The ‘Corps of Royal Engineers’, or more informally known as the Royal Engineers, are in charge of all things to do with technical support in the British Armed forces; which has always been needed when being involved in military campaigns. Things get broken, therefore things need fixing. This gives them a pretty rich history, so here are ten things you might not know about the Sappers.
1) The word “Sapper”, the famous nickname of the Royal Engineers, comes from the French-derived word “Sapeur”, quite literally meaning ‘to undermine a structure or building, in order to cause it to collapse’. The Royal Engineers are fittingly, quite good at that.
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| A Sapper on exercise |
2) The RE’s have an expansive civil engineering history, The Royal Albert Hall was designed by Captain Francis Fowke RE, as well as Pentonville Prison which was designed by a Royal Engineer, then Captain Joshua Jebb, at the expense of £84,186 12s 2d, and completed in 1842. They have also had a large input in overseas engineering during the British Empire, most notably in India, Canada and Bermuda.
3) The Corps surprisingly has no battle honours.
4) It was only after the Board of Ordinance was abolished in 1855, that the Royal Engineers, Royal Sappers and Miners and Royal Artillery were put under the command of the Army, however, the RE’s and its predecessors have had over 900 years of unbroken service to the crown.
5) The Royal Engineers made the first ever airborne unit in the British Armed Forces, named the Air Battalion Royal Engineers (ABRE). This joined the Royal Flying Corps in 1912, which evolved into the RAF in 1918. It was made to utilise “heavier-than-air” craft.
6) The first Engineer that was to officially serve the monarchy was a monk, called Bishop Gundalf from the Abbey of Bec in Normandy, who was to assist Archbishop Lafranc in 1070. He was appointed by King William I to supervise the construction fo The White Tower, now the Tower of London. Serving three English kings in his life, and being a strong favourite to them all, he was known as the first “King’s Engineer”, paving the way for Royal Engineers centuries later.
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| Gundalf, Bishop of Rochester |
7) The Royal Engineers played in the first ever FA Cup final, where they regrettably lost 1-0 to Wanderers in 1872. Two years later, they played in the 1874 FA Cup final, losing again against Oxford University A.F.C. On 7 November 2012, the Royal Engineers played against the Wanderers again for revenge in a remake of the 1872 FA Cup Final at The Oval. Unlike the actual final, the Engineers won, and by a large margin, 7–1 being the final score.
8) Before WWII, unlike most other corps, you could enlist in the Royal Engineers up to the age of 35, instead of 25 like most others.
9) The Royal Engineers brought about the birth of the Royal Signals in 1920. They were born from the Royal Engineers Signal Service, previously called the Telegraph Battalion Royal Engineers.
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| A group of Sappers from the Jersey Field Squadron, part of the Royal Monmouthsire Royal Engineers, the most senior Reserve regiment in the British Army |
10) The Royal Engineers were instrumental in the building the first guided torpedo, the Brennan Torpedo, due to the Royal Engineers being in charge of shore defences of Britain in the 1880s. This torpedo was to become the standard harbour defence throughout the Empire until the early 1900s and showed the advantages for guided weapons in the 20th century.
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| A model of the Brennan Torpedo |
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