The 4th Infantry Division was a regular

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

division of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

with a very long history, seeing active service in the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spai ...

, the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...

, the First World War, and during the Second World War. It was disbanded after the war and reformed in the 1950s as an armoured formation before being disbanded and reformed again and finally disbanded on 1 January 2012.

Napoleonic Wars

The 4th Division was originally formed in 1809 by

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...

, as part of the

Anglo-Portuguese Army The Anglo-Portuguese Army was the combined British and Portuguese army that participated in the Peninsular War, under the command of Arthur Wellesley. The Army is also referred to as the British-Portuguese Army and, in Portuguese, as the ''Ex ...

, for service in the

. It fought in the Battles of Talavera, Salamanca, Roncesvalles, Vitoria, the Pyrenees, Orthez, and

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...

, and the siege of Badajoz.

Peninsular War order of battle

The order of battle from January 1812 was as follows: Major General Sir Charles Colville (to April 1812) Major General Lowry Cole (from June 1812) * 1st Brigade: Major General James Kemmis ** 3/27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot ** 1/40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot ** 1/48th (Northamptonshire) Regiment of Foot (from October 1812) ** 2nd Provisional Battalion (2nd & 1/53rd Regiments of Foot) (from December 1812) ** 1 Coy., 5/60th (Royal American) Regiment of Foot * 2nd Brigade: Major General Sir

Edward Pakenham Major General Sir Edward Michael Pakenham, (19 March 1778 – 8 January 1815), was a British Army officer and politician. He was the son of the Baron Longford and the brother-in-law of the Duke of Wellington, with whom he served in the Pe ...

** 1/7th Regiment of Foot (Royal Fusiliers) ** 2/7th Regiment of Foot (Royal Fusiliers) (November 1810 to May 1811) ** 20th (East Devonshire) Regiment of Foot (from November 1812) ** 1/23rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Welsh Fusiliers) ** 1/48th (Northamptonshire) Regiment of Foot (to October 1812) ** 1/82nd Regiment of Foot (Prince of Wales's Volunteers) (October to November 1812) ** 1 Coy., Brunswick-Oels Jaegers * 3rd Brigade: Major General Skerrett (October to December 1812) ** 3/1st Foot Guards ** 2/47th (Lancashire) Regiment of Foot ** 2/87th (Prince of Wales's Irish) Regiment of Foot ** 2 Cos., 2/95th Regiment of Foot (Rifles) * Portuguese Brigade: Major General Collins ** 1/11th Line Infantry of the

Portuguese Army The Portuguese Army ( pt, Exército Português) is the land component of the Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With it ...

** 2/11th Line Infantry of the Portuguese Army ** 1/23rd Line Infantry of the Portuguese Army ** 2/23rd Line Infantry of the Portuguese Army ** 7th ''

Caçadores The Caçadores (hunters) were the elite light infantry troops of the Portuguese Army, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Units of ''Caçadores'' – with features somewhat different from the original ones – continued to exist in the Po ...

'' of the Portuguese Army

Waterloo

At the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armies of the Sevent ...

it was tasked with holding Wellington's right flank and, with the exception of its 4th brigade, took no active part in the fighting, but did capture the town of

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord department and in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt river, which is known locally as the ...

afterwards. The commanding general at this time was

Charles Colville General Sir Charles Colville (7 August 1770 – 27 March 1843) was a British Army officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars. He was an ensign in 1781. He served in the West Indies from 1791 to 1797 and while serving there was promoted to li ...

. In his novel ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

credits Colville with asking for the surrender of the

Imperial Guard An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the Emperor or Empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial forces, i ...

at Waterloo and receiving General Cambronne's reply of "'' Merde''".

Waterloo order of battle

* Commanding General Major-General Sir

* 4th Brigade – Lieutenant-Colonel Hugh Henry Mitchell ** 3/14th (Buckinghamshire) Regiment of Foot ** 1/23rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Welch Fusiliers) ** 51st (2nd Yorkshire West Riding) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) * 6th Brigade – Major-General George Johnstone ** 2/35th (Sussex) Regiment of Foot ** 54th (West Norfolk) Regiment of Foot **

59th (2nd Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot The 59th (2nd Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1755 in response to the threat of renewed war with France. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 30th (Cambridgeshire) Regiment ...

** 1/91st (Argyllshire) Regiment of Foot * 6th Hanoverian Brigade – Major-General Sir James Lyon ** Field Battalion Calenberg ** Field Battalion Lauenburg ** Landwehr Battalion Bentheim ** Landwehr Battalion Hoya ** Landwehr Battalion Nienburg

Crimean War

The Division was also called for service during the

fought between the allied forces of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

, French Empire and the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

on one side and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

on the other. It saw action in the

Battle of Alma The Battle of the Alma (short for Battle of the Alma River) was a battle in the Crimean War between an allied expeditionary force (made up of French, British, and Ottoman forces) and Russian forces defending the Crimean Peninsula on 20Septem ...

the Battle of Inkerman and the

Battle of Balaclava The Battle of Balaclava, fought on 25 October 1854 during the Crimean War, was part of the Siege of Sevastopol (1854–55), an Allied attempt to capture the port and fortress of Sevastopol, Russia's principal naval base on the Black Sea. The en ...

, fought on 25 October 1854 (famous for the

Charge of the Light Brigade The Charge of the Light Brigade was a failed military action involving the British light cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War. Lord Raglan had intended to ...

and the Thin Red Line).

Crimean War order of battle

Commanding General: Major General Sir

George Cathcart Major-General Sir George Cathcart (12 May 1794 – 5 November 1854) was a British general and diplomat. Military career He was born in Renfrewshire, son of William Cathcart, 1st Earl Cathcart. After receiving his education at Eton and in Edinb ...

* 7th Brigade: Brigadier General Torrens ** 20th (East Devonshire) Regiment of Foot ** 21st Royal Scots Fusiliers ** 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) * 8th Brigade ** 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot ** 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot * one field battery royal Artillery

First World War

The First Battle of the Aisne, September 1914 Q51499

As a permanently established Regular Army division it was amongst the first to be sent to France as part of the British Expeditionary Force at the outbreak of the First World War. It served on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers * Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a maj ...

for the duration of the war and was present during all the major offensives including the Battle of the Marne,

Battle of Ypres The Battle of Ypres was a series of engagements during the First World War, near the Belgian city of Ypres, between the German and the Allied armies (Belgian, French, British Expeditionary Force and Canadian Expeditionary Force). During the five ...

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place be ...

and the

Battle of Passchendaele The Third Battle of Ypres (german: link=no, Dritte Flandernschlacht; french: link=no, Troisième Bataille des Flandres; nl, Derde Slag om Ieper), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele (), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by t ...

Order of battle

The order of battle of 4th Division during the First World War was as follows: ; 10th Brigade : * 1st Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment * 2nd Battalion,

Seaforth Highlanders The Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, mainly associated with large areas of the northern Highlands of Scotland. The regiment existed from 1881 to 1961, and saw service ...

* 1st Battalion,

Royal Irish Fusiliers The Royal Irish Fusiliers (Princess Victoria's) was an Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army, formed by the amalgamation of the 87th (Prince of Wales's Irish) Regiment of Foot and the 89th (Princess Victoria's) Regiment of Foot in ...

(''left August 1917'') * 2nd Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers (''left November 1916'') * 10th Machine Gun Company,

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a Regiment, corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in the World War I, First World War. Th ...

''(formed 22 December 1915, moved to 4th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps 26 February 1918)'' * 10th Trench Mortar Battery ''(formed June 1916)'' * 1/7th Battalion,

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

(''from January 1915 until March 1916'') * 1/9th Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders ''(from May to July 1915)'' * Household Battalion (''from November 1916 until February 1918'') * 3/10th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment (''from August 1917 until February 1918'') * 2nd Battalion, Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment) (''from February 1918'') ; 11th Brigade : * 1st Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry * 1st Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment ''(left February 1918)'' * 1st Battalion, Hampshire Regiment * 1st Battalion, Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) * 1/5th (City of London) Battalion, London Regiment ( London Rifle Brigade) (''from November 1914 until May 1915'') * 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment (''from July 1915 until May 1916'') * 11th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps ''(formed 23 December 1915, moved to 4th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps 26 February 1918)'' * 11th Trench Mortar Battery ''(formed June 1916)'' Western front 1915-16

; 12th Brigade : * 1st Battalion, King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) * 2nd Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers * 2nd Battalion,

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was an Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot and the 108th Regiment o ...

''(left December 1914)'' * 2nd Battalion, Essex Regiment * 1/2nd Battalion, Monmouthshire Regiment (''until January 1916'') * 1/5th Battalion, South Lancashire Regiment (''from February 1915 until January 1916'') * 12th Machine Gun Company, Machine Gun Corps ''(formed 24 January 1916, moved to 4th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps 26 February 1918)'' * 12th Trench Mortar Battery ''(formed 11 June 1916)'' * 2nd Battalion, Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment) (''from January 1916 to 10th Bde. February 1918'') * 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment (''from March until July 1915'') From early November 1915 until February 1916 the 12th Brigade was swapped with the 107th Brigade of the

36th (Ulster) Division The 36th (Ulster) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, part of Lord Kitchener's New Army, formed in September 1914. Originally called the ''Ulster Division'', it was made up of mainly members of the Ulster Volunteer Force, ...

. Artillery * XIV Brigade,

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of ...

(''until 14 January 1917'') * XXIX Brigade, Royal Field Artillery * XXXII Brigade, Royal Field Artillery * XXXVII (Howitzer) Brigade, Royal Field Artillery (''until 17 February 1915'') * CXXVII (Howitzer) Brigade, Royal Field Artillery (''from 6 August 1915 until 21 May 1916'') * 31st Heavy Battery,

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (R ...

(''until 29 April 1915'') Engineers * 7th Field Company,

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is head ...

(''until 29 April 1915'') * 9th Field Company, Royal Engineers * 1st West Lancashire Field Company, Royal Engineers (''from 14 February 1915 until 28 February 1916'') * 1st Renfrew Field Company, Royal Engineers (''joined 2 May 1916; became 406th (Renfrew) Field Company 3 February 1917'') * 1st Durham Field Company, Royal Engineers (''joined 20 September 1916; became 526th (Durham) Field Company 3 February 1917'') Pioneers * 21st (Service) Battalion,

West Yorkshire Regiment ) , march = ''Ça Ira'' , battles = Namur FontenoyFalkirk Culloden Brandywine , anniversaries = Imphal (22 June) The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) (14th Foot) wa ...

(''from 21 June 1916'')

Second World War

France and Belgium

Shortly after the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

in September 1939 the 4th Division, under

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

Dudley Johnson, who had won the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

(VC) in the Great War, was sent to the border between France and Belgium as part of

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Alan Brooke's

II Corps 2nd Corps, Second Corps, or II Corps may refer to: France * 2nd Army Corps (France) * II Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * II Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French ...

of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). All three of the division's brigades were commanded by distinguished soldiers, the 10th by

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. ...

Evelyn Barker General Sir Evelyn Hugh Barker (22 May 1894 – 23 November 1983) was a British Army officer who saw service in both the First World War and the Second World War. During the latter, he commanded the 10th Brigade during the Battle of France i ...

, the 11th by Brigadier Kenneth Anderson and the 12th by Brigadier John Hawkesworth. After the disastrous

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second Wor ...

in May–June 1940, where the division sustained heavy losses, and the evacuation at Dunkirk, it spent the next two years in the United Kingdom on anti-invasion duties and training for its next deployment. The British Army in the United Kingdom 1939-45 H17909

The British Army in the United Kingdom 1939-45 H17909

In June 1942 the division, now under Major General John Hawkesworth, was selected to be converted into a 'mixed' division, consisting of two infantry brigades and one tank brigade. As a result of this change, the divisions' 11th Infantry Brigade left the division and was replaced by the

21st Army Tank Brigade The 21st Army Tank Brigade was an armoured brigade formation of the British Army active during the Second World War. The brigade served with the British First Army and the British Eighth Army during the fighting in Tunisia and Italy. Histor ...

North Africa

The division departed for North Africa in early 1943, arriving in

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

in March, coming under Lieutenant-General John Crocker's

IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to: France * 9th Army Corps (France) * IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German ...

, part of the British First Army. During the

Tunisian Campaign The Tunisian campaign (also known as the Battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. Th ...

it was involved in Operation Vulcan, the final ground attack against Axis forces in North Africa which ended the North African Campaign, with the surrender of nearly 250,000 German and Italian soldiers. During the assault the division suffered heavy losses, with four battalions sustaining over 300 casualties. After the Axis defeat in North Africa, in May 1943, the division was to remain there for the next 9 months, during which time it was converted back into a standard infantry division, with the 28th Infantry Brigade, consisting mainly of Regular Army battalions who had served on garrison duties in Gibraltar, arriving to replace the 21st Tank Brigade.

Italy

The division arrived on the Italian Front in late February 1944, relieving the British 46th Infantry Division, initially coming under command of Lieutenant-General Richard McCreery's British X Corps, then serving under the

U.S. Fifth Army The United States Army North (ARNORTH) is a formation of the United States Army. An Army Service Component Command (ASCC) subordinate to United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM), ARNORTH is the joint force land component of NORTHCOM.

. In March the division transferred to Lieutenant-General Sidney Kirkman's British XIII Corps, part of the

British Eighth Army The Eighth Army was an Allied field army formation of the British Army during the Second World War, fighting in the North African and Italian campaigns. Units came from Australia, British India, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Free French Force ...

. The division, now under the command of Major-General Alfred Dudley Ward, fought with distinction at the fourth and final

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino, was a series of four assaults made by the Allies against German forces in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II. The ultimate objective was ...

in May 1944, and later in severe fighting in the battles for the Gothic Line. During the battle of Cassino

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Richard Wakeford of the 2/4th Battalion, Hampshire Regiment was awarded the Victoria Cross.

Greece

However, in November 1944 it was dispatched, with the rest of

III Corps 3rd Corps, Third Corps, III Corps, or 3rd Army Corps may refer to: France * 3rd Army Corps (France) * III Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * III Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of t ...

, to Greece to provide assistance during the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος}, ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom and ...

, and was to remain there until the end of the war in Europe in May 1945.

Order of battle

The 4th Infantry Division was constituted as follows during the war 10th Infantry Brigade * 2nd Battalion, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment * 2nd Battalion,

Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, by the merger of the 32nd (Cornwall Ligh ...

* 1st Battalion, Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment (''left 3 May 1940'') * 10th Infantry Brigade Anti-Tank Company (''disbanded 1 January 1941'') * 1/6th Battalion,

East Surrey Regiment The East Surrey Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot, the 70th ...

(''from 4 May 1940'') 11th Infantry Brigade (''left 5 June 1942'') * 2nd Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers * 1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment * 1st Battalion,

Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry was a light infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1958, serving in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. The regiment was formed as a consequence ...

(''left 29 January 1940'') * 11th Infantry Brigade Anti-Tank Company (''disbanded 31 December 1940'') * 5th (Huntingdonshire) Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment (''from 29 January 1940'') 12th Infantry Brigade * 2nd Battalion,

Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wars ...

* 1st Battalion, South Lancashire Regiment (''left 13 June 1940'') * 1st Battalion, Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) (''left 4 March 1940'') * 12th Infantry Brigade Anti-Tank Company (''disbanded 3 January 1941'') * 6th Battalion, Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) (''from 4 March 1940'') * 1st Battalion, Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment (''from 5 September 1940'')

(''from 6 June 1942, left 12 December 1943'') *

12th Royal Tank Regiment 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

48th Royal Tank Regiment The 48th Royal Tank Regiment (48 RTR) was an armoured regiment of the British Army during the Second World War. It was part of the Royal Tank Regiment, itself part of the Royal Armoured Corps. It was originally formed as a duplicate of the 42nd Ro ...

145th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps The 145th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps (8th Duke of Wellington's Regiment) (145 RAC) was an armoured regiment of the British Army's Royal Armoured Corps that served in North Africa, Tunisia and Italy during World War II. The Duke of Wellington' ...

28th Infantry Brigade (''from 24 December 1943'') * 2nd Battalion, King's Regiment (Liverpool) * 2nd Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry * 1st Battalion,

(''from 5 January, left 2 February 1944'') * 2/4th Battalion, Hampshire Regiment (''from 24 March 1943'') Divisional Troops * 5th Dragoon Guards (''Reconnaissance Battalion, left 31 March 1940'') * 4th Battalion, Reconnaissance Corps ''(from 1 January 1941, redesignated 4th Regiment 6 June 1942, became 4th Reconnaissance Regiment,

Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the component of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 Tank and the Scimitar Reconnaissance Vehicle. It includes most of the ...

1 January 1944)'' * 2nd Battalion, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers ''(joined as Machine Gun Battalion from 11 November 1941, left 20 May 1942, rejoined as Support Battalion 10 March 1944, became MG Battalion from 7 June 1944)'' * 17th Field Regiment,

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

(''left 19 February 1940'') * 22nd Field Regiment, Royal Artillery * 30th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery * 77th (Highland) Field Regiment, Royal Artillery (''from 19 February 1940'') * 14th Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery *

91st Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery The 91st Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, (91st LAA Rgt) was an air defence unit of the British Army during World War II. Initially raised as an infantry battalion of the South Staffordshire Regiment in 1940, it transferred to the R ...

(''from 26 January 1942, disbanded 6 November 1944'') * 7th Field Company,

* 9th Field Company, Royal Engineers (''left 16 February 1940'') * 59th Field Company, Royal Engineers * 225th Field Company, Royal Engineers (''from 16 February 1940'') * 18th Field Park Company, Royal Engineers * 3rd Bridging Platoon, Royal Engineers (''from 18 October 1943'') * 4th Divisional Signals,

Royal Corps of Signals The Royal Corps of Signals (often simply known as the Royal Signals – abbreviated to R SIGNALS or R SIGS) is one of the combat support arms of the British Army. Signals units are among the first into action, providing the battlefield commun ...

Post Second World War

The Division was reformed from

11th Armoured Division The 11th Armoured Division was an armoured division of the British Army which was created in March 1941 during the Second World War. The division was formed in response to the unanticipated success of the German panzer divisions. The 11th Armour ...

on 1 April 1956, and took on 20th Armoured Brigade Group from the disbanding 6th Armoured Division in May 1958. At the time the Division also incorporated the (Canadian) 4th Infantry Brigade and the 4th Guards Brigade. During the 1970s, the division consisted of two "square" brigades, the 11th Armoured Brigade and the 20th Armoured Brigade. It was renamed 4th Armoured Division and served with I (BR) Corps being based at Hammersmith Barracks in Herford from 1978. After being briefly reorganised into two "task forces" ("Golf" and "Hotel") in the late 1970s, the division consisted of the 11th Armoured, the 20th Armoured, and the 33rd Armoured Brigades in the 1980s. The division ceased its role as a frontline Armoured Division on 1 July 1993.

1995–2012

The 4th Division was reformed as an administrative division – effectively a military district – from South East District and Eastern District on 1 April 1995. It had its permanent headquarters at the Military Headquarters Building in Steeles Road,

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

. The Division was responsible for the administration of

Aldershot Garrison Aldershot Garrison, also known as Aldershot Military Town, is a major garrison in South East England, between Aldershot and Farnborough in Hampshire. The garrison was established when the War Department bought a large area of land near the vill ...

British Gurkhas Nepal British Gurkhas Nepal (BGN) is an administrative organisation of the British Army. History Following generations of territorial disputes between the successors of Prithvi Narayan Shah, Leader of the Gorkha Kingdom, and the East India Company a peac ...

and British Garrison Brunei and by 2000 comprised the following Regional Brigades: * 2nd (South East) Brigade * 49th (East) Brigade * 145th (South) Brigade *

16 Air Assault Brigade 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team, from 1999 to 2021 16 Air Assault Brigade, is a formation of the British Army based in Colchester in the county of Essex. It is the Army's rapid response airborne formation and is the only brigade in the Britis ...

Following further reshuffling, 49th (East) Brigade came under the command of the 5th Division based in

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

from 1 April 2007, 43 (Wessex) Brigade was transferred to 4th Division on 1 April 2007 and 16 Air Assault Brigade became subordinated to Joint Helicopter Command. The Division reported to Army Headquarters at

Andover Andover may refer to: Places Australia *Andover, Tasmania Canada * Andover Parish, New Brunswick * Perth-Andover, New Brunswick United Kingdom * Andover, Hampshire, England ** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station United States * Andov ...

from 2010. The new HQ Support Command in Aldershot began operation in January 2012 when HQ 4th Division in Aldershot disbanded.First tranche of Army unit moves confirmed
Defence News, 10 November 2011 HQ 2nd division in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

and HQ

5th division In military terms, 5th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions *5th Division (Australia) * 5th Division (People's Republic of China) * 5th Division (Colombia) * Finnish 5th Division (Continuation War) *5th Light Cavalry Division (France) * 5th M ...

were both disbanded in April 2012.House of Commons Library: Standard Note: SN06038
/ref>

Notes

References

* Becke, Major A.F. (1934) ''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 1: The Regular British Divisions'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1934/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Chappel M. (1986) ''British Battle Insignia (1). 1914–18'' Osprey Publishing * * * Litchfield, Norman E.H. (1992) ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, . * Pemberton, W. Baring (1962). ''Battles of the Crimean War''. Pan Books Ltd. *

External links

The British Army in the Great War: The 4th Division

British Military History: 4 Division (1930-38)

4 Infantry Division (1944–45)

Orbat.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:04 Infantry Division 1809 establishments in the United Kingdom Infantry divisions of the British Army in World War I Infantry divisions of the British Army in World War II Military units and formations established in 1809 British military units and formations of the Crimean War

Napoleonic Wars

Peninsular War order of battle

Waterloo

Waterloo order of battle

Crimean War

Crimean War order of battle

First World War

Order of battle

Second World War

France and Belgium

North Africa

Italy

Greece

Order of battle

Post Second World War

1995–2012

See also

Notes

References

External links