II Indian Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery was a

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, 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 ...

of the

Royal Horse Artillery The Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) was formed in 1793 as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (commonly termed Royal Artillery) to provide horse artillery support to the cavalry units of the British Army. Although the cavalry link rem ...

formed at the outbreak of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. It served with the

2nd Indian Cavalry Division The 2nd Indian Cavalry Division was a division of the British Indian Army formed at the outbreak of World War I. It served on the Western Front, being renamed as 5th Cavalry Division on 26 November 1916. In March 1918, the 5th Cavalry Divisio ...

on the Western Front. It was redesignated XVII Brigade, RHA in February 1917 and XVII Army Brigade, RHA just before being disbanded in April 1918.

History

II Indian Brigade, RHA

II Indian Brigade, RHA was formed in December 1914 for the

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It commanded * N Battery, RHA from IX Brigade, RHA at

Secunderabad Secunderabad () is a twin cities, twin city of Hyderabad and one of the six zones of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Telangana. It is the headquarters of the South ...

, India * V Battery, RHA from XII Brigade, RHA at

Meerut Meerut (, ISO 15919, ISO: ''Mēraṭh'') is a city in the western region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Located in the Meerut district, it is northeast of the national capital, New Delhi, and is ...

, India * X Battery, RHA from XIII Brigade, RHA at

Mhow Mhow, officially Dr. Ambedkar Nagar, is a town in the Indore district in Madhya Pradesh state of India. It is located south-west of Indore city, towards Mumbai on the old -Agra Mumbai Road. It is the birthplace of Babasaheb B. R. Ambedkar . ...

, India * II Indian RHA Brigade Ammunition Column Each battery was armed with six 13 pounder guns. The brigade served with the 2nd Indian Cavalry Division on the Western Front and the brigade commander acted as Commander Royal Horse Artillery (CRHA). In practice, the batteries were permanently assigned to the cavalry brigades, viz: * N Battery with

9th (Secunderabad) Cavalry Brigade The Secunderabad Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1907 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 9th (Secunderabad) Cavalry Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War and departed f ...

* V Battery with

7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade The Meerut Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1904 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War and departed for the West ...

* X Battery with

5th (Mhow) Cavalry Brigade The 5th (Mhow) Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the Indian Army during the First World War. Formed in November 1914, it served on the Western Front as part of the 2nd and 1st Indian C ...

then

3rd (Ambala) Cavalry Brigade The Ambala Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1904 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 3rd (Ambala) Cavalry Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War as part of the 1st India ...

from 15 September 1915 when it arrived from

1st Indian Cavalry Division The 1st Indian Cavalry Division was a division of the British Indian Army which was formed at the outbreak of the First World War. It served on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front, and was renamed the 4th Cavalry Division on 26 Novem ...

In June 1916, 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade (complete with V Battery, RHA) left the division and was reformed for service in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

. Its place was taken by the

Canadian Cavalry Brigade The Canadian Cavalry Brigade was raised in December 1914, under its first commanding officer Brigadier-General J.E.B. Seely. It was originally composed of two Canadian and one British regiments and an attached artillery battery. The Canadian un ...

with its attached Royal Canadian Horse Artillery Brigade (A and B Batteries, RCHA each with four 13 pounders). Other than the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

in 1916 (

Battle of Bazentin Ridge The Battle of Bazentin Ridge was part of the Battle of the Somme on the Western Front in France, during the First World War. On 14 July, the British Fourth Army (General Henry Rawlinson) made a dawn attack against the German 2nd Army (Gene ...

, 14–17 July and

Battle of Flers-Courcelette A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

, 15–22 September) and the Battle of Cambrai in 1917, the division was not involved in the battle. Instead, it was held in reserve in case of a breakthrough, although it did send parties to the trenches on several occasions. They would hold the line, or act as Pioneers; such parties were designated as, for example, the Mhow Battalion.

XVII Brigade, RHA

On 26 November 1916, 2nd Indian Cavalry Division was renamed 5th Cavalry Division. Consequently, on 24 February 1917, the brigade was redesignated as XVII Brigade, RHA. In March 1918, the 5th Cavalry Division was broken up in France. The British and Canadian units remained in France and the Indian elements were sent to Egypt to help constitute

2nd Mounted Division The 2nd Mounted Division was a yeomanry ( Territorial Army cavalry) division that served in the First World War. At the outbreak of war it was assigned to defence of the Norfolk coast. In March 1915 it formed a 2nd Line duplicate of itself, th ...

. The brigade became XVII Army Brigade, RHA at this time, though this new identity was short lived. On 13 March, G Battery, RHA joined from IV Brigade, RHA ( 3rd Cavalry Division) to bring the brigade back up to three batteries. On 9 April, G and N Batteries, RHA left for V Army Brigade, RHA. On 17 April 1918, the brigade HQ was dissolved.

Notes

References

Bibliography

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External links

2nd Indian Cavalry Division on the Regimental Warpath
{{DEFAULTSORT:17 Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery Royal Horse Artillery brigades Artillery units and formations of World War I Military units and formations established in 1914 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918