The 87th 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 ...

that saw service in

World War I 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 ...

. It was originally formed in 1915 from four

Regular Army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregulars, irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenary, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

s serving away from home in numerous parts of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

. Its first commander was General W.R. Marshall, with C.H.T.Lucas taking command in August 1915. The brigade was assigned to the 29th Division and served in the Gallipoli Campaign from 1915 - 1916, preceding a short time in the Middle Eastern theatre, later being sent to the Western Front in time to attack at Beaumont Hamel on July 1, 1916, and remaining on that front for the rest of the war. The Battle of the Somme, July-november 1916 Q5320

The Battle of the Somme, July-november 1916 Q5320

Formation

*2nd 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 ...

*1st Battalion,

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Margaret's Own ...

*1st 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 ...

*1st 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 ...

*87th Machine Gun Company *87th Trench Mortar Battery

Commanders

The following officers commanded 87th Brigade during the First World War: *Brigadier-General W. R. Marshall (24 January 1915) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel R. O. C. Hume (27 April 1915) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel H. G. Casson (28 April 1915) *Brigadier-General W. R. Marshall (29 April 1915) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel Q. G. K. Agnew (24 July 1915) *Brigadier-General W. R. Marshall (8 August 1915) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel C. H. T. Lucas (15 August 1915) *Brigadier-General C. H. T. Lucas (24 August 1915) *Brigadier-General R. N. Bray (7 December 1916) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel A. J. Welch (14 February 1917) *Brigadier-General C. H. T. Lucas (3 April 1917) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel A. J. Ellis (20 October 1917) *Brigadier-General C. H. T. Lucas (12 November 1917) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel G. T. Raikes (16 January 1918) *Brigadier-General G. H. N. Jackson (20 January 1918)

References

{{reflist Infantry brigades of the British Army in World War I