242nd Brigade (242 Bde) was an infantry formation composed of British and Indian troops, which served in Turkey during the

Occupation of Constantinople The occupation of Istanbul ( tr, İstanbul'un İşgali; 12 November 1918 – 4 October 1923), the capital of the Ottoman Empire, by British, French, Italian, and Greek forces, took place in accordance with the Armistice of Mudros, which ended Ot ...

after

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 ...

History

242 Brigade was formed around Izmit, about 100 km east of

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

, on 30 March 1920 by General Headquarters of the British Army of Occupation. Under the command of Brigadier-General F.S. Montague-Bates, 242 Bde initially comprised three

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

battalions, with a proportion of

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 ...

support troops, all drawn from 28th Division, which was serving in Turkey at the time; a British infantry battalion (1st

Gordon Highlanders Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gord ...

, from the Army of Occupation in Germany) was soon added. The brigade was formally attached to 28th Division from 6 June to 15 September 1920.Becke, pp. 112–6.242 Brigade War Diary, The National Archives, Kew file WO 95/4925.

Order of battle

During its short existence, 242 Bde was constituted as follows: * General Officer Commanding: Brig.-Gen. F.S. Montague-Bates
Brig.-Gen. H.A.V. Cummins * 1st Battalion

* 1st Battalion

10th Jats The 10th Jats were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. They could trace their origins to 1823, when they were known as the 1st Battalion, 33rd Bengal Native Infantry. Over the years they became known by a number of different titles. ...

* 1st Battalion 21st Punjabis * 1st Battalion 25th Punjabis ''Attached'': *

20th Hussars The 20th Hussars was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. After service in the First World War it was amalgamated with the 14th King's Hussars to form became the 14th/20th King's Hussars in 1922. History Early wars The regiment was original ...

* Anatolian Mounted Infantry * 51st Battery Royal Field Artillery (18-pounders) from 39th Field Brigade * Section 39th Field Brigade Ammunition Column * 26th Field Company Royal Engineers * One company 2nd Battalion 128th Pioneers * One section Z Company

Machine Gun Corps The Machine Gun Corps (MGC) was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in the First World War. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use tanks ...

* 84th Field Ambulance Royal Army Medical Corps * A and B echelons Royal Army Service Corps On 13 July the 20th Hussars took part in one of the last mounted actions by British cavalry, during an operation against Turkish nationalists. During August Major-General

Edmund Ironside Edmund Ironside (30 November 1016; , ; sometimes also known as Edmund II) was King of the English from 23 April to 30 November 1016. He was the son of King Æthelred the Unready and his first wife, Ælfgifu of York. Edmund's reign was marred by ...

took over command of the troops in the Izmit area (which became 'Ironside Force'). When Montague-Bates authorised a sortie over the River Sarkaria to protect his perimeter against attacks by Nationalist Turks, Ironside reprimanded him. One of Montague-Bates' staff reported that the two generals 'had heated words' and 'When Brigadier Bates came out of the meeting he was white with rage, said good-bye, and having collected his belongings left with hardly a word'. Montague-Bates returned to Constantinople and was sent home. He was replaced in command of 242 Bde by Brigadier-General H.A.V. Cummins. In September 1920 the Greek Army took over the Izmit Front, which allowed the British Army of Occupation to be reduced. 242 Brigade was disbanded on 3 October and the troops dispersed, most of them joining 84th Brigade of 28th Division at

Haydarpaşa Haydarpaşa is a neighborhood within the Kadıköy and Üsküdar districts on the Asian part of Istanbul, Turkey. Haydarpaşa is named after Ottoman Vizier Haydar Pasha. The place, on the coast of Sea of Marmara, borders to Harem in the northwes ...

Notes

References

* Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 1: The Regular British Divisions'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1934/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Ian Lyster, ''Among the Ottomans: Diaries from Turkey in World War I'', London: Tauris, 2010,

External sources

Queen's Royal Surrey regimental website

Great War Forum

{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Military units and formations established in 1920 1920 establishments in the United Kingdom Infantry brigades of the British Army Infantry brigades of the British Army in World War I Military units and formations disestablished in 1920