Fourth Army (United Kingdom)

Fourth Army
Active	First World War 1914–1918
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Type	Army
Engagements	First World War
Commanders
Notable commanders	Sir Henry Rawlinson

The Fourth Army was a field army that formed part of the British Expeditionary Force during the First World War. The Fourth Army was formed on 5 February 1916 under the command of General Sir Henry Rawlinson to carry out the main British contribution to the Battle of the Somme.

The Fourth Army was formed in France on 5 February 1916, under the command of Sir Henry Rawlinson. On the first day on the Somme, eleven Fourth Army divisions (from XIII Corps, XV Corps, III Corps, X Corps and VIII Corps) attacked astride the Albert–Bapaume road. The attack was completely defeated on the northern sector, so subsequent Fourth Army operations concentrated on the southern sector, handing control of the northern sector to the Reserve Army.

The plan for the Fourth Army during the Third Battle of Ypres (31 July – 10 November 1917), was to mount Operation Hush, an amphibious invasion of the Belgian coast. Once the Germans had been pushed back from the Passchendaele–Westroosebeke ridge and an advance begun on Roulers and Thourout, the XV Corps would mount the coastal operation. As the Ypres fighting became bogged down, the Fourth Army divisions were drawn off as reinforcements until the army was effectively disbanded.

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