The 74th (Yeomanry) Division was a

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 ...

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 m ...

division formed in Palestine in early 1917 from three dismounted

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, ...

brigades. It served in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of 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 fig ...

, mostly as part of XX Corps. In May 1918 it was sent to the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

where it remained until the end of the war. The division's insignia was a broken

spur A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse or other animal to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to ba ...

to signify that its units were once mounted but now served as infantry.

History

Formation

On 14 January 1917,

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 ...

(EEF) Order No. 26 instructed that the 2nd, 3rd and

4th Dismounted Brigade D4, D.IV, d4 or variants may refer to: Science and medicine * 22-Dihydroergocalciferol, vitamin D4 * D4-isoprostane, a type of isoprostane * ATC code D04, ''Antipruritics, including antihistamines, anesthetics, etc.'', a subgroup of the Anatomic ...

s (then with the Suez Canal Defences) be reorganized as the 229th, 230th and 231st Brigades. On 23 February 1917,

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Sir Archibald Murray, the General Officer Commanding EEF, sought permission from 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 (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence (MoD ...

to form the 229th, 230th and 231st Brigades into a new division. On 25 February, the War Office granted permission and the new 74th (Yeomanry) Division started to form. It was acknowledged that it would take some time for artillery, engineers and auxiliary services to complete the division. The division began to assemble from 4 March at el Arish. The 229th Brigade joined at el Arish by 9 March, the 231st Brigade joined at Khan Yunis by 6 April and the 230th Brigade joined by 13 April at

Deir el Balah Deir al-Balah or Deir al Balah ( ar, دير البلح, , Monastery of the Date Palm) is a Palestinian city in the central Gaza Strip and the administrative capital of the Deir el-Balah Governorate. It is located over south of Gaza City. The c ...

. The other divisional units (cavalry squadron, engineer field companies, veterinary section, and the train), had joined by April. The artillery did not become a part of the division until July and August (after the division had already fought in the Second Battle of Gaza).

Palestine 1917–18

The 74th Division took part in the invasion of Palestine in 1917 and 1918. The division was not fully formed when it participated in the Second Battle of Gaza between 17 and 19 April 1917. It acted as reserve to the Eastern Force and was not engaged. Thereafter, the division was assigned to XX Corps where it remained for the rest of its time in Palestine. In October and November 1917, the division took part in the Third Battle of Gaza (including the capture of

Beersheba Beersheba or Beer Sheva, officially Be'er-Sheva ( he, בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע, ''Bəʾēr Ševaʿ'', ; ar, بئر السبع, Biʾr as-Sabʿ, Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven), is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. ...

on 31 October and the Sheria Position on 6 November). At the end of 1917, it took part in the capture and defence of

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

and in March 1918 in the Battle of Tell 'Asur. On 3 April 1918, the division was warned that it would move to France and by 30 April 1918 had completed embarkation at Alexandria. Before departure for France, the 4th (of 229th Brigade), 209th (of 230th Brigade), 210th (of 231st Brigade) and 261st MG Companies formed 74th Battalion,

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in the First World War. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use ...

. It concentrated at

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandr ...

between 17 and 30 April and departed for France with the division on the latter date. The artillery was also restructured in March and April 1918 before departing for France. On 21 March, 'A' Battery of CCLXVIII Brigade, RFA (A/CCLXVIII) returned to 60th (2/2nd London) Division where it resumed its original identity as B/CCCI. It was replaced by 425 Battery which was redesignated A/CCLXVIII. Then, between 11 and 21 April, the artillery was reorganized as two brigades at Lydda: Each brigade now consisted of three batteries of six 18-pounders and a battery of four 4.5" howitzers. Each of the howitzer batteries were later made up to six 4.5" howitzers in France (on 21 May 1918 at Noulette).

France and Flanders 1918

In May 1918, the 74th (Yeomanry) Division landed at

Marseilles Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

. It served in

France and Flanders France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

for the rest of the war. By 18 May, the division had concentrated around Rue in the

Abbeville Abbeville (, vls, Abbekerke, pcd, Advile) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the chef-lieu of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital o ...

area. Here the dismounted Yeomanry underwent training for service on the

, particularly gas defence. Due to a lack of replacements, British infantry divisions on the Western Front had been reduced from 12 to nine battalions in January and February 1918. To conform with this new structure, on 21 June, 12th Royal Scots Fusiliers (of 229th Brigade), 12th Norfolk Regiment (of 230th Brigade) and 24th Royal Welsh Fusiliers (of 231st Brigade) left the 74th (Yeomanry) Division. They were used to reconstitute 94th Brigade of 31st Division which was renamed the 94th (Yeomanry) Brigade on that date. On 16 May, the Pioneer Battalion, 1/12th

Loyal North Lancashire Regiment The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) (until 1921 known as the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Lancashire Re ...

, was reduced from a 4-company to a 3-company organization. On 14 July 1918 the 74th (Yeomanry) Division went into the line for the first time, near Merville on the right of XI Corps. From September 1918, as part of III Corps of Fourth Army, it took part in the

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Western Front, the Allies pushed the Central Powers ...

including the

Second Battle of the Somme The Second Battle of the Somme of 1918 was fought during the First World War on the Western Front from late August to early September, in the basin of the River Somme. It was part of a series of successful counter-offensives in response to the ...

( Second Battle of Bapaume) and the Battles of 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 ...

( Battle of Épehy). In October and November 1918, it took part in the 'Final Advance' on Artois and Flanders. By the

Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...

it was in the area of

Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Eu ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

. With the end of the war, the troops of 74th Division were engaged in railway repair work and education was undertaken while demobilisation began. The division and its subformations were disbanded on 10 July 1919.

Commanders

74th (Yeomanry) Division was commanded throughout its existence by

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

E.S. Girdwood.