About: 55th (West Lancashire) Division

The 55th (West Lancashire) Division was an infantry division of the British Army's Territorial Force (TF) that saw extensive combat during the First World War. It was raised initially in 1908 as the West Lancashire Division. Following the outbreak of the First World War, in 1914, the majority of the division's men volunteered for overseas service. Those who did not volunteer were used to form new reserve units, and on 31 August 1914 these units were used to create the 2nd West Lancashire Division. Rather than being deployed as a whole formation, the West Lancashire Division was broken up during 1914 and 1915 as its units were dispatched piecemeal to the Western Front. As each unit left, it was replaced by a reserve unit. When the last unit of volunteers for overseas service departed, the r