Appendix 3
Structure of the British Army
in the Great War

Not all readers will be familiar with the British Army’s structure and its often-bewildering nomenclature. This section provides a simplified structure of the Army hierarchy which can be used as an accompanying reference tool to the biographies. There is also a more detailed explanation of the role and development of the infantry Battalion which was the unit that most British soldiers in the Great War regarded as their home.

Building blocks – the basic organisational structure

Infantry

Infantry soldier - he was part of a Battalion (around 1,000 men) This was subdivided into four Companies, which were each subdivided into four Platoons, which were each subdivided into four Sections.

Several Battalions - were under command of a Brigade (around 5,000 men).

Several Brigades - were under command of a Division (around 20,000 men).

Several Divisions - were under command of a Corps.

Several Corps - were under command of an Army.

Several Armies (the British eventually had five on the Western Front) – were under command of a General Headquarters (GHQ)

GHQ – was under command of the War Office.

 

Artillery

The Artillery was organised slightly differently:

Soldier - he was part of a Battery or Ammunition Column (which was subdivided into Sections).

Several Batteries and an Ammunition Column - were under command of a Brigade.

Several Brigades - were under command of a Division.

 

Cavalry

The Cavalry also had a different structure. The term ‘cavalry’ only applied to Regular Army units. Mounted Territorial Force units were known as yeomanry:

Soldier – he was part of a Troop (around 40 men).

Several Troops - were under command of a Squadron (around 160 men).

Several Squadrons – were under command of a Cavalry Regiment (around 550 men).

Several Cavalry Regiments – were under command of a Cavalry Brigade (around 1,750 men).

Several Cavalry Brigades – were under command of a Cavalry Division (around 7,000 men).

Structure and role of the Battalion

Each infantry Battalion belonged to a Regiment. The British infantry Regiments of 1914-18 were based on counties and been created under the Childers Reforms of 1881. Each Regiment was commanded by a full Colonel and was usually divided into two Regular Battalions, plus a Reserve Battalion and several Territorial Force (part-time) Battalions.

Regiments never fought as Regiments, but as individual numbered Battalions. These in turn were attached to Brigades, Divisions, Corps and Armies (see above). In 1914 a full-strength Battalion comprised 1,107 officers and men. Commanded by a Lieutenant-Colonel, it had a Headquarters, Machine-Gun Section and four Companies.

The Headquarters was made up of the Commanding Officer, his Second in Command, an Adjutant (Battalion staff officer), the Quartermaster, plus the Orderly Room staff, Pioneers, Signallers, and Stretcher Bearers. There would also be a Medical Officer and a Padre plus an Armourer from the Army Ordnance Corps. In total there were four officers, one Warrant Officer (the Regimental Sergeant Major), eight Sergeants and 61 Other Ranks plus the Medical Officer and the Padre.

The Machine-Gun Section had two Maxim Guns and was commanded by a Second Lieutenant or a Lieutenant. He had one Sergeant and 16 men under his command. In February 1915, the Machine-Gun Section had its strength increased from two to four machine-guns, and the old Maxims were gradually replaced by the Vickers Machine-Gun. In October 1915, the Machine-Gun Section in every battalion was disbanded, and the personnel transferred with their equipment to the newly-formed Machine-Gun Corps. The Vickers were replaced at Battalion level by the Lewis light machine gun. Initially there were four in every Battalion, formed into a Lewis Gun Section, but this had increased to 36 by 1918.

An infantry Company was lettered from A to D (or W-Z in some regiments) and was commanded by a Major or Captain. He had a Second in Command, normally a Captain. There was also a Company Sergeant Major, and a Company Quarter Master Sergeant. In total there were 227 officers and men in a Company.

A Company was split into four Platoons, each one numbered. Numbers 1-4 always served in A Company, numbers 5-8 in B, numbers 9-12 in C, and numbers 13-16 in D. In total the four platoons comprised eight Sergeants, nine Corporals, four Drummers, four Batmen and 188 Privates. Each Platoon was commanded by a Second Lieutenant or a Lieutenant, with a Platoon Sergeant as his right-hand man.

Each Platoon was made up of four Sections, of 12 men, each commanded by a Non-Commission Officer (NCO) - usually a Corporal.

Shortly after the outbreak of war in 1914, Territorial Force Battalions were authorised to form Reserve or 2nd Line units. They were distinguished by a ‘2/’ prefix from their parent unit (prefixed ‘1/’). Initially these were formed from men who had not volunteered for overseas service, and the recruits who were pouring in. Later they, too, were mobilised for overseas service and new 3rd Line units were created to supply drafts to the two service Battalions. In this way the six pre-war Territorial Force infantry Battalions of the Hampshire Regiment grew to 17 after 1914.

As the Great War progressed the strength of a Battalion varied greatly because of casualties, sickness and transfers. Heavy losses meant that by the time of the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele) in 1917, the average infantry Battalion was around 450 officers and men - less than half its pre-war strength.