46th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)

On 2 October 1939, the 46th Infantry Division became active. The division took control of the 137th, the 138th, and the 139th Infantry Brigades, in addition to supporting divisional units, which had been administered by the 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division.[18] Major-General Algernon Ransome, who was called out of retirement and had previously commanded a brigade in the British Indian Army during the mid-1930s, was made General Officer Commanding.[19][20] The 137th Brigade had been created as the second-line duplicate of the 147th Infantry Brigade, and comprised the 2/5th Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment; the 2/6th Battalion, Duke of Wellington's Regiment (2/6DWR); and the 2/7DWR.[21] The 138th Brigade was raised as the duplicate of the 146th Infantry Brigade, and consisted of the 6th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment; the 2/4th Battalion, King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (2/4KOYLI); and the 6th Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment.[22] The 139th Infantry Brigade was the second-line duplicate of the 148th Infantry Brigade, and on formation comprised the 2/5th Battalion, Leicestershire Regiment (2/5LR); the 2/5th Battalion, Sherwood Foresters; and the 9th Battalion, Sherwood Foresters.[23]

Due to the lack of official guidance, the newly formed units were at liberty to choose numbers, styles, and titles. The division adopted the number, but not the county association, of their First World War counterpart: the 46th (North Midland) Division.[15][24] The division's battalions were largely drawn from the English North Midlands. To denote the association of the division with this area, a Sherwood Forest oak tree was chosen as the divisional insignia. The Imperial War Museum wrote that "in addition, the oak was seen as an emblem of strength and reliability."[24]

The war deployment plan for the TA envisioned its divisions being sent overseas, as equipment became available, to reinforce the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) that had already been dispatched to Europe. The TA would join regular army divisions in waves as its divisions completed their training, the final divisions deploying a year after the war began.[25] However, the 46th Division's men were ill-equipped, lacked transportation, were spread out, and were assigned to guard strategically important locations known as vulnerable points. This lasted until December 1939, when the division was assigned to anti-invasion duties.[26] By December, the division was based in Yorkshire.[27] On 5 December 1939, Major-General Henry O. Curtis took over command of the division; Curtis had previously commanded an infantry brigade within the BEF.[28] At this point, the division was allocated a role within the defensive anti-invasion plan, codenamed Julius Caesar.[26][lower-alpha 3] Divisions assigned to this role, were tasked with launching an immediate attack on German parachutists. If that was not possible, the division was to cordon off and immobilise any German invasion effort, until relieved by forces capable of launching a major counter-attack to defeat the Germans.[30]

In March 1940, the division became caught up in an effort to address manpower shortages among the BEF's rear-echelon units.[lower-alpha 4] More men were needed to work along the lines of communication, and the Army had estimated that by mid-1940 it would need at least 60,000 pioneers.[32] The lack of such men had taxed the Royal Engineers (RE) and Auxiliary Military Pioneer Corps (AMPC) as well as impacting frontline units, which had to be diverted from training to help construct defensive positions along the Franco-Belgian border.[33][34] To address this issue, it was decided to deploy untrained territorial units as an unskilled workforce; thereby alleviating the strain on the existing pioneer units and freeing up regular units to complete training.[35][36] As a result, the decision was made to deploy the 12th (Eastern), 23rd (Northumbrian), and the 46th Infantry Divisions to France. Each division would leave their heavy equipment and most of their logistical, administrative, and support units behind. In total, the elements of the three divisions that were transported to France amounted to 18,347 men.[37][lower-alpha 5] The 46th Division was deployed to Brittany. The 137th Brigade was sent to aid in the unloading of supplies at Saint-Nazaire and Nantes, as well as aiding in the construction of railway sidings in that area. The other two brigades were deployed to Rennes to assist in railway construction and aid the transportation of ammunition supplies.[26][39] The intent was that by August their job would be completed, and they could return to the United Kingdom to resume training before being redeployed to France as front-line soldiers.[40] Lionel Ellis, the author of the British official history of the BEF in France, wrote that while the divisions "were neither fully trained nor equipped for fighting ... a balanced programme of training was carried out so far as time permitted".[41] Historian Tim Lynch commented that the deployment also had a political dimension, allowing "British politicians to tell their French counterparts that Britain had supplied three more infantry divisions towards the promised nineteen by the end of the year".[36]

General Edmund Ironside, Chief of the Imperial General Staff, was opposed to such a use of these divisions. He reluctantly caved to the political pressure to release the divisions, having been assured by General Sir John Gort (commander of the BEF) that the troops would not be used as frontline combat formations.[42] The 46th Division departed Southampton on 28 April and arrived at Cherbourg the following day. Each of the division's nine battalion were equipped with four 2 in (51 mm) mortars, 18 Bren light machine guns, 10 Boys anti-tank rifles, and 12 trucks.[26] The division was below their establishment of 108 2 in (51 mm) mortars, and 361 anti-tank rifles; but over the establihment of 28 Bren guns.[43]

The operating area of the various Belgian, British, and French field armies and army groups are shown in blue. The German field armies and corps are shown in red. The red area denotes the territory captured by Germany between 10–16 May 1940.

On 10 May 1940, the Phoney War, the period of inactivity on the Western Front since the start of the conflict, came to an end as the German military invaded Belgium and the Netherlands.[44] As a result, the majority of the BEF along with the best French armies and their strategic reserve moved forward to assist the Belgian and Dutch armies.[45] While these forces attempted to stem the tide of the German advance, the main German assault pushed through the Ardennes Forest and crossed the River Meuse. This initiated the Battle of Sedan and threatened to split the Allied armies in two, separating those in Belgium from the rest of the French military along the Franco-German border.[46] The 46th Division was ordered to concentrate on the Belgian border, to act as a reserve to the BEF.[47] As the German threat developed, Gort created an ad hoc force known as Macforce. This force was to protect the BEF's right rear flank and lines of communication, and deny the Germans from crossing River Scarpe.[48][lower-alpha 6]

On 15 May, the 138th and the 139th Brigades boarded trains and moved from the Rennes area. The men expected to be assigned to rear-area duties, such as clearing supply lines of refugees. They arrived the next day and were assigned to Macforce, and ordered to take up defensive positions on the River Scarpe. These positions were occupied on 20 May. The river, less than 3 ft (0.91 m) deep, was not a major defensible position.[49] The 137th Brigade and the divisional headquarters arrived in the Seclin area, on the outskirts of Lille, on 20 May. There, the division took command of the 25th Infantry Brigade and other assets assigned by Gort, and were dubbed Polforce (after the town of St Pol where the units were waiting). These two brigades were assigned to defend the La Bassée Canal between Aire and Carvin, a front of 28 mi (45 km), on the flank of Macforce. With insufficient forces to cover the entire area, they had to defend and prepare to destroy 44 bridges.[49][50] This duty was impeded by the stream of refugees moving through the area.[47] The water obstacles posed the only natural barrier between the advancing German armour forces and the rear of the BEF, and potential catastrophic defeat.[51]

With assets being moved between Polforce and Macforce, the division was unable to fight as a cohesive entity. The divisional history, wrote by staff of the division, stated the brigade's fought "confused, independent and one‐sided" battles. Most notably, they record the 137th Brigade suffering "grievous casualties" when German forces broke through their positions on the La Bassée Canal.[47][50] Meanwhile, with the BEF surrounded and the military situation in Flanders having deteriorated, the decision was made to evacuate the BEF from Dunkirk, the only remaining port in British hands.[52] The remnants of the division's brigades retreated north towards the port. On 29 May, the division was assigned to defensive positions along the Canal de Bergues and Nieuwpoort-Dunkirk Canal, on the Dunkirk perimeter.[47] On 1 June, the division faced a major German attack, which involved bitter fighting, artillery barrages, and heavy casualties.[53] During the day, the division withdraw into Dunkirk and were subsequently evacuated via the mole or from the beaches. The 2/4KOYLI, the 2/6DWR, and the 2/7DWR had become separated from the division during the move from Rennes. They were located on the southern side of the German advance into France, and unable to retreat towards or evacuate from Dunkirk. These battalions retreated across France, with the 2/4KOYLI being heavily engaged in the defence of bridges crossing the Seine at Pont-de-l'Arche. These battalions continued their retreat towards Cherbourg and Saint-Nazaire, eventually being evacuated as part Operation Aerial.[47]

Universal Carriers of the 2/5th Battalion, Leicestershire Regiment in Scotland, 5 December 1940

After returning to the United Kingdom, the division moved to Manchester to start rebuilding. Curtis was assigned to the 49th Division, and replaced by Major-General Desmond Anderson (previously GOC the 45th Infantry Division) on 5 July.[54][55] In late July, the division relocated to Scotland, and was placed under the authority of Scottish Command. The Royal Artillery field regiments from the 49th Division were then assigned to the division, replacing those that were detached prior to the 46th Division's departure to France. This was followed by the engineer, signal, and other support units being brought up to full strength.[54][56][57] The divisional history claimed "within little more than a month of Dunkirk", the division "was better equipped than it had ever been in the dark days in France."[54] On 27 July, Lieutenant-General Alan Brooke, the Commander-in-Chief, Home Forces, visited the division. He recorded in his dairy that he found the division "in a lamentably backward state of training, barely fit to do platoon training and deficient of officers."[58]

The division was initially based along the Fife coastline, to prevent any potential German landings, before it moved to Dumfries. Here, and the remainder of 1940, the division trained.[54][59] On 14 December, Major-General Charles Edward Hudson replaced Anderson as GOC; Hudson was a distinguished First World War veteran and a recipient of the Victoria Cross (VC), and who had previously commanded the 2nd Infantry Brigade during the fighting in France.[60][61] In January 1941, the division left Scotland and travelled to Cambridgeshire.[54] Subsequently, it moved to Norfolk where it undertook varying duties alongside training; anti-invasion duties that included manning coastal defences, airfield defence, and training Home Guard battalions. The division also conducted field exercises across East Anglia.[54] On 22 May, Major-General Douglas Wimberley briefly took command of the division.[19][lower-alpha 7] In June, Major-General Miles Dempsey replaced Wimberley. In November, the division moved to Kent, and Major-General Harold Freeman-Attwood became GOC.[18][54] In Kent, the division established a 'Battle School', and spent the remaining part of 1941 and the majority of 1942 training and undertaking exercises. During this period, the division was also brought up to full strength.[54][lower-alpha 8] Notably, the division conducted an exercise on Lewes Downs that was watched by Lieutenant General Dwight D. Eisenhower.[54] On 19 July, the 137th Brigade left, temporarily reducing the division to two brigades. It was replaced on 15 August, by the 128th Infantry Brigade.[59] This brigade was composed of the 1/4th Battalion, Hampshire Regiment (1/4HR), the 2/4HR, and the 5HR.[65]

In late 1941, following Operation Crusader in the Egyptian-Libyan Western Desert, the British military proposed Operation Gymnast; a landing in French North Africa and subsequent advance into Tunisia. After the United States entry into the war, this plan was expanded into Super Gymnast, but subsequently abandoned by April 1942. Due to American pressure, Allied planning efforts focused on an assault on German-occupied France; codenamed Operation Roundup. Additional proposals for an assault on France included Operation Sledgehammer. In July, Super Gymnast was revived as Operation Torch, Sledgehammer had been cancelled, and the assault on France had been postponed. By September, a final plan for Torch had been issued. This involved the formation of the British First Army.[66] On 24 August, the division was assigned to the First Army, but was not allocated to the initial invasion of French North Africa.[59][67] The division remained in the United Kingdom until the end of 1942, assembling at Aldershot in December. During the month, the division was inspected by King George VI.[54]

Sedjenane

Thala

Hunt's Gap

Sidi Nsir

Kasserine Pass

Béja

Kairouan

Bou Arada

Key locations in Tunisia, in reference to division's actions.

On 24 December 1942, 4,000 men of the 139th Infantry Brigade and supporting forces[lower-alpha 9] departed from Liverpool. The convoy arrived in Algiers, French Algeria, on 3 January 1943, and was followed by a 500 miles (800 km) road and rail journey to the frontline near Sedjenane, French Tunisia.[68] Meanwhile, on 6 January, the 128th Brigade departed from Gourock, Scotland, and the 138th Brigade departed from Liverpool. The brigades arrived in Algeria on 17 January. While the 138th moved across land, the 128th Brigade re-boarded ships and were transported further down the Algerian coast to Bône. During this move, an Axis air attack resulted in one ship being sunk and the loss of materiel. Both brigades moved up to the front during February.[69]

On 10 January, the 139th Infantry Brigade launched a minor attack upon Italian positions, but further efforts were postponed by an Axis offensive. The Italian-German forces struck at Allied positions in western Tunisia in order to gain more favourable defensive positions from which to contend with the expected Allied offensive. This offensive started with the Battle of Sidi Bou Zid, aimed at largely American positions.[70][71] The Axis offensive expanded, with the Battle of Kasserine Pass. In response, the 2/5LR, along with anti-tank guns and artillery pieces from the 139th Brigade, were moved 150 miles (240 km) south to Thala to bolster Allied positions. Once at Thala, they covered the withdrawal of American and British forces, repulsed a German tank attack late on 20 February after heavy fighting that saw German units penetrate their position, and aided in the subsequent defence of the town. The fighting cost these units over 400 casualties.[70][72] To the north, patrols from the 5HR (128th Infantry Brigade) clashed with their German counterparts near Sidi Nsir.[73]

On 26 February, the 5HR became embroiled in opening moves of Operation Ochsenkopf, another major German attack. Ochsenkopf aimed to capture the town of Béja. After a 24-hour battle, which included three German tanks being disabled, the battalion was reduced to 120 men and forced back. The following day, the Germans attacked towards Hunt's Gap where the reinforced 128th Brigade (including the Churchill tank equipped North Irish Horse) was concentrated. Fighting raged until 3 March, by which time the brigade had halted the German effort to capture Béja and destroyed at least 11 tanks.[73][74] At the same time, on 26 February, Axis forces advanced into the Sedjenane valley, held by the 139th Brigade, initiating the Battle of Sedjenane. Notably, on 2 March, the 16th Durham Light Infantry (16DLI) launched a counterattack that failed with heavy casualties. By 4 March, the brigade had been forced to withdraw. During the following two weeks, the brigade launched local counterattacks and engaged in further back and forth fighting in isolated company and battalion actions.[75] Starting 27 March, the division launched counterattacks to regain the Sedjenane valley. During these attacks, the division took temporary command of the 1st Parachute and the 38th (Irish) Brigades. They, alongside the 138th Brigade, retook all territory that had been lost by 1 April, as well around 1,000 prisoners.[76][77]

On 2 April, the 128th Brigade moved 100 miles (160 km) south to assist in an attack towards Pichon, near Kairouan. This was part of a larger effort to intercept Axis forces retreating north, from the south of Tunisia where they were being chased by the British Eighth Army. The resulting fighting was a success for the brigade, who took 150 prisoners, but the overall attack failed to trap Axis forces. They then marched north to rejoin the main body of the division, doing so on 14 April.[78][79] The division was next tasked with capturing hills northeast of Bou Arada, to open the way for an armoured advance towards Tunis. On 21 April, Axis forces launched a minor spoiling attack that was repelled, before the division attacked. Over the next two days, in heavy fighting, the division took its objectives. Further back and forth fighting followed as the division was called upon to clear additional Axis positions. Fighting lasted until 27 April, and so did the division's role in the campaign. On 20 May, elements of the 46th took part on the victory parade in Tunis.[80]

Universal Carriers of the 6th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment drive ashore from a Landing Ship, Tank (LST) at Salerno, 8 September 1943.

Bofors 40 mm gun of 379 Battery, 115th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, 46th Division, 7 January 1944

From there on the 46th Division, from August under the command of Major-General John Hawkesworth, fought throughout the Italian Campaign in late 1943 with both the U.S. Fifth Army and the Eighth Army, fighting in tough battles such as that at the initial Salerno landings in September 1943, followed by fighting at the Volturno Line, the Winter Line, the Bernhardt Line, First Battle of Monte Cassino and later the Gothic Line. During the fighting in Italy the 46th Division suffered over 9,200 casualties, including 1,447 officers and men killed in action, with a further 6,476 wounded and 1,957 missing.[81]

In late December/early 1945, the division, now commanded by Major-General Stephen Weir, a New Zealand Army officer, was sent to re-occupy Greece, where they came under command of Lieutenant-General Ronald Scobie's III Corps. On 7 April 1945, the division started its move back to Italy.[82]

By the time the division started to move north, the Spring 1945 offensive in Italy was already underway.[83] On 2 May, Axis forces in Italy surrendered. Six days later, the war in Europe ended. The division then moved into Austria as part of the Allied occupation force. The division was assigned to the province of Styria, arriving in July following the withdrawal of Soviet forces.[84][85] Elements of the division moved further, the 16DLI entered the Austrian capital of Vienna.[83] In the coming months, elements of the division were disbanded. For example, the 16DLI was stood down over January and February 1946.[83]

During 1946, the division took part in Operation Keelhaul, which included the forced repatriation of Cossacks to the Soviet Union.[86] The author Ian Mitchell wrote the division was ordered, on 26 May, "to provide 'static picquets' along the route the Cossacks were to travel." The 138th Brigade was informed "the return of the Cossacks to Russia is part of an international agreement", that "a very large number ... are wanted for war crimes", and "any Cossack who escapes will be a menace to British troops stationed in the area."; the men of the division were ordered "to capture or shoot any Cossack who attempts to escape", but were to avoid "mass shootings".[86] The historian and writer Giles MacDonogh wrote that the division, along with the 78th, were engaged in "some ugly scenes" once the Cossacks and their families realised what was happening; "Tommies used rifles, bayonets and pickaxe handles to convince them to board the lorries that would take them to the frontier." These efforts also resulted in 900 German officers being turned over to the Soviets, among them Helmuth von Pannwitz who was later executed.[87]

In 1947, the division was disbanded as part of the demobilisation of the British army.[88] The TA was reformed that year, on a much smaller scale of eight divisions, which did not include the 46th Infantry Division.[89][lower-alpha 10]