85-776: The Furqan Force or Furqan Battalion was a uniformed Battalion force of volunteers of the minority Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in the Dominion of Pakistan . Formed in June 1948 at the direction of Head of the Worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood Ahmad , at the request of Pakistan government, the unit fought for Pakistan against India in the First Kashmir War . In addition to its troops being drawn from
170-502: A combat support company . With all these components, a battalion is the smallest military unit capable of "limited independent operations". The battalion must have a source of resupply to enable it to sustain operations for more than a few days. This is because a battalion's complement of ammunition, expendable weapons (e.g., hand grenades and disposable rocket launchers ), water, rations, fuel, lubricants, replacement parts, batteries, and medical supplies normally consists of only what
255-556: A single company : The battalions of the Scots Guards, Royal Hampshire Regiment, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, and Royal Green Jackets were subsequently reconstituted. HM Treasury asked for major cuts in the strength of the infantry in 2003, with at least ten battalions to be disbanded. This proved so unacceptable that, in November 2003, there was consideration to instead reducing each battalion to two rifle companies (with
340-506: A battalion headquarters mounted in a command tank and a headquarters and service platoon, for a total of 165 personnel and 40 tanks; battalions using the older T-54 , T-55 or T-62s tanks had 31 or 40 additional enlisted personnel. However, forces in Eastern Europe began to standardise to a smaller formation with 135 personnel and 31 tanks total, with each tank company consisting of 10 tanks total. A Soviet artillery battalion in
425-419: A combat logistics element (a Marine combat logistics regiment, which includes naval construction forces [Seabees] and naval medical elements). In the U.S. Marine Corps, an infantry or "rifle" battalion typically consists of a headquarters and service company, three rifle or "line" companies (designated alphabetically A through M depending upon which battalion of the parent regiment to which they are attached) and
510-781: A further review called Army 2020 Refine , the 1st Battalion, Scots Guards and the 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland will be equipped with Mechanised Infantry Vehicles and form the core of the first Strike Brigade under the Reaction Force. Five infantry battalions will undertake the new specialist infantry role; these units will provide an increased contribution to countering terrorism and building stability overseas, and will number around 300 personnel. Four of these battalions, 1st Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland; 2nd Battalion, The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment; 2nd Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment; and 4th Battalion, The Rifles, will be existing battalions, while
595-585: A headquarters company, support company and three rifle companies (usually, but not always, A, B and C companies). Each company is commanded by a major , the officer commanding (OC), with a captain or senior lieutenant as second-in-command (2IC). The HQ company contains signals , quartermaster , catering, intelligence , administration, pay, training, operations and medical elements. The support company usually contains anti-tank , machine gun , mortar , pioneer and reconnaissance platoons. Mechanised units usually have an attached light aid detachment (LAD) of
680-420: A headquarters company, two mechanized infantry companies, two tank companies and a forward support company attached from the battalion's parent brigade support battalion. This new structure eliminated the need to task-organize companies between battalions; each combined arms battalion was organically composed of the requisite companies. At a higher level, each armored brigade (formerly designated 'heavy brigade')
765-422: A heavy weapons company. That is, rifle companies A, B, C along with heavy weapons Company D were part of the 1st battalion, rifle companies E, F, G and heavy weapons Company H constituted the 2nd battalion, and rifle companies I, K, L and heavy weapons Company M were in the 3rd. There was no J Company: the letter J was traditionally not used because in 18th- and 19th-century old-style type,
850-412: A limited capability to plan and conduct independent operations and are normally organic components of brigades, groups, or regiments. A U.S. Army battalion includes the battalion commander ( lieutenant colonel ), executive officer ( major ), command sergeant major (CSM), headquarters staff and usually three to five companies, with a total of 300 to 1,000 (but typically 500 to 600) soldiers. During
935-646: A major), the sergeant major and the executive staff (S-1 through S-4 and S-6). The battalion headquarters is supported by a headquarters and service company (battery). A battalion usually contains two to five organic companies (batteries in the artillery), with a total of 500 to 1,200 Marines in the battalion. A regiment consists of a regimental headquarters, a headquarters company (or battery) and two to five organic battalions (Marine infantry regiments – three battalions of infantry; Marine artillery regiments – three to five battalions of artillery; Marine combat logistics regiments – one to three combat logistics battalions). In
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#17327720525391020-513: A mechanised infantry battalion usually consists of one command- and medical company, three mechanised infantry companies and one support company, which has three platoons with heavy mortars and three platoons with anti-tank missiles ( TOW ). With the Dutch artillery units, the equivalent of a battalion is called an afdeling (which translates to "section"). Combat companies consist of (usually mechanised) infantry, combat engineers , or tanks . In
1105-647: A number of combat support units: a mortar battery consisting of eight 120 mm 120-PM-43 mortars or automatic 82 mm 2B9 Vasileks , an air defence platoon with nine MANPADs , either the SA-7 Grail , SA-14 Gremlin or SA-16 Gimlet and an automatic grenade launcher platoon with six 30 mm AGS-17 launchers. The BTR battalion also featured an anti-tank platoon with four AT-3 Sagger or AT-4 Spigot launchers and two 73 mm SPG-9 recoilless guns ; BTR units on high-readiness status sometimes had six missile launchers and three recoilless guns. Both featured
1190-580: A number of other formations that are independent of the British Army's three existing divisions. London District is responsible for the dedicated public duties units for London and Windsor . Two company sized units are used at the British Army's training establishments. A number of the United Kingdom's Overseas Territories maintain their own infantry units, which undertake a number of different roles in addition to internal security. Following
1275-508: A pair of armoured brigades containing the army's mechanised infantry units. Field Army Troops is the formation encompassing specialist elements of the Field Army , including signals and ISTAR units. The formation has responsibility for two separate infantry brigades, both of which are optimised to a training role - one is primarily intended as a mentoring formation for the UK's allies, while
1360-435: A planned reduction in the size of the infantry – the intention was that the junior battalion of each large regiment or brigade (prior to the implementation of the divisional structure) would be removed, whether by amalgamation or disbanding. This saw plans for the creation of four new single battalion infantry regiments: At the same time, three more single battalion regiments elected to disband rather than amalgamate: Three of
1445-550: A similar type, but from widely different areas, have been amalgamated. Two modern examples have been the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (amalgamated from the county regiments of Northumberland, Warwickshire, City of London and Lancashire, all of which were regiments of fusiliers ) and The Light Infantry (amalgamated from the county regiments of Cornwall, Somerset, Shropshire, South Yorkshire and Durham, all of which were regiments of light infantry ). Since September 2007, when
1530-412: A single cap badge that would be worn by all of the regiments under its administration. This led to discussions within the government regarding the flexibility of the infantry under the then present regimental system, as well as the difficulty of potentially making reductions to the size of the army owing to the emotive nature of the amalgamation of regiments into single battalions. This led to the concept of
1615-554: A single course at the Infantry Training Centre Catterick . This course, called the "Combat Infantryman's Course" (CIC), lasts 26 weeks as standard and teaches recruits both the basics of soldiering (Phase 1 training) and the specifics of soldiering in the infantry (Phase 2 training). On completion of the CIC, the newly qualified infantry soldier will then be posted to his battalion. For some infantry units,
1700-716: A single large regiment, the Royal Australian Regiment – this system is the one undertaken by the Scottish Division and the Light Division . Canada's regular infantry has three regiments, each of three battalions, which is how the King's Division and the Prince of Wales' Division will be restructured (albeit with one regiment of three battalions and one of two battalions each). In addition to
1785-487: A specialist air assault infantry battalion. The withdrawal of two armoured infantry battalions is to bring this into line with the planned future operational structure, intended to see three "armoured infantry brigades", each with a pair of infantry battalions, forming the core of the Army's "reaction forces". These two battalions, along with the two light infantry battalions, will be disbanded and their personnel distributed among
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#17327720525391870-441: A total of 255 personnel. A Swedish battalion during the mid 17th century up to the mid 18th century was the smallest tactical unit in combat. The 600 man unit was formed, temporarily, at the inception of a battle by joining four foot companies from a foot regiment of eight companies. The commander of the regiment, an överste ( colonel ), led the first battalion and his deputy, an överstelöjtnant ( lieutenant colonel ),
1955-437: A weapons company. Weapons companies do not receive a letter designation. Marine infantry regiments use battalion and company designations as described above under World War II, with company letters D, H and M not normally used but rather held in reserve for use in augmenting a fourth rifle company into each battalion as needed. United States Marine Corps infantry battalions are task organised into Battalion Landing Teams (BLTs) as
2040-471: Is a military unit , typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. Commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several companies , each typically commanded by a major or a captain . The typical battalion is built from three operational companies, one weapons company and one headquarters company. In some countries, battalions are exclusively infantry , while in others battalions are unit-level organizations. The word "battalion" came into
2125-570: Is a lead element of the UK's rapid reaction strategy. The other major independent element of the Reaction Force is UK Commando Force ; although this does have British Army units attached in combat support roles, the infantry units are from the Royal Marines , which is part of the Naval Service . 3rd (UK) Division is planned as the UK's main reaction force, intended to act as a lead formation alongside NATO, and primarily consists of
2210-565: Is also undertaken at the Support Weapons School at Warminster, where new officers, NCOs and soldiers are trained in the use of support weapons (mortars, anti-tank weapons) and in communications. Reservist Infantrymen undertake preliminary training at Regional Training Centres prior to attending a two-week CIC (Reserve) at Catterick. Headquarters Infantry, which is located at Waterloo Lines on Imber Road in Warminster ,
2295-501: Is for command elements. According to some observers, the average manpower of the battalions has substantially declined: from 670 plus in 1988, 350 plus in 1998, and 250 plus in 2008. A leaked document reported in the international media revealed that in late 2006, the Tatmadaw had 284 battalions with fewer than 200 personnel, and 220 battalions with between 200 and 300 personnel. As of January 2024 , most battalions/regiments of
2380-435: Is now composed of three CABs (versus the two CABs of a former heavy brigade), one reconnaissance squadron, one artillery battalion, one brigade engineer battalion (BEB) and one brigade support battalion (BSB). A United States Marine Corps battalion includes the battalion headquarters, consisting of the commanding officer (usually a lieutenant colonel, sometimes a colonel), an executive officer (the second-in-command, usually
2465-526: Is responsible for recruiting, manning and training policy of the Infantry. Headquarters Infantry was established in 1991 as a result of the Options for Change reform. The infantry in the British Army is divided for administrative purposes into divisions. These are not the same as the ready and regenerative divisions (see below), but are based on either the geographical recruiting areas of the regiments, or
2550-727: Is used in the British Army Infantry and some corps including the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and Intelligence Corps . It was formerly used in the Royal Engineers (before they switched to regiments), and was also used in the now defunct Royal Army Ordnance Corps and Royal Pioneer Corps . Other corps usually use the term "regiment" instead. An infantry battalion is numbered ordinarily within its regiment (e.g., 1st Battalion, The Rifles , usually referred to as 1 Rifles). It normally has
2635-602: The 2010 General Election , the new government instituted a new defence review. The ultimate conclusion of this process was to reduce the size of the British Army from approximately 102,000 to approximately 82,000 by 2020. The detail of the process was subsequently announced as Army 2020 in July 2012. As part of this, the infantry was reduced in size from 36 regular battalions to 31. Of the five to be withdrawn, two were armoured infantry units, two general light infantry and one
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2720-806: The American Civil War , an infantry or cavalry battalion was an ad hoc grouping of companies from the parent regiment (which had ten companies, A through K, minus J as described below), except for certain regular infantry regiments, which were formally organized into three battalions of six companies each (numbered 1–6 per battalion vice sequential letter designations). After 1882, cavalry battalions were renamed squadrons and cavalry companies were renamed troops. Artillery battalions typically comprised four or more batteries, although this number fluctuated considerably. During World War II, most infantry regiments consisted of three battalions (1st, 2nd and 3rd) with each battalion consisting of three rifle companies and
2805-606: The Netherlands Marine Corps all have a battalion structure. Each battalion usually consists of the following: In the Soviet Armed Forces , a motorised rifle battalion could be mounted in either BTR armoured personnel carriers or BMP infantry fighting vehicles , with the former being more numerous into the late 1980s. Both consisted of a battalion headquarters of 12 personnel and three motorised rifle companies of 110 personnel each, along with
2890-531: The Regular army and the remaining 16 a part of the Army Reserve . The British Army's Infantry takes on a variety of roles, including armoured, mechanised , air assault and light . Traditionally, regiments that form the combat arms of the British Army (cavalry and infantry) recruit from specific areas of the country. Infantry regiments had been assigned specific areas from which they would recruit from by
2975-542: The Royal Anglian Regiment ). Important figures in a battalion headquarters include: Battalions of other corps are given separate cardinal numbers within their corps (e.g., 101 Battalion REME). A battle group consists of an infantry battalion or armoured regiment with sub-units detached from other military units acting under the command of the battalion commander. In the Canadian Army ,
3060-476: The Second World War , infantry recruits were required to be at least 5 feet 2 inches (1.57 m) tall. They initially enlisted for seven years with the colours and a further five years with the reserve. They trained at their own regimental depot. Unlike the other trades in the army, which have separate units for basic training and specialised training, new recruits into the infantry undergo
3145-526: The " large regiment ", which would use the existing brigades as the basis of new, multi-battalion infantry regiments, amalgamating the existing single-battalion regiments en masse, with each of them becoming a battalion of the new formation. This process had to a certain degree begun in the East Anglian and Green Jackets Brigades , which had redesignated the regiments they were responsible for from their old names to numbered designations. These two became
3230-453: The 1580s. A battalion is composed of two or more primary mission companies, which are often of a common type (e.g., infantry, tank, or maintenance), although there are exceptions, such as combined arms battalions in the U.S. Army. In addition to the primary mission companies, a battalion typically includes a headquarters staff and combat service support , which may be combined into a headquarters and service company . A battalion may contain
3315-497: The 1960s through the early 1980s, a typical maneuver (infantry or tank) battalion had five companies: headquarters and headquarters company (HHC) and A, B and C Companies, plus a combat support company (CSC), with a scout platoon, 107 mm (4.2 inch) heavy mortar platoon, along with other elements that varied between organisations. These included heavy anti-tank TOW missile platoons, ground surveillance radar sections and man-portable air-defense system sections. Beginning in
3400-620: The Ahmadiyya population, the expenses of maintaining the unit were also paid by that community. The unit was disbanded on 7 June 1950. Following the anti-Ahmadiyya Lahore riots of 1953 , a Pakistani court of inquiry cited the Furqan Battalion in discussions of the Ahmadiyya role in Pakistani society . This Ahmadiyya -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Battalion A battalion
3485-815: The CIC is longer, due to specific additional requirements for individual regiments: Officers receive their initial training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst , infantry officers then undertake the Platoon Commander's Battle Course , which is run at the Infantry Battle School at Brecon in Wales. It is here that leadership and tactics are taught to new platoon commanders. New NCOs and Warrant Officers are also sent on courses at Brecon when they come up for promotion. This encompasses Phase 3 training. Phase 3 training
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3570-459: The Canadian battalion forms the core of the infantry battle group, which also includes various supporting elements such as armour, artillery , combat engineers and combat service support . An infantry battle group will typically be commanded by the commander of the core infantry battalion around which it is formed and can range in size from 300 to 1,500 or more soldiers, depending on the nature of
3655-742: The English language in the 16th century from the French bataillon , meaning "battle squadron" (similar to the Italian battaglione meaning the same thing) and the Spanish batallón , derived from the Vulgar Latin noun battalia ("battle") and ultimately from the Classical Latin verb battuere ("to beat" or "to strike"). The first use of the word in English is attested in
3740-787: The Prince of Wales's Division in 2005. These two were amalgamated into a single battalion and then amalgamated with Light Infantry and the Royal Green Jackets to form a new five battalion regiment, called The Rifles . On its formation, the Light Division was abolished. With the exception of the Royal Gurkha Rifles, every line infantry regiment has at least one TA battalion (the Royal Regiment of Scotland and The Rifles have two). The Guards Division has The London Regiment as an affiliated TA battalion. Following
3825-500: The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) to perform field repairs on vehicles and equipment. A British battalion in theatre during World War II had around 845 men; as of 2012, a British battalion had around 650 soldiers. With successive rounds of cutbacks after the war, many infantry regiments were reduced to a single battalion (others were amalgamated to form large regiments that maintained multiple battalions, e.g.,
3910-468: The U.S. Marine Corps, the brigade designation is used only in " Marine Expeditionary Brigade " (MEB). An MEB is one of the standard Marine Air-Ground Task Forces (MAGTF), is commanded by a brigadier general or major general , and consists of command element, a ground combat element (usually one reinforced Marine infantry regiment), an aviation combat element (a reinforced Marine aircraft group including rotary wing, fixed wing and tiltrotor aircraft) and
3995-483: The UK's primary land element for operations outside the European theatre, as well as operations supporting NATO's flanks. It consists of four infantry centred brigades – one is intended as a high-readiness mobile formation, one as a light infantry formation to provide surge capacity, and one as a parent formation for Army Reserve battalions. The other, 16 Air Assault Brigade, forms part of the overall "Reaction Force", and
4080-479: The army are reported to have less than 150 men. Within these battalions only around 80 men are fit for actual combat. Due to such manpower shortages, the army has been reportedly drawing out 30,000 men from combat support service battalions as of late 2023 (signal, supply and transport battalions for example). British Army Infantry The Infantry of the British Army comprises 49 infantry battalions , from 19 regiments . Of these, 33 battalions are part of
4165-528: The army's infantry battalions, there are three further battalion-sized commando infantry units, which are part of the Royal Marines , as well as eight field squadrons (each larger than an infantry company) of the RAF Regiment , who have responsibility for the ground defence of air assets and are under the control of the Royal Air Force . The majority of infantry battalions are attached to one of
4250-765: The battalion is the standard unit organisation for infantry and combat service support and each battalion is divided into one or more sub-units referred to as companies. In the Canadian Forces , most battalions are reserve units of between 100 and 200 soldiers that include an operationally ready, field-deployable component of approximately a half-company apiece. The nine regular force infantry battalions each contain three or four rifle companies and one or two support companies. Canadian battalions are generally commanded by lieutenant-colonels , though smaller reserve battalions may be commanded by majors . Those regiments consisting of more than one battalion are: Tactically,
4335-413: The battalion's soldiers and the battalion's vehicles can carry. The commander's staff coordinates and plans operations. A battalion's subordinate companies and their platoons are dependent upon the battalion headquarters for command, control, communications and intelligence, and the battalion's service and support structure. The battalion is usually part of a regiment , group , or brigade , depending on
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#17327720525394420-411: The battalion, to coordinate naval gunfire support . The United States Navy has construction battalions and navy cargo handling battalions . They are structured roughly analogous to an Army or Marine Corps battalion with staff and commanding officers of similar grade and experience. In Myanmar (Army, People's Defence Force and various EAOs), battalions (or Regiments), called Tat Yinn (တပ်ရင်း), are
4505-531: The battalions of the Royal Regiment of Scotland recruit from the areas they recruited from when they were separate regiments), while England has seven line infantry and rifles regiments. The Parachute Regiment recruits nationally, while the Royal Gurkha Rifles recruits most of its serving personnel from Nepal , and the Royal Gibraltar Regiment recruits from the UK and Commonwealth nations Before
4590-442: The branch of service. NATO defines a battalion as being "larger than a company, but smaller than a regiment" while "consisting of two or more company-, battery-, or troop-sized units along with a headquarters." The standard NATO symbol for a battalion represented by a pair of vertical lines above a framed unit icon. Member nations have specified the various names they will use for organisations of this size. The term battalion
4675-757: The capital letters I and J looked alike and were therefore easily confused with one another. It was common for a battalion to become temporarily attached to a different regiment. For example, during the confusion and high casualty rates of both the Normandy Landings and the Battle of the Bulge , in order to bolster the strength of a depleted infantry regiment, companies and even battalions were moved around as necessary. The U.S. Army also created independent tank battalions to attach to infantry divisions during World War II in order to give them fire support. From
4760-458: The core of the battalion structure remains roughly the same with Battalion/Regimental HQ housing command elements (OC, 2IC, Adjutant, Quartermaster, RSM, RQMS, R.P Sergeant and etc.), HQ Company (Support Platoons like Engineer, Signal, Medical and etc.) and 4 Rifle Companies. 4 Rifle Companies (No. (1) Rifle Company, No. (2) Rifle Company, No. (3) Rifle Company and No. (4) Rifle Company) and HQ Company are combat troops whereas Battalion/Regimental HQ
4845-473: The deployable brigades. However, there are a number of formations that exist to administer those infantry battalions that are not assigned to deployable brigades, but are instead available for independent deployment on roulement tours. Each battalion in the five single battalion regiments of the Guards Division has a fixed role: Two battalions will be assigned as general light role battalions, with
4930-412: The early 1980s, some elements of the combat support companies (the mortar and scout platoons) were merged into the headquarters company with the staff and support elements, others were moved to their parent type organisation (ground surveillance radar and air defence), and in infantry battalions the heavy anti-tank missile platoon was organized as a separate company (E Company). In the late 1980s, there
5015-459: The end of the Second World War , reductions in the size of the infantry led to the amalgamation of the existing regimental depots , together with their operational battalions, into geographically based infantry depots, each designated by a letter of the alphabet from A to O (not including I). In 1948, upon the further reduction of line infantry and rifle regiments to a single battalion, the 14 infantry depots were renamed as geographical brigades (with
5100-413: The exception of Depot J, which was the brigade for those regiments designated as "light infantry", and Depot O, which was for the two regiments of rifles ). These brigades assumed the administrative functions from the individual regimental depots, essentially forming what amounted to a multi-battalion regiment. This was taken a stage further following the 1957 Defence White Paper , when each brigade adopted
5185-602: The fifth will be formed as a new battalion of the Royal Gurkha Rifles All five battalions will periodically rotate roles : ^α These are the battalions represented by the four incremental companies Over time, a handful of infantry regiments have disappeared from the roll through disbandment rather than amalgamation. In the twentieth century, eight regiments disappeared like this: The Honourable Artillery Company included infantry battalions from its formation up to 1973 when its infantry wing
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#17327720525395270-569: The first large regiments as the Royal Anglian Regiment and Royal Green Jackets in 1964 and 1966 respectively. Four further large regiments (The Queen's Regiment , Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, Royal Irish Rangers and Light Infantry ) were formed between 1966 and 1968, before the process was halted – the brigade system was abolished, with instead all of the remaining infantry regiments grouped into six administrative divisions. The amalgamations into large regiments coincided with
5355-533: The ground combat element (GCE) of a Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). A standard U.S. Marine infantry battalion is typically supported by an artillery battery and a platoon each of tanks, amphibious assault vehicles, light armoured reconnaissance vehicles, reconnaissance Marines and combat engineers. The battalion structure is designed to readily expand to include a fourth rifle company, if required, as described above under battalion organisation. Often Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company (ANGLICO) officers are assigned to
5440-473: The late 1980s consisted of a battalion headquarters, a headquarters platoon, a maintenance and supply platoon and three firing batteries, each with six artillery pieces, whether the self-propelled 2S1 Gvozdikas or the towed D-30 howitzers , and numbering 260 personnel or 240 personnel respectively. Rocket launcher artillery battalions consisted of a headquarters and headquarters platoon, a service battery and three firing batteries equipped with BM-21 Grads for
5525-565: The latter case, the unit is called an eskadron , which translates roughly to "squadron". There are also support battalions in the Dutch Army, which specialise on a specific task: for example, supplies and transport or communications. The Netherlands have four battalions that are permanently reserved for the United Nations , for the purpose of peacekeeping duties. An infantry battalion, logistical battalion, combat battalion and
5610-406: The main maneuver units. As for structure, an Infantry Battalion was structured with 27 Officers and 750 other ranks back in 1966 under a structure organisation named of ကဖ/၇၀(၈)/၆၆ . This was revised in 1988 to 814 men and then revised again in 2001 as 31 Officers and 826 other ranks under a structure organisation named ကဖ/၇၀-ဆ/၂၀၀၁ . Even though authorised strength of the structure changed,
5695-469: The mid eighteenth century. These were formalised under the Cardwell Reforms that began in the 1860s. Under this scheme, single battalion infantry regiments were amalgamated into two battalion regiments, then assigned to a depot and associated recruiting area (which would usually correspond to all or part of a county). The recruiting area (usually) would then become part of the regiment's title. It
5780-597: The mission assigned. A battalion in the Indian Army consists of four rifle companies. In turn each rifle company consists three platoons . A battalion in the Indian Army is commanded by a colonel . Normally a battalion is attached to a regiment of infantry, which is organised, as a general rule, of a number of battalions and the regimental centre battalion. In the Royal Netherlands Army ,
5865-492: The most recent reforms were completed, the infantry has consisted of 18 separate regiments. The five regiments of foot guards recruit from their respective home nations (with the exception of the Coldstream Guards, which recruits from the counties through which the regiment marched between Coldstream and London). Scotland, Ireland and Wales each have a single regiment of line infantry from which they recruit (though
5950-649: The old regimental system and adopted a combat team approach centred on battalions as the building blocks of mission-oriented task forces. Battalion sizes vary between branches. In the United States Army , a battalion is a unit composed of a headquarters and two to six batteries, companies, or troops. They are normally identified by ordinal numbers (1st Battalion, 2nd Squadron, etc.) and normally have subordinate units that are identified by single letters (Battery A, Company A, Troop A, etc.). Battalions are tactical and administrative organizations with
6035-477: The operations of his regiment and first battalion, command of his company was delegated to a kaptenlöjtnant . During battle, each officer, except the fänrikar , was in charge of a portion of his company. Underofficer (NCO) ranks consisted of furir , förare , fältväbel , sergeant and rustmästare . With the major reform of its armed forces in 2004, the Swiss Army abandoned
6120-579: The other is the Army Special Operations Brigade, which contains those infantry units dedicated to military training and operational support for the UK's partner nations . The formation also has responsibility for the Land Warfare Centre , an organisation that administers a number of the Army's training centres, which includes one infantry battalion and an additional training company. Infantry units are attached to
6205-425: The other three formations, while a number of other regiments sat outside the divisional structure. Within the British Army, there are six main types of infantry: The infantry is traditionally divided into three types: The tactical distinctions between infantry regiments disappeared in the late nineteenth century, but remain in tradition. In the order of precedence, the five regiments of foot guards are ranked above
6290-610: The other two assigned to public duties. These battalions will periodically rotate roles and postings. The six battalions of the Scottish Division have amalgamated into a single five battalion regiment to be called the Royal Regiment of Scotland . The six battalions of the King's Division have amalgamated into two regiments; The original seven battalions of the Prince of Wales's Division have been reduced to five with
6375-637: The regimental amalgamations, two of the regimental disbandments, plus another three of the planned disbandings of large regiment battalions, took place between 1968 and 1970. However, the 1970 General Election saw a change of administration, with the new Conservative government electing to review the plans. The outcome of this saw the planned amalgamation of the Gloucestershire Regiment and Royal Hampshire Regiment rescinded, together with plans to disband another four infantry battalions completely. Instead, six battalions were reduced in size to
6460-537: The remaining battalions of each regiment. The air assault battalion will be reduced to company strength, with the intention that it is assigned as a permanent public duties unit in Scotland. The affected regiments were: In addition, the Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling), 83rd, 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment) was transferred to the administration of the Prince of Wales' Division . Under
6545-460: The restructuring would also see a series of amalgamations of the remaining single battalion infantry regiments into large regiments. In addition, the regular army will lose four battalions. The roles are divided up as follows: The reorganisation was a hybrid of the systems used to organise the regular infantry in Australia and Canada . Australia's regular infantry encompasses eight battalions in
6630-492: The same support units as well, with a signal platoon, supply platoon, repair workshop and medical aid station. The addition of the antitank platoon meant that a BTR battalion at full strength was 525 personnel and 60 BTRs, including three command variants, while a BMP battalion consisted of 497 personnel and 45 BMPs, including three command variants. Prior to the late 1980s, Soviet tank battalions consisted of three tank companies of 13 T-64 , T-72 or T-80 tanks each, along with
6715-424: The second battalion. Battalion commanders and all other officers marched in front of the formation. Non-commissioned officers ( underofficers ) marched beside and behind to prevent desertion , and to replace officers who were killed. In addition to his principal duties, senior officers, such as majorer , the överstelöjtnant and överste , also commanded a company. So that the överste could focus on
6800-532: The ten regiments of traditional line infantry, who are ranked above the two remaining regiments of rifles. Under the Future Soldier reforms announced in 2021, the British Army will have a total of 31 regular infantry battalions, 16 reserve infantry battalions and nine independent companies performing a variety of tasks. Under the Future Soldier plan, postings are: 1st (UK) Division is planned as
6885-466: The third to come from the TA). By March 2004, ECAB had shown that the maximum number of battalions it was possible to cut was four. This was finally officially announced as part of the army re-organisation . The arms plot system would be abolished; instead, individual battalions would be given fixed roles. To ensure that officers and men could continue to gain the variety of skills that the arms plot provided,
6970-597: The transfer of the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment and the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment to the Light Division. The five remaining battalions will amalgamate into two regiments; The three existing large regiments of the Queen's Division remain unaffected by the restructuring. The four current battalions of the Light Division in two regiments were augmented by two battalions from
7055-513: The type of regiments: Each division, in addition to the regiments under its administrative control, also hosts a battalion of The Rangers , the newly formed special operations unit. The four existing divisions were formed as a result of the Future Soldier reforms announced in 2021; prior to this, only the Queen's Division of the new formations existed. The Guards Division , Scottish, Welsh and Irish Division and King's Division were
7140-556: Was a fourth "line" company added (D Company) in most infantry and tank battalions. In this older structure, U.S. Army mechanised infantry battalions and tank battalions, for tactical purposes, task-organised companies to each other, forming a battalion-sized task force (TF). Starting in 2005–2006, the U.S. Army's mechanised and tank battalions were reorganised into combined arms battalions (CABs). Tank battalions and mechanised infantry battalions no longer exist. These new combined arms battalions are modular units, each consisting of
7225-427: Was this that gave rise to the concept of the "county regiment", with the local infantry regiment becoming part of the fabric of its local area. Over time, regiments have been amalgamated further, which has led to recruiting areas of individual regiments increasing in size. Often, these amalgamations have been between regiments whose recruiting areas border each other. However, there have been occasions where regiments of
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