The 2nd Battalion, which had been stationed at Shorncliffe Camp, landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 10th Brigade in the 4th Division in August 1914. It took part in the retreat from Le Cateau later that month, the Battle of the Marne in September 1914, the Battle of the Aisne also in September 1914 and the Battle of Messines in October 1914. It went on to fight in the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915, the Battle of the Somme in Autumn 1916 and the Battle of Arras in April 1917. The battalion also saw action at the Battle of Passchendaele in Autumn 1917, the Battle of the Lys in April 1918, the battles of the Hindenburg Line and the final advance in Picardy.