CURRENT PROJECT: Graphics for all major groups

Below is the Outline of the British Army before Army 2020. The units below will show their locations in December 2010, just before the SDSR 2010 had been published. "Produced in 2011, following the outcomes of the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review (and working within substantial financial constraints), Army 2020 was the British Army’s plan to make itself both more useful and more ready." (https://wavellroom.com/2022/02/02/more-range-or-more-rangers-the-fight-for-the-future-of-the-british-army/)

Preface

The list shown below is still changing as a result of the above said refines, but shows the current overall structure of the army.

Note: units in bold are higher commands, and the units in italics are those units which are part of the Territorial Army and have the prefix or suffix '(V)'.

Army Board

Land Forces

Command of the 'Field Army' was brought together at Wilton in April 1995 (a consequence of Options for Change), when HQ United Kingdom Land Force was renamed Headquarters Land Command. Between then and 2008, the Chief of the General Staff governed the Army through three subordinate headquarters: Land Command (responsible for operational command of about 75% of the Army's manpower), Adjutant General's Branch (responsible for personnel, individual training, doctrine and administration), and Equipment Support (Land). Following Future Army Structure (2004), HQ Land Command became HQ Land Forces in 2008, and in 2009 moved to Andover.[3]

In 2009, HQ Land Forces and posts from the Chief of the General Staff and down (including subsequent commands) was reorganised. However, these will not be shown, only the structure before will be shown.[3]

1st (United Kingdom) Armoured Division

7th Armoured Brigade

Sign at Celle Station, headquarters of the 7th Armoured Brigade until 2015.

The brigade commander for 7th Armoured Brigade is also Commander, Bergen-Hohne Garrison.

20th Armoured Brigade

The brigade commander for 20th Armoured Brigade is also Commander, Paderborn Garrison.

102nd Logistic Brigade

101st Logistic Brigade remains under the control of Commander Theatre Troops, but under 1st UK Division for operational purposes. The brigade commander for 102nd Logistic Brigade is also Commander, Gütersloh Garrison.

Structure of the 1st (United Kingdom) Armoured Division in 2010, before the Army 2020 reform.

United Kingdom Support Command (Germany)

3rd (United Kingdom) Mechanised Division

1st Mechanised Brigade

4th Mechanised Brigade

12th Mechanised Brigade

19th Light Brigade

52nd Infantry Brigade

101st Logistic Brigade

101st Logistic Brigade remains under the control of Commander Theatre Troops, but under 1st UK Division for operational purposes.

Structure of the 3rd (United Kingdom) Mechanised Division in 2010, before Army 2020.

6th Division

HQ 6th Division was raised in May 2007, and announced in July, stood up 5th August 2008. To be extant until 2011 to control HQ Regional Command South (HQ RC (S)) at Kandahar in Afghanistan, rotating with Canada and the Netherlands, and HQ Multi National Division-South East (HQ MND-SE) at Basra in Iraq. Very few other details are currently available, except that it will be composed of 55 staff (drawn from formation staffs) and six civilians. Also in the May it was announced that a further light brigade would be raised for specific duties in Afghanistan and disbanded upon its completion. This meaning ten brigades available, five each for Iraq and Afghanistan operations.

11th Light Brigade

In 2008, it was announced that 11th Light Brigade would be reformed to assume command of the planned Operation Herrick deployment to Afghanistan in late 2009. The Brigade was headquartered in Aldershot and was formed using units from existing formations. Commanded by Brigadier James Cowan,[10] it was disbanded in 2010 on its return from Afghanistan, with its component units returning to their previous formations.[11]

Theatre Troops

Theatre Troops was formed on 31 August 2001 as part of the Landmark study and tasked with overseeing the 'essential capabilities'. These include Intelligence (1 MI Bde), Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) (1 Art Bde), Deep Strike (1 Art Bde), Specialist Engineers (8 Eng Bde), Communications (1, 2, and 11 Sig Bdes), Support (2 Med Bde), Air Defence (JGBAD), and Logistic re-supply (101, 102, and 104 Log Bdes).[5][12] Though 101st and 102nd Logistic Brigades are part of Theatre Troops, they are in essence part of the 3rd and 1st Divisions respectively for operations and are therefore listed there.

Note: because of internal changes to the Royal Corps of Signals in 2010 itself (two months before Army 2020), the structures of the signal brigades will be that of late 2009/early 2010.

1st (United Kingdom) Signal Brigade

1st (United Kingdom) Signal Brigade tasked with supporting Commander, Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC). In addition, the brigade provides and commands the operational troops which support HQ ARRC directly including those of NATO.[16]

2nd (National Communications) Signal Brigade

2nd (National Communications) Signal Brigade tasked with, as the name would suggest, national communications and specialist communications taken up by the Territorial Army.

11th Signal Brigade

11th Signal Brigade tasked with the signal regiments not supporting Allied Rapid Reaction Corps or tasked with national communications.

1st Military Intelligence Brigade

1st Artillery Brigade

Joint Ground Based Air Defence Headquarters

A Joint Royal Air Force-British Army command overseeing all air defence units both RAF and Army.

8th Force Engineer Brigade

104th Logistic Support Brigade

2nd Medical Brigade

Joint Helicopter Command

16th Air Assault Brigade

2nd Division

2nd Division is responsible for overseeing Scotland and Northern England, and from 1 August 2007 also Northern Ireland (following the end of Operation Banner). The headquarters employed 58 military and 204 civilian staff posts.

15th (North East) Brigade

15th (North East) Brigade encompassing North East England (Durham, Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear) and Yorkshire and the Humber (East Riding of Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, and West Yorkshire).

38th (Irish) Brigade

38th (Irish) Brigade encompassing Northern Ireland.

42nd (North West) Brigade

42nd (North West) Brigade encompassing North West England (Cheshire, Cumberland, Lancashire, Greater Manchester, and Westmorland) and the Isle of Man.[36]

51st (Scottish) Brigade

51st (Scottish) Brigade encompassing Scotland.[5]

4th Division

4th Division covering Southern England.

2nd (South East) Infantry Brigade

2nd (South East) Infantry Brigade covering part of South East England, encompassing the counties of East Sussex, Kent, Surrey, and West Sussex. The brigade commander doubles as Deputy Constable of Dover Castle.[7]

43rd (Wessex) Brigade

43rd (Wessex) Brigade covering part of South West England, encompassing the counties of City and County of Bristol, Cornwall, Devonshire, Dorsetshire, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, the Channel Islands, and the Isles of Scilly.[41]

145th (South) Brigade

145th (South) Brigade covering Thames and Solent (Thames Valley (Royal County of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, and Oxfordshire) and the Solent (Hampshire, and the Isle of Wight).

British Gurkhas Nepal

British Gurkhas Nepal is commanded by a Colonel.

5th Division

5th Division encompassing the Midlands and Wales.

49th (East) Brigade

49th (East) Brigade encompassing the East of England (Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk) and the East Midlands (Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, and Rutland).

143rd (West Midlands) Brigade

143rd (West Midlands) Brigade encompassing the West Midlands (Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, and Worcestershire).

160th (Wales) Brigade

160th (Wales) Brigade encompassing the Principality of Wales.

London District

Commander Regional Forces

The Commander Regional Forces maintains, and where possible, enhances the provision of the military capability and infrastructure support required to meet Land Command’s operational requirements. In addition, is the Inspector General of the Territorial Army, with addition responsibilities for Cadets and the University Officer Training Corps. Service personnel total for the Commander Regional Forces at 1st April 2006 was 12,500 (including 1,400 officers).

Adjutant General to the Forces

Army Recruiting and Training Division

Land Warfare Centre

Army Schools

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Group

Master General of the Ordnance

Strategic Command

Strategic Command Troops

United Kingdom Special Forces

British Forces Belize

British Forces Bermuda

British Forces Brunei

British Forces Cyprus

British Forces Gibraltar

British Forces South Atlantic Islands

British Army Training Unit Suffield (BATUS)

Royal Marines

3rd Commando Brigade

NATO

Allied Rapid Reaction Corps

Royal Air Force

No. 2 Group RAF

No. 11 Group RAF

Land Equipment Directorate

The Land Equipment Directorate reports to Defence Equipment and Support, however this organisation is an army command, and is therefore listed here.[41]

Footnotes

Notes

Citations

  1. ^ Mackinlay, pp. 26–30
  2. ^ "British Army - Command and Organisation - The Army Board - Secretary of State for Defence - Armed Forces - a2a1". www.armedforces.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-27.
  3. ^ a b Tanner, pp. 22–23.
  4. ^ Mackinlay, Gordon Angus (2007). "A Moment in Time", The British Army at a Moment in Time – 1 July 2007: A Look at and from it of the makeup of the Regular and Territorial Army. Norwich, Norfolk, United Kingdom: University of East Anglia.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "HQ TH TPS History". web.archive.org. 2008-01-13. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  6. ^ "British Army - The Infantry - Armoured Infantry Battalion - Manoeuvre Support Company - Armed Forces - a5a03". www.armedforces.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-01.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h "2nd (South East) Brigade". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ a b c "British Army - The Infantry - Heavy Protected Mobility Battalion - Armed Forces - a5a04". www.armedforces.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-01.
  9. ^ a b c "British Army -The Infantry - AFV 432 - Bulldog - Armed Forces - a5a09". www.armedforces.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-01.
  10. ^ "Next stop Helmand: On manoeuvres with the British Army". The Independent. 23 July 2009. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
  11. ^ "11 Light Brigade". British Army Website. 2014. Archived from the original on 9 July 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  12. ^ "HQ Theatre Troops - British Army Website". web.archive.org. 2010-12-08. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  13. ^ "Divisions and Brigades". web.archive.org. 2007-10-06. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  14. ^ "British Army units from 1945 on - REME Companies". british-army-units1945on.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-13.
  15. ^ "British Army units from 1945 on - Regiments 21 on". british-army-units1945on.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-13.
  16. ^ "1st Signal Brigade". web.archive.org. 2007-10-13. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  17. ^ "1 Signal Brigade - Units". web.archive.org. 2007-12-27. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  18. ^ "2 Signal Brigade - British Army Website". web.archive.org. 2010-12-08. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  19. ^ "British Army - The Household Cavalry and Royal Armoured Corps - Armoured Cavalry Regiment - Armed Forces - a4a4". www.armedforces.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-30.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  20. ^ "2nd Division". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-30.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. ^ "Headquarters 2nd Division". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-30.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ^ "No. 59249". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 November 2009. p. 20321.
  23. ^ "2nd Division Troops". British Army. Archived from the original on 7 January 2008. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  24. ^ a b c d "Army Education Centres Locations". British Army. Archived from the original on 10 July 2006. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  25. ^ "15 (North East) Brigade". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-30.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  26. ^ "51st (Scottish) Brigade". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  27. ^ "15 (North East) Brigade Regional Training Centre". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-30.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  28. ^ "9th Cadet Training Team". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  29. ^ "Humberside And South Yorkshire Army Cadets". Army Cadets UK. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  30. ^ "Yorkshire (North And West) Army Cadets". Army Cadets UK. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  31. ^ "Cleveland Army Cadets". Army Cadets UK. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  32. ^ "Durham Army Cadets". Army Cadets UK. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  33. ^ "Northumbria Army Cadets". Army Cadets UK. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  34. ^ "1st Northern Ireland Battalion Army Cadets". Army Cadets UK. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  35. ^ "2nd (Northern Ireland) Battalion Army Cadets". Army Cadets UK. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  36. ^ a b c webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20080107225809/http://www.army.mod.uk/42bde/index.htm. Retrieved 2021-12-04. ((cite web)): Missing or empty |title= (help)
  37. ^ "TA Units in Scotland". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  38. ^ "Cadets in Scotland". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  39. ^ "4th Division / Regional Training Centre". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  40. ^ "43rd (Wessex) Brigade / Units". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  41. ^ a b c d e Heyman 2011, p. 36.
  42. ^ "3rd Cadet Training Team". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  43. ^ "32nd Cadet Training Team". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-12-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  44. ^ "Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps". TheyWorkForYou. Retrieved 2021-11-30.

References