20th Brigade (United Kingdom)

Boer War

British Army brigades had traditionally been ad hoc formations known by the name of their commander or numbered as an integral part of a division. However, units deployed to the Second Boer War in 1899 were organised into sequentially numbered brigades that were frequently reassigned between divisions. 20th Brigade was formed in South Africa in 1900 under the command of Major-General Arthur Paget as part of Lieutenant-General Lord Methuen's 1st Division. It comprised two regular infantry battalions that were already serving in the theatre and had seen much action, together with two Militia battalions newly arrived from Britain:

Order of Battle 1900

The composition of 20 Bde in May–June 1900 was as follows:

When the Militia were embodied in November 1899 and invited to volunteer for overseas service, it had been intended to employ them in garrisons and on lines on communications in order to release Regular troops for frontline service. However, 20th Brigade with its mix of Regulars and Militia was immediately thrown into action during Lord Roberts' advance through the Transvaal. Methuen's 1st Division was assigned to guard Roberts' left flank in the Orange Free State. 20th Brigade assisted General Hunter's 10th Division at Christiana then 1st Division captured Hoopstad by a surprise night attack. Methuen's men earned the nickname of 'the Mobile Marvels' for their hard marching. At the end of May Methuen marched to relieve Lindley, and left 20 Bde there to guard the town while he continued on to relieve Heilbron in June.

By now the Boers in Orange Free State had broken up into small parties, and British forces spent many months pursuing them, especially the guerrillas led by Christiaan de Wet (in the 'Great de Wet Hunt'). For the rest of the war, formal divisional and brigade organisations dissolved into ad hoc columns formed and reformed for specific tasks.

World War I

Soon after the outbreak of World War I, a new 20th Brigade was organised, composed of the last three Regular infantry battalions left in Britain after the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) went to France. Although not officially designated a Guards brigade, it did contain two Guards battalions (1st Grenadier Guards from Warley Barracks and 2nd Scots Guards from the Tower of London), together with 2nd Border Regiment stationed at Pembroke Dock. Both Guards battalions were largely composed of Reservists recalled to the Colours. A Guards officer, Brigadier-General H.G. Ruggles-Brise, was appointed to command the brigade.

20th Brigade assembled at Lyndhurst, Hampshire, forming part of 7th Division, which was otherwise composed of Regular battalions brought back from various overseas stations. 2nd Battalion Gordon Highlanders returned from Cairo to complete 20th Bde just before the division sailed from Southampton.

Order of Battle 1914

The composition of 20 Bde on embarkation was as follows:

1st Battle of Ypres

7th Division landed at Zeebrugge on 7 October 1914, intended to assist the Belgian Army in the defence of Antwerp. In the event all it could do was help to cover the Belgian retreat and then take up defensive positions at Ypres where they were joined by the rest of the BEF after the Race to the Sea. Thereafter 20th Brigade was engaged in heavy fighting at Langemarck and Gheluvelt during the First Battle of Ypres. Like several other senior officers who got out among their units to exercise personal command during this confused fighting, Ruggles-Brise was wounded, being carried back 'half dead of a dreadful wound on a stretcher' on 2 November. All the battalion commanders also having become casualties, the Brigade Major (Major A.B.E. Cator) took command as senior officer in the brigade.

On 5 December, the badly-depleted brigade was reinforced by a Territorial Force unit, the 1/6th (Banff and Donside) Battalion Gordon Highlanders, which had been serving as GHQ troops since landing in France. 20th Brigade's last major action in 1914 was a failed attack on the Well Farm position at La Boutillerie by 2nd Scots Guards and 2nd Border on 18 December. The dead from this action were buried during the Christmas truce.

1915

During the first half of 1915, the brigade was involved in the Battles of Neuve Chapelle (10–13 March), Aubers Ridge (9 May – in reserve), Festubert (15–19 May) and Givenchy (15–16 June).

When the Guards Division was formed in August 1915, 20 Bde's two Guards battalions left to join it, being replaced by two 'New Army' battalions sent from England, the 8th and 9th Battalions Devonshire Regiment. The new battalions were 'blooded' at the Battle of Loos.

Order of Battle September 1915

For the Battle of Loos, the composition of 20 Bde (with casualties in brackets) was as follows:

1916

In January 1916, 1/6th Gordons returned to GHQ troops in exchange for 1/6th Bn Cheshire Regiment, but this battalion left the brigade for 39th Division in February, after which 20 Bde reverted to the normal four-battalion formation. In line with a new organisation for infantry brigades, it formed a Machine-Gun Company and a Trench Mortar Battery in February 1916.

During the Battle of the Somme, 20 Bde was involved in the following actions:

1917

In the early part of 1917, 20 Bde was involved in the following actions:

During the Third Battle of Ypres 20 Bde was engaged at:

Italian Front

On 17 November, 7th Division entrained for the Italian Front as part of the reinforcements rushed to assist the Italian Army after the defeat of Caporetto. The division remained on the Piave front until 23 February 1918, when it was ordered to return to France. However, these orders were cancelled in March, and the division moved to the Asiago Plateau, taking part in the fighting there in June.

As part of an Army-wide reorganisation, 20th Machine-Gun Company left 20 Bde in Spring 1918 to join the 7th Division Machine-Gun Battalion. A more fundamental reorganisation took place in September 1918: in preparation to move back to France 20 Bde was reduced to three battalions in line with the current establishment for the Western Front. 9th Devons was transferred to another division in France, but the divisional move was once again countermanded. The reduced brigade then took part in the final actions of the war on the Italian Front, the Battle of Vittorio Veneto, including the Passage of the Piave (23 October–4 November), the capture of the Grave di Papadopoli (23–26 October) and the Crossing of the Tagliamento (3 November). The brigade was demobilised in Italy soon after the Armistice with Austria.

Brigade Commanders 1914–18

The following officers commanded 20 Bde during World War I:

In April 1940 the brigade number was reactivated for 20th Independent Infantry Brigade (Guards), which fought in the brief expedition to Boulogne in June that year. In 1941 it was converted to the armoured role as 5th Guards Armoured Brigade in Guards Armoured Division.