A brigade major was the

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of a

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 ...

in 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 ...

. They most commonly held the rank of

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

, although the appointment was also held by

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

s, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section directly, and oversaw the two other branches, "A – Administration" and "Q – Quartermaster". Intentionally ranked lower than the

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

s commanding the brigade's combat battalions, his role was to expand on, detail and execute the intentions of the commanding

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 ...

. In 1913, staff captains of artillery in the British Army were re-styled as brigade majors to bring them into line with cavalry and infantry practice. In the 21st century, the title is no longer used except in the

Household Division Household Division is a term used principally in the Commonwealth of Nations to describe a country's most elite or historically senior military units, or those military units that provide ceremonial or protective functions associated directly with ...

and in divisional-level artillery headquarters. As of 2014 the title is still retained by HQ

London District London District (LONDIST) is the name given by the British Army to the area of operations encompassing the Greater London area. It was established in 1870 as ''Home District''. History In January 1876 a ‘Mobilization Scheme for the forces in ...

. During

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 ...

, the brigade major was reportedly "a key personality who affected the health and happiness of the battalions." He was in most frequent contact with the front-line troops and was responsible for planning brigade operations. Many brigade majors held the rank of captain, e.g., the future

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Anthony Eden Robert Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon, (12 June 1897 – 14 January 1977) was a British Conservative Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1955 until his resignation in 1957. Achieving rapid promo ...

, was a brigade major at the age of twenty-one. The practice of using brigade majors has continued in some

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

armies, such as that of India. The position was a standard fixture in the British Army and

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

until between 1982 and 1984 when the

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

system was adopted and brigade G-3 ( Operations), also known as "Chief of Staff", replaced the brigade major. In the old system, the brigade major was a Staff Officer 2 in charge of "G Branch", abbreviated "GSO2", General Staff Officer (Grade 2).

References

Military appointments of the British Army {{mil-rank-stub

See also

References