The 1st Mounted Division was a

Yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles. History Origins In the 1790s, f ...

Division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

of 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 ...

active during

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 ...

. It was formed in August 1914 for the home defence of the United Kingdom from four existing mounted brigades of the

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 ...

, each of three regiments of

. The divisional order of battle changed often, as the 1st Line brigades left for service overseas and were replaced by 2nd Line formations. It was converted to the 1st Cyclist Division in July 1916, and was broken up in November 1916 without being involved in active service. It remained in East Anglia throughout its existence. An unrelated 1st Mounted Division was formed in July 1916, from the

3rd Mounted Division The 3rd Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed on 6 March 1915 as the 2/2nd Mounted Division, a replacement/depot formation for the 2nd Mounted Division which was being sent abroad o ...

, lasting until September 1917. Another incarnation of 1st Mounted Division was created in April 1918 from the Yeomanry Mounted Division, lasting until July 1918.

History

1st Mounted Division

The Mounted Division was formed on 5 August 1914, immediately after the outbreak of

, from four existing mounted brigades of the

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, 1st South Midland, 2nd South Midland, and Notts. and Derby. It was assembled in East Anglia with Headquarters at Bury St Edmunds and the brigades at

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...

, Diss and two at Bury. The division was to spend its entire existence in East Anglia. Later in the month, a decision was made to concentrate mounted troops in the

Churn Churn may refer to: * Churn drill, large-diameter drilling machine large holes appropriate for holes in the ground Dairy-product terms * Butter churn, device for churning butter * Churning (butter), the process of creating butter out of mil ...

area of Berkshire and at the end of August 1914 these were formed into a new

2nd Mounted Division The 2nd Mounted Division was a yeomanry ( Territorial Army cavalry) division that served in the First World War. At the outbreak of war it was assigned to defence of the Norfolk coast. In March 1915 it formed a 2nd Line duplicate of itself, ...

. The original division was designated as 1st Mounted Division and gained three more 1st Line mounted brigades South Wales,

Welsh Border Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

, and North Midlandto replace the 1st South Midland, 2nd South Midland, and Notts. and Derby brigades. As the 1st Line mounted brigades left for overseas service, they were replaced by 2nd Line formations. As with other 2nd Line divisionswhich the 1st Mounted Division was in all but namethe division experienced considerable problems with regard to equipment and personnel. Even as late as July 1915, some

Royal Horse Artillery The Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) was formed in 1793 as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (commonly termed Royal Artillery) to provide horse artillery support to the cavalry units of the British Army. (Although the cavalry link r ...

batteries were without guns, wagons or harnesses, machine guns were lacking and few of the men had fired a recruits' course of musketry. By the beginning of March 1916, the last 1st Line brigades had left and the division was now composed entirely of 2nd Line formations. On 31 March 1916, the remaining mounted brigades were ordered to be numbered in a single sequence and the division now commanded the 1st,

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds or 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Second of arc, an angular measurement unit, ...

, 3rd and 4th Mounted Brigades.

1st Cyclist Division

In July 1916 there was a major reorganization of 2nd Line

yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles. History Origins In the 1790s, f ...

units in the United Kingdom. All but 12

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

s were converted to

cyclists Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of Bicycle, cycles for transport, recreation, Physical exercise, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", ...

: the rest were dismounted, handed over their horses to the remount depots and were issued with bicycles. The 1st Mounted Division was reorganized as the 1st Cyclist Division, now commanding the 1st,

, 3rd and 4th Cyclist Brigades. On reorganisation, 2nd Mounted Brigadewith 2/1st Royal 1st Devon, 2/1st Montgomeryshire and 2/1st Fife and Forfar Yeomanrywas posted to the new 1st Mounted Division (

redesignated) and remained mounted. In exchange, the 12th Mounted Brigade (2/1st London) joined as the 4th Cyclist Brigade. A further reorganization in November 1916 saw the 1st Cyclist Division broken up. The cyclist brigades were dispersed and the yeomanry regiments were amalgamated in pairs to form ''Yeomanry Cyclist Regiments'' in new cyclist brigades.

Other formations

Two other divisions of the

were named ''1st Mounted Division'' during World War I. When the original division was converted to a cyclist division in July 1916, the

was renumbered as the 1st Mounted Division as it was the only remaining mounted division. It, too, was converted to cyclists as The Cyclist Division on 4 September 1917. In March 1918, the

1st Indian Cavalry Division The 1st Indian Cavalry Division was a division of the British Indian Army which was formed at the outbreak of the First World War. It served on the Western Front, and was renamed the 4th Cavalry Division on 26 November 1916. In March 1918, the ...

was broken up in France. The British units remained on the Western Front and the Indian elements were sent to Egypt. By an

Egyptian Expeditionary Force The Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) was a British Empire military formation, formed on 10 March 1916 under the command of General Archibald Murray from the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and the Force in Egypt (1914–15), at the beginning ...

GHQ Order of 12 April 1918, the mounted troops of the EEF were reorganised when the Indian Army units arrived in

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

. On 24 April 1918, the Yeomanry Mounted Division was ''indianized'' and its title was changed to

1st Mounted Division The 1st Mounted Division was a Yeomanry Division of the British Army active during World War I. It was formed in August 1914 for the home defence of the United Kingdom from four existing mounted brigades of the Territorial Force, each of three ...

. On 22 July 1918, it was renumbered as the 4th Cavalry Division.

Orders of battle

Commanders

The 1st Mounted Division / 1st Cyclist Division had the following commanders:

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * *

External links

* * {{British Army Divisions 1 1 Military units and formations established in 1914 Military units and formations disestablished in 1916 1914 establishments in the United Kingdom