The sheer scale and complexity of the battles of the 1st World War presented new problems over the award of Battle Honours. Battles lasted for weeks or months rather than the day or two of earlier actions. The area covered and number of troops involved, particularly in the major battles of the Western Front, eclipsed anything previously seen. With both the scale and widespread geographical areas of Regimental involvement, the number of Battle Honours that could fairly be claimed was obviously going to be too great to be accommodated on the Regimental Colour on which all pre-1914 Honours were carried. The solution adopted for the Western Front was to award a Battle Honour to cover the major operation and then additional Battle Honours for the supporting actions which contributed to the operation. An example is the Second Battle of Ypres in 1915 which was marked with the Honour Ypres 1915 (to differentiate from Ypres 1914, 1917 and 1918 all of which were awarded as separate Honours) with four supporting Honours, Gravenstafel, St Julien, Frezenberg and Bellewaarde. A further change was that, for the first time, Battle Honours were awarded for a defeat, thus both “Mons” and “Retreat from Mons” appear among those won by the Regiment. Once the list of Battle Honours was agreed by the Honours and Distinctions Committee of the War Office, each Regiment was allowed to select ten, from the total of those awarded, to be carried on the then King’s Colour. These would appear in bold type in the Army List with the remaining in ordinary type.
The Regiment was awarded seventy-nine Battle Honours out of a total of one hundred and sixty eight that were designated. These covered all the campaigns and battles and the many operational theatres in which the Service Battalions of the Regiment served. A Regimental Committee then made recommendations to the War Office for the ten that were to be carried on the King’s Colour. Of these seven were from the Western Front and three, Struma 1918, Gallipoli 1915-16 and Palestine 1917-18 represented the other major operational areas where the battalions of the Regiment served The full list, with the battalions that served there, is shown below. The ten Battle Honours subsequently emblazoned on the King’s Colour are shown in heavy type and capitals. The supporting actions for the main battles have been slightly inset and, where they cover the main battle over a number of years such as Ypres 1915, 1917 and 1918 have been placed within the relevant year with the main action bracketed for guidance:
| Battle Honour | Battalion (s) |
| Mons | 2nd |
| LE CATEAU | 2nd |
| Retreat from Mons | 2nd |
| MARNE 1914 | 2nd |
| MARNE 1918 | 8th, 9th, 13th (for supporting actions see below) |
| Aisne 1914 | 2nd |
| La Bassee 1914 | 2nd |
| Neuve Chapelle | 8th |
| YPRES 1915 | 1st, 9th |
| Gravenstafel | 1st, 9th |
| St Julien | 1st, 9th |
| Frezenburg | 1st, 9th |
| Bellewaarde | 1st, 2nd, 9th |
| YPRES 1917 | 2nd, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 17th (for supporting actions see below) |
| YPRES 1918 | 11th, 12th, 17th |
| Aubers | 8th |
| Festubert 1915 | 8th |
| LOOS | 11th, 12th, 17th |
| SOMME 1916 | 2nd, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 17th |
| Albert 1916, 1918 | 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th (for 1918 Battalions see below) |
| Bazentin | 2nd, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th, 17th |
| Pozieres | 13th, 15th, 16th |
| Flers-Courcelette | 13th |
| Le Transloy | 11th, 12th, 13th |
| Ancre Heights | 5th/6th |
| Ancre 1916, 1918 | 2nd, 5th/6th, 8th, 9th (for 1918 Battalions see below) |
| SOMME 1918 | 2nd, 4th, 5th/6th, 7th, 8th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 17th (for supporting actions see below) |
| ARRAS 1917 | 2nd, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th |
| Scarpe 1917, 1918 | 2nd, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th,16th (for 1918 Battalions see below) |
| Arleux | 2nd, 15th, 16th |
| ARRAS 1918 | (See Somme 1918) |
| (Ypres 1917) | (See above) |
| Pilckem | 8th, 9th, 13th |
| Langemarck 1917 | 8th, 9th, 13th |
| Menin Road | 2nd, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th |
| Polygon Wood | 2nd |
| Poelcappelle | 11th, 12th, 17th |
| Passchendaele | 2nd, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th |
| Cambrai 1917 | 8th, 9th |
| (Somme 1918) | (See above) |
| St Quentin | 2nd, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th |
| Rosieres | 8th, 9th |
| Arras 1918 | 2nd, 4th, 5th/6th, 7th, 8th, 13th |
| Ancre 1918 | 2nd, 4th, 5th/6th, 7th, 8th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 17th |
| LYS | 2nd, 8th, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th |
| Estaires | 2nd, 8th, 15th, 16th |
| Messines 1918 | 11th, 12th |
| Hazebrouck | 2nd, 8th |
| Bailleul | 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th |
| Kemmel | 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th |
| Bethune | 2nd |
| (Marne 1918) | (See above) |
| Soissonnais-Ourcq | 9th, 13th |
| Tardenois | 8th |
| Amiens | 5th/6th |
| Bapaume 1918 | 2nd, 5th/6th, 8th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 17th |
| Albert 1918 | 2nd, 4th, 5th/6th, 7th |
| (Scarpe 1918) | 4th, 7th, 8th |
| Drocourt-Queant | 4th, 7th |
| Hindenburg Line | 2nd, 4th, 5th/6th, 7th, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th |
| Canal du Nord | 2nd, 4th, 7th |
| St Quentin Canal | 2nd, 5th/6th, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th |
| Beaurevoir | 5th/6th |
| (Ypres 1918) | (See above) |
| Courtrai | 11th, 12th, 17th |
| Selle | 2nd, 8th |
| Sambre | 5th/6th |
| France and Flanders 1914-18 | 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th/6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th, 17th |
| STRUMA | 1st |
| Macedonia 1915-18 | 1st |
| Helles | 4th, 5th, 7th |
| Landing at Helles | 5th |
| Krithia | 4th/7th, 5th |
| Suvla | 5th |
| Scimitar Hill | 5th |
| GALLIPOLI 1915-16 | 4th, 5th, 7th |
| Romani | 4th, 7th |
| Egypt 1915-16 | 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th |
| Gaza | 4th, 7th |
| El Mughar | 4th, 7th |
| Nebi Samwil | 4th, 7th |
| Jaffa | 4th, 7th |
| PALESTINE 1917-18 | 4th, 7th |
| Archangel 1918-19 | 2/10th |
