1st (United Kingdom) Division

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Mobile Division
1st Armoured Division
1st (United Kingdom) Armoured Division
1st (United Kingdom) Division
1ukdiv.svg
Insignia of the 1st Armoured Division
Active1937–1945
1960–1992
1993–Present
Country United Kingdom
Branch British Army
TypeInfantry Division
SizeSecond World War
14,964 men[1]
343 tanks[nb 1][nb 2]
Army 2020 size - around eight brigades, including 102 Logistics Brigade
Part ofField Army
Garrison/HQImphal Barracks, York, United Kingdom
EngagementsSecond World War
  • Battle of France
  • North African Campaign
  • Italian Campaign
First Gulf War
Iraq War
Commanders
Current
commander		Major General Charles Collins
Notable
commanders		Willoughby Norrie
Herbert Lumsden
Richard Hull
Rupert Smith

The 1st (United Kingdom) Division, formerly known as the 1st (United Kingdom) Armoured Division, is a division of the British Army. It has recently returned home from being stationed in Germany. Originally formed in November 1937 as the Mobile Division, it saw extensive service during the Second World War and was disbanded afterwards; reconstituted in 1976, it remains in service. It should not be confused with the 1st Infantry Division.

Formation[]

The division was formed in November 1937 on the initiative of General Sir Archibald Montgomery-Massingberd, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS). At the time, it was named The Mobile Division. The choice of General Officer Commanding reflected the tensions within the army. The Secretary of State for War (Leslie Hore-Belisha) wanted a Royal Tank Corps (RTC) officer as tanks would be the main force of the division but Montgomery-Massingberd wanted a cavalry officer. Supporters of Montgomery-Massingberd proposed that the tank element of the division should be formed from cavalry regiments equipped only with light tanks and that the tank brigade and its heavier tanks be removed from the division. The compromise was the appointment of Major-General Alan Brooke who was from the Royal Artillery.[3] When Brooke was promoted, his replacement was Major-General Roger Evans, a cavalry officer.[4]

The Mobile Division was formed with the 1st and 2nd Light Armoured Brigades, the 1st Army Tank Brigade, artillery, engineers and signals. Its paper strength was 620 armoured fighting vehicles but 7⁄8 of these were reconnaissance vehicles and some were simulated by trucks. The heavier tanks were in the tank brigade, which had obsolete medium tanks until cruiser tank deliveries began in December 1938. At the same time, the organisation of the division was changed to a Light Armoured Brigade (three regiments with light and cruiser tanks), a Heavy Armoured Brigade (three regiments of cruiser tanks) and a Support Group (motorised rifle battalion, motorised artillery regiment and a company of engineers). In practice, with insufficient cruiser tanks to equip the division, there was no difference in numbers and type of tanks between the light and heavy brigades.[5]

Second World War[]

The 1st Armoured Division first saw service during the Second World War in incomplete form under the command of Major-General Roger Evans[6] when the second British Expeditionary Force (2nd BEF) was sent to France in May 1940.[7] The 1st Armoured Division, consisting of the understrength 2nd and 3rd Armoured Brigades, along with the , and with no infantry support (which had been transferred in April to form the 30th Infantry Brigade), landed in France on 14 May 1940[8] and, after suffering heavy tank losses during the Battle of France, was evacuated to England on 16 June, having fought south of the river Somme, isolated from the other British formations.[9]

Cruiser Mk I tanks of the 5th Royal Tank Regiment, 1st Armoured Division, on Thursley Common, Surrey, July 1940.

Until 27 August 1941, the division was stationed in the United Kingdom on anti-invasion duties, anticipating a German invasion, under the command of Major-General Willoughby Norrie, who had taken command on 24 August 1940.[6] It then embarked for Egypt under the command of Major-General Herbert Lumsden and arrived on 13 November 1941.[8] After Major-General Lumsden was wounded, Major-General Frank Messervy took command in January 1942, retaining command until Major-General Lumsden returned in March.[6] The 1st Armoured Division took part in many of the battles of the North African Campaign against Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel, the "Desert Fox", including Gazala, Mersa Matruh, First El Alamein, Second El Alamein, , Mareth Line, Akarit, El Kourzia and Tunis.[7] In August 1942, Major-General Raymond Briggs was appointed to command and in July 1943 was succeeded by Major-General Alexander Galloway.[6]

Sherman tanks of the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays), 1st Armoured Division, at El Alamein, 24 October 1942.

From the end of the campaign in Tunisia in May 1943, which saw the surrender of almost 250,000 German and Italian soldiers, the 1st Armoured Division remained in North Africa until May 1944. The division, minus the 18th Lorried Infantry Brigade (previously 7th Motor Brigade, on loan to the 1st Infantry Division in the Anzio beachhead, only rejoining 1st Armoured in August),[10] then transferred to the Italian Front, arriving in Italy in late May.[8]

The division came under command of V Corps,[10] under Lieutenant-General Charles Keightley, of the Eighth Army, commanded by Lieutenant-General Sir Oliver Leese. The 1st Armoured Division was the only British division, of six in total, to have fought at Alamein under Eighth Army command, to rejoin the army in Italy.[11] During the fighting in front of the Gothic Line throughout August and September, the 2nd Armoured Brigade suffered severe losses in tanks in the Battle of Coriano, with the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays), losing 31 tanks, out of 52.[7][12] Major-General Richard Hull, aged just 37 and three months who became Chief of the General Staff, took over command for this part of the campaign in August 1944.[6] The division was broken up soon after, due to a lack of sufficient drafts to replace casualties; the 2nd Armoured Brigade survived as an independent brigade and the 18th Infantry Brigade was broken up and used to fill gaps in other British divisions, mainly for the 46th and 56th Infantry Divisions.[13] The division was officially disbanded on 11 January 1945.[14]

Order of battle[]

The 1st Armoured Division was constituted as follows and shows some of the changes that were made to British armoured formations during the war.[15][16][17]

From 3 September 1939[]

23 October 1942[]

Main article: Second Battle of El Alamein
  • 2nd Armoured Brigade (14 April 1940 – 29 September 1944)
  • 7th Motor Brigade (23 September 1942–19 July 1943)
    • 7th Battalion, Rifle Brigade
    • 2nd Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps
    • Minefield Task-force
      • 2nd Battalion, Rifle Brigade
      • 7th, 9th Field, 572nd Army Companies Royal Engineers
      • Detachments from 2nd Armoured Brigade
  • Hammerforce (attached from 8th Armoured Division)
    • 146th Field, 73rd Anti-tank, 56th Light A. A. Regiments Royal Artillery
    • 4th/6th South African Armoured Car Regiment
  • Royal Artillery
    • 2nd Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery
    • 4th Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery
    • 11th Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery (Honourable Artillery Company)
    • 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery
    • 42nd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery
  • Royal Engineers
    • 1st Field Squadron
    • 7th Field Squadron
    • 1st Field Park Squadron
  • Divisional Troops

Other brigades were part of the division for varying lengths of time:

Post Second World War[]

Ground operations during Operation Desert Storm, showing the 1st Armoured Divisions movements.

It was not until 1960 that the Division re-emerged in the British Army. It was reformed as the 1st Division following the disbandment of the 1st Infantry Division and was initially based with the British Army of the Rhine at Verden an der Aller in West Germany.[19]

During the 1970s, the division consisted of two "square" brigades, the 7th Armoured Brigade and 22nd Armoured Brigade.[20] It became the 1st Armoured Division in 1976 and served with I (BR) Corps being based at Caithness and Shiel Barracks in Verden in Germany from 1978.[21] After being briefly reorganised into two "task forces" ("Alpha" and "Bravo") in the late 1970s, it consisted of the 7th Armoured Brigade, the 12th Armoured Brigade and 22nd Armoured Brigade in the 1980s.[22] The divisional badge dates from 1983, and combines the hollow red triangular "spearhead" badge of the 1st Infantry Division with the charging rhinoceros badge of 1st Armoured Division as displayed in the Second World War.[23]

Gulf War[]

The headquarters of the division was deployed to Saudi Arabia in 1990 to command British land forces in the Gulf War. It had the 4th Armoured Brigade and 7th Armoured Brigade under command. During the war, it came under the US VII Corps and was part of the great armoured left-hook that destroyed many Iraqi Republican Guard formations. The two brigades in the division alternated heading the advance.[24] The division participated in the Battle of Norfolk.[25] During this engagement it destroyed several companies of Iraqi T-55 tanks.[26] After 48 hours of combat, the division destroyed or isolated four Iraqi infantry divisions (the 26th, 48th, 31st, and 25th) and overran the Iraqi in several sharp engagements. The division traveled 217 miles in 97 hours. It captured or destroyed about 300 tanks[27] and a very large number of armoured personnel carriers, trucks, reconnaissance vehicles, etc.[26][28] The division also took over 7,000 Iraqi prisoners of war including two division commanders and two other general officers.[29]

1993 to present[]

Structure 1st Armoured Division before the Army 2020 changes.

In 1993, HQ 1st Armoured Division was disbanded and the 1st (UK) Armoured Division formed from the 4th Armoured Division. The headquarters were established at Wentworth Barracks in Herford, Germany, in 1993.[30] In 1994 it had the 4th, 7th, and 20th Armoured Brigades, each with two armoured regiments with Challenger tanks and two Warrior‐equipped armoured infantry battalions and an AS90 self‐propelled howitzer regiment.[31]

The divisional headquarters was deployed in command of the Multi-National Division (South-West) in Bosnia in 1996–1997 and 1998–1999.[32]

The Division headquarters again deployed to the Persian Gulf area in 2003. It again commanded British forces in the area, this time with three full brigades under its control. Those were 7th Armoured Brigade again, along with 16 Air Assault Brigade, and 3 Commando Brigade. In a combined arms operation, the division secured southern Iraq, including the city of Basra during the invasion. It came under I Marine Expeditionary Force during the 2003 conflict.[33]

Under Army 2020, the division was renamed 1st (United Kingdom) Division in July 2014 and given responsibility for commanding the Adaptable Force; and then in June 2015, the divisional headquarters moved to Imphal Barracks in York.[34]

Organisation[]

The brigades currently assigned to the division are:[35][36][37]

Graphic of the 1st UK Division as of March 2021.

General Officers Commanding[]

Commanders have been:[57]

See also[]

Notes[]

Footnotes[]

  1. ^ 63 light tanks, 205 medium tanks, 24 close support tanks, 25 anti-aircraft tanks and 8 artillery observation tanks.[2]
  2. ^ These two figures are the war establishment of the division for 1944–1945; for information on how the division size changed over the war please see British Army during the Second World War and British Armoured formations of World War II.

Citations[]

  1. ^ Joslen, p. 129
  2. ^ Joslen, p. 9
  3. ^ AFV Profile Book No. 2 British and Commonwealth Armoured Formations (1919–1946) Profile Publishing p24
  4. ^ "Evans, Roger". Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  5. ^ AFV Profile Book No. 2 pp24–25
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Joslen, p. 13
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b c Chappell, p.12
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b c Joslen, p. 15
  9. ^ Ellis, Major L.F. "Fight for the Somme Crossings". History of the Second World War. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Joslen, p. 14
  11. ^ Alexander's Generals, the Italian Campaign 1944–45, Gregory Blaxland, p. 167
  12. ^ Alexander's Generals, the Italian Campaign 1944–45, Gregory Blaxland, p. 182
  13. ^ Alexander's Generals, the Italian Campaign 1944–45, Gregory Blaxland, p. 202-203
  14. ^ Joslen p. 13
  15. ^ Niehorster, Dr. Leo. "1st Armoured Division, British Army, 03-09-1939". World War II Armed Forces. Orders of Battle and Organisations. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
  16. ^ Niehorster, Dr. Leo. "1st Armoured Division, 23 October 1942". World War II Armed Forces. Orders of Battle and Organisations. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
  17. ^ Joslen pp. 13–15
  18. ^ Sutton, p. 136.
  19. ^ British Army Units
  20. ^ Watson, Graham (2005). The British Army in Germany: An Organisational History 1947-2004. Tiger Lily. p. 95. ISBN 9780972029698.
  21. ^ "Shiel Barracks". BAOR Locations. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  22. ^ Black, Harvey. "The Cold War Years. A Hot War in reality. Part 6".
  23. ^ "Badge, formation, 1st Armoured Division & 2nd Armoured Brigade". Imperial war Museum. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  24. ^ Order of Battle for VII Armoured Corps, see also Cordingley, "Eye of the Storm: Commanding 7th Armoured Brigade in the Gulf War."
  25. ^ Bourque, p.260
  26. ^ Jump up to: a b Bourque, p.275
  27. ^ "Challenger 1 Main Battle Tank". Global Security. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  28. ^ Bourque, p.377
  29. ^ Bourque P.319
  30. ^ "Wentworth Barracks". BAOR locations. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  31. ^ "Land Command Shapes Up", Jane's Defence Weekly, 15 July 1995; Charles Heyman, The British Army: A Pocket Guide 1997/1998, Pen & Sword, Barnsley, 24-25.
  32. ^ NATO ARRC, COMARRC
  33. ^ 1st (UK) Armoured Division in Iraq Field Artillery, January–February 2004
  34. ^ "Homecoming of a Yorkshire general". The Press. 4 June 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  35. ^ "Army restructures to confront evolving threats". Ministry of Defence. London. 31 July 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  36. ^ Burgess, Sally (1 August 2019). "British Army to train cyber spies to combat hackers and digital propaganda". Sky News. London. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  37. ^ Nicholls, Dominic (1 August 2019). "British Army to engage in social media warfare as new cyber division unveiled". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  38. ^ "4th Infantry Brigade and HQ North East". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
  39. ^ "7th Infantry Brigade and HQ East". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  40. ^ "11th Infantry Brigade & HQ South East". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  41. ^ "Today marked the formal move of 51 Brigade and Army Headquarters Scotland from Forthside Barracks, Stirling to its new home at Redford Cavalry Barracks in Edinburgh". The Army in Scotland – Twitter. 26 March 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  42. ^ at 4:56pm, Tom Sables 20th October 2020. "Is Your Military Base Closing? Read The Full List Of Sites Shutting". Forces Network. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  43. ^ Regular Army basing matrix by formation and unit Archived 14 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  44. ^ Army 2020 Update Archived 10 June 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  45. ^ "1st (United Kingdom) Division". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  46. ^ "102 Logistic Brigade - British Army".
  47. ^ "Question regarding whether 102nd Logistic Brigade HQ will disband or will the HQ continue to stay in the Field Army Order of Battle" (PDF). assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/. Ministry of Defence UK. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 9 April 2020. I can advise that we still plan to rationalise Headquarters 102nd Logistic Brigade
  48. ^ "102 Logistic Brigade". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  49. ^ "104th Logistic Support Brigade". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  50. ^ "1st (United Kingdom) Division". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  51. ^ "2nd Medical Brigade". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  52. ^ "Army 2020 Refine changes since 2017" (PDF). Dropbox. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
  53. ^ "Provost Marshal (Army) & 1st Military Police Brigade". army.mod.uk. British Army. 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  54. ^ "1st (United Kingdom) Division". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
  55. ^ "Today we realign (TACOM) to @1UKDivision We are very much looking forward at becoming part of #TeamRHINO". Twitter. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
  56. ^ "It's great to have @1MPBrigade as part of #teamrhino". Twitter. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
  57. ^ Colin Mackie. "Army Commands" (PDF). pp. 204–205. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  58. ^ Corps Commanders: Five British and Canadian Generals at War, 1939–45 By Douglas E. Delaney, p.128
  59. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h Armoured Division Unit Histories - 1st Armoured Division

References[]

  • Joslen, Lieutenant-Colonel H.F (1960) [1960]. Orders Of Battle Second World War 1939–1945. Naval & Military Press Ltd. ISBN 978-1-84342-474-1.
  • Chappell, Mike (1986) [1986]. British battle insignia, volume 2. Osprey. ISBN 978-0-85045-727-8.
  • Bourque, Stephen A. (2001). Jayhawk! The 7th Corps in the Persian Gulf War. Center of Military History, United States Army. LCCN 2001028533. OCLC 51313637.
  • Bourque, Stephen A.; Burdan, John (2007). The road to Safwan the 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry in the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Denton, Tex: University of North Texas Press. ISBN 9781574412321.
  • John Sutton (ed.), Wait for the Waggon: The Story of the Royal Corps of Transport and its Predecessors 1794–1993, Barnsley: Leo Cooper, 1998, ISBN 0-85052-625-6.

External links[]

Coordinates: 52°07′00″N 8°41′49″E / 52.11667°N 8.69694°E / 52.11667; 8.69694

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