Infantry of the British Army


The Infantry of the British Army comprises 49 infantry battalions, from 19 regiments. Of these, 32 battalions are part of the Regular army and the remaining 16 a part of the Army Reserve. The British Army's Infantry takes on a variety of roles, including armoured, mechanised, air assault and light.

Recruitment and training

Recruitment

Traditionally, regiments that form the combat arms of the British Army recruit from specific areas of the country. Infantry regiments were assigned specific areas from which they would recruit from by the mid-eighteenth century. These were formalised under the Cardwell Reforms that began in the 1860s. Under this scheme, single-battalion infantry regiments were amalgamated into two-battalion regiments, then assigned to a depot and associated recruiting area. The recruiting area would then become part of the regiment's title. It was this that gave rise to the concept of the "county regiment", with the local infantry regiment becoming part of the fabric of its local area.
Regiments have since been amalgamated further, which has led to recruiting areas of individual regiments increasing in size. Often, these amalgamations have been between regiments whose recruiting areas border each other. There have been occasions where regiments of a similar type, but from widely different areas, have been amalgamated. Two modern examples have been the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and The Light Infantry.
Before the Second World War, infantry recruits were required to be at least tall. They initially enlisted for seven years with the colours and a further five years with the reserve. They trained at their own regimental depot.
Since September 2007, when the most recent reforms were completed, the infantry has consisted of 18 separate regiments. The five regiments of foot guards recruit from their respective home nations. Scotland, Ireland and Wales each have a single regiment of line infantry from which they recruit, while England has seven line infantry and rifles regiments. The Parachute Regiment recruits nationally, while the Royal Gurkha Rifles recruits most of its serving personnel from Nepal, and the Royal Gibraltar Regiment recruits from the UK and Commonwealth nations

Training

Unlike the other trades in the army, which have separate units for basic training and specialised training, new recruits into the infantry undergo a single course at the Infantry Training Centre Catterick. This course, called the "Combat Infantryman's Course", lasts 26 weeks as standard and teaches recruits both the basics of soldiering and the specifics of soldiering in the infantry. On completion of the CIC, the newly qualified infantry soldier will then be posted to his battalion.
For some infantry units, the CIC is longer, due to specific additional requirements for individual regiments:
Officers receive their initial training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, infantry officers then undertake the Platoon Commander's Battle Course, which is run at the Infantry Battle School at Brecon in Wales. It is here that leadership and tactics are taught to new platoon commanders. New NCOs and Warrant Officers are also sent on courses at Brecon when they come up for promotion. This encompasses Phase 3 training. Phase 3 training is also undertaken at the Support Weapons School at Warminster, where new officers, NCOs and soldiers are trained in the use of support weapons and in communications.
Reservist Infantrymen undertake preliminary training at Regional Training Centres prior to attending a two-week CIC at Catterick.

Headquarters Infantry

Headquarters Infantry, which is located at Waterloo Lines on Imber Road in Warminster, is responsible for recruiting, manning and training policy of the Infantry. Headquarters Infantry was established in 1991 as a result of the Options for Change reform.

Divisions of infantry

The infantry in the British Army is divided for administrative purposes into divisions. These are not the same as the ready and regenerative divisions, but are based on either the geographical recruiting areas of the regiments, or the type of regiments:
Each division, in addition to the regiments under its administrative control, also hosts a battalion of The Rangers, the newly formed special operations unit.
The four existing divisions were formed as a result of the Future Soldier reforms announced in 2021; prior to this, only the Queen's Division of the new formations existed. The Guards Division, Scottish, Welsh and Irish Division and King's Division were the other three formations, while a number of other regiments sat outside the divisional structure.

Types of infantry

Operations

Within the British Army, there are six main types of infantry:
  • Armoured Infantry – armoured infantry are equipped with the Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicle, a tracked vehicle that can deploy over all terrain.
  • Mechanised Infantry – mechanised infantry are equipped with wheeled armoured vehicles for transporting troops. This is divided into "heavy protected mobility infantry", and "light protected mobility infantry".
  • Light Infantry – light infantry are not equipped with armoured vehicles; such units may specialise in jungle and/or arctic warfare
  • Air Assault Infantry – air assault infantry are trained to be deployed using helicopters, parachute or aircraft.
  • Specialised Infantry – infantry configured to undertake training, mentoring and assistance to indigenous forces in partner nations.
  • Public duties – infantry on public duties are essentially light infantry units undertaking primarily ceremonial tasks.

    Traditions

The infantry is traditionally divided into three types:
  • Foot Guards – foot guards are those infantry regiments that were formed specifically to provide close guard to the monarch. Soldiers in the guards were usually the best trained and equipped members of the infantry. However, they would fight in the same way as ordinary regiments.
  • Line Infantry – line infantry refers to those regiments that historically fought in linear formations, unlike light troops, who fought in loose order. The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries saw expansion of the roles of the infantry. To this end, the companies stationed on each flank of an infantry battalion were specialist units, with a company of light infantry trained as skirmishers to operate independently on the battlefield, and a company of grenadiers, who were usually the biggest and strongest men in the battalion, operating as the lead assault troops. In later years, the British Army raised full line infantry regiments classed as light infantry, who operated with muskets alongside specialised regiments armed with rifles.
  • Rifles – in the late eighteenth century, the development of the Baker rifle led to the commissioning by the British Army of regiments specially trained to use the new weapon. These regiments would operate as skirmishers and sharpshooters on the edges of the field of battle. These regiments wore green rather than red tunics to enable them to blend in more with the environment, thus giving them the nickname "green jackets".
The tactical distinctions between infantry regiments disappeared in the late nineteenth century, but remain in tradition. In the order of precedence, the five regiments of foot guards are ranked above the ten regiments of traditional line infantry, who are ranked above the two remaining regiments of rifles.

Divisions and brigades

Under the Future Soldier reforms announced in 2021, the British Army will have a total of 31 regular infantry battalions, 16 reserve infantry battalions and nine independent companies performing a variety of tasks. Under the Future Soldier plan, postings are:

[1st (United Kingdom) Division]

1st Division is planned as the UK's primary land element for operations outside the European theatre, as well as operations supporting NATO's flanks. It consists of four infantry centred brigades – one is intended as a high-readiness mobile formation, one as a light infantry formation to provide surge capacity, and one as a parent formation for Army Reserve battalions. The other, 16 Air Assault Brigade, forms part of the overall "Reaction Force", and is a lead element of the UK's rapid reaction strategy. The other major independent element of the Reaction Force is UK Commando Force; although this does have British Army units attached in combat support roles, the infantry units are from the Royal Marines, which is part of the Naval Service.