British 52nd (Lowland) Division

The British 52nd (Lowland) Division was a Territorial Army division. During the First World War the division fought at Gallipoli, in the Middle East (Sinai and Palestine) and on the Western Front in France.

Post World War I

After the war the Division remained in existence as a Territorial Army division and was mobilised again in 1939 as part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France.

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After evacuation from France in 1940 having been part of the 'Second BEF' that remained in France after Dunkirk, it trained as a mountain warfare formation but was never used in that role. In August 1944, it became part of the British I Airborne Corps. (As a mountain formation, it had little heavy equipment and transport, and could therefore operate as an air-transportable formation.

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In October 1944, it was moved to the Netherlands, and took part in the operations to capture the island of Walcheren. It later fought through Germany as part of the British Liberation Army in 1945. Divisional Commanders during World War II included Major General E Hakewell Smith, late of the Royal Scots Fusiliers, and Major General Neil Ritchie, the former Eighth Army commander.

Related Topics:
Walcheren - Neil Ritchie - Eighth Army

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Although the division was disbanded after the war, the division's number and traditions were later embodied in the 52nd Lowland Regiment, a Territorial Army unit.

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