The 14th Indian Division was formed 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, ...

, for service in the

Mesopotamian Campaign The Mesopotamian campaign was a campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I fought between the Allies represented by the British Empire, troops from Britain, Australia and the vast majority from British India, against the Central Po ...

. It was composed of battalions of the Regular

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 Gurkha ...

, the British

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 ...

and the

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which cou ...

History

The Division now part of the Tigris Corps was involved in a number on minor engagements the

Second Battle of Kut The Second Battle of Kut was fought on 23 February 1917, between British and Ottoman forces at Kut, Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq). The battle was part of the British advance to Baghdad begun in December 1916 by a 50,000-man British force (ma ...

and the Fall of Baghdad, the Division's 36th Brigade was left in Baghdad as the

Garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mili ...

. The Division remained in Mesopotamia until the Armistice of Mudros 31 October 1918.British Official History of the Great War, Mesopotamia Campaign Vol. 4

Order of battle

The division commanded the following units, although not all of them served at the same time:

35th Indian Brigade The 35th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was disbanded shortly after the end of the war. ...

* 1/5th Battalion,

Buffs (East Kent Regiment) The Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment), formerly the 3rd Regiment of Foot, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army traditionally raised in the English county of Kent and garrisoned at Canterbury. It had a history dating back to 1572 and ...

* 37th Dogras *

102nd King Edward's Own Grenadiers The 102nd Prince of Wales's Own Grenadiers was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It could trace its origins to 1796, when it was raised as the 13th Battalion, Bombay Native Infantry. The Grenadiers were part of the Indian army whi ...

* 2nd Battalion, 4th Gurkha Rifles

36th Indian Brigade

Departed for the

North Persia Force North Persia Force (Norper force) was a British military force that operated in Northern Persia from 1918–1919. Composition The force was a large brigade which consisted of: * 1st Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers * 1st Battalion, 42nd Deoli Regi ...

in June 1918, replaced by 56th Indian Brigade * 1/4th Battalion, Hampshire Regiment *

26th Punjabis The 26th Punjabis were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1857, as the 18th Regiment of Punjab Infantry. It was designated as the 26th Punjabis in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 15th Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, i ...

62nd Punjabis The 62nd Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1759 as the 3rd Battalion of Coast Sepoys, and formed part of the Madras Army. It was designated as the 62nd Punjabis in 1903 and became 1st Battalion 1st Punja ...

82nd Punjabis The 82nd Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1788, as the 29th Madras Battalion. It was designated as the 82nd Punjabis in 1903 and became the 5th Battalion 1st Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was al ...

37th Indian Brigade The 37th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was disbanded shortly after the end of the war. ...

* 1st Battalion,

2nd King Edward's Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) The 2nd King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) was a rifle regiment of the British Indian Army before being transferred to the British Army on India's independence in 1947. The 4th Battalion joined the Indian Army as the 5th Bat ...

36th Sikhs The 36th Sikhs was an infantry regiment in the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1887, when they were the 36th (Sikh) Bengal Infantry. Composed of Jat Sikhs, it was created by Colonel Jim Cooke and Captain H. R. Holmes. They ...

64th Pioneers The 64th Pioneers was a regiment of the British Indian Army. Originally serving as regular infantry it evolved into a specialist military pioneer unit performing engineering and construction tasks. History The 64th Pioneers could trace their ori ...

* 1/4th Battalion,

Devonshire Regiment The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. In 1 ...

45th Rattray's Sikhs The 45th Rattray's Sikhs was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to the 1st Bengal Military Police Battalion raised in April 1856, at Lahore, by Captain Thomas Rattray originally consisting of a troop ...

* 2nd Battalion, Norfolk Regiment * 2nd Battalion, 9th Gurkha Rifles * 1st Battalion, 67th Punjabis *

* 185th Machine Gun Company * 37th Light Trench Mortar Battery

56th Indian Brigade

Joined in August 1918 to replace 36th Indian Brigade * 1/4th Battalion, Prince Albert's (Somerset Light Infantry) * 1st Battalion, 42nd Deoli Regiment *

95th Russell's Infantry The 95th Russell's Infantry were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1813, when they were raised as the 2nd Battalion of the Russell Brigade for the Princely state of Hyderabad. Until 1853, the regime ...

104th Wellesley's Rifles The 104th Wellesley's Rifles were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1775, when they were raised as the 5th Battalion, Bombay Sepoys and presently its designation is 3 Guards (1 Rajputana Rifles) o ...

* 1st Patiala Lancers ''(attached March to June 1918)'' * 2nd Indian Machine Gun Company * 56th Light Trench Mortar Battery

Artillery

*13th Brigade

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of ...

*C/69th Howitzer battery

Battles

*Advance to the Hai and capture of the Khudaira Bend. 14 December 1916. *Capture of the Hai Salient. 25 January – 5 February 1917. *Capture of Sannaiyat. 17–24 February 1917. *

. 23 February 1917 *Passage of the

Tigris The Tigris () is the easternmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian and Arabian Deserts, and empties into the ...

. 23–24 February 1917. * Fall of Baghdad (1917). 8–11 March 1917 *Passage of the ‘ Adhaim. 18 April 1917. *Action of the Shatt al Adhaim. 30 April 1917. *Second action of Jabal Hamrin. 16–20 October 1917. *Third action of Jabal Hamrin. 3–6 December 1917.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

* {{Indian Expeditionary Forces British Indian Army divisions Indian World War I divisions Military units and formations established in 1916 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919