United Kingdom Land Forces was a command 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 ...

responsible for generating and preparing forces for current and contingency operations. The commander of the forces was known as Commander-in-Chief, United Kingdom Land Forces, who in turn reported to the

Chief of the General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces (militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ( United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Af ...

. On 1 April 1972, HQ Army Strategic Command amalgamated with the three existing geographical commands ( Northern Command, Southern Command and Western Command) to form HQ UK Land Forces. It had eight districts plus HQ Scotland and HQ Northern Ireland under its direction: * London District (HQ in London) * Eastern District (HQ at Colchester) * South Eastern District (HQ at Aldershot) (a reformation of a headquarters disbanded in 1903) * South West District (HQ at

Bulford Camp Bulford Camp is a military camp on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England. Established in 1897, the site continues in use as a large British Army base. The camp is close to the village of Bulford and is about northeast of the town of Amesbury. ...

) * North West District (HQ at

Cuerden Hall Cuerden Hall is a country mansion in the village of Cuerden near Preston, Lancashire, England. It is a Grade II* listed building. The Hall was formerly a family home between 1717 and 1906, and used by the Army until the 1960s. In 1985 it became ...

near

Bamber Bridge Bamber Bridge is an urban village in Lancashire, England, south-east of Preston, in the borough of South Ribble. The name derives from the Old English "bēam" and "brycg", which probably means "tree-trunk bridge". The population was 13,945 at ...

) * West Midlands District (HQ at Shrewsbury) *

Headquarters Wales Headquarters Wales was a district command of the British Army from 1967 and 1991. History The district was formed from 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division as part of the Territorial Army Volunteer Reserve in 1967. It had its headquarters at The Barra ...

(HQ at Brecon) * North East District (HQ in York) * Headquarters Scotland (HQ in Edinburgh) *

Headquarters Northern Ireland HQ Northern Ireland was the formation (military), formation responsible for the British Army in and around Northern Ireland. It was established in 1922 and disbanded, replaced by a brigade-level Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Army Reserve formati ...

(HQ at Lisburn). North West District headquarters shifted to

Fulwood Barracks Fulwood Barracks is a military installation at Fulwood in Preston, Lancashire, England. History The barracks were built between 1842 and 1848 as a base, initially at least, for the 2nd Battalion 60th Rifles following the chartist riots. In 18 ...

, Preston, in 1977. In the early 1980s West Midlands District became HQ Western District. In 1995, HQ UK Land Forces at Wilton assumed control of troops in Germany and most other places. The remaining British Army troops in Germany (including the core of

Headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps The Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization High Readiness Force (Land) Headquarters ready for deployment worldwide. History The ARRC was created on 1 October 1992 in Bielefeld based on the former I (Britis ...

, HQ ARRC) were placed under its command after the disbandment of Headquarters

British Army of the Rhine There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located ...

. It became HQ Land Command, and assumed control of almost all British Army combat and combat support units on 1 April 1995. When it was formed it included 69,200 regular troops (6,400 officers and 62,800 other ranks), 59,700 reservists and 14,200 civil servants.

Commander-in-Chief, United Kingdom Land Forces (1971–1995)

Holders of the post have been:{{Cite web, title=Army Commands, url=http://www.gulabin.com/armynavy/pdf/Army%20Commands%201900-2011.pdf, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150705211343/http://www.gulabin.com/armynavy/pdf/Army%20Commands%201900-2011.pdf, archive-date=July 5, 2015 *

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Sir Basil Eugster 1972–1974 *

Sir Roland Gibbs 1974–1976 *

Sir Edwin Bramall 1976–1978 *

Sir John Archer 1978–1980 *

Sir Timothy Creasey 1980–1981 *

Sir John Stanier 1981–1982 *

Sir Frank Kitson 1982–1985 *

Sir James Glover 1985–1987 *

Sir John Chapple 1987–1988 *

Sir Charles Huxtable 1988–1990 *

Sir John Waters 1990–1993 *

Sir John Wilsey 1993–1995

Footnotes

Commands of the British Army Military units and formations established in 1972 Military units and formations disestablished in 1995 Military units and formations established in 2008 Military units and formations disestablished in 2015