The 52nd Indian Brigade 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 ...

of the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

that saw active service with the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the

Mesopotamian campaign The Mesopotamian campaign or Mesopotamian front () was a campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I fought between the British Empire, with troops from United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Britain, Australia and the vast major ...

and formed part of the occupation force for Iraq post-war. It was not reformed for 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 ...

History

The 52nd Brigade was formed in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

on 13 September 1917 in 15th Indian Division. It was formed from

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

s that had already been in Mesopotamia for some months, guarding lines of communications. In October 1917 it was transferred to 17th Indian Division where it remained for the rest of the war, taking part in the action at Fat-ha Gorge on the

Little Zab The Little Zab or Lower Zab (, ''al-Zāb al-Asfal''; or '; , ''Zâb-e Kuchak''; , ''Zāba Taḥtāya'') is a river that originates in Iran and joins the Tigris just south of Al Zab in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The Little Zab is approximatel ...

(23–26 October 1918) and the Battle of Sharqat (28–30 October 1918). At the end of the war, the 17th Division was chosen to form part of the occupation force for Iraq. It took part in the Iraq Rebellion in 1920. In August 1923, the division was reduced to a single brigade; the last British troops left in March 1927 and the Indian ones in November 1928.

Order of battle

The brigade had the following composition in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

: * 1/6th Battalion,

Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The re ...

''(joined from Ambala Brigade, 16th Indian Division in August 1917)'' * 45th Rattray's Sikhs ''(joined from Corps Troops in August 1917)'' * 84th Punjabis ''(joined from Corps Troops in August 1917; left in September 1918 and joined the British 28th Division)'' * 1st Battalion, 113th Infantry ''(joined from Corps Troops in August 1917)'' * 1st Battalion, 94th Russell's Infantry ''(joined from Corps Troops in November 1918)'' * 258th Machine Gun Company * 52nd Light Trench Mortar Battery ''(joined in February 1918)''

Commander

The 52nd Brigade was commanded from formation by Brigadier-General F.A. Andrew.

References

Bibliography

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External links