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| XIII Corps | |
|---|---|
| Active | World War I and World War II |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | British Army |
| Type | Field corps |
| Part of | British Expeditionary Force Eighth Army United States Fifth Army |
| Engagements | Battle of the Somme Western Desert Campaign Tunisia Campaign Allied invasion of Sicily Italian Campaign (World War II) |
XIII Corps was a British infantry corps during World War I and World War II.
Contents |
World War I
XIII Corps was formed in France on 15 November 1915 under Lieutenant-General Walter N. Congreve to be part of Fourth Army. It was first seriously engaged during the Battle of the Somme in 1916.[1] On the First day on the Somme, the corps held the southern flank of the British line. The corps objective was the village of Montauban. The two assault divisions — the 18th (Eastern) and 30th Division, both New Army formations — seized all their objectives at the cost of over 3,000 casualties each.
World War II
On 1 January, 1941 the Western Desert Force while fighting the Italian Tenth Army during Operation Compass was redesignated XIII Corps. By February 1941, the remaining Italian forces in Cyrenaica were withdrawing down the Via Balbia with the British 7th Armored Division and the Australian 6th Infantry Division close behind.[2] When Operation Compass came to an end with the surrender of the Italian Tenth Army the corps HQ was deactivated in February and its responsibilities taken over by HQ Cyrenaica, a static command, reflecting the Allied defensive posture in the Western Desert as Middle East Command became obliged to focus on the campaign in Greece.
After the Italian forces in North Africa had been reinforced with the Africa Corps during Operation Sonnenblume, Lieutenant-General Philip Neame, the commander in Cyrenaica, was captured during Rommel's advance and the Western Desert Force HQ was reactivated on 14 April to take command of British Commonwealth forces in the western desert and halt the Axis advance at the Egyptian-Libyan border.
In August 1941 Archibald Wavell was replaced as C-in-C Middle East by Claude Auchinleck and the British and Commonwealth forces were reinforced to create in September 1941 the Eighth Army. During this reorganisation Western Desert Force was once again redesignated as XIII Corps and became part of the new army. The corps remained part of the Eighth Army throughout the rest of the North African Campaign which finished when the Axis forces in Tunisia surrendered in May 1943.
XIII Corps took part in the Allied invasion of Sicily in July 1943 and when Sicily fell, moved to the Italian mainland, campaigning with the Eighth Army on the Adriatic front until the end of 1943. In May 1944 the corps had switched with much of Eighth Army's strength to the centre of the Allied front at Cassino and during the fourth Battle of Monte Cassino was responsible for effecting a successful opposed crossing of the Garigliano and Rapido rivers, breaking into the heart of the German defenses in the Liri valley.
At the end of 1944 XIII Corps was transferred to the United States Fifth Army to become its right wing high in the Apennine mountains for the fighting on the Gothic Line. By April 1945 the Corps had returned to Eighth Army for the Spring 1945 offensive in Italy which ended in May 1945 with the surrender of Axis forces in Italy. 2nd New Zealand Division, operating with the corps, confronted Yugoslav troops at Trieste, entering and capturing the city. The corps restored order in the strife-ridden city and enforced the Morgan Line from May 1945 to mid-1946.
Commanders
- Richard O'Connor: Western Desert Force and XIII Corps (June 1940 to February 1941)
- Noel Beresford-Peirse: Western Desert Force and XIII Corps (April 1941 to October 1941)
- Reade Godwin-Austen: (October 1941 to February 1942)
- William Gott (February 1942 to August 1942)
- Brian Horrocks: (August 1942 to December 1942)
- Miles Dempsey: (December 1942 to January 1944)
- Sidney Kirkman: (January 1944 to March 1945)
- John Harding: (March 1945 to June 1945)
References
- ^ Baker, Chris. "The British Corps of 1914-1918". The Long, Long Trail: The British Army of 1914-1918. http://www.1914-1918.net/corps.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-30.
- ^ Walker, Ian W. (2003). Iron Hulls, Iron Hearts : Mussolini's elite armoured divisions in North Africa. Marlborough: Crowood. ISBN 1-86126-646-4., pg. 64
See also
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