Heavy Section, Machine Gun Corps

Heavy Section, Machine Gun Corps
Unit name	Heavy Section, Machine Gun Corps
Dates	1916–1918
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Type	Artillery support
Role	Heavy machine gun operations
Size	Company/Battalion equivalent

Heavy Section, Machine Gun Corps was an experimental British Army formation created during World War I to trial heavy machine gun deployment, integration, and tactics. It operated at the nexus of infantry, artillery, and cavalry practice, influencing later formations in the British Expeditionary Force, Royal Flying Corps, and Tank Corps. The unit intersected with major campaigns such as the Battle of the Somme, Third Battle of Ypres, and the German Spring Offensive, and engaged with institutions including the War Office, Imperial War Cabinet, and Admiralty for doctrine and logistics.

Formation and Organisation

The Heavy Section, Machine Gun Corps emerged from debates between advocates in the War Office, proponents in the British Army, and experimental officers from the Royal Engineers, Royal Artillery, and Royal Flying Corps about concentrated firepower after lessons from the First Battle of Ypres, Second Battle of Ypres, and the Gallipoli Campaign. It was constituted as part of the broader Machine Gun Corps reorganisation following proposals by figures linked to the Admiralty, Imperial General Staff, and parliamentary committees influenced by reports from the Western Front, Salonika Campaign, and Mesopotamian campaign. Organisation drew on company structures experimented with by the Coldstream Guards, Grenadier Guards, King's Royal Rifle Corps, and territorial units such as the London Regiment and Highland Light Infantry.

Role and Equipment

The Heavy Section's prescribed role was to provide sustained, high-calibre machine gun fire in support of formations including the British Expeditionary Force, Indian Army, and attachments to the Canadian Expeditionary Force and Australian Imperial Force. Equipment procurement involved trials with weapons and mounts influenced by designers linked to Vickers Limited, Maxim Gun, and workshops in Enfield. Logistics intersected with supply chains managed by the Army Service Corps and ordnance handled by the Royal Army Ordnance Corps, while technical maintenance drew on expertise from the Royal Army Medical Corps for casualty care and the Royal Engineers for mounting and fortification work.

Operational History

Operational employment began during major 1916 actions on the Western Front where the Heavy Section supported offensives coordinated by commanders of the Fourth Army, Third Army, and Second Army. It adapted tactics developed in cooperation with the Royal Flying Corps for aerial spotting and with the Royal Naval Division for trench support. Deployments extended to sectors involving the Italian Front and units attached to the Egyptian Expeditionary Force during operations associated with the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. The Section’s operational record informed later organisation within the Machine Gun Corps (Heavy Branch) and the nascent Royal Tank Corps.

Notable Engagements and Deployments

The Heavy Section was employed in key actions that included phases of the Battle of the Somme, support at Ginchy, employment during the Battle of Arras, and counter-fire in the run-up to the Third Battle of Ypres including the Battle of Passchendaele. It saw deployment during the German Spring Offensive of 1918 and in the Allied Hundred Days Offensive, cooperating with formations such as the BEF and partnering with colonial contingents like the New Zealand Expeditionary Force and South African Overseas Expeditionary Force. Attachments occurred with division commands including the 50th (Northumbrian) Division and corps staff of the IX Corps.

Personnel and Commanders

Leadership involved officers drawn from regiments including the Royal Fusiliers, Coldstream Guards, Scots Guards, Royal Welch Fusiliers, and specialists from the Machine Gun Corps. Notable commanders and staff liaised with senior figures from the General Staff, brigade commanders of the Territorial Force, and staff officers seconded from the Adjutant-General's Department. Personnel included NCOs and gunners who had previously served in the Somerset Light Infantry, Middlesex Regiment, Royal Irish Regiment, and volunteer units like the London Rifle Brigade.

Training and Doctrine

Training doctrine was developed in consultation with schools and depots such as the Machine Gun School, the School of Musketry, and establishments at Aldershot and Bordon. Doctrinal influences included lessons from the Siege of Kut, reports from the Salonika front, and experiments advocated by officers with ties to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and staff colleges at Camberley. Training emphasised coordination with the Royal Flying Corps for observation, the Royal Engineers for emplacement, and infantry tactics practised by units like the Green Howards and Royal Scots.

Disbandment and Legacy

The Heavy Section was disbanded or reorganised into heavier formations during 1918 as doctrine evolved into the Machine Gun Corps (Heavy Branch), later forming core practices for the Royal Tank Regiment and influencing interwar manuals used by the British Army and colonial forces including the Indian Army and Canadian Militia. Its legacy persisted in combined-arms concepts adopted by the Allied Expeditionary Force and memorialised in regimental histories of the Machine Gun Corps, collections at the Imperial War Museum, and archives held by institutions such as the National Archives (United Kingdom). Category:Battalions of the Machine Gun Corps