Group    From 30/10/1916  To 30/11/1918

Fifth Army

Categories: Armed Forces

The British Reserve Army was formed in May 1916 and renamed as the Fifth Army in October 1916. It formed part of the British Expeditionary Force which fought in France and Flanders during WW1. Commanded by Hubert Gough in 1918 it failed to withstand a German offensive and withdrew, giving up hard-won territory. The fifth army was ruined and was disbanded March 1918. Reformed under the command of William Birdwood on 31 May 1918 it was disbanded on 30 November 1918.

Alternatively: The Children's Newspaper of April 16, 1938, carries a report of a "fighting retreat of our Fifth Army" in March 1918 when "the war was lost and won", and an appeal for funds to endow two wards in St Mary's Hospital as a memorial to "the bravest men who ever saved the flag".

At the source, The History Place, this image is captioned: "The newly formed British Fifth Army passes through Cugny, France, heading toward the Front. It played a major role in the Third Battle of Ypres beginning in July 1917 and suffered heavy casualties. Following this it was repositioned to the Somme in what had become a quiet sector of the Front. However, it was against this sector that the Germans launched their 1918 Spring Offensive."

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Fifth Army

Commemorated ati

St Mary's Hospital - Fifth Army

The red fox was the insignia of the Fifth Army.

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Other Subjects

Raymond Bevir

Raymond Bevir

Resident of the Central Ward, Hendon who served and died in WW1.

Person, Armed Forces

War dead, WW1
1 memorial
E. J. Arnold

E. J. Arnold

Co-partner or employee of the South Suburban Gas Company. Served but did not die in WW1.

Person, Armed Forces

War served, WW1
1 memorial
ORP Kujawiak

ORP Kujawiak

Former Destroyer in the Polish Navy. ORP stands for Okret Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej (Ship of the Polish Republic).

Vehicle, Armed Forces, Poland

1 memorial
Captain Francis Dansays

Captain Francis Dansays

Naval officer.  RN Lieut-Governor of Greenwich Hospital.

Person, Armed Forces, Politics & Administration

1 memorial
Laurence Corner Army Surplus

Laurence Corner Army Surplus

Closed when the owner, Victor Jamilly, died January 2007, aged 79.  The staff moved on and opened Squadron HQ in 121 Kentish Town Road.  Some sources give the opening date as 1947, but possibly tha...

Place, Armed Forces, Commerce

1 memorial

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Dennis Gabor

Dennis Gabor

Electronics engineer and humanist. Born as Dénes Gábor, in Budapest, Hungary. He worked in Germany for several years, but moved to England when Adolf Hitler came to power. he invented holography in...

Person, Engineering, Germany, Hungary

1 memorial