The 210th Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) was an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

formation of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

organised during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

to command a group of newly raised Home Defence battalions. It was later converted to a frontline brigade that served (under a new name) with distinction in the later years of the war, the 38th (Irish) Infantry Brigade.

Origin

The brigade was formed for service in the United Kingdom on 10 October 1940 by No 10 Infantry Training Group. It was initially composed of newly raised battalions from English infantry regiments.Joslen, p. 373.

Service

The brigade initially served in

V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to: France * 5th Army Corps (France) * V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Arm ...

, and was then attached to 3rd Infantry Division (28 February – 24 April 1941) before becoming an integral part of the

Dorset County Division The Dorset County Division was formed on 24 February 1941. However it did not take over operational commitments from Southern Area until March 10 and it did not finally assume command of its allocated infantry brigades until 24 April. It only h ...

. When that division was disbanded on 24 November 1941, 210 Brigade transferred to the 1st Infantry Division, and soon afterwards dropped the 'Home' part of its title. By now all of 210 Brigade's English home defence battalions had been posted away and were being replaced by frontline Irish battalions. The brigade was redesignated as the 38th (Irish) Infantry Brigade on 13 January 1942. Under this designation it served with distinction in the

Tunisian Campaign The Tunisian campaign (also known as the battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. Th ...

with the 6th Armoured Division before being transferred to the 78th Infantry Division in February 1943 with whom it saw service in the

Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as the Battle of Sicily and Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allies of World War II, Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis p ...

, the Italian Campaign and later in

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

.Joslen, pp. 36, 109.

Order of battle

The 210th Brigade was constituted as follows: *As part of the Dorset County Division. ** 7th Battalion,

Suffolk Regiment The Suffolk Regiment was an infantry regiment Line infantry, of the line in the British Army with a history dating back to 1685. It saw service for three centuries, participating in many wars and conflicts, including the World War I, First and ...

''(to 8 November 1941, converted to 142nd Regiment Royal Armoured Corps)'' ** 8th Battalion,

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

''(to 226th Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) 28 February 1941; later converted to 153rd Regiment Royal Armoured Corps)'' ** 9th Battalion, Essex Regiment ''(to 226th Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) 28 February 1941); later converted to 11th Medium Regiment, Royal Artillery'' ** 9th Battalion,

Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army based in the county of Kent in existence from 1881 to 1961. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, originally as the Queen' ...

''(to 6th Armoured Division 2 February 1941)'' ** 8th Battalion, Dorsetshire Regiment ''(to 24 November 1941; converted to 105th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery)'' ** 10th Battalion,

Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) (until 1921 known as the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Lancashire R ...

''(from 2 February 1941; to 203rd Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) 24 November 1941)'' ** 10th Battalion,

Somerset Light Infantry The Somerset Light Infantry (Prince Albert's) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army, which served under various titles from 1685 to 1959. In 1959, the regiment was amalgamated with the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry to form the Som ...

''(from 10 February 1941; to 226th Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) 14 June 1941)'' *As part of the 210th Independent Infantry Brigade attached to the 1st Infantry Division. ** 2nd Battalion,

London Irish Rifles The London Irish Rifles (LIR) was a reserve infantry regiment and then company of the British Army. The unit's final incarnation was as D (London Irish Rifles) Company, the London Regiment. On 1 April 2022 soldiers in the company transferred t ...

''(from 30 November 1941)'' ** 1st Battalion,

Royal Irish Fusiliers The Royal Irish Fusiliers (Princess Victoria's) was an Irish line infantry (later changed to light infantry) regiment of the British Army, formed by the amalgamation of the 87th (Prince of Wales's Irish) Regiment of Foot and the 89th (Princess ...

''(from 12 December 1941)'' ** 6th Battalion,

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was an Ireland, Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot and the 108th (Ma ...

''(from 15 January 1942)'' Renamed the 38th (Irish) Infantry Brigade on 12 January 1942.

Commanders

The following officers commanded the 210th Infantry Brigade: * Brigadier N.V. Blacker ''(until 4 November 1940)'' * Brigadier

Gerald Templer Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Sir Gerald Walter Robert Templer (11 September 1898 – 25 October 1979) was a senior British Army officer. He fought in both the world wars and took part against the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Pales ...

''(4 November 1940 – 1 May 1941)'' * Brigadier H.P. Spark ''(1 May – 30 December 1941)'' * Lieutenant Colonel Sir William Randle Starkey, 2nd Baronet ''(acting, 30 December 1940 – 12 January 1942)'' * Brigadier The O'Donovan ''(from 12 January 1942)''

Notes

References

* {{British infantry brigades of the Second World War Military units and formations established in 1940 Infantry brigades of the British Army Infantry brigades of the British Army in World War II Military units and formations disestablished in 1942