Structure of the Military section of the WOPC website This Military section of the WOPC website consists of 7 sub-pages: – Introduction (this page) – Remembrance – The Wiltshire Regiment – Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry – Royal Flying Corps & Royal Air Force – Royal Navy – Mercantile Marine & Merchant Navy Objectives of the Military […]

We Will Remember Them The WOPC has a major ongoing project to identify all men and women who died in conflict and/or service and have a connection to Wiltshire, to ensure they are remembered for their sacrifices. As of June 2025, the WOPC has identified almost 16,000 such men and women. These men and women […]

Introduction to the Wiltshire Regiment Page This page of the Military section of the website holds information about our own regiment together with general information about army activities in Wiltshire. Some of the information refers to army units from other countries – especially the Commonwealth – who have had a presence in Wiltshire. Please note […]

  This section contains information about the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, which was a separate entity to that of the Wiltshire Regiment. The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry now exists as 2 squadrons of the Royal Wessex Yeomanry. Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry (RWY) – History The Yeoman Cavalry of Wiltshire was formed at the Bear Inn, Devizes on 12 […]

Wiltshire and the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) & Royal Air Force (RAF) Wiltshire played a key role in the early days of powered flight. Early experiments on flying at Larkhill around 1908/9 saw the opening of a flying school there in 1910. On 13 May 1912, The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was formed, with both […]

Wiltshire and the Royal Navy Despite Wiltshire being a land-locked county, many Wiltshire men and women served in the Royal Navy. Naval service would probably not have been a first choice peacetime occupation because the nearest ports were Bristol, Avonmouth, Gloucester and, further afield, Portsmouth, Southampton & Plymouth. The only local sailing or water based […]

The Merchant Navy Despite the term Merchant Navy being in common use, there is no formal organisation known as the Merchant Navy and it is not a single entity (unlike the Royal Navy or Royal Air Force). The term Merchant Navy is a collective term for anything that floats, is not in the Royal Navy […]