Army Cyclist Corps

[1] Cyclists were employed on an intermittent basis during the South African War – whilst they were not deployed as organised combat formations, the bicycle was found to be invaluable for reconnaissance and communications work, being lighter, quieter, and logistically much easier to support than horses.

Most units of the Corps served out their time in the United Kingdom, providing replacement drafts to infantry battalions; some were converted back to conventional infantry and saw active service, such as the Kent Cyclists (on the North-West Frontier) or the 2/10th Royal Scots (in northern Russia).

[2] Cyclists, as well as cavalry, of the British Salonika Army were used to patrol villages in the Struma Valley, in order to deny them to the Bulgarians and Turks.

These were rarely committed to action, rather being held back in preparation for the resumption of "normal" mobile warfare.

The Corps was disbanded in 1920; by 1922 all remaining Territorial cyclist battalions had been converted back to conventional units.