23rd (Northumbrian) Infantry Division

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

23rd (Northumbrian) Division
Active	World War II
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Territorial Army
Type	Infantry
Engagements	Battle of France

The 23rd (Northumbrian) Division was a 2nd Line Territorial Army duplicate of the British 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division during the Second World War.

1 History
2 Commanders
3 Component Units
4 External links

[edit] History

The 23rd Northumbrian Division was raised in October 1939, and was sent to France on 22 April 1940 on Labour and training duties, without any of its artillery , signals, or administration units.

On 20 May 1940 the division suffered heavy casualties trying to delay the German advance at Arras. On its return to Britain, after Dunkirk, the 23rd Division was disbanded due to the heavy losses it had suffered. Ironically both of its infantry brigades would still survive till 1944 and see action in Normandy. The 70th being apart of the 49th Division and the 69th having seen action in the desert prior to Normandy as a part of the 50th Northumbrian Division . It's Machine Gun and Motorcycle Battalions, the 8th (Motorcycle)and 9th (Machine Gun)Battalions the Northumberland Fusiliers, would also survive with the 9th surviving until February 1942 as the Machine Gun Battalion for the 18th Division until its capture at Singapore and the 8th would survive until the end of the war having been converted to the 3rd Reconnaissance Regiment the Reconnaissance Corps under the 3rd British Infantry Division right up till the end of the war.