54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division

East Anglian Division
54th (East Anglian) Division
54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division

Shoulder sleeve insignia of the 54th (East Anglian) Division, World War II.
Active 1908–1919
1920–1943
Country  United Kingdom
Branch  British Army
Type Infantry
Size Division
Engagements World War I
*Battle of Gallipoli
*First Battle of Gaza
*Battle of Mughar Ridge
*Battle of Jerusalem (1917)
*Action of Tell 'Asur
*Battle of Megiddo (1918)'s Battle of Arara
World War II
Commanders
Notable
commanders		 the Hon. Julian Byng
Sir Charles Townshend
Sir Evelyn Barker
Cyril Lomax
Sir Ian Freeland

The 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. During the First World War the division fought at Gallipoli and in the Middle East. The division was disbanded after the war but reformed in the Territorial Army in 1920. During the Second World War it was a home service division and did not see any combat service abroad and was disbanded in late 1943 but many of its component units went to see service in the Normandy Campaign and North-western Europe from June 1944 to May 1945.

Formation

The division was raised as the East Anglian Division in 1908 when the Territorial Force was created. Under command it had the Essex Brigade, the East Midland Brigade and the Norfolk and Suffolk Brigade. In 1915, during the First World War, these later became the 54th (East Anglian) Division, the 161st (Essex) Brigade, the 162nd (East Midland) Brigade and the 163rd (Norfolk and Suffolk) Brigade respectively.

First World War

The 54th (East Anglian) Division landed at Suvla on 10 August in the Gallipoli Campaign, as a part of IX Corps under Lieutenant-General Stopford. It was moved to the Egyptian Expeditionary Force under General Murray in late 1916 and garrisoned the southern part of the Suez Canal.

Then in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign, during the First Battle of Gaza, on 26 March 1917, the 161st Brigade and divisional artillery were in reserve while the 53rd (Welsh) Division carried out the main attack. These reserves were committed as the battle progressed resulting in the British gaining a foothold in the Turkish defences but the British commander called off the attack as night fell. In the Second Battle of Gaza, the 1/4th and 1/5th Battalions of the Norfolk Regiment sustained 75 per cent casualties (about 1,200 men).[1] It took part in the successful Third Battle of Gaza as part of XXI Corps led by General Bulfin, and by the end of 1917 Edmund Allenby's forces had taken Jerusalem.

In September 1918 the division took part in the Battle of Megiddo.

Order of battle

The division was constituted as follows during the war:[2][3]

161st (Essex) Brigade
162nd (East Midland) Brigade
163rd (Norfolk and Suffolk) Brigade
Divisional Artillery

The divisional artillery did not accompany the division to Gallipoli. On 17 November 1915 it embarked for France, where it joined 33rd Division, a 'Kitchener's Army' division whose artillery were still under training. It rejoined 54th Division in Egypt in May 1916.

After reorganisation in August 1916:

Engineers
Medical

Between the wars

The division was disbanded after the Great War when the whole of the Territorial Force was disbanded. However, it was reformed in 1920 as the Territorial Army (TA) and the division was reconstituted, initially with a similar composition to before the First World War but, over the next few years, with a much different composition.

In 1939 the TA was doubled in size to meet the threat of Nazi Germany and the division raised a second-line duplicate unit, the 18th Infantry Division. However, it was not formed as an exact duplicate as most Territorial divisions did and the units were divided by geographical location, with the Essex Regiment, one battalion of the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment and both battalions of the Hertfordshire Regiment being assigned to the 54th Division. The 18th Division contained battalions of the Royal Norfolk Regiment, the Suffolk Regiment, the Cambridgeshire Regiment and a single battalion of the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment.[4]

Second World War

Upon the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939, the 54th Division, commanded by Major General John Priestman,[5] a Regular Army officer, and serving under Eastern Command,[5] was mobilised for full-time war service. Comprising still the 161st, 162nd and 163rd Infantry Brigades and divisional troops, the division absorbed hundreds of conscripts and spent the first few months of the war, after guarding various designated 'vulnerable points', training for eventual overseas service.[4]

The division remained in the United Kingdom as a local defence formation, being downgraded to a Lower Establishment in January 1942. The division was disbanded and broken up on 14 December 1943.[4] Its component units would take part in the Normandy Campaign as support units, with the HQ Royal Artillery becoming HQ 8th Army Group Royal Artillery and HQ Royal Engineers becoming HQ Royal Engineers for the 6th Airborne Division. The divisional HQ was redesignated HQ Lines of Communication (54th Division) for the 21st Army Group.[4]

The division was not reformed in the post-war Territorial Army in 1947 but the 161st and 162nd Infantry Brigades both survived until disbandment in the 1960s.[4]

Order of battle

The 54th Infantry Division was constituted as follows during the war:[5]

161st Infantry Brigade (until 17 December 1940)[6]

162nd Infantry Brigade (until 10 November 1942 and from 5 September 1943)[7]

163rd Infantry Brigade (redesignated 53rd Infantry Brigade 18 September 1939)[8]

198th Infantry Brigade (from 20 December 1940)[9]

Divisional Troops

Commanders

The following officers commanded the division during its existence:

Victoria Cross recipients

See also

References

  1. ↑ Eastern Daily Press, "Sunday" section May 5, 2007
  2. ↑ Becke, Pt 2a, pp. 125–32.
  3. ↑ Chris Baker (2010). "The 54th (East Anglian) Division of the British Army in 1914-1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 2015-08-17.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "badge, formation, 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division & 162nd Infantry Brigade". Imperial War Museum. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 Joslen, p. 89
  6. ↑ Joslen, p. 349.
  7. ↑ Joslen, p. 350.
  8. ↑ Joslen, p. 351.
  9. ↑ Joslen, p. 382.

Bibliography

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