11th (Northern) Division


The 11th Division, was an infantry division of the British Army during the First World War, raised from men who had volunteered for Lord Kitchener's New Armies. The division fought in the Gallipoli Campaign and on the Western Front. The division's insignia was an ankh or ankhus.

History

The division came into existence on 21 August 1914 under Army Order No. 324, which authorised the formation of the first six new divisions of Kitchener's Army. The division was composed of early wartime volunteers and assembled at Belton Park near Grantham. By late spring 1915, the recruits were judged to be ready for active service, and the division was consequently ordered to reinforce the beleaguered garrison on Gallipoli. The division sailed for the Mediterranean in June and July 1915 and formed part of the Suvla Bay landing force on 7 August. The 6th Battalion, Alexandra, Princess of Wales Own of the 32nd Brigade was the first Kitchener unit to be involved in a major offensive operation of the war. Their action at Lala Baba Hill, on 7 August 1915, during the Suvla Bay landings, was costly, the commanding officer –Lieutenant Colonel E. H. Chapman –was killed as were all but 3 of the officers but they enter the history books with the hill being renamed York hill for the duration of the Gallipoli Campaign.
The division continued to serve at Gallipoli, suffering high casualties, until the evacuation of Suvla in December 1915. After a period of time in Egypt guarding the Suez Canal, the division was transferred to the Western Front and served there from the Battle of the Somme in 1916 until the end of the war, which arrived on 11 November 1918. On 28 June 1919, exactly five years since the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, the 11th Division was officially disbanded, having sustained more than 32,100 casualties during the war.

Order of battle

The division comprised the following units and formations:
; 32nd Brigade :
men of the 6th Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment at a Lewis gun post, on the front line near Cambrin, Pas-de-Calais, France, 6 February 1918.
; 33rd Brigade :
; 34th Brigade :
; 1/2nd South-Western Mounted Brigade
– attached at Suvla 9 October to 15 November 1915
; Divisional Mounted Troops:
; Divisional Royal Artillery:
Also attached:
After 1916 reorganisations
After Winter 1916–17 reorganisation
;Divisional Royal Engineers:
;Divisional Pioneers :
;Divisional Machine Gun Troops:
;Divisional Medical Services:
;Divisional Transport:
The following officers served as General Officer Commanding:
The division took part in the following actions:
Gallipoli Campaign
1915
Western Front
1916
1917
1918