Originally seven separate corps formed in 1859-60, the Bucks rifle volunteers were brought together as The 1st Bucks Administrative Battalion in July 1862. Corps retained control of their own arms, stores and financial affairs and conducted correspondence through an adjutant. The overall commanding officer had only general charge of drill and discipline, whilst adjutants maintained contact with the individual corps. North to south communications in Bucks were not conducive to uniformity, as it was often easier to travel to London by rail from one town and then back to another rather than go directly by horse or foot.. No battalion commanding officer was appointed until May 1864, when the Hon. Percy Barrington of Westbury, later 1st Viscount Barrington, took charge. He had previously commanded the 3rd Bucks (Buckingham and Winslow) RVC. The first adjutant, William Forder, was a former sergeant major in the Royal Bucks King’s Own Militia. The battalion was then fully consolidated as the 1st Bucks Rifle Volunteers in March 1875.
Officers were initially appointed by the Lord Lieutenant but, as a result of the Cardwell reforms that affected the army as a whole, the Regulation of the Forces Act in 1871 made commissions in the auxiliary forces as a whole awarded by the Crown rather than lords lieutenant. The latter could still make recommendations as to first appointments.
The pouch carries the initials BRV with the numeral 1 in the bugle horn since the former Eton College Rifle Volunteer Corps formed in 1860 had been designated the 8th Bucks (Eton College) RVC in 1867, and as the 2nd Bucks (Eton College) Rifle Volunteers in 1878. Most shoulder pouches were purely decorative but, unusually, the pouch contains binoculars like those pouches worn by staff officers and officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers.
