15th (Scottish) Division

Last updated

15th (Scottish) Division
British 15th Division (Scottish) Insignia.svg
15th (Scottish) Division insignia
Active1914 – 1919
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
BranchFlag of the British Army.svg  British Army
Type Infantry
Size Division
Engagements First World War

The 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that served in the First World War. The 15th (Scottish) Division was formed from men volunteering for Kitchener's Army, and served from 1915 to 1918 on the Western Front. The division was later disbanded, after the war, in 1919.

Contents

First World War

The division was a New Army unit formed in September 1914 as part of the K2 Army Group. The division moved to France in July 1915 and spent the duration of the First World War in action on the Western Front. The division fought in the Battle of Loos in which it seizing the village of Loos and Hill 70, the deepest penetration of the German positions by the six British divisions involved in the initial day. It later fought in the Battle of the Somme (1916) which included the battles of Pozières and Flers–Courcelette, the Battle of Arras 1917 and the Third Battle of Ypres. [1]

The North Uist-born war poet Dòmhnall Ruadh Chorùna, a highly important figure in 20th century Scottish Gaelic literature, saw combat with the 7th (Service) Battalion King's Own Cameron Highlanders, 44th Infantry Brigade, 15th (Scottish) Division during the trench warfare along the Western Front and vividly described his war experiences in verse. [2]

Outpost manned by men of the 11th (Service) Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders on a road beside the Lys Canal near Saint-Floris, 9 May 1918. The German Spring Offensive, March-july 1918 Q6607.jpg
Outpost manned by men of the 11th (Service) Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders on a road beside the Lys Canal near Saint-Floris, 9 May 1918.

General officers commanding

The division had the following commanders: [3]

AppointedName
14 September 1914 Major-General A. Wallace
12 December 1914Brigadier-General M. G. Wilkinson (acting)
15 December 1914Major-General C. J. Mackenzie
15 March 1915Brigadier-General F. E. Wallerstein (acting)
22 March 1915Major-General F. W. N. McCracken
17 June 1917Major-General H. F. Thullier
11 October 1917Major-General H. L. Reed VC (sick 4 July 1918)
4 July 1918Brigadier-General E. B. MacNaghten (acting)
9 July 1918Major-General H. L. Reed VC

Order of battle

See also

Footnotes

  1. Stewart & Buchan 2003, pp. 301–305.
  2. Fred MacAulay (editor), Dòmhnall Ruadh Chorùna, Comann Eachdraidh Uibhist a Tuath, (1995), p. xxxiv
  3. Becke 2007, p. 53.
  4. Stewart & Buchan 2003, pp. 285–288.
  5. Baker 2020.
  6. Becke 2007, pp. 56–58.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">32nd Division (United Kingdom)</span> Infantry division of the British Army during the First World War

The 32nd Division was an infantry division of the British Army that was raised in 1914, during the First World War. The division was raised from volunteers for Lord Kitchener's New Armies, made up of infantry 'Pals battalions' and artillery brigades raised by public subscription or private patronage. The division was taken over by the War Office in September 1915. It served in France and Belgium in the trenches of the Western Front for the duration of the war. It saw action at the Battle of the Somme, the Pursuit to the Hindenburg Line, the Defence of Nieuport, the German spring offensive, and the Allied Hundred Days Offensive beginning at the Battle of Amiens. After the Armistice it marched into Germany as part of the Army of Occupation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)</span> Infantry regiment of the British Army, 1881–1968

The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) was a rifle regiment of the British Army, the only regiment of rifles amongst the Scottish regiments of infantry. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 26th Cameronian Regiment and the 90th Perthshire Light Infantry. In 1968, when reductions were required, the regiment chose to be disbanded rather than amalgamated with another regiment, one of only two infantry regiments in the British Army to do so, with the other being the York and Lancaster Regiment. It can trace its roots to that of the Cameronians, later the 26th of Foot, who were raised in 1689. The 1881 amalgamation coincided with the Cameronian's selection to become the new Scottish Rifles.

The 19th Brigade is an Army Reserve formation of the British Army. As the 19th Infantry Brigade, it fought in the First and Second World War.

The 25th Infantry Brigade was a war-formed infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service during both the First and the Second World Wars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">152nd Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

152nd Infantry Brigade was a formation of Britain's Territorial Force/Territorial Army that was part of 51st (Highland) Division in both World Wars. From its origins in the 19th Century Volunteer Force it was based in Inverness and was composed of Highland battalions. It served on the Western Front in World War I, and after it was captured at Saint-Valery-en-Caux early in World War II it was reformed from its 2nd Line and saw action in North Africa, Sicily and North West Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">153rd Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

153rd Infantry Brigade was a formation of Britain's Territorial Force/Territorial Army that was part of 51st (Highland) Division in both World Wars. From its origins in the 19th Century Volunteer Force it was based in Aberdeen and was composed of Highland battalions. It served on the Western Front in World War I, and after it was captured at Saint-Valery-en-Caux early in World War II it was reformed from its 2nd Line and saw action in North Africa, Sicily and North West Europe. It continued serving postwar until the reduction of the Territorial Army in the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">154th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

154th Infantry Brigade was a formation of Britain's Territorial Force/Territorial Army that was part of 51st (Highland) Division in both World Wars. From its origins in the 19th Century Volunteer Force it was based in Stirling and was composed of Highland battalions. It served on the Western Front in World War I, and after it escaped from France early in World War II it was reformed from its 2nd Line and saw action in North Africa, Sicily and North West Europe. It continued serving postwar until the reduction of the Territorial Army in the 1960s.

The 44th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars, and served with the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division.

The Welsh Horse Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army that served in the First World War. The regiment was raised shortly after the outbreak of the war. Initially it served in East Anglia on anti-invasion duties, before being dismounted in 1915 and sent to take part in the Gallipoli Campaign. After withdrawal to Egypt, it was amalgamated with the 1/1st Montgomeryshire Yeomanry as the 25th Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers and served as such throughout the rest of the war. It took part in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in 1917 and 1918, before being transferred to the Western Front where it remained until the end of the war. The regiment formed 2nd and 3rd Lines in 1914, but these never left the United Kingdom before being disbanded in 1916 and early 1917, respectively. The 1st Line was disbanded in 1919.

Dòmhnall Ruadh Chorùna, legally Donald MacDonald or Dòmhnall MacDhòmhnaill, was a Scottish Gaelic Bard, North Uist stonemason, and veteran of the First World War. Literary historian Ronald Black has called Dòmhnall Ruadh, "The Voice of the Trenches."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guards Division (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

The Guards Division was an infantry division of the British Army that was formed in the Great War in France in 1915 from battalions of the Guards regiments from the Regular Army. The division served on the Western Front for the duration of the First World War. The division's insignia was the "All Seeing Eye".

The 156th Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army. The brigade saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars with the 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division.

The 155th Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars. Assigned to the 52nd (Lowland) Division, the brigade saw active service in the Middle East and on the Western Front during the First World War. During the Second World War, now the 155th Infantry Brigade, it continued to serve with the 52nd Division in Operation Dynamo, and later in North-western Europe from late 1944 until May 1945.

The 157th Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army. The brigade fought in both the First and the Second World Wars, assigned to 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">140th (4th London) Brigade</span> Military unit

The 140th Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army's Territorial Army (TA) that had its origins in a South London Brigade of the former Volunteer Force. It served on the Western Front in the First World War and was recreated during the Second World War where it served only in the United Kingdom as a training formation.

The 142nd Brigade was an infantry brigade of the Territorial Army, part of the British Army, that served in the First and the Second World Wars, and remained in the United Kingdom throughout the latter.

The 120th Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army during World War I. Part of Lord Kitchener's 'New Armies', it served in the 40th Division on the Western Front. In 1918 it was reorganised as the 120th (Highland) Brigade. The brigade number was reactivated for deception purposes during World War II.

221st Mixed Brigade was a Scottish Home Service formation of the British Army that served under various titles throughout World War I.

The South Wales Brigade was a Territorial Force infantry brigade of the British Army. Formed in 1908, it was not part of any division, instead serving as Army Troops, though attached to the Welsh Division in peacetime. It was dissolved in early 1915 as its constituent battalions were posted to other formations.

References

Further reading