The British Divisions of 1914-1918

Click on the Division for details of its history and its order of battle.

The Divisions of the Regular Army

Please note that these formations were only nominally of the regular army. From the very beginning some non-regular units were required to make up the full establishment and from as early as 1915 the ranks of regular units began to be replenished with "war service only" recruits.

The first-line Territorial Divisions

Please note that these formations were renamed to have the number designations in 1915. When they first went overseas they were named as, for example, the East Lancashire Division. Some did not go to a recognised theatre of war and are marked in italic text. The West Lancashire and 1st London Divisions re-formed in France by gathering back together many units that had been sent there independently in 1914 and 1915.

The New Army (or Kitchener) Divisions

These formations did not exist before the war.

The second-line Territorial Divisions

Please note that these formations were only released to go to a theatre of war by the Military Service Act of 1916. Some did not go to a recognised theatre of war and are marked in italic text. Those that are 'missing' from the list remained at home and can be seen on the table below covering home-based Divisions.

Other Divisions

Home Service Divisions

Some Divisions of the British Army did not leave their native shore. They were retained as the command structure for training formations and at part of the home defences.