1.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
2.
Army Reserve (United Kingdom)
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The Army Reserve is the active-duty volunteer reserve force and integrated element of the British Army. Most Volunteer infantry units had unique identities, but lost these in the reorganisation, only one infantry unit, the London Regiment, has maintained a separate identity. Reservists in the past also served as constables or bailiffs, even holding positions of civic duty as overseer of their parish, the more modern Yeomen of the 18th century were cavalry-based units, which were often used to suppress riots. Several units that are now part of the Army Reserve bear the title militia, after the Second World War, for example, the Army Reserve - or Territorial Army as it was known then - was not demobilised until 1947. All Army Reserve personnel have their jobs protected to a limited extent by law should they be compulsorily mobilised. There is, however, no protection against discrimination in employment for membership of the Army Reserve in the normal course of events. As part of the process, remaining units of militia were converted to the Special Reserve. The TF was formed on 1 April 1908 and contained fourteen infantry divisions and it had an overall strength of approximately 269,000. The individual units that made up each division or brigade were administered by County Associations, the other members of the association consisted of military members, representative members and co-opted members. Associations took over any property vested in the volunteers or yeomanry under their administration, each regiment or battalion had a Regular Army officer attached as full-time adjutant. In August 1914, after the outbreak of the First World War, territorial units were given the option of serving in France and, by 25 August, in excess of seventy battalions had volunteered. This question over the availability of territorial divisions for service was one of Lord Kitcheners motivations for raising the New Army separately. The first fully Territorial division to join the fighting on the Western Front was the 46th Division in March 1915, with divisions later serving in Gallipoli and elsewhere. As the war progressed, and casualties mounted, the character of territorial units was diluted by the inclusion of conscript. Following the Armistice all units of the Territorial Force were gradually disbanded, New recruiting started in early 1920, and the Territorial Force was reconstituted on 7 February 1920. On 1 October 1920, the Territorial Force was renamed the Territorial Army, the 1st Line divisions were reconstituted in that year. However, the composition of the divisions was altered, with a reduction in the number of infantry battalions required, there was also a reduced need for cavalry, and of the 55 yeomanry regiments, only the 14 most senior retained their horses. The remaining yeomanry were converted to artillery or armoured car units or disbanded, the amalgamation of 40 pairs of infantry battalions was announced in October 1921
3.
Infantry
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Infantry is the general branch of an army that engages in military combat on foot. As the troops who engage with the enemy in close-ranged combat, infantry units bear the largest brunt of warfare, Infantry can enter and maneuver in terrain that is inaccessible to military vehicles and employ crew-served infantry weapons that provide greater and more sustained firepower. In English, the 16th-century term Infantry describes soldiers who walk to the battlefield, and there engage, fight, the term arose in Sixteenth-Century Spain, which boasted one of the first professional standing armies seen in Europe since the days of Rome. It was common to appoint royal princes to military commands, and the men under them became known as Infanteria. in the Canadian Army, the role of the infantry is to close with, and destroy the enemy. In the U. S. Army, the closes with the enemy, by means of fire and maneuver, in order to destroy or capture him, or to repel his assault by fire, close combat. In the U. S. Marine Corps, the role of the infantry is to locate, close with, and destroy the enemy fire and maneuver. Beginning with the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century, artillery has become a dominant force on the battlefield. Since World War I, combat aircraft and armoured vehicles have become dominant. In 20th and 21st century warfare, infantry functions most effectively as part of a combined arms team including artillery, armour, Infantry relies on organized formations to be employed in battle. These have evolved over time, but remain a key element to effective infantry development and deployment, until the end of the 19th century, infantry units were for the most part employed in close formations up until contact with the enemy. This allowed commanders to control of the unit, especially while maneuvering. The development of guns and other weapons with increased firepower forced infantry units to disperse in order to make them less vulnerable to such weapons. This decentralization of command was made possible by improved communications equipment, among the various subtypes of infantry is Medium infantry. This refers to infantry which are heavily armed and armored than heavy infantry. In the early period, medium infantry were largely eliminated due to discontinued use of body armour up until the 20th century. In the United States Army, Stryker Infantry is considered Medium Infantry, since they are heavier than light infantry, Infantry doctrine is the concise expression of how infantry forces contribute to campaigns, major operations, battles, and engagements. It is a guide to action, not a set of hard, doctrine provides a very common frame of reference across the military forces, allowing the infantry to function cooperatively in what are now called combined arms operations. Doctrine helps standardise operations, facilitating readiness by establishing common ways of accomplishing infantry tasks, doctrine links theory, history, experimentation, and practice
4.
Brigade
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A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment, two or more brigades may constitute a division. Brigades formed into divisions are usually infantry or armored, in addition to combat units, they may include combat support units or sub-units, such as artillery and engineers, and logistic units or sub-units. Historically, such brigades have sometimes been called brigade-groups, on operations, a brigade may comprise both organic elements and attached elements, including some temporarily attached for a specific task. Brigades may also be specialized and comprise battalions of a branch, for example cavalry, mechanized, armored, artillery, air defence, aviation, engineers. Some brigades are classified as independent or separate and operate independently from the division structure. The typical NATO standard brigade consists of approximately 3,200 to 5,500 troops, however, in Switzerland and Austria, the numbers could go as high as 11,000 troops. The Soviet Union, its forerunners and successors, mostly use regiment instead of brigade, a brigades commander is commonly a major general, brigadier general, brigadier or colonel. In some armies, the commander is rated as a General Officer, the brigade commander has a self-contained headquarters and staff. Some brigades may also have a deputy commander, the headquarters has a nucleus of staff officers and support that can vary in size depending on the type of brigade. On operations, additional specialist elements may be attached, the headquarters will usually have its own communications unit. In some gendarmerie forces, brigades are the organizational unit. The brigade as a military unit came about starting in the 15th century when the British army, as such a field army became larger, the number of subordinate commanders became unmanageable for the officer in general command of said army, usually a major general, to effectively command. In order to streamline command relationships, as well as effect some modicum of control, especially in regard to combined arms operations. The terms origin is found in two French roots, which together, meant roughly those who fight, the so-called brigada was a well-mixed unit, comprising infantry, cavalry and normally also artillery, designated for a special task. The size of such brigada ranged from a company of up to two regiments. The brigada was the forerunner of the battalion task force, battle group. The brigade was improved as a unit by the Swedish king Gustavus Adolphus
5.
49th (West Riding) Infantry Division
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The 49th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. The division was formed in the Territorial Force on 1 April 1908 as the West Riding Division, the division fought in the Great War in the trenches of the Western Front, in the fields of France and Flanders. During World War II the division fought in the Norwegian Campaign, after the Second World War it was disbanded in 1946, then reformed in 1947. It remained with the Northern Command until finally disbanded in 1967, the division was originally raised as the West Riding Division when the Territorial Force was created in 1908. In 1915, during the Great War, it was designated the 49th Division, the campaign was a complete disaster and the division withdrew from Norway in May 1940. The divisions 146th and 147th Infantry Brigades were thereafter stationed in Iceland, as a result, a new divisional insignia, featuring a polar bear standing on an ice floe, was adopted. The idea was from the commander, Major General Evelyn Barker. In 1942, the division was transferred back to the United Kingdom where the 70th Brigade, just after D-Day, in June 1944, the 49th Division moved to France as part of XXX Corps. During the fierce fighting in Normandy, the Nazi propaganda broadcaster Lord Haw-Haw referred to the division as the Polar Bear Butchers. During the rest of the war, the division served mainly with the First Canadian Army and was variously under the command of I Corps, the II Canadian Corps, and the I Canadian Corps. The 49th Divisions last major contribution to the Second World War was the Second Battle of Arnhem, just after the German surrender on 7 May 1945 the division played a part in the liberation of Utrecht with the 49th Reconnaissance Regiment entering first followed by Canadian troops. There’s a monument dedicated to the Polar Bears at a spot on Biltstraat in the city, during the course of the war the division suffered heavy casualties of 11,000 wounded or missing in action with around 1,642 killed in action. Finally, it underwent its last major change in 1961, when it was renamed to the 49th Division/District, the Division/District finally disbanded in 1967, becoming simply X District. The polar bear flash was last worn by 49th Brigade, Under Army 2020,49 Brigade was merged with 7th Armoured Brigade to become 7th Infantry Brigade on 13 February 2015. Cameron, October 1917 – June 1919 Major-General Henry R. Davies, June 1919 – June 1923 Major-General Alfred A. Kennedy, June 1923 – March 1926 Major-General Neville J. G. Cameron, June 1926 – June 1930 Major-General Sir Reginald S. May, June 1930 – September 1931 Major-General George H. N. Jackson, kelly, September 1935 – April 1938 Dates in British form indicating the date they entered the command. Major-General Pierse J. Macksey –03.09.1939 Major-General Harry O. Curtis –10.06.1940 Brigadier Neville P, procter –12.04.1943 Major-General Sir Evelyn W. Barker –12.04.1943 Major-General Sir Gordon H. A. MacMillan –30.11.1944,06.02.1945 Brigadier R. H, senior –27.01.1945 &24.03.1945 Major-General Stuart B
6.
World War I
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World War I, also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history and it was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. The war drew in all the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war, Italy, Japan, the trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. This set off a crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia. Within weeks, the powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world. On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July, the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia, Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise, and when this was refused, declared war on Russia on 1 August. Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France, after the German march on Paris was halted, what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition, with a trench line that changed little until 1917. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army was successful against the Austro-Hungarians, in November 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers, opening fronts in the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Sinai. In 1915, Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Romania joined the Allies in 1916, after a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918, the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives. By the end of the war or soon after, the German Empire, Russian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, national borders were redrawn, with several independent nations restored or created, and Germanys colonies were parceled out among the victors. During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the Big Four imposed their terms in a series of treaties, the League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict. This effort failed, and economic depression, renewed nationalism, weakened successor states, and feelings of humiliation eventually contributed to World War II. From the time of its start until the approach of World War II, at the time, it was also sometimes called the war to end war or the war to end all wars due to its then-unparalleled scale and devastation. In Canada, Macleans magazine in October 1914 wrote, Some wars name themselves, during the interwar period, the war was most often called the World War and the Great War in English-speaking countries. Will become the first world war in the sense of the word. These began in 1815, with the Holy Alliance between Prussia, Russia, and Austria, when Germany was united in 1871, Prussia became part of the new German nation. Soon after, in October 1873, German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors between the monarchs of Austria-Hungary, Russia and Germany
7.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
8.
British Army
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The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
9.
Yeomanry
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Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles, in the 1790s, the threat of invasion of the Kingdom of Great Britain was high, after the French Revolution and the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. To improve the defences, volunteer regiments were raised in many counties from yeomen. These regiments became known collectively as the Yeomanry, members of the yeomanry were not obliged to serve overseas without their individual consent. In 1827 it was decided for reasons to reduce the number of yeomanry regiments. A number of independent troops were also dissolved, following these reductions the yeomanry establishment was fixed at 22 corps receiving allowances and a further 16 serving without pay. During the 1830s the number of yeomanry units fluctuated, reflecting the level of civil unrest in any region at any particular time. The Irish Yeomanry, which had played a role in suppressing the rebellion of 1798, was completely disbanded in 1838. For the next thirty years the Yeomanry Force was retained as a line of support for the regular cavalry within Britain. Recruiting difficulties led to serious consideration being given to the disbandment of the force in 1870. These included requirements that individual yeomanry troopers attend a number of drills per year in return for a permanent duty allowance. While these reforms improved the professionalism of the Yeomanry Force, numbers remained low, in 1876 the role of the Yeomanry Force was fixed as that of light cavalry. These supernumerary units were now abolished, during the Second Boer War companies of Imperial Yeomanry were formed to serve overseas from volunteers from the Yeomanry. In 1901 all yeomanry regiments were redesignated as Imperial Yeomanry, in 1908 the Imperial Yeomanry was merged with the Volunteer Force to form the Territorial Force, of which it became the cavalry arm. The Imperial title was dropped at the same time, on the eve of World War I in 1914 there were 55 Yeomanry regiments, each of four squadrons instead of the three of the regular cavalry. Upon embodiment these regiments were brought together to form mounted brigades or allocated as divisional cavalry. For purposes of recruitment and administration the Yeomanry were linked to counties or regions. Some of the still in existence in 1914 dated back to those created in the 1790s while others had been created during a period of expansion following on the Boer War
10.
Volunteer Force
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The Volunteer Force was a citizen army of part-time rifle, artillery and engineer corps, created as a popular movement throughout the British Empire in 1859. Originally highly autonomous, the units of volunteers became increasingly integrated with the British Army after the Childers Reforms in 1881, most of the regiments of the present Territorial Army Infantry, Artillery, Engineers and Signals units are directly descended from Volunteer Force units. During the Crimean War, the War Office had been forced to send militia, the situation had been complicated by the fact that both auxiliary forces were under the control of the Home Office until 1855. Tensions rose between the United Kingdom and France following the Orsini affair, an attempt on Emperor Napoleon III on 14 January 1858. It emerged that the assassin, Felice Orsini had travelled to England to have the bombs used in the attack manufactured in Birmingham. On 29 April 1859 war broke out between France and the Austrian Empire, and there were fears that Britain might be caught up in a wider European conflict. Volunteer corps were to be raised under the provisions of the Volunteer Act 1804, alfred Tennyson captured the spirit of the time by publishing his poem Riflemen Form in The Times on 9 May 1859. As a basis for the units, many communities had rifle clubs for the enjoyment of the sport of shooting, Corps were only to be formed on the recommendation of the county’s lord-lieutenant. The force was liable to be called out “in case of invasion, or of appearance of an enemy in force on the coast, or in case of rebellion arising in either of these emergencies. ”While under arms volunteers were subject to military law and were entitled to be billeted. Members were not permitted to quit the force during actual military service, members were to be returned as “effective” if they had attended eight days drill and exercise in four months, or 24 days within a year. The members of the corps were to provide their own arms and equipment, Volunteers were also permitted to choose the design of their uniforms, subject to the lord-lieutenant’s approval. Although volunteers were to pay for their own firearms, they were to be provided under the superintendence of the War Office, the number of officers and private men in each county and corps was to be settled by the war office, based on the lord-lieutenant’s recommendation. Originally corps were to consist of approximately 100 all ranks under the command of a captain, the purpose of the rifle corps was to harass the invading enemy’s flanks, while artillery corps were to man coastal guns and forts. Although not mentioned in the letter, engineer corps were also formed. Stretcher-bearers attached to the rifle corps subsequently formed volunteer medical detachments affiliated to the Army Medical Corps, in a handful of counties, units of light horse or mounted rifles were formed. Two volunteer units whose services had been accepted by Queen Victoria during the early 1850s became the two senior rifle corps of the new force and these were the 1st Rifle Volunteer Corps who became the 1st Devonshire Rifle Volunteers and the Victoria Rifles who became the 1st Middlesex Rifle Volunteers. An order of precedence was established for other counties, depending upon the date of establishment of the first corps in the county. The most senior artillery corps was the 1st Northumberland formed at Tynemouth on August 2,1859, some also compared the initiative, small unit tactics and marksmanship principles of rifle regiments of the Napoleonic Wars compared with the linear tactics of the standing army
11.
King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry
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The Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry was a light infantry regiment of the British Army. It officially existed from 1881 to 1968, but its predecessors go back to 1755, the 53rd Regiment of Foot was raised in Leeds in 1755 and renumbered the 51st in January 1757. In 1782, in common with other regiments of the line, the 2nd Madras European Light Infantry was raised by the East India Company in 1839. In 1861 East India Company forces were absorbed into the British Army, the 105th Regiment moved to Pontefract Barracks to co-locate with the 51st Regiment in 1879. In 1881 after the Cardwell and Childers Reforms, regimental numbers were abolished, the 51st Kings Own Light Infantry became the 1st Battalion, Kings Own Light Infantry and the 105th became its 2nd Battalion. The Childers Reforms also combined Militia and rifle volunteer units into the formed in 1881. In 1897 the regimental title was changed to the Kings Own, the 2nd battalion fought at the Battle of Modder River in November 1899 during the Second Boer War. The 1/4th and 1/5th Battalions landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 3rd West Riding Brigade in the West Riding Division in April 1915 for service on the Western Front. The 2/4th and 2/5th Battalions landed at Le Havre as part of the 187th Brigade in the 62nd Division in January 1917 also for service on the Western Front. Corporal Ernest Hayes, who was awarded three Military Medals in 1918 for acts of bravery on the Western Front, served with the 2/4th Battalion. The 6th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 43rd Brigade in the 14th Division in May 1915 for service on the Western Front, captain B. H. Liddell Hart, who went on to be prolific military writer, served with the 6th Battalion. The 7th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 61st Brigade in the 20th Division in July 1915 also for service on the Western Front. The 8th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 70th Brigade in the 23rd Division in August 1915 for service on the Western Front and then moved to Italy in November 1917. The 9th and 10th Battalions landed in France as part of the 64th Brigade in the 21st Division in September 1915 also for service on the Western Front, stuart Cloete, a South African novelist, served with the 9th Battalion at the Battle of the Somme in autumn 1916. The 12th Battalion landed in Egypt as pioneer battalion for the 31st Division in December 1915, in 1921 the regiment became the Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry. During the Second World War the battalions served in all three fronts, in May 1940, with the brigade, the battalion was sent to Norway where they saw service as part of Sickleforce in the Norwegian Campaign and was later evacuated. The 2nd Battalion, also a Regular Army unit, fought as a rearguard in the retreat through Burma in 1942, however, the battalion saw little active service afterwards, remaining in British India on internal security duties. The battalions last battle was during the Second Battle of Arnhem, the 2/4th Battalion was created in 1939 in the Territorial Army when the 4th Battalion was split in two, creating the 1/4th Battalion and the 2/4th Battalion
12.
York and Lancaster Regiment
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The York and Lancaster Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was created in the Childers Reforms of 1881 by the amalgamation of the 65th Regiment of Foot and this reflected the fact that the regimental district included an area of West Riding of Yorkshire known as Hallamshire. The proposed title was unpopular with the units, who sought a more suitable title. Which at the time would identify the Regiment with the county. Four different titles were proposed, and following a vote of the officers of all four battalions, the regiment inherited the title York and Lancaster from the 84th Foot to which had been awarded in 1809. The new regiment saw service in both Egypt and Sudan immediately after its formation, and also during the Second Boer War, the 1st battalion of the new regiment had spent 11 years in India 1871-1882. They were moved to Aden to be held in reserve for the Egyptian Campaign, after 18 months they shipped on The Serapis to Trinkitat, Sudan, arriving 28 Feb 1884. The next day they came under gun fire and made a bayonet charge, later that day seven were killed and 35 wounded at the battle of El Teb. The 1st battalion was reported 421 strong when at Souakim,14 March and they embarked on troopship HMS Jumna 29 March, arriving Dover 22 April 1884. The regiment raised 22 battalions for service in the Great War, losing 8,814 officers, the 22 battalions consisted of the two regular battalions, the depot battalion, six Territorial Force battalions, nine Service, two Reserve, one Transport and one Labour battalion. 17 of the 22 battalions saw service overseas, during the Battle of the Somme the Yorks and Lancs eight battalions that went over the top on the first day,1 July 1916, suffering huge casualties. Eleven battalions of the regiment fought during the Somme offensive, the regular 1st Battalion returned from service in British India to be formed up as part of the 83rd Brigade in the 28th Division. The 28th Division consisted of regular battalions returning from service and was shipped to France in January 1915. The 1st Battalion saw action in the Second Battle of Ypres, the battalion was then shipped to the Balkans as part of the British Salonika Army where it would remain until the end of the war. While the battalion was still in France Private Samuel Harvey won the York, the 2nd Battalion was stationed in Ireland with the 16th Brigade when war broke out. The battalion arrived on the Western Front in September 1914 with the 6th Division as part of the original British Expeditionary Force, the 2nd Battalion fought its first battle at Radinghem south of Armentières during the Race to the Sea. The 2nd Battalion fought in most of the battles of the war including the Battle of the Somme and spent the entire war serving in France. Private John Caffrey, 2nd battalion, won the Victoria Cross in 1915, the 1/4th Battalion and the 1/5th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 3rd West Riding Brigade in the West Riding Division in April 1915 for service on the Western Front
13.
Territorial Force Imperial Service Badge
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The conditions of enlistment for the TF laid down at their creation in 1908 did not allow for soldiers to be sent for service overseas against their will, as the TF was intended for home defence. However, any man could volunteer for the Imperial Service Section and serve abroad in times of war, the badge was worn on the right breast of the uniform. It was not compulsory for the badge to be worn and this badge became obsolete when the Territorial Force was elevated to become the Territorial Army
14.
Western Front (World War I)
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The Western Front or Western Theater was the main theatre of war during World War I. Following the outbreak of war in August 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by invading Luxembourg and Belgium, the tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne. Following the Race to the Sea, both sides dug in along a line of fortified trenches, stretching from the North Sea to the Swiss frontier with France. This line remained unchanged for most of the war. Between 1915 and 1917 there were several major offensives along this front, the attacks employed massive artillery bombardments and massed infantry advances. However, a combination of entrenchments, machine gun emplacements, barbed wire, as a result, no significant advances were made. In an effort to break the deadlock, this front saw the introduction of new technology, including poison gas, aircraft. But it was only after the adoption of improved tactics that some degree of mobility was restored, the German Armys Spring Offensive of 1918 was made possible by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk that marked the end of the conflict on the Eastern Front. In spite of the stagnant nature of this front, this theatre would prove decisive. The terms of peace were agreed upon with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, belgiums neutrality was guaranteed by Britain under the 1839 Treaty of London, this caused Britain to join the war at the expiration of its ultimatum at 11 pm GMT on 4 August. Armies under German generals Alexander von Kluck and Karl von Bülow attacked Belgium on 4 August 1914, Luxembourg had been occupied without opposition on 2 August. The first battle in Belgium was the Siege of Liège, which lasted from 5–16 August, Liège was well fortified and surprised the German Army under von Bülow with its level of resistance. German heavy artillery was able to demolish the main forts within a few days. Following the fall of Liège, most of the Belgian field army retreated to Antwerp, leaving the garrison of Namur isolated, with the Belgian capital, Brussels, although the German army bypassed Antwerp, it remained a threat to their flank. Another siege followed at Namur, lasting from about 20–23 August, for their part, the French had five armies deployed on their borders. The pre-war French offensive plan, Plan XVII, was intended to capture Alsace-Lorraine following the outbreak of hostilities, on 7 August the VII Corps attacked Alsace with its objectives being to capture Mulhouse and Colmar. The main offensive was launched on 14 August with 1st and 2nd Armies attacking toward Sarrebourg-Morhange in Lorraine, in keeping with the Schlieffen Plan, the Germans withdrew slowly while inflicting severe losses upon the French. The French advanced the 3rd and 4th Armies toward the Saar River and attempted to capture Saarburg, attacking Briey and Neufchateau, before being driven back
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Hallamshire Battalion
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The Hallamshire Battalion was an infantry battalion of the York and Lancaster Regiment, part of the British Army in existence from 1859 until 1999. Formed in 1859 as The Hallamshire Volunteer Rifle Corps with its H. Q. at Sheffield, the title Hallamshire came from the ancient lordship of West Riding that comprised the parishes of Sheffield, Ecclesfield and Bradfield. In 1862 the Hallamshire Rifles were presented with Colours, the Hallamshires raised a second active service battalion. They were awarded the battle honour South Africa 1900-1902, in 1908 they were redesignated as the 4th Battalion. A year later it regained its title becoming 4th Battalion, the battalion was assigned to the 3rd West Riding Brigade, alongside the 5th Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment, and the 4th and 5th KOYLI. The brigade was assigned to the West Riding Division, in April 1915 the battalion was moved to the Western Front as part of the 148th Brigade of the 49th Division and sent to the Ypres Salient by June. Over the next six months they lost 94 killed and 401 injured in the war of the trenches. After a period of rest in Calais they moved to theSomme, on the first day of the Battle of the Somme,1 July 1916, the battalion was part of the follow-up assault wave. During the next three months of the campaign the Hallamshires lost 27 officers and 750 soldiers killed and wounded, during the rest of the war the Hallamshires suffered many more casualties including 288 in the first use of Mustard Gas at Nieuwpoort in July 1917. In the final Allied Advance to Victory, the Hallamshires were ordered on 13 October to reach the line of the river Selle which was supposedly undefended on the western bank and they advanced across open ground without artillery support to find strongly defended enemy positions. They achieved their objective but with only 4 officers and 240 men present of the 20 officers and 600 men who had started the advance. In 1924 the number was dropped by order of King George V in recognition of their war service, the Hallamshire Battalion saw action in World War II and would serve with the 49th Infantry Division throughout the war. The battalion and most of the division first saw action as part of the ill-fated Norwegian Campaign in early 1940, the battalion arrived with most of the 146th Infantry Brigade. They were ashore for twelve days seeing limited action and losing their only casualties on the home when one of their transports was sunk. The battalion spent the two years defending Iceland and training as Alpine troops before returning to Scotland for garrison duties. The Hallamshires landed in France on D+3,9 June 1944, twelve days after landing the Hallamshires were involved in the attack on Fontenay-le-Pesnel against the 26th Panzer Grenadier Regiment. The attack was successful but at the expense of 123 members of the battalion killed or wounded, to this day, former members of the battalion at that time still celebrate the victory as the Fontenay Club. The battalion was involved in the capture of the docks at Le Havre before the Germans could destroy the vital installations, here they captured 1,005 prisoners, three Dornier flying boats and a submarine
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Machine Gun Corps
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The Machine Gun Corps was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in the First World War. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use tanks in combat and was turned into the Tank Corps. The MGC remained in existence after the war until it was disbanded in 1922, at the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, the tactical potential of machine guns was not appreciated by the British Armed Forces. Despite the evidence of fighting in Manchuria the army went to war with each infantry battalion. These organic units were supplemented in November 1914 by the formation of the Motor Machine Gun Service administered by the Royal Artillery, a machine gun school was also opened in France. To achieve this, the Machine Gun Corps was formed in October 1915 with Infantry, Cavalry, a depot and training centre was established at Belton Park in Grantham, Lincolnshire, and a base depôt at Camiers in France. The Infantry Branch was by far the largest and was formed by the transfer of battalion machine gun sections to the MGC and these sections were grouped into Brigade Machine Gun Companies, three per division. New companies were raised at Grantham, in 1917, a fourth company was added to each division. In February and March 1918, the four companies in each division were formed into a Machine Gun Battalion, the Guards Division formed its own machine gun support unit, the Guards Machine Gun Regiment. The Cavalry Branch consisted of Machine Gun Squadrons, one per cavalry brigade, the Motor Branch was formed by absorbing the MMGS and the armoured car squadrons of the recently disbanded Royal Naval Armoured Car Service. It formed several types of units, motor cycle batteries, light armoured motor batteries, as well as motor cycles, other vehicles used included Rolls-Royce and Ford Model T cars. The Heavy Section was formed in March 1916, becoming the Heavy Branch in November of that year, men of this branch crewed the first tanks in action at Flers, during the Battle of the Somme in September 1916. In July 1917, the Heavy Branch separated from the MGC to become the Tank Corps, the MGC saw action in all the main theatres of war, including France and Belgium, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Salonika, East Africa and Italy. In its short history, the MGC gained a record for heroism as a front line fighting force. Indeed, in the part of the war, as tactics changed to defence in depth. It had an enviable record for its casualty rate. Some 170,500 officers and men served in the MGC, with 62,049 becoming casualties, including 12,498 killed, as stated by Paul Cornish in Machine Guns and the Great War, The theory behind this technique had long been understood. The mathematical work required to provide a basis for the conduct of such fire was carried out by a group of British enthusiasts at the Hythe musketry school
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Role of Douglas Haig in 1918
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This article is about the role of Douglas Haig in 1918. In 1918, during the year of the First World War. On 1 January Derby told Haig that he saved Robertson from the sack by threatening resignation and he also hinted to Haig that the government wanted the removal of Launcelot Kiggell as BEF Chief of Staff, and that General Butler, Haig’s preferred choice, was not acceptable. Haig had an interview with the King to pick up his Field Marshal’s baton, Haig appears to have been placing too much faith in recent German peace feelers, now known not have been seriously intended. He told the King that British soldiers needed to be told what they were fighting for, in Haig’s view, Britain should keep to her original war aims - the defence of France and liberation of Belgium - not try to gain Alsace-Lorraine for France or Trieste for Italy. Haig attended a meeting of the War Cabinet, in fact the logistical infrastructure was not available for a breakout from the Ypres salient, and there is no mention of his suggestion in the official minutes. The minutes do agree with Haigs account that he warned only of limited German offensives, over lunch at 10 Downing Street with Lord Derby and Lloyd George, Haig predicted that the war would end within a year because of the “internal state of Germany”. Haig again left the politicians with the impression that he thought the Germans would launch attacks on the scale of Cambrai. A manpower committee under Lloyd George’s chairmanship had given the Royal Navy, RFC, shipbuilding, food production, the War Cabinet allocated 100,000 Category A men to the Western Front rather than the 615,000 demanded by the Army. Lloyd George discounted the Army’s warnings and wrongly thought the Western Front secure, between January and March the BEF received 174,379 men, including 32,384 Dominion troops and 7,359 non-combatants. Many of the troops were Category B, i. e. not fully fit for combat, the BEFs manpower shortage was not solely the fault of the politicians. 120,000 men of the BEF general reserve were kept in Britain to help the economy by spending their wages there. There were too many troops in the Middle East, but this was partly the fault of Robertson who had attempted to prevent action there by submitting inflated estimates of troop requirements,88,000 BEF men were on leave when the German offensive began. Only around a third were potentially available for service on the Western Front, eighteen-year olds had to be sent to France after the German Spring Offensives in 1918. Haig remonstrated in vain with Derby about the promotion of his ally Lt-Gen Trenchard from command of the RFC to become Chief of Air Staff. The War Office ordered a reduction in the size of British divisions from 12 infantry battalions to 9,134 infantry battalions were disbanded or amalgamated, and another 7 converted to pioneers. By mid January Haig had 58 infantry divisions, down from 62, fighting strength was cut by 70,000 – a drop of about 7%. Haig complained to his diary that the British government were taking the advice of Henry Wilson, there is no evidence that he considered resignation
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British Expeditionary Force (World War I)
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The British Expeditionary Force or BEF was the British Army sent to the Western Front during the First World War. Planning for a British Expeditionary Force began with the Haldane reforms of the British Army carried out by the Secretary of State for War Richard Haldane following the Second Boer War. The term British Expeditionary Force is often used to only to the forces present in France prior to the end of the First Battle of Ypres on 22 November 1914. By the end of 1914—after the battles of Mons, Le Cateau, an alternative endpoint of the BEF was 26 December 1914, when it was divided into the First and Second Armies. B. E. F. remained the name of the British armies in France. Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany, who was dismissive of the BEF. The treacherous English and walk over General Frenchs contemptible little army, hence, in later years, the survivors of the regular army dubbed themselves The Old Contemptibles. No evidence of any such order being issued by the Kaiser has ever been found, in October 1914, 7th Division arrived in France, forming the basis of III Corps and the cavalry had grown to form the Cavalry Corps of three divisions. By December 1914, the BEF had expanded to such an extent that the First Army, the force was commanded by Field Marshal Sir John French until December 1915, when he was replaced by General Sir Douglas Haig. The BEFs Chief of Staff on mobilization was General Archibald Murray and he was replaced in January 1915 by General William Robertson. Lieutenant-General Launcelot Kiggell then served as Chief of Staff from December 1915 to January 1917 when he was succeeded by Lieutenant-General Herbert Lawrence, the two initial Army Corps were commanded by Douglas Haig and Horace Smith-Dorrien. As the Regular Armys strength declined, the numbers were made up, first by the Territorial Force, by the end of August 1914, he had raised six new divisions and by March 1915, the number of divisions had increased to 29. The Territorial Force was also expanded, raising second and third battalions and forming eight new divisions. The Third Army was formed in July 1915 and with the influx of troops from Kitcheners volunteers and further reorganisation, the Fourth Army and the Reserve Army, became the Fifth Army in 1916. The BEF grew from six divisions of British regular army and reserves in 1914, to encompass the British Empires war effort on the Western front in 1918 and some of its allies. Over the course of the war 5,399,563 men served with the BEF, the First Army was formed on 26 December 1914. Its first commander was Douglas Haig promoted from command of the I Corps, when Haig took over command of the BEF in 1915, the new commander was General Henry Horne. First Army remained in France until the end of the war, the Second Army was formed at the same time as the First Army on 26 December 1914
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Royal Artillery
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The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery, is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name Royal Regiment of Artillery it actually consists of 13 Regular Regiments and 5 Reserve Regiments, the introduction of artillery into the English army came as early as the Battle of Crécy in 1346. Henry VIII made the armys artillery semi-permanent in the sixteenth century, before the 18th century, artillery traynes were raised by royal warrant for specific campaigns and disbanded again when they were over. On 26 May 1716, however, by warrant of George I two regular companies of field artillery, each 100 men strong, were raised at Woolwich. The title Royal Artillery was first used in 1720, in 1741 the Royal Military Academy was formed in the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich to provide training for RA and Royal Engineers officers. The regiment expanded rapidly and, by 1757, had 24 companies divided into two battalions, as well as a company formed in 1741. During 1748, the presidential artilleries of Bengal, Madras and Bombay were formed,1756 saw the creation of the Royal Irish Regiment of Artillery. In 1762 the Royal Artillery Band was formed at Minden, by 1771 there were 32 companies in four battalions, as well as two invalid companies comprising older and unfit men employed in garrison duties. During 1782, the regiment moved to the Royal Artillery Barracks on Woolwich Common, in January 1793, two troops of Royal Horse Artillery were raised to provide fire support for the cavalry, augmented by two more in November 1793. The Royal Irish Artillery was absorbed into the RA in 1801, during 1805, the Royal Military Academy moved to Woolwich Common. In 1819, the Rotunda was given to the regiment by the Prince Regent to celebrate end of the Napoleonic Wars, in 1832, the regimental motto, Ubique Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducunt, was granted. The motto signified that the regiment had seen action in all the conflicts of the British Army. The regiment was under the control of the Board of Ordnance until the board was abolished in 1855, thereafter the regiment came under the War Office along with the rest of the army. The School of Gunnery established at Shoeburyness, Essex in 1859, the third group continued to be titled simply Royal Artillery, and was responsible for ammunition storage and supply. Which branch a gunner belonged to was indicated by metal shoulder titles, the RFA and RHA also dressed as mounted men, whereas the RGA dressed like foot soldiers. In 1920 the rank of Bombardier was instituted in the Royal Artillery, the three sections effectively functioned as separate corps. This arrangement lasted until 1924, when the three amalgamated once more to one regiment. In 1938, RA Brigades were renamed Regiments, during the World War II there were over 1 million men serving in 960 gunner regiments
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2nd Anti-Aircraft Division (United Kingdom)
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The 2nd Anti-Aircraft Division was an Air Defence formation of the British Army from 1935 to 1942. It controlled anti-aircraft gun and searchlight units of the Territorial Army defending the East Midlands, in December 1935 the TAs 46th Division was disbanded and its headquarters was converted into 2nd Anti-Aircraft Division to control the increasing number of AA units being created. At first it administered all AA units in Great Britain outside London and the Home Counties, the new division was first organised at York, but shortly afterwards took over 46 Divisions HQ at Normanton, Derby. In 1938 the Royal Artillery replaced the unit designation Brigade by Regiment. The TAs AA units were mobilised on 23 September 1938 during the Munich Crisis, because the organisation of 2 AA Division and its component units was not yet complete, it was only partially mobilised. The emergency mobilisation lasted nearly three weeks before the TA units were released on 14 October, the experience led to improvements in equipment scales, and a rapid expansion of AA defences brought many new AA gun and searchlight units into existence. In November 1938,31 and 33 AA Bdes transferred to the newly formed 7th Anti-Aircraft Division, in 1939,30 AA Bde also joined 7 AA Division. They were replaced in 2 AA Division by new brigadescreated in September 1938, 39th at Retford in Nottinghamshire and 40th, 39th AA Bde also transferred to 7th AA Division just before the outbreak of war. In April 1939, AA Command was formed to control all the AA gun, Major-General Harrison was transferred to command RA Training Establishments and was replaced as GOC2 AA Division on 30 May 1939 by Maj-Gen Claude Grove-White. The deterioration in relations during 1939 led to a partial mobilisation in June. Full mobilisation of AA Command came in August 1939, ahead of the declaration of war on 3 September 1939, on the outbreak of war 2 AA Division had the following order of battle, GOC, Major-General M. F. By late 1940,2 AA Division formed part of 2 AA Corps, Grove-White had been promoted on 11 November to command the new corps and it shared 2 AA Divisions HQ at RAF Hucknall. The brigades were the same, but by February 1941 their locations and composition had changed, GOC, inside each belt was a 20-mile deep Killer Belt of single S/Ls cooperating with night-fighters patrolling defined boxes. The pattern was designed to ensure that raids penetrating deeply towards the Midlands GDAs would cross more than one belt, the number of LAA units to protect Vital Points such as airfields was growing, albeit slowly. 66 AA Brigade HQ, with its section and transport company, left AA Command in August 1942. 2 AA Division, like the other AA Corps and Divisions, was disbanded and replaced on 1 October 1942 by a new AA Group structure, the Midlands and East Anglia were covered by 5 AA Group, headquartered at Hucknall. 2 AA Divisional Signals was apparently converted into the new Group signal unit, litchfield, The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988, Nottingham, Sherwood Press,1992, ISBN 0-9508205-2-0. Cliff Lord & Graham Watson, Royal Corps of Signals, Unit Histories of the Corps and its Antecedents, Solihull, Helion,2003, ISBN 1-874622-92-2
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146th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)
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The 146th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army, part of the Territorial Force with the 49th Infantry Division. The brigade saw service during both World War I and World War II, and during the early part of the Cold War. The brigade was active from 1908 until 1967 when it was finally disbanded, the brigade was assigned to the West Riding Division. On the outbreak of the Great War in early August 1914, in mid-May 1915 the brigade and division would become the 146th Brigade and 49th Division respectively. The battalions adopted the 1/ prefix to differentiate them from their 2nd Line duplicates, the 2nd Line units were raised from those men who did not originally volunteer for overseas service, although many of them did end up seeing active service. The brigade served on the Western Front from July 1915 to the end of the war in November 1918, two men from the brigade were awarded the Victoria Cross, Corporal Samuel Meekosha of the 1/6th Battalion and Corporal George Sanders of the 1/7th Battalion. In 1937 the 6th Battalion was also converted to a different role, transferring to the Royal Engineers, they became 49th Anti-Aircraft Battalion, Royal Engineers and became part of the 31st Anti-Aircraft Brigade, alongside the former 8th Battalion, West Yorks. In April 1938 the 7th Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment was transferred to the Royal Tank Regiment, in late 1936 the 4th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment joined the brigade from the 46th Division which had been converted into the 2nd Anti-Aircraft Division. The 5th Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment, the original battalion in the brigade, was transferred to 147th Infantry Brigade in 1938 when all brigades were reduced from four to three battalions. In 1939 the brigade was redesignated as the 146th Infantry Brigade The brigade was mobilised between late August and early September 1939. After briefly returning to the United Kingdom, the brigade and division was stationed in Iceland. In April 1942 they were transferred back to the United Kingdom, the brigade, with the rest of the 49th Division, saw their final battle in the Liberation of Arnhem in April 1945 and the fierce battles that led up to it. During the fighting on the Continent, the 49th Infantry Division was nicknamed the Polar Bears because of their divisional insignia, on 28 September 1944 Corporal John William Harper of the Hallamshire Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. G. Phillips Lieutenant Colonel R. W. Newton Brigadier C. G. Phillips Lieutenant Colonel C. G. Robins Brigadier N. P, procter Lieutenant Colonel R. L. de Brisay Brigadier N. P. Procter Brigadier A. Dunlop Brigadier J. F. Walker Brigadier D. S. Gordon Lieutenant Colonel M. B. Jenkins Brigadier D. S. Formation Badges of World War 2 Britain, Commonwealth, archived from the original on 24 February 2003. Composition of the 49th Division 49th Infantry Division Polar Bear Association
22.
Leicestershire Regiment
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The Leicestershire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, with a history going back to 1688. On 27 September 1688 a commission was issued to Colonel Solomon Richards to raise a regiment of foot in the London area, in its early years, like other regiments, the regiment was known by the name of its various colonels. Following a failed attempt to break the Siege of Derry in 1689 and it transferred to Portugal in 1704 and took part in the sieges of Valencia de Alcántara, Alburquerque and Badajoz in 1705 as well as the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo in 1706. It also saw action at the Battle of Almansa in April 1807 before returning to England in 1809 and it went to Scotland to suppress the Jacobite rising of 1715 and fought at the Battle of Sheriffmuir in November 1715. In 1726 the regiment moved to Minorca and in 1751 a royal warrant assigned numbers to the regiments of the line, following that war it also saw duty during Pontiacs Rebellion before eventually returning to England in 1767. The regiment embarked for Boston, landing there on New Years Day 1776 and it saw action at the Battle of Long Island in August 1776, the Battle of White Plains in October 1776 and the Battle of Fort Washington in November 1776. Several companies were captured at the Battle of Stony Point in July 1779 by a daring bayonet charge by Mad Anthony Wayne. The regiment was in action again at the Battle of Guilford Court House in March 1781, the regiment became the 17th Regiment of Foot. The regiment moved to Nova Scotia in 1783 before returning to England in 1786, in 1804 the regiment moved to India, and remained there until 1823. In 1825 the regiment was granted the badge of a tiger to recall their long service in the sub-continent. The Regiment was posted to New South Wales from 1830 to 1836, the regiment returned to India in 1837, and then took part in the Battle of Ghazni in July 1839 and the Battle of Khelat in November 1839 during the First Anglo-Afghan War. The regiment next came under fire at the Siege of Sevastopol in winter 1854 during the Crimean War, in 1858 a second battalion was raised. Together these formed a battalion, which became the 1st Volunteer Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment in 1880. By 1900, when the unit provided a detachment of volunteers to serve alongside the Regulars during the Second Boer War, under the reforms the regiment became The Leicestershire Regiment on 1 July 1881. The 1st and 3rd battalions fought in the Second Boer War 1899 –1902, the 2nd Battalion was stationed as a garrison regiment in Ireland from 1896, and in Egypt from February 1900. In 1908, with the creation of the Territorial Force, the 1st Volunteer Battalion formed the 4th and 5th Battalions, there was a minor controversy in the same year, when new colours were issued to the 1st Battalion to replace those of the 17th foot. A green tiger had been shown on the old colours and the regiment refused to take the new issue into use, the issue was resolved when the regiment received permission for the royal tiger emblazoned on the regimental colours to be coloured green with gold stripes. In the First World War, the regiment increased from five to nineteen battalions which served in France and Flanders, Mesopotamia, the 1st Battalion landed at Saint-Nazaire as part of the 16th Infantry Brigade in the 6th Division in September 1914 for service on the Western Front
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Sherwood Foresters
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The Sherwood Foresters was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for just under 90 years, from 1881 to 1970. The lineage of the Sherwood Foresters is now continued by the 2nd Battalion, the regiment was formed on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms. The 45th Regiment of Foot and the 95th Regiment of Foot were redesignated as the 1st, Henry Cooper (ex 45th Foot 1881-.1889, Gen. John Studholme Brownrigg, CB (ex 95th Foot 188n–. Sir Daniel Lysons, GCB (ex 45th Foot 1898–1900, Gen. Frederic Augustus Thesiger, 2nd Baron Chelmsford, GCB, GCVO 1900–1902, sir Mark Walker, VC, KCB 1902–1905, Lt-Gen. Sir William Bellairs, KCMG, CB 1905–1930, Gen, sir Horace Lockwood Smith-Dorrien, GCB, GCMG, DSO 1930–1935, Lt-Gen. Sir William Raine Marshall, GCMG, KCB, KCSI 1935–1941, sir Frederick Barton Maurice, KCMG, CB 1941–1946, Lt-Gen. Sir Douglas Studholme Brownrigg Wellesley, KCB, DSO 1946–1947, Lt-Gen, sir Henry Beresford Dennitts Willcox, KCIE, CB, DSO, MC 1947–1958, Maj-Gen. Percival Napier White, CB, CBE 1958–1965, Maj-Gen, cecil Benfield Fairbanks, CB, CBE 1965–1970, Brig. Built on the site of a tower called Crich Stand. It is 1,000 feet above sea level, and has 52 steps to the top, from there eight counties can be seen, including landmarks such as the Humber Bridge and Lincoln Cathedral. In 1931, the Sherwood Foresters were officially allied with the Simcoe Foresters, the Sherwood Foresters stable belt continues to be used by the East Midlands Universities Officer Training Corps. Anon, The Robin Hoods, 1/7th, 2/7th and 3/7th Battns Sherwood Foresters, J & H Bell, 1921/Uckfield, Naval and Military Press,2009, ISBN 1-847349-92-7 Bellis, regiments of the British Army 1939–1945. George Forty, British Army Handbook 1939-1945, Stroud, Sutton Publishing,1998, the Sherwood Foresters in the Great War 1914 -1919, History of 1/8th Battalion at Project Gutenberg. ISBN 1-4365-8981-9 BBC - WW2 Peoples War - History of the Sherwood Foresters
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46th (North Midland) Division
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The 46th Division was an infantry division of the British Army, part of the Territorial Force, that saw service in World War I. At the outbreak of the war, the 46th Division was commanded by Major-General Hon. E. J, originally called the North Midland Division, it was redesignated as the 46th Division in May 1915. The Staffordshire Brigade was composed of battalions of the South Staffordshire Regiment, artillery, engineer, medical and other support services for the division either came from the Volunteers of these counties, or were newly raised in the TF. The North Midland Division was sent to France in February 1915, on 12 May 1915 the division was numbered 46th Division and the brigades were also numbered. During the Battle of Loos the 46th Division was decimated in an attack on the Hohenzollern Redoubt on 13 October 1915 and it was reformed as the Territorial Army in the 1920s as was the 46th Division. However, the 46th Division was disbanded in 1936, the headquarters being converted into 2nd Anti-Aircraft Division, most of the remainder of 46th Divisions units were sent to other divisions, mainly the 49th and the 55th Infantry Divisions. A new 46th Infantry Division was formed in October 1939, a month after the outbreak of World War II, a 59th Infantry Division was also raised as a 2nd Line duplicate of the 55th Division, and contained many units that served with 46th Division. Borrett, May 1931 – December 1932 Major-General Maurice G. Taylor, December 1932 – April 1934 Major-General Sir Hereward Wake, Bt. April 1934 –1937 List of British divisions in World War I Maj A. F. Lt-Col H. F. Alan MacDonald, the 46th Division at Gommecourt, 1st July 1916, West Wickham, Iona Books,2008, ISBN 978-0-9558119-0-6. Breaking the Hindenburg Line, the story of the 46th Division, /Uckfield, Naval & Military Press,2002, ISBN 978-1-843422-66-2. The British Army in the Great War British Military History 46 Infantry Division
25.
German Army (Wehrmacht)
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The German Army was the land forces component of the Wehrmacht, the regular German Armed Forces, from 1935 until it was demobilized and later dissolved in August 1946. The Wehrmacht also included the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe, during World War II, a total of about 13 million soldiers served in the German Army. Only 17 months after Adolf Hitler announced publicly the rearmament program, during the autumn of 1937, two more corps were formed. In 1938, four corps were formed with the inclusion of the five divisions of the Austrian Army after the Anschluss in March. During the period of its expansion by Adolf Hitler, the German Army continued to develop concepts pioneered during World War I, combining ground, the German Army entered the war with a majority of its infantry formations relying on horse-drawn transport. The infantry remained foot soldiers throughout the war, artillery also remained primarily horse-drawn, however their motorized and tank formations accounted for only 20% of the Heers capacity at their peak strength. The armys lack of trucks was a handicap to infantry movement especially during. Panzer movements also depended upon rail, driving a tank over 150 kilometers wore out its tracks, the Oberkommando des Heeres was Germanys Army High Command from 1936 to 1945. In theory the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht served as the military General Staff for the German Reichs armed forces, in practice OKW acted in a subordinate role as Hitlers personal military staff, translating his ideas into military plans and orders, and issuing them to the three services. However, as the war progressed the OKW found itself exercising increasing amounts of direct command authority over military units and this created a situation where by 1943 the OKW was the de facto command of Western Theatre forces while the Army High Command is the same on the Eastern Front. The Abwehr was the Army intelligence organization from 1921 to 1944, the term Abwehr was used as a concession to Allied demands that Germanys post-World War I intelligence activities be for defensive purposes only. After 4 February 1938, its title was Overseas Department/Office in Defence of the Armed Forces High Command, the method OKW adopted was to separate the Field Army from the Home Command, and to entrust the responsibilities of training, conscription, supply and equipment to Home Command. The German Army was mainly structured in Army groups consisting of several armies that were relocated, restructured or renamed in the course of the war, Forces or allied states as well as units made up of non-Germans were also assigned to German units. The army used the German term Kampfgruppe which equates to the English combat group or battle group and these provisional combat groupings ranged from an Army Corps size such as Army Detachment Kempf to commands composed of several companies and even platoons. They were named for their commanding officers, German operational doctrine emphasized sweeping pincer and lateral movements meant to destroy the enemy forces as quickly as possible. This approach, referred to as Blitzkrieg, was an operational doctrine instrumental in the success of the offensives in Poland, the military strength of the German army was managed through mission-based tactics, and an almost proverbial discipline. Once an operation began, whether offensive or defensive, speed in response to changing circumstances was considered more important than careful planning and coordination of new plans. These technologies were featured by propaganda, but were only available in small numbers or late in the war, as overall supplies of raw materials
26.
Invasion of Poland
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The campaign ended on 6 October with Germany and the Soviet Union dividing and annexing the whole of Poland under the terms of the German-Soviet Frontier Treaty. German forces invaded Poland from the north, south, and west the morning after the Gleiwitz incident, as the Wehrmacht advanced, Polish forces withdrew from their forward bases of operation close to the Polish–German border to more established lines of defence to the east. After the mid-September Polish defeat in the Battle of the Bzura, Polish forces then withdrew to the southeast where they prepared for a long defence of the Romanian Bridgehead and awaited expected support and relief from France and the United Kingdom. While those two countries had pacts with Poland and had declared war on Germany on 3 September, in the end their aid to Poland was very limited. The Soviet Red Armys invasion of Eastern Poland on 17 September, in accordance with a protocol of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. Facing a second front, the Polish government concluded the defence of the Romanian Bridgehead was no longer feasible, on 6 October, following the Polish defeat at the Battle of Kock, German and Soviet forces gained full control over Poland. The success of the invasion marked the end of the Second Polish Republic, the Soviet Union incorporated its newly acquired areas into its constituent Belarusian and Ukrainian republics, and immediately started a campaign of sovietization. In the aftermath of the invasion, a collective of underground resistance formed the Polish Underground State within the territory of the former Polish state. Many of the exiles that managed to escape Poland subsequently joined the Polish Armed Forces in the West. On 30 January 1933, the Nazi Party, under its leader Adolf Hitler, as part of this long-term policy, Hitler at first pursued a policy of rapprochement with Poland, trying to improve opinion in Germany, culminating in the German–Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934. Earlier, Hitlers foreign policy worked to weaken ties between Poland and France, and attempted to manoeuvre Poland into the Anti-Comintern Pact, forming a front against the Soviet Union. The Poles feared that their independence would eventually be threatened altogether, the so-called Polish Corridor constituted land long disputed by Poland and Germany, and inhabited by a Polish majority. The Corridor had become a part of Poland after the Treaty of Versailles, many Germans also wanted the city of Danzig and its environs to be reincorporated into Germany. Danzig was a city with a German majority. It had been separated from Germany after Versailles and made into the nominally independent Free City of Danzig, the series of border violations, which are unbearable to a great power, prove that the Poles no longer are willing to respect the German frontier. Poland participated with Germany in the partition of Czechoslovakia that followed the Munich Agreement and it coerced Czechoslovakia to surrender the region of Český Těšín by issuing an ultimatum to that effect on 30 September 1938, which was accepted by Czechoslovakia on 1 October. This region had a Polish majority and had been disputed between Czechoslovakia and Poland in the aftermath of World War I, the Polish annexation of Slovak territory later served as the justification for the Slovak state to join the German invasion. Poland rejected this proposal, fearing that after accepting these demands, it would become subject to the will of Germany
27.
55th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)
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The 55th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both World War I and World War II. However, it was reformed as the 55th Infantry Brigade in 1939 in the Territorial Army shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and it remained in the United Kingdom on home defence and training duties, preparing for a possible German invasion which, fortunately, never arrived. The 55th Infantry Brigade, along with the rest of the 18th Division, was sent to Singapore in 1942 where it surrendered to the Imperial Japanese Army in the short, the men of the brigade would spend the next three years as Japanese prisoners in harsh and degrading imprisonment. Regiments of the British Army 1939–1945, regiments of the British Army 1939–1945. Orders of Battle, Second World War, 1939–1945, the Territorial Battalions, A Pictorial History, 1859–1985
28.
18th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)
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The 18th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Territorial Army, part of the British Army, that saw service in World War II. It was formed as a 2nd Line duplicate of the 54th Infantry Division using mostly units with connections to East Anglia, the division fought in the short but violent Battle of Singapore but later surrendered and was captured by the Imperial Japanese Army in February 1942. Throughout the spring and summer of 1939 the Territorial Army was ordered to be doubled in size, the 54th Infantry Division, a 1st Line division, formed a duplicate unit, to be known as the 18th Infantry Division. The 18th Division, however, was not formed as an exact mirror duplicate as most divisions were and was divided on geographical basis. Among the infantry brigades, the 53rd Infantry Brigade was converted from the 163rd Infantry Brigade, the main part of the 18th Division landed at Singapore a few weeks before the fall of the island. After the violent week-long Battle of Singapore, Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival, commander of the Singapore garrison, the divisions soldiers went into Japanese Prisoner of war camps where they suffered many hardships for the next three years. The 18th Division was not reformed later in the war or afterwards when the Territorial Army was reformed in 1947.09.1939 Major-General T. G, ISBN 978-0-14-101036-6 Order of Battle Unit History Order of Battle Data Base Cambridgeshire Regt
29.
South Wales Borderers
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The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years. It first came into existence, as the 24th Regiment of Foot in 1689, based at Brecon the regiment recruited from the border counties of Monmouthshire, Herefordshire and Brecknockshire, but was not called the South Wales Borderers until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in a great many conflicts, including the American Revolutionary War, various conflicts in India, the Zulu War, Second Boer War, in 1969 the regiment was amalgamated with the Welch Regiment to form the Royal Regiment of Wales. The regiment was formed by Sir Edward Dering, 3rd Baronet as Sir Edward Derings Regiment of Foot in 1689, becoming known, like other regiments, by the names of its subsequent colonels. The regiment was part of the expedition to the Caribbean. The regiment was ranked as 24th in the order of precedence in 1747. It took part in the Siege of Fort St Philip in Minorca in April 1756 during the Seven Years War. It was also part of the expedition against, or descent on. In June 1776 the regiment was sent to Quebec where it subsequently fought American rebels who had invaded the province during their War of Independence, in 1782 it became the 24th Regiment of Foot. They were released the following year, the 1st Battalion took part in the Anglo-Nepalese War in November 1814. The regiment was deployed to Canada in 1829 and remained there until 1842, meanwhile,5 Victoria Crosses were awarded to men of the regiment who rescued their colleagues from cannibals on the Andaman Islands in May 1857. In 1879 both battalions took part in the Anglo-Zulu War, begun after a British invasion of Zululand, the 24th Regiment of Foot took part in the crossing of the Buffalo River on 11 January, entering Zululand. The first engagement came at Isandlwana, the British had pitched camp at Isandlwana and not established any fortifications due to the sheer size of the force, the hard ground and a shortage of entrenching tools. A Zulu force of some 20,000 warriors attacked a portion of the British main column consisting of about 1,800 British, colonial, during the battle Lieutenant-Colonel Pulleine ordered Lieutenants Coghill and Melvill to save the Queens Colour—the Regimental Colour was located at Helpmekaar with G Company. The two Lieutenants attempted to escape by crossing the Buffalo River where the Colour fell and was lost downstream, at this time the Victoria Cross was not awarded posthumously. This changed in the early 1900s when both Lieutenants were awarded posthumous Victoria Crosses for their bravery, the Battle of Isandlwana was dramatized in the 1979 movie Zulu Dawn. Two Boer cavalry officers, Lieutenants Adendorff and Vane, arrived to inform the garrison of the defeat at Isandlwana, the Acting Assistant Commissary James Dalton persuaded Bromhead and Chard to stay and the small garrison frantically prepared rudimentary fortifications. The Zulus first attacked at 4,30 pm, throughout the day the garrison was attacked from all sides, including rifle fire from the heights above the garrison, and bitter hand-to-hand fighting often ensued
30.
Norwegian Campaign
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The Norwegian Campaign was fought in Norway between Norway, the Allies and Germany in World War II after the latters invasion of the country. In April, the United Kingdom and France came to Norways aid with an expeditionary force, despite moderate success in the northern parts of Norway, Germanys invasion of France in May eventually compelled the Allies to withdraw and the Norwegian government to seek exile in London. The campaign ended with the occupation of Norway by Germany, the 62 days of fighting made Norway the nation that withstood a German invasion for the second longest period of time, after the Soviet Union. Britain and France had signed military assistance treaties with Poland and two days after the German invasion, both declared war on Nazi Germany. However, neither country mounted significant offensive operations and for several months no major engagements occurred in what known as the Phoney War or Twilight War. Winston Churchill in particular wished to move the war into an active phase. During this time both sides wished to open secondary fronts, for the Allies, in particular the French, this was based on a desire to avoid repeating the trench warfare of the First World War, which had occurred along the Franco-German border. Following the outbreak of the Second World War, the Norwegian government had mobilized parts of the Norwegian Army and all, the Norwegian Army Air Service and the Royal Norwegian Navy Air Service were also called up to protect Norwegian neutrality from violations by the warring countries. The first such violations were the sinkings in Norwegian territorial waters of several British ships by German U-boats, in the following months aircraft from all the belligerents violated Norwegian neutrality. Following protracted negotiations between 25 September and 20 November 1939, the Norwegians agreed to charter 150 tankers, as well as other ships with a tonnage of 450,000 gross tons. The Norwegian governments concern for the supply lines played an important role in persuading them to accept the agreement. Norway, although neutral, was considered important for both sides of the war for two main reasons. Narvik became of greater significance to the British when it became apparent that Operation Catherine, the Norwegian ports could have also served as holes in the blockade of Germany, allowing the latter access to the Atlantic Ocean. The principal reason for Germanys invasion of Norway was its dependence on Swedish iron ore, by securing access to Norwegian ports, the Germans could more easily obtain the supply of iron ore they needed for their war effort. Control of Norway was considered to be important to Germanys ability to use its sea power effectively against the Allies. While Norway was strictly neutral, and unoccupied by either of the fighting powers, but the weakness of the Norwegian coastal defences, and the inability of her field army to resist effectively a determined invasion by a stronger power were clear. A successful invasion of Norway by either side had the potential to strike a blow against the other without getting bogged down in the trench warfare of the previous conflict. Norway had particular importance to the Germans during the Battle of the Atlantic
31.
Dunadry
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Dunadry is a small village and townland 5km from Antrim in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is situated in the parish of Grange of Nilteen. It is within the Borough of Antrim and it had a population of 430 people in the 2011 Census. Around 1251 the name of Dunadry townland was recorded as Dunedergel, the Irish Dún Eadradh may reinterpret an earlier name, Dún Eadarghabhal, referring to a fort which formerly stood in the junction between the Six Mile Water River and the Rathmore Burn. The 1838 Ordnance Survey Memoir records Dunadry as taking its name from a fort which stood about 100 yards to the north of the village, the site of an ancient church and graveyard, formerly the parish church of the Grange of Nilteen, lies in the townland. In the Papal Taxation c.1306 the church is recorded as Ecclesia de Drumnedergal, the Ordnance Survey Memoir of 1838 records, however, that the foundations of the church were wholly removed and the burial ground cultivated. Dunadry railway station was opened on 11 April 1848 but closed on 20 September 1954, ellie Mays Dunadry Hotel List of towns and villages in Northern Ireland List of townlands in County Antrim
32.
Northern Ireland
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Northern Ireland is a constituent unit of the United Kingdom in the north-east of Ireland. It is variously described as a country, province, region, or part of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland shares a border to the south and west with the Republic of Ireland. In 2011, its population was 1,810,863, constituting about 30% of the total population. Northern Ireland was created in 1921, when Ireland was partitioned between Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland by an act of the British parliament, Northern Ireland has historically been the most industrialised region of Ireland. After declining as a result of the political and social turmoil of the Troubles, its economy has grown significantly since the late 1990s. Unemployment in Northern Ireland peaked at 17. 2% in 1986, dropping to 6. 1% for June–August 2014,58. 2% of those unemployed had been unemployed for over a year. Prominent artists and sports persons from Northern Ireland include Van Morrison, Rory McIlroy, Joey Dunlop, Wayne McCullough, some people from Northern Ireland prefer to identify as Irish while others prefer to identify as British. Cultural links between Northern Ireland, the rest of Ireland, and the rest of the UK are complex, in many sports, the island of Ireland fields a single team, a notable exception being association football. Northern Ireland competes separately at the Commonwealth Games, and people from Northern Ireland may compete for either Great Britain or Ireland at the Olympic Games. The region that is now Northern Ireland was the bedrock of the Irish war of resistance against English programmes of colonialism in the late 16th century, the English-controlled Kingdom of Ireland had been declared by the English king Henry VIII in 1542, but Irish resistance made English control fragmentary. Victories by English forces in war and further Protestant victories in the Williamite War in Ireland toward the close of the 17th century solidified Anglican rule in Ireland. In Northern Ireland, the victories of the Siege of Derry and their intention was to materially disadvantage the Catholic community and, to a lesser extent, the Presbyterian community. In the context of open institutional discrimination, the 18th century saw secret, militant societies develop in communities in the region and act on sectarian tensions in violent attacks. Following this, in an attempt to quell sectarianism and force the removal of discriminatory laws, the new state, formed in 1801, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, was governed from a single government and parliament based in London. Between 1717 and 1775 some 250,000 people from Ulster emigrated to the British North American colonies and it is estimated that there are more than 27 million Scotch-Irish Americans now living in the US. By the close of the century, autonomy for Ireland within the United Kingdom, in 1912, after decades of obstruction from the House of Lords, Home Rule became a near-certainty. A clash between the House of Commons and House of Lords over a controversial budget produced the Parliament Act 1911, which enabled the veto of the Lords to be overturned. The House of Lords veto had been the unionists main guarantee that Home Rule would not be enacted, in 1914, they smuggled thousands of rifles and rounds of ammunition from Imperial Germany for use by the Ulster Volunteers, a paramilitary organisation opposed to the implementation of Home Rule
33.
Invasion of Iceland
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The invasion of Iceland, codenamed Operation Fork, was a British military operation conducted by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines during World War II to occupy and deny Iceland to Germany. At the start of the war, Britain imposed strict controls on Icelandic goods, preventing profitable shipments to Germany. Britain offered assistance to Iceland, seeking cooperation as a belligerent and an ally, the German diplomatic presence in Iceland, along with the islands strategic importance, alarmed the British. After failing to persuade the Icelandic government to join the Allies, the initial force of 746 British Royal Marines commanded by Colonel Robert Sturges disembarked at the capital Reykjavík. Meeting no resistance, the troops moved quickly to disable communication networks, secure strategic locations, requisitioning local transport, the troops moved to Hvalfjörður, Kaldaðarnes, Sandskeið, and Akranes to secure landing areas against the possibility of a German counterattack. In 1918, after a period of Danish rule, Iceland had become an independent state in personal union with Denmark. The newly born Kingdom of Iceland declared itself a country without a defence force. The treaty of union allowed for a revision to begin in 1941, by 1928, all Icelandic political parties were in agreement that the union treaty would be terminated as soon as possible. On 9 April 1940, German forces launched Operation Weserübung, invading both Norway and Denmark, Denmark was subdued within a day and occupied. Iceland was invited to join Britain in the war as a belligerent, the Icelandic government rejected the offer. On 12 April, in Operation Valentine, the British took over the Faroe Islands, following the German invasion of Denmark and Norway, the British government became increasingly concerned that Germany would soon try to establish a military presence in Iceland. They felt that this would constitute a threat to British control of the North Atlantic. Just as importantly, the British were eager to obtain bases in Iceland for themselves to strengthen their Northern Patrol, planning conquest of Iceland for next week. As the military situation in Norway deteriorated, the Admiralty came to the conclusion that Britain could no longer do without bases in Iceland, on 6 May, Winston Churchill presented the case to the War Cabinet. Churchill maintained that if negotiations with the Icelandic government were attempted. A surer and more effective solution was to land troops unannounced, the War Cabinet approved the plan. The expedition was organized hastily and haphazardly, much of the operational planning was conducted en route. The force was supplied with few maps, most of poor quality, no one in the expedition was fully fluent in the Icelandic language
34.
Headquarters Northern Ireland
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HQ Northern Ireland was the formation responsible for the British Army in and around Northern Ireland. It was established in 1922 and disbanded, replaced by a brigade-level Army Reserve formation,38 Brigade, Northern Ireland District was established following the partition of Ireland in 1922 and was originally based at Victoria Barracks, Belfast. During the Second World War the role of the District was enhanced from internal security to that of combatting any threat of invasion from the Republic of Ireland, the status of the formation was upgraded from District to Command under the leadership of Lieutenant General Sir John Hackett in 1961. On 6 August 2007 HQ Northern Ireland and 38 Brigade combined to create a single transitional headquarters with a two star General Officer Commanding, at the same time the British military presence in the Province was reduced to about 5,000 troops. On 1 January 2009 the name of the changed to 38 Brigade. Other services had a footprint in the province during the Troubles. The RAFs presence in Northern Ireland was based at RAF Aldergrove, the Royal Navy no longer maintain a regular presence in Northern Ireland waters with the disbandment of the Northern Ireland Squadron. The Royal Navys main presence is HMS Hibernia, which serves as the HQ of the Royal Naval Reserves Ulster Division, in December 1989 the following units were permanently based in Northern Ireland under command of HQ Northern Ireland. The three infantry battalions on a 6-month rotation to Northern Ireland are shown in italics, smaller units on a 6-month roulement to Northern Ireland are not shown. Two Territorial Army battalions stationed in Northern Ireland were to immediately to Germany to reinforce British Army of the Rhine in case of war between NATO and the Warsaw Pact. For administrative purposes these units were under command of brigade HQs based in Northern Ireland during peacetime
35.
Officers' Training Corps
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The Officers Training Corps, more fully called the University Officers Training Corps, are leadership training units similar to a university club but operated by the British Army. Their focus is to develop the abilities of their members whilst giving them an opportunity to take part in military life whilst at university. UOTC units are not deployable units and cannot be mobilised for active service, the majority of members of the UOTC do not go on to serve in the regular or reserve forces. The committee recommended that an Officers Training Corps be formed, the Corps was to be in two divisions, a junior division in public schools and a senior division in the universities. Oxford UOTC claims descent from the bodyguard to Charles I that students of the University of Oxford formed in 1642, but the immediate origin of the present body is the 1st Oxfordshire Rifle Volunteer Corps, formed in 1859 and established in response to the threat of war with France. From 1881, the OURVC served as one of volunteer battalions of the Oxfordshire Light Infantry. The OUOTC was then was one of 23 such bodies formed at universities in Great Britain following the establishment of the Officers Training Corps by Royal Warrant in 1908, thereafter, the Cambridge University Rifle Volunteers was formally raised in 1860. During British involvement in the Second Boer War in 1899 there was a focus on volunteering for the forces serving in South Africa. In response to this, more than one hundred members of CURV applied, however, due to age, qualifications, training and, critically, attached to the Suffolk Regiment, the CURV men reported for duty on 20 January 1900 in Bury St Edmunds. On 11 February, they sailed from Southampton on the SS Doune Castle, initially the Cambridge Volunteers worked as guards on the railway lines around Cape Town, but alongside the Suffolks they joined the siege of Pretoria on 4 June. Although the defending Boer guns sent down artillery fire, no casualties were taken and this marked the end of the conventional phase of the Boer War and the progression into a more guerrilla style warfare, and the Volunteers guarded the railways from the Boer commando attacks. When the Suffolk Regiment marched as part of General Mahons column to attack a Boer position in Barberton, with 600 Boers entrenched around the town, supported by artillery, the battle was over before the Volunteers had arrived. However, due to their prowess at shooting, they were detailed to harrying the retreating Boers with long-range rifle fire, after more guard duties, they disembarked from Cape Town in April 1901 and returned to Britain on 4 May. With a large welcome home awaiting them, including a service in Great St Mary’s Church, all the Volunteers were made Honorary Freemen of the Borough of Cambridge and on 21 December 1904, three years later, CURV was granted the battle honour South Africa 1900-01. In 1908, CURV was renamed Cambridge University Officers Training Corps and is one of only two Officers Training Corps to be awarded a battle honour, Tayforth is descended from a Militia formed from the time of Charles II and the Jacobite rebellions of 1715 and 1745. In 1859 a committee was formed in St Andrews to form a corps of both rifle and artillery. This was carried in a meeting on 5 December 1859 and was carried unanimously. Following the formation of Dundee University from University College Dundee, a part of the University of St Andrews in 1967, the OTC became St Andrews and Dundee University OTC
36.
Royal Leicestershire Regiment
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The Leicestershire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, with a history going back to 1688. On 27 September 1688 a commission was issued to Colonel Solomon Richards to raise a regiment of foot in the London area, in its early years, like other regiments, the regiment was known by the name of its various colonels. Following a failed attempt to break the Siege of Derry in 1689 and it transferred to Portugal in 1704 and took part in the sieges of Valencia de Alcántara, Alburquerque and Badajoz in 1705 as well as the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo in 1706. It also saw action at the Battle of Almansa in April 1807 before returning to England in 1809 and it went to Scotland to suppress the Jacobite rising of 1715 and fought at the Battle of Sheriffmuir in November 1715. In 1726 the regiment moved to Minorca and in 1751 a royal warrant assigned numbers to the regiments of the line, following that war it also saw duty during Pontiacs Rebellion before eventually returning to England in 1767. The regiment embarked for Boston, landing there on New Years Day 1776 and it saw action at the Battle of Long Island in August 1776, the Battle of White Plains in October 1776 and the Battle of Fort Washington in November 1776. Several companies were captured at the Battle of Stony Point in July 1779 by a daring bayonet charge by Mad Anthony Wayne. The regiment was in action again at the Battle of Guilford Court House in March 1781, the regiment became the 17th Regiment of Foot. The regiment moved to Nova Scotia in 1783 before returning to England in 1786, in 1804 the regiment moved to India, and remained there until 1823. In 1825 the regiment was granted the badge of a tiger to recall their long service in the sub-continent. The Regiment was posted to New South Wales from 1830 to 1836, the regiment returned to India in 1837, and then took part in the Battle of Ghazni in July 1839 and the Battle of Khelat in November 1839 during the First Anglo-Afghan War. The regiment next came under fire at the Siege of Sevastopol in winter 1854 during the Crimean War, in 1858 a second battalion was raised. Together these formed a battalion, which became the 1st Volunteer Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment in 1880. By 1900, when the unit provided a detachment of volunteers to serve alongside the Regulars during the Second Boer War, under the reforms the regiment became The Leicestershire Regiment on 1 July 1881. The 1st and 3rd battalions fought in the Second Boer War 1899 –1902, the 2nd Battalion was stationed as a garrison regiment in Ireland from 1896, and in Egypt from February 1900. In 1908, with the creation of the Territorial Force, the 1st Volunteer Battalion formed the 4th and 5th Battalions, there was a minor controversy in the same year, when new colours were issued to the 1st Battalion to replace those of the 17th foot. A green tiger had been shown on the old colours and the regiment refused to take the new issue into use, the issue was resolved when the regiment received permission for the royal tiger emblazoned on the regimental colours to be coloured green with gold stripes. In the First World War, the regiment increased from five to nineteen battalions which served in France and Flanders, Mesopotamia, the 1st Battalion landed at Saint-Nazaire as part of the 16th Infantry Brigade in the 6th Division in September 1914 for service on the Western Front
37.
Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
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The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry was a light infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1958, serving in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. The former numerical titles of the battalions remained in unofficial usage, 1st Battalion The 43rd Foot was based in Burma when it became the 1st Battalion. In 1882 the unit moved to Bangalore, India, in 1887 the battalion returned home, being based in Parkhurst, England. It moved to Kinsale, Ireland in 1893 and, having based in other parts of Ireland. In December 1899 the Second Boer War began and the 1st Battalion arrived in Southern Africa to take part in it. It saw extensive service in the conflict, including in the relief of the besieged British garrison at Kimberley, the war raged on for a further two years, the regiment saw extensive service for the duration of the conflict. The Oxfordshires returned to the UK in 1902 with the conclusion of the war and it moved to India the following year where it was based until the outbreak of World War I in 1914. 2nd Battalion The 52nd Light Infantry was based in Oxford, England and this was the 52nd of Waterloo fame who, under the command of Colonel Sir John Colborne, broke a battalion of the Chasseurs of the Imperial Guard. In 1886 it was based in India, where it would remain into the 20th century, in 1903 the battalion returned home and was initially based in Chatham and in 1907 moved to Tidworth, Wiltshire. The battalion was stationed at Albuhera barracks, Aldershot, when World War I commenced, during the war, the Ox and Bucks raised 12 battalions, six of which fought on the Western Front, two in Italy, two in Macedonia and one in Mesopotamia. The regiment won 59 battle honours and four theatre honours,5,878 officers and men of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry lost their lives during the First World War. The battalion took part in the first British battle of the war, at Mons, where the British defeated the German forces that they had encountered on 23 August. The 2nd Ox and Bucks later took part in all the battles of the First Battle of Ypres that saw the heart ripped out of the old Regular Army. In the First Battle of Ypres the 2nd Ox and Bucks first engagement with the enemy was on 20 October in an attack on the Passchendaele ridge, the battalion had heavy casualties,4 officers killed and 5 wounded and 143 other ranks killed or wounded. On 11 November the Germans made another attempt to capture Ypres, First Ypres was the last major battle of 1914. In 1915 trench warfare commenced with both sides developing impregnable defences, leading to casualties in return for minimal gains. The 2nd Ox and Bucks were involved in fighting at Richebourg lAvoue on 15–16 May. The 2nd Ox and Bucks and other battalions of the regiment also saw action at the Battle of Loos, 2nd Ox, the 2nd Battalion took part in the subsequent attack against the Hohenzollern Redoubt
38.
Royal Berkshire Regiment
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The Royal Berkshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was created in 1881, as the Princess Charlotte of Waless, by the amalgamation of the 49th Regiment of Foot, in 1921, it was renamed the Royal Berkshire Regiment. The regiment saw service in the Second Boer War, World War I. The Berkshire Regiment was formed as part of the carried out by Edward Cardwell and Hugh Childers. The first stage, under Cardwell in 1873, introduced a localisation scheme and this saw the United Kingdom divided into Brigade Districts consisting of a county or counties. Each district was assigned two infantry battalions, one of which would be on foreign service while the other was on home service. The home-based battalion was to provide drafts to the battalion on duty as required. County militia regiments were also to be linked with the regular battalions and it was announced that a depot was to be built at Reading, Berkshire, which would serve a district comprising the County of Berkshire. The two line battalions which were to be linked were the 49th and 66th Regiments of Foot, on 1 July 1881, the reforms were completed under Childers, with the formation of the The Princess Charlotte of Waless 1st Battalion. The regiment had raised in 1743, and had been granted the title Princess Charlotte of Waless in 1816. The regiment had raised in 1758. They arrived by train in Penzance at around 4pm and took temporary barracks in the town, two hours later their assistance was requested by the Superintendent in charge and assisted police in occupying the pier at Newlyn long enough to see in the arrival of the HMS Ferret. The 1st Battalion was posted at Gibraltar from February 1900, most battalions would see active service in the trenches of the Western Front in Belgium and France. The 1st Battalion was a Regular Army unit and was serving with the 6th Brigade, part of the 2nd Division and served with the British Expeditionary Force when it was sent to Belgium in 1914. They fought in the Battle of Mons, the Marne and the First Battle of Ypres, in 1915 during the Battle of Loos, 2nd Lieutenant Alexander Buller Turner of the 3rd Battalion, attached to the 1st, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. In 1916 Lance corporal James Welch, also of the 1st Battalion, was awarded the Victoria Cross as well and they came to the Western Front in late 1914 and served there for the rest of the war. The Territorial Force saw an expansion and raised the 1/4th, 2/4th and 3/4th battalions. The 1/4th Battalion was part of the South Midland Brigade of the South Midland Division, in 1915 it was designated the 145th Brigade, 48th Division
39.
Royal Engineers
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The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers, and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army. It is highly regarded throughout the military, and especially the Army and it provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is headed by the Chief Royal Engineer. The Regimental Headquarters and the Royal School of Military Engineering are in Chatham in Kent, the corps is divided into several regiments, barracked at various places in the United Kingdom and around the world. In Woolwich in 1716, the Board formed the Royal Regiment of Artillery and established a Corps of Engineers, the manual work was done by the Artificer Companies, made up of contracted civilian artisans and labourers. In 1782, a Soldier Artificer Company was established for service in Gibraltar, ten years later the Gibraltar company, which had remained separate, was absorbed and in 1812 the name was changed to the Corps of Royal Sappers and Miners. The Corps has no battle honours, in 1832, the regimental motto, Ubique Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducunt, was granted. The motto signified that the Corps had seen action in all the conflicts of the British Army. In 1911 the Corps formed its Air Battalion, the first flying unit of the British Armed Forces, the Air Battalion was the forerunner of the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force. In 1915, in response to German mining of British trenches under the then static siege conditions of the First World War, before the Second World War, Royal Engineers recruits were required to be at least 5 feet 4 inches tall. They initially enlisted for six years with the colours and a six years with the reserve or four years. Unlike most corps and regiments, in which the age limit was 25. They trained at the Royal Engineers Depot in Chatham or the RE Mounted Depot at Aldershot, the Royal Engineers Museum is in Gillingham in Kent. Britain having acquired an Empire, it fell to the Royal Engineers to conduct some of the most significant civil engineering schemes around the world, some examples of great works of the era of empire can be found in A. J. Smitherss book Honourable Conquests. The Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment, commanded by Richard Clement Moody, was responsible for the foundation, the Royal Albert Hall is one of the UKs most treasured and distinctive buildings, recognisable the world over. Since its opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the leading artists from every kind of performance genre have appeared on its stage. The Hall was designed by Captain Francis Fowke and Major-General Henry Y. D. Scott of the Royal Engineers, the designers were heavily influenced by ancient amphitheatres, but had also been exposed to the ideas of Gottfried Semper while he was working at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Much of the British colonial era infrastructure of India, of which survive today, was created by engineers of the three presidencies armies and the Royal Engineers. In 1838 he designed and built sea defences for Vizagapatam and he masterminded the Godavery Delta project where 720,000 acres of land were irrigated and 500 miles of land to the port of Cocanada was made navigable in the 1840s
40.
Cheshire Regiment
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The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence of over 300 years. The regiment was expanded in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the linking of the 22nd Regiment of Foot, the title 22nd Regiment continued to be used within the regiment. In 1689, Henry Howard, Duke of Norfolk, raised a regiment on the little Roodee at Chester, for the early part of its formation, the regiment was known by the name of the current colonel. The regiment fought at the Battle of the Boyne in July 1690, at the Battle of Aughrim in July 1691 and at the Siege of Limerick in August 1691. The regiment continued to serve as a garrison in Ireland from this point until 1695, when it was sent to the Low Countries for a short time before returning to its duties in Ireland. In 1702, the regiment sailed to Jamaica under the colonelcy of William Selwyn, spending the next years in combat duties against the French and native population. By 1751, the regiment had become the 22nd Regiment of Foot, in 1758, it took part in the Siege of Louisbourg in French Canada. The regiment also took part in General Wolfes victory over the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in September 1759, the regiment received two battle honours for taking part in the capture of Martinique and the British expedition against Cuba during 1762. The regiment was sent to North America for service in the American Revolutionary War in 1775, the regiment later evacuated from Boston to Halifax and then took part in the New York and New Jersey campaigns of 1776. The Battalion Companies participated in the Battle of Rhode Island in August 1778 and then returned to New York City in 1779, although the County designation existed as early as 1772, the regiment was retitled the 22nd Regiment of Foot in 1782. It was deployed to the West Indies in September 1793, taking part in expeditions against Martinique, Saint Lucia, Guadeloupe, in January 1800, the regiment was posted to South Africa, before moving to India where it suffered heavy losses during the assault on Bhurtpore in 1805. In 1810, the regiment took part in the occupation of Mauritius, the regiment took part in the Battle of Miani in February 1843, the Battle of Hyderabad in March 1843 and the conquest of Sindh in summer 1843 during further Indian service. Under the reforms the regiment became The Cheshire Regiment on 1 July 1881 and its recruiting area was confirmed as being the County of Cheshire. Both battalions of the regiment served in Burma between 1887 and 1891, while the 2nd Battalion saw active service in South Africa in 1900. The 1st battalion landed at Le Havre as part of the 15th Brigade in the 5th Division in August 1914 for service on the Western Front and it also saw action at the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915 and the Battle of Hill 60 also in April 1915. In 1917 they fought at the Battle of Arras in April 1917 and it then took part in the Battle of the Lys in April 1918 and the Battles of the Hindenburg Line and the Final Advance in Picardy later in the year. The 1/5th Battalion landed at Le Havre as part of the 14th Brigade in the 5th Division in February 1915 for service on the Western Front
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Reconnaissance Corps
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The Reconnaissance Corps, or simply Recce Corps, was a corps of the British Army, formed during the Second World War whose units provided the mobile spearhead of infantry divisions. It was formed from infantry brigade reconnaissance groups on 14 January 1941, all the brigade reconnaissance groups of each infantry corps were formed into reconnaissance battalions, each usually bearing the number of its relevant division. For example, the 43rd Battalion, Reconnaissance Corps was the reconnaissance battalion of the 43rd Division. Initially, coming from infantry units, reconnaissance units used the designations of battalions, companies. However, from 6 June 1942, the Corps changed to the descriptions of regiments, squadrons. The Corps became part of the Royal Armoured Corps in 1944, with the end of the war, this number of reconnaissance units was not needed and the Reconnaissance Corps was disbanded in August 1946. Reconnaissance duties reverted to regular armoured units of the RAC, the Reconnaissance Corps was charged with gathering vital tactical information in battle for infantry divisions, probing ahead and screening the flanks of main advances. The training centre was established at Winchester in February 1941, until the home of the Corps moved to Catterick in Yorkshire. Many failed and were sent to infantry battalions, but those who succeeded enjoyed the kudos of belonging to an elite unit and were determined to prove their own worth. Before beginning training with his unit, each man undertook a course with technical units. Most recce men became efficient in two of these roles e. g. driver and operator, Reconnaissance regiments were organised into a headquarters squadron and three reconnaissance squadrons. Each recce squadron comprised three troops and an assault troop. Scout troops were equipped with Bren Gun Carriers and light reconnaissance cars, the assault troops were composed of lorried infantry and were called up when enemy resistance needed to be overcome. Later in the war, more efficient and well-armed armoured cars such as the Humber Armoured Car, Daimler Armoured Car, the following units served in the Recce Corps, 1st Reconnaissance Regiment formed January 1941 in the 1st Division from the Hampshire Regiment. 2nd Reconnaissance Regiment formed April 1941 in the 2nd Division, mainly from the 6th Battalion, Loyal Regiment, 3rd Reconnaissance Regiment formed April 1941 in the 3rd Division, from the 8th Battalion, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers. 4th Reconnaissance Regiment formed January 1941 mainly from the companies of the 10th, 11th and 12th Brigades of the 4th Division. 5th Reconnaissance Regiment formed February 1941 in the 5th Division from the 3rd Battalion, 18th Reconnaissance Battalion formed in the 18th Division from the 5th Battalion, Loyal Regiment, surrendered at Singapore 1942. 44th Reconnaissance Regiment formed January 1941 in the 44th Division from the 7th Battalion, Queens Own Royal West Kent Regiment, transferred to 56th Division in 1943, but retained number
United Kingdom
Territorial Army
