British Expeditionary Force headquarters appointed

On 4 August 1914, the day Britain entered the war, the command of the British Expeditionary Force was appointed. It was an army prepared before the war for rapid dispatch to the Continent to support France in the event of German aggression.

Its Commander-in-Chief was Field Marshal Sir John French, an experienced cavalryman who had made his name in the Boer War. General Sir Archibald Murray was appointed Chief of the General Staff. Personnel matters were the responsibility of the Adjutant-General, General Sir Nevil Macready, and supply and transport that of the Quartermaster-General, General Sir William Robertson.

The force was small compared with the continental armies. It consisted of professional soldiers, well trained, especially in accurate rifle fire. The government finally decided to send four infantry divisions and a cavalry division to France, and later further units. The crossing of the Channel began in the second week of August, and on 23 August the British fought their first major battle at Mons.

The members of the first staff played various roles in the war. French commanded the force until December 1915, when he was replaced by General Douglas Haig. Murray handed over the post of Chief of Staff to Robertson as early as the beginning of 1915, and in December 1915 Robertson became Chief of the Imperial General Staff in London. Macready later became Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police.