1st Guards Brigade (United Kingdom)

a similarly designated, but distinct, formation 1st Armoured Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom) April 2015 May 2026 1st Guards Brigade British Guards Division Insignia.png Guards Division Insignia. 20 August 19151919 United Kingdom United Kingdom 23px Infantry Brigade Guards Division First World War Battle of Loos Battle of the Somme Battle of Passchendaele Battle of Cambrai (1917) First Battles of the Somme Second Battles of the Somme Second Battle of Arras Battles of the Hindenburg Line Final Advance in Picardy George Jeffreys The 1st Guards Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army, formed in the First World War. It was formed in August 1915 by the redesignation of the 4th (Guards) Brigade on its transfer from the 2nd Division to the Guards Division. It served with the Guards Division on the Western Front for the rest of the war. History 4th (Guards) Brigade The 4th Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army with a history that stretched back to the Napoleonic Wars.http://www.napoleonic-literature.com/Waterloo_OB/Allied.htm The Anglo-Allied Army at napoleonic-literature.com 2013-03-21 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20120717034259/http://www.napoleonic-literature.com/Waterloo_OB/Allied.htm 17 July 2012 http://www.napolun.com/mirror/napoleonistyka.atspace.com/British_Order_of_Battle_WATERLOO.html Wellington's Army in 1815 10 April 2015 At the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, the 4th Brigade was a regular army formation stationed in London District and assigned to the 2nd Division.http://marksrussianmilitaryhistory.info/BRIT14.html The British Army, 1914 Conrad Mark 1996 10 April 2015 It was designated as 4th (Guards) Brigade as it commanded four battalions of Foot Guards.Becke 1989 44 The brigade was among the first British formations to be sent overseas as part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), crossing to France between 11 and 16 August 1914. It served on the Western Front in 1914 and 1915 taking part in the Battle of Mons (23 and 24 August 1914), the First Battle of the Marne (69 September), the First Battle of the Aisne (1320 September), the First Battle of Ypres (19 October30 November), and the Battle of Festubert (1520 May 1915).Becke 1989 46 Formation On 19 August 1915, the brigade was transferred complete to the newly formed Guards Division and redesignated as 1st Guards Brigade the next day.Becke 1989 28 It remained with the division for the rest of the war, serving exclusively on the Western Front.Becke 1989 30 1st Guards Brigade 1916 Guards Division 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards 2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards 3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards 1st Battalion, Irish Guards 1st Guards Brigade Machine Gun Company 1st Guards Trench Mortar Battery War service In September 1915, the brigade took part in the Battle of Loos (26 September8 October) and Hohenzollern Redoubt (1819 October). In 1916, it fought in the later stages of the Battle of the Somme, in particular the Battle of Flers–Courcelette (1516 and 2022 September), the Battle of Morval (2528 September), and the Capture of Lesboeufs (25 September). In 1917, it saw action in the Battle of Passchendaele including the Battle of Pilckem Ridge (31 July2 August), the Battle of Poelcappelle (9 October), and the First Battle of Passchendaele (12 October). It then took part in the Battle of Cambrai (24 November3 December). thumb|left|Stretcher bearers passing by motor lorries of the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards, near Arras, France, 22 March 1918. In February 1918, Britishreduced As distinct from the Canadian and the New Zealand divisions which remained on a 12-battalion basis. divisions on the Western Front were reduced from a 12-battalion to a 9-battalion basis (brigades from four to three battalions). As a result, the 4th Guards Brigade was formed on 8 February 1918 by taking a battalion from each of the brigades of the Guards Division and the 1st Guards Brigade lost the 3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards.Becke 1989 294th Guards Brigade also gained the 2nd Battalion, Irish Guards from the 2nd Guards Brigade and the 4th Battalion, Grenadier Guards from the 3rd Guards Brigade. 1918 saw the return of the war of movement. It had to withstand the German Army's Spring Offensive in the First Battles of the Somme (125 March) then switched over to counter-attack in the Second Battles of the Somme (2123 August), the Second Battle of Arras (26 August3 September), the Battles of the Hindenburg Line (12 September12 October), and in the Final Advance in Picardy including the battles of the Selle and of the Sambre. Its final action was the Capture of Maubeuge on 9 November.Becke 1989 31 Post-war After the signing of the Armistice of 11 November 1918, the brigade was at Assevent, north-east of Maubeuge,James 1978 41 and on 17 November it regained 3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards from the disbanding 4th Guards Brigade. The next day it began the march on Germany and crossed the frontier on 11 December. By 19 December it had reached the Cologne area. Battalions started returning to England on 20 February 1919 and the last units had completed the move by 29 April. Order of battle The following units served in the brigade: 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards 2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards 3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards (joined the 4th Guards Brigade on 8 February 1918, returned on 17 November 1918Becke 1989 27) 1st Battalion, Irish Guards 1st Guards Brigade Machine Gun Company (formed 1–19 September 1915; joined the 4th Battalion, Machine Gun Guards on 1 March 1918) 1st Guards Trench Mortar Battery (formed 2–18 May 1916) Commanders The brigade had the following commanders:Becke 1989 26 From Name Notes 29 June 1915 Brigadier General G.P.T. Feilding wounded, 8 December 1915Brigadier General G.P.T. Fielding was in command of the 4th (Guards) Brigade before it was redesignated as 1st Guards Brigade.Becke 1989 42 8 December 1915 Lieutenant Colonel G.D. Jeffreys acting 13 December 1915 Brigadier-General G.P.T. Feilding invalided for treatment, 15 December 1915 15 December 1915 Lieutenant-Colonel G.D. Jeffreys acting 9 January 1916 Brigadier-General C.E. Pereira 31 December 1916 Brigadier-General G.D. Jeffreys 22 September 1917 Brigadier-General C.R. Champion de Crespigny See also United Kingdom Notes References 3 Bibliography Becke Major A.F. 1935 1989 Order of Battle of Divisions Part 1. The Regular British Divisions His Majesty's Stationery Office London 1-871167-09-4 James Brigadier E.A. 1978 British Regiments 1914–18 Samson Books Limited London 0-906304-03-2 External links http://www.1914-1918.net/gdiv.htm The Guards Division Chris Baker The Long Long Trail 8 April 2015 http://www.warpath.orbat.com/divs/guards.htm Guards Division on The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918 by PB Chappell 2015-04-09 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20130215050327/http://www.warpath.orbat.com/divs/guards.htm 15 February 2013 dmy Category:Infantry brigades of the British Army in World War I Category:Guards Division (United Kingdom) Category:Military units and formations established in 1915 Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1918