Mobilisation On the outbreak of war, the division was at its annual camp when the order to mobilise was received at 05.30 on 4 August. The units returned to their drill halls to mobilise, the men being billeted close by. The 5th Battalion mobilised at Bank Chambers under the command of Lt-Col W.S. France. On 10 August, TF units were invited to volunteer for Overseas Service. The infantry brigades of the East Lancashire Division volunteered by 12 August and on 15 August 1914, the
War Office issued instructions to separate those men who had opted 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 and would absorb the flood of volunteers coming forwards. In this way duplicate battalions, brigades and divisions were created, mirroring those TF formations being sent overseas.
1/5th Battalion On 20 August the East Lancashire Division moved into camps, with the Manchester Bde near
Rochdale, and on 5 September it received orders to go to
Egypt to complete its training and relieve
Regular units from the garrison for service on the
Western Front. It embarked on a convoy of troopships from
Southampton on 10 September, and landed at
Alexandria on 25 September, the first complete TF division to go overseas. Major Henry Darlington, who had seen active service in the Boer War, was promoted to Lt-Col to command 1/5th Manchesters and take it overseas. On arrival the 1/5th Bn went into garrison at Mustapha Barracks in Alexandria and underwent intensive training. At first the division's role was simply garrison service, but on 5 November Britain declared war on Turkey and Egypt became a war zone. While the East Lancashire Division went to guard the Suez Canal, the Manchester Bde was detached in January 1915 to garrison
Cairo.
Gallipoli At the end of April the division was ordered to sail to join the
Gallipoli campaign. On 3 May 1/5th and
1/6th Manchesters embarked at Alexandria on the SS
Derfflinger, a captured German
Norddeutscher Lloyd shipping line vessel that had just arrived with a cargo of wounded from the initial landings at Gallipoli.
Derfflinger missed her intended landing spot at
Cape Helles, and so the Manchesters arrived late on 6 May, after the rest of the division had gone into action. The 1/5th Bn bivouacked above 'W' Beach ('Lancashire Landing') and during the night of 7/8 May was moved, with ammunition, rations and entrenching equipment, but no blankets or baggage, to the
Krithia sector, where the men went into the firing line for a 10-day period. On 12 May the brigade made a feint attack to attract attention away from a movement elsewhere. On 25 May, the East Lancashire Division was formally designated
42nd (East Lancashire) Division, and the Manchester Brigade became
127th (Manchester) Brigade. During another spell in front of Krithia beginning on 25 May, the 1/5th and 1/6th Manchesters advanced their line between 50 and . The lines were now within assaulting distance of the nearest Turkish trenches, and a new attack (the
Third Battle of Krithia) was launched on 4 June. After a bombardment starting at 08.00, the assault was launched at noon. 127th Brigade led 42nd (EL) Division's attack, with half of 1/5th Bn in the first wave, and in this sector all went well to begin with: despite intense rifle and machine gun fire the brigade took all its first objectives, the second wave passing through and parties advancing up to into the Turkish fourth line. The
Official History records that 'The Manchester Territorials, fighting like veterans, were all in high fettle'. There was almost nothing between them and Krithia, and beyond that the ultimate target of
Achi Baba. However, things had gone disastrously wrong for 127th Bde's neighbours, and the Turks were counter-attacking both flanks. Although the Manchesters held on to the first Turkish line they had captured, casualties had been severe. The Manchesters consolidated their position on 5 June before being relieved that night and going into reserve. On 12 June the Manchester Brigade was withdrawn from the Gallipoli Peninsula and went to the island of
Imbros for rest. It returned to Cape Helles on 21 June and 1/5th Bn went up to the forward sector on 23 June. They relieved the 1/6th Bn in the firing line in the Krithia Nullah sector on 29 June. The battalion then spent the next six weeks alternating in the line with 1/6th and
1/7th Bns, taking casualties steadily. A new attack at Helles (the
Battle of Krithia Vineyard) began on 6 August.
88th Brigade of
29th Division wa to launch the attack, but to protect its right flank 1/5th Manchesters was tasked with an attack on two small trenches (H11a and H11b) on the right bank of West Krithia Nullah. The battalion moved into the front line overnight, but then had to wait in the sun during the artillery exchanges until the assault was launched at 15.50. 1/5th Manchesters reached their first objective with hardly a casualty, but this turned out to be a dummy trench. Meanwhile 88th Bde had been shattered within a few minutes, and a Turkish counter-attack drove the Manchesters out of the trench they had captured. The battalion was ordered to make a new attempt to take H11b after dark and get in touch with 4th Bn
Worcestershire Regiment of 88th Bde, who were believed to be hanging on in trench H13. The battalion's second attack also failed, and a reconnaissance by 1/7th Bn revealed that H13 was fully held by the Turks, and that the remnants of the Worcesters were slipping back across
No man's land. 29th Division's proposed attack that night was therefore cancelled. 42nd (EL) Division launched its own attack at 09.45 next morning, from H11b to F13, but this also failed. 127th Brigade was now temporarily unfit for service and its total strength was only that of a single battalion, though it relieved
125th (Lancashire Fusiliers) Brigade on 8/9 August. The division was finally withdrawn into reserve on 13 August. After a short rest and receiving a few drafts and returning casualties, the division was put back into the line on 19 August, still badly under strength and suffering from sickness. Lieutenant-Col Darlington was one of those who were evacuated sick, and the 1/5th and 1/6th Manchesters were temporarily combined under the commanding officer of 1/6th Bn. For the rest of the month the combined battalion alternated in the front line with 1/8th Manchesters. Both sides resorted to
mine warfare, and ex-coal miners in 42nd (EL) Division were active in this. The Turks regularly exploded mines in front of the British trench known as the 'Gridiron'. On 29/30 October one such explosion blew in of trench, killing two men and burying six, of whom three were quickly dug out, but the other three, all miners, were given up for dead. Three days later, led by Private Grimes, 1/5th Manchesters, the three missing men emerged from their mine shaft, having dug through with a pocket knife. Between 6 May and 4 November 1/5th Manchesters lost 10 officers and 144 other ranks (ORs) killed, 23 officers and 463 ORs wounded, and 6 officers and 57 ORs missing. Nevertheless, the division continued to hold its position, suffering further casualties from mining and bad weather until its infantry were evacuated to Mudros on 29 December.
Romani The Gallipoli Campaign was shut down at the beginning of January, but 42nd (EL) Division remained on Mudros for some time before returning to the
Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) and the Suez Canal defences. From February to 1916 it was stationed at Shallufa, base for the Southern Sector of the defences, broken by spells of training in the desert. In June the division was moved to the Central Sector, between
Ismailia and
Kantara. 1/5th and 1/8th Manchesters were stationed with
126th (East Lancashire) Bde between El Ferdan and Abu Uruk. In July, 42nd (EL) Division became part of a Mobile Column (under Maj-Gen Hon
Herbert Lawrence, former brigadier of 127th Bde) formed to counter a threatened Turkish thrust across the Sinai desert before it reached the canal. 127th Brigade was the advanced brigade of this force, and 1/5th Manchesters moved up from El Ferdan to rejoin. The
Battle of Romani opened early on the morning of 4 August, and 127th Bde was rushed up to support the
Anzac Mounted Division, which was heavily engaged. 1/5th and 1/7th Manchesters led off, through heavy sand in intense heat, and extended into line when from the Turks, 1/5th Bn on the right, to attack Mount Royston. However, seeing fresh troops arriving and the Anzacs remounting their horses, the Turks fled or surrendered. The brigade had moved so fast that it left its transport behind, but that night the camel transport carried vital water and supplies up to the front line troops. During 5 and 6 August the brigade pursued the defeated Turkish force, suffering badly from extreme heat and lack of water, with many men falling out through exhaustion, until it reached Qatiya. For the next few months the division was part of the
Desert Column covering the extension of the railway and water pipeline into the
Sinai Desert to permit the
Egyptian Expeditionary Force to mount an offensive into
Palestine. The head of the Desert Column reached
El Arish, near the Palestine frontier, on 22 December. On 28 January 1917, orders arrived for the division to be sent to the Western Front. By 12 February the division had withdrawn from El Arish to Moascar, and on 22 February the division began embarking at Alexandria for
Marseille.
Western Front By 2 March 1/5th Manchesters had landed at
Marseille. The troops were concentrated at
Pont-Remy, near
Abbeville, and re-equipped; the
Short Magazine Lee-Enfield rifle was issued in place of the obsolescent long model with which the battalions had gone to war. The division was employed on working parties in the area abandoned by the Germans when they retired to the
Hindenburg Line, and then the brigades started taking turns in the line near
Havrincourt Wood. On the night of 8/9 June all four battalions of the Manchesters went into
No man's land to dig a new trench closer to the enemy line, which was completed and occupied the following night. The battalions also carried out regular night patrols and raids. From 9 July to 22 August the division was in reserve, with 127th Bde stationed at
Achiet-le-Petit. It then moved to the
Ypres Salient where the
Third Ypres Offensive was continuing, passing through the
Menin Gate to Frezenberg on 7 September. The battalion was now regularly shelled and bombed, suffering a trickle of casualties. It was not involved in the division's failed attack on Borry Farm but practised for a renewed attack that was cancelled on 12 September. After a short spell in the Salient, the division was relieved and moved to the
Nieuport sector on the Belgian coast, where it relieved
66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division on 23 September (1/5th Manchesters relieved 2/5th Manchesters,
see below). It went into the line on 26/27 September and remained here until November. In the front line it engaged in active patrolling; when not in the front line trenches it had to supply working parties to build underground passages. It then marched to the
Givenchy sector, arriving on 27 November, and spent the winter building concrete defences to replace the existing poor
breastworks. The BEF was now suffering a manpower crisis, and in early 1918 around a quarter of its battalions were disbanded to reinforce others; the 1/5th Manchesters absorbed a draft of 6 officers and 174 ORs from the disbanded 1/9th Manchesters on 16 February. Lieutenant-Col Darlington left the battalion on medical grounds on 18 February and Maj T. Blatherwick was promoted to take over. On 1 March the battalion was at virtually full strength, with 43 officers and 975 ORs.
Spring Offensive When the
German spring offensive opened on 21 March 1918, 42nd (EL) Division was in reserve behind the
Portuguese Expeditionary Corps, but on 23 March it was sent south in motor buses to reinforce
Third Army. 127th Brigade debussed at midnight on the
Ayette–
Douchy road and set up an outpost line. The following day the division was ordered to relieve
40th Division, and 127th Bde advanced in artillery formation across open ground to take up its positions. At dawn on 25 March the Germans attacked, making some penetrations but being stopped by the Manchesters. That night the 1/5th Manchesters took up positions at Logeast Wood. During 26 March the enemy began working round the division's flanks, and it was ordered to pull back to the
Bucquoy–
Ablainzevelle line; 127th Brigade slipped away unnoticed and the German advance was held in front of Bucquoy, despite heavy shellfire. Over the next two days the Germans continued to attack from Ablainzeville, and 1/5th Manchesters sent up platoons and companies to support the rest of the brigade as required. On 29 March the battalion was relieved and moved to
Gommecourt Park, where it was heavily shelled and began digging in. Casualties had been heavy, the battalions of 42nd (EL) division now averaging only 350 remaining effectives. However, the first stage of the German offensive had been checked, although shellfire and raiding continued along the line (particularly during the
Battle of the Ancre on 5 April) until the division was relieved on 8 April. The battalion went back to
Louvencourt where received large drafts of reinforcements: 13 officers and 127 ORs)from battalions that had been disbanded in February, including
18th (3rd City) Bn, Manchesters, the former '
Pals battalion'; 113 ORs from 17th Entrenching Battalion (also formed from 18th and
19th (4th City) Manchesters amongst others); 25 ORs transferred from each of the other battalions in 127th Bde (1/6th and 17th Manchesters); and 48 ORs straight from England. On 17 May the battalion received a draft of 80 ORs from 2/5th Manchesters, which was being reduced to a
cadre (
see below). On 26 May Lt-Col Blatherwick was transferred to command 1/6th Manchesters, and Maj W.F. Panton was promoted to succeed him.
Hundred Days Offensive The Allied counter-offensive began with the
Battle of Amiens (8–12 August), as a result of which the Germans began to give ground. Patrols from 5th Manchesters found posts like 'Watling Street' unoccupied on 14 August and 42nd (EL) Division began following up against rearguards next day. Third Army began its formal assault (the
Battle of Albert) on 21 August. 125 Brigade advance behind a
creeping barrage onto its first objective, then the barrage switched to precede 127th Bde advancing with two battalions, each with a company of 5th Manchesters in support. Assisted by morning mist, the Manchesters took their first objective and then moved on, finally advancing along the ridge up to
Miraumont. 5th Manchesters moved up behind to the 'Redan'. A counter-attack from Miraumont at 04.15 the following morning was shattered by the Manchesters, as were two more against the division that day, but the German
gas shelling drove 5th Manchesters' HQ out of the Redan into Munich Trench. 5th Manchesters continued supporting 127th Bde as it crossed the
River Ancre and captured Miraumont on 24 August. The division continued to advance slowly against rearguards until the end of the month.
Thilloy near
Bapaume held up a neighbouring division for two days during the
Second Battle of Bapaume, but on 29 August patrols of 5th Manchesters found it being evacuated, and pushed on through the village. On 2 September 127th Bde put in a setpiece attack on
Villers-au-Flos with support from tanks, aircraft, mortars and a creeping barrage that began moving forward at 05.18. 5th Manchesters on the right made good progress and the village was entered at 05.50 and cleared by 06.00, though the right-hand company was held up by pockets of enemy until the field guns and aircraft accompanying the advance were turned onto them. The division then exploited this success, and a period of open warfare ensued, with cavalry passing through 127th Bde and going into action as the Germans withdrew to the Hindenburg Line once more. After a period of rest and training, the division returned to the line for the set-piece assault on the Hindenburg Line (the
Battle of the Canal du Nord). Zero hour was 05.30 on 27 September; the bombardment on 42nd (EL) Division's opened at 08.20 and A Company of 5th Manchesters left their trenches three minutes later, leading 127th Bde's advance over the
Trescault Ridge 'in fine stye'. They were in the opposing trenches by 08.26. B Company was briefly held up by machine gun fire but 'dashed in' and captured the Black Line objective, after which 6th and 7th Bns passed through to the second and third objectives. The situation on the right flank was confused, so C and D Companies of 5th Manchesters were sent to form a defensive flank. 6th and 7th Battalions were too weak to attempt the final objective, Welsh Ridge, but it was taken that night by the rest of the division, which continued to advance the following morning. ,
VC. After 10 days' rest and training 42nd (EL) Division next participated in the
Battle of the Selle. The divisional Royal Engineers bridged the
River Selle on the nights of 17–19 October and the attack went in at 02.00 on 20 October. 127th Brigade set off at 07.00 and passed through the leading brigades to follow the creeping barrage towards the second objective at Marou. There was a lot of confusion: much of the barrage fell short onto the battalion as it advanced, and it was
enfiladed by machine guns, Lt-Col Panton being wounded. Four runners were killed trying to get a message back to the supporting company: Private
Alfred Wilkinson volunteered for the duty. He was subsequently awarded the
Victoria Cross, the citation stating that 'He succeeded in delivering the message although the journey involved exposure to extremely heavy machine-gun and shell fire for . He showed magnificent courage and complete indifference to danger and throughout the remainder of the day continued to do splendid work'. By the end of the day 42nd (EL) Division had secured all its objectives. Major W.M. Tickler took command of the battalion. When the advance was resumed on 23 October 127th Bde was in support. During the subsequent pursuit (3–11 November), it remained in support, marching through the
Forest of Mormal and across the
River Sambre behind 42nd (EL) Division's advanced guards until the
Armistice with Germany came into effect on 11 November. 42nd (EL) Division remained at
Hautmont on the Sambre during November, then moved to
Fleurus where
demobilisation began. As the men went home the division's units were reduced to cadres by 16 March 1919.
2/5th Battalion The 2nd Line battalion was formed at Wigan on 31 August 1914, and by November it was training at
Southport in
2nd Manchester Brigade of
2nd East Lancashire Division. It remained in Lancashire until about May 1915, when moved to the
Crowborough area in
Sussex where the division was concentrating. Training was hindered by the lack of instructors and weapons: the infantry battalions eventually received
.256-in Japanese Ariska rifles. Unit training was also delayed because of the need to provide reinforcements drafts to the 1st Line serving at Gallipoli. At the end of August the remaining Home Service men were transferred to the provisional battalion (
see below) and all the personnel of 2/5th Manchesters were eligible for overseas service. The division was numbered
66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division and the brigade became
199th (Manchester) Brigade. At the end of 1915 the battalions were issued with
Lee–Enfield rifles and in March 1916 the division moved to
Colchester in
Essex to become part of
Southern Army (Home Forces) responsible for part of the East Coast defences. However, all the division's units were still providing large drafts for units serving overseas and it was not until January 1917 that it was considered ready for service. It received its embarkation orders on 11 February, and the transport of 2/5th Manchesters entrained at Colchester for
Southampton Docks on 4 March. It sailed on the SS
Karnak the same night, but the sea was too rough and it returned to port. The rest of the battalion successfully sailed from
Folkestone to
Le Havre on the SS
Princess Henrietta on 6 March under the command of Lt-Col Alfred Hewlett (who had only joined 5th Manchesters as a
2nd Lieutenant after the outbreak of war and had been rapidly promoted). It was not until 12 March that the transport reboarded the
Karnak and caught up with the battalion at
Saint-Floris. By then parties of the battalion had already been taken up to the Givenchy sector in London buses to carry out 48-hour familiarisation spells in the trenches, suffering their first casualty. 199th Brigade was pulled out of the line on 19 June for training and then on 28 June the battalion entrained for St-Pol, behind the lines on the
Flanders coast.
Fourth Army was concentrating here in the Nieuport sector for a thrust up the coast (
Operation Hush) in conjunction with the planned
Third Ypres Offensive. The battalion continued training, and supplied large working parties to dig gun pits for the corps heavy artillery. When 66th (EL) Division took over the westernmost section of the line in July, 199th Bde was posted to watch the coast against flanking attacks from the sea. From August it moved round to face the German trenches across the
River Yser, with the men accommodated in tunnels and dugouts beneath Nieuport when they were in the line. The whole sector was regularly shelled and bombed, and the battalion suffered numerous casualties. The division remained at Nieuport until 23 September when it was relieved by 42nd (EL) Division (2/5th Manchesters was relieved by 1/5th Manchesters,
see above).
Poelcapelle '' by Sir
William Orpen. The division then travelled to the Ypres salient to join the Third Ypres Offensive. The battalion practised the new attack formations and then moved up to
Zonnebeke, where 199th Bde took over the front line from the Australians, with 2/5th Manchesters in the support line. 66th (EL) Division made its first attack on 9 October at the
Battle of Poelcappelle, where its role was to advance up a ridge to the outskirts of the village of
Passchendaele. 197th and 198th Brigades attacked through the shellholes and mud, which seriously hindered movement, clogged weapons and deadened artillery fire. Although patrols from 66th Division did reach Passchendaele, by the end of the day all temporary gains had been wiped out, and the division did note even hold a consolidated line. During the night 2/5th Manchesters moved up to hold the old British front line, now the support line, which was under shellfire. The battalion was pulled out to camp near the
Menin Gate on 11 September, having suffered 141 casualties even though it had not participated in the attack. 2/5th Manchesters received 140 reinforcements, but they were from a number of units, many untrained men from the Labour Corps. Lieutenant-Col Hewlett was sent to a rest camp (later evacuated to England) and the battalion moved to
Arques where Maj K.G. Maxwell arrived from 2/6th Manchesters on 14 October to take over command. The battalion resumed training, moving back to Ypres in November, where it did some short spells in the line along the Ypres–Comines Canal and provided working parties. In January 1918 it returned to Zonnebeke to garrison and improve the line at Broodseinde and 'Daring Crossing' during the winter. 199th Brigade was relieved on 9/10 February and on 13 February 2/5th Manchesters received a draft from 2/8th Manchesters, which was being disbanded as part of the BEF's reorganisation.
Operation Michael 66th (EL) Division moved by rail to join
Fifth Armythe Somme sector, where 2/5th Manchesters went into the line at Villeret, near
Hargicourt on 27 February. The line ran through the undulating valleys of the Somme's tributaries. Reconnaissance had revealed strange new holes in No man's land, which turned out to be forming-up points for the German
Stormtroopers. When the German spring offensive opened on 21 March the divisional front was held by three battalions in the Forward Zone (or Outpost Line), including 2/5th Manchesters. A heavy bombardment came down at 04.30, including a large amount of
gas shells, and telephone lines back to brigade HQ were cut. The defences in the Hargicourt sector were close to the enemy's jumping-off trenches, and aided by early morning fog, the German attackers quickly penetrated the outposts at Villaret. Although the companies of 2/5th Manchesters in front reported 'all OK' at 10.00, Battalion HQ at 'the Egg' soon found itself attacked from the rear, and Lt-Col Maxwell and about 30 men broke out to join 2/6th Manchesters in the Red Line (the Battle Zone). The front line companies had effectively disappeared. 2/7th Manchesters marching up to occupy their positions in the Battle Zone met a few survivors of 2/5th Bn, who joined them, a story repeated all along the line as 66th (EL) Division fought to hold the enemy advance. The rear details of 2/5th Manchesters at the transport lines were sent forward under the second-in-command to reinforce 2/6th Manchesters. 2/6th Manchesters with the remnants of 2/5th Bn held on doggedly next day until 14.00 before falling back under cover of fog to the 'Green Line' at
Hébécourt, where
50th (Northumbrian) Division was hurriedly digging in. On 23 March Lt-Col Maxwell and the remnant of 2/5th Manchesters helped 2/6th Bn to hold Bristol Bridge at
Péronne, while British forces retreated over it. On 24 March the Germans carried out a heavy bombardment and at 18.00 the engineers destroyed the bridge, the last one standing over the Somme in this sector. Next day the German fire drove 66th (EL) Division back from the banks of the Somme, and Lt-Col Maxwell was posted as missing. From 26 March 199th Bde was so depleted that it operated as a single composite battalion. 66th (EL) Division was finally relieved on 31 March as Fifth Army's retreat ended in front of
Amiens. When the casualty list was drawn up on 13 April, 2/5th Manchesters reported losses since 21 March of 2 officers and 3 ORs killed, 8 officers and 22 ORs wounded, and 23 officers and 670 ORs posted as missing – killed or captured. (On 1 February 1918 the battalion had had a total strength of 43 officers and 775 ORs, and two weeks later received 10 officers and 184 ORs from 2/8th Manchesters). 66th Division had suffered some of the heaviest casualties during the battle, and in April its battered battalions were reduced to training cadres; one group of 80 ORs from 2/5th Manchesters was posted to 1/5th Bn with 42nd (EL) Division on 7 May (
see above). On 1 June 2/5th Manchesters consisted of 14 officers and 77 ORs under the command of Lt-Col Hancock. The division was used to train newly arrived US troops: in June 2/5th Manchesters was attached to 106th Regiment of 27th US Division in a succession of training camps behind the lines. 2/5th Manchesters was disbanded on 31 July, the remaining personnel being transferred to the 1/5th Bn in 42nd (EL) Division (
see above).
3/5th Battalion This battalion was formed at Wigan on 25 May 1915, with the role of training drafts for the 1/5th and 2/5th Bns. Early in 1916 it moved to
Witley Camp in
Surrey. On 8 April that year it was renamed the 5th Reserve Bn, Manchester Regiment, and on 1 September it absorbed the 6th and 7th Reserve Bns in the
East Lancashire Reserve Brigade at Witley. The battalion was back at Southport in October, then at
Ripon in
North Yorkshire in January 1917. It then moved to the Yorkshire coast, at
Scarborough from July 1917, and at the end of the war was at
Filey Camp, near
Hunmanby. The
Military Service Act 1916 swept away the Home/Foreign service distinction, and all TF soldiers became liable for overseas service, if medically fit. The Provisional Brigades thus became anomalous, and on 1 January 1917 the remaining battalions became numbered battalions of their parent units: 45th Provisional Bn became
28th Bn Manchester Regiment. It served in
219th Brigade of
73rd Division and was disbanded on 29 March 1918 at
Southend-on-Sea. ==Interwar==