30th Indian Brigade

Last updated

30th Indian Brigade
ActiveOctober 1914 – 29 April 1916
CountryBritish Raj Red Ensign.svg  British India
Allegiance British Crown
BranchEnsign of the Royal Indian Army Service Corps.svg  British Indian Army
Type Infantry
Size Brigade
Part of 10th Indian Division
12th Indian Division
6th (Poona) Division
Engagements First World War
Sinai and Palestine Campaign
Actions on the Suez Canal
Mesopotamian Campaign
Battle of Shaiba
Battle of Ctesiphon (1915)
Siege of Kut
Commanders
Notable
commanders
Br.-Gen. C.J. Melliss

The 30th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It initially saw active service in Egypt in 1915, before transferring to Mesopotamia. It took part in a number of battles and actions before being besieged at Kut and going into Turkish captivity in April 1916.

Contents

History

Formation

The 30th Indian Brigade was formed in October 1914 as part of Indian Expeditionary Force F (along with the 28th and 29th Indian Brigades) and sent to Egypt. [1]

10th Indian Division

After arriving in Egypt, it joined the 10th Indian Division when it was formed on 24 December. It served on the Suez Canal Defences, notably taking part in the Actions on the Suez Canal on 3–4 February 1915. After the defeat of the Turkish attempts to cross the canal, the division was dispersed and the brigade was sent to Mesopotamia in March 1915. [2]

12th Indian Division

The brigade joined the 12th Indian Division in Mesopotamia in April 1915. [3] With the division, the brigade took part in the Battle of Shaiba (12–14 April), the Affair of Khafajiya (14–16 May), the Actions for Nasiriya (5, 13–14, 24 July) and the Occupation of Nasiriya (25 July). [4]

6th (Poona) Division

The brigade was attached to the 6th (Poona) Division in September 1915. [5] It took part in the Battle of Kut al Amara (28 September), the Battle of Ctesiphon (22–24 November) and the Affair of Umm at Tubul (1 December). After the Battle of Ctesiphon it was decided to withdraw the division to Kut where it was besieged. With the fall of Kut in April 1916, the brigade passed into Turkish captivity. [6]

Order of battle

The brigade commanded the following units in the First World War: [7] [8] [9]

Commander

The brigade was commanded throughout its existence in the First World War by Major-General C.J. Melliss VC . [11] [12] [5] He went into captivity with his brigade.

See also

Notes

  1. The other half of the 2nd Battalion, Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment) was assigned to the 34th Indian Brigade, 12th Indian Division in January 1916; [3] the battalion was brought back up to full strength in 15th Indian Division in June 1916. [10]

Related Research Articles

The 10th Indian Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army during World War I. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914 with three infantry brigades of Indian Expeditionary Force F. After taking part in the Actions on the Suez Canal, the division was dispersed as its brigades were posted away.

The Meerut Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1904 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War and departed for the Western Front where it served as part of the 2nd Indian Cavalry Division.

The 6th (Poona) Division was a division of the British Indian Army. It was formed in 1903, following the Kitchener reforms of the Indian Army.

The 8th (Lucknow) Division was a formation of the British Indian Army's Northern Army that was first formed as a result of the Kitchener reforms of the Indian Army in 1903. The Division remained in India on internal security duties during World War I, though the 8th (Lucknow) Cavalry Brigade was transferred to the 1st Indian Cavalry Division and served in France on the Western Front, and the 22nd Lucknow Infantry Brigade served as part of the 11th Indian Division in Egypt.

The 9th (Secunderabad) Division was an infantry division formation of the British Indian Army. It was part of the Southern Army and was formed in 1904 after Lord Kitchener was appointed Commander-in-Chief, India between 1902 and 1909. He instituted large-scale reforms, including merging the three armies of the Presidencies into a unified force and forming higher level formations, eight army divisions, and brigading Indian and British units. Following Kitchener's reforms, the British Indian Army became "the force recruited locally and permanently based in India, together with its expatriate British officers."

The 12th Indian Division was formed in March 1915 from units of the British Indian Army. It formed part of the Tigris Corps, for service during the Mesopotamia Campaign of World War I. The Division arrived in Mesopotamia in April 1915 and remained there until it was broken up in March 1916. The Division's brigades remained in Mesopotamia as independent formations until forming part of the 15th Indian Division in May 1916. During its short existence it fought in a number of actions including the Battle of Shaiba between April 12–14, 1915, the Battle of Khafajiya between May 14–16, 1915, the Battle of Nasiriya between July 5, 13-14, 24 1915, where 400 British and Indian soldiers were killed in the battle and up to 2,000 Turkish Soldiers. The Occupation of Nasiriya and the affair at Butanuja, January 14, 1916.

The 17th Indian Division was formed in 1917 from units of the British Indian Army for service in the Mesopotamia Campaign during World War I. After the war, it formed part of the occupation force for Iraq and took part in the Iraq Rebellion in 1920. In August 1923, the division was reduced to a single brigade.

The 14th Indian Division was formed during World War I, for service in the Mesopotamian Campaign. It was composed of battalions of the Regular British Army, the British Territorial Force and the British Indian Army.

The 34th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the Mesopotamian campaign in the Indian Army during the First World War. It was reformed for the Second World War as the 34th Indian States Forces Infantry Brigade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">6th Indian Cavalry Brigade</span> Military unit

The 6th Indian Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was broken up soon after the end of the war.

The Garhwal Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1902 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 20th (Garhwal) Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War as part of the 7th (Meerut) Division and departed for France. It served on the Western Front until November 1915. It then moved to Egypt where it joined the 10th Indian Division, by now designated as 20th Indian Brigade. It left the division in March 1916 and thereafter served as an independent brigade in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. It was broken up in 1920.

The 33rd Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign in 1915 before being broken up at the end of the year.

The 12th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the First World War. It served in the Mesopotamian Campaign on the Euphrates Front throughout its existence.

The 53rd Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and formed part of the occupation force for Iraq post-war.

The 54th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and formed part of the occupation force for Iraq post-war. It was not reformed for the Second World War.

The 59th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that formed part of the Indian Army during the First World War. It remained in India throughout the war. It was not reformed for the Second World War.

The 35th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was disbanded shortly after the end of the war. It was not reformed for the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">37th Indian Brigade</span> Military unit

The 37th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was disbanded shortly after the end of the war.

The 36th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and later formed part of the North Persia Force. It remained with the Force until withdrawn in June 1921.

The 28th Indian Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. Formed in October 1914, it defended the Suez Canal in early 1915, ended the Ottoman threat to Aden in July 1915, took part in the Mesopotamian Campaign in 1916 and 1917, before finishing the war in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. It remained in Palestine until it was broken up in 1920.

References

  1. Perry 1993 , p. 172
  2. Perry 1993 , p. 118
  3. 1 2 Perry 1993 , p. 125
  4. Perry 1993 , p. 126
  5. 1 2 Perry 1993 , p. 74
  6. Perry 1993 , p. 78
  7. Perry 1993 , p. 116
  8. Perry 1993 , p. 124
  9. Perry 1993 , p. 76
  10. Perry 1993, p. 134
  11. Perry 1993 , p. 115
  12. Perry 1993 , p. 123

Bibliography