 |
| Arms of theBritish Army |
|---|
| Combat Arms |
| Combat Support Arms |
| Combat Services |
|
| Brigade of Gurkhas | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1815–present[1] |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Allegiance | King Charles III |
| Branch |  British Army |
| Type | Assault troops |
| Role | Land warfare Expeditionary warfare Airborne forces |
| Size | ~4090[2] |
| Garrison/HQ | Staff College, Camberley |
| Nickname | ''The Gurkhas" |
| Commanders | |
| Commander-in-Chief | Charles III |
| Insignia | |
| Tactical Recognition Flash |  |
Brigade of Gurkhas is the collective name which refers to all the units in theBritish Army that are composed ofNepalese Gurkha soldiers.[3] The brigade draws its heritage from Gurkha units that originally served in theBritish Indian Army prior to Indian independence, and prior to that served for theEast India Company.[4] The brigade includes infantry, engineering, signal, logistic and training and support units. They are known for theirkhukuri, a distinctive heavy knife with a curved blade, and have a reputation for being fierce and brave soldiers.
The brigade celebrated 200 years of service in the British Army in 2015.[5][6]
During thewar in Nepal in 1814, in which the British failed to annexNepal into the Empire, Army officers were shocked by the tenacity of the Gurkha soldiers and encouraged them to volunteer for theEast India Company. Gurkhas served as troops of the Company in thePindaree War of 1817, inBharatpur, Nepal in 1826, and theFirst andSecond Sikh Wars in 1846 and 1848. During theSepoy Mutiny in 1857, the Gurkharegiments remained loyal to the British, and became part of theBritish Indian Army on its formation. The2nd Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) and the60th Rifles famously defendedHindu Rao's house.[7]
During theMalayan Emergency in the late 1940s, Gurkhas fought as jungle soldiers as they had done inBurma.[8] The Training Depot Brigade of Gurkhas was established on 15 August 1951 atSungai Petani,Kedah,Malaya.[9] After the conflict ended, the Gurkhas were transferred toHong Kong, where they carried out security duties.[9] The troops patrolled the border checking for illegal immigrants entering the territory, most crucially during the turbulence of theCultural Revolution. They were deployed to contain crowds during theStar Ferry riots of 1966.
After Indian independence andpartition in 1947, under theTripartite Agreement, six Gurkha regiments joined the post-independenceIndian Army. Four Gurkha regiments, the2nd,6th,7th, and10th Gurkha Rifles, joined the British Army on 1 January 1948.[10] The1st/2nd Gurkha Rifles was deployed toBrunei at the outbreak of theBrunei Revolt in 1962.[11] In 1974Turkey invaded Cyprus and the 10th Gurkha Rifles was sent to defend the British sovereign base area ofDhekelia.[12] In 1982, during theFalklands War, the 7th Gurkha Rifles formed part of 5 Infantry Brigade and was responsible for capturing Mount William shortly before the Argentinian surrender.[13]
On 1 July 1994, the four rifle regiments were merged into one, theRoyal Gurkha Rifles, and the three corps regiments (the Gurkha Military Police having been disbanded in 1965) were reduced tosquadron strength. On 1 July 1997, the British governmentHandover of Hong Kong Sovereignty to thePeople's Republic of China, which led to the elimination of the local British garrison. Gurkha HQ and recruit training were moved to the UK.[9] The Royal Gurkha Rifles took part in operations inKosovo in 1999, inUN peacekeeping operations inEast Timor in 2000 and inSierra Leone later that year.[14]
In September 2008, the High Court in London ruled that the British Government must issue clear guidance on the criteria against which Gurkhas may be considered for settlement rights in the UK. On 21 May 2009, and following a lengthycampaign by Gurkha veterans, the BritishHome Secretary,Jacqui Smith, announced that all Gurkha veterans who had served four years or more in the British Army before 1997 would be allowed to settle in Britain.[15]
Former units included:[10]
Current units of the Brigade of Gurkhas include:[16]
In 2018, the UK Government announced that it intended to expand the brigade by more than 800 posts, with the Queen's Gurkha Engineers receiving an additional squadron, while the Queen’s Gurkha Signals and the Queen's Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment will receive two new squadrons. Additionally, approximately 300 new posts within the Royal Gurkha Rifles will be created forming a new battalion planned for the Specialist Infantry role.[25][26] In 2018, it was announced that from 2020, female applicants would be able to apply to join the Gurkhas.[27] However, this decision was reversed in 2019.[28]
In April 2025, the UK government announced a further increase by creating a new artillery regiment within the brigade, bearing the name the King's Gurkha Artillery. As with other Gurkha units affiliated to the support arms and services, the King's Gurkha Artillery will have its own unique cap badge combining elements that illustrate its Gurkha heritage and the heritage of its parent unit, in this case theRoyal Artillery. The creation of the King's Gurkha Artillery will mark the first time that Gurkhas have served in their own dedicatedartillery unit in the British Army.[29][30][b]
The selection process for the Gurkhas is demanding: in 2017, 230 trainee riflemen were recruited from about 25,000 applicants.[32] Recruitment is run byBritish Gurkhas Nepal; based atJawalakhel, nearKathmandu, the main recruiting centre is in the city ofPokhara. Recruitment sees the prospective soldier undergo two stages of selection; first the regional selection at either Pokhara orDharan, where the recruit undertakes a series of physical tests, writtenEnglish andnumeracy assessments, and aninterview.[33] Those that pass regional selection move forward to the central selection process in Kathmandu, which sees further physical and language tests, a medical and a second interview.[34]
Training for Gurkhas is conducted at theInfantry Training Centre atCatterick Garrison inNorth Yorkshire. It lasts for 36 weeks and addresses a range of areas such as the Brigade ethos, language training, cultural training, career management and trade selection, as well as the same 26-week Combat Infantryman's Course that the Line Infantry receive. This enables the trained Gurkha soldiers to fulfill their roles on operations and continue the traditions of their forefathers.[35]
In addition to running recruitment of soldiers to join the British Army, British Gurkhas Nepal also runs the recruitment process for theGurkha Contingent of theSingapore Police Force. Recruits indicate at the registration stage whether they wish to join the Singapore Police or the British Army.[36]
Although all enlisted Gurkha soldiers are recruited from Nepalese citizens in Nepal, officers in the Brigade are either selected from those who have distinguished themselves in the ranks, or are commissioned from British or Commonwealth cadets at theRoyal Military Academy Sandhurst. Officers from Sandhurst attend an intensive language course at Pokhara Camp to enable them to converse with their soldiers in theNepali language, although Gurkha soldiers are also expected to learn English.[37]
Brigade HQ is based at the formerStaff College, Camberley. Two battalions of theRoyal Gurkha Rifles are formed as light role infantry; they are not equipped with either armoured or wheeled vehicles.[38] The 1st Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles is based at theBritish garrison inBrunei as part of Britain's commitment to maintaining a military presence in SEAsia.[39] The 2nd Battalion, Royal Gurkha Rifles is based atShorncliffe Army Camp, nearFolkestone inKent as part of 16 Air Assault Brigade, and is available for deployment to most areas in Europe and Africa. The 3rd Battalion, to be stationed atAldershot, is approximately half the size of the others, and is a so-called 'specialised infantry' battalion, serving in thetraining role as part of theSpecialised Infantry Group.
TheBritish memorial to the Gurkhas was unveiled by QueenElizabeth II on 3 December 1997. The inscription on the monument is a quotation from SirRalph Lilley Turner, a former officer in the3rd Gurkha Rifles.
A series of events took place in 2015 to mark 200 years of service by the Gurkhas in the British Army including a march pastBuckingham Palace.[40][41][42]
Under international law, according to Protocol 1 Additions to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, Gurkhas serving as regular uniformed soldiers are not mercenaries.[43] According to Cabinet Office official histories (Official History of the Falkland Islands by SirLawrence Freedman), SirJohn Nott, as Secretary of State for Defence, expressed the British Government's concern that the Gurkhas could not be sent with the task force torecapture the Falkland Islands because it might upset the non-aligned members of the fragile coalition of support that the British had built in the United Nations. The then-Chief of Defence Staff SirEdwin Bramall, a former officer in the 2nd Gurkhas like Nott, said that the Gurkhas were needed for sound military reasons (as a constituent part of 5th Infantry Brigade) and if they were not deployed then there would always be a political reason not to deploy Gurkhas in future conflicts. So he requested that Nott argue the case in Government for deploying them against the advice of the Foreign Office. Nott agreed to do so, commenting that the Gurkhas "would be mortified if we spoilt their chances [of going]".[44]
Australia –The Royal Australian Regiment
New Zealand –The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment
Brunei –The Royal Brunei Land ForceNotes
Citations
Media related toBrigade of Gurkhas at Wikimedia Commons
Gurkha topics | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background | | ||||||||||||||||||
| Service |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| People |
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Welfare | |||||||||||||||||||
| Honours | |||||||||||||||||||
| Influence | |||||||||||||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
