The 24th Army Tank Brigade was an armoured

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. ...

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 ...

. It was embodied in the United Kingdom at the outbreak of 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 ...

. On 1 November 1940, it was redesignated as the 24th Armoured Brigade and reorganized. In July 1942, it transferred to Egypt and took part in the Western Desert Campaign, notably the

Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa had prevented th ...

. The

Headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

was disbanded in the Middle East on 1 March 1943.

Original formation

The 24th Army Tank Brigade was a Territorial Army (TA)

Tank 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 ...

of the

, one of four Army Tank Brigades in the TA in 1939. It was embodied in the United Kingdom on 1 September 1939 at the outbreak of the Second World War, commanding 41st, 45th and 47th Royal Tank Regiments (41st, 45th and 47th RTR) of the TA. It remained in the UK under Northern Command throughout its existence. On 1 November 1940 it was redesignated as the 24th Armoured Brigade and reorganized. The reorganization saw the addition of a motor battalion – 1st Battalion,

Queen's Westminsters The Queen's Westminsters were an infantry regiment of the Territorial Army, part of the British Army. Originally formed from Rifle Volunteer Corps, which were established after a French invasion scare of 1859. The unit became part of the newly ...

– to provide motorized infantry support to the Brigade. On 22 November 1940, the Brigade joined 8th Armoured Division. With the division, it left the UK on 8 May 1942, arriving in Egypt on 8 July – the long sea journey being due to transiting via the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is ...

. 8th Armoured Division was destined never to operate as a complete formation; at this time, for tactical reasons, the battle formation in the Middle East became the Brigade Group and the division would now operate as two Brigade Groups. Along with the 23rd Armoured Brigade, the brigade was reorganised on 30 August as the 24th Armoured Brigade Group with three armoured regiments, a motor battalion, an artillery regiment, an anti-tank

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

, a light anti-aircraft battery and various other support units. The brigade's most notable action was in the Battle of El Alamein from 23 October to 4 November 1942. For the battle, the brigade was attached to 10th Armoured Division and equipped with 2

Grants Grant or Grants may refer to: Places *Grant County (disambiguation) Australia * Grant, Queensland, a locality in the Barcaldine Region, Queensland, Australia United Kingdom *Castle Grant United States * Grant, Alabama * Grant, Inyo County, ...

, 93 Shermans and 45

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

for a total of 140 tanks. On the night of 24/25 October, the brigade took part in the unsuccessful thrust by 10th Armoured Division from Miteirya Ridge. The leading unit, 8th Armoured Brigade, was caught on their start line at 22:00 – zero hour – by an air attack and were scattered. 24th Armoured Brigade had pushed forward and reported at dawn they were on the ''Pierson'' line, although it turned out that, in the dust and confusion, they had mistaken their position and were well short. On 27 October, the brigade supported the 2nd Battalion,

Rifle Brigade The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Ri ...

's attack on '' Outpost Snipe''. The brigade was soon in contact with the Rifle Brigade (having shelled them in error for a while). Some hours of confused fighting ensued involving tanks from the Littorio Armoured Division and troops and anti-tank guns from

15th Panzer Division The 15th Panzer Division (german: 15. Panzer-Division) was an armoured division in the German Army, the Wehrmacht, during World War II, established in 1940. The division, formed from the 33rd Infantry Division, fought exclusively in North Afr ...

which managed to keep the British armour at bay in spite of the support of the Rifle Brigade battlegroup's anti-tank guns. After the battle, the brigade's officers and men were progressively posted away to other units over the succeeding months. In December, 11th Battalion,

King's Royal Rifle Corps The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United ...

was posted to 23rd Armoured Brigade, and 41st RTR was replaced by the

2nd Royal Gloucestershire Hussars The Royal Gloucestershire Hussars was a volunteer yeomanry regiment which, in the 20th century, became part of the British Army Reserve. It traced its origins to the First or Cheltenham Troop of Gloucestershire Gentleman and Yeomanry raised in ...

(2nd RGH), formerly of 22nd Armoured Brigade. The remaining units were placed in suspended animation: 47th RTR in December 1942, 2nd RGH in January 1943, and 45th RTR in March 1943. The

was disbanded in the Middle East on 1 March 1943.

Commanders

The 24th Army Tank / Armoured Brigade had the following commanders:

Component units

The 24th Army Tank / Armoured Brigade commanded the following units during its existence: IWM-E-18461-Crusader-camouflaged-19421026

While organized as 24th Armoured Brigade Group, it also commanded:

Dummy tanks

The brigade was reformed to control a number of dummy tank "regiments". These were intended to deceive the enemy as to the disposition and strength of British armour.

Reformed

On 5 July 1942, 'A' Force Depot was redesignated as 74th Armoured Brigade (Dummy Tanks) in Egypt under the command of

British Troops in Egypt British Troops in Egypt was a command of the British Army. History A British Army commander was appointed in the late 19th century after the Anglo-Egyptian War in 1882. The British Army remained in Egypt throughout the First World War and, after t ...

. The "brigade" was redesignated a number of times: as 24th Armoured Brigade (Dummy Tanks) from 23 August 1943, as 87th Armoured Brigade (Dummy Tanks) from 26 May 1944, and back to 24th Armoured Brigade (Dummy Tanks) again from 14 July 1944. Finally, on 29 September 1944 it was redesignated and reorganized as 13th Reserve Unit in the UK.

Commander

74th / 24th / 87th Armoured Brigade (Dummy Tanks) was commanded throughout its existence by Lt-Col V.H. Jones (other than a brief period from 30 April to 30 June 1943 when

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

P.K. Copperthwaite was acting commander).

Dummy tank units

Dummy tanks, mounted on trucks, going to the forward areas in the Western Desert, 13 February 1942

The brigade commanded the following units during its existence:

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* {{British mobile brigades of the Second World War 24 Armoured Fictional units of World War II Military units and formations established in 1939 Military units and formations disestablished in 1943