Does anyone know why these men have Service Numbers with 8 digits starting with 22?
The information I have is at the bottom of the picture below.
Cliff
The numbers on your list ("22"s apart) are all "Army numbers" and date from before the change to "Service numbers" in 1950. From 1950 they became service numbers starting with 22000000 and allocated in line with enlistment date...
22000000 to 22199408 Until October 1950
22199409 to 22460786 Until February 1951 22460787 to 22562759 Until July 1951
22562760 to 23052500 Until June 1955
23052501 to 23188252 Until October 1955
23188253 to 23479123 Until May 1956
23479124 to 23845071 Until October 1960
23845072 to 23969619 Until April 1964
23969620 to 24033484 Until October 1964
24033485 to 24057159 Until April 1965
24057160 to 24076468 Until December 1966
24076469 to 24182226 Until April 1969
24182227 to 24262662 Until September 1971
24262663 to 24302033 Until September 1972
24302034 to 24315610 Until January 1973
24315611 to 24322198 Until February 1973
24322199 to 24355527 Until August 1974
24355528 to 24369281 Until September 1975
24369282 to 24475540 Until May 1978
24475541 to 24520161 Until March 1979
24520162 to 24579860 Until August 1980
24579861 to 24587118 Until March 1981
24587119 to 24753060 Until December 1985
24753061 to 24854044 Until November 1988
24854045 to 25012465 Until January 1992 25012466 to 25027818 Until July 1993
25027819 to 25065603 Until July 1997
25065604 to 25130600 Until February 2001
25130601 to 25136865 Until August 2001
25136866 to 25139703 August 2001
25139704 onwards Still being issued
(First bold block includes my dad's number (King's Own) - he enlisted in dec 1950, and the second bold block covers my number (QLR -Jan 1989), so it seems accurate enough)