The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) 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 Gurkha ...

provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of the regiment, the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) and the

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (R ...

(RGA). It ceased to exist when it was amalgamated with the Royal Garrison Artillery in 1924. The Royal Field Artillery was the largest arm of the artillery. It was responsible for the medium calibre guns and howitzers deployed close to the front line and was reasonably mobile. It was organised into

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. ...

s, attached to divisions or higher formations.

Notable members

Ernest Wright Alexander Major-General Ernest Wright Alexander, (2 October 1870 – 25 August 1934) was a British Army officer and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Co ...

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

recipient *

Colin Gubbins Major-General Sir Colin McVean Gubbins (2 July 1896 – 11 February 1976) was the prime mover of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) in the Second World War. Gubbins was also responsible for setting up the secret Auxiliary Units, a comman ...

(1896–1976), prime mover of the

Special Operations Executive The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its p ...

(SOE) *

Dar Lyon Malcolm Douglas Lyon (22 April 1898 – 17 February 1964), generally known as Dar Lyon was an English first-class cricketer who played for Somerset County Cricket Club through the 1920s. He was a right-handed top order batsman known for his be ...

(1898–1964).

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

er * Norman Manley (1893–1969), first

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispa ...

, serving from 14 August 1959 to 29 April 1962 * Donald McLeod (1882–1917), represented Scotland at football *

Cecil Patteson Nickalls Cecil Patteson Nickalls, Distinguished Service Order, D.S.O. (14 October 1877 – 7 April 1925) was a Colonel in the Royal Field Artillery. He was a champion polo player, and a champion rugby player, who took his own life with a gun on 7 April ...

, D.S.O. (1877-1925), champion polo player who took his own life with a gun on 7 April 1925 *

Alfred William Saunders Captain Alfred William Saunders (16 January 1888 – 22 May 1930) was an Irish flying ace of the First World War, credited with twelve aerial victories. He remained in the RAF post-war, serving until 1927. Early life and background Saunders was ...

(1888–1930), World War I

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

* Garth Neville Walford, Victoria Cross recipient * Francis Wallington, first recipient of the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

four times * Henry Curling, sole British front line officer to survive the

Battle of Isandlwana The Battle of Isandlwana (alternative spelling: Isandhlwana) on 22 January 1879 was the first major encounter in the Anglo-Zulu War between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Eleven days after the British commenced their invasion of Zulul ...

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

A List of the formation, attachments and history of each Brigade of the Royal Field Artillery
Royal Artillery Artillery units and formations of World War I Units and formations of the Royal Artillery {{UK-mil-unit-stub