In the Second World War, it formed part of the British Second Army during Operation Overlord and the subsequent North-West Europe Campaign of 1944-46.

XII Corps was formed in France on 8 September 1915 under the command of Lt-Gen Sir Henry Fuller Maitland Wilson.

[1][2] In November 1915, XII Corps was sent from France with 22nd, 26th and 28th Divisions under command to reinforce Allied forces on the Macedonian front.

The BSF’s commander, Sir George Milne decided that his manpower was too limited, and reduced this to a smaller assault on the first defence line only, preceded by a three-day bombardment to neutralise enemy batteries and destroy trenches and barbed wire.

In a second attack two weeks later, the assault troops managed to cross no man’s land, but it was difficult to get information back to HQs, and some companies simply disappeared.

[10] XII Corps occupied parts of European Turkey and Wilson was appointed GOC Allied Forces Gallipoli and Bosporus.

[16] Order of Battle, June - October 1940[17] XII Corps, now commanded by Lieutenant-General Neil Ritchie, was designated as one of the follow-up corps of the British Second Army, commanded by Lieutenant-General Miles C. Dempsey, and was sent to Normandy, France as part of Operation Overlord, shortly after the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944.