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The 18th
Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force was a unit
raised for service in the First World War.
History
The 18th
Battalion was organized in October 1914, mobilizing at
London, Ontario and officially authorized by General Order
36/1915 dated 15 March 1915.1
The battalion
was composed of recruits from London, Windsor, Woodstock,
Chatham, St. Thomas, Stathroy, Startford, Galt, Guelph,
Walkerville and Goderich, Ontario and was
commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel E.S. Wigle. The
unit embarked for overseas from Halifax, Nova Scotia on
18 April 1915 aboard S.S. Grampian and
disembarked in the U.K. on 28 April 1915 with a strength of
36 officers and 1081 other ranks. An advance party of
approximately 20 had sailed for England previously on 6
April.
The unit
disembarked in France on 15 September 1915, and served with
the 2nd Canadian Division as a component of the 4th Canadian
Infantry Brigade. Lance Sergeant Ellis Welwood Sifton was
awarded the Victoria Cross for actions at Neuville St. Vaast
during the fighting at Vimy Ridge on 9 April 1917.
The unit was reinforced in the field by the 4th Canadian
Reserve Battalion. |
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18th
Battalion, CEF |
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Organized:
October 1914
Initial Strength: 36 officers, 1081 other
ranks
Service: 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade, 2nd
Canadian Division
Disbanded: Privy Council Order 1366 & 1863 eff
4 June 1917
Perpetuated by: The Essex Scottish Regiment |
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The battalion
returned to England on 3 April 1919, returned to Canada on 22 May
1919 and demoblized by General Order 149/1920 dated 15 September
1920.
The unit had a brass
band and deposited a King's Colour in St. Paul's Cathedral, London,
Ontario in 1919.2
Insignia
In 1914, there had been little time to
adopt distinctive unit badges for the hastily assembled battalions
of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. As many battalions were drawn
from men from several of the pre-war Militia regiments, there was a
desire to avoid using existing badges and forming associations with
those existing units, in favour of creating new identities - the
General Officer Commanding the 1st Canadian Contingent (later 1st
Canadian Division) is quoted as saying sometime in October or
November of 1914 "there must be distinctive badges for each unit."3
Until unit badges were approved and issued, a mixture of
pre-war Militia badges and maple-leaf pattern General Service badges
were seen.
 In
mid-1916, cloth "battle-patches" were added to the sleeves of the
Service Dress and greatcoat. The 2nd Division was distinguished by a
blue rectangle, 3 inches wide by 2 inches tall, worn on each upper
arm. The 18th Battalion was further distinguished by a green circle
worn above the rectangle, the green indicating the 4th Brigade, and
the circle indicating the senior
battalion in the brigade. More information on formation patches can
be found in the article on the
organization of the division.
Metal cap and collar badges were also
worn on service dress.
Battle Honours
Battle Honours were granted by General
Order 110 of 1929. Honours selected for emblazonment are in bold:
Mount Sorrel
Flers-Courcelette
Ancre Heights
Vimy 1917
Ypres, 1917
Amiens
Hindenburg Line
Cambrai, 1918 |
Somme, 1916, 18
Thiepval
Arras 1917, '18
Hill 70
Passchendaele
Scarpe, 1918
Canal du Nord
Pursuit to Mons |
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France and Flanders 1915-18 |
Notes
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Guide to Sources Relating to
Units of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Infantry Battalions (Library
and Archives Canada, Ottawa, ON, 2012)
p.97, (copy in RG24, vol. 1258, file HQ 593-2-1, pt. 1).
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Ibid
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Harper, Joseph A Source of
Pride: Regimental Badges and Titles in the Canadian
Expeditionary Force 1914-1919 (Service Publications,
Ottawa, ON, 1999) ISBN 0-9699845-8-8 p.5
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Stewart, Charles Overseas: The
Lineages and Insignia of the Canadian Expeditionary Force
1914-1919 (Little & Stewart,
Toronto, ON, 1970)
References
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Love, David W.
A Call to Arms: The Organization and Administration of
Canada's Military in World War One (Bunker to Bunker
Books, Calgary, AB, 1999) ISBN 1894255-03-8
Archival Holdings
The following holdings at Library and
Archives Canada may be useful for further research on this unit:
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War diary, 29 April 1915 -3 March
1919
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Mess accounts
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Report on, medical officer
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Inspection reports, clothing and
equipment
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Badges
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Pay and paysheets
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Demobilization
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Appointment of officers
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Essex Fusiliers file
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DHS file
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Overseas Ministry file, 1915-1916
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Master parades
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Promotions
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Absentees and deserters
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Aliens
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Attachments
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Attestations
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Barrack and camp equipment
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Billeting
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Casualties
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Claims
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Clothing and equipment
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Commissions
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Courts of inquiry
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Correspondence
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Death and wills
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Dentition
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Discharges
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Strength, Dec. 1918-Jan. 1919
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Defence schemes, March 1918-Jan.
1919
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Panorama, 18th Battalion front-Boisquarante-Wytschaete,
March-April 1916
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Minor operations, April-July 1918
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Operation orders, Jan. 1917-Nov.
1918
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List of employed men, Nov. 1917
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Operation orders, 24 April 1916
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Operation orders, 12 Feb. 1918
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Minor operations, 20-25 March 1917
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Report on patrols, 16 Jan. 1916
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Badges
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History, 1914-1918
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Nominal rolls of officers, 1916
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Operations. St Eloi
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Operations. Somme, 1916
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Operations. Hill 70, 9-15 Aug. 1917
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Minor operations, 9 Aug. 1917
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Photographs
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Inspection reports prior to
departure from Canada
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Nominal roll on embarkation, 1915
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Promotion, appointments
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Daily Orders
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RG 150, vol. 71
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File Part
1=1914/12/01-1915/12/25
File Part 2=1916/01/01-1916/12/28
File Part 3=1917/01/03-1917/12/29
File Part 4=1918/01/05-1918/12/31
File Part 5=1919/01/08-1920/02/04
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RG 150, vol. 71
File Part 1=1915/04/02-1915/12/31
File Part 2=1916/01/01-1916/12/31
File Part 3=1917/01/15-1917/12/31
File Part 4=1918/01/07-1918/12/31
File Part 5=1919/01/03-1919/12/31
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