| IV Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery (T.F.) | |
|---|---|
| Active | April 1916 – July 1917 |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Artillery |
| Size | Battalion |
| Part of | ANZAC Mounted Division |
| Equipment | Ordnance QF 15-pounder Ordnance QF 18-pounder |
| Engagements | World War I |
IV Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery (Territorial Force), along with its sisterIII Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery (T.F.), was aRoyal Horse Artillerybrigade[a] of theTerritorial Force that was formed in Egypt in April 1916 for theANZAC Mounted Division.
Both brigades served with the ANZAC Mounted Division during theSinai and Palestine Campaign ofWorld War I. In July 1917, the division's artillery was reorganized and the brigadeheadquarters were dissolved.
The ANZAC Mounted Division was formed in March 1916 with fourcavalry brigades, each of three regiments: the Australian1st,2nd and3rd Light Horse Brigades and theNew Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade. Four British Territorial Forcehorse artillerybatteries were assigned to the division to provide artillery support, one per brigade.[3]
IV Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery (Territorial Force) was formed in April 1916 in theEgyptian Expeditionary Force with[4][b]
The batteries had been assigned to theLowland andHighland Mounted Brigades, respectively, at the outbreak of the war,[5] each equipped with four[6]Ehrhardt 15-pounder guns.[7] The batteries had arrived in Egypt independently;[3] Inverness-shire RHA landed atAlexandria between 22 and 25 February 1916.[8]
In practice, the batteries were permanently attached to the mounted brigades: Inverness-shire RHA to the 3rd Light Horse Brigade[9] and Ayrshire RHA to theNew Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade.[10] When the 3rd Light Horse Brigade was transferred to theImperial Mounted Division in January 1917, it was replaced by the British22nd Mounted Brigade. Inverness-shire RHA remained with the ANZAC Mounted Division and was attached to 22nd Mounted Brigade thereafter.[3]
The brigade, and its batteries, served with the ANZAC Mounted Division in theSinai and Palestine Campaign until July 1917. With the division, it saw action at theBattle of Romani (4 – 14 August 1916) as part of No. 3 Section, Suez Canal Defences. This saw the repulse of the final Turkish attempt to cut theSuez Canal.[11]
The division then joined theDesert Column and with it took part in the advance across theSinai. It fought at theBattle of Magdhaba (23 December 1916) and theBattle of Rafah (9 January 1917).[11] The batteries were then re-equipped with four18 pounders each.[12] They then took part in theFirst (26 – 27 March 1917) andSecond Battles of Gaza (17 – 19 April 1917).[11]
In July 1917, the artillery of the ANZAC Mounted Division was reorganized. A newheadquarters,XVIII Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery (T.F.), was formed for the division and took command of Inverness-shire and Ayrshire RHA. They were joined bySomerset RHA of III Brigade, RHA (T.F.). With the departure of its batteries, IV Brigade was dissolved.[3][c]
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