Pre 1914 British Army Cyclist

[Peter Crosby]

Could anyone identify the motorised bicycle in this photograph please. I'm trying to date the photograph - the rifle, uniform and equipment suggest British Army, post Boer War, pre Great War. If I knew when this model of bike was introduced I could at least establish an earliest possible date. The shield shaped badge on the petrol tank isn't clear but I think it says 'Irvine Imperial' if that helps at all.
Many thanks

Pete

 

[kevininpa]

Don't know the bike but the rifle is an Enfield. Nice accessory!

 

[Street Ryderz]

That lee enfeild mk 1 model from 1914-1918 so close but not likely pre 1914 as the earlyier ones had wood top almost the length of the barrel.

 

[Frankenstein]

The more I look at it the more strange it becomes, is that a leather pad covering a part of the cylinder?

I gave up looking since it might be home built, I'm looking at the carbide lamp on the front, they came about around the time you expected this picture to be from, maybe a specific lamp would be known to be packaged with an early once and do e motorcycle maker.

Could even be a promotional picture, I can't get a solid on that soldier uniform. Doesn't seem to match any military uniform in the past, almost reminds me of a Mexican ammo sash with German clothes and rather unprofessional looking service marks...

Could be I'm looking at it strange.

Why would a man on a motorcycle with that outfit need a large rifle?

I can't tell if a messenger or a special early war sniper...

The bike looks like some custom and some here and there parting. The black framing around the bottom of the motor is unique, it's almost like it was meant to hold the motor and give it a way to be attached to the frame..

Even the muffler or what appears to be a muffler is very strange looking, unless it was part of that large box acting as a silencer. Again snipers needed to be hard to find or trace, motorcycles are kinda loud...

Beats me.

 

[zippinaround]

Looks like a bsa spring frame . Check out this page might help I don't have time right now , https://oldbike.wordpress.com/1905-bsa-fittings-machine/

 

[Frankenstein]

No it's different, look at the very bottom of your bike in the link, the downtube goes right to the pedals (with a different chainring) but this motorcycle has a horizontal bar that meets St downtube at the motor, then on the other side is the pedal after the seat post comes to that bar.

If it's that frame it's highly modified. Aka custom.

 

[Peter Crosby]

Many thanks for the replies and suggestions. With regard to the rifle, uniform and equipment, I can add that –

· The rifle is a .303 calibre, Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk I*, introduced in August 1899, but still in service with some TA and reserve units up to and including the early part of the Great War. It was replaced by the Short, Magazine Lee-Enfield Rifle Mk III in January 1907, which was the standard issue British Army service rifle used throughout the Great War and the early years of the Second World War.

· The uniform suggests he is a member of a Rifle Volunteer Regiment. The three stars on his right sleeve are efficiency awards and he looks to have some sort of proficiency badge on his left sleeve, most likely for marksmanship. Volunteer cyclist units date back as far as the 1880’s. In 1908 the Haldane reforms reorganised the volunteers into the Territorial Force and nine battalions of cyclists were formed.

· He wears an 1897 Pattern Leather Bandolier. Although superseded and replaced by more modern equipment in 1903 and 1908, this pattern can still be seen in studio portraits of British soldiers right up to 1914.

I now have the original photograph and can confirm that the badge on the fuel tank shows the cycle is an ‘Irvine Imperial’ model – though a Google search throws up no matches. The registration K533 suggests a Liverpool origin – the K prefix was in use for Liverpool vehicles from 1903 to 1914. Furthermore, the photo originated in Liverpool.

The purpose of my research is to establish which Regiment/Battalion/Unit of the British Army the soldier was from. His shoulder title looks to be ‘LoE’ or something similar but as yet I can’t find anything to remotely match that.

Thanks again.

Pete

 

[Frankenstein]

I couldn't find anything on that lamp, it's proper for a bike (has a black spot on the side of the lens, it would be a dark colored piece of glass, red on one side green on the other, used to indicate heading to other vehicles.

This may be one of the only surviving relics of that special cyclist. I found similarly dressed soldiers equipped with the same rifle and ammo sash. But they only have bikes without motors, and the cuff insignia is really plain in comparison to the photos I found, they have the same loop but with more decoration inside.

 

[Frankenstein]

Nobody with a matching shoulder patch.

 

[Peter Crosby]

I couldn't find anything on that lamp, it's proper for a bike (has a black spot on the side of the lens, it would be a dark colored piece of glass, red on one side green on the other, used to indicate heading to other vehicles.

This may be one of the only surviving relics of that special cyclist. I found similarly dressed soldiers equipped with the same rifle and ammo sash. But they only have bikes without motors, and the cuff insignia is really plain in comparison to the photos I found, they have the same loop but with more decoration inside.

I'm told that the lamp is a 'King of the Road' Acetylene Carbide lamp, made by Joseph Lucas of Birmingham. The jacket is a late pattern full dress issue that went out of service before 1914. All the evidence suggests the photo was most likely taken sometime between 1902 and 1914. If someone could just identify the bike I'm sure I could pin it down closer still.