List of divisions of the British Territorial Force 1914–1918

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The Territorial Force was established on 1 April 1908 as a volunteer auxiliary to the British Army. It was formed by the amalgamation of the former auxiliary institutions of the Volunteer Force and the yeomanry. Designed primarily as a home defence force, its members could not be compelled to serve overseas unless they volunteered to do so. On the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, many did. The first units were deployed piecemeal in support of the regular army as it defended against the opening German offensive in Belgium and France in 1914. The first territorial divisions to be deployed were used to free up imperial garrisons overseas, but in 1915 they began to be deployed to the front lines on the Western Front and at Gallipoli. The pre-war territorial divisions were numbered in May 1915 in order of their deployment. As they were deployed, second-line divisions were raised to replace them at home, and in 1916 these began to be deployed to combat zones. By the end of the war in 1918, the Territorial Force had provided 28 divisions and 14 mounted brigades. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Contents

Infantry divisions

NumberNameSecond-lineRecruitment AreaNotesReferences
42nd East Lancashire Division 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division Cumberland, part of Lancashire and Westmorland [5] [6]
43rd Wessex Division 45th (2nd Wessex) Division Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Hampshire, Somerset, Wiltshire [7] [8]
44th Home Counties Division 67th (2nd Home Counties) Division Middlesex, Kent, Surrey and Sussex Second-line division lost territorial association early 1918 [9] [10]
46th North Midland Division 59th (2nd North Midland) Division Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Rutland and Staffordshire [11] [12]
47th 2nd London Division 60th (2/2nd London) Division County of London [13] [14]
48th South Midland Division 61st (2nd South Midland) Division Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Warwickshire [15] [16]
49th West Riding Division 62nd (2nd West Riding) Division West Riding of Yorkshire [17] [18]
50th Northumbrian Division 63rd (2nd Northumbrian) Division County Durham, Northumberland, East and North Ridings of YorkshireSecond-line division broken up in July 1916 [19] [20]
51st Highland Division 64th (2nd Highland) Division Aberdeen and Dundee, the counties of Aberdeenshire, Argyllshire, Banffshire, Buteshire, Caithness, Clackmannanshire, Dunbartonshire, Elginshire, Fife, Forfarshire, Inverness-shire, Kinross-shire, Nairnshire, Renfrewshire, Shetland, Stirlingshire, Sutherland and part of Lanarkshire Second-line division lost territorial association early 1918 [21] [22]
52nd Lowland Division 65th (2nd Lowland) Division Edinburgh and Glasgow, Counties of Berwickshire, Dumfriesshire, Haddingtonshire, Kirkcudbrightshire, Linlithgowshire, Midlothian, Peeblesshire, Selkirkshire, Wigtownshire and part of Lanarkshire Second-line division broken up 18 March 1918 [23] [24]
53rd Welsh Division 68th (2nd Welsh) Division Wales, Monmouthshire, Cheshire, Herefordshire and Shropshire Second-line division lost territorial association early 1918 [25] [26]
54th East Anglian Division 69th (2nd East Anglian) Division Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire and Suffolk Second-line division lost territorial association early 1918 [27] [28]
55th West Lancashire Division 57th (2nd West Lancashire) Division Lancashire and Liverpool [29] [30]
56th 1st London Division 58th (2/1st London) Division City of London and County of London [31] [32]

Mounted units

The original mounted brigades were: [33]

A number of yeomanry divisions were also formed:

NameFormedTheatreNotesReferences
1st Mounted Division August 1914Home defenceBecame the 1st Cyclist Division in July 1916. Disbanded November 1916. [34]
2nd Mounted Division September 1914 Gallipoli Campaign Fought dismounted at Gallipoli. Disbanded January 1916. [35]
3rd Mounted Division March 1915Home defenceFormed as the second-line 2/2nd Mounted Division. Renamed to 3rd Mounted Division March 1916. Renamed to 1st Mounted Division July 1916. Renamed to Cyclist Division September 1917. Disbanded June 1919. [36]
4th Mounted Division March 1916Home defenceRenamed to 2nd Cyclist Division July 1916. Disbanded November 1916. [37]
Yeomanry Mounted Division July 1917 Sinai and Palestine Campaign Lost its yeomanry affiliation April 1918, becoming an Indian division and renamed to 1st Mounted Division. [38]
74th (Yeomanry) Division April 1917 Sinai and Palestine Campaign
Western Front 		Formed from dismounted yeomanry. Transferred to France May 1918. Disbanded July 1919. [39]

Other divisions

Also considered divisions of the Territorial Force were:

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Territorial Force</span> Former volunteer reserve component of the British Army

The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry into a unified auxiliary, commanded by the War Office and administered by local County Territorial Associations. The Territorial Force was designed to reinforce the regular army in expeditionary operations abroad, but because of political opposition it was assigned to home defence. Members were liable for service anywhere in the UK and could not be compelled to serve overseas. In the first two months of the First World War, territorials volunteered for foreign service in significant numbers, allowing territorial units to be deployed abroad. They saw their first action on the Western Front during the initial German offensive of 1914, and the force filled the gap between the near destruction of the regular army that year and the arrival of the New Army in 1915. Territorial units were deployed to Gallipoli in 1915 and, following the failure of that campaign, provided the bulk of the British contribution to allied forces in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. By the war's end, the Territorial Force had fielded twenty-three infantry divisions and two mounted divisions on foreign soil. It was demobilised after the war and reconstituted in 1921 as the Territorial Army.

The 1st Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed in August 1914 for the home defence of the United Kingdom from four existing mounted brigades of the Territorial Force, each of three regiments of Yeomanry. The divisional order of battle changed often, as the 1st Line brigades left for service overseas and were replaced by 2nd Line formations. It was converted to the 1st Cyclist Division in July 1916, and was broken up in November 1916 without being involved in active service. It remained in East Anglia throughout its existence.

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The 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade was a yeomanry brigade of the British Army, formed as part of the Territorial Force in 1908.

The North Midland Mounted Brigade was a yeomanry brigade of the British Army, formed as part of the Territorial Force in 1908.

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The West Riding Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in the West Riding of Yorkshire in 1908. It saw active service as field artillery with 52nd (Lowland) Division in Egypt during the First World War before being broken up at the end of 1916. Post-war, it was reconstituted as a Royal Field Artillery battery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hampshire Royal Horse Artillery</span> Former British Army horse artillery battery

The Hampshire Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Hampshire in 1909. It saw active service during the First World War in Egypt and Palestine from 1916 to 1918, initially as field artillery with 52nd (Lowland) Division before being converted back to horse artillery and serving with the Yeomanry Mounted Division and 1st Mounted / 4th Cavalry Division. A second line battery, 2/1st Hampshire RHA, served on the Western Front in 1917 and 1918 as part of an Army Field Artillery Brigade. Post-war, it was reconstituted as a Royal Field Artillery battery.

The Essex Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Essex in 1908. It saw active service during the First World War in Egypt and Palestine from 1916 to 1918, initially as field artillery with 52nd (Lowland) Division before being converted back to horse artillery and serving with the 2nd Mounted / 5th Cavalry Division. A second line battery, 2/1st Essex RHA, served on the Western Front in 1917 and 1918 as part of an Army Field Artillery Brigade.

The Glamorganshire Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Glamorganshire in 1908. It saw active service during the First World War on the Western Front in 1917 and 1918 as part of an Army Field Artillery Brigade. A second line battery, 2/1st Glamorganshire RHA, served in England and Ireland before being broken up in January 1917. Glamorganshire RHA was not reconstituted in the post-war Territorial Force.

B Battery, Honourable Artillery Company was a horse artillery battery that was formed from the Field Artillery, HAC in 1899. It transferred to the Territorial Force in 1908 as artillery support for the South Eastern Mounted Brigade.

The Inverness-shire Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Inverness-shire in 1908. It saw active service during the First World War in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign with the ANZAC Mounted Division from 1916 to 1918. A second line battery, 2/1st Inverness-shire RHA, served in the United Kingdom throughout the war. It was disembodied after the end of the war and was reconstituted as a Royal Field Artillery battery in 1920.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leicestershire Royal Horse Artillery</span> Former British Army horse artillery battery

The Leicestershire Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Leicestershire in 1908. It saw active service during the First World War in Egypt and Palestine from 1916 to 1918, initially with ANZAC Mounted Division before joining the Yeomanry Mounted Division and 1st Mounted / 4th Cavalry Division. A second line battery, 2/1st Leicestershire RHA, served on the Western Front with the 63rd Division from 1916 to 1918. Post-war, it was reconstituted as a Royal Field Artillery battery.

The Shropshire Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Shropshire in 1908 from the Shropshire Battery of the 1st Shropshire and Staffordshire Artillery Volunteers, Royal Garrison Artillery of the Volunteer Force. It saw active service during the First World War on the Western Front in 1917 and 1918 as part of an Army Field Artillery Brigade. A second line battery, 2/1st Shropshire RHA, also served on the Western Front in 1917 and 1918 as part of another Army Field Artillery Brigade. It was reconstituted post-war as a medium artillery battery and served as such in the Second World War.

The Warwickshire Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Warwickshire in 1908. It was the first Territorial Force artillery unit to go overseas on active service, spending the whole of the First World War on the Western Front, mostly with 1st Cavalry Division and 29th Division. A second line battery, 2/1st Warwickshire RHA, also served on the Western Front in 1917 and 1918 as part of an Army Field Artillery Brigade. Post-war it was reconstituted as a Royal Field Artillery battery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nottinghamshire Royal Horse Artillery</span> Former British Army horse artillery battery

The Nottinghamshire Royal Horse Artillery was a Territorial Force Royal Horse Artillery battery that was formed in Nottinghamshire in 1908. It saw active service during the First World War in the Middle East – in the Senussi Campaign and the Sinai and Palestine Campaign – from 1915 to 1918. A second line battery, 2/1st Nottinghamshire RHA, served in the Mesopotamian Campaign in 1917 and 1918 as a Field Artillery battery. Post-war, it was reconstituted as a Royal Field Artillery battery.

The 1st North Riding Artillery Volunteers was a part-time unit formed in the North Riding of Yorkshire in 1860 in response to an invasion scare. The unit later became part of the Territorial Force and served on the Western Front during World War I, while their successors served as anti-aircraft gunners in World War II.

The British home army in the First World War served the dual purpose of defending the country against invasion and training reinforcements for the army overseas. Initial responsibility for defending the nation lay with the Territorial Force, a part-time auxiliary designed in 1908 as a means of expanding the army in a major foreign conflict but, as a result of political compromise, implemented as a home defence army. It was supported in this role by 42,000 regular army troops, primarily belonging to the Royal Garrison Artillery and the Royal Engineers. The 14 infantry divisions and 14 mounted brigades of the Territorial Force were mainly allocated either to the Local Force, stationed near the coast and tasked with disrupting an invasion at the point of landing, or the Central Force, a mobile element tasked with defeating the invading force as it marched on London. The Local Force was augmented by units of the Special Reserve and Extra Reserve, which were the third battalions of the regular army line infantry regiments established to recruit and train replacements for their regiments' two combat battalions. The home army was also largely responsible for guarding vulnerable points, such as the communications infrastructure, rail network and munitions works.

References

  1. ↑ Beckett 2011 pp. 213–217 & 230
  2. ↑ Becket 2008 pp. 54, 57 & 79
  3. ↑ Mitchinson pp. 59, 62 & 204
  4. ↑ Beckett 2004 p. 132
  5. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 35–41
  6. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 67–74
  7. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 43–48
  8. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 55–60
  9. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 49–54
  10. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 75–82
  11. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 61–67
  12. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 17–23
  13. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 69–75
  14. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 25–32
  15. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 77–834
  16. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 33–39
  17. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 85–91
  18. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 41–48
  19. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 93–100
  20. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 49–54
  21. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 101–107
  22. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 55–59
  23. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 109–115
  24. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 61–65
  25. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 117–123
  26. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 83–90
  27. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 125–131
  28. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 91–98
  29. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 133–139
  30. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 1–7
  31. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 141–147
  32. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 9–15
  33. ↑ Westlake pp. 14–15
  34. ↑ Becke 2A p. 7
  35. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 16–17
  36. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 25–26
  37. ↑ Becke 2A p. 30
  38. ↑ Becke 2A p. 34
  39. ↑ Becke 2A pp. 121–122
  40. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 101–105
  41. ↑ Becke 2B pp. 129–130

Bibliography

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