In accordance with the
Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 (
7 Edw. 7, c.9) which brought the
Territorial Force into being, the TF was intended to be a home defence force for service during wartime and members could not be compelled to serve outside the country. However, on the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, many members volunteered for
Imperial Service. Therefore, TF units were split into 1st Line (liable for overseas service) and 2nd Line (home service for those unable or unwilling to serve overseas) units. 2nd Line units performed the home defence role, although in fact most of these were also posted abroad in due course. On 15 August 1915, TF units were instructed to separate home service men from those who had volunteered for overseas service (1st Line), with the home service personnel to be formed into reserve units (2nd Line). On 31 August, 2nd Line units were authorized for each 1st Line unit where more than 60% of men had volunteered for overseas service. After being organized, armed and clothed, the 2nd Line units were gradually grouped into large formations thereby forming the 2nd Line brigades and divisions. These 2nd Line units and formations had the same name and structure as their 1st Line parents. On 24 November, it was decided to replace imperial service (1st Line) formations as they proceeded overseas with their reserve (2nd Line) formations. A second reserve (3rd Line) unit was then formed at the peace
headquarters of the 1st Line. The
2nd Wessex Division was formed in October 1914 as a 2nd Line duplicate of the
Wessex Division. Most of the units were only raised after the departure of the 1st Line division to
India in the same month; officers and men of the 1st Line units left behind formed the core of the new units. On 22 September, India agreed to send 32 British and 20 Indian regular battalions to Europe in exchange for 43 partially trained TF battalions. The
2nd/1st Hampshire,
2nd/1st South Western and
2nd/1st Devon and Cornwall Brigades were notionally numbered as 134th, 135th and 136th, respectively. The units pushed on with training to prepare for active service, handicapped by the need to provide experienced manpower for active service units. In 1916 and 1917, the artillery was reorganized; the batteries were initially lettered A, B and C in each brigade, one battery in each brigade was broken up to make the other batteries up to 6 guns and these were then numbered and rearmed with
18 pounders. In 1917, five battalions went to
Palestine between April and October, and two more went to
Mesopotamia in September. By the beginning of 1918, just five batteries and three battalions remained in India. During 1919, the remaining units were reduced and returned to England and the division ceased to exist. ==Orders of Battle==