The 29th Infantry 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 ...

unit 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 ...

. It was originally raised in 1914 and saw service during 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

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 ...

and the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

First World War

The 29th Brigade was formed in August 1914 as part of the

10th (Irish) Division The 10th (Irish) Division, was one of the first of Kitchener's New Army K1 Army Group divisions (formed from Kitchener's 'first hundred thousand' new volunteers), authorized on 21 August 1914, after the outbreak of the Great War. It included b ...

, of the first wave of

Kitchener's Army The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, as Kitchener's Mob, was an (initially) all-volunteer portion of the British Army formed in the United Kingdom from 1914 onwards following the outbreak of hostilities in the Fi ...

(K1). The division and brigade transferred to

Lemnos Lemnos or Limnos ( el, Λήμνος; grc, Λῆμνος) is a Greek island in the northern Aegean Sea. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Lemnos regional unit, which is part of the North Aegean region. The p ...

in July 1915 in preparation for the

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

landings. The 29th Infantry Brigade landed at Anzac Cove on August 6/7 of the same year, participating in the

Battle of Chunuk Bair The Battle of Chunuk Bair ( tr, Conk Bayırı Muharebesi) was a World War I battle fought between the Ottoman defenders and troops of the British Empire over control of the peak in August 1915. The capture of Chunuk Bair, ( tr, Çanak Bayır Bas ...

. The 10th (Irish) Division was withdrawn from Gallipoli to

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

at the end of September 1915, elements of the division participating in actions at

Karajakois Monokklisia () is a village in Kapetan Mitrousi, Serres regional unit, northern Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and i ...

Yenikoi Provatas (Greek: Προβατάς) is a larger village in Kapetan Mitrousi, Serres regional unit, northern Greece. It has 1,099 inhabitants (2011 census). Until 1923, the village was called ''Yenikoi'' or ''Yeniköy'' and inhabited mostly by Turk ...

and Kosturino. In early September 1917, the Division was withdrawn to

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and took part in the Palestine Campaign where it fought in the

third Battle of Gaza The Third Battle of Gaza was fought on the night of 1–2 November 1917 between British and Ottoman forces during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I and came after the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) victory at the B ...

. The division moved back to

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

at the end of the war.

Second World War

In 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 ...

, the Cairo Brigade (a

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 ...

force stationed in

) was renamed as the 29th Infantry Brigade on 20 September 1939. In October 1939, it was redesignated as the 22nd Infantry Brigade. On 14 July 1940, a new 29th Independent Infantry Brigade Group, 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 ...

Sir Oliver Leese, was formed in the United Kingdom from Regular Army infantry battalions. It was successively under command of

XII Corps 12th Corps, Twelfth Corps, or XII Corps may refer to: * 12th Army Corps (France) * XII Corps (Grande Armée), a corps of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps, a unit of the Imperial German Army * XII ...

, the

West Sussex County Division The West Sussex County Division was a formation of the British Army, raised in the Second World War and formed by the redesignation of Brocforce on 9 November 1940. On 18 February 1941, the headquarters was redesignated as the Essex County Divi ...

, IV Corps and South Eastern Command before passing to

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

Control in May 1941. The British Army in Burma 1944 SE142

The brigade, under the command of Brigadier Frank Festing, led the invasion of Madagascar by Force 121 on 5 May 1942. It left Madagascar for two weeks in

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

in late August 1942 and finally departed on 16 October 1942 for

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. After two months, the brigade departed for

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, arriving on 26 January 1943, and came under the command of Frank Festing's 36th Indian Infantry Division, where it was trained in

amphibious assault Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducted ...

operations. It entered

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

on 12 February 1944. 2-inch mortar team of the 2nd Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment, keep up covering fire during the advance on Pinbaw, December 1944

2-inch mortar team of the 2nd Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment, keep up covering fire during the advance on Pinbaw, December 1944

It remained in 36 Division, which was redesignated as the British 36th Infantry Division on 1 September 1944, for the rest of the Burma Campaign, returning to India in June 1944 before flying into North Burma in August 1944 and advancing south to Mandalay. Throughout its time in the 36th Division, it was commanded by Brigadier

Hugh Stockwell General Sir Hugh Charles Stockwell, (16 June 1903 – 27 November 1986) was a senior British Army officer most remembered for commanding the Anglo-French ground forces during the Suez Crisis and his service as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Eu ...

. The 29th Brigade returned to India in May 1945. Officially recognised battles: *North Arakan 1 January – 12 June 1944 *Mandalay 12/13 February – 21 March 1945 *Rangoon Road 1 April – 6 May 1945

Korean War

Centurion tanks and infantry of the Gloucestershire Regiment advancing to attack Hill 327 in Korea, March 1951

The 29th Brigade was back in existence by 1949, and then was re-mustered after the outbreak of the Korean War as 29th Independent Infantry Brigade to reinforce the United Nations war effort. When it arrived in Korea, in December 1950, it comprised the 1st Battalion,

Royal Northumberland Fusiliers The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1674 as one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, it accompanied William III to England in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution an ...

, 1st Battalion, the

Gloucestershire Regiment The Gloucestershire Regiment, commonly referred to as the Glosters, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 until 1994. It traced its origins to Colonel Gibson's Regiment of Foot, which was raised in 1694 and later became the ...

, 1st Battalion, the

Royal Ulster Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County ...

8th King's Royal Irish Hussars The 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1693. It saw service for three centuries including the First and Second World Wars. The regiment survived the immediate post-war reduction in forces ...

, C Squadron,

7th Royal Tank Regiment The 7th Royal Tank Regiment (7th RTR) was an armoured regiment of the British Army from 1917 until disbandment in 1959. History The 7th Royal Tank Regiment was part of the Royal Tank Regiment, itself part of the Royal Armoured Corps. The regimen ...

(specialised armour), 45 Field Regiment RA, 11 LAA Battery RA, and 170 Mortar Battery RA, plus supporting units. It also incorporated elements from non-British forces, including the

Belgian United Nations Command The Volunteer Corps for Korea (french: Corps de Volontaires pour la Corée; nl, Vrijwilligerskorps voor Korea) was a Belgian–Luxembourg military force sent to assist South Korea during the Korean War. A battalion-sized unit, it arrived in Korea ...

. The brigade saw action during the third Battle for Seoul in late December 1950 and the Chinese Spring Offensive (the

Battle of the Imjin River The Battle of the Imjin River ( fil, Labanan sa Ilog Imjin), also known as the Battle of Solma-ri ( ko, 설마리 전투) or Battle of Gloster Hill () in South Korea, or as Battle of Xuemali () in China, took place 22–25 April 1951 during th ...

) in April 1951. In July 1951, it was re-organized as 29th British Infantry Brigade and absorbed into the

1st Commonwealth Division The 1st Commonwealth Division was the military unit that commanded Commonwealth land forces in the Korean War. The division was a part of the multinational British Commonwealth Forces Korea, with infantry units of the British Army, Canadian Arm ...

, the brigade finished its tour of duty in November 1951. In September 1956 all British troops head left Korea, thus ending the brigade's history.

Component units

First World War

;1914–1918 * 5th (Service) Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment (August 1914 to June 1915) * 6th (Service) Battalion,

Royal Irish Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County ...

(August 1914 to May 1918) * 5th (Service) Battalion,

Connaught Rangers The Connaught Rangers ("The Devil's Own") was an Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army formed by the amalgamation of the 88th Regiment of Foot (Connaught Rangers) (which formed the ''1st Battalion'') and the 94th Regiment of Foot (which ...

(August 1914 to April 1918) * 6th (Service) Battalion,

Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians) The Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians) was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army, formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot and the 109th Regiment of Foot ...

(August 1914 to 2 May 1918) * 10th (Service) Battalion,

Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The regi ...

(June 1915 to November 1916) * 1st Battalion, Prince of Wales' Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians) (November 1916 to end of war) * 29th Machine Gun Company (May 1916 to May 1918) * 29th Trench Mortar Battery (October 1916 to October 1917) * 1st Battalion,

54th Sikhs (Frontier Force) The 54th Sikhs (Frontier Force) were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1846 as the 4th Regiment of Infantry The Frontier Brigade. It was designated as the 54th Sikhs (Frontier Force) in 1903 and became 4th Battalio ...

(April 1918 to end of war) * 1st Battalion,

101st Grenadiers The 101st Grenadiers was a regiment of the British Indian Army. 1778–1878 The regiment was formed in 1778 after six grenadier companies (two companies each from the three battalions of the Bombay Army) were combined to form a composite battal ...

(April 1918 to end of war) * 2nd Battalion, 151st Sikh Infantry (June 1918 to end of war)

Second World War

;1939 *1st Battalion,

Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment) The Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment), formerly the 3rd Regiment of Foot, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army traditionally raised in the English county of Kent and garrisoned at Canterbury. It had a history dating back to 1572 and ...

*2nd Battalion,

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the ...

;1940–1945 *1st Battalion,

Royal Scots Fusiliers The Royal Scots Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1678 until 1959 when it was amalgamated with the Highland Light Infantry (City of Glasgow Regiment) to form the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Mar ...

*2nd 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 ...

*2nd Battalion,

Royal Welch 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 ...

*2nd Battalion,

South Lancashire Regiment The South Lancashire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment, which recruited, as its title suggests, primarily from the South Lancashire area, was created as part of the Childers Ref ...

(only till April 16, 1944) *29th Independent Brigade Group Anti-tank Company (1 September 1940 – 18 January 1941) * 204th (Oban) Anti-tank Battery,

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

(16 July 1940 – 5 May 1941) *17th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery (16 July 1940 – 5 May 1941) *"E" Company, 5th

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

(Machine Guns) 16 August 1940 – 11 June 1941) *29th Independent Brigade Group Machine Gun Company

(12 June 1941 – 31 October 1941) *29th Independent Brigade Group Reconnaissance Company (19 January 1941 – 5 May 1941) *29th Independent Brigade Group Machine Gun Company

(19 January 1941 – 5 May 1941) *"B" SS Squadron

Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the component of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 Tank and the Scimitar Reconnaissance Vehicle. It includes most of the A ...

(20 August 1942 – 1 June 1943) *455th Independent Light Battery, Royal Artillery (20 August 1942 – 1 June 1943) *"D" Company, 2nd

Manchester Regiment The Manchester Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1958. The regiment was created during the 1881 Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot and the 96th ...

(Machine Guns) 17 October 1943 – 16 June 1944) *236th Field Company, Royal Engineers (16 July 1940 – 25 January 1943) *29th Independent Brigade Group Company, Royal Army Service Corps 1 August 1940 – 5 May 1941) *154th Field Ambulance, Royal Army Medical Corps (16 July 1940 – 25 January 1943) *29th Independent Brigade Group Workshop, Royal Army Ordnance Corps (27 April 1940 – 10 July 1941) *29th Independent Brigade Group Ordnance Field Park, Royal Army Ordnance Corps (29 April 1940 – 5 May 1941) *29th Independent Brigade Group Provost Section, Royal Military Police (18 July 1940 – 15 January 1943) ;From May–Aug 1945 *1st Battalion,

Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) was a rifle regiment of the British Army, the only regiment of rifles amongst the Scottish regiments of infantry. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 26th Cameronian Reg ...

*1st Battalion,

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

*2nd Battalion,

Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Arm ...

Korean War

;From Nov 1950 – July 1951 *As 29th Independent Infantry Brigade ;From July–Nov 1951 *1st Battalion

*1st Battalion

;From Nov 51 – Nov 52 *1st Battalion

Royal Norfolk Regiment The Royal Norfolk Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army until 1959. Its predecessor regiment was raised in 1685 as Henry Cornwall's Regiment of Foot. In 1751, it was numbered like most other British Army regiments and named ...

*1st Battalion

Royal Leicestershire Regiment The Leicestershire Regiment (Royal Leicestershire Regiment after 1946) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, with a history going back to 1688. The regiment saw service for three centuries, in numerous wars and conflicts such as both W ...

*1st Battalion

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 ...

;from Nov 52 – July 53 *1st Battalion

The Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment ...

*1st Battalion

King's Regiment (Liverpool) The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which we ...

*1st Battalion

Duke of Wellington's Regiment The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, forming part of the King's Division. In 1702, Colonel George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, was authorised to raise a new regiment, which he di ...

Commanders

First World War *Brigadier-General R. J. Cooper (26 August 1914) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel H. F. N. Jourdain (11 August 1915) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel Q. G. K. Agnew (13 August 1915) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel H. F. N. Jourdain (10 September 1915) *Brigadier-General R. S. Vandeleur (22 September 1915) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel J. Craske (8 June 1917) *Brigadier-General R. S. Vandeleur (28 July 1917) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel E. H. Wildblood (9 June 1918) *Brigadier-General C. L. Smith (12 June 1918) :*''Acting'': Lieutenant-Colonel E. H. Wildblood (12 June 1918) *Brigadier-General C. L. Smith (21 August 1918) Second World War *Lt-Col E.G. Earle (acting commander) *Brig. Sir G.W.H. Leese, Bart *Brig. J.M.L. Grover *Brig. F.W. Festing *Brig. H.C. Stockwell *Brig. G.E.R. Bastin *Lt-Col. C.S. Mill *Brig. J.J. McCully Korean War *Brig T. Brodie *Brig A.H.G. Ricketts *Brig D.A. Kendrew

Notes

References

* * *

External links

the 10th (Irish) Division at 1914–1918
{{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 Military units and formations in Burma in World War II Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the Korean War United Nations contingents in Korea Brigades of the Korean War