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92-566: The unit was ready for operations between January 2008 and June 2008. The battle group second alert period was between 1 January and 30 June 2011. This had been planned by a core of staff officers since January 2009. On the 31st of August 2009 the "Key Nucleus" of the Force Headquarters arrived in Enköping in order to establish a functional staff. During autumn 2009 the main focus has been education and internal processes. Spring 2010

184-748: A sidearm or ancillary weapons . Infantry with ranged or polearms often carried a sword or dagger for possible hand-to-hand combat. The pilum was a javelin the Roman legionaries threw just before drawing their primary weapon, the gladius (short sword), and closing with the enemy line. Modern infantrymen now treat the bayonet as a backup weapon, but may also have handguns as sidearms . They may also deploy anti-personnel mines, booby traps, incendiary, or explosive devices defensively before combat. Infantry have employed many different methods of protection from enemy attacks, including various kinds of armour and other gear, and tactical procedures. The most basic

276-605: A "motor infantry" battalion mounted in Universal Carriers or later in lend-lease halftracks. "Type B" brigades lacked a motor infantry component and were subordinated to infantry formations. The Canadian Army and, subsequently the British Army, used expedients such as the Kangaroo APC , usually for specific operations rather than to create permanent mechanized infantry formations. The first such operation

368-414: A battlefield obstructed by craters , barbed wire , and trenches. Tracked or all-wheel drive vehicles were to be the solution. Following the war, development of mechanized forces was largely theoretical for some time, but many nations began rearming in the 1930s. The British Army had established an Experimental Mechanized Force in 1927, but it failed to pursue that line because of budget constraints and

460-420: A comparatively larger proportion of manpower is required to crew and maintain the vehicles. For example, most APCs mount a section of seven or eight infantrymen but have a crew of two. Most IFVs carry only six or seven infantry but require a crew of three. To be effective in the field, mechanized units also require many mechanics , with specialized maintenance and recovery vehicles and equipment. As early as 1915

552-510: A division of a roughly similar composition to a Soviet mechanized corps, which fought in the Italian Campaign , but it had little scope for mobile operations until near the end of the war. The Romanian Army fielded a mixed assortment of vehicles. These amounted to 126 French-designed Renault UE Chenillettes which were licence-built locally, 34 captured and refurbished Soviet armored tractors , 27 German-made armored half-tracks of

644-628: A few exceptions like the Mongol Empire , infantry has been the largest component of most armies in history. In the Western world , from Classical Antiquity through the Middle Ages ( c. 8th century BC to 15th century AD), infantry are categorised as either heavy infantry or light infantry . Heavy infantry, such as Greek hoplites , Macedonian phalangites , and Roman legionaries , specialised in dense, solid formations driving into

736-512: A full suit of attack-proof armour would be too heavy to wear in combat. As firearms improved, armour for ranged defence had to be made thicker and heavier, which hindered mobility. With the introduction of the heavy arquebus designed to pierce standard steel armour, it was proven easier to make heavier firearms than heavier armour; armour transitioned to be only for close combat purposes. Pikemen armour tended to be just steel helmets and breastplates, and gunners had very little or no armour at all. By

828-417: A hundred meters wide and a dozen rows deep. Maintaining the advantages of heavy infantry meant maintaining formation; this became even more important when two forces with heavy infantry met in battle; the solidity of the formation became the deciding factor. Intense discipline and training became paramount. Empires formed around their military. The organization of military forces into regular military units

920-467: A mechanized infantry element for combined arms teamwork. For example, US armored divisions had a balance of three battalions each of tanks, armored infantry, and self-propelled artillery . The US armored infantry was fully equipped with M2 and M3 halftracks . In the British and Commonwealth armies, "Type A armoured brigades," intended for independent operations or to form part of armored divisions, had

1012-442: A modular organisation with a mechanised infantry battalion at its core. For NBG 2008 it was the 41. Rapid Reaction Battalion from Skaraborgs regemente and for NBG 2011 it was the 192. Core Battalion Norrbottens regemente (I19). During 2011 a framework existed for the integration of additional resources. These resources ranged from artillery , air defence , and intelligence to additional logistical support. Additional support in

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1104-399: A problem. This can be avoided by having shield-armed soldiers stand close together, side-by-side, each protecting both themselves and their immediate comrades, presenting a solid shield wall to the enemy. The opponents for these first formations, the close-combat infantry of more tribal societies , or any military without regular infantry (so called " barbarians ") used arms that focused on

1196-440: A return to body armour for infantry, though the extra weight is a notable burden. In modern times, infantrymen must also often carry protective measures against chemical and biological attack, including military gas masks , counter-agents, and protective suits. All of these protective measures add to the weight an infantryman must carry, and may decrease combat efficiency. Early crew-served weapons were siege weapons , like

1288-493: A second officer to lead the assault team. During the Battle of St. Quentin in late March 1918, A7Vs were accompanied by twenty stormtroopers from Rohr Assault Battalion, but it is unspecified if they were acting as dismounts or were accompanying the tanks on foot. During the battle, tank crews were reported to have dismounted and attacked enemy positions with grenades and flamethrowers on numerous occasions. Another example of

1380-463: Is personal armour . This includes shields , helmets and many types of armour – padded linen , leather, lamellar , mail , plate , and kevlar . Initially, armour was used to defend both from ranged and close combat; even a fairly light shield could help defend against most slings and javelins, though high-strength bows and crossbows might penetrate common armour at very close range. Infantry armour had to compromise between protection and coverage, as

1472-541: Is a national symbol common to the constituent countries of the Nordic Battlegroup except Ireland, and the sword and olive branch signify the ambition to impose peace - with or without the use of violence. The Nordic Battlegroup's coat of arms was originally designed to incorporate heraldic elements and colours from all member nations, including "a lion that did not look Finnish, Norwegian, Estonian or Swedish." In 2007, commander Karl Engelbrektson decided that

1564-692: Is first noted in Egyptian records of the Battle of Kadesh ( c.  1274 BC ). Soldiers were grouped into units of 50, which were in turn grouped into larger units of 250, then 1,000, and finally into units of up to 5,000 – the largest independent command. Several of these Egyptian "divisions" made up an army, but operated independently, both on the march and tactically, demonstrating sufficient military command and control organisation for basic battlefield manoeuvres. Similar hierarchical organizations have been noted in other ancient armies, typically with approximately 10 to 100 to 1,000 ratios (even where base 10

1656-510: Is generally accepted that single weapons system types are much less effective without the support of the full combined arms team; the pre-World War II notion of "tank fleets" has proven to be as unsound as the World War I idea of unsupported infantry attacks. Though many nations' armored formations included an organic mechanized infantry component at the start of World War II, the proportion of mechanized infantry in such combined arms formations

1748-544: Is highest, after Russian tank and motor infantry units suffered heavy losses fighting Chechen troops in Grozny during the First Chechen War in 1995. Many APCs and IFVs currently under development are intended for rapid deployment by aircraft. New technologies that promise reduction in weight, such as electric drive, may be incorporated. However, facing a similar threat in post-invasion Iraq to that which prompted

1840-639: The British instigated a tracked vehicle that could carry 50 equipped troops under armour but the project got no further than trials before cancellation. Some of the first mechanized infantry were German assault teams mounted on A7V tanks during World War I . The vehicles were extra-large to let them carry sizeable assault teams and would regularly carry infantry on board in addition to their already large crews that were trained as stormtroopers . All machine-gun-armed A7V tanks carried two small flamethrowers for their dismounts to use. A7V tank would often carry

1932-607: The Bulldog APC as "mechanised infantry". This convention is becoming widespread; for example the French Army has " motorisées " units equipped with the wheeled VAB and " mécanisées " units with the tracked AMX-10P . The transport and other logistic requirements have led many armies to adopt wheeled APCs when their existing stocks of tracked APCs require replacement. An example is the Canadian Army, which has used

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2024-668: The Federal Republic of Germany , an approximate analogue, the Marder , appeared only in 1970. Unlike the APC, which was intended merely to transport the infantry from place to place under armor, the IFV had heavy firepower that could support infantry. The Infantry fighting vehicle concept was subsequently copied by almost all countries of the world. The introduction of the BMP-1 prompted

2116-641: The IDF Achzarit , that are converted from obsolete main battle tanks (such as the Soviet T-55 ). Such vehicles are usually expedients, and lack of space prevents the armament of an IFV being carried in addition to an infantry section or squad. In the Russian Army, such vehicles were introduced for fighting in urban areas, where the risk from short range infantry anti-tank weapons, such as the RPG-7 ,

2208-743: The LAV III wheeled IFV in fighting in Afghanistan. The Italian , Spanish and Swedish armies are adopting (and exporting) new indigenous-produced tracked IFVs. The Swedish CV90 IFV in particular has been adopted by several armies. A recent trend seen in the Israel Defense Forces and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is the development and introduction of exceptionally well-armored APCs (HAPC), such as

2300-1142: The Royal Dragoon Guards , Royal Lancers , and King's Royal Hussars . Similarly, motorised infantry have trucks and other unarmed vehicles for non-combat movement, but are still infantry since they leave their vehicles for any combat. Most modern infantry have vehicle transport, to the point where infantry being motorised is generally assumed, and the few exceptions might be identified as modern light infantry . Mechanised infantry go beyond motorised, having transport vehicles with combat abilities, armoured personnel carriers (APCs), providing at least some options for combat without leaving their vehicles. In modern infantry, some APCs have evolved to be infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs), which are transport vehicles with more substantial combat abilities, approaching those of light tanks . Some well-equipped mechanised infantry can be designated as armoured infantry . Given that infantry forces typically also have some tanks, and given that most armoured forces have more mechanised infantry units than tank units in their organisation,

2392-662: The Sd.Kfz. 250 and Sd.Kfz. 251 types, over 200 Czechoslovak Tatra , Praga and Skoda trucks (the Tatra trucks were a model which was specifically built for the Romanian Army) as well as 300 German Horch 901 4x4 field cars. Sd.Kfz. 8 and Sd.Kfz. 9 half-tracks were also acquired, as well as nine vehicles of the Sd.Kfz. 10 type and 100 RSO/01 fully tracked tractors. The Romanians also produced five prototypes of an indigenous artillery tractor. On July 9, 1945, Decree of

2484-460: The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. At present, almost all infantry units from industrialized nations are provided with some type of motor transport. Infantry units equipped with IFVs rather than lighter vehicles are commonly designated as "heavy", indicating more combat power but also more costly long-range transportation requirements. In Operation Desert Shield , during the buildup phase of

2576-659: The State Defence Committee No. GKO-9488ss, "On the Resupply of Armored and Mechanized Forces of the Red Army" was issued. It ordered the creation of mechanised divisions from many rifle divisions, included in the Armored and Mechanised Troops. In some cases, cavalry divisions and airborne divisions also became mechanised divisions The Soviet motorised rifle troops officially appeared in accordance with

2668-848: The United States Army , mechanized infantry is distinguished from motorized infantry in that its vehicles provide a degree of armor protection and armament for use in combat, whereas motorized infantry are provided with "soft-skinned" wheeled vehicles for transportation only. Most APCs and IFVs are fully tracked or are all-wheel drive vehicles ( 6×6 or 8×8 ), for mobility across rough ground. Some militaries distinguish between mechanized and armored (or armoured ) infantry , designating troops carried by APCs as mechanized and those in IFVs as armored. The support weapons for mechanized infantry are also provided with motorized transport, or they are built directly into combat vehicles to keep pace with

2760-442: The ballista , trebuchet , and battering ram . Modern versions include machine guns , anti-tank missiles , and infantry mortars . Beginning with the development the first regular military forces, close-combat regular infantry fought less as unorganised groups of individuals and more in coordinated units, maintaining a defined tactical formation during combat, for increased battlefield effectiveness; such infantry formations and

2852-469: The 1800s with the invention of more accurate and powerful weapons. In English, use of the term infantry began about the 1570s, describing soldiers who march and fight on foot. The word derives from Middle French infanterie , from older Italian (also Spanish) infanteria (foot soldiers too inexperienced for cavalry), from Latin īnfāns (without speech, newborn, foolish), from which English also gets infant . The individual-soldier term infantryman

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2944-527: The American all-purpose lightweight individual carrying equipment (ALICE). Infantrymen are defined by their primary arms – the personal weapons and body armour for their own individual use. The available technology, resources, history, and society can produce quite different weapons for each military and era, but common infantry weapons can be distinguished in a few basic categories. Infantrymen often carry secondary or back-up weapons, sometimes called

3036-567: The Directive of the Minister of Defense of the USSR No. org. / 3/62540 of February 27, 1957. This directive ordered part of the mechanized divisions and all rifle units and formations reorganized into 'motorised rifle' in the period 1957 to 1964. Creation of the motorised rifle troops was facilitated by large-scale mechanisation of the whole Soviet Ground Forces . This became possible due to

3128-624: The First Gulf War, the U.S. Army was concerned about the lack of mobility, protection and firepower offered by existing rapid deployment (i.e., airborne) formations; and also about the slowness of deploying regular armored units. The experience led the U.S. Army to form combat brigades based on the Stryker wheeled IFV. In the British Army, "heavy" units equipped with the Warrior IFV are described as "armoured infantry", and units with

3220-619: The German economy could not produce adequate numbers of its half-track APC, barely a quarter or a third of the infantry in Panzer or Panzergrenadier divisions were mechanized, except in a few favored formations. The rest were moved by truck. However, most German reconnaissance units in such formations were also primarily mechanized infantry and could undertake infantry missions when it was needed. The Allies generally used jeeps, armored cars, or light tanks for reconnaissance. The Red Army began

3312-547: The Russians to convert tanks to APCs, the occupying armies have found it necessary to apply extra armor to existing APCs and IFVs, which adds to the overall size and weight. Some of the latest designs (such as the German Puma ) are intended to allow a light, basic model vehicle, which is air-transportable, to be fitted in the field with additional protection, thereby ensuring both strategic flexibility and survivability. In

3404-765: The Soviet Armed Forces from the 1980s was the provision of specialized IFVs for use by the Russian Airborne Troops . The first of them was the BMD-1 , which had the same firepower as the BMP-1 but could be carried in or even parachuted from the standard Soviet transport aircraft. That made airborne formations into mechanized infantry at the cost of reducing their "bayonet" strength, as the BMD could carry only three or at most four paratroopers in addition to its three-man crew. They were used in that role in

3496-621: The Soviet Army, a first-line "motor rifle" division from the 1970s onward usually had two regiments equipped with wheeled BTR-60 APCs and one with the tracked BMP-1 IFV. The "light" regiments were intended to make dismounted attacks on the division's flanks, while the BMP-equipped "heavy" regiment remained mounted and supported the division's tank regiment on the main axis of advance. Both types of infantry regiment still were officially titled "motor rifle" units. A line of development in

3588-607: The Soviet Union and its allies in the Warsaw Pact . Armored vehicles meant infantry were capable of overcoming water barriers and having means of protection against Weapons of Mass Destruction . The US Army established the basic configuration of the tracked APC with the M75 and M59 before it adopted the lighter M113 , which could be carried by Lockheed C-130 Hercules and other transport aircraft. The vehicle gave infantry

3680-590: The Swedish Armed Forces Heraldry Council authorised the Nordic Battlegroup commander's use of a command sign . This consisted of a bunting divided into fields of blue, gold and blue with a Roman numeral V in the gold field, since the unit would be the fifth mobilized combat unit of the European Union . As of December 2014, the Nordic Battlegroup consisted of around 2,500 officers and soldiers: On October 29, 2010

3772-507: The Swiss, English, Aragonese and German, to men-at-arms who went into battle as well-armoured as knights, the latter of which at times also fought on foot. The creation of standing armies —permanently assembled for war or defence—saw increase in training and experience. The increased use of firearms and the need for drill to handle them efficiently. The introduction of national and mass armies saw an establishment of minimum requirements and

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3864-443: The arms they used developed together, starting with the spear and the shield. A spear has decent attack abilities with the additional advantage keeping opponents at distance; this advantage can be increased by using longer spears, but this could allow the opponent to side-step the point of the spear and close for hand-to-hand combat where the longer spear is near useless. This can be avoided when each spearman stays side by side with

3956-409: The battlefields quickly enough to maintain the pressure on the regrouping enemy forces. It was widely acknowledged that cavalry was too vulnerable to be used on most European battlefields, but many armies continued to deploy them. Motorized infantry could maintain rapid movement, but their trucks required either a good road network or firm open terrain, such as desert . They were unable to traverse

4048-411: The carrying burden is spread across several infantrymen. In all, this can reach 25–45 kg (60–100 lb) for each soldier on the march. Such heavy infantry burdens have changed little over centuries of warfare; in the late Roman Republic, legionaries were nicknamed " Marius' mules " as their main activity seemed to be carrying the weight of their legion around on their backs, a practice that predates

4140-549: The development of similar vehicles in Western armies, such as the West German Marder and American M2 Bradley . Many IFVs were also equipped with firing ports from which their infantry could fire their weapons from inside, but they were generally not successful and have been dropped from modern IFVs. Soviet organization led to different tactics between the "light" and the "heavy" varieties of mechanized infantry. In

4232-463: The distinction between mechanised infantry and armour forces has blurred. The first military forces in history were infantry. In antiquity , infantry were armed with early melee weapons such as a spear , axe , or sword , or an early ranged weapon like a javelin , sling , or bow , with a few infantrymen being expected to use both a melee and a ranged weapon. With the development of gunpowder , infantry began converting to primarily firearms . By

4324-455: The enemy to prepare for the main forces' battlefield attack, protecting them from flanking manoeuvers , and then afterwards either pursuing the fleeing enemy or covering their army's retreat. After the fall of Rome, the quality of heavy infantry declined, and warfare was dominated by heavy cavalry , such as knights , forming small elite units for decisive shock combat , supported by peasant infantry militias and assorted light infantry from

4416-442: The eponymous Gaius Marius . When combat is expected, infantry typically switch to "packing light", meaning reducing their equipment to weapons, ammunition, and other basic essentials, and leaving other items deemed unnecessary with their transport or baggage train , at camp or rally point, in temporary hidden caches, or even (in emergencies) simply discarding the items. Additional specialised equipment may be required, depending on

4508-464: The equipment and doctrine for mechanized infantry. With the exception of airborne formations , the Red Army mechanized all its infantry formations. Initially, wheeled APCs, like the BTR-152 , were used, some of which lacked overhead protection and were therefore vulnerable to artillery fire. It still gave the Soviet Army greater strategic flexibility because of the large land area and the long borders of

4600-400: The existence of any organised military, likely started essentially as loose groups without any organisation or formation. But this changed sometime before recorded history ; the first ancient empires (2500–1500 BC) are shown to have some soldiers with standardised military equipment, and the training and discipline required for battlefield formations and manoeuvres: regular infantry . Though

4692-434: The expected duration of time operating away from their unit's base, plus any special mission-specific equipment. One of the most valuable pieces of gear is the entrenching tool —basically a folding spade —which can be employed not only to dig important defences, but also in a variety of other daily tasks, and even sometimes as a weapon. Infantry typically have shared equipment on top of this, like tents or heavy weapons, where

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4784-478: The exploitation phase of offensives, as part of the prewar Soviet concept of deep operations . The Soviet Army also created several cavalry mechanized groups in which tanks, mechanized infantry and horsed cavalry were mixed. They were also used in the exploitation and pursuit phases of offensives. Red Army mechanized infantry were generally carried on tanks or trucks, with only a few dedicated lend-lease half-track APCs. The New Zealand Army ultimately fielded

4876-666: The findings of an official audit by the Swedish National Audit Office was published which concluded there were fundamental weaknesses in the organization's logistics capabilities, internal cooperation and personnel supply. According to the National Auditor, Jan Landahl, the Nordic Battlegroup also suffered from inadequate control over expenditures and reporting from the Government to the Riksdag

4968-418: The form of air, naval and special forces assets would be allocated based on the operational tasks the unit was expected to perform. The unit's coat of arms , registered in 2008, is a blue escutcheon displaying a silver lion with red tongue and claws, holding in his right forepaw a sword and in his left an olive branch, both of gold. The motto is Ad omnia paratus ( Latin : Prepared for anything). The lion

5060-462: The formation than the lighter motorized infantry formation, in which vehicles were considered "battle taxis" due to poor protection. The earliest experiment was the short-lived Soviet Light Motor Rifle Division in 1987, which consisted of wheeled BTR platforms for its primary armament. In the 1990s, the United States explored Stryker Brigade Combat Team (SBCT) formation and doctrines, which

5152-430: The increase in the production of armored personnel carriers , self-propelled guns and so on. For example, in the period before the formation and in the initial period of the formation of the motorized rifle troops : One or two motorised rifle regiments were also present in each tank division, and many tank regiments included one motorised rifle battalion. After 1945, the Soviet Armed Forces and NATO further developed

5244-889: The individual – weapons using personal strength and force, such as larger swinging swords, axes, and clubs. These take more room and individual freedom to swing and wield, necessitating a more loose organisation. While this may allow for a fierce running attack (an initial shock advantage) the tighter formation of the heavy spear and shield infantry gave them a local manpower advantage where several might be able to fight each opponent. Thus tight formations heightened advantages of heavy arms, and gave greater local numbers in melee. To also increase their staying power, multiple rows of heavy infantrymen were added. This also increased their shock combat effect; individual opponents saw themselves literally lined-up against several heavy infantryman each, with seemingly no chance of defeating all of them. Heavy infantry developed into huge solid block formations, up to

5336-422: The introduction of special troops (first of them the engineers going back to medieval times, but also different kinds of infantry adopted to specific terrain, bicycle, motorcycle, motorised and mechanised troops) culminating with the introduction of highly trained special forces during the first and second World War. Naval infantry, commonly known as marines , are primarily a category of infantry that form part of

5428-407: The late Cold War and early 21st century, various countries developed medium infantry forces armed with armored vehicles, which typically consisted of wheeled armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles, and assault guns. Medium mechanized forces are characterized by having more strategic air and road mobility than heavier, tank-based armored forces while offering better armor protection for

5520-408: The lion's penis had to be removed. Contrary to initial media reports that the decision was taken following complaints from female soldiers, Engelbrektsson revealed in a February 2008 interview with Sveriges Radio that it was he who made the decision, based on the 2000 United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace, and security. Since civilian women are often sexually assaulted in

5612-725: The lower classes. Towards the end of Middle Ages, this began to change, where more professional and better trained light infantry could be effective against knights, such as the English longbowmen in the Hundred Years' War . By the start of the Renaissance , the infantry began to return to a larger role, with Swiss pikemen and German Landsknechts filling the role of heavy infantry again, using dense formations of pikes to drive off any cavalry. Dense formations are vulnerable to ranged weapons. Technological developments allowed

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5704-417: The main enemy lines, using weight of numbers to achieve a decisive victory , and were usually equipped with heavier weapons and armour to fit their role. Light infantry, such as Greek peltasts , Balearic slingers , and Roman velites , using open formations and greater manoeuvrability, took on most other combat roles: scouting , screening the army on the march, skirmishing to delay, disrupt, or weaken

5796-447: The main force of the army, these forces were usually kept small due to their cost of training and upkeep, and might be supplemented by local short-term mass-conscript forces using the older irregular infantry weapons and tactics; this remained a common practice almost up to modern times. Before the adoption of the chariot to create the first mobile fighting forces c.  2000 BC , all armies were pure infantry. Even after, with

5888-586: The mechanized infantry in combat. For units equipped with most types of APC or any type of IFV, fire support weapons, such as machine guns , autocannons , small-bore direct-fire howitzers , and anti-tank guided missiles are often mounted directly on the infantry's own transport vehicles. Compared with "light" truck-mobile infantry, mechanized infantry can maintain rapid tactical movement and, if mounted in IFVs, have more integral firepower. They require more combat supplies ( ammunition and especially fuel ) and ordnance supplies (spare vehicle components), and

5980-487: The mid 17th century began replacement of the pike with the infantry square replacing the pike square. To maximise their firepower, musketeer infantry were trained to fight in wide lines facing the enemy, creating line infantry . These fulfilled the central battlefield role of earlier heavy infantry, using ranged weapons instead of melee weapons. To support these lines, smaller infantry formations using dispersed skirmish lines were created, called light infantry, fulfilling

6072-595: The mission or to the particular terrain or environment, including satchel charges , demolition tools, mines , or barbed wire , carried by the infantry or attached specialists. Historically, infantry have suffered high casualty rates from disease , exposure, exhaustion and privation — often in excess of the casualties suffered from enemy attacks. Better infantry equipment to support their health, energy, and protect from environmental factors greatly reduces these rates of loss, and increase their level of effective action. Health, energy, and morale are greatly influenced by how

6164-934: The offensive with tank-heavy formations during the Six-Day War , the Israel Defense Forces found in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 that a doctrine that relied primarily on tanks and aircraft had proven inadequate. As a makeshift remedy, paratroopers were provided with motorized transport and used as mechanized infantry in coordination with the armor. Infantry Infantry is a specialization of military personnel who engage in warfare combat . Infantry generally consists of light infantry , irregular infantry , heavy infantry , mountain infantry , motorized infantry , mechanized infantry , airborne infantry , air assault infantry , and naval infantry . Other types of infantry, such as line infantry and mounted infantry , were once commonplace but fell out of favor in

6256-646: The other infantry and support units, this gave both armies highly mobile combined-arms formations. The German doctrine was to use them to exploit breakthroughs in Blitzkrieg offensives, whereas the French envisaged them being used to shift reserves rapidly in a defensive battle. As World War II progressed, most major armies integrated tanks or assault guns with mechanized infantry, as well as other supporting arms, such as artillery and combat engineers , as combined arms units. Allied armored formations included

6348-400: The others in close formation, each covering the ones next to him, presenting a solid wall of spears to the enemy that they cannot get around. Similarly, a shield has decent defence abilities, but is literally hit-or-miss; an attack from an unexpected angle can bypass it completely. Larger shields can cover more, but are also heavier and less manoeuvrable, making unexpected attacks even more of

6440-618: The prior need to garrison the frontiers of the British Empire . Although some proponents of mobile warfare, such as J. F. C. Fuller , advocated building "tank fleets", other, such as Heinz Guderian in Germany, Adna R. Chaffee Jr. in the United States, and Mikhail Tukhachevsky in the Soviet Union , recognized that tank units required close support from infantry and other arms and that such supporting arms needed to maintain

6532-458: The raising of large numbers of light infantry units armed with ranged weapons, without the years of training expected for traditional high-skilled archers and slingers. This started slowly, first with crossbowmen , then hand cannoneers and arquebusiers , each with increasing effectiveness, marking the beginning of early modern warfare , when firearms rendered the use of heavy infantry obsolete. The introduction of musketeers using bayonets in

6624-616: The same mobility as tanks but with much less effective armor protection (it still had nuclear, biological, and chemical protection). In the Vietnam War , the M113 was often fitted with extra armament and used as an ad hoc infantry fighting vehicle. Early operations by the Army of the Republic of Vietnam using the vehicle showed that troops were far more effective while they were mounted in

6716-1041: The same multiple roles as earlier light infantry. Their arms were no lighter than line infantry; they were distinguished by their skirmish formation and flexible tactics. The modern rifleman infantry became the primary force for taking and holding ground on battlefields as an element of combined arms . As firepower continued to increase, use of infantry lines diminished, until all infantry became light infantry in practice. Modern classifications of infantry have since expanded to reflect modern equipment and tactics, such as motorised infantry , mechanised or armoured infantry , mountain infantry , marine infantry , and airborne infantry . Beyond main arms and armour, an infantryman's "military kit" generally includes combat boots , battledress or combat uniform , camping gear , heavy weather gear, survival gear , secondary weapons and ammunition , weapon service and repair kits, health and hygiene items, mess kit , rations , filled water canteen , and all other consumables each infantryman needs for

6808-457: The same pace as the tanks. As the Germans rearmed in the 1930s, they equipped some infantry units in their new Panzer divisions with the half-track Sd.Kfz. 251 , which could keep up with tanks on most terrain. The French Army also created "light mechanized" ( légère mécanisée ) divisions in which some of the infantry units possessed small tracked carriers. Together with the motorization of

6900-723: The soldier is fed, so militaries issue standardised field rations that provide palatable meals and enough calories to keep a soldier well-fed and combat-ready. Communications gear has become a necessity, as it allows effective command of infantry units over greater distances, and communication with artillery and other support units. Modern infantry can have GPS , encrypted individual communications equipment, surveillance and night vision equipment, advanced intelligence and other high-tech mission-unique aids. Armies have sought to improve and standardise infantry gear to reduce fatigue for extended carrying, increase freedom of movement, accessibility, and compatibility with other carried gear, such as

6992-464: The time of Napoleonic warfare , infantry, cavalry and artillery formed a basic triad of ground forces, though infantry usually remained the most numerous. With armoured warfare , armoured fighting vehicles have replaced the horses of cavalry, and airpower has added a new dimension to ground combat, but infantry remains pivotal to all modern combined arms operations. The first warriors, adopting hunting weapons or improvised melee weapons, before

7084-445: The time of the musket, the dominance of firepower shifted militaries away from any close combat, and use of armour decreased, until infantry typically went without wearing any armour. Helmets were added back during World War I as artillery began to dominate the battlefield, to protect against their fragmentation and other blast effects beyond a direct hit. Modern developments in bullet-proof composite materials like kevlar have started

7176-531: The tribal host assembled from farmers and hunters with only passing acquaintance with warfare and masses of lightly armed and ill-trained militia put up as a last ditch effort. Kushite king Taharqa enjoyed military success in the Near East as a result of his efforts to strengthen the army through daily training in long-distance running. In medieval times the foot soldiers varied from peasant levies to semi-permanent companies of mercenaries, foremost among them

7268-500: The use of such a method of fighting is the capture of Villers-Bretonneux , in which A7Vs would suppress the defenders with machine gun fire and assault teams would dismount and attack them with grenades. The British heavy tank design was given an extended hull to cross wide German trenches . This Mark V** had space for fourteen troops. The Mark IX tank based on the Mark V was designed solely for carrying troops with space for 30 but

7360-492: The vehicles than when they dismounted. American doctrine subsequently emphasized mounted tactics. The Americans ultimately deployed a mechanized brigade and ten mechanized battalions to Vietnam. The motorized rifle troops of the Soviet Armed Forces were the world's first infantry units that adopted a new class of combat vehicles in 1966 – Infantry fighting vehicles . BMP-1 began entering service in 1966. In

7452-500: The war ended before the order was complete and they could be used. Towards the end of World War I , all the armies involved were faced with the problem of maintaining the momentum of an attack. Tanks, artillery, or infiltration tactics could all be used to break through an enemy defense, but almost all offensives launched in 1918 ground to a halt after a few days. The following infantry quickly became exhausted, and artillery, supplies and fresh formations could not be brought forward over

7544-547: The war while still in the process of reorganizing its armored and mechanized formations, most of which were destroyed during the first months of the German Invasion of the Soviet Union. About a year later, the Soviets recreated division-sized mechanized infantry units, termed mechanized corps , usually with one tank brigade and three mechanized infantry brigades, with motorized supporting arms. They were generally used in

7636-591: The war zones of the world , the commander did not consider the depiction of a penis appropriate on a uniform worn into battle. The decision was questioned by some Swedish heraldists, with Vladimir Sagerlund asserting that coats of arms containing lions without a penis were historically given to those who had betrayed the Swedish Crown. The state heraldist Henrik Klackenberg complained that his heraldry unit should have been consulted before making such change, but did not intend to take legal action. In an unusual move,

7728-613: The weapon speciality; examples of infantry units that retained such names are the Royal Irish Fusiliers and the Grenadier Guards . Dragoons were created as mounted infantry , with horses for travel between battles; they were still considered infantry since they dismounted before combat. However, if light cavalry was lacking in an army, any available dragoons might be assigned their duties; this practice increased over time, and dragoons eventually received all

7820-452: The weapons and training as both infantry and cavalry, and could be classified as both. Conversely, starting about the mid-19th century, regular cavalry have been forced to spend more of their time dismounted in combat due to the ever-increasing effectiveness of enemy infantry firearms. Thus most cavalry transitioned to mounted infantry. As with grenadiers, the dragoon and cavalry designations can be retained long after their horses, such as in

7912-474: Was Operation Totalize in the Battle of Normandy , which failed to achieve its ultimate objectives but showed that mechanized infantry could incur far fewer casualties than dismounted troops in set-piece operations. The German Army, having introduced mechanized infantry in its Panzer divisions, later named them Panzergrenadier units. In the middle of the war, it created entire mechanized infantry divisions and named Panzergrenadier divisions. Because

8004-561: Was a medium mechanized infantry formation with all-wheeled platforms centered around Stryker armored personnel carrier. In the early 21st century, China reformed its ground forces with the concept called Medium Combined Arms Brigade (CA-BDE), armed with Type 08 universal wheeled platform. A similar trend of adopting the medium mechanized forces was observed in European countries, including the Italian, Polish, and French armed forces. It

8096-809: Was also unsatisfactory. The audit office's report found that twice as many Swedish soldiers were assigned to the Battlegroup compared to what the 2004 mandate had assigned, and the costs to the State was in the multiples of what the Riksdag had been told. Previous Swedish Armed Force chief General Sverker Göranson advocated for a Nordic Battalion Force to be more narrowly focused on local defense. Mechanised infantry Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also armoured corps ). As defined by

8188-485: Was increased by most armies as the war progressed. The lesson was re-learned, first by the Pakistani Army in the 1965 war with India , where Pakistan fielded two different types of armored divisions: one which was almost exclusively armor (the 1st), while another was more balanced (the 6th). The latter division showed itself to be far more combat-capable than the former. Having achieved spectacular successes in

8280-570: Was not coined until 1837. In modern usage, foot soldiers of any era are now considered infantry and infantrymen. From the mid-18th century until 1881, the British Army named its infantry as numbered regiments "of Foot" to distinguish them from cavalry and dragoon regiments (see List of Regiments of Foot ). Infantry equipped with special weapons were often named after that weapon, such as grenadiers for their grenades , or fusiliers for their fusils . These names can persist long after

8372-399: Was not common), similar to modern sections (squads) , companies , and regiments . The training of the infantry has differed drastically over time and from place to place. The cost of maintaining an army in fighting order and the seasonal nature of warfare precluded large permanent armies. The antiquity saw everything from the well-trained and motivated citizen armies of Greece and Rome,

8464-404: Was used for planning, case study and exercise Combined Joint Staff Exercise CJSE 10. Autumn 2010 is an intense exercise period with Illuminated Summer 10, Initial Effort 10 and Joint Action 10. 1 January the Nordic Battlegroup is on standby to be deployed within 10 days. All personnel shall be at their operating bases within 48 hours after the decision to launch an operation is taken. The unit uses

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