| |
|---|---|
 Shoulder sleeve insignia of the 5th Division, 1995 onwards | |
| Active | 1810–1815 1906–1922 1929–1947 1958–1960 1968–1971 1995–2012 |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Nicknames | The Globe Trotters The Gypsies The Fighting Fifth |
| Engagements | |
| Insignia | |
| c. 1939–Cold War period |  |
| c. First World War |  |
The5th Infantry Division was aregular armyinfantrydivision of theBritish Army. It was established byArthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington for service in thePeninsular War, as part of theAnglo-Portuguese Army, and was active for most of the period since, including the First World War and the Second World War and was disbanded soon after. The division was reformed in 1995 as an administrative division covering Wales and the Englishregions ofWest Midlands,East Midlands andEast. Its headquarters were inShrewsbury. It was disbanded on 1 April 2012.
The 5th Division during thePeninsular War under the command of GeneralJames Leith was present at most of the major engagements including theBattle of Bussaco, theBattle of Sabugal, theSiege of Almeida, theBattle of Badajoz, theBattle of Salamanca, theBattle of Vitoria, theSiege of San Sebastian, theBattle of Nivelle and theBattle of the Nive.[1]
The order of battle in summer 1813 was:[2]
The division was also present during theWaterloo Campaign first seeing action at theBattle of Quatre Bras then at theBattle of Waterloo under the command of Lieutenant General SirThomas Picton.[3]
The division's order of battle at Waterloo was as follows:[3]
On the outbreak of war in 1899 anArmy Corps of three divisions was sent to South Africa from the UK; the troops already there constituted the 4th Division. The rapid deterioration of the situation led theWar Office to announce on 11 November 1899 that a5th Division was to be formed and sent out. This consisted of the 10th and 11th (Lancashire) Brigades and concentrated atEstcourt on 8 January 1900.[4][5][6] Under the command ofLieutenant-General SirCharles Warren, 5th Division joined up with theNatal Field Force shortly after theBattle of Colenso and was a part of the relieving army of the besiegedLadysmith.[7]
The division was constituted as follows:[8][9]
Under the command of Major GeneralSir Charles Fergusson, who had taken over as GOC 5th Division from Major GeneralWilliam Pitcairn Campbell in February 1913, the division, a key component ofII Corps, was part of the originalBritish Expeditionary Force (BEF) which deployed to France in the summer of 1914, and where it would remain for the rest of the war, except for a brief period on theItalian Front from 27 November 1917 to 1 April 1918.[16][17]
The division saw action in several pivotal battles, including theBattle of Mons (23-24 August) and thesubsequent retreat, where it engaged in theAction of Élouges (24 August) and theBattle of Le Cateau (26 August). Continuing to play a significant role in the war effort, the division participated in theFirst Battle of the Marne (7-10 September), theFirst Battle of the Aisne (12-15 September), and theBattle of La Bassée (10 October – 2 November). Following Fergusson's controversial removal by Field MarshalSir John French,commander-in-chief of the BEF, Major-GeneralThomas Morland took command, and elements of the division saw action atMessines (12 October – 2 November) andArmentières (13 October – 2 November). In November, the division took part in theFirst Battle of Ypres, specifically theBattle of Nonne Bosschen (11 November).[17]
In 1915, the 5th Division played a key role in several battles. It participated in theCapture of Hill 60 from 17-22 April. The division was also involved in theSecond Battle of Ypres, with the13th Infantry Brigade seeing action at the Battle of Grafenstafel (22-23 April) and the Battle of St. Julien (24 April – 4 May), both under the temporary command ofV Corps.[17]
Major-General Morland, in command for almost nine months, was promoted to a corps command on 15 July, and Major-GeneralCharles Kavanagh, a cavalryman, took over the division.[17]
Later in 1915, the division underwent changes, with some of its Regular units being exchanged with those from the32nd Division, a newly arrivedKitchener's Army formation, comprising civilians who had volunteered for military service. This was done to bolster the inexperienced division withRegular Army troops, although many of the pre-war Regular units had already suffered heavily and the Regular battalions were by now actually largely composed of new recruits.[17]
In March 1916, the 5th Division redeployed to the Arras sector, assuming control of the front line stretching from St. Laurent Blangy to the southern edge of Vimy Ridge. The area was a hotbed of activity, with frequent trench raids, sniping incidents, and mining operations.[17]
Major-GeneralReginald Stephens took command on 1 April from Major-General Kavanagh, who went to command a corps.[17]
As theFranco-British offensive on the Somme commenced on1 July, the 5th Division was withdrawn to the BEF's general headquarters reserve for rest and refurbishment. The division subsequently participated in several key Somme battles, including:[17]
By early October, the division had relocated to the Festubert sector, where it endured a relatively calm period, punctuated by occasional artillery and sniper fire, which lasted until March 1917.[17]
The 5th Division played a key role in several battles in 1917, including theBattle of Arras in April and theThird Battle of Ypres, which began in late July.[17] The 5thfought at Vimy Ridge under theCanadian Corps (9-14 April), at theAttack on La Coulotte (23 April), and the Third Battle of the Scarpe (3-4 May).[17]
After several months in the Arras area, they were relieved and sent to Flanders for the Third Battle of Ypres, where theyfought at Polygon Wood (26 September – 3 October),Broodseinde (4 October),Poelcapelle (9 October), and theSecond Battle of Passchendaele (26 October – 10 November).[17]
The division was then selected as one of ultimately five British divisions to be sent from theWestern Front to theItalian Front, a move agreed upon by theBritish government to supportItalian forces after thedisaster at Caporetto in late October. Many British soldiers described the move to Italy as "like another world" after the harsh conditions of Passchendaele.[17]
The division prepared to move to the Brenta mountains but eventually took up positions along the River Piave in late January 1918. Together with the41st Division (which had also been sent from the Western Front to Italy, like the 5th), they were later recalled to France in response to theGerman attack on 21 March, having seen no major actions in Italy.[17]
In 1918, the 5th Division fought in theBattles of the Lys, specifically the Battle of Hazebrouck (12-15 April) under XI Corps, where they defended Nieppe Forest.[17]
A leadership change occurred on 15 July, with Major GeneralJohn Ponsonby succeeding Major General Stephens, who was promoted to command a corps.[17]
The division was withdrawn for rest on 14 August and placed in GHQ Reserve. Two weeks later, they joined the “Hundred Days Offensive”, fighting through Albert, Irles, Beugny, Havrincourt, Gonnelieu, and the River Selle, eventually reaching Valenciennes and the River Sambre. They were in continuous action until late October.[17]
The division's battles included:[17]
TheSecond Battle of the Somme (August-September)
The Battles of theHindenburg Line (September-October)
TheArmistice of 11 November 1918 brought an end to the fighting on the Western Front.[17]
The order of battle of the 5th Division during the Great War was as follows:[17]
13th Infantry BrigadeThe 13th Brigade was temporarily under the command of the28th Division between 23 February and 7 April 1915, when it was replaced by the84th Infantry Brigade from that division.
14th Infantry BrigadeThe 14th Brigade transferred to the 32nd Division on 30 December 1915.
15th Infantry BrigadeThe 15th Brigade was temporarily under the command of the 28th Division between 3 March and 7 April 1915, when it was replaced by the83rd Brigade from that division.
95th Infantry BrigadeThe 95th Brigade transferred from the 32nd Division on 26 December 1915
Artillery
Engineers
Pioneers
The 5th Division was unusual among other British divisions in that no battle patches were worn on their tunics or helmets, aside from those briefly worn by New Army battalions bringing them from their former division.[19]
The 5th Division remained in the Le Quesnoy area until mid-December 1918, before commencing a march into Belgium on 13 December. They eventually reached the region between Namur and Wavre, where demobilisation efforts began on 22 December, continuing into early 1919 with men being released at regular intervals.[17]
The division was later based in Egypt and then in Palestine. The latter occurred during the1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine.[20]
Upon the outbreak of theSecond World War, in September 1939, the 5th Infantry Division was aRegular Army formation, commanded byMajor-GeneralHarold Franklyn, who had been in command since 1938. The division was based atCatterick underNorthern Command. Both of its infantry brigades (the13th and15th) went to France to join the rest of theBritish Expeditionary Force (BEF) in early October 1939 as independent infantry brigades, but the divisional Headquarters crossed to France on 19 December 1939, coming under the command ofLieutenant-GeneralAlan Brooke'sII Corps from 23 December. By the new year of 1940 the division was reformed with three infantry brigades –the 13th, 15th and17th, all commanded by men who would achieve high rank in the next few years.[21][22]
Throughout the early months of 1940 the division saw some changing of units, as theTerritorial Army (TA) divisions began to arrive in France from the United Kingdom. This was part of official BEF policy, based on experience from theGreat War, and was intended to strengthen the inexperienced TA formations with experienced Regulars, although at the same time diluting the strength of the Regular divisions with inexperienced TA units. Despite this, the division still maintained its integrity as a Regular formation. The next few months were spent in training, although this was hampered by severe shortages of modern equipment. Due to the lack of immediate action many soldiers believed the war would amount to very little. Despite this, morale in the division was high. This period of inactivity was known as the "Phoney War".[22]
In mid-April the 15th Brigade was sent toNorway and fought, very briefly, in the unsuccessfulNorwegian campaign, evacuating from there and arriving in the United Kingdom in early May, although it did not rejoin the 5th Division until 3 July 1940. In early May the25th Infantry Brigade came temporarily under command of the division in France.[22][23] TheGerman Army launched its attack in the West on 10 May 1940 and the 5th Division saw action in the battles ofBelgium andFrance in May–June 1940 including theBattle of Arras, supported by the1st Army Tank Brigade, on 21 May 1940 and at theBattle of the Ypres-Comines Canal from 26 to 28 May 1940, and then waswithdrawn to Dunkirk, along with the rest of the BEF, where they wereevacuated to England, with most of the division arriving on 1 June.[22] Lieutenant-General Brooke, commanding II Corps, wrote in his diary that there "is no doubt that the 5th Div in its fight on the Ypres-Comines canal saved the II Corps and the BEF".[24]
The division, having sustained very heavy losses, remained in the United Kingdom for the next 21 months, with most of 1940 being spent inScotland underScottish Command, reforming in numbers and being brought up to strength with large numbers ofconscripts, alongside training in anti-invasion duties and preparing forOperation Sea Lion, the German invasion of the United Kingdom which never arrived. In late March 1941 the division, now under the command of Major-General Horatio Berney-Ficklin, who had taken over in July 1940 (and previously commanded the 15th Brigade), was sent toNorthern Ireland, coming under command of Lieutenant-GeneralJames Marshall-Cornwall'sIII Corps, under overall control ofBritish Troops Northern Ireland, and, as in Scotland, continued training to repel a German invasion there (seeOperation Green).[21][25]
The division left Northern Ireland on 16 March 1942 and served and travelled in so many regions of the world that they were known as theGlobe Trotters, and became the most travelled division of theBritish Army during the Second World War. In April 1942 the 13th and 17th Infantry Brigades and a portion of the divisional troops were detached to 'Force 121' forOperation Ironclad, the invasion ofVichy French heldMadagascar. The division was not complete again until August 1942. It was sent from the United Kingdom toIndia for three months and then toMiddle East Command, where it trained inmountain warfare.[21][22]
In mid-February 1943 the division was sent toSyria, remaining there for the next four months, and laterEgypt, where it came under the command ofBritish XIII Corps, commanded by Lieutenant-GeneralMiles Dempsey (who earlier had commanded the 13th Brigade in France and Belgium in 1940), which was part of theBritish Eighth Army, underGeneralSir Bernard Montgomery. The division, serving again alongside the 50th Division, began training inamphibiousoperations in preparation forOperation Husky, theAllied invasion of Sicily.[22]
The 5th Division saw action during the invasion of Sicily where, towards the end of the campaign, in early August, the divisional commander, Major-General Berney-Ficklin, who had commanded the division since July 1940, was replaced by Major-GeneralGerard Bucknall.[21] The division was pulled out of the line and absorbed replacements, andinvaded the Italian mainland inOperation Baytown on 3 September (four years since Britain's entry into the war), still as part of XIII Corps of the Eighth Army, but now serving alongside the1st Canadian Infantry Division, andadvanced up the spine of Italy. Later in the year, the division fought in theMoro River Campaign, although sustaining relatively light casualties in comparison to the other Allied formations involved.[22]
Progress for theAllied Armies in Italy (AAI), commanded by GeneralSir Harold Alexander, towards the end of 1943 had slowed down considerably, due mainly to a combination of worsening weather, stiffening German resistance and theWinter Line (also known as the Gustav Line, a series of formidable defences the Germans had created). The Eighth Army, operating on theAdriatic coast, had already pierced the Gustav Line at its eastern end. However, the appalling weather conditions forbade further progress and so operations there were closed down. As a result, the relatively intact 5th Division was available elsewhere. Therefore, in early January 1944 the division was transferred from the Eighth Army, now under Lieutenant-GeneralSir Oliver Leese, to the western side of Italy to join Lieutenant-GeneralRichard McCreery'sBritish X Corps. X Corps, stationed along theGarigliano river, was part ofLieutenant GeneralMark W. Clark'sU.S. Fifth Army. The division, now commanded by Major-GeneralPhilip Gregson-Ellis and with the veteran201st Guards Brigade now under command, crossed the Garigliano river as part of theFirst Battle of Monte Cassino where it gained considerable territory.[26][27]
In March 1944 the division, after holding its positions that it gained during the battle, was transferred again, this time to theAnziobridgehead (or, more appropriately,beachhead) where they came under command ofMajor GeneralLucian Truscott'sU.S. VI Corps and relieved the battered 56th Division, which was returning to the Middle East. Although by this time the majorbattles for the Anzio beachhead were over, the division was involved in minor skirmishing and operating in conditions more reminiscent of thetrench warfare of theFirst World War. In May the division participated inOperation Diadem and thebreakout from Anzio, which led to the capture of the Italian capital ofRome in early June. During the fighting,SergeantMaurice Rogers of the 2nd Battalion,Wiltshire Regiment was posthumously awarded theVictoria Cross, the first and only to be awarded to the 5th Division during the Second World War. Soon afterwards the division, having sustained just under 3,000 casualties since its arrival at Anzio three months before, was then withdrawn toPalestine, arriving there in mid-July. The division then came under command ofPersia and Transjordan Command.[21][22]
The division, now commanded by the relatively young Major-GeneralRichard Hull, who, at the age of 37, was the youngest division commander in the British Army (and later destined to becomeChief of the General Staff andChief of the Defence Staff), returned to Italy in early 1945 where they relieved the1st Infantry Division, which had fought alongside the Globetrotters at Anzio. Soon afterwards, however, the division was transferred to theWestern Front in March 1945 to participate in the final stages of theNorth West Europe campaign. Arriving in Belgium just after the Britishcrossing of the Rhine, the division came under command ofVIII Corps, under Lieutenant-GeneralEvelyn Barker, part of theBritish Second Army, under Lieutenant-General Miles Dempsey, and took part in theWestern Allied invasion of Germany, closely supported by elements of the6th Guards Armoured Brigade.[21][22]
Throughout the Second World War, the British 5th Infantry Division used a 'Y' on a khaki background as its insignia.[22]
The 5th Infantry Division was constituted as follows during the war:[22][21]
13th Infantry Brigade(detached toForce 121 inMadagascar from 26 April until 2 August 1942)[28]
17th Infantry Brigade(Brigade HQ formed 3 October 1939, detached toForce 121 in Madagascar from 15 March to 30 June 1942)[30]
Divisional Troops
The division remained in Germany, undertaking occupation duties, into the immediate post-war period. Major-GeneralJohn Churcher was the final commander, taking command in July 1947 and the division was disbanded two months later in September.[43][44][a] In April 1958, as part of a restructure undertaken by theBritish Army of the Rhine (BAOR), the7th Armoured Division was converted into and became the newly revived 5th Division and was headquartered atVerden an der Aller, Germany. This incarnation of the division lasted until 30 June 1960. The following day, 1 July, it was redesignated as the1st Division and took on that formation's lineage and insignia.[22][43][45]
On 1 April 1968, theArmy Strategic Command was formed in the UK, with a goal of supportingNATO forces from as far north as Norway to as far south as Turkey; to provide internal security operations world-wide; and to undertake limited operations alongside allied forces. In conjunction with this command being formed, the 5th Division was resurrected atWrexham. During this period, it consisted of the2nd, the8th, and the39th Infantry Brigades. However, with the onset ofOperation Banner, the deployment of British troops to Northern Ireland duringThe Troubles, the division was disbanded on 26 February 1971 as it was no longer needed.[43][46][47]
During the mid-1990s, the British Army restructured and disbanded variousregional districts, which were replaced by several regionally based divisions. This included the reformed 5th Division, alongside the2nd and the4th Divisions. These formations were all dubbed "regenerative" divisions, and held administrative and training responsibilities for all non-deployed forces located within their geographical boundaries. For the 5th Division, this included Wales, theWest Midlands, andNorth West England. In the event of a major international crisis, the formation would be used as the core to form a combat-ready division around. On reformation (April 1995), the division was headquartered inShrewsbury and comprised the42nd Brigade (headquartered inPreston, Lancashire), the143rd Brigade (Shrewsbury), and the160th Infantry Brigades (Brecon). At the time, it was around 4,600 strong and also contained 97 artillery pieces, onemultiple launch rocket system, two helicopters, and 123 tracked vehicles.[43][49][50]
As part of its training mandate, the division dispatched troops to train in Belize, was the first British formation to undertake training operations in Slovakia, and regularly worked with theArmy Cadet Force.[51] In addition to training, the division was held responsible for environmental conservation in areas that it oversaw. It also conducted a number of UK-based humanitarian missions in the early 2000s. DuringOperation Waterfowl, the division assisted those effected by theAutumn 2000 Western Europe floods. In 2001, the division supported farmers across the country, as well as theMinistry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, during the2001 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak (its deployment falling under the codenameOperation Peninsular).[52] The same year, it also sent troops to join theStabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Operation Palatine).[53]
By the mid-2000s, the division's boundaries had changed. The 2nd Division was assigned northern England and the 42nd Brigade. In turn, the 5th Division's area of responsibility was expanded so that it stretched from Wales, across the Midlands, and included theEast of England. It also took command of the49th (East) Brigade.[54][55][b] The opening decade of the millennium saw the outbreak of thewar on terror, which resulted in British deployments to Afghanistan (Operation Herrick) and Iraq (Operation Telic and the division prepared troops for deployments to these conflicts. It also sent troops to the Falkland Islands.[55]
TheStrategic Defence and Security Review of 2010 identified that the army had had become optimised foroperations in Afghanistan, but in order to meet potential future threats would need to be reorganised to become more flexible. This restructure was calledArmy 2020 and resulted in the decision to disband the three regional regenerative divisions, to be replaced bySupport Command, with the aim of making the home-based forces better able to support any deployed troops. The 5th Division was disbanded alongside the 2nd during April 2012, with the 4th Division preceding them in January.[57]
The book includes: – A detailed overview of the Italian Campaign and its battles. – Notes on the [five] Divisions engaged in Italy.