The 12th Indian Division was formed in March 1915 from units of the

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...

. It formed part of the

Tigris Corps The III Corps is a formation of the Indian Army that was formed during World War I in Mesopotamia during its respective campaign. Prior to the reorganization of the British and Indian forces in Mesopotamia, it was designated as the Tigris Corps. ...

, for service during the

Mesopotamia Campaign The Mesopotamian campaign was a campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I fought between the Allies represented by the British Empire, troops from Britain, Australia and the vast majority from British India, against the Central Po ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The Division arrived in Mesopotamia in April 1915 and remained there until it was broken up in March 1916. The Division's brigades remained in Mesopotamia as independent formations until forming part of the 15th Indian Division in May 1916. During its short existence it fought in a number of actions including the

Battle of Shaiba The Battle of Shaiba (12–14 April 1915) was a battle of World War I fought between British and Ottoman forces, the latter trying to retake the city of Basra from the British. Background By capturing Basra, the British had taken an important ...

between April 12–14, 1915, the

Battle of Khafajiya A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

between May 14–16, 1915, the

Battle of Nasiriya A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

between July 5, 13-14, 24 1915, where 400 British and Indian soldiers were killed in the battle and up to 2,000 Turkish Soldiers. The Occupation of

Nasiriya Nasiriyah ( ar, ٱلنَّاصِرِيَّة; BGN: ''An Nāşirīyah''; also spelled ''Nassiriya'' or ''Nasiriya'') is a city in Iraq. It is on the lower Euphrates, about south-southeast of Baghdad, near the ruins of the ancient city of Ur. ...

and the affair at Butanuja, January 14, 1916.

Order of battle

The division included the following units; not all of them served at the same time:

12th Indian Brigade The 12th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the First World War. It served in the Mesopotamian Campaign on the Euphrates Front throughout its existence. History The 12th Indian Brigade ...

* 2nd Battalion,

Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment) The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army based in the county of Kent in existence from 1881 to 1961. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, originally as the Queen' ...

90th Punjabis The 90th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment was raised in 1799 as a battalion of Madras Native Infantry. It was designated as the 90th Punjabis in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 8th Punjab Regiment in 1922. ...

* 44th Mherwara Infantry * 4th Prince Albert Victor's Rajputs *

67th Punjabis The 67th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1759, when they were raised as the 8th Battalion Coast Sepoys. The regiment's first action was during the Carnatic Wars followed by the Thir ...

* 1/5th Battalion,

Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment) The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Ar ...

30th Indian Brigade The 30th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It initially saw active service in Egypt in 1915, before transferring to Mesopotamia. It took ...

* 24th Punjabis * 76th Punjabis * 126th Baluchis * 2nd Battalion,

7th Gurkha Rifles The 7th Gurkha Rifles was a rifle regiment of the British Indian Army, before being transferred to the British Army, following India's independence in 1947 and after 1959 designated as the 7th Duke of Edinburgh's Own Gurkha Rifles. History ...

* 1/4th Battalion,

Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The regim ...

* half of 2nd Battalion,

* half of

33rd Indian Brigade The 33rd Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign in 1915 before being broken up at the end of the year ...

The brigade was broken up in December 1915. * 1/4th Battalion,

* 11th Rajputs *

66th Punjabis The 66th Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1761 as the 7th Battalion of Coast Sepoys. It was designated as the 66th Punjabis in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 1st Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was ...

* 4th Prince Albert Victor's Rajputs * 43rd Erinpura Regiment * 20th Punjabis

34th Indian Brigade

Replaced 33rd Brigade when it was broken up. * 1/5th Battalion,

* 31st Punjabis * 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry * 114th Mahrattas * half of 2nd Battalion,

Divisional Cavalry

*Two squadrons of 33rd Queen Victoria’s Own Light Cavalry

Divisional Artillery

*86th Heavy Battery,

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

*104th Heavy Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery * 1/5th Hampshire (Howitzer) Battery,

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of t ...

(

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry i ...

)

Divisional Engineers

*12th Field Company, 2nd Sappers and Miners *12th Division Signal Company

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* {{Indian Expeditionary Forces British Indian Army divisions Indian World War I divisions Military units and formations established in 1915 Military units and formations disestablished in 1916