Lucknow Brigade Explained

Unit Name:Lucknow Brigade
22nd (Lucknow) Brigade
Dates:June 1907 – January 1916
July 1917 – December 1941
Allegiance:British Crown
Type:Infantry
Size:Brigade
Command Structure:8th (Lucknow) Division
Indian Expeditionary Force E
11th Indian Division
Garrison:Lucknow
Battles:First World War

Sinai and Palestine Campaign

Actions on the Suez Canal

Notable Commanders:Maj.-Gen. A. Wilson

The Lucknow Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1907 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 22nd (Lucknow) Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War as part of Indian Expeditionary Force E. It served in Egypt in 1915 before being broken up in January 1916.

The brigade was reformed in India in 1917 for internal security duties and to aid the expansion of the Indian Army in the last year of the war. It remained part of the British Indian Army between the wars under several designations and was the 6th (Lucknow) Infantry Brigade in September 1939.

History

The Kitchener Reforms, carried out during Lord Kitchener's tenure as Commander-in-Chief, India (1902–09), completed the unification of the three former Presidency armies, the Punjab Frontier Force, the Hyderabad Contingent and other local forces into one Indian Army. Kitchener identified the Indian Army's main task as the defence of the North-West Frontier against foreign aggression (particularly Russian expansion into Afghanistan) with internal security relegated to a secondary role. The Army was organized into divisions and brigades that would act as field formations but also included internal security troops.

The Lucknow Brigade was formed in June 1907 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. The brigade formed part of the 8th (Lucknow) Division.

22nd (Lucknow) BrigadeIn October 1914, the brigade was mobilized as the 22nd (Lucknow) Brigade and was sent to Egypt as the core of Indian Expeditionary Force E. The brigade joined the 11th Indian Division when it was formed in Egypt on 24 December and served on the Suez Canal Defences. After the defeat of the Turkish attempts to cross the canal on 3–4 February 1915, the division acted as a relieving depot for the divisions in France. It was broken up on 31 May 1915 and the brigade came under direct command of the Suez Canal Defences. The brigade was broken up in January 1916.
Reformed brigadeThe Lucknow Brigade was reformed in 8th (Lucknow) Division in July 1917. It remained with the division for the rest of the war, carrying out internal security duties. In the final year of the war, the division (and brigade) took part in the general expansion of the Indian Army as new units were formed.
Post-warThe brigade remained part of the British Indian Army after the end of the war. It underwent a number of changes of designation between the World Wars: 73rd Indian Infantry Brigade from May until September 1920, 19th Indian Infantry Brigade from November 1920 and 6th (Lucknow) Infantry Brigade from sometime in the 1920s. For its subsequent history, see 6th (Lucknow) Infantry Brigade.

Commanders

The brigade had the following commanders during its existence:

From Rank Name Notes
1 June 1907
November 1908
1910 Major-General
22 October 1911 Major-General
16 November 1914 Brigadier-General
21 December 1915Brigadier-General Brigade broken up in January 1916
July 1917 Major-General Brigade re-formed
26 November 1917 Brigadier-General
27 November 1918 Brigadier-General
January 1920 Brigadier-General
December 1922 Brigadier-General
December 1923 Brigadier-General
November 1926
June 1930 Brigadier
May 1933 Brigadier
June 1935 Brigadier
February 1936 Brigadier
December 1936 Brigadier
September 1939 Brigadier

See also

Bibliography

. Philip Haythornthwaite . 1996 . The World War One Source Book . Arms and Armour Press . London . 1-85409-351-7.

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