British infantry brigades of the First World War

Background

At the outbreak of the war in August 1914, the British regular army was a small professional force. It consisted of 247,432 regular troops organised into four Guards, 69 line infantry and 31 cavalry regiments, along with artillery and other support arms. The regular Army was supported by the Territorial Force, and by reservists. In August 1914, there were three forms of reserves. The Army Reserve of retired soldiers was 145,350 strong. The Special Reserve had another 64,000 men and was a form of part-time soldiering, similar to the Territorial Force. The National Reserve had some 215,000 men, who were on a register which was maintained by Territorial Force County Associations; these men had military experience, but no other reserve obligation. The regulars and reserves—at least on paper—totalled a mobilised force of almost 700,000 men, although only 150,000 men were immediately available to be formed into the British Expeditionary Force.

Pre war regular army

After 1907, the regular British Army, serving at home, was grouped into six divisions, each of three brigades numbered 1st–18th. Following the declaration of war, four infantry battalions, which had been intended to defend the lines of communication, were brigaded together as the 19th Brigade. Near the end of 1914, when regular army battalions returned to Europe from serving around the British Empire, they formed the 7th and 8th Division, with the 20th–25th brigades. As the war progressed three more regular army divisions were formed the 27th, 28th and 29th, with their brigades being numbered from 80th–88th.

Territorial Force

The reserve formations of the Territorial Force comprised fourteen divisions each of three brigades, while another three brigades were independent formations intended for coastal defence. They were unnumbered until August 1915, and took the name of the region they were affiliated with, or the name of the regiments that supplied their battalions. When the brigades were given numbers they became the 125th–234th brigades. As a home defence organisation, their men could not be sent overseas against their wishes. After war was declared almost to a man the Territorial Force volunteered to serve overseas, so a second line Territorial Force was recruited, virtually a mirror image of the first line divisions and brigades. For example, the Northumbrian Division, had the Northumberland, York and Durham and the Durham Light Infantry Brigades. The second line 2nd Northumbrian Division, had the 2nd Northumberland, 2nd York and Durham and the 2nd Durham Light Infantry Brigades. Volunteers for the second line Territorial Force had the same terms and conditions as the first line, and could not be sent overseas unless they agreed to do so.

Kitchener's Army

The third part of the British Army was the New Army, also known as Kitchener's Army. Recruits for the New Armies were technically part of the regular army, serving for three years or until the end of the war. The first of the New Armies comprised the 9th–14th divisions, with the 26th–43rd brigades. The second New Army comprised the 15th–20th divisions, with the 44th–61st brigades. The third comprised the 21st–26th divisions, with the 62nd–79th brigades. The fourth and fifth were the Pals battalions of the 30th–35th divisions, with the 89th–106th brigades and the 37th–42nd divisions, with the 110th–136th brigades. The last New Army was the sixth, comprising the 36th–41st divisions, with the 107th–124th brigades.

Infantry brigade composition

At the start of the First World War French, Russian and German divisions consisted of two brigades each of which were made up of two regiments. Each regiment had three battalions except the Russians with four, which meant that in total there were around 6,000 men in the brigade. The British Army was different. Their divisions consisted of three brigades, with each brigade having slightly over 4,000 men in four battalions, plus support troops, under the command of a brigadier general.

The 1914 British infantry brigade comprised a small headquarters and four infantry battalions, with two heavy machine guns per battalion. Over the course of the war, the composition of the infantry brigades gradually changed, and there was an increased emphasis upon providing them with their own organic fire support. By 1916 each brigade had a Vickers machine gun company and a mortar battery with eight Stokes Mortars. The machine gun companies were later withdrawn and combined into a divisional machine gun battalion. By 1918, the brigade formation had been reduced to three battalions. However each battalion now had thirty-six Lewis machine guns, making a total of 108 in the brigade.

Several brigades that served away from the Western Front and other main theatres of operations, had a different composition. The 228th Brigade, which served with the command of the Greek Crete Division, had a Royal Engineers signal section and a Royal Army Medical Corps field ambulance attached. Other brigades that served in the British Salonika Army, had a Section Ammunition Column attached. Brigades that served in the Mesopotamia Campaign had their own supply and transport columns of the Army Service Corps. One brigade, the 226th Mixed, was unique in the respect that it was the only infantry brigade with its own artillery, having two batteries from the Royal Garrison Artillery assigned.

In the trench warfare on the Western Front, an infantry brigade's defensive responsibilities depended upon where they were at the time. On 21 March 1918, the first day of the German Spring Offensive, the 173rd Brigade was responsible for 5,000 yards (4,600 m) of the front line. In 1918, the British Army was responsible for 126 miles (203 km) of the Western Front. The forty-two brigades, fourteen divisions, of the First Army had to defend 33 miles (53 km). The thirty-six brigades, twelve divisions, of the Second Army 23 miles (37 km). The forty-two brigades, fourteen divisions, of the Third Army 28 miles (45 km). The thirty-six brigades, twelve divisions, of the Fifth Army possibly had the hardest task with 42 miles (68 km) of front to defend.

Within the brigade a typical deployment was one battalion in the front line, with the other two in reserve, about 2 to 3 miles (3.2 to 4.8 km) back. The forward battalion had several sections manning outposts in the front trench with two companies manning strong points behind them. Their third company was in reserve to act as a counterattacking force and the fourth company was resting. Two brigades of a division would be deployed forward with the third brigade in reserve.