The Staffordshire Brigade (later 137th Brigade) was a volunteer infantry brigade formation of the British Army from 1888 to 1936. It saw active service on the Western Front in World War I, including the attacks on the Hohenzollern Redoubt and the Gommecourt Salient, and the assault crossing of the St Quentin Canal, 'a most remarkable feat of arms'.Brown, p. 245.
Origins The Staffordshire Brigade had its origin in the Stanhope Memorandum of 1888. This proposed a Mobilisation Scheme for units of the Volunteer Force, which would assemble by brigades at key points in case of war. In peacetime the brigades provided a structure for collective training.Beckett, pp. 135, 185–6.Dunlop, pp. 60–1. Under this scheme the Volunteer Battalions of the South Staffordshire Regiment and the Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment) would assemble at Wolverhampton. The brigade commander and his Aide-de-Camp were retired Regular officers on the Reserve list, while the other staff were Volunteer officers drawn from the constituent battalions. The Staffordshire Brigade was organised as follows:Army ListWestlake, pp. 216–222. Brigade Headquarters at Wolverhampton, later at The Friary, Lichfield 1st Volunteer Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment at Handsworth 2nd Volunteer Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment at Walsall 3rd Volunteer Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment at Wolverhampton 1st Volunteer Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment at Stoke-on-Trent 2nd Volunteer Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment at Burton-upon-Trent Supply Detachment, later designated an Army Service Corps Company Bearer Company, later part of the Royal Army Medical Corps
The brigade formed part of Northern Command, and was commanded by the following officers: Colonel (Hon Maj-Gen) Frederick Edward Sotheby, a retired former officer in the Rifle Brigade, was appointed Brigade Commander on 11 July 1888. He had seen active service in the Crimea, Indian Mutiny, China War and Ashanti War.Hart's Army List. Col Hon Francis Bridgeman, MP, retired former officer in the Scots Guards, appointed 17 Aug 1892.Burke. Charles Pierrepont, Viscount Newark (later 4th Earl of Manvers), a former officer in the Grenadier Guards and later Major in the 4th VB of the Sherwood Foresters, was appointed on 15 January 1899, and reappointed on the reorganisation of the brigades in 1906.
Territorial Force Under the Haldane Reforms, the former Volunteers were subsumed into the Territorial Force (TF) in 1908. The 1st VB of the South Staffordshires was converted into the North Midland Divisional Engineers, the remainder of the brigade were renumbered 5th and 6th battalions in sequence after the Regular and Special Reserve battalions of their parent regiments. The Staffordshire Brigade was assigned to the North Midland Division of the TF.Becke, Pt 2a, pp. 61–7.
World War I
On the outbreak of World War I, the North Midland Division mobilised immediately, and soon afterwards the men were invited to volunteer for foreign service. This was accepted by the majority, and the division moved to Luton to train for deployment overseas. It began landing in France in late February 1915 and by 8 March had completed its concentration – the first complete TF formation to arrive on the Western Front. Shortly afterwards the TF formations were numbered, the North Midland Division becoming the 46th (North Midland) Division, and the Staffordshire Brigade was designated 137th (Staffordshire) Brigade on 12 May 1915.46th Division at Long, Long Trail
Meanwhile, duplicate or 2nd-Line TF forces were being organised in the United Kingdom from Home Service personnel and new recruits who came flooding in, with 176th (2/1st Staffordshire) Brigade forming in 59th (2nd North Midland) Division, after which the original units were distinguished by a '1/' prefix.Becke, Pt 2b, pp. 17–23.
The 137th Brigade served on the Western Front for the whole of the war, with the exception of a few weeks in Egypt.
Order of Battle During World War I the brigade had the following composition:MacDonald, Appendix 3. 1/5th Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment 1/6th Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment 1/5th Battalion, Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment) – broken up between 2/5th, 1/6th, 2/6th and 9th North Staffords on 29–30 March 1918 1/6th Battalion, Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire Regiment) 4th (Extra Reserve) Battalion, King's (Liverpool Regiment) – attached from 10 November to 3 December 1915 1/4th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment – attached from 10 to 15 November 1915 1/4th Battalion, Seaforth Highlanders (Ross-shire Buffs, The Duke of Albany's) – attached from 6 to 16 November 1915 1/4th (City of London) Battalion, London Regiment – attached from 11 to 15 November 1915 137th Brigade Machine Gun Company, Machine Gun Corps – formed 7 March 1916 – joined 46th Battalion Machine Gun Corps 28 February 1918 423 Trench Mortar Battery – joined 2 March 1916 – became 137/1 TMB 137/2 Trench Mortar Battery – joined 22 April 1916 137th Trench Mortar Battery – 137/1 and 137/2 TMBs amalgamated 6 June 1916
Operations
Hohenzollern Redoubt The brigade was not involved in the 46th Division's first action (the German flamethrower attack at Hooge in the Ypres Salient on 30–31 July 1915), but was in the forefront of the attack on the Hohenzollern Redoubt on 13–15 October that year. This was an attempt to restart the failed Battle of Loos, and the division was moved down from Ypres on 1 October for the purpose. The Germans recaptured the Hohenzollern trench system on 3 October, and the new attack was aimed at this point, the actual objective for 137th Brigade being to clear 'Big Willie' trench followed by 'The Dump' behind the Hohenzollern trenches. It went in at 14.00 on 13 October behind a gas cloud, two companies each of 1/5th North Staffs and 1/5th South Staffs in the lead, the other two of each battalion in the second line, followed by bombing parties to clear enemy dugouts. Things did not go according to plan: Brig-Gen Freetham found it almost impossible to deploy his troops, and they jumped off partly from Big Willie (2 companies 1/5th South Staffs) and partly from the old front line 300 yards from the rest of Big Willie.Cherry, pp. 247–8, 257–8, 266–7, 271, 286–8.Rawson, p. 122.
The British bombardment had been ineffective while the German artillery brought down a barrage on the division's jumping-off trenches. The attacking battalions came under enfilade fire and lost hundreds of casualties within a few yards of their own line. Only a handful of 1/5th North Staffs got as far as Big Willie, while the attack of the 1/5th South Staffs never got going. The British attack was hurriedly called off.Cherry, pp. 288–92, 296–7.Rawson, pp. 122–4.MacDonald, pp. 42–3.
To Egypt In December 1915 the division was ordered to Egypt, and 137th Brigade arrived there by 13 January. A week later the move was countermanded and the troops re-embarked for France, concentrating near Amiens by mid-February. The only result of this move was an outbreak of infectious disease (Paratyphoid fever and Diphtheria) that weakened units and men for months to come.MacDonald, pp. 50–52, 106–7.
Gommecourt The 46th Division went back into the line in the Vimy sector, suffering a steady trickle of casualties over the coming months. In May, however, it began to move south to take part in the forthcoming offensive on the Somme. The division was ordered to assault the north side of the Gommecourt Salient on 1 July 1916. The operation, in conjunction with the 56th (1/1st London) Division attacking from the south, aimed at cutting off the salient, but was in fact a diversion for the main attack a few miles south that opened the Battle of the Somme.MacDonald pp. 57–65.Middlebrook, p. 73.Edmonds, 1916, Vol I, pp. 252–9, 308.
1/6th South Staffs and 1/6th North Staffs were to form the first waves, with 1/5th South Staffs and 1/5th North Staffs supporting the attack with bombing parties and forming the rear waves setting off from the Support Line carrying heavy loads of trench equipment for consolidating the anticipated captures.MacDonald pp. 293–4. But the attack was another disaster, the first wave being cut down almost on the start line. The jumping-off and communication trenches were completely inadequate,MacDonald pp. 229–33. and the following waves were badly delayed, completely mixed up, and suffering casualties from German shellfire.MacDonald pp. 338–41. The brigadier tried to organise a second attack by 1/5th North Staffs and 1/5th South Staffs, but after several delays they were told to 'sit tight' and abandon an attack that the Official History says 'would have been a mere waste of life'.MacDonald.Middlebrook, Somme, pp. 123–4, 193.Edmonds, 1916, Vol I, pp. 465–70.
Bocquoy Early 1917 saw the 46th Division still holding the line in the Gommecourt area. However, at the beginning of March, patrols found that the Germans were beginning to retreat from the Gommecourt defences. The division followed up slowly and cautiously, but on the night of 14 March an attack on Bucquoy Graben (trench) by the 1/5th North Staffs and 1/6th South Staffs led to heavy casualties. The rushed attack had been ordered by V Corps headquarters despite the protests of the divisional commander. The battalions had been on the training grounds practising for the attack when it was brought forward. Although 'the assault was gallantly pressed' (Official History) it was a complete failure, with heavy casualties.MacDonald, pp. 556-7.Campbell-Johnson, p. 9.Falls, pp. 108–9.Accounts of attack on Bucquoy at Buxton War Memorials
Lens After rest and training, 46th Division returned to the line in the coal-mining sector around Lens in April. Late in May, the division began small-scale operations against Hill 65. On 8 June, 138th Brigade attacked, with 137th Brigade providing a diversion using dummies representing an advancing battalion.Campbell-Johnson, pp. 10–19. 46th Division was now ordered to capture Lens itself, beginning on 28 June. The attack by 137th Brigade gained its objectives with few casualties. Another divisional attack on 1 July aimed at capturing more houses and trenches. The troops were held up in severe house-to-house fighting before a second push cleared the cellars and caused heavy casualties to the defenders. But in the afternoon a German counter-attacks drove the attackers back to their start line.Campbell-Johnson, pp. 19, 24–30.
After Lens, the division was withdrawn into reserve, and did not engage in major operations again during 1917. On 29–30 January 1918 the 1/5th North Staffs was broken up to provide replacements to other North Staffs battalions, including the 1/6th Battalion in 137th Brigade.
St Quentin Canal