A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,000 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies. In some countries, battalions are exclusively infantry, while in others battalions are unit-level organizations.
Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within an armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a military hierarchy. It incorporates the principles of exercising power and authority into the military chain of command – the succession of commanders superior to subordinates through which command is exercised. The military chain of command constructs an important component for organized collective action.
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division.
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.
A group is a military unit or a military formation that is most often associated with military aviation.
III Corps was an army corps of the British Army formed in both the First World War and the Second World War.
An Army Group Royal Artillery (AGRA) was a British Commonwealth military formation during the Second World War and shortly thereafter. Generally assigned to Army corps, an AGRA provided the medium and heavy artillery to higher formations within the British Army.
The West Sussex County Division was a formation of the British Army, raised in the Second World War and formed by the redesignation of Brocforce on 9 November 1940. On 18 February 1941, the headquarters was redesignated as the Essex County Division. It was commanded by four officers, Major-General Edwin Morris from formation until 16 December, Brigadier A. E. Lawrence until 29 December, Major-General Sir Oliver Leese until 30 January 1941 and then Brigadier H. J. Parham. It was an infantry only formation consisting of two Independent Infantry Brigades. Usually, combat support, artillery, engineers etc., would be provided by other local formations, exceptionally, for a county division, the 29th Brigade Group commanded additional units.
Colonel commandant is a military title used in the armed forces of some English-speaking countries. The title, not a substantive military rank, could denote a senior colonel with authority over fellow colonels. Today, the holder often has an honorary role outside the executive military structure, such as advocacy for the troops.
The 5th Indian Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II that fought in several theatres of war and was nicknamed the "Ball of Fire". It was one of the few Allied divisions to fight against three different armies - the Italian, German and Japanese armies.
This is the British Expeditionary Force order of battle on 9 May 1940, the day before the German forces initiated the Battle of France.
The 8th Armoured Division was an armoured division of the British Army during the Second World War. It was deployed to Egypt in June 1942 but never operated as a complete formation and was disbanded in January the following year.
Major General Albert Bruce Matthews was a senior Canadian Army officer and businessman in the 1930s. He rose to be the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 2nd Canadian Infantry Division during the Second World War, after campaigns in Sicily and Italy. He became noted for his personal bravery and the accuracy and reliability of the artillery under his command. Post-war, his business career continued. In addition, he was active in the Canadian Liberal Party.
The 8th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars, before being disbanded and reactivated in the 1960s. The brigade was finally being disbanded in 2006. It was formed before the First World War as part of the 3rd Division. As part of that division it spent the entire war on the Western Front from 1914 to 1918 in the First World War. The brigade was also active during the Second World War.
The 25th Indian Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II which fought in the Burma Campaign. It was re-raised within the post-independence Indian Army in 1948.
General Sir Gwilym Ivor Thomas, was a senior British Army officer who saw active service in both World Wars. He is most notable for commanding the 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division throughout the campaign in Western Europe from June 1944 until Victory in Europe Day in May 1945, and later rose to become Quartermaster-General to the Forces.
Major-General Sir Stephen Cyril Ettrick Weir, was a New Zealand military leader and diplomat.
In the Allied invasion of Italy, a phase of the Mediterranean Theater of World War II, Allied naval forces landed American and Commonwealth troops on the beaches of southern Italy where they faced resistance from Axis forces.
The Eastern Command is one of the six operational commands of the Indian Army. It is headquartered in Fort William in the city of Kolkata in the state of West Bengal. The Eastern Command was formed on 1 November 1920. The Command is commanded by a three-star rank officer with the title General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C).
59th Army Group Royal Artillery was an artillery formation of the British Army in World War II. Having operated in the North West Europe theatre in late 1944, it was switched to India to command artillery units preparing for the liberation of South-East Asia.