King's Division
Encyclopedia
The King's Division is a British Army
command, training and administrative apparatus designated for infantry regiments in the North of England. The King's Division was formed in 1968 with the union of the Lancastrian Brigade
, Yorkshire Brigade
and North Irish Brigade
. As of 2007, the King's Division comprises seven infantry battalions:
In addition, the King's Division also maintains a single band titled the Band of the King's Division. The Band was formed through the amalgamation of two former divisional bands, the Normandy Band and the Waterloo Band.
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
command, training and administrative apparatus designated for infantry regiments in the North of England. The King's Division was formed in 1968 with the union of the Lancastrian Brigade
Lancastrian Brigade
The Lancastrian Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1968. The Brigade administered the regular infantry battalions of northwest England....
, Yorkshire Brigade
Yorkshire Brigade
The Yorkshire Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1968. The Brigade administered the regular infantry battalions of Yorkshire, England....
and North Irish Brigade
North Irish Brigade
After the Second World War there were 14 infantry depots in Britain, each bearing a letter. The depots were territorially aligned, and Infantry Depot M at Omagh was aligned with the regiments from Northern Ireland...
. As of 2007, the King's Division comprises seven infantry battalions:
- Regular Army Units
- 1st & 2nd Battalions, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border)Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border)The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment is an infantry regiment of the line within the British Army. It recruits throughout the North West of England...
- 1st, 2nd & 3rd Battalions, Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot)Yorkshire RegimentThe Yorkshire Regiment is one of the largest infantry regiments of the British Army. The regiment is currently the only line infantry or rifles unit to represent a single geographical county in the new infantry structure, serving as the county regiment of Yorkshire covering the historical areas...
- 1st & 2nd Battalions, Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border)
- Territorial Army Units
- 4th Battalion (V), Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Lancashire and Border)
- 4th Battalion (V), Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot)
In addition, the King's Division also maintains a single band titled the Band of the King's Division. The Band was formed through the amalgamation of two former divisional bands, the Normandy Band and the Waterloo Band.
Past Units
- 1st Battalion, The King's Own Royal Border Regiment - (1959-2006)
- 1st Battalion, The King's Regiment (1958-2006)
- 1st Battalion, The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of YorkshirePrince of Wales's Own Regiment of YorkshireThe Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was created in 1958 by the amalgamation of The West Yorkshire Regiment and The East Yorkshire Regiment...
- (1958-2006) - 1st Battalion, The Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment) - (1688-2006)
- 1st Battalion, The Royal Irish Rangers (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd and 87th)Royal Irish RangersThe Royal Irish Rangers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army.-Creation:...
- (1968-1992) - 2nd Battalion, The Royal Irish Rangers (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd and 87th) - (1968-1992)
- 3rd Battalion, The Royal Irish Rangers (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd and 87th) - (1968)
- 1st Battalion, The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding)Duke of Wellington's RegimentThe Duke of Wellington's Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army, forming part of the King's Division.In 1702 Colonel George Hastings, 8th Earl of Huntingdon, was authorised to raise a new regiment, which he did in and around the city of Gloucester. As was the custom in those days...
- (1881-2006) - 1st Battalion, The Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Volunteers)The Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Volunteers)The Lancashire Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army.It was formed, as a consequence of defence cuts implemented in the late 1950s, by the amalgamation of the 1st Battalion, The East Lancashire Regiment and 1st Battalion, The South Lancashire Regiment on 1 July 1958, forming the...
- (1958-1970) - 1st Battalion, The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) - (1881-1970)
- 1st Battalion, The Queen's Lancashire Regiment - (1970-2006)
- 3rd Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) - (2006-2007)
Fictional
Although not explicitly stated, there is evidence that two fictional infantry regiments depicted on British television have been in the geographical area covered by the King's Division:- King's Own Fusiliers - The television drama series Soldier SoldierSoldier SoldierSoldier Soldier is a British television drama series. The title comes from a traditional song of the same name.Produced by Central Television and broadcast on the ITV network, it ran for a total of seven series and 82 episodes from 1991 to 1997...
depicts the lives of members of the 1st Battalion, King's Own Fusiliers. During Options for ChangeOptions for ChangeOptions for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in 1990, aimed at cutting defence spending following the end of the Cold War....
, the King's Fusiliers is shown amalgamating with a regiment from CumbriaCumbriaCumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
to become the King's Own Fusiliers. As it is unlikely that regiments from different parts of the country would amalgamate, it can be inferred that the King's Fusiliers, and then the King's Own Fusiliers, are a north-west based regiment. - Northdale Rifles - the television film The Mark of Cain depicts the deployment to IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
of the 1st Battalion, Northdale Rifles. Photographs of members of this regiment show that its cap badge contains the Red Rose of Lancashire, suggesting that the Northdale Rifles is a LancashireLancashireLancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
-based regiment.