A second line battery, 2/1st Somerset RHA, served on the Western Front with the 63rd (Royal Naval) Division from 1916 to 1918.

[2] On 18 March 1908, Somerset Royal Horse Artillery (Territorial Force) was proposed as a new unit and it was recognized by the Army Council on 30 September 1908 (and the ammunition column on 2 December 1908).

[3] The unit consisted of The battery was equipped with four[1] Ehrhardt 15-pounder[5] guns and allocated as artillery support to the 2nd South Western Mounted Brigade.

2nd Line units performed the home defence role, although in fact most of these were also posted abroad in due course.

[6] The battery was embodied with the 2nd South Western Mounted Brigade on 4 August 1914 at the outbreak of the First World War.

The brigade was assigned to the Third Army of Central Force[8] and moved to the Colchester area of Essex in August 1914 where it remained until September 1915.

[9] In late September 1915, the 2nd South Western Mounted Brigade (without the battery) was dismounted and left Essex for Liverpool en route to Gallipoli.

[10] The battery remained in the United Kingdom until February 1916 when it (and its ammunition column) was embarked at Southampton and transported to Alexandria in Egypt.

[15] At the beginning of 1918, the division was attached to XX Corps and helped to capture Jericho (19 – 21 February) and then formed part of Shea's Force for the First Trans-Jordan Raid (21 March – 2 April).

It returned to the Desert Mounted Corps for the Second Trans-Jordan Raid (30 April – 4 May), the Battle of Abu Tellul (14 July) and the capture of Amman (25 September).

[10] The pre-war Territorial Force infantry divisions were generally[d] supported by four field artillery brigades.

[28] The battery, and the brigade, served with 63rd (Royal Naval) Division for the rest of the war on the Western Front.

[32] At the Armistice, the battery (six 18 pounders) was still with CCXXIII Brigade, RFA serving with 63rd (Royal Naval) Division.