History
The 1 (United Kingdom) Armoured Division has existed in the British Army since 1809 when the Duke of Wellington formed it, in Portugal, from two British brigades and one Hanoverian brigade of the King's German Legion.
The Division has been stationed continuously in Germany since June 1960, as part of NATO.
The 1st (UK) Armoured Division is currently the only British division to be stationed in Germany.
The headquarters of the division was deployed to Saudi Arabia in 1990 to command British land forces. It had two brigades under its command, 4th and 7th Armoured Brigade. During the war it came under the US VII Corps and was part of the great armoured left-hook that destroyed many Iraqi Republican Guard formations. The two brigades in the division alternated heading the advance.
The Division headquarters again deployed to the Gulf area in 2003. It again commanded British forces in the area, this time with three full brigades under its control. Those were 7th Armoured Brigade again, along with 16th Air Assault Brigade, and 3rd Commando Brigade. In a combined arms operation the division secured southern Iraq, including the city of Basra during the invasion. It came under I Marine Expeditionary Force during the 2003 conflict.
Organisation
The following brigades make up the 1 (United Kingdom) Armoured Division.
- 4th Armoured Brigade
- 7th Armoured Brigade
- 20th Armoured Brigade
- Danish Reaction Brigade
- 4th (Czech) Rapid Deployment Brigade
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