The 13th (Service) Battalion (

Wandsworth Wandsworth Town () is a district of south London, within the London Borough of Wandsworth southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Gre ...

), East Surrey Regiment was a British

New Army The New Armies (Traditional Chinese: 新軍, Simplified Chinese: 新军; Pinyin: Xīnjūn, Manchu: ''Ice cooha''), more fully called the Newly Created Army ( ''Xinjian Lujun''Also translated as "Newly Established Army" ()), was the modernised ar ...

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

during the

First World War 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 ...

. Formed in 1915 as a hostilities-only battalion, it was part of the East Surrey Regiment garrisoned at Witley, England. Going to France in 1916, it saw action at the battles of

the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French language, French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. I ...

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department and in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, regio ...

Arras Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department, which forms part of the regions of France, region of Hauts-de-France; before the regions of France#Reform and mergers of ...

and the Lys.

Formation

The battalion was formed in

by the Mayor on 16 June 1915, and the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

recognised the battalion on 28 August 1915. The separate 14th (Service) Battalion (Wandsworth) East Surrey Regiment was absorbed into other training reserve battalions in June 1916. The 13th Battalion wore a special cap badge, authorised by the War Office. The arms of Wandsworth were displayed at the centre of the badge, instead of the arms of Guildford, worn more generally by the East Surrey Regiment.

Western Front

1916

After training in southern England, the battalion landed at

Le Harve Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime Departments of France, department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the Seine, ri ...

on 4 June 1916. They were then moved to Lens and from there with the 40th Division moved to the

Hohenzollern Redoubt The Hohenzollern Redoubt () was a strongpoint of the German 6th Army on the Western Front during the First World War, at Auchy-les-Mines near Loos-en-Gohelle in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France. Named after the House of Hohenzollern, ...

where they relieved the 12th Battalion,

Suffolk Regiment The Suffolk Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army with a history dating back to 1685. It saw service for three centuries, participating in many wars and conflicts, including the First and Second World Wars, before bein ...

. They were not involved in major actions at the Hohenzollern Redoubt, but artillery bombardment was starting to take a toll, with casualties of 16%. The battalion was then put into reserve for the next months while the 40th Division was being relieved. The battalion was then temporarily attached to the 49th Division to help relieve the 4th Battalion, King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry at Hébuterne near the town of Albert, during the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

. They soon rejoined the 40th Division and marched to Bouchavesnes Area near the Somme Valley where they spent Christmas.

1917

During the German withdrawal to the

Hindenburg Line The Hindenburg Line (German: , Siegfried Position) was a German defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to Laffaux, near Soissons on the Aisne. In 191 ...

in the spring, the 13th Battalion were in the front line near Bouchavesnes. It was here, on 24 April during the Battle of Arras, that Corporal Edward Foster of the battalion won the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

when he entered a heavily protected enemy trench and knocked out two machine guns, enabling the advance to continue. In the autumn, the battalion were heavily engaged in the Battle of Cambrai.

1918

The battalion fought at the Battle of the Lys during the German spring offensive and suffered severe loses when surrounded at

Fleurbaix Fleurbaix (; vls, Vloerbeek) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography A farming village some northeast of Béthune and west of Lille, at the junction of the D176 and the D171 roads, at ...

. In May, the battalion was reduced to

cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...

strength. After a period attached to the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

for training purposes, the battalion returned to England on 30 June. Stationed in Lowestoft, they absorbed the newly formed 15th Battalion East Surrey Regiment and were disbanded on 3 November 1918.

Post war

After the war, to recognise their service, each Service Battalion that served overseas was presented with a King’s Colour. The colour of the 13th Battalion was presented at a special ceremony on

Wandsworth Common Wandsworth Common is a public common in Wandsworth, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, south London. It is and is maintained and regulated by Wandsworth Council. It is also a Ward of the London Borough of Wandsworth. The population of the ward ...

on 16 July 1921, in the presence of over 350 former members of the battalion.

References

{{reflist, 30em Battalions of the British Army in World War I East Surrey Regiment

East Surrey East Surrey is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Claire Coutinho, a Conservative. The seat covers an affluent area in the English county of Surrey. Since its creation in 1918, East Surrey has e ...

Military units and formations in Wandsworth Military units and formations in London Military units and formations established in 1915 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918