37th Brigade (United Kingdom)
The 37th Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army. It was one of the New Army or Kitchener's Army brigades, and was assigned to the 12th (Eastern) Division and served on the Western Front during the First World War. It was reformed for the Second World War before being redesignated as 7th Infantry Brigade in 1941.
World War I
During the First World War, the brigade commanded:[1]
- 6th Battalion, Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)
- 6th Battalion, Buffs (East Kent Regiment)
- 7th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment – disbanded February 1918
- 6th Battalion, Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment)
- 37th Machine Gun Company – formed 4 February 1916; joined 12th MG Battalion on 1 March 1918
- 37th Trench Mortar Battery – formed by 15 June 1916
World War II
The 37th Infantry Brigade was reformed on 7 October 1939 as a 2nd Line Territorial Army infantry brigade as a duplicate of 133rd (Sussex) Infantry Brigade.[2] The 37th Infantry Brigade was with the 12th (Eastern) Infantry Division when they were sent in 1940 to France to join the British Expeditionary Force. The division suffered very heavy casualties during the Battle of France and was disbanded in July 1940 after having been evacuated to England from Dunkirk. In November 1941 the brigade joined the 3rd Infantry Division and was redesignated the 7th Infantry Brigade. However, it left the division in June 1942 and then joined the 9th Armoured Division.
During the Second World War the brigade had the following units under command:
- 5th Battalion, Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment)
- 2/6th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment
- 6th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment
- 7th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment
- 2nd Battalion, South Wales Borderers
References
- ↑ "12th (Eastern) Division". The Long Long Trail. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
- ↑ Joslen 1990, p. 286
External links
- Baker, Chris. "The 12th (Eastern) Division in 1914-1918". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- Chappell, PB. "12th (Eastern) Division". The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
Bibliography
- Joslen, Lt-Col H.F. (1990) [1st. Pub. HMSO:1960]. Orders of Battle, Second World War, 1939–1945. London: London Stamp Exchange. ISBN 0-948130-03-2.