The history of 3rd Division

One of the first British formations to move to France, the 3rd Division remained on the Western Front throughout the war. It took part in most of the major actions, including:

1914
The Battle of Mons and the subsequent retreat, including the the Rearguard action of Solesmes
The Battle of Le Cateau
The Battle of the Marne
The Battle of the Aisne including participation in the Actions on the Aisne heights
The Battles of La Bassee and Messines 1914
First Battle of Ypres

1915
Winter Operations 1914-15
The First Attack on Bellewaarde
The Actions of Hooge
The Second Attack on Bellewaarde (in support of the opening attack in the Battle of Loos)

1916
The Actions of the Bluff and St Eloi Craters (local operations 1916)
The Battle of Albert*
The Battle of Bazentin* in which the Division helped capture Longueval
The Battle of Delville Wood*
The Battle of the Ancre*
The battles marked * are phases of the Battles of the Somme 1916

1917
The First Battle of the Scarpe**
The Second Battle of the Scarpe**
The Battle of Arleux**
The Third Battle of the Scarpe** in which the Division helped capture Roeux
The battles marked ** are phases of the Battles of Arras 1917
The Battle of the Menin Road***
The Battle of Polygon Wood***
The battles marked *** are phases of the Third Battle of Ypres
The Battle of Cambrai 1917

1918
The Battle of St Quentin****
The Battle of Bapaume****
The First Battle of Arras 1918****
The battles marked **** are phases of the First Battles of the Somme 1918
The Battle of Estaires+
The Battle of Hazebrouck+
The Battle of Bethune+
The battles marked + are phases of the Battles of the Lys
The Battle of Albert++
The Second Battle of Bapaume++
The battles marked ++ are phases of the Second Battles of the Somme 1918
The Battle of the Canal du Nord^
The Battle of Cambrai 1918^
The battles marked ^ are phases of the Battles of the Hindenburg Line
The Battle of the Selle

The Division was selected to advance into Germany and form part of the Occupation Force.

The order of battle of the 3rd Division

7th Brigade
This Brigade left 3rd Division to go to 25th Division on 18 October 1915.
3rd Bn, the Worcestershire Regt
2nd Bn, the South Lancashire Regt
1st Bn, the Wiltshire Regt
2nd Bn, the Royal Irish Rifles
1/1st Bn, the Honourable Artillery Company	joined December 1914
1/4th Bn, the South Lancashire Regt	joined February 1915
8th Brigade
2nd Bn, the Royal Scots
2nd Bn, the Royal Irish Regt	left March 1915
4th Bn, the Middlesex Regt	left November 1915
1st Bn, the Gordon Highlanders	left 18 October 1915
1st Bn, the Devonshire Regt	joined 14 September 1914, left 30 September 1914
2nd Bn, the Suffolk Regt	joined October 1914, left October 1915
1/1st Bn, the Honourable Artillery Company	joined November 1914, left December 1914
1/4th Bn, the Gordon Highlanders	joined February 1915, left October 1915
13th Bn, the King's (Liverpool Regt)	joined October 1915 from 76th Bde, left April 1916
7th Bn, the King's (Shropshire Light Infantry)	joined October 1915
1/5th Bn, the London Regt (LRB)	joined November 1915, left February 1916
8th Bn, the East Yorkshire Regt	joined November 1915, left February 1918
1st Bn, the Royal Scots Fusiliers	joined April 1916
8th Machine Gun Company	formed on 22 January 1916 left to move into 3rd MG Battalion 6 March 1918
8th Trench Mortar Battery	joined by 18 April 1916
9th Brigade
This Brigade temporarily transferred to 28th Division between 17 February and 2 April 1915, in exchange for 85th Brigade from that Division
1st Bn, the Northumberland Fusiliers
4th Bn, the Royal Fusiliers
1st Bn, the Lincolnshire Regiment	left November 1915
1st Bn, the Royal Scots Fusiliers	left April 1916
1/10th Bn, the King's (Liverpool Regiment)	joined November 1914, left January 1916
12th Bn, the West Yorkshire Regiment	joined November 1915, left February 1918
9th Brigade Machine Gun Company	formed on 8 February 1916 left to move into 3rd MG Battalion 6 March 1918
13th Bn, the King's (Liverpool Regiment)	joined April 1916
9th Trench Mortar Battery	joined by 1 May 1916
76th Brigade
This Brigade was transferred from 25th Division on 18 October 1915 in exchange for 7th Brigade
8th Bn, the King's Own (Lancaster)
13th Bn, the King's (Liverpool Regiment)	left 23 October 1915 for 8th Bde
2nd Bn, the Suffolk Regt
10th Bn, the Royal Welsh Fusiliers	disbanded February 1918
1st Bn, the Gordon Highlanders	joined 19 October 1915
76th Brigade Machine Gun Company	formed on 13 April 1916 left to move into 3rd MG Battalion 6 March 1918
76th Trench Mortar Battery	joined on 1 April 1916 as 43rd TMB but immediately renamed
Divisional Troops
1/4th Bn, the South Lancashire Regt	joined as Divisional Pioneer Battalion October 1915, left January 1916
20th Bn, the King's Royal Rifle Corps	joined as Divisional Pioneer Battalion May 1916
233rd Company, the Machine Gun Corps	joined 18 July 1917 left to move into 3rd MG Battalion 6 March 1918
No 3 Battalion, the Machine Gun Corps	formed 6 March 1918
Divisional Mounted Troops
A Squadron, the 15th (King's) Hussars	left April 1915
C Sqn, North Irish Horse	joined April 1915, left June 1916
B Sqn, the Glasgow Yeomanry	joined 10 May 1916, left 1 June 1916
3rd Company, Army Cyclist Corps	left June 1916
Divisional Artillery
XXIII Brigade, RFA	left January 1917
XXX (Howitzer) Brigade, RFA	left May 1916
XL Brigade, RFA
XLII Brigade, RFA
3rd Divisional Ammunition Column RFA
48th Heavy Battery RGA	left April 1915
No 5 Pom-Pom Section RGA	attached 22 August 1914 to December 1914
No 5 Mountain Battery RGA	attached 14 December 1914 to 3 March 1915
V.3 Heavy Trench Mortar Battery RFA	formed by July 1916, left 6 March 1918
X.3, Y.3 and Z.3 Medium Mortar Batteries RFA	joined in February 1916; by 24 February 1918, Z broken up and batteries reorganised to have 6 x 6-inch weapons each
Royal Engineers
56th Field Company
57th Field Company	left April 1915
1st (Cheshire) Field Company	joined December 1914, later renamed 438th Field Company RE
1st (South Midland) Field Company	joined and left March 1915
1st (East Riding) Field Company	joined September 1915, later renamed 529th Field Company RE
3rd Divisional Signals Company
Royal Army Medical Corps
7th Field Ambulance
8th Field Ambulance
9th Field Ambulance	left 28 August 1915
142nd Field Ambulance	joined August 1915
5th Sanitary Section	joined as 4A Section on 9 January 1915, renamed in April 1916, left 3 April 1917
Other Divisional Troops
3rd Divisional Train ASC	15, 21, 22, 29 Companies
11th Mobile Veterinary Section AVC
206th Divisional Employment Company	joined 31 May 1917 at which time it was 8th Divisional Employment Company; renamed in June 1917
3rd Divisional Motor Ambulance Workshop	joined by 18 April 1915, transferred to Divisional Train 9 April 1916

This page is dedicated to the memory of men like
Walter Bayard Neighbour, who was educated at Christ's Hospital in Horsham and at Pembroke College, Cambridge, served as a Second Lieutenant with the 4th Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers. He died near Guillemont on the Somme, aged 20, on 16 August 1916.
Walter was researched in detail for a private client by fourteeneighteen|research