| Eastern Command | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1793–1968 |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Command |
| Garrison/HQ | Colchester (1866–1905) London (1905–1939) Hounslow (1939-1941, 1945–1968) Luton Hoo (1941–1945) |
Eastern Command was a Command of the British Army.
Great Britain was divided into military districts on the outbreak of war with France in 1793. [1] In the first half of the 19th century the command included the counties of Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire and Hertfordshire. [2] It was based in Colchester. [3]
Disbanded after the Napoleonic Wars, the Eastern District Command was re-created in 1866 [4] [5] and was based at Flagstaff House in Colchester. [6] In January 1876 a ‘Mobilization Scheme for the forces in Great Britain and Ireland’ was published, with the ‘Active Army’ divided into eight army corps based on the District Commands. 1st Corps was to be formed within Eastern Command, based in Colchester. This scheme disappeared in 1881, when the districts were retitled ‘District Commands’. [7]
The 1901 Army Estimates introduced by St John Brodrick allowed for six army corps based on six regional commands. As outlined in a paper published in 1903, IV Corps was to be formed in a reconstituted Eastern Command, with HQ at London. [8] Lieutenant General Lord Grenfell was appointed acting General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOCinC) of IV Corps in April 1903. [9]
Army Order No 324, issued on 21 August 1914, authorised the formation of a 'New Army' of six Divisions, manned by volunteers who had responded to Earl Kitchener's appeal (hence the First New Army was known as 'K1'). Each division was to be under the administration of one of the Home Commands, and Eastern Command formed what became the 12th (Eastern) Division. [10] It was followed by 18th (Eastern) Division of K2 in September 1914. [11] During the First World War, HQ Eastern Command was in London: initially at Horse Guards, [12] then (from February 1916) at 50 Pall Mall, London; [13] in 1919 it moved to 41 Queen's Gardens, Bayswater. [14]
At the outbreak of the Second World War, the headquarters was again located at Horse Guards, [15] but by October 1939 it had moved to Hounslow Barracks. [16] At that time Regular Troops reporting to the Command included 4th Infantry Division. [15] In 1941, [17] the Command relocated to Luton Hoo in Bedfordshire. [18] During the war, the 76th Infantry (Reserve) Division was assigned to the command as its training formation. [19]
From 1 December 41 to 30 July 1943 36th Tank Brigade was located in Eastern Command. It disbanded without going overseas. [20]
After the War the command headquarters moved back to Cavalry Barracks, Hounslow in north London. [21] When the Territorial Army was reformed in 1947, 54th (East Anglian) was not reestablished as a field division, but 161st Infantry Brigade was reformed as an independent infantry brigade in Eastern Command. [22] From 1947 to 1956 101 Coast Brigade supervised RA TA coastal defence regiments, until the disestablishment of all coastal artillery. [23]
In 1952 the Command was reported to include 48 Field Regiment RA, Kirkee Barracks, Colchester; [24] 49 Field Regiment RA, Canterbury; 47 Coast Regiment RA, Dover; 36 Army Engineer Regiment, Maidstone; and 1st Battalion, The Devonshire Regiment, at Colchester. [25]
In 1954 a single-storey blockhouse was built at Wilton Park in Beaconsfield, to provide a protected Eastern Command headquarters for use in the event of war; however in 1957 this provision was superseded by plans for Regional Seats of Government. [26] In 1968, Eastern Command was dissolved and merged into a reconfigured Southern Command. [27] The new HQ Southern Command was established at Hounslow, and the last GOCinC Eastern Command took over as GOCinC Southern Command. [28] In 1972, Southern Command, together with the other two geographic commands, was merged with Army Strategic Command to form a new command: UK Land Forces (UKLF). [29]
Between 1941 and 1943, each regional command of the British Army formed at-least one training centre which trained those recruits preparing to move overseas. The centres which were based within the command were: [30]
GOCs and GOCinCs have included: [31] [32] [33]
General Officer Commanding Eastern District
10th Division was renamed 6th Division in 1905.
Commander 4th Army Corps
Home District at Horse Guards, Eastern District at Colchester, Thames District at Chatham and Woolwich District were grouped under 4th Army Corps in 1903.
4th Army Corps was renamed Eastern Command 1 June 1905.
General Officer Commanding Eastern Command
There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located around the German section of the River Rhine.
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