163rd Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)
Norfolk and Suffolk Brigade 163rd (Norfolk and Suffolk) Brigade 163rd Infantry Brigade | |
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Active | 1908–1919 1920–1943 |
Country | Sinai and Palestine Campaign |
The 163rd Infantry Brigade was an
History
Formation
The brigade was raised in 1908 upon the creation of the
First World War
The division was mobilised on 5 August 1914, the day after Britain declared war on Germany. On 20 August the entire division moved to Chelmsford, Bury St Edmunds and Norwich. The division spent the next few months on home service and coastal defence and started training in preparation to eventually go overseas.
In May 1915 the East Anglian Division was numbered as the
In July 1915 the division was ordered to prepare for overseas service. The brigade served with the 54th Division in the
"...were on the right of the line", wrote
The men, the so-called vanishing Norfolks, were the subject of a BBC TV film, All the King's Men. The division was evacuated from Gallipoli in early December and spent the most of 1916 in Cairo, Egypt, occupying No. 1 (Southern) Section of the Suez Canal defences.
The division (and the brigade) fought again in 1917 and
In 1918 the brigade fought at
Order of battle
- 1/4th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment
- 1/5th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment
- 1/4th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment (left November 1914)
- 1/5th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment
- Hampshire Regiment(from 19 April 1915)
- 163rd Machine Gun Company, Machine Gun Corps (formed 1 May 1916, moved to 54th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps 19 April 1918)
- 163rd Trench Mortar Battery (formed 9 May 1917)[2]
Commanders
The following officers commanded the brigade in the First World War:[3]
- 9 October 1911: Brigadier-GeneralR. Bayard
- 24 May 1915: Brigadier-General C. M. Brunker
- 19 August 1915: Brigadier-General F. F. W. Daniell (temporary)
- 19 August 1915: Lieutenant-Colonel E. Evans (acting)
- 10 September 1915: Brigadier-General T. Ward
- 24 April 1918: Lieutenant-Colonel O. M. Torkington (acting)
- 27 April 1918: Brigadier-General A. J. McNeill
Inter-war period
The brigade (and the division) was disbanded after the war, along with the rest of the Territorial Force. However, it was reformed, as the 163rd (Norfolk and Suffolk) Infantry Brigade,[4] in the Territorial Army and continued to serve with the 54th (East Anglian) Division and had the same four battalions as it did before the First World War. However, in 1921, the 4th and 5th battalions of the Suffolks were amalgamated as the 4th/5th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment. The brigade later received the 1st Battalion, Cambridgeshire Regiment from the 162nd (East Midland) Infantry Brigade. The composition of the brigade remained this throughout much of the inter-war period.
In 1938, however, the 1st Battalion, Cambridgeshire Regiment was transferred back to 162nd (East Midland) Infantry Brigade, when all British infantry brigades were reduced to three battalions.
Second World War
In the Second World War, the brigade continued to be part of the 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division from 3 September 1939 to 13 December 1943, when that division was disbanded. The brigade then became a Lines of Communication unit for the 21st Army Group. It stayed in the United Kingdom for the duration of its service. The original battalions of the brigade were converted into the 53rd Infantry Brigade, joining the 18th Infantry Division, on 18 September 1939 and the 163rd Infantry Brigade was reformed from the redesignation of the 161st Infantry Brigade.[5]
Second World War commanders of the brigade included Brig. M.D. Jephson, Brig. R.A.D. Moseley, Brig. O.M. Wales, and Lieut.Col. A.L. Taffs.
Order of battle
- 5th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment (until 17 September 1939)
- 6th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment (until 17 September 1939)
- 7th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment (until 17 September 1939)
- 2/4th Battalion, Essex Regiment (from 18 September 1939 to 11 April 1943)
- 5th (Hackney) Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment (from 18 September 1939 to 1 November 1943)
- 7th (Stoke Newington) Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment (from 18 September 1939 to 16 October 1942)
- 163rd Infantry Brigade Anti-Tank Company (formed 1 February 1940, disbanded 14 July 1941)
- 6th Battalion, King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) (from 16 October to 11 December 1942)
- 1st Buckinghamshire Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (from 12 December 1942 to 30 May 1943)
- 5th Battalion, King's Regiment (Liverpool) (from 18 July to 1 November 1943)[6]
References
- ^ The Holy Boys - A History of the Royal Norfolk Regiment and the Royal Anglian Regiment 1685-2010, Jon Sutherland & Diane Canwell
- ^ "54th (East Anglian) Division". The Long Long Trail. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- ^ Becke, A. F. (1936). Order of Battle of Divisions Part 2A. London: His Majesty’s Stationery Office. p. 126.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2015-05-16.
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: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2015-05-16.
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: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2015-05-24.
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: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)