Entrenching battalions were temporary units formed in the armies of the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Entrenching Battalions were trained as infantry, but were primarily utilized for manual labour duties such as trench repair, wire laying, road making and assisting tunnellers, pioneers, engineers and signals. The Battalions were also used as pools of men from which drafts of replacements could be drawn by conventional infantry battalions.'Entrenching Battalions', The National Archives (TNA), Kew, file WO 95/5494/1.
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Australian Battalions

; 1st Anzac Entrenching Battalion :Formed in 1916 and provided a reinforcement pool to

I ANZAC Corps The I ANZAC Corps (First Anzac Corps) was a combined Australian and New Zealand army corps that served during World War I. It was formed in Egypt in February 1916 as part of the reorganisation and expansion of the Australian Imperial Force and ...

. After the heavy casualties suffered during the

Battle of Pozières The Battle of Pozières (23 July – 3 September 1916) took place in northern France around the village of Pozières, during the Battle of the Somme. The costly fighting ended with the British in possession of the plateau north and east of the ...

between July and September 1916 the battalions remaining manpower was absorbed by the Australian Infantry battalions. The 1st Anzac Entrenching Battalion later absorbed the surplus reinforcements for the Australian tunnelling companies and worked with the Canadian tunnellers at

Ypres Ypres ( ; ; ; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres/Ieper ...

. The battalion was disbanded in late 1917.

British Battalions

Entrenching battalions were first formed in the British Army in July 1916 and were allocated at

Corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was formally introduced March 1, 1800, when Napoleon ordered Gener ...

level. The practice ceased on the Western Front by autumn 1917, due to manpower shortages, but saw a revival at the start of 1918. The reduction in the number of battalions in an infantry brigade (from four to three) resulted in many (under-manned) infantry

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

s being disbanded. Following the disbandment of these infantry battalions in February 1918, the pool of men was used to bring the remaining battalions up to strength, and to allocate any remaining manpower surplus to 25 entrenching battalions. These battalions were put to use in improving the existing defences in anticipation of a German offensive, and could be used as a reserve force if needed. The entrenching battalions were disbanded in April 1918, with their troops apportioned to infantry battalions to make good the losses suffered following

Operation Michael Operation Michael () was a major German military offensive during World War I that began the German spring offensive on 21 March 1918. It was launched from the Hindenburg Line, in the vicinity of Saint-Quentin, France. Its goal was to bre ...

, which began the

German spring offensive The German spring offensive, also known as ''Kaiserschlacht'' ("Kaiser's Battle") or the Ludendorff offensive, was a series of German Empire, German attacks along the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during the World War I, First Wor ...

of 1918. Many of their war diaries from 1918 have survived and can be consulted at

the National Archives National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention. Conceptual development From the Middle Ages i ...

at Kew though the 1918 war diaries for the 1st, 6th, 7th, 10th, 13th, 15th and 17th Entrenching Battalions have not survived. The following entrenching battalions were formed: ; 1st Entrenching Battalion :The Battalion appears to have been stationed in

Salonika Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...

in 1918. ; 2nd Entrenching Battalion :The Battalion appears to have been stationed in Salonika in 1918. The unit was commanded by Hubert Carr-Gomm. ; 3rd Entrenching Battalion :Formed from a number of battalion elements. ; 4th Entrenching Battalion :Formed primarily from the disbanded 13th Battalion

East Yorkshire Regiment The East Yorkshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1685 as Sir William Clifton's Regiment of Foot and later renamed the 15th Regiment of Foot. It saw service for three centuries, before eventually being ...

, and a small number of former members of 14th Battalion

York and Lancaster Regiment The York and Lancaster Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was created in the Childers Reforms of 1881 by the amalgamation of the 65th (2nd Yorkshire, North Riding) Regiment of ...

(aka 2nd Barnsley Pals), although many of the 2nd Barnsley Pals were to join the 1st Barnsley Pals. ; 5th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 13th Battalion

Cheshire Regiment The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Henry Howard, 7th Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence ...

, 8th Battalion

Bedfordshire Regiment The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment was the final title of a Line infantry, line infantry regiment of the British Army that was originally formed in 1688. After centuries of service in many conflicts and wars, including both the World War ...

, 9th Battalion

Suffolk Regiment The Suffolk Regiment was an infantry regiment Line infantry, of the line in the British Army with a history dating back to 1685. It saw service for three centuries, participating in many wars and conflicts, including the World War I, First and ...

and 8th Battalion

Loyal North Lancashire Regiment The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) (until 1921 known as the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Lancashire Re ...

. ; 6th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 11th Battalion Kings Own (Royal Lancaster) Regiment. ; 7th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the Nelson Battalion,

Royal Naval Division The 63rd (Royal Naval) Division was a United Kingdom infantry division of the First World War. It was originally formed as the Royal Naval Division at the outbreak of the war, from Royal Navy and Royal Marine reservists and volunteers, who w ...

, and 8th (Service) Battalion, The South Staffordshire Regiment. ; 8th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 10th and 19th (Service) Battalions of the

Royal Welsh Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers () was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689, shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and becam ...

. ; 9th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 3rd Battalion,

Monmouthshire Regiment The Monmouthshire Regiment was a Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial infantry regiment of the British Army. Originating in units of Volunteer Force (Great Britain), rifle volunteers formed in Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire in 1859, ...

. ; 10th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the disbanded 8th Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment and 12th Battalion

West Yorkshire Regiment The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) (14th Foot) was an infantry regiment of the British Army. In 1958 it amalgamated with the East Yorkshire Regiment (15th Foot) to form the Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire which was ...

. Disbanded on 5 April 1918. These men subsequently joined the 7th Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment and 10th Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment. ; 11th Entrenching Battalion :Formed on 20 February 1918 from the battalion headquarters and residue of the disbanded 3/10th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment, and the residue of the Household Battalion (a battalion raised from the Household Cavalry). Joined on 16 March 1918 by the residue of the 11th (Service) Battalion,

Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army based in the county of Kent in existence from 1881 to 1961. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, originally as the Queen' ...

(Lewisham), just arrived from

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and disbanded on the Western Front. The battalion was working under XVII Corps in Third Army when the

opened. It manned and improved the 'Purple Line' near

Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...

, but there was no breakthrough there, and at the end of the month the battalion was moved behind the

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

sector until the end of the Michael offensive. ; 12th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from elements of four disbanded battalions of 35th Division: 23rd (Service) Battalion, Manchester Regiment (8th City),James, p. 98. 20th (Service) Battalion,

Lancashire Fusiliers The Lancashire Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that saw distinguished service through many years and wars, including the Second Boer War, and the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wars. It had many diffe ...

(4th Salford),James, p. 64. 16th (Service) Battalion,

(2nd Birkenhead),James, p. 66. and 14th (Service) Battalion,

Gloucestershire Regiment The Gloucestershire Regiment, commonly referred to as the Glosters, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 until 1994. It traced its origins to Colonel Gibson's Regiment of Foot, which was raised in 1694 and later became the ...

(West of England).James, p. 72. Battalion headquarters of 23rd Manchesters transferred to the 12th Entrenching Bn and the commanding officer until 18 March was Lieutenant Colonel L.M. Stevens, DSO, from that battalion. During the

it was engaged in heavy fighting in the defence of the Crozat Canal, after which it was absorbed into 7th Royal West Kent Regiment. ; 13th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 10th (Service) Battalion,

. ; 14th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 7th Battalion, Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry. ; 15th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 8th Battalion, East Lancaster Regiment. ; 16th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from half of the disbanded 6th Battalion King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry. ; 17th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from elements of the 18th Battalion

Manchester Regiment The Manchester Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1958. The regiment was created during the 1881 Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot and the 96th R ...

. The battalion was with the 49th (West Riding) Division during the Spring Offensive. ; 18th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 12th Battalion,

Middlesex Regiment The Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1966. The regiment was formed, as the Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment), in 1881 as part of the Childers Re ...

. ; 19th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 10th (Service) Battalion,

Royal Dublin Fusiliers The Royal Dublin Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army created in 1881 and disbanded in 1922. It was one of eight 'Irish' regiments of the army which were raised and garrisoned in Ireland, with the regiment's home depot being l ...

, 7th (Service) Battalion,

Leinster Regiment The Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians) was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army, formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot and the 109th Regiment of Foo ...

and details from the

16th (Irish) Division The 16th (Irish) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, raised for service during World War I. The division was a voluntary 'Service' formation of Lord Kitchener's New Armies, created in Ireland from the 'National Volunteers', ...

. ; 20th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from men of the 3/4th (T.F.) Battalion

Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Arm ...

, 8th and 9th (Service) Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers, 9th (Service) Battalion

Leicestershire Regiment The Leicestershire Regiment (Royal Leicestershire Regiment after 1946) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, with a history going back to 1688. The regiment saw service for three centuries, in numerous wars and conflicts such as both ...

, 10th (Service)

Yorkshire Regiment The Royal Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) (abbreviated R YORKS) is an infantry regiment of the British Army, created by the amalgamation of three historic regiments in 2006. It lost one battalion as part of the Future of ...

, 10th (Service) King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, 14th (Service)

Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The re ...

and 3rd South African Infantry Regiment. ; 21st Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 10th Battalion,

Royal Irish Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an light infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal ...

. ; 22nd Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 11/13th Royal Irish Rifles. ; 23rd Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 14th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles and 11th Battalion

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was an Ireland, 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 (Ma ...

. ; 24th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 2/5th (T.F.) Battalion

Royal Warwickshire Regiment The Royal Warwickshire Regiment, previously titled the 6th Regiment of Foot, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. The regiment saw service in many conflicts and wars, including the Second Boer War ...

, the 2/4th and 2/6th (T.F.) Battalions

. ; 25th Entrenching Battalion :Formed from the 2/1st Buckinghamshire Battalion, the 2/7th and 2/8th (T.F.) Battalions Royal Warwickshire Regiment. These men subsequently joined the 2/4th Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry when the battalion was disbanded in April 1918.

Canadian Battalions

Officers of the 1st Canadian Entrenching Battalion

The

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF; French: ''Corps expéditionnaire canadien'') was the expeditionary warfare, expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed on August 15, 1914, following United Kingdom declarat ...

formed four entrenching battalions in July 1916, one for each of the respective

divisions Division may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication * Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting of 10,000 t ...

. They were disbanded in September 1917 with the creation of the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp. ; 1st Canadian Entrenching Battalion :Attached to the

1st Canadian Division The 1st Canadian Division (French: ) is a joint operational command and control formation based at CFB Kingston, and falls under Canadian Joint Operations Command. It is a high-readiness unit, able to move on very short notice, and is staffed and ...

; 2nd Canadian Entrenching Battalion :Attached to the

2nd Canadian Division The 2nd Canadian Division (2 Cdn Div; ) is a formation of the Canadian Army in the province of Quebec, Canada. The present command was created 2013 when Land Force Quebec Area was re-designated. The main unit housed in this division is the Roy ...

; 3rd Canadian Entrenching Battalion :Attached to the

3rd Canadian Division The 3rd Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for the command and mobilization of all army units in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, as well as Northwestern Ontario including the ...

; 4th Canadian Entrenching Battalion :Attached to the

4th Canadian Division The 4th Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army. It is currently responsible for Canadian Army operations in the Canadian province of Ontario and is headquartered at Denison Armoury in Toronto. The division was first created as ...

New Zealand Battalions

1st New Zealand Entrenching Battalion inspected by King George V

The

New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

formed the New Zealand Entrenching Group in February 1918. It consisted of three entrenching battalions with the manpower drawn from men of the disbanded 4th New Zealand Infantry Brigade. Each of the Battalions was attached to one of the remaining three New Zealand Infantry brigades. The Entrenching Battalions were disbanded in October 1918. ; 1st New Zealand Entrenching Battalion :Attached to the 1st New Zealand Infantry Brigade. Formed from men of the

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

and

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

infantry regiments ; 2nd New Zealand Entrenching Battalion :Attached to the 2nd New Zealand Infantry Brigade. Formed from men of the

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

and

Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...

infantry regiments. Became serious engaged in the Battle of the Lys in April 1918, taking 400 casualties. ; 3rd New Zealand Entrenching Battalion :Attached to the 3rd New Zealand (Rifle) Brigade. Formed from men of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade

Notes

References

* J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol I, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, ISBN 1-85117-007-3. * Brig E.A. James, ''British Regiments 1914–18'', London: Samson Books, 1978, ISBN 0-906304-03-2/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2001, ISBN 978-1-84342-197-9. * Everard Wyrall, ''The Die-Hards in the Great War'', Vol II, ''1916–1919'', London: Harrisons, 1930/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2002, ISBN 978-1-84734-575-2.

External links

Chris Baker, ''The Long, Long Trail''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Entrenching Battalions (WW1) Battalions of the British Army in World War I Military units and formations of Australia in World War I Military units and formations of Canada in World War I Military units and formations of New Zealand in World War I