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106-656: Brigade of Gurkhas is the collective name which refers to all the units in the British Army that are composed of Nepalese Gurkha soldiers. The brigade draws its heritage from Gurkha units that originally served in the British Indian Army prior to Indian independence, and prior to that served for the East India Company . The brigade includes infantry, engineering, signal, logistic and training and support units. They are known for their khukuri ,

212-779: A 21-year engagement, following which (should he survive so long) he was discharged as a Pensioner. Pensioners were sometimes still employed on garrison duties, as were younger soldiers no longer deemed fit for expeditionary service who were generally organised in invalid units or returned to the regimental depot for home service. The cost of paying pensioners, and the obligation the government was under to continue to employ invalids as well as soldiers deemed by their commanding officers as detriments to their units were motivations to change this system. The long period of engagement also discouraged many potential recruits. The long service enlistments were consequently replaced with short service enlistments, with undesirable soldiers not permitted to re-engage on

318-577: A Catholic) during his brief controversial reign, off the throne and into exile. England then involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance on the Continent, primarily to prevent a possible French Catholic monarch organizing invasion restoring the exiled James II (Queen Mary's father and still a Roman Catholic ). Later in 1689, William III to solidify his and Mary's hold on the monarchy, expanded

424-707: A deployment in Afghanistan as part of Operation Toral . Following an announcement by the US Government of the end of their operations in the Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence announced in April 2021 that British forces would withdraw from the country by 11 September 2021. It was later reported that all UK troops would be out by early July. Following the collapse of the Afghan Army, and the completion of

530-715: A distinctive heavy knife with a curved blade, and have a reputation for being fierce and brave soldiers. The brigade celebrated 200 years of service in the British Army in 2015. During the war in Nepal in 1814, in which the British failed to annex Nepal into the Empire, Army officers were impressed by the tenacity of the Gurkha soldiers and encouraged them to volunteer for the East India Company . Gurkhas served as troops of

636-545: A further review would be completed by the middle of July. On 5 May Joanna Lumley said that she had received private assurances of support from a senior member of the Royal Family , and attended a meeting with Prime Minister Gordon Brown at 10 Downing Street the following day. Afterwards she described the meeting as "extremely positive", and praised Brown, saying, "I trust him. I rely on him. And I know that he has now taken this matter into his own hands and so today

742-545: A large reserve of recently discharged soldiers, ready to be recalled on the outbreak of war to immediately bring the small peacetime regular army up to strength), the Regular Reserve of the British Army was originally created in 1859 by Secretary of State for War Sidney Herbert , and re-organised under the Reserve Force Act 1867 . Prior to this, a soldier was generally enlisted into the British Army for

848-621: A march past Buckingham Palace . Under international law, according to Protocol 1 Additions to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, Gurkhas serving as regular uniformed soldiers are not mercenaries. According to Cabinet Office official histories ( Official History of the Falkland Islands by Sir Lawrence Freedman ), Sir John Nott , as Secretary of State for Defence, expressed the British Government's concern that

954-665: A medical and a second interview. Training for Gurkhas is conducted at the Infantry Training Centre at Catterick Garrison in North Yorkshire . It lasts for 36 weeks and addresses a range of areas such as the Brigade ethos, language training, cultural training, career management and trade selection, as well as the same 26-week Combat Infantryman's Course that the Line Infantry receive. This enables

1060-559: A military presence in SE Asia . The 2nd Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles is based at Shorncliffe Army Camp , near Folkestone in Kent as part of 16 Air Assault Brigade, and is available for deployment to most areas in Europe and Africa. The 3rd Battalion, to be stationed at Aldershot , is approximately half the size of the others, and is a so-called 'specialised infantry' battalion, serving in

1166-578: A multinational armoured battlegroup in Estonia under Operation Cabrit and contributes troops to another military battle group in Poland . As part of the NATO plans, Britain has committed a full mechanized infantry brigade to be on a high state of readiness to defend Estonia. Between 2015 and 2022, the British Army deployed Short Term Training Teams (STTTs) to Ukraine under Operation Orbital to help train

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1272-549: A new battalion planned for the Specialist Infantry role. In 2018, it was announced that from 2020, female applicants would be able to apply to join the Gurkhas. However, this decision was reversed in 2019. The selection process for the Gurkhas is demanding: in 2017, 230 trainee riflemen were recruited from about 25,000 applicants. Recruitment is run by British Gurkhas Nepal ; based at Jawalakhel , near Kathmandu ,

1378-605: A part of the British Armed Forces along with the Naval Service and the Royal Air Force . As of 1 July 2024, the British Army comprises 74,296 regular full-time personnel, 4,244 Gurkhas , 25,934 volunteer reserve personnel and 4,612 "other personnel", for a total of 109,086. The British Army traces back to 1707 and the formation of the united Kingdom of Great Britain which joined

1484-661: A political reason not to deploy Gurkhas in future conflicts. So he requested that Nott argue the case in Government for deploying them against the advice of the Foreign Office. Nott agreed to do so, commenting that the Gurkhas "would be mortified if we spoilt their chances [of going]". Notes Citations British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom , British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies ,

1590-881: A safe distance by aiding the Ottoman Empire ). Like the English Army , the British Army fought the kingdoms of Spain, France (including the First French Empire ) and the Netherlands ( Dutch Republic ) for supremacy in North America and the West Indies . With native and provincial and colonial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the French and Indian War (North American theatre) of

1696-546: A series of support vehicles, including six-, nine- and fifteen-tonne MAN trucks, Oshkosh heavy-equipment transporters (HET), close-support tankers, quad bikes and ambulances. Tactical communication uses the Bowman radio system, and operational or strategic communication is controlled by the Royal Corps of Signals . Gurkha Justice Campaign The group wanted the law to be changed so that all Gurkhas who served in

1802-512: A target strength of 82,000, and just over 30,000 Army Reservists , with a target strength of 30,000. All former Regular Army personnel may also be recalled to duty in exceptional circumstances during the 6-year period following completion of their Regular service, which creates an additional force known as the Regular Reserve . The table below illustrates British Army personnel figures from 1710 to 2024. The British Army's basic weapon

1908-605: A volunteer army and threatened to emulate the American colonists if their conditions were not met. Learning from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution. The British Army fought Irish rebels—Protestant and Catholic—primarily in Ulster and Leinster ( Wolfe Tone's United Irishmen ) in the 1798 rebellion . In addition to battling the armies of other European empires (and its former colonies,

2014-843: A war against the Prussian -led German Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire ). When the First World War broke out in August 1914 the British Army sent the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), consisting mainly of regular army troops, to France and Belgium . The fighting bogged down into static trench warfare for the remainder of the war. In 1915 the army created the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force to invade

2120-576: Is a very good day". However, on the day following the meeting with Brown, five Gurkha veterans who had applied for residency in the United Kingdom received letters telling them that their appeals had been rejected. Lumley confronted Phil Woolas at the BBC Westminster studios about the issue and, after pursuing him around the studio, the pair held an impromptu press conference in which she pressured him into agreeing to further talks over

2226-656: Is administered by the Ministry of Defence and commanded by the Chief of the General Staff . At its inception, being composed primarily of cavalry and infantry, the British Army was one of two Regular Forces (there were also separate Reserve Forces ) within the British military (those parts of the British Armed Forces tasked with land warfare, as opposed to the naval forces), with the other having been

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2332-648: Is based on that of the earlier English army. Although technically the Scots Royal Regiment of Foot was raised in 1633 and is the oldest Regiment of the Line, Scottish and Irish regiments were only allowed to take a rank in the English army on the date of their arrival in England (or the date when they were first placed on the English establishment). In 1694, a board of general officers was convened to decide

2438-713: Is provided by L16 81mm mortars . Sniper rifles include the L118A1  7.62 mm, L115A3 and the AW50F , all manufactured by Accuracy International . The British Army utilises the Glock 17 as its side arm. Anti tank guided weapons include the Javelin , the medium range anti-tank guided weapon replacement for Milan , with overfly and direct attack modes of operation, and the NLAW . The Next-generation Light Anti-tank Weapon ( NLAW )

2544-514: Is the 5.56 mm L85A2 or L85A3 assault rifle, with some specialist personnel using the L22A2 carbine variant (pilots and some tank crew). The weapon was traditionally equipped with either iron sights or an optical SUSAT , although other optical sights have been subsequently purchased to supplement these. The weapon can be enhanced further utilising the Picatinny rail with attachments such as

2650-591: Is the first, non-expert, short-range, anti-tank missile that rapidly knocks out any main battle tank in just one shot by striking it from above. The army's main battle tank is the Challenger 2 , which is being upgraded to Challenger 3 . It is supported by the Warrior tracked armoured vehicle as the primary infantry fighting vehicle , (which will soon be replaced by the Boxer 8x8 armoured fighting vehicle ) and

2756-670: Is the official list of which bodies of the British Military (not to be confused with naval ) Forces were to be considered Corps of the British Army for the purposes of the Army Act , the Reserve Forces Act, 1882, and the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act, 1907, had not been updated since 1926 (Army Order 49 of 1926), although amendments had been made up to and including Army Order 67 of 1950. A new Corps Warrant

2862-729: The Americas , Africa , Asia , India and Australasia . British soldiers captured strategically important sites and territories, with the army involved in wars to secure the empire's borders, internal safety and support friendly governments and princes. Among these actions were the French and Indian War / Seven Years' War, the American Revolutionary War , the Napoleonic Wars , the First and Second Opium Wars ,

2968-683: The Anglo-Irish War . The increasing demands of imperial expansion and the inadequacy and inefficiency of the underfunded British Army, Militia , Ordnance Military Corps, Yeomanry and Volunteer Force after the Napoleonic Wars led to series of reforms following the failures of the Crimean War . Inspired by the successes of the Prussian Army (which relied on short-term conscription of all eligible young men to maintain

3074-690: The Armed Forces of Ukraine against further Russian aggression. This operation was succeeded by Operation Interflex in July 2022. The British Army has been a volunteer force since national service ended during the 1960s. Since the creation of the part-time, reserve Territorial Force in 1908 (renamed the Army Reserve in 2014), the full-time British Army has been known as the Regular Army. In July 2020 there were just over 78,800 Regulars, with

3180-1013: The Boxer Rebellion , the New Zealand Wars , the Australian frontier wars , the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857 , the first and second Boer Wars , the Fenian raids , the Irish War of Independence , interventions in Afghanistan (intended to maintain a buffer state between British India and the Russian Empire ) and the Crimean War (to keep the Russian Empire to the north on the Black Sea at

3286-416: The Bulldog armoured personnel carrier . Light armoured units often utilise the Supacat "Jackal" MWMIK and Coyote tactical support vehicle for reconnaissance and fire support. The army has three main artillery systems: the M270 multiple launch rocket system (MLRS), the AS-90 and the L118 light gun . The MLRS, first used in Operation Granby , has an 85-kilometre (53 mi) standard range, or with

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3392-477: The Far East , the British Army rallied against the Japanese in the Burma Campaign and regained the British Far Eastern colonial possessions. After the Second World War the British Army was significantly reduced in size, although National Service continued until 1960. This period saw decolonisation begin with the partition and independence of India and Pakistan, followed by the independence of British colonies in Africa and Asia. The Corps Warrant , which

3498-442: The Islamic State (ISIL). The British Army maintains a standing liability to support the civil authorities in certain circumstances, usually in either niche capabilities (e.g. explosive ordnance removal) or in general support of the civil authorities when their capacity is exceeded. In recent years this has been seen as army personnel supporting the civil authorities in the face of the 2001 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak ,

3604-445: The L17A2 under-barrel grenade launcher. In 2023, the Army Special Operations Brigade , which includes the Ranger Regiment , began using the L403A1 , an AR-pattern rifle also used by the Royal Marines . Some soldiers are equipped with the 7.62mm L129A1 sharpshooter rifle , which in 2018 formally replaced the L86A2 Light Support Weapon. Support fire is provided by the L7 general-purpose machine gun (GPMG), and indirect fire

3710-423: The Nepali language , although Gurkha soldiers are also expected to learn English. Brigade HQ is based at the former Staff College, Camberley . Two battalions of the Royal Gurkha Rifles are formed as light role infantry; they are not equipped with either armoured or wheeled vehicles. The 1st Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles is based at the British garrison in Brunei as part of Britain's commitment to maintaining

3816-437: The Netherlands for the War of the Spanish Succession . Although all the regiments were now part of the new British military establishment, they remained under the old operational-command structure and retained much of the institutional ethos, customs and traditions of the standing armies created shortly after the Restoration of the Monarchy 47 years earlier. The order of seniority of the most-senior British Army line regiments

3922-413: The Ordnance Military Corps (made up of the Royal Artillery , Royal Engineers , and the Royal Sappers and Miners ) of the Board of Ordnance , which along with the originally civilian Commissariat Department , stores and supply departments, as well as barracks and other departments, were absorbed into the British Army when the Board of Ordnance was abolished in 1855. Various other civilian departments of

4028-424: The Ottoman Empire via Gallipoli , an unsuccessful attempt to capture Constantinople and secure a sea route to Russia . The First World War was the most devastating in British military history , with nearly 800,000 men killed and over two million wounded. Early in the war, the BEF was virtually destroyed and was replaced first by volunteers and then by a conscript force. Major battles included those at

4134-441: The PrSM , up to 500 km. The AS-90 is a 155 mm self-propelled armoured gun with a 24-kilometre (15 mi) range. The L118 light gun is a 105 mm towed gun, which is typically towed by a Pinzgauer all-terrain vehicle. To identify artillery targets, the army operates the TAIPAN artillery detection radar and utilises artillery sound ranging . For air defence it uses the new Sky Sabre system, which in 2021 replaced

4240-418: The Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA). Under the 1998 Good Friday Agreement , there was a gradual reduction in the number of soldiers deployed. In 2005, after the PIRA declared a ceasefire, the British Army dismantled posts, withdrew many troops and restored troop levels to those of a peacetime garrison. Operation Banner ended at midnight on 31 July 2007 after about 38 years of continuous deployment,

4346-422: The Rapier . It also deploys the Very Short-Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) Starstreak HVM (high-velocity missile) launched by a single soldier or from a Stormer HVM vehicle-mounted launcher. Where armour is not required or mobility and speed are favoured the British Army utilises protected patrol vehicles, such as the Panther variant of the Iveco LMV , the Foxhound , and variants of the Cougar family (such as

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4452-561: The Royal Gurkha Rifles , and the three corps regiments (the Gurkha Military Police having been disbanded in 1965) were reduced to squadron strength. On 1 July 1997, the British government Handover of Hong Kong Sovereignty to the People's Republic of China , which led to the elimination of the local British garrison. Gurkha HQ and recruit training were moved to the UK. The Royal Gurkha Rifles took part in operations in Kosovo in 1999, in UN peacekeeping operations in East Timor in 2000 and in Sierra Leone later that year. In September 2008

4558-437: The Territorial Force as the army's volunteer reserve component, merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia and Yeomanry. Great Britain was challenged by other powers, primarily the German Empire and Nazi Germany , during the 20th century. A century earlier it vied with Napoleonic France for global pre-eminence, and Hanoverian Britain's natural allies were the kingdoms and principalities of northern Germany . By

4664-496: The high court ruled that the policy had been illegal since the process used to determine pre-1997 applications was deemed arbitrary. The Government of Gordon Brown agreed to produce new rules. However, when these were unveiled on 24 April 2009, the Gurkhas were furious because there was no automatic right to settle in the UK for all veterans. Indeed, Gurkhas who wanted to settle in the UK would have to meet one or more of five requirements. These were; Campaigners claimed that under

4770-399: The training role as part of the Specialised Infantry Group . The British memorial to the Gurkhas was unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II on 3 December 1997. The inscription on the monument is a quotation from Sir Ralph Lilley Turner , a former officer in the 3rd Gurkha Rifles . A series of events took place in 2015 to mark 200 years of service by the Gurkhas in the British Army including

4876-453: The 2002 firefighters strike, widespread flooding in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2013 and 2014, Operation Temperer following the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017 and, most recently, Operation Rescript during the COVID-19 pandemic . Since 2016, the British Army has maintained a presence in the Baltic States in support of the NATO Enhanced Forward Presence strategy which responded to the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea . The British Army leads

4982-608: The 2014 West African Ebola virus epidemic . In November 2001, as part of Operation Enduring Freedom with the United States, the United Kingdom deployed forces in Afghanistan to topple the Taliban in Operation Herrick . The 3rd Division were sent to Kabul to assist in the liberation of the capital and defeat Taliban forces in the mountains. In 2006 the British Army began concentrating on fighting Taliban forces and bringing security to Helmand Province , with about 9,500 British troops (including marines, airmen and sailors) deployed at its peak —the second-largest force after that of

5088-420: The American colonial rebels early in the war). Halifax, Nova Scotia and Bermuda were to become Imperial fortresses (although Bermuda, being safer from attack over water and impervious to attack overland, quickly became the most important in British North America), along with Malta and Gibraltar , providing bases in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea for Royal Navy squadrons to control

5194-408: The Brigade of Gurkhas include: In 2018, the UK Government announced that it intended to expand the brigade by more than 800 posts, with the Queen's Gurkha Engineers receiving an additional squadron, while the Queen’s Gurkha Signals and the Queen's Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment will receive two new squadrons. Additionally, approximately 300 new posts within the Royal Gurkha Rifles will be created forming

5300-408: The British Army was deployed as a peacekeeping force from 1969 to 2007 in Operation Banner . Initially, this was (in the wake of unionist attacks on nationalist communities in Derry and Belfast ) to prevent further loyalist attacks on Catholic communities; it developed into support of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and its successor, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) against

5406-444: The British Army would gain the right of abode , whereas under previous legislation only service personnel from Commonwealth countries bore that right. The campaign's legal case reached the High Court , and had the support of a number of celebrities, including Joanna Lumley . The campaign eventually succeeded. Until 2004 Gurkhas were not allowed to settle in the United Kingdom. However, the Labour government under Tony Blair changed

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5512-432: The British Army. Although all enlisted Gurkha soldiers are recruited from Nepalese citizens in Nepal, officers in the Brigade are either selected from those who have distinguished themselves in the ranks, or are commissioned from British or Commonwealth cadets at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst . Officers from Sandhurst attend an intensive language course at Pokhara Camp to enable them to converse with their soldiers in

5618-486: The British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world; at its peak in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian armies under the Duke of Wellington and Field Marshal von Blücher finally defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. The English were involved politically and militarily in Ireland. The campaign of English republican Protector Oliver Cromwell involved uncompromising treatment of

5724-439: The British military, mostly civilians. An estimated 100 soldiers committed suicide during Operation Banner or soon afterwards and a similar number died in accidents. A total of 6,116 were wounded. Sierra Leone The British Army deployed to Sierra Leone for Operation Palliser in 1999, under United Nations resolutions, to aid the government in quelling violent uprisings by militiamen. British troops also provided support during

5830-424: The Company in the Pindaree War of 1817, in Bharatpur, Nepal in 1826, and the First and Second Sikh Wars in 1846 and 1848. During the Sepoy Mutiny in 1857, the Gurkha regiments remained loyal to the British, and became part of the British Indian Army on its formation. The 2nd Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) and the 60th Rifles famously defended Hindu Rao 's house. During the Malayan Emergency in

5936-485: The English Long Parliament realised that the use of county militia organised into regional associations (such as the Eastern Association ), often commanded by local members of Parliament (both from the House of Commons and the House of Lords), while more than able to hold their own in the regions which Parliamentarians ('Roundheads") controlled, were unlikely to win the war. So Parliament initiated two actions. The Self-denying Ordinance forbade members of Parliament (with

6042-404: The Germans and Italians at the Second Battle of El Alamein in North Africa in 1942–1943 and helped drive them from Africa. It then fought through Italy and, with the help of American, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, Indian and Free French forces, was the principal organiser and participant in the D-Day invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944; nearly half the Allied soldiers were British. In

6148-484: The Gurkhas could not be sent with the task force to recapture the Falkland Islands because it might upset the non-aligned members of the fragile coalition of support that the British had built in the United Nations. The then-Chief of Defence Staff Sir Edwin Bramall , a former officer in the 2nd Gurkhas like Nott, said that the Gurkhas were needed for sound military reasons (as a constituent part of 5th Infantry Brigade) and if they were not deployed then there would always be

6254-417: The Gurkhas, who are natives of Nepal . They have served Britain for almost 200 years with over 50,000 dying in service, and 13 have been awarded the Victoria Cross . On 20 November 2008, Lumley led a large all party group including Gurkhas starting from Parliament Square to 10 Downing Street with a petition signed by 250,000 people. She supports the Gurkha Justice Campaign. On 24 April 2009 she stated that she

6360-474: The High Court in London ruled that the British Government must issue clear guidance on the criteria against which Gurkhas may be considered for settlement rights in the UK. On 21 May 2009, and following a lengthy campaign by Gurkha veterans , the British Home Secretary , Jacqui Smith , announced that all Gurkha veterans who had served four years or more in the British Army before 1997 would be allowed to settle in Britain. Former units included: Current units of

6466-494: The Irish towns (most notably Drogheda and Wexford ) which supported the Royalists during the English Civil War . The English Army (and the subsequent British Army) remained in Ireland primarily to suppress Irish revolts or disorder. In addition to its conflict with Irish nationalists, it was faced with the prospect of battling Anglo-Irish and Ulster Scots in Ireland who were angered by unfavourable taxation of Irish produce imported into Britain. With other Irish groups, they raised

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6572-434: The Kingdoms of England and Scotland into a single state and, with that, united the English Army and the Scots Army as the British Army . Members of the British Army swear allegiance to the monarch as their commander-in-chief , since both the English Bill of Rights of 1689 and Scottish Claim of Right Act 1689 require parliamentary consent for the Crown to maintain a peacetime standing army . The army

6678-458: The Ridgeback, Husky and Mastiff). For day-to-day utility work the army commonly uses the Land Rover Wolf , which is based on the Land Rover Defender . Specialist engineering vehicles include bomb-disposal robots such as the T7 Multi-Mission Robotic System and the modern variants of the Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers , including the Titan bridge-layer, Trojan armoured engineer vehicle, Terrier armoured digger . Day-to-day utility work uses

6784-416: The Scots Greys was reassessed and based on their June 1685 entry into England. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, and the Scots Greys eventually received the British Army rank of 2nd Dragoons. After 1700, British continental policy was to contain expansion by competing powers such as France and Spain. Although Spain was the dominant global power during the previous two centuries and

6890-473: The Somme and Passchendaele . Advances in technology saw the advent of the tank (and the creation of the Royal Tank Regiment ) and advances in aircraft design (and the creation of the Royal Flying Corps ) which would be decisive in future battles. Trench warfare dominated Western Front strategy for most of the war, and the use of chemical weapons (disabling and poison gases) added to the devastation. The Second World War broke out in September 1939 with

6996-411: The Soviet and German Army 's invasion of Poland . British assurances to the Poles led the British Empire to declare war on Germany . As in the First World War, a relatively small BEF was sent to France but then hastily evacuated from Dunkirk as the German forces swept through the Low Countries and across France in May 1940. After the British Army recovered from its earlier defeats, it defeated

7102-404: The Troubles . Following the 1994–1996 IRA ceasefires and since 1997, demilitarisation has been part of the peace process and the military presence has been reduced. On 25 June 2007 the 2nd Battalion of the Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment left the army complex in Bessbrook , County Armagh , ending the longest operation in British Army history. The British Army contributed 50,000 troops to

7208-423: The US. In December 2012 Prime Minister David Cameron announced that the combat mission would end in 2014, and troop numbers gradually fell as the Afghan National Army took over the brunt of the fighting. Between 2001 and 26 April 2014 a total of 453 British military personnel died in Afghan operations. Operation Herrick ended with the handover of Camp Bastion on 26 October 2014, but the British Army maintained

7314-444: The United States, in the American War of 1812 ), the British Army fought the Chinese in the First and Second Opium Wars and the Boxer Rebellion , Māori tribes in the first of the New Zealand Wars, Nawab Shiraj-ud-Daula's forces and British East India Company mutineers in the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857 , the Boers in the first and second Boer Wars, Irish Fenians in Canada during the Fenian raids and Irish separatists in

7420-399: The actress Joanna Lumley , whose father served in the 6th Gurkha Rifles , became the public face of the campaign to provide all Gurkha veterans who served in the British Army before 1997 the right to settle in Britain, and ran a highly publicised and successful campaign. Those serving following 1997 had already been granted permission but the UK Government has not extended the offer to all of

7526-400: The army saw the introduction of new weapons systems. Despite the decline of the British Empire, the army was engaged in Aden , Indonesia , Cyprus , Kenya and Malaya . In 1982, the British Army and the Royal Marines helped liberate the Falkland Islands during the conflict with Argentina after that country's invasion of the British territory. In the three decades following 1969,

7632-699: The army was heavily deployed in Northern Ireland 's Operation Banner to support the Royal Ulster Constabulary (later the Police Service of Northern Ireland ) in their conflict with republican paramilitary groups. The locally recruited Ulster Defence Regiment was formed, becoming home-service battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment in 1992 before it was disbanded in 2006. Over 700 soldiers were killed during

7738-520: The board were absorbed into the War Office . The British Army has seen action in major wars between the world's great powers , including the Seven Years' War , the American Revolutionary War , the Napoleonic Wars , the Crimean War and the First and Second World Wars . Britain's victories in most of these decisive wars allowed it to influence world events and establish itself as one of

7844-666: The chief threat to England's early trans-Atlantic colonial ambitions, its influence was now waning. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the later Napoleonic Wars . Although the Royal Navy is widely regarded as vital to the rise of the British Empire , the British Army played an important role in the formation of colonies, protectorates and dominions in

7950-788: The coalition which fought Iraq in the Persian Gulf War , and British forces controlled Kuwait after its liberation. Forty-seven British military personnel died during the war. The army was deployed to former Yugoslavia in 1992. Initially part of the United Nations Protection Force , in 1995 its command was transferred to the Implementation Force (IFOR) and then to the Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina (SFOR);

8056-545: The colours and the remainder in the Regular Reserve, remaining liable for recall to the colours if required. Among the other benefits, this thereby enabled the British Army to have a ready pool of recently trained men to draw upon in an emergency. The name of the Regular Reserve (which for a time was divided into a First Class and a Second Class ) has resulted in confusion with the Reserve Forces , which were

8162-470: The commitment rose to over 10,000 troops. In 1999, British forces under SFOR command were sent to Kosovo and the contingent increased to 19,000 troops. Between early 1993 and June 2010, 72 British military personnel died during operations in the former Yugoslavian countries of Bosnia, Kosovo and Macedonia. Although there have been permanent garrisons in Northern Ireland throughout its history,

8268-438: The completion of their first engagement. The size of the army also fluctuated greatly, increasing in war time, and drastically shrinking with peace. Battalions posted on garrison duty overseas were allowed an increase on their normal peacetime establishment, which resulted in their having surplus men on their return to a Home station. Consequently, soldiers engaging on short term enlistments were enabled to serve several years with

8374-500: The disbanded New Model Army , were formed between November 1660 and January 1661 and became a standing military force for England (financed by Parliament ). The Royal Scots and Irish Armies were financed by the parliaments of Scotland and Ireland . Parliamentary control was established by the Bill of Rights 1689 and Claim of Right Act 1689 , although the monarch continued to influence aspects of army administration until at least

8480-511: The end of the 19th century. After the Restoration, King Charles II pulled together four regiments of infantry and cavalry, calling them his guards, at a cost of £122,000 from his general budget. This became the foundation of the permanent English Army. By 1685, it had grown to number 7,500 soldiers in marching regiments, and 1,400 men permanently stationed in garrisons. A Monmouth Rebellion in 1685 allowed successor King James II to raise

8586-470: The forces to 20,000 men. There were 37,000 in 1678, when England played a role in the closing stage of the cross-channel Franco-Dutch War . After Protestant dual Monarchs William III , formerly William of the Dutch House of Orange , and his wife Mary II's joint accession to the throne after a short constitutional crisis with Parliament sending Mary's father, predecessor King James II, (who remained

8692-615: The issue. Following a Commons Home Affairs Committee meeting in which talks were held between campaigners, the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office on 19 May 2009, Gordon Brown announced to the House of Commons on 20 May that the Home Secretary Jacqui Smith would make a statement on the issue the following day. Smith subsequently announced that all Gurkha veterans who had served four years or more in

8798-461: The late 1940s, Gurkhas fought as jungle soldiers as they had done in Burma . The Training Depot Brigade of Gurkhas was established on 15 August 1951 at Sungai Petani , Kedah , Malaya . After the conflict ended, the Gurkhas were transferred to Hong Kong , where they carried out security duties. The troops patrolled the border checking for illegal immigrants entering the territory, most crucially during

8904-491: The longest in British Army history. According to an internal document released in 2007, the British Army had failed to defeat the IRA but made it impossible for them to win by violence. Operation Helvetic replaced Operation Banner in 2007, maintaining fewer service personnel in a more-benign environment. Of the 300,000 troops who served in Northern Ireland since 1969, there were 763 British military personnel killed and 306 killed by

9010-512: The main recruiting centre is in the city of Pokhara . Recruitment sees the prospective soldier undergo two stages of selection; first the regional selection at either Pokhara or Dharan , where the recruit undertakes a series of physical tests, written English and numeracy assessments, and an interview . Those that pass regional selection move forward to the central selection process in Kathmandu, which sees further physical and language tests,

9116-541: The middle of the 19th century, Britain and France were allies in preventing Russia's appropriation of the Ottoman Empire , although the fear of French invasion led shortly afterwards to the creation of the Volunteer Force. By the first decade of the 20th century, the United Kingdom was allied with France (by the Entente Cordiale ) and Russia (which had a secret agreement with France for mutual support in

9222-503: The new English army to 74,000, and then a few years later to 94,000 in 1694. Parliament was very nervous and reduced the cadre to 70,000 in 1697. Scotland and Ireland had theoretically separate military establishments, but they were unofficially merged with the English Crown force. By the time of the 1707 Acts of Union , many regiments of the English and Scottish armies were combined under one operational command and stationed in

9328-576: The nobility, or on hired mercenaries from Europe. From the later Middle Ages until the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, when a foreign expeditionary force was needed, such as the one that Henry V of England took to France and that fought at the Battle of Agincourt (1415), the army, a professional one, was raised for the duration of the expedition. During the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, the members of

9434-603: The notable exception of Oliver Cromwell , then a member of parliament and future Lord Protector) from serving as officers in the Parliamentary armies. This created a distinction between the civilians in Parliament, who tended to be Presbyterian and conciliatory to the Royalists ("Cavaliers") in nature, and a corps of professional officers, who tended to be Independent ( Congregational ) in theology. The second action

9540-628: The oceans and trade routes, and heavily garrisoned by the British Army both for defence of the bases and to provide mobile military forces to work with the Navy in amphibious operations throughout their regions. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars , participating in a number of campaigns in Europe (including continuous deployment in the Peninsular War ), the Caribbean , North Africa and North America . The war between

9646-740: The parallel Seven Years' War and suppressed a Native / Indian North Americans uprising in Pontiac's War around the Great Lakes . The British Army was defeated in the American Revolutionary War , losing the Thirteen Colonies but retaining The Canadas and The Maritimes as in British North America , including Bermuda (originally part of the Colony of Virginia , and which had been originally strongly sympathetic to

9752-536: The pre-existing part-time, local-service home-defence forces that were auxiliary to the British Army (or Regular Force ), but not originally part of it: the Yeomanry , Militia (or Constitutional Force ) and Volunteer Force . These were consequently also referred to as Auxiliary Forces or Local Forces . The late-19th-century Cardwell and Childers Reforms gave the army its modern shape and redefined its regimental system . The 1907 Haldane Reforms created

9858-529: The rank of English, Irish and Scots regiments serving in the Netherlands; the regiment which became known as the Scots Greys were designated the 4th Dragoons because there were three English regiments raised prior to 1688 when the Scots Greys were first placed in the English establishment. In 1713, when a new board of general officers was convened to decide the rank of several regiments, the seniority of

9964-490: The requirements seemed designed to frustrate: for example, one way to qualify automatically was by soldiering for at least 20 years, though most rank-and-file Gurkhas serve for only 15. Another was to prove that a long-term medical condition was caused or worsened by active service—a tall order for those whose injuries were sustained decades ago. The campaign was also supported by the Liberal Democrats . In 2008

10070-491: The return of a king. The militia acts of 1661 and 1662 prevented local authorities from calling up militia and oppressing their own local opponents. Calling up the militia was possible only if the king and local elites agreed to do so. King Charles II and his " Cavalier " / Royalist supporters favoured a new army under royal control, and immediately after the Restoration of 1660 to 1661 began working on its establishment. The first English Army regiments, including elements of

10176-512: The rules so that Gurkhas who retired after 1997 would be allowed to settle in the UK, 1997 being the date when the Gurkha Brigade headquarters moved from Hong Kong to Britain. Soldiers who retired before this date, however, were only allowed the same settlement rights in exceptional circumstance. The Gurkha Justice Campaign wanted the same settlement rights for all Gurkha soldiers. In 2008,

10282-507: The rules, only around 100 Gurkhas would qualify for residence, although the government figures suggested that as many as 4,300 would be eligible to settle. The rules would disqualify many from being able to settle in the United Kingdom, as indicated by an article which appeared in The Economist : Veterans would be allowed to settle only if they met one or more conditions based on length of service, gallantry or related illness. Many of

10388-608: The trained Gurkha soldiers to fulfill their roles on operations and continue the traditions of their forefathers. In addition to running recruitment of soldiers to join the British Army, British Gurkhas Nepal also runs the recruitment process for the Gurkha Contingent of the Singapore Police Force . Recruits indicate at the registration stage whether they wish to join the Singapore Police or

10494-615: The turbulence of the Cultural Revolution . They were deployed to contain crowds during the Star Ferry riots of 1966 . After Indian independence and partition in 1947, under the Tripartite Agreement , six Gurkha regiments joined the post-independence Indian Army . Four Gurkha regiments, the 2nd , 6th , 7th , and 10th Gurkha Rifles , joined the British Army on 1 January 1948. The 1st/2nd Gurkha Rifles

10600-714: The withdrawal of civilians, all British troops had left by the end of August 2021. In 2003, the United Kingdom was a major contributor to the invasion of Iraq , sending a force of over 46,000 military personnel. The British Army controlled southern Iraq, and maintained a peace-keeping presence in Basra . All British troops were withdrawn from Iraq by 30 April 2009, after the Iraqi government refused to extend their mandate. One hundred and seventy-nine British military personnel died in Iraqi operations. The British Armed Forces returned to Iraq in 2014 as part of Operation Shader to counter

10706-624: The world's leading military and economic powers. Since the end of the Cold War , the British Army has been deployed to a number of conflict zones, often as part of an expeditionary force , a coalition force or part of a United Nations peacekeeping operation. Until the Wars of the Three Kingdoms , neither England or Scotland had had a standing army with professional officers and career corporals and sergeants. England relied on militia organised by local officials or private forces mobilised by

10812-503: Was "ashamed" of the UK administration's decision to affix five criteria to the Gurkhas' right to settle in the UK. With the support of both Opposition parties and Labour rebel MPs on 29 April 2009 a Liberal Democrat motion that all Gurkhas be offered an equal right of residence was passed, allowing Gurkhas who served before 1997 residence in the UK. Following the Government defeat, the Minister for Immigration Phil Woolas announced that

10918-578: Was declared in 1951. Although the British Army was a major participant in Korea in the early 1950s and Suez in 1956, during this period Britain's role in world events was reduced and the army was downsized. The British Army of the Rhine , consisting of I (BR) Corps , remained in Germany as a bulwark against Soviet invasion. The Cold War continued, with significant technological advances in warfare, and

11024-628: Was deployed to Brunei at the outbreak of the Brunei Revolt in 1962. In 1974 Turkey invaded Cyprus and the 10th Gurkha Rifles was sent to defend the British sovereign base area of Dhekelia . In 1982, during the Falklands War , the 7th Gurkha Rifles formed part of 5 Infantry Brigade and was responsible for capturing Mount William shortly before the Argentinian surrender. On 1 July 1994 the four rifle regiments were merged into one,

11130-595: Was legislation for the creation of a Parliamentary-funded army, commanded by Lord General Thomas Fairfax , which became known as the New Model Army (originally phrased "new-modelled Army"). While this proved to be a war-winning formula, the New Model Army, being organised and politically active, went on to dominate the politics of the Interregnum and by 1660 was widely disliked. The New Model Army

11236-603: Was paid off and disbanded at the later Restoration of the monarchy in 1660 with the accession of King Charles II . For many decades the alleged excesses of the New Model Army under the Protectorate / Commonwealth under Oliver Cromwell were used as propaganda (and still feature in Irish folklore) and the Whig Party element recoiled from allowing a standing army to continue with the agreed-upon rights and privileges under

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