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In September 1939, the British Army was in process of expanding their anti-aircraft and mobile (including armoured) assets. Among these new changes was the formation of Anti-Aircraft Command which was formed on 1 April 1939, and the 1st Armoured Division formed in 1937. The list below will include the British Army units, colonial units, and those units which were in the process of formation.
The list includes units which were in the process of formation, cadre sized, or had no units attached. Also included are Territorial Army (TA) and Supplementary Reserve (SR) units.
The War Office or WO as it was abbreviated, was the office of the British Government which controlled all of the Armed Forces of which were based around the United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland and Middle East.
Aldershot Command's geographical area encompassed portions of the following counties Berkshire, Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex. Its primary formations on the outbreak of the war were: [1]
Northumbrian Area, Darlington: comprising the counties of Northumberland, County Durham, North Riding of Yorkshire (excluding Catterick Area and Strensall Camp), East Riding of Yorkshire; also Berwick-upon-Tweed (except regulars).
West Riding Area: York, covering West Riding of Yorkshire, County Borough of York, Strensall Camp, Lincolnshire, Rutlandshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, and Derbyshire.
Scottish Command, Edinburgh covered Scotland and Berwick-upon-Tweed (so far as regards Regulars and Militia only).
Highland Area, Perth: covering the counties of Sutherland, Caithness, Ross and Cromarty, Inverness-shire, Nairnshire, Morayshire, Banffshire, Aberdeenshire, Kincardineshire, Angus, Perthshire, Kinross-shire, Fife, Clackmannanshire, Stirlingshire, Dumbartonshire, Renfrewshire, Buteshire, and Argyllshire.
Lowland Area, Darlington: comprising the counties of West Lothian, Midlothian, East Lothian, Berwickshire (including Berwick-upon-Tweed for Regulars and Militia only), Roxburghshire, Dumfriesshire, Kirkcudbrightshire, Wigtownshire, Ayrshire, Lanarkshire, Peeblesshire, Selkirkshire; and (for Clyde and Forth Defences only), and Fife.
Eastern Command was one of two southern commands, itself overseeing the areas of: Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex (except Purfleet and Rainham rifle ranges; and (when occupied by Foot Guards) the Guards' barracks at Warley Barracks), Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Middlesex, Kent, Sussex, and Surrey (less portion in the Aldershot Command and London District), and Woolwich Garrison (exclusive of the Territorial Army troops quartered there).
East Anglian Area covered the counties of Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Middlesex, Hertfordshire, and Bedfordshire (less the following: Colchester Garrison, Purfleet Rifle Range, and Rainham rifle ranges (when occupied by the Foot Guards) the Guards' Barracks at Warley Barracks which area under London District, That partition of Essex in Chatham Area from Grays Thurrock Station along main road to Stanford-le-Hope, thence north side of railway via South Benfleet to Southend-on-Sea borough boundary - thence a line drawn north-east to Lower Edward's Hall - thence road eastwords to Harp House - thence a line south-east to Southchurch Lawn - thence a line due north to River Roach - thence along south bank of River Roach and south bank of River Crouch to Foulness Point).
Chatham Area covered the areas of: Foulness Point (Essex) by a line drawn south to Shellness (Kent) thence a line drawn south-west to Ladydane thence along a road to Watling Street thence Watling Street to road Faversham, Leaveland, Challock Lees, Chaning, Lenham, Harrietsham, Elsfield, Hollingbourne thence Pilgrim's Way via Detling, Burham, Snodland thence via Pilgrim's Road to Trosley Towers thence along road Wrotham-Gravesent to Northumberland Bottom thence Watling Street to Southern Railway Bridge at Springhead thence northward along stream to River Thames, along south bank of River Thames to lighthouse on Swanscombe Marshes thence by a line drawn northeast across the River Thames to Grays Thurrock Station (Essex) thence along the main road to Stanford-le-Hope thence northside of railway via South Benfleet to Southend Borough boundary thence a line drawn northeast to lower Edward's Hull thence along road Eastwood to Harp House thence a line drawn south-east to Southchurch Lawn thence a line due north to River Roach, along south bank of River Roach and south bank of River Crouch to Foulness Point.
Home Counties Area covered the areas of: Woolwich (exclusive of Territorial Army troops in London District), Counties of Kent (less areas in Chatham Area and the 4th Infantry Division stations of Dover, Shorncliffe, Hythe and Lydd), Sussex, Surrey (less the eastern boundaries of the parishes of Chobham, Horsell and Woking through Woking) including portions of the parishes of Stoke-next-Guildford, St. Nicholas, Arlington, to the west of the railway.
Northern Ireland District was one of two army districts, tasked with covering all of Northern Ireland.
Western Command was the largest command by area covered, including: Wales and the Counties of Cumberland, Westmorland, Lancashire, Staffordshire, Shropshire, Herefordshire, Cheshire, and Beachley, Gloucestershire, and The Isle of Man.
Welsh Area covered Wales and the Countries of Shropshire and Herefordshire, and Beachley (Glouchestershire).
West Lancashire encompassed: Lancashire, south and west of a line along the River Douglas and the Leeds-Liverpool Canal, South-East to Worsley, Cheshire, and Staffordshire.
East Lancashire Area comprised the areas of: Cumberland, Westmoreland and that part of Lancashire not included in West Lancashire Area.
London District comprises County of London, Warley Barracks (Foot Guards only), Rainham Rifle Range, Purfleet, Woolwich (for Territorial Army Troops), Caterham Barracks, Pirbright, and (for regular troops) Combermere Barracks and Victoria Barracks.
Southern Command comprised: Counties of Warwickshire, Northamptonshire, Huntingdonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire (except Victoria Barracks and Combermere Barracks and that portion of the county included in the Aldershot Command), Oxfordshire, Hampshire (except that portion included in the Aldershot Command), Wiltshire, Dorset, Devonshire, Cornwall, Somerset, Gloucestershire (expect Beachley) and Worcestershire.
Salisbury Plain Area comprising: The County of Wiltshire (within the following boundaries): The Great Western Railway from the bridge over the River Avon at Freshford to the aqueduct of the Kennet and Avon Canal (1.5 miles west of Bradford-on-Avon), thence the Kennet and Avon Canal to Devizes, The Depot The Wiltshire Regiment, Devizes (on the north bank of the canal), thence the Kennet and Avon Canal to the County boundary at Froxfield, thence the county boundary from Froxfield to the road Fordingbridge-Salisbury at Downton. Thence the road Fordingbridge-Salisbury from the county boundary at Downton to Salisbury; Salisbury; the road Salisbury-Wilton-Great Wishford-Codford-Hegtesbury, the road Warminster-Frome to the county boundary at Whitbourne; thence the county boundary near Whitbourne to the Great Western Railway Bridge over the River Avon near Freshford. That portion of Hampshire including Tidworth and Western District land adjacent.
South Midland Area comprising: Counties of Warwickshire, Northamptonshire, Huntingdonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire (except Victoria Barracks and Combermere Barracks and portions in Aldershot Command), Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire (except Beachley), Worcestershire, and Wiltshire north of the Salisbury Plain Area.
South-Western Area comprising: Counties of Somerset, Dorsetshire, Devonshire and Cornwall, those portions of Wiltshire not included in South Midland and Salisbury Plain Areas, and that part of Hampshire lying west of the Southern Railway between the county boundary of Downton and the county boundary at Fordingbridge station.
Southern Area comprising: Hampshire (excluding those portions of the county Included in Aldershot Command and Salisbury Plain and South-Western Areas.).
Anti-Aircraft Command controlled all of the AA units (minus the regular 1st and 2nd AA brigades).
1st AA Division covering London, Dover, and Slough.
2nd AA Division covering Kingston upon Hull, The Humber, Leeds, Sheffield, and Nottingham. Aligned with No. 12 Group RAF.
3rd AA Division covering the Firth of Forth, The Clyde, Scapa Flow, Tyne River, Tees River, and Belfast. Aligned with No. 13 Group RAF.
4th AA Division covering Liverpool, Birmingham, Coventry, Manchester, Cardiff, and Newport. Aligned with No. 9 Group RAF.
5th AA Division covering Bristol, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Isle of Portland, Southampton, and Cardiff. Aligned with No. 10 Group RAF.
6th AA Division covering Thames and Medway and Harwich. Aligned with No. 11 Group RAF.
7th AA Division covering River Tyne, River Tees, and Middlesbrough.
Middle East Command controlled all the forces based in: Sudan, Aden, Somaliland, Palestine, Transjordan, and Egypt.
The British Indian Army, or as it was known in the British Army as the 'Army of India' was the collective name for all the units and commands of the army based in India (excluding Burma and Ceylon). (ISF) for Imperial Service Force.
The Auxiliary Force (India) (AFI) was a part-time, paid volunteer organisation within the Indian Army in British India. Its units were entirely made up of European and Anglo-Indian personnel.
Western District encompassed the states of: Baluchistan, Sind, Khairpur State, and Rajputana.
Northern Command comprised the areas of: The North-West Frontier Province; Waziristan District; Kashmir State; the Punjab (less districts of Rohtak and Gurgaon); the Punjab States including the Punjab Hill States [less Khairpur, Tehri (Garhwal), Pataudi, Dujana, and the Bawal District of the Nabha State.]
Eastern Command comprising: Delhi Province; Rohtak and Gurgaon districts, the United Provinces; Rajputana (less States of Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Sirohi, Danta, Palanpur, Banswara, Partabgarh, Dungarpur, Shahpura, Kushalgarh, Nimbahera (Tonk); the combined Bundelkhand and Bagelkhand Agency of Central India; Piklon (Bhopal); Gwalior State (less detached Districts in Southern Command); Bihar and Orissa Province; Eastern States Agency (less States of Basar, Changbakhar, Chhuikhadan, Jashpur, Kanker, Kawardha, Khairagarh, Korea, Nandgaon, Raigarh, Sakti, Sarangarh, Surguja (Udaipur and Makrai); Bengal, Bengal States; Assam and Manipur States. Of the Punjab states; Pataudi, Dujana, Tehri (Garhwal) and the Bawal District of the Nabha State.
Southern Command comprised the areas of the Western India States Agency – Central India States Agency (less combined Bundelkhand and Baghelkhand Agency) – Ajmer-Merwara – Jodhpur – Udaipur, Sirohi, Danta, Palanpur, Banswara, Partabgarh, Shahpurg, Kushalgarh, Nimbahera (Tonk) and Dungarpur States of Rajputana – Ujjain, Amjhera, Shajapur, and Mandasar districts of Gwalior State – Bombay Presidency – Gujarat States Agency including Baroda State – Deccan State Agency, including Kolhapur State – Central Provinces – Bastar Changbakhar, Chhuikadan Jashpur, Kanker, Karwardho, Khairagarh, Korea, Nandgaon, Raigarh, Sakti, Sarangarh, Surguja, Udaipur and Makrai States of the Eastern States Agency – Hyderababd State, Madras Presidency – Mysore State and Madras States Agency.
BAF - Burma Auxiliary Forces or BFF - Burma Frontier Force
The Atlantic region covered: Falkland Islands, Newfoundland (still under control of the British at this point, not part of Canada yet), Saint Helena, and Bermuda.
The Caribbean region covered: Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent.
The South America Region covered the areas of British Guiana and British Honduras.
The Mediterranean Region consisted of the colonies which were NOT part of Middle East Command. These regions included: Gibraltar, Malta, Cyprus, and Iraq.
China Command covered the British interests in: Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tianjin.
Malaya Command covered British Malaya, British Singapore, and British Borneo.
The Indian Ocean area covered the islands of Ceylon and Mauritius.
The Pacific Ocean region comprised the areas of: Fiji, Sarawak, and the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony.
The Royal West African Frontier Force or also known as the West African Force comprised troops from the areas of Colony of Nigeria, Gold Coast Protectorate, Colony of Sierra Leone, Gambia Protectorate, and the Cameroons Mandate.
The East African Force comprised troops, and was tasked with covering the following areas: Uganda Protectorate, Kenya Colony, Tanganyika Mandate, Northern Rhodesia Protectorate, Southern Rhodesia Colony, and Nyasaland Protectorate.
The 47th Division was an infantry division of the British Army, raised in 1908 as part of the Territorial Force.
The 1st Armoured Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army with a long history including service during both the First and the Second World Wars. It was based at Tidworth Camp. Previously, it has been designated 1st (Guards) Brigade, 1st Infantry Brigade, 1st Mechanised Brigade, and under the initial Army 2020 reforms assumed the title of 1st Armoured Infantry Brigade. Under the Future Soldier programme, the brigade merged with the 1st Artillery Brigade to form the 1st Deep Recce Strike Brigade Combat Team.
The 10th Armoured Division was an armoured formation of division-size of the British Army, raised during the Second World War and was active from 1941–1944 and after the war from 1956–1957. It was formed from the 1st Cavalry Division, a 1st Line Yeomanry unit of the Territorial Army (TA) which had previously been serving in Palestine. The division was converted from cavalry to armour and redesignated from 1 August 1941.
The 19th Brigade is an Army Reserve formation of the British Army. As the 19th Infantry Brigade, it fought in the First and Second World War.
The 1957 White Paper on Defence was a British white paper issued in March 1957 setting forth the perceived future of the British military. It had profound effects on all aspects of the defence industry but probably the most affected was the British aircraft industry. Duncan Sandys, the recently appointed Minister of Defence, produced the paper. The decisions were influenced by two major factors: the finances of the country and the coming of the missile age.
HQ Northern Ireland was the formation responsible for the British Army in and around Northern Ireland. It was established in 1922 and disbanded, replaced by a brigade-level Army Reserve formation, 38 (Irish) Brigade, in 2009.
The 6th Canadian Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Canadian Army, formed in 1942 during the Second World War. It was attached to Pacific Command. The division had a brigade sent to the Aleutian Islands Campaign, particularly at Kiska, but never saw action. The 6th Division was to have been part of a proposed Commonwealth Corps, formed for a planned invasion of Japan, but was disbanded on 31 January 1946, after the surrender of Japan in August 1945.
The Northern Army Group (NORTHAG) was a NATO military formation comprising five Army Corps from five NATO member nations. During the Cold War NORTHAG was NATO's forward defence in the Northern half of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). The Southern half of the Federal Republic of Germany was to be defended by the four Army Corps of NATO's Central Army Group (CENTAG). During wartime NORTHAG would command four frontline corps and one reserve corps. Air support was provided by Second Allied Tactical Air Force.
1st Anti-Aircraft Brigade was an Air Defence formation of the British Army, during the Second World War, and served in the Battle of France and during The Blitz. It then transferred to the Middle East, where it defended the Eighth Army's lines of communication during the final phases of the North African Campaign.
The 1st Anti-Aircraft Division was an Air Defence formation of the British Army before and during the early years of the Second World War. It defended London during the Battle of Britain and The Blitz.
27th Anti-Aircraft Brigade was an Air Defence formation of the British Army in the Second World War that served in The Blitz and later converted to infantry.
26th (London) Anti-Aircraft Brigade was an Air Defence formation of the British Army during the Second World War. It defended London during the Blitz.
The 38th Light Anti-Aircraft Brigade was an air defence formation of Britain's Territorial Army formed just before the Second World War, which protected London and Southern England during the Blitz and later converted into an infantry formation for the liberation of Europe.
The Essex (Fortress) Royal Engineers was a volunteer unit of Britain's Royal Engineers formed to defend the Essex coast. It served in this role in World War I and then converted to a searchlight regiment for air defence in World War II. The unit ended the war as a garrison infantry battalion. Its descendants continued to serve in the Territorial Army until 1955.
The page contains the current structure of the British Army. The British Army is currently being reorganised to the Future Soldier structure.
Malta Command was an independent command of the British Army. It commanded all army units involved in the defence of Malta. Once mobilised the Command deployed its headquarters to underground hardened shelters and its combat units were deployed to fixed points in the Maltese countryside, from where they operated. This mobilised, but largely static, army garrison would be tested by aerial bombardment and naval blockade during the Second World War. Whilst Malta Command was already a functioning command structure before 1939, the Second World War would see the Command operate as a genuine war-fighting headquarters, albeit in a static defensive role.
The following is a hierarchical outline for the structure of the British Army in 1989. The most authoritative source for this type of information available is Ministry of Defence, Master Order of Battle, and United Kingdom Land Forces, HQ UKLF, UKLF ORBAT Review Action Plan, HQ UKLF, 1990.
Future Soldier is a reform of the British Army resulting from the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy published in March 2021. The aim of the reform is to create a more lethal, agile and expeditionary force, able to fight and win wars and to operate in the grey-zone between peace and war. Future Soldier was published on 25 November 2021 and deals with the organizational changes of the British Army, with changes to personnel and equipment were set out in the Defence in a Competitive Age paper published on 22 March 2021.
Aldershot Command was a formation of the British Army at the start of the Second World War in September 1939.