The Tyneside Irish advance 1st July 1916. 'Y' Sap crater in the background
Officially sanctioned by the War Office on 14th October 1914 the respective committees of the Tyneside Scottish and Tyneside Irish continued to recruit men into their brigades well into 1915 in response to Lord Kitcheners call to the colours. The Tyneside Irish were the first to complete a brigade of four battalions including a depot company for each. A total of 5,400 men for each brigade, although the actual number raised was much higher due to deficiencies in many men. The total number raised for both brigades is probably closer to 13,000 men. The first big test for both brigades was at La Boisselle on the fateful day of July 1st 1916. The beginning of the Battle of the Somme, and the worst single day in the history of the British Army which ended in nearly 60,000 casualties. Figures for the Tyneside Brigades were amongst the worst of any units recorded, the Scottish suffering over 2,400 casualties and the Irish almost 2,100. This is a brief outline of their story.
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