Unit Name: | 2/1st East Lancashire Brigade 198th (2/1st East Lancashire) Brigade 198th Infantry Brigade |
Dates: | 1914-1919 1939-1943 |
Country: | United Kingdom |
Branch: | Territorial Army |
Type: | Infantry |
Size: | Brigade |
Command Structure: | 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division 66th Infantry Division 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division |
Battles: | First World War |
The 198th (2/1st East Lancashire) Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw service during the First World War with the 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division. It was reformed in the Second World War as the 198th Infantry Brigade and served with 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division, where it remained in the United Kingdom throughout the war and was disbanded in late 1943.
The brigade was raised as a duplicate of the East Lancashire Brigade. It was part of the 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division, from those men in the Territorial Force who originally had not agreed to serve overseas. However, the brigade ended up serving in the trenches of the Western Front, suffering horrendous casualties in March 1918 during Operation Michael, the opening phase of the German Army's Spring Offensive. As with the rest of the division, the brigade suffered extremely heavy casualties and had to be completely reformed. The brigade saw service during the Hundred Days Offensive and the war ended on 11 November 1918. Both the brigade and division were disbanded in 1919, shortly after the end of the Great War.
In 1939, the brigade was reformed as the 198th Infantry Brigade, as part of the Territorial Army (TA). This was part of the expansion, which started in preparation for the Second World War. It was assigned to the 66th Infantry Division. However, the division was disbanded in June 1940, shortly after the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was evacuated from Dunkirk. The brigade then became an independent formation for six months, before joining the 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division until it was disbanded near the end of 1943.
Commanders