Regimental Sergeant Major H 'Tommy' Atkins

Were there any fights between you and any sort of unpleasantness, because you paint a very sort of bleak picture?
What amongst the chaps? No, no, what amongst our chaps you mean? No, No, goodness me, I think we grew closer together really, I can't remember anybody arguing the toss or anything like that, no, the comradeship was absolutely splendid, couldn't fault it.
Tell me what, looking back, what the Regiment means to you.
The Regiment of course means a tremendous amount to me. At first you don't really realise this. As a young soldier when you first join the Army you are not aware of this sort of thing because you're sort of joining a group of chaps and your first thoughts are well you are a soldier and that's what it means to you to start off with. The best way to recall that question is that for the first seven years of my regimental life was served in the one Battalion, the 2nd Battalion of the Queen's Royal Regiment, and in the ranks at that time of course there was many longer serving men, non-commissioned officers and men in the Battalion, than ever I had in length of service, but you got to know them, they were your guides and mentors to a certain extent with all that goes on, and it grows onto you this feeling of regimental comradeship and you build up friendship amongst the chaps that you choose to make friends with and you become friends and you're serving with them over a long period of time, continuously, and what better example can you have of comparing that with living in your own immediate family.