From OTC to OCB: the professionalisation of the selection and training of junior officers.

'From OTC to OCB: the professionalisation of the selection and training of junior temporary officers during the Great War'. This talk looks at the formation of the Officer Cadet Battalion (OCB) system in 1916 and how it developed out of the OTCs and precursor Schools of Instruction. It argues that by mid-1917 a highly professionalised system of OCBs had evolved, and that this sat within a broader framework for developing officers. This system produced officers of sufficient quality and quantity that it helped enable the BEF's success in 1918. The first part of this talk is the subject of a chapter in 1917: The Darkest Hour, edited by Spencer Jones, published by Helion.

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