The 1st Armoured Division is the title of an armoured division of the British Army. It saw extensive service during World War II, was disbanded afterward, was reconstituted in 1976, and remains in service today. The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Combatants France United Kingdom Canada Czechoslovakia Poland Belgium Netherlands Luxembourg Germany Italy Commanders Maurice Gamelin, Maxime Weygand (French) Lord Gort (British Expeditionary Force) H.G. Winkelman (Dutch) Gerd von Rundstedt (Army Group A) Fedor von Bock (Army Group B) Wilhelm von Leeb (Army Group C) H.R.H. Umberto di... The Western Desert Campaign was the primary early theatre of the North African Campaign of World War II. It is sometimes referred to as the Egypt-Libya Campaign. ... The Italian Campaign of World War II was the name of Allied operations in and around Italy, from 1943 to the end of the war. ... Lieutenant General Herbert Lumsden, CB, DSO, MC, (1897 - January 6, 1945) was a British Army general during World War II. Lumsden was widely praised for his command of an Armoured car regiment during the retreat to Dunkirk in 1940 as part of the British Expeditionary Force. ... Lieutenant General Charles Willoughby Moke Norrie, 1st Baron Norrie, GCMG, GCVO, CB, DSO, MC (1893–1977) was an Australian-New Zealand general and political figure. ... A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of around 10,000 soldiers. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom France Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Charles de Gaulle Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ...

World War II

The 1st Armoured Division was a regular division in the British Army at the outbreak of World War II. It had formerly been designated The Mobile Division. It first saw service in incomplete form under the second British Expeditionary Force sent to France in 1940. It landed in France on 14 April 1940 and was evacuated on 16 June having seen service south of the River Somme, isolated from the other British formations. The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was the British army sent to France and Belgium in World War I and British Forces in Europe from 1939 - 1940 during World War II. The BEF was established by Secretary of State for War Richard Haldane following the Second Boer War in case the... Year 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... April 14 is the 104th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (105th in leap years). ... June 16 is the 167th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (168th in leap years), with 198 days remaining. ... Somme river The Somme River (French Rivière Somme) is a river in Picardy, northern France. ...

For the rest of 1940 and up until 27 August 1941 the Division was stationed in the United Kingdom on anti-invasion duties. It then embarked for Egypt under the command of Major General Herbert Lumsden. Arriving in Egypt on 13 November 1941 it took part in many of the major battles of the later part of the campaign against Rommel including Gazala, Mersa Matruh, 1st El Alamein, 2nd El Alamein, Tebaga Gap, Akarit, El Kourzia and Tunis. August 27 is the 239th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (240th in leap years), with 126 days remaining. ... Lieutenant General Herbert Lumsden, CB, DSO, MC, (1897 - January 6, 1945) was a British Army general during World War II. Lumsden was widely praised for his command of an Armoured car regiment during the retreat to Dunkirk in 1940 as part of the British Expeditionary Force. ... November 13 is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 48 days remaining. ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... The Battle of Gazala was an important battle of the World War II Western Desert Campaign, fought around the port of Tobruk in Libya from May 26 to June 21, 1942. ... The First Battle of El Alamein 1–July 27, 1942 was a battle of the Western Desert Campaign of World War II, fought between the German–Italian Afrika Korps commanded by Erwin Rommel and the British Eighth Army, commanded by Claude Auchinleck. ... Combatants British 8th Army German Panzer Army Africa Commanders Bernard Montgomery Erwin Rommel Strength 250,000 men 1,030 tanks 900 guns 530 aircraft 90,000 men 500 tanks 500 guns 350 aircraft Casualties 13,500 dead and wounded 13,000 dead 46,000 wounded or captured The Second Battle...

From the end of the Tunisian campaign the division remained in North Africa until May 1944. It then transferred to Italy, fighting one last battle at Coriano before ceasing to be an operational unit on 28 October. The division was disbanded on 1 January 1945. October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ...

The Post-war Period

It was not until 1976 that the Division re-emerged in the British Army. It was reformed by the redesignation of the British 1st Infantry Division, and has been stationed in Germany ever since as part of the British forces committed to NATO. In the early 1980s it consisted of the 7th, 12th, and 22nd Armoured Brigades. The 1st (UK) Armoured Division is currently the only British division to be stationed in Germany. The Headquarter is stationed in Herford. 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... List of military divisions — List of British divisions in WWII The British 1st Infantry Division was a permanently established Regular Army division. ... NATO 2002 Summit in Prague The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation[1] (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for collective security established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on 4 April 1949. ... Herforder Münster Herford is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the lowlands between the mountain chains of the Wiehengebirge and the Teutoburg Forest. ...

Divisional formations and units have deployed on many other operations such as internal security in Northern Ireland, The Falkland Islands, Belize and United Nations tours in Cyprus, Bosnia and Kosovo. The Divisional Headquarters itself has also taken its full share of operational deployment in command of the Multi-National Division (South West) in Bosnia in 1996 – 97 and 1998 – 99.

The headquarters of the division was deployed to Saudi Arabia in 1990 to command British land forces. It had two brigades under its command, 4th and 7th Armoured Brigade. During the war it came under the US VII Corps and was part of the great armoured left-hook that destroyed many Iraqi Republican Guard formations. The two brigades in the division alternated heading the advance. This article is about the year. ... The VII Army Corps of the United States Army was one of the two principal corps of the army in Europe during the Cold War, along with V Corps. ... Iraqi President Saddam Hussein talks with elite Republican Guard officers in Baghdad on March 1, 2003. ...

In 1993 HQ 1st Armoured Division was disbanded and the 1st (UK) Armoured Division formed from the 4th Armoured Division.

The Division headquarters again deployed to the Gulf area in 2003. It again commanded British forces in the area, this time with three full brigades under its control. Those were 7th Armoured Brigade again, along with 16th Air Assault Brigade, and 3rd Commando Brigade. In a combined arms operation the division secured southern Iraq, including the city of Basra during the invasion. It came under I Marine Expeditionary Force during the 2003 conflict. It has been suggested that Persian Gulf States be merged into this article or section. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Location of Basra Basra (Arabic: ‎ ; BGN: Al BaÅŸrah) is the second largest city of Iraq with an estimated population of 2,600,000 (2003). ... Presumably a USA force ? // Lineage Activated November 8th, 1969 at Okinawa, Japan as the I Marine Expeditionary Force Redesignated August 18th, 1970 as the I Marine Amphibious Force Relocated in April 1971 to Camp Pendleton, California Redesignated February 5th, 1988 as the I Marine Expeditionary Force Recent Service Persian Gulf...

The Division currently reports to Commander Field Army within Headquarters Land Command at Wilton. Land Command (or HQ Land) is a military command and part of the structure of the modern British Army. ...

Organisation

Present day

The following brigades make up the 1 (United Kingdom) Armoured Division.

• 4th Armoured Brigade(to become a Mech Bde and move to Catterick Garrison, 2008)^[1].
• 7th Armoured Brigade
• 20th Armoured Brigade
• 102nd Logistics Brigade
• 4th (Czech) Rapid Deployment Brigade

The 4th Armoured Brigade was a British Army brigade during the Second World War. ... Map sources for Catterick Garrison at grid reference SE2497 Catterick Garrison is a major Army base located in North Yorkshire in England. ... The 7th Armoured Brigade is a unit of the British Army. ... The 20th Armoured Brigade was a British Army brigade during the Second World War. ... HQ 102 Log Bde and 262 Signal Squadron are located in Princess Royal Barracks, Gütersloh (formerly RAF Gütersloh) Category: ... The 4th (Czech) Rapid Deployment Brigade is assigned to the NATO Headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps but falls under the organizational control of 1 (UK) Armoured Division when required. ...

See also

• Western Desert Campaign, North African Campaign
• List of senior officers of 1st Armoured Division (United Kingdom)
• List of component units of 1st Armoured Division (United Kingdom)
• List of equipment of 1st Armoured Division (United Kingdom)

The Western Desert Campaign was the primary early theatre of the North African Campaign of World War II. It is sometimes referred to as the Egypt-Libya Campaign. ... During World War II, the North African Campaign, also known as the Desert War, took place in the North African desert from September 13, 1940 to May 13, 1943. ...

References

External links

• British Army 1 Div
• Armed Forces