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Royal Army Chaplains' Department

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Royal Army Chaplains' Department
Cap Badge of the Royal Army Chaplains' Department; for Jewish padres the Maltese Cross is replaced by a Star of David
Active23 September 1796 - present
CountryUnited Kingdom United Kingdom
Branch British Army
RoleChaplaincy
Motto(s)"In this Sign Conquer"
MarchPrince of Denmark's March (Trumpet Voluntary)

The Royal Army Chaplains' Department (RAChD) is an all-officer corps that provides ordained clergy to minister to the British Army.

History

A post 1953 RAChD No.1 dress cap
Arms of the British Army
Combat Arms
Combat Support Arms
Combat Services

The Army Chaplains' Department (AChD) was formed by Royal Warrant of 23 September 1796.[1] Previously chaplains had been part of individual regiments, but not on the central establishment. Only Anglican chaplains were recruited until 1827, when Presbyterians were recognised. Roman Catholic chaplains were recruited from 1836, Methodist chaplains from 1881, and Jewish chaplains from 1892.[2] During the First World War some 4,400 Army Chaplains were recruited and 179 lost their lives on active service.[2] The Department received the "Royal" prefix in February 1919.[2] During the Second World War another 96 British and 38 Commonwealth Army Chaplains lost their lives.[2]

From 1946 until 1996, the RAChD's Headquarters, Depot and Training Centre were at Bagshot Park in Surrey, now the home of The Earl and Countess of Wessex.[3] In 1996, they moved to the joint service Armed Forces Chaplaincy Centre at Amport House near Andover.[4]

Role

There are about 150 serving regular chaplains (commonly known as "padres") in the British Army; these can belong to one of several Christian denominations, or to the Jewish faith, although currently all active chaplains are Christian.[5] Uniquely within the British Army, the Royal Army Chaplains' Department has different cap badges for its Christian and Jewish officers.[6]

Army chaplains, although they are all commissioned officers of the British Army and wear uniform, do not have executive authority. They are unique within the British Army in that they do not carry arms. At services on formal occasions, chaplains wear their medals and decorations on their clerical robes (many chaplains have been decorated for bravery in action, including three Victoria Crosses: James Adams, Noel Mellish and William Addison).[7]

The RAChD's motto is "In this Sign Conquer" as seen in the sky before the Battle of the Milvian Bridge by the Roman Emperor Constantine. Its regimental march, both quick and slow, is the Prince of Denmark's March, erroneously known as the Trumpet Voluntary.[8]

Museum

The Museum of Army Chaplaincy is located at Amport House near Andover, Hampshire.[9]

Representative denominations in the RAChD

Chaplains are either classified as Jewish (currently only in the Territorial Army) or as a member of one of the following seven Christian denominational groups:

However, an Army chaplain is expected to minister to and provide pastoral care to any soldier who needs it, no matter their denomination or faith or lack of it.[10]

Ranks

Chaplains are the only British Army officers who do not carry standard officer ranks. They are officially designated Chaplain to the Forces (CF) (e.g. "The Reverend John Smith CF"). They do, however, have grades which equate to the standard ranks and wear the insignia of the equivalent rank. Chaplains are usually addressed as "Padre" /ˈpɑːdreɪ/, never by their nominal military rank.

The senior Church of England Chaplain is ranked within the church hierarchy as an Archdeacon – he or she holds the appointment of Archdeacon for the Army whether or not he or she is also the Chaplain-General. The Senior Roman Catholic Chaplain (usually a CF1) is sometimes ranked as a monsignor.[11]

Senior chaplains

Order of precedence

Preceded by Order of Precedence Succeeded by

Some notable Army chaplains

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ Museum of Army Chaplaincy webpage. British Army official website.
  2. ^ a b c d "History of Army Chaplains". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  3. ^ "Bagshot Park". Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  4. ^ "Army Forces Chaplaincy Centre". Defence Academy. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  5. ^ "Army chaplains". BBC. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  6. ^ "Military Cap Badge Royal Army Chaplains Department (Jewish)". Intriguing history. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  7. ^ "Padre VC Holders". Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  8. ^ "Marches of the British Forces". Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  9. ^ "Museum of Army Chaplaincy". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  10. ^ "Royal Army Chaplains' Department". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  11. ^ "The gave their today". Retrieved 5 May 2014.
  12. ^ "Remembrance Sunday 2013". Diocese of Oxford. Retrieved 5 May 2014.

Further reading

  • Bergen, Doris. L., (ed), 2004. The Sword of the Lord: Military Chaplains from the First to the Twenty-First Century. University of Notre Dame Press ISBN 0-268-02176-7
  • Kennedy, Geoffrey Anketell Studdert The Unutterable Beauty, ISBN 1-84685-110-6
  • Loudon, Stephen H. Chaplains in Conflict. The Role of Army Chaplains since 1914. Avon Books, London: 1996. ISBN 1-86033-840-2
  • MacDonald, David R. Padre E. C. Crosse and 'the Devonshire Epitaph': The Astonishing Story of One Man at the Battle of the Somme (with Antecedents to Today's 'Just War' Dialogue), ISBN 978-1-929569-45-8
  • McLaren, Stuart John (ed.) Somewhere in Flanders. A Norfolk Padre in the Great War. The War Letters of the Revd Samuel Frederick Leighton Green MC, Army Chaplain 1916–1919. The Larks Press, Norfolk, UK (www.booksatlarkspress.co.uk): 2005. ISBN 1-904006-25-6
  • Montell, Hugh (2002) A Chaplain's War. The Story of Noel Mellish VC, MC. ISBN 1-84394-008-6
  • O'Rahilly, Alfred The Padre of Trench Street (about Jesuit Father William Doyle), ISBN 1-905363-15-X
  • Purcell, William Woodbine Willie. An Anglican Incident. Being some account of the life and times of Geoffrey Anketell Studdert Kennedy, poet, prophet, seeker after truth, 1883–1929. London: 1962
  • Smyth, Brigadier The Rt Hon. Sir John, Bt, VC, MC In This Sign Conquer. The Story of the Army Chaplains. London: 1968
  • Snape, Michael The Royal Army Chaplains' Department, 1796–1953. Clergy under Fire. Boydell Press, 2007. ISBN 1-84383-346-8
  • Teonge, Henry The Diary of Henry Teonge Chaplain on Board HM’s Ships Assistance, Bristol and Royal Oak 1675–1679. Edited by Sir E. Denison Ross and Eileen Power. London: Routledge, [1927] 2005.
  • Thornton, Sybil "Buddhist Chaplains in the Field of Battle" in Buddhism in Practice, ed. Donald S. Lopez, Jr. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995)
  • Wilkinson, Alan The Church of England and the First World War. SPCK, London: 1978, reprinted by SCM, London: 1996. ISBN 0-334-02669-5
  • Padres at war: Army chaplains bring comfort to the front line. Royal Army Chaplains' Department webpage. British Army official website.

" 'Evans Above".....The Auto Biography of THE REV WALTER EVANS.CF. I do not have the "LIBRARY" detail....He served PADRE to 22 Regt S A S. EVANS...The Rev WALTER C.F. His Auto Biography...."'Evens Above". He was too.....CHAPLAIN....THE ROYAL HOSPITAL CHELSEA.

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