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| "The KAR began World War I with 21 small companies in 3 battalions (each with up to 8 companies following the British pre-1913 half-company TOE): the 1st Nyasaland (half of the battalion was located in northeast Nyasaland), 3rd East Africa (with one company on Zanzibar) and the 4th Uganda, both of the latter included a 4th platoon of Sudanese with the 4th platoons of 4th battalion being led by Sudanese officers. Additionally the companies were scattered all over British East Africa. Full strength in 1914 was 70 British officers, 3 British NCO's, and 2,325 Africans. There were no organic heavy weapons (each company had only one machinegun), including artillery, or organized reserves and the companies were in reality large platoons of 70 to 80 men. The regiment fought in the East African Campaign against the German commander Paul Erich von Lettow-Vorbeck and his forces in German East Africa. Transport and support into the interior was provided by over 400,000 porters of the Carrier Corps. By the end of the Great War the KAR comprised 1,193 British officers, 1,497 British NCO's and 30,658 Africans in 22 battalions, including two made up of former German askaris, as noted above. In ""Armies in East Africa 1914-18"", Peter Abbot notes that the KAR units recruited from former prisoners of war were used as garrison troops by the British, to avoid any conflict of loyalties. However, one of these battalions was involved in the pursuit of one Hauptman Wintgens from February to October 1917. KAR casualties in World War One were 5,117 killed and wounded with another 3,039 dying from diseases. " |
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