When the Territorial Force (TF) was created in 1908 it was a part-time volunteer force intended for home defence when the Regular British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was deployed overseas, although a small number of TF units had volunteered for 'Imperial Service'. With the outbreak of World War I the TF was mobilised on 4 August 1914 and went to its war stations. However, on 10 August the TF was invited to volunteer for overseas service, and the majority of men and units did so. Those who did not volunteer or were unfit for overseas service were separated on 15 August to form the basis for reserve units to train the mass of volunteer recruits coming forward. From 31 August these reserve units were termed '2nd Line', distinguished from their 1st Line parents by a '2/' prefix. In this way duplicate units and formations came into being.[1] [2]
By May 1915 it was decided to prepare the 2nd Line TF units for overseas service, and 3rd Line training units were created to supply reinforcements to the 1st and 2nd Lines. At the same time the remaining home service and unfit personnel were separated and grouped into coast defence brigades, shortly afterwards termed provisional brigades. The provisional infantry battalions were numbered up to 108 (with some gaps in the sequence). Support units (Royal Field Artillery, Royal Engineers, Army Service Corps etc), took the number of the provisional brigade to which they belonged.[3] [4] [5] [6]
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 infantry units became numbered battalions of appropriate regiments.[4] [5] [7]
| Provisional Battalion | Formed from | Final designation | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scottish Command | ||||
| 1st (Scottish) | 4th, 5th and 6th Bns, Seaforth Highlanders; 4th Bn Cameron Highlanders | Absorbed into 10th Provisional Bn by 1917 | ||
| 2nd (Scottish) | 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th Bns and Shetland Companies, Gordon Highlanders | Disbanded 1917 | ||
| 3rd (Scottish) | 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Bns, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders | 16th Bn, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders[8] [9] | ||
| 4th (Scottish) | 5th and 6th Bns, Black Watch | ?Disbanded | ||
| 5th (Scottish) | 4th and 7th Bns, Black Watch; 5th Bn, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders; 9th Bn, Royal Scots | Disbanded 1917 | ||
| 6th (Scottish) | 4th, 5th and 6th Bns, Royal Scots | Disbanded 1917 | ||
| 7th (Scottish) | 7th and 8th Bns, Royal Scots | Disbanded 1917 | ||
| 8th (Scottish) | 8th Bn, Highland Light Infantry (whole battalion) | Disbanded 1916 | ||
| 9th (Scottish) | 5th, 6th, 7th and 9th Bns, Highland Light Infantry | 21st Bn, Highland Light Infantry[10] [11] | ||
| 10th (Scottish) | 5th, 6th and 7th Bns, Scottish Rifles | 15th Bn, Scottish Rifles[12] [13] | ||
| 11th (Scottish) | 4th and 5th Bns, Royal Scots Fusiliers; 8th Bn, Scottish Rifles | 11th Bn, Royal Scots Fusiliers[14] [15] | ||
| 12th (Scottish) | 4th and 5th Bns, King's Own Scottish Borderers | Disbanded 1917 | ||
| Northern Command | ||||
| 21st | 4th and 7th Bns, Northumberland Fusiliers | 35th Bn, Northumberland Fusiliers[16] [17] | ||
| 22nd | 5th and 6th Bns, Northumberland Fusiliers | 36th Bn, Northumberland Fusiliers | ||
| 23rd | 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Bns Durham Light Infantry | 26th Bn Durham Light Infantry[18] [19] | ||
| 24th | 4th and 5th Bns, Yorkshire Regiment | 18th Bn, Yorkshire Regiment[20] [21] | ||
| 25th | 4th Bn, East Yorkshire Regiment | 27th Bn, Durham Light Infantry | ||
| 26th | 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Bns, West Yorkshire Regiment; 4th and 5th Bns, York and Lancaster Regiment | Disbanded 1916 | ||
| 27th | 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th Bns, West Riding Regiment; 4th and 5th Bns, King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry | Disbanded 1917 | ||
| 28th | 4th and 5th Bns, Lincolnshire Regiment; 4th and 5th Bns, Leicestershire Regiment; 5th and 6th Bns, South Staffordshire Regiment | 13th Bn, Lincolnshire Regiment[22] [23] [24] [25] | ||
| 29th | 21st Bn, Sherwood Foresters[26] [27] | |||
| Western Command | ||||
| 41st | 4th and 5th Bns, Royal Lancaster Regiment | 12th Bn, Royal Lancaster Regiment[28] [29] [30] | ||
| 42nd | 4th, 5th and 12th Bns, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment | 14th Bn, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment[31] [32] | ||
| 43rd | 5th and 6th Bns, Liverpool Regiment | 25th Bn, Liverpool Regiment[33] [34] | ||
| 44th | 7th, 8th and 9th Bns, Liverpool Regiment | 26th Bn, Liverpool Regiment | ||
| 45th | 6th, 7th and 8th Bns, Lancashire Fusiliers; 5th, 6th, 7th and 10th Bns, Manchester Regiment | 28th Bn, Manchester Regiment[35] [36] | ||
| 46th | 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th Bns, Cheshire Regiment | 23rd Bn, Cheshire Regiment[37] [38] | ||
| 47th | 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th Bns, Royal Welsh Fusiliers | 23rd Bn, Royal Welsh Fusiliers[39] [40] | ||
| 48th | 1st, 2nd and 3rd Bns, Monmouthshire Regiment; 1st Bn, Herefordshire Regiment | 4th Bn Monmouthshire Regiment[41] [42] | ||
| 49th | 10th Bn, Liverpool Regiment; 4th and 5th Bns, South Lancashire Regiment | 14th Bn, South Lancashire Regiment[43] [44] | ||
| 50th | 4th Bn, Shropshire Light Infantry; Brecknockshire Bn, South Wales Borderers | Disbanded 1916 | ||
| 51st | 4th, 5th and 6th Bns, Welsh Regiment | Disbanded 1917 | ||
| 52nd | 5th Bn, Lancashire Fusiliers; 4th and 5th Bns, East Lancashire Regiment; 4th and 5th Bns, Border Regiment; 8th and 9th Bns, Manchester Regiment | Disbanded 1916 | ||
| Eastern Command | ||||
| 61st | 4th and 5th Bns, Norfolk Regiment | 11th Bn, Norfolk Regiment[45] [46] [47] | ||
| 62nd | 1st Bn Cambridgeshire Regiment; 4th Bn, Northamptonshire Regiment | 9th Bn, Northamptonshire Regiment[48] [49] [50] | ||
| 63rd | 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th Bns, Middlesex Regiment | 32nd Bn, Middlesex Regiment[51] [52] | ||
| 64th | 4th and 5th Bns, Suffolk Regiment[53] | 14th Bn, Suffolk Regiment[54] [55] | ||
| 65th | 4th Bn, Essex Regiment | 15th Bn, Essex Regiment[56] [57] | ||
| 66th | 5th (part) and 6th Bns, Essex Regiment | 16th Bn, Essex Regiment | ||
| 67th | 5th (part) and 7th Bns, Essex Regiment | 17th Bn, Essex Regiment | ||
| 68th | 5th Bn, Bedfordshire Regiment; 1st Bn, Hertfordshire Regiment | 11th Bn, Bedfordshire Regiment[58] [59] | ||
| 69th | 4th and 5th Bns Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment) | 19th Bn, Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)[60] [61] [62] | ||
| 70th | 5th and 6th Bns, East Surrey Regiment | 15th Bn, Royal Sussex Regiment[63] [64] | ||
| 71st | 4th and 5th Bns, Buffs (East Kent Regiment); 4th and 5th Bns, Royal West Kent Regiment | Amalgamated with 69th Provisional Bn 5 June 1916 | ||
| 72nd | 4th & 5th Bns, Royal Sussex Regiment | Disbanded by 1917 | ||
| Southern Command | ||||
| 81st | 5th, 6th, 7th and 8h Bns, Royal Warwickshire Regiment | 18th Bn, Royal Warwickshire Regiment[65] [66] | ||
| 82nd | 4th and 6th Bns, Gloucestershire Regiment; 7th and 8th Bns, Worcestershire Regiment | 17th Bn, Gloucestershire Regiment[67] [68] | ||
| 83rd | 5th Bn, Gloucestershire Regiment
| 10th Bn, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry[69] [70] | ||
| 84th | 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Bns, Hampshire Regiment | 17th Bn, Hampshire Regiment[71] | ||
| 85th | 4th and 5th Bns, Somerset Light Infantry; 4th Bn, Wiltshire Regiment; 4th Bn, Dorsetshire Regiment | 11th Bn, Somerset Light Infantry[72] [73] [74] | ||
| 86th | 4th, 5th and 6th Bns, Devonshire Regiment; 4th and 5th Bns, Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry | 15th Bn, Devonshire Regiment[75] [76] | ||
| London District | ||||
| 100th[77] | 1st, 2nd, 4th and 7th Bns, London Regiment | 29th Bn, London Regiment[78] [79] | ||
| 101st | 3rd, 5th, 6th and 8th Bns, London Regiment | 30th Bn, London Regiment | ||
| 102nd | 9th, 10th and 12th Bns, London Regiment | Amalgamated with 100th Provisional Bn to form 29th Bn London Regiment | ||
| 104th | Honourable Artillery Company Infantry Bn | Amalgamated with 101st Provisional Bn | ||
| 105th | 11th, 13th, 15th and 16th Bns, London Regiment | Amalgamated with 107th Provisional Bn to form 31st Bn, London Regiment | ||
| 106th | 19th, 20th and 22nd Bns, London Regiment | Amalgamated with 108th Provisional Bn to form 32nd Bn, London Regiment | ||
| 107th | 17th, 18th and 21st Bns, London Regiment | 31st Bn, London Regiment | ||
| 108th | 23rd and 24th Bns, London Regiment | 32nd Bn, London Regiment | ||