The 113th Brigade was an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises 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. Br ...

formation of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

active in both the

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and the

Second World Wars World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

First World War

The 113th Brigade was originally raised in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

from men volunteering for Lord Kitchener's

New Armies The New Armies (Traditional Chinese: 新軍, Simplified Chinese: 新军; Pinyin: Xīnjūn, Manchu: ''Ice cooha''), more fully called the Newly Created Army ( ''Xinjian Lujun''Also translated as "Newly Established Army" ()), was the modernised a ...

, and was assigned to the

38th (Welsh) Division The 38th (Welsh) Division (initially the 43rd Division, later the 38th (Welsh) Infantry Division and then the 38th Infantry (Reserve) Division) of the British Army was active during both the First and Second World Wars. In 1914, the division w ...

. The brigade, composed entirely of four battalions of the

Royal Welsh Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers ( cy, Ffiwsilwyr Brenhinol Cymreig) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales' Division, that was founded in 1689; shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated ...

, served in the

trenches A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from eros ...

of the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

throughout the war.

Order of battle

The 113th Brigade was constituted as follows during the war: * 13th (Service) Battalion (1st North Wales),

(''from November 1914'') * 14th (Service) Battalion, Royal Welsh Fusiliers (''from November 1914'') * 15th (Service) Battalion (1st London Welsh), Royal Welsh Fusiliers (''from November 1914, disbanded February 1918'') * 16th (Service) Battalion, Royal Welsh Fusiliers (''from November 1914'') * 17th (Service) Battalion (2nd North Wales), Royal Welsh Fusiliers (''from February 1915, left July 1915'') * 113th Machine Gun Company,

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in the First World War. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use tank ...

(''from 19 May 1916, moved to 38th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps March 1918'') * 113th Trench Mortar Battery (''from 26 December 1915'')

Second World War

The brigade and division were both disbanded after the war, but were reformed in the Territorial Army (TA), the British Army's part-time reserve force, in the latter half of 1939 as war with

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

seemed increasingly likely. As a consequence of this, the Territorial Army was ordered to be doubled in size, with each unit forming a 2nd Line duplicate. The

38th (Welsh) Infantry Division The 38th (Welsh) Division (initially the 43rd Division, later the 38th (Welsh) Infantry Division and then the 38th Infantry (Reserve) Division) of the British Army was active during both the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wa ...

was reconstituted as was the brigade, now the 113th Infantry Brigade. The 113th Brigade, under the command of

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

Llewellyn Alston Brigadier (United Kingdom), Brigadier Llewellyn Arthur Augustus Alston (21 December 1890 – 18 March 1969) was a British Army Officer (armed forces), officer who saw active service in both of the world wars. Military career Alston was Officer ...

, was formed as a duplicate of the 160th Infantry Brigade and initially consisted of two TA battalions, the 15th and 2/5th, of the

Welch Regiment The Welch Regiment (or "The Welch", an archaic spelling of "Welsh") was an infantry regiment of the line of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1969. The regiment was created in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of ...

and one, the 4th, of the

Monmouthshire Regiment The Monmouthshire Regiment was a Territorial infantry regiment of the British Army. Originating in units of rifle volunteers formed in Monmouthshire in 1859, the regiment served in the Second Anglo-Boer War and both World War I and World War II ...

. However, the brigade never saw active service outside the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was reduced to a Lower Establishment and eventually became a training brigade.

Order of battle

The 113th Infantry Brigade was constituted as follows during the war: * 15th Battalion,

(''left 22 July 1944'') * 2/5th Battalion, Welch Regiment (''left 29 August 1944'') * 4th Battalion,

(''redesignated 1st Battalion,

South Wales Borderers The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years. It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. In ...

12 December 1942'') * 113th Infantry Brigade Anti-Tank Company (''formed 1 September 1940, disbanded 6 January 1942'') * 1st Battalion, South Wales Borderers (''from 12 December 1942, left 30 November 1943, rejoined 21 January 1944, left 29 August 1944'') From 26 September 1944: * 4th Battalion,

East Lancashire Regiment The East Lancashire Regiment was, from 1881 to 1958, a line infantry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 30th (Cambridgeshire) Regiment of Foot and 59th (2nd Nott ...

* 5th Battalion,

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was an Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot and the 108th Regiment o ...

* 5th Battalion,

Border Regiment The Border Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 34th (Cumberland) Regiment of Foot and the 55th (Westmorland) Regiment of Foot. After service ...

Commanders

The following officers commanded the 113th Infantry Brigade during the war: *

L.A.A. Alston (''until 28 July 1941'') * Brigadier D.C. Butterworth (''from 28 July 1941 until 30 April 1942'') * Brigadier N.A. McD. Walker (''from 30 April 1942 until 22 June 1942'') * Brigadier H.V. Combe (''from 22 June 1942'') From 26 September 1944:Joslen, p. 290 * Brigadier B.B. Rackham (''until 30 August 1945'') * Brigadier G.P. Harding (''from 30 August 1945'')

References

Sources

* {{British infantry brigades of the Second World War Infantry brigades of the British Army in World War I Infantry brigades of the British Army in World War II B113