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British 16th (Irish) Division
Encyclopedia
The 16th Division was a voluntary 'Service' division
of Kitchener's New Army
raised in Ireland
from the 'National Volunteers
', initially in September 1914, after the outbreak of the Great War. In December 1915, the division moved to France, joining the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), under the command of Irish Major General
William Hickie
, and spent the duration of the First World War
in action on the Western Front
. Following enormous losses at the Somme, Passchendaele and Ypres, the Division required a substantial refit in England between June and August 1918, which involved the introduction of many non-Irish battalions. The division served as a formation of the United Kingdom
's British Army during World War I
.
first filled the ranks of the 10th (Irish) Division before being assigned to the 16th Division, formed around a core of National Volunteers. Initial training began in Ireland at Fermoy
, Munster; recruits also trained at Buttevant
. It moved to Aldershot
in England for more intensive training in September 1915. After thirteen weeks, the formation was deployed to Etaples
in France, joining the BEF, from where it left on December 18 for that part of the front in the Loos
salient, under the command of Irish Major General
William Hickie
. It spent the rest of the war on the Western Front.
At Loos, in January and February 1916, the division was introducted to trench warfare
and suffered greatly in the Battle of Hulluch
, 27–29 April, (during the Easter Rising in Ireland). Personnel raided German trenches all through May and June, and in late July they were moved to the Somme Valley
where they were intensively engaged in the Battle of the Somme. The 16th division played an important part in capturing the towns of Guillemont
and Ginchy
, although they suffered massive casualties. During these successful actions between 1 and 10 September casualties amounted to 224 officers and 4,090 men; despite these very heavy losses the division gained a reputation as first-class shock troops. Out of a total of 10,845 men, it had lost 3,491 on the Loos sector between January and the end of May 1916, including heavy casualties from bombardment and a gas attack at Hullach in April. Bloodletting of this order was fatal to the division’s character, for it had to be made good by drafts from England.
In early 1917, the division took a major part in the Battle of Messines
alongside the 36th (Ulster) Division, adding to both their recognition and reputation. Their major actions ended in the summer of 1917 at the Battle of Passchendaele after coming under the command of General Hubert Gough
and the Fifth Army. In July 1917, during the Third Battle of Ypres, although both divisions were totally exhausted after 13 days of moving weighty equipment under heavy shelling, Gough ordered the battalions to advance through deep mud towards well fortified German positions left untouched by totally inadequate artillery preparation. By mid August, the 16th had suffered over 4,200 casualties, the 36th almost 3,600, or more than 50% of their numbers. General Haig was very critical of Gough for "playing the Irish card".
The 16th Division held an exposed position from early 1918 at Ronssoy
where they suffered more heavy losses during the German Spring Offensive
in March and being practicaally wiped out in the retreat which followed Operation Michael
, when they helped to finally halt the German attack prior to the Battle of Hamel
. The decision was then made to break up the division, the three surviving Service battalions were posted to other formations. On 14 June the division returned to England for "reconstitution". The Conscription Crisis of 1918 in Ireland meant that fewer Irish recruits could be raised so that the 16th Division which returned to France on 27 July contained five English Battalions, two Scottish Battalions and one Welsh Battalion. The only original Battalion left was the 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers.
The dispersion of the Irish battalions throughout the BEF in 1918, despite its practical considerations, appears to suggest that the Irish units were increasingly distrusted by the military authorities.
:
48th Brigade :
The 8th and 9th Battalions of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers combined to form the 8/9th Battalion in October 1917 which was subsequently disbanded in February 1918.
49th Brigade :
The 7th and 8th Battalions of the Royal Irish Fusiliers combined to form the 7/8th Battalion in October 1916 which was subsequently disbanded in February 1918. The 7th and 8th Battalions of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers combined to form the 7/8th Battalion in August 1917 which was subsequently disbanded in February 1918.
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
of Kitchener's New Army
Kitchener's Army
The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, Kitchener's Mob, was an all-volunteer army formed in the United Kingdom following the outbreak of hostilities in the First World War...
raised in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
from the 'National Volunteers
National Volunteers
The National Volunteers was the name taken by the majority of the Irish Volunteers that sided with Irish Parliamentary Party leader John Redmond after the movement split over the question of the Volunteers' role in World War I.-Origins:...
', initially in September 1914, after the outbreak of the Great War. In December 1915, the division moved to France, joining the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), under the command of Irish Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
William Hickie
William Bernard Hickie
Sir William Bernard Hickie was an Irish born Major General of the British Army and an Irish nationalist politician....
, and spent the duration of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in action on the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
. Following enormous losses at the Somme, Passchendaele and Ypres, the Division required a substantial refit in England between June and August 1918, which involved the introduction of many non-Irish battalions. The division served as a formation of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
's British Army during World War I
British Army during World War I
The British Army during World War I fought the largest and most costly war in its long history. Unlike the French and German Armies, its units were made up exclusively of volunteers—as opposed to conscripts—at the beginning of the conflict...
.
History
The Division began forming as part of the K2 Army Group towards the end of 1914 after Irish recruits in the early days of the war from England and BelfastBelfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
first filled the ranks of the 10th (Irish) Division before being assigned to the 16th Division, formed around a core of National Volunteers. Initial training began in Ireland at Fermoy
Fermoy
Fermoy is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Blackwater in the south of Ireland. Its population is some 5,800 inhabitants, environs included ....
, Munster; recruits also trained at Buttevant
Buttevant
Buttevant is a medieval market town, incorporated by charter of Edward III, situated in North County Cork, Ireland.While there may be reason to suggest that the town may occupy the site of an earlier settlement of the Donegans, Carrig Donegan, the origins of the present town are clearly and...
. It moved to Aldershot
Aldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
in England for more intensive training in September 1915. After thirteen weeks, the formation was deployed to Etaples
Étaples
Étaples or Étaples-sur-Mer is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. It is a fishing and leisure port on the Canche river.There is a separate commune named Staple, Nord.-History:...
in France, joining the BEF, from where it left on December 18 for that part of the front in the Loos
Battle of Loos
The Battle of Loos was one of the major British offensives mounted on the Western Front in 1915 during World War I. It marked the first time the British used poison gas during the war, and is also famous for the fact that it witnessed the first large-scale use of 'new' or Kitchener's Army...
salient, under the command of Irish Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
William Hickie
William Bernard Hickie
Sir William Bernard Hickie was an Irish born Major General of the British Army and an Irish nationalist politician....
. It spent the rest of the war on the Western Front.
At Loos, in January and February 1916, the division was introducted to trench warfare
Trench warfare
Trench warfare is a form of occupied fighting lines, consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are largely immune to the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery...
and suffered greatly in the Battle of Hulluch
Battle of Hulluch
The Battle of Hulluch was a conflict in World War I, 27–29 April 1916, involving the 16th Division of the British Army's 19th Corps.The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers on the night of the 27th suffered a heavily-concentrated German chlorine gas attack near the German-held village of Hulluch, a mile...
, 27–29 April, (during the Easter Rising in Ireland). Personnel raided German trenches all through May and June, and in late July they were moved to the Somme Valley
Somme River
The Somme is a river in Picardy, northern France. The name Somme comes from a Celtic word meaning tranquility. The department Somme was named after this river....
where they were intensively engaged in the Battle of the Somme. The 16th division played an important part in capturing the towns of Guillemont
Battle of Guillemont
The Battle of Guillemont was a British assault on the German-held village of Guillemont during the 1916 Battle of the Somme. Guillemont lay on the right flank of the British sector where it linked with French forces and by holding it, the Germans prevented the Allied armies from operating in...
and Ginchy
Battle of Ginchy
The Battle of Ginchy took place on 9 September 1916 during the Battle of the Somme when the United Kingdom 16th Division captured the German-held village of Ginchy. However the Irish Royal Munster Fusiliers suffered heavy casualties in the process...
, although they suffered massive casualties. During these successful actions between 1 and 10 September casualties amounted to 224 officers and 4,090 men; despite these very heavy losses the division gained a reputation as first-class shock troops. Out of a total of 10,845 men, it had lost 3,491 on the Loos sector between January and the end of May 1916, including heavy casualties from bombardment and a gas attack at Hullach in April. Bloodletting of this order was fatal to the division’s character, for it had to be made good by drafts from England.
In early 1917, the division took a major part in the Battle of Messines
Battle of Messines
The Battle of Messines was a battle of the Western front of the First World War. It began on 7 June 1917 when the British Second Army under the command of General Herbert Plumer launched an offensive near the village of Mesen in West Flanders, Belgium...
alongside the 36th (Ulster) Division, adding to both their recognition and reputation. Their major actions ended in the summer of 1917 at the Battle of Passchendaele after coming under the command of General Hubert Gough
Hubert Gough
General Sir Hubert de la Poer Gough GCB, GCMG, KCVO was a senior officer in the British Army, who commanded the British Fifth Army from 1916 to 1918 during the First World War.-Family background:...
and the Fifth Army. In July 1917, during the Third Battle of Ypres, although both divisions were totally exhausted after 13 days of moving weighty equipment under heavy shelling, Gough ordered the battalions to advance through deep mud towards well fortified German positions left untouched by totally inadequate artillery preparation. By mid August, the 16th had suffered over 4,200 casualties, the 36th almost 3,600, or more than 50% of their numbers. General Haig was very critical of Gough for "playing the Irish card".
The 16th Division held an exposed position from early 1918 at Ronssoy
Ronssoy
Ronssoy is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Population:-External links:*...
where they suffered more heavy losses during the German Spring Offensive
Spring Offensive
The 1918 Spring Offensive or Kaiserschlacht , also known as the Ludendorff Offensive, was a series of German attacks along the Western Front during World War I, beginning on 21 March 1918, which marked the deepest advances by either side since 1914...
in March and being practicaally wiped out in the retreat which followed Operation Michael
Operation Michael
Operation Michael was a First World War German military operation that began the Spring Offensive on 21 March 1918. It was launched from the Hindenburg Line, in the vicinity of Saint-Quentin, France...
, when they helped to finally halt the German attack prior to the Battle of Hamel
Battle of Hamel
The Battle of Hamel was a successful attack launched by the Australian Corps of the Australian Imperial Force and several American units against German positions in and around the town of Hamel in northern France during World War I....
. The decision was then made to break up the division, the three surviving Service battalions were posted to other formations. On 14 June the division returned to England for "reconstitution". The Conscription Crisis of 1918 in Ireland meant that fewer Irish recruits could be raised so that the 16th Division which returned to France on 27 July contained five English Battalions, two Scottish Battalions and one Welsh Battalion. The only original Battalion left was the 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers.
The dispersion of the Irish battalions throughout the BEF in 1918, despite its practical considerations, appears to suggest that the Irish units were increasingly distrusted by the military authorities.
Order of battle
47th Brigade47th Brigade
The 47th Brigade was one of the three brigades in the 16th Division during the 1914-1918 War. It was known as the "Nationalist Brigade" as the majority were men from Redmond's Irish Volunteers. The four battalions were ;- 6th Batt. Royal Irish Regiment, 6th Batt. Connaught Rangers, 7th...
:
- 8th (Service) Battalion, Royal Munster Fusiliers (New Army)Royal Munster Fusiliers (New Army)The Royal Munster Fusiliers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army. One of eight Irish regiments raised largely in Ireland, its home depot in Tralee. With the outbreak of World War I in August 1914 the immediate need for a considerable expansion of the British Army resulted in the...
(disbanded November 1916) - 6th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment (disbanded 1922)
- 7th (Service) Battalion, Leinster RegimentPrince of Wales's Leinster RegimentThe Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army, formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 100th Regiment of Foot and the 109th Regiment of Foot...
; (disbanded February 1918) - 6th (Service) Battalion, Connaught Rangers (until June 1918)
- 1st (Service) Battalion, Royal Munster FusiliersRoyal Munster FusiliersThe Royal Munster Fusiliers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army. One of eight Irish regiments raised largely in Ireland, it had its home depot in Tralee. It was originally formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of two regiments of the former East India Company. It served in India and...
(from November 1916 until April 1918) - 18th (Service) Battalion Welsh Regiment (2nd GlamorganGlamorganGlamorgan or Glamorganshire is one of the thirteen historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It was originally an early medieval kingdom of varying boundaries known as Glywysing until taken over by the Normans as a lordship. Glamorgan is latterly represented by the three...
), (from May 1918) - 14th (Service) Battalion, Leicestershire Regiment (from June 1918)
- 9th (Service) Battalion, Black WatchBlack WatchThe Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The unit's traditional colours were retired in 2011 in a ceremony led by Queen Elizabeth II....
(from July 1918) - 2nd (Service) Battalion, Leinster Regiment (from February 1918 until April 1918)
- 47th Machine Gun Company Joined 28 April 1916, moved to 16th Battalion MGC 9 March 1918
48th Brigade :
- 9th (Service) Battalion, Royal Munster Fusiliers (New Army)Royal Munster Fusiliers (New Army)The Royal Munster Fusiliers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army. One of eight Irish regiments raised largely in Ireland, its home depot in Tralee. With the outbreak of World War I in August 1914 the immediate need for a considerable expansion of the British Army resulted in the...
(disbanded May 1916) - 7th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles (until August 1917)
- 8th (Service) Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers (merged with 9th Battalion October 1917)
- 9th (Service) Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers (merged with 8th Battalion October 1917)
- 1st (Service) Battalion, Royal Munster FusiliersRoyal Munster FusiliersThe Royal Munster Fusiliers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army. One of eight Irish regiments raised largely in Ireland, it had its home depot in Tralee. It was originally formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of two regiments of the former East India Company. It served in India and...
(from May 1916 until November 1916) - 1st (Service) Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers (from October 1917 until April 1918)
- 2nd (Service) Battalion, Royal Munster FusiliersRoyal Munster FusiliersThe Royal Munster Fusiliers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army. One of eight Irish regiments raised largely in Ireland, it had its home depot in Tralee. It was originally formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of two regiments of the former East India Company. It served in India and...
(from February 1918 until May 1918) - 22nd (Service) Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (from June 1918)
- 18th (Service) Battalion, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) (from July 1918)
- 11th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish FusiliersRoyal Irish FusiliersThe Royal Irish Fusiliers was an Irish infantry regiment of the British Army, formed by the amalgamation of the 87th Regiment of Foot and the 89th Regiment of Foot in 1881. The regiment's first title in 1881 was Princess Victoria's , changed in 1920 to The Royal Irish Fusiliers...
(from June 1918 until August 1918) - 5th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers (from August 1918)
- 10th (Service) Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers (from June 1917, disbanded February 1918)
- 48th Machine Gun Company Joined 28 April 1916, moved to 16th Battalion MGC 9 March 1918
The 8th and 9th Battalions of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers combined to form the 8/9th Battalion in October 1917 which was subsequently disbanded in February 1918.
49th Brigade :
- 7th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers (merged with 8th Battalion October 1916, disbanded February 1918)
- 8th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers (merged with 7th Battalion October 1916, disbanded February 1918)
- 7th (Service) Battalion, Royal Inniskilling FusiliersRoyal Inniskilling FusiliersThe Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was a Irish infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 27th Regiment of Foot and the 108th Regiment of Foot...
(merged with 8th Battalion August 1917) - 8th (Service) Battalion, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers (merged with 7th Battalion August 1917)
- 2nd (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment (from October 1916 until April 1918)
- 7th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles (from August 1917 until October 1917)
- 7th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment (South Irish Horse) Battalion,(from October 1917 until July 1918)
- 34th (Service) Battalion, The London Regiment (County of London) Battalion (from June 1918)
- 6th (Service) Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry (from July 1918)
- 18th (Service) Battalion, The Gloucestershire RegimentThe Gloucestershire RegimentThe Gloucestershire Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Nicknamed "The Glorious Glosters", the regiment carried more battle honours on their regimental colours than any other British Army line regiment.-Origins and early history:...
(from July 1918) - 49th Machine Gun Company Joined 29 April 1916, moved to 16th Battalion MGC 9 March 1918
The 7th and 8th Battalions of the Royal Irish Fusiliers combined to form the 7/8th Battalion in October 1916 which was subsequently disbanded in February 1918. The 7th and 8th Battalions of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers combined to form the 7/8th Battalion in August 1917 which was subsequently disbanded in February 1918.
Battles
- Battle of HulluchBattle of HulluchThe Battle of Hulluch was a conflict in World War I, 27–29 April 1916, involving the 16th Division of the British Army's 19th Corps.The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers on the night of the 27th suffered a heavily-concentrated German chlorine gas attack near the German-held village of Hulluch, a mile...
- Battle of the Somme (1916)Battle of the Somme (1916)The Battle of the Somme , also known as the Somme Offensive, took place during the First World War between 1 July and 14 November 1916 in the Somme department of France, on both banks of the river of the same name...
- Battle of GuillemontBattle of GuillemontThe Battle of Guillemont was a British assault on the German-held village of Guillemont during the 1916 Battle of the Somme. Guillemont lay on the right flank of the British sector where it linked with French forces and by holding it, the Germans prevented the Allied armies from operating in...
- Battle of GinchyBattle of GinchyThe Battle of Ginchy took place on 9 September 1916 during the Battle of the Somme when the United Kingdom 16th Division captured the German-held village of Ginchy. However the Irish Royal Munster Fusiliers suffered heavy casualties in the process...
- Battle of MessinesBattle of MessinesThe Battle of Messines was a battle of the Western front of the First World War. It began on 7 June 1917 when the British Second Army under the command of General Herbert Plumer launched an offensive near the village of Mesen in West Flanders, Belgium...
- Third Battle of Ypres
Great War Memorials
- Irish National War Memorial GardensIrish National War Memorial GardensThe Irish National War Memorial Gardens is an Irish war memorial in Islandbridge, Dublin dedicated "to the memory of the 49,400 Irish soldiers who gave their lives in the Great War, 1914–1918", out of over 300,000 Irishmen who served in all armies....
, Dublin. - Island of Ireland Peace ParkIsland of Ireland Peace ParkThe Island of Ireland Peace Park and its surrounding park , also called the Irish Peace Park or Irish Peace Tower in Messines, near Ypres in Flanders, Belgium, is a war memorial to the soldiers of the island of Ireland who died, were wounded or are missing from World War I, during Ireland's...
Messines, Belgium. - Ulster Tower MemorialUlster Tower ThiepvalThe Ulster Tower is a memorial to the men of the 36th Division. The memorial was officially opened on November 19, 1921 and is a very close copy of Helen's Tower which stands in the grounds of the Clandeboye Estate, near Bangor, County Down in Northern Ireland...
Thiepval, France. - Menin Gate Memorial Ypres, Belgium.
See also
- 10th (Irish) Division
- 36th (Ulster) Division
- List of British divisions in WWI
External links
- The Long, Long Trail: The 16th (Irish) Division in 1914-1918
- A website with information relating to the Royal Dublin Fusiliers who had battalions which were a part of the 16th (Irish) Division.
- The Long, Long Trail: Information relating to the Royal Munster Fusiliers (New Army) which was part of the 16th (Irish) Division
- The Battle for Messines Ridge
- Homepage of the Island of Ireland Peace Park Memorial
- The Irish War Memorials Project - listing of monuments throughout Ireland
- The Military Heritage of Ireland Trust
- Department of the Taoiseach: Irish Soldiers in the First World War