VI Corps (United Kingdom)
Encyclopedia
VI Corps was an army corps of the British Army
in World War I
. It was first organised in June 1915 and fought throughout on the Western Front
.
. This scheme had been dropped by 1881. The 1901 Army Estimates (introduced by St John Brodrick when Secretary of State for War
) allowed for six army corps based on the six regional commands: 'Sixth Army Corps' was to be formed by Scottish Command
with headquarters in Edinburgh
. It was to comprise 3 regiments of Imperial Yeomanry
, 26 artillery batteries (17 Regular, 6 Militia and 3 Volunteer
) and 25 infantry battalions (2 Regular, 13 Militia and 10 Volunteers). Under Army Order No 38 of 1907 the corps titles disappeared.
's Second Army of the British Expeditionary Force on 1 June 1915. It was placed under the command of Lt-Gen Sir John Lindesay Keir
, promoted from command of 6th Division. Initially it comprised 4th Division
from V Corps
and 6th Division from III Corps, and it took over the left of the British line at Ypres
.
VI Corps cooperated with the attack by its neighbour V Corps on Bellewaarde Ridge on 16 June 1915 with rifle and artillery fire, and in July and August 1915 it was engaged in trench fighting round Hooge Chateau
. The corps was first seriously engaged in the Second Battle of Bellewaarde, a subsidiary attack to assist First Army
's attack at Loos
on 18 September 1915.
. It had 6th Division and 49th Division holding the line and 14th (Light) Division in reserve. The attack was made by the German XXVI Reserve Corps between the Roulers and Staden railways, NW of Ypres. The attack was designed to test new weapons (the gas released was an 80:20 mixture of chlorine and phosgene) and to inflict casualties. There was some shelling, but apart from sending out infantry and air patrols to gauge the effectiveness of the gas cloud, the Germans made no attempt to advance. VI Corps' anti-gas measures were reasonably effective, and a pre-arranged counter-barrage of shrapnel shells discouraged the enemy patrols. The British reserves stood to, but were not required. A total of 1069 gas casualties (120 fatal) were suffered, three-quarters by 49th Division.
's Third Army
in the Arras
sector, with which it remained until the Armistice.
Order of Battle of VI Corps March 1916
General Officer Commanding
: Lt-Gen Sir John Keir
Later in the year, VI Corps was taken over by Lt-Gen J.A.L. (later Sir Aylmer) Haldane, promoted from command of 3rd Division, who remained in command until the end of the war.
. During the phase known as the First Battle of the Scarpe (9-14 April), 37th Division
of VI Corps captured Monchy-le-Preux
. During the Second Battle of the Scarpe (23-24 April), 15th (Scottish) Division captured Guemappe.
Order of Battle of VI Corps April 1917
GOC
: Lt-Gen J.A.L. Haldane
For the Battle of Arleux (28-29 April) VI Corps only had 3rd and 12th (Eastern) Divisions in the line, but 56th (1/1st London) Division was added for the Third Battle of the Scarpe (3-4 May). 3rd and 12th Eastern) Divisions took Roeux (13-14 May), which brought it up to the Drocourt-Queant Switch Line (part of the Hindenburg Line
defences) and completed VI Corps' participation in the offensive.
), otherwise known as the 'First Battles of the Somme 1918'.
Order of Battle of VI Corps March 1918
GOC
: Lt-Gen Sir Aylmer Haldane
By the end of the month, VI Corps was back where it had been a year earlier, fighting a new Battle of Arras on 28 March. For this action Haldane had 2nd Canadian Division
and 97th Brigade of 32nd Division under command, as well as Guards, 3rd and 31st Divisions. 32nd Division took part in the Battle of the Ancre on 5 April.
Order of Battle of VI Corps August 1918
GOC
: Lt-Gen Sir Aylmer Haldane
For the Second Battle of Bapaume
(31 August-3 September) and the subsequent Allied attacks during September 1918, VI Corps had Guards, 2nd, 3rd, and 62nd (2nd West Riding)
Divisions under command. During the Final Advance in Picardy, VI Corps fought in the Battle of the Selle (17-25 October) and the Battle of the Sambre
(4 November).
German resistance was now crumbling, and the Allied advance had become a pursuit. During the night of 8/9 November, the reserve of Guards Division, 3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards
, was pushed ahead through a black night with its machine guns on pack mules to seize the citadel of the old French frontier fortress of Maubeuge
, which the Germans had captured after a siege in 1914. The main German defence line was now seven miles away. By 11 November when the Armistice came into effect, the 62nd and Guards Divisions were the advance guard of Third Army, but were doing no more than pushing forward infantry outposts and cyclist patrols against the dissolving German forces. VI Corps was among Allied troops that advanced into the Rhineland after the Armistice.
to travel to France and prepare designs for a proposed South African War Memorial. Tweed knew Haldane, who had raised the money for Tweed's sculpture of Lt-Gen Sir John Moore at Shorncliffe, and Haldane offered the sculptor facilities with VI Corps HQ. Tweed spent the last five months of the war as a civilian member of the corps staff, and accompanied the troops into the Rhineland. Although one of Tweed's studies entitled Attack was exhibited, the ambitious architectural monument that he designed for South Africa was never executed.
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. It was first organised in June 1915 and fought throughout on the Western Front
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
.
Prior to World War I
In 1876 a Mobilisation Scheme for the forces in Great Britain and Ireland, including eight army corps of the 'Active Army', was published. The '6th Corps' was headquartered at ChesterChester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
. This scheme had been dropped by 1881. The 1901 Army Estimates (introduced by St John Brodrick when Secretary of State for War
Secretary of State for War
The position of Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a British cabinet-level position, first held by Henry Dundas . In 1801 the post became that of Secretary of State for War and the Colonies. The position was re-instated in 1854...
) allowed for six army corps based on the six regional commands: 'Sixth Army Corps' was to be formed by Scottish Command
Scottish Command
-History:The Command was established in 1905 at Edinburgh Castle but moved to Craigiehall in the early 1950s.Since 1936 the General Officer Commanding Scottish Command has also always been appointed Governor of Edinburgh Castle....
with headquarters in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. It was to comprise 3 regiments of Imperial Yeomanry
Imperial Yeomanry
The Imperial Yeomanry was a British volunteer cavalry regiment that mainly saw action during the Second Boer War. Officially created on 24 December 1899, the regiment was based on members of standing Yeomanry regiments, but also contained a large contingent of mid-upper class English volunteers. In...
, 26 artillery batteries (17 Regular, 6 Militia and 3 Volunteer
Volunteer Force (Great Britain)
The Volunteer Force was a citizen army of part-time rifle, artillery and engineer corps, created as a popular movement in 1859. Originally highly autonomous, the units of volunteers became increasingly integrated with the British Army after the Childers Reforms in 1881, before forming part of the...
) and 25 infantry battalions (2 Regular, 13 Militia and 10 Volunteers). Under Army Order No 38 of 1907 the corps titles disappeared.
Operations around Ypres
VI Corps was organised within Sir Herbert PlumerHerbert Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer
Field Marshal Herbert Charles Onslow Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer, GCB, GCMG, GCVO, GBE was a British colonial official and soldier born in Torquay who commanded the British Second Army in World War I and later served as High Commissioner of the British Mandate for Palestine.-Military...
's Second Army of the British Expeditionary Force on 1 June 1915. It was placed under the command of Lt-Gen Sir John Lindesay Keir
John Keir
Lieutenant General Sir John Lindesay Keir KCB was a British Army officer during the Boer War and the First World War. After early service in the Royal Artillery, he commanded the 6th Division in the British Expeditionary Force when it was mobilised in 1914, and was later promoted to lead VI Corps...
, promoted from command of 6th Division. Initially it comprised 4th Division
4th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)
The 4th Infantry Division is a regular British Army division with a long history having been present at the Peninsular War the Crimean War , the First World War , and during the Second World War.- Napoleonic Wars :...
from V Corps
V Corps (United Kingdom)
V Corps was an army corps of the British Army in both the First and Second World War. It was first organised in February 1915 and fought through World War I on the Western front...
and 6th Division from III Corps, and it took over the left of the British line at Ypres
Ypres
Ypres is a Belgian municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres and the villages of Boezinge, Brielen, Dikkebus, Elverdinge, Hollebeke, Sint-Jan, Vlamertinge, Voormezele, Zillebeke, and Zuidschote...
.
VI Corps cooperated with the attack by its neighbour V Corps on Bellewaarde Ridge on 16 June 1915 with rifle and artillery fire, and in July and August 1915 it was engaged in trench fighting round Hooge Chateau
Hooge Crater Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery
Hooge Crater Cemetery is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission burial ground for the dead of the First World War located in the Ypres Salient in Belgium on the Western Front....
. The corps was first seriously engaged in the Second Battle of Bellewaarde, a subsidiary attack to assist First Army
British First Army
The First Army was a field army of the British Army that existed during the First and Second World Wars. Despite being a British command, the First Army also included Indian and Portuguese forces during the First World War and American and French during the Second World War.-First World War:The...
's attack at Loos
Battle of Loos
The Battle of Loos was one of the major British offensives mounted on the Western Front in 1915 during World War I. It marked the first time the British used poison gas during the war, and is also famous for the fact that it witnessed the first large-scale use of 'new' or Kitchener's Army...
on 18 September 1915.
Phosgene attack
Before dawn on 19 December 1915 VI Corps was the victim of the first German attack with phosgene gasPoison gas in World War I
The use of chemical weapons in World War I ranged from disabling chemicals, such as tear gas and the severe mustard gas, to lethal agents like phosgene and chlorine. This chemical warfare was a major component of the first global war and first total war of the 20th century. The killing capacity of...
. It had 6th Division and 49th Division holding the line and 14th (Light) Division in reserve. The attack was made by the German XXVI Reserve Corps between the Roulers and Staden railways, NW of Ypres. The attack was designed to test new weapons (the gas released was an 80:20 mixture of chlorine and phosgene) and to inflict casualties. There was some shelling, but apart from sending out infantry and air patrols to gauge the effectiveness of the gas cloud, the Germans made no attempt to advance. VI Corps' anti-gas measures were reasonably effective, and a pre-arranged counter-barrage of shrapnel shells discouraged the enemy patrols. The British reserves stood to, but were not required. A total of 1069 gas casualties (120 fatal) were suffered, three-quarters by 49th Division.
1916
In early 1916 the expanding BEF was reorganised, and VI Corps became part of Sir Edmund AllenbyEdmund Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby
Field Marshal Edmund Henry Hynman Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby GCB, GCMG, GCVO was a British soldier and administrator most famous for his role during the First World War, in which he led the Egyptian Expeditionary Force in the conquest of Palestine and Syria in 1917 and 1918.Allenby, nicknamed...
's Third Army
British Third Army
-First World War :The Third Army was part of the British Army during World War I and was formed in France on 13 July 1915. The battles it took part in on the Western Front included:*Battle of the Somme*Battle of Cambrai*Second Battle of Arras...
in the Arras
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
sector, with which it remained until the Armistice.
Order of Battle of VI Corps March 1916
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
: Lt-Gen Sir John Keir
John Keir
Lieutenant General Sir John Lindesay Keir KCB was a British Army officer during the Boer War and the First World War. After early service in the Royal Artillery, he commanded the 6th Division in the British Expeditionary Force when it was mobilised in 1914, and was later promoted to lead VI Corps...
- 5th Division
- 14th (Light) Division
- 56th (1/1st London) Division)
Later in the year, VI Corps was taken over by Lt-Gen J.A.L. (later Sir Aylmer) Haldane, promoted from command of 3rd Division, who remained in command until the end of the war.
Arras Offensive
In the Spring of 1917 VI Corps took part in Third Army's Arras OffensiveBattle of Arras (1917)
The Battle of Arras was a British offensive during the First World War. From 9 April to 16 May 1917, British, Canadian, New Zealand, Newfoundland, and Australian troops attacked German trenches near the French city of Arras on the Western Front....
. During the phase known as the First Battle of the Scarpe (9-14 April), 37th Division
37th Division (United Kingdom)
The 37th Infantry Division was a unit of the British Army during World War I. The divisional symbol was a gold horseshoe, open end up.Formed as part of the New Army, the division was established at Andover as the 44th Infantry Division in March 1915...
of VI Corps captured Monchy-le-Preux
Monchy-le-Preux
Monchy-le-Preux is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Monchy-le-Preux is situated southeast of Arras, at the junction of the D33 and the D339 roads...
. During the Second Battle of the Scarpe (23-24 April), 15th (Scottish) Division captured Guemappe.
Order of Battle of VI Corps April 1917
GOC
GOC
GOC may refer to:*Gareth O'Callaghan, Irish author and presenter*General Officer Commanding, a general officer who holds a military command appointment*General Optical Council, an organisation in the United Kingdom that regulates opticians and optometrists...
: Lt-Gen J.A.L. Haldane
James Aylmer Lowthorpe Haldane
General Sir James Aylmer Lowthorpe Haldane GCMG, KCB, DSO was a senior British Army officer with a long and distinguished career.-Military career:...
- 3rd Division
- 12th (Eastern) Division
- 15th (Scottish) Division
- 17th (Northern) Division
- 29th Division
- 37th Division37th Division (United Kingdom)The 37th Infantry Division was a unit of the British Army during World War I. The divisional symbol was a gold horseshoe, open end up.Formed as part of the New Army, the division was established at Andover as the 44th Infantry Division in March 1915...
For the Battle of Arleux (28-29 April) VI Corps only had 3rd and 12th (Eastern) Divisions in the line, but 56th (1/1st London) Division was added for the Third Battle of the Scarpe (3-4 May). 3rd and 12th Eastern) Divisions took Roeux (13-14 May), which brought it up to the Drocourt-Queant Switch Line (part of the Hindenburg Line
Hindenburg Line
The Hindenburg Line was a vast system of defences in northeastern France during World War I. It was constructed by the Germans during the winter of 1916–17. The line stretched from Lens to beyond Verdun...
defences) and completed VI Corps' participation in the offensive.
The German counter-offensive
VI Corps fought in the Battle of St Quentin (21-23 March), and the First Battle of Bapaume (24-25 March), the opening phases of the German 1918 Spring Offensive (Operation MichaelOperation Michael
Operation Michael was a First World War German military operation that began the Spring Offensive on 21 March 1918. It was launched from the Hindenburg Line, in the vicinity of Saint-Quentin, France...
), otherwise known as the 'First Battles of the Somme 1918'.
Order of Battle of VI Corps March 1918
GOC
GOC
GOC may refer to:*Gareth O'Callaghan, Irish author and presenter*General Officer Commanding, a general officer who holds a military command appointment*General Optical Council, an organisation in the United Kingdom that regulates opticians and optometrists...
: Lt-Gen Sir Aylmer Haldane
James Aylmer Lowthorpe Haldane
General Sir James Aylmer Lowthorpe Haldane GCMG, KCB, DSO was a senior British Army officer with a long and distinguished career.-Military career:...
- Guards DivisionGuards Division (United Kingdom)The British Guards Division was formed in France in 1915 from battalions of the elite Guards regiments from the Regular Army. The division served on the Western Front for the duration of the First World War...
- 3rd Division
- 31st Division
- 34th Division
- 40th Division
- 59th (2nd North Midland) Division
- 42nd (East Lancashire) Division - replaced 34th Division at Bapaume.
By the end of the month, VI Corps was back where it had been a year earlier, fighting a new Battle of Arras on 28 March. For this action Haldane had 2nd Canadian Division
2nd Canadian Division
The 2nd Canadian Division was an infantry formation that saw service in the First World War. A 2nd Canadian Infantry Division was raised for the Second World War.-History:...
and 97th Brigade of 32nd Division under command, as well as Guards, 3rd and 31st Divisions. 32nd Division took part in the Battle of the Ancre on 5 April.
The Hundred Days
During the Second Battles of the Somme in August 1918, VI Corps attacked at Albert (21-23 August).Order of Battle of VI Corps August 1918
GOC
GOC
GOC may refer to:*Gareth O'Callaghan, Irish author and presenter*General Officer Commanding, a general officer who holds a military command appointment*General Optical Council, an organisation in the United Kingdom that regulates opticians and optometrists...
: Lt-Gen Sir Aylmer Haldane
James Aylmer Lowthorpe Haldane
General Sir James Aylmer Lowthorpe Haldane GCMG, KCB, DSO was a senior British Army officer with a long and distinguished career.-Military career:...
- Guards DivisionGuards Division (United Kingdom)The British Guards Division was formed in France in 1915 from battalions of the elite Guards regiments from the Regular Army. The division served on the Western Front for the duration of the First World War...
- 2nd Division
- 3rd Division
- 52nd (Lowland) Division
- 56th (1/1st London) Division
- 59th (2nd North Midland) Division
For the Second Battle of Bapaume
Second Battle of Bapaume
The Second Battle of Bapaume was a battle of World War I that took place at Bapaume, Francebetween 21 August and 3 September 1918. It followed the Battle of Amiens and is also referred to as the second phase of that battle...
(31 August-3 September) and the subsequent Allied attacks during September 1918, VI Corps had Guards, 2nd, 3rd, and 62nd (2nd West Riding)
62nd (2nd West Riding) Division
- History :During the First World War the division fought on the Western Front at Bullecourt in the Battle of Arras and Havrincourt in the Battle of Cambrai. In the First Battle of the Somme , they were in the line near Arras and in the Second Battle of the Marne, in the Ardre Valley...
Divisions under command. During the Final Advance in Picardy, VI Corps fought in the Battle of the Selle (17-25 October) and the Battle of the Sambre
Battle of the Sambre (1918)
The Second Battle of the Sambre was part of the final European Allied offensives of World War I.-Background:...
(4 November).
German resistance was now crumbling, and the Allied advance had become a pursuit. During the night of 8/9 November, the reserve of Guards Division, 3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards
Grenadier Guards
The Grenadier Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It is the most senior regiment of the Guards Division and, as such, is the most senior regiment of infantry. It is not, however, the most senior regiment of the Army, this position being attributed to the Life Guards...
, was pushed ahead through a black night with its machine guns on pack mules to seize the citadel of the old French frontier fortress of Maubeuge
Maubeuge
Maubeuge is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.It is situated on both banks of the Sambre , east of Valenciennes and about from the Belgian border.-History:...
, which the Germans had captured after a siege in 1914. The main German defence line was now seven miles away. By 11 November when the Armistice came into effect, the 62nd and Guards Divisions were the advance guard of Third Army, but were doing no more than pushing forward infantry outposts and cyclist patrols against the dissolving German forces. VI Corps was among Allied troops that advanced into the Rhineland after the Armistice.
General Officers Commanding
Commanders have been:- Jun 1915-Aug 1916 Lieutenant General John KeirJohn KeirLieutenant General Sir John Lindesay Keir KCB was a British Army officer during the Boer War and the First World War. After early service in the Royal Artillery, he commanded the 6th Division in the British Expeditionary Force when it was mobilised in 1914, and was later promoted to lead VI Corps...
- Aug 1916-1919 Lieutenant General Aylmer Haldane
Trivia
In July 1918 the sculptor John Tweed, who had failed to gain employment as an official war artist, was commissioned by General Jan SmutsJan Smuts
Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948...
to travel to France and prepare designs for a proposed South African War Memorial. Tweed knew Haldane, who had raised the money for Tweed's sculpture of Lt-Gen Sir John Moore at Shorncliffe, and Haldane offered the sculptor facilities with VI Corps HQ. Tweed spent the last five months of the war as a civilian member of the corps staff, and accompanied the troops into the Rhineland. Although one of Tweed's studies entitled Attack was exhibited, the ambitious architectural monument that he designed for South Africa was never executed.