36th (Ulster) Division
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| 36th (Ulster) Division | |
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| Active | World War I September 1914 - January 1919 |
| Branch | New Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Engagements | Battle of Cambrai Battle of Messines Battle of the Somme (1916) Battle of Ypres (1917) Battle of Ypres (1918) Battle of Courtrai (1918) |
The 36th (Ulster) Division was a division of Lord Kitchener's New Army formed in September 1914. Originally called the Ulster Division, it was made up of members of the Ulster Volunteer Force who formed thirteen additional battalions for three existing Irish regiments; the Royal Irish Fusiliers, the Royal Irish Rifles and the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. The division served on the Western Front for the duration of the First World War.
The division's insignia was the Red Hand of Ulster.
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[edit] Unit history
The 36th were one of the few divisions to make significant gains on the first day on the Somme. They attacked between the Ancre and Thiepval against a position known as the Schwaben Redoubt. According to military historian Martin Middlebrook:
| “ | The leading battalions (of the 36th (Ulster) Division) had been ordered out from the wood just before 7.30am and laid down near the German trenches ... At zero hour the British barrage lifted. Bugles blew the "Advance". Up sprang the Ulstermen and, without forming up in the waves adopted by other divisions, they rushed the German front line ..... By a combination of sensible tactics and Ulster dash, the prize that eluded so many, the capture of a long section of the German front line, had been accomplished. | ” |
During the Battle of the Somme the Ulster Division was the only division of X Corps to have achieved it's objectives on the opening day of the battle. This came at a heavy price, with the division suffering in two days of fighting, 5,500 officers and men, killed, wounded or missing. [1]
[edit] The Ulster Memorial Tower
On Saturday 19 November, 1921, in dedication to the contributions of the 36th Ulster Division during WWI, the Ulster Memorial Tower, was unveiled by Field-Marshall Sir Henry Wilson in Thiepval, France. [1]
The Ulster Memorial Tower marks the site of the Schwaben redoubt, against which the Ulster Division advanced on the first day of the Battle of the Somme. [1]
The tower itself is a replica of Helen's Tower which is situated at Clandeboye, County Down. It was at Helen's Tower that the men of the then newly formed Ulster Division drilled and trained on the outbreak of World War I. [1]
For many of the men of the 36th (Ulster) Division the distinctive sight of Helen's Tower rising above the surrounding countryside was one of their last abiding memories of home before their departure for England, and subsequently, the Western Front. [1]
[edit] Victoria Cross Recipients
In total nine members of the 36th Division were awarded the Victoria Cross: [2]
- Captain Eric Norman Frankland Bell, 9th Battalion The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. Died 20 years old, July 1st 1916, Battle of the Somme.
- 2nd Lieutenant James Samuel Emerson, 9th Battalion The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. Died 22 years old, December 6th 1917, La Vacquerie.
- Lance Corporal Ernest Seaman, 2nd Battalion The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. Died 25 years old, September 29th 1918, Terhand Belgium.
- Fusilier Norman Harvey, 1st Battalion The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. Awarded for actions during October 25th 1918, Ingoyghem, Belgium.
- Second Lieutenant Edmund De Wind, 15th Battalion The Royal Irish Rifles. Died 34 years old, March 21st 1918, Second Battle of the Somme.
- Rifleman William Frederick McFadzean, 14th Battalion The Royal Irish Rifles. Died 20 years old, July 1st 1916, Battle of the Somme.
- Rifleman Robert Quigg, 12th Battalion The Royal Irish Rifles. Awarded for actions during the Battle of the Somme on July 1st 1916. Also awarded the Medal of Order of St. George (Fourth Class), the highest honour of the Russian Empire.
- Lieutenant Geoffrey Cather 9th Battalion The Royal Irish Rifles. Died 25 years old, July 2nd 1916, Battle of the Somme
- Private Robert Morrow, 1st Btn Royal Irish Fusiliers. Died 23 years old, April 26th 1915, Battle of Messines
[edit] Commendations
Captain Wilfred Spender of the Ulster Division's HQ staff after the Battle of the Somme was quoted in the press as saying, "I am not an Ulsterman but yesterday, the 1st. July, as I followed their amazing attack, I felt that I would rather be an Ulsterman than anything else in the world."[3] The final sentences of Captain Wilfred Spender's account furthered his viewpoint:[4]
| “ | The Ulster Division has lost more than half the men who attacked and, in doing so, has sacrificied itself for the Empire which has treated them none too well. The much derided Ulster Volunteer Force has won a name which equals any in history. Their devotion, which no doubt has helped the advance elsewhere, deserved the gratitude of the British Empire. It is due to the memory of these brave fellows that their beloved Province [sic] shall be fairly treated. | ” |
After the war had ended, King George V. paid the following tribute to the 36th Division saying, "Throughout the long years of struggle ... the men of Ulster have proved how nobly they fight and die ..."[1]
[edit] Formation
- 15th (Service) Battalion (North Belfast), the Royal Irish Rifles
- 8th (Service) Battalion (East Belfast), the Royal Irish Rifles
- 9th (Service) Battalion (West Belfast), the Royal Irish Rifles
- 10th (Service) Battalion (South Belfast), the Royal Irish Rifles (until February 1918)
- 1st Battalion, the Royal Irish Fusiliers (from August 1917 until February 1918)
- 1st Battalion, the Royal Irish Rifles (from February 1918)
- 2nd Battalion, the Royal Irish Rifles (from February 1918)
- 107th Brigade Machine Gun Company (from 18 December 1915, moved into 36 MG Bn 1 March 1918)
- 107th Trench Mortar Battery (from 1 April 1916)
In August 1917 the 8th and 9th battalions of the Royal Irish Rifles amalgamated to form the 8/9th Battalion which disbanded in February 1918.
Between November 1915 and February 1916 the brigade swapped with the 12th Brigade from the 4th Division.
- 108th Brigade
- 9th (Service) Battalion, the Royal Irish Fusiliers
- 12th (Service) Battalion (Central Antrim), the Royal Irish Rifles
- 2nd Battalion, the Royal Irish Rifles (from November 1917 to 107th Bde. February 1918)
- 11th (Service) Battalion (South Antrim), the Royal Irish Rifles
- 13th (Service) Battalion (County Down), the Royal Irish Rifles
- 1st Battalion, the Royal Irish Fusiliers (from 107th Bde. February 1918)
- 108th Brigade Machine Gun Company (from 26 January 1916, moved into 36 MG Bn 1 March 1918)
- 108th Trench Mortar Battery (from 1 April 1916)
In August 1917 the 11th and 13th battalions of the Royal Irish Rifles amalgamated to form the 11/13th Battalion which disbanded in February 1918.
- 109th Brigade
- 9th (Service) Battalion (County Tyrone), the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
- 10th (Service) Battalion (Derry), the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers (disbanded January 1918)
- 11th (Service) Battalion (Donegal and Fermanagh), the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers (disbanded February 1918)
- 14th (Service) Battalion (Young Citizens), the Royal Irish Rifles (disbanded February 1918)
- 1st Battalion, the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers (from February 1918)
- 2nd Battalion, the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers (from February 1918) ll
- 109th Brigade Machine Gun Company (from 23 January 1916, moved into 36 MG Bn 1 March 1918)
- 109th Trench Mortar Battery (from 1 April 1916)
[edit] Battles
- Battle of Cambrai (1917)
- Battle of Messines
- Battle of the Somme (1916)
- Third Battle of Ypres
- Fourth Battle of Ypres
- Battle of Courtrai (1918)
[edit] Great War Memorials
- Ulster Tower Memorial Thiepval, France.
- Irish National War Memorial Gardens, Dublin
- Island of Ireland Peace Park Messines, Belgium.
- Menin Gate Memorial Ypres, Belgium.
[edit] See also
[edit] Further reading
- Cyril Falls History of the 36th (Ulster) Division Constable and Robinso (1998), ISBN 0-09-476630-4
- Timothy Bowman: Irish Regiments in the Great War: Discipline and Morale, Manchester University Press (2003), ISBN 0-7190-6285-3.
- Steven Moore The Irish on the Somme, Local Press Belfast (2005), ISBN 0-9549715-1-5
- Peter Hart The Somme, Weidenfeld and Nicolson (2005), ISBN 0-297-84705-8
- Desmond & Jean Bowen: Heroic Option: The Irish in the British Army, Pen & Sword Books (2005), ISBN 1-84415-152-2.
- Steven Moore: The Irish on the Somme (2005), ISBN 0-9549715-1-5.
- Thomas Bartlett & Keith Jeffery: A Military History of Ireland, Cambridge University Press (1996) (2006), ISBN 0-521-62989-6
- David Murphy: Irish Regiments in the World Wars, OSprey Publishing (2007), ISBN 978-1-84603-015-4
- David Murphy: The Irish Brigades, 1685-2006, A gazatteer of Irish Military Service past and present, Four Courts Press (2007)
The Military Heritage of Ireland Trust. ISBN 978-1-84682-080-9
[edit] External links
- The British Army in the Great War: The 36th (Ulster) Division
- South Belfast Friends Of The Somme
- The Somme Association
- The Irish War Memorials Project - listing of monuments throughout Ireland
- The Military Heritage of Ireland Trust
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f The Somme Heritage Centre
- ^ [1] The Ministry of Defence
- ^ BBC - Your Place And Mine
- ^ Gordon Lucy The Ulster Covenant - A Pictorial History of the 1912 Home Rule Crisis (1989), New Ulster (Publications) Ltd., ISBN 1-870276-025
