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1st South Western Mounted Brigade
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December 2013
December 2023
1st South Western Mounted Brigade 1908–1915 UKGBI United Kingdom 23px Yeomanry Brigade Salisbury peacetime HQ World War I Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 9th Earl of Shaftesbury
The 1st South Western Mounted Brigade was a formation of the Territorial Force of the British Army, organised in 1908. By 1915 its regiments had been posted away so it was broken up; it never saw active service as a brigade. The Headquarters may have formed the HQ for 2/1st Southern Mounted Brigade.
Formation
Under the terms of the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 (7 Edw.7, c.9), the brigade was formed in 1908 as part of the Territorial Force. It consisted of three yeomanry regiments, a horse artillery battery and ammunition column, a transport and supply column and a field ambulance.Westlake 1992 14 The Queen's Own Dorset Yeomanry was attached for training in peacetime.
As the name suggests, the units were drawn from South West England, predominantly Wiltshire, Somerset, Hampshire and Dorset. http://marksrussianmilitaryhistory.info/BRIT14.html The British Army, 1914 Conrad Mark 1996 21 February 2013
World War I
The brigade was mobilised on 4 August 1914 at the outbreak of the First World War. Initially assigned to the Portsmouth Defences in August 1914,Rinaldi 2008 60 the brigade moved to the Forest Row area of Sussex in October 1914.James 1978 36 Thereafter, the regiments left the brigade for other formations.
The Queen's Own Dorset Yeomanry left in September 1914 for the 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade.James 1978 18 It ended the war in the 4th Cavalry Division in Palestine.Sumner 2001 10
The North Somerset Yeomanry left the brigade in November 1914, joining the 6th Cavalry Brigade in France on 13 November 1914.James 1978 28 It remained with the 6th Cavalry Brigade until April 1918 when it was broken up, sending a squadron to reinforce each of the other regiments in the brigade.6 October 2012 MoD A brief history of 39 (Skinners) Signal Regiment http://www.army.mod.uk/documents/general/A_brief_history_of_39.pdf
The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry (Prince of Wales's Own Royal Regiment) was split up as divisional cavalry in 1915:James 1978 30
Regimental HQ and D Squadron joined 38th (Welsh) Division at Winchester
A Squadron joined 40th Division at Aldershot
B Squadron joined 41st Division at Aldershot about November 1915.
It was later brought back together as a corps cavalry regiment. It was converted to infantry and absorbed into 6th (Wiltshire Yeomanry) Battalion, Wiltshire Regiment in September 1917.5 October 2012 The Wardrobe The (Duke of Edinburgh's) Wiltshire Regiment http://www.thewardrobe.org.uk/research/history-of-regiments/the-duke-of-edinburghs-wiltshire-regiment-1881-1920-the-wiltshire-regiment-duke-of-edinburghs-1920-1959
The Hampshire Yeomanry (Carabiniers) was split up as divisional cavalry in March 1916:James 1978 20
Regimental HQ and B Squadron joined 60th (2/2nd London) Division at Warminster on 26 April 1916
A Squadron joined 58th (2/1st London) Division at Ipswich on 21 March 1916
C Squadron joined 61st (2nd South Midland) Division at Ludgershall on 18 March 1916.
It was later brought back together as a corps cavalry regiment. In September 1917 it was converted to infantry and absorbed into the 15th (Hampshire Yeomanry) Battalion, Hampshire Regiment.7 October 2012 Baker Chris Hampshire Yeomanry The Long Long Trail http://www.1914-1918.net/hampshire.htm
Hampshire Royal Horse Artillery joined the Essex and West Riding RHA in V Lowland Brigade, Royal Field Artillery (T.F.); it was re-equipped with four 18 pounders before departing for Egypt in February 1916 where it joined 52nd (Lowland) Division.Becke 1936 113 It was reformed as horse artillery on 5 July 1917 exchanging its 18 pounders for 13 pounders and joined the Yeomanry Mounted Division. It remained with the division when it was restructured and indianizedBritish divisions were converted to the British Indian Army standard whereby brigades only retained one British regiment or battalion and most support units were Indian (artillery excepted). as the 1st Mounted Division (from 24 April 1918) and later renamed as 4th Cavalry Division (23 July 1918).Perry 1993 22 It served throughout the Sinai and Palestine Campaign from 1916 to 1918.
By 1915, with its regiments having been posted away, the brigade was dissolved. The headquarters staff may have been used to form the 2/1st Southern Mounted Brigade.
See also
United Kingdom
2/1st South Western Mounted Brigade for the 2nd Line formation
British yeomanry during the First World War
Notes
References
Bibliography
Becke Major A.F.
1936
Order of Battle of Divisions Part 2A. The Territorial Force Mounted Divisions and the 1st-Line Territorial Force Divisions (42–56)
His Majesty's Stationery Office
London
https://archive.org/details/order-battle-divisions-p-2-a
863387009
James Brigadier E.A.
1978
British Regiments 1914–18
Samson Books Limited
London
0-906304-03-2
Perry F.W.
1993
Order of Battle of Divisions Part 5B. Indian Army Divisions
Ray Westlake Military Books
Newport
1-871167-23-X
Rinaldi Richard A
2008
Order of Battle of the British Army 1914
Ravi Rikhye
978-0-97760728-0
Sumner Ian
2001
The Indian Army 1914-1947
Osprey Elite
75
Osprey Publishing
978-1-84176-196-1
Westlake Ray
1992
British Territorial Units 1914-18
Osprey Publishing
978-1-85532-168-7
SW11
Category:Military units and formations established in 1908
Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1915
Category:1908 establishments in the United Kingdom