Description:This postcard view of soldiers from the New Zealand Rifle Brigade is titled “Teatime N.Z.o.o. at Brocton”. This could be a humorous reference to the 'zoo' consisting of the cat and dog in the photograph. Pets reminded them of home and were probably encouraged to some extent.
Normally you would be able to see the letter which was used to identify each hut on the door which, for example H23 would designate it as hut number 23 in “H” Lines. Unfortunately, in this view it is obscured. The trench in front of the hut is for drainage, to carry away the rain which would have cascaded down the slopes of Old Acre Valley.
In order to differentiate between the two Camps (Brocton Camp and Rugeley Camp) on Cannock Chase and no doubt make it easier for mail distribution from family and or friends, Brocton’s 20 Battalion Lines were alphabetically from A-T whilst Rugeley Camps were numbered 1-20. With approximately 20,000 men in each Camp it would have made it much easier to locate each soldier as the address would have been Battalion Line and individual Hut number.
The New Zealand Rifle Brigade transferred to Brocton Camp from Salisbury Plain Encampment in September 1917 due to overcrowding as there was ample space available. They set up their Headquarters in “H” Lines. During their stay, the fluctuating numbers of soldiers coming and going meant that they would reside in adjacent Battalion Lines as and when required. From October 1917 all subsequent reinforcements, of which there were many would proceed directly to Brocton from their port of disembarkation. The standard of training was excellent, and the schedules show how tactics changed as the warfare did on the Western Front with the new recruits being demonstrated every possible scenario they would encounter in as much realism as possible.
A Civic Farewell was given to the New Zealanders when they left for home in May 1919 as they were popular within the County Town of Stafford. They would be useful soldiers to have as nearby was the larger prisoner of war camp housing thousands of Germans should any unruly behaviour occur.
Acknowledgement: thank you to Mr Trevor Warburton for the additional information.