52nd Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= 52nd Infantry Brigade


caption= WWII Insignia of 52 Infantry Brigade
dates= World War I
1914 - 1918
World War II
1939 - 1945
1982 -
country= United Kingdom
allegiance=
branch= British Army
type= Infantry
role= Light Infantry
size=
command_structure=1st (Armoured) Division
garrison= Redford Barracks, Edinburgh
equipment=
current_commander= Brigadier C.J.Lawrence MBEChief of Staff=Major C Davies
colonel_of_the_regiment=
notable_commanders=
identification_symbol=
identification_symbol_2=
nickname=
patron=
motto=
colors=
march=
mascot=
battles=
anniversaries=
decorations=
battle_honours=

The 52nd Infantry Brigade is a Scottish formation in the British Army. It was formed and disbanded several times during the 20th Century.

History

It began its existence in September 1914 as a formation of the British 17th (Northern) Division during the First World War. It spent the whole war with the Division on the Western Front, until May 1919 when it was disbanded.

The Brigade was reformed in September 1943 as a training formation for jungle warfare reinforcements. It was redesignated as Headquarters Training Group on 1 August 1945, and then disbanded later, possibly in 1946.

52nd (Lowland) Division

However the dominant historical threads behind the current 52nd Infantry Brigade comes from the famed 52nd Lowland Division. It was initially deployed to Gallipoli during World War I, sent to the Middle East, and moved to France in March 1918. It was later reformed in the Territorial Army in the interwar period.

During World War II it was deployed to France with the British Expeditionary Force, the Division was evacuated along with rest of the army from Dunkirk, and then trained before D-Day as both an airlanding and a mountain division. However, it was deployed to mainland Europe finally in November 1944 as a conventional infantry formation and fought in North Western Europe for the remainder of the war.

Reformed

The Territorial Army in Scotland re-raised the 51st/52nd Scottish Division in the late 1940s, which was in existence until the TA was disbanded and reorganised as the TAVR in 1967. In 1968 the Division was split into two brigade level districts based in the Highlands and Lowlands, with the Lowland District Headquarters in Hamilton, near Glasgow. The Brigade was reformed in 1982 from that Lowland District, as 52nd (Lowland) Brigade. As 52 Lowland Brigade it consisted of the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 52nd Lowland Volunteers, as well as other TA units in the Scottish Lowlands.

The Brigade was retitled 52 Infantry Brigade on 1 April 2002, taking command of Regular Army units in Scotland and the North West of England and giving up its regional and TA responsibilities to 51 Scottish Brigade.This freed 52 Brigade to parent regular light role battalions for operational deployments. The Brigade is currently commanded by Brigadier C J Lawrence MBE. He is the commander of the Edinburgh Castle Garrison and is also responsible for the security of the Key to the Castle.The Brigade are specialists in Afghanistan fact|date=July 2008|why more so than any of the other Bdes that have served there? and on current standings will return there in 2010fact|date=July 2008.

The headquarters of 52 Infantry Brigade is currently located at Redford Barracks, Colinton, approximately four miles south of Edinburgh city centre.

Component units today

The Brigade consists today of the Brigade HQ which is split between Redford Barracks and Edinburgh Castle and the following units:

* 52 Infantry Brigade Headquarters and Signal Squadron (258 Signal Squadron)
* The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, Glencorse Barracks in Penicuik
* 2nd Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles, Sir John Moore Barracks in Shorncliffe
* 1st Battalion Irish Guards

Operation Herrick VII

In July 2007, it was announced that 52 Infantry Brigade, under the command of Brigadier Andrew McKay [http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/MilitaryOperations/ScotsGuardsMakeItSafeForVillagersToReturnHomeInHelmand.htm] , would provide the command element for the UK Task Force on Operation Herrick VII in Afghanistan. They served in Afghanistan between September 07 and March 08, and were relieved in spring 2008 by 16 Air Assault Brigade. [http://www.mod.uk/defenceinternet/defencenews/defencepolicyandbusiness/16airassaultbrigadetoreplace52infantrybrigade.htm] During the time that the Brigade were in Afghanistan, they successfully retook the strategic Taliban stronghold of Musa Qaleh [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Musa_Qala] [http://www.mod.uk/defenceinternet/defencenews/militaryoperations/afghanflagfliesovermusaqalehonceagain.htm] . Brigadier McKay subsequently received a CBE for his work. [http://news.scotsman.com/opinion/Wha39s-like-us--Brigadier.4328912.jp]

Fatal Casualties Operation Herrick VII

*Major Alexis Roberts , 2 Battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles , 04/10/2007
*Captain John McDermid , Royal Highland Fusiliers,2nd Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland , 18/11/2007
*Trooper Jack Sadler , Honourable Artillery Company , attached Brigade reconnaissance force , 04/12/2007
*Sergeant Lee Johnson, Yorkshire Regiment , 08/12/2007
*Corporal Darryl Gardiner , Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers , attached Brigade reconnaissance force , 20/01/2008
*Corporal Damian Lawrence , Yorkshire Regiment , 17/02/2008

Future reorganisation

Under the reorganisation of the infantry, 52 Brigade will receive a number of battalions that are stationed on a semi-permanent basis.
*1st Battalion, Royal Welsh (Royal Welsh Fusiliers) in 2008.
*The UK based Gurkha battalion will be trained in the air assault role, and will rotate with the two other line infantry battalions in 16 Air Assault Brigade. These are The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland, stationed in Canterbury, and 1st Battalion, Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd and 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment), stationed in Tern Hill in 2008).
*The Royal Highland Fusiliers will rotate with The Royal Scots Borderers, 1st Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland in 19 Light Brigade. The battalion in 52 Brigade will be responsible for all public duties in Edinburgh.
*52 Brigade will assume responsibility for the infantry battalion based at Weeton, near Preston. This will be the 2nd Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th & 33rd/76th Foot) (Green Howards) once they have moved from Chepstow.

Under this structure, all infantry battalions not attached to a ready brigade, or permanently deployed elsewhere (London, Cyprus, Brunei) will be attached to 52 Brigade and will be trained to provide the Spearhead Land Element - this is a battalion sized group held at Extremely High Readiness for deployment overseas as part of the land element of the Joint Rapid Reaction Force.

Those battalions that are not rotated to a ready brigade (initially 1 R WELSH and 2 YORKS), will rotate with the light infantry battalions stationed in London (2 RRF) and Cyprus (2 PWRR and 2 LANCS). The UK based Gurkha battalion (initially 2 RGR) will continue to rotate with the battalion stationed in Brunei.

ee also

*Military of Scotland

External links

* [http://www.regiments.org/formations/uk-bde/bde052.htm]
* [http://www.army.mod.uk/52bde/]