| 5th Brigade 5th Infantry Brigade 5th Airborne Brigade | |
|---|---|
 Badge of 5th Infantry Brigade | |
| Active | 1908-1918 1935-1976 1982-1999 |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Role | Airborne Infantry brigade |
| Size | Brigade |
| Part of | 3rd (UK) Division |
| Garrison/HQ | Aldershot Garrison |
| Engagements | First World War Second World War Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation The Troubles Falklands War |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Michael West |
The5th Infantry Brigade was aregularinfantrybrigade of theBritish Army that existed from before theFirst World War until 1999, except for a short break in the late 1970s. It was an Airborne Brigade from the early 1980s until amalgamating with24th Airmobile Brigade, in 1999, to form16 Air Assault Brigade.
During theBoer War, the 5th Infantry Brigade, then known as the Irish Brigade, fought in theBattle of Colenso under Major General Arthur Fitzroy Hart. It consisted of the 1st Royal Dublin Fusiliers, 1st Inniskilling Fusiliers, 1st Connaught Rangers, and the 1st Border Regiment.[1]
Following the end of the Boer war in 1902 the army was restructured, and a 3rd Infantry division was established permanently atBordon as part of the1st Army Corps, comprising the 5th and6th Infantry Brigades.[2][3]
The brigade was part of the2nd Division during the First World War and was one of the first British units to be sent overseas on the outbreak of war. The brigade became part of theBritish Expeditionary Force and saw action on theWestern Front in theBattle of Mons and the subsequentGreat Retreat and at theFirst Battle of Ypres, which saw the oldRegular Army virtually destroyed.[4]
During theSecond World War, the 5th Brigade was again part of the 2nd Infantry Division and was sent to France in 1939 shortly after the outbreak of war, where it joined theBritish Expeditionary Force. It served on the Franco-Belgian border until May 1940, when it wasevacuated at Dunkirk after fighting in the short but fierce battles ofFrance andBelgium in which theGerman Army nearly cut off the entire BEF from theFrench Army.[5] With the division, the brigade remained in Britain on home defence until 10 April 1942, when it was shipped out toIndia to fight theImperial Japanese Army after a series of disasters suffered by the British and Indian troops stationed there. The 5th Brigade served with the 2nd Infantry Division in theBurma Campaign underGeneral Slim'sBritish Fourteenth Army and fought in theBattle of Kohima, which managed to help turn the tide of thecampaign in the Far East.[6]
Following the war, it was part of theBritish Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan, and then theBritish Army of the Rhine until 1964, when theBrigade Group was released to bolster the strategic reserve.[7] It arrived inBorneo in October 1965 to take control of the Mid West Sector during theIndonesia–Malaysia confrontation, but by 1968 it was back in theUnited Kingdom as part of the3rd Infantry Division.[8] It did a tour inNorthern Ireland during the early part ofthe Troubles.[9]
In 1979-80 Headquarters 8 Field Force was heavily involved in directing theCommonwealth Monitoring Force during the transition to the newly independent state ofZimbabwe.[10]
In the early 1980s, the Field Force concept was dropped in favour of traditional Brigades; 5th Infantry Brigade was reformed at Aldershot in January 1982 by the redesignation of 8th Field Force. The Brigade consisted of the former elements of the Parachute Contingency Force (PCF) from 6 Field Force (which became the1st Infantry Brigade), at the time2 PARA, together with a second Parachute Battalion from 8 Field Force (3 PARA).[11]
The Brigade was sent to theFalklands in 1982 as the follow-on force to3rd Commando Brigade. Having had its two Parachute Regiment battalions withdrawn to reinforce 3 Commando Brigade, it was hurriedly reconstituted with two Guards battalions pulled fromPublic duties in London andNo. 63 Squadron RAF Regiment, (based atRAF Gütersloh, Germany) initially to provide additional Short Range Air Defence (SHORAD) of land forces landing atSan Carlos Water.[12]
Following theFalklands War, it was converted into 5th Airborne Brigade by its Commander, BrigadierTony Jeapes. The brigade consisted of two battalions of theParachute Regiment, a Gurkha battalion, and aTerritorial Army infantry battalion, together with additional parachute support elements and a small parachute deployable Brigade HQ. The7th Parachute Regiment RHA returned from Germany and was converted to an airborne unit and attached to the brigade. A Brigade Logistic Battalion was formed. On 1 September 1999, the brigade merged with24 Airmobile Brigade to produce16 Air Assault Brigade.[13]
The brigade was part of2nd Division. The brigade commanded the following units in the First World War:[14]
The brigade commanded the following units in the Second World War:[15]
The final order of battle included:[12]
The 5th Airborne Brigade Order of Battle was as follows:[13]
Commanders included:[17]