Mobilisation On the outbreak of war the brigade was commanded by a Regular officer, Maj W.E. Emery, who was a Temporary Lt-Col in the TF. When war was declared in August 1914, VIII London Bde had only just arrived at
Perham Down on
Salisbury Plain for its annual training camp, and it was immediately recalled to London to mobilise. After completing their mobilisation the 2nd London Division's artillery brigades moved to the country round
Hemel Hempstead,
Berkhamsted and
Kings Langley in
Hertfordshire to begin war training. After mobilisation TF units were invited to volunteer for Overseas Service. On 15 August 1914, the
War Office issued instructions to separate those men who had signed up for Home Service only, and form these into reserve units. On 31 August, the formation of a reserve or 2nd Line unit was authorised for each 1st Line unit where 60 per cent or more of the men had volunteered for Overseas Service. The titles of these 2nd Line units would be the same as the original, but distinguished by a '2/' prefix. In this way duplicate batteries, brigades and divisions were created, mirroring those TF formations being sent overseas. Eventually these too were prepared for overseas service and 3rd Line reserve units were formed to produce reinforcement drafts to the others. The duplicate 2/VIII London Brigade was formed at Plumstead in October 1914.
I/VIII London Brigade At the end of October 1914 the 2nd London Division was chosen to reinforce the
British Expeditionary Force (BEF) fighting on the
Western Front and training was stepped up, despite bad weather and equipment shortages. Brigade and divisional training began in February 1915 and it received its orders for the move to France on 2 March. By 22 March all the batteries had reached the divisional concentration area around
Béthune.
Aubers Ridge While the division's infantry were introduced to trench routine by being attached in groups to the
1st and
2nd Divisions holding the line, the TF field batteries with their obsolescent guns were interspersed with those of the two Regular divisions equipped with modern
18-pounder guns and
4.5-inch howitzers. However, ammunition was very scarce, and they were restricted to three rounds per gun per day during April. Ammunition was being saved for the
Battle of Aubers Ridge on 9 May, when the 5-inch howitzers of 1/VIII London Bde joined with those of IV West Riding Bde, the 4.5s of
XLIV Bde and the heavy howitzers of the
Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) to break down the German
breastworks for the assault by 1st Division. The bombardment became intense at 5:30, then at 5:40 the guns lifted to targets further back and the infantry moved to the attack. The attackers ran into devastating machine gun fire (there was no artillery
barrage to suppress the defenders) and they found that the
barbed wire was inadequately cut and the breastworks barely touched. The inexperienced artillery had failed in all its tasks. A renewed bombardment was ordered from 6:15 to 7:00, but the artillery's forward observation officers (FOOs) were unable to locate the hidden German machine gun positions, which required a direct hit from an HE shell to be put out of action. The second attack failed as badly as the first, as did two others launched during the afternoon, and the survivors were pinned down in
No man's land until nightfall, despite a further bombardment being laid on to allow them to withdraw.
Festubert Although 2nd London Division suffered few casualties at Aubers Ridge, its gunners had learned a sobering lesson about the impossibility of suppressing strong defences with inadequate guns and shells. On 11 May the division was redesignated
47th (1/2nd London) Division, and on the night of 14/15 May it took its place in the line for the
Battle of Festubert. The guns were already in place, with 47th Divisional Artillery operating under the control of
7th Division. Despite the continuing shortage of ammunition, the plan this time was for a long methodical bombardment. On 13 and 14 May the field artillery carried out three two-hour deliberate bombardments each day, with the howitzers registering the enemy support and communication trenches with observed fire, and then firing to destroy them, along with certain important
salients in the front line. Intermittent bombardments were continued during the night to stop supplies being brought up and to prevent repairs being carried out. The guns fired about 100 rounds per day. Unfortunately, the FOOs reported that many of the howitzer shells failed to explode due to faulty manufacture of the
fuzes. During 15 May feint bombardments mimicking the moment of assault were carried out, but the actual attack was made after dark with some success. The fighting went on for several days, and between 18 and 20 May the
Canadian and
51st (Highland) Divisions took over the line under the command of
Lt-Gen Edwin Alderson as 'Alderson's Force', with 1/VIII London Bde among its supporting artillery. 47th (2nd L) Division made its own first attack on the night of 25 May. The leading brigade captured the German front and support trenches, but was then pinned down by accurate German artillery fire and could advance no further. This effectively ended the battle.
Loos In June 47th (2nd L) Division took over trenches in front of
Loos-en-Gohelle from the French. In August the divisional artillery was rested for the first time since March, and the brigade began training on the 4.5-inch howitzer for when these became available. The Loos sector had been selected for the next major British attack (the
Battle of Loos), to which part of 47th (2nd L) Division would provide the southern 'hinge'. The batteries moved into position in the weeks beforehand, Maj E.H. Eley of 1/22nd London Bty finding a concealed position in a railway cutting. He placed each 5-inch howitzer between some abandoned railway trucks and covered them with tarpaulins so they could not be seen from the air. German maps captured in the subsequent fighting showed that this was one of only two British battery positions that had not been identified. 1/VIII London Bde, with the eight remaining 5-inch howitzers on the front, were allotted 4800 HE rounds for the coming battle. 1/21st London Bty was attached to
XL Bde as part of the 'MacNaghten Group' supporting the attack by
140th (4th London) and
141st (5th London) infantry brigades, while the rest of the division stood firm while firing continuously on the German trenches opposite. Supported by
poison gas clouds, the attacking portion of 47th (2nd L) Division made good progress towards its limited objective on the first day (25 September). However, events had not played out so well further north at the
Hohenzollern Redoubt, and the battle raged on after 47th (2nd L) Division had been relieved between 28 September and 1 October. On 13 October 47th (2nd L) Division was in support for the final attack on the Hohenzollern Redoubt, and was practising on dummy trenches for a follow-up attack on
Hulluch next day, but the results at the Hohenzollern were so disappointing that the operation was cancelled. The division took over the line and the artillery was in constant action over the following weeks. The division returned to the Loos sector in January 1916, with most of the artillery round
Grenay, with Observation Posts (OPs) in the cottages of Maroc, which had become known as 'Artillery Row' during the earlier battle. The guns carried out a great deal of counter-battery (CB) work against battery positions in and around
Lens, ammunition supply having improved.
Spring 1916 On 19 January 1916 the batteries of 1/VIII London Bde were re-equipped with modern 4.5-inch howitzers, for which they had been training since August. On 4 February it was joined by B (H) Bty and a subsection of the Brigade Ammunition Column (BAC) from
CLXXVI (Leicestershire) Howitzer Bde, a newly arrived '
Kitchener's Army' unit, followed by R (H) Bty of CLXXVI Bde on 4 April. The field artillery of the BEF was reorganised in May 1916, with the brigades being numbered and the batteries lettered. 1/VIII London Bde became
CCXXXVIII Brigade (238 Bde) on 14 May, exchanging R (H) Bty for the Regular 34th Bty from CCXXXV Bde (formerly
V London Bde), and transferring 1/22nd London Bty to CCXXXVI (formerly
VI London) Bde in exchange for R Bty from CCXXXVII (formerly
VII London) Bde. The BAC was also absorbed into the Divisional Ammunition Column. This gave the brigade the following organisation: • 34th Bty (originally with XXXVIII Bde in
6th Division)– 4 × 18-pdr • B Bty (formerly B/CLXXVI Bde in
34th Division) – 4 × 18-pdr • C Bty (formerly R/VII London Bty) – 4 × 18-pdr • D (H) Bty (formerly 1/21st London Bty) – 4 × 4.5-inch By now the brigade was commanded by Lt-Col E.H. Eley, who had commanded 22nd London Bty from its formation in 1908.
Somme On 1 August 1916 47th (2nd L) Division began to move south to join in the
Somme Offensive. While the infantry underwent training with the newly introduced tanks, the divisional artillery went into the line on 14 August in support of
15th (Scottish) Division. The batteries were positioned in Bottom Wood and near
Mametz Wood, and became familiar with the ground over which 47th (2nd L) Division was later to attack, while supporting 15th (S) Division's gradual encroachment on
Martinpuich. Casualties among FOOs and signallers was heavy in this kind of fighting. Between 9 and 11 September 47th (2nd L) Division took over the front in the High Wood sector, and on 15 September the
Battle of Flers-Courcelette was launched, with tank support for the first time. The barrage fired by the divisional artillery left lanes through which the tanks could advance. However, the tanks proved useless in the tangled tree stumps of High Wood, and the artillery could not bombard the German front line because No man's land was so narrow. Casualties among the attacking infantry were extremely heavy, but they succeeded in capturing High Wood and the gun batteries began to move up in support, crossing deeply-cratered ground. Casualties among the exposed guns and gunners took their toll, but a German counter-attack was broken up by gunfire. Next day the division fought to consolidate its positions round the captured 'Cough Drop' strongpoint. When the infantry were relieved on 19 September the artillery remained in the line under 1st Division. 47th (2nd L) Division came back into the line to relieve 1st Division on 28/29 September, and began attacking
Eaucourt L'Abbaye as part of the
Battle of the Transloy Ridges, finally securing the ruins on 3 October. This allowed the batteries to cross the High Wood Ridge into a small valley where they remained for the rest of the Somme fighting, helping to cover the unsuccessful attacks by 47th (2nd L) Division and later
9th (Scottish) Division against the
Butte de Warlencourt through October. By now the gun lines were crowded together in deep mud, guns sank up to their axles, and getting ammunition through was extremely difficult. The artillery was finally relieved on 14 October and followed the rest of the division to the
Ypres Salient. At Ypres 47th (2nd L) Division garrisoned the
Hill 60 sector, where intensive mine and trench warfare had been conducted for two years. The divisional artillery was arranged in two groups, one in
Ypres, the other in the Railway Dugouts. These battery positions were under enemy observation and were frequently shelled during the winter. On 16 January 1917 a German attack was anticipated, and the divisional artillery, together with that of
23rd and
41st Divisions and the Corps and Army heavy guns, carried out an intense bombardment, which brought considerable enemy retaliation. As well as organised bombardments of the enemy lines, the guns frequently responded to SOS calls from the front during enemy raids, and laid on wire-cutting and box barrages for British
trench raids. A further reorganisation of the BEF's field artillery was carried out during the winter of 1916–17. On 27 November B Bty was split up between 34th and C Btys to bring both up to six guns; C Bty became the new B Bty. At the same time C and half of B Bty from CCXXXVII (VII London) Bde replaced C Bty. However, CCXXXVIII Brigade's headquarters was abolished on 21 January 1917, and the brigade ceased to exist for the rest of the war. The batteries were dispersed: 34th to
CLXXXIX (Hackney) Army Field Bde, B to CIV Army Field Bde, C to CCXXXVI (VI London) Bde and D (H) to CCXXXV (V London) Bde. The division was warned to prepare for embarkation to the Western Front. On 17–18 May the artillery brigades were converted to the establishment adopted by the BEF: 2/VIII Bde was numbered
CCCIII Brigade (303 Bde), 2/21st London Bty left to become D (H) Bty in CCC (formerly
2/V London) Bde, and 2/22nd London Bty became D (H) Bty in CCCII (formerly
2/VII London) Bde. 3/1st, 3/2nd and 3/3rd Wessex Btys, which had earlier joined the other brigades in the division, became A, B and C Btys, and the former 4/LX Bty became D (H). The BACs were also abolished before the division went overseas. CCCIII Brigade therefore had no remaining London units in its organisation: • A (formerly 3/1st Wessex) Bty – 4 × 18-pdrs • B (formerly 3/2nd Wessex) Bty – 4 × 18-pdrs • C (formerly 3/3rd Wessex) Bty – 4 × 18-pdrs • D (H) (formerly 4/LX) Bty – 4 × 4.5-inch
Western Front On 14 June 1916 orders arrived for 60th (2/2nd L) Division to embark, and the artillery units made the crossing from
Southampton to
Le Havre between 22 and 26 June, with CCCIII Bde under the command of Lt-Col N. Bayley. The division concentrated in the area behind
Arras by 29 June. It relieved
51st (Highland) Division in the line on 14 July, with the artillery moving into position over the next three nights. The line held was facing the same strong German positions along Vimy Ridge that 47th (2nd L) Division had faced, and there was constant mine warfare and trench raiding. The artillery was mostly engaged in suppressing troublesome German trench mortars (
Minenwerfers) by firing short concentrated bombardments on specific sectors of the enemy line. Some trench raids were preceded by local wire-cutting bombardments, or by a barrage, others were 'stealth' raids. On 30–31 August the divisional artillery underwent the same reorganisation into six-gun batteries that was going on throughout the BEF. In CCCIII Bde this meant half batteries joining from CCC Bde, which was being broken up. However, orders arrived on 1 November for the division to transfer to the
Macedonian front (Salonika), where the four-gun establishment was still in force, and the batteries reverted to their original organisation; the former sections from CCC Bde left and formed a composite B/CCC Bty, which remained in France as an instructional battery at
First Army School. The BAC was also reformed. Once the brigade was in Macedonia, the six-gun battery establishment was introduced there as well, and this time C Bty was broken up to bring A and B Btys up to six guns each (D (H) Hty became C (H) on 20 June 1917).
Salonika Entrainment of the artillery for the embarkation port of
Marseille began on 14 November and was a slow business due to lack of facilities: the drivers needed their wooden trench bridges to get their horses aboard the trains. All units were embarked and at sea by 12 December and proceeded to
Salonika via
Malta. Early in 1917 the division's units moved up the poor roads to the
Lake Doiran sector and settled in to improve the defences and harass the enemy. Veterinary officers found that the transport horses and mules in this campaign were overworked, but that artillery horses lacked exercise and it became standard practice to allow them to wander at will during the day and then round them up a feeding times. In early March the division began moving in bad weather to take over the line between Lake Doiran and the
Vardar in preparation for the Allied Spring offensive. Apart from diversionary raids, 60th (2/2nd L) Division took little part in the first part of this operation (8–9 April), most of its batteries being used to reinforce the main attack near Lake Doiran, which required several days' artillery preparation. The division did attack during the second phase of the offensive (8/9 May), but it captured its objectives by night attacks without preliminary artillery fire. A further advance was made by the division on 15 May, but the rest of the offensive having come to a standstill it was called off on 24 May. On 1 June 1917 the division was marched back to Salonika to embark for
Egypt.
Palestine After landing at
Alexandria between 18 and 22 June, 60th (2/2nd L) Division moved to the
Suez Canal to join the
Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF), where its units were reorganised (the BACs were absorbed into the DAC once more) and underwent training before crossing
Sinai in early July 1917. Further intensive training followed until late October, when the division made its first full-scale attack of the war, at
Beersheba. In the weeks leading up to the attack artillery officers had regularly ridden close to the Beersheba defences to reconnoitre, often under fire. Concentration for the attack was carried out under cover of darkness, beginning on 20/21 October and completed on 28/29 October. The divisional artillery was divided into Right and Left groups corresponding to the two attacking brigade; CCCIII Bde was part of Right Group supporting
179th (2/4th London) Brigade. The whole force moved forward under moonlight on 30/31 October, with the
Royal Engineers improving the track north of Wadi ed Sabe for the artillery, which was in position by 1:30. At dawn the guns began to bombard Hill 1070, pausing at 7:00 to let the smoke and dust clear. Right Group then resumed its wirecutting and at 8:30 the guns switched to intensive bombardment, 179th Bde moving forward as the guns lifted. By 13:00 the whole of the defence works were in British hands, and that evening the
Desert Mounted Corps entered Beersheba. The next phase of the offensive involved 60th (2/2nd L) Division in an attack on
Kauwukah in the Turkish Sheria position (the
Battle of Hareira and Sheria) on 6 November. The attacking brigades moved forwards at 3:30 with the artillery, which began wire-cutting as soon as it was in position. Each 18-pdr battery cut two gaps in the wire by 12:15, and then began a bombardment of the enemy trench as the attack went in against heavy fire. The field guns then lifted onto the works in the second line. The whole defensive position was in the division's hands by 14:00 and it pushed patrols ahead towards Sheria and its water supply. Each brigade advanced with its artillery group, 'Bayley's Group' (commanded by CCCIII Bde's CO) supported
181st (2/6th London) Brigade. Sheria was captured at daybreak the following morning without artillery preparation, CCCIII Bde's guns moving up under heavy shellfire to support the attack once launched. B Bty advanced one gun under Lieutenant E.C. Philpott and stopped the fire of machine guns that were holding up
180th (2/5th London) Brigade. Two Turkish counter-attacks were broken up by the field guns. CCCIII Brigade suffered casualties of two officers wounded, 23 men killed, 26 wounded, and 39 horses and mules killed or wounded. The infantry brigade groups continued their advance the following day, supported by their artillery groups (Bayley's Group supporting 179th Bde in the advance guard). By 9:30, 179th Bde had cleared the Zuheilikah ridge and supported by the artillery stormed the strongly held village of Muntaret-el-Baghl. The brigade then reorganised to advance on its final objective,
Huj, which was undefended after a mounted charge by the
Worcestershire and
Warwickshire Yeomanry. of an RFA battery engaging Turkish batteries at Nebi Samwil After a short rest at Huj, the division
bivouacked at
Gaza under heavy rain, then began a march through the mud to Junction Station, which it reached on 22 November. It now entered the last stage of the
Battle of Nebi Samwil, where the objectives were a tangle of hill slopes, with tracks so bad that it was impossible to bring up the guns until roads had been made for them. Nebi Samwil had been captured by units of
75th Division, and the London battalions that relieved them came under fierce counter-attacks on 29 November; only the supporting British artillery fire allowed them to maintain their position. However, the way was now open to attack the final defences of
Jerusalem; an encirclement was chosen, to avoid attacking the city itself. The surprise attack began on 8 December without artillery support; once progress had been made the batteries were to move up and come under command of the brigade groups. The going was tough for the gun teams, and while the infantry fought their way into the suburbs of Jerusalem; there was little the artillery could do to support them. The Turks evacuated the city and the following morning the mayor and civic leaders initially
surrendered the city to two sergeants of
2/19th Londons. They were followed an hour later by Maj W.C. Beck of C/CCCIII Bty and Maj F.R. Barry of 413 (H) Bty of CCCII Bde on reconnaissance, who said that they were not authorised to accept the surrender, but passed the information to 60th Divisional Artillery HQ. The first formed party to enter the city was a small force of gunners commanded by Lt-Col Bayley, who had been bringing CCCIII Bde up the road from Qalonye. 60th (2/2nd L) Division was then pushed forward into positions from which to defend the captured city. Turkish counter-attacks began on 22 December, and a major attack followed on the night of 26/27 December. This was beaten off and the division took the opportunity to push forward up the
Nablus Road into the hills over the following days. 60th Divisional Artillery made 'extraordinary exertions' to get its guns up to support attacks that captured the heights of Tahuneh and Shab Salah on 29 December. 180th Brigade was halted by enemy fire until CCCIII Bde struggled through to come into action and allow 181st Bde to resume the advance. The Jerusalem defences were then garrisoned by 179th Bde backed by CCCIII Bde. There was a pause in operations until February 1918 when the EEF moved to drive the Turks east of the
Jordan. 60th (2/2nd L) Division advanced with three brigade groups, each supported by artillery, and worked its way forward between 14 and 21 February over rough country, with Turkish road demolitions needing repair before the guns could get forward. Major Cooke, in temporary command of CCCIII Bde supporting 180th Bde Group, reported that 'On the way to support the
2/20th [Londons], finding the bridge blown up, we unhooked the teams, and with the help of sixty men of the 2/20th, dragged the guns bodily down into the wadi and up the other side, in time to render much needed aid to the Infantry held up south of Talat-ed-Dumm'. On 21 February the Australian
1st Light Horse Brigade swept into
Jericho, leaving the Turks with only small bridgeheads west of the Jordan. 60th (2/2nd L) Division then crossed the river on the night of 21 March to carry out the
First Transjordan raid. A
Pontoon bridge was built at
Ghoraniyeh, and during the night 24/5 March CCCIII Bde went over to support the infantry advance. The reinforced division advanced as far as
Amman, though the field artillery could not get forward in the wet conditions, even with double teams of horses. Without artillery support the division failed to capture the
Amman Citadel, and with its communications back to the Jordan threatened, the raiding force withdrew on 30–31 March. The EEF then settled down to defend its Jordan bridgeheads. CCCIII Brigade played no part in the
Second Transjordan raid in May, after which 60th (2/2nd L) Division then went into Corps Reserve for a rest. As a result of the
German spring offensive and consequent British manpower crisis on the Western Front, 60th (2/2nd L) Division was changed between 25 May and 1 August to an
Indian Army establishment, releasing three-quarters of its London infantry units for service in France and replacing them with Indian units; however, this did not affect the artillery, which continued to serve with the division in Palestine. In July the Abu Tulul salient in the Jordan Valley was garrisoned by the 1st Light Horse Brigade when it was attacked by German troops bolstering the Turks. Among the artillery supporting this sector was C (H)/CCCIII Bty. When the Australian unit in the front line heard the sound of movement in front at 1:00 on 14 July he called down a defensive barrage in front of his position; the enemy artillery also came into action, shelling the whole position. A serious attack came in at 3:30 as the Australians withdrew their outposts, but after a fierce fight the Light Horse recovered their positions and took hundreds of prisoners. For the final offensive in Palestine, the
Battle of Megiddo, 60th Division was transferred to the coastal sector where the breakthrough was to be made. The opening attack (the
Battle of Sharon) went in at 4:30 on 19 September behind an intense artillery bombardment. As soon as the barrage programme was complete, the artillery moved up behind the infantry, who had gained their first objectives. The division then continued its advance as the Turks streamed away in retreat. The 60th Division advanced for the next three days against enemy rearguards until it ran ahead of its supplies. After the battle the pursuit was carried out by the mounted troops and 60th Division was left behind on salvage duties. It was still in the rear areas when the
Armistice of Mudros ended the war with Turkey on 31 October. The division then went back to Alexandria where
demobilisation began and units were gradually reduced to
cadres, though still with some responsibility for internal security and seizing illegal arms. The division ceased to exist on 31 May 1919 and CCCIII Bde was disbanded.
2/2nd London Battery After leaving CCCIII Bde, 2/22nd London Bty became D (H)/CCCII Bty and continued to serve in 60th (2/2nd L) Division in Macedonia. On arrival in Egypt, the battery transferred to become C (H) in CCLXVIII Bde on 19 June 1917. This brigade was newly formed for service with
74th (Yeomanry) Division. It served with this brigade at Beersheba (where the battery's howitzers were dragged into action by the pack-mules of 5th Bn
Royal Irish Fusiliers), Sheria, the defence of Jerusalem, and the
Battle of Tell 'Asur. On 3 April 1918, 74th (Y) Division was warned that it was to go to France as part of the same reinforcement for the BEF that saw most of 60th (2/2nd L) Division's infantry leave Palestine. Between 13 and 21 April CCLXVIII Bde was broken up, and C (H) Bty transferred within the division to XLIV Bde as D (H) Bty. The battery embarked at Alexandria on 3 May and concentrated with 74th (Y) Division in the
Abbeville district for training, principally in defence against
gas. At the end of the month the division went into GHQ reserve while continuing its training. It took its place in the line on 14 July, and the participated in the Allied
Hundred Days Offensive, including the battles of
Bapaume and
Épehy, and the final advance into Flanders. ==Interwar==