The West Riding Heavy Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery was a part-time unit of Britain's

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 ...

formed in 1908 in the

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

. It fought on 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 maj ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, and served on in the Territorial Army until the eve of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Origin

::''See main article

1st East Riding Artillery Volunteers The 1st East Yorkshire Artillery Volunteers was a part-time unit of Britain's Royal Artillery based in the East Riding of Yorkshire, which also contained sub-units from the North and West Ridings. Created during an invasion scare in 1859–1 ...

'' When the Territorial Force (TF) was created in 1908 by the

Haldane Reforms The Haldane Reforms were a series of far-ranging reforms of the British Army made from 1906 to 1912, and named after the Secretary of State for War, Richard Burdon Haldane. They were the first major reforms since the "Childers Reforms" of the e ...

, each infantry division was allocated a heavy battery of the

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 (R ...

(RGA). The West Riding Division was provided with the West Riding battery, based at

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. This unit had originally been formed on 9 February 1861 as the 3rd Yorkshire (West Riding) Artillery Volunteer Corps but for almost 50 years it had been brigaded as part of the

, later the 1st East Riding RGA (Volunteers).Litchfield & Westlake, pp. 176–86.1st East Riding Artillery Volunteers at Regiments.org.
/ref>''Army List'', various dates. BritishQF4

In 1908–10, while the

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

and North Riding batteries of the 1st East Riding RGA became part of the II Northumbrian Brigade, Royal Field Artillery in the Northumbrian Division, the York batteries from 11 June 1908 formed one heavy battery, armed with four 4.7-inch guns, together with a dedicated ammunition column.Frederick, pp. 696–701.Litchfield, pp. 264–5.Becke, Pt 2a, pp. 85–91.

World War I

Mobilisation

The West Riding Division went to its annual training camps in late July 1914, but on 3 August the units were instructed to return to their headquarters. The battery was ordered to

mobilise Mobilise is a set of Christian conferences, weekend retreats and resources for students and twenties, run by the Newfrontiers family of churches in the UK. Mobilise Conference The main Mobilise event is an annual conference which has been attend ...

at York on 4 August. Under the command of

Major Major ( commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicato ...

W. Graham (a retired

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the

Army Remount Service The Army Remount Service was the body responsible for the purchase and training of horses and mules as remounts for the British Army between 1887 and 1942. Origins Prior to 1887, the purchase of horses was the responsibility of individual reg ...

), it moved to its war station at

Hedon Hedon is a town and civil parish in Holderness in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately east of Hull city centre. It lies to the north of the A1033 road at the crossroads of the B1240 and B1362 roads. It is ...

on 16 August. On the outbreak of war, TF units were invited to volunteer for Overseas Service. On 15 August 1914, 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 ...

issued instructions to separate those men who had signed up for Home Service only, and form these into reserve units, and on 31 August, the formation of a reserve or 2nd Line unit was authorised for each 1st Line unit where 60 per cent or more of the men had volunteered for Overseas Service. The titles of these 2nd Line units would be the same as the original, but distinguished by a '2/' prefix. In this way duplicate units were created, mirroring those being sent overseas. The parent battery was designated 1/1st West Riding Heavy Battery and the new unit recruiting at York became the 2/1st Battery.Becke, Pt 2b, pp. 41–8.

1/1st West Riding Heavy Battery

At first, the 1st Line West Riding Division (designated the 49th (West Riding) Division on arrival in France in May 1915) formed part of

Central Force In classical mechanics, a central force on an object is a force that is directed towards or away from a point called center of force. : \vec = \mathbf(\mathbf) = \left\vert F( \mathbf ) \right\vert \hat where \vec F is the force, F is a vecto ...

in Home Defence, but while working on defences in East Yorkshire it also underwent progressive training. On 31 March 1915 it was informed that it would soon proceed to France and join the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). The heavy battery received its orders on 6 April and disembarked at

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...

on 17 April.49 Division at Long, Long Trail.
/ref> NLS_Haig_-_Heavy_gun_in_action

However, artillery policy in the BEF was to withdraw heavy batteries from the divisions and group them into dedicated heavy artillery brigades, so the battery was immediately posted to VIII Brigade, RGA, in II Group, Heavy Artillery Reserve.Farndale, ''Western Front'', Annex E.'Allocation of Heavy Batteries RGA' and 'Headquarters Heavy Artillery Groups', The National Archives (TNA), Kew, file WO 95/5494.
/ref> II Group consisted of a variety of heavy and siege artillery and was tasked with

Counter-battery fire Counter-battery fire (sometimes called counter-fire) is a battlefield tactic employed to defeat the enemy's indirect fire elements (multiple rocket launchers, artillery and mortars), including their target acquisition, as well as their command ...

for the Allies' forthcoming Artois Offensive. On the British front this opened with the Battle of Aubers Ridge on 9 May. The group was provided with

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

reconnaissance aircraft fitted with wireless to assist observation in the flat country. Unfortunately the weight of the artillery support was inadequate for the task in hand: the obsolescent 4.7-inch guns were so worn that in many cases the driving bands were stripped off the shells at the muzzle, resulting in extreme inaccuracy. In spite of the counter-battery fire, German guns were able to open up on the British trenches, which were soon packed with wounded men from the first attacking wave, and support troops waiting to follow up. A second attempt to attack in the afternoon was hampered by the shortage of artillery ammunition to repeat the bombardment. 1/1st West Riding Battery returned to 49th Division on 13 May for the continuation of the offensive on 15 May (the

Battle of Festubert The Battle of Festubert (15–25 May 1915) was an attack by the British army in the Artois region of France on the western front during World War I. The offensive formed part of a series of attacks by the French Tenth Army and the British ...

). The division's role in this operation was confined to localised trench warfare, one short advance by two companies on 24 May being supported by 96 guns. On 28 June the battery permanently left 49th Division and joined VIII Bde. 60-pounder_gun_at_Wieltje_Sep_1917_IWM_Q_3019

60-pounder_gun_at_Wieltje_Sep_1917_IWM_Q_3019

The obsolescent 4.7-inch guns were progressively replaced in the BEF by 60-pounders during 1915–16. The policy at the time was to move batteries between heavy artillery brigades (later termed Heavy Artillery Groups or HAGs) as required. The 1/1st West Riding Bty transferred to 27th HA Bde on 3 March 1916, then to 9th HAG on 21 April and 2nd HAG in First Army on 6 June, moving with it to Reserve Army (later Fifth Army) on 10 September. The battery remained with 2nd HAG until the end of the year, being rested from 11 December to 4 January 1917. The battery then joined 55th HAG on 6 February 1917 in time for a minor operation at

Miraumont Miraumont () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Current agricultural products include grains, potatoes, and beets. Geography Miraumont is situated on the D107 and D50 crossroads, some northeast of Am ...

on 17–18 February. 55th and three other HAGs bombarded enemy gun positions, but a thaw had turned the ground to mud, surprise had been lost, and the wire-cutting bombardment had been ineffective, so the infantry attack by

II Corps 2nd Corps, Second Corps, or II Corps may refer to: France * 2nd Army Corps (France) * II Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * II Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French ...

failed. The battery was brought up to a strength of six guns on 28 February 1917 when it was joined by a section from 200th Heavy Battery, RGA, which had just arrived in France. On 25 March 1917 the augmented 1/1st West Riding Bty joined 12th HAG, which was one of the groups assigned to support XVII Corps' successful attack on the first day of the Battle of Arras. 1/1st West Riding Bty transferred to 28th HAG on 8 August 1917, with which it remained (apart from short attachments) until the end of the war. In August 1917, 28th HAG was supporting Fifth Army in the dreadful Third Ypres Offensive, moving to Second Army when that took over part of the line on 16 September for the artillery-led battles of the Menin Road Ridge,

Polygon Wood In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two to ...

, Broodseinde and Poelcappelle before the offensive bogged down in the two Battles of Passchendaele. 1/1st West Riding Battery was withdrawn for rest and refitting on 8 November. 28th Brigade reverted to Fourth Army during the winter of 1917–18. HAGs became RGA Brigades again on 1 February 1918, by which time the 28th was a 'Mixed' brigade containing both 60-pounder gun and 6-inch howitzer batteries. It transferred to First Army on 1 May. On 28 June 1918, 28th was one of the RGA brigades supporting an operation by

XV Corps 15th Corps, Fifteenth Corps, or XV Corps may refer to: * XV Corps (British India) *XV Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I *15th Army Corps (Russian Empire), a unit in World War I * XV Royal Bav ...

just east of the forest of Nieppe designed to improve the British line (the action of La Becque). 28th (Mixed) Brigade joined Fifth Army on 7 July 1918 and remained with it until the

Armistice with Germany The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...

on 11 November 1918. 1/1st West Riding Bty was detached to 49th Bde RGA (normally composed of 8-inch howitzers) with Fourth Army from 21 August to 16 September, during 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 th ...

returning to 28th Bde thereafter. It was with 28th Bde during Fifth Army's pursuit of the defeated German army towards the

Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

in October 1918, when the 'heavies' were principally employed on harassing fire on the roads and tracks the Germans were using, and on concentrations of fire on headquarters and exits from villages, while trying to avoid civilian casualties. When the BEF demobilised in 1919, the battery was placed in suspended animation.

2/1st West Riding Heavy Battery

The 2/1st West Riding Heavy Battery began to form once the 1/1st Battery had volunteered for overseas service, and it served with the 62nd (2nd West Riding) Division.62 Division at Long, Long Trail.
/ref>Magnus, pp. 69–76. Although early recruitment to the 62nd Division was generally good, this was tempered by the need for critical workers to be released back to industry, and to provide drafts for the 49th Division in France. Training was also hampered by the lack of guns and equipment. In March 1915 the division moved into

billets A billet is a living-quarters to which a soldier is assigned to sleep. Historically, a billet was a private dwelling that was required to accept the soldier. Soldiers are generally billeted in barracks or garrisons when not on combat duty, alt ...

around

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

and

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

for training, then in May to camps in ' The Dukeries' area before concentrating round

Retford Retford (), also known as East Retford, is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England, and one of the oldest English market towns having been granted its first charter in 1105. It lies on the River Idle and the Chesterf ...

in October. The division moved to the

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 ...

area in December, where it dug entrenched lines in the Tyne Defences. Early in 1916 the division moved to Larkhill Camp on Salisbury Plain for battle training, but the continual drain of drafts for the BEF held back the completion of this training and in June it moved to the East Coast defences round Lowestoft. In October it moved inland to the

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

area to complete its equipment for overseas service. However, when the 62nd Division finally embarked for France in January 1917 the heavy battery did not accompany it, but was detached and remained in England. It served in the Tyne Defences, being stationed at

Blyth, Northumberland Blyth () is a town and civil parish in southeast Northumberland, England. It lies on the coast, to the south of the River Blyth and is approximately northeast of Newcastle upon Tyne. It has a population of about 37,000, as of 2011. The port o ...

(where its four old 4.7-inch guns supplemented the coast defence battery equipped with two 6-inch guns) and then at

Whitburn, South Tyneside Whitburn is a village in South Tyneside in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear on the coast of North East England. It is located north of the city of Sunderland and south of the town of South Shields. Historically, Whitburn was a part of ...

until the end of the war. The 2/1st West Riding Battery was disbanded in 1919.

Postwar

When the renamed Territorial Army (TA) was formed in 1920–2, the former West Riding Heavy Battery was reconstituted on 7 February 1920 as two batteries, based at York and

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

. It was combined with two batteries reconstituted from the former North Midland Heavy Battery to form the 9th (West Riding & Staffordshire) Medium Brigade, RGA, renumbered 54th the following year:Frederick, p. 733.54th Medium Brigade, RA, at Regiments.org.
/ref>Litchfield, pp. 212–5. 6 inch 26 cwt howitzer

54th (West Riding & Staffordshire) Medium Brigade, RGA * Brigade Headquarters at Lumley Barracks, York * 213 (1st West Riding) Medium Battery at Lumley Barracks * 214 (2nd West Riding) Medium Battery (Howitzers) at Drill Hall, Huddersfield * 215 (1st Staffordshire) Medium Battery (Howitzers) at Drill Hall, Hartshill, Staffordshire * 216 (2nd Staffordshire) Medium Battery (Howitzers) at Drill Hall, Stoke-on-Trent The RGA was subsumed into the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

(RA) in 1924. In these postwar years the medium artillery was still equipped with wartime 60-pounder guns and 6-inch howitzers. 54th Medium Bde HQ and the two West Yorkshire batteries were in 49th Divisional Area, while the two Staffordshire batteries were in 46th Divisional Area. This awkward arrangement persisted until 1932 when the brigade was split up, the two Staffordshire batteries becoming 51st (Midland) Medium Brigade, while the West Riding batteries were joined by two from County Durham, giving the following organisation: 54th (Durham & West Riding) Medium Brigade, RA * Brigade Headquarters at Lumley Barracks, York * 186 (Durham) Medium Battery (Howitzers) at The Armoury,

West Hartlepool West Hartlepool was a predecessor of Hartlepool, County Durham, England. It developed in the Victorian era and took the name from its western position in the parish of what is now known as the Headland. The former town was originally formed ...

, from the Durham Heavy Brigade * 213 (1st West Riding) Medium Battery at Lumley Barracks * 214 (2nd West Riding) Medium Battery (Howitzers) at Drill Hall, Huddersfield * 219 (Durham) Medium Battery (Howitzers) at West Hartlepool, from 55th (Northumbrian) Medium Brigade.Litchfield, p. 55

Disbandment

The need for increased Anti-Aircraft (AA) provision for Britain's cities saw a further reorganisation of TA artillery units in the late 1930s. This resulted in the breaking up of 54th Medium Brigade in October 1937: * Brigade HQ contributed to 73rd AA Bde * 213 (1st West Riding) Bty formed 221 AA Battery in 62nd (Northumbrian) AA Bde * 186 and 219 (Durham) Btys merged to form 220 AA Battery in 63rd (Northumbrian) AA Bde * 214 (2nd West Riding) Bty remained a medium howitzer battery and rejoined 51st (Midland) Medium Bde.

Honorary Colonels

The following served as Honorary Colonel of 54th Medium Bde: * Hon Major-General Aldred Lumley, 10th Earl of Scarbrough, GBE, KCB, TD, appointed on 10 March 1923. * Hon Brigadier-General Sir Edward Whitley, KCB, CMG, DSO, TD, appointed on 6 March 1929.

Footnotes

Notes

References

* Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2a: The Territorial Force Mounted Divisions and the 1st-Line Territorial Force Divisions (42–56)'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1935/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2b: The 2nd-Line Territorial Force Divisions (57th–69th), with the Home-Service Divisions (71st–73rd) and 74th and 75th Divisions,'' London: HM Stationery Office, 1937/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Ian F.W. Beckett, ''Riflemen Form: A Study of the Rifle Volunteer Movement 1859–1908'', Aldershot, The Ogilby Trusts, 1982, . * Col John K. Dunlop, ''The Development of the British Army 1899–1914'', London: Methuen, 1938. * Brig-Gen James E. Edmonds & Lt-Col R. Maxwell-Hyslop, ''History of the Great War: Military Operations, France and Belgium 1918'', Vol V, ''26th September–11th November, The Advance to Victory'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1947/Imperial War Museum and Battery Press, 1993, . * Gen Sir

Martin Farndale General Sir Martin Baker Farndale, (6 January 1929 – 10 May 2000) was a British Army officer who reached high office in the 1980s. Military career Educated at Yorebridge Grammar School, Askrigg, and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Farnd ...

, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: Western Front 1914–18'', Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1986, . * Gen Sir Martin Farndale, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: The Forgotten Fronts and the Home Base 1914–18'', Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1988, . * Gen Sir Martin Farndale, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: The Years of Defeat: Europe and North Africa, 1939–1941'', Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1988/London: Brasseys, 1996, . * J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol II, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, ISBN 1-85117-009-X. * Norman E.H. Litchfield, ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, . * Norman Litchfield & Ray Westlake, ''The Volunteer Artillery 1859–1908 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1982, . * Laurie Magnus, ''The West Riding Territorials in the Great War'', London: Keegan Paul, Trench, Trubner, 1920//Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2004, . * Edward M. Spiers, ''The Army and Society 1815–1914'', London: Longmans, 1980, . * ''Titles and Designations of Formations and Units of the Territorial Army'', London: War Office, 7 November 1927.

External sources

Mark Conrad, ''The British Army, 1914'' (archive site)

''London Gazette''

The Long, Long Trail

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20100118221541/http://warpath.orbat.com:80/index.htm The Regimental Warpath 1914–1918 (archive site){{refend

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

Military units and formations in the West Riding of Yorkshire Military units and formations in York Military units and formations established in 1908 1908 establishments in the United Kingdom Artillery units and formations of World War I