 On 7 September 1939, just four days after the outbreak of the war, Private Darby of the 1st Battalion died in Jerusalem of wounds he had sustained earlier in the year, the first British soldier to die in the war.The battalion was destined to see service in the Western Desert.In July 1940, the battalion was assigned to the 21st Infantry Brigade, serving alongside the 2nd Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment and the 1st Battalion, Essex Regiment.