Authors and Contributors this page: T.F. Mills | ||||||||
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Scope and Disclaimers... |
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... what we are and do, what we are not and do not | ||||||||
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Use of this website implies acceptance of the terms and conditions described below and on the copyright notice page and citing and linking pages. This website includes the following:
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Scope and History of This Site | ||||||||
The focus of this site is the history of the regiments of all territories and successor states that were at any time part of the British Empire or Commonwealth. These histories are presented as encapsulated summaries and lists of data (including bibliographies), complemented by extensive cataloguing of related external sites. The emphasis is generally on manifestations of the British regimental system throughout the world (e.g. Canada), and to a lesser extent on the land forces that have not continued those traditions (e.g. Iraq). Context for the regiments pages is provided by general histories of the nations and their wars. Every page is static in the sense that you can expect to find the same outline and the same sort of information in each section anywhere on this site. Some sections are designed only for cataloguing remote sites (e.g. regimental museums, regimental associations). If none have been found, they include a note to that effect. Through regular link checking we try to keep "link rot" to less than 5%, and new links are added almost every day. Other sections are designed for lists of facts or brief synopses (e.g. causes of wars, regimental battle honours). If the section is not yet developed, it will include a construction sign: . The two-fold function (content and external links) is enhanced by a very high degree of internal linkage that makes this work more easily navigable than any printed encyclopedia (as of 2004, well over 340,000 internal links). See also: schedule of site development, and what's new. Topics you will generally not find on in this site are:
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This site began in 1995 as an organised catalogue of external links -- originally just one page, but as of 2004 well over 15,000 links scattered throughout the site). In 2000 the emphasis began to shift towards providing substantial content in a uniform style not found elsewhere on the internet, and for some aspects rarely found in print. As of 2004, there are over 3000 pages on this site (which, if printed on paper, would amount to over tenfold that number, so don't try it!), and new material and new pages are constantly being added. See also: schedule of site development, and what's new. The site was reorganised into nation pages in late 1995, taking their present form in April 1999. Except for minor redesign and regular link-checking, these pages change little, and are a fairly good representation of the scope of related world-wide links on the web. In 2002 these pages began to include an expanded constitutional history to put all the military history links in context. Examples of well-developed pages are Canada and Malta. The regimental pages were the second section to be developed. This began in January 1996 with lists and indexes of regiments serving as a catalogue of external sites. More lists continue to be added. Examples of well-developed pages are British Regiments 1945, and Alphabetical Index of British Regiments. Starting in May 2000, a new feature was added: a dedicated page for "every" regiment and corps of the Commonwealth. The registers of regiments consequently became internal rather than external indexes. During the year 2000, this website grew tenfold with the addition of regiment pages. As of July 2004, there were 2,076 regiment pages complemented by 430 separate battalion service histories. An example of a well-developed page is The York and Lancaster Regiment. The war pages were added in September 2000. The first stage of development involved listing battles and battle honours in each war so that the regiment pages could link to them. Synopses of the causes, casualties, results, etc. are gradually being added. As of July 2004, there were 218 war pages in various stages of development. An example of a well-developed page is the Third Anglo-Afghan War. As complementary pages for these main sections continued to grow, the whole site was reorganised in July 2004 to to simplify access and editorial control, and to provide new top-level entry points on the navigation tabs for Formations, Tradition, and Biography. |
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Statement of Responsibility | ||||||||
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Stylistic Conventions | ||||||||
This site uses certain stylistic conventions to convey information, adhering in most general respects to the Chicago Manual of Style. Orthography, however, is normally British English. On occasion this may cause some surprises since there are variations throughout the Commonwealth (e.g. the Canadian spelling of honourary). Some special considerations: | ||||||||
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Accuracy | ||||||||
While every attempt is made to assure the accuracy of information presented on this website, the webmaster and authors disclaim any legal responsibility or liability for errors or incomplete information. This website should be considered a living document since information is constantly being expanded and corrected. Corrections and additions are made without notice other than the update notice on every page. Major additions and updates are noted on the What's New page. (See also "External linking" below.) |
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External Linking From This Site | ||||||||
While internet law has decided very little about hyperlinking, Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, has written "There is no reason to have to ask before making a link to another site" because hyperlinking is intrinsic to the life of the web. Linking is protected as free speech, but carries the same responsibilities as free speech (e.g. restrictions against libel, copyright infringement, and disruption of commerce). The placement of material on the web implies the author's/publisher's willingness to be linked by directories, search engines and other web sites. See Links and Law, by Tim Berners-Lee, and Deep Linking by the American Library Association. In making links to remote sites, we tend not to make editorial judgments about their quality, accuracy, or historical bias. We will occasionally reject links to sites which egregiously misrepresent history or themselves (e.g. Holocaust denial, fantasy games that could be mistaken for reality, heavily plagiarised sites, etc.). If we do choose to link to such sites, we often include a cautionary note. We are not in a position to adjudicate disputes over intellectual property or authenticity between third parties, and we will normally provide links to both parties. In such instances, it is the responsibility of the aggrieved to seek appropriate redress from the other party in question (e.g. voluntary or legally enforced removal of the disputed material). When offending sites have been removed, we will remove the offending links. If we have relied on erroneous sites for the construction of our own historical material, we will gladly make appropriate corrections if we can ascertain that the information is indeed authentic. However, since we maintain pages about thousands of units and we receive contributions from hundreds of readers, we cannot always guarantee that erroneous information will not be reintroduced. (See also "Accuracy" above.) |
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Philosophy | ||||||||
This website:
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