After the end of World War II, under the conditions of the Yalta and Potsdam agreements, Allied forces occupied West Berlin. This occupation lasted throughout the Cold War. The Berlin Brigade was a term used to describe the brigade-sized garrison forces based there by the British and American armies; the French army also maintained a garrison, but did not use the name. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... The Big Three at the Yalta Conference, Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Joseph Stalin. ... Harry S. Truman and Joseph Stalin meeting at the Potsdam Conference on July 18, 1945. ... Boroughs of West Berlin West Berlin was the name given to the western part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. ... For other uses, see Cold War (disambiguation). ... In military science a brigade is a military unit that is part of a division and includes regiments (where that level exists), or (in modern armies) is composed of several battalions (typically two to four) and directly attached supporting units. ...

United States

The Berlin Brigade was an United States Army unit; its shoulder sleeve insignia was the U.S. Army Europe patch with Berlin tab. The United States Army is the largest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... Shoulder Sleeve Insignia of the U.S. Seventh Army. ...

During the Berlin Wall Crisis of 1961, the army reorganized the command structure of the forces in Berlin and created the U.S. Army Berlin and created the Berlin Brigade from the units already in the city. At this time, the infantry units of the Brigade were organized according to the "pentomic" structure: One "battle group" consisted of five line (rifle) companies, a combat support company, and a Headquarters & Headquarters company. Berlin Brigade had the 2nd & 3rd battle groups of the 6th US Infantry Regiment assigned to it from 1960 through 1964, when structure reverted to battalions. East German construction workers building the Berlin Wall, 20 November 1961. ... U.S. Army Berlin (USAB) was a command of the United States Army created in December 1961 at the height of the Berlin Wall crisis. ...

Contrasting roles of the Berlin troops-- 1970 soldier's jammed locker includes uniforms for variety of duties along with big-city dress clothes.

The brigade consisted of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Battalions of the 6th Infantry Regiment (reflagged to 4th, 5th and 6th Battalions of the 502d Infantry Regiment), Battery C 94th Field Artillery, Echo Battery 320th Field Artillery, Company F of the 40th Armor, 42nd Engineer Company, 42nd Military Police Company (Customs), 287th Military Police Company (Separate), 43rd and 76th Chemical Detachments, 279th Station Hospital (became US Army Hospital Berlin in 1976), 168th Medical Detachment (Veterinary Service), and 298th Army Band. The 168th and 298th share the distinction of being the longest serving units in Berlin. They both arrived to the city in a 37-vehicle convoy on July 3, 1945. The commanders of both units were old high school classmates. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 400 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (534 × 800 pixel, file size: 117 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Photo by R. W. Rynerson, Winter 1969-70. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 400 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (534 × 800 pixel, file size: 117 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Photo by R. W. Rynerson, Winter 1969-70. ... The Sixth United States Infantry Regiment (“The Regulars”) has a long and proud history, dating back to 1812. ... 502 PIR Patch, depicting death from above During World War II, the 502d Parachute Infantry Regiment (502d PIR) was a regiment of the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army. ...

After the reunification of Germany, the Berlin Brigade was no longer necessary and it was deactivated in 1994. The Berlin Brigade was the first combat unit selected to deploy to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in 1993 as Task Force Able Sentry.

United Kingdom

The Berlin Infantry Brigade of the British Army consisted of some 3,000 men in three infantry battalions, an armoured squadron, and a number of support units. It may have initially not been part of the British Army of the Rhine despite being based in Germany. However, it is recorded, at the very least, by the mid-1980s, that the brigade was indeed part of BAOR, being its second major component after I (BR) Corps.^[1] The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... There have been two formations named British Army on the Rhine (BAOR). ... There have been two formations named British Army on the Rhine (BAOR). ... The British I Corps has a long history, and was in existence as an active formation in the British Army for longer than any other corps. ...

The actual 3 infantry battalions and armoured squadron assigned to Berlin were rotated regularly; the single armoured squadron was detached from an armoured regiment assigned to I (BR) Corps. 7 Flight AAC, based at RAF Gatow, provided aviation support. Other units such as 62 Transport and Movements Squadron RCT, REME, 229 Signals Squadron and 247 Provost Company RMP were also permanently based in Berlin. The British I Corps has a long history, and was in existence as an active formation in the British Army for longer than any other corps. ... The Army Air Corps is a component of the British Army. ... Gatow Airport is an airport in the city of Berlin, Germany. ... The Royal Corps of Transport (RCT) was a British Army corps formed in 1965 from the transport elements (land, water and air) of the Royal Army Service Corps. ... The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers cap badge The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME; usually pronounced phonetically as Reemee) is a corps of the British Army that has responsibility for the maintenance of all electrical and mechanical equipment. ... The Royal Corps of Signals (sometimes referred to incorrectly as the Royal Signal Corps and often known simply as the Royal Signals or R Sigs) is one of the arms (combat support corps) of the British Army. ... The Royal Military Police (RMP) is the branch of the British Army responsible for the policing of service personnel and providing a military police presence on service property, operations and exercises. ...

External links and references

• Berlin Brigade Memories
• History of the French, American and British Berlin Brigades
• Berlin 1969 - the Allies in Berlin at midpoint of the Cold War
• Photos and information on the British Military Train to Berlin.
• Co F 40th Armor site by Bob Decker.