British Expeditionary Force formation in August 1914

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Commemorative plaque in Mons for the arrival of the British expeditionary forces in August and November 1914
Soldiers of the 4th / Royal Fusiliers, 9th Brigade after the Battle of Mons on August 22, 1914

The formation of the British Expeditionary Force in August 1914 ( British Expeditionary Force ) shows the composition of the first fighting force after the start of World War I was sent to France and Belgium. It includes all combat units and combat support units.

Troop strength

Together, six infantry divisions and one cavalry division were deployed, which consisted of 71 infantry battalions and 14 cavalry regiments. Together with the support troops, there were about 70,000 men. When the war began, there were no permanent cavalry divisions in Britain. In the course of the mobilization, the first four cavalry brigades were combined into a division, a fifth brigade (No. 5) remained independent.

At the time of mobilization, the British feared a possible German landing on the east coast of England. They therefore decided to hold back two divisions for the defense of the island, which is why they initially only sent four infantry divisions and one cavalry division to France at the beginning of August 1914. A fifth infantry division was ordered in late August and a sixth in early September.

Recon of the 9th Hodsons Horse in April 1917.

Indian Expeditionary Force A

The "Indian Expeditionary Force A" were Indian units that were incorporated into the expeditionary force. They arrived in Marseille on September 20, 1914 . There were four divisions, combined in the Indian corps into two infantry divisions and an Indian cavalry corps into two divisions. The commanding officer was James Willcocks . The so-called Lahore Division fought on the front lines in the Battle of La Bassée (October 10 to November 2, 1914). "Force A" was then disbanded and the Indian infantry were sent to Egypt in October 1915. The loss of officers to which these troops were used, also because they knew the language of the people, were as bad for them as the cold of winter. The "Force A" had no regimental artillery and no modern equipment. Only the two cavalry divisions remained in France and served to support the British troops, which had also become smaller. They were withdrawn from the Western Front in March 1918 and also transferred to Egypt.

Troops came from the princely states of the Indian Empire , consisting mainly of Punjab , Rajasthan or Sikh soldiers. The forces of the Indian Army were formed from volunteers who were particularly recruited in the regions administered by the British Empire. "Force A" consisted of more than 130,000 soldiers who were deployed in France and Belgium, of which 9,000 did not return.

organization chart

Organization chart of the BEF 1914.

listing

- General Staff -
General Sir Archibald Murray ,
General Henry Hughes Wilson ,
General Sir Nevil Macready ,
General ERC Graham,
General Sir William Robertson ,
General WFL Lindsay
General George Henry Fowke
Col. George Montague Harper , Col. George Macdonogh, Col. Alfred Cavendish, Col. CT Dawkins.

1st Cavalry Division

General Edmund Allenby
1st Signal Troop
2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays)
5th Dragoon Guards (Princess Charlotte of Wales's)
11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own)
2nd Signal Troop
4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards
9th Queen's Royal Lancers
18th Hussars (Queen Mary's Own)
3rd Signal Troop
4th Queen's Own Hussars
5th Royal Irish Lancers
16th Queen's Lancers
  • 4th Cavalry Brigade - Brigadier-General Hon. CE Bingham
4th Signal Troop
Household Cavalry Composite Regiment
Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards)
3rd King's Own Hussars
  • Division troops
III Brigade Royal Horse Artillery
D Battery Royal Horse Artillery / E Battery Royal Horse Artillery
VII Brigade Royal Horse Artillery
I Battery, Royal Horse Artillery / L Battery Royal Horse Artillery
1st Engineers Field Squadron (Royal Engineers)
1st Signal Squadron
1st Division Supply Column
Royal Scots Grays (2nd Dragoons)
12th Royal Lancers (Prince of Wales's)
20th Hussars
J Battery Royal Horse Artillery

I Corps

General Sir Douglas Haig

1st division

General Samuel Lomax
1st Battalion, Coldstream Guards
1st Battalion, Guardsman
1st Battalion, Royal Highlanders
2nd Battalion, Royal Munster Fusiliers
2nd Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment
1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment
1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment
2nd Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps
  • 3rd Infantry Brigade - General HJS Landon
1st Battalion, The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)
1st Battalion, South Wales Borderers
1st Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment
2nd Battalion, Welch Regiment
  • Division troops
A Squadron, 15th Hussars (The King's)
1st Cyclist Company
1st Division Ammo Column
1st Division Signal Company
1st Division Train
1st, 2nd, 3rd Field Hospital
23rd Field Company, RE / 26th Field Company, RE (Royal Engineers)
XXV Brigade Royal Field Artillery
113th Battery, RFA / 114th Battery, RFA / 115th Battery, RFA
XXVI Brigade Royal Field Artillery
116th Battery, RFA / 117th Battery, RFA / 118th Battery, RFA
XXXIX Brigade Royal Field Artillery
46th Battery, RFA / 51st Battery, RFA / 54th Battery, RFA
XLIII (Howitzer) Brigade Royal Field Artillery
30th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 40th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 57th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 26th Heavy Battery, RGA

2nd division

General Charles Monro
  • 4th Guards Brigade - General Robert Scott-Kerr
2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards
2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards
3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards
1st Battalion, Irish Guards
2nd Battalion, Worcestershire Regiment
2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
2nd Battalion, Highland Light Infantry
2nd Battalion, Connaught Rangers
  • 6th Infantry Brigade - General RH Davies (New Zealand Staff Corps)
1st Battalion, King's Regiment (Liverpool)
2nd Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment
1st Battalion, Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire Regiment)
1st Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps
  • Division troops
B Squadron, 15th (The King's) Hussars
2nd Cyclist Company
2nd Division Ammo Column
2nd Division Signal Company
2nd Division Train
4th, 5th, 6th, Field Hospital
5th Field Company, RE / 11th Field Company, RE (Royal Engineers)
XXXIV Brigade Royal Field Artillery
22nd Battery, RFA / 50th Battery, RFA / 70th Battery, RFA
XXXVI Brigade Royal Field Artillery
15th Battery, RFA / 48th Battery, RFA / 71st Battery, RFA
XXXXI Brigade Royal Field Artillery
9th Battery, RFA / 16th Battery, RFA / 17th Battery, RFA
XXXXIV (Howitzer) Brigade Royal Field Artillery
47th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 56th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 60th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 35th Heavy Battery, RGA

II Corps

General Sir James Grierson

3rd division

General Hubert IW Hamilton
3rd Battalion, Worcestershire Regiment
2nd Battalion, Prince of Wales's Volunteers (South Lancashire Regiment)
1st Battalion, Duke of Edinburgh's (Wiltshire Regiment)
2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles
  • 8th Infantry Brigade - General Beauchamp Doran
2nd Battalion, The Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment)
2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment
4th Battalion, Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment)
1st Battalion, Gordon Highlanders
  • 9th Infantry Brigade - General Frederick Charles Shaw
1st Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers
4th Battalion, The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment)
1st Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment
1st Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers
  • Division troops
C Squadron, 15th (The King's) Hussars
3rd Cyclist Company
3rd Division Ammo Column
3rd Division Signal Company
3rd Division Train
7th, 8th, 9th Field Hospital
56th Field Company, RE / 57th Field Company, RE (Royal Engineers)
XXIII Brigade Royal Field Artillery
107th Battery, RFA / 108th Battery, RFA / 109th Battery, RFA
XXXX Brigade Royal Field Artillery
6th Battery, RFA / 23rd Battery, RFA / 45th Battery, RFA
XXXXII Brigade Royal Field Artillery
29th Battery, RFA / 41st Battery, RFA / 45th Battery, RFA
XXX Brigade (Howitzer) Royal Field Artillery
128th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 129th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 130th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 48th Heavy Battery, RGA

5th division

General Sir Charles Fergusson
  • 13th Infantry Brigade - General GJ Cuthbert
2nd Battalion, King's Own Scottish Borderers
2nd Battalion, Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding)
1st Battalion, Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment)
2nd Battalion, King's Own (Yorkshire Light Infantry)
  • 14th Infantry Brigade - General Stuart Peter Rolt
2nd Battalion, Suffolk Regiment
1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment
1st Battalion, Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry
2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment
1st Battalion, Norfolk Regiment
1st Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment
1st Battalion, Cheshire Regiment
1st Battalion, Dorsetshire Regiment
  • Division troops
A Squadron, 19th Royal Hussars (Queen Alexandra's Own)
5th Cyclist Company
5th Division Ammo Column
5th Division Signal Company
5th Division Train
13th, 14th, 15th Field Hospital
59th Field Company, RE / 17th Field Company, RE (Royal Engineers)
XV Brigade Royal Field Artillery
11th Battery, RFA / 52nd Battery, RFA / 80th Battery, RFA
XXVII Brigade Royal Field Artillery
119th Battery, RFA / 120th Battery, RFA / 121st Battery, RFA
XXVIII Brigade Royal Field Artillery
122nd Battery, RFA / 123rd Battery, RFA / 124th Battery, RFA
VIII Brigade (Howitzer) Brigade Royal Field Artillery
37th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 61st (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 65th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 108th Heavy Battery, RGA

III Corps

General William Pulteney

4th division

General Thomas D'Oyly Snow
1st Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment
2nd Battalion, Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's)
1st Battalion, Princess Victoria's (Royal Irish Fusiliers)
2nd Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers
1st Battalion, Prince Albert's (Somerset Light Infantry)
1st Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment
1st Battalion, Hampshire Regiment
1st Battalion, Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own)
1st Battalion, King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment)
2nd Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers
2nd Battalion, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
2nd Battalion, Essex Regiment
  • Division troops
B Squadron, 19th Royal Hussars (Queen Alexandra's Own)
4th Cyclist Company
4th Division Ammo Column
4th Division Signal Company
4th Division Train
10th, 11th, 12th Field Hospital
7th Field Company, RE / 9th Field Company, RE (Royal Engineers)
XIV Brigade Royal Field Artillery
39th Battery, RFA / 68th Battery, RFA / 88th Battery, RFA
XXIX Brigade Royal Field Artillery
125th Battery, RFA / 126th Battery, RFA / 127th Battery, RFA
XXXII Brigade Royal Field Artillery
27th Battery, RFA / 134th Battery, RFA / 135th Battery, RFA
XXXVII (Howitzer) Brigade Royal Field Artillery
31st (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 35th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 55th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 31st Heavy Battery, RGA

6th Division

General John Keir
1st Battalion, The Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment)
1st Battalion, Leicestershire Regiment
1st Battalion, The King's (Shropshire Light Infantry)
2nd Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment
  • 17th Infantry Brigade - General WRB Doran
1st Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment)
1st Battalion, Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment)
2nd Battalion, Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians)
3rd Battalion, Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own)
1st Battalion, Prince of Wales's Own (West Yorkshire Regiment)
1st Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment
2nd Battalion, Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment)
2nd Battalion, Durham Light Infantry
  • Division troops
C Squadron, 19th Royal Hussars (Queen Alexandra's Own Royal)
6th Cyclist Company
6th Division Ammo Column
6th Division Signal Company
6th Division Train
16th, 17th, 18th Field Hospital
12th Field Company, RE / 38th Field Company, RE (Royal Engineers)
II Brigade Royal Field Artillery
21st Battery, RFA / 42nd Battery, RFA / 53rd Battery, RFA
XXIV Brigade Royal Field Artillery
110th Battery, RFA / 111th Battery, RFA / 112th Battery, RFA
XXXVIII Brigade Royal Field Artillery
24th Battery, RFA / 34th Battery, RFA / 72nd Battery, RFA
XII (Howitzer) Brigade Royal Field Artillery
43rd (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 86th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 87th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA / 24th Heavy Battery, RGA

Subordinated directly to the army

cavalry

"North Irish Horse" (Escadrons A, B, and C)

Siege artillery

No. 1 wins Battery
No. 2 wins Battery
No. 3 wins Battery
No. 4 wins Battery
No. 5 wins Battery
No. 6 wins Battery

infantry

1st Battalion "Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders"

Royal Flying Corps (Air Force)

No. 2 Squadron RFC, Major Charles Burke
No. 3rd Squadron RFC, Major John Salmond
No. 4th Squadron RFC, Major GH Raleigh
No. 5th Squadron RFC, Major JFA Higgins
No. 6 Squadron RFC Major John Becke
1st Aircraft Park, Major AD Carden

Units for guarding and securing the communication lines

1st Battalion "Devonshire Regiment"
2nd Battalion Royal Welch Fusiliers
1st Battalion "Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)"
1st Battalion "Middlesex Regiment (The Duke of Cambridge's Own)"
2nd Battalion "Princess Louise's (Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders)"

Sanitary

12th and 20th Field Hospital

GHQ Troops, (Royal Engineers)

The pioneers of the army groups were under the General Headquarters Troops. In 1914 they were composed as follows:

  • 1st Bridging Train, Royal Engineers - 1st bridging train
  • 2nd Bridging Train, Royal Engineers - 2nd bridging train
  • 1st Siege Company, Royal Monmouthshire Militia, (Royal Engineers) - 1st Siege Company
  • 4th Siege Company, Royal Monmouthshire Militia, (Royal Engineers) - 4th Siege Company
  • 1st Siege Company, Royal Anglesey Militia, (Royal Engineers) - 1st Siege Company
  • 2nd Siege Company, Royal Anglesey Militia, (Royal Engineers) - 2nd Siege Company
  • 1st Ranging Section, (Royal Engineers)
  • Railway Transport Establishment - railway transport division
8th Railway Company, (Royal Engineers) - 8th Railway Company
10th Railway Company, (Royal Engineers) - 10th Railway Company
2nd Railway Company, Royal Monmouthshire Militia, (Royal Engineers)
3rd Railway Company, Royal Monmouthshire Militia, (Royal Engineers) - 3rd Railway Company
3rd Railway Company, Royal Anglesey Militia, (Royal Engineers) - 3rd Railway Company
  • 29th General Headquarters Troops Company, (Royal Engineers) - 29th General Headquarters Troops Company
  • 20th Fortress Company, (Royal Engineers) - 20th Fortress Company
  • 25th Fortress Company, (Royal Engineers) - 25th Fortress Company
  • 31st Fortress Company, (Royal Engineers) - 31st Fortress Company
  • 42nd Fortress Company, (Royal Engineers) - 42nd Fortress Company
  • 1st Printing Company, (Royal Engineers) - 1st printing company

composition

The cavalry regiments consisted of four escadrons and two mitrailleuses . A battalion of infantry consisted of four companies and also had two mitrailleuses.

A Royal Horse Artillery battery had six 13-pounder cannons, while a Royal Field Artillery battery had six 18-pounder cannons and six 4.5-pounder howitzers.

A heavy battery of the "Royal Garrison Artillery" (foot artillery) carried four 60 pounder cannons.

In each battery there were two ammunition wagons per gun, and each artillery brigade had an ammunition column.

In September 1914, each division was assigned a Maxim-Nordenfelt-1-pounder rapid-fire gun (37-mm- "Pom-Pom") for defense against airships , which was used in the division artillery.

The cavalry division consisted of 12 regiments of four escadrons each. It had a personnel strength of 9,269 men with 9,815 horses, 24 13-pounder cannons and 24 mitrailleuses.
The infantry division consisted of three brigades of four battalions each. It had a staff of 18,073 men with 5592 horses, 76 cannons and 24 mitrailleuses.

The strength of the British Army

The British Expeditionary Force represented the majority of the available armed forces, another part was located overseas. The defense of the home area had been assigned to volunteers, territorial forces and reservists. The effective strength of the regular army in July 1914 was 125,000 men on the British Isles, plus 5,000 men in India and Burma, and 33,000 men in the other colonies. The reserves amounted to 145,000 men, 64,000 of them in the militia. The territorial forces had a strength of 272,000 men.

literature

  • David Chandler: The Oxford History of the British Army . Oxford paperbacks, 2003, ISBN 0-19-280311-5 .
  • Mike Chappell: The British Army in World War I: The Western Front 1914-16 . Osprey Publishing, 2003, ISBN 1-84176-399-3 .
  • Paul Cornish: Machine-Guns and the Great War . Pen & Sword Military, 2009, ISBN 978-1848840478 .
  • William Griffiths, Thomas Griess: The Great War . Square One Publishers, 2003.
  • Roman Jarymowycz, Donn Starry: Cavalry from Hoof to Track . Greenwood Publishing Group, 2008, p. 124.
  • GJ Meyer: A World Undone: The Story of the Great War, 1914 to 1918 . Delacorte Press, 2006.
  • Pearce, Malcolm; Stewart, Geoffrey (2002). British political history, 1867-2001: democracy and decline. Routledge. ISBN 0-415-26869-9
  • Gary Sheffield, Martin Pelger: War on the Western Front . Osprey Publishing, 2007.
  • Ian Sumner: The Indian Army 1914-1947 . Osprey Publishing, 2001.
  • Spencer Tucker, T Roberts: World War I: encyclopedia . ABC-CLIO, 2005.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Ian Sumner & Mike Chappell "The Indian army, 1914-1947" Section 5 Oxford Edition Omprey Pub / Osprey elite series N ° 75 2001 ISBN 978-1-841-76196-1
  2. ^ The British Army in the Great War of 1914-1918
  3. ↑ The name Battalion was replaced by Brigade in 1859.
  4. ↑ Division supply column
  5. ↑ Cycling company
  6. ↑ Ammunition column
  7. ↑ Telecommunication company
  8. ^ Royal Garrison Artillery - fortress artillery
  9. ^ Died on August 17, 1914 on the train journey between Rouen and Amiens . The command went to General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien in Bavai on August 21 .
  10. ↑ Replaced in September by 1st Battalion, Devonshire Regiment
  11. ↑ Compiled in France on August 31.
  12. ^ The division was landed in France on the night of August 22nd to 23rd, 1914.
  13. ^ The division was landed in France on the night of September 8th to 9th, 1914.
  14. ^ Arrived in St. Nazaire on October 5th. First used on October 16
  15. ^ The Corps Of Royal Engineers: Organization and Units 1889-2018 , p. 18.