The Motorised Brigade, formerly the Medium Brigade, is a

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

Land Component The Land Component (, ), historically and commonly still referred to as the Belgian Army (, ), is the Land warfare, land branch of the Belgian Armed Forces. The King of the Belgians is the commander in chief. The current chief of staff of the Land ...

of the

Belgian Armed Forces The Belgian Armed Forces (; , ) are the combined national military forces of Belgium. The Monarchy of Belgium, King of the Belgians is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The Belgian Armed Forces was established after Belgium Belgian Rev ...

commanded by Kolonel Lieven Geeraert. Its headquarters is located in

Leopoldsburg Leopoldsburg (; ; ) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. On January 1, 2006, Leopoldsburg had a total population of 14,403. The total area is which gives a population density Population density (in agriculture: Stand ...

and

Marche-en-Famenne Marche-en-Famenne (; ; literally "Marche in Famenne") is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Luxembourg. The municipality consists of the following districts: Aye, Hargimont, Humain, Marche-en-Famenne, ...

After

World War II 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 ...

, the unit was known as the Brigade Bevrijding, 1er Groupement d'Infanterie and finally as the 1re Brigade d'Infanterie, later the 1re Brigade d'Infanterie Blindée. The brigade consists of 5 manoeuvre battalions. Equipment: In the future, the brigade will be equipped with various motorised vehicles, including 44x

pandur I Pandurs were a type of light infantry unit raised in Central Europe. The first was Trenck's Pandurs, used by the Kingdom of Hungary from 1741, fighting in the War of the Austrian Succession and the Silesian Wars. Others to follow included Vla ...

, 382x

VBMR griffon The Véhicule Blindé Multi-Rôle Griffon ( English: Multirole Armoured Vehicle Griffon) or VBMR Griffon is a French six-wheel multi-purpose armoured personnel carrier developed and manufactured by KNDS France (formerly ''Nexter Systems''), Ar ...

, 60x EBRC Jaguar and hundreds of Oskosch command and liaison vehicles. The artillery battalion will have 28 155 mm self-propelled howitzers. Future organisation: the combat capacity of the brigade will be reorganized around 4 infantry battalions and 2 cavalry battalions. The artillery battalion is to have an anti-aircraft battery.

Structure

* Motorized Brigade, in

** Headquarters and Staff Company, carrying the traditions of the 8th/9th Regiment of the Line, in Leopoldsburg * Combat units: ** 1/3rd Lancers Battalion, in

with Piranha IIIC and ATF Dingo 2 wheeled, armored vehicles (to be replaced by

VBMR Griffon The Véhicule Blindé Multi-Rôle Griffon ( English: Multirole Armoured Vehicle Griffon) or VBMR Griffon is a French six-wheel multi-purpose armoured personnel carrier developed and manufactured by KNDS France (formerly ''Nexter Systems''), Ar ...

s) ** Battalion Carabiniers "Prins Boudewijn" - Grenadiers, in Leopoldsburg with Piranha IIIC and ATF Dingo 2 wheeled, armored vehicles (to be replaced by VBMR Griffons) ** Battalion "Bevrijding" - 5th of the Line, in Leopoldsburg with Piranha IIIC and ATF Dingo 2 wheeled, armored vehicles (to be replaced by VBMR Griffons) ** Battalion "Chasseurs Ardennais", in Marche-en-Famenne with Piranha IIIC and ATF Dingo 2 wheeled, armored vehicles (to be replaced by VBMR Griffons) ** Battalion 12th of the Line "Prince Léopold" - 13th of the Line, in

Spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa health treatments are known as balneotherapy. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters and hot springs goes back to pre ...

(Light infantry) * Combat support units: ** Artillery Battalion, in Brasschaat *** Mortar Battery, with 120 mm mortars *** Howitzer Battery, with LG1 105 mm howitzers ** 4th Engineer Battalion, in

Amay Amay (; ) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 Amay had a total population of approximately 14,231. The total area is 27.61 km2 which gives a population density of approximately 476 i ...

** 11th Engineer Battalion, in Zwijndrecht ** Jagers te Paard Battalion (

ISTAR ISTAR stands for Military intelligence, intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. In its macroscopic sense, #ISTAR, ISTAR is a practice that links several battlefield functions together to assist a combat force in employ ...

), in

Heverlee Heverlee () is a sub-municipality of the city of Leuven located in the province of Flemish Brabant, Flemish Region, Belgium. It was a separate municipality until 1977. On 1 January 1977, it was merged into Leuven. According to the official websit ...

with

Pandur I Pandurs were a type of light infantry unit raised in Central Europe. The first was Trenck's Pandurs, used by the Kingdom of Hungary from 1741, fighting in the War of the Austrian Succession and the Silesian Wars. Others to follow included Vla ...

reconnaissance vehicles. * Combat service support units: ** 4th Communication and Information Systems Group, in Marche-en-Famenne ** 10th Communication and Information Systems Group, in Leopoldsburg ** 4th Logistics Battalion, in Marche-en-Famenne ** 18th Logistics Battalion, in Leopoldsburg * Training units: ** Training Camp Beverlo, near Leopoldsburg ** Training Camp Marche, near Marche-en-Famenne

References

Medium Brigade {{Belgium-mil-stub