XII Corps (United Kingdom)

Last updated

XII Corps
XII corps.svg
XII Corps formation badge the Second World War
Active1915−1919
1940−1945
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
BranchFlag of the British Army.svg  British Army
Type Corps
SizeAround 115,000 men (Second World War).
Engagements First World War [1]
Second World War
Commanders
Notable
commanders
Sir Henry Fuller Maitland Wilson
Sir Andrew Thorne
Sir Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein
Sir Montagu Stopford
Sir Neil Ritchie
Sir Gordon MacMillan

XII Corps was an army corps of the British Army that fought in the First and Second World Wars. In the First World War, it formed part of the British Salonika Force on the Macedonian front. In the Second World War, it formed part of the British Second Army during Operation Overlord and the subsequent North-West Europe Campaign of 1944-46.

Contents

First World War

XII Corps was formed in France on 8 September 1915 under the command of Lt-Gen Sir Henry Fuller Maitland Wilson. [1] [2] In November 1915, XII Corps was sent from France with 22nd, 26th and 28th Divisions under command to reinforce Allied forces on the Macedonian front. Wilson and his corps headquarters (HQ) arrived at the port of Salonika on 12 November, but the commander of the British Salonika Force (BSF) took XII Corp’s staff to establish his own HQ. [3] On 14 December 1915, the War Office sanctioned the establishment of two corps within the BSF and Wilson reformed XII Corps. [4]

After a period holding the defensive position known as ‘the Birdcage’ around Salonika, XII Corps moved up-country in July 1916, taking over former French positions, but only part was involved in the fighting during the summer and autumn. [5] XII Corps was selected to attack the Bulgarian positions west of Lake Doiran in April 1917. [6] The area to be attacked was ‘a defender’s dream, being a tangled mass of hills cut by numerous ravines’. [7] Wilson planned a three-stage operation to capture the three lines of defences, preceded by a short intense bombardment. The BSF’s commander, Sir George Milne decided that his manpower was too limited, and reduced this to a smaller assault on the first defence line only, preceded by a three-day bombardment to neutralise enemy batteries and destroy trenches and barbed wire. This, of course, lost the element of surprise and the Bulgarians were well aware of what was coming. Only three brigades were engaged, but the casualties were high and little ground was gained. In a second attack two weeks later, the assault troops managed to cross no man’s land, but it was difficult to get information back to HQs, and some companies simply disappeared. [8]

This 1st Battle of Doiran (second battle by Bulgarian reckoning) had been a failure and, with many troops being withdrawn to other theatres, XII Corps did not get another opportunity to launch a major attack until 18 September 1918. On that day, with two brigades of 22nd Division and the Greek Seres Division, XII Corps failed to take ‘Pip Ridge’ and the ‘Grande Couronne’. The following day, the attack was renewed with a brigade from 27th Division supported by the remnants of 22nd Division, the Seres Division, and the French 2nd Regiment of Zouaves. Once more the attack failed with heavy casualties. [9] However, the 2nd Battle of Doiran had served its purpose by drawing Bulgarian attention away from Gen Franchet d’Esperey’s main Franco-Serbian thrust, which broke through the Bulgarian lines further west. On 21 September, the BSF was ordered to pursue the retreating Bulgarians, with XII Corps in the lead. Bulgaria signed an armistice with the Allies on 29 September, but XII Corps continued to advance across Bulgaria towards the Turkish frontier, until the Ottoman Turks also signed the Armistice of Mudros on 31 October. [10]

XII Corps occupied parts of European Turkey and Wilson was appointed GOC Allied Forces Gallipoli and Bosporus. On 11 February 1919, XII Corps ceased to exist, Wilson becoming Commander, Allied Forces Turkey in Europe, British Salonika Army, and British Army of the Black Sea. [11] [12]

First World War order of battle

Order of Battle (March 1917) [13]

Corps Troops:

Second World War

Home defence

XII Corps, which was formed in 1940, came under Commander-in-Chief, Home Forces in the early part of the Second World War. It was based at 10 Broadwater Down in Royal Tunbridge Wells in Kent. [14] [15] Lieutenant-General Sir Bernard Montgomery was its commander from 27 April 1941 until 13 August 1942, when he was sent to Egypt to take command of the British Eighth Army. [16]

Order of Battle, June - October 1940 [17]

North West Europe

XII Corps, now commanded by Lieutenant-General Neil Ritchie, was designated as one of the follow-up corps of the British Second Army, commanded by Lieutenant-General Miles C. Dempsey, and was sent to Normandy, France as part of Operation Overlord, shortly after the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944. In July, it took over command of the troops holding the Odon Valley area in July 1944 (previously under command of Lieutenant-General Richard N. O'Connor's VIII Corps). XII Corps then took part in a diversionary action in the area prior to Operation Goodwood (18–20 July 1944), and was then involved in the fighting southwards out of this area in August. XII Corps was the last assignment of the 59th (Staffordshire) Infantry Division prior to the division's disbandment, due to a severe shortage of manpower, in late August.

Lieutenant General N. M. Ritchie, GOC XII Corps, with his ADC during an inspection of bridging parties on the Rhine, March 1945. The British Army in North-west Europe 1944-45 BU2514.jpg
Lieutenant General N. M. Ritchie, GOC XII Corps, with his ADC during an inspection of bridging parties on the Rhine, March 1945.

XII Corps supported the left flank of XXX Corps during Operation Market Garden in September 1944; but, like VIII Corps on the right flank, struggled to match the pace of XXX Corps' rapid advance. This left XXX Corps' flanks exposed to German counter-attacks on its lines of communication. XII Corps later went on to fight in the rest of the campaign, during operations Pheasant, Blackcock and later in the invasion of Germany.

Order of battle, June 1944
General Officer Commanding Lieutenant-General Neil Ritchie
Corps Troops [20]

Attached formations:

Divisions attached at other times:

Order of Battle, 14–26 January 1945 (Operation Blackcock) [34]

General Officers Commanding

Commanders included: [35]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 The British Corps of 1914-1918
  2. Official History: France and Belgium 1915, Vol. II, p. 87.
  3. Official History: Macedonia, Vol. I, p. 58.
  4. Wakefield & Moody, p.45; Official History: Macedonia, Vol. I, p. 95.
  5. Wakefield & Moody, pp. 48–58; Official History: Macedonia, Vol. I, pp. 155, 188.
  6. Official History, Macedonia, Vol I, p. 295.
  7. Wakefield & Moody p. 65.
  8. Wakefield & Moody, pp. 65–98;Official History: Macedonia, Vol I, pp. 306–319.
  9. Wakefield & Moody pp. 196–219; Official History: Macedonia, Vol II, pp. 163–178.
  10. Wakefield & Moody pp. 220–227.
  11. Army List.
  12. Official History: Macedonia, Vol II, pp. 268–70.
  13. Wakefield & Moody, Appendix.
  14. Newbold, p. 202
  15. "Tunbridge Wells". Kent Photo Archive. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  16. Michael Carver, 'Montgomery', in John Keegan (ed), Churchill's Generals, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1991.
  17. "XII Corps". Ordersofbattle.com. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  18. "12 Corps". The Royal Artillery 1939-45. 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  19. Nigel F Evans (19 September 2010). "Field Artillery Formations and Regiments of the Royal Artillery in World War 2". Nigelef.tripod.com. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  20. Forty p. 346.
  21. 86 Anti-Tank Regiment RA (TA) Archived 23 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  22. 112 (Durham Lt Inf) Light AA Regiment RA (TA) Archived 10 January 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  23. 7 Survey Regiment RA (TA) Archived 7 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  24. Morling, p. 211.
  25. Watson & Rinaldi, p. 132.
  26. 3rd Army Group RA Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  27. 6 Field Regiment RA Archived 16 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  28. 13 Medium Regiment RA Archived 10 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  29. 59 (4th W Lancs) Medium Regiment RA (TA) Archived 10 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  30. 67 Medium Regiment RA (TA) Archived 10 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  31. 72 Medium Regiment RA (TA) Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  32. 59 (Newfoundland) Heavy Regiment RA (TA) Archived 7 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  33. Regiments.org
  34. "XII Corps". Ordersofbattle.com. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
  35. Army Commands Archived 5 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  36. Hamilton, Nigel (1981). Monty: The Making of a General 1887-1942. McGraw-Hill Book Company. p. 475-495.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Corps (United Kingdom)</span> Inactive British Army formation

I Corps was an army corps in existence as an active formation in the British Army for most of the 80 years from its creation in the First World War until the end of the Cold War, longer than any other corps. It had a short-lived precursor during the Waterloo Campaign. It served as the operational component of the British Army of the Rhine during the Cold War, and was tasked with defending West Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Salonika Army</span> Military unit

The British Salonika Army was a field army of the British Army during World War I. After the armistice in November 1918, it was disbanded, but component units became the newly formed Army of the Black Sea, and General Milne remained in command.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">XXX Corps (United Kingdom)</span> Corps of the British Army during the Second World War

XXX Corps was a corps of the British Army during the Second World War. The corps was formed in the Western Desert in September 1941. It provided extensive service in the North African Campaign and many of its units were in action at the Second Battle of El Alamein in late 1942. It then took part in the Tunisia Campaign and formed the left flank during the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VIII Corps (United Kingdom)</span> World War-era British Army formation

VIII Corps was a British Army corps formation that existed during the First and Second World Wars. In the latter, it took part in the Normandy Campaign in 1944, where it was involved in Operation Epsom and Operation Goodwood. It would later play a supporting role in Operation Market Garden and finish the war by advancing from the Rhine to the Baltic Sea.

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

IV Corps was a corps-sized formation of the British Army, formed in both the First World War and the Second World War. During the First World War the corps served on the Western Front throughout its existence. During the Second World War it served in Norway and Britain until it was transferred to India, which was threatened with attack after Japan entered the war.

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

The II Corps was an army corps of the British Army formed in both the First World War and the Second World War. There had also been a short-lived II Corps during the Waterloo Campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">III Corps (United Kingdom)</span> Corps of the British Army in the First and Second World Wars

III Corps was an army corps of the British Army formed in both the First World War and the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Army Group Royal Artillery</span> Former British Commonwealth military unit


An Army Group Royal Artillery (AGRA) was a British Commonwealth military formation during the Second World War and shortly thereafter. Generally assigned to Army corps, an AGRA provided the medium and heavy artillery to higher formations within the British Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">29th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

The 29th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade unit of the British Army. It was originally raised in 1914 and saw service during the First and Second World Wars and the Korean War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Doiran (1918)</span> Battle of the Balkans Campaign of WW1

The Third Battle of Doiran was fought from 18 to 19 September 1918, with the British and the Greeks assaulting the positions of the Bulgarian First Army near Dojran Lake. The battle was part of World War I and took place in the Balkan Theatre. The battle ended with the Bulgarians repulsing all attacks.

The British XVI Corps was a British infantry corps during World War I. During World War II the identity was recreated for deceptive purposes.

228th Brigade was a formation of the British Army in both the First and Second World Wars.

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

X Corps was a corps of the British Army that served in the First World War on the Western Front before being disbanded in 1919. The corps was re-formed in 1942 during the Second World War and saw service in the North African Campaign and the Italian Campaign where it came under command of the US Fifth Army and the British Eighth Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Nottinghamshire Hussars</span> Military unit

The South Nottinghamshire Hussars is a unit of the British Army formed as volunteer cavalry in 1794. Converted to artillery in 1922, it presently forms part of 103 Regiment, Royal Artillery.

The Surrey Yeomanry was a unit of the British Army first formed as volunteer cavalry in 1794. It was reformed in 1901 and saw varied service in the First World War. During the interwar period, it converted to artillery and during the Second World War one of its regiments distinguished itself during the retreat to Dunkirk, saw action during the Second Battle of El Alamein, and also saw service in Sicily and Italy. Its other regiment served in East Africa, the Siege of Tobruk, and in Iraq and Persia. The regiment's lineage is maintained today by 2 Field Troop, 579 Field Squadron (EOD), part of 101 (London) Engineer Regiment (Volunteers).

Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Fuller Maitland Wilson was a British Army officer who, throughout his long military career which spanned over four decades, served in the Second Anglo-Afghan War, the Second Boer War and the First World War, during which he served with distinction, commanding a division on the Western Front and an army corps in the lesser-known Salonikan campaign.

This is the order of battle of the German, Greek and British Commonwealth units on 5 April 1941, prior to the German invasion of Greece and Yugoslavia. The German invasion and conquest of mainland Greece is known as the "Battle of Greece".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1st Hampshire Engineers</span> Military unit

The 1st Hampshire Engineer Volunteer Corps was first formed in 1862 and then reformed in 1891 with special responsibility for the port defences of the South Coast of England. It carried out this role during World War I, as well as forming field units that served on the Western Front and at Salonika. Before the outbreak of World War II it formed an air defence regiment that saw service during The Blitz and field companies that fought in the Western Desert and Italy, The unit continued in the postwar Territorial Army before finally disbanding in 1967.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">79th (Lowland) Field Regiment, Royal Artillery</span> Military unit

79th (Lowland) Field Regiment was a Royal Artillery (RA) unit of Britain's part-time Territorial Army (TA) during World War II. It was descended from the 1st Ayrshire and Galloway Artillery Volunteers, first raised in Scotland in 1859. It served in Home Forces for most of the war, undergoing training in mountain warfare and air-portable operations before eventually going into action at sea level in the Battle of the Scheldt. It then took part in the fighting in the Rhineland, and then the drive to Bremen. It was reformed in the postwar TA, and continued until 1967.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">134th Siege Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery</span> Military unit

134th Siege Battery was a heavy howitzer unit of Britain's Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) raised during World War I. It saw active service at Salonika and in Palestine.

References