An extensive reorganisation was now effected throughout the British armies in France. The ever-dwindling supply of reinforcements from home, due in part to failing resources in man-power and partly to the retention in England of large defence forces which were held in readiness against a possible German invasion, had caused the numbers in infantry battalions throughout the Army to sink dangerously below full strength. In the 1/4th Londons the casualties of Ypres and Cambrai in 1917 had never been balanced by reinforcements, and this was typical of the condition of affairs in every unit which had been heavily engaged in the preceding six months. The decision arrived at, therefore, was to reduce all Brigades to a three, instead of a four, battalion establishment, and this was carried out by disbanding one battalion per brigade and dividing out its strength among the three battalions which were retained. Inevitably such drastic action caused bitter disappointment among the battalions which had the misfortune to be selected for disbandment, and _esprit de corps_ received temporarily a severe check. In the 56th Division the 3rd (Royal Fusiliers), 9th (Queen Victoria's) and 12th (Rangers) Battalions were reduced to cadre strength and transferred to the 58th Division, so that from the beginning of the month of February 1918 the infantry of the Division consisted of: 167TH BRIGADE--1st London Regiment (Royal Fusiliers). 1/7th Middlesex Regiment. 1/8th do. 168TH BRIGADE--1/4th London Regiment (Royal Fusiliers). 1/13th do. (Kensingtons). 1/14th do. (London Scottish). 169TH BRIGADE--1/2nd London Regiment (Royal Fusiliers). 5th do. (London Rifle Brigade). 1/16th do. (Queen's Westminster Rifles). The Battalion received through these changes about 150 N.C.O.'s and men from the 9th Londons, 50 from the 3rd Londons and 60 from the 2/1st Londons, who had been disbanded from the 58th Division. Four subalterns also came to the Battalion as follows: Lieuts. G. G. Lewis and F. G. Athey from 2/1st Londons, H. F. Dade from 3rd Londons and W. G. Hook from 9th Londons. The new arrivals naturally felt sore at first at the disappearance of their own units, but, being all good sportsmen, accepted the inevitable, and rapidly settled down in the 1/4th Battalion. This acquisition of strength enabled the Battalion organisation of companies to be expanded to a three-platoon basis instead of the two-platoon system which had been in force since August 1917. At Magnicourt a week's useful training was effected, in which the reorganisation necessary in consequence of the above changes figured largely. The Battalion was joined by 2/Lieuts. R. E. Campkin, C. H. Board, T. H. Mawby and G. R. Pitman.