The British First World War cavalry generals, by the end of the war belonged to one of the smallest arms of the British Army, they did however, including those belonging to the British Indian Army, provided some of its highest ranking commanders.
The cavalry were well represented among the British Army's higher ranks, with five of the ten officers who would command the five armies on the Western Front being cavalrymen.Griffith 1998, p.142 In the British Army the term "cavalry" was only used for regular army units. The other mounted regiments in the army, which were part of the Territorial Force reserve, were the yeomanry and special reserve regiments of horse.Gudmundsson 2005, p.48 However the yeomanry formations were commanded by cavalry or ex-cavalry officers.
The two commanders of the British Expeditionary Force during the First World War, Field Marshals John French and Douglas Haig, came from the 19th (Queen Alexandra's Own Royal) Hussars and 7th (Queen's Own) Hussars respectively.Pearce and Stewart 2002, pp.289–290Griffiths and Greiss 2003, p.69 William Robertson, 3rd (Prince of Wales's) Dragoon Guards, who rose in rank from private to field marshal,Holmes 2005, p.121 was the Quartermaster General, then Chief of Staff of the British Expeditionary Force, before becoming the Chief of the Imperial General Staff in December 1915.
Edmund Allenby, 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons, who started the war as the commander of the Cavalry Division, went on to command the Cavalry Corps, then V Corps, the Third Army, and the Egyptian Expeditionary Force. He was replaced as commander of the Third Army by Julian Byng, 10th (Prince of Wales's Own) Royal Hussars who had previously commanded the Canadian Corps. Hubert Gough of the 16th (The Queen's) Lancers, known before the war for his involvement in the Curragh incident mutiny, started the war as a brigade commander, became the commander of the I Corps, then the Fifth Army. He was replaced by William Birdwood, 12th (Prince of Wales's) Royal Lancers, who had previously commanded the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during the Gallipoli Campaign. Charles Briggs, 1st (King's) Dragoon Guards, commanded the British Salonika Army. William Peyton, 15th (The King's) Hussars, commanded the Western Desert Force during the Senussi Campaign. He later transferred to the Western Front, where he was temporarily commander of the Fifth Army before taking over command of the X Corps.
Cavalry generals + Key Rank Commanded Field-Marshal Army group General Army Lieutenant-General Corps Major-General Division Brigadier-General Brigade
Name Rank Command Regiment Egyptian Expeditionary Force 1st South Western Mounted Brigade XIV Corps 41st Brigade 179th (2/4th London) Brigade Derajat Brigade 57th (2nd West Lancashire) Division 4th Cavalry Division Director of Remounts EEF 2nd Cavalry Brigade 8th (Lucknow) Cavalry Brigade 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division 3rd Cavalry Brigade 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division British Salonika Army 1st Cavalry Division Fifth Army 57th (2nd West Lancashire) Division 22nd Mounted Brigade South Eastern Mounted Brigade 59th Brigade 19th (Western) Division 8th Cavalry Brigade 7th Cavalry Brigade The Cyclist Division Third Army 11th Indian Cavalry Brigade Head of mission Belgian Army 5th Cavalry Brigade 21st Division Head of mission French Army General Staff officer War Office XX Corps 10th Cavalry Brigade 34th Brigade 2nd Indian Cavalry Division Secunderabad Cavalry Brigade 2nd Tank Brigade Mesopotamia Cavalry Division 1st (Risalpur) Cavalry Brigade XV Corps 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade 14th Indian Division 8th (Lucknow) Cavalry Brigade V Corps 8th Brigade 5th Mounted Brigade 4th Mounted Division British Expeditionary Force 22nd Mounted Brigade 8th (Lucknow) Cavalry Brigade Director of Remounts BEF 10th Cavalry Brigade 2nd Cavalry Division 11th Cavalry Brigade 10th Cavalry Brigade Fifth Army British Expeditionary Force 5th Cavalry Brigade 15th (Imperial Service) Cavalry Brigade DA&QMG 3rd Cavalry Division 3rd Tank Brigade Imperial Service Cavalry Brigade Welsh Border Mounted Brigade 229th Brigade Australian Mounted Division Remount Service 6th Indian Cavalry Brigade DA&QMG Fourth Army Brigadier-General General Staff Provost Marshal BEF General Staff II Corps 10th Cavalry Brigade 8th Division Director of Organisation War Office Administrative Staff 97th Brigade Mesopotamia Cavalry Division Cavalry Corps 13th Cavalry Brigade 3rd (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire) Mounted Brigade 4th Cavalry Division 9th Cavalry Brigade Commandant Embarkation India 7th Mounted Brigade Chief of the General Staff BEF 2nd Cavalry Brigade 1st Indian Cavalry Division 9th Cavalry Brigade 2/1st Welsh Border Mounted Brigade Commander Canal Zone 56th Brigade 3rd Reserve Cavalry Brigade Inspector of Cavalry 5th Cavalry Division Commander-in-Chief, Ireland 230th Brigade 6th Cavalry Brigade 2nd (Sialkot) Cavalry Brigade 64th Brigade DA&QMG Lowland Mounted Brigade 159th (Cheshire) Brigade General Staff 1st Cavalry Division Le Havre Base 63rd Brigade 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade 2/1st Western Mounted Brigade 187th (2/3rd West Riding) Brigade 2nd (2nd South Midland) Mounted Brigade 5th Tank Brigade 6th Cavalry Brigade DA&QMG Fifth Army 9th (Secunderabad) Division 38th (Welsh) Division 3rd (Ambala) Cavalry Brigade 1st Brigade Royal Flying Corps 2nd Cavalry Division 6th Mounted Brigade Jhansi Brigade 7th Cavalry Brigade 3rd (Ambala) Cavalry Brigade Indian Cavalry Corps 4th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade Chief Imperial General Staff 8th Mounted Brigade 32nd Division 54th Brigade Canadian Cavalry Brigade 1st Cavalry Brigade 8th Cavalry Brigade 60th (2/2nd London) Division 2/1st Yorkshire Mounted Brigade Inspector General of Cavalry 59th (2nd North Midland) Division 7th Cyclist Brigade 42nd (East Lancashire) Division Liaison officer French GHQ Scottish Horse Mounted Brigade Highland Mounted Brigade Chief of the Air Staff DA&QMG 8th Mounted Brigade GOC Sierra Leone 1st (Risalpur) Cavalry Brigade Yeomanry Mounted Brigade 3rd Cavalry Division 35th Brigade 4th (Quetta) Division 9th (Secunderabad) Cavalry Brigade Imperial Service Cavalry Brigade 84th Brigade 134th (2/1st Hampshire) Brigade 7th Mounted Brigade 1st (1st South Midland) Mounted Brigade 2nd South Midland Mounted Brigade 22nd Mounted Brigade 5th Cavalry Brigade Western Desert Force 7th (Meerut) Division
See also British Army during the First World War
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