44th Parachute Brigade (V)

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British Army

The 44th Parachute Brigade (Volunteers) was a British Army Territorial Army parachute brigade, active from c.1950 to 1978.

British Army land warfare branch of the British Armed Forces of the United Kingdom

The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of British Armed Forces. As of 2018, the British Army comprises just over 81,500 trained regular (full-time) personnel and just over 27,000 trained reserve (part-time) personnel.

Contents

History

Formation

From 1950-1956 it was one of the brigades of 16th Airborne Division. From 1956 the division was reduced to the 44th Independent Parachute Brigade Group, comprising the 10th (County of London), 12th (Yorkshire), 13th (Lancashire), 15th (Scottish) and 17th (Durham Light Infantry) battalions of the Parachute Regiment. Shortly after formation, the 12th and 13th Battalions were amalgamated as 12th/13th (Yorkshire and Lancashire) Battalion. [1] In 1967, the TA battalions were reduced again, the 12th/13th and 17th being amalgamated to reform the 4th Battalion.

16th Airborne Division

The 16th Airborne Division was an airborne infantry division of the British Territorial Army. It was first commanded by Major-General Roy Urquhart, and had its divisional headquarters in London.

Parachute Regiment (United Kingdom) formation of the British Army

The Parachute Regiment, colloquially known as the Paras, is an elite airborne infantry regiment of the British Army. The regiment is one of the most elite units in the world. The first battalion is part of the Special Forces Support Group under the operational command of the Director Special Forces. The other battalions are the parachute infantry component of the British Army's rapid response formation, 16 Air Assault Brigade. The Paras are the only line infantry regiment of the British Army that has not been amalgamated with another unit since the end of the Second World War.

Reformation in 1967

It was reformed on 1 April 1967 from 44th Independent Parachute Brigade Group (T.A.). The Brigade was the only Territorial Army Parachute formation in the Army's order of battle. The following units were part of the Brigade: [2]

Chelsea, London area of central London, England, historically in the county of Middlesex.

Chelsea is an affluent area of South West London, bounded to the south by the River Thames. Its river frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above Sloane Square Underground station. The modern eastern boundary is Chelsea Bridge Road and the lower half of Sloane Street, including Sloane Square. To the north and northwest, the area fades into Knightsbridge and Brompton, but it is considered that the area north of King's Road as far northwest as Fulham Road is part of Chelsea.

The 289 Commando Troop originated as a Royal Artillery regiment of the Territorial Army that was formed in London in 1956. It was transferred to the Royal Horse Artillery in 1960 and reduced to a battery in 1967. In 1977 it was re-roled as a Commando battery before being reduced to a troop in 1999. It is now based in Plymouth as a detached part of 266 Battery where they perform the same Close Support Light Gun Role as part of 104 Regiment Royal Artillery, whilst also supporting 29 Commando Regiment in an unofficial role.

Birmingham Major city in the English Midlands, 2nd highest population of UK cities

Birmingham is the second-largest city and metropolitan area in England and the United Kingdom, with roughly 1.1 million inhabitants within the city area and 3.8 million inhabitants within the metropolitan area. This also makes Birmingham the 17th largest city and 8th largest metropolitan area in the European Union. Birmingham is commonly referred to as the nation's "second city".

The 44th Parachute Brigade (V) was disbanded on 31 March 1978. Only the 3 TA Parachute Battalions and 144 Field Ambulance retained their parachute role; 289 Battery RHA and 131 Squadron RE were converted to Commando units (289 reverting from RHA to RA) while the remainder of the Brigade units were either converted or disbanded.

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References

  1. "16th Airborne Division (TA)". ParaData. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  2. "Order of battle". Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2006-11-23.