Brigade & Divisional war diaries

[Porteous]

This is probably a very, very stupid question!

I am assuming that each Bde and Div kept it's own war diary in the same way that each battalion did.

If this is correct, where are they and how do I access them? I have tried the NA digitised war diaries, but they all seem to be battalion or small sub-unit (Engrs, RA, etc) diaries.

Grateful for any help on this.

[Chris_Baker]

All Brigade, Divisional, Corps and Army diaries are held at the National Archives as original documents in series WO95.

[John_Hartley]

where are they and how do I access them?

They're at the National Archives. Few (if any) seem to have been digitised yet.

They can make for interesting reading, particularly at times of major incident, as there is often an overview of the situation unavailable to individual battalions.

[bmac]

Divisions are numbered 47 or 56 (not 56th) Division. So, search the catalogue on say 56 Division, click on the link and then click on the 'browse from here' button and all of the component parts of the Division are listed. Brigades are listed under x infantry brigade, e.g. 167 infantry brigade.

[Taylor17]

David,

Brigade's did keep a war diaries, and the part of one I have states where each battalion of that brigade where and what work was carried out by the battalions.

I managed to order the above by the digital express order, but unfortunatley they have now stopped searching and coping the WO95 series where these are kept.

On the National Archives website in the search box at the top of the page type in the brigade/division you are looking for. This should being up the WO95 catalogue number, which you need to know to order the right item.

The only way I know is to visit the National Archives at Kew.

Hope this helps,

Trp255

[Porteous]

Many thanks for the words of wisdom! I expect to spend a while at Kew and now have a little more to go on.

I suppose I should declare my hand at this point. I will be researching the 61st Division, which has already been discussed elsewhere on the Forum. If anyone has primary source material suggesting that the Division was somehow "second rate", either official or personal, I would be most interested.

I would also be most interested in locating primary source material which suggests that, undermanned as they were, 2nd line Territorial Force Divisions were used for defence rather than offence (At least before the events of Spring 1918!).

[bmac]

In that case you are looking at WO 95/3033 onwards (http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/browser.asp?CATLN=3&CATID=13155&POSCATLN=6&POSCATID=3033000)

[Porteous]

Many, many thanks.

How very interesting. "Lack of offensive spirit" was the term used by Mackenzie of his own division after the failure at Fromelles.

[bmac]

How very interesting. "Lack of offensive spirit" was the term used by Mackenzie of his own division after the failure at Fromelles.

Twice in the same month! Bizarre.

[Ron Clifton]

Hello David

Here is the list of War Diaries held at Kew for 61st Division:

61 DIVISION

WO 95/3033 Headquarters Branches and Services: General Staff 1915 Sept. - 1917 May

WO 95/3034 Headquarters Branches and Services: General Staff 1917 June - Dec.

WO 95/3035 Headquarters Branches and Services: General Staff 1918 Jan. - Aug.

WO 95/3036

WO 95/3036 Headquarters Branches and Services

WO 95/3036 General Staff 1918 Sept. - 1919 July

WO 95/3036 Adjutant and Quarter-Master General 1915 Nov. - 1919 July

WO 95/3037 Headquarters Branches and Services: Commander Royal Artillery 1915 Sept. - 1918 June

WO 95/3038

WO 95/3038 Headquarters Branches and Services

WO 95/3038 Commander Royal Artillery 1918 July - 1919 May

WO 95/3038 Assistant Director Medical Services 1915 May - 1919 Mar.

WO 95/3039 Headquarters Branches and Services: Commander Royal Engineers 1915 Sept. - 1917 June

WO 95/3040 Headquarters Branches and Services: Commander Royal Engineers 1917 July - 1918 June

WO 95/3041

WO 95/3041 Headquarters Branches and Services

WO 95/3041 Commander Royal Engineers 1918 July - 1919 July

WO 95/3041 Deputy Assistant Director Ordnance Services 1915 Sept. - 1919 June

WO 95/3041 Assistant Director Veterinary Services 1915 Sept. 1919 Mar.

WO 95/3042

WO 95/3042 Divisional Troops

WO 95/3042 Divisional Cyclist Company 1915 Nov. - 1916 Jan.

WO 95/3042 305 Brigade Royal Field Artillery 1915 May - 1916 Sept.

WO 95/3042 306 Brigade Royal Field Artillery 1915 Sept. - 1919 May

WO 95/3043 Divisional Troops: 307 Brigade Royal Field Artillery 1915 Sept. - 1918 Mar.

WO 95/3044

WO 95/3044 Divisional Troops

WO 95/3044 307 Brigade Royal Field Artillery 1918 Apr. - 1919 June

WO 95/3044 308 Brigade Royal Field Artillery 1915 Sept. - 1917 Jan.

WO 95/3045

WO 95/3045 Divisional Troops

WO 95/3045 Divisional Ammunition Column 1916 May - 1919 May

WO 95/3045 Divisional Trench Mortar Batteries 1916 Aug. - 1919 Jan.

WO 95/3046 Divisional Troops: 476 Field Company Royal Engineers 1915 Dec. - 1919 July

WO 95/3047 Divisional Troops: 478 Field Company Royal Engineers 1915 Dec. - 1919 July

WO 95/3048 Divisional Troops: 479 Field Company Royal Engineers 1915 Dec. - 1919 July

WO 95/3049

WO 95/3049 Divisional Troops

WO 95/3049 Divisional Signal Company 1915 Dec. - 1919 June

WO 95/3049 61 Battalion Machine Gun Corps 1918 Jan. - 1919 Sept.

WO 95/3050 Divisional Troops: 5 Battalion Duke Cornwall's Light Infantry (Pioneers) 1916 May - 1919 Dec.

WO 95/3051

WO 95/3051 Divisional Troops

WO 95/3051 2/1 South Midland Field Ambulance 1915 Sept. - 1919 July

WO 95/3051 2/2 South Midland Field Ambulance 1915 Sept. - 1919 July

WO 95/3051 2/3 South Midland Field Ambulance 1915 Sept. - 1919 July

WO 95/3052

WO 95/3052 Divisional Troops

WO 95/3052 61 Sanitary Section 1916 May - 1917 Apr.

WO 95/3052 61 Mobile Veterinary Section 1916 May - 1919 Mar.

WO 95/3052 Divisional Train (521, 522, 523, 524 Companies A.S.C.) 1915 Mar. - 1917 May

WO 95/3053 Divisional Troops: Divisional Train (521, 522, 523, 524 Companies A.S.C.) 1917 June - 1919 Aug.

WO 95/3054 182 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters 1915 Oct. - 1917 Dec.

WO 95/3055 182 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters 1918 Jan. - 1919 Sept.

WO 95/3056

WO 95/3056 182 Infantry Brigade

WO 95/3056 2/5 Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3056 2/6 Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1919 Feb.

WO 95/3056 2/7 Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1919 Aug.

WO 95/3057

WO 95/3057 182 Infantry Brigade

WO 95/3057 2/8 Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3057 2/8 Battalion Worcestershire Regiment 1918 Feb. - 1919 Apr.

WO 95/3057 Brigade Machine Gun Company 1916 June - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3057 Brigade Trench Mortar Battery 1916 June - Aug.

WO 95/3058 183 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters 1915 Sept. - 1917 Dec.

WO 95/3059 183 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters 1918 Jan. - 1919 Aug.

WO 95/3060

WO 95/3060 183 Infantry Brigade

WO 95/3060 2/4 Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3060 2/6 Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3060 2/7 Battalion Worcestershire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1918 Jan.

WO 95/3060 2/8 Battalion Worcestershire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1918 Jan.

WO 95/3061

WO 95/3061 183 Infantry Brigade

WO 95/3061 1 Battalion East Lancashire Regiment 1918 Mar. - 1919 May

WO 95/3061 5 Battalion Gordon Highlanders 1918 Feb. - 1918 May

WO 95/3062

WO 95/3062 183 Infantry Brigade

WO 95/3062 9 Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers 1918 June - 1919 Aug.

WO 95/3062 11 Battalion Suffolk Regiment 1918 June - 1919 Nov.

WO 95/3062 Brigade Machine Gun Company 1916 June - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3062 Brigade Trench Mortar Battery 1916 July - Aug.

WO 95/3063 184 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters 1915 Sept. - 1917 Sept.

WO 95/3064 184 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters 1917 Oct. - 1919 July

WO 95/3065 184 Infantry Brigade: 2/4 Battalion Royal Berkshire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1919 Apr.

WO 95/3066

WO 95/3066 184 Infantry Brigade

WO 95/3066 2/5 Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment 1915 Sept. - 1919 July

WO 95/3066 2/1 Battalion Oxfordshire and Buckingham Light Infantry 1915 Sept. - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3067

WO 95/3067 184 Infantry Brigade

WO 95/3067 2/4 Battalion Oxfordshire and Buckingham Light Infantry 1915 Sept. - 1919 Mar.

WO 95/3067 Brigade Machine Gun Company 1916 June - 1918 Feb.

WO 95/3067 Brigade Trench Mortar Battery 1916 July - Aug.

It is a quirk of the catalogue that for divisional headquarters and many divisional and brigade troops, the number of the division or brigade does not appear in the title. This makes searching for, say, 61 Div Ammunition Column's diary very difficult if you don't know the system.

Not all diaries are complete, of course.

61 Div was a second-line Territorial Division. I would not call it second-rate in any other sense!

Ron

[JimSmithson]

I've photographed a number of brigade and divisional diaries in my research. They are very vital documents for anyone looking at a particular event. You probably need the General Staff diary for the period you are looking at. You very often have good maps along with detailed operational orders (not always existent in battalion diaries) and often a detailed post-operational report. Amongst others I have 30th Division for April 1917 and it is 114 sheets including 21 maps!

The brigade diaries can be more varied in quality but sometimes add important information about battalion positions and plans, again, including maps.

I will be at Kew (time for 12th and 15th divisions to come under the scope) a week on Friday. If you only want a very narrow time frame I could have a go at getting you some images. It is a rare opportunity for me though and I have to get away to get to Birmingham before the others have drunk the Old Contemptibles dry so I do have to concentrate on my own research!

Jim