25th Division (United Kingdom)

The 25th Division of the British Army was raised for Kitchener's Third New Army (K3) during September 1914. It served on the Western Front for most of the First World War. The component units were assembled around Salisbury and moved to Aldershot in May 1915 to complete their training. The division was formed by Major-General Francis Ventris; it subsequently crossed to France on 25–30 September 1915 under the command of Major-General Beauchamp Doran.

The division originally comprised the 74th, 75th and 76th Brigades, but the 76th Brigade was posted away on 15 October 1915 and replaced by the 7th Infantry Brigade.

In June 1916 Major-General E G T Bainbridge took command and the Division went on to fight at the Battle of the Somme, at the Battle of Messines, at the Battle of Passchendaele, in the German offensive of March/April 1918 and at the Battle of Aisne.

The 25th was uniquely unlucky during the 1918 German Spring Offensives. It was on the northern flank defences during Operation Michael in March 1918 and was moved north to refit. There it lost more men in the Battle of the Lys attacks in April. Moved south to another quiet area, it was attacked for a third time in the Third Battle of the Aisne.

After suffering severe casualties in June 1918, it underwent a major refit and reorganisation, the reformed division moving back to France in September 1918.

The division was demobilised by the end of March 1919, having suffered 48,300 casualties during the war.