Kitchener's Army
The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, as Kitchener's Mob,[a] was an (initially) all-volunteer portion of the
Origins
Contrary to the popular belief that the war would be over by Christmas 1914, Kitchener predicted a long and brutal war. He believed that arrival in Europe of an overwhelming force of new, well-trained and well-led divisions would prove a decisive blow against the Central Powers. Kitchener fought off opposition to his plan, and attempts to weaken or water down its potential, including piece-meal dispersal of the New Army battalions into existing regular or Territorial Force divisions (the view of the Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), Field Marshal French). Kitchener declined to use the existing Territorial Force (set up by Lord Haldane and Douglas Haig as part of the Army reforms of the Edwardian period) as the basis for the New Army, as many of its members had volunteered for "Home Service" only, and because he was suspicious of the poor performance of French "territorials" in the Franco-Prussian War 1870–1871. In the early days of the war, the Territorial Force could not reinforce the regular army, as it lacked modern equipment, particularly artillery. In addition, it took time to form first-line units composed only of men who had volunteered for "General Service".[2][page needed]
Those recruited into the New Army were used to form complete
Recruitment
All five of the full army groups (meaning a group of divisions similar in size to an army, not a group of armies) were made up of volunteer recruits, which included the famous Pals' Battalions. Due to the huge numbers of men wishing to sign up, in places queues up to a mile long formed outside recruitment offices, there were many problems in equipping and providing shelter for the new recruits. Rapidly the Government added many new recruitment centres, which eased the admissions burden, and began a programme of temporary construction at the main training camps. By 12 September, almost half a million men had enlisted.[3][4] The priority placement of recruits was to make up the strength of K1 units, then the Reserve battalions, and then the K2 units.[5] Almost 2.5 million men volunteered for Kitchener's Army.[2][page needed] The War Office stipulated that NCOs for these new formations should be selected from those men reenlisting.[b]
By the beginning of 1916, the queues were not so long anymore. Information about the true nature of the war had reached Great Britain, and enthusiasm for volunteering plunged.[
The first conscripts arrived in France in late 1916 to fill the gaps in the volunteer units,[
Training
The British Army traditionally recruited on a regimental basis, therefore a recruit accepted into the Army was first sent to his new regiment's depot, where he received his kit
The Regiments also suffered from a lack of officers to train them. The government called up all reserve-list officers and any British Indian Army officer who happened to be on leave in the UK during the period. Men who had been to a recognised public school and university graduates, many of whom had some prior military training in Officer Training Corps, were often granted direct commissions. Commanding officers were encouraged to promote promising leaders and later in the war it was common for officers ("temporary gentlemen") to have been promoted from the ranks to meet the demand, especially as casualty rates among junior infantry officers were extremely high. Many officers, both regular and temporary, were promoted to ranks and responsibilities far greater than they had ever realistically expected to hold.
The Army had difficulty supplying new units with enough weapons. No artillery pieces had been left in Britain to train new artillery brigades, and most battalions had to drill with obsolete rifles or wooden mockups. By early 1915 the Government had overcome many of these problems. Among its methods was pressing into use old ceremonial cannons and unfinished modern artillery pieces (they lacked targeting sights). During 1915, it corrected such shortages.
Later developments
At the beginning of 1918, the shortage of manpower in the British Expeditionary Force in France became acute. The Army ordered infantry divisions to be reduced from twelve infantry battalions to nine. The higher-numbered battalions (in effect the New Army units, and some Second-Line Territorial units) were to be disbanded rather than the lower-numbered Regular and First-Line Territorial battalions. (Since Kitchener's death in 1916, no other major figure opposed this fundamental change to the principles on which the New Army had been raised.) In some cases, New Army divisions had to disband about half of their units to make room for surplus battalions transferred from Regular or First-Line Territorial divisions. While the change reduced the unique sense of identity of some New Army formations, it developed the divisions in France into more homogeneous units. By this time there was no longer much real distinction between Regular, Territorial, and New Army divisions.[7]
Structure
Kitchener's New Army was made up of the following Army Groups (meaning a group of divisions similar in size to an army, not a group of armies) and Divisions:
K1 Army Group
- 9th (Scottish) Division
- 10th (Irish) Division
- 11th (Northern) Division
- 12th (Eastern) Division
- 13th (Western) Division
- 14th (Light) Division—originally 8th (Light) Division but renumbered when the regular army 8th Division was formed in September 1914.[8]
K2 Army Group
- 15th (Scottish) Division
- 16th (Irish) Division
- 17th (Northern) Division
- 18th (Eastern) Division
- 19th (Western) Division
- 20th (Light) Division
K3 Army Group
Original K4 Army Group
Kitchener's Fourth New Army was formed from November 1914 with
- 30th Division
- 31st Division
- 32nd Division
- 33rd Division
- 34th Division
- 35th Division
The divisions were not fully formed when the decision was made to use them to provide replacements for the first three New Armies. The divisions were broken up on 10 April 1915; the infantry brigades and battalions became reserve formations and the other divisional troops were transferred to the divisions of the newly created Fourth and Fifth New Armies.[9]
K4/K5 Army Group
Redesignated K4 following breakup of original K4.
- 30th Division—originally designated as 37th Division[10]
- 31st Division—originally designated as 38th Division[11]
- 32nd Division—originally designated as 39th Division[12]
- 33rd Division—originally designated as 40th Division[13]
- 34th Division—originally designated as 41st Division[14]
- 35th Division—originally designated as 42nd Division[15]
K5 Army Group
Following the re-designation of the previous K5 Army Group, a new K5 Army Group was formed.
- 36th (Ulster) Division—raised as the Ulster Division, numbered on 28 August 1914.[16]
- 37th Division—originally designated as 44th Division[17]
- 38th (Welsh) Division—originally designated as 43rd Division[18]
- 39th Division
- 40th Division
- 41st Division
Divisional structure in 1915
In 1915, the prescribed structure of a division would have comprised the following units:
- Divisional HQ
- Infantry:
- 3 brigades, each comprising:
- 4 battalions (with 4 machine guns each)
- 3 brigades, each comprising:
- Mounted troops:
- 1 cavalry squadron
- 1 cyclist company
- Artillery:
- HQ Divisional Artillery
- 3 18 pounders and one ammunition column)
- 1 field artillery 4.5" howitzersand an ammunition column)
- 1 heavy battery (four 60 pounderswith an ammunition column)
- 1 divisional ammunition column
- Engineers:
- HQ Divisional Engineers
- 3 field companies
- Signals Service:
- 1 signal company
- Pioneers:
- 1 pioneer battalion (with 4 machine guns)
- 3 field ambulances
- 1 sanitarysection
- 1 mobile veterinarysection
- 1 motor ambulance workshop
- 1 divisional train
Number of troops and equipment:
- All ranks: 19,614
- Horses & mules: 5,818
- Guns:
- 48 × 18 pounders
- 16 × 4.5" howitzers
- 4 × 60 pounders
- Vickers machine guns: 52
- Assorted carts & vehicles: 958
- Cycles: 538
- Motor vehicles:
- cycles: 19
- cars: 11
- lorries: 4
- ambulances: 21
Divisional structure in 1918
In 1918, a typical division would have comprised the following units:
- Divisional HQ
- Infantry
- 3 brigades,
- each comprising 3 Lewis Guns (light machine guns) each
- and one light trench Stokes
- each comprising 3
- Artillery
- H.Q. Divisional Artillery
- 2 field artillery brigades
- each comprising three batteries with six 18 pounders and one battery of six 4.5" howitzers
- 2 medium trench mortar batteries with 6 × 2" mortars each
- 1 divisional ammunition column
- Engineers
- H.Q. Divisional Engineers
- 3 field companies
- Signals Service
- 1 signal company
- Pioneers
- 1 pioneer battalion, 12 Lewis Guns
- Battalion, Machine Gun Corps
- comprising 4 companies, with 16 Vickers machine guns each
- 3 field ambulances
- 1 sanitary section
- 1 mobile veterinary section
- 1 motor ambulance workshop
- 1 divisional train
Number of troops and equipment:
- All ranks: 16,035
- Horses & mules: 3,838
- Guns: 48
- 18 pounders: 36
- 4.5" howitzers: 12
- trench mortars: 36
- Stokes: 24
- Medium: 12
- Machine guns: 400
- Vickers: 64
- Lewis: 336
- Assorted carts & vehicles: 870
- Cycles: 341
- Motor cycles: 44
- Motor cars: 11
- Motor lorries: 3
- Motor ambulances: 21
See also
- List of British divisions in World War I
Footnotes
- ^ "'Kitchener's Mob' they were called in the early days of August, 1914, when London hoardings were clamorous with the first calls for volunteers. The seasoned regulars of the first British expeditionary force said it patronizingly, the great British public hopefully, the world at large doubtfully. 'Kitchener's Mob,' when there was but a scant sixty thousand under arms with millions yet to come. 'Kitchener's Mob' it remains to-day, fighting in hundreds of thousands in France, Belgium, Africa, the Balkans. And to-morrow, when the war is ended, who will come marching home again, old campaigners, war-worn remnants of once mighty armies? 'Kitchener's Mob.'"
- —Kitchener's Mob: Adventures of an American in the British Army by James Norman Hall, 1916
- ^ Men 'who may be promoted from the rank they formerly held.'[6]
- ^ his basic uniform, boots, webbing etc
References
- ^ Medlicott, (1967), p. 21.'[Kitchener] had acted decisively on the outbreak of war in calling for a large enlistment of 500,000 volunteers for the regular army; but these would take time to train and he did not anticipate that the full weight of the British effort could be thrown in until perhaps the middle of 1916.'
- ^ a b c Simkins 2007.
- The British Library. Archived from the originalon 26 January 2021. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
- ^ "Recruiting [bar charts] Aug-Dec 1914". BEF 1915: Loos and the Kitchener battalions. Great War Forum. 8 January 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
I recall late Sep 1914 that the authorities tightened up the requirements in order to put the brakes on recruiting, only to relax it again in Nov 1914, once the backlog had started to clear. The effects can be clearly seen in the daily data (see below). The subtle changes in the recruiting criteria are of great interest. Sadly I only have daily recruiting data for 1914 [within "New Armies: Organisation", archive reference WO 162/3]. Thereafter it becomes monthly.
- ^ "Kitchener Bn men drawn off to fill Regular Bns in 1914". Analysis of 1914 recruiting statistics in WO 162/4. Great War Forum. 11 October 2013. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
Peter Simkins comments in "Kitchener's Army" that once K1 had been formed, the SR battalions would be brought up to strength of 2,000 before K2 was formed. This, according to Simkins was decided on 27th Aug 1914. Any further surplus would then be used for the formation of K2... [There was] the realisation that the SR would need far more men in the immediate future than their establishment of 606 ORs.
- ^ Simkins 2007, p. 225.
- ^ Carrington 1978, p. 15-20.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 14th (Light) Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Becke 1945, pp. 133–138
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 30th Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 31st Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 32nd Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 33rd Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 34th Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 35th Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Archived from the original on 21 December 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 36th (Ulster) Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 37th Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The 38th (Welsh) Division in 1914–1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
Bibliography
- Becke, Major A.F. (1938). Order of Battle of Divisions Part 3A. New Army Divisions (9–26). London: His Majesty's Stationery Office. ISBN 1-871167-08-6.
- Becke, Major A.F. (1945). Order of Battle of Divisions Part 3B. New Army Divisions (30–41) & 63rd (RN) Division. London: His Majesty's Stationery Office. ISBN 1-871167-08-6.
- Beckett, Ian, Timothy Bowman, and Mark Connelly. The British Army and the First World War (Cambridge University Press, 2017)
- Carrington, Charles E. (1978). "Kitchener's Army: The Somme and After". The RUSI Journal. 123 (1): 15–20. .
- Ginzburg, Carlo. "‘Your Country Needs You’: A Case Study in Political Iconography." History Workshop Journal . No. 52. 2001.
- Medlicott, W.N. (1967). Contemporary England 1914-1964. Longmans.
- Royle, Trevor. Kitchener Enigma: The Life and Death of Lord Kitchener of Khartoum, 1850-1916 (The History Press, 2016).
- Simkins, Peter (2007). Kitchener's Army: The Raising of the New Armies, 1914–16. Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword Military. ISBN 978-1-84-415585-9.
External links
- E-book The First Hundred Thousand by John Hay Beith at Project Gutenberg
- E-book All in It: K(1) Carries On a Continuation of the First Hundred Thousand by John Hay Beith at Project Gutenberg
- E-book Kitchener's Mob: Adventures of an American in the British Army by James Norman Hall at Project Gutenberg