London District (LONDIST) is the name given by 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 Gurkha ...

to the area of operations encompassing the

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness Greatness is a concept of a state of superiority affecting a person or object in a particular place or area. Greatness can also be attributed to individuals who possess a natural ability to be better than al ...

area. It was established in 1870 as ''Home District''.

History

In January 1876 a ‘Mobilization Scheme for the forces in Great Britain and Ireland’ was published, with the ‘Active Army’ divided into eight army corps based on the District Commands. 3rd Corps was to be formed within London District, based in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an exten ...

. This scheme disappeared in 1881, when the districts were retitled ‘District Commands. It was re-formed in 1905 as ''London District'' to be an independent district within the larger command structure of the army, and has remained so ever since. In 1906, when 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 ...

moved to the Old War Office Building, HQ London District moved to Horse Guards.Tabor, p. 19 In September 1939, the district included the

1st 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 reco ...

and

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds or 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Second of arc, an angular measurement unit, ...

London Divisions, the 22nd Armoured Brigade, the

Life Guards Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energy transf ...

and

Royal Horse Guards The Royal Regiment of Horse Guards (The Blues) (RHG) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. Raised in August 1650 at Newcastle upon Tyne and County Durham by Sir Arthur Haselrigge on the orders of Oliver Cr ...

and five Guards infantry battalions. 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 opposi ...

the operational headquarters of London District was temporarily based at

Leconfield House Leconfield House is a building in Mayfair, London. It was the headquarters of the Security Service (MI5) from 1945 to 1976. History Early history The site at the junction of South Audley Street and Curzon Street was occupied in the second half ...

Curzon Street Curzon Street is located within the Mayfair district of London. The street is located entirely within the W1J postcode district; the eastern end is north-east of Green Park underground station. It is within the City of Westminster, running a ...

. After the War London District returned to Horse Guards, where it remains under the command of the General Officer Commanding (GOC), currently Major-General Chris Ghika. The incumbent is concurrently the

Major-General commanding the Household Division The Major-General commanding the Household Division commands the Household Division of the British Army and is also the General Officer Commanding London District. In British Army parlance, "The Major-General" always refers to the Major-Genera ...

. The

Garrison Sergeant Major A garrison sergeant major (GSM) in the British Army is the senior warrant officer of a garrison and holds the rank of warrant officer class 1. The GSM London District, always a guardsman, holds one of the four most senior WO1 appointments in t ...

is currently Warrant Officer Class 1 (WO1) Andrew 'Vern' Stokes COLDM GDS. London District included the 56th (London) Brigade from January 1987 to 1993. By 2007 the units in the district included the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment; the 1st Battalions of the

Welsh Guards The Welsh Guards (WG; cy, Gwarchodlu Cymreig), part of the Guards Division, is one of the Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It was founded in 1915 as a single-battalion regiment, during the First World War, by Royal Warrant of George V. ...

and

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

; 2nd Battalion,

Mercian Regiment The Mercian Regiment (Cheshire, Worcesters and Foresters, and Staffords) is an infantry regiment of the British Army, which is recruited from five of the counties that formed the ancient kingdom of Mercia. Known as 'The Heart of England's Infa ...

; Nijmegan Company,

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

, No. 7 Company,

, and F Company,

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 E ...

, the three Guards incremental companies; The

King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, is a ceremonial unit of the British Army, quartered at Woolwich. It is a mounted unit and all of its soldiers are trained to care for and drive teams of six horses, each team pulling a First World War-er ...

; 20 Transport Squadron,

Royal Logistic Corps The Royal Logistic Corps provides logistic support functions to the British Army. It is the largest Corps in the Army. History The Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) was formed on 5 April 1993, by the union of five British Army corps: * Royal Engine ...

; headquarters and much of the Army Reserve's

Royal Yeomanry The Royal Yeomanry (RY) is the senior reserve light cavalry regiment of the British Army. Equipped with Supacat Jackal variants, their role is to conduct mounted and dismounted formation reconnaissance. The Regimental Headquarters is located in ...

; the London Regiment;

106th (Yeomanry) Regiment Royal Artillery 106 (Yeomanry) Regiment Royal Artillery is part of the Army Reserve and has sub-units throughout the South of England. The Regiment's role is Close Air Defence and it was part of the Joint Ground Based Air Defence (Jt GBAD) formation, later 7 Ai ...

; the Honourable Artillery Company; 135 Independent Geography Squadron,

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is head ...

; 151 (

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

) Transport Regiment,

; Central Volunteer Headquarters RA; and the University of London Officers' Training Corps.

Forces

London District supervises several operational infantry battalions that are not attached to a deployable brigade, but instead are available for independent deployment as needed; as well as carrying out ceremonial and vital asset/facilities protection, including of the

Royal Family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term pa ...

. The Headquarters is also regionally aligned with the Caribbean region as part of defence engagement. HQ London District is responsible for the administration of all Army units within Greater London that are not part of another formation, including those based at

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

* Regular Army Units ** Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, Hyde Park Barracks, Knightsbridge, London ** The

Royal Artillery Barracks Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich, is a barracks of the British Army which forms part of Woolwich Garrison. The Royal Regiment of Artillery had its headquarters here from 1776 until 2007, when it was moved to Larkhill Garrison. History In 17 ...

, Woolwich, London ** 1st Battalion,

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

, Lille Barracks,

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

** 1st Battalion,

Victoria Barracks, Windsor Victoria Barracks is a British Army barracks located south of Windsor Castle. History The barracks were built in 1853 and were enlarged in 1911. The old barracks were completely demolished in 1988 and new barracks were built between 1989 and 1 ...

, Windsor. ** Nijmegen Company,

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

Wellington Barracks Wellington Barracks is a military barracks in Westminster, central London, for the Foot Guards battalions on public duties in that area. The building is located about three hundred yards from Buckingham Palace, allowing the guard to be able to ...

** No 7 Company, Coldstream Guards, Wellington Barracks ** F Company,

, Wellington Barracks ** No 9 Company,

Irish Guards ("Who Shall Separate s") , colors = , identification_symbol_2 Saffron (pipes), identification_symbol_2_label = Tartan , identification_symbol = , identification_symbol_label = Tactical Recognition F ...

, Wellington Barracks ** No 12 Company, Irish Guards, Wellington Barracks ** 20 Transport Squadron,

based at

Regent's Park Barracks The Regent's Park Barracks, commonly known as the Albany Street Barracks, is a British Army barracks located on Albany Street, London, near Regent's Park. History The barracks were constructed in 1820-1821 as cavalry barracks for the Life Guard ...

, provides all the transport needs for London District and the Royal Household ** 238 (London) Signal Squadron,

Royal Corps of Signals The Royal Corps of Signals (often simply known as the Royal Signals – abbreviated to R SIGNALS or R SIGS) is one of the combat support arms of the British Army. Signals units are among the first into action, providing the battlefield commun ...

provides all communications for London District

References

Sources

* Tabor, Paddy, ''The Household Cavalry Museum'', Ajanta Book Publishing, 2010,

External links

HQ London District
– on British Army official website
London District (1939)
{{British armies, commands, and corps during the Second World War Districts of the British Army Military units and formations in London Military units and formations established in 1905 1905 establishments in England