The 169th (3rd London) Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars. Throughout its existence the brigade, serving under numerous many different titles and designations, was an integral part of the 56th (London) Infantry Division. It served on the Western Front in the First World War, and in the North African and Italian campaigns during the Second World War.
Origin The Volunteer Force of part-time soldiers was created following an invasion scare in 1859, and its constituent units were progressively aligned with the Regular British Army as the 19th Century progressed. The Stanhope Memorandum of December 1888 introduced a Mobilisation Scheme for Volunteer units, which would assemble in their own brigades at key points in case of war. In peacetime these brigades provided a structure for collective training.Beckett, pp. 135, 185–6.Dunlop, pp. 60–1.
The North London Brigade was one of the formations organised at this time. The commanding officer of the Coldstream Guards and his adjutant were ex officio the brigade commander and brigade major, while the Coldstream Guards' orderly room at Wellington Barracks acted as brigade headquarters. The brigade's original composition was:Monthly Army Lists, 1889–1914.
North London Brigade 1st Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (Queen Victoria's Rifles) 6th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (St George's) (attached to 1st) 16th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (London Irish Rifles) 18th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (Paddington Rifles) 19th Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (St Giles's & St George's Bloomsbury) 21st Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (Finsbury Rifles) 22nd Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps (Central London Rangers) Supply Detachment, Army Service Corps Bearer Company, Medical Staff Corps
Territorial Force This organisation was carried over into the Territorial Force (TF) when that was created under the Haldane Reforms in 1908, the North London Brigade becoming the 3rd London Brigade in 1st London Division. The commander and staff continued to be provided by the Coldstream Guards up to the outbreak of war in 1914. All of the Volunteer Battalions in the Central London area became part of the all-Territorial London Regiment and were numbered sequentially through the London brigades and divisions:Martin.Money Barnes, Appendix IV.Westlake.
3rd London Brigade 9th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Queen Victoria's Rifles) (incorporating 6th and 19th Middlesex RVCs) 10th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Paddington Rifles) 11th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Finsbury Rifles) 12th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (The Rangers)
The London Irish Rifles became the 18th Londons and transferred to the 5th London Brigade in the 2nd London Division.
In May 1912, however, the 10th Battalion (Paddington Rifles) was disbanded and the personnel were absorbed by 3rd (City of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Royal Fusiliers), part of 1st London Brigade, and was replaced by a new 10th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Hackney Rifles). In 1913 the new battalion was retitled 10th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Hackney).
First World War The 1st London Division was mobilised in early August 1914, soon after the outbreak of the First World War. Most of the men of the brigade, when asked, elected to volunteer for overseas service (according to the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907, soldiers of the TF were only allowed to serve overseas with their consent). The men who did not volunteer, together with the many recruits coming forward to volunteer, were formed into 2nd Line battalions and brigade, 2/3rd London Brigade, part of 2/1st London Division. These later became 175th (2/3rd London) Brigade and 58th (2/1st London) Division respectively. The battalions were also redesignated, becoming, for example, '1/8th' Londons (for the 1st Line) to differentiate them from the 2nd Line units, which were redesignated '2/8th' Londons (for the 2nd Line).
However, from November 1914 until April 1915 all of the battalions of the brigade were posted elsewhere, either to other formations or to reinforce the tired Regulars of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) serving on the Western Front. The 3rd London Brigade was, as a result, broken up in April 1915 as was the 1st London Division. The 1/9th and 1/12th Londons were both sent to France, the 1/9th to 13th Brigade of 5th Division, and 1/12th to 84th Brigade of 28th Division, both consisting largely of Regular Army troops. The remaining two battalions, the 1/10th and 1/11th Londons, were both transferred to 162nd (1/1st East Midland) Brigade, 54th (East Anglian) Division
In early 1916 the War Office authorised for the division to be reformed in France, although now it was to be known as 56th (1/1st London) Division and the brigade came into existence again, now the 169th (1/3rd London) Brigade but was now composed mainly of different units, with the exception of 1/9th Londons. The other three battalions had joined mainly from other divisions, the 1/2nd Londons had originally been with 1st London Brigade and fought in France with 17th Brigade of 6th Division (later 24th Division), and the 1/5th Londons, originally part of 2nd London Brigade, had served with 11th Brigade of 4th Division (later 8th Brigade of 3rd Division) and the 1/16th Londons, originally of 4th London Brigade of 2nd London Division, later served with 18th Brigade of 6th Division, before transferring to 169th Brigade.
The reformed brigade would serve with 56th Division for the rest of the war, fighting in the trenches of the Western Front in both Belgium and France and saw its first action fighting alongside the 46th (North Midland) Division on the Gommecourt Salient on 1 July 1916, to distract the German Army's attention away from the simultaneous Somme offensive. The first day of the Somme was a complete failure, and saw nearly 60,000 casualties being sustained by the British Army, the bloodiest day in British military history. The diversionary assault at Gommecourt was also considered a failure, sustaining only heavy casualties for both divisions involved, with 56th Division suffering 4,567 men and 182 officers killed, wounded or missing. The division later participated in the pursuit of the German Army when they retreated to the Hindenburg Line in early 1917, and later in battles at Arras, Langemarck, Passchendaele, Cambrai, Albert, Spring Offensive, and the Hundred Days Offensive, suffering heavy casualties in nearly all engagements. By the time of the Armistice of 11 November 1918 the division had sustained nearly 35,000 casualties in just over two and a half years.
Order of battle The brigade was composed as follows during the war: 1/9th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Queen Victoria's Rifles) (left November 1914, rejoined February 1916, left February 1918) 1/10th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Hackney) (left April 1915) 1/11th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Finsbury Rifles) (left April 1915) 1/12th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (The Rangers) (left December 1914) 1/2nd (City of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Royal Fusiliers) (joined February 1916) 1/5th (City of London) Battalion, London Regiment (London Rifle Brigade) (joined February 1916) 1/16th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Queen's Westminster Rifles) (joined February 1916) 169th Machine Gun Company, Machine Gun Corps (formed 17 March 1916, moved to 56th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps 1 March 1918) 169th Trench Mortar Battery (joined 17 June 1916)
Due to a shortage of manpower in the BEF in early 1918, all British divisions serving on the Western Front were reduced from twelve to nine infantry battalions, with all brigades reducing to three. The 1/9th Londons (the only original battalion of the brigade) were, therefore, transferred from 169th Brigade to 175th (2/3rd London) Brigade of 58th (2/1st London) Division where they were amalgamated with the 2/9th Londons and was subsequently renamed the 9th Battalion. On 6 February, with the disbandment of 2/5th Londons, the 1/5th was redesignated as the 5th Battalion.
Between the wars The Territorial Force was disbanded after the war but later reformed in 1920 as the Territorial Army, formed on a very similar basis to the old Territorial Force. The brigade was reformed as the 169th (3rd London) Infantry Brigade, along with the rest of the division, with much the same composition it had before the Great War, of four Territorial battalions of the London Regiment. In 1922 all battalions of the London Regiment dropped the 'battalion' from their title, becoming, for example, 9th London Regiment (Queen Victoria's Rifles).
Throughout the inter-war years 169th Brigade, unlike the other two brigades of 56 Division, saw little change in its composition until the middle part of the 1930s. In 1935 the 10th London Regiment (Hackney) was transferred as a replacement battalion to 167th (1st London) Infantry Brigade. Due to a serious need to strengthen the anti-aircraft defences of the United Kingdom, particularly for London, Southern England and the Midlands, many infantry battalions of the Territorial Army were, throughout the 1930s, converted into anti-aircraft or searchlight battalions of either the Royal Artillery or Royal Engineers. Therefore, on 15 December 1935, the 11th London Regiment (Finsbury Rifles) was converted into an anti-aircraft role, being transferred to the Royal Artillery, and became 61st (Finsbury Rifles) Anti-Aircraft Brigade, Royal Artillery, becoming part of 28th (Thames and Medway) Anti-Aircraft Group, attached to 1st Anti-Aircraft Division, which was formed by the redesignation of the Headquarters of 47th (2nd London) Infantry Division. Two replacement battalions arrived, the first being the 17th London Regiment (Tower Hamlets Rifles), previously the 17th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Poplar and Stepney Rifles) and, more recently, 17th London Regiment (Tower Hamlets Rifles). The other replacement battalion was the 18th London Regiment (London Irish Rifles). Both battalions were originally from 141st (5th London) Infantry Brigade from the now disbanded 47th Division. The battalion was previously known as 18th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (London Irish Rifles). After the disbandment of the 47th Division, the 56th Division was redesignated simply as The London Division and so the brigade was also redesignated, becoming 3rd London Infantry Brigade.
In 1937 the London Regiment was disbanded after nearly all of its battalions were converted to other roles or posted elsewhere. For the most part, therefore, the battalions previously part of the London Regiment became Territorial battalions of Regular Army regiments. The 9th Londons became the Queen Victoria's Rifles (King's Royal Rifle Corps), 12th Londons became The Rangers (King's Royal Rifle Corps), 17th Londons became the Tower Hamlets Rifles (Rifle Brigade) and 18th Londons became the London Irish Rifles (Royal Ulster Rifles). In the following year all British infantry divisions were reduced from twelve to nine battalions, all brigades reducing to three, and the London Division simultaneously was converted into a motorised infantry division, and so the Queen's Victoria Rifles was transferred from the brigade to become the motorcycle reconnaissance battalion for the division. A further change in 1938 came when the London Irish Rifles was transferred to 1st London Infantry Brigade, making the 3rd a two battalion brigade.