<P> A set procedure was used by a division that was moving into the front line . Once they had been informed that they were moving forward, the brigadiers and battalion commanders would be taken to the forward areas to reconnoitre the sections of the front that were to be occupied by their troops . Meanwhile, the battalion transport officers would be taken to the headquarters of the division that they were relieving to observe the methods used for drawing rations and ammunition, and the manner in which they were supplied to the troops at the front . Detachments from the divisional artillery group would move forward and were attached to the artillery batteries of the division they were relieving . Five days later, the infantry battalions that were destined for the front line sent forward their specialists from the Lewis gun teams, and the grenade officer, the machine gun officer, the four company commanders, and some of the signallers to take over the trench stores and settle into the trench routine before the battalions moved in . Overnight, the battalions would move into the line, and the artillery would take over the guns that were already in position, leaving theirs behind to be taken over by the batteries that had been relieved . </P> <P> The Army was ultimately under political authority . Since the Glorious Revolution of 1688 the Crown has not been permitted a standing army in the United Kingdom--it derives its existence from the Army Act, passed by Parliament each year (every five years since the late 1950s). The House of Commons took these responsibilities seriously: a letter from Haig clarifying the position on shell - shock had to be read out in the House of Commons on 14 March 1918 . Most disciplinary regulations in the First World War derived from the 1881 Army Act, although some offences were more severely dealt with on active service, e.g. in principle looting or wilful disobedience carried the death penalty . </P> <P> Lesser offences were dealt with by commanding officers . For petty offences, a company commander could have men fined or confined to barracks for fatigue duty A battalion Commanding Officer could give detention, order up to 28 days Field Punishment, or demote corporals to the ranks (officers and senior NCOs were dealt with by court martial other than for very trivial offences). Enlisted men could also lose leave or seniority . </P> <P> Field punishment (FP) had replaced flogging (abolished at home in 1868 and on active service in 1881, although still used in military prisons until 1907). FP No. 1 (in which the man was shackled to fixed object, e.g. a large wheel) was awarded to 60,210 cases, equivalent to one man in 50 (although in practice there were many repeat offenders). FP No. 1 could be very unpleasant depending on the weather, was abhorred by some as barbaric, and in some units was ritualised (e.g. by locking a man in a shed and throwing the handcuffs in with him); there were also cases of Australian troops releasing British troops whom they found tied up, although in other units it was regarded as a necessary sanction for serious offences . FP No. 2 meant that a man was shackled but not fixed in place . </P>

Names of british soldiers who died in ww1