122nd Brigade
Brigade sign. This was not worn on the uniform, but on signs and vehicles.
Active1915–1918
Country United Kingdom
Branch British Army
TypeInfantry
SizeBrigade
EngagementsFirst World War
* Battle of Flers-Courcelette
* Battle of the Lys and the Escaut

The 122nd Brigade was a formation of the British Army during the First World War.

History

Mark I tank (D 17) surrounded by men of the 122nd Brigade whom it led into the eastern part of Flers on 15 September 1916. Photograph taken two days later, on 17 September.[1]

The 122nd Brigade was raised as part of the New Army also known as Kitchener's Army, and assigned to the 41st Division.

1916

On 15 September 1916, troops of the 122nd Brigade, led by a Mark I tank, entered the eastern part of Flers on the Somme and took part in the Battle of Flers-Courcelette. This was the first time tanks had been deployed on the Western Front.[1][2][3] The village of Flers itself was taken by the 122nd Brigade which had a total casualty roll of 1,200 out of 1,800 who went into action.[4]

1918

The 122nd Brigade also fought in the Battle of the Lys and the Escaut.[5]

Formation

Official sources

War diaries

  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2632/1 (01/05/1916–31/07/1916)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2632/2 (01/08/1916–30/09/1916)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2632/3 (01/10/1916–31/10/1916)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2632/4 (01/11/1916–31/12/1916)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2632/5 (01/01/1917–30/04/1917)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2632/6 (01/05/1917–30/06/1917)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2633/1 (01/07/1917–31/10/1917)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/2633/2 (01/03/1918–31/10/1919)
  • The National Archives of the UK (TNA): WO 95/4243 (01/11/1917–28/02/1918)

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "A Mark I tank surrounded by troops of 122nd Brigade, 17 September 1916". National Army Museum. Retrieved 2 July 2022.
  2. Oldfield, Paul (2016). Victoria Crosses on the Western Front: Somme 1916. Great Britain: Pen & Sword Books Ltd. pp. 112, 117. ISBN 978-1-4738-7457-2.
  3. McEwen, Andrew (Autumn 2011). ""A useful accessory to the infantry, but nothing more": Tanks at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette, September 1916" (PDF). Canadian Military History. 20 (4): 7–22.
  4. Lawford, Sir Sydney T. B.; Towsey, F. W., eds. (1936). The History of the 12th (Bermondsey) Battalion, East Surrey Regiment. United Kingdom: Naval & Military Press. p. 59. ISBN 9781781515853.
  5. Edmonds, Sir James Edward; Maxwell-Hyslop, R. (1947). Military Operations: France and Belgium 1918. Vol. V: 26th Sept.–11th Nov. The Advance to Victory. London: His Majesty's Stationery Office. pp. 433–443.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "41st Division". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
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