 Following consultation with the British government, it was decided that the main New Zealand contribution to the war effort would be in the form of an infantry division, the 2nd New Zealand Division, under the command of Major General Bernard Freyberg.The new division would require nine battalions of infantry and consequently, several infantry battalions were formed from 1939 to 1940 with New Zealand volunteers.The 23rd Battalion, also known as the Canterbury-Otago Battalion, was formed in January 1940 under the command of Lieutenant Colonel A. S. Falconer.