The British ArIllYin World War I (1)The Western Front 1914-16

ORGANISATION & TACTICS 23• Infanu1' - artillery - supporting arms and sen;ce

OTHER ARMS OF SERVICE 21• The RF - the first tanks - the Royal Na\'y ashore

ARTILLERY, 1914-16 18• The J pdr gun - the 'shell samdal' - the 4.5in howitzer­

Royal Garrison artillery - organisation and application

3

4

CONTENTSINTRODUCTION

THE BRITISH ARMY IN THEEARLY 20th CENTURY• Character of the \'olunteer Regular Army• Response to Boer War experience - musketry lraining• Regulars and Territorials

KITCHENER'S ARMY 8• Raising the' ew Armies' - KJ, K2 & K3• Volunteer enlisunents o\'en\'helm the system ­

shonage of unifonns, equipmenl and inslructors• The Territorial Force -Imperial Senice "o)unteers

INFANTRY WEAPONS, 1914-16 13• The SMLE rine - shortcomings of O.303in rimmed ammunition• Other weapons: the 'bomb' - the bayonet- pistols­

machine guns - Lewis guns - mortars

UNIFORM 37• Senice dress: officers - other ranks• Personal equipment• Insignia

MIKE CHAPPELL comes froman Aklershot famlty with

BrttJsh Army connectionsstretching back severalgenerations. He enlisted as ateenage private In the Royal

Hampshire Regiment In 1952.

Over the next 22 years ofInfantry soldiering, manyof them spent with the

Gloucester Regiment, heheld every rank and manyregimental appointmentsup to W01 and Regimental

Sergeant Major. He retired

In 1974, as RSM of the 1st

BatUillon The WessexRegiment (RJfIe V~unteers).

after seeing servk:e In Malaya,Cyprus. Swaziland, Ubya,Gennany, Ulster and homegamsons. He began paintingmilitary subjects In 1968 and

since then has gained world­wide popularity as a militaryIllustrator. Mike has writtenand Illustrated many booksfor Osprey.

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY 42

THE PLATES 42

INDEX 48

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OPPOSITE Despite his reputation as one of the bettercommanders of British cavalry during the Boer War,the seleetlon of Sir John French as General OffIcer

Commanding the BEF In 1914 proved to be a mistake.His advanced age, poor eyesight, fiery temper and

unimpressive Intellect should have weighed agalnat hischoice, but he remained In command of the BEF for almost

18 months before his political masters summoned up thecourage to replace him. Over the course of 1915 the BEF

fought a series of battles at Neuve--Chapelle, 'Second! Ypres,Aubers Ridge, Festubert and Loos, none of which achieVedany Important 9alns for the lbutcher's bill' of 267,597 men

killed, wounded and missing. In return for his voluntary res-Ignation Sir John was given 8 v1scountcy and the command

of the Untted KIngdom Home Forces. (Imperial War Museum)

THE BRITISH ARMY OF WORLD WAR I(1) THE WESTERN FRONT 1914-16

INTRODUCTION

WHEN THE NATIONS OF EUROPE went to war in 1914, mostmobilised huge armies of conscripts numbered in theirmillions, produced by long established system that took the

whole able-bodied youth of the nation for brief compulsory militaryservice followed by years in the re en-es. Gennany put into the field5 million men from her potential resources of nearly 10 million; theinitial war strength of France was 4 million.' Compared to these 'nationsin anns' the volunteer professional army of Great Blitain was numer­ically paltry, deserving of the Gennan insult 'contemptibly little'. TheBriti h had long entrusted the safety of their home islands to the RoyalNavy, ti,e largest and most powerful in ti,e world and the guarantor offreedom of the seas for the commerce that made Britain wealthy. Yet thispowerful country sustained an illogical mistrust of standing armies,traceable to Oliver Cromwell's brief period of military dictatorship inthe 1650s. Since the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 Britain hadmaintained the minimum military force necessary to keep the peace athome and, subsequently, in her overseas Empire.

In August 1914 Britain ent 160,000 men of her Regular Anny toFrance in accordance with her treaty obligations. The expectations of theleaders of the European powers, and the military experts who advisedthem. were that tlle war would be a brief affair, a single campaign inwhich ,;ctory would go to the alliance_ wl\pse armies outmanoeuvredtheir enemies to force an unfavourable arrrristice upon them, Britain'stoken force would, it was thought, guarantee her a seat at these annisticenegotiations, In the event, it was to take over four years of pouring out theblood and treasure of the British Empire before this end was reached, bywhich time the 'token' force had grown into the greatest army Britain hadever put into the field. By 1918 it too was numbered in millions, and hadbecome a tough professional force of all arms at the peak of its fonn,playing a major part in the defeat of its country's enemies in all tI,eatresofwhat had by then become a world war.

By far the most important of these theatres was the Westem Front inEurope, where a large Gennan Army confronted a French Am1Ysupported by a British Expeditionary Force, the remnants of the BelgianArmy, and forces of other nations which joined the fray later, such asPortugal and the United States. By late 1914 the Westem Front hadstratified into opposing lines of fortifications which extended from theBelgian coast south of Ostend, through westem Belgiwn and northemFrance, along ti,e borders of France and Gennany, before terminating

at the frontiers of neutral Switzerland. Here. for over fOUf years, thesee MAA 394, The Getman Atmyof World War I (1) 1914-15 and MAA 286. The French Army 1914--18 3

4

The backbone of Britain'sRegular Anny has alwaysbeen Ita warrant officers andsergeants, Prior to 1914 andfor many years afterwards tt wasmen such as these who handledthe day-to-day supervi.lon anddiscipline of the rank and file oftheir battalions. Offieers mightbe seen on certain occasions Inthe routine of barrack life, but tothe men In the ranks they wereremote figures; the real powerwas wielded by the sergeants,a. anyone who fell foul of themwoukt testify. The sergeantsshown here, attending a courseat the School of Musketry, Hythe,In 1904, are mostly veterans ofwars In Africa and IndIa, andhave done well enough to bechosen for a coveted 'course ofInstructlon'. (Author's collectlon)

opposing armies fought a campaign of attrition: the cynical trad~ff

of li"es, material and w'ealth, until Gennany accepted defeat andsought terms, withdrawing its battered army from the parts of Belgiumand France that it had conquered, and marching them back acrothe Rhine. It was on this frOnt that the British Expeditionary Forcegrew from the 160,000 regulan of August 1914 to the five annies ofBritish and Commonwealth troops engaged in driving the beatenGerman Anny before them when the bugle sounded 'cease fire' on II

TO"ember 1918.It is the story of this British Expeditionary Force, the BEF, that is

et oul in this tille, from the outbreak of war in 1914 to me end of itsfirst major campaign, the first great Battle of the Somme in late 1916.Later titles will deal with the BEF on the Western Front in 1917-18, andtl,e Briti h Army in other theatres of war 1914--19.

THE BRITISH ARMYIN THE EARLY 20th CENTURY

While nations such as Germany and France had, over the past century,become accustomed to peacetime conscription as a means of main­taining the u-ained manpower required by their armies in time of war,the people ofCreat Britain and her Empire had not, and refused to con­template compulsory military service. They could see the need for ana,y to keep enemies at bay and to protect Britain's merchant fleets andO"erseas interests, and they held Jolly Jack Tar' in high affection andesteem. 'Tommy Atkins', however, was held in quite a different regard bythe public who e taXes paid, housed, fed and clotl'ed him. 'I wouldsooner see my boy in his grave than in a red coat', the mother ofone young soldier is reputed to have said, expressing the contemptthe British public at large had for their Regular AJmy, then and for

many years to come. Britishsoldiers had for centuriesacted as a police force athome and a gendarmeriein Lhe countries of theEmpire before the estab­lishment of civil police,since when they had 'aidedthe civil power' onmany occasions in puttingdown civil unrest. Thisdid nothing to enhancetheir popularity. It is notsurprising, therefore, thatthose who enlisted werenot the cream of thenation, but the hungry,the homeles and theunemployable, tho e onthe dodge from the law,institutionalised lads from

orphanages and the sons of serving soldierswho drifted into 'boys' senice', young menrebelling against the authority of fathers oremployers, others who had got girls 'into trouble'.There was certainly a mall but importantlea"ening of decent, educated but poor yOllngmen whose only chance for the tfa\'el andad"enture the)' cra"ed was in tl,e ranks of thearmy; but for most, military life was a last refuge.

The B.itish Anny of the early 20th centurylook this unpromising material and tunled itinto useful soldiery by means of tl,e harshestdiscipline, administered by non-eommissionedofficers who brooked no challenge to theirauthorit),. They saw tl'eir first task as breakingany rebelliolls spirit shown by recruits beforeaccustoming mem to instant and w"Iquestioningobedience of orders. Although flogging was along forgotten barbarism, these NCOs were stillbacked up by a fearsome apparatus of militarypunishment ranging from confinement tobarracks, through cells and pack-<lrill, to therightly feared military pri ons.

This training was supenised by regimentalofficers, men who came rna tly from the Britishmiddle classes, attracted by a life that was forthem comfortable, convivial and leisurely, withplenty of spon (which in tl'ose days meant activities on horseback orshooting wild animals) and games (today's 'sports'). Most office.were content to spend their service li\'es witllin me 'family' of theirregiment. Few were militaril)' ambitious, and tllose who showed aserious interest in advancement be)'ond tlle regiment were consideredby mo t of their fellows to be less tl,an gentlemen.

The pattem of senice life at home and abroad was dictated by anannual training cycle, building to large-scaJe manoeU\Te in the summerand autumn of each year. ll,ese were followed by furloughs, after whichthe cycle began again with indi,idual training. uch a system uited anarmy composed of long-senice officers and men, and there was ampletime to learn next season that which had not been grasped this year.There was no training organisation to eqllal that of the Cerman Anny. Afew 'schools of instruction' ran courses to qualify inSlnlcLOrs. butmost learning was acquired within units by what would today be called'on the job training' - by watching the example of seniors, botl' goodand bad. Creat emphasis was placed on those aspects of military lifewhich gave the outward appearance ofefficiency: 'tllmollt' (the soldier'sappearance in uniform, both in and out of barracks), the cleanliness ofbarracks, cantonments or lines, and drill - which was mostly ceremonialand based on the battlefield manoeU\Tes ofWeUington's era, and had noapplication on a 20th century battlefield, as the marksmanship of theSouth African Boers had recently made painfully clear. By these meansthe British Regular Ann)' gave all the outward appearances of efficiencyas they 'kept the peace' at home - e pecially in Ireland - and abroad.

Sir Douglas Halg commandedI Corps of the BEF and tookover from Sir John French InDecember 1915. His ablllty.s.general continues to be thesubject of controversy, but hewas by far the beat the BritishAnny had. He continued Incommand of the BEF for theremainder of the Great War,and moulded it Into the tln.stfighting machine of tts tlme.Halg's keen sense of duty andunswerving single·mlndedne..enabled him to lead the BEFto Ita par1 In the great ylctoryof 1918. (lWM)

5

6

A ••rueant and a corporal ofthe 1/16th (County of London)Battalion (Queen's WestminsterRlft.a), The London Regiment,Territorial Forc., pose for thecamera before departing forFrance In 1814. Their equipmentIs the 1908 pattern webbIngbut they are armed with'~ng' Lee-Enflekl rttJ•••

(Dougl•• Honychurch)

Response to Boer War experienceHowe\'er. recent events had shown the need forthe refonn of the gendarmerie role into whichthe Briti h Army had lapsed. Its humiliation atthe hands of the Boe... in 1 99-1902 had led to

changes in organisation, weapons, clothing andequipment and. not least, tactical doctrine. In theinfantry greater emphasis was placed on musketr)'training and 'fieldcraft' to produce units thatcould manoeuvre on a battlefield under theirown fire suppon - 'fire and movement'. Theannual muskeu}' course was shot at ranges from100 to 600 yards and included nap-shootingand rapid-fire practices. The manipulation of tI,ebolt- action rifle was practised with drill roundsuntil the average soldier could 'rapid-fire' 20rounds per minute, wilh some skilful men able tooperate bolt, trigger and charge... at a rate to takethem to over 30 rounds per minute - thoughat this frantic pace their accuracy with ballammunition was another mauer. Individual andcollective field firing practices followed. duringwhich officers and Teo were able LO exercisetheir fire control kills. In all, 250 rounds ofammunition were allotted for each soldier topractise shooting in me course of the year, morethan had ever before been expended on weapon

training. As a further incentive, men were awarded badges for marks­manship and small increments in tI'eir pay for skill-at-anns proficienC)'.Apart from tI'eir rifles and bayonets, however. the infantry had no otherweapons save two Maxim machine guns per battalion.

The Royal Regiment of Artillel)' felt tI,at it too had absorbed thelesson of the Boer \\'ar. Fire and mO\'cment was also their watchword intheir defined role of 'supporting infantry action by fire when and whererequired'. For this task most of their field artillery units were equippedwith a quick-firing IS-pounder gun firing fixed shrapnel ammunition.With a bulletproof shield to helter the gun crew from rifle fire. theIS-pdr was an ideal weapon with which to refight the Boer War. It was to

prm·e less than effective for the trench warfare to come.In common with all armies in 1914 most of the transport used by the

British Anny was ho...ed. Ho...es hauled its wagons, guns and limbe....and were the mounts for the cavalry units earmarked for France with theBEF. Since the Boer War the cavalry had been issued with effectivedfles and o-ained in their use, but they were still also anned wiLh thesword and lances considered necessary for 'shock' acLion on horseback.Througholll tI,e war to come vast amounts of fodder were hipped tothe Westen> Front to feed tI,e animals of the BEF. taking up moretonnage than that for am.munition.

Regulars and TerrltorlalsIn the yea... from 1902 to 1914 the British government re truClured itsmilitary forces in order to face the threat of a European war. Having

rejected conscnpllon, the best they could do was to reorganise thecountry's volunteer, militia and home-based Regular forces to create ­on paper - a Territorial Force gi\·en over to the defence of the BritishIsles, and an Expeditionary Force of a handful of Regular divisionswhich might be deployed to the Continent in the event of war. Underthis scheme 14 Territorial infantry divisions and 14 Territorial cavalrybrigades would defend the home islands. while six Regular divisions andone Regular cavalry division would fonn a British Expeditionary Force.

On the outbreak of war the Terrilorials would mobilise, and wouldcall for voluntee... to enable the TF to 'duplicate' its strength to 28divisions and 28 cavalry brigades. Regular resern ts would be recalledto the colours to bling the units of the BEF up to strength andprovide a pool of reinforcements. No expansion of land forces beyondthis point was envisaged, and no provision was made for weapons,equipment and ammunition other than tho e required for the shortwar that the military thinke... predicted.

In August 1914 Great Britain mobilised her forces according to thisplan, moving the BEF to France "itl, great efficiency to fight underthe command of the French. In the war of manoeune predicted by theexperts the BEF took a considerable baltering until the Gennan Armywas halted and then dri\·en back. Regular units withdrawn from imperialgarrisons were fed into the line, as were fonnations from India andCanada and units of the Territorial Force which had volunteered toserve o,·erseas. (TF contracts of service were for home defence only.Individuals could volwueer to serve abroad, and in some cases wholeunits volwlleered to a man - one such being the London Scottish, whichcrossed to France in September 1914.) By late 1914the original BEF hadgrown into five Army corps organi ed into two annies; but by early 1915the resources of Britain's military establishment were all but used up.

Men of the 16th ...nc.... passingF...nch Dragoons, August 1814.Once the trench lines w.,...stabllshed the role of thecavalry became on. of waltin8to .xplolt any b...akthrough ofthe enemy's line. To this end fivedivisions of cavalry were k.pt Inreadiness, tending th.lr mountsand occasionally operating In 8dismounted role. (IWM)

7

9

Typical of the many recruiting

posters of 1914, this Lawson

Wood painting depicts a

prtvate soldier of the BlackWatch. Appeals In the name

of 'King and Country' and the

'Honour and Glory of the Brttlsh

Empire' had a greater drawingpower In 1914-15 than they

were to have In later years.

(Author's collection)

existed no tramlllg organisation wonhy of the name. The BritishRegular recruit in peacetime received only elementary training at a'depot' before being posted to a service unit where the real bu iness ofturning him into a trained soldier took place. Establishments such as tI,eSchool of Muskelr}' at Hythe, Kent, ran courses to train small numbersof Regular officers and NCOs in the arts of instruction. They werenot in the bu incss of turning horde of civilians into soldiers, nor oftraining large numbers of instructors, and such tactical doctrine thathad developed prior to 1914 was soon to be made redundant by tI,erealities of trench warfare. Available to each New Almy unit were ahandful, at best, of Regular officers and 'COs. Each unit of the BEF hadbeen ordered to leave behind in the UK tI,ree officers and a group ofNCOs to assist witl, the formation ofKl; 500 officers of the Indian AJlnyon UK leave had been retained for the same purpose; and a number ofwounded officers and men from tI,e BEF's first battles were posted toNew Army units after convalescence. The re-enJistment of'time-expired'NCOs up to the age of 50 was authorised, and man)' elderly retiredofficers - 'dug-outs' - were recalled to help with training. but therewere precious few experienced personnel to teach the New Annies thesoldier's trade.

With insufficient rines and ammunition, hardly any artilleryequipment, few horses and shortages of equipment and clothing, therewas little practical training the units of Kl could have undergoneeven if they had been fortunate enough tohave sufficient instructOrs. They thereforespent most of tI,eir time at dlill, physical u-aining,route-marching and digging. Small arms werepassed from group to group umil factoriesproduced sufficient for all. AJ·tiller)' unitspractised on wooden mock-ups until their gunsbecame available, as did machine gunners. !lwas to take ten months of discomfort. hard work,muddle and imprO\~sation before the six divisionsofKJ left the UK for active sen~ce overseas, threegoing to the Western Front and three to theMiddle East. [n that time they had somehow beentransformed from mobs of patriotic volunteersinto units with the appearance of trained soldiers,men considered fit to fight. Not all who sawthem were impressed by Kitchener' AJm)', or bythe methods tI,e great man had employed to raiseand train them: 'K's shadow almy for shadowcampaigns', sneered onc British general officer.'Under no circumstances can these mobs take thefield... What we want... is for our little force outhere to be kept to full strength.' He was to havecause to review his caustic judgement.

Even greater difficulties were suffered by themen of K2 to K5 during tI,eir training. Theywere amongst the more than two million menwho volunteered during the first year of the war,and it was to take even longer to arm and equip

KITCHENER'$ ARMY

The 15 divisions then in France represented amaximum effort, and a much larger British AJmyneeded to be raised and put into the field on theWestern Front if Britain's allies were to be effec­tively assisted in the defeat of the German AJ·my.

W:-;[)Q:\ OPIt-4IQN

Such an army was already in the process of beingformed. On the outbreak of war Field-Marshalthe Earl Kitchener of Khartoum was appointedSecretary of State for War, and he immediatelydeclared that the war would be a protractedand costly affair, a challenge that Britain's militaryresources were too few to meel. He infonnedthe cabi.net that the cauno"}' needed to raise anarmy of millions and prepare for a war lasting atleast three years. Such was the reputation andauthority of this great military autocrat thathe was allowed to proceed with a plan to raisethe largest army Britain had ever known, on theunderstanding that the nation would not tolerateconscription; his almy had to be one composedsolely of volunteers.

Kitchener's plan was to raise a sCI-ies of whatbecame known as 'New Armies', each numbering

100,000 men, to be formed and trained by the Regular AJmy in theexisting regimental depots and military commands of the UnitedKingdom. He chose to have nothing to do with the burgeoningTerritorial Force or the County Associations which administered it. Hehad a low opinion of the predecessors of the Territorials, based on hisexperiences in outh Africa, and of the French Territorial troops hehad observed as a young man. His prejudices were to condemn Britainin a time of crisis LO a situation in which the TerritoriaJ Force andthe New Arrnies competed for men, equipment and weapons.

On 7 August 1914 the press published Kitchener's call for volunteersfor 'an addition of lOO,OOO men to His Majesty's Regular Almy' - the'first hundred thousand', or 'J(] '. Enlisunent was to be for tI,ree yea.rsor the duration of the war. The re panse was overwhelming: within daysthe attestation rate had climbed to 30,000 per day, and under suchpressure the recnliting apparatus broke down. Local authoritiesrallied to the aid of the Regular AJmy and, little by little, the throngwas attested. medically examined and swanl in before being sent to Lhedepots and barracks deputed to hold and train the New AJmies. Here toothe vast numbers overwhelmed the resources of a Regular AJmy gearedto the modest intakes of peacetime. at only was accom.modation at apremiwn (acres of tented camps were pitched). but what slOcks therewere of uniforms, weapons, and equipment were rapidly absorbed by tI,eunits of J(].

To train the infantry battalions, artillery brigades, Royal Engineercompanies and the Field AJnbulances of the ix divisions of Kl tI,ere

SAVE THE

Arguably the most famous poster

of all time. The stem gaze andaccusing finger of Eart Kitchener

of Khartoum ~ft ltttle doubt Inthe minds of patriotic Britonsas to where their duty lay; the

reputation of the great man was

unassaJlable In 1914. Followingthe raising of the New Annles

his autocratic manner andoutspokenness alienated hisfellow cabinet members, whoIntrigued to strip him of some

of his powers, but his reputation

as Britain's greatest soldier

remained untamlshed with thepublic at large. He met his

de8th In June 1916 when the

warship takJng him to Russia

struck a mine and foundered.(Author's collection)

8

NOTICE[I. IJfm~

DIlDTlY lIlTEDLORD KJTCHENER appeals to ox-non­

eommlssloned o/fke,.,. or IlIIJ' brancb orHIs Majesty's Forces to assist blm now byre-enllstlng at once ror lbe duraUon or lbeWar. Sucb men are chleny wanted asInstructors ror lbe new units now beingrormed. and will be promoted immediatelyaner enl1slmen~ ox-Regula,.,. being givenlbe rank tbey rormerly beld, and all olbe,.,.lbe rank or Corporal, wllb rurtber pro­moUon II round sultable.

AGE LIMIT-If accepted as Warr8JIl Otneer or1:5 .c.o. above the rank or Sergeant: 50 Years.

In other cases: 45 Years.NOTE-A Pensioner ~nllstlng durlDJt: !be

present time or N8Uomll Emergency wtU be. abowed10 draw his pe.oslon In addition to his p8y.",.., til .., IhcnIUq Of1let te. • a-n.t ~.I.IIC fwUIw~

fit for "ntt~

GOD SAVE THE KING.

11

'Note: 'Bant9ms' W9I'8 I7JEI'I bebw the f'1(1fITIIJ/

nrinlm hei{1tr lor enIstm8nI.

Heavy Sectklo. MachIne G"" Cctps (lanks)Royal f¥ng Cctps (illlfOIllane squadrons

& baIoon sec1ions)Bases and tiles of ConYnunication !Slits

23><1 [);y (New Amrt)24th [);y (New Amrt)25th [);y (New Anny)29th [);y (Regulars)30th [);y (New Anny)31st [);y (New Anny)32nd [);y (New Anny)33>d [);y (New Anny)34th [);y (New Anny)35th (Bantam) [);y (New Amrt)'36th (Ust"" [);y (New Amrt)37th [);y (New Anny)36th (Welsh) [);y (New Anny)39th [);y (New Anny)41st [);y (New Anny)48th iN.MidIand) [);y (Tenitorlal Fo<ce)47th (2nd London) [);y (Tenitorlal Force)48th (S.MidIand) [);y (Tenit_ F0<C8)49th (West Riding) [);y (Tenitorlal Fo<ce)50th (Norttunbetland) DIv (Tenitorlal Fo<ce)51s' !Highland) [);y (Tenitorlal Force)55th (W.lBr<:asIVe) [);y (Tenitorlal Fo<ce)56th (1 st London) [);y (Tenitorlal Fo<ce)63rd (Royal Naval) [);y

1st Austraflan DiV2nd Austraian [);y

4th Austratian DIv5th Australan Div151 canadian DiV2nd Canadian Div3rd Canadian Div4th Canadian DivNew Zeaiand [);y

As the strength of the BEF had grown, so had the sectors of the Alliedtrench lines in Belgium and northern France which it took over. Fromthe fairl)' small part pla),ed in the opening battles of the war, when thevast armies of German)' and France clashed a,-ound it, tl,e BEF had b),1915 grown to sufficient strength (two, and then three armies) to beginoffensive operations, such as the Battle of Loos in September 1915. Butthe fil t real attempt b), tl,e BEF to defeat the German Arm)' on theWestenl Front occurred in the summer of 1916 when, in co-operationwith the French Sixth Arm)', it launched a series of attacks astride tl,evalle)' of the River Somme. From Jul), until 'o\'ember the British Third,Fourth and Fifth Armies persisted in very costl)' operations that often

B: The Battle of the Somme,Juty-November 1916

Comrnandef-n..cNef:Gao Sir Douglas HaJg

ThIrd Amrt (Gao Sir E.AlIenby)Fourth Amrt (Gao Sir H.Rawinsoo)Reserve, laterFifth Amrt (Gao Sir H.Gough)

C8vs.\'y Cctps (ttGon C. Kavanagh)/I Cctps (lIGon C.Jacob)1/1 Cctps (lIGon w.Pu/leneWV Cctps (lIGon E.Fanshawe)VII Cctps (ttGon Sir [Snow)VI" Corps (LtGen Sir AHuntar-Weston)X Cctps (ttGon Sir T.Morland)XI/I Cctps (lIGonw.~)XN Cctps (ttGon the Earl of CaYan)iN Cctps (lIGon H.Home)

1st Cavalry DMslon (Regula<s)2nd Cav [);y (Regulars)3><1 Cav [);y (Regulars)4th (Indian) Cav [);y

5th Ordan) Cav [);y

Guards [);y (Regulars)1sl [);y (Regulars)2nd [);y (Regulars)3><1 [);y (Regular.l)4th [);y (Regulars)51h [);y (Regulars)6th [);y (Regulars)71h [);y (Regulars)8th [);y (Regulars)9th (Scott;sh) [);y (New Amrt.

& 1 Sooth African Bde)11th (Northern) [);y (New Anny)12th (Eastern) [);y (New Anny)14th (Ugh~ [);y (New Anny)15th (Scottish) [);y (New Amrt)16th (Irish) [);y (New Anny)17th (Northern) [);y (New Anny)18th (Eastern) [);y (New Anny)19th (Weslern) [);y (New Anny)20th (Ugh~ [);y (New Anny)21 st [);y (New Anny)

Table 1: EXPANSION OF BRITISH EXPEDITIONARY FORCE, 1914-1916

/I Cctps (GM Sir '*"""" Smith­Dotrien)

3><1 DMslon5th DivisIoncavalry DMslon (MaIGen E.AlIenby)19th Infantry Brigade

(MaIGen LDrummond)

I Cctps (lIGon Sir Douglas Halg)1st DMslon2nd DMslon5th Cavalry Brigade'J' Battery. R.Hoole Mlety

A: The Battle of Mons,23/24 August 1914Comnander-ln-O>ef:FM Sir JoIv1 French

OPPOSITE The chronic shortage

of Instructors for the units of the

New Armies led to a number of

Initiatives Including appeals totime-expired old soldiers, as In

this poster, (Author's collection)

Training in England. Men 018 New Anny Infantry untt

performing 'physical jem' underthe supervision of an Instruc:tor

from the AnnY Gymnastic Staff.

a corps of athletes dedicatedto training units of the British

Army to the peak of fltnessbefore sending them off to

fight. (Author's collection)

G.them than it did Kl. Nevertheless, over the periodcovered in lhis tiLie 26 ew Anny divisions werebrought into being and sent to the Westenl Fronl.

The Territorial ForceMention has alread)' been made of the provisionfor TerntOl;al (0 volunteer for 'Imperial Service',On the outbreak of war four Territorial Force(TF) divisions were immediately sent overseas to

relieve Regular units stationed in Egypt and India.Additionall)', units such as the 1/4th RO)"l1 WelshFusiliers, 1/5th Scottish Rifles, l/5th BlackWatch, Glasgow Highlanders, 1/4th SeaforthHighlanders, 1/6th Gordon Highlanders, 1/7thArgylls, IIlst Honourable Artillery Compan)',London Rifle Brigade, Queen VictOlia's Rifles,1I12th and 1/13th Londons, London Scottish,Queen's Westminster Rifles and the Artist's Rifleswere all serving with the BEF before the end of1914. In March 1915 the 46th (North Midland)Division became the first complete TF divisionto atl;ve on the Western Front, followed by afurtller nine before the end of 1916. Moving toFrance with them were divisions from Canada.and those returned from the abortive Dardanellescampaign including Regulars, Territorials, andthe famous ANZACs - the Australian and ew Zealand Ann)' COIl'S.

B)' the time tl,e BEF was read)' to launch its first 'big push' on theSomme in the summer of 1916 it had grown to 55 divisions organisedinto 18 Army corps, which in tunl were organised into four armies - aprodigious effort made even more astounding when we appreciate thatit was achieved solely by voluntary enlistment. A National RegistrationAct of Jul), 1915 began the movement towards the introduction ofcon C1iption in Great Britain, to be followed b), the 'Derb)' Scheme' andthe Military Senice Act ofJanuary 1916. This rendered liable for serviceall single men between 18 and 41, extended to married men in Ma)';there were categories of exemption. But by mid-19l6 conscription hadbrought into the BritishArm)' less than i'O,OOO men.

The extent of tl,e build-up of the BEF can perhapsbe best illustrated b)' com­paring its strength duringits first battle in France withthat for the great Sommeoffensive (see Table 1). Thisshows at a glance not onl)'the vast expansion of theBEF over a period of lessthan twO )'ears, but also howgreat a part of it was repre­sented b)' Kitchener's Arm),.10

13

The SMLE rifleCompared lO those of its enem)" the weapons of the BEF of 1914-16were somewhat inferior - a fact frequently o,·erlooked, and one thatmakes the achie,"ements of tlle British Army on the ""estern Frontthe morc worthy of respect.

INFANTRY WEAPONS, 1914-16

Ludendorff, 'The GermanAnny had been foughl lOa randstill and was ullerl)'worn OUl'. The BEF hadbegun the campaign asmostly an enthu iasLiccollection of amateu.rs.From the di\isional andbrigade commanders whohad commanded nothinglarger tl,an a baltalionbefore the war, lhroughtheir nmice staffs learningtheir jobs b)' trial and error,down to lhe raw officers andmen in the bau:a.lions 3Jldbaueries: all had taken theshock of battle, sustainedtaggering casualties, and

returned again and again lOtl,e fighl, each time \\,th a growing and hard-won expertise. Ln thewords of a junior British officer who survived the baltle, 'The Bdti hAnn)' learned its lesson tl,e hard way, and during tl,e middle pan of theSomme battle and for the resl of the war was the besl arm)' in the field'.

18 Juty 1918: men of the 28th

(HIghland) Brigade make theirway back from the fighting at

Longueval and Delville Wood.The brigade was part of the

9th (Scottish) Division, thesenior fonnation of 'K1 ', which

lost 314 office,.. and 7,303other ranks In the operations

between 14 and 18 July. (IWM)

The trench lines, once

established, were not allwell-ordered or properly

constn.lcted; this seetion Is1Ittt. more than • waterlogged

bteastwortt supported by

sandbags. Note the small

graveyard at far left. Thetwo soldiers wear leather

Jeritlns and waders. (IWM)

Waiting to go - a platoon ofTerritortals of the 1/15th 8n,

London Regiment (prince of

W.I.... Own Civil serviceRift••), photographed at Watford

In early 1$115. Their unit landed

In FFllnce In March of that yearand became part of the 47th

(London) OM.1on, a TerritorialForce formation. They havereceived 1908 pattem webbing

equipment. but note the'long' lee--Enfteld rift••.(Dougl.s Honychurch)

Territorials 01 the Queen's

Westminster Rines, a unit of

the London Regiment, practise

the construction of trenchesin an English wood. Digging

and physical training took up

a great deal of the volunteers'time as they waited for Industry

to supply the weapons and

ammunltion they needed.(Douglas Honychurch)

mel with little ucce in lenns of ground taken, bUl inflicled equallydevastating 10 es on the enemy and occasionalI)' came dose lO thebreakthrough thal was sought.

It cannOl be denied thal tl,e B£F began its Somme campaign as araw and untried arm)', mostly badly led, and less tl,an killed in its arms.Considering the ridiculously hon time mOSl of its officers and men hadbeen in uniform and their lack of proper training, il would have beenremarkable if they had gone imo baltle the professional equals of tl,eGerman Ann),. BUl b)' tl,e time the onsel of ",nler plll an end lO tl,eSomme fighting, thal is whal tl,ey had become. In tl,e words of General

12

14

A cheerful group of office,..and men of the 11th 8n,Northumberland FuslUers,after an attack on the enemypositions near Le Sa,..,6 october 1g16, A NewArmy unit of the 23rd(New Army) Division, the11th Northumbertands wontheir ObJective, a complex ofGerman trenche. called "theTangl.'t but had to wtthdrawfrom tt later. (IWM)

The standard infalllry weapon was the 0.303in ' hon Rine,Magazine, Lee-Enfield' - the SMLE, in its Mark m form, a weaponwhich has passed into history with the reputation of a first-classrine. Developed from the Lee-Metford rine of 1889, it had by 1914undergone a bewildering number of modifications and changes, par­ticularlyas a result of its poor showing in the Boer War. In 1910 trialsand development were started on a Mauser-action rifle firing rimless0.276in ammw,ition as a replacement for the Lee-Enfield, but the inter­vention of the Creat War put an end to this move and the MLE servedon in one fonn or another until replaced in the 1950 .

The Lee bolt action stemmed from an American design which hadbeen tried with a variety of ammunition before the Swiss 0.303in Rubinround had been selected. Compared to the ammunition used by othernations, that developed by the British from the Rubin was inferior,both in materials and design. It featured a rimmed cartridge casewhich was thought necessary for reliable extraction in Maxim machinegun actions, and the e rims caused feed stoppages in riAes and lightmachine guns throughout the senke life ofO.303in ammunition. ( uchstoppages did not occur with rimless ammunition, which the GermanArmy found worked perfecuy well in their Maxims.)

The propellant of the original Rubin round had been black powder(gunpowder) but in searching for a 'smokeless' substitute the Britishopted for Corclite, a propellant which caused exce ive barrel ero ionand - when combined with primers containing corro ive chemicals ­rust. Special ammunition with nitro-<:ellulose propellant had to beintroduced to reduce machine gut, barrel wear, but the only way topresen'e riAe barrels was to drench them with boiling water beforeworking on the rust with abrasives. By 1914 the 0.303in round was upto its tenth modification, in which the 'spitzer' bullet had been reduced

to 174 grain, while thepropellant had beenincreased from its original31 to 37 grains. Theresultant increased muzzle"elocity - from 1,970 feetper second to 2,440fp ­ga,"e the bullet the Aallertrajectory and ums greater accuracy that was ought.

These changes might have had Iitue effect on the handling qualitiesof the original Lee-Enfield rine, which weighed about 100bs, but u,edecision to cut it down and lighten the barrel to suit the ca,-alry resultedin a weapon which was in reality a carbine, weighing a little over 81bsand \\;th a vicious recoil when hooting ~lk VII ammunition. \Vhenthe new 'short' rine was decreed as the standard arm for all the forcesof Creat Britain and her Empire the British Am,y found itself armedwith a weapon which had OIiginally been designed b)' a commillee,firing ammunition which had also been designed by a commillee, bothof which were then redesigned, altered. modified and revised o\'er aquarter of a century from their introduction to the outbreak of war in1914. But whate"er its shortcomings the Lee-Enfield was British and (asin the case of the current British senice rine) criticisms fell on deaf ears,especially in the Treasury.

The pre-war Regulars learned to cope "ith its shortcomings andpraised its lightness, handiness and slick bolt action. With the incentive ofadditional pay for good hooting they became proficient in its usethrough years of practice. But these standards were ne"er reached by theinfantry of u,e New AJmies. Is ued with a variety of ob olete or foreignarms for training, u,ey had Iitue time to practise wiu, MLE Mk m senicerifles when these became available to lhem, Most fired nothing morethan recruit practices on gallery ranges before heacling off to France.

Other weaponsNeither were they ,'ersedin the minor Lactics andfieldcraft that must becombined with marks­manship and good weaponhandling to make aninfanu)'man skilled in fireand mo\·ement. Insteadthe)' were taught thehandling - and such tacticsas had been devised - ofthe new infantry wonder­weapon: the 'bomb', whichby late 1914 was seen asthe ideal weapon for ttsein trenches, where fightingwas invariably at closequarters and victory usuallywent to the side hurling the

In an attempt to make theWebley Mk VI revotver c.n1ed bymany officers a more effectiveweapon for trench-fighting. thl.example has had a commercialshoulder stock and • Pritchard­Greener bayonet fitted. Thebayonet could be quicklyremoved and used as adagger. see Plate E2.(Author's collection)

Men of the Machine Gun Corpsoperating a Vickers machinegun and (background) acaptured German Maxim gunnear Mouquet Farm, theSomme, September 1916.This Is In fact a posed .cene ­neither gunner has raised thebackslght on his gun. (IWM)

15

16

The IGun, Machine. Vickers .303Inch Mark I on Mount, Tripod,Mark NB'. It 1. shown here withan ammunition box containing

250 rounds of betted Mk VIIZ

ammunttJon, a condenser can,

and an 'emergency mounting'lIttached to the water jacket,

from which hangs a carTYtngstnlp. The gun Itself weighed

about 42'1t Ibs with 1'1t pints of

cooUrtt water In the Jacket, and

the tripod 48lbsi a full boJ: ofammunition weighed 22 pounds.

The gun's length was 3ft Sinsiit had a cyclic rate of fire of

between 450 and 600 roundsper minute, and Its operation

was by recoil and spring. Sosound was its basic design that

it served on with the BritishArmy, with very few and

superficial mod,"catJons, Into

the 1980s. (Author's collection)

mosl high explosive lO beSleffect. The BEF had goneto France with one patternof grenade, and nOl verymany of those. The needfor more was immediatelyapparenl and the gap wasfilled by a wriety of crudeand hazardou devicesmost of which representedmore danger to the menwho threw them than to

the enemy.' By 1916 the'Mills bomb' (more cor­recLly the Grenade, Hand,

'0.5) had replaced moslother types, and was saferand simpler lO use. BUl ilwas still the prerogative ofmen specially de ignaledas 'bombers' lO handle

grenades in the spearhead of allllcks, accompanied by bayonel men lorush round trench lTlIverses afler the grenade delonated.

Casualties amongst infantry bombers were high. To those incurred intraining were added the many more in combat and, as the volunteerswho PUl themselve forward for this risky pecialisation were usually thebravesland the be l, this drain of potential leaders was soon fell. As timewent by all infantrymen were Lrained in the use oflhe No.5 grenade, butnot until the lives of some of the best men in L1,e BEF had beensquandered lo leasl effect. (Grenades were also projected from rifles bymean of powerful blank cartridges and several types of rods and cups.By these means they could be fired up to 200 yards or more with wryingdegrees of accuracy.)

Infantrymen continued lO spend hours practising bayonet fighting, askill thal could be llIught as a drill on the barrack square, and lhereforean activity popular with bully-boy 'COs and with physical Lraininginstructors skilled in the spon ofbayonel fencing - a gymnasium activityfealuring masks, padding and spring-loaded dummy muskets. Somemen became expert at Lhe use of the bayonel, but most must haveconsidered that, if close enough to (ro bayonets with an enemy, it wasbest lO shool him before he shot you. Free use of the bayonel was oflenconfined by the parapets and lTlIverses of trenches, leading to daggersand mace-like clubs being improvised for the hand-to-hand clashes thatoccurred, especially al nighl, on patrols and trench raids.

Officers and many other ranks carried pistols. The official patternwas one of several 'marks' of Webley revolver in 0.455in calibre. uchwas the demand for pistols thal re\·olvers were bought from Coltand Smith & Wesson in America, and from firms in Spain, all firing0.455in ammunition.

Machine guns, the belt-fed sustained fire weapons fired from heavymounts, had been taken from infanlry baltalions early in the war to be2 See EJite 78. World w.t Trench Wlwtat'e (J) 1914-16

'brigaded' into machinegun companies, and thentransferred with their crewslO L1,e Machine Gun Corpsin order LO support theinfantry more effectiYel)'.The smndard weapon wasL1,e Vickers 0.303in Mk Imachine gun, orderedlO replace the Maximmachine gun in 1912, bUlboth types ",..ere in usein the period covered bylhis tiLle. The tWO gun perbanalion were increasedto four in early 1915,and machine gun trainingcentres were set up inFrance and in the K. B1916 the Machine Gun Corps mustered 4,000 officers and 80,000 men.

In Lhi time experience was gained which en~?led ~lcke~ guns to beused to the limil:s of their capabilities. Ammumuon WIth I11tTo-cell.ulosepropellants gave grealer range to L1,e guns and preserved L1,e life oftheir barrels. Clinometers and direction dials were used to ~e.mannerof artille\)' dial sights, to enable llIrgets to be regislered for md,rect fireshoots and fire llISks al nighl or in smoke or fog. Once III pOSlllon theVickers could fire al the rale of one bell (250 rounds) every twO mmutesindefinilely, subject lO the availabilil)' of ammunition: spare ,barrels,cooling water, lubricanLS and spare pans. This was the .nonnal rate offire _ the 'rapid' rale used up a bell per minute. A hIgh standard oftraining was required if the gun 'numbers' were LO cope WIth the many

Men of the 'Household BattaUon',

an Infantry unit fonned from

reservists of the Householdcavalry, parade with their Lewisgun ~rta, late 1916. At left are

some of the unit's stretcher­

bearersi note their narrowbrassards, with a red 'S.B.' on

white. Although capable of

being handled by one man, theLewis was not considered to bea 'light machine gun' and wasissued a~ng with a handcart..These were later replaced byhor'Se-dr1llwn limberS, each of

which ~rrled two guns, their

spares, magazines and

ammunition. (1WM)

30 July 1916: the Battle ofPozieres Ridge on the Somme ­

an 1a.pounder RFA gun crew

pose for the camera nearMontauban. (They would not

be firing with horses to their

front-) All the ammunition lyingready Is high explosive shell

which, with leSS than 8 pound of

explosive, was less destructivethan a 3in mortar bomb. Clearly

visible is the pole trail which

limited the 18-pdr's elevation

and thus Its range. (lWM) 17

18

The 'Fuse. Graze, No.100' froman illustration In the handbookfor the is-pdr gun: attached tott Is the 'Qalne No.2', • deviceIgnited by the flash of thedetonator In the fuse. whichthen Ignited the HE wtthln the

shell. As well as causing many'prematures' In gun. the 100Fuse was found to be thecause of eccklents while beingtnln.portedj these Included anexplosion and fire that wreckedan ammunftion depot at Quevtlty,and • huge explosion atWanquetln which ruined thevillage and caused considerablelou of life. Eventually severalsafety and delay devices werebuilt Into the No.1 00 serie.,as well as • needle that wouldatrike the detonator on theshell's Impact ."en If the fusehad been laimpered with - notan unknown OCCUrntn<:8, gtvenIts reputation for killing guncrews. (Authors collection)

sloppages possible on the gun as well as the care and el"\1cmg ilrequired. (The spare parts wallel for the gun held 31 ilems includingpliers, punches. screwdrivers and a mirror. as ,..'ell as a multiplicity ofspares. The gun's spare parts box contained a further 136 ilems.) Grealkill was also demanded of the fire controllers who used rangefinders,

maps and insuumenLS lO plOl the fire laSks for lheir guns, and thensel them up with aiming po LS, aiming lamps and nighl sighLS.

Used in this manner, machine gun dominated no-man's-land.covering il with carefully plolled bealen zones of fire calculaled LOcut down any enemy infantry attempting to ero . For example, on24 Augusl 1916 during the Somme baltles, a machine gun company ofthe 33rd ( ew Anny) Division with len guns fired jusl one bell shonof one million rounds while covering the brigade il was supporting. Selto deny the enemy movement in certain areas, the company used up allthe waler in the vicinity of iLS guns (for refilling their cooling jackeLS)before nuning lO urine for the same purpose. Relays of poners carriedammunition lO the guns while a bell·filling machine was operaled for12 hours non-slop. One gun is recorded as having fired 480 belLS ofammunition in that time.

With the centralisation of Vickers and Maxim machine guns a lighlaUlomatic, the Lewis gun, began lO be issued lO infantry companies,which by 1916 had one Lewis per plaloon. Weighing 27lbs, the weaponwas gas operaled, air cooled, and fired al a cyclic rale of 550 roundsper minute, using the standard O.303in ammunition. "Vilh a maximumeffective range of 800-1,000 yards, il was fired by one man bUl neededeight orners to carry its 44 magazines, over 2,000 rounds ofammunition,lools and spare parts. The Lewis gun was one of the beSl weapons inthe hands of the British infantry, bUl il was lO be some time before theylearned lO PUl illo besl use. Only afler the Somme baltles were infantrytactics devi ed around the plaloon as the basic unil in the altack,covering its movement with its own Lewi guns, rine grenades andmoke grenades.

A variety of mortars were devised for trench warfare and some ofthese, particularly the SLOkes mortar, were issued LO the infantry. Theywere operaled in 'baueries' controlled by a brigade trench mortarofficer. The Slokes was a fairly crude weapon, a lUbe with a 3-inch borewhich propelled canislers ofbigh explosive lowards the enemy by meansofshotgun cartridge filled with ballastile. When filled with augmentingcharge of propellanl the bomb could be hurled lO a maximum of 550yards. The weapon had no sighLS because of iLS inherent inaccuracy, bUlcould produce a greal volume of fire which could be used lO 'brackel'an area of ground. ILS bombs also contained more than l\vice theamount of higb explosive than an 18-pdr shell.

ARTILLERY, 1914-16

The mo t common equipment used by the Royal Regiment of Artilleryin 1914-18 was the 18-pdr gun; aboul 1,500 of these had been i uedbefore J914, and over 9,000 more were lO be manufaclUred and issuedby the war's end. Il has been calculaled thal in 1914-18 the 18-pdrs firedmore shells than any other British artillery pieces: nearly 100 million

rounds. Of the ammunition slocks allocaled forthe opening of the mme battles in summer1916, for example, 2.6 million rounds were forthe l8-pdrs, which made up roughly half of thegunpower used.

These guns had been de igned for open"arfare, for which their mobilily, fixed shrapnel..unmunition and high rate of fire made themideal weapons; but they were soon found to beIe than perfecl for the condilions prevailing intrench warfare. Their single 'pole' lrails limiledelevation LO 16 degrees and their range lO 6,525prds. Their shrapnel rounds were delonaled inthe air by time fuses and aCled like giantshOlguns,showering fOn\'ard their loads of lead/antimonyballs. these had a lethal effecl on trOOpS in the open, bUl were lesseffe~tive againsl those dug in below the surface. When a high explosiveshell was devised for the 18-pdr in 1915 il had only 130z of Amalol HE"hich with iLS Oal trajeclory, made il the equivalent of the German77m'; 'whizzbang'. The 18-pdr had never been de igned lO fire lheenormous amounts of ammunition called for in trench warfare,however. and t.he)' broke down under the strain. Malfunctions werecommon in their h)'dro-spring recoil s'St.ems. which were eventuall),replaced with more durable h)·dro-pn.eumatic s)'s.lems. Otl,er problems"ith the guns and tlleir ammUnluon (espeCIally the. fuses) weree\.enlUally overcome; bUl nothing could be done lO ,mpro\·e lherange or shell-power of the weapons thal made up half the British

artillery's resources.From the onsel of rrench warfare there had been a shortage of

artillery ammunition, especially the high explosi\"e shell (HE) which wasdesperalely needed. Briti h artillery ammunition had lO be 'rationed';for example. al Ypres in late 1914 guns were IUlllled firsl to 20 rounds pergun per day, then lenrounds, and finally JUSlt.wo. No one had foreseenthe vastly grealer amowlLSof ammunition that. thesiege conditions of trenchwarfare would consumeover and above theslocks calculaled for'open' warfare, and theinability of the militarybureaucracy and RoyalOrdnance Factories tomeel demand led lO whalbecame known as the 'shellscandal', which boiled overin early 1915. 1l resulledin ammunition productionbeing put. on a morepractical footing, bUl it

A 4.51n howitzer In action on theSomme, September 19U1i. Oneof the better pieces • ."allable tothe artillery of the BEF. this wasthe first to use HE ammunitionfitted with the notorious No.1 00Fuse; batteries of 4.5s suffered~ many premature detonationsIn the gun that they werenkknamed 'suicide clubs'. (IWM)

An American Holt 75hp tractortowing an 81n hoWitzer, 1918.

The Holt was one of thetrack-laying ."ehlcles used In thetrials end de."elopment of the

"rat British "tanks'. (lWM)

19

20

The monstrous 121n howitzer InIts Mk II configuration weighedoyer 9 tons and could throw a750lb shell to a maximum of11,340 yards or more than six

miles. The large metal box seenhere below the barrel of thehowitzer carried 20 tons of earthIn order to stabilise Its firingplatform. Note the system ofcranes and pulleys necessary toload the shells and charges Intothe monster's breech. The No.7dial sight on the left of thecarriage was an Instrumentcommon to all British guns andhowitzers of the time. (IWM)

was to be 1917 before a sufficiency of the light type of ammunitionbecame available. ntil then the BEF operated under a distinctdIsadvantage as regards the use of its artillel".

One of. the better weapons available to the Royal Field Artillerywas the 4.:>m hOl"'tzer. (The Bnush Anny usually referred to guns bytheIr shell weIght and howitzers by the diameter of their bores.) Therewas one battery of 4.5s to every three of IS-pdrs, and these excellentpIeces were capable of high-angle fire which hurled a 35lb shell Ollt toa distance of 7,300 yards. The 4.5in ammunition was not 'fixed', whichmeant that propellant charges could be vaJied to increase the versatilityof the gun. The HE shell calTied 4lbs JOoz of explosive, but its effectwas somewhat reduced by the No.IOO Fuse and its modificationswhich often malfunctioned or allowed the shell to partially bury itselfbefore detonating.

Heavy battelies of the Royal Gamson Artillery operated many typesofguns and hOl"'tzers, rangmg from the comparatively new 60-pdr (witha 60lb shell and a maximum range of 12,300 yards) to obsolete 12inna~ guns mounted on railway carriage, and huge siege howitzerswhICh could lob a 1,400lb shell 10,795 yards (to pllt those figures ineveryday context, the shell weighed more than half a ton, and the rangewas more than SIX mIles). Royal Artillery trench mortar batteriesoperated the heavier mortars when these were devised. The RA also?perated ~ti-aircraft g~ns as they came into service. ranging from theporn-porn hea,~ machll1e gun to the 3in gun introduced in 1914.

The resources available to the artillery of the Fourth Army on theSomme.injune 1916 included: IS-pdrs x 808; 4.7in guns x 32; 60-pdrsx128; 6111 guns x 20; 9.2in guns x I; 12in guns x I; 4.5in howitzel x 202;6111 hOl,otzers x 104; 8in howitzers x 64; 9.2in howitzer x 60· 12inhowitzers x II; 15in howitzers x 6; 220mm howitzers (French)' x 16;75mm gun (French) x 60; 120mm guns (French) x 24; medium u·enchmortars. x 288; heavy trench mortars x 28; plus three gas cylindercompames, three smoke companies, and one fixed flame-throwercompany. Of the total of 1,537 guns and howitzers roughly half were

thu IS-pdrs; and French75s had to be borrowedbecause the Blitish had nogas shells at this time.

For the first two years ofthe war the artillery of theBEF struggled to overcomethe many problems forcedupon it by the adventof trench warfare. Thegunners had faced theearly difficulties causedby the rapid expansionin manpower and theshortages of weapons andequipment probably to agr'eater extent than otheranns. Having anived at theseat of operations they had

A 9.21n gun on a Mk I railwaymounting In action at Maricourt.September 1916. Chalked orpainted on the side of themounting Is 'The Big Push', thename by which the operationsastride the Rlyer Somme werecommonly known. Note thegantry used to load the 380lbshell; this could be hurled outto. maximum of 21,000 yards­nearty 12 miles. (IWM)

difficulties over command stnlcture, organ­isation, the application of fire. communication,the breakdo"", of equipment and the shortageand defects of ammunitioll. Perhaps their biggestproblem was how to make the best use of theirresources. General Sir Douglas Haig saw noconnict of purpose between a battle witl, theaim of a breakthrough of tI,e enemy line, and onefought with the intention of wearing the enemydown. Other senior officers disagreed, and so didthe artillerymen. Breakthrough attempts tiedartillery resources to Lhe divisions which wouldneed their support in the open warfare that mustfollow a rupture of the enemy's line. A battle ofamition demanded a different deployment ofartillery for the best fire effect. It was only after theSomme battles that these technical and tacticalproblems were effectively solved, allowing theartillery of the BEF to become the virtually perfectinstrument it remained from that time on.

OTHER ARMS OF SERVICE

The Royal Flying Corps, 1914-16The RFC remained a corps of the British Atmy until Apli11918, when itmerged with the Royal Naval Air Service to become tI,e Royal Air Force.Formed from the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers in 1912, tI,e RFCwent to France with the BEF in 1914 with four squadrons of aircraftdedicated to reconnaissance and communications flights. as well asballoon units whose task was that of observation.

Within days the pilots and observers of the aircraft had armed them­selves with pistols, riOes and a Vll1iety of crude bombs witl, which tI,eyengaged ground targets and enemy Oying machines. As more men andaircraft arrived on the Western Front 'aggressive patrolling' increased,especially when tI,e first Lewis guns became available in early 1915. Asmore effective aircraft type , machine guns and born bs were developed,so did aerial warfare, which included the attacking of enemy aircraft andobservation balloons as well as the bombing of their rear areas. Aetialanilie,,' ob ervation was also developed, as was aerial photographicreconnaissance. Over the peliod 1914-16 the air arm of the BEFwas transfonned from a collection of Oim y machines dedicated toobserving and carrying messages, to a vital weapon with which tostrike at the enemy, to destroy his aerial observation. and to combathis fighting machines attempting to do the same.

Tanks, 1914-16Before the outbreak of war armoured fighting vehicles had beenforeseen by the ""iters of fiction, and had been made fact by tI,emilitary forces of several nations who had fitted armour plate to carsand trucks before arming them with machine guns and, in some cases,small cannon. It has recently been revealed that a young Australian 21

22

TYpical of the aircraft operatedby the Royal Aylng Corps1914-16 was the FE2B, atwo-seat fighter-reconnaissancebiplane powered by a 160hp'pusher' engine. A Lewis gunwa. mounted In the observer'sforward cockpft. (lWM)

iln-entor lodged plansfor a tracked armouredfighting vehicle with theBritish War Office in 1912.Powerful internal com­bustion engines andtrack-laying vchicles werein being before 1914, andthe British Army boughtmany Holt tractorswhich it u ed to towheavy guns. The RoyalNa\al Air en;ce operatedan Armoured Car Divisionof armoured and armed'tenders' (or trucks) in

1914; and the BEF formed a MOLOr Machine Gun Semce withguns and crews mounted on motor-cycle combinations.

It was. not until the realities of trench warfare were appreciatedthat soluuons were sought to the problems of prO\iding effective closesuppon to infantry atlacking across no-man's-land, and in particularthe desrrucuon of enemy machine guns. Hindering development of'Iandships' or 'machine gun destroyers' was the mutual mi trust thatexisted between the General Staff, who were not the most imaginativebod), of men, and the engineers capable of developing and building~ch . machInes. The Staff were too involved with the problems of

wlOnmg the war with the resources to hand, and felt disinclined tospeculate on what might be achieved by what orne saw as WellsianfanlaSies. The engineering industry were perfectly capable of over­comIng the army's problems, but needed tl,e miliLary to define theseproblems and to issue detailed specifications as to what the machineswere required to do.

In June 1915 these were put before a recently eSlablished LandshipsCommmee, who were asked for a machine with (a) a top speed of notless than 4mph on flat ground; (b) the capability of sharp turns at topspeed; (c) a reversIng capability; (d) the ability to climb a 5ft parapetWIth a 1-In-J lope; (e) a gap-crossing ability of 8ft; (I) a radius ofactionof20 miles; (g) a ~rew.often men with two machine guns and one lightcannon. Fr?m thIS POInt development proceeded until, in early 1916,demonstrauons of the new vehicles were held in the UK beforeKitchener, Mr Lloyd George (then Minister for Munitions), theChancellor of the Exchequer and other decision makers. For securitypurposes the vehicles were already being called 'lanks', since theytrongly resembled large "ater ranks. De pite Kitchener's remarks that

they were 'pretty mechanical toys' and that 'the war would neverbe won by such machines', an order for 100 lanks was placed on12 February 1916.

As the tanks went into production their crews were being assembledfrom the ranks of the Motor Machine Gun Sen;ce (which was at thetime being reduced), from the Mechanical Transport sections ofthe Army Semce Corps, and from civilian recrttilS who bad answeredad\'ertisemenlS in the pre and mOLOr trade publication. Called the

Communication trenches ledfrom the safety of the rearareas to the support line of thetrenches, then forward to thefront or fighting line. In this1815 photo a sentry maintainsthe security of 'Funne" trench;he would not be particularlyInterested In traffic goingforward, but would have strictorders to check any Individualgoing to the rear without duecause. Note that his ServiceDress cap stili has Its stiffener;and the thick appearance of theftlled cartridge carriers on his1908 webbing equipment. PWM}

'Heavy Section' of the Machine Gun Corps, they took the first 50 tanksLO France on 30 August 1916.

By early September these \'ehicles had mO\'ed LO the area of theSomme battlefields, and on the 15th of that month 36 of them went imoaction in what was to be the first tank battle in history. Their appearanceshocked the enemy; but the lumbering monsters were underpowered,mechanically unreliable, and crewed by men ill prepared for the battle.Most tanks broke down, became mired in the mud, or were hit by enemyartillery; but at least one vehicle came close to leading the infantry itsupported in a rupture of the enemy lines. The potential of the Lank, aBritish concept, "as clear to friend and foe alike.

The Royal Navy ashore, 1914-16Maintaining the security of the BEF's sea Line of communication was atask the Royal Na\y performed \\;th great efficiency throughout the war;but tl,e ' enior semce' conuibuted to the war on land also, especially onthe Western Front. The outbreak of war found the Royal Navy \\ith asurplus of resen;slS from which the First Lord of tl,e Admiralty, WinstonChurchill, formed a division ofsailors and marines LO fight on land. Thisfirst Royal Naval Division was sem to defend the port of Antwerp in1914, and in attempting to do so suffered healy casualties, many ofwhom became pnsoners-of-war or internees in neutral Holland. Thedivision was re-formed and sent out to the abortive Dardanellescampaign, on the conclusion of which it was ent again to the \t\'esternFront. There it took part in the final battle of the Somme campaign. Inaddition to sailors and marines in the Royal Naval Division (by 1916reduced by casualtie to such a degree that one of the division's brigadeswas composed of army unilS), Royal Marine personnel crewed heavygun; and tl,e Royal laval Air Semce flew aircraft and operatedarmoured cars in support of tl,e BEF.

ORGANISATION ANDTACTICS

Trench warfare, once eSlablished, brought theinfantry of the BEF imo direct confronlation \\;ththe enemy on a 24-hour-a-day basis. The onlyrespite battalions could look fonvard to was arelief from the from line of trenches. This mightfind them relocated to a reserve trench lineperhaps a few hundred yards in the rear; or in anarea behind the trenches where they might besafe from all enemy fire but long-range artilleryor bombing aircraft, but where the)' becameavailable as labour to carry fomard to the trenchlines the enormous amounts of materials neededfor their maintenance and repair.

The main laSk of front-line infanuy was todefend and maintain their positions by manningthe 'firestep' almost shoulder to shoulder if theywere threatened, and to repel any enemy attack 23

A

THE REGULAR ARMY. 19141: Private, 2nd Battalion, Royal Welsh Fusiliers, 19th Infantry Brigade

2: Private, 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys), 5th Cavalry Brigade

3: Gunner. Royal Field Artillery

(cont;"rud on pagr JJ)

\\~lh Lewis gun, rifle and grenade. UppOrL fromartillery, machine guns and mortars could becalled fOf, but was not under their control.Infantr}' units of the BEF were encouraged to

pursue aggressh'c patrolling. which meant thatat night. in addition to lhe maintenance of thebarbed wire in frollt of lheir positions. Lhey sentout into ncrman's-Iand parties ofofficel and menwho pro\;ded standing patrols, listening patrols,reconnaissance palrol and fighting palrols. Theaim of most of Lhesc was to dominate no-man's­land and to bring back iofonnation on enem)!aCl.hity. Fighting patrols. howc\'cr, wenl into theenemy's front lines expre Iy to capture prisonersfor interrogation. Snipers operated [rom thefront line, and from hides in ncrman's-land whichthey built and occupied under cover of darkness.'

British infantry in the auack in 1915 and 1916depended entirely on fire support from theirartillery and machine guns as they attempted tocross no-man's-land and the barrier of theGerman barbed wire before getting into theenemy trenches. Artillery and mortar fire wasexpected to breach the enemy wire. neutralise hismachine guns and supp.-ess his artillery. Not only

were British infalllr)' units untrained in the ort of minor tactics thatmight have enabled them to cross no-man's-land by dashing from coverto co\"er while using their own firepower; they were usually forbiddento attempt to do so, by orders that they \,'ere to advance in line, and tokeep marching forward unless wounded (or killed). These crude tacticsworked if the artillery were succe ful in suppressing enemy fire andsmashing the enemy wire. \\'hen they were not, as in the opening auacksof the Somme batues, the infantry sulTered horrendous casualties asthey lay lJ'apped in the open under the fire of German artillery andmachine guns. Where they were able to gain the enemy front u"enchesthey began bombing, bayoneting and snap-shooting their way fOn\oardvia the enemy communication trenches, as long as reinforcementsand ammunition could be got across no-man's-land.

These bloody assaults were nearly always made in broad daylight andafter intense artillery bombardments had announced British intentionsto the Germans. However, on 14July 1916, an attack was made on theSomme in darkness and withom the usual preliminary bombardment.The Germans we.-e taken completel)' by surprise and, in a matter of afew hours, the British Fourth Anny were e tablished on the BazentinRidge and had probed the \'Lal position of High Wood to find it unoc­cupied. The tantalising opportunity for a breakthrough was lost herewhen requests for pennission to push on were denied in order to waitfor the cavalry to come up. By the time they did, later in the afternoon,the Germans had already plugged the gap.

The infant!)' fighting unit was the battalion, notionalI)' "ith a strengthof about 1,000 officers and men bm often operating with a strength

1 July 1816, the day the firstBritish Infantry .....ults werelaunched on the Somma; 57,000casualties were sustained by theBritish Army on this single day.The lnhlntrymen watling to goforward appear to be alreadyexhausted by the overnightapproach march from theirassembly areas. (IWM)

24

1

KITCHENER'S ARMY. 1914-151: Private, 10th (Service) Battalion, Durham Light Infantry

2: Signaller, 11 th (Sel"t/lce) Battalion, The Welsh Regiment

3: Private. 15th (Scottish) Division

THE TERRITORIAL FORCE, 1914-151: Captain. london Scottish2: Corporal. Queen Victoria's Rifles

3: Trumpeter, Oxfordshire Yeomanry (Queen'. Own Oxfordshire Hussars I

B c

FRANCE & BELGIUM, 191'1: Sergeant. 1st Battalion, The Gordon Highlanders2: Seaman, Royal Naval Division

3: Infantryman. trench clothing, winter 1914/15

FRANCE & BELGIUM, 19151: Ueutenant·Colonel, 9th (service) Battalion, The East Surrey Regiment, 24th

(New Army) Division; loos. September 1915

2: 2nd lieutenant of infantry, raiding dress

3: Artilleryman of an ammunition c umn

3

'!

E

F

THE SOMME. 19161: Major·General C.E.Pereira,. GOC 2nd (RegutaJ1 Diyjston

2: Lewis gunner, 1/6th Battalion, Durham light Infantry (Bishop Auckland Riftes).

50th (Northumberland) Division. Territorial Force3: 'Bomber', 1I6th Battalion, The Black Watch, 51st (Highland) Division,

Territorial Force4: Gunner, Royal Field Artillery

I

THE SOMME. 19161: Sergeant, 1st Battalion, The Grenadier Guards Lewis gunner, 1/6th Battalion.

2: Private, Royal Army Medical Corps3: Nursing sister, Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service (Reserve)

4: Chaplain, Army Chaplains Department

+

G

•

H

ROYAL FLYING CORPS, 1914-161: Sergeant Observer2: Pilot, flying clothing

3: Captain Albert B~U

'"

far below this figure.Bau.alions were commandedb\" Iieutcnant-eolonels; atbattalion headquaners"ere round signallers, themachine gun section, thercbrimental medical officerand medical orderlies, aquartermaster and staff,the uallsport section withhorses, wagons and cans,and such personalities asthe se ond-ill-command,adjutant and regimentalsergeant major. BaualionHQ changed slightlyO\"er the pCI;od covered.~tachil1egun sections went,and battalion Lewis gun,sniping and gas officerswere appointed. \t\Then inthe line the qU3ncnnasterand transport were left \\;t.h the 'rear details'; and these sometimesincluded a number of officers and men 'left out of battle' aroundwhom the unit could be rcconstnlcted in the event of hea,,)' casualties.

Four 'riOe' companies were the main fighting strength of the bat­talion, each ",itll a paper strengtll or227 officers and men but invariabl)'functioning \\~th fewer; these included drummers, buglers or pipers anda number of fanner bandsmen acting as stretcher-bearers. Captainscommanded companies, and subaltel11 officers (sometimes sergeants)commanded each or the rour platoons that made them up, Platoonwere divided into [our sections, each commanded by an NCO.

• • •B, 1916 the artillery of the BEF "'as in a state or transition, from ",hat ithad been in August 1914 (batteries and brigades or horse and fieldarLiner)' whose purpose \V"dS the suppon of cava11l' and infanuy unils ina war of movement), to the powerful and homogeneous force it hadbecome by 1918, B tI,at date it had rullyadaptedto the conditions of the "VeStenl Front, where ilhad pushed gunnery to the limits or its possibilitiesin order to master the artillery of the enemy.

\Vith the onset of u-ench warfare the resourcesor the Royal Garrison Anillery had beensummoned to bring to the "Ve tCI-n Front thehea\')' weapons that tllis branch usually employedin the defence or pOl1S and rortresses, As ti,eanillel)' strength or ti,e BEF ",as built up aslrLlggle ror the comrol or this powerful anndc\"eloped. urprising though it rna)' now seem,'General Officers Commanding, Royal Artillery'were, in 1916, ad\~sors and not commanders.Wrangling with the General SLa1J obtained them

A subaltem of the Irish Guards

checks the gas helmets of hisplatoon, september 1916.Chlorine and Phosgene were the

most commonty used war gases

at this time, and ftannel hoodssoaked In chemicals - like these

'P helmets' - were considered to

give adequate protection. (lWM)

Sappers of the Royal engineerspack sacks of high explosive Into

a mine chamber driven Into the

chalk below the German trenches

on the Samme, while an officerlistens for enemy countermlnlng

with a geophone - a sort of

glortfled stethoscope. (IWM)

33

Table 2: COMPARATIVE DIVISIONALESTABLISHMENTS, 1914 & 1916

A: 1st OMslan, August 1914 B: 1st Division. June 1916tJMsionaj Headquarters DMsional Headquarters'C' Squadron. 15th Hussws 6th WeIsI1 (__)

1st Cyclist Company1st Infantry Bde:

1st (Guards) Infantry Brigade: 151 Black Watch151 Bn, CoIdstream Guards 1sl Cameron H;ghIanders1st Scots Guards 10th Glcosters (New Army)151 8Iack Watch 8th Royal _res (New Army)

2nd Royal Munster FusiIiers 1st Bde MG Coy1st Bde Trerd1 Mortar Sty

2nd Infantry~2nd Royal Sussex 2nd Infantry Bde:1st Loyal North Lancashire 2nd Royal Sussex151 Northants 1st Loyal North I..ancastWe2nd KRRC 151 Northants

2nd KRRC3rd Infantry~ 2nd Bde MG C<:tt1st Queen's 2nd Bde TM Sty1st South W_ 8o«ien>rs1st Glosters 3rd Infantry Bde:2nd Welsh 1st South W8Ies Border9rs

'. 151 GIostersDivisIonalMiIefy: 2nd WelshXYN Bde. Royal FteId Art,1ery (l8-pdrs) 2nd Royal Munst", FusitiersXXVI Bde, RFA (l8-pdrs) 3td Bde MG C<:ttXXXIX Bde. RFA (IB-pd'S) 3tdBdeTMStyXlIII Bde. RFA ('.Sin howitzers)(Each brigade With its own Arnmt.a1ition DivisIonal~

Column) XYN Bde. RFA (lB·pdrs & •.5<1)26 Heavy Bartery (60-pd'S) XXVI Bde. RFA (16·pd'S & '.Sin)(with fts ""'" ArrmJrition CoIum) XXXIX Bde. RFA (I8-pdrs & '.Sin)

·X'. 'y' & 'Z' TM Btys1st DMsionaI ArrmJnition CoIurm 1st [)Iv Ammunitlon Cok.mn

Royal EngIneers: Royal EngIneers:23rd & 261h F''''''' Companies 23rd. 26th & 1st (\.Jlwland) Fd Cays1st DNMsk>naI Signal C<:tt 1st Div Signal C<N

Royal Anny MedIc8I Caps: Royal Anny Medical Caps:1st, 2nd & 3td Aald Ambulances 1st, 2nd & 141st FdAmbs

2nd MobIle VeleOnary 8ec1ion 2nd MobiJe Veterinary Section

DMsionaI Train: DMsionaI Train:7l1t. 13th. 16th & 36th Cays. Army 7th. 131h. 161h & 36th Cays, ASC

SerYlce CapsTOTALS,

TOTALS: 19,372 all rankslB.179 all ranks 5,145 horses5.594 horses 48 x 18-J,xh, 16 x 4.5in54 x 18-pdr, 18 x 4.5in, 4 x 6().jXtr 2. x Stokes mortanl (3in).24 VICkers machine glrlS 12 x mediLm mtrs (2(1),877 carts &vehIdes, • x heavy mus (9.45in)

382 cycles. 48 x Vickers MGs9 molOfClJCl9S, 152 x Lewis guns9 motOf't8l'S B7B carts & vehicles,

372 cycles,24 motorcycles,13 motorcars, 3 motor lorries,21 motor 8I"f'tUance cars

35

•

oppOSITE The BEF used

hundreds of thousands ofhOrdS, all of which needed

feedl"" and care - their forageaccounted for more of the totaltonnage moving up the supply

lines than ammunition. In

1916, apart from the flvecavalry divisions, every Infantry

division had 5,600 horses on

establl.hment. totalling nearty

300,000 on the Somme front

alone. Here Royal ArmyVeterinary Corps personnel

treat a horse wounded by a

shen .pllnter. (lWM)

Back from the battlefields ofFrance and Belgium came the

wounded, to be healed and, If

possible, sent back out to thefighting. These convalescents

posing with their nurses wear 8

mixture of service uniform and

'hospital blues' - a bright bluejacket and trousers, sometimes

wom with a white shirt and rednecktie. (Authors collection)

some limited powers, but it was not untilDecember 1916 that the powers of coes RAwere positively resolved.

Organisational problems included deciding thebest use to be made of experienced batteryofficers, and that of obtaining the best effect fromthe available gun power. Four·gun baueries hadbeen introduced in early 1916, and baueries hadbeen taken [rom divisions to form Army brigades.Some of this shuffiing o[ resources was found to beadvantageous and some not: in early 1917, forexample. a reversion was made to si.x-gull batteries.

Over the course of the Creat War the artilleryof the BEF was constantly developing thetechnical equipment and kills necessary for theaccurate application of indirect fire - Le. thelocation and engagement of targets not visible from gun positions,especially enemy artillery. These means included sound-ranging,flash-spotting, gun calibration, application of meteorological data,accurate field survey and observation from the ground and the air.

Problems with com.munications handicapped artillery more thanother alms, particularly when they limited or prevented contaCl betw'eenobservers and gun positions. Without the flexibility of fire control soessential to the effective support of infantry in U"IC attack, heavydependence was placed on barrages run to a timetable to 'shoot' themon to their objectives. These used up enonnous quantities of ammu­nition, not always to best effect.

A Royal Field Artillery 18-pdr 'brigade' of 19i4 was the equivalent ofan infantry battalion in strength, with an e tablishmem of 23 officers,766 other ranks, 700 horses, 18 guns and limbers, 72 horse-drawnvehicles and 5 bicycles. A brigade operating 4.5in howitzers had analmost identical e tablishment but required only 62 carts and wagons. ARoyal Canison Artillery brigade of 6in howitzers, however, requirednearly 1,000 officers and men and 600 horses to operate their 16 pieces.

The Corps of Royal Engineers had a multiplicity of tasks includingcommunications, field works. ulI1nelling the miles of shafts a.ndchambers necessary to set mines beneath enemy fortifications. bridging,the operation of railways,canal and river craft andthe discharge of war gases.The organisalion andestablishments of RE unitsvaried greatly according totheir task.

The organisation of themedical services of theBEF, although mainly con­cerned Witll the task of theevacuation and treatmentof casualties. also variedfrom unit to unil. In batLlethe wounded infanu-yrnan34

Ii

36

Out to the battlefields wentreplacements for the casualties.Late In 1916 the first drafts ofconscripted men were sent tothe Westem Front. WIth theiramnl the era of the 811­volunteer BEF - a military forceunique among the conscriptedarmies of the other powers ­finally drew to a close. (IWM)

would first be attended to by a stretcher-bearer before being c3lned tothe battalion's medical officer at the Regimental Aid Post. (If he couldwalk, lhe wounded man was expected lO get mere under his ownsteam.) From the RAP he would proceed, perhaps via an AdvancedOre ing Station, to a Casualty Clearing Station, before being conveyedby 31nbulance to hospitals in the rear areas. ~Iost of the sen';cesmentioned were operated by a Field Ambulance, a unit of the Ro)"t1Army ~Iedical Corps, who e typical organisation consisted of ten officersand 242 other ranks, 100 horses and 16 horse-drawn ambulances, laterreplaced by motor am bulances.

The role of the Army enice Corps on the Western Front wasthe supply to the BEF of just about e\'ery commodity needed. Theorganisation of AS wlits also \'3.ried according to lheir tasks, whichranged from field bakeries and butcheries to the prO\.;sion of forage.Thousands of tons of store were constantly on the mO\'e from the ponsand bases of the BEF to the trOOps in the line, and the magnitude ofthe task of the AS may be gauged by its growth in trength from 500officers and 6,000 other ranks in 1914 to 4,40 officers and 311,47other ranks in 1918. Ammunition was the responsibility of the ArmyOrdn3l1ce Corps, who e senices also included workshops for the repairand maintenance of transport of all kinds, artillery, ammunition, smallanns, elC. (It is worth noting that as me BEF' casualties rose me fit menin the ranks of the ASC and AOC were 'combed Olll' and drafted to theinfanu)', in exchange for medically downgraded men from the front.)

The enormous number of horse deployed by the BEF required theservices of many units of Lhe Anny Veterinary Corps, whose companiesmustered 6 officers and 221 men each. They attended to the healthof me horses in units as well as those in the 'remount services', theorganisation thal bought or impressed animals into Lhe army andtrained, t.ransported and held them as replacements.

Behind the units of the BEF in the line there existed by 1916 a systemof bases, mostly established around the Channel ports of northern

France, from Rauen toBoulogne. From these alines-of-com municalionorganisation ferried menand munitions to the fronton a network of railways,roads, rivers and canals,and brought back thecasualtie , botll human andmaterial, to be restoredor repaired. Thi vast enter­pri e required hundredsof thousand of officersand men, enlisted foreignlabourers from the Empire,and French civilian workers(mostly women), to movethe stores needed by theBEF, to construct accom­modation, La operate the

\

\

The Service Dress or a subaltemofficer of the Grenadier Guardala ahown In thia 1914 portrait ofthe Prince of Wales, the futureKln9 Edward VIII. Not. the blackband, 90ld grenade and goldpeak lace on hla cap, the badgesof rank on his shoulder atraps,and the plain patch pockets onhis Jacket. (Author" colle<:tlon)

factOlie 311d workshops manufacturing everything from duckboardsto camouflage nets, to staff the base depots which trained and

sent forward reinforcements, Lo police the rear areas, to staff meIllilitary prisons, and LO provide anti-aircraft defence for those

parts of the organisation \ulnerable to air attack.Finally, there were the headquarters, from the General

Headquarters of the BEF down through those of the amliesand corps to the Di\ision and Brigade headquarters. As anile, the more senior the command the further from theline "'ould be found the headquarters, which was invariablysited in and about buildings offering the pace and comfortconsidered \ital LO its efficient functioning. Headquartersalso drew to them large numbers of officers and men; themore senior the headquarters. the greater the number of

general officers. their staffs, orderlies, grooms, dri\'ers, cooks,etc., and of the units whose duty it was to guard and, if

necessary, defend the headquarters from enemy attack. (Forexample, GHQ BEF had at one time l/lst Bn, Honourable

Artillery Company, and nm sections of AA artillery for uchprotection.) Infanu),nen mo\';ng up to the line viewed these head­

quarters, bases and lines of communication vvim ell\"Y for lhe soft lifeof the personnel who staffed them, regarding them "ith thecustomary contempt reserved for those who wore the unifonn of asoldier bUL were never in hann' way.

UNIFORM

The field en';ce unifoml wom by the BEF was known as Sernce Dress.Introduced in 1902, it was made from serge - a durable !\,';lIed worstedfabric - in 311 earth brown colour known officially as 'drab' butuniversally called 'khaki'.

Officer's Sernce Dress had been modified slightly by 1914 andconsisted of a jacket with an open collar, patch pockets on the breastand bellows pockets on the skirts, dull metal button and collar badge.For most officers rank was di plared by worsted braid, 'pips' and cro",lSon the cuffs of the jacket. Breeche were worn "ith puttees by'dismounted' officers, and with leggings or field 00015 and spurs bythose whose duties required them to ride. Boots (and all other items ofleather) were brown. Headdress consisted of a peaked cap. Officersbought all their unifoml, equipment and amlS from the tailor andoutfitter authori ed b)' meir regiments in peacetime, so there were slightregimental differences in materials, cut and insignia before Lheoutbreak of war. The officers of the Guards regiments chose to ignoreregulations and wore badges of rank in the st)'le ofsenior officers, Le. ontheir shoulder straps; they also wore forage caps "ith coloured bandsand laced peaks, and buttons grouped to show their regimental seniority.In Scottish regimenl5 the Glengarry bonnet was worn by all, while ti,ehighland regiments till maintained the kilt as a uitable nethem'ear foraClh'e service. For officers on acth'e service in France special officers'shops were set up from which they could buy clothing and equipmentwhen necessary; these were rarely of a regimental pattern, 37

r

38

A divisional commander and hisalllff. Major-General Tom Bridges(centre) went to France InAugust 1914 In command 0'.cavalry regiment. and by 1916had progressed to the positionof General Officer Commanding,19th (New Army) Dfvfslon.

When selecting. sign for hisdivision Bridges chose that of• butterfty; ft can lust be seenhe,.. pinned to the red dtvl.lonalbrassard on his right arm(see also Plate F1). The youthfulstaff captain on the right Is noneother than the Prtnce of Wales.The three slanting braIds onthe cuff of the left·hand officerIdentify a staff major orneutenant-colonel from aScottish regiment. (lWM)

Service Dre for otherranks differed in styleand material from theunifonns of their officers.The jacket was worn100 e-fitting, and featureda turned-down rolledcollar, rifle patches onthe shoulders, and patchpockets on the breast.Side pockets were let intothe skirts below the waist,and there was a pocketfor a field dressing(bandages and gauzepads) under the nap ofthe skirt. All butLOns werebra and regimentalshoulder titles in metalwere worn on the shoulderstrap. Badges of ran kswere worn on me sleeveof the jacket, and avariety of worsted badgeswere worn to indicateinstruClOrs' qualifications,sk.ill~at-arms, pecialist ortrade qualifications and

good conduct. Di mounted men wore trousers in Service Dressmounted men wore riding breeches; all wore puttees and ankJe boots:

British Anny boots came from the factory with the uppers in reversedhjde, rather like a coarse suede. They were issued well greased ",thwaterproofing dubbin, and standing orders in orne units of the pre­1914 Regular Anny decreed 'one pair to be kept brown and greased'.(This treatment produced footwear that gave beuer protection in theextreme conditions of the Western Front than that given by OMS bootsin the Falklands in 1982.) Steel tip were fitted to the soles and heelof boots as well as hobnails or studs.

Under the loose-fitting Service Dress different layers of clothingcould be worn, all woollen, and ranging from very substantialundenvear and flannel shirts to waistcoat and cardigan sweaters. Bothofficers and other ranks wore greatcoats of heavy, closely woven,supposedly 'waterproor material; that for officer was double-breasted,while the other ranks' coat was single-breasted for dismounted men.Mounted soldiers had short, double-breasted greatcoats which werecalled 'British Warms'. This practical and comfortable uniform wastopped off for most by a most impractical peaked (visored) cap;tiffened with wire, it did little to helter the head from rain or sun

but was an ideal place to display the regimental cap-badge. Carriedin the jacket pocket of each soldier "'as his record and pay book or'small book'; and from 1906 each man wore identity cliscs abouthis neck.

It is interesting to note that when the officers and men of the GennanAnnl' first saw British prisoners tl,ey thought their SeT\,ce Dress resembleda golfing costume, especially that of the officers ",th tl,eir collars and ties.

The ye", 1914 to 1916 saw little change in other ranks' Service Dressexcept for a modified pattern of jacket, the introduction of variouspatterns of 'trench' or soft cap, and the more practical Balmoral andTam-o'-Shanter bonnets for Scottish units. Protective clotlUng issued forthe trenche included rubber boots and waders, leather jerkins andanimal skin waistcoats, but no effecth'e waterproof clothing other thanthe issue 'groundsheet' - a 6ft x 3ft rectangle of mackintosh materialthat was often wonl as a cfilde cape. As time went by officers acquiredan extraordinary range of commercial protective clothing for wear inthe trenches, from 'trench caps' and 'trench macs' to 'trench bOOlS'.(Less obvious were the 'bullet-proor vests available through militarytailors. Trench armour was developed ""d tested, but the only item ongeneral issue by I916 was the steel helmet.) It became fashionable tobuv shirts, ties, breeches and puttees in the I'ery palest hues of khaIU ­in the case of breeches, of shades closer to pink than fawn. (Oneinspecting general officer, on enqwring where a young officer hadobtained his almost white shirt and tie, was sent the reply 'From thesame place your taffCaptain buys his breeches'.)

Personal equipmentA set of personal equipment made from woven cotton webbing had beenauthorised in 1908 and was worn by the inf""try of the Regular Ann)',some units of the Royal Engineers and by mOst of the infantry of theTerritorial Force by 1914.' Cavalry wore a set ofequipment in leather, the main item of which wasa bandolier carrying 90 rounds of ammunition.Gunners and other moun led troops al 0 wore thiequjpment, but ",th a 50-round b""dolier. Men ofcorps such as the ASC and AOC wore sets ofeqwpment made up from obsolete patterns.

Officers' equipment was of tl,e same patternregardless of the arm or branch of the wearer. Apattern called the ' am Browne' had beenunifonn for some time prior to 1914, and it came\\ith all the necessary straps and cases to enablethe wearer to carry his sword, pistOl, ammunition,binoculars, compass and maps. (Swords were dis­carded soon after the opening battles of the war.)

On active service an inf",,,,)' soldier of 1914carried tl,e clothing he stood up in, his rine ""dbayonet, 150 rounds of ammunition, water boule,entrenching tool, and a full 'Il'larching order' setof equipment. In his pack he carried a greatcoat,cap comforter (knitted cap), holdall (containingknife, fork, spoon, washjng and shal,ng kit, etc.),'housewife' (sewing kit), mess tin, pare socks andtowel. His haversack contained an 'iron ration' (atin of concentrated food, to be consumed onl), in• See MM 108, 8nf1JIl /nfIr)t1y~ (1J 1908-2000

Other ranks' Service Dress,1915: an uncluttered view ofthe stiffened cap and thejacket of pre-war style (note

pleated breast pockets), womby • private and a long-servicecorporal of the Royal NorfolkRegiment. They are holdingpart of a bomb casing found

.tt.r • Zeppelin raid onYarmouth. (TWM)

39

40

the direst emergenc),), daii)' rations (usuaU)' corned beef and biscuilS),ration bag, and ground heel. As time went b)' this burden wasincreased \\ilh items such as anti-gas equipment. sleel helmet, grenades,extra ammunition and digging tools. It soon became practice to dumppacks in rear areas and to wear ha,oersacks in their place; this wascalled 'battle order'.

[n 1914 the compan)' which had upplied the 190 webbingequipment to tl,e Briti h Ann)' had all but ceased production and couldnot meet the massive demand for their producl. An altcrnath-cequipment set ,....-as designed in leather, and initial orders for a million setswere placed with manufacturers ofleather goods in Great Blitain and theUSA. The 1914 pallem leather equipment was made in leatller gi"en akhaki or brown finish, and had packs and haversacks made of Canvas. Itwas mostly issued lO units of the New Anny and the TerriLOlial Force.

InsigniaUnlike the soldiers of theGerman Ann)', the Britishsoldier wore no badge ortitle to identif)' his counIT)'.Badges on caps and titleon shoulders identifiedmembers of, sa)', the 3rdDragoon Guards, TheQueen 's, or the TynesideScottish, and in doingso they demonstratedthe 'tribal' nature of theregiments of the BritishAnny - soldiers of theKing and proud to be,but more fiercely proudof their regiments.

Tltis displa)' of regi­mental insignia. whichincluded the titles of unilSpainted on the side ofvchicles, made identifi­cation of British unils andfonnations an easy matter:an enem), sp)' need onl)'stand beside the roadand read tl,e titles of theunilS passing. Therefore, byearly 1915 schemes of'battle insignia' had beenintroduced; the titles dis­played on flags, signboard,vehicles and guns werereplaced by devices andsymbols which concealedfonnation identities from

OPPOSITE Gunners - includinga New Zealander in a 'lemon·squeez.er' hat - pose by a stackof 18-pdr ammunition, September

1816. The group display a variety

of servk:e caps: the preo-waroti1Ioned type (Iell centre~ .....'aoft' cap with its stiched peak(JeftJ, and the ~Blimey'withits large earllaps (right). Theammunition Is also Interesting:

of the 123 fuses visible In the

photo, only e~ht appear to beoriginal No.100 'Graze' fuseSj81 have been modffled by havingdelay composition inserted, andthe remainder 8re time fusesfOf' shrapnel. (lWM)

OPPOSITE Mounted other ranb'Service Dress, 1916. Very fewYeomanry regiments - thecavalry of the Territorial Force ­served throughout the war asmounted unlts. Many wereconverted to cyclist units,before becoming battalions ofInfantry or being disbanded toprovide Infantry reinforcements.This sergeant of the 'DorsetCyclist Battalion' demonstratesthe dress and equipment of hisunit, which had been the 2/1 stDo,..et Yeomanry; note hisbreeches and cavairy.,tyleputtees. The wreathed badgeon his left forearm I, the 'MG'for machine gun proficiency.He Is armed with a Pattem 1914

0.3031n rifle and Is equippedas 8n Infantryman In 1908

pattern 'battle order', with therest of hi' gear strapped tohi, bicycle. (lWM)

the uninstructed observer.Similarl)', scheme of'battlepatches' were devisedand worn on unifonn. toconceal unit and fonnationidentities from those whodid not need to know. andcon\'ersely to make themmore ob\ious to U10 e whodid. UnilS of Kitchener'sAnn)' inu'oduced tl,e firstschemes, which enabledthe rapid identification ofa man's brigade, baualionand company fromcoloured de\;ce on theback or slee"es of hisjacket. The practice spreadthroughout the infantryof the BEF, so tl,at in timethe little pieces of cloth

became the badges that identified a front-line soldier.'Badges of rank were worn on both slee\'es by NCOs and \,,'arrant

officers: a single Che\TOn indicated the appointment of lance-corporal.two chevrons a corporal. ulfee chevrons a sergeant, three chevrons anda crown a staff-sergeant. a crown (on the cuff) a warrant officer up to1915 and a warralll officer Class II thereafter, and a badge of the RoyalAnns a warralll officer Class I from 1915. As always in the British Ann)',there were exceptions to these broad rules, with the Foot Guardschoosing to add extra chevrons to the sieeves of their junior COs,and the Royal Artillery calling NCOs with one chevron 'bombardiers'.There were special badges ofappoinrment for regimental quanennastersergeants. for dnlm, bugle and trumpet sergeants, bandmasters, etc.;but most appoinunems. uch as regimental sergeant major, batterysergeant major and company quanennaster sergeant carried no specialbadges other than those of rank.

Officers up to and including tl,e rank of lieutenant-colonel wore acombination of stars. crowns, chevron tape and trncing braid to indicaterank. One star marked a second-lieutenant, two a lieutenant. three acaptain, a crown a major, and a crown and one star a lieutenant-<:olonel.The more senior the officer, the more braid was worn with these badges.Colonels and above wore tlleir badges of rank on their shoulder straps:a crown and two stars for a colonel. a crossed sword and baton for abrigadier-general, a crossed sword and baton with one star for a major­general. a crossed sword and baton with a crown for a lieutenant.general,a crossed sword and baton with a crown and a star for a general, andcrossed batons within a wreath unnounted by a crO\\l1 for a field­marshal. General officers wore cap with red bands and much goldlace which also indicated their status. thus gi\ing rise to the nickname'brass-halS', as well as other distinctions such as gorget patches.

5 See MAA 182, 8fftl5h Bame~ (1) J914- 18 41

42

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barthorp, Michael, The Old umtemptibln, Elite 24,Ospre), Publishing (19 9)

Carrington, Charles E., Soldiu from the lVarsRLtuming, Hutchinson, (1965)

Chappell. Mike, British Bottle 17lSignia (I):1914-18, Men-at-Arms I 2, Ospre), Publi hing(1986)

Chappell, Mike, British Infantry Equipments (2):1908-2000, Men-at-Arms 108, OspreyPublishing (2000)

Dunn,J. c., 17Ie War the Infantry Knew, Jancs (rip,1987)

Edmonds, Brig Sir James E., Official History of theGreat War, hearer Publications (rip, 1986)

Haythomthwaitc, Philip J., The lVorid War OneSource Book, Am" & Armour Press (J 992)

Hogg, I. V., & Thurston, L.F., British Arlillery"ropons & Ammunition 1914-1918, [an AllenLtd (1972)

James, Brig. E. A., OBE, m, British Regiments1914-18, Samson Books Ltd (197 )

Richards, Frank, Old Soldiers Never Die, PhillipAusten (rip, 1994)

Simkins, Peter, Kitchener's Anny, Mancheslerniversity Press (1988)

tcm, Sir A. G., Tanks 1914-1918: The Log-book ofa Pioneer, Hodder & Stoughton (192?)

To this day unexploded British HE shells conUnue to beploughed up from the fields where the Somme battlestook place. The.. we,.. photographed near Serre,awaiting collection by the ordnance dispoul unit. of

the French Army. (Author. collection)

THE PLATES

A: THE REGULAR ARMY, 1914In August 1914 Kaiser Wilhelm II ordered General von Kluck,the commander of the German First Army, to 'walk overGeneral French's contempti~e little army'. His order led intime to the original BEF referring to themseWes as 'the OldContemptlbles', but long before that name became wide­spread the men of the BEF sang as they marched (to thetune of 'The Gir1 I Left Behind Me1: •...And we don't give af··· for old von KluckJ And all his f··.;ng army!' This cheerfulprofanity probably expressed the true nature of the oldtime Regulars better than the many thousands of wordswritten about them: tough, arrogant. skilled in their arms andspoiling for a fight. One of the greatest military historians Inthe English language called the BEF 'the most highly trainedstriking force of any country - a rapier amongst scythes'; theGennan chief-of-staff called ~ 'that perfect thing apart'.When it clashed with the German Army it invariably exacteda fearsome toll before retiring; one German officer wrote,'Our men attacked with the utmost determination, but againand again they were driven back by those incomparablesoldiers. Regardless of loss the English artillery cameforward to protect their infantrymen and in full view of ourguns kept up a devastating fire'. But the losses of the BEF inthese battles were grievous and increasingly difficult toreplace; by the end of 1914 few 'Old Contemptibles'remained, and the BEF would never again be the 'perfectthing apart'. Our plate shows officers and men of the BEF asthey appeared on landing in France in August 1914.A1: Private. 2nd Battalion, Royal WelshFuslliers, 19th Infantry BrigadeThe author's grandfather, Pte George Green, was a signallerwfth this unit. having been called from the reserve to jointhe battalion at Portland. He marched and fought with the2nd AWF for over a year until killed in action near Laos in8eptember 1915. (The circumstances of his death arerecorded in Frank Richards' book Old Soldiers Never Die.)Note his Service Dress. his regimental cap badge. hisshoulder titles (a bursting bomb over 'RWF'). his ReidService Marching Order equipment, and his SMLE rifle. Onhis sleeve are the chevrons of good conduct badgesmarking his seven years with the cotours. and the crossedflags of a regimental stgnaller. He carries a set of visualsignalling flags.A2: Private, 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys),5th Cavalry BrigadeNote the differences between his uniform and that of theinfantryman, particularly the way puttees were wound over­lapping upwards rather than downwards. His equipment,saddlery and bridle are mostly brown leather; his sword is ofthe 1908 pattern and is strapped to his saddle, as is hisSMLE rifle. His cap badge shows the Eagle of the French45th Une captured at Waterloo: what his French allies madeof this and similar Items commemorating such victories maybe imagined. (see also MAA 138 (Revised). BriYsh CavalryEquipments 1800-1941.)A3: Gunner. Royal Field ArtilleryHe carries a round of shrapnel ammunition for an18-pounder gun. Note his SO-round bandoffer; atthoughevery gunner carried rifle ammunition, only two rifles per gunteam were carried clipped to the limber.

In the background two staff officers confer beside the flagof the Farst Division. Note their red-banded caps, gorgetpatches and staff brassards.

A young Territorial artilleryman proudly wears the Imperial

Servtce badge on his right breast, al;ntfylng that he hasvolunteered to serve overseas In the event of a war.See Plate B. (Author's collection)

s: THE TERRITORIAL FORCE, 1914-15This plate shows members of units of the Territorial Forcewho volunteered for 'Imperial Service' and crossed toFrance to fight with the BEF in 1914.81: Captain, London ScottishOffICially the 1/14th (County of London) Battalion, this wasone of the first to go, arriving at Le Havre on 16 September.Their first battle was at Messines in November. Our subject'sService Dress is cut as for an officer of a highland regimentand his kilt is the 'Hodden Grey' chosen by the regiment ontheir formation. Note his Glengarry bonnet with badge andblue 'toone', the cutaway 'doublet' skirts of his tunic and cuffranking arrangement peculiar to Scottish regiments, hissporran, hose and garters. He wears the full sam Browneequipment inclUding broadsword, pistol and ammunitionpouch, binoculars, compass, haversack, water bottle andslung greatcoat.B2: Corporal, Queen Victoria's RiflesThis 119th (County of London) Battalion arrived in France inearty November. As a member of a Rifle regiment he wearsblack insignia and buttons on his Service Dress, and hisbadges of rank are of the cok>ured pattern worn with fulldress - another Rifle regiment affectation. Hts webbingequipment is of the pattern provided by CountyAssociations. which differed from the 1908 pattern in havingcartridge carriers for 90 rounds instead of lSO. His rifle isa (long) Lee-Enfield Mk I.83: Trumpeter, Oxfordshlre Yeomanry (Queen'sOwn Oxfordshlre Hussars)This un~ landed in France in September 1914, and had joinedthe 2nd Cavalry Division by November of that year, remainingpart of that formation for the remainder of the war. Apart fromhis cap badge and titles he is clothed and equipped exactlyas a regular cavalryman. Note that both a bugle and atrumpet were carried, on green cords by this unit - the formerfor calls on horseback and the latter for dismounted calls.Just visible on his upper sleeve is his metal badge of crossedtrumpets. Trumpeters do not appear to have been armedwith pistols at this time: he wears a 9O-round bandolier, andhis mess tin is strapped to the leather boot of his SMLE rifle.His greatcoat. ground sheet and wallets are strapped to thefront and rear arches of his saddle.(Inset detaiij All members of the Territorial Force and theYeomanry who had volunteered for Imperial 8ervice worethis white metal badge above their right breast pockets.

C: KITCHENER'S ARMY, 1914-15Confronted with the impossibility of providing uniforms andweapons to the horde of volunteers responding to LordKitchener's call, the authorities resorted to measures such asbuying civilian clothes and boots from outfitters, making upseveral patterns of jackets and trousers In the dark bluecloth that was more readily available than drab 'khaki', andissuing oddments of 'full dress' uniform that happened to beon the quartermaster's shelves. (All the details of dress andequipment on this plate are taken from photographs of NewArmy units in 'training'.)C1: Private, 10th (Service) Battalion, DurhamLight InfantryA member of K1. 'the firs1 hundred thousand'. at bayonettraining. He is dressed in the midnight blue uniform that wasissued to most New Army troops until Service Dress became 43

44

available. His equipment is a mixture of obsolete 1882and 1888 patterns in buff leather, and his rifle is the Mk Iversion of the SMLE. The blue uniform was hated byKitchener's men, since it marked them as tyros; Regularsscathingly referred to its wearers as 'Militia men', eventhough the Militia had been absorbed into the SpecialReserve some years earlier.C2: Signaller, 11th (Service) Battalion, TheWelsh RegimentThe volunteer of a unit of K3 is practising visual sIgnallingwith flags, shortly after the formation of the battalion inSeptember 1914. Still in civilian clothes, he carries hisraincoat 'bandolier fashion', and his jacket pockets bUlgewith the personal possessions he has brought with him onenlistment. Most New Army volunteers enlisted in workingclothes or clothing suitable for outdoor activities, but thosewho marched off to war in lounge suits and light shoes hadcause to regret their choice during their first weeks in thearmy. Shoes and boots wore out with constant drilling, and'gent's natty suiting' gave little protection from wind and rain.

Until uniform of any sort became available civilian boots,overcoats and replacement clothing were bought from localoutfitters as a stopgap measure.C3: Private, 15th (Scottish) DivisionYet another stopgap was the issue of obsolete uniform itemsfrom military resources. This soldier typifies one of the unitsof this New Army formation; his battalion is not identified,but the details are taken from a photograph of men of thedivision drilling at barracks at AJdershot in September 1915.Of the many men captured by the camera, no two aredressed the same; our subject wears the full dress trousersof a line regiment. the full dress doublet of a Scottishregiment, and a civilian cloth cap.

D: FRANCE & BELGIUM, 1914The BEF first clashed with the German Army near Mons,Belgium, on 23 August, from whence they conducted afighting withdrawal into northern France to the River Marne,where the enemy were contained and then driven back. The'retreat from Mons' has passed into legend as much for its

By the winter of 1914/15 theappearance of the highlandInfantryman had changedconsiderably. Coloured hosetops and 'spats' had beenreplaced by khaki hose andshort puttees. The colourfulGlengarry bonnet had beenreplaced flrst by a blue Balmoral

bonnet, then by a khakiBalmoral, and finally by a khakJserge round cap called aTam-o'-Shanter. These fourArgyll & Sutherland Highlanderspose In their newly~lssued

animal-skin winter jerkins:three wear khaki Balmorals,and the man standing at centrea Tam-o'-Shanter. See PlateD. (Author'S collection)

OPPOSITE By 1916 the Britishsoldier carried two antl~gas

wallets or haversacks, eachcontaining a fabric hood soaked

In chemicals. In one he carriedthe 'Hypo helmet' (lett), and Inthe other the later 'P helmet'(right) with an exhalation valve.Also carried were pairs of gasgoggles for protectton againstlachrymatory agents - 'tear gas'.See Plate E. (Author's collection)

endless marching as for its bloody battles, such as that atLe Cateau. Heavily outnumbered battalions and batteriesinflicted crippling casualties on the advancing Germansbefore slipping away to join the columns marching south.Such was the exhaustion of the marching men during thiscritical two-week period that several recorded falling asleepwhile continuing to march.01: Sergeant, 1st Battalion, The GordonHighlandersThis unit suffered so many casualties at the battle ofLe Cateau that the survivors became 'Army Troops' from12 to 30 September white reinforcements were brought upto bring the battalion up to strength. Note the generalappearance of a senior NCO of a highland regiment at thistime, including his Glengany bonnet, 'cutaway' jacket, kiltapron over his Gordon tartan kilt, and regimental hose andgarters. He wears the 1908 pattern Field Service MarchingOrder webbing equipment, and carries a SMLE Mk III rifle.His medal ribbons mark him as a veteran of the Boer War.02: Seaman, Royal Naval DivisionIn early October the Royal Naval Division arrived in Antwerpand helped to cover the withdrawal of the Belgian Army fromthe port. This sailor of the division, fighting in the role ofinfantryman, wears the standard uniform of an ordinaryseaman of the time but without the blue jean collar. His cap'tally' bears the legend 'A.N.V.A.' marking him as a memberof the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. His trousers aretucked into webbing gaiters, and his equipment is theleather pattern peculiar to the Royal Navy. His rifle is theOong) Lee-Enfield Mk I. In the confusion of the withdrawalfrom Antwerp three units of the 1st Naval Brigade (the Hawk.Benbow and Collingwood Battalions) became detached,and were either taken prisoner or interned in Holland ­an inauspicious debut for what Churchill's AssistantDirector of Naval Operations called 'Winston's tuppennyuntrained rabble'.

03: Infantryman, trench clothing, winter1914/15As the year drew to an end the misery of life in open trenchesbegan to be experienced, and protective clothing was sentout to the BEF in the hope of keeping down the number ofmen going sick with trench foot and exposure. Thisinfantryman is dressed in waders, a goatskin jerkinand a knItted 'cap comforter' - over, presumably, manylayers of socks, underwear. shirt, and 'jersey cardigan'.Socks, scarves, 'Balaclava helmets' and similar items wereknitted by patriotic ladies' groups all over Great Britain andsent out to the troops 'at the front', either to individuals orfor general distribution. By today's standards the clothingand diet of the BEF would seem insufficient to sustain lifein a Flanders ditch in winter, but the troops there in 1914 and1915 managed to endure the conditions without seriousdeterioration in their health. Note that our subject is a'bomber', identified by the white, red-flamed badge on hissleeve. He holds the Mk II version of the NO.1 Hand Grenade;when the safety pin (note label) had been removed and thegrenade was swung back for throwing, care had to be takennot to touch the wall of the trench with the brass cap, as thiswould detonate it instantly - with predictable results.'Bombing', at this date. was the business of specialists.

E: FRANCE & BELGIUM, 1915E1: L1eutenant~Colonel,9th (Service) Battalion,The East Surrey Regiment, 24th (New Army)Division; Laos, September 1915Caught unawares by the German use of war gases In April1915, the Allies were not slow in developing the weaponthemselves. In the Battle of Loos in September, the first inwhich the New Army formations were used in the attack, gaswas released to support the assaulting infantry. To protectthem from its effects they wore hoods made from layers offlannel and cotton which were impregnated with a mixtureof caustic soda, phenol and glycerine. and fitted witheyepieces and a valve for breathing out. Called a 'P helmet',it was tucked into the collar of the jacket, as demonstratedhere by the commanding officer of a unit of the 24thDivision; this formation was thrust into the battle a scantfortnight after concentrating in France, and lost 4,178casualties In the process. Note our subject's Sam Browneequipment, two haversacks for anti-gas equipment, cuffbadges of rank, O.455in Webley reVOlver, and his walkingstick - an item adopted by many officers at this time. Notealso the 'flash' of ribbon In the regimental colours of black,white and red worn by officers of the 9th Surreys as anaid to identification in battle.E2: 2nd Lieutenant of infantry, raiding dressWearing a 'cap comforter' and 'blacked up' with soot for anight-time trench raid, he wears and carries nothing bywhich his unit could be identified if he is captured or killed,and his equipment is kept to the bare minimum. Hisweapons are a 0.455in Webley Mk VI revolver, a Pritchard­Greener bayonet, and an improvised bludgeon. The bigbellows pockets of his Service Dress jacket accommodatehand grenades.E3: Artilleryman of an ammunition columnThis gunner leads a mule loaded with 18-pounder shells.He wears a leather jerkin over his Service Dress, and asoft trench cap with earlJaps, christened the 'Gor'Blimey' - 45

46

perhaps by the first sergeant-major who saw it. Hisanti-gas haversacks accomadate his P helmet, Hypo helmetand tear gas goggles.

F: THE SOMME, 1916Fl: Major-General C.E.Perelra,GOe 2nd (Regular) DivisionContrasting starkly with the figures surrounding him, thisgeneral officer demonstrates the splendour of the uniform ofa 'brass hat', from his red-banded and gold-braided cap tothe spurs on his highly polished boots. General Pereira tookover command of the 2nd Division on 27 December 1916and remained its GOC for the remainder of the war. Thegeneral was former1y an officer of the Foot Guards, and thisis reflected in the cut of his service Dress and the patternof his Sam Browne. Note his badges of rank, the gorgetpatches on his collar, and his red divisional brassard uponwhich he wears the badge of the 2nd Division: one redbetween two white eight-pointed stars.F2: Lewis gunner, 1/6th Battalion, Durham LightInfantry (Bishop Auckland Rifles), 50th(Northumberland) Division, Territorial ForceBy this time issues of the 'Brodie' pattern steel helmet hadbecome general: sometimes worn with canvas or hessiancovers, they were painted in a wide range of cok>urs. 1llelarge diamond-shaped patch worn on both sleevesrepresents his brigade and unij by its shape and colourrespectively. Note on his cuff the wreathed 'MG' badge whichat this date marked proficiency with the Lewis gun; the blackbuttons on his SeMce Dress (an affectation of his regiment),his 1914 pattern leather equipment, anti-gas haversacks, andthe 0.455in revolver with which most machine gun 'No.ls'were by then armed. (The history of the OU notes that thereinforcements sent up to replace the casuaJtjes incurredduring the Somme fighting included the first 'Derby men' orconscripts, who were mostly from southern England.)F3: 'Bomber', 1/6th Battalion, The Black Watch,51 st (Highland) Division, Territorial ForceNote the blue bar at the top of his sleeves, denoting brigadeand battalion, and the red and khakl grenade badge of aQualified bomber on the upper right sleeve. He wears acanvas apron with pockets containing ten NO.5 Grenades or'Mills bombs' above his 1914 pattern equipment. Note alsohis anti-gas haversacks, one of which Is worn in the mannerof a sporran. His Black WatCh tartan kilt is covered by acanvas apron and he wears short puttees In place of the lesspractical 'spats' (el Plate 01).F4: Gunner, Royal Field ArtilleryThis figure depicts a typtcal gunner, stripped to the waist inorder to better work at the business of feeding ammunitionto his gun, in this case a 4.5in howitzer. He is adjusting aNo.83 'time and percussion fuse' which has been filled to anHE shell. The No.83 was frequently used in place of theNo.100 'Fuse, graze' from mid-July 1916; tile design andmanufacture of the 100 Fuse was flawed, and its use in HEshells resulted in an alarming number of 'prematures' whichdestroyed guns and killed and injured their crews. Delaydevices were eventually built into the 100 fuse series,rendering their use safer for the gunners but ensuring that HEshells partialty buried themsefves before detonatk>n. Thisreduced tile effect on the enemy and cratered the battlefield,making it almost impassable in places.

A private of a New Anny unit of the Royal Anny MedicalCorps, 1915. Note his waterproof cap cover; his 'modified'Service Dress Jacket, cut more simply than the pre-warmodel and with larger, unpleated patch pockets; and thered crou badge on his sleeves. (Author. collection)

G: THE SOMME. 1916The scale of casualties suffered by tile BEF during thebattles of the Somme campaign, Juty-November 1916,defIeS comprehension; on the first day alone, 1 July, 57.000men were killed or wounded. Over the whole campaign theGerman Army lost between 660,000 and 680,000 men - tothis day the ghastly body count is uncertain: the British andFrench armies in this sector lost 630,000 between them. Therecovery of wounded men was difficult at the best oftimes. when stretchers had to be negotiated through narrowtrenches, and it was all but impossible when badly hurt menlayout in no-man's-land under the watch, and often the fire,of the enemy. It was a lucky soldier who received medicalattention soon after being hit. and luckier still one who wasmoved rapidly down the evacuation route to the hospitals intile rear. This plate depicts tile arrival at a General Hospitalof wounded from the Guards OMsion.G1: Sergeant, 1st Battalion, The GrenadierGuardsHe has retained his helmet and anti-gas equipment forprotection during his journey out of the battle area, andhe has a casualty evacuation label fastened to his jacket.Note his regimenta1 titles and battalion numerals on bothsleeves, above badges of rank incorporating the regimentalgrenade badge.

G2: Private, Royal Army Medical CorpsAssisting him is an RAMG orderty. Note the typtcaI warmweather wor1<ing dress of tile 'greyback' shirt, with its neckband refled inside, and trousers worn loose: the leather beltdecorated with various souvenir cap badges is a typicalpersonal affectation. This far behind the lines, boots weresometimes polished black rather than dubbined.G3: Nursing sister, Queen Alexandra's ImperialMilitary Nursing Service (Reserve)This is the service dress worn outdoors, in the traditionalgrey and red of the QAIMNS. For ward duty the hat and cape('tippet') were replaced by an apron and cap ('veil'). Themaroon bars on her sleeve are the badges of a 1st ClassNursing Sister; nurses did not have military rank but wereaccorded the status of officers.G4: Chaplain, Army Chaplains DepartmentAssisting with the reception of the casualty, this chapfaindisplays the equivalent rank of captain on his shoulderstraps. which for this department are distinguished by broadblack side stripes. He wears the black Maltese cross badgeof the AChD on his cap, and on the collar of an old workingjacket which is patched with leather at elbows and cuff; notealso the black buttons. In the background is a CammerambUlance bearing the sign of XIV Corps, in which theGuards Division served.

H: ROYAL FLYING CORPS, 1914-16Military aviation was extremely hazardous throughout theperiod under study. Aircraft were flimsy and unstable. theirengines unreliabfe, and the possibility of a machine catchingfire through enemy action or accident threatened airmenwith a horrifying death. Observers in balloons were providedwith primitive parachutes, but these were not thoughtpractical for the pilots and observers in aircraft.H1: Sergeant ObserverThe uniform for the other ranks of the Royal Flying Corps isdepicted here. The 1914 pattern 'lancer' jacket (oftenreferred to as a 'maternity jacket') was peculiar to the RFC;It was worn by some officers, but most preferred to continuewearing the unrtorm of the regiments from which they hadtransferred into the Corps. Both offICers and men wore thisFieki Service cap. Note the other ranks' Corps title on hissleeves above his badges of rank; and the flying 'brevet' onthe left breast, in this case an '0' for observer with a singlewing. Our subject wears 1908 pattern webbing and is armedwith a 0.455in Webley revolver.H2: Pilot, flying clothingOfficers purchased their own flying clothing of a wide rangeof commercial patterns, and the items bought in by thegovernment for issue to other ranks also showed manyvariations. This airman wears a leather cowl-type hefmetcovering most of the face. with ~Ied wind deflectors in frontof the ear apertures, and a pair of yeUow-tinted anti-glaregoggles. The double-breasted leather coat with a fur- orfleece-lined coJlar and a convenient horizontal chest pocket

The cross erected by the Germans over the grave of theBritish 'ace' Albert Ball. On 7 May 1917 he was iast seendiving Into cloud, and his body was later found in hiscrashed SES, without signs of combat. Some claimedthat he had been shot down by Baron von Rlchthofen'sbrother lather, but the latter always denied tt. (lWM)

was typical flying clothing before 1918. The lined gauntletshave slits allowing the choice of alternative glove and mittenfingers. the latter being clipped back out of the way (asshown on his left hand) when separate fingers were neededfor greater dexterity. The tIligh-length sheepskin and leather·tug boots' were originally designed by Major Lanoe Hawker.VC, and made up for him by Harrods; their popularity Quicklyspread. The pilot carries maps and a 0.4551n revolver in hiscoat pockets.H3: Captain Albert BallThe first RFC fighter 'ace' whose exploits became widelyknown to the public, Ball arrived in France in February 1916.On 22 May he brought down his first two enemy aircraftwhile piloting a Nieuport scout; a steadily mounting recordof victories resulted in the award of the Milrtary Cross on27 June. His first Distinguished Service Order and a Barwere gazetted simultaneously on 26 September. and asecond bar on 25 November. Promotion and furtherdecorations followed, and after a spell as an instructor hereturned to the front as a flight commander in No.56 Sqn,flying the SE5 scout. After his mysterious death in action inMay 1917 - three months short of his 21st birthday- he wasawarded the Victoria Gross to add to his three DSOs, MG,Legion d'Honneur, Croix de Guerra and Order of St George.His total of enemy aircraft destroyed was officially 44, but heis reckoned to have forced down 23 others. Gaptain Ball isillustrated late in 1916, wearing tile Service Dress of the 7th(Robin Hood) Bn, The ShOfWood Foresters (Noltingharnshireand Derbyshire Regiment) - the unit in which he wascommissioned before training as a pilot. He wears hispilot's brevet above the ribbons of the OSC and the MG.(See also MAA 341 & 351, British Air Forces 1914-18(1) & (2).)

47

48

INDEX

Figures in bold refer to illustrations.

ammunition 14-15, 17. 1 .36.39artillerv F4, 17, 18-20,34,41. 42, 46Antwerp. defence of. 1914 02.

23.45annour 39annoured cars 22, 23Arm)' Ordnance Corps 36Arm Service Corps 36Ann)' Veterinary Corps 34, 36artillery 0.9,20-21,24,33-34.42,

4>-469.2in guns 21l8-pounderguns 6,17,18-19,20ammunition F4. 17, 18-20.34.41.

42,46anti~aircraflguns 20fuses F4, ) 8, 41, 46hea"y mortars 20ho\\inen 19,20.20railway 21Ro)'al Field Artillery ;\3, F4, 17,

20,34,42,46Ro,.al Ganison Artillel)' 20, 33RO)'a1 Regiment of Artillery 6,

18,41

badges B, 1'2, F3, 38, 40,40, 41, 43.43,46

Ball, Captain Alben H3, 47, 47Boer War. I 99-1902. lessons of

6,14bomben; D3, F3, 16, 45, 46Bridges. Major-Ceneral Tom 38BriLi It E.xpeditionary Force (BU) 3,

4,7-S, 10-11, I I (table), 42I t Di~ision 35(table)2nd (Regular) Di\ision Fl,4615th (Scottish) Di\ision e3.4426th Highland Brigade 13

c",'alry 6, 15,392nd Dragoon (Ro)'al Scots Grc)'S)

A2,4216th Lancers 7Dorset Yeomanry 40'Household Battalion' 17Oxfordshire Yeomanry (Queen '5

own Oxfordshire Hussars)B3,43

chaplains G4,47

discipline 5divisional establishmems 35(tablc)

fire support 24French, SirJohn (1852-1925) 3

gas masks EI, 33, 45, 45

Haig, General ir Douglas(1861-192 ) 5,21

headgear A, 0, 23, 37. 37, 38, 39.39, 41, 45-46, 46

helmets F2, 46highland BI, DI. 37, 39, 43. 44, 45headquarters 37hof1i<S 6, 34, 86

infamry regimenlSArg)'J1 & Sutherland Highlanders

44the Black Watch F3, 46Durham Lightlnfamry CI, F2,

43--44,46the East Surrey Regiment EI, 45the Gordon Highlandcrs Dl, 45Grenadier Guards Gl, 37, 46Irish Guards 33The London Regimcnt 6, 12!.he London Scottish BI, 7, 43Northumberland FusiJiers 14Queen \'ictoria's Rifles 82, 43Queen's Wesuninster Rifles 12Royal Norfolk Regiment 39Royal Welsh FlI5iliers AI, 42the Welsh Regiment C2. 44

insignia AI, B2, 40-41, 42, 43rank EI, Fl. 37, 37, 38. 41, 45, 46

KJ 8-9, 13Kitchener, Field Marshal Horatio

Herben, Earl Kitchcner ofKhanoum (1850-1916) 8.

8,22

lines of communication 36-37Loos, Battle of, 1915 El, 11,45Ludendorff, General Erich

(186.'>-1937) 13

~Iachine Gun Corps IS, 17.Hea\)' Section' 23

marksmanship 6. 15medical scn;ces and treaLmel1l G.

34,34.36,46,46mining operations 33mobilisation 7Mon , Bal~e of, 1914 D, II (table),

44-45Motor Machine Gun Sen;ce 22

'New Armies C, 8-10,10, 15.40,43--44

non<ommissioned officers 82.01,GI, HI, 4, 5, 6, 39, 41, 43, 45, 46,47

officen; 5,13,16,33.38.41staff A, 43unifonns and dress BI, EI-2, Fl,

37,37,39,43,45,46organisation 10.24,33,34

Pereira, ,Major.ceneral C.E. FI,46personal equipment Al-2, BI-2, DI,

E1,6,12.23,39-40.40.42.43.45poslers 8, 9. 10

Queen Alexandra's Imperial Milir.aryNursing nice G3,47

rank. insignia of El, FI, 37, 37. 38,41,45,46

recmilS and recruitment 4-5. 8, 8, 9,10.36

Regular Aml)' A, 3, 4. +-5. 39, 42--13respite 23reslnlcluring. 1902-14 6-8Rora1 Engineen;. Gorps of 33,34,39Royal Fl};ng Corps H, 21, 22, 47Ro\..u ~Iarines 23Royal Na\'al Air Sen;ce 21, 22. 23Ro)'aJ ~a\'al Oi\; ion D2, 23. 45Ro)ral Na\')' 4

signallers AI, C2, 33, 42, 44snipers 24Somme offensi\'e, 1916 F-G. 10,

lI(table), 11-13.17, 1,19,20.23,24,24,46-47

tactics 6,17-18,21,23-24,34lanks 21-23TerriloriaJ Force, the B, F2-3. 7.8,

10,12.39,40,43,43,46training 5. 8-9. 10

weapons CI, 4, 6. 17,43transpon 6, 19Lrcnch S)'Slems 13, 23lfUmpelers 83, 43

UllifollllS and dress AI, 37, 38-39,39, 42.46ca,,"ry A2,B3.40.42.43grealcoats 38highland BI. 0, DI. F3. 37, 43,

44.44,45.46'hospital blues' 34'New Armies' C,43-44officen; BI, EI-2, F1, 37. 37, 39,

43.45.46prOlecti\'e clothing 39raiding £2, 45Royal FIling Gorps H,47Lrench clothing D3. 45

weapons 13ba)'onets CI, 16,43--44bombs 1!>-16imprO\;scd [2, 16, 45lances 6~is guns 1'2, 17, I ,21,46machine guns 6. 14, 15, 16-18. 16mortars ]8pistols EI-2, 1'2. 15, 16,45,46rifle grenades 16~le SMLE riOe AI, B2-3, CI, DI,

6,6,12.13-15.42,43,44,45s"urds A2. BI,6,39.42. 43Weslern FronL the ~

Ypres, Firsl Battle of, 1914 19

The uniforms, equipment. history and organisation

of the world's military forces, past and present.The British Army

in World War I (1)The Western Front

1914-16

Full colour artwork

UnnvaJled detail

Illustrations

Photographs

At the outbreak of World Will I

In August 1914 the British Army

was unique: unlike the massed

conscripts of the continental

powers, it was a small force

raised entirely by voluntary

recruitment. While the first

CillOpaigns brought admiring

praise from the enemy for its

Incomparable soldiers, the

British Expeditionary Force had

been virtually eliminated by the

end of 1914. Kitchener's call

for volunteers to build the

'New Armies' drew such an

astonishing patriotic response

that by the 'Big Push' on the

Somme In mid-1916 the BEF

had grown from five to 55

c1Ivisions. However, that

summer's hideous casualties

forced Britain to adopt

conscription at last.

OSPREYPUBLISHING

www.ospreypubllshlng.com 9

ISBN 1-84176-399-3

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