershire and South Staffordshire. The first recorded use of the term "the Black Country" may be from a toast given by a Mr Simpson, town clerk to Lichfield , addressing a Reformer's meeting on 24 November 1841, published in
23086-421: The end of May completed the German conquest of the Balkans. Partisan warfare subsequently broke out against the Axis occupation of Yugoslavia , which continued until the end of the war. In the Middle East in May, Commonwealth forces quashed an uprising in Iraq which had been supported by German aircraft from bases within Vichy-controlled Syria . Between June and July, British-led forces invaded and occupied
23280-409: The end of the war. World War II changed the political alignment and social structure of the world, and it set the foundation of international relations for the rest of the 20th century and into the 21st century. The United Nations was established to foster international cooperation and prevent conflicts, with the victorious great powers—China, France, the Soviet Union, the UK, and the US—becoming
23474-413: The establishment of this device was associated with Richard Foley , son of a Dudley nailer, who built a slitting mill near Kinver in 1628. The slitting mill made it much simpler to produce nail rods from iron bar. Another development of the early 17th century was the introduction of glass making to the Stourbridge area. One attraction of the region for glass makers was the local deposits of fireclay ,
23668-416: The expansion of local railways and coal mine lines. The line running from Stourbridge to Walsall via Dudley Port and Wednesbury closed in the 1960s, but the Birmingham to Wolverhampton line via Tipton is still a major transport route. The anchors and chains for the ill-fated liner RMS Titanic were made in the Black Country at Netherton . Three anchors and accompanying chains were manufactured; and
23862-468: The first step of what its government saw as the country's right to rule Asia , staged the Mukden incident as a pretext to invade Manchuria and establish the puppet state of Manchukuo . China appealed to the League of Nations to stop the Japanese invasion of Manchuria. Japan withdrew from the League of Nations after being condemned for its incursion into Manchuria. The two nations then fought several battles, in Shanghai , Rehe and Hebei , until
24056-408: The first to explicitly distinguish the area from nearby Birmingham , noting that "On certain rare holidays these people wash their faces, clothe themselves in decent garments, and, since the opening of the South Staffordshire Railway, take advantage of cheap excursion trains, go down to Birmingham to amuse themselves and make purchases." The geologist Joseph Jukes made it clear in 1858 that he felt
24250-475: The following organisation: The 1875 mobilisation scheme had never been more than a paper organisation, but now the Yeomanry regiments were grouped into brigades for collective training. They were commanded by the senior regimental CO but they did have a Regular Army Brigade major . The Staffordshire Yeomanry together with the Warwickshire Yeomanry formed the 8th Yeomanry Brigade in the 4th Division of Auxiliary Cavalry. The Prince of Wales visited Lichfield for
24444-533: The following organisation: The regiment formed part of the TF's North Midland Mounted Brigade . Lieutenant-Col Heath retired in April 1910 and Lt-Col Bromley-Davenport succeeded to the command. When war was declared on 4 August 1914, the Staffordshire Yeomanry mobilised at Stafford under the command of Lt-Col Bromley-Davenport The regiment assembled with the North Midland Mounted Brigade (NMMB) and then went with it to its war station at Diss in Norfolk , where it came under 1st Mounted Division . In accordance with
24638-462: The following years. In 1809, 13 days' regimental training was carried out at Derby . On 30 May 1810 there was a riot at Wolverhampton Market, and the Bilston Troop was called out to assist the magistrates and the Western Regiment, Staffordshire Local Militia , to suppress the trouble. Next day the Teddesley and Weston Troops arrived, but were not required. In 1813 it was proposed that the independent troops of Volunteer Cavalry should be incorporated into
24832-420: The forerunners of a number of Black Country towns and villages such as Cradley, Dudley, Smethwick, and Halesowen are included in the Domesday Book of 1086. At this early date, the area was mostly rural. A monastery was founded in Wolverhampton in the Anglo-Saxon period and a castle and priory was built at Dudley during the period of Norman rule. Another religious house, Premonstratensian Abbey of Halesowen ,
25026-404: The formation of a reserve or 2nd Line unit was authorised for each 1st Line unit where 60 per cent or more of the men had volunteered for Overseas Service. The titles of these 2nd Line units would be the same as the original, but distinguished by a '2/' prefix. In this way duplicate battalions, brigades and divisions were created, mirroring those TF formations being sent overseas. Later, the 2nd Line
25220-672: The former Chinese imperial capital of Peking after instigating the Marco Polo Bridge incident , which culminated in the Japanese campaign to invade all of China. The Soviets quickly signed a non-aggression pact with China to lend materiel support, effectively ending China's prior cooperation with Germany . From September to November, the Japanese attacked Taiyuan , engaged the Kuomintang Army around Xinkou , and fought Communist forces in Pingxingguan . Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek deployed his best army to defend Shanghai , but after three months of fighting, Shanghai fell. The Japanese continued to push Chinese forces back, capturing
25414-447: The idea of a flag for the region was first raised. After four years of campaigning a competition was successfully organised with the Black Country Living Museum . This resulted in the adoption of the Flag of the Black Country as designed by Gracie Sheppard of Redhill School in Stourbridge and was registered with the Flag Institute in July 2012. The flag was unveiled at the museum on 14 July 2012 as part of celebration in honour of
25608-609: The independent Handsworth Volunteer Cavalry was disbanded in 1827. Colonel Monckton, aged 86, resigned the command in December 1829 and Lt-Col Edward Littleton , MP , was appointed Lt-Col Commandant. The Teddesley Trp under Capt Hordern was renamed the Wolverhampton Trp in January 1832. The Staffordshire Yeomanry was called out on the following occasions: In 1832 the regiment escorted the Duchess of Kent and her daughter Princess Victoria when they visited Lt-Col Thomas Anson, 1st Earl of Lichfield (the regiment's second-in-command), at Shugborough Hall . Lieutenant-Col Littleton resigned
25802-405: The invasion of the Ethiopian Empire (also known as Abyssinia ) by the armed forces of the Kingdom of Italy ( Regno d'Italia ), which was launched from Italian Somaliland and Eritrea . The war resulted in the military occupation of Ethiopia and its annexation into the newly created colony of Italian East Africa ( Africa Orientale Italiana , or AOI); in addition it exposed the weakness of
25996-469: The local area's unemployment dramatically, however. The Black Country Living Museum in Dudley recreates life in the Black Country in the early 20th century, and is a popular tourist attraction . On 17 February 2012 the museum's collection in its entirety was awarded Designation by Arts Council England (ACE). Designation is a mark of distinction that celebrates unique collections of national and international importance. The four metropolitan boroughs of
26190-408: The meaning of the term was self-explanatory to contemporary visitors, remarking that "It is commonly known in the neighbourhood as the 'Black Country', an epithet the appropriateness of which must be acknowledged by anyone who even passes through it on a railway". Jukes based his Black Country on the seat of the great iron manufacture, which for him was geographically determined by the ironstone tract of
26384-406: The most economically deprived communities in the UK. This is particularly true in parts of the metropolitan boroughs of Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton. According to the Government's 2007 Index of Deprivation (ID 2007), Sandwell is the third most deprived authority in the West Midlands region, after Birmingham and Stoke-on-Trent , and the 14th most deprived of the UK's 354 districts. Wolverhampton
26578-435: The next year it carried out internal security, quelling disturbances between Palestinians and Jewish settlers, and planned for mechanisation. Initially this was as motorised infantry mounted in 15-hundredweight trucks , though the five senior yeomanry regiments in the division (the Staffordshire being 5th) had been selected to be converted to armour when tanks became available. The Staffordshire Yeomanry officially became part of
26772-480: The north of Worcestershire turned out successive supplies of sword blades and pike heads. It was said that among the many causes of anger Charles had against Birmingham was that one of the best sword makers of the day, Robert Porter , who manufactured swords in Digbeth , Birmingham, refused at any price to supply swords for " that man of blood " (a Puritan nickname for King Charles), or any of his adherents. As an offset to this sword-cutler and men like him in Birmingham,
26966-399: The northern districts through Willenhall to Bentley, The Birchills, Walsall and Darlaston, Wednesbury, Smethwick and Dudley Port, West Bromwich and Hill Top, Brockmoor, Wordsley and Stourbridge. As the atmosphere becomes purer, we get to the higher ground of Brierley Hill, nevertheless here also, as far as the eye can reach, on all sides, tall chimneys vomit forth great clouds of smoke". Today
27160-434: The outbreak of the First World War . Following a ballot of the union membership, a settlement of the dispute was reached on 11 July after arbitration by government officials from the Board of Trade led by the Chief Industrial Commissioner Sir George Askwith, 1st Baron Askwith . One of the important consequences of the strike was the growth of organised labour across the Black Country, which was notable because until this point
27354-447: The permanent members of its security council . The Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers , setting the stage for the Cold War . In the wake of European devastation, the influence of its great powers waned, triggering the decolonisation of Africa and Asia . Most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery and expansion . World War II began in Europe on 1 September 1939 with
27548-411: The political European map with the defeat of the Central Powers —including Austria-Hungary , Germany , Bulgaria , and the Ottoman Empire —and the 1917 Bolshevik seizure of power in Russia , which led to the founding of the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, the victorious Allies of World War I , such as France, Belgium, Italy, Romania, and Greece, gained territory, and new nation-states were created out of
27742-444: The population is described as white, while in Dudley 92 per cent of the population is white. Resistance to mass immigration in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s led to the slogan " Keep the Black Country white! ". The Black Country suffered its biggest economic blows in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when unemployment soared largely because of the closure of historic large factories including the Round Oak Steel Works at Brierley Hill and
27936-427: The port of Tobruk . By late March 1941, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia signed the Tripartite Pact ; however, the Yugoslav government was overthrown two days later by pro-British nationalists. Germany and Italy responded with simultaneous invasions of both Yugoslavia and Greece , commencing on 6 April 1941; both nations were forced to surrender within the month. The airborne invasion of the Greek island of Crete at
28130-574: The post-war boom in Britain, with the West Midlands motor industry being a key driver of the economy. Wages rose faster than the national average, and unemployment remained low into the late 1970s. It was only in the late 1970s and 1980s, as global shocks and political change affected British industry, that the region began to become deindustrialised, with the years 1979-1982 witnessing the closure of large employers such as Bilston Steel Works , Round Oak, Patent Shaft Steelworks, Rubery Owen, Birmid Industries and others in quick succession. The population of
28324-450: The presence of iron ore and coal in a seam 30 feet (9 m) thick, the thickest seam in Great Britain, which outcropped in various places. The first recorded blast furnace in the Black Country was built at West Bromwich in the early 1560s. Many people had an agricultural smallholding and supplemented their income by working as nailers or smiths, an example of a phenomenon known to economic historians as proto-industrialisation . In 1583,
28518-412: The process: one in 1621 to Lord Dudley and one in 1638 to Dud Dudley and three others. In his work Metallum Martis , published in 1665, he claimed to have "made Iron to profit with Pit-cole". However, considerable doubt has been cast on this claim by later writers. An important development in the early 17th century was the introduction of the slitting mill to the Midlands area. In the Black Country,
28712-443: The regiment had expanded to 12 Troops with regimental headquarters (RHQ) at Lichfield. The strength on 1 December 1875 was stated to be 495 out of an establishment of 599. The regiment was issued with the Snider carbine in 1881, replaced by the Martini–Henry carbine in 1885 and the Martini–Metford carbine in 1896. Colonel Bromley-Davenport died during the 1884 training and Lt-Col Henry Paget, 4th Marquess of Anglesey , succeeded to
28906-402: The regiment was issued with percussion carbines in place of the old flintlock pistols. By 1850 the regiment consisted of 11 troops in six squadrons, a total of 892 all ranks, making it the largest yeomanry regiment in the country. The Earl of Lichfield was still in command, and after Lt-Col Edward Monckton (son of the former colonel) died in 1848 there was a series of promotions: Edmund Peel, MP,
29100-417: The regiment was unable to assist the magistrates with a disturbance at Walsall in October, but the independent Handsworth Volunteer Cavalry did the duty. The Leek Troop intercepted the ' Blanket March ' to Manchester in March 1817. The continued disturbances led to the regiment being expanded to 12 troops with 838 men enlisted by the end of 1819: Future Prime Minister Robert Peel was commissioned as
29294-414: The regiment's centenary in 1894, when he was entertained at Elmhurst Hall , former home of the regiment's founder, Francis Eliot, by the commanding officer, Cromartie Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, 4th Duke of Sutherland , great-grandson of the first CO. The Yeomanry was not intended to serve overseas, but due to the string of defeats during Black Week in December 1899, the British government realised that it
29488-452: The region. Black Country Day takes place on 14 July each year. Originally in March, the day was later moved to 14 July—the anniversary of the invention of the Newcomen steam engine—and now coincides with a wider series of events throughout the month aimed at promoting Black Country Culture called the Black Country Festival. The Black Country Anthem was written by James Stevens and is performed by Black Country band The Empty Can. The idea for
29682-407: The remainder of Czechoslovakia and subsequently split it into the German Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia and a pro-German client state , the Slovak Republic . Hitler also delivered an ultimatum to Lithuania on 20 March 1939, forcing the concession of the Klaipėda Region , formerly the German Memelland . Greatly alarmed and with Hitler making further demands on the Free City of Danzig ,
29876-405: The ribs of a half decayed corpse. The majority of the natives of this Tartarian region are in full keeping with the scenery – savages, without the grace of savages, coarsely clad in filthy garments, with no change on weekends or Sundays, they converse in a language belarded with fearful and disgusting oaths, which can scarcely be recognised as the same as that of civilized England. This work was also
30070-561: The set weighed in at 100 tons . The centre anchor alone weighed 12 tons and was pulled through Netherton on its journey to the ship by 20 Shire horses . In 1913, the Black Country was the location of arguably one of the most important strikes in British trade union history when the workers employed in the area's steel tube trade came out for two months in a successful demand for a 23 shilling minimum weekly wage for unskilled workers, giving them pay parity with their counterparts in nearby Birmingham. This action commenced on 9 May in Wednesbury, at
30264-410: The significant territorial, colonial, and financial losses imposed by the Treaty of Versailles . Under the treaty, Germany lost around 13 percent of its home territory and all its overseas possessions , while German annexation of other states was prohibited, reparations were imposed, and limits were placed on the size and capability of the country's armed forces . The German Empire was dissolved in
30458-441: The site. The history of industry in the Black Country is connected directly to its underlying geology. Much of the region lies upon an exposed coalfield forming the southern part of the South Staffordshire Coalfield where mining has taken place since the Middle Ages. There are, in fact several coal seams, some of which were given names by the miners. The top, thin coal seam is known as Broach Coal . Beneath this lies successively
30652-410: The south of the ridge, water flows into the Stour and thence to the Severn and the Bristol Channel. At Dudley and Wrens Nest, limestone was mined. This rock formation was formed in the Silurian period and contains many fossils. One particular fossilized creature, the trilobite Calymene blumenbachii , was so common that it became known as the "Dudley Bug" or "Dudley Locust" and was incorporated into
30846-447: The start or prelude to World War II. The exact date of the war's end also is not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 15 August 1945 ( V-J Day ), rather than with the formal surrender of Japan on 2 September 1945, which officially ended the war in Asia . A peace treaty between Japan and the Allies was signed in 1951. A 1990 treaty regarding Germany's future allowed
31040-415: The strong Maginot Line fortifications on the Franco-German border, Germany directed its attack at the neutral nations of Belgium , the Netherlands , and Luxembourg . The Germans carried out a flanking manoeuvre through the Ardennes region, which was mistakenly perceived by the Allies as an impenetrable natural barrier against armoured vehicles. By successfully implementing new Blitzkrieg tactics,
31234-451: The summer it was affiliated to a Reserve Cavalry Regiment at Aldershot . In the summer of 1916, it was affiliated to 12th Reserve Cavalry Regiment also at Aldershot. Early in 1917, the regiment was absorbed into the 3rd Reserve Cavalry Regiment still at Aldershot. Postwar, a commission was set up to consider the shape of the Territorial Force ( Territorial Army from 1 October 1921). The experience of World War I made it clear that there
31428-421: The term commonly refers to the majority of the four metropolitan boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton although it is said that "no two Black Country men or women will agree on where it starts or ends". Official use of the name came in 1987 with the Black Country Development Corporation , an urban development corporation covering the metropolitan boroughs of Sandwell and Walsall, which
31622-466: The time) led to the area's name, which was first recorded in the 1840s. The Black Country has no single set of defined boundaries. Some traditionalists define it as "the area where the coal seam comes to the surface – so West Bromwich , Coseley , Oldbury , Blackheath , Cradley Heath , Old Hill , Bilston , Dudley , Tipton , Wednesbury , and parts of Halesowen , Walsall and Smethwick or what used to be known as Warley ." There are records from
31816-419: The town as well as being a friend to many of its leading citizens, so his portrait of the surrounding area was largely positive. He was the author of the famous early description of the Black Country as "black by day and red by night", adding appreciatively that it "cannot be matched, for vast and varied production, by any other space of equal radius on the surface of the globe". Burritt used the term to refer to
32010-415: The two wars became World War II in 1941. Other proposed starting dates for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939. Others view the Spanish Civil War as
32204-407: The war were not fulfilled in the peace settlement. From 1922 to 1925, the Fascist movement led by Benito Mussolini seized power in Italy with a nationalist, totalitarian , and class collaborationist agenda that abolished representative democracy, repressed socialist, left-wing, and liberal forces, and pursued an aggressive expansionist foreign policy aimed at making Italy a world power, promising
32398-475: The war. Germany annexed western Poland and occupied central Poland ; the Soviet Union annexed eastern Poland ; small shares of Polish territory were transferred to Lithuania and Slovakia . On 6 October, Hitler made a public peace overture to the United Kingdom and France but said that the future of Poland was to be determined exclusively by Germany and the Soviet Union. The proposal was rejected and Hitler ordered an immediate offensive against France, which
32592-404: The west halted the German advance for several days, but it was outflanked and encircled by the Wehrmacht . Remnants of the Polish army broke through to besieged Warsaw . On 17 September 1939, two days after signing a cease-fire with Japan , the Soviet Union invaded Poland under the supposed pretext that the Polish state had ceased to exist. On 27 September, the Warsaw garrison surrendered to
32786-483: The world order , and soon began a massive rearmament campaign . France, seeking to secure its alliance with Italy, allowed Italy a free hand in Ethiopia , which Italy desired as a colonial possession. The situation was aggravated in early 1935 when the Territory of the Saar Basin was legally reunited with Germany, and Hitler repudiated the Treaty of Versailles, accelerated his rearmament programme, and introduced conscription. The United Kingdom, France and Italy formed
32980-439: The world's countries —including all the great powers —participated, with many investing all available economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities in pursuit of total war , blurring the distinction between military and civilian resources. Tanks and aircraft played major roles , with the latter enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and delivery of the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II
33174-463: Was Francis Perceval Eliot of Elmhurst Hall , former captain in the 14th Foot . Soon there were five Troops or 'Divisions' in the county, which were loosely regimented on 20 September as the Staffordshire Regiment of Gentlemen and Yeomanry (one of the first counties to be regimented): The regiment was first employed when the Stafford Troop was called out on 6 August 1795 in support of the civil power in suppressing bread rioters who had intercepted
33368-554: Was invaded by Germany. The United States started strategic planning to prepare for a full-scale offensive against Germany. At the end of September 1940, the Tripartite Pact formally united Japan, Italy, and Germany as the Axis powers . The Tripartite Pact stipulated that any country—with the exception of the Soviet Union—that attacked any Axis Power would be forced to go to war against all three. The Axis expanded in November 1940 when Hungary , Slovakia , and Romania joined. Romania and Hungary later made major contributions to
33562-408: Was a surplus of cavalry . The commission decided that only the 14 most senior regiments were to be retained as cavalry, the remainder would be converted to other roles such as armoured cars or artillery. As the 5th most senior regiment in the order of precedence , the Staffordshire Yeomanry was retained as horsed cavalry. By the later 1930s the policy was to mechanise all remaining cavalry units, but
33756-427: Was also heavily mined in Hamstead , further east, whose workings extended well under what is now north Birmingham . Smethwick and Dudley Port were described as "a thousand swarming hives of metallurgical industries" by Samuel Griffiths in 1872. Another geological definition, the seam outcrop definition, only includes areas where the coal seam is shallow, making the soil black at the surface. Some coal mining areas to
33950-415: Was at Leybourne near West Malling in Kent . The regiment was once again converted to cyclists in August 1917 and joined 12th Cyclist Brigade in The Cyclist Division . By the end of 1917, it was at Tonbridge and then to Canterbury where it remained until the end of the war. 2/1st Staffordshire Yeomanry began disbanding in March 1919 at Canterbury . The 3rd Line regiment was formed in 1915 and in
34144-441: Was considered a success and before the war ended the existing Yeomanry regiments at home were converted into Imperial Yeomanry, with an establishment of RHQ and four squadrons with a machine gun section. The regiment was redesignated the Staffordshire Imperial Yeomanry (Queen's Own Royal Regiment) in May 1901. In 1905 RHQ and the regimental stores moved from the Friary at Lichfield to 38 Tamworth Street, Lichfield . Annual training
34338-422: Was disbanded after the Treaty of Amiens in March 1802, including the Needwood Troop and the Wolverhampton Association, but the Staffordshire Yeomanry continued in existence. The peace was short-lived, and many volunteer troops were reformed or newly formed when war broke out again in 1803, including the following Staffordshire units: The regiment was regularly trained and inspected, collectively or by troops, over
34532-427: Was disbanded in 1998. The Black Country Consortium (founded in 1999) and the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership (founded in 2011) both define the Black Country as the four metropolitan boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton, an approximate area of 138 square miles (360 km ). The borders of the Black Country can be defined by using the special cultural and industrial characteristics of
34726-420: Was discovered beyond the western boundary fault at Baggeridge at a depth of around 600 yards. A broken ridge runs across the Black Country in a north-westerly direction through Dudley, Wrens Nest and Sedgley, separating the Black Country into two regions. This ridge forms part of a major watershed of England with streams to the north taking water to the Tame and then via the Trent into the North Sea whilst to
34920-425: Was dismounted and joined the 3rd Cyclist Brigade (and the division became 1st Cyclist Division ) in the Holt area. A further reorganisation in November 1916 saw the 1st Cyclist Division broken up and the regiment was remounted along with the rest of the brigade, which was redesignated as the new 2nd Mounted Brigade in the new 1st Mounted Division (originally 3rd Mounted Division ) at Stansted . By May 1917, it
35114-403: Was founded in the early 13th century. A number of Black Country villages developed into market towns and boroughs in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, notably Dudley, Walsall and Wolverhampton. Coal mining was carried out for several centuries in the Black Country, starting from medieval times, and metalworking was important in the Black Country area as early as the 16th century spurred on by
35308-429: Was going to need more troops than just the regular army. A Royal Warrant was issued on 24 December 1899 to allow volunteer forces to serve in South Africa. The Royal Warrant asked standing Yeomanry regiments to provide service companies of approximately 115 men each for the Imperial Yeomanry . The new force was equipped to operate as Mounted infantry (MI), armed with a Lee–Metford infantry rifle and bayonet instead of
35502-441: Was little difference between the mounted volunteers and the Yeomanry. Earl Gower resigned the command of the Staffordshire Yeomanry in March 1800 and Lt-Col Monckton was promoted to succeed him. That year there were frequent disorders, and the Stafford and Newcastle Troops were regularly called out. Lord Bradford raised a sixth troop for the Yeomanry at Weston in October 1800 and was appointed its captain. Most volunteer cavalry
35696-450: Was no trouble. This was the last occasion on which the regiment was employed in aid of the civil power. New Yeomanry Regulations came into force in April 1871, setting the establishment of a regiment at eight troops of 60 men, but as one of the strongest-recruited units the Staffordshire Yeomanry obtained a special dispensation to continue its 12 troops. It was also issued with Westley Richards breechloading carbines. Lord Bagot retired from
35890-438: Was now the sole British unit with two Indian cavalry regiments constituting 12th Cavalry Brigade. 4th Cavalry Division then undertook a tour of duty in the malarial Jordan Valley during the height of summer, with 1/1st Staffs Yeomanry having to evacuate many casualties suffering from sickness. In September the division secretly moved to the coast with the Desert Mounted Corps (DMC) under the Australian General Harry Chauvel for
36084-403: Was postponed until the spring of 1940 due to bad weather. After the outbreak of war in Poland, Stalin threatened Estonia , Latvia , and Lithuania with military invasion, forcing the three Baltic countries to sign pacts allowing the creation of Soviet military bases in these countries; in October 1939, significant Soviet military contingents were moved there. Finland refused to sign
36278-405: Was prepared for overseas service and a 3rd Line was formed to act as a reserve, providing trained replacements for the 1st and 2nd Line regiments. After more than a year training in Norfolk, 1/1st Staffs Yeomanry was ordered to complete to full war establishment in September 1915, and the following month embarked with 1/1st NMMB for the Mediterranean. The advance party went to Mudros , the base for
36472-657: Was repulsed with heavy Italian casualties; the campaign ended within months with minor territorial changes. To assist Italy and prevent Britain from gaining a foothold, Germany prepared to invade the Balkans, which would threaten Romanian oil fields and strike against British dominance of the Mediterranean. In December 1940, British Empire forces began counter-offensives against Italian forces in Egypt and Italian East Africa . The offensives were successful; by early February 1941, Italy had lost control of eastern Libya, and large numbers of Italian troops had been taken prisoner. The Italian Navy also suffered significant defeats, with
36666-441: Was required to go through the bureaucracy of the League of Nations, which rendered it essentially toothless. The United States, concerned with events in Europe and Asia, passed the Neutrality Act in August of the same year. Hitler defied the Versailles and Locarno Treaties by remilitarising the Rhineland in March 1936, encountering little opposition due to the policy of appeasement . In October 1936, Germany and Italy formed
36860-447: Was second lt-col and the Hon William Bagot and Earl Granville were the majors; the colonel's son, Viscount Anson and Sir Francis Scott, 3rd Baronet were among the captains. Edmund Peel was the former prime minister's younger brother; Sir Robert's younger son Frederick Peel , MP, was also a lieutenant in the regiment. Major Bagot (now Lord Bagot) was promoted in 1851 after Lt-Col Peel died, and then became commanding officer (CO) when
37054-498: Was still with Rundle's division, attached to 16th Brigade at Bethlehem . The force provided escorts and cover for the working parties constructing blockhouse lines. After the 11th Bn IY were overrun at the disastrous Battle of Groenkop or Tweefontein on 25 December, 4th Bn went out with a mounted column under Maj-Gen Edward Locke Elliot that pursued the Boers and almost caught them at Armstrong Drift on 28 December but were foiled by night falling. For two more days they pursued, but
37248-480: Was the deadliest conflict in history, resulting in 70 to 85 million deaths , more than half being civilians. Millions died in genocides , including the Holocaust of European Jews, as well as from massacres, starvation, and disease. Following the Allied powers' victory, Germany , Austria , Japan , and Korea were occupied, and war crimes tribunals were conducted against German and Japanese leaders . The causes of World War II included unresolved tensions in
37442-446: Was used again, though as a description rather than a proper noun , by the Illustrated London News in an 1849 article on the opening of the South Staffordshire Railway . An 1851 guidebook to the London and North Western Railway included an entire chapter entitled "The Black Country", including an early description: In this Black Country, including West Bromwich, Dudley, Darlaston, Bilston, Wolverhampton and several minor villages,
37636-488: Was usually carried out at Trentham Park outside Stoke. Colonel Sir Reginald Hardy resigned the command of the regiment on 13 March 1906 and was succeeded by Lt-Col A.H. Heath, with Lt-Col Bromley-Davenport as second-in-command. The Imperial Yeomanry were subsumed into the new Territorial Force (TF) under the Haldane Reforms of 1908. On 1 April 1908 the regiment was redesignated as the Staffordshire Yeomanry (Queen's Own Royal Regiment) (TF) affiliated to Hussars , with
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