Wessex (Hampshire) Heavy Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery

When the Territorial Force was created from the Volunteer Force in 1908 by the Haldane Reforms, each infantry division was allocated a heavy battery of the Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA). One company of the former 2nd Hampshire Royal Garrison Artillery (Volunteers) was allocated to this role with the Wessex Division. The battery was formed at Southsea, although the HQ later moved to Cosham. TF heavy batteries of the RGA were each equipped with four Boer War-era 4.7-inch guns and included their own ammunition column. ==Mobilisation==

On 26 July 1914, the Wessex Division was on Salisbury Plain carrying out its annual training camp. Three days later, because of the worsening international situation, it was ordered to take 'precautionary measures'. On 30 July the division took up its precautionary positions in Somerset, Devon and Cornwall. On August the infantry were ordered to their war stations at the defended ports, and the following day war was declared against Germany. By 10 August the Wessex Division was once more concentrating on Salisbury Plain, but now it was training for war. On 24 September, at the special request of Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War, the 1st Wessex Division accepted liability for service in India in order to relieve Regular troops from garrison duty there. The infantry and field artillery embarked on 9 October. However, the heavy battery was not required in India, and remained in the UK. ==Home service==

On 7 April 1915, the two Wessex Heavy Batteries joined the 2/2nd London Division (which became the 60th (2/2nd London) Division in August). This 2nd Line formation had just assembled at its war station around Hemel Hempstead to take its place in Third Army, Central Force. As late as December 1915 the 1/1st Wessex Heavy Battery still had no guns or equipment, and only had its personnel, horses and harness. Finally, the 1/1st Wessex Heavy Battery received orders to proceed overseas, and it embarked on 22 April 1916. The 2/1st Battery remained in the UK, providing drafts of reinforcements to the 1/1st Battery until October 1916, when it was broken up and dispersed to other units. ==Western Front==

On landing in France, 1/1st Wessex Heavy Bty joined Second Army and was assigned to 41st Heavy Artillery Group (HAG) on 25 April 1916. HAGs were composed of various mixtures of heavy guns and howitzers and were assigned to Army and Corps HQs for counter-battery fire and direct bombardment of targets. At the time the policy was to move batteries between HAGs as required. 1/1st Wessex Heavy Bty moved to 13th HAG on 5 October, to 33rd HAG on 19 November and to 71st HAG on 11 January 1917, all within Second Army. By this stage of the war, artillery tactics in the BEF had become very sophisticated, and mobile heavy brigades were an integral part of the more open warfare that characterised the latter part of the war (the Allied Hundred Days Offensive). 86th Brigade was part of Fourth Army for the opening of the Battle of Amiens on 8 August 1918. and to XIII Corps in Fourth Army for the Battle of Cambrai, when the brigade was one of those pushed as far forwards as was possible in order to cover the advancing troops. In Second Army's crossing of the Schelde on 31 October, 86th Bde supported the attack of 34th Division: 'Greatly owing to the excellent artillery barrage, the attackers carried al before them' (Official History). At the Battle of the Sambre on 4 November, XVII Corps of Third Army achieved complete success supported by overwhelming weight of artillery, including 86th Bde. :'This superbly well-oiled machine moved relentlessly on – artillery and infantry co-operation reaching a peak hitherto never achieved in the history of war. The Battle of the Sambre was a great British victory, a victory which finally broke the enemy's will to fight' (RA History). At the time of the Armistice with Germany on 11 November 1918, 1/1st Wessex Hy Bty was still in 86 (Mobile) Bde, RGA, now as part of Second Army. ==Postwar==

The battery was placed in suspended animation in 1919, and reformed in 1920 as 4 Battery of 1st Wessex Brigade, Royal Field Artillery (also originally formed from part of 2nd Hampshire RGA (V)), later 219 (Hampshire) Battery in 54th (Wessex) Field Brigade, RA. ==Footnotes==