British Armed Forces

British Armed Forces
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The armed forces of the United Kingdom are known as the British Armed Forces or Her Majesty's
Armed Forces, sometimes legally the armed forces of the Crown. Their Commander-in-Chief is the
British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II and they are managed by the Defence Council of the Ministry of
Defence.
The British Armed Forces are charged with protecting the United Kingdom and its overseas territories,
promoting Britain's wider security interests, and supporting international peacekeeping efforts. They are
active and regular participants in NATO and other coalition operations.
History
British military history is long, complex and greatly influential in world history, especially since the
17th Century. Important conflicts in which the British took part include the Seven Years' War and the
Napoleonic Wars of the 18th Century/early 19th Century, the Crimean War of the mid 19th Century, and
the First and Second World Wars of the 20th Century. The British Empire, which reached its apogee in
the 1920s, was the largest empire in history; a quarter of the world's population were subjects of the
British Crown and it controlled a quarter of the world's total land area. Since the end of the Second
World War, British forces have continued to be very active and bases remain spread out across the globe
in places such as Northern Ireland, Cyprus, Germany, Gibraltar, Brunei and the Falkland Islands.
The current structure of defence management in the United Kingdom was set in place in 1964 when the
modern day Ministry of Defence (MoD) was created (an earlier form had existed since 1940). The MoD
assumed the roles of the Admiralty, the War Office and the Air Ministry.
Current strength
The United Kingdom fields one of the most powerful, technologically advanced and comprehensive
armed forces in the World. Its global power projection capabilities are deemed second only to those of
the United States Military. The UK has the 2nd to 4th highest military expenditure in the world
(depending on source), despite only having the 28th highest number of troops. It is also the second
largest spender on military science, engineering and technology. Despite Britain's wide ranging
capabilities, recent defence policy has a stated assumption that any large operation would be undertaken
as part of a coalition. Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq (Granby, Desert Fox and Telic) may all be
taken as precedent - indeed the last large scale military action in which the British armed forces fought
alone was the Falklands War of 1982.
The Royal Navy is the second largest navy in the world in terms of gross tonnage, with 90
commissioned ships. The Naval Service (which comprises the Royal Navy and Royal Marines) had a
strength of 35,470 in July 2006 and is charged with custody of the United Kingdom's independent
strategic nuclear deterrent consisting of four Trident missile submarines, while the Royal Marines
provide commando units for amphibious assault and for specialist reinforcement forces in and beyond
the NATO area.
The British Army had a reported strength of 100,010 in July 2006 and as of 2006 9.0% of the regular
Armed Forces were women. The Royal Air Force had a strength of 45,210. This puts the total number of
regular Armed Forces personnel at 180,690 (not including civilians). This number is supported by
reserve forces, including over 35,000 from the Territorial Army. The total number of serving personnel,
including reserve forces, is therefore in the region of 225,000 (taking into account Navy, Marines and
Air Force reserves).
Branches
 Naval Service
o Royal Navy
o Royal Marines
 British Army
o Territorial Army
 Royal Air Force
British Army
The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with
unification of the governments and armed forces of Scotland and England into the United Kingdom of
Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated existing English and Scottish regiments, and
was controlled from London. As of 2006, the British Army includes roughly 107,730 active members
and 38,460 Territorial Army members, and is considered one of the most disciplined, well-trained, and
technologically advanced forces of its kind. The British Army is deployed in many of the world's war
zones as part of a fighting force and in United Nations peacekeeping forces.
From around 1763 until at least 1914, the United Kingdom was the dominant military and economic
power of the world. The British Empire expanded in this time to include colonies, protectorates, and
Dominions throughout the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australasia, and while the Royal Navy is widely
regarded as having been vital for the rise of Empire, the British Army played important roles in
colonisation, including garrisoning the colonies, capturing strategically important territories and
participating in actions to pacify colonial borders, support allied governments, and suppress Britain's
rivals. Among these actions were the Seven Years' War, the American War of Independence, the
Napoleonic Wars, the First and Second Opium Wars, the Boxer Rebellion, the New Zealand Wars, the
Indian Mutiny, the First and Second Boer Wars, the Fenian raids, the Anglo-Irish War, serial
interventions into Afghanistan, the Crimean War, World War I, World War II, the Falklands War, the
two Gulf Wars - Operation Granby and Operation Telic - and the Iraq War.
In contrast to the Royal Navy, Royal Marines and Royal Air Force, the British Army does not include
"Royal" in its title, because of its roots as a collection of disparate units, many of which do bear the
"Royal" prefix.
History
The Battle of Waterloo, one of the greatest victories in British military history
The British Army came into being with the merger of the Scottish Army and the English Army,
following the unification of the two countries' parliaments and the creation of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain in 1707. Although England had made many earlier claims to sovereignty in Scotland, there
had been no unified British state prior to that time (other than a brief period during which the Roman
province of Britain had achieved political independence-although even that had failed to establish
complete control over the north of the island). The new British Army incorporated existing English and
Scottish regiments, and was controlled from London.
From roughly 1763 until at least 1914, the United Kingdom was the dominant military and economic
power of the world. The British Empire expanded in this time to include colonies, protectorates, and
Dominions throughout the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australasia. Although the Royal Navy is widely
regarded as having been vital for the rise of Empire, and British dominance of the world, the British
Army played important roles in colonisation. First, the British Army provided garrisons for the colonies,
protecting them against foreign powers and hostile natives. Second, the troops also helped capture
strategically important territories for the British, allowing the British Empire to expand throughout the
globe. The Army also involved itself in numerous wars meant to pacify the borders, or to prop-up
friendly governments, and thereby keep other, competitive, empires away from the British Empire's
borders. Notable amongst these were its serial interventions into Afghanistan, which were meant to
maintain a friendly buffer state between British India and the Russian Empire. Keeping the Russian
Empire at a safe distance was also one of Britain's motivations for coming to Turkey's aid in the
Crimean War.
As had its predecessor, the English Army, in building the Empire, the British Army fought Spain,
France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. It also battled many
Native American nations and groups, including the many disgruntled former allies who launched
Pontiac's War in response to the wave of British settlers that flooded over the Appalachians following
the defeat of France in the Seven Years' War. The British Government's attempt to mollify the Natives
by delineating the Appalachians as the westward limit for European settlement was the primary
motivator of the American colonies in launching the secessionist American War of Independence. The
British Army fought American colonists and their Native and French allies in that war.
The British army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars in which the army served from Spain
across to Europe to North Africa in the South. The British Army finally came to defeat Napoleon at one
of Britain's greatest military victories at the battle of Waterloo.
The Battle of Rorke's Drift in which 11 VC's were awarded to British troops
Under Oliver Cromwell, the English Army had been active in the re-conquest, and the settlement, of
Ireland since the 1650s. It (and subsequently, the British Army) have been almost continuously involved
in Ireland ever since, primarily in suppressing numerous native revolts and guerilla and terrorist
campaigns. It was faced with the prospect of battling British settlers in Ireland, who had raised their own
volunteer army and threatened to emulate the American colonists if their conditions (primarily
concerning freedom of trade) were not met, but the British Government acceded to these demands. The
British Army still found itself fighting Irish rebels (Wolfe Tone's United Irishmen) in the unrelated,
Napoleon-supported 1798 rebellion.
In addition to battling the armies of other European Empires' (and of its former colonies, the United
States, in the American War of 1812,) in the battle for global supremacy, the British Army fought the
Chinese in the First and Second Opium Wars, and the Boxer Rebellion; Mā ori tribes in the first of the
New Zealand Wars; Indian princely forces and British East India Company mutineers in the Indian
Mutiny; the Boers in the First and Second Boer Wars; Irish Fenians in Canada during the Fenian raids;
and Irish separatists in the Anglo-Irish War.
Following William and Mary's accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand
Alliance primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Mary's father, James II. Following the 1707
union of England and Scotland, and then the 1801 creation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, British foreign policy, on the continent, was to contain expansion by its competitor powers such
as France and Spain. The territorial ambitions of the French led to the War of the Spanish Succession
and the Napoleonic Wars. Russian activity led to the Crimean War.
British Mark One Tank during World War I
Great Britain's dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, notably
Germany. The UK was allied with France (by the Entente Cordiale) and Russia, and when war broke out
in 1914, the British Army sent the British Expeditionary Force to France and Belgium to prevent
Germany from occupying these countries. The War would be the most devastating in British military
history, with near 800,000 men killed and over 2 million wounded. In the early part of the war, the
professional force of the BEF was decimated and, by turns, a volunteer (and then conscripted) force
replaced it. Major battles included the Battle of the Somme. Advances in technology saw British advent
of the tank and advances in aircraft design which were to be decisive in future battles. Trench warfare
dominated strategy, and the use of chemical and poison gases added to the devastation.
In 1939, World War II broke out with the German invasion of Poland. British assurances to the Polish
led the British Empire to declare war on Germany. Again an Expeditionary Force was sent to France,
only to be hastily evacuated as the German forces swept through the Low Countries and across France in
1940. Only the Dunkirk evacuations saved the entire Expeditionary Force from capture. Later, however,
the British would have success defeating the Italians and Germans at the Battle of El Alamein in North
Africa, and in the D-Day invasions of Normandy. In the Far East, the British Army battled the Japanese
in Burma. World War II saw the British army develop its Commando units including the Special Air
Service. During the war the British army was one of the major fighting forces on the side of the allies.
After the end of World War II, the British Empire declined with the independence of India, and other
colonies in Africa and Asia. Accordingly the strength of the British military was reduced, in recognition
of Britain's reduced role in world affairs. However, a large deployment of British troops remained in
Germany, facing the threat of Soviet invasion. The Cold War saw massive technological advances in
warfare, and the Army saw more technological advanced weapons systems installed.
Despite the decline of the British Empire, the Army was still deployed around the world, fighting in the
Korean War, the Suez crisis of 1956, and colonial wars in Oman and Malaysia. In 1982 the British
Army, alongside the Royal Marines, helped to recapture the Falkland Islands during the Falklands War
against Argentina.
In the three decades following 1969, the Army was heavily deployed in Northern Ireland, to support the
Royal Ulster Constabulary (later the Police Service of Northern Ireland) in their conflict with loyalist
and republican paramilitary groups. This is called Operation Banner. The locally-recruited Ulster
Defence Regiment was formed, later becoming the Royal Irish Regiment in 1992. Over 700 soldiers
were killed during the Troubles. Following the IRA ceasefires between 1994 and 1996 and since 1997,
demilitarisation has taken place as part of the peace process, much reducing the military presence in the
area.
Recent conflicts
Gulf War
The ending of the Cold War saw a 40% cut in manpower. Despite this, the Army has been deployed in
an increasingly global role. In 1991, the United Kingdom was the second largest contributor (after the
USA) to the coalition force that fought Iraq in the Gulf War. The nation supplied just under 50,000
personnel and was the nation put in control of Kuwait after it was liberated.
Balkans conflicts
The British Army was deployed to Yugoslavia in 1992. Initially this force formed part of the United
Nations Protection Force. In 1995 command was transferred to IFOR and then to SFOR. Currently
troops are under the command of EUFOR. Over 10,000 troops were sent. In 1999 British forces under
the command of SFOR were sent to Kosovo during the conflict there. Command was subsequently
transferred to KFOR.
Afghanistan
In 2001 The Parachute Regiment were deployed in Kabul, Afghanistan to assist in the liberation of the
troubled capital. Royal Marines Commandos also swept the Afghan mountains but this force is part of
the Royal Navy. The British Armed forces are currently in charge of UN forces in the nation. The
British Army is today concentrating on fighting Taliban forces and bringing security to Helmand
province under NATO control
Iraq War
In 2003, the United Kingdom was the only other major contributor to the United States-led invasion of
Iraq. There was great disagreement amongst the populace but the government voted for the war, with the
result of sending over 10,000 army personnel to the region. The British Army is still the major coalition
presence in the city of Basra and the Southern regions of Iraq.
Northern Ireland
The British Army has been deployed in this troubled part of the UK under Operation Banner since 1969
in support of the RUC and now the PSNI. There has been a reduction in the number of troops deployed
in Northern Ireland since the Good Friday Agreement was signed in 1998. In 2005, after the IRA
announced an end to armed conflict in Northern Ireland, it was revealed that the British Army would
dismantle posts in the province and withdraw many troops and restore troop levels to that of a peace
time garrison. Officially Operation Banner will end on 1 August 2007, making it the longest military
operation in the history of the British Army, at 35-years-old.
The legend of Tommy Atkins

The nickname for a British soldier for several centuries was 'Tommy Atkins' or 'Tommy' for short.
Present day soldiers are called 'Toms' or just 'Tom' within the services. Outside the services soldiers are
generally known as 'Squaddies'. The British Army magazine Soldier has a regular cartoon strip, 'Tom',
featuring the everyday life of a British soldier. Officers in the army are generally known (behind their
backs) as 'Ruperts' by the Other ranks.
Today's Army
The Challenger 2 the British Army's Main Battle Tank
Statistics
British Army statistics
Personnel (Regular Army) 107,730
Personnel (Territorial Army) 38,460
Main Battle Tanks 386 Challenger 2
Infantry fighting vehicles 667 Warrior (789 purchased)
APCs and reconnaissance vehicles 3,230–4,000+
Land Rover Wolf 15,000
Pinzgauer 2,000
Utility Trucks 2,300
Artillery pieces and mortar 2,896
Air Defence 337
Aircraft 300+
Current deployments
'High Intensity' Operations
Country Dates Deployment Details
British troops have been based in Afghanistan since

the US-led invasion there in 2001. Currently, under
Afghanistan 2001– 5,000 troops Operation Herrick, the Army maintains a battalion in
Kabul and most of a brigade in the southern province
of Helmand.
As part of Operation Telic (Gulf War 2), the British

Army participated in the invasion of Iraq. Following
the decision for continued security operations, the UK
commands the Multi-National Division (South-East)
with a headquarters unit, National Support Element,
Iraq 2003– 8,500 troops and a combat brigade (at the moment 7 Armoured
Brigade), along with troops from Italy, Norway,
Romania, Denmark, the Netherlands, Czech Republic,
Portugal, and Lithuania. A large number of Territorial
Army soldiers have been used for a variety of tasks,
both as individuals serving and as formed units.
'Low Intensity' Operations
British troops are based in Bosnia as

One light-role infantry
Bosnia 1995– peacekeepers under UN Security Council
battalion (on rotation)
resolutions.
Two resident infantry The UK retains two Sovereign Base Areas

battalions, Royal
in Cyprus after the island's independence.
Cyprus 1960– Engineers, 16 Flight The bases serve as forward bases for
Army Air Corps and Joint
deployment in the Middle East. British
Service Signals Unit at
forces are also deployed separately with
Ayios Nikolaos as a part
of British Forces Cyprus UN forces.
Constant occupation since 1833, except

brief period in 1982 when Argentina
An infantry company
Falkland invaded. Previously a platoon-sized Royal
1982– group and an Engineers
Islands Marines Naval Party served as garrison.
Squadron
After 1982 the garrison was enlarged, and
bolstered with an RAF base.
British Army garrison is provided by an

indigenous regiment, the Royal Gibraltar
Gibraltar 1704– One infantry battalion Regiment, which has been on the Army
regular establishment since the last British
regiment left in 1991.
After the Kosovo War in 1999, the British

Army led the NATO deployment in
Kosovo 1999 3,500 troops Kosovo to restore peace to the province.
Since then, the UK has withdrawn some
forces, as other nations provided troops.
Since the Gulf War 1 in 1991, the UK has

had a considerable military presence in the
Rest of the
Middle East. Besides Iraq, there are also
Middle 1990 3,700 troops
an additional 3,500 troops in Saudi Arabia
East
and Kuwait, as well as regular training
missions in Oman.
The British Army were deployed to Sierra

Leone, a former British colony, in 1999 to
aid the government in quelling violent
Sierra 1999 around 100 uprisings by militiamen, under United
Leone
Nations resolutions. Troops remain in the
region to provide military support and
training to the Sierra Leone government.
Northern 1969– 11,000 troops Operation Banner is the army's back-up

Ireland role first to the Royal Ulster Constabulary
and then to the Police Service of Northern
Ireland. Re-deployed in large numbers
from 14 August 1969 after civil disorder.
They were initially welcomed by the
nationalist community as protectors but
most eventually came to oppose their
presence especially after Operation
Demetrius (internment) and Bloody
Sunday, when members of the Parachute
Regiment shot dead 14 civilians. The
army became involved in a conflict with
the PIRA, smaller republican splinter
groups and loyalist terrorists. 763 soldiers
have been killed in Northern Ireland since
1969, mostly in Belfast and Armagh.
Counter-terrorist experience in Northern
Ireland later proved useful in Iraq.
Operation Banner will end on the 1
August 2007.
Training Operations
British troops have been based in Belize since

British Army Training the country gained independence from the UK
and Support Unit in 1981. Until 1994 Belize's neighbour,
Belize 1981–
Belize and 25 Flight Guatemala claimed the territory, and British
Army Air Corps troops were based in Belize to provide a
deterrent force
A Gurkha battalion has been maintained in

One battalion from the Brunei since the troubles in 1962 at the
Royal Gurkha Rifles, request of Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin III. The
British Garrison, Training Team Brunei is the Army's jungle
Brunei 1962–
Training Team Brunei warfare school, while the small number of
(TTB) and 7 Flight garrison troops support the battalion. 7 Flight
Army Air Corps Army Air Corps supports both the Gurkha
battalion and the TTB.
British Army Training Training centre in the Alberta prairie. Regular
Canada 1972– Unit Suffield exercises every year.
British forces remained in Germany after the

1st (UK) Armoured end of World War II. Forces declined
Division as part of considerably after the end of the Cold War,
Germany 1945– British Forces although the lack of accommodation in the
Germany UK means forces will continue to be based in
Germany.
The Army has a training centre in Kenya,

British Army Training under agreement with the Kenyan
Kenya and Liaison Staff
government. It provides training facilities for
Kenya
three infantry battalions per year
Equipment
The basic infantry weapons of the British Army is the SA80 assault rifle family, with several variants
such as the L86A2 Light Support Weapons and the short stock variant, issued to tank crews. The general
issue sidearm is the Browning L9A1, though a search is currently underway to find a replacement for the
L9A1. Indirect fire is provided by the Minimi machine gun, 51 and 81mm Mortar, the L7 GPMG, as
well as the RGGS, mounted under the barrel of the SA80 rifle. Sniper rifles used include the
L96A1 7.62mm, the L115A1 and the AW50F, all produced by Accuracy International. In addition, some
units use the L82A1 .50 calibre Barrett sniper rifle.
The British Army commonly uses the Land Rover Wolf and Land Rover Defender, with the Challenger
2 as its Main Battle Tank. The Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicle is the primary APC, although many
variants of the Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) are used, as well as the Saxon APC and
FV430 series.
The Army uses three main artillery systems; the MLRS, which debuted in Operation Granby and has a
range of 30;nbsp;km, the AS-90, a self-propeeled howitzer, and the L118, a 105 mm towed gun-
howitzer, used primarily by lighter units as well as the Royal Marines
The Rapier FSC Missile System is the Army's primary battlefield air defense system, widely deployed
since the Falklands War, and the Starstreak HVM is an anti-aircraft missile, launched either by a single
soldier or from a vehicle mounted launcher. The Starstreak is the British equivalent of the American
FIM-92 Stinger
The Army Air Corps (AAC) provide direct support for the Army, although the RAF also assist in this
role. The primary attack helicopter is the Westland WAH-64 Apache, a license built modified version of
the AH-64 Apache that will replace the Westland Lynx in an anti tank role. The Westland Lynx
performs several roles including tactical transport, armed escort, reconnaissance and evacuation as well
as anti-tank warfare; it can carry eight TOW missiles. The Bell 212 is used as a utility and transport
helicopter, with a crew of two and a transport capacity of twelve troops. The Westland Gazelle
helicopter is a light helicopter primarily used for battlefield scouting and control of artillery and aircraft.
The Britten-Norman Islander is a light aircraft used for airborne reconnaissance and command, primarily
in Northern Ireland.
Firearms
Artillery
L85A2 5.56mm IW Armour AS-90 155mm Self-Propelled Gun
L86A2 5.56mm LSW
FV4043 Challenger 2 MBT MLRS
L110A1 5.56mm SAW
Warrior IFV L118 Light Gun
L9A1 Browning
CVR(T) Rapier FSC Missile System
L7A2 7.62mm GPMG
FV432 APC Starstreak HVM
L96A1 7.62mm
L121 Field Howitzer
L115A1 8.6mm LRR
Aircraft
Electronics & Comms
Apache AH.Mk.1 Logistics MSTAR
Gazelle AH.Mk.1
DROPS Bowman
Lynx AH.Mk.7
Land Rover (TUL/TUM) Skynet 5
Bell 212
ATMP Spyglass Thermal Imager
Britten-Norman Islander
Cobra Artillery Location Radar
Agusta A109
Formation and structure

The structure of the British Army is complex, due to the different origins of its various constituent parts.
It is broadly split into the Regular Army (full-time soldiers and units) and the Territorial Army (part-
time soldiers and units).
In terms of its military structure it has two parallel organisations, one administrative and one
operational.
Administrative:
Corps, which is a grouping by common function, such as Royal Corps of Signals.

Divisions administrating all military units, both Regular and TA, within a geographical area.
Brigade in a non fighting capacity
Regiment, which is a grouping of battalions most commonly found in the Infantry. It is also the correct
name for the Corps sized grouping of Artillery regiments.
Operational: The three major commands are Land Command, Headquarters Adjutant General, and
Headquarters Northern Ireland.
Corps made up of two or more Divisions (now unlikely to be used due to the size of the British Army.)
Division made up of two or three Brigades with an HQ element and support troops. Commanded by a
General
Brigade made up of three Battalions an HQ element and associated support troops. Commanded by a
Brigadier
Battalion of about 700 soldiers, made up of five companies commanded by a Lieutenant-Colonel
or:
Battlegroup. This is a mixed formation of armour, infantry, artillery, engineers and support units, and
its structure is task specific. It is formed around the core of either an armoured regiment or infantry
battalion, and has other units added or removed from it as necessary. A battlegroup will typically consist
of between 600 and 700 soldiers under the command of a Lt. Colonel.
Company of about 100 soldiers, typically in three platoons, commanded by a Major.
Platoon of about 30 soldiers, commanded by a Second Lieutenant or Lieutenant.
Section of about 8 to 10 soldiers, commanded by a Corporal.
A number of element of the British Army use alternative terms for Battalion, Company and Platoon.
These include the Royal Armoured Corps,Royal Corps of Engineers, Royal Logistics Corps, and the
Royal Corps of Signals who use Regiment, Squadron and Troop. The Royal Regiment of Artillery are
unique in using the term Regiment in place of both Corps and Battalion, they also replace Company with
Battery and Platoon with Troop.
Aerial components
The British Army is heavily in co-operation with the Royal Air Force for air support but the army also
has its own Army Air Corps.
The AAC has in its arsenal:
- Westland Apache Helicopters
- Westland Lynx Helicopters
- Westland Gazelle Helicopters
- Bell 212 Helicopters
- Britten-Norman Islander Aircraft
- Agusta A109
Special forces
The British army contributes two of the three special forces formations within the United Kingdom
Special Forces Command; the Special Air Service Regiment and the Special Reconnaissance Regiment.
The largest and most famous formation is the The Special Air Service Regiment. Formed in 1941, the
SAS is seen by many as the role model for every other special force in the world.
The SAS comprises one regular Regiment and two Territorial Army Regiments and is headquartered at
Duke of York Barracks, London.
The regular regiment, 22 SAS Regiment has its headquarters and depot are located in Hereford and
consists of five squadrons: A, B, D, G and Reserve and a training wing. The regiment has battlespace
roles in deep reconnaissance, target identification and indication and target destruction and denial. In its
Counter Terrorism role it is seen as one of the prime anti-terrorist, hostage rescue and target capture
units in the world
The two reserve SAS regiments; 21 SAS Regiment and 23 SAS Regiment have a more limited role,
focusing on the battlespace rather than Counter Terrorism.
The Special Reconnaissance Regiment (SRR) which was formed in 2005, from existing assets, to
undertake close reconnaissance and surveillance tasks.
Formed around 1st Battalion the Parachute Regiment, with attached Royal Marines and Royal Air Force
asssets, the Special Forces Support Group are under the Operational Control of Director Special Forces
to provide Infantry support to the elements of United Kingdom Special Forces
Recruitment
The Army mainly recruits within the United Kingdom, and normally has a recruitment target of around
25,000 soldiers per year. Low unemployment in Britain has resulted in the Army having difficulty in
meeting its target, and in the early years of the 21st century there has been a marked increase in the
number of recruits from other (mostly Commonwealth) countries, who as of mid-2004 comprised
approximately 7.5% of the Army's total strength. By 2005 this number had risen to almost 10%. There
were 6,460 foreign soldiers from 54 countries in the Army (not counting over 3,000 Nepalese Gurkhas).
After Nepal, the nation with most citizens in the British Army is Fiji, with 1,965, followed by Jamaica
with 975; soldiers also come from more prosperous countries such as Australia and South Africa (650)
(However, recent proposals by the South African government may in future bar South African citizens
from serving within the militaries of foreign states. The British government has appealed against this
move). The Caribbean island of St Lucia, which has a population of just over 150,000, provides 220
soldiers.
There has been a strong and continuing tradition of recruiting from Ireland including what is now the
Republic of Ireland. Almost 150,000 Irish soldiers fought in the First World War; 49,000 died. More
than 60,000 Irishmen, more than from Northern Ireland, also saw action in the Second World War; like
their compatriots in the Great War, all were volunteers. There were more than 400 men serving from the
Republic in 2003.
Oath of allegiance
All soldiers must take an oath of allegiance upon joining the Army, a process known as "attestation".
Those who believe in God use the following words:
I swear by Almighty God that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance
to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, her heirs and successors and that I
will as in duty bound honestly and faithfully defend Her Majesty, her
heirs and successors in person, crown and dignity against all enemies
and will observe and obey all orders of Her Majesty, her heirs and
successors and of the generals and officers set over me. [1]
Others replace the words "swear by Almighty God" with "solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and
affirm".
Flags and ensigns
Flag Ratio: 3:5. The official flag of the Army.
The non-ceremonial flag of the British Army. Sometimes the word "Army" in gold letters appears
below the badge.
The British Army does not have its own specific ensign, unlike the Royal Navy, which uses the White
Ensign, and the RAF, which uses the Royal Air Force Ensign. Instead, the Army has different flags and
ensigns, for the entire army and the different regiments and corps. The official flag of the Army as a
whole is the Union Flag, flown in ratio 3:5. A non-ceremonial flag also exists, which is used at
recruiting events, military events and exhibitions. Whilst at war, the Union Flag is always used, and this
flag represents the Army on the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London (the UK's memorial to war dead). A
British Army ensign also exists for vessels commanded by a commissioned officer, the Blue Ensign
defaced with the Army badge. However, there are currently no commissioned vessels in the Army.
Each line regiment (except the Rifle Regiments) also has its own flags, known as the Colours - the
Regimental Colour and the Queen's Colour. These colours have been taken into battle in the past and
serve as a great sense of pride to the regiment. There is great variation in the different regimental
colours. Typically the colour has the regiment's badge in the centre.
Royal Navy and RAF infantry units

The other services have their own infantry-like units which are not part of the British Army. The Royal
Marines are amphibious light infantry forming part of the Royal Navy, and the Royal Air Force has the
RAF Regiment used for airfield defence and force protection duties.
Overseas Territories Military Units

Numerous military units were raised historically in British territories, including self-governing and
Crown colonies, and protectorates. Few of these have appeared on the Army List, and their relationship
to the British Army has been ambiguous. Whereas Dominions, such as Canada and Australia, raised
their own armies, Crown possessions (like the Channel Islands), and colonies (now called Overseas
Territories) were, and are, legally part of the UK, and their defence remains the responsibility of the
National (ie., United Kingdom) government. All military forces of overseas territories are, therefore,
under the direct command of the UK Government, via the local Governor and Commander-In-Chief.
Many of the units in colonies, or former colonies, were also actually formed at the behest of the UK
Government as it sought to reduce the deployment of the British Army on garrison around the world at
the latter end of the 19th Century. Today, three overseas territories retain locally-raised military units,
Bermuda, Gibraltar, and the Falkland Islands. The units are patterned on the British Army, are subject to
review by the Ministry Of Defence, and are ultimately under the control of the UK Government, not the
local governments of the Territories (though day-to-day control may be delegated to Ministers of the
territorial governments). Despite this, the units may have no tasking or funding from the MOD, and are
generally raised under acts of the territorial assemblies.
Structure of the British Army
At the top level, the structure of the British Army is headed by two main administrative top-level
budgets - Land Command and the Adjutant-General. These are responsible for providing operational
capability to the Permanent Joint Headquarters, which is responsible for the command of all operations.
There are also two other significant headquarters, Headquarters Northern Ireland, and British Forces
Cyprus.
The command structure forms a hierarchy. Formations (divisions, and brigades) control groupings of
units. Major Units are battalion- or regiment-sized units. Minor Units are smaller units, which may
either be independent or part of a battalion or regiment. Units may be either Regular (full-time) or
Territorial Army (part-time volunteers).
The naming conventions of units differ across the army for historical reasons - for example, an infantry
battalion is equivalent to a cavalry regiment. An infantry regiment is an administrative and ceremonial
organisation only, and can include several battalions.
Formations
Land Command
Land Command, headquartered at Wilton, has two main subdivisions, Field Army and Regional Forces.
Commander Field Army commands 1 Division, 3 Division, Theatre Troops, and Director General
Training Support. Commander Regional Forces, currently Lieutenant General John McColl CBE DSO,
commands 2, 4, and 5 Divisions, plus London District and United Kingdom Support Command
(Germany).
Commander-in-Chief Land Command (CINCLAND) is also the Standing Joint Commander (UK) or
SJC(UK), responsible for overall command to Military Aid to the Civil Authorities within the United
Kingdom (excluding Northern Ireland). (IJDP 2)
Corps
In operational terms, a corps is a formation of two or more divisions - it could include upwards of fifty
thousand personnel.
Although the British Army has the capability of forming a corps using its two available Ready
Divisions, it would be unlikely to deploy an all-British corps; instead, it would most likely deploy one of
its two divisions to serve as part of a larger multinational force. It does however provide much of the
headquarters and framework for the multinational NATO formation, the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps.
The word corps is also used for some large administrative groupings by common function - for example,
the Infantry Corps.
Divisions
A division is a formation of (usually) three or four brigades - around twenty thousand personnel.
The British Army has two main Deployable Divisions, which can deploy their headquarters and trained
formations immediately to operations.
 1st (UK) Armoured Division

 3rd (UK) Mechanised Division,
The three remaining divisional headquarters (referred to as Regenerative Divisions), plus the London
District and Northern Ireland HQ, act as regional commands in the UK itself and train subordinate
formations and units under their command for UK and overseas operations; the divisions would only be
required to generate field formations in the event of a general war. These Divisions are:
 2nd Division - (Scotland and the North of England)

 4th Division — (East Midlands, South and East England)
 5th Division — (Wales, West Midlands and South West England)
A further two regional headquarters exist - Headquarters Northern Ireland and London District, at
the Divisional level .
Although the security situation in Northern Ireland has eased greatly in recent years and the British
Army's presence there has been reduced, Headquarters Northern Ireland remains in being for the present.
It contains the Territorial Army British 107 (Ulster) Brigade, which has no Internal Security role, plus
British 8th Infantry Brigade and British 39th Infantry Brigade.
London District's most public concern is the administration of ceremonial units and provision of
garrisons for such installations as the Tower of London. However, its primary responsibility is to
maintain units directly for the defence of the capital. 56 (London) Brigade was disbanded in 1993.
Brigades
A brigade usually includes three or four battalion-sized units - around 5000 personnel. See Land
Command for details of specific brigades within the divisions. However it should be noted that 3
Commando Brigade, Royal Marines, is an additional deployable formation, outside the operational
control of the Army but containing a number of army units.
When deployed on operations, the primary tactical formation is the battlegroup. This is a mixed
formation formed around the core of one unit (either an armoured regiment or infantry battalion), with
armour, infantry, artillery, engineers etc attached as needed. On operations, a brigade could be expected
to be able to deploy up to three seperate battlegroups.
Key
o 1) Armoured Regiment
o 2) Armoured Infantry Battalion
o 3) Artillery Regiment
o 4) Army Air Corps Detachment
o 5) Provost Unit
o 6) Royal Logistic Corps Squadron
o 7) Engineer Squadron
o 8) Javelin Air Defence Battery
o 9) Long-Range Anti-Tank Guided Weapons Troop
o 10) Mechanised Infantry Battalion
Administrative Formations
 United Kingdom Special Forces

 1 Armoured Reconnaissance Brigade
 1 Artillery Brigade
 7 Air Defence Brigade
 12 (Air Support) Engineer Brigade
 29 (Corps Support) Engineer Brigade
 101 Logistics Brigade (3rd Mechanised Division)
 102 Logistics Brigade (1st Armoured Division)
 104 Logistic Support Brigade (PJHQ)
 2 (National Communications) Signal Brigade
 11 Signal Brigade
Order of Precedence
For the purposes of parading, the British Army is listed according to an order of precedence. This is the
order in which the various corps of the army parade, from right to left, with the unit at the extreme right
being highest.
The Household Cavalry have the highest precedence, apart from the Royal Horse Artillery when it
parades with its guns.
Arms and Services
Combat Arms
The Combat Arms are the "teeth" of the British Army - the infantry and armoured units which have
responsibility for closing with and killing the enemy.
Royal Armoured Corps
The regiments of line cavalry and the Royal Tank Regiment are grouped together as the Royal
Armoured Corps. These units operate either as armoured regiments with main battle tanks, or as
formation reconnaissance units. The Household Cavalry is a separate corps formed of two regiments.
One of these, the Household Cavalry Regiment, forms the fifth formation reconnaissance regiment.
Formation Reconnaissance
Armoured Regiments
Regiments
The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers
The Household Cavalry Regiment
and Greys)
The Royal Dragoon Guards 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
The Queen's Royal Hussars (Queen's Own and 9th/12th Royal Lancers (Prince of
Royal Irish) Wales's)
The King's Royal Hussars The Light Dragoons
2nd Royal Tank Regiment The Queen's Royal Lancers
1st Royal Tank Regiment operates in a dual role; two squadrons serve in the NBC role as part of the
Joint CBRN Regiment, while the other two are main battle tank training squadrons that serve as part of
the Combined Arms Training Battlegroup at the Land Warfare Centre at Warminster.
Infantry
As of 2006, the Infantry is divided for administrative purposes into divisions. These are not the same as
the divisions that are sent into combat, which are a mixture of infantry, armoured and support units. It
should be noted that the formar Scottish Division is now called The Royal Regiment of Scotland, as it
contains 5 battalions, but only one Regiment. Instead they are groupings of regiments based on either
geographical location or historical connection. Infantry battalions operate in one of five main roles:
 Armoured Infantry
 Mechanised Infantry
 Air Assault Infantry
 Light Infantry
 Public Duties
Under the arms plot system, a battalion would normally spend between two and six years in one role,
before re-training for another. However, plans are currently in place to phase out the arms plot system,
and in future to have battalions specialise in individual roles.
Royal Prince of
Guards Regiment of King's Queen's
Wales' Light Division
Division Division Division
Scotland Division
1st, 2nd &
1st & 2nd Bn,
The Royal 3rd Bn, The
The Princess
Scots Duke of
of Wales's 1st Bn, The
1st Bn, Borderers, Lancaster's 1st Bn, The
Royal Devonshire and
Grenadier (1st Bn, The Regiment 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment Dorset Light
Guards Royal (King's Regiment
(Queen's and Infantry
Regiment of Lancashire
Royal
Scotland) and
Hampshires)
Border)[2]
1st, 2nd &
The Royal
3rd Bn The
Highland
Yorkshire 1st & 2nd Bn, 1st & 2nd Bn,
1st Bn, Fusiliers 1st & 2nd Bn,
Regiment The Royal
Coldstream (2nd Bn, The The Royal The Light
(14th/15th, Regiment of
Guards Royal Welsh Infantry
19th and Fusiliers
Regiment of
33rd/76th
Scotland)
Foot)
1st Bn, The
The Black 1st Bn, The
Worcestershire
Watch (3rd 1st & 2nd Bn, Royal
1st Bn, and Sherwood
Bn, The The Royal Gloucestershire,
Scots Foresters
Royal Anglian Berkshire and
Guards Regiment
Regiment of Regiment Wiltshire Light
(29th/45th
Scotland) Infantry
Foot)
The
1st Bn, The
Highlanders
1st Bn, Staffordshire 1st & 2nd Bn,
(4th Bn, The
Irish Regiment (The The Royal Green
Royal
Guards Prince of Jackets
Regiment of
Wales's)
Scotland)
The Argyll
and
1st Bn, Sutherland
Welsh Highlanders
Guards (5th Bn, The
Royal
Regiment of
Scotland)
↑1st July 2006 - March 2007
There are three further infantry units in the regular army that are not grouped in the various infantry
divisions:
 1st Bn, The Royal Irish Regiment (27th Inniskillings, 83rd, 87th & The Ulster
Defence Regiment)
 2nd & 3rd Bn, The Parachute Regiment
 1st & 2nd Bn, The Royal Gurkha Rifles
The Royal Gibraltar Regiment can also be considered part of the infantry, although its primary
responsibility is the home defence of Gibraltar.
Royal Irish Regiment
The Royal Irish Regiment shares the status of the largest infantry regiment in the British Army with the
Parachute Regiment. The Royal Irish has a total of four battalions. The 1st Battalion, as has been
stated, is a general service battalion that is part of the main body of infantry. However, the 2nd, 3rd and
4th Battalions are home service battalions, purely for service in Northern Ireland.
 2nd Bn, Royal Irish Regiment (Belfast and Antrim)

 3rd Bn, Royal Irish Regiment (Down, Armagh and Tyrone)
 4th Bn, Royal Irish Regiment (Fermanagh and Londonderry)
With the announcement of the IRA ceasefire in 2005 came the end of military support to the police in
Northern Ireland, and a normalisation of the army's presence in the province. This has led to the
announcement that the three home service battalions will be disbanded with the end of Operation Banner
in August 2007.
Brigade of Gurkhas
The Royal Gurkha Rifles is the largest part of the Brigade of Gurkhas, which also has its own support
arms. These units are affiliated to the equivalent British units, but have their own unique cap badges.
 Support units of the Brigade of Gurkhas

o Queen's Gurkha Engineers: The Queen's Gurkha Engineers consists of:
 69 Field Squadron, 36 Engineer Regiment, Royal Engineers
 70 Field Support Squadron, 36 Engineer Regiment, Royal
Engineers
o Queen's Gurkha Signals: The Queen's Gurkha Signals consists of:
 246 Gurkha Signal Squadron, 2 Signal Regiment, Royal Signals
 250 Gurkha Signal Squadron, 30 Signal Regiment, Royal Signals
o Queen's Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment: The Queen's Own Gurkha
Logistic Regiment consists of:
- 28 Transport Squadron, 10 Transport Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps
- 94 Stores Squadron, 9 Supply Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps.
Special Forces
 Special Air Service Regiment - The regular army's special forces unit, 22 SAS
Regiment is a battalion sized formation and considered as infantry.
 Special Reconnaissance Regiment - A tri-service element of the United Kingdom
Special Forces alongside the SAS and Special Boat Service.
 Special Forces Support Group - A tri-service unit formed around 1st Battalion,
Parachute Regiment and enhanced with personnel from Combat Support Services, the
Royal Marines and RAF Regiment. SFSG is designed to provide support to Special
Forces operations.
Combat Support Arms
The Combat Support Arms include the artillery, engineer, signals and aviation units. Their role is to
directly support the Combat Arms in combat.
Royal Regiment of Artillery
The Royal Artillery, despite its name, is a corps sub-divided into 16 regiments. Of these, four retain the
name, cap badge and traditions of the Royal Horse Artillery. The sixteen regiments are divided into
seven specialities:
Close
General Close Surveillance
Home Air Support
Support Support and Target Training
Defence Defence (L118 Light
(MLRS) (AS90) Acquisition
Gun)
King's 12 39 1 7 (Para) 14
5 Regiment,
Troop, Regiment, Regiment, Regiment, Regiment, Regiment,
RA
RHA RA RA RHA RHA RA
16 3 29 (Cdo)
32 Regiment,
Regiment, Regiment, Regiment,
RA
RA RHA RA
47 4 40
Regiment, Regiment, Regiment,
RA RA RA
19
Regiment,
RA
26
Regiment,
RA
Corps of Royal Engineers
Engineering support for the army is provided by the Royal Engineers, of which there are a total of 15
regiments in the regular army. Of these, 25 Engineer Regiment is a field regiment dedicated to service in
Northern Ireland, 33 Engineer Regiment is an Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit, and 42 Engineer
Regiment is a dedicated Geographic unit. The Royal School of Military Engineering (RSME), also has
two regiments, which are the parent units for recruits to the RSME:
 1 RSME Regiment - Construction Engineer School

 3 RSME Regiment - Combat Engineer School
The remainder are field regiments attached to various deployable formations:
 21 Engineer Regiment - 4th Armoured Brigade

 22 Engineer Regiment - 1st Mechanised Brigade
 23 Engineer Regiment - 16th Air Assault Brigade
 24 Engineer Regiment - 3 Commando Brigade (Forming 2007)
 26 Engineer Regiment - 12th Mechanised Brigade
 28 Engineer Regiment - British 1st Armoured Division
 36 Engineer Regiment - British 3rd Infantry Division
 38 Engineer Regiment - 19th Light Brigade
In addition, there are a number of independent squadrons in the Royal Engineers:
 59 Independent Commando Squadron - 59 Squadron is the engineers unit

assigned to 3 Commando Brigade. This will form part of 24 Engineer Regiment on its
formation.
 62 Cyprus Squadron - 62 Squadron provides the engineering support for British
Forces in Cyprus.
 Within the structure of the Royal Engineers are two squadrons that are cap-
badged as the Queen's Gurkha Engineers, manned predominantly by Gurkhas.
The operational structure of the Royal Engineers also includes two specialist support groups:
 12 (Air Support) Engineer Group - this is organised to provide support to airborne

forces, and is composed of both regular and TA units. Regular units assigned to 12
Engineer Group include:
o 39 Engineer Regiment - engineering support to the RAF
o Works Group, RE (Airfields) - infrastructure support to the RAF
o 529 Specialist Team Royal Engineers
 170 (Infrastructure Support) Engineer Group - formerly known as the Military
Works Force, this has responsibility for both permanent and temporary infrastructure
development in several areas, including water, fuel, communications and utilities:
o HQ 170 Engineer Group, RE
o 62 Works Group, RE - Water Infrastructure
o 63 Works Group, RE - Utilities Infrastructure
o 64 Works Group, RE - Fuel Infrastructure
Royal Corps of Signals
In the British Army, communications below brigade level are maintained by individual units. For
formations of Brigade level and above, communications and ICT are provided by the Royal Signals,
which has a total of ten regiments, and 13 separate squadrons:
 Regiments
o 1 (UK) Armoured Division HQ and Signal Regiment
o 2 Signal Regiment - 11 Signal Brigade
o 3 (UK) Division HQ and Signal Regiment
o 7 Signal Regiment - 1 Signal Brigade (Allied Rapid Reaction Corps)
o 10 Signal Regiment - 2 (National Communications) Signal Brigade
o 11 Signal Regiment - Royal School of Signals (Training)
o 14 Signal Regiment - 11 Signal Brigade (Electronic Warfare)
o 15 Signal Regiment - HQ Northern Ireland
o 18 Signal Regiment - UK Special Forces
o 21 Signal Regiment - Joint Helicopter Command
o 22 Signal Regiment (Forming 2007)
 Squadrons
o 200 Signal Squadron - 20 Armoured Brigade
o 209 Signal Squadron - 19 Light Brigade
o 213 Signal Squadron - 39 Infantry Brigade (NI)
o 215 Signal Squadron - 1 Mechanised Brigade
o 216 Signal Squadron - 16 Air Assault Brigade
o 218 Signal Squadron - 8 Infantry Brigade (NI)
o 228 Signal Squadron - 12 Mechanised Brigade
o 261 Signal Squadron - 101 Logistic Brigade
o 262 Signal Squadron - 102 Logistic Brigade
o 628 (UK) Signal Troop - Allied Forces North (AFNORTH)
o Cyprus Communications Unit
 Within the structure of the Royal Signals are two squadrons that are cap-badged
as the Queen's Gurkha Signals, manned predominantly by Gurkhas.
Army Air Corps
The Army Air Corps provides the battlefield support element of the army's aviation needs (the heavy
transport element comes from the helicopters of the RAF, while the amphibious element is provided by
the FAA). The AAC has six regiments, and a number of independent squadrons and flights:
 1 Regiment, AAC - 1st (Armoured) Division.

 2 Regiment, AAC - Training Regiment
 3 Regiment, AAC - Attack Regiment - 16 Air Assault Brigade
 5 Regiment, AAC - Northern Ireland
 657 Squadron, AAC

 7 Flight - Aviation support to British Forces in Brunei
 8 Flight - Aviation support for the SAS
 12 Flight - Part of 1 Regiment, AAC
 25 Flight - Aviation support to British Forces in Belize
Intelligence Corps
The Intelligence Corps is the army's main tool for the gathering and collating of intelligence, and for the
organisation of the army's counter-intelligence apparatus.
 1 Military Intelligence Battalion

 15 (UK) Psychological Operations Group
Joint CBRN Regiment
The Joint CBRN Regiment is a specialised corps of the army tasked with defence against nuclear,
biological, radiological and chemical weapons. The regiment is a joint Army/RAF unit, made up of the
following regular units:
 1st Royal Tank Regiment

 No 27 Squadron, Royal Air Force Regiment
Combat Service Support Arms
The Combat Service Support Arms have the role of providing the services necessary for sustaining the
Army.
Royal Logistic Corps
The Royal Logistic Corps is the largest single corps in the British Army, and is responsible for the
supply and movement of material to all units. Within the corps there are 21 separate regiments:
1 Logistic Support Regiment 12 Logistic Support Regiment

2 Logistic Support Regiment 13 Air Assault Support Regiment
3 Logistic Support Regiment ARRC Support Battalion
4 Logistic Support Regiment 17 Port and Maritime Regiment
6 Supply Regiment 21 Logistic Support Regiment
7 Transport Regiment 23 Pioneer Regiment
8 Transport Regiment 24 Postal Courier and Movement Regiment
9 Supply Regiment 27 Transport Regiment
10 Transport Regiment, QOGLR 29 Postal Courier and Movement Regiment
11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Regiment
5 Training Regiment 25 Training Support Regiment
There are also a number of other regular army units:
 20 Logistic Support Squadron (London District)

 44 Support Squadron (Royal Military Academy Sandhurst)
 89 Postal and Courier Unit (SHAPE)
 105 Logistic Support Squadron (BATUS)
 132 Aviation Supply Squadron (16 Air Assault Brigade)
 Cyprus Service Support Unit (British Forces Cyprus)
Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers have responsibility for the maintenance of all of the
British Army's equipment. Almost every unit will have REME tradesmen attached normally designated
as a "Light Aid Detachment (LAD)" or "Workshop (Wksp)". The corps provides detachments to each
formation of brigade level and higher from its total of seven battalions:
 1st Battalion, REME - 4 Armoured Brigade

 2nd Battalion, REME - 7 Armoured Brigade
 3rd Battalion, REME - 20 Armoured Brigade
 4th Battalion, REME - 12 Mechanised Brigade
 5th Battalion, REME - 19 Light Brigade
 6th Battalion, REME - 1 Mechanised Brigade
 7th Battalion, REME - 16 Air Assault Brigade
Other Services
 Army Medical Services

o Royal Army Medical Corps - The Royal Army Medical Corps has a total
of five regiments in the regular army:
 1 Close Support Medical Regiment - 1st Armoured Division
 3 Close Support Medical Regiment - 3rd Mechanised Division
 4 General Support Medical Regiment - 101 Logisitc Brigade
 5 General Support Medical Regiment - 102 Logistic Brigade
 16 Close Support Medical Regiment - 16 Air Assault Brigade
o Royal Army Dental Corps
o Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps
o Royal Army Veterinary Corps
 Adjutant General's Corps - The Adjutant General's Corps, unlike the Army
Medical Services, is a single corps; however, three of the units that were
amalgamated to form it were permitted to retain their own cap badges:
o Corps of Royal Military Police - While the majority of the Adjutant
General's Corps forms part of other operational units, the Royal Military Police is
formed into two regular regiments. In addition, there are regular provost companies in
the TA regiments of the RMP, plus a single independent air assault trained company:
 1 Regiment, Royal Military Police
 3 Regiment, Royal Military Police
 160 Provost Company - 4 RMP
 156 Provost Company
o Military Provost Staff Corps
o Army Legal Corps
 Royal Army Chaplains' Department

 Army Physical Training Corps
 Small Arms School Corps
 Corps of Army Music
Training
There are two phases in the training for recruits into the army:
 Phase 1: the initial phase features the basic training for all new recruits. There are
two main strands, one for officers and one for other ranks.
o Officers: Prospective officers first attend the Regular Commissions
Board to determine whether they are suited to become officers. Once they pass the
RCB, they attend the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, where they undergo basic
training, not just in the elements of soldiering, but also leadership. The
Commissioning Course, which is the standard course for new officers, lasts 44
weeks. However, there are also short course for those with professional qualifications
joining one of the services (Medicine, Law etc) that provides basic military training.
o Soldiers: Prospective ordinary soldiers (other than the infantry) attend
either one of four Army Training Regiments or the Army Foundation College:
 Army Foundation College, Harrogate
 ATR Bassingbourn
 ATR Lichfield
 ATR Pirbright
 ATR Winchester
Here they undergo basic training, learning how to become soldiers. The basic course is the Army
Development Course, which lasts for 20 weeks.
Once new recruits have passed their initial courses, either at RMAS or an ATR, then they move to Phase
2 Training.
 Phase 2: the second phase involves the new officer or soldier choosing which
branch of the service they wish to specialise in, and then undergoing the specific
training. This is with one of the specialist schools located around the country:
o Infantry Training Centre (see below) - the ITC is responsible for both
Phase 1 and Phase 2 infantry training for soldiers. Officers undergo their Phase 1
training at Sandhurst.
o Armour Centre
o Royal School of Artillery
o School of Army Aviation
o Royal School of Military Engineering
o Royal School of Signals
o Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineering Training Group
o Defence Logistic Support Training Group
o Defence Medical Services Training Centre
o AGC Training Group
o Royal Military School of Music
Infantry Training Centre
As of 2001, infantry training is undertaken as a single 24 week course at the Infantry Training Centre at
Catterick Garrison, as opposed to being divided into Phase 1 and Phase 2 training. The ITC is divided
into four separate battalions; these are divided into companies, each of which are responsible for one of
the infantry's administrative divisions:
 1st Battalion, Infantry Training Centre

o Queen's Division Company
o King's Division Company
o Light Division Company
 2nd Battalion, Infantry Training Centre
o Scottish Division Company
o Prince of Wales's Division Company
o Somme Company
 3rd Battalion, Infantry Training Centre
o Guards Division Company
o Parachute Regiment Company
o Gurkha Company
o Gurkha Language Wing
 4th Battalion, Infantry Training Centre
o HQ Company
o Williams Company
o Hook Company
o Army School of Ceremonial
o Army School of Bagpipe Music & Highland Drums
o Gym EL Wing
Units of the Territorial Army
Armour (TA)
The four armoured regiments of the Territorial Army operate in two roles - provision of crew
replacements for armoured and NBC regiments, and formation reconnaissance:
 Royal Yeomanry
 Royal Mercian and Lancastrian Yeomanry
 Royal Wessex Yeomanry
 Queen's Own Yeomanry
Infantry (TA)
The 1999 reorganisation of the Territorial Army saw a number of new, multi-cap badge battalions take
the place of the old territorial battalions of regular regiments. However, starting in 2006, these regiments
will be replaced by a number of single cap-badged battalions attached to the new large infantry
regiments:
 3rd Battalion, The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment

 4th Battalion, The Parachute Regiment
 51st Highland, 7th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland
 52nd Lowland, 6th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland
 4th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment
 3rd Battalion, Royal Anglian Regiment
 4th Battalion, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment
 The London Regiment
 The Rifle Volunteers
 Royal Irish Rangers
 Royal Rifle Volunteers
 3rd Battalion, Royal Welsh
 5th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
 West Midlands Regiment
 21st Special Air Service Regiment (Artist's)
 23rd Special Air Service Regiment
A further infantry unit, not officially on the British Army list but still technically a British unit, is The
Bermuda Regiment. This is a territorial infantry battalion which is responsible for the internal security of
Bermuda.
Royal Artillery (TA)
General Support Close Support Surveillance and Target

Air Defence
(MLRS) (Light Gun) Acquisition
104 Regiment, 101 Regiment, 100 Regiment, Honourable Artillery
RA(V) RA(V) RA(V) Company
105 Regiment, 103 Regiment,
RA(V) RA(V)
106 Regiment,
RA(V)
 Note: The Honourable Artillery Company does not come under the Royal
Artillery's order of battle, but is instead a separate regiment.
Royal Engineers (TA)
 71 Engineer Regiment (Volunteers) - Air Support Regiment

 73 Engineer Regiment (Volunteers) - Air Support Regiment
 75 Engineer Regiment (Volunteers) - Field Regiment
 101 (City of London) Engineer Regiment (Volunteers) - Explosive Ordnance
Disposal Regiment
 Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia) - Field Regiment
 131 Independent Commando Squadron (Volunteers) - Commando Support
 135 Independent Geographic Squadron (Volunteers) - Topography
 65 Works Group, RE (Volunteers) - Communications Infrastructure
Note: Although the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers is part of the Royal Engineers order of
battle, it is a separate regiment with its own cap badge, regimental colours and traditions.
Royal Signals (TA)
 31 (City of London) Signal Regiment

 32 (Scottish) Signal Regiment
 33 (Lancashire and Cheshire) Signal Regiment
 34 (Northern) Signal Regiment
 35 (South Midlands) Signal Regiment
 36 (Eastern) Signal Regiment
 37 (Wessex and Welsh) Signal Regiment
 38 (City of Sheffield) Signal Regiment
 39 (Skinners) Signal Regiment
 40 (Ulster) Signal Regiment
 71 (Yeomanry) Signal Regiment
Intelligence Corps (TA)
 3 (Volunteer) Military Intelligence Battalion (Strategic Intelligence)

 5 (Volunteer) Military Intelligence Battalion (Tactical Intelligence)
Army Air Corps (TA)
 6 Regiment, Army Air Corps (Volunteers)

 7 Regiment, Army Air Corps (Volunteers)
Services (TA)
In addition to the combat units, there are Territorial Army units in:
 Adjutant General's Corps

o 4 Regiment, Royal Military Police
o 5 Regiment, Royal Military Police
 Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
o 101 Battalion (V), REME
 Royal Logistic Corps
o 87 Postal and Courier Regiment
o 88 Postal and Courier Regiment
o 150 (Northumbrian) Transport Regiment
o 151 (Greater London) Logisitic Support Regiment
o 152 (Ulster) Transport Regiment
o 155 Transport Regiment
o 156 (North-West) Transport Regiment
o 157 (Wales and Midlands) Logistic Support Regiment
o The Scottish Transport Regiment
o 158 (Royal Anglian) Transport Regiment
o 159 Logistic Support Regiment
o 160 Transport Regiment
o 162 Movement Control Regiment
o 163 Movement Control Regiment
o 165 Port Regiment
o 166 Supply Regiment
o 168 Pioneer Regiment
o Catering Support Regiment
o 383 Commando Petroleum Troop
o 395 Air Despatch Troop
 Army Medical Services
o 144 Field Ambulance
o 152 Ambulance Regiment
o 201 (Northern) Field Hospital
o 202 (Midlands) Field Hospital
o 203 (Welsh) Field Hospital
o 204 (North Irish) Field Hospital
o 205 (Scottish) Field Hospital
o 207 (Manchester) Field Hospital
o 208 (Liverpool) Field Hospital
o 212 (Yorkshire) Field Hospital
o 220 (1st Home Counties) Field Ambulance
o 222 (East Midlands) Field Ambulance
o 243 (The Wessex) Field Hospital
o 253 (North Irish) Field Ambulance
o 254 (City of Cambridge) Field Ambulance
o 256 (City of London) Field Hospital
o 306 Field Hospital
o 335 Medical Evacuation Regiment
o First Aid Nursing Yeomanry
Ceremonial Units
Although the majority of the British Army performs both operational and ceremonial roles, there are
some units that are purely ceremonial. These are manned by fully trained soldiers who are periodically
transferred from operational units.
Queen's Guard/Queen's Life Guard
The following are units of the regular army that most regularly mount the guard at Buckingham Palace,
Horse Guards and Windsor Castle:
 Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment

 Nijmegen Company, Grenadier Guards
 No 7 Company, Coldstream Guards
 F Company, Scots Guards
Gun Salutes
The following are units that provide gun salutes in various parts of London:
 King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery

 Honourable Artillery Company
Sovereign's Bodyguard
The following are not part of the army, but perform the ceremonial role of Sovereign's Bodyguard.
They tend to be made up of retired officers and NCOs:
 Her Majesty's Bodyguard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms

 Queen's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard
 Royal Company of Archers, the Queen's Bodyguard in Scotland
One of the significant duties that all of the above units (with the exception of the King's Troop and the
Honourable Artillery Company) perform is to guard the catafalque upon which the coffin of a state
funeral rests in Westminster Hall.
Others
 Yeomen Warders of Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress the Tower of
London: This corps provides the ceremonial guard at the Tower of London, with
responsibility for guarding any prisoners housed in the fortress, and ensuring the
security of the crown jewels. The most notable ceremony that the Yeoman Warders
participate in is the Ceremony of the Keys. However, they also form a guard of
honour in the annexe of Westminster Abbey at the coronation service.
 Military Knights of Windsor: This is a small formation of retired army officers,
who receive a pension and accommodation at Windsor Castle. They lead the
procession of the Garter Knights on Garter Day.
 High Constables of Holyroodhouse: This is the ceremonial guard of the Palace of
Holyroodhouse, which parades whenever the Sovereign is in Edinburgh.
 In-Pensioners of the Royal Hospital: While not strictly speaking a corps, the In-
Pensioners of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea form a significant part of the army's
heritage and history, and often take part in major occasions, especially those of
remembrance.
 Atholl Highlanders: A further ceremonial unit is the Atholl Highlanders. This is
unique in that it is the only legal private army in Europe; instead of being in the
service of the Crown, it is in the service of the Duke of Atholl.
Restructuring
In July 2004, the Government announced its proposals for restructuring of the armed forces. The main
points concerning the army included:
 Cutting four infantry battalions (three English and one Scottish) with the
remaining single battalion regiments of the Scottish Division, King's Division and
Prince of Wales's Division amalgamating. These will see either one regiment of four
or more battalions, or two regiments of between two and three battalions in each
division.
 One armoured regiment being re-roled as force reconnaissance, with seven
Challenger 2 squadrons being cut.
 One heavy artillery regiment being re-roled as light artillery, with six AS-90
batteries being cut.
 A reduction in the number of Ground Based Air Defence units, with the
disbandment of the RAF Regiment squadrons, and a reduction in the size of the Royal
Artillery batteries.
On 16 December 2004, Geoff Hoon announced restructuring plans. The new operational structure of the
army will feature:
 Two Armoured Brigades - these will be 7 Armoured Brigade and 20 Armoured

Brigade.
 Three Mechanised Brigades - these will be 1 Mechanised Brigade and 12
Mechanised Brigade, to be joined by the current 4 Armoured Brigade, which will
convert to mechanised by 2006.
 One Light Role Brigade - this will see 19 Mechanised Brigade convert to the light
role, beginning at the start of 2005.
 One Air Assault Brigade - 16 Air Assault Brigade.
Rumours were also confirmed, with the restructuring of the infantry along the large regiment lines. This
involved the Royal Scots and the King's Own Scottish Borderers amalgamating into a single battalion on
the 1st August 2006, after the two regiments had formed single battalions of the Royal Regiment of
Scotland in March 2006, with battalions retaining their former titles. The regiments of the King's
Division and the Prince of Wales's Division will also merge, with one battalion lost from the King's
Division, and two from the Prince of Wales's. Thus, each will have one regiment of three battalions and
one regiment of two battalions.
The restructuring will be as follows:
Royal Armoured Corps restructuring
In 2005, the Queen's Royal Lancers will begin conversion from the Armoured role, equipped with
Challenger 2, to the Formation Reconnaissance role, equipped with Scimitar.
Royal Artillery restructuring
In 2005, 40 Regiment, Royal Artillery will begin conversion to the L118 Light Gun from the AS-90.
Royal Engineers restructuring
Engineering support for 3 Commando Brigade to be expanded to a full regiment with the establishment
of 24 Commando Engineer Regiment. This brings it into line with the other brigade sized formations.
Royal Signals restructuring
Establishment of a new signals regiment, 22 Signal Regiment.
Infantry restructuring
The arms plot is to be abolished, with all infantry battalions given a set role and (for armoured and
mechanised battalions) location. In order that officers and soldiers can keep up the various skills gained
through each of the distinct roles, all single battalion regiments (with the exception of the Guards
regiments and the Royal Irish Regiment) will be amalgamated into large regiments. It is planned that
each division will have a total of five battalions - of these, one will be armoured infantry, one will be
mechanised infantry and the remainder light infantry.
Guards Division
 Although there will remain five single battalion Guards regiments, operationally
these will conform to the new structure, with each battalion being given a specific
role (1 armoured infantry, 2 light infantry, 2 public duties). Operationally therefore,
the Guards will be a single large regiment. The London Regiment will be transferred
to the Guards Division, and become the Guards TA battalion.
Scottish Division
 Royal Scots and King's Own Scottish Borderers to amalgamate into a single
battalion. The combined Royal Scots/KOSB to merge with the Royal Highland
Fusiliers, Black Watch, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and The Highlanders into
the Royal Regiment of Scotland.
o The Royal Scots Borderers (1st Bn, Royal Regiment of Scotland)
o The Royal Highland Fusiliers (2nd Bn, Royal Regiment of Scotland)
o The Black Watch (3rd Bn, Royal Regiment of Scotland)
o The Highlanders (4th Bn, Royal Regiment of Scotland)
o The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (5th Bn, Royal Regiment of
Scotland)
 The 52nd Lowland Regiment with form the 6th Bn, and the 51st Highland the 7th.
Prince of Wales's Division
 The breakup of the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment has
been cancelled. It will merge directly with the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment to
form 1st Battalion, The Light Infantry.
 The Staffordshire Regiment, 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment and Worcestershire and
Sherwood Foresters Regiment to merge into the Mercian Regiment.
o 1st Bn, Mercian Regiment (Cheshires)
o 2nd Bn, Mercian Regiment (Worcesters and Foresters)
o 3rd Bn, Mercian Regiment (Staffords)
 A 4th Bn will be formed from the TA West Midlands Regiment and the Cheshires
element of the Kings and Cheshire Regiment
 The Royal Welch Fusiliers and Royal Regiment of Wales to merge into the Royal
Welsh.
o 1st Bn, Royal Welsh (Royal Welch Fusiliers)
o 2nd Bn, Royal Welsh (Royal Regiment of Wales)
 The TA Royal Welsh Regiment will become 3rd Battalion, Royal Welsh
King's Division
 The King's Own Royal Border Regiment, King's Regiment and Queen's
Lancashire Regiment to merge into the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's
Lancashire and Border).
o 1st Bn, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment
o 2nd Bn, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment
 4th Bn, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment will be formed from the Kings Regiment
elements of the TA Kings and Cheshire Regiment and Lancastrian and Cumbrian
Volunteers Regiment.
 The Duke of Wellington's Regiment, Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of
Yorkshire and the Green Howards to merge into the Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th,
19th and 33rd/76th Foot).
o 1st Bn, Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own)
o 2nd Bn, Yorkshire Regiment (Green Howards)
o 3rd Bn, Yorkshire Regiment (Duke of Wellington's)
 4th Bn, Yorkshire Regiment will be formed from the TA East and West Riding
Regiment and the Green Howards elements of the Tyne Tees Regiment.
Queen's Division
 The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires), Royal
Regiment of Fusiliers and the Royal Anglian Regiment are unaffected.
 The RRF and R ANGLIAN gain a Territorial Army Battalion. The Tyne-Tees
Regiment will be the 5th Bn, RRF and the East of England Regiment will become the
3rd Bn R ANGLIAN.
Light Division
 As of November 2005, in a change to the original plans, a new large regiment will
be created from the merger of the The Light Infantry, the Royal Green Jackets, the
Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment and the Devonshire and
Dorset Regiment and will be called The Rifles.
 1st Bn, The Rifles (from the merger of the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and
Wiltshire Regiment and the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment)
 2nd Bn, The Rifles (redesignated of 1st Bn, The Royal Green Jackets)
 3rd Bn, The Rifles (redesignation of 2nd Bn, The Light Infantry)
 4th Bn, The Rifles (redesignation of 2nd Bn, The Royal Green Jackets)
 5th Bn, The Rifles (redesignation of 1st Bn, The Light Infantry)
 6th (V) Bn, The Rifles (formed from the majority of The Rifle Volunteers)
 7th (V) Bn, The Rifles (formed from the majority of the Royal Rifle Volunteers)
[The Parachute Regiment
 1st Battalion, the Parachute Regiment remains in the infantry order of battle roled
to form the core of the Special Forces Support Group in support of United Kingdom
Special Forces. Battalion strength is reduced to 450 men, with the remainder
distributed among the remaining two battalions.
 2nd and 3rd Battalions, the Parachute Regiment remain unaffected.
 4th Battalion will conform it the new TA infantry structure but is otherwise
unaffected.
Royal Irish Regiment
 In order to retain an 'infantry footprint' in Northern Ireland, the Royal Irish

Regiment will retain its single general service battalion.
 The Royal Irish Rangers will become TA battalion of the R IRISH.
 With the announcement by the Provisional IRA that they will cease armed
conflict, the three home service battalions will be disbanded.
Royal Gurkha Rifles
 The Royal Gurkha Rifles remain unaffected by the changes to the infantry
structure.
Special Forces
 Special Forces Support Group has been formed around a core of 1 PARA
supplemented by a Squadron of RAF Regiment and a company of Royal Marines.
SFSG provides infantry support of Special Forces Operations falls under the
command of Director Special Forces. Administered as a regiment the SFSG is based
at RAF St Athan.
Territorial Army
 With the exception of the Royal Gurkha Rifles, every infantry regiment will
receive one Territorial Army battalion, with the exception of the Royal Regiment of
Scotland and The Rifles, which will receive two. The Guards Division will gain an
affiliated TA battalion.
Bands
 The British Army has 29 military bands of varying strength. The seven bands of
the Household Division each have 49 musicians, whereas the other bands each have
35 musicians. All bands can play in many different formats, but primarily as a
marching band or a concert band.
Brief comment
While the Government maintains that regimental traditions will remain through the addition of subtitles
to battalions, it should be noted that in the reforms of the 1960s, which brought the likes of the Queen's
Regiment, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, Royal Green Jackets and Light Infantry, the individual
regiments that made them up also retained their individual titles for only a brief period, before these
were removed to promote the harmonisation of the new regiments.
The government has also announced that the concept of arms plotting will be ended; however, since the
announcement of reorganisation, it has been revealed that light infantry battalions will continue to be
rotated, to prevent units staying in unpopular postings (Cyprus, Northern Ireland, public duties etc) for
too long.
New Infantry Structure and Order of Precedence

Regular Army
Prince of
Guards Scottish King's Queen's Light
Wales'
Division Division Division Division Division
Division
1st, 2nd, 3rd,
1st & 2nd Bn, 1st & 2nd Bn, 1st, 2nd,
1st Bn, 4th & 5th Bn, 1st & 2nd
Duke of Princess of 3rd, 4th &
Grenadier Royal Bn, Royal
Lancaster's Wales's Royal 5th Bn, The
Guards Regiment of Welsh
Regiment Regiment Rifles
Scotland
1st, 2nd & 1st & 2nd Bn,
1st Bn, 1st, 2nd & 3rd
3rd Bn, Royal
Coldstream Bn, Yorkshire
Mercian Regiment of
Guards Regiment
Regiment Fusiliers
1st & 2nd Bn,
1st Bn, Scots
Royal Anglian
Guards
Regiment
1st Bn, Irish
Guards
1st Bn,
Welsh
Guards
 1st Bn, Royal Irish Regiment
 1st & 2nd Bn, Royal Gurkha Rifles
 2nd & 3rd Bn, Parachute Regiment
 22nd SAS Regiment
 1st Bn, Parachute Regiment/JSFG
 Royal Gibraltar Regiment
Territorial Army
Prince of
Guards Scottish Queen's Light
King's Division Wales'
Division Division Division Division
Division
6th & 7th Bn, 3rd Bn,
3rd Bn, King's 3rd Bn, 6th & 7th
London Royal Princess of
Lancashire and Royal Bn, The
Regiment Regiment of Wales's Royal
Border Regiment Welsh Rifles
Scotland Regiment
4th Bn, 4th Bn, 5th Bn, Royal
Yorkshire Mercian Regiment of
Regiment Regiment Fusiliers
3rd Bn, Royal
Anglian
Regiment

 4th Bn, Parachute Regiment
 21st and 23rd SAS Regiment
Territorial Army
The Territorial Army (TA) is a part of the British Army, the land armed forces of the United Kingdom,
and composed mostly of part-time soldiers paid at the same rate, while engaged on military activities, as
their Regular equivalents. It forms about a quarter of the strength of the Army. Its original purpose was
home defence, but it is being restructured and reconceptualized to focus on providing support for the
Regular army.
Territorial soldiers, or Territorials, are volunteers, not conscripts or a militia, and often undergo military
training in their spare time. They normally have a day job and often need to take leave or resign their job
if called up for military service. Some employers, such as the public service, have military leave to allow
these soldiers to be deployed without losing their full time job.
It was created in 1908, when the War Office took over and reorganised the previously civilian-
administered Volunteer Army, folding its remaining Militia and Yeomanry units into it.
World War I and earlier

The Territorial Force was originally formed by the Secretary of State for War, Richard Burdon Haldane,
following the passage of the "Territorial and Reserve Forces Bill", which combined and re-organised the
old Volunteer Army with the remaining units of militia and yeomanry, on August 2, 1907 and contained
14 infantry divisions, each administered by a County Association. There were also 14 mounted
yeomanry brigades.
The use of the word territorial signified that the volunteers who served with the force were under no
obligation to serve overseas — in 1910, when asked to nominate for Imperial Service overseas in the
event of mobililzation, less than 10% of the Force chose to do so. In August 1914, after the outbreak of
World War I, Territorial units were given the option of serving in France and by August 25 in excess of
70 battalions had volunteered. This question over the availability of Territorial divisions for overseas
service was one of Lord Kitchener's motivations for raising the New Army separately.
The original divisions of the Territorial Army were:
 East Anglian Division

 East Lancashire Division
 Highland Division
 Home Counties Division (broken up in India, December 1914)
 Lowland Division
 1st London Division
 2nd London Division
 North Midland Division
 Northumbrian Division
 South Midland Division
 West Lancashire Division
 West Riding Division
 Welsh Division
 Wessex Division
The divisions were assigned numbers in April 1915 so that, for example, the 'East Anglian Division'
became the 54th Division.
Territorial Force battalion numbers were prefixed with '1', for instance the 1/5th Battalion, the East
Surrey Regiment. A second line of Territorial units were raised by the respective County Associations in
August and September of 1914. These battalion and division names were prefixed with '2' to distinguish
from the originals. For instance, the second line 'Wessex Division' was originally called the '2nd Wessex
Division' (later the 45th Division) and the second line battalion for the 1/5th East Surreys was the 2/5th
East Surreys. When a first line battalion was sent overseas, a third line battalion, prefixed with '3', was
raised thus enabling the second line battalion to be released for overseas service as well. By the end of
the war 692 Territorial Force battalions had been raised. In total, nine second line divisions were raised.
No complete divisions of third line battalions were raised.
The second line Territorial Force divisions were:
 45th (2nd Wessex) Division

 57th (2nd West Lancashire) Division
 58th (2/1st London) Division
 59th (2nd North Midland) Division
 60th (2/2nd London) Division
 61st (2nd South Midland) Division
 62nd (2nd West Riding) Division
 63rd (2nd Northumbrian) Division (broken up in July 1916)
 64th (2nd Highland) Division (lost territorial association early 1918)
 65th (2nd Lowland) Division (broken up 18 March 1918)
 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division
 67th (2nd Home Counties) Division (lost territorial association early 1918)
 68th (2nd Welsh) Division (lost territorial association early 1918)
 69th (2nd East Anglian) Division (lost territorial association early 1918)
Also considered divisions of the Territorial Force were:
 71st - 73rd Divisions which were formed late 1916 as Home Service divisions.
All broken up early 1918
 74th (Yeomanry) Division, formed early 1917 from dismounted Yeomanry
 75th Division, formed early 1917 from various Territorial Force and Indian Army
battalions
Territorial units initially saw service in Egypt and India and other Empire garrisons such as Gibraltar,
thereby releasing regular units for service in France and enabling the formation of an additional five
regular army divisions (for a total of eleven) by early 1915. The first Territorial division to join the
fighting on the Western Front was the 46th Division in March 1915. The 42nd and 52nd divisions were
sent to Gallipoli as reinforcements for the Helles front in May and June of 1915.
As the war progressed and casualties mounted, the distinctive character of Territorial units was diluted
by the inclusion of conscript and New Army drafts. Following the Armistice all units of the Territorial
Force were gradually disembodied.
Interwar and World War II

New recruiting started in early 1920, and the Territorial Force was reconstituted 7 February 1920. On 1
October 1920 the Territorial Force was renamed the Territorial Army. The 1st Line divisions (that were
created in 1907 or 1908) were reconstituted in that year. The 2nd Line was reconstituted in April 1939 in
reaction to the declaration of war.[1] When the 2nd Line was reformed they were a little different from
their WWI predecessors. They had slightly different names and the regiments assigned were different.
List of TA Divisions, World War II
The Territorial Army armoured and infantry divisions during World War II were:

o 1st Line:
 1st Cavalry Division (1st Line Yeomanry)
 10th Armoured Division (1st Line Yeomanry)
 42nd (East Lancashire) Infantry Division
 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division
 44th (Home Counties) Infantry Division
 48th (South Midland) Infantry Division
 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division
 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division
 51st (Highland) Infantry Division
 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division
 53rd (Welsh) Division
 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division
 55th (West Lancashire) Infantry Division
 56th (London) Infantry Division

o 2nd Line
 9th (Highland) Infantry Division

 12th (Eastern) Infantry Division
 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division
 18th (East Anglian) Infantry Division
 23rd (Northumbrian) Division
 38th (Welsh) Infantry Division
 45th (Wessex) Infantry Division
 46th (West Riding) Infantry Division
 47th (London) Infantry Division
 59th (Staffordshire) Infantry Division
 61st (South Midland) Infantry Division
 66th (East Lancashire) Infantry Division
Postwar
The TA kept its former role of supplying complete divisions to the regular Army for twelve years after
WW II. The manoeuvre divisions established or restablished in 1947 were:
 42nd Infantry Division

 43rd Infantry Division
 44th Infantry Division
 49th (West Riding & North Midland) Armoured Division
 50th Infantry Division
 51st/52nd (Scottish) Division
 53rd Infantry Division
 56th (London) Armoured Division
It also furnished much of the anti-aircraft cover for the United Kingdom during that period. However, as
the 1950s drew to a close, British forces contracted dramatically as the end of conscription in 1960 came
in sight. The TA was thus re-roled into its modern form. Instead of supplying complete combat
divisions, its function was to round out regular formations by supplying units of up to battalion size
(including infantry and light artillery, but not tracked armour), and supply extra support functions such
as engineers, medical units and military police.
After the Strategic Defence Review of 1998, the TA's size was further reduced. As of 2006 it has an
authorised strength of 42,000 though recruiting difficulties put the actual strength of the TA below that
figure (manning is currently at approx 82% which equates to 34 000).
TA soldiers have seen service in almost every conflict the UK has been involved with since 1945.
However, they served in particularly large numbers in three conflicts. The Korean War and Suez Crisis
were during the 1950s, when the UK still had an imperial role. However, in 2003, 9,500 reservists, the
vast majority of them from the TA, were mobilised to take part in Operation Telic, the invasion of Iraq.
Given the current state of world politics and security, it seems inconceivable that the TA will not see
further extensive service during the remainder of the early part of the 21st century.
Present-day units
 Royal Yeomanry
 Royal Mercian and Lancastrian Yeomanry
 Royal Wessex Yeomanry
 Queen's Own Yeomanry
Infantry
 52nd Lowland, 6th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland
 51st Highland, 7th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland
 3rd Battalion, Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal
Hampshires)
 The London Regiment
 4th Battalion, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border)
 5th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
 3rd Battalion, Royal Anglian Regiment
 4th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot)
 West Midlands Regiment
 3rd Battalion, Royal Welsh
 4th Battalion, The Parachute Regiment
 The Rifle Volunteers
 Royal Rifle Volunteers
Special Forces
 21st Special Air Service Regiment (Artists) (Volunteers)

 23rd Special Air Service Regiment
Royal Artillery
 100 Regiment, Royal Artillery

 101 (Northumbrian) Regiment Royal Artillery (Volunteers)
 103 (Lancastrian Artillery Volunteers) Regiment, Royal Artillery
 106 (Yeomanry) Regiment, Royal Artillery
Though not part of the Royal Artillery, the Honourable Artillery Company is a further artillery unit
within the Territorial Army.
Royal Engineers
 71 Engineer Regiment
 72 Engineer squadron
 101 (City of London) Engineer Regiment
 131 Independent Commando Squadron Royal Engineers (Volunteers) to form 24
Commando Regiment Royal Engineers in early 2007
 Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers
Royal Signals
 2 (City of Dundee) Signal Squadron
 31 (City of London) Signal Regiment
 32 (Scottish) Signal Regiment
 33 (Lancashire and Cheshire) Signal Regiment
 34 (Northern) Signal Regiment
 35 (South Midlands) Signal Regiment
 36 (Eastern) Signal Regiment
 37 (Wessex and Welsh) Signal Regiment
 38 (City of Sheffield) Signal Regiment
 39 (Skinners) Signal Regiment
 40 (Ulster) Signal Regiment
 63 (SAS) Signal Squadron (Volunteers)
 71 (Yeomanry) Signal Regiment
Army Air Corps
 6 (Volunteer) Regiment AAC

 7 (Volunteer) Regiment AAC
Intelligence Corps
 3 (Volunteer) Military Intelligence Battalion
Overseas territories
During the imperial age, home defence units were raised in various British colonies with the intention of
allowing Regular Army units tied-up on garrison duty to be deployed elsewhere. These have generally
been organised along Territorial Army lines. There are three units, today, in the remaining British
Overseas Territories (BOT): the Bermuda Regiment, the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, and the Falkland
Islands Defence Force. Although the British Government, as national government, is responsible for the
defence of the territories, and holds direct control of military units raised within them, the local forces
are raised and funded by the governments or the territories. These units must meet British Army
standards in organisation and efficiency. Their officers are commissioned by Sandhurst, and their
sergeants attend the Platoon Sergeants course at Brecon (itself having been begun as a course for
Parachute Regiment NCOs, created by a Bermudian officer, Major-General Glyn Charles Anglim
Gilbert). Although OT units may have no tasking under the Ministry of Defence, and members may not
be compelled to serve outside their territory, many serve voluntarily on attachment to Regular Army
units. In the 1980s, a cadre of officers and NCOs from the Bermuda Regiment was briefly attached to a
battalion of the affiliated Royal Anglian Regiment deployed to Belize, guarding against a threatened
invasion by Guatemala. The Royal Gibraltar Regiment is moving towards integration with the British
Army, having been added to the Army List, and with one of its three rifle companies having become
full-time, following the withdrawal of the Regular Army garrison in 1991.
Services
In addition to the combat units, there are Territorial Army units in the Adjutant General's Corps, Royal
Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Royal Logistic Corps and Army Medical Services. Many
universities also have Officer Training Corps units, which allow students to experience military life and
provided a source of TA officers; for a long time, this was the only route by which it was possible to
become a British Army officer without attending RMC Sandhurst, but this anomaly was removed in the
mid 1980's. University Officer Training Corps(UOTCs) still officially form part of the TA. However,
they fall into reserve category "B" meaning they cannot be called up for service unless there is a national
emergency.
Basic training
Recruits have to pass the Common Military Standard (Recruits), which for TA Soldiers lasts two weeks
(as opposed to fourteen weeks for regular recruits), normally held at an Army Training Regiment.
Restructuring
On December 16, 2004, then Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon announced a major restructuring of the
infantry. The 40 battalions of the regular army will be reduced to 36, with the majority of those
remaining being amalgamated into larger regiments. The 14 TA infantry battalions will be included in
this structure, with each regiment having at least one TA battalion (the Royal Regiment of Scotland will
have two); the Guards Division will also have an affiliated TA battalion.
List of British Army Regiments
This is a current and updated list of regiments of the British Army, changing as new regiments are
formed following the defence review Delivering Security in a Changing World.
Cavalry
Household Cavalry
Household Cavalry Regiment and Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment
 The Life Guards

 The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons)
Heavy Cavalry
 The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys)

 The Royal Dragoon Guards
 The King's Royal Hussars
 The Queen's Royal Hussars (The Queen's Own and Royal Irish)
Light Cavalry
 9th/12th Royal Lancers (Prince of Wales's)

 The Light Dragoons
 The Queen's Royal Lancers
 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
The Royal Tank Regiment
 1st Royal Tank Regiment

 2nd Royal Tank Regiment
Infantry
Foot Guards
 Grenadier Guards - 1 battalion

 Coldstream Guards - 1 battalion
 Scots Guards - 1 battalion
 Irish Guards - 1 battalion
 Welsh Guards - 1 battalion
Line Infantry
 The Royal Regiment of Scotland - 5 battalions

 The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires) - 2
battalions
 Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border) - 3 battalions (Jul
06-Feb 07)
 The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers - 2 battalions
 The Royal Anglian Regiment - 2 battalions
 The Devonshire and Dorset Light Infantry - 1 battalion
 The Light Infantry - 2 battalions
 The Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) - 3 battalions
 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment -1 battalion
 The Royal Welsh - 2 battalions
 The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd and 87th and The Ulster
Defence Regiment) - 1 battalion
 The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry - 1 battalion
 The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment (29th/45th Foot) - 1
battalion
 The Staffordshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's) - 1 battalion

 The Parachute Regiment - 3 battalions (1 Battalion forms part of SFSG)
 The Royal Gurkha Rifles - 2 battalions
 Royal Green Jackets - 2 battalions
 Royal Gibraltar Regiment - 1 battalion
Special Forces
 Special Air Service Regiment
 Special Reconnaissance Regiment
 Special Forces Support Group
Support Arms and Services
Support Arms
 Royal Regiment of Artillery
 Corps of Royal Engineers
 Royal Corps of Signals
 Army Air Corps
 Intelligence Corps
Services
 Royal Army Chaplains Department

 Royal Logistic Corps
 Royal Army Medical Corps
 Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
 Adjutant General's Corps
 Royal Army Veterinary Corps
 Small Arms School Corps
 Royal Army Dental Corps
 Army Physical Training Corps
 General Service Corps
 Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps
 Corps of Army Music
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the
Senior Service). From the early 18th century to the middle of the 20th century, it was the largest and
most powerful navy in the world, helping to establish the British Empire as the dominant power of the
18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. During the Cold War, it was transformed into primarily an anti-
submarine force, hunting for Soviet submarines, being mostly active in the North Atlantic Ocean. With
the collapse of the Soviet Union, its role for the 21st century has returned to focus on global
expeditionary (blue water) operations.
The Royal Navy is the second largest navy in the world in terms of gross tonnage. There are currently 90
commissioned ships in the Royal Navy, including aircraft carriers, submarines, mine counter-measures
and patrol vessels as well as the ships of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
The Royal Navy is a constituent component of the Naval Service, which also comprises the Royal
Marines, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and associated reserve forces under command. The Naval Service had
39,400 regular personnel as of April 2006.
Role
The role of the Royal Navy (RN) is to protect British interests at home and abroad, executing the foreign
and defence policies of Her Majesty's Government through the exercise of military effect, diplomatic
activities and other activities in support of these objectives. The RN is also a key element of the UK
contribution to NATO, with a number of assets allocated to NATO tasks at any time. These objectives
are delivered via a number of capabilities:
 Maintenance of the UK Nuclear Deterrent through a policy of Continuous at Sea

Deterrence
 Delivery of the UK Commando force
 Contribution of assets to Joint Force Harrier
 Contribution of assets to the Joint Helicopter Command
 Maintenance of standing patrol commitments; Atlantic Patrol Task (North),
Atlantic Patrol Task (South), Persian Gulf patrols etc.
 Delivery of Mine Counter Measures capability to UK and allied commitments
 Provision of Hydrographic and meteorological capabilities deployable worldwide
 Protection of UK and EU fisheries
Command, Control and Organisation

HMS Manchester a Type 42 destroyer
The Royal Navy is established under the Royal Prerogative, hence members of the Navy (unlike the
British Army and Royal Air Force) have never been required to take the oath of allegiance to the
Sovereign. The head of the Royal Navy is the Lord High Admiral, the overall head of the Armed Forces
is the British Sovereign with the two roles currently vested in the same individual, Queen Elizabeth II.
The professional head of the service is the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Jonathon Band, who is a member
of the Defence Council and of the Admiralty Board, which undertakes the management as delegated by
the Defence Council. The Navy Board, a sub-committee of the Admiralty Board, is responsible for the
running of the Naval Service. These are all based in Ministry of Defence Main Building in London,
where First is supported by the Naval Staff Department.
Full Command of all deployable Fleet units including the Royal Marines and the Fleet Auxiliary is
delegated to Commander-in-Chief Fleet, Admiral Sir James Burnell-Nugent, with a Command
Headquarters at HMS Excellent in Portsmouth and an Operational Headquarters at Northwood,
Middlesex, co-located with the Permanent Joint Headquarters and a NATO Regional Command, Allied
Maritime Component Command Northwood. CINCFLEET is dual hatted as Commander AMCCN.
CINC is supported by:
 Second Sea Lord, based in HMS Excellent, Principal Personnel Officer for the
Naval Service. Also Rear Admiral Fleet Air Arm.
 Deputy CINC, based in HMS Excellent, who commands the HQ
 Commander Operations, based at Northwood, responsible for operational
command of RN assets. Also Rear Admiral Submarines and Commander Submarine
Allied Forces North (NATO)
 Commander UK Maritime Forces, the deployable Force Commander responsible
for the Maritime Battle Staffs; UK Task Group, UK Amphibious Task Group, UK
Maritime Component Command.
 Commander UK Amphibious Force/ Commandant General Royal Marines
The three Naval Bases; Portsmouth, Clyde and Plymouth each host a Flotilla Command under a
Commodore responsible for the provision of Operational Capability using the ships and submarines
within the flotilla. 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines is similarly commanded by a Brigadier and
based in Plymouth.
The purpose of CINCFLEET is to provide ships and submarines and commando forces at readiness to
conduct military and diplomatic tasks as required by the UK government, including the recruitment and
training of personnel.
Significant numbers of naval personnel are employed within the Ministry of Defence, Defence Logistics
Organisation, Defence Procurement Agency and on exchange with the Army and Royal Air Force.
Small numbers are also on exchange within other government departments.
In earlier times the office of Lord High Admiral was delegated to a naval officer. The office later came
to be frequently put into commission, during which time the Royal Navy was run by a board headed by
the First Lord of the Admiralty. In 1964 the functions of the Admiralty were transferred to the Secretary
of State for Defence and the Defence Council of the United Kingdom. Since then, the historic title of
Lord High Admiral has been restored to the Sovereign.
History of the Commanders-in-Chief
Well dock of HMS Albion
Historically, the Royal Navy has usually been split into several commands, each with a Commander-in-
Chief, e.g. Commander-in-Chief Plymouth, Commander-in-Chief China Station, etc. There now remain
only two Commanders-in-Chief, Commander-in-Chief Fleet and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home
Command.
In 1971, with the withdrawal from Singapore, the Far East and Western fleets of the Royal Navy were
unified under the Commander-in-Chief Fleet (CINCFLEET), initially based in HMS Warrior, a land
base in Northwood, Middlesex. This continued the trend of shore-basing the home naval command that
had started in 1960 when the Home Fleet command was transferred ashore. The majority of the staff
have transferred to a new facility in HMS Excellent.
The Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command (CINCNAVHOME) has traditionally also been
known as the Second Sea Lord (2SL) and is responsible for the shore-based establishments and
manpower of the Royal Navy, and is based in Portsmouth. The Second Sea Lord and his staff were
resident in Victory Building, Portsmouth Dockyard, and he formally flies his flag aboard HMS Victory.
In 2006 the staffs of CINCFLEET and 2SL merged, with the majority of 2SL's staff joining the
CINCFLEET staff in Excellent.
Titles and naming
Of the Royal Navy
The British Royal Navy is commonly referred to as the "Royal Navy" both inside and outside the United
Kingdom. Commonwealth navies also include their national name e.g. Royal Australian Navy.
However, there are other navies, such as the Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy) which are
also called the "Royal Navy" in their own language.
Of ships
Royal Navy ships in commission are prefixed with Her Majesty's Ship (His Majesty's Ship), abbreviated
to HMS e.g. HMS Ark Royal. Submarines are styled HM Submarine, similarly HMS. Names are
allocated to ships and submarines by a naming committee within the MOD and given by class, with the
names of ships within a class often being thematic (e.g. the Type 23 class are named after British Dukes)
or traditional (e.g. the Invincible class all carry the names of famous historic aircraft carriers). Names are
frequently re-used offering a new ship the rich heritage, battle honours and traditions of her
predecessors.
As well as a name each ship, and submarine, of the Royal Navy and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary is given a
pennant number which in part denotes its role.
History
The Royal Navy has historically played a central role in the defence and wars of England, Great Britain
and later the United Kingdom. As Britain is an island nation, any enemy power would have to cross the
sea to invade. Attainment of naval superiority by a hostile power would have placed the nation in great
peril. Moreover, a large navy was vital in maintaining the security of supply and communication with
the Empire.
England - Saxon navy (c. 800-1066)
England's first navy was established in the 9th century by Alfred the Great but, despite inflicting a
significant defeat on the Vikings in the Wantsum Channel at Plucks Gutter near to Stourmouth, Kent , it
fell into disrepair. It was revived by King Athelstan and at the time of his victory at the Battle of
Brunanburh in 937, the English navy had a strength of approximately 400 ships. Just Prior to the
Norman invasion, King Harold had put his trust in his navy, which was to halt William the Conqueror's
invasion fleet from crossing the Channel, although, obviously failed to defend against William's superior
navy.
England - Norman and Medieval, to 1485 - The Cinque Ports

Saxon naval forces having failed to prevent William the Conqueror from crossing the channel and
winning the Battle of Hastings, the Norman kings started an equivalent force in 1155, with ships
provided by the Cinque Ports alliance (possibly created by Norman, possibly pre-existing then
developed by them for their own purposes). The Normans probably did establish the post of Lord
Warden of the Cinque Ports.
King John had a fleet of 500 sail. In the mid-fourteenth century Edward III's navy had some 712 ships.
There then followed a period of decline.
Sir Francis Drake, c. 1540–1596.
England - The Tudors and the Royal Navy
The first reformation and major expansion of the Navy Royal, as it was then known, occurred in the
16th century during the reign of Henry VIII whose ships, Henri Grâce a Dieu ("Great Harry") and Mary
Rose, engaged the French navy in the battle of the Solent in 1545. By the time of Henry's death in 1547
his fleet had grown to 58 vessels.
In 1588 the Spanish Empire, at the time Europe's superpower, threatened England with invasion and the
Spanish Armada set sail to enforce Spain's dominance over the English Channel and transport troops
from the Spanish Netherlands to England. However, the armada failed, due to bad weather and a revolt
by the Dutch in Spain's territories across the Channel. The defeat of the armada is the first major 'victory'
by the English at sea. However, the Drake-Norris Expedition of 1589 saw the tide of war turn against the
Royal Navy. England continued to raid Spain's ports and ships travelling across the Atlantic Ocean
under the reign of Elizabeth I but was to suffer a series of damaging defeats against a reformed Spanish
navy.
1692-1815
A permanent Naval Service did not exist until the mid 17th century, when the Fleet Royal was taken
under Parliamentary control following the defeat of Charles I in the English Civil War. This second
reformation of the navy was carried out under 'General-at-Sea' (equivalent to Admiral) Robert Blake
during Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth. The incorporation of the Royal Navy was in contrast to the
land forces, which are descended from variety of different sources including both royalist and
Parliamentary forces.
Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1758–1805
After defeats in the second and third Anglo-Dutch wars the Royal Navy gradually developed into the
strongest navy in the world. From 1692 the Dutch navy was placed under the command of the Royal
Navy's admirals (though not incorporated in it) by William III's command following the Glorious
Revolution. In 1707, the Royal Navy absorbed the Royal Scots Navy per the Acts of Union. The early
18th century saw the Royal Navy with a superior number of ships to contemporary navies, although it
suffered severe financial problems throughout this period, and found itself in heavy debt, which affected
most of its operations and administration. As the 18th century drew on the government developed
improved means of financing the Royal Navy through bonds. With improved cash flow, the Royal Navy
began to develop the strategic ability to counteract the movements of other countries' naval forces by the
means of blockades, supported by unprecedented naval logistics, the gradual development of superior
naval tactics and strategy and consistently high morale. This eventually led to almost uncontested power
over the world's oceans from 1805 to 1914, when it came to be said that "Britannia ruled the waves".
Even before 1805, the Royal Navy suffered only one strategic defeat - during the American Revolution
at the Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781 against a French fleet commanded by the able Comte de Grasse
(although in 1796 a French invasion fleet was prevented from landing in Bantry Bay, Ireland only by the
weather). The Napoleonic Wars saw the Royal Navy reach a peak of efficiency, dominating the naval
forces of all Britain's adversaries. The height of the Navy's achievements came on 21 October 1805 at
the Battle of Trafalgar where a combined French and Spanish fleet was decisively beaten by a
numerically smaller but more experienced British fleet under the command of Admiral Lord Nelson.
The victory at Trafalgar consolidated the United Kingdom's advantage over other European maritime
powers. By concentrating its military resources in the navy it could both defend itself and project its
power across the oceans as well as threaten rivals' ocean trading routes. The United Kingdom therefore
needed to maintain only a relatively small, highly mobile, professional army that could be dispatched to
where it was needed by sea, as well as be given support by the navy with bombardment, movement,
supplies and reinforcement. Meanwhile rivals could have their sea-borne supplies cut off, as had
occurred with Napoleon's army in Egypt. Other major European powers were forced to split their
resources between maintaining both a large navy and enormous armies and fortifications to defend their
land frontiers. The domination of the sea therefore allowed the United Kingdom to rapidly build its
empire from the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) and throughout the 19th century, giving it enormous
military, political and commercial advantages.
HMS Victory
Unlike the French navy of pre-revolutionary France, the highest commands of the Royal Navy were
open to all within its ranks showing talent. This greatly increased the pool available, even if there was a
bias towards the upper class. Furthermore, the French revolution's anti-aristocratic purges caused the
loss of most of the French navy's experienced commanders, increasing the Royal Navy's advantage.
Despite the success of the Royal Navy during this period, the conditions of service for ordinary seamen,
including no increases in pay for a century, late payment of wages and maintaining ships in commission
for years without shore leave, all set against the background of harsh and arbitrary discipline, eventually
resulted in serious mutinies in 1797 when the crews of the Spithead and Nore fleets refused to obey their
officers and some captains were sent ashore. This resulted in the short-lived "Floating Republic" which
at Spithead was quelled by promising improvements in conditions, but at the Nore resulted in the
hanging of 29 mutineers.
Napoleon acted to counter Britain's maritime supremacy and economic power, closing European ports to
British trade. He also unleashed a storm of privateers, operating from French territories in the West
Indies, which placed great pressure on British mercantile shipping in the western hemisphere. The Royal
Navy was too hard-pressed in European waters to release significant forces to combat the privateers. Its
large ships-of-the-line were not useful, in any case, for seeking out and running down the nimble
privateers, which operated individually, or in small numbers, scattered far-and-wide. The Royal Navy
reacted by commissioning small warships, of traditional Bermuda design. The first three ordered from
Bermudian builders, HMS Dasher, HMS Driver and HMS Hunter, were each sloops of 200 tons, armed
with twelve 24-pounders. A great many more ships of this type were ordered, or bought up from trade,
primarily for use as advice ships. The most notable was HMS Pickle, the former Bermudian
merchantman that carried news of victory back from Trafalgar.
In the years following Trafalgar, there was increasing tension at sea between the Britain and the United
States. American traders took advantage of their country's neutrality to trade with both the French
controlled parts of Europe and Britain. Both France and Britain tried to prevent trade but only the Royal
Navy was in a position to enforce a blockade. Another irritant was the suspected presence of British
deserters aboard US merchant and naval vessels. Royal Navy ships often attempted to recover these
deserters. In one notorious instance in 1807, otherwise known as the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair, HMS
Leopard fired on USS Chesapeake causing significant casualties before boarding and seizing suspected
British deserters.
In 1812, while the Napoleonic wars continued, the United States declared war on the United Kingdom
and invaded Canada. At sea, the war was characterised by single ship actions between small ships, and
disruption of merchant shipping. The better designed American frigates were heavier and faster than
their counterparts, and handled well under volunteer crews. As a result a number of British ships were
defeated and mid-way through the war, the Admiralty was forced to issue the order to not engage
American frigates individually. Additionally, there were also significant merchant losses of merchant
shipping to American privateers, 866 merchant vessels; however, the Royal Navy gradually reinforced
the blockade of the American coast, virtually halting all trade by sea and capturing many merchant ships
and forcing the US navy frigates to stay in harbour or risk being captured.
Admiral Sir George Cockburn

By this time, the Royal Navy had begun building a naval base and dockyard in Bermuda, which had
become the winter location of the Admiralty previously based in Newfoundland. The Royal Navy had
begun development after American independence had deprived it of bases on most of the North
American seaboard. In time, Bermuda would become the headquarters for Royal Naval operations in the
waters of southern North America and the West Indies. During the War of 1812, the Royal Navy's
blockade of the US Atlantic ports was orchestrated from Bermuda and HalifaxNova Scotia. The
blockade kept most of the American navy trapped in port. The Royal Navy also occupied coastal islands,
encouraging American slaves to defect. Units of Royal Marines were raised from these freed slaves.
After British victory in the Peninsular War, part of Wellington's Light Division was released for service
in North America. This 2,500 man force, composed of Major-General Ross and detachments from the 4,
21, 44, and 85 Regiments, with some elements of artillery and sappers, arrived in Bermuda in 1815
aboard a fleet composed of the 74-gun HMS Royal Oak, three frigates, three sloops and ten other
vessels. It had been thought to use the combined force to launch raids on the coastlines of Maryland and
Virginia, with the aim of drawing US forces away from the Canadian border. Following American
atrocities at Lake Erie, however, Sir George Prevost requested a punitive expedition which would 'deter
the enemy from a repetition of such outrages'. The British force arrived at the Patuxent on 17 August. It
landed the soldiers within 36 miles of Washington DC. Led by Rear Admiral Sir George Cockburn, the
force drove the US government out of Washington, DC. Ross shied from the idea of burning the City,
but Cockburn and others set it alight. Buildings burned included the US Capitol and the US President's
Mansion.
Between 1793 and 1815 the Royal Navy lost 344 vessels to non-combat causes - 75 by foundering, 254
shipwrecked and 15 from accidental burnings or explosions. In the same period it lost 103,660 seamen -
84,440 by disease and accidents, 12,680 by shipwreck or foundering, and 6,540 by enemy action.
1815-1914
During the 19th century the Royal Navy enforced a ban on the slave trade and the suppression of piracy.
Another job of the Royal navy was given during the 19th century (and before and after as well), was to
map the world. Mostly, this involved recording every coastline to provide this information for humanity.
To this day, Admiralty charts are maintained by the Royal Navy.
Royal Navy vessels on surveying missions carried out extensive scientific work. On one voyage, Charles
Darwin travelled around the world on the Beagle, making scientific observations which later influenced
his theory of evolution.
HMS Dreadnought
Life in the early Royal Navy would be considered harsh by today's standards; discipline was severe and
flogging was used to enforce obedience to the Articles of War. The law allowed the navy to use the
unpopular practice of impressment where seamen were forced to serve in the navy during times of
manpower shortage, usually in wartime. Impressment reached its peak in the 18th and early 19th century
but was abandoned after the end of the Napoleonic Wars as the peacetime navy was smaller.
During the later half of the 19th century, ships of the Royal Navy were used for 'gunboat diplomacy'.
For this, large, heavily armed boats with shallow draught were employed in coastal areas in the far
reaches of the Empire, mostly to assure the local population/ruler of the United Kingdom's power and
also to interfere where the UK's interests were at stake.
By the end of the 19th century though, the Royal Navy, despite being the largest in the world, was not as
powerful as it seemed to be. It was a collection of new, powerful pre-Dreadnoughts such as the Royal
Sovereign Class, and of old ironclad vessels and even sailing ships, by then several decades old. Mainly
thanks to the efforts of John Arbuthnot Fisher, then First Lord of the Admiralty, many of the older
vessels were retired, scrapped, or placed into reserve, freeing up funds and manpower for newer ships.
He also was the main force behind the development of the HMS Dreadnought, the first all big gun ship
and possibly one of the most influential ships in naval history. At one stroke, this ship rendered all other
battleships then existing totally obsolete, and started an arms race in which Great Britain had a lead over
all others. Fisher was also a proponent of submarines, and bought a few based on John Holland's design
from Vickers.
At this time, other changes also took place. Admiral Percy Scott introduced new gunnery training
programs and a central fire control station, greatly improving accuracy and ship effectiveness in battle.
Telegraphs were introduced onto flagships, and the Parson Turbine and experimentation with oil as fuel
led to greatly increased range and speed.
1914–1945
Landing craft convoy crossing the English Channel in 1944
During the two World Wars, the Royal Navy played a vital role in keeping the United Kingdom supplied
with food, arms and raw materials and in defeating the German campaigns of unrestricted submarine
warfare in the first and second battles of the Atlantic.
During the First World War the majority of the Royal Navy's strength was deployed at home in the
Grand Fleet in an effort to blockade Germany and to draw the Hochseeflotte (the German "High Seas
Fleet") in to an engagement where a decisive victory could be gained. Although the latter never
materialised, the Royal Navy and the Kaiserliche Marine fought many battles; Battle of Heligoland
Bight, Battle of Coronel, Battle of the Falkland Islands, Battle of Dogger Bank and the Battle of Jutland.
The latter engagement is the best-known and was a somewhat indecisive affair, with the Royal Navy
suffering heavier losses yet succeeding in its strategic goal of blockading the Hocheseeflotte. The Royal
Navy was also heavily committed in the Dardanelles Campaign against the Ottoman Empire. During the
war, the Navy contributed the Royal Naval Division to the land forces of the New Army.
In the inter war period, the Royal Navy was stripped of much of its power. The Washington Naval
Treaty of 1922 imposed limits on individual ship tonnage and gun calibre, as well as total tonnage of the
navy. The treaty, compounded by the deplorable financial conditions during the immediate post-war
period and the Great Depression, forced the Admiralty to scrap all capital ships from the Great War with
a gun calibre under 15 inches and to cancel plans for new construction. Three planned units of the Hood
class of battlecruiser and a class of 16-inch battlecruisers and 18-inch battleships - the G3 and N3
classes respectively - were cancelled. Also under the treaty, three "large light cruisers" - Glorious,
Courageous and Furious - were converted to aircraft carriers. New additions to the fleet were therefore
minimal during the 1920s, the only major new vessels being the two units of the Nelson class of
battleships and fifteen heavy cruisers of the County and York classes.
The London Naval Treaty of 1930 deferred new capital ship construction until 1937 and reiterated
construction limits on cruisers, destroyers and submarines. As international tensions increased in the
mid-1930s the Second London Naval Treaty of 1935 failed to halt the deterioration into a naval arms
race and by 1938 treaty limits were effectively null and void. The re-armament of the Royal Navy was
well under way by this point however. This resulted in the new capital ship construction, in the shape of
the King George V class of 1936, being limited to the 35,000 tons and 14-inch armament. Other
significant new construction included the carriers Ark Royal and of the Illustrious classes, the Town and
Crown Colony classes of light cruiser and the Tribal class destroyers. In addition to new construction,
several changes were made to existing ships, such as the reconstruction of old battleships, battlecruisers
and heavy cruisers and the reinforcement of anti-aircraft weaponry.
As a result, the Royal Navy entered the Second World War as a relatively heterogeneous force
composed of World War I veterans, inter war ships limited by close adherence to treaty restrictions and
new construction. It remained, however, a powerful force, though smaller and more aged than it was
during World War I.
During the earlier phases of World War II, the Royal Navy provided critical, if depressing cover during
British evacuations from Dunkirk and Crete. In the latter operation, Admiral Cunningham ran great risks
to extract the Army, but saved many men to fight another day. It suffered a massive blow however,
when the battlecruiser HMS Hood was sunk by the German battleship Bismarck. The Bismarck was also
sunk a few days later, though public pride in the Royal Navy was severely damaged as a result of the
loss of Hood.
The Royal Navy was also vital in guarding the sea lanes that enabled British forces to fight in remote
parts of the world such as North Africa, the Mediterranean and the Far East. Naval supremacy was vital
to the amphibious operations carried out, such as the invasions of Northwest Africa, Sicily, Italy, and
Normandy. By the end of the war however, it was clear that aircraft carriers were the new dominant
weapon of naval warfare, and that Britain's former naval superiority in terms of battleships had been
rendered null.
The Cold War
After World War II, the growing power of the United States and the decline of the British Empire,
reduced the role of the Royal Navy. However, the threat of the Soviet Union and British commitments
throughout the world created a new role for the Navy. In the 1960s, the Royal Navy received its first
nuclear weapons and was later to become responsible for the maintenance of the UK's nuclear deterrent.
In the latter stages of the Cold War, the Royal Navy was reconfigured with three anti-submarine warfare
(ASW) aircraft carriers and a force of small frigates and destroyers. Its purpose was to search for and
destroy Soviet submarines in the North Atlantic.
HMS Warspite, the Royal Navy's third nuclear-powered submarine.
Recent operations
The most important post-war operation conducted predominantly by the Royal Navy was the defeat in
1982 of Argentina in the Falkland Islands War. Despite losing four naval ships and other civilian and
RFA ships the Royal Navy proved it was still able to fight a battle 8,000 miles (12,800 km) from Great
Britain. HMS Conqueror is the only nuclear-powered submarine to have engaged an enemy ship with
torpedoes, sinking the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano. The war also underlined the
importance of aircraft carriers and submarines and exposed the service's late 20th century dependence on
chartered merchant vessels.
The Royal Navy also participated in the Gulf War, the Kosovo conflict, the Afghanistan Campaign, and
the 2003 Iraq War, the last of which saw RN warships bombard positions in support of the Al Faw
Peninsula landings by Royal Marines. Also during that war, HM submarines Splendid and Turbulent
launched a number of Tomahawk cruise missiles at targets in Iraq.
In August 2005 the Royal Navy rescued seven Russians stranded in a submarine off the Kamchatka
peninsula. Using its Scorpio 45, a remote-controlled mini-sub, the submarine was freed from the fishing
nets and cables that had held the Russian submarine for three days.
The Royal Navy has deployed a number of Naval Task Groups to the Far East including "NTG 03" in
2003, HM ships Exeter, Echo, RFAs Diligence and Grey Rover in 2004 and HMS Liverpool and RFA
Grey Rover in 2005.
The Royal Navy today
HMS Invincible the former flagship of the Royal Navy
At the beginning of the 1990s, the Royal Navy was a force designed for the Cold War with a focus on
blue water ASW, its purpose was to search for and destroy Soviet submarines in the North Atlantic,
complemented by the nuclear deterrent submarine force. However, the Falklands War proved a need for
the Royal Navy to regain an expeditionary and littoral capability which, with its resources and structure
at the time, would prove difficult. With the UK government developing its Foreign Policy following the
end of the Cold War this has been demonstrated by a number of operations which have required an
aircraft carrier to be deployed globally such as the Adriatic, Peace Support Operations in Bosnia and
Herzegovina and Kosovo, Sierra Leone, the Persian Gulf. Destroyers and Frigates have also been
similarly deployed conducting anti-piracy in the Malacca Straits or Horn of Africa. So, over the course
of the 1990s, the navy began a series of projects to refresh the fleet, with a view to bringing its
capabilities into the 21st century and allow it to turn from a North Atlantic-based anti-submarine force
into an expeditionary force.
Current Deployments
The Royal Navy is currently deployed in many areas of the world, including a number of standing Royal
Navy deployments.
North Atlantic Tasks
Fleet Ready Escort HMS Northumberland

Mine Countermeasures Force (Group 1) HMS Middleton
Fishery Protection Squadron River class patrol vessel and rotation of Hunt class
MCMV
Mediterranean Tasks
Standing NRF Maritime (Group 2) HMS York [1]

Mine Countermeasures Force (Group 2) HMS Hurworth
Caribbean Tasks
Atlantic Patrol Task (North) HMS Iron Duke, RFA Wave Ruler
South Atlantic Tasks
Atlantic Patrol Task (South) HMS Chatham, RFA Gold Rover

Falkland Islands Patrol Vessel HMS Dumbarton Castle
Ice Patrol Ship HMS Endurance
East-of-Suez Tasks
Armilla Patrol HMS Sutherland, RFA Diligence, HMS Echo

Far-East/Pacific Tasking HMS Westminster
Custom and tradition
Heraldry
Commissioned ships and submarines wear the White Ensign at the stern whilst alongside
during daylight hours and at the main-mast whilst under way. When alongside, the Union
Jack is flown from the jackstaff at the stem, and can only be flown under way either to
signal a court-martial is in progress or to indicate the presence of an Admiral of the Fleet
on-board (including the Lord High Admiral, the Monarch.)[2] .
Fleet reviews
HMS Endurance carries the Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom, HM Queen Elizabeth II, as
part of the Trafalgar bi-centennial Fleet Review, 28 June 2005
The Fleet Review is an irregular tradition of assembling the fleet before the monarch. For example, at
the most recent on 28 June 2005 to mark the bi-centenary of the Battle of Trafalgar; 167 ships of the
RN, and 30 other nations, were present.
Service nicknames
Nicknames for the service include "The Andrew" (of uncertain origin, possibly after a zealous press
ganger) and "The Senior Service". It has also been referred to as the "Grey Funnel Line".
Naval salute
Traditionally, subordinates would uncover, remove their head dress, to a superior. In a book called New
Art of War, printed in 1740, it is stated that;
When the King or Captain General is being saluted each Officer is to time his salute so as to pull off his
hat when the person he salutes is almost opposite him.
Queen Victoria instituted the hand salute in the Navy to replace uncovering; The occasion being when
she sent for certain Officers and men to Osborne House to thank them for rendering help to a distressed
German ship, and did not like to see men in uniform standing uncovered.
The personal salute with the hand is borrowed from the military salute of the Army, and there are
various theories concerning its origin. There is the traditional theory that it has been the custom from
time immemorial for a junior to uncover to a superior, and even to-day men on Captains Defaulters
remove their hats. In this theory, the naval salute is merely the first motion of removing one's head dress.
It was officially introduced into the Navy in 1890, but during the First World War a large number of old
retired officers were in the habit of doffing their head gear instead of saluting, this, of course, being the
method to which they were accustomed.
Another theory holds that in the age of sail, hemp ropes were preserved in tar, causing the sailor's hands
to become stained. It would have been a discourtesy to show the dirty palm to one's superior, therefore
the naval salute differs from the military salute in that it has the palm turned down, rather than outwards
[7]
. The Royal Marines, with their military origin, use the military rather than the naval salute.
Affiliation
Ships will engage in a number of affiliations with cities, e.g. HMS Newcastle with Newcastle upon
Tyne, elements of the other forces, e.g. HMS Illustrious with 30 Signal Regiment, schools, cadet units
and charities.
Naval slang
The RN has evolved a rich volume of slang, known as "Jack-speak". Nowadays the British sailor is
usually "Jack" (or "Jenny") rather than the more historical "Jack Tar", which is an allusion to either the
former requirement to tar long hair or the tar-stained hands of sailors. Nicknames for a British sailor,
applied by others, include "Matelot" (pronounced matlow), derived from French or "Limey".[5] Royal
Marines are fondly known as "Bootnecks" or often just as "Royals".[5]
Uckers and Ucker

Uckers is a four player board game similar to Ludo that is traditionally played in the Royal Navy. It is
fiercely competitive and rules differ between ships and stations (and between other services). Ucker,
pronounced you-ker, is a card game also played on board ships and in naval establishments. It is similar
to Trumps, is highly competitive and extremely difficult to learn.
The Royal Navy in Fiction

The Napoleonic campaigns of the navy have been the subject of many novels including Patrick O'Brian's
series featuring Jack Aubrey, C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower, and Alexander Kent's Richard
Bolitho. Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe series though primarily involving the Peninsular War of the time,
includes several novels involving Richard Sharpe at sea with the Navy. Alexander Kent is a pen name of
Douglas Reeman who, under his birth name, has written many novels featuring the Royal Navy in the
two World Wars. Other well known novels include Alistair MacLean's HMS Ulysses and Nicholas
Monsarrat's The Cruel Sea, both set during World War II.
Royal Navy timeline and battles

 1588 The Spanish Armada
 1589 The English Armada
 1652 Battle of Dungeness
 1690 Battle of Beachy Head
 1692 Battle of La Hougue
 1692 Battle of Plaisance (Placentia)
 1759 Battle of Quiberon Bay and Battle of Lagos
 1762 Battle of Signal Hill
 1780 Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1780)
 1781 Battle of the Chesapeake and Battle of Dogger Bank (1781)
 1782 Battle of St. Kitts and Battle of the Saintes
 1794 The Glorious First of June
 1797 Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1797)
 1798 Battle of the Nile
 1801 Battle of Copenhagen
 1805 Battle of Trafalgar
 1808–1814 Peninsular war
 1812–1814 War of 1812
 1821 First steam paddle ships for auxiliary use (tugs etc.)
 1839-1842 Opium War First Anglo-Chinese war.
 1840 First screw driven Steamship, Rattler
 1860 First Iron-hulled armoured battleship, Warrior
 1902 First Royal Navy submarine, Holland 1
 1905 First Steam turbine and all big-gun battleship, Dreadnought
 1914–1918 First Battle of the Atlantic
 1914 Battle of Heligoland Bight, Battle of Coronel, Battle of the Falkland Islands
 1915 Battle of Dogger Bank (1915) and Dardanelles Campaign
 1916 Battle of Jutland
 1919 Russian Civil War
 1931 Invergordon Mutiny
 1939–1945 Second Battle of the Atlantic
 1939 Battle of the River Plate
 1940 Operation Dynamo (Dunkirk)
 1941 Battle of Cape Matapan
 1941 Sinking of HMS Hood and the German battleship Bismarck
 1943 Battle of North Cape
 1944 Operation Tungsten
 1944 Operation Neptune (Normandy)
 1946 Mining of Saumarez and Volage in the Corfu Channel Incident
 1949 Amethyst incident on the Yangtze River
 1950 Korean War begins
 1956 Suez campaign
 1962 Indonesian Konfrontasi begins in Borneo
 1963 First British nuclear submarine, Dreadnought
 1965 Beira Patrol against Rhodesia begins
 1980 Armilla Patrol in the Persian Gulf begins
 1982 Falklands War
 1991 Gulf War
 1999 Kosovo conflict
 2000 Operation Palliser
 2001 Afghanistan Campaign
 2003 Iraq War
Royal Marines
His/Her Majesty's Royal Marines, also known as the Royal Marines (RM), are the Royal Navy's
Light Infantry, the United Kingdom's amphibious force and specialists in Arctic and Mountain Warfare.
A core component of the country's Rapid Deployment Force, the Corps is able to operate independently
in all terrains, and are highly trained as commando forces. The high levels of training and competence,
coupled with a unique mix of capabilities, are regarded as comparable to those found in Special
Forces.[citation needed]
The Royal Marines are a component part of the Naval Service which encompasses the Royal Navy and
other units.
Role
Corps of Royal Marines
Cap Badge of the Royal Marines

Active 26 April 1755-
Country United Kingdom
Branch Royal Navy
Type Commando
Role Rapid reaction force/Home defence
Size Six battalions
Part of Naval Service
Garrison/HQ 40 Commando - Taunton
42 Commando - Plymouth
45 Commando - Arbroath
Fleet Protection Group - HMNB Clyde
Commando Logistic Regiment -
Chivenor
1 Assault Group - Poole
Nickname The Royals, HM Jollies, Bootnecks
Motto Per Mare Per Terram (By Sea By Land)
(Latin)
March Quick - A Life on the Ocean Wave
Slow - Preobrajensky
Commanders
Current Naval Service
commander
Captain-General HRH The Duke of Edinburgh
Commandant- Major General Garry Robison RM
General
Insignia
Commando Flash
The Royal Marines are a maritime focussed, amphibious, light infantry force capable of deploying at
short notice in support of the United Kingdom Government's military and diplomatic objectives overseas
and are optimised for highly manoeuvreable operational situation. As the United Kingdom Armed
Forces' specialists in cold weather warfare the Corps will provide lead element expertise in the NATO
Northern Flank and are optimised for high altitude operations.
In common with the other armed forces the Royal Marines can provide resources for Military Aid to
Civil Authority and Military Aid to Civil Power.
Command, Control and Organisation

Command of the Royal Marines is vested in Commander in Chief Fleet with Commandant General
Royal Marines, a Major General, embedded within the CINCFLEET staff as Commander UK
Amphibious Force (COMUKAMPHIBFOR).
The operational capability of the Corps comprises a number of Battalion-sized units, three of these are
designated as "Commandos":
 40 Commando (known as Forty Commando) based at Norton Manor Barracks,

Taunton, Somerset
 42 Commando (known as Four Two Commando) based at Bickleigh Barracks,
Plymouth, Devon
 45 Commando (known as Four Five Commando) based at Condor Barracks,
Arbroath, Angus, Scotland
 Commando Logistic Regiment based at Chivenor, Devon
 UK Landing Force Command Support Group based at Stonehouse Barracks,
Plymouth
 Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines based at HM Naval Base Clyde,
Helensburgh, Argyll and Bute
 Special Boat Service based at Royal Marines Barracks Poole, Dorset
Each of these formations is commanded by a Lieutenant-Colonel of the Royal Marines, who may have
sub-specialised in a number of ways throughout his career.
3 Commando Brigade
Operational Control (OPCON) of the three Commandos and the Commando Logistics Regiment is
delegated to 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines based at Stonehouse Barracks which exercises control
as directed by either CINCFLEET or the Permanent Joint Headquarters. As the main combat formation
of the Royal Marines the Brigade has its own organic capability to support it in the field:
 UK Landing Force Command Support Group which comprises[1]:
 CSG Headquarters Troop

 Signals Squadron
 Two HQ Satcomm Troops
 Brigade Staff Squadron

 Support Squadron
 Brigade Patrol Troop

 Electronic Warfare Troop (Y Troop)
 Air Defence Troop
 Tactical Air Control Parties
 Police Troop
 Logistics Squadron
 Motor Transport Troop

 QMs Troop
 Equipment Support Troop
 539 Assault Squadron
The Brigade also holds Operational Control of attached Royal Artillery and Royal Engineer assets.
Independent Elements
The independent elements of the Royal Marines are:

 Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines is responsible for the security of the United
Kingdom's nuclear deterrent and other security-related duties. It also provides
boarding party support for the embargo enforcement, counter narcotics and counter
insurgency activities of the Royal Navy. It is commando-sized, however the structure
differs to reflect its role, it bears the colours, battle honours and customs of 43
Commando.
 Commando Training Centre: This is the training unit for the entire corps, and
consists of three separate sections:
o Commando Training Wing: This is the initial basic commando training
section for new recruits to the Royal Marines, and the All Arms Commando Course.
o Specialist Wing. This provides specialist training in the various trades
which Marines may elect to join once qualified and experienced in a Rifle Company.
o Command Wing: This provides command training for both officers and
NCOs of the Royal Marines.
 1 Assault Group Royal Marines: Provides training in the use of landing craft and
boats, and also serves as a parent unit for the three assault squadrons permanently-
embarked on the Royal Navy's amphibious ships.
o 4 Assault Squadron - HMS Bulwark
o 6 Assault Squadron - HMS Albion
o 9 Assault Squadron - HMS Ocean
 Special Boat Service (SBS) are maritime special forces and under the Operational
Control of Director Special Forces. The Service is battalion-sized and commanded by
a Lieutenant Colonel with previous experience as a Swimmer Canoeist.
Responsibilities include Maritime Counter-Terrorism operations and other special
forces tasks.
 Royal Marines Band Service provides regular bands for the Royal Navy and
provides expertise to train RN Volunteer Bands. Bandsmen have a secondary role as
field hospital orderlies. Personnel may not be commando trained, wearing a blue beret
instead of green, the band service is the only branch of the Royal Marines which
admits women.
Structure of a Commando
The Commando Flash, sewn to the upper sleeve of a DPM shirt.
The three Commandos are each organised into six companies, further organised into platoon-sized
troops) as follows:
 Command Company
o Main HQ
o Tactical HQ
o Reconnaissance Troop (includes a sniper section)
o Mortar Troop (81 mm) (Includes 4 MFC pairs)
o AT Troop (Milan - to be replaced Javelin ATGW)
o Medium Machine Gun Troop
 One Logistic Company
o A Echelon 1 (A Ech1)
o A Echelon 2 (A Ech2)
o FRT
o RAP
o B Echelon (B Ech)
 Two Close Combat Companies
o Company Headquarters (Coy HQ)
o 3 Close Combat Troops (Troop HQ, 3 Rifle Sections, Manoeuvre Support
Section)
 Two Stand Off Companies
o Company Headquarters (Coy HQ)
o Heavy Machine Gun (HMG) Troop (0.5" heavy machine guns)
o Anti-Tank Troop (Milan - to be replaced with Javelin)
o Close Combat Troop
In general a rifle company Marine will be a member of a four-man fire team, the building block of
commando operations. A Royal Marine works with his team in the field and lives with them in his
accommodation (if he lives in barracks).
This structure is a recent development, formerly Commandos were structured similarly to light Infantry
Battalions. During the restructuring of the United Kingdom's military services the Corps evolved from a
Cold War focus on NATOs Northern Flank towards a more expeditionary posture.
Amphibious Ready Group
Royal Marines in a Rigid Raider assault watercraft
The Amphibious Ready Group is a mobile, balanced amphibious force, based on a Commando Group
and its supporting assets, that can be kept at high readiness to deploy into an area of operations. The
Amphibious Ready Group is normally based around specialist amphibious ships, most notably HMS
Ocean, the largest ship in the British fleet. Ocean was designed and built to accommodate an embarked
commando and its associated stores and equipment. The strategy of the Amphibious Ready Group is to
wait "beyond the horizon" and then deploy swiftly as directed by HM Government. The whole
amphibious force is intended to be self-sustaining and capable of operating without host-nation support.
The concept was successfully tested in operations in Sierra Leone.
Commando Helicopter Force

The Fleet Air Arm Commando Helicopter Force uses both Sea King transport and Lynx Light lift/ light
attack helicopters to provide aviation support for the Royal Marines. It consists of both Royal Navy and
Royal Marines personnel, who need not be commando trained.
Training
Marines undergo the longest basic training regimen of any Infantry force in the world (32 weeks), at the
Commando Training Centre Royal Marines (CTCRM) at Lympstone, Devon. The Royal Marines is the
only part of the British Armed Forces where Officers and Other Ranks are trained at the same location.
Much of the basic training is carried out on the rugged terrain of Dartmoor and Woodbury common with
a significant proportion taking place at night. Before beginning Royal Marines recruit training the
potential recruit must attend a PRMC known as Potential Royal Marines Course held at CTCRM.
PRMC lasts 3 days and asseses measuring physical ability and intellectual capacity to undertake the
recruit training. Officer candidates must also undertake the Admiralty Interview Board.
Officers and Marines undergo the same training up to the commando tests, thereafter Marines go on to
employment in a rifle company while Officers continue training. Officer courses are required to meet
higher standards in the Commando tests.
Basic training
The first weeks of training are spent learning basic skills that will be used later. This includes much time
spent on the parade ground and on the rifle ranges. Physical training at this stage emphasizes all-round
body strength, in order to develop the muscles necessary to carry the heavy weights a marine will use in
an operational unit. Key milestones include a gym passout at week 9 (not carried out with fighting
order), which shows that a recruit is ready for the Bottom Field, a battle swimming test, and learning to
do a "regain" (i.e. climb back onto a rope suspended over a water tank). Most of these tests are
completed with the ever present "fighting order" of 32 lb of equipment. Individual fieldcraft skills are
also taught at this basic stage.
The Commando Course
The culmination of training is a period known as the Commando Course. Since the creation of the
British Commandos during World War II, all Royal Marines, except those in the Royal Marines Band
Service, complete the Commando course as part of their training (see below). Key aspects of the course
include climbing and ropework techniques, patrolling, and amphibious operations.
This intense phase ends with a series of tests which have remained virtually unchanged since World War
II. Again these tests, and indeed virtually all the training, is done with a "fighting order" of 32 lb
(14.5kg) of equipment.
The commando tests are taken on consecutive days, they include;
 A nine-mile (14.5 km) speed march, carrying full fighting order, to be completed
in 90 minutes; the pace is thus 10 minutes per mile (6 min/km or 6 mph).
 The Endurance course is a six mile, (9.65 km), course across rough terrain at
Woodbury Common near Lympstone, which includes tunnels, pipes, wading pools,
and an underwater culvert. The course ends with a four-mile run back to CTCRM.
Followed by a marksmanship test, where the recruit must hit 6 out of 10 shots at a
target representing a fig. 11 target at 200 m. To be completed in 73 minutes (71
minutes for Royal Marine officers), these times were recently increased by one
minute as the route of the course was altered. The Course ends at the 25m range
where the recruit must then put at least 6 out of 10 shots on target without cleaning
their weapon.
 The Tarzan Assault Course. This is an assault course combined with an aerial
confidence test. It starts with a death slide and ends with a rope climb up a thirty foot
vertical wall. It must be completed with full fighting order in 13 minutes, 12 minutes
for Royal Marine officers. The Potential Officers Course also includes confidence
tests from the Tarzan Assault Course, although not with equipment.
 The Thirty miler. This is a 30 mile (48 km) march across Dartmoor, wearing
fighting order, and additional safety equipment. It must be completed in 8 hours for
recruits and 7 hours for Royal Marine officers, who must also navigate the route
themselves, rather than following a DS with the rest of a syndicate and carry their
own equipment.
The day after the 30 mile (48 km) march, any who failed any of the tests may attempt to retake them.
Completing the Commando Course successfully entitles the recruit or officer to wear the coveted green
beret but does not mean that the Royal Marine has finished his training. That decision will be made by
the troop or batch training team and will depend on the recruit's or young officer's overall performance.
Furthermore, officer training still consists of many more months.
After basic and commando training, a Royal Marine Commando will normally join a unit of 3
Commando Brigade. There are three Royal Marines Commando infantry units in the Brigade:
40 Commando located at Norton Manor Camp near Taunton in Somerset, 42 Commando at Bickleigh
Barracks, near Plymouth, Devon, and 45 Commando at HMS Condor, Arbroath on the east coast of
Scotland.
[edit] Specialist training
Royal Marines may then go on to undertake specialist training in a variety of skills; Platoon Weapons
Instructor, Mortar operator, signals, clerks, sniper, PT instructor, Mountain Leader, Swimmer Canoeist,
chef, Landing Craft coxwain etc.
Training for these specialisations may be undertaken at CTCRM or in a joint environment, such as
Royal School of Signals or the Defence Police College.
Some Marines undergo military parachute training at RAF Brize Norton without having to undergo P-
Company training with the Parachute Regiment. This allows flexibility of insertion methods for all force
elements.
Current weapons
 L85A2 IW - 5.56 x 45 mm (Individual Weapon)
 L86A2 LSW - 5.56 x 45 mm (Light Support Weapon)
 L110A1 Light Machine Gun 5.56 x 45 mm belt or magazine.
 L82A1 Barret - .50 inch (12.7 mm) BMG (Browning Machine gun) anti-materiel
sniper rifle
 L96A1 Sniper Rifle - 7.62 x 51 mm Accuracy International bolt-action sniper rifle
 L7A2 GPMG (General Purpose Machine Gun) - the FN MAG 7.62 x 51 mm belt-
fed machine gun.
 L1A1 Heavy Machine Gun .50 inch (12.7 mm) BMG (Browning Machine gun)
 LAW 80 ((Light Anti-tank Weapon))
 MILAN wire guided anti-tank missile (in the process of being replaced by the
Javelin Anti-Tank missile)
 L16A2 81 mm Mortar (High Explosive, Smoke and Illuminating ammunition)
 L9A1 Browning - 9 x 19 mm Parabellum semi-automatic pistol
 L107A1 - 9 x 19 mm Parabellum semi-automatic pistol
 L17A2 UGL (Under-slung Grenade Launcher) - Attachment to L85A2
History
Origin
The first unit of English Naval Infantry, originally called the Duke of York and Albany's Maritime
Regiment of Foot and soon becoming known as the Admiral's Regiment, was formed on October 28,
1664, with an initial strength of 1200 Infantrymen recruited from the Trained Bands of London as part
of the mobilisation for the Second Dutch War. It was the fourth European Marine unit formed, being
preceded by the Spanish Marines (1537), the Portuguese Marines (1610) and the French Marines (1622).
Later followed by the formation of the Dutch Marines in 1665. James (later King James II), the Duke of
York, Lord High Admiral and brother of King Charles II, was Captain-General of the Company of the
Artillery Garden, now the Honourable Artillery Company, the unit that trained the Trained Bands. The
Regiment was very distinct, being dressed in yellow rather than the red of the other Regiments until
1685. The name "Marines" first appeared in official records in 1672. John Churchill, the 1st Duke of
Marlborough, was the most famous member of this Regiment. A Company of Guards served as Marines
to augment the Marines of the Admiral's Regiment during the Naval battle of Sole Bay in 1672.
Marlborough's conduct as an ensign in the Guards during the battle so impressed James that he
commissioned him a Captain in the Admiral's Regiment after four Marine Captains died during the
battle. Marlborough later led a Battalion of the Regiment in the land battle of Enzheim in 1674. The
Regiment was disbanded in 1689 shortly after James II was deposed in the Glorious Revolution and The
Buffs replaced them as third in precedence in the British Army.
Portrait of a Marine officer, by William Dobson, 17th century

The Marine Regiments of the Army were revived in 1690 and disbanded again in 1699. In 1702 six
Regiments were formed for the War of Spanish Succession. The most historic achievement of these
Marines was the capture of the mole during the assault on Gibraltar (sailors of the Royal Navy captured
the Rock itself) and the subsequent defence of the fortress alongside the Dutch Marines in 1704. In 1713
three of these Regiments were transferred to the Line and the others disbanded. Only four Companies of
Marine Invalids remained.
Six Marine Regiments were raised for the War of Jenkins Ear in 1739 with four more being raised later.
One large Marine Regiment (Spotswood's Regiment later Gooch's Marines, the 61st Foot) was formed
of American colonists and served alongside British Marines at Cartegena, Columbia and Guantanamo,
Cuba in the War of Jenkin's Ear (1741). Among its officers was Lawrence Washington, the half-brother
of George Washington. In 1747, the remaining regiments were transferred to the Admiralty and then
disbanded in 1748.
Even though they were part of the Army, these Marines were quite nautical at times. Some Royal Navy
officers began in these Marine regiments and some kept their Marine rank throughout their careers, one
Royal Navy Captain even serving as the Captain of Marines on his own ship. They were used by the
Admiralty to rig ships before they were placed in commission as the Royal Navy had no extra sailors,
the law requiring that all sailors must be part of a commissioned vessel. It was another law requiring that
in order for Army Regiments to be paid, the entire Regiment had to muster that led to their transfer to
the Admiralty. This requirement was hard for the Marine Regiments to follow as their Companies were
stationed on many different ships.
In 1755 His Majesty's Marine Forces, fifty Companies in three Divisions, headquartered at Chatham,
Portsmouth, and Plymouth, were formed under Admiralty control. During the rest of the 18th century,
they served in numerous landings all over the world, the most famous being the landing at Bellisle on
the Brittany coast in 1761. They also served in the American Revolutionary War, being particularly
courageous in the Battle of Bunker Hill led by Major John Pitcairn. These Marines also often took to the
ship's boats to repel attackers in small boats when RN ships on close blockade were becalmed. In 1802,
largely at the instigation of Admiral the Earl St. Vincent, they were titled the Royal Marines by King
George III.
The Royal Marine Artillery (RMA) was formed as a separate unit in 1804 to man the artillery in bomb
ketches. This had been done by the Royal Regiment of Artillery, but a lawsuit by a Royal Artillery
officer resulted in a court decision that Army officers were not subject to Naval orders. As their
uniforms were the blue of the Royal Regiment of Artillery this group was nicknamed the "Blue
Marines" and the Infantry element, who wore the scarlet uniforms of the British infantry, became known
as the "Red Marines", often given the derogatory nickname "Lobsters" by sailors.
The Royal Marines Artillery (RMA) & Royal Marines Light Infantry (RMLI) where almalgamated in
1929.
Pursuing a career in the Marines was considered social suicide - the Marines were deeply unpopular in
society as most Marines were failures in life running away from their problems on land. Marines
officers, unlike their counterparts in the Army or regular Navy, faced obstacles when trying to climb the
social ladder, as officers in the Marines were widely perceived as failures unable to obtain commissions
in the Army. In addition, the Royal Navy began handing out positions previously held by RM Colonels
to post-captains on half-pay, meaning that the farthest most RM officers could advance was to Major.
[edit] 19th Century

During the Napoleonic Wars, the Royal Navy suffered from manpower problems in the Marines, and so
regular Infantry units from the Army often had to be used as shipboard replacements. In the War of
1812, escaped American slaves were formed into the Corps of Colonial Marines and fought at
Bladensburg. Other Royal Marines units raided up and down Chesapeake Bay, fought in the Battle of
New Orleans and later helped capture Fort Bowyer in Mobile Bay in the last action of the war.
In 1855 the Infantry forces were re-named the Royal Marines Light Infantry (RMLI) and in 1862 the
name was slightly altered to Royal Marine Light Infantry. The Royal Navy did not fight any other
ships after 1850 (until 1914) and became interested in landings by Naval Brigades. In these Naval
Brigades, the function of the Royal Marines was to land first and act as skimishers ahead of the sailor
Infantry and Artillery. This skirmishing was the traditional function of Light Infantry. For most of their
history, British Marines had been organised as fusiliers. It was not until 1923 that the separate Artillery
and light Infantry forces were formally amalgamated into the Corps of Royal Marines.
In the rest of the 19th Century the Royal Marines served in many landings especially in the First and
Second Opium Wars (1839-1842 and 1856-1860) against the Chinese. These were all successful except
for the landing at the Mouth of the Peiho in 1859, where Admiral Sir James Hope ordered a landing
across extensive mud flats even though his Brigadier, Colonel Thomas Lemon RMLI, advised against it.
During the Crimean War in 1854 and 1855, three Royal Marines earned the Victoria Cross, two in the
Crimea and one in the Baltic. The use of the new "torpedoes" (mines) by the Russians in the Baltic made
the campaign there particularly suited to RM raiding and reconnaissance parties. Landings by the British
and French Navy and Marines in 1854 were repulsed by the Russians at Petropavlovsk on the Pacific
coast of Russia.
[edit] 20th Century
The Royal Marines also played a prominent role in the Boxer Rebellion in China (1900), where a Royal
Marine earned a Victoria Cross. For the first part of the 20th Century, the Royal Marines' role was the
traditional one of providing shipboard Infantry for security, boarding parties and small-scale landings.
The Marines' other traditional position on a Royal Navy ship is manning "A" (the forwardmost) gun
turret.
[edit] First World War

During the First World War, in addition to their usual stations aboard ship, Royal Marines were part of
the Royal Naval Division which landed in Belgium in 1914 to help defend Antwerp and later took part
in the amphibious landing at Gallipoli in 1915. It also served on the Western Front. The Division's first
two commanders were Royal Marine Artillery Generals. Other Royal Marines acted as landing parties in
the Naval campaign against the Turkish fortifications in the Dardanelles before the Gallipoli landing.
They were sent ashore to assess damage to Turkish fortifications after bombardment by British and
French ships and, if necessary, to complete their destruction. The Royal Marines were the last to leave
Gallipoli, replacing both British and French troops in a neatly planned and executed withdrawal from the
beaches. It even required some Marines to wear French uniforms as part of the deception. In 1918 Royal
Marines led the raid at Zeebrugge. Five Royal Marines earned the Victoria Cross in the First World
War, two at Zeebrugge, one at Gallipoli, one at Jutland and one on the Western Front. After the war
Royal Marines took part in the allied intervention in Russia. In 1919, the 6th Battalion RMLI mutinied
and was disbanded at Murmansk.
[edit] Second World War

During the Second World War, a small party of Royal Marines were first ashore at Namsos in April
1940, seizing the approaches to the Norwegian town preparatory to a landing by the British Army two
days later. The Royal Marines formed the Royal Marine Division as an amphibiously trained division,
parts of which served at Dakar and in the capture of Madagascar. In addition the Royal Marines formed
Mobile Naval Base Defence Organisations (MNBDOs) similar to the US Marine Corps Defense
Battalions. One of these took part in the defence of Crete. Royal Marines also served in Malaya and in
Singapore, where due to losses they were joined with remnants of the 2nd Battalion , Argyll and
Sutherland Highlanders to form the "Plymouth Argylls". The Royal Marines formed one Commando (A
Commando) which served at Dieppe. One month after Dieppe, most of the 11th Royal Marine Battalion
was killed or captured in an amphibious landing at Tobruk in Operation Daffodil , again the Marines
were involved with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders this time the 1st Battalion. In 1943 the
Infantry Battalions of the Royal Marine Division were re-organised as Commandos, joining the Army
Commandos. The Division command structure became a Special Service Brigade command. The
support troops became landing craft crew.
Men of No 4 Commando engaged in house to house fighting with the Germans at Riva Bella,
near Ouistreham.
A total of four Special Service, later Commando, Brigades were raised during the war, and Royal
Marines were represented in all of them. A total of nine RM Commandos (Battalions) were raised
during the war, numbered from 40 to 48.
1 Commando Brigade had just one RM Battalion, No 45 Commando. 2 Commando Brigade had two
RM battalions, Nos 40 and 43 Commandos. 3 Commando Brigade also had two, Nos 42 and 44
Commandos. 4 Commando Brigade was entirely Royal Marine after March 1944, comprising Nos 41,
46, 47 and 48 Commandos.
1 Commando Brigade took part in the assaults on Sicily and Normandy, campaigns in the Rhineland and
crossing the Rhine. 2 Commando Brigade was involved in the Salerno landings, Anzio, Comacchio, and
operations in the Argenta Gap. 3 Commando Brigade served in Sicily and Burma. 4 Commando Brigade
served in Normandy and in the Battle of the Scheldt on the island of Walcheren during the clearing of
Antwerp.
In January 1945, two further RM Brigades were formed, 116th Brigade and 117th Brigade. Both were
conventional Infantry, rather than in the Commando role. 116th Brigade saw some action in the
Netherlands, but 117th Brigade was hardly used operationally. In addition one Landing Craft Assault
(LCA) unit was stationed in Australia late in the war as a training unit.
In 1946 the Army Commandos were disbanded, leaving the Royal Marines to continue the Commando
role (with supporting Army elements).
A number of Royal Marines served as pilots during the Second World War. It was a Royal Marines
officer who led the attack by a formation of Blackburn Skuas that sank the German cruiser Königsberg.
Eighteen Royal Marines commanded Fleet Air Arm squadrons during the course of the war, and with
the formation of the British Pacific Fleet were well-represented in the final drive on Japan. Captains and
Majors generally commanded squadrons, whilst in one case Lt. Colonel R.C.Hay on HMS Indefatigable
was Air Group Co-ordinator from HMS Victorious of the entire British Pacific Fleet.
Only one Marine was awarded a Victoria Cross in the Second World War, for action at Lake Comacchio
in Italy. So far that is the last awarded to a Royal Marine.
After 1945
Royal Marines in 1972

Royal Marines were involved in the Korean War. 41 (Independent) Commando was reformed in 1950,
and was originally envisaged as a raiding force for use against North Korea. It performed this role in
partnership with the US Navy until after the landing of United States Army X Corps at Wonsan. It then
joined the 1st Marine Division at Koto-Ri. As Task Force Drysdale with Lt. Col. D.B. Drysdale RM in
command, 41 Commando, a USMC company, a US Army company and part of the divisional train
fought their way from Koto-Ri to Hagaru after the Chinese had blocked the road to the North. It then
took part in the famous withdrawal from Chosin Reservoir. After that, a small amount of raiding
followed, before the Marines were withdrawn from the conflict in 1951. It received the US Presidential
Unit Citation after the USMC got the regulations modified to allow foreign units to receive the award.
After playing a part in the long-running Malayan Emergency, the next action came in 1956, during the
Suez Crisis. Headquarters 3 Commando Brigade, and Nos 40, 42 and 45 Commandos took part in the
operation. It marked the first time that a helicopter assault was used operationally to land troops in an
amphibious attack. British and French forces defeated the Egyptians, but after pressure from the United
States, and French domestic pressure, they backed down.
Further action in the Far East was seen during the Konfrontasi. Nos 40 and 42 Commando went to
Borneo at various times to help keep Indonesian forces from causing trouble in border areas. The most
high profile incident of the campaign was a company strength amphibious assault by Lima Company of
42 Commando at the town of Limbang to rescue hostages.
From 1969 onwards Royal Marine units regularly deployed to Northern Ireland during The Troubles.
The Falklands War provided the backdrop to the next action of the Royal Marines. Argentina invaded
the islands in April 1982. A British task force was immediately despatched to recapture them, and given
that an amphibious assault would be necessary, the Royal Marines were heavily involved. 3 Commando
Brigade was brought to full combat strength, with not only 40, 42 and 45 Commandos, but also the 2nd
and 3rd Battalions of the Parachute Regiment attached. The troops were landed at San Carlos Water at
the western end of East Falkland, and proceeded to "yomp" across the entire island to the capital,
Stanley, which fell on 14 June 1982. Not only was 3 Commando Brigade deployed, but also a Royal
Marines divisional headquarters, under Major-General Jeremy Moore, who was commander of British
land forces during the war.
3 Commando Brigade was not deployed in the 1991 Gulf War, but was deployed to northern Iraq in the
aftermath to provide aid to the Kurds. The remainder of the 1990s saw no major warfighting
deployments, other than a divisional headquarters to control land forces during the short NATO
intervention that ended the Bosnian War.
More recently Royal Marines detachments have been involved in operations in Kosovo, Sierra Leone,
and East Timor.
From 2000 onwards, the Royal Marines began converting from their traditional light infantry role
towards an expanded force protection type role, with the introduction of the Commando 21 concept,
leading to the introduction of the Viking, the first armoured vehicle to be operated by the Royal Marines
for half a century.
In November 2001, after the seizure of Bagram Air Base by the Special Boat Service, Charlie Company
of 40 Commando became the first British regular forces into Afghanistan, using Bagram Air base to
support British and US Special Forces Operations. With the arrival Bravo Company 40 Commando in
December 2001 then moving into Kabul itself, beginning the building of the infrastructure which
became ISAF.
2002 Saw the deployment of 45 Commando Royal Marines to Afghanistan, where contact with enemy
forces was expected to be heavy. However little action was seen, with no Al-Qaida or Taliban forces
being found or engaged.
3 Commando Brigade deployed on Operation TELIC in early 2003 with the USMC's 15th Marine
Expeditionary Unit under command. The Brigade conducted an amphibious assault on the Al Faw
peninsula in Iraq, securing the port and oil installations to assure continued operability of the Iraqs
export capability. The attack proceeded well, with light casualties. 3 Commando Brigade served as part
of the US 1st Marine Division and received the US Presidential Unit Citation.
In late 2006, 3 Commando Brigade relieved 16 Air Assault Brigade in Helmand Province, Afghanistan,
as part of Operation Herrick.
Traditions and insignia
The Royal Marines have a proud history and unique traditions; they have so many battle honours
that the "globe itself" has become the symbol of the Corps.
The badge of the Royal Marines is designed to commemorate the history of the Corps. The Lion and
Crown denotes a Royal regiment. King George III conferred this honour in 1802 "in consideration of the
very meritorious services of the Marines in the late war."
The "Great Globe itself" surrounded by laurels was chosen by King George IV as a symbol of the
Marines' successes in every quarter of the world. The laurels are believed to honour the gallantry they
displayed during the investment and capture of Belle Isle, off Lorient, in April through June 1761.
The word "Gibraltar" refers to the Siege of Gibraltar in 1704. It was awarded in 1827 by George IV as a
special distinction for the services of four of the old Army Marine regiments (Queen's Own Marines, 1st
Marines, 2nd Marines, 3rd Marines). All other honours gained by the Royal Marines are represented by
the "Great Globe". As a consequence, there are no battle honours displayed on the colours of the four
battalion sized units in the corps.
When referring to individual Commandos: 45 Commando is referred to as "four-five" rather than "forty-
five commando" as is 42 Commando, 40 Commando is "forty".
The only units which carry colours are 40 Commando, 42 Commando, 45 Commando, and the Fleet
Protection Group (which is the custodian of the colours of 43 Commando).
The fouled anchor, incorporated into the emblem in 1747, is the badge of the Lord High Admiral and
shows that the Corps is part of the Royal Navy.
Per Mare Per Terram ("By Sea, By Land"), the motto of the Marines, is believed to have been used for
the first time in 1785.
The regimental quick march of the Corps is A Life on the Ocean Wave, while the slow march is
Preobrajensky.
Dress headgear is a white Wolseley pattern pith helmet surmounted by a ball, a distinction once standard
for artillerymen. This derives from the part of the Corps that was once the Royal Marine Artillery.
The Royal Marines are one of six regiments allowed by the Lord Mayor of London to march through the
City as a regiment in full array. This dates to the charter of Charles II that allowed recruiting parties of
the Admiral's Regiment of 1664 to enter the City with drums beating and colours flying.
Order of Precedence
As the descendant of the old Marine Regiments of the British Army, the Royal Marines has a position in
the Order of Precedence of the Infantry; this is after the 49th Regiment of Foot, the descendant of which
is the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment. Therefore, the Royal Marines would
parade after the RGBW. This is because the 49th Foot was the last Regiment raised prior to the
formation of the Corps of Marines as part of the Royal Navy in 1755. However, when the Royal Navy is
on parade, then the RM parades with them at the extreme right of the line.
Royal Fleet Auxiliary
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is a component of the Naval Service that keeps the Royal Navy of
the United Kingdom running around the world. Its main function is to supply the Royal Navy with fuel
and supplies. It also counts a repair ship, and amphibious assault vessels amongst its assets. RFA
personnel are civilians of the Ministry of Defence civil service who wear Merchant Navy-style uniforms
and rank insignia and who are under naval discipline when the vessel is engaged on warlike operations.
RFA vessels are manned predominantly by the civilians, augmented with regular Royal Navy personnel
to perform specialised military functions, such as operating and maintaining helicopters or manning
hospital facilities.
History
The RFA was first established in 1905 to provide coaling ships for the Navy in an era when the change
from sail to coal as the main means of propulsion for the navies of the world meant that a network of
bases around the world with coaling facilities or a fleet of ships able to supply coal were necessary for a
fleet to operate away from its home country. Since the Royal Navy of that era possessed the largest
network of bases around the world of any fleet, the RFA at first took a relatively minor role.
The RFA really came into its own in World War II when the British fleet was often far from available
bases, either due to the enemy capturing available bases, or, in the Pacific, the sheer distances involved.
WWII also saw naval ships staying at sea for much longer periods than had been the case since the days
of sail. Techniques of underway replenishment, or Replenishment At Sea (RAS), were developed
particularly by the United States Navy. The British auxiliary fleet was never up to the standards of that
of the American fast carrier taskforces in the Pacific. The auxiliary fleet was a polyglot collection with
not only RFA ships, but commissioned warships and merchantmen as well. However, the need for such
a fleet was unambiguously demonstrated by WWII.
After 1945, the RFA assumed centre stage in supporting the operations of the Royal Navy in the many
conflicts that the Navy was involved in. The RFA performed important service to the Far East Fleet off
Korea from 1950 until 1953, when sustained carrier operations were again mounted in Pacific waters.
During the extended operations of the Konfrontasi in the 1960s, the RFA was also heavily involved. As
the network of British bases overseas shrank during the end of the Empire, the Navy increasingly relied
on the RFA to supply its ships during routine deployments.
The RFA played an important role in the largest naval war since 1945, the Falklands War in 1982
(where 1 vessel was lost and another badly damaged), and also the Gulf War, Kosovo War, Afghanistan
Campaign and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. With the end of the Cold War, and the resumption of the
worldwide role for the Royal Navy, the RFA will be called on a great deal in the next few decades.
Fleet
Three RFAs accompanying HMS Invincible and three Leander class frigates
Ships in RFA service carry the prefix RFA, standing for Royal Fleet Auxiliary, and wear
the Blue Ensign defaced with an upright gold killick anchor. All Royal Fleet Auxiliaries
are built and maintained to Lloyd's Register and Department for Transport standards.
Most RFA ships are armed, typically with at least two 20 mm GAM-B01 anti-aircraft
guns and a number of 7.62mm L7 GPMGs.
The most important role provided by the RFA is replenishment at sea (RAS) [1], therefore
the mainstay of the current RFA fleet are the tankers and replenishment ships. There are
three classes of tankers (oilers), one of combined oiler / replenisher and one class of
replenisher in service. The new fast fleet tankers of the Wave class class, the small fleet
tankers of the Rover class and the support tankers of the Leaf class provide under way
refuelling facilities to the RN. The Leaf class are occasionally tasked with the bulk
movement of oil between terminals and MoD facilities. The Rover and Leaf classes are
nearing the end of their active lives and will soon be due for replacement. The Fort
Victoria class are "one-stop" replenishment oilers, capable of supplying refuelling,
rearming and victualling services while the older Fort Rosalie class provide only
rearming and victualling of "dry" cargoes. The Wave and both the Fort classes have
generous aviation facilities, providing aviation support and training facilities and
significant VERTREP (vertical replenishmet) capabilities.
The RFA is also tasked with a role supporting British amphibious operations and so
contains a number of amphibious assault ships. The newest such ships are the four Bay
class Landing Ship Dock (LSD) of which two are currently in service, one is working up
and the fourth is fitting out (as of November 2006). The Bays are complemented by the
last of the Round Table class Landing Ship Logistics (LSL), Sir Bedivere, which is due to
be retained until 2011, since it underwent a SLEP from 1994 until 1998. Sir Galahad of
this class was sunk in the Falklands War, and a ship of the same name was built post-war
as a replacement. She, however, made her last journey under the RFA's flag as she sailed
to Portsmouth to be decommissioned on July 20, 2006[2].
Two unique support ships in the fleet are the repair vessel Diligence and the aviation
training ship Argus. Both of these ships are converted former merchantmen. Diligence is
a former North Sea oil industry support ship tasked with fleet repairs and maintenance.
Argus, a converted Roll On/Roll Off (RoRo) container ship, is tasked with peacetime
aviation training and support. On active operations, she becomes the Primary Casualty
Receiving Ship (PCRS); essentially a hospital ship. She cannot be described as such - and
is not afforded such protection under the Geneva Convention - as she is armed. She can,
however, venture into waters too dangerous for a normal hospital ship. Argus is slated for
replacement, but the new vessel is not forthcoming.
Recently, two fast sealift ships were also in the fleet, Sea Crusader and Sea Centurion.
They were merchant Ro-Ro ships chartered as a stopgap measure to increase the strategic
lift of the RFA, enabling faster deployment of British forces. Sea Centurion was returned
to its owners in 2002 and Sea Crusader in 2003, after performing cargo hauling duties for
the campaign in Iraq. They have been replaced by newly built Point class vessels
operated under a Private Finance Initiative; these vessels will be ordinary merchant ships
leased to the Ministry of Defence as and when needed, and not in the RFA.
Current ships
 Wave-class fast fleet tankers

o Wave Knight
o Wave Ruler
 Rover-class small fleet tankers

o Gold Rover
o Black Rover
 Leaf-class support tankers

o Brambleleaf
o Bayleaf
o Orangeleaf
o Oakleaf
 Fort Rosalie or Fort (i) class replenishment ships

o Fort Rosalie (ex-Fort Grange)
o Fort Austin
 Fort Victoria or Fort (ii) class replenishment oilers
o Fort Victoria
o Fort George
 Aviation training / Primary Casualty Receiving Ship

o Argus
 Forward repair ship

o Diligence
 Bay-class Landing Ships Dock (Auxiliary)

o Largs Bay
o Lyme Bay, not yet in service.
o Mounts Bay
o Cardigan Bay, not yet in service.
 Round Table-class Landing Ships Logistics

o Sir Bedivere
 Point class sealift ships
o MV Hurst Point
o MV Eddystone
o MV Longstone
o MV Beachy Head
o MV Hartland Point
o MV Anvil Point
Royal Naval Reserve
Blue Ensign flown by merchant vessels commanded by officers in the RNR.
The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is the volunteer reserve force of the Royal Navy in the United
Kingdom.
The present Royal Naval Reserve was formed in 1958, merging the former Royal Naval Reserve,
founded in 1859 as a reserve of professional seamen, and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR), a
reserve of volunteers founded in 1903. The RNR is often called the "Wavy Navy" after the wavy sleeve
stripes of officers in the RNVR and RNR during World War II. These have since been replaced by the
straight rank lacing used in the full-time RN, with the addition of a small 'R' in the centre of the
executive curl. There are plans in motion now to remove this R, as the RNR is further integrated with
the regular Royal Navy.
The modern RNR has fourteen Royal Naval Reserve Units (with 7 satellite units). These are:
 HMS Scotia (Rosyth)

o Tay Division (Dundee)
o Forth Division (Edinburgh)
 HMS Cambria (Sully, Wales)
o Tawe Division (Swansea)
 HMS Dalriada (Greenock)
o Govan Division
 HMS Flying Fox (Bristol)
 HMS Calliope (Gateshead)
 HMS President (London)
o Medway Division (Chatham, Kent)
 HMS Eaglet (Liverpool)
o Menai Division (Llandudno)
 HMS Vivid (Devonport)
 HMS Sherwood (Nottingham)
o Ceres Division (Leeds)
 HMS King Alfred (Portsmouth)
 HMS Forward (Birmingham)
 HMS Caroline (Belfast)
 HMS Wildfire (Northwood)
 HMS Ferret (Chicksands)
The University Royal Naval Units, although under the jurisdiction of BRNC Dartmouth, are also a part
of the Royal Naval Reserve, with students holding the title "Midshipman RNR".
There are also naval reserve forces operated by other Commonwealth of Nations navies, e.g. the Royal
Australian Naval Reserve (RANR), the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNZNVR),
Canadian Naval Reserve, etc. Previously there were also colonial RNVR units, e.g. the Straits
Settlements Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (SSRNVR), Hong Kong Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve
(HKRNVR) and the South African Division of the RNVR.
Royal Marines Reserve
The role of the Royal Marines Reserve (RMR) [1] of the United Kingdom is to support the regular
Royal Marines[2]in times of war or national crisis.
All the volunteers within the RMR pass through the same rigorous commando course as the regulars.
The former may be civilians with no previous military experience or men who transfer from the
Territorial Army (the reserve component of the British Army) or are former regular Royal Marines.
The RMR consists of some 600 trained ranks distributed among the five RMR Centres within the UK.
About 10 percent of the RMR are working with the Regular Corps on long-term attachments in all of the
Royal Marines regular units.
Mission
The mission of the RMR is to act as a general reserve to the Royal Marines command and to promote a
nationwide link between the military and civilian community. Specifically it is to:
 Enforce the Royal Marines when required, with individuals and sub-units
worldwide.
 Promote a nationwide link between the Royal Marines and civilian communities.
 Provide a nationwide infrastructure for strengthening and replacing the regular

forces in times of national emergency.
The History of the RMR

The RMR can trace their roots back to the Royal Marines Forces Volunteer Reserve (RMFVR) formed
in the City of London under the Royal Marines Act 1948. The RMFVR were officially formed on the
5th November 1948 at a ceremonial parade on Bunhill Fields, the same place the Royal Marines were
formed on 28th October 1664.
In the beginning, Reservists were chiefly former hostilities only (HO) personnel. They were mainly, but
not solely, Royal Marines who had gained experience in WWII and trained in order to support the Corps
against the threat from the Soviet Bloc. However, today the majority of Reservists have no previous
military experience. Their transition from civilian to Marine, is therefore more challenging. Moreover,
21st century threats compel the training to be more comprehensive to equip the Marine with an arsenal
of skills to face any eventuality. The RMR have adapted to these changes and remains flexible,
continuing to train in order to support properly the Corps that Sir Winston Churchill described as "The
finest in the world".
What happens during RMR basic training?
RMR Basic Training and the Commando Course are not for the fainthearted. It requires real
commitment and determination, as it puts great demands on the recruits spare time and dedication. In
order to complete RMR Basic Training and prepare for the Commando Course. Over a period of 8 - 10
months, recruits are required to attend training at their RMR Units, one evening a week and usually two
weekends a month. In addition when not training with the RMR they must work on their physical fitness
in their own time.
To undergo and complete RMR Basic Training a recruit must remain self-motivated and dedicated,
while balancing this with the support, co-operation and understanding of families, girlfriends, wives and
employers.
However, it is these very challenges that attract the calibre of recruit the RMR are looking for. The fact
they are willing to undergo one of the toughest courses any Reservist can attempt, to have the pride of
wearing the coveted Green Beret that signifies their achievement.
Outline of RMR Basic Training Basic Training for RMR recruits is divided into three parts: Phase 1A
- Individual Skills Training Phase 1B - Tactics Training & Commando Course Phase 2 - Advanced &
Commando Skills Training
Phase 1A - Individual Skills Training Phase 1A lasts for approximately four to five months and is the
beginning of RMR Basic Training. It is designed to introduce recruits to the rudiments of Individual
Skills and Fieldcraft. Recruits must complete 6 Weekend training periods in addition to training for two
hours for one evening a week. On completion of their Phase 1A training, recruits are required to attend a
2-week course at the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines (CTCRM).
Phase 1A - The Blue Beret Phase 1A Recruits wear the blue beret with red badge backing issued to RM
personnel who have not passed the Commando Course.
Basic Fieldcraft Instruction on how to fend for themselves under field conditions. This covers the
construction of different types of shelters ("bivvies"), the use of the different types of ration pack, how
to maintain themselves and their standards of hygiene under arduous conditions. Camouflage and
concealment.
Navigation Theoretical and practical aspects of finding their way over all types of terrain by day and
night.
Weapon Training Instruction on how to handle, maintain, strip and clean their 5.56mm Rifle correctly.
Physical Training - is important from the outset, it is progressive and prepares recruits for Battle
Physical Training (BPT) in Phase 1B. Physical Training periods concentrate on introducing and
developing the techniques required for rope climbing, regains, fireman's carry and obstacle courses with
an introduction to speed marching and load carries. However, it is necessary for recruits to continue
fitness training in their own time in order to build their strength and endurance to the required level.
Field Exercises - recruits are taught and tested on how they fend for themselves under field conditions,
they soon learn that their comfort and survival in the field and on operations begins with good personal
organisation and preparedness. To bring these points home there is usually an inspection every morning
- the NCOs have an eagle eye for detail.
PHASE 1A Course at CTCRM The two-week course is designed as a confirmation of the recruit's
individual and physical skills. Also the recruit's abilities are tested over an extended period to ensure that
they are capable of proceeding on to Phase 1B. The course also introduces the recruits to CTCRM and
provides an insight into the conduct of the Commando Tests. Phase 1A Recruit Weapon Training
Camouflage & Concealment Assault Course at CTCRM
Phase 1B - Tactics Training & Commando Course Phase 1B lasts for approximately four to five months
and is designed to equip recruits with the skills and knowledge required to act as a Rifleman in a
Commando Unit. In addition to preparing them for the rigours of the Reserve Forces Commando
Course. Recruits must complete 8 Weekend training periods in addition to training for two hours for one
evening a week. On completion of their Phase 1B training, recruits are required to attend the 2 week
Reserve Forces Commando Course at CTCRM.
Phase 1B - The Cap Comforter On the successful completion of Phase 1A, Phase 1B Recruits are
entitled to wear The Cap Comforter. Since WW II, this headgear has traditionally been worn by those
ranks undergoing Commando Training.
Battle Physical Training - BPT - is designed to develop physical military skills, strength and
endurance, whilst preparing recruits to withstand mental pressure. The BPT is designed to prepare
Recruits for their BPT Pass Out and the Commando Course.
Physical Training is now undertaken wearing personal load carrying equipment (PLCE/Fighting
Order/Webbing). Throughout Phase 1B training, weight is gradually added to the Recruit's Fighting
Order until it weighs the 22lbs required during the Commando Course. In addition the Recruits will
carry their 5.56mm Rifle (a further 10lbs).
Fieldcraft and Tactics - The development and practise of the recruit's Individual and Fieldcraft skills
continues. Tactical instruction begins with Basic Patrolling Techniques before moving onto Recce
Patrols, Observation Posts and finally Fighting Patrols and Ambushes.
RESERVE FORCES COMMANDO COURSE at CTCRM The two week Reserve Forces
Commando Course (RFCC) at CTCRM is the culmination of the Recruit's Basic Training. The course is
designed to test whether the Recruits professional and physical abilities are of the standard required by a
Commando.
On successful completion of the RFCC, RMR Recruits are awarded the coveted Green Beret. As new
Marines in the RMR they continue to learn Commando Skills during their Phase 2 Training.
Phase 2 - Advanced & Commando Skills Training Phase 2 is designed to equip Marines who have
recently passed the Reserve Forces Commando Course with the remaining skills and knowledge they
required to possess if they are to serve with the Royal Marines on Exercise or Deployment. The Phase 2
Course is normally conducted over a period of 2 weeks, usually divided into two separate weeklong
packages based at CTCRM.
Live Field Firing Exercise (FFX) - Marines are introduced to realistic live firing exercises conducted
on field firing areas. Exercises progress from individual shooting on a simple range through to a live
firing troop attack involving 30 Marines. At first this can be somewhat nerve-racking, but Marines
quickly learn that they must trust the men around them and act responsibly and professionally
themselves to earn the trust of others. In addition to firing small arms, Marines are given the opportunity
to throw live grenades and fire the 94mm Light Anti-Tank Weapon (LAW).
Amphibious Exercise - Marines are taught the theory and drills associated with Amphibious Warfare.
Practical training then takes place using Rigid Raiding Craft (RRC) during an Amphibious Exercise,
where the Marines conduct Landing Raids from the sea.
Helicopter Drills - Marines are taught the theory and drills associated with the Operational use of
Helicopters. Practical training then takes place, using Helicopters.
Quarry Day - The purpose of this day is to teach the Marines roping skills. The Marines practise
abseiling and other Cliff Assault techniques.
Further Training and Specialist Qualification Training On completion of their Phase 2 Training,
Marines are considered fully trained Riflemen capable of serving with the Regular Corps. Marines are
now able to embark on Further Training e.g. Mountain & Cold Weather Warfare Training. In time
Marines will also have the opportunity to attend Specialist Courses and gain Specialist Qualifications
(SQ) e.g. Assault Engineer.
Special Qualifications
After gaining experience as a General Duties Rifleman (GD) within their RMR Units Marines, subject to
suitability, will then be given the opportunity to attend Specialist Courses and gain a Specialist
Qualification (SQ).
RMR Units have the responsibility of providing a pool of suitably trained volunteers for certain
specialisations in order to augment the regular Corps if required. These specialisations are Landing Craft
Coxswains, Assault Engineers, Heavy Weapons (Mortars) and Swimmer Canoeists. In addition here are
many other specialisations open to RMR ranks.
Additional Qualifications
In addition to the Specialist Qualifications on offer, ranks are able to attend specific courses to gain a
number of Additional Qualifications (AdQuals) to increase their employability with the Corps. Having
gained certain AdQuals, ranks can join specialist organisations within the RMR. For example, a rank
qualified as a Recce Leader would be in a position to join the RMR Brigade Patrol Troop.
The majority of courses are abridged versions of those undertaken by regulars, courses usually last two
to four weeks. Four-week courses are divided up into separate two-week packages. As reservists
progress through the ranks in the RMR, they can attend further courses in their chosen specialisation that
are of a more advanced nature (e.g.. LC3 - Marine; LC2 - Corporal; LC1 - Sergeant). However, many
reservists are given the opportunity to attend the full courses undertaken by regulars if they are able to
make the time available.
Reservists continue to develop and practise their chosen specialisation or AdQual within their RMR
Units. In addition members of the RMR are encouraged to work, exercise and operate with their
specialist counterparts within the regular Corps whenever possible. There are constant opportunities for
Full Time Reserve Service (FTRS) for specialists within the Regular Corps.
Life as a Reservist
On earning their Green Beret following completion of Phase 1B Training, Marines join 'Commando
Company' within their RMR units. Only on completion of Phase 2 of Basic Training are Marines
considered fully trained General Duties (GD) Riflemen, capable of serving with the Regular Corps on
Exercise or Deployment.
Commando Company Training
The purpose of Commando Company is to continue to expand and build on the Marine's individual and
team skills through further training, in order to develop Marines capable of deploying with and in aid of
the Royal Marines Command (RMC).
Within their RMR Units Marines will train so as to consolidate their basic soldiering skills such as
Weapon Training, First Aid, Signals, Nuclear Biological Chemical (NBC) Warfare, Physical Fitness,
etc. In addition to learning and developing more advanced skills such as conducting amphibious raids
and learning how to conduct Operations in Built Up Areas (OBUA).
Throughout each year Commando Company conduct a number of weekend exercises where they are
given the opportunity to learn and develop new skills. For example - a unit live field firing exercise,
where they would employ and practise weapon drills, marksmanship and troop tactics using live
ammunition. During the lead up to any exercise the Marines would normally use the week night training
periods to revise or learn the skills required during the forthcoming exercise.
In addition to participating in Commando Company Training within their own RMR Units, Marines
have the opportunity to attend a wide variety of training courses. For example - military parachute
course, combat medic course, recce leader etc. They assist with the annual charitable fund raising event
the Dartmoor Beast. [3]
Serving with the Corps
All trained ranks within the Royal Marines Reserve have the opportunity to serve with the regular Corps
anywhere in the world, on exercise or operations, whenever their time and circumstances permit. These
periods can vary from 2 weeks up to 6 months and provide RMR ranks with excellent scope to learn and
develop new skills. These opportunities normally occur on a regular basis and are advertised within the
RMR Units.
Further Training
The Royal Marines are trained to fight in many places where the environment is as hostile as the enemy.
Members of the RMR also have the opportunity to train in these environments, either with RMR Units
or the Corps.
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. The RAF is the oldest
independent air force in the world, formed on April 1, 1918. The RAF has taken a significant role in
British military history since then, playing a large part in World War II, and more recently in conflicts
such as the recent war in Iraq. With some 998 aircraft and in 2006, 46,880 personnel, the RAF is the
fifth largest air force in the world. It is also one of the most technologically advanced, a position that is
being enhanced significantly with the purchase of 232 Eurofighter Typhoons. The only founding
member of the RAF still living today is Henry Allingham at age 110.
Mission
The RAF's mission is to "Produce a battle-winning agile air force: fit for the challenges of today; ready
for the tasks of tomorrow; capable of building for the future; working within Defence to achieve shared
purpose." This is to support the MOD's objectives, which are to "provide the capabilities needed: to
ensure the security and defence of the United Kingdom and Overseas Territories, including against
terrorism; to support the Government’s foreign policy objectives particularly in promoting international
peace and security."
History
The RAF was founded on April 1, 1918, during the First World War, by Viscount Trenchard when he
amalgamated the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service. After the war, the service was
cut drastically and its inter-war years were relatively quiet, with only minor actions being undertaken in
some parts of the British Empire.
The RAF Memorial on the Victoria Embankment, London, commemorating RAF personnel killed
in the two World Wars
The RAF underwent rapid expansion prior to and during the Second World War. Under the British
Commonwealth Air Training Plan of December 1939, the air forces of other members of the British
Commonwealth trained and formed squadrons for service with RAF formations. Many individual
personnel from these countries and from continental Europe also served with RAF squadrons.
A defining period of the RAF's existence came during the Battle of Britain when it held off the
Luftwaffe and helped to turn the tide of the war.
The largest and most controversial RAF effort during the war was the strategic bombing campaign
against Germany by RAF Bomber Command. Under the leadership of Air Chief Harris, RAF forces fire-
bombed Dresden, causing the death of ca. 35,000 civilians. On 3 May 1945, in the last days of the war,
three ships (Cap Arcona, Thielbek, and Deutschland) were sunk in the Bay of Lübeck, after four
separate attacks by RAF planes. Around 7,000 civilians of many nations were killed, most of them
concentration camp prisoners from the Neuengamme, Stutthof and Mittelbau-Dora camps. The RAF has
sealed all documents pertaining to these attacks until 2045.
Royal Air Force badge. The RAF Motto is Per Ardua ad Astra (Latin), which translates as
Through Struggle to the Stars
During the Cold War years the main role of the RAF was the defence of the continent of Europe against
potential attack by the Soviet Union, including holding the UK's nuclear deterrent for a number of years.
Since the end of the Cold War, several large scale operations have been undertaken by the RAF,
including the Kosovo War, the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Structure of the RAF

The professional head of the RAF is known as the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), currently Air Chief
Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy. The CAS heads the Air Force Board, which is a committee of the Defence
Council. The Air Force Board (AFB) is the management board of the RAF and consists of the
Commanders-in-Chief of the Commands, together with several other high ranking officers. The CAS
also has a deputy known as the Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (ACAS); currently this post is held by
Air Vice-Marshal Chris Moran.
Commands
Authority is delegated from the AFB to the RAF's commands. While there were once individual
commands responsible for bombers, fighters, training, etc, only two commands exist currently:
 Strike Command — HQ at RAF High Wycombe — responsible for all of the

operations of the RAF.
 Personnel and Training Command — HQ now also at RAF High Wycombe —
responsible for recruitment, initial, trade training, including flying training.
Groups
Groups are the subdivisions of operational Commands, responsible for certain types of operation or for
operations in limited geographical areas. As from 1 April 2006, Strike Command is made-up of two
Groups following the disbandment of No.3 Group:
 1 Group — the Air Combat Group, controls the RAF's combat fast jet aircraft,
including Joint Force Harrier, and has seven airfields in the UK plus RAF Unit Goose
Bay in Canada, which is used extensively as an operational training base.
 2 Group — the Air Combat Support Group, controls the Strategic and Tactical air
transport aircraft, the RAF Regiment, the RAF's Air to Air Refuelling aircraft as well
as ISTAR and Search & Rescue assets.
Only one group exists within Personnel and Training Command, namely 22 Group.
Stations
The RAF's roundel was adopted during the First World War. The roundel has been adopted and
modified by Commonwealth air forces, often replacing the red circle with a national symbol.
An RAF Station is ordinarily subordinate to a Group and it is administratively sub-divided into Wings.
Since the mid to late 1930s RAF stations have controlled a number of flying squadrons or other units at
one location by means of a station headquarters.
Wings
A Wing is either a sub-division of a Group acting independently or a sub-division of an RAF Station.
Independent Wings are a grouping of two or more squadrons, either flying squadrons or ground support
squadrons. In former times, numbered flying Wings have existed, but more recently they have only been
created when required, for example during Operation Telic, Tornado Wings were formed to operate
from Ali Al Salem and Al Udeid Air Bases; each of these were made up of aircraft and crews from
several squadrons.
On 31st March 2006, the RAF formed nine Expeditionary Air Wings (EAW). The Expeditionary Air
Wings have been established to support operations. They have been formed at the nine main operating
bases; RAF Coningsby, RAF Cottesmore, RAF Kinloss, RAF Leeming, RAF Leuchars, RAF
Lossiemouth, RAF Lyneham, RAF Marham, and RAF Waddington. These units will be commanded by
a Group Captain who is also the Station Commander. The unit is formed around the squadrons based at
the stations housing the wing, however, they are flexible and can be quickly adapted for operations and
deployment. [4]
On RAF Stations, a Wing is an administrative sub-division. For a flying station these will normally be
Engineering Wing, Operations Wing and Administration Wing. Aside from these, the only Wings
currently in permanent existence are the Air Combat Service Support wings of 2 Group which provide
support services such as communications, supply and policing to operationally deployed units.
Squadrons
The term squadron (sqn) can be used to refer to an administrative sub-unit of a station, e.g. Air Traffic
Control sqn, Personnel Management sqn; there are also ground support squadrons, e.g. 2 (MT) Sqn.
However, the primary use for the term is as the name of the flying squadrons which carry out the
primary tasks of the RAF. RAF squadrons are somewhat analogous to the regiments of the British army,
in that they have histories and traditions going back to their formation, regardless of where they are
currently based, which aircraft they are operating, etc. They can be awarded standards and battle
honours for meritorious service.
Whilst every squadron is different, most flying squadrons are commanded by a Wing Commander and,
for a fast-jet squadron, have an establishment of around 100 personnel and 12 aircraft, but 16 aircraft for
Tornado F3 Squadrons.
Flights
A flight is a sub-division of a squadron. Flying squadrons are often divided into two flights, under the
command of a Squadron Leader; administrative squadrons on a station are also divided into flights.
There are several flying units formed as Flights rather than Squadrons, due to their small size.
RAF Personnel
In 2006 the RAF employed 52,804 active duty personnel and more than 12,000 reservists.At its height
during the Second World War, in excess of 1,000,000 personnel were serving at any one time.
Officers
Main article: RAF officer ranks
Officers hold a commission from the Sovereign, which provides the legal authority for them to issue
orders to subordinates. The commission is granted after successfully completing the 30-week-long
Initial Officer Training course at the RAF College, Cranwell.
The titles and insignia of RAF Officers were derived from those used by the Royal Navy, specifically
the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) during World War I. For example, the rank of Squadron Leader
derived its name from the RNAS rank of Squadron Commander. RAF officers fall into three categories:
air officers, senior officers and junior officers.
Other Ranks
Other Ranks attend the Recruit Training Squadron at RAF Halton for basic training, with the exception
of the RAF Regiment, which trains its recruits at RAF Honington.
The titles and insignia of Other Ranks in the RAF was based on that of the Army, with some alterations
in terminology. Over the years, this structure has seen significant changes, for example there was once a
separate system for those in technical trades and the rank of Chief Technician continues to be held only
by personnel in technical trades. RAF other ranks fall into four categories: warrant officers, senior non-
commissioned officers, junior non-commissioned officers and airmen.
Branches and Trades

 All Pilots and Weapon Systems Officers (formerly known as Navigators) in the
RAF are commissioned officers.
 Non-commissioned aircrew fulfil roles such as Air Loadmasters (ALM), Air
Signallers, Air Electronics Operators (AEO), etc, although they are now all known as
Weapon Systems Operators.
The majority of the members of the RAF serve in vital support roles on the ground.
 Officers and Gunners in the RAF Regiment, which was created during World War
II, defend RAF airfields from attack. They have infantry and light armoured units to
protect against ground attack and until recently they operated surface-to-air missiles [
Rapiers ] to defend against air attack - this role was given to the Royal Artillery in
2005 and was taken against the wishes of the RAF, which wanted to retain and
maintain its organic ground-to-air defence capability.
 The RAF Police are the military police of the RAF and are located wherever the
RAF is located. Unlike the UK Civil Police, the RAF Police are armed as needed.
Since 2003 the RAF Police have stop and search, arrest, and search and seizure
powers outside RAF Stations.
 Intelligence Officers and Analysts of the RAF Intelligence Branch support all
operational activities by providing timely and accurate Indicators and Warnings. They
conduct military intelligence fusion and analysis by conducting imagery and
communications analysis, targeting, and assessment of the enemies capabilities and
intent.
 Engineering Officers and technicians are employed to maintain and repair the
equipment used by the RAF. This includes routine preparation for flight and
maintenance on aircraft, as well as deeper level repair work on aircraft systems, IT
systems, ground based radar, MT vehicles, etc.
 Fighter Controllers (FC) and Air Traffic Controllers (ATC) control RAF and
NATO aircraft from the ground. The FC control the interception of enemy aircraft
while the ATC provide air traffic services at RAF stations and to the majority of en-
route military aircraft in UK airspace.
 Administrative Officers and associated trades perform a range of secretarial tasks
as well as fulfilling training management, physical education and catering roles.
 Royal Air Force Chaplains are trained by the Armed Forces Chaplaincy Centre at
Amport House.
 The Royal Air Force Medical Branch provides healthcare at home and on
deployed operations, including aeromedical evacuation services. Medical officers are
the doctors of the RAF and have specialist expertise in aviation medicine to support
aircrew and their protective equipment. Medical Officers can go on aeromedical
evacuations, providing vital assistance on search-and-rescue missions or emergency
relief flights worldwide.
 The RAF Legal Branch provides legal advice on discipline / criminal law and
operations law.
Aircraft
Many types of aircraft currently serve with the RAF, although there is less variety in the order of battle
of the organisation than in previous decades due to the increasing cost of military systems. The types
currently in the RAF inventory are listed below.
The code which follows each aircraft's name describe the role of the variant. For example, the Tornado
F.3 is designated as a fighter by the 'F', and is the third variant of the type to be produced.
Strike, attack and offensive support aircraft

The mainstay of what the RAF calls its Offensive Support fleet is the Tornado GR.4. This supersonic
aircraft can carry a wide range of weaponry, including Storm Shadow cruise missiles, laser guided
bombs and the ALARM anti-radar missile. The Tornado is supplemented by the Harrier GR.7 & GR.7A
and Jaguar GR.3 & GR.3A, which are used in the close air support role and to counter enemy air
defences. The Harrier is being upgraded to GR.9 standard with newer systems and more powerful
engines. The Harrier GR9 was formally accepted into RAF service in late September 06.
Air defence and Airborne Early Warning Aircraft
The Tornado F.3 is the RAF's air defence fighter aircraft, based at RAF Leuchars and RAF Leeming to
defend the UK’s airspace. The Sentry AEW.1 provides airborne radar to detect incoming enemy aircraft
and to co-ordinate the aerial battlefield. Both the Sentry and the F.3 have been involved in recent
operations including over Iraq and the Balkans. The Tornado, in service in the air defence role since the
late 1980s, is due to be replaced by the state of the art, Typhoon F.2.
Reconnaissance Aircraft
Variants of attack aircraft, the Jaguar GR.3/GR.3A and Tornado GR.4A are fitted with specialist
reconnaissance pods and squadrons exist with both types in the reconnaissance role. The elderly
Canberra PR.9 was also used in this role for its ability to fly at high altitude for long duration sorties,
however was recently retired from service. All three types are/were equipped with a range of cameras
and sensors in the visual, infra-red and radar ranges of the spectrum. Providing electronic and signals
intelligence is the Nimrod R.1. The new Sentinel R.1 provides ASTOR ground radar surveillance
platform based on the Bombardier Global Express long range business jet.
Search and Rescue Aircraft

Three squadrons of helicopters exist with the primary role of rescuing aircrew who have ejected or
crash-landed their aircraft. These are 22 Sqn and 202 Sqn with the Sea King HAR.3/HAR.3A in the UK
and 84 Sqn with the Griffin HAR.2 in Cyprus. Although established in a military role, most of their
operational missions are to rescue civilians from ships at sea, mountains and other locations.
Maritime Patrol
The Nimrod MR2 primary role is that of Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and Anti-Surface Unit
Warfare (ASUW). The Nimrod MR2 is additionaly used in a Search and Rescue (SAR) role, where its
long range and extensive communications facilities allow it to co-ordinate rescues by acting as a link
between rescue helicopters, ships and shore bases. It can also drop pods containing life rafts and survival
supplies to people in the sea.The already very capable MR2,will begin to be replaced by 12 NIMROD
MRA4 aircraft in the next few years.The NIMROD MRA4 is described by BAE Systems as a world
leader in terms of maritime patrol platforms.
Support helicopters
An important part of the work of the RAF is to support the Army by ferrying troops and equipment to
and across the battlefield. The support helicopters are organised into the tri-service Joint Helicopter
Command with Army and Navy aircraft. The large twin- rotor Chinook HC.2/HC.2A, based at RAF
Odiham provides heavy lift and is supported by Merlin HC.3 and the smaller Puma HC.1, based at RAF
Benson and RAF Aldergrove.
Transport and Air-to-Air Refuelling aircraft

Having refuled the former Queen's Flight in 1995, 32 (The Royal) Squadron uses the BAe 125 CC.3,
Agusta A109 and BAe 146 CC.2 in the VIP transport role, based at RAF Northolt in west London. More
routine air transport tasks are carried out by the Tristars and VC10s based at RAF Brize Norton, both
used to transport troops and cargo, and for air-to-air refuelling. Shorter range tactical transport is
provided by the C-130 Hercules, the fleet including both older K-model and new J-model aircraft. The
RAF has leased 4 C-17 Globemaster IIIs from Boeing to provide a strategic heavy airlift capability; it
was announced in 2004 that these will be purchased, together with a further example, once the lease
expires. The MOD as expressed a wish to buy a further 3 C-17's, but due to budget constraints the MOD
can only afford to buy one each year, running the risk that the production line may be shut down before
the RAF gets the aircraft it needs.
Training aircraft
A wide range of aircraft types are used for training aircrew in their duties. At the more advanced stage in
training, variants of front-line aircraft have been adapted for operational conversion of trained pilots,
these include the Canberra T.4, Harrier T.10, Jaguar T.4 and Typhoon T.1. Advanced flying training for
fast-jet, helicopter and multi-engine pilots is provided using the Hawk T.1, Griffin HT.1 and Super King
Air T.1 respectively.
Basic pilot training is provided on the Tucano T.1 and Eurocopter Squirrel HT.1, while navigator
training is in the Dominie T.1. Elementary flying training is conducted on either the Slingsby Firefly or
Tutor T.1, depending on the new pilot's route of entry to the service. The Tutor is also used, along with
the Viking T.1 and Vigilant T.1 gliders, to provide air experience for Air Cadets.
Future aircraft
The aircraft operated by the RAF continue to be upgraded and improved throughout their service life. In
addition, new aircraft to replace existing fleets or fill new roles come into service every so often.
Aircraft in development or soon to be deployed include the Airbus A400M, of which 25 are to be used
to replace the remaining Hercules C-130Ks. (Some of the C-130K fleet was replaced by 25 new C-130J
Hercules in 1999, 5 C-17s will be retained). A new version of the Chinook, the HC.3, with improved
avionics and increased range, was developed mainly for special forces missions. Service entry has been
delayed due to software problems and legal issues. The Eurofighter Typhoon is entering service and the
RAF will be the largest operator of the type. The Typhoon will replace the Tornado F3 interceptor and
the Jaguar GR3A ground attack aircraft by 2010. The Hawk 128 will replace the existing Hawks in
service; the newer model being more similar in equipment and performance to modern front line aircraft.
The ageing aerial refuelling fleet of VC10s and Tristars should be replaced with the Airbus A330 MRTT
under the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft programme. Problems with contract negotiations have led to
unsolicited proposals for the conversion of civil Tristars or DC-10s. The Joint Combat Aircraft (the
British designation for the F-35 Lightning II) will replace the Harrier GR.7 and GR.9. Studies have
begun regarding the long term replacement for the Tornado GR.4 (Although the Future Offensive Air
System project was cancelled in 2005). The RAF transport helicopter force, the Puma and Sea Kings,
are to be replaced by the Support Amphibious and Battlefield Rotorcraft (SABR) project, likely a mix of
Merlins and Chinooks.
RAF deployments

Baltic Air 4 Tornado F3 for a 3 months rotation under NATO
Lithuania 2004
Policing monitoring mission
Chinooks provided airlift support to coalition forces.
Afghanistan 2001– Operation Since late 2004 six Harriers have provided
Veritas
reconnaissance and close air support to the ISAF.
RAF enforced no-fly zones over the Balkans in the
late 1990s and participated in the NATO
Merlin
Bosnia 1995– interventions in Bosnia and Kosovo. Today, RAF
helicopters
helicopters remain to provide support to the United
Nations.
Used as an air bridge between the UK and the
Ascension 1981– Ascension
Falkland Islands. United States Air Force also
Island Island Base
stationed at this base.
RAF Unit RAF aircraft train in low-level tactical flying at CFB
Canada 1940s– Goose Bay, Goose Bay, an air force base of the Canadian Air
Canada Force.
Located in the British Sovereign Base Area on
Cyprus 1956– RAF Akrotiri Cyprus, the airfield acts a forward base for
deployment of UK forces in the Middle East
Built after the Falklands War to allow a fighter and
Falkland RAF Mount transport facility on the islands, and to strengthen the
1984–
Islands Pleasant defence capacity of the British Forces. A detachment
of RAF Regiment provides anti-aircraft support.
No permanently stationed aircraft. RAF aircraft, e.g.
Gibraltar 1940s–RAF Gibraltar
Hercules transports, make regular visits.
RAF dispatched to South East Asia following the
Support and
Indonesia 2005 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake disaster to provide aid
transport
relief support
RAF fighters based in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait prior
Middle East 1990– Various to and during the 1990 Gulf War, and later to enforce
no-fly zones over Iraq. Following the 2003 invasion
of Iraq and the occupation of southern Iraq by British
Forces, the RAF is deployed at Basra. SH is provided
in Iraq by Merlin, Puma and Chinook
Norway 1960s– Bardufoss Air RAF fighter and/or helicopter squadrons undergo
Station winter-training here most years.
Symbols, flags and emblems
Royal Air Force Ensign
Following the tradition of the other British fighting services, the RAF has adopted various symbols to
represent it and act as a rallying point for its members [2].
The RAF Ensign is flown from the flagstaff on every RAF station during daylight hours. It is hoisted
and hauled down by station duty staff daily. The design was approved by King George V in 1921, after
much opposition from the Admiralty, who have the right to approve or veto any flag flown ashore or on
board ship.
British aircraft in the early stages of the First World War carried the Union Flag as an identifying
feature, however this was easy to confuse with the German Iron Cross motif. Therefore in October 1914
the French system of three concentric rings was adopted, with the colours reversed to a red disc
surrounded by a white ring and an outer blue ring. The relative sizes of the rings have changed over the
years and during World War II an outer yellow ring was added. Aircraft serving in the Far East during
World War II had the red disc removed to prevent confusion with Japanese aircraft. Since the 1970s,
camouflaged aircraft carry low-visibility roundels, either red and blue on dark camouflage, or washed-
out pink and light blue on light colours. Most uncamouflaged training and transport aircraft retain the
traditional red-white-blue roundel.
The Latin motto of the RAF, "Per Ardua ad Astra", is usually translated as "Through Adversity to the
Stars". The choice of motto is attributed to a junior officer by the name of J S Yule, in response to a
request from the first Commander of the RFC, Colonel Sykes, for suggestions.
Royal Air Force fin flash (non combat version)
The badge of the RAF, shown at the top of this article, is in heraldic terms: "In front of a circle inscribed
with the motto Per Ardua Ad Astra and ensigned by the Imperial Crown an eagle volant and affronty
Head lowered and to the sinister." It was approved in 1923 based on a design by a tailor at Gieves Ltd of
Savile Row, although the original had an albatross rather than the eagle and was surrounded by a garter
belt rather than the plain circle.
In 2006 a flash was designed and issued to personnel with the same design as the tail panel for wear on
combat clothing. It is 45mm squared. There is also a badge to go over the right chest pocket with the text
ROYAL AIR FORCE in black capitals on a green background. There is no desert pattern available.
The RAF also has its own tartan. Designed in 1988, it was only officially recognised by the Ministry of
Defence in 2001. It is used by the RAF Pipes Band and may be worn by Officers serving at Scottish
units with their No.5 HD Mess Dress.
Royal Auxiliary Air Force
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF) is the volunteer reserve part of the Royal Air Force. It
consists of volunteers who give up some of their weekends to train at one of a number of Squadrons
around the United Kingdom
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force owes its origin to Lord Trenchard's vision of an elite corps of civilians
who would serve their country in flying squadrons in their spare time. Instituted by Order in Council on
9th October 1924, the first Auxiliary Air Force (AAF) squadrons were formed the following year.
World War II
By September 1939, there were 20 Flying Sqns, equipped with a variety of operational aircraft which
included Hurricanes and Spitfires; there were also 47 Balloon Squadrons. These AAF Squadrons scored
a number of notable successes before and during World War ll: the flight over Mount Everest, the first
German aircraft destroyed over British territorial waters - and over the mainland, the first U-boat to be
destroyed with the aid of airborne radar, the first kill of a VI flying bomb; the first to be equipped with
jet-powered aircraft, and the highest score of any British Night Fighter Sqn. In the Battle of Britain, the
AAF provided 14 of the 62 Squadrons in Fighter Command's Order of Battle and accounted for
approximately 30% of the accredited enemy kills. The Balloon Squadrons also played their part,
downing and deterring many hostile aircraft and were accredited with the destruction of 279 VI flying
bombs.
Cold War
These achievements were honoured by the prefix Royal conferred by King George VI in 1947. Events
post WWII heralded a time of great danger for the UK. The onset of the Cold War with the Communist
Bloc leading to the Berlin Air Lift and ultimately the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. During
all these crises the RAuxAF fighter squadrons, and other RAuxAF units, played their part in the UK's air
defenceand participated in many NATO air exercises. In 1951, at the height of the Korean War, all 20
RAuxAF fighter squadrons representing one third of Fighter Command strength were called up for
three-months full-time service. They were required for home defence in place of regular squadrons
earmarked for deployment to Korea. In the event RAF fighter squadrons were not needed in Korea, but
the RAuxAF squadrons were retained for intensive refresher training at their home bases
The 10 March 1957 saw the disbandment of all 21 Royal Auxiliary Air Force Flying Squadrons and also
the Light Anti-Aircraft Squadrons of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment. In the following two
years or so, the Auxiliary Fighter Control Units associated with them were also disbanded. On the 16
March 1960, the Air Commodore-in-Chief and His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh,
invited the Squadron Commanders and Flight Commanders of all the disbanded Royal Auxiliary Air
Force units to a Reception at Buckingham Palace. (All were given a letter from the Air Commodore-in-
Chief and this is reproduced below)
The renaissance of the RAuxAF began in 1979 with the formation of three Regiment Field Sqns, and
continued with a Movements Sqn in 1982, and, following lessons learned during the Falklands conflict;
an Aeromedical Evacuation Sqn in 1983. A more recent addition, in 1987, was an auxiliary element
(The Grampian Troop) formed within a regular RAF Regiment Rapier Air Defence Sqn. Another step
forward was taken in 1986, with the raising of four Defence Force Flts with the role of ground defence
of key points on air bases. In 1984, the RAuxAF's Diamond jubilee was marked by the award to the
Service of its own badge, which forms the basic motif of the Sovereign's Colour for the Royal Auxiliary
Force presented by Her Majesty the Queen in 1989. The words of the badge motto COMITAMUR AD
ASTRA - We go with them to the stars.
Gulf War and beyond

During the Gulf War in 1991 the Aeromedical and Movements Sqns performed with great distinction in
theatre and at other locations in the UK and overseas.
During 2003 the RAuxAF was involved in the first large-scale mobilisation for over 50 years. More than
900 people, over 70% of its trained strength, were called into full-time service and were deployed to
support RAF operations in Cyprus, Kuwait, Iraq and the Falkland Islands, as well as those in the UK.
The RAuxAF enjoyed its 80th anniversary during 2004 and Lord Trenchard's vision has been amply
vindicated by its achievements spanning the years. Whilst the Auxiliary concept has moved away from
the provision of Flying Sqns, the professional skill, enthusiasm and esprit-de-corps of his young men of
the twenties and thirties are matched by the men and women who constitute the RAuxAF of today
Personal letter from Queen Elizabeth

BUCKINGHAM PALACE
I have welcomed this opportunity of taking leave of the Commanding Officers and senior Auxiliary
officers of the squadrons of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force which are being disbanded and of sending
through them this message of appreciation and thanks to all their officers, airmen and airwomen.
The history of the Auxiliary Air Force has been a glorious one. The first Auxiliary squadrons were
included in the Air Defence of Great Britain in 1925. By the outbreak of war in 1939 the Auxiliary
fighter, coastal and balloon squadrons formed an integral and vital part of our forces. It was aircraft of
these squadrons which shot down the first enemy bomber over this country; and Auxiliary squadrons
were heavily engaged in the air over Dunkirk and throughout the Battle of Britain. Later they were to
win battle honours over the Atlantic, in Malta, North Africa, Sicily and Italy, the Arakan and Burma,
and in Normandy, France and Germany.
After the war, the fighter squadrons were reconstituted as the Royal Auxiliary Air Force and the
traditional spirit of voluntary service found new outlets with the formation of Regiment, Air OP, Fighter
Control and Radar reporting Units, some of which are to remain in being and provide further
opportunities for voluntary service.
The association of the Force with my family has always been close. I was proud to become Honorary
Air Commodore of Nos 603, 2063 and 3603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadrons in 1951 and to succeed my
father as Honorary Air Commodore-in-Chief of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force in 1952. Members of my
family have always treasured their association with Auxiliary squadrons as Honorary Air Commodores.
I wish as Air Commodore-in-Chief to thank officers, airmen and airwomen of the Royal Auxiliary Air
Force for all that they have given to the service of the country by their enthusiasm, their spirit and their
devotion to duty in peace and war. It is a sad day when it is necessary to tell so many that it is no longer
possible to use their services on the duties they have assumed so willingly. I wish them to know that
they can look back with pride and satisfaction to service well done.
16 March 1957 Elizabeth R

RAF Regiment
The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regt) is a specialist corps within the Royal Air Force,
responsible for capturing and defending airfields and associated installations. Effectively, its members
are the RAF's soldiers. Members of the Regiment are known within the RAF as 'Rock Apes' or 'Rocks'
and the corps itself is simply known as 'The Regiment'. In the past the nickname 'Rock Ape' has been
attributed to their traditional role guarding areas of Gibraltar, but this is not so. The term came into use
after an accident in the Western Aden Protectorate in November 1952. Two Regiment Officers serving
with the APL at Dhala decided to amuse themselves by going out to shoot some of the baboons (locally
referred to as rock apes). The Officers drew rifles and split up to hunt the apes yet in the semi-darkness
one of the Officers fired at a moving object in the distance. When he reached the target he discovered he
had shot the other Officer. After emergency treatment Flight Lieutenant Mason survived to return to
service a few months later. When asked why he had fired at his friend by a board of inquest the Officer
replied that his target had 'looked just like a rock ape' in the half light. The remark soon reverberated
around the RAF and it was not long before the term was in general use.
Organisation and current role

The RAF Regiment comes under command of 2 Group, Strike Command. Its members are organised
into ten regular squadrons. There are three Ground-Based Air Defence squadrons. These are responsible
for defending airfields and other high value assets against air attack and are equipped with Rapier
vehicle-portable surface-to-air missiles. The remainder of the regiment consists of nine Field squadrons
including three Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF) squadrons, responsible for defending against
ground attack. Whilst apparently similar to British Army infantry, they are trained, equipped and
manned to deal with the requirements of protecting high value air assets during operations across the
spectrum of conflict. They are particularly equipped with a range of direct and indirect fire systems and
specialist surveillance and night vision equipment. Unlike the infantry, each member of a field squadron
is required to master a wide range of skills that include covert observation and target acquisition, and
dismounted close combat. The unique nature of air operations is such that RAF Regiment personnel
must have a specific understanding of its requirements in order to ensure that the tactics, techniques and
procedures employed do not disrupt those operations. Additionally, because air bases are fixed and
supporting elements are unable to redeploy quickly, field squadrons must engage an attacking adversary
at the earliest opportunity to prevent air operations from being disrupted. This requires RAF Regiment
personnel to operate in small groups and to be trained and prepared to engage the adversary in combat
frequently without the level of support that would be commonplace on an infantry battlegroup.
Field Squadrons employ a tactic of aggressive defence, seeking to dominate the wider area around the
station by mounting observation posts and employing patrols to locate and neutralize the enemy before it
can come within striking distance. Field Squadrons are divided into Flights, which are larger than an
army platoon. Each squadron contains several Rifle Flights, whose task is to engage and destroy the
enemy at close range, and a Support Weapons Flight, which provides fire support to the Rifle Flights by
using machine guns, mortars, portable anti-tank weapons, and snipers.
The Ground-Based Air Defence Squadrons are 108 strong and the field squadrons are 166 strong
(increasing soon to 171 strong) making them considerably larger than an infantry company in the army.
All RAF Regiment personnel are male, in line with the British Government policy that women cannot
serve in front line close-combat units. There are approximately 2,000 regular airmen (i.e. Other Ranks),
300 regular officers, and 500 reservists. Since 1990, the RAF Regiment has taken part in operations in
Afghanistan, Bosnia, Croatia, Cyprus, Falkland Islands, Iraq, Kosovo, Kuwait, Northern Ireland, Saudi
Arabia and Sierra Leone. Furthermore, RAF Regiment officers have been seconded as United Nations
Monitoring Officers in support of UN peace-keeping mission in places such as Iraq, Cambodia and
Republic of Georgia. RAF Regiment units have frequently been tasked to form part of Army and other
formations to make use of their specialist skills and 51 Squadron RAF Regiment
Specialist squadrons and units
The Royal Air Force Regiment
Badge of the RAF Regiment

Active 1 February 1942-Present
Country United Kingdom
Branch Royal Air Force
Type Ground Defence
Role Ground Defence/Low Level Air
Defence
Size 10 Squadrons
Part of Royal Air Force
Garrison/HQ No 1 Sqn - RAF ST Mawgan
No 2 Sqn - RAF Honington
No 3 Sqn - RAF Aldergrove
No 26 Sqn - RAF Waddington
No 34 Sqn - RAF Leeming
No 51 Sqn - RAF Lossiemouth
No 63 Sqn (QCS) - RAF Uxbridge
Nickname The Rock Apes
Motto Per Ardua (Through Adversity)
March Quick - Holyrood
Commanders
Air Commodore-in- HM The Queen
Chief
Insignia
Tactical Recognition
Flash
 I Squadron took part in the Berlin Airlift, the 1991 Gulf War, and the 2003
invasion of Iraq.
 II Squadron is a parachute-trained Field Squadron which is capable of inserting by
parachute and securing forward airfields, a capability that was used during Operation
Palliser in Sierra Leone in 2000.
 3 Squadron is a Field Squadron deployed to guarantee the security of RAF
Aldergrove and Belfast International Airport in Northern Ireland.
 27 Squadron is a specialist unit that forms half of the Joint CBRN Regiment
together with 1st Royal Tank Regiment.
 In addition, the Regiment has a ground extraction unit attached to No. 28
Squadron RAF, which provides Combat Search and Rescue teams to recover downed
RAF Aircrew.
 51 Squadron also took part in the 1991 Gulf War, and the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
 63 Squadron, known as the Queen's Colour Squadron, is a Field Squadron which
represents the RAF at high profile ceremonial occasions (including mounting the
Queen's Guard at Buckingham Palace), and is also responsible for guarding the
Queen's Colour of the Royal Air Force. It was formerly purely a ceremonial
squadron, the Queen's Colour Squadron (with no number), with no other duties, but it
has now become a fully fledged field squadron.
 The RAF Regiment provides training teams for all RAF stations, which are
responsible for training station personnel in Force Protection and operational
deployment skills.
 The Regiment is also responsible for the Defence CBRN Centre at Winterborne
Gunner which trains personnel from all 3 services and the civilian police in CBRN
defence skills. It also provides CBRN specialist advice and support to other
organisations.
 RAF Regiment personnel man a number of Tactical Air Control Parties, including
3 in the Army's 16 Air Assault Brigade. These parties contain RAF Regiment
Forward Air Controllers who are responsible for directing fire support from fast jet
attack aircraft in support of ground combat forces.
 A handful of RAF Regiment personnel are deployed as part of the tri-service
Special Forces Support Group which provides support to the United Kingdom Special
Forces.
History
The genesis of the RAF Regiment was with the creation of No 1 Armoured Car Company RAF in 1921
for operations in Iraq, followed shortly afterwards by Nos II and 3 companies. These were equipped
with Rolls Royce Armoured Cars and were highly successful in ground combat operations throughout
the Middle East in the 1920s and 30s. The RAF Regiment came into existence, in name, on 1 February
1942. From the start it had both field squadrons and light anti-aircraft squadrons, the latter originally
armed with Hispano-Suiza and Bofors automatic cannon. Its role was originally purely defensive, but
later in the war it took on offensive tasks such as capturing enemy airfields and frequently worked as
line infantry in all theatres of war. Several parachute squadrons were formed to assist in the capture of
airfields and the recovery of downed aircrew, and No II Squadron retains this capability. 284 Field
Squadron was the first RAF unit to arrive in West Berlin in 1945, to secure RAF Gatow.
World War II recruiting poster
The Regiment has a museum at RAF Honington near Bury St Edmunds. The RAF Regiment frequently
mounts the King's Guard/Queen's Guard at Buckingham Palace, St James's Palace, Windsor Castle and
the Tower of London, with the first occasion being on 1 April 1943.
During World War II, the RAF Regiment grew to a force of 66,000 men in 280 Squadrons of 185 men
each (each squadron including five officers). Each squadron consisted of a Headquarters Flight, three
Rifle Flights, an Air-Defence Flight, and an Armoured-Car Flight. The flights were grouped together
into Wings as needed. It also operated six Armoured Car Squadrons to provide an area response
capability to several RAF stations. Light Armoured Squadrons, equipped with FV101 Scorpion and
FV107 Scimitar light tanks, continued to be operated into the 1980s.
Formerly the RAF's firefighters were also members of the RAF Regiment, although they are now
independent of it.
Further information on the history of the RAF Regiment:
'Through Adversity' by Kingsley M Oliver
Recent news
On 12 July 2004, it was announced by Geoff Hoon that the RAF Regiment will relinquish the Ground-
Based Air Defence role as the threat from air attack had diminished. This role will now only be carried
out by the Royal Artillery, and the four RAF Regiment squadrons will be disbanded by 1 April 2008.
The four squadrons to be disbanded are:
 15 Squadron (March 2008)

However, as part of the same re-organisation, it was announced that the RAF Regiment would make up
part of the new Ranger unit, designed to support the Special Forces. It is estimated that the RAF
Regiment will supply approximately 100 members of this unit. In addition, a large number of personnel
from the disbanding squadrons will be employed on other specialist tasks. The Special Forces Support
Group was declared operational in April 2006.
As a result of the deletions of the GBAD squadrons, No 3 Squadron and No 63 (QCS) Squadron will
each receive an additional 40 personnel, in order to match their operational capabilities with the four
other field squadrons, while another two Force Protection units have been formed (No 5 FP Wing at
Lossiemouth and No 6 FP Wing at Leuchars). In addition, No 1 Squadron is to be moved from RAF St
Mawgan to RAF Honington, which will result in No 2625 Squadron, RAuxAF Regt also being
disbanded.
Current RAF Regiment units

 Field Squadrons
o 1 Squadron
o II Squadron (Parachute)
o 3 Squadron
o 34 Squadron
o 51 Squadron
o 63 Squadron (Queen's Colour Squadron)
 Ground Based Air Defence Squadrons
o 15 Squadron
o 16 Squadron
o 26 Squadron
 NBC Squadrons
o 27 Squadron (Joint NBC Regiment)
 Other Units
o Force Protection
 No 1 RAF Force Protection Wing HQ
o Combat Recovery
 Ground Extraction Force, E Flight, No 28 (AC) Squadron
 Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment Squadrons
o 2503 Squadron (Ground Defence)
o 2623 Squadron (CBRN)
Royal Air Force Police
The Royal Air Force Police (RAFP), also called the RAF Provost Branch or Scuffers, is the military
police branch of the British Royal Air Force. It was formed on 1 April 1918, when the RAF was formed
from the merger of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). It is
responsible for policing the RAF and its installations.
Members of the RAFP are distinguished by their white-topped caps (giving rise to their nickname of
"Snowdrops"), which they have worn since 1945, and black/red/black flashes worn below their rank
slides, known as "Mars Bars". Unlike their Army colleagues in the Royal Military Police, they do not
wear a distinctive red beret when wearing camouflaged uniform, although they do wear the same red
'MP' flashes on the sleeve of their uniforms.
Organisation and current role

The RAF Police is headed by a Provost Marshal, who until recently held the rank of Air Commodore.
The RAF Police have recently undergone a period of downsizing in line with reductions across the RAF
in both manpower and aircraft. The Provost Marshal now holds the rank of Group Captain, with an Air
Commodore of the RAF Regiment being in overall charge of security for the RAF. The Provost Marshal
is assisted by other Provost Officers (formerly known as Assistant Provost Marshals - APM), who are in
charge of the RAF Police on a unit level and are responsible for advising the Station Commander on all
aspects of policing and security.
There is a detachment of RAFP on most RAF stations. Usually it is a flight, commanded by a Flying
Officer or Flight Lieutenant (as OC), with either a Flight Sergeant or Sergeant as Senior Non-
Commissioned Officer (SNCO) RAFP (sometimes referred to as the "Sheriff"). A Warrant Officer
sometimes commands a police flight in place of a commissioned officer, or acts as second-in-command
in a larger flight.
Larger stations may have a security squadron, with a Squadron Leader in command as Officer
Commanding (OC) Security, who is also responsible for the general security of the station. The security
squadron may also encompass a flight of RAF Regiment personnel. The police flight in such a squadron
is usually commanded by a Flight Lieutenant as OC RAFP, with a Flight Sergeant as SNCO RAFP.
The RAF Police also fulfills the RAF's counter-intelligence (CI) role, similar to that carried out by the
British Army Intelligence Corps. They provide specialist counter-intelligence and computer security
support. Unlike their Intelligence Corps counterparts, who tend to specialise in a particular area, RAF
Police CI specialists are trained in all aspects of the counter-intelligence field. Computer security (CSy)
is a further specialisation within the CI field and personnel trained to this level are expected to perform
all CI and CSy related tasks.
The modern station RAF Police flight may operate shifts, but these are usually only involved in
community policing and are normally commanded by a Corporal (larger shifts may require a Sergeant).
Some stations with large airheads may also operate shifts for Air Transport Security (ATSy). The police
flight will normally consist of a Community Police Section, a Special Investigations Section
(investigators trained specifically for criminal investigations - known as SI), and a CI Section. The
special investigations role is undergoing a restructure that is centralising the task. In future special
investigations will be handled by regional teams that will replace the station SI sections.
Specialist units
Outside the unit level, the RAFP also has its own Special Investigation Branch (SIB) for the
investigation of serious crime. This is effectively the RAF's version of civilian police Criminal
Investigation Departments. This is known as the Specialist Police Wing (SPW), and is split into four
geographical regions covering the United Kingdom and Germany. This section of the RAFP is also
responsible for forensic investigation through the RAF's own Forensic Science Flight. SPW is also
responsible for the Counter Intelligence Field Force.
The RAFP also has a tactical deployable wing known as the Tactical Provost Wing, whose major role is
forward policing and Line Of Communication Policing (LoCP) in conflict zones. The TPW was heavily
involved in the recent Gulf conflict.
Additionally, the RAFP operate a large Police Dog Section from a number of RAF bases.
Training
RAF Police are now trained at the Defence Police College, Southwick Park, along with the Royal Navy
Service Police and Royal Military Police.
The RAF Police were previously trained at RAF Halton. Until the late 1980s, training took place at RAF
St Athan, whilst RAF Police dog handlers were trained at RAF Newton.
TPW training includes:
 police exams/assessments
 driving (on and off road)
 weapons training
 Lines of Communication Police training
 Air Transport Security
 Baton and handcuff training
 Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) warfare
Personnel are also required to maintain good physical fitness and this is tested yearly.
Royal Auxillary Air Force (Police)

3 Suadron, Tactical Provost Wing is based at RAF Henlow in Bedfordshire and is part of RAF Provost
and Security Services (P&SS).
During 2005 elements of 3 TPW deployed on exercise with Territorial Army units of the Royal Military
Police to Poland for Exercise Uhlan Eagle.

British Armed Forces

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British Armed Forces

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Personnel (Regular Army) 107,730

Personnel (Territorial Army) 38,460

Main Battle Tanks 386 Challenger 2

Infantry fighting vehicles 667 Warrior (789 purchased)

APCs and reconnaissance vehicles 3,230–4,000+

Land Rover Wolf 15,000

Utility Trucks 2,300

Artillery pieces and mortar 2,896

Air Defence 337

'High Intensity' Operations

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'Low Intensity' Operations

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Two resident infantry The UK retains two Sovereign Base Areas

Constant occupation since 1833, except

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After the Kosovo War in 1999, the British

Since the Gulf War 1 in 1991, the UK has

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British troops have been based in Belize since

A Gurkha battalion has been maintained in

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Formation and structure

Corps, which is a grouping by common function, such as Royal Corps of Signals.

Brigade in a non fighting capacity

Battalion of about 700 soldiers, made up of five companies commanded by a Lieutenant-Colonel

Company of about 100 soldiers, typically in three platoons, commanded by a Major.

Platoon of about 30 soldiers, commanded by a Second Lieutenant or Lieutenant.

Section of about 8 to 10 soldiers, commanded by a Corporal.

The AAC has in its arsenal:

- Westland Apache Helicopters

- Westland Lynx Helicopters

- Westland Gazelle Helicopters

- Bell 212 Helicopters

- Britten-Norman Islander Aircraft

Flag Ratio: 3:5. The official flag of the Army.

Royal Navy and RAF infantry units

Overseas Territories Military Units

 1st (UK) Armoured Division

 2nd Division - (Scotland and the North of England)

 United Kingdom Special Forces

Royal Armoured Corps

↑1st July 2006 - March 2007

Royal Irish Regiment

 2nd Bn, Royal Irish Regiment (Belfast and Antrim)

 Support units of the Brigade of Gurkhas

- 28 Transport Squadron, 10 Transport Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps

- 94 Stores Squadron, 9 Supply Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps.

Combat Support Arms

Royal Regiment of Artillery

Corps of Royal Engineers

 1 RSME Regiment - Construction Engineer School