The armed forces of Great Britain are composed of the main types of weapons. British Army - Wikiwand British Army

British Armed Forces(English) British Armed Forces) The armed forces of the United Kingdom are known by such names as the British Armed Forces, Her Majesty's Armed Forces (eng. Her Majesty's Armed Forces), sometimes the common name is the Royal Armed Forces (eng. the Armed Forces of the Crown). The Commander-in-Chief of the British Armed Forces is the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. The British Armed Forces are under the control of the Defense Council of the Ministry of Defence.

The primary mission of the British Armed Forces is to protect the United Kingdom and its overseas territories, advance the UK's security interests and support international peace efforts. Also, the British Armed Forces are active and permanent participants in NATO operations and coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since the end of the 1990s, Great Britain has been participating in the regulation of the foreign and security policy of the European Union, which implies the supply of troops numbering up to 12.5 thousand people.

History of the British Armed Forces

The history of the creation and development of the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom was long and complex, influencing the course of European history since the 17th century. Significant conflicts in which the UK has been involved include:

Traditionally, in the armed forces of Great Britain, the main place is given to the fleet, containing small ground forces.

Composition of the armed forces

Naval Forces

Ground troops

Air Force

Special Forces

medical service

Notes

Links

Official website of the British Ministry of Defense
UK Ministry of Defense Educational resource
British Formation Badges 1939-1945

Since I have already told (and I will tell more) about the regimental structure of the armies of the former British colonies, it would be necessary to write about the model for them - the British army. Moreover, after the last mergers and acquisitions in the spring of 2015, it will be stable for the next five years.

The modern regimental structure of the British Army dates back to the reforms of the ministers of war in the liberal cabinets of Gladstone in the 70s and 80s of the 19th century. It was then that the transition to the territorial regimental structure was made in the British army.

The very ideas of such a transition had already been expressed by that time for half a century. Viscount Palmerston, reflecting on ways to increase the attractiveness of military service in 1829, said:
"They [i.e., the lower strata of society] would like to serve in a certain regiment associated with their home county, next to their friends, and under the command of officers closely associated with the locality."
However, as with the abolition, the reform met with resistance from conservatives and the officer corps, who advocated the preservation of traditions.
And only the impressive victories of Prussian weapons in the wars with Austria and France forced the British to move from words to deeds in matters of military reform.

During the reform of the Minister of War Edward Cardwell in 1872, instead of 109 regular and 121 militia infantry regiments, 69 territorial regiments were created. The system was finalized by the reform of Secretary of War Hugh Childers in 1881. At the same time, a huge amount of work was carried out to standardize uniforms and colors, linked to old regimental traditions.

On the territory of the United Kingdom, 69 infantry regiments were recruited. Of these, only two had no territorial binding - the King's Own Royal Rifle Corps and the Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own).
The other 67 were recruited and based in certain districts into which the entire territory of the country was divided. 46 districts (and regiments, respectively) were created in England, 10 in Scotland, 8 in Ireland, 3 in Wales. Each infantry regiment had two regular and two (three in Ireland) militia battalions. While one regular battalion was serving abroad, the second was training at home.

True, in practice, due to the lack of population in many districts, only 25 regiments were formed in two battalions, the rest had one battalion each.

With the approach (and even more so the beginning) of the First World War, the number of battalions in the regiments increases dramatically.
After the end of the war, the regiments were reduced to two battalions; in 1922, after the secession of Ireland, five Irish regiments were disbanded.

During the Second World War, there was a new increase in the number of infantry regiments.

After its completion, by 1948, all regiments were reduced to a single battalion.
By 1957, the British infantry consisted of 14 administrative brigades, each consisting of 3-4 regiments.

Between 1958 and 1961, a reduction in the number of regiments followed - 24 infantry regiments were combined into 12.

At the same time, the idea of moving to "large regiments" was expressed - each of the administrative brigades was to become a regiment of 3-4 battalions.
In this way, between September 1964 and July 1968, 6 new "large regiments" were created from 22 old regiments: the Royal English Regiment, the Royal Green Jackets, Her Majesty's Regiment, the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, the Royal Irish Rangers, Light Infantry.

The reform caused great protests in the military environment, as a result, by 1970 it was stopped.

A new stage in the reform of the armed forces began after the end of the Cold War. In 1992-94, three more "big regiments" were created: the Royal Irish Regiment, the Royal Regiment of the Princess of Wales and.
At the same time, throughout the 90s, the number of battalions within the "big regiments" continued to be reduced - first to 3 battalions per regiment, and then to two.

In 2004, a new reform completes the creation of "large regiments", by 2006 the Regiment of the Duke of Lancaster (His Majesty, Lancashire and Frontier) was also created.

During the latest reform in 2012-14, there is a new reduction in the number of battalions in the composition of infantry regiments - most of them now have only two battalions.

The British cavalry was not formally affected by the reforms of Cardwell and Childers; by the beginning of the 20th century, cavalry regiments with a number designation continued to exist - 3 dragoons, 7 dragoon guards, 9 hussars and 5 lancers.
Formally, they did not have a territorial connection, but during the reforms to create the Territorial Army (TA) at the beginning of the 20th century, each regular cavalry regiment was associated with a certain reserve cavalry regiment (yeomanry), which were just built on a territorial basis. So the cavalry regiments received the regions of recruitment without prior notice.

The First World War ended the history of the cavalry, in the 20-30s the cavalry regiments were mechanized. The last to lose horses in 1941 were the Royal Scots Grays serving in Palestine.
By the beginning of World War II, the British cavalry had 8 tank regiments and 20 cavalry. During the war years, their number increased, mostly due to conversion from TA infantry units.

The British Army has a special place in NATO. First of all, due to the high political activity of this country in the international arena. The British Armed Forces have been involved in almost every major armed conflict on the planet since 1945. And the rich imperial past to this day positions the Royal Navy as the second in the world, after the American one. At one time up to 2/3 of the British Army was placed under Alliance command. However, over the past time in the UK there have been major changes. They also touched its armed forces.

Formally, at the moment, the total strength of the British army, including aviation and navy, is about 200 thousand people: including 113 thousand in the ground forces, 52 thousand in the air force and 43 thousand people in the navy . However, the country is currently undergoing a large-scale military reform, the attitude towards which is ambiguous even among the British themselves. Back in the early 90s of the twentieth century, the British Armed Forces had 1.2 thousand tanks, 3.2 thousand armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles, 700 artillery systems and almost 850 combat aircraft. But the optimization of the composition and cost of maintaining the British army, begun in 2010, has fundamentally reduced these figures.

In November 2010, the UK published a new national security strategy. The set of documents bears the unifying name " A strong Britain in an age of uncertainty". It formulates the main promising threats that the country will face for the period up to 2020 - 2030. The main message is the idea that after the collapse of the USSR, the likelihood of any "big war" in Europe has completely disappeared. In connection with this 16 other threats took the first place, among which the first degree of significance includes: international terrorism, cyber attacks, national disasters, natural hazards, pandemics and crises in international relations.

The last point is the most curious, since, at first glance, it directly contradicts the original basic message of the document. However, the entire national security strategy is presented in the newfangled style of streamlined, outwardly loud, but rather meaningless formulations inside. They are designed to clearly exaggerate the real meaning of the concepts involved. So, for example, a crisis in international relations actually means only a local military conflict of low intensity, in which the UK will take part only as part of coalition forces. The main regions in which the use of British military force is possible are the strip from West Africa to Southeast Asia. The main type of adversary is non-state militias. An advanced industrialized country with a modern high-tech army is not considered as an enemy even theoretically. Consequently, military construction is being carried out in accordance with ideas about the composition and nature of future threats.

British Army Lieutenant General Nick Carter

Based on the mentioned national security strategy, two fundamental documents were developed that became the basis for further military development in the country: "On Strategic Defense and Security" and the Army 2020 Reform Plan of the Armed Forces, authored by Lieutenant General Nick Carter. Formally, at the moment, "Army 2020" is still only at the stage of discussion in the national parliament, but events have already begun in the country that suspiciously coincide in composition and nature with what General Carter presented to the House of Lords. Therefore, the program will be adopted and the prospects of the British armed forces should be further assessed on its basis.

British ground forces

Since November 1, 2011, the following structure of the High Command of the Ground Forces has been operating in the UK. Chief of the General Staff ( Chief of the General Staff or CGS for short) commands the Army Headquarters, located in the city of Andover. His duties include military planning in peacetime and wartime. Commander of the Ground Forces (Commander Land Forces) exercises direct command of all UK ground forces, including helicopter units and the reservist component. The organization of interaction between them, as well as with the Ministry of Defense of the country, is entrusted to the General's Adjutant ( Assistant Chief of the General Staff). It's not a title, it's a position. The issues of combat training and provision of the army are in charge of the Commander for the Training and Development of the Armed Forces ( Commander Force Development and Training).

According to the top military and political leadership of the UK, such a structure should provide improved feedback and understanding with the Ministry of Defense, as well as other government structures. It is believed that it is more efficient and less costly in the current geopolitical and economic conditions.

According to the Army 2020 plan, all UK land units are reduced to two basic components: high intensity units ( Reaction Division) and adaptive parts ( Adaptive Division).

High intensity parts include:

The 1st Armored Division, which forms the basis of the so-called British Rhine Army, stationed in Germany with headquarters in the city of Herford. Officially, the division consists of the 7th and 20th Armored Brigades, the 4th, 6th, 11th and 12th Infantry, the 1st Artillery Brigade, the 39th Royal Artillery Regiment and the 22nd Regiment connections. Once upon a time, the ARB was the backbone of the entire Northern Group of Forces of NATO in Europe, but those days are long gone. At the moment, the division has 70-75% of the regular strength in terms of personnel and no more than 80% in terms of standard equipment. Although it is still in Europe, half of its current strength (in total, the 1st btd has 20 thousand people) will be returned to the metropolis before the end of 2015, and the entire division will return to the Islands by 2020. As the British Prime Minister said, more than 65 years have passed since the war in Europe, the Cold War ended more than 20 years ago, and there is "no need" to keep expensive troops in Germany.

7th Armored Brigade Commander Brigadier James Woodham

3rd Division (3rd Division) consisting of: 1st, 4th and 12th mechanized brigades, as well as the 19th "light" brigade). To date, this is the most combat-ready and completed formation of the British army.

The 16th Air Assault Brigade, despite its name, consists of: the 5th Airborne and the 24th Air Brigade. The brigade was created in 1999 in accordance with the program of reorganization of ground units in order to obtain the most highly mobile tool. Its specialization is the landing of light infantry in the form of airborne assaults with the support of helicopter units. The staff strength of the brigade is 8 thousand people.

Burgundy beret - a distinctive feature of the British paratroopers

3rd Marine Brigade (up to 3 thousand commandos) consisting of: 40th, 42nd, 45th Marine Battalions, 1st Battalion of the Rifle Regiment, 43rd Anti-Sabotage Marine Battalion, 29th Artillery regiment (two batteries of L115 howitzers), the 24th engineer regiment, and the logistics regiment.

In the future, one of the two divisions will be formed, of some kind of unified composition, including three "standard" mechanized brigades. Why the British focus on "standard" will be discussed below. For now, it is worth noting that a standard brigade should consist of two motorized infantry battalions (about 400 - 460 people each on modernized Warrior BMPs), a tank regiment (about 600 people, 56 Challenger II MBTs), a medium reconnaissance regiment (about 500 people on promising Scout armored vehicles SV) and a mobile motorized infantry regiment (about 700 people on promising FRES UV armored personnel carriers). The division provides for the presence of a separate artillery and engineering regiments, as well as a logistics regiment. The artillery regiment (769 people) consists of a command and headquarters, a headquarters battery, two batteries of 155-mm M109 howitzers with 6 guns each, and an anti-tank battery (30 Swingfire ATGM launchers). In fact, this part is only called a regiment. In terms of armament, it is simply an artillery battalion, reinforced by a company of anti-tank weapons, if you count by the old Soviet standards.

True to its name, high-intensity units are designed to "rapidly respond to global threats" and conduct "high-intensity" combat operations. The total number of this component is approximately 55 thousand soldiers, sergeants and officers.

Royal Irish Regiment in Iraq

The adaptive units include seven infantry brigades stationed in the UK. In the future, these brigades are also supposed to be brought to a "standard form" consisting of: 2 - 4 infantry battalions on light armored vehicles and MRAP vehicles, as well as several (up to 3) "light cavalry" or armored reconnaissance squadrons on light wheeled armored vehicles. But this moment is highly doubtful in view of the specifics of the organization and traditions of the British army.

The adaptive units will include the Territorial Army and reservists. It is assumed that as a result of the reforms, part of the regular military will be fired and replaced by reservists, whose number is expected to be raised to 30 thousand people. True, it is not yet clear how London intends to resolve the issue with employers who are not too ready to release employees to serve in the Army Reserve, since the period of absence of an employee from the workplace can be up to one year. Again, there is the problem of the quality of the reservists. According to the British Ministry of Defense, at the moment only 1 out of 19 reservists is able to serve in army conditions. The military expresses the hope that by 2020-2025 London will be able to achieve a level "at least like in the US National Guard", where every tenth reservist is capable of serving in the army. But whether it will be possible to achieve this is a big question.

British reservists

The task of the adaptive units is to conduct counterinsurgency and soft power operations.

The future status of the Joint Helicopter Command is not entirely clear. Formally, it includes the 16th Air Assault Brigade, already mentioned above, the Troop Support Helicopter Command (two regiments of AH-64 Apache attack helicopters) and helicopter units abroad. Organizationally, the UWC is part of the Ground Forces, but the 16th brigade belongs to the Reaction Division, and the rest of the units are part of the Adaptiv Division.

Also, the documents do not mention the 17th Gurkha Brigade (the former 17th Gurkha Infantry Division), consisting of a training company and five infantry battalions, a communications regiment and an automobile regiment. It is only known that after the transfer of Hong Kong to China, the Gurkha brigade stationed there was transferred to the UK. Its number was reduced to 2.5 thousand people. Of the five battalions, two remained, the support units were also severely cut. But where the brigade was included further is currently unknown. It is logical to assume its use as part of adaptive parts.

Her Majesty's Gurkhas as part of the British Expeditionary Force in Afghanistan, Gilnand Province

Ensuring the combat operations of both components will be carried out by the Forse Troop And Logistics Support Command, which is subordinate to up to eight different brigades: artillery, reconnaissance, engineering, medical, communications (two) and logistics (also two).

No less mysterious is the further fate of individual regiments of British artillery. At the moment, there are 10 of them, with different composition, different weapons and differing in numbers. It is assumed that they will be brought into a new artillery brigade and subordinated to Forse Troop And Logistics Support. But so far, we can more or less confidently talk about the preservation in the future of only three artillery regiments transferred to the new unified states: three batteries of six 155-mm AS-90 self-propelled guns, one M270 MLRS MLRS battery and two platoons of Exactor Mk2 missile systems. It is assumed that such a structure will provide the ability to solve fire missions at ranges up to 300 km. Starting from 45 km and further - targets are hit by MLRS with conventional and special long-range missiles, and up to 25 - 30 km - they are covered with cannon artillery and Exactor missile systems.

British Army Palace Cavalry

A separate complexity of the British army are its traditions.

In accordance with military doctrines, the construction of the armed forces of the capitalist states was also carried out.

British Armed Forces consisted of ground forces (army), naval (navy and naval aviation) and air forces. The regular armed forces were staffed by volunteers aged 18 to 25 years. In July 1939, a law on compulsory military service came into force in the metropolis, according to which all men who had reached the age of twenty had to serve for six months in the regular army, after which they were enrolled in the territorial army for three and a half years ( E. Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army. London, 1950, p. 373-375.). The dominions of Great Britain had their own national armed forces, which also consisted of three types and were staffed by volunteers. In the most important strategic points and bases of the empire, there were British units that performed police functions. All other parts of the English Empire contained colonial troops from local residents, which the government could use outside their territories. Data on the strength of the British armed forces by their types are given in table 15.

The king was nominally considered the supreme commander of the armed forces of the British Empire, in fact they were led by the Prime Minister of Great Britain, who headed the committee of imperial defense.

With regard to the dominions, the committee limited itself to general instructions on the development of the armed forces. The order of construction of armed forces of the colonies was completely determined by him. All decisions on this issue in the colonies were carried out by the respective ministers of war (army, navy and air force) through the governors general of the colonies, and in India - through the viceroy.

Proceeding from the general military doctrine, the main attention in the development of the armed forces was given to the fleet and the air force.

By the beginning of World War II, the British fleet consisted of 15 battleships and battlecruisers, 7 aircraft carriers, 64 cruisers, 184 destroyers, 45 minesweepers and coastal defense ships, 58 submarines ( Encyclopedia Britannica. Vol. 23. Chicago-London, 1973, p. 780 C.). Some ships, including 2 battleships, were reconstructed, 4 obsolete battleships could only be used for escort service. Coastal Command Aviation had 232 combat aircraft, grouped into 17 squadrons ( D. Butler. Big strategy. September 1939 - June 1941, page 46.); about 500 aircraft were on aircraft carriers and 490 in reserve ( PRO. Cab., 23/97, p. 126.).

Organizationally, the British fleet included the fleet of the mother country, the Mediterranean, the eastern and the reserve. In addition, there were fleets and formations of ships in the dominions. As part of the fleets, the ships were consolidated into squadrons of battleships, cruisers, aircraft carriers, fleets of destroyers and submarines.

Most of the mother country's fleet was based at Scapa Flow, and some of its ships were at the Humber and Portland naval bases. The West Indian station operated in the Western Atlantic (4 cruisers), and the South Atlantic station (8 cruisers) operated in the South Atlantic. The Mediterranean Fleet was based in Gibraltar and Alexandria, the Eastern Fleet was stationed mainly in Singapore. A detachment of light forces operated in the Red Sea. In addition, there was an East Chinese station (4 cruisers) in the waters of China.

The military leadership of Great Britain believed that superiority over the fleets of Germany and Italy in large surface ships would ensure the safety of sea communications, and expected to overcome the possible threat from German submarines with the help of new means of detecting them, which were introduced on the ships of the British fleet. The plans of the British Admiralty took into account that if Japan entered the war, the British fleet, located in the Far East, would be much weaker than the enemy fleet.

After the revision of the "air doctrine" in connection with the emergence of new views on the use of aviation in the late 30s, the rearmament and reorganization of the air force began. In 1936, three commands were organized in their composition: fighter, bomber and coastal ( R. Higham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 179.). In November 1938, Plan M was approved in the UK, according to which it was supposed to have 163 squadrons (2549 first-line combat aircraft) in the metropolis in the coming years, and 49 squadrons (636 aircraft) at overseas bases ( D. Butler. Big strategy. September 1939 - June 1941, page 53.).

However, Plan M could not be fully implemented, and by the beginning of the Second World War, there were 78 squadrons in the metropolis (1456 combat aircraft, including 536 bombers). About 2 thousand cars were in reserve ( R. Higham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 188.). The Overseas Air Force had 34 squadrons (435 aircraft), of which 19 squadrons were based in the Middle East, 7 in India and 8 in Malaya ( Ibidem; D. Richards, X. Conders. British Air Force in World War II 1939-1945. Translation from English. M., 1963, p. 45.). Bomber Command had only 17 squadrons of Whitleys, Wellingtons and Hampdens, 10 squadrons of Blenheims and 12 squadrons of obsolete Battles. By the beginning of the war, most of the fighter aviation was armed with quite modern Spitfire, Hurricane and Blenheim aircraft ( R. Bigham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 188.). But in general, in terms of the number and training of the flight crew, the British aviation was somewhat inferior to the German one.

The country's air defense plan was approved in 1938. The overall direction of air defense was carried out by a committee headed by the prime minister. The head of the air defense of the metropolis was the commander of fighter aircraft, to whom all air defense systems were operationally subordinate.

The territory of the British Isles was divided into four air defense areas: the first area covered the southeastern part of the country, the second - the southwest, the third - the central, the fourth - the northern part of the country and Scotland. In organizational terms, the air defense troops were reduced to three divisions (with the exception of fighter aircraft). One air defense division defended London, the other - the cities located in the center and in the north of the country, the third - the cities of Scotland.

The ground forces were subdivided into regular, territorial armies and reserves. Their basis was the regular army, which included all types of troops. The territorial army was a kind of reserve of the first stage and was recruited at the expense of persons who had mainly served in the regular army. The reserve consisted of demobilized officers and persons who had served in the territorial army.

In 1936, the British government began a radical reorganization of the ground forces. The focus of their construction was on motorization. The creation of the first motorized and armored units and formations began ( E Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army, p. 373-375.).

The lack of a clearly developed theory and tactics of using armored forces in combat operations led to the fact that before the war the British army was armed with the most diverse types of tanks in terms of their tactical and technical data. Even at the beginning of 1939, the General Staff could not finally decide what kind of tanks the army needed: it was believed that light vehicles were needed for colonial wars, and heavy vehicles for sending to France, slow-moving, well-armored ones for infantry support, and for mobile warfare - light cruiser tanks ( S. Barnett. Britain and Her Army 1509-1970, p. 419.). Nevertheless, by the beginning of the war, the process of motorization of regular army formations was basically completed.

The territorial army, which was also entrusted with the task of air defense of the metropolis, also underwent a radical reorganization. For this purpose, 7 divisions were allocated from its composition ( ). On March 29, 1939, the British government decided to increase the number of territorial divisions from 13 to 26, as a result of which the total number of divisions of the ground forces increased to 32 (of which 6 were regular) ( S. Barnett. Britain and Her Army. 1509-1970, p. 420.). In fact, by the beginning of the war, Great Britain had 9 regular and 16 territorial divisions, 8 infantry, 2 cavalry and 9 tank brigades ( Calculated from: H. Joslen. Orders of Battle of the Seconal World War 1939-1945. Vol. I-II. London, 1960.). Territorial divisions were hastily transferred to regular states. India had seven regular divisions and a significant number of independent brigades; Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand and the Union of South Africa - several separate brigades each.

An English infantry division in 1939 consisted of a headquarters, three infantry brigades, a mechanized regiment, three field regiments, an anti-tank artillery regiment, three anti-tank companies, and support and maintenance units. The total number of personnel was 14.5 thousand people, of which 500 officers. The division was armed with 140 armored personnel carriers, 28 light tanks, 156 tractors, 147 guns, 810 trucks, 644 light and 56 heavy machine guns, 126 mortars, 10,222 rifles, 361 anti-tank rifles and other equipment ( H. Joslen. Orders of Battle of the Second World War 1939-1945, vol. I, p. 131.).

The organization of higher formations and associations of the British ground forces by the beginning of the war had not yet finally taken shape. Due to the lack of officers, weapons, military equipment and equipment, the British did not begin to deploy corps and armies. To assist France in repelling possible aggression from Germany, the command of the British Expeditionary Forces was created, to which the divisions scheduled for dispatch to the European continent were subordinate, as well as the command of the British Armed Forces in the Near and Middle East, at the disposal of which were allocated two infantry and one armored divisions (not yet fully manned) ( E Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army, p. 375.). The main forces of the ground forces on the eve of the war were stationed in the metropolis.

All the calculations of the British command were based on the assumption that if Germany undertook a war against France, military operations would proceed slowly. In accordance with this, the first British infantry divisions were to arrive in France only 33 days after the announcement of mobilization, two armored divisions - after 8 months, and subsequently 2-3 divisions at intervals of 6-8 months.

According to Field Marshal Montgomery, at the end of August 1939, the British ground forces were allegedly completely unprepared for large-scale military operations: they experienced a shortage of tanks, guns, had weak anti-tank artillery, imperfect communications, poor logistics, and were insufficiently trained ( The War on Land. The British Army in World War II. New York, 1970, p. 6-7.).

However, in reality, despite many omissions and shortcomings in the organization and equipment of its armed forces, Great Britain had, at the beginning of the war, large naval and air forces and some ground forces in the mother country, sufficient reserves in the empire. This allowed her, together with France and Poland, to successfully wage an armed struggle against fascist Germany.

French Armed Forces consisted of three types: land army, air force and navy. Their organization and construction were based on official military doctrine.

In accordance with the law "On the organization of the nation in times of war" of July 11, 1938, all supreme political and military power was concentrated in the hands of the government. To solve the fundamental issues of preparing the country for war, the supreme council of national defense was reorganized, which included all members of the cabinet of ministers, Marshal Petain and the chief of the general staff, General Gamelin, and, with the right of an advisory vote, the commanders-in-chief of the branches of the armed forces and the chief of staff of the colonial troops.

In wartime, to direct the armed forces in all theaters of military operations, it was planned to create a military committee. The chairman of the committee and the supreme commander was the President of the Republic.

On the eve of the Second World War, there were ministries in France: national defense, army, aviation and navy. The ministries of national defense and the army had a single governing body - the general staff, other ministries - the main headquarters of the branches of the armed forces. The chief of the general staff was at the same time the commander of the ground forces located in the metropolis and colonies.

The commanders of aviation and the navy did not report to the chief of the general staff; he only coordinated the actions of the aviation and navy with the actions of the ground forces.

According to the law "On the organization of the nation in times of war", the territory of France was divided into three fronts: northeast, southeast and the Pyrenees. The commanders of these fronts reported directly to the Chief of the General Staff ( Les evenements survenus en France de 1933 a 1945. Annexes, t. III, p. 811.).

There were 20 military districts in the country, each with 1-2 personnel divisions. In case of war, the mobilization plan provided for the deployment of 80-100 divisions of type "A" and "B" on the basis of these formations ( Division "A" was staffed by 75 percent of the personnel, the rest were reservists of young ages. Equipped mainly with modern weapons, it had a high combat capability. Division "B" consisted of 45 percent of the personnel and replenished to the norm at the expense of reservists of older ages. The armament was mostly obsolete. The combat effectiveness of such a division was low.).

The armed forces were recruited on the basis of universal military service. In 1936, the term of service was increased from one year to two, for sailors and soldiers of the colonial troops it remained the same - three years. After the introduction of a two-year service life, the French armed forces had about 700 thousand people of variable composition. In case of war, up to 6 million reservists could be mobilized. However, the contingents, from which, according to the plan, it was supposed to form numerous units and formations, did not undergo thorough combat training. Until the middle of the 1920s, retraining of those liable for military service was not carried out at all. Later, they began to be called up for training camps, which, however, were too short, and the number of called-up reservists was clearly insufficient. As a result, the reserve formations did not have high military-technical and tactical training, which had a negative impact on their combat capability.

The French armed forces in peacetime numbered over 1 million people, including in the ground forces - 865 thousand (550 thousand - the metropolitan army, 199 thousand - expeditionary forces and 116 thousand - colonial formations), in the air force - 50 thousand, navy - 90 thousand people.

By the end of August 1939, after a series of extraordinary appeals, the number of armed forces increased to 2,674 thousand people (2,438 thousand in the ground forces, 110 thousand in the air force and 126 thousand in the navy ) ( M. Gamelin. Servir. Le prologue du drama, p. 448.). The land army consisted of 108 divisions, including 1 tank, 2 mechanized, 5 cavalry and 13 divisions of fortress areas. The tank and 8 infantry divisions were not yet fully equipped by the time France entered the war.

France had 14,428 guns (excluding railway platforms and fortress artillery) ( Archives nationales de France. Cour de Riom. W 11 . Serie XIX, cartone 48, doc. nine.); in the land army, there were 3100 tanks ( "Revue d" histoire de la deuxieme guerre mondiale", 1964, No. 53, p. 5.), most of them were in 39 separate tank battalions ( J. Boucher. Armored weapons in war. Translation from French. M., 1956, pp. 83-86.).

The infantry divisions of both types ("A" and "B") had the same organization: three infantry and two artillery (light and medium artillery) regiments, an anti-tank division, units and subunits of support and maintenance ( Ibid., pp. 86-87.). In total, the division had 17.8 thousand people, 62 75-mm and 155-mm guns, 8 47-mm anti-tank guns and 52 25-mm universal guns.

Light mechanized divisions were reorganized in 1932 from cavalry formations. Each of them had tank and motorized brigades, reconnaissance and artillery regiments, support and maintenance units and subunits, 11,000 personnel, 174 tanks, and 105 armored vehicles (mostly obsolete designs).

The cavalry division consisted of two brigades (cavalry and light mechanized) and an artillery regiment. In total, there were 11.7 thousand people, 22 tanks and 36 armored vehicles ( La campagne de France. Mai - juin 1940, p. 21.).

The serious shortcomings in the technical equipment that existed in the French army significantly reduced its combat effectiveness. Although the armament for the most part met modern requirements, many weapons remained from the First World War. The artillery was represented mainly by a 75 mm gun, which was significantly inferior to the German 105 mm howitzer. The French heavy and high powered artillery was numerous and outgunned the corresponding German artillery.

The French Air Force, including naval aviation, consisted of 3335 combat aircraft. By the beginning of the war, their armament and organization were still in their infancy. The highest association of the Air Force was the mixed air army (there were three in total), which consisted of a bomber division and several fighter brigades. In the French Air Force, fighters accounted for 36 percent, scouts for 25 percent, and bombers for 39 percent of the total aircraft fleet. The leadership of the French air force, in contrast to the German, was decentralized. Each army corps, army and front had its own aviation, which was based on airfields located in the rear areas of military formations and associations.

France possessed a significant navy, ranked fourth among the fleets of the capitalist countries. It included 7 battleships, 1 aircraft carrier, 19 cruisers, 32 destroyers, 38 destroyers, 26 minesweepers and 77 submarines ( R. Auphan, J. Mordal. La Marine Francaise pendant la seconde guerre mondiale. Paris, 1958, p. 481 - 511.).

Thus, by the beginning of the Second World War, France had significant armed forces, sufficiently equipped with military equipment and weapons, including modern ones. However, as a result of a policy that sought to direct aggression towards the Soviet Union and the betrayal of the national interests of France by her ruling circles, as well as due to serious shortcomings in the preparation of the country for war, the French armed forces inevitably had to face great difficulties in the fight against a strong enemy.

The armed forces of the United States of America consisted of the army and the navy. The Air Force was part of the Army.

The Supreme Commander was the President of the United States, who led the armed forces through the War and Navy Departments. The armed forces were recruited on a voluntary basis.

The size of the American army in 1939 was only 544.7 thousand people, of which 190 thousand were in the regular army, 200 thousand in the national guard and 154.7 thousand in the navy ( The Information Please Almanac, 1950. New York, 1951, p. 206; R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 419.). The military-political leadership believed that, being at a sufficient distance from possible theaters of military operations, the United States would have time, if necessary, to quickly deploy its armed forces to the required number and enter the war at a decisive moment.

In accordance with the military doctrine of the United States, the main attention in the development of the armed forces was given to the navy, mainly powerful battleships and aircraft carriers. By the beginning of World War II, the US Navy had more than 300 warships, including 15 battleships, 5 aircraft carriers, 36 cruisers, 181 destroyers, 99 submarines, 7 gunboats and 26 minesweepers ( W. Churchill. The Second World War. Vol. I. The Gathering Storm. New York, 1961, p. 617.). The fleet also had a large number of auxiliary ships for various purposes. However, many destroyers and submarines were obsolete.

In organizational terms, before the Second World War, the ships were consolidated into two fleets - the Pacific and the Atlantic, in which there were formations of battleships, aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, submarines, auxiliary and amphibious forces. The structure of naval aviation included about 300 aircraft.

The main forces of the navy were based in Norfolk (Atlantic coast), San Diego (Pacific coast) and Pearl Harbor (Hawaiian Islands).

The US Navy was basically ready to carry out the tasks assigned to them in the defense of the American continent and to ensure the transfer of ground forces for landings on other continents.

The few ground forces consisted of the regular army, the national guard and organized reserves. The units and formations of the regular army were more prepared. The National Guard was a militia army of individual states, designed primarily to maintain internal order and was not subordinate to the federal government. The organized reserves consisted of reserve officers and persons who had served a certain period in the regular army.

On the eve of World War II, the regular army had only three fully and six partially manned infantry divisions, two cavalry divisions, an independent armored brigade and several independent infantry brigades ( M. Kreidberg, M. Henry. History of Military Mobilization in the United States Army, 1775-1945. Washington, 1955, p. 548-552.). There were 17 divisions in the National Guard. These military formations and units were combined into four armies stationed in the continental part of the country. Small garrisons of ground forces were located in Alaska, Hawaii and other Pacific islands.

In December 1936, a directive from the chief of staff of the ground forces announced the start of the development of a "plan for the mobilization of covering forces", which was completed by 1939. The plan provided for the deployment within 90 days from the date of the announcement of the mobilization of 730,000 well-equipped ground forces. Then, in a short time, the army must deploy up to 1 million people. Until 1940, all calculations for the production of weapons for the army were based on this number of ground forces ( R. Smith. The Army and Economic Mobilization, p. 54, 127 - 128.).

In the 1930s, the American army was armed mainly with light tanks. Only in 1939, taking into account the lessons of the war in Spain, did the Americans begin to create medium tanks ( R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 411.).

The general leadership of aviation, which was part of the ground forces, was carried out by the Minister of War through his assistant for aviation, and operational management through the general staff. On the eve of the war, the army air force had 1,576 combat aircraft. Since the beginning of World War II, the US Congress has allocated additional funds for the development of aircraft construction. Aircraft production was planned to be increased to 5500 aircraft per year ( The War Reports of General of the Army G. Marshall, Chief of the Staff; General of the Army H. Arnold, Commanding General, Army Air Forces; Fleet Admiral E. King, Commander-in-Chief, United States Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations. Philadelphia-New-York, 1947, p. 308; The Army Almanac. Washington, 1950, p. 214.). At the same time, it was planned to train 20 thousand pilots, navigators and shooters. Air bases were built at an accelerated pace in Panama, Alaska, Puerto Rico and the Hawaiian Islands.

The air forces of the army were divided into tactical and defense of the continent. In their construction, the main attention was paid to strategic aviation, while the importance of tactical aviation was underestimated. By the beginning of the war, the United States had a good heavy bomber B-17 ("flying fortress"), but did not have equal fighters and attack aircraft necessary to support the ground forces ( R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 414.). In terms of the quantity and quality of military equipment and weapons, American aviation was generally inferior to the British and German.

For the purposes of air defense, the territory of the United States was divided into four districts, in which the air force commander of these districts, subordinate to the commander of the Army Air Forces, was entrusted with ensuring the interaction of fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft artillery, air warning service and air barrage balloons.

Thus, the state of the US armed forces in 1939 basically corresponded to the requirements imposed on them by the military-political leadership. However, significant funds and time were needed to implement the plans for the deployment of the armed forces outlined by the American government.

Polish Armed Forces consisted of the ground forces and the navy. According to the constitution of 1935, the president was the supreme commander in chief, but in fact the armed forces, like all power in the country, after the death of Pilsudski were in the hands of the military and political dictator, the general inspector of the armed forces, Marshal E. Rydz-Smigly.

The army and navy were recruited on the basis of the law on universal conscription adopted on April 9, 1938. As of June 1, 1939, the armed forces of Poland numbered 439,718 people, of which 418,474 were in the ground forces, 12,170 in aviation and military navy - 9074 people ( This number does not include parts of the Border Guard Corps. The border troops consisted of regiments and brigades. In May 1939 they numbered 25,372. Calculated on the basis of monthly reports on the actual state of the Polish Armed Forces: Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe. Departament Dowodztwa Ogolnego MS Wojsk., t. 4393. L. dz. 8838/tj. z dn. 14.8.1939; Akta Departamentu Art. MS Wojsk., t. 11, Akta gisz, t. 287-667, 960.). The number of trained reserves reached 1.5 million people ( W. Iwanowski. Wysilek Zbrojny Narodu Polskiego w czasie II Wojny Swiatowej. T. I. Warszawa, 1961, str. 66.).

In social terms, the Polish army in the vast majority (about 70 percent) consisted of peasants with a small stratum of workers. Up to 30-40 percent were representatives of national minorities (Ukrainians, Belarusians, Lithuanians and others). The recruitment system for the armed forces had a pronounced class character and was designed to make them an obedient weapon in the struggle against the revolutionary movement and in the war against the Soviet socialist state.

The ruling circles of Poland have for a long time educated the army in a spirit of hostility towards the Soviet Union and the working people of Poland itself. The troops were often used to suppress the revolutionary uprisings of the masses of Poland, the national liberation movement of Belarusians, Ukrainians and Lithuanians. Separate garrisons had special units specially designed for these purposes ( S. Rowecki. Walki uliczne. Warszawa, 1928, str. 286.).

The Polish bourgeoisie counted on a carefully thought-out system of indoctrination of personnel to ensure the reliability of their armed forces, to protect them from the penetration of revolutionary ideas and sentiments.

The system of training and education of soldiers and officers was aimed at smoothing out the existing contradictions between the social composition of the army and its purpose, isolating the soldiers from the masses, distracting them from politics, dulling class consciousness and turning them into blind executors of the will of the ruling classes. Having declared the army out of politics, the military leadership forbade soldiers and officers to be members of political parties, participate in rallies, meetings and other social and political events and campaigns ( See art. 55 § I Dekretu about sluzbie wojskowej oficerow. Warzawa, 1937.). The reactionary government mercilessly persecuted military personnel for participating in the revolutionary movement and persistently inspired them with the supposedly established by God and religion need to protect the bourgeois-landlord system of Poland, blindly obeying its laws.

The main organizing force of the Polish army was the officers and non-commissioned officers. The officer corps was almost entirely selected from persons belonging to the ruling and privileged strata and classes. The leading role in the army among the Polish officers belonged to Pilsudchik, mostly former legionnaires. In 1939, out of 100 generals, 64 were legionnaires, more than 80 percent of the positions of army inspectors and commanders of corps districts were staffed by Pilsudski's associates ( P. Stawecki. Nastepcy commandanta. Warszawa, 1969, str. 76.). The most important command positions in the army were occupied by people whose military knowledge did not go beyond the experience of the anti-Soviet war of 1920. It was Pilsudchiki who were the most outspoken bearers of the bourgeois-landlord ideology and policy of the reactionary regime in the army.

Since the Polish military doctrine considered the future war as predominantly continental, the main role in it, and consequently in the development of the armed forces, was assigned to the ground forces. The ground forces included infantry, cavalry, border guard corps, and aviation.

The ground forces were based on infantry divisions, distributed over corps districts ( The corps districts, which were military-administrative units in peacetime, were disbanded during the war.). The infantry division consisted of three infantry regiments, a light regiment and a heavy artillery battalion, support and maintenance units. It numbered up to 16 thousand people. Compared to the German infantry division, it did not have enough artillery (42-48 guns and 18-20 mortars, mostly of obsolete designs). The division had 27 37 mm anti-tank guns, significantly fewer than in the German division. The air defense was also weak - only four 40-mm anti-aircraft guns.

Polish military theory considered the cavalry as the main means of maneuvering to achieve decisive goals. The cavalry was supposed to make up for the lack of technical vehicles in the army. It was she, the "Queen of the Army", who was entrusted with the task of breaking the enemy's will to resist, paralyzing him psychologically, and weakening morale.

All cavalry formations were consolidated into 11 brigades; the staff strength of each brigade was 3427 people. Unlike infantry divisions, the staffing of cavalry brigades during the war period remained almost the same as in peacetime. The strike force of the cavalry brigade was small: its firepower was equal to the strength of the fire volley of one Polish infantry regiment ( T. Rawski, Z. Stupor, J. Zamojski. Wojna Wyzwolencza Narodu Polskiego w latach 1939-1945, str. 104.).

The armored forces included: a motorized brigade (formed in 1937), three separate battalions of light tanks, several separate reconnaissance tank and armored car companies, as well as units of armored trains.

The motorized brigade consisted of two regiments, anti-tank and reconnaissance battalions, as well as service units. It numbered about 2800 people. The brigade was armed with 157 machine guns, 34 guns and mortars, 13 reconnaissance tanks ( E. Kozlowski. Wojsko Polskie 1936-1939, str. 172.). For the duration of the war, the brigade was reinforced by a tank battalion from the reserve of the main command and other units.

In total, in the Polish armed forces in July 1939, there were 887 light tanks and tankettes, 100 armored vehicles, 10 armored trains ( Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe, Akta DDO MS Wojsk., t. 27.). The main part of the tank fleet, according to its tactical and technical data, was unsuitable for effective use in combat conditions.

Military aviation consisted of six aviation regiments, two separate aeronautical battalions and two naval aviation divisions. In total, by the beginning of the war, there were 824 combat aircraft of all types in the air fleet ( E. Kozlowski. Wojsko Polskie 1936-1939, str. 238; Mala Encyklopedia Wojskowa. T. 2. Warszawa, 1970, str. 693-694.), most of them were inferior to the aircraft of the main European states in their flight performance. In 1939, Polish-made elk-type bombers with higher flying qualities entered service, but by the beginning of the war there were only 44 of them in the troops.

Aviation was intended primarily to escort infantry and tanks in battle and cavalry in its raids. However, in all cases, the role of army aviation was reduced mainly to shallow reconnaissance of the enemy, and in some cases - to bombing attacks on his troops. The use of aviation for independent operations was not actually envisaged. The capabilities of bomber aircraft were underestimated, they were not given due attention ( See A. Kurowski for the general directive of the Chief of Staff on the use of aviation. Lotnictwo Polish w 1939 Warszawa, 1962, str. 333-335.).

The naval forces were subdivided into the navy (ships) and coastal defense. They included 4 destroyers, 5 submarines, a minelayer, 6 minesweepers and 8 coastal defense battalions armed with 42 field and 26 anti-aircraft guns ( A. Rzepniewski. Obrona Wybrzeza w 1939 r. Warszawa, 1970, str. 134-143, 241-242; M. Porwit. To omentarze do historii polskich dziatan obronnych 1939 roku. Cz. I. Warszawa, 1969, str. 65.).

The fleet was not ready to perform tasks in the war against Nazi Germany. It lacked vessels for operations in coastal waters, there were no escort ships. In shipbuilding, the main attention was paid to the construction of expensive heavy ships. The Polish command did not attach much importance to the problem of defending bases from land and air.

Conducted by the main headquarters in 1935-1936. An analysis of the combat effectiveness of the army in comparison with the armies of the USSR, Germany and France showed that the Polish armed forces were at the level of 1914 and lagged far behind in all key indicators.

The plan for the modernization and development of the army developed in Poland, designed for six years (1936-1942), provided for a significant strengthening of the main types of armed forces, the expansion of the country's industrial and raw material base, the construction of defensive structures, etc. ( Z. Landau, J. Tomaszewski. Zarys historii gospodarczej Polski 1918-1939. Warszawa, 1960, str. 166-191; Zeszyty science. wap. Seria economiczna. Warszawa, 1970, no. 13, str. 158-165.). However, the absence of a pre-established unified concept for the development and modernization of the army ultimately led to the implementation of only individual measures of this plan.

During the first three years of the implementation of this plan, there was only a slight quantitative change in the armament and equipment of the army, but the proportions of the combat arms remained the same. All types of weapons and military equipment, with the exception of the materiel of the navy, were largely worn out and obsolete. There were not enough aircraft, tanks, field artillery and small arms.

Thus, the size and organizational structure of the army, its weapons, the system of recruitment, training and education of personnel did not meet the requirements of preparing the country for defense in the conditions of the impending war.

On the eve of the Second World War, the most aggressive grouping of imperialist states (Germany, Italy, Japan) adopted the doctrine of total "blitzkrieg" war. This doctrine provided for the mobilization of all the resources of the state and the infliction of sudden lightning strikes on the front and rear of the enemy in order to achieve victory in the shortest possible time. The early militarization of the economy and all public life, the use of surprise in treacherous attacks, bestial cruelty, the establishment of a "new order" in the world, and colonial slavery for the vanquished were placed at the service of this strategy.

Another grouping of capitalist states (England, France, USA, Poland), which had a huge economic potential, was guided by military doctrines that were more inclined towards a strategy of attrition. As a result, the economic and financial possibilities of Britain, France and the USA were not used to train the armed forces to the same extent as was done in the countries of the fascist bloc.

The fascist German war machine turned out to be much better prepared for the Second World War. Hitler's army, which received high professional training and had an experienced, carefully selected command staff, equipped with the latest military equipment and weapons for that time, posed a mortal threat to humanity.

High command structure

In accordance with the reforms in the army, from November 1, 2011, a new structure of the Higher Command Staff of the Army has been operating.

Chief of the General Staff or CGS for short ****

He is in command of Army Headquarters, which seems to operate from Andover.

Commander of the Land Forces ***

He exercises command of all ground forces, including reservists and helicopter units, which are attached to the ground armed forces.

Adjutant General (Assistant Chief of the General Staff) ***

His duties include interaction with the Ministry of Defense, as well as with the Commander of the Ground Forces.

Commander Force Development and Training ***

The area of responsibility of the commander is the preparation and maintenance of the army.

This new structure is intended to improve communication and understanding with the Ministry of Defense and other UK government agencies. It is also more effective in the current, generally calm, situation in the world.

Divisions and brigades:

1 Armored Division (1st Armored Division)

The history of the 1st division dates back to 1809, when the Duke of Wellington created it from 2 British brigades and the Hanover German Legion (King's German Legion). Since then, the 1st division has maintained ties with Germany. Since the 1960s, the 1st division with other British units was part of the composition of the NATO "Rapid Response Group" in Germany. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the strength of the British army was reduced from 155 to 116 thousand people. As a result, at the moment in Germany, the 1st division continues to serve as part of the "mandatory presence" in connection with NATO terms.

2nd Division

3rd Division (3rd Division)

The 3rd Division is the only fully land division in the British Armed Forces. The history of this division can be traced back to 1809, when the Duke of Wellington, in the war against Napoleon, decided to try (for the first time in the history of the British Army) to form an infantry division.

The division was formerly known as the Fighting Division. She participated in the Crimean War (1854-56) and in the Anglo-Boer War in 1899-1900. Also, she participated in the First and Second World Wars and at one time bore the name "Iron Division" for her stamina.

During World War II, the division was initially part of the "French Expeditionary Force" to stop the advance of the German troops. But due to the general setbacks of the Allies, she was evacuated and later took part in the landings in Normandy as part of the 21st Army Group and ended the war in Germany in 1945.

Composition of the 3rd division:

1st mechanized brigade (1 Mechanized Brigade (Tidworth)
4th mechanized brigade (4 Mechanized Brigade (Catterick)
12th mechanized brigade (12 Mechanized Brigade (Bulford)
19th Light Brigade (Lisburn)

5th Division

Controls the border forces. Also controls British Gurkha units and British forces in Brunei. Helps to more effectively organize and manage the ground units of the army.

16 Air Assault Brigade (16 Air Assault Brigade)

This brigade was formed on September 1, 1999 in accordance with the reform program in the army. It included units of the 5th Airborne Brigade and the 24th Airborne Brigade. The main task that was pursued during the creation of this brigade was to create a mobile strike force that is capable of being where it is needed in the shortest possible time. The main emphasis is on airborne assault with the support of helicopter units.

The name of the brigade was inherited from the 1st and 6th airborne divisions, which existed during the Second World War. The emblem of the 16th Brigade, "Striker Eagle", was borrowed from the Special Training Center, which was located in Lochailot, Scotland. It trained soldiers

The maroon and light blue colors on the patch match the traditional colors of the airborne troops and aviation. The 16th brigade is the main strike unit of the British Army, therefore, it participates in all military operations conducted by Great Britain (Sierra Leone, Macedonia, Iraq, Afghanistan).

There are about 8,000 employees in the brigade. It is the largest of all brigades in the British Army. It includes airborne units, infantry, artillery, signalmen and intelligence officers, medical and engineering units.

List of units and formations included in the 16th brigade:

7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery
23rd Engineer Regiment (23 Engineer Regiment)
1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment
5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland ("The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders" 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland)
2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment
3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment
3rd Regiment Army Aviation Corps (3 Regiment Army Air Corps)
4th Regiment Army Aviation Corps (4 Regiment Army Air Corps)
9th Regiment Army Aviation Corps (9 Regiment Army Air Corps)
13th Airborne Regiment of the Royal Logistic Corps (13 Air Assault Regiment Royal Logistics Corps)
16th Medical Regiment (16th Medical Regiment)
7th Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (7 Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers)
D Squadron The Household Cavalry Regiment
216th signal squadron (216 (Parachute) Signals Squadron)
156th company of the Royal Military Police (156 Provost Company Royal Military Police)
Reconnaissance Platoon (Pathfinder Platoon)

Headquarters in London (HQ London District)

Carries out general management of all parts of the army, as well as preparing and conducting ceremonies, parades and other events related to the army.

This structural unit of the British Army was formed on August 31, 2001 and is mainly engaged in intelligence, analysis of possible threats to the UK, provision, communications and other things, without which the successful implementation of British military operations would be impossible.

Coordinates with the allied forces of the 1st Armored Division, which is part of the NATO Rapid Reaction Group (Allied Rapid Reaction Corps), located in Germany.

Publications on this topic

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