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Army Reserve (United Kingdom)

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The Territorial Army (TA) is a part of the British Army, the land armed forces of the United Kingdom, and composed mostly of part-time soldiers paid at the same rate, while engaged on military activities, as their Regular equivalents. It forms about a quarter of the overall strength of the Army. Its original purpose was home defence although the establishment of the Territorial Army and Volunteer Reserve in 1967 involved a restructuring and revised doctrine leading to provision of routine support for the Regular army overseas. The Indian Territorial Army is based on its British counterpart.

Territorial soldiers, or Territorials, are volunteers who undergo military training in their spare time either as part of a formed unit or as specialists in a professional field. TA members have a minimum commitment to serve 27 training days per annum, with specialists only required to serve 19 days, which normally includes a two-week annual camp. As a volunteer military reserve raised from local civilians, the TA may be considered a militia [1] and several units bear the title "militia" [2], although historically, the British official term Militia designated a specific force, distinct from the Volunteers and the Yeomanry. Territorials normally have a full-time job or career, which in some cases provides skills and expertise that are directly transferable to a specialist military role, such as NHS employees serving in TA Royal Army Medical Corps units. All Territorial personnel have their civilian jobs protected by employment law should they be compulsorily mobilised. There are currently approximately 34,000 serving members in the TA, although it has a target established strength of 42,000. The current highest ranking Territorial is Major General Simon Lalor TD (late HAC) who succeded, The Duke of Westminster TD late Royal Yeomanry as Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Reserves and Cadets).

The Territorial Army was created in 1908 by the Secretary of State for War, Richard Haldane, when the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 combined the previously civilian-administered Volunteer Force, with the Militia and Yeomanry. Most Volunteer infantry units had unique identities, but most lost these in the reorganisation, becoming Territorial battalions of Regular Army infantry regiments. Some, notably the London Regiment, maintained a separate identity. Another example was the Liverpool Scottish, which was linked with the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders, but maintained a separate identity through the Second World War.

Formation to World War I

Main article: Territorial Force

The Territorial Force was originally formed by the Secretary of State for War, Richard Burdon Haldane, following the enactment of the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 which combined and re-organised the old Volunteer Army with the remaining units of militia and yeomanry. The TF was formed on April 1, 1908 and contained 14 infantry divisions, and 14 mounted yeomanry brigades.

The individual units that made up each division or brigade were administered by County Associations, with the county's lord lieutenant as president. The other members of the association consisted of military members (chosen from the commanding officers of the units), representative members (nominated by the county councils and county boroughs in the lieutenancy county) and co-opted members (often retired military officers). Associations took over any property vested in the volunteers or yeomanry under their administration. Each regiment or battalion had a regular army officer attached as full-time adjutant.

The use of the word territorial signified that the volunteers who served with the force were under no obligation to serve overseas — in 1910, when asked to nominate for Imperial Service overseas in the event of mobilisation, less than 10% of the Force chose to do so. In August 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, Territorial units were given the option of serving in France and by August 25 in excess of 70 battalions had volunteered. This question over the availability of Territorial divisions for overseas service was one of Lord Kitchener's motivations for raising the New Army separately.

Territorial units initially saw service in Egypt and India and other Empire garrisons such as Gibraltar, thereby releasing regular units for service in France and enabling the formation of an additional five regular army divisions (for a total of eleven) by early 1915. The first Territorial division to join the fighting on the Western Front was the 46th Division in March 1915, with divisions later serving in Gallipoli and elsewhere. As the war progressed and casualties mounted, the distinctive character of Territorial units was diluted by the inclusion of conscript and New Army drafts. Following the Armistice all units of the Territorial Force were gradually disbanded.

Interwar re-establishment and World War II

New recruiting started in early 1920, and the Territorial Force was reconstituted 7 February 1920. On 1 October 1920 the Territorial Force was renamed the Territorial Army. The 1st Line divisions (that were created in 1907 or 1908) were reconstituted in that year. The 2nd Line was reconstituted in April 1939 in reaction to the declaration of war.[3] When the 2nd Line was reformed they were a little different from their WWI predecessors. They had slightly different names and the regiments assigned were different. After VJ Day in August 1945, the Territorial Army was significantly downsized with all 2nd Line and several 1st Line Divisions once again disbanded.

List of TA Divisions, World War II

The Territorial Army armoured and infantry divisions during World War II were:

Postwar reforms and Cold War to Present Day

In 1947, the TA was restructured and expanded, through the reactivation of some of the 1st Line divisions that were initially disbanded after the war, keeping its former role of supplying complete divisions to the regular Army until 1967. For the first time, TA units were formed in Northern Ireland. The manoeuvre divisions established or re-established in 1947 were:[4]

The Territorials also provided much of the anti-aircraft cover for the United Kingdom until 1956. In that year Anti-Aircraft Command and 15 anti-aircraft regiments of the Royal Artillery were disbanded, with nine others passing into "suspended animation" as new Surface to Air Missile units replaced them.[5] The territorial units of the Royal Armoured Corps were also reduced in number to nine armoured regiment and eleven reconnaisance regiments. This was effected by amalgamation of pairs of regiments, and the conversion of four RAC units to an infantry role. At the same time, the 16th Airborne Division was reduced to in size to become the 44th Independent Parachute Brigade Group.[6]

British forces contracted dramatically as the end of conscription in 1960 came in sight as announced in the 1957 Defence White Paper. On July 20, 1960 a reorganisation of the TA was announced in the House of Commons. The Territorials were to be reduced from 266 fighting units to 195. There was to be a reduction of 46 regiments of the Royal Artillery, 18 battalions of infantry, 12 regiments of the Royal Engineers and 2 regiments of the Royal Corps of Signals.[7] The reductions were carried in 1961, mainly by amalgamation of units.

This was followed by complete reorganisation announced in the 1966 Defence White Paper from April 1, 1967 when the title Territorial Army and Volunteer Reserve (TAVR) was adopted which abolished the former regimental and divisional structure of the TA. Units in the new TAVR were divided into four categories:

  • TAVR I: Units available for all purposes
  • TAVR II: Units with a NATO role, specifically support for the British Army of the Rhine
  • TAVR III: Home Defence units
  • TAVR IV: Consisting of bands and the University-based Officer Training Corps

TAVR I and II units were known as "Volunteers", and those in TAVR III as "Territorials". These terms were often incorporated into the unit titles.

The TAVR III was disbanded in 1969, with the units being reduced to eight-man "cadres". The cadres became part of a "sponsoring" TAVR II unit, although continuing to wear the badges and perpetuating the traditions of their forebears. An increase in the size of the TAVR in 1971 lead to the formation of a number of battalions based on these cadres.[8][9]

In 1979 the Territorial Army title was restored, and in the following years its size was somewhat increased, with the regimental system being progressively reinstated. Although due to it's decreased established size, Brigades rather than Divisions were used at a manouvre formation level.

The TA was thus re-roled into its modern form. Instead of supplying complete combat divisions, its function was to round out regular formations by supplying units of up to battalion size (including infantry, light artillery and formation reconnaissance), and to supply extra support functions such as engineers, medical units and military police.

After the Strategic Defence Review of 1998, the TA's size was further reduced. The Infantry suffered most, with 87 companies in 33 battalions reducing to 67 companies in 15 battalions. As of 2006 the Territorial Army has an authorised strength of 42,000 though recruiting difficulties put the actual strength of the TA below that figure (manning is currently at approx 82% which equates to 34,000). Units also have attached Regular Army personnel from their affiliated Corps or Regiment who assist with training and administration and tend to fill the roles of Adjutant and Regimental Sergeant Major, as well as Permanent Staff Instructors in every Squadron or Company.

TA soldiers have seen service in a number of conflicts that the UK has been involved with since 1945. However, they served in particularly large numbers in two conflicts. The Korean War and Suez Crisis, which were during the 1950s when the entire TA was called up. Throughout the Cold War however, the Territorial Army was never regarded as a particularly useable force overseas, either by the Government of the day or by the Regular Army. This was due to the fact that the entire Territorial Army had to be mobilised by Royal Prerogative in a wartime scenario, as occurred in the World Wars, with no flexibility to use smaller formations or specialists if required and as a result relied purely on Territorials willing to volunteer their services. Therefore, it's role was, at least unofficially, seen as home defence and as a result the TA was not used in conflicts such as the 1982 Falklands War and 1991 Gulf War [10]. However, the Government passed the Reserve Forces Act 1996 [11], which enables individual TA personnel to be compulsorily called up for deployment, with certain caveats exempting those in full-time education and other compassionate reasons, as well as providing protection by employment law for members' civilian jobs should they be mobilised, which has lead to the TA increasingly providing routine support for the Regular army overseas.

In 2003, 9,500 reservists, the vast majority of them from the TA, were mobilised to take part in Operation Telic, the invasion of Iraq. Approximately 1,200 members of the TA continue to deploy annually on tours of duty in Iraq, Operation Herrick in Afghanistan and elsewhere, normally on 6 month-long tours of duty. Given the relatively-small size of the Regular British Army, coupled with the current high rate of operational deployments, it seems inconceivable that the TA will not see further extensive overseas service during the remainder of the early part of the 21st century.

Regional Brigades

Most units of the Territorial Army are organised into Regional Brigades for administrative and training purposes, dependent upon their geographic location within the United Kingdom. Exceptions include the Army Medical Services and UKSF(R). The Brigades also co-ordinate Civil Contingency Reaction Forces (CCRF) in their respective regions, which are organised to provide support to the emergency services if required:

Current units

Arms of the British Army
Combat Arms
Combat Support Arms
Combat Services

Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia)

Honourable Artillery Company

Royal Armoured Corps

Royal Artillery

Royal Engineers

Royal Corps of Signals

11 Signal Brigade Units:

2 (National Communications) Signal Brigade Units:

Infantry

Special Air Service

Army Air Corps

  • 6 (Volunteer) Regiment AAC
  • 7 (Volunteer) Regiment AAC

Royal Logistic Corps

Royal Army Medical Corps

  • 254 (City of Cambridge) General Support Medical Regiment
  • 225 (Scottish) General Support Medical Regiment
  • 253 (North Irish) General Support Medical Regiment
  • 250 Medical Squadron
  • 144 Parachute Medical Squadron

2 Medical Brigade Units:

  • 201 (Northern) Field Hospital
  • 202 (Midlands) Field Hospital
  • 203 (Welsh) Field Hospital
  • 204 (North Irish) Field Hospital
  • 205 (Scottish) Field Hospital
  • 207 (Manchester) Field Hospital
  • 208 (Liverpool) Field Hospital
  • 212 (Yorkshire) Field Hospital
  • 222 Field Hospital
  • 243 (Wessex) Field Hospital
  • 256 (City of London) Field Hospital
  • 34 Field Hospital

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers

Adjutant General's Corps

Intelligence Corps

Corps of Army Music

Pipes and Drums

Officer Training Corps

Many British Universities also have Officer Training Corps units, which allow students to experience military life. University Officer Training Corps (UOTCs) still officially form part of the TA. However, they fall into reserve category "B" meaning they cannot be called up for service unless there is a national emergency.

  • Aberdeen UOTC
  • Birmingham UOTC
  • Bristol UOTC
  • Cambridge UOTC
  • East Midlands UOTC
  • Edinburgh UOTC
  • Exeter UOTC
  • Glasgow and Strathclyde UOTC
  • Leeds UOTC
  • Liverpool UOTC
  • Manchester UOTC
  • Northumbrian UOTC
  • Oxford UOTC
  • Queen's UOTC
  • Sheffield UOTC
  • Southampton UOTC
  • Tayforth UOTC
  • Wales UOTC
  • University of London OTC

Overseas territories

Throughout the British Empire, home defence units, like the Royal Hong Kong Regiment, were raised in various British colonies with the intention of allowing Regular Army units tied-up on garrison duty to be deployed elsewhere. These have generally been organised along Territorial Army lines. There are three units, today, in the remaining British Overseas Territories (BOT): the Bermuda Regiment, the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, and the Falkland Islands Defence Force. Although the British Government, as national government, is responsible for the defence of the territories, and holds direct control of military units raised within them, the local forces are raised and funded by the local governments of the territories. These units must meet British Army standards in organisation and efficiency. Their officers are commissioned by Sandhurst, and their sergeants attend the Platoon Sergeants course at Brecon (itself having been begun as a course for Parachute Regiment NCOs, created by a Bermudian officer, Major-General Glyn Charles Anglim Gilbert). Although OT units may have no tasking under the Ministry of Defence, and members may not be compelled to serve outside their territory, many serve voluntarily on attachment to Regular Army units. In the 1980s, a cadre of officers and NCOs from the Bermuda Regiment was briefly attached to a battalion of the affiliated Royal Anglian Regiment deployed to Belize, guarding against a threatened invasion by Guatemala. The Royal Gibraltar Regiment is moving towards full integration with the British Army, having been added to the Army List, and with two of its three rifle companies having become full-time, following the withdrawal of the Regular Army garrison in 1991.

Basic training

For TA Soldiers, recruit training is structured into two phases. In Phase 1, recruits initially undergo a series of 8 training weekends at Regional Training Centres (RTCs) that culminates in the Common Military Syllabus (Recruit) (CMS(R)) Course, which for TA Soldiers lasts two weeks (as opposed to fourteen weeks for regular army recruits), normally held at an Army Training Regiment. This is followed by Phase 2, a further period of specialist training specific to the type of unit the recruit is joining, for example the two week Combat Infantryman's Course (CIC) held at the Infantry Training Centre, Catterick. For Officers, training is structured into five modules, which together form the Territorial Army Officer Commissioning Course (TAOCC). Module 1 is the same as the Common Military Syllabus (Recruit) course which Potential Officers must also pass as part of normal TA recruit training or within an Officer Training Corps. In Module 2, lessons in Tactics, Leadership, Doctrine and Navigation are taught and a further series of selection and aptitude tests are undertaken, usually spread over 10 weekends, this also includes passing The Army Officer Selection Board. Module 3 applies the theory taught in Module 2 into a 9 day Battle Camp. Modules 2 and 3 are run by Regional Training Centres. Passing the AOSB and Module 3 then enables Potential Officers to attend an intensive 3 week Assessment at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, which forms Module 4. This is subsequently followed up by a period of further post-commissioning training as part of Module 5 back at an RTC, usually over 4 weekends.

Restructuring

On December 16 2004, Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon announced a major restructuring of the infantry in the Delivering Security in a Changing World Review of the Armed Forces. The 40 battalions of the regular army will be reduced to 36, with the majority of those remaining being amalgamated into larger regiments, leaving a total of 18 infantry regiments. The 14 TA infantry battalions will be included in this structure, with each regiment having at least one TA battalion (the Royal Regiment of Scotland and The Rifles will have two); the Guards Division will also have an affiliated TA battalion, the London Regiment.

See also

References

  1. ^ Oxford English Dictionary online: "a military force raised from the civilian population of a country or region, esp. to supplement a regular army in an emergency", "military units and forces, raised locally (and usually for the purpose of local defence) from the civilian population of an area, and distinguished from professional standing armies as the latter developed"
  2. ^ e.g. Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia), The Jersey Field Squadron (Militia), The Royal Militia of The Island of Jersey, 4th (Volunteer) Battalion The Royal Irish Rangers (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd and 87th) (North Irish Militia) (until 1993)
  3. ^ http://www.essex-yeomanry.org.uk/history/shorthistory.htm
  4. ^ Charles Messenger, A History of the British Infantry: Volume Two 1915-94, Leo Cooper, London, 1996, p.157
  5. ^ Napoleonic war links to go, The Times, August 30, 1955
  6. ^ TA replanning complete, The Times, May 6, 1956
  7. ^ Reorganizing Territorials, the Times, July 21, 1960
  8. ^ [1] Regiments of the British Territorial & Army Volunteer Reserve 1967 (regiments.org)
  9. ^ Lineage of British Army Regiments 1967 - 2000 by Wienand Drieth [2]
  10. ^ [3]
  11. ^ [4]
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