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| 56th (London) Infantry Division | |
|---|---|
| Unit name | 56th (London) Infantry Division |
| Dates | 1908–1961 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Role | Infantry operations |
| Size | Division |
| Garrison label | HQ |
| Battles | Second Battle of Ypres; Battle of Passchendaele; Spring Offensive; Operation Overlord; Battle of Normandy; Battle of the Scheldt; Operation Market Garden; Rhine crossings |
| Notable commanders | Sir John French; Bernard Montgomery; Sidney Kirkman |
56th (London) Infantry Division was a Territorial Force and later Territorial Army formation of the British Army formed under the Haldane Reforms and associated with London-area units, which served in both World War I and World War II and took part in major campaigns on the Western Front, the Mediterranean, and Northwest Europe. It experienced reorganization between the wars, conversion of infantry battalions to support arms, and postwar disbandment and amalgamation during Territorial Army reductions. The division's service connected it with numerous regiments, corps-level formations, and commanders influential in twentieth-century British military history.
The division originated in the Haldane Reforms that created the Territorial Force in 1908, linking it to London Regiment, City of London, Middlesex Regiment, Royal Fusiliers, Royal West Kent Regiment, and other metropolitan units. Early peacetime drills and mobilization planning placed the division under London-area military district control alongside formations such as the 47th (London) Division and formations raised from the Territorial Force. Prewar exercises involved coordination with Regular Army commands including Home Defence arrangements and liaison with corps headquarters influenced by figures like Richard Haldane and staff officers attached to the War Office.
Mobilized in 1914, the division's battalions were drafted into the British Expeditionary Force and served on the Western Front during major battles such as the Second Battle of Ypres and the Battle of Passchendaele. Units fought in trench warfare against formations of the German Empire and later participated in the Allied Hundred Days Offensive, meeting German Spring Offensive actions and cooperating with corps such as II Corps (United Kingdom) and VII Corps (United Kingdom). The division's infantry battalions were paired with Royal Artillery brigades, Royal Engineers companies, and Royal Army Medical Corps units for combined arms operations; its soldiers received decorations including awards like the Victoria Cross for gallantry during frontline actions.
After demobilization, the Territorial Force was reconstituted as the Territorial Army in the 1920s, and the division was reformed with many prewar London battalions returning to part-time service alongside units of the Territorial Army. Economic constraints and the Ten Year Rule affected training and equipment, while doctrinal changes influenced by publications from the General Staff and overseas lessons prompted reorganization of infantry brigades and support elements. During the 1930s, some battalions underwent conversion into machine gun and anti-aircraft roles associated with formations such as the Royal Corps of Signals and Royal Artillery (Anti-Aircraft) as the British Army adapted to mechanization and air threat concerns.
The division mobilized again in 1939 and saw home defense duties before embarking for Iraq and the Syria–Lebanon campaign in the Middle East, linking operations with the Iraqi coup d'état aftermath and Vichy France forces. Later, reorganized and retrained, it participated in the Allied invasion of Sicily and operations in the Italian Campaign, coordinating with formations like Eighth Army (United Kingdom) and commanders associated with Bernard Montgomery. Transferred to Northwestern Europe in 1944, the division fought in the Battle of Normandy, advanced through the Netherlands during the Battle of the Scheldt and supported operations linked to Operation Market Garden, culminating in participation in crossings of the Rhine and final advances into Germany alongside First Canadian Army and 21st Army Group components.
Throughout its existence the division's composition changed; typical wartime order included three infantry brigades drawn from regiments such as the London Regiment, Royal Fusiliers, Middlesex Regiment, and Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey), supported by divisional troops from the Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers, Royal Army Service Corps, Royal Army Medical Corps, and Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. Anti-tank and anti-aircraft batteries from the Royal Artillery (Anti-Aircraft) and specialist signals units from the Royal Corps of Signals were attached as requirements evolved. The division incorporated attached units from allied and colonial formations on occasion, including corps-level liaison with Polish Armed Forces in the West and logistical coordination with Royal Navy and Royal Air Force elements during amphibious operations.
Commanding officers and senior staff who influenced the division's conduct included Territorial senior officers promoted from regimental commands and Regular Army generals assigned during wartime, connecting to figures active in higher command such as John French, Bernard Montgomery, and corps commanders within 21st Army Group. Divisional commanders coordinated closely with corps and army headquarters, staff officers drawn from the General Staff, and specialists from the Royal Engineers and Royal Artillery to implement offensive and defensive operations, training, and administration throughout both world wars.
After 1945 the division underwent postwar reductions, with Territorial Army reorganizations and amalgamations influenced by the Defence Review process and the creation of new force structures during the Cold War era, leading to eventual disbandment or reconstitution of constituent battalions within new formations such as 4th Battalion, The Queen's Royal Regiment-type successors. The division's legacy persists in regimental museums, memorials in London boroughs, archival collections at institutions like the Imperial War Museum, and scholarly works on the Territorial Force, World War I, World War II, and British military reform. Category:Infantry divisions of the British Army