THE TERRITORIAL DIVISIONS
THE
TERRITORIAL
DIVISIONS
1914-1918
BY
J. STIRLING
Late Major
8th Batt. Royal Scots
1922
LONDON & TORONTO
J. M. DENT & SONS LTD.
NEW YORK: E. P. DUTTON & CO.
All rights reserved
[Pg v]
INTRODUCTION
These Notes are composed very largely of extracts,relating to the work of Territorial Infantry Divisions,taken from the published despatches. These divisionssaw a great deal of heavy fighting throughout theyears 1916 and 1917, but the numbers, or Territorialdesignations, of formations operating on the WesternFront were not given in despatches, as publishedin the Gazette, until the Commander-in-Chief reportedon 20th February, 1918, as to the battle ofCambrai, November 1917. However, in the editionof Sir Douglas Haig’s Despatches, published byMessrs. Dent, the divisions, which are referred toas being engaged in the more important battles,are identified by number; and, in compiling theseNotes, advantage (with permission) has been takenof this additional information.
The facts recited by the Field-Marshals andGenerals, who commanded the British Armies inthe field, and the judgments expressed by themin their despatches seem to be the best, if not theonly reliable, material from which to form an opinionon the value of the services of the Territorial Forcein the great struggle. It will generally be admittedthat the opinion of units on their own doings would[Pg vi]not be quite impartial and could not be used to forma basis for assessing the value of the Force as a whole.
Under the Territorial Act of 1907 fourteeninfantry divisions were formed. Some of thesesailed for the East in September and October, 1914,and all the fourteen had embarked for abroad beforeJuly 1915. If it had not been necessary to keep inview the question of armament and the possibilityof invasion, several divisions might have been inFrance before the close of the first battle of Ypres.If that had been found practicable Lord Frenchmight have had fewer anxieties in November 1914.His Lordship, in his despatches and elsewhere, hasborne testimony to the valuable services of theTerritorial battalions which were under his commandin 1914.
It is doubtful if Britain ever quite realised whatit owed to the Territorials who went abroad beforethe New Armies were ready. Apart from the fourdivisions which went to the East in the autumn of1914, thus allowing the Indian Corps to be broughtto France, the Territorial strength, in France alone,in April 1915, before the second great struggleat Ypres broke out, probably exceeded that of theBritish Army at Mons, and it is by no means certainthat the ten Regular divisions plus two Indiandiv