Brigade of Gurkhas

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Arms of the British Army
Combat Arms
Combat Support Arms
Combat Services
Brigade of Gurkhas
Active1815–present
Tactical Recognition Flash

Brigade of Gurkhas is the collective name which refers to all the units in the

khukuri
, a distinctive heavy knife with a curved blade, and have a reputation for being fierce and brave soldiers.

The brigade celebrated 200 years of service in the British Army in 2015.[5][6]

History

See also:
Gurkhas

During the

2nd Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) and the 60th Rifles famously defended Hindu Rao's house.[7]

Gurkhas advancing with tanks to clear the Japanese from the Imphal–Kohima road

During the

Star Ferry riots of 1966
.

After Indian independence and

Brunei Revolt in 1962.[11] In 1974 Turkey invaded Cyprus and the 10th Gurkha Rifles was sent to defend the British sovereign base area of Dhekelia.[12] In 1982, during the Falklands War, the 7th Gurkha Rifles formed part of 5 Infantry Brigade and was responsible for capturing Mount William shortly before the Argentinian surrender.[13]

On 1 July 1994 the four rifle regiments were merged into one, the

UN peacekeeping operations in East Timor in 2000 and in Sierra Leone later that year.[14]

Gurkhas undergoing an urban warfare exercise in the United States. Note the kukri on the webbing of the nearest soldier.

In September 2008 the High Court in London ruled that the British Government must issue clear guidance on the criteria against which Gurkhas may be considered for settlement rights in the UK. On 21 May 2009, and following a lengthy campaign by Gurkha veterans, the British Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, announced that all Gurkha veterans who had served four years or more in the British Army before 1997 would be allowed to settle in Britain.[15]

British Gurkha units 1947–1994

Former units included:[10]

Today

Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas performing in France, 2014.

Current units of the Brigade of Gurkhas include:[16]

In 2018, the UK Government announced that it intended to expand the brigade by more than 800 posts, with the Queen's Gurkha Engineers receiving an additional squadron, while the Queen’s Gurkha Signals and the Queen's Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment will receive two new squadrons. Additionally, approximately 300 new posts within the Royal Gurkha Rifles will be created forming a new battalion planned for the Specialist Infantry role.[24][25] In 2018, it was announced that from 2020, female applicants would be able to apply to join the Gurkhas.[26] However, this decision was reversed in 2019.[27]

Recruitment and basic training

The selection process for the Gurkhas is demanding: in 2017, 230 trainee riflemen were recruited from about 25,000 applicants.[28] Recruitment is run by British Gurkhas Nepal; based at Jawalakhel, near Kathmandu, the main recruiting centre is in the city of Pokhara. Recruitment sees the prospective soldier undergo two stages of selection; first the regional selection at either Pokhara or Dharan, where the recruit undertakes a series of physical tests, written English and numeracy assessments, and an interview.[29] Those that pass regional selection move forward to the central selection process in Kathmandu, which sees further physical and language tests, a medical and a second interview.[30]

Training for Gurkhas is conducted at the Infantry Training Centre at Catterick Garrison in North Yorkshire. It lasts for 36 weeks and addresses a range of areas such as the Brigade ethos, language training, cultural training, career management and trade selection, as well as the same 26-week Combat Infantryman's Course that the Line Infantry receive. This enables the trained Gurkha soldiers to fulfill their roles on operations and continue the traditions of their forefathers.[31]

In addition to running recruitment of soldiers to join the British Army, British Gurkhas Nepal also runs the recruitment process for the Gurkha Contingent of the Singapore Police Force. Recruits indicate at the registration stage whether they wish to join the Singapore Police or the British Army.[32]

Although all enlisted Gurkha soldiers are recruited from Nepalese citizens in Nepal, officers in the Brigade are either selected from those who have distinguished themselves in the ranks, or are commissioned from British or Commonwealth cadets at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Officers from Sandhurst attend an intensive language course at Pokhara Camp to enable them to converse with their soldiers in the Nepali language, although Gurkha soldiers are also expected to learn English.[33]

Organisation

Brigade HQ is based at the former

Specialised Infantry Group
.

Commemoration of service

London memorial

A monument to the Gurkha Soldier near the Ministry of Defence in London

The

3rd Gurkha Rifles
.

200 years of service

A series of events took place in 2015 to mark 200 years of service by the Gurkhas in the British Army including a march past Buckingham Palace.[36][37][38]

Other

Under international law, according to Protocol 1 Additions to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, Gurkhas serving as regular uniformed soldiers are not mercenaries.

recapture the Falkland Islands because it might upset the non-aligned members of the fragile coalition of support that the British had built in the United Nations. The then-Chief of Defence Staff Sir Edwin Bramall, a former officer in the 2nd Gurkhas like Nott, said that the Gurkhas were needed for sound military reasons (as a constituent part of 5th Infantry Brigade) and if they were not deployed then there would always be a political reason not to deploy Gurkhas in future conflicts. So he requested that Nott argue the case in Government for deploying them against the advice of the Foreign Office. Nott agreed to do so, commenting that the Gurkhas "would be mortified if we spoilt their chances [of going]".[40]

Alliances

See also


Footnotes

Notes

  1. ^ Established in 1993 as Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps Support Battalion, for many years it included numbers of Gurkhas. In August 2021, the battalion added the subtitle 'Gurkha', and is now officially subsumed into the Brigade of Gurkhas.

Citations

  1. ^ "Who are they | the Gurkha Welfare Trust | About the Gurkhas". The Gurkha Welfare Trust.
  2. ^ "UK Armed Forces Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 12 August 2023.
  3. ^ "» Who are they?". www.gwt.org.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  4. ^ Latter, Mick (25 March 2013). "Gurkhas, Nepal and the East India Company". Welcome to the Gurkha Brigade Association. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  5. ^ "200th anniversary of the Gurkhas: fierce, loyal and brave, Britain must thank them for their service". The Telegraph. 7 April 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  6. ^ "Nepali men have been fighting for Britain for 200 years". The Washington Post. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  7. ^ "Artist captures key moment of Gurkha loyalty". The Telegraph. 2 September 2001. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  8. ^ "Operations by 1st Battalion 6th Gurkha Rifles during the Malayan Emergency". Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  9. ^ a b c "The Nepalese community in Hong Kong looks to preserve Gurkha legacy". Lifestyle. 28 March 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  10. ^ a b "The Gurkha Museum Winchester". Archived from the original on 16 December 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
  11. ^ "British officer served with 1/2nd Gurkha Rifles in Brunei Rebellion, 1962–1963". Imperial War Museum. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  12. ^ "A short history of the 10th Princess Mary's own Gurkha Rifles". Archived from the original on 17 May 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  13. ISBN 978-1-84884-636-4
    .
  14. ^ "The Royal Gurkha Rifles: Regimental History". Archived from the original on 27 April 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  15. ^ "Gurkhas win right to settle in UK". BBC News. 21 May 2009. Retrieved 24 May 2009.
  16. ^ "Serving Brigade of Gurkhas". 13 February 2013. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
  17. ^ "HQBG opening ceremony at Camberley". The Gurkha Brigade Association. 11 April 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  18. ^ a b c Cooper, Tim (25 September 2021). "Queen's Gurkha Engineers Celebrate 73rd Birthday". Forces Network. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  19. ^ "British Army units from 1945 on - 36 Regiment". british-army-units1945on.co.uk.
  20. ^ Royal Visit For 50 year old Gurkha Regiment. The national archives. Retrieved 12 February 2012
  21. ^ British Army, August 2021 Soldier Magazine. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  22. ^ "British Gurkhas Nepal". British Army. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  23. ^ "Gurkha Staff and Personnel Support". British Army. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  24. ^ Ripley, Tim (18 July 2018). "UK to recruit more Gurkha soldiers". Jane's 360. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  25. ^ Molinelli, Gabriele (4 August 2016). "Good news and a confirmation of a bad habit". UK Armed Forces Commentary. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  26. ^ "Gurkhas to recruit women for first time from 2020". BBC News. 16 July 2018. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  27. ^ "Girl Gurkhas". Nepali Times. 23 July 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  28. ^ "Recruiting". khukurihouseonline.com. Archived from the original on 9 February 2017.
  29. ^ "Regional Selection". Brigade of Gurkhas. British Army. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  30. ^ "Central Selection". Brigade of Gurkhas. British Army. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  31. ^ "The British Army – Gurkha training". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
  32. ^ "Recruit Registration". Brigade of Gurkhas. British Army. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  33. ^ "The Royal Gurkha Rifles Potential Officers Guide". www.army.mod.uk. British Army. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  34. ^ "The Gurkha culture". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  35. ^ "Royal Gurkha Rifles". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  36. ^ "Events". Gurkha 200. Archived from the original on 23 May 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  37. ^ "Gurkhas march to remember fallen comrades". BBC News. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  38. ^ "Gurkha 200". Gurkha Welfare Trust. Archived from the original on 12 May 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  39. ^ Wither, James (January 2005). "Expeditionary Forces for Post Modern Europe: Will European Military Weakness Provide an Opportunity for the New Condottieri?". Conflict Studies Research Centre, website of the MoD. p. 11. Archived from the original on 21 October 2007.
  40. ISBN 978-0-7146-5207-8
    . Page 208.

Further reading

External links
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