1st Cavalry Division ( United Kingdom ) The 1st Cavalry Division was a regular Division of the British Army during the First World War where it fought on the Western Front . During the Second World War it was a second line formation , formed from Yeomanry Regiments . It fought in the Middle East before being converted to the 10th Armoured Division . Napoleonic Wars . During the Peninsular War , Wellington organized his cavalry into The Cavalry Division from June 1809 under Major General Sir William Payne . This performed a purely administrative , rather than tactical , role ; the normal tactical headquarters were provided by brigades commanding two , later usually three , regiments . On 3 June 1810 , Payne return home and his second - in - command , Major General Stapleton Cotton took command . Cotton was to remain in command thereafter and effectively acted as Wellington ' s chief of cavalry . On 19 June 1811 , the cavalry was reorganized as two divisions and The Cavalry Division was redesignated as 1st Cavalry Division with the formation of the 2nd Cavalry Division . The divisions were once again amalgamated as The Cavalry Division on 21 April 1813 with Cotton ( Lieutenant General from 1 January 1812 ) still in command . First World War . The 1st Cavalry Division was one of the first Divisions to move to France in 1914 , they would remain on the Western Front throughout the war . It participated in most of the major actions where cavalry were used as a mounted mobile force , they would also be used as dismounted troops and effectively serve as infantry . On 11 November 1918 , orders were received that the Division would lead the advance of Second Army into Germany , by 6 December , having passed through Namur , the Division secured the Rhine bridgehead at Cologne . Order of battle in the First World War . 9th Cavalry Brigade . 9th Cavalry Brigade was formed in France on 14 April 1915 with the 15th Hussars and the 19th Hussars . These regular cavalry regiments had been serving on the Western Front since August 1914 as divisional cavalry squadrons assigned to infantry divisions . The brigade remained with 1st Cavalry Division for the rest of the war . Second World War . The 1st Cavalry Division was reformed on 31 October 1939 in Northern Command and took command of two pre - war First Line Territorial Army cavalry brigades ( 5th and 6th ) and the newly formed 4th Cavalry Brigade . It was the only cavalry division in the British Army in World War II . It departed the United Kingdom in January 1940 , transited across France , and arrived in Palestine on 31 January 1940 . It served as a garrison force under British Forces , Palestine and Trans - Jordan . In May 1941 , the Divisional Headquarters and elements of the division ( notably the 4th Cavalry Brigade ) , together with a battalion of infantry from the Essex Regiment , a mechanised regiment from the Arab Legion and supporting artillery was reorganised as " Habforce " for operations in Iraq including the relief of the base at RAF Habbaniya and the occupation of Baghdad . Following this , in July 1941 , " Habforce " was placed under the command of I Australian Corps and was involved in operations against the Vichy French in Syria , advancing from eastern Iraq near the Trans - Jordan border to capture Palmyra and secure the Haditha - Tripoli oil pipeline . On 1 August 1941 , the Division was converted into the 10th Armoured Division . 10th Armoured Division later fought at the Battles of Alam Halfa and El Alamein . It was disbanded on 15 June 1944 in Egypt . Order of battle in Second World War . Support Units . The division also commanded the following support units : Commanders . The 1st Cavalry Division had the following commanders during World War I : The 1st Cavalry Division had the following commanders during World War II :