The Tyneside Scottish Brigade was raised in 1914 as part of

Kitchener's Army The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, as Kitchener's Mob, was an (initially) all-volunteer portion of the British Army formed in the United Kingdom from 1914 onwards following the outbreak of hostilities in the Fi ...

. Officially named the 102nd (Tyneside Scottish) Brigade, it contained four

Pals battalion The Pals battalions of World War I were specially constituted battalions of the British Army comprising men who had enlisted together in local recruiting drives, with the promise that they would be able to serve alongside their friends, neighbour ...

s from

Newcastle-on-Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is als ...

Origins

The Tyneside Scottish Brigade was a British

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 ...

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 ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Br ...

. It was formed from men from the

Tyneside Tyneside is a built-up area across the banks of the River Tyne in northern England. Residents of the area are commonly referred to as Geordies. The whole area is surrounded by the North East Green Belt. The population of Tyneside as published i ...

area of England and even though it was called a Scottish brigade, they accepted any nationality. The request to 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 ...

to form the brigade was originally turned down, but after a visit to

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

Lord Haldane Richard Burdon Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane, (; 30 July 1856 – 19 August 1928) was a British lawyer and philosopher and an influential Liberal and later Labour politician. He was Secretary of State for War between 1905 and 1912 during whi ...

on 10 October 1915, permission was granted. The complete Tyneside Scottish Brigade of four

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 ...

s was raised by 16 November 1915. Reports of bodies of men and groups of

miner A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face; cutting, blasting, ...

s marching ten miles into the city to enlist are common. The brigade's four battalions were known as the 1st to 4th Tyneside Scottish. When taken over by the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

, these became battalions of the

Northumberland Fusiliers The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1674 as one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, it accompanied William III to England in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution an ...

as the: * 20th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (1st Tyneside Scottish) * 21st Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (2nd Tyneside Scottish) * 22nd Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (3rd Tyneside Scottish) * 23rd Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (4th Tyneside Scottish) The reserve battalions were the 29th and 33rd (Reserve) Battalions, Northumberland Fusiliers (Tyneside Scottish).

Active service

Under the command of Brigadier-General T. P. B. Ternan, the Tyneside Scottish Brigade suffered the worst losses of any brigade on 1 July 1916, the first day of 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 ...

; the Tyneside Irish Brigade had the next worst tally of casualties. The 23rd (4th Tyneside Scottish) Battalion lost 629 men (19 officers and 610 other ranks), the third worst battalion loss of the day. The 20th (1st Tyneside Scottish) Battalion lost 584 men and the 22nd (3rd Tyneside Scottish) Battalion, led by Boer War veteran Lt Col Arthur Elphinstone (a former pupil of

Monkton Combe School (Thy Word is Truth) , established = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , founder = The Revd Francis Pocock , head_label = Head Master , head ...

), lost 537 men. All four battalion commanders were killed (the 21st (2nd Tyneside Scottish) commander had been killed shortly before the battle).

Memorial

A memorial was dedicated to the fallen of the Tyneside Scottish Brigade, at La Boiselle for their part in its capture. It was unveiled by Marshal

Ferdinand Foch Ferdinand Foch ( , ; 2 October 1851 – 20 March 1929) was a French general and military theorist who served as the Supreme Allied Commander during the First World War. An aggressive, even reckless commander at the First Marne, Flanders and Art ...

Notes

References

* * {{cite book , last=Simpkin , first=Peter , year=1988 , title=Kitchener's army: the raising of the New Armies, 1914–16 , publisher=Manchester University Press , isbn=0-7190-2638-5 Pals Brigades of the British Army Military units and formations in Northumberland Military units and formations established in 1914 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918 1914 establishments in the United Kingdom Infantry brigades of the British Army in World War I Royal Northumberland Fusiliers