137th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)

Last updated

137th Infantry Brigade
Active19391942
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Branch Flag of the British Army.svg Territorial Army
Type Infantry
Size Brigade
Part of 46th Infantry Division

The 137th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service during the Second World War.

Contents

History

The brigade was raised in the summer of 1939 when the Territorial Army was doubled in size in order to meet the threat of Nazi Germany. The brigade was formed as a 2nd Line duplicate of the 147th Infantry Brigade and was assigned to the 46th (West Riding and North Midland) Infantry Division. With the division, the brigade was sent overseas to join the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France in April 1940 for training and labour duties. In May, the brigade fought against the German Army in the Battle of France until being evacuated at Dunkirk with the rest of the BEF. After spending the next two years in the United Kingdom on home defence against a German invasion, in July 1942 it was decided to convert the 137th Brigade into an armoured formation. The brigades' infantry battalions were subsequently transferred to the Royal Armoured Corps and the brigade was redesignated 137th Armoured Brigade. [1] [2]

Order of battle

The composition of the brigade was as follows: [1] [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Corps (United Kingdom)</span> Inactive British Army formation

I Corps was an army corps in existence as an active formation in the British Army for most of the 80 years from its creation in the First World War until the end of the Cold War, longer than any other corps. It had a short-lived precursor during the Waterloo Campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">49th (West Riding) Infantry Division</span> Infantry division of the British Army

The 49th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. The division fought in the First World War in the trenches of the Western Front, in the fields of France and Flanders. During the Second World War, the division fought in the Norwegian Campaign and in North-western Europe. After the Second World War, it was disbanded in 1946, then reformed in 1947. It remained with Northern Command until finally disbanded in 1967.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)</span> British Army formation

The 4th Infantry Division was a regular infantry division of the British Army with a very long history, seeing active service in the Peninsular War and Waterloo Campaign, the Crimean and Boer Wars and both World Wars. It was disbanded after the Second World War and reformed in the 1950s as an armoured formation before being disbanded and reformed again and finally disbanded on 1 January 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">5th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)</span> British Army formation

The 5th Infantry Division was a regular army infantry division of the British Army. It was established by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington for service in the Peninsular War, as part of the Anglo-Portuguese Army, and was active for most of the period since, including the First World War and the Second World War and was disbanded soon after. The division was reformed in 1995 as an administrative division covering Wales and the English regions of West Midlands, East Midlands and East. Its headquarters were in Shrewsbury. It was disbanded on 1 April 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">II Corps (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

The II Corps was an army corps of the British Army formed in both the First World War and the Second World War. There had also been a short-lived II Corps during the Waterloo Campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">III Corps (United Kingdom)</span> Corps of the British Army in the First and Second World Wars

III Corps was an army corps of the British Army formed in both the First World War and the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division</span> Military unit

The 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division was an infantry division of Britain's Territorial Army (TA). The division was first formed in 1908, as the Wessex Division. During the First World War, it was broken-up and never served as a complete formation. It was reformed in the TA in 1920, and then served in the campaign in North West Europe from June 1944 until May 1945, during the Second World War. The division suffered heavy casualties and gained an excellent reputation. After the Second World War, the division formed part of the postwar TA, and became the 43rd (Wessex) Division/District in 1961. It was finally disbanded in 1967.

The 150th Infantry Brigade was an infantry formation of the British Army that saw active service in the Second World War. A 1st Line Territorial Army brigade, it was part of the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division. It served in the Battle of France and was evacuated from Dunkirk. Later it served in the Middle East and was overrun and forced to surrender during the Battle of Gazala in the North African Campaign. For almost 72 hours during the battle the 150th Brigade and the 44th Royal Tank Regiment held out against Erwin Rommel's concentrated attacks, without any support. On 1 June the German Army finally forced their surrender. The brigade was not reformed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">23rd Armoured Brigade (United Kingdom)</span> Military unit

The 23rd Armoured Brigade, originally formed as the 23rd Army Tank Brigade, was an armoured brigade of the British Army that saw service during the Second World War. The brigade was a 2nd Line Territorial Army (TA) formation. It was reorganised and renamed the 23rd Armoured Brigade, when it was assigned to the 8th Armoured Division, although it never operated under command of the division.

The 137th Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the British Army that saw active service during the Second World War

<span class="mw-page-title-main">12th Armoured Brigade Combat Team (United Kingdom)</span> British Army formation

The 12th Armoured Brigade Combat team, formerly the 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade, is a regular brigade of the British Army which has been in almost continuous existence since 1899 and now forms part of 3rd Division.

The 10th Infantry Brigade was a Regular Army infantry brigade of the British Army formed during the Second Boer War in 5th Division, and during both World Wars the brigade was part of the 4th Infantry Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sherwood Foresters</span> Infantry regiment of the British Army

The Sherwood Foresters was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for just under 90 years, from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Worcestershire Regiment to form the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment, which in 2007 was amalgamated with the Cheshire Regiment and the Staffordshire Regiment to form the present Mercian Regiment. The lineage of the Sherwood Foresters is now continued by The Mercian Regiment.

The 168th Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army that saw service during both the First and the Second World Wars. Throughout its existence, serving under many different titles and designations, the brigade was an integral part of the 56th (London) Infantry Division. It served on the Western Front during First World War and in the Italian Campaign during the Second World War. It was finally disbanded in the 1960s.

The 158th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that served in both the First and Second World Wars, before being disbanded in 1968. Throughout its existence the brigade was assigned to the 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division and was composed almost entirely of Territorial battalions from the Royal Welch Fusiliers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">46th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)</span> British 2nd Line Territorial Army formation

The 46th Infantry Division was a British Army infantry division formed during the Second World War that fought during the Battle of France, the Tunisian Campaign, and the Italian Campaign. In March 1939, after Germany re-emerged as a significant military power and occupied Czechoslovakia, the British Army increased the number of divisions in the Territorial Army (TA) by duplicating existing units. The 46th Infantry Division was formed in October 1939, as a second-line duplicate of the 49th Infantry Division. The division's battalions were drawn largely from men living in the English North Midlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beauman Division</span> Military unit

The Beauman Division was an improvised formation of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) during the Second World War, which fought in France against the German 4th Army in June 1940, during Fall Rot, the final German offensive of the Battle of France.

The 138th Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in the First World War with the 46th Division. The brigade again saw active service in the Second World War, with the 46th Infantry Division.

The 139th Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in the First World War with the 46th Division. Later designated the 139th Infantry Brigade, the brigade also saw service with the 46th Infantry Division in the Second World War.

References

  1. 1 2 Lt-Col H.F. Joslen, Orders of Battle, United Kingdom and Colonial Formations and Units in the Second World War, 1939–1945, London: HM Stationery Office, 1960/London: London Stamp Exchange, 1990, ISBN 0-948130-03-2/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2003, ISBN 1-843424-74-6, p. 323.
  2. 1 2 "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. 46th Recce Regiment at Recce Corps website.