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{{Redirect-distinguish2|Meerut Cavalry Brigade|[[4th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade]] that also served in the [[First World War]]}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2015}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name = Meerut Brigade Meerut Cavalry Brigade 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade 7th Indian Cavalry Brigade
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| dates = 1 November 1904 – November 1920
| country = {{flag|British India|23px}}
| allegiance = [[British Crown]]
| branch = {{army|British India|23px}}
| type = [[Cavalry]]
| role =
| size = [[Brigade]]
| command_structure = [[7th (Meerut) Division]] [[2nd Indian Cavalry Division]] [[Cavalry Division (British Indian Army)|Cavalry Division (Mesopotamia)]]
| garrison = [[Meerut]]
| garrison_label = Peacetime HQ
| nickname =
| patron =
| motto =
| march =
| mascot =
| anniversaries =
| equipment =
| equipment_label =
| battles = [[First World War]]
:[[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]]
:[[Mesopotamian Campaign]]
::[[Kut al Amara 1917]]
::[[Battle of Baghdad (1917)]]
::[[Battle of Sharqat]]
| decorations =
| battle_honours =
| battle_honours_label =
| disbanded =
| notable_commanders = [[Brigadier-General|Br.-Gen.]] [[William Peyton|W.E. Peyton]]
| identification_symbol =
| identification_symbol_label =
}}

The '''Meerut Cavalry Brigade''' was a [[cavalry]] [[brigade]] of the [[British Indian Army]] formed in 1904 as a result of the [[Kitchener Reforms]]. It was mobilized as '''7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade''' at the outbreak of the [[First World War]] and departed for the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] where it served as part of the [[2nd Indian Cavalry Division]].

It was reorganized in June 1916 as '''7th Indian Cavalry Brigade''' and took part in the [[Mesopotamian campaign]]. It formed part of the occupation forces for [[Mesopotamia]] after the end of the war and was broken up late in 1920.

==History==
The [[Kitchener Reforms]], carried out during [[Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener|Lord Kitchener's]] tenure as [[Commander-in-Chief, India]] (1902–09), completed the unification of the three former [[Presidency armies]], the [[Frontier Force (disambiguation)|Punjab Frontier Force]], the [[Hyderabad Contingent]] and other local forces into one [[British Indian Army|Indian Army]]. Kitchener identified the Indian Army's main task as the defence of the [[North-West Frontier (military history)|North-West Frontier]] against foreign aggression (particularly Russian expansion into Afghanistan) with [[internal security]] relegated to a secondary role. The Army was organized into [[division (military)|divisions]] and [[brigade]]s that would act as field formations but also included internal security troops.<ref name=Haythornthwaite244>{{harvnb|Haythornthwaite|1996|p=244}}</ref>

The '''Meerut Brigade''' was formed in November 1904{{efn|name=Formed|1 November 1904 was the appointment date of the brigade's first commanding officer.<ref name=Hart1906>{{cite web | url = https://archive.org/stream/hartsannualarmy1906hart#page/103/mode/2up | title = Hart's Annual Army List for 1906 | author = The late Lieutenant General H.G. Hart | author-link = Henry George Hart | publisher = John Murray | location = London | access-date=21 July 2015 }}</ref>}} as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. The brigade formed part of the [[7th (Meerut) Division]].<ref name=Hart1906/> In 1908, it was redesignated as '''Meerut Cavalry Brigade'''.<ref name=Hart1909>{{cite web | url = https://archive.org/stream/hartsannualarmy1909lond#page/110/mode/2up | title = Hart's Annual Army List for 1909 | author = The late Lieutenant General H.G. Hart | author-link = Henry George Hart | publisher = John Murray | location = London | access-date=21 July 2015 }}</ref>

===7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade===
[[File:13th Hussars horselines and bivouacs Aire, France (Photo 24-108).jpg|thumb|right|[[13th Hussars]] horselines and bivouacs Aire, France, 25 July 1915]]

In August 1914, the brigade was mobilized as the '''7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade'''.<ref name=Perry85>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=85}}</ref> In company with the newly formed [[5th (Mhow) Cavalry Brigade]], it departed [[Bombay]] on 19 November 1914 and landed at [[Marseilles]] on 14–16 December. It joined the [[2nd Indian Cavalry Division]] which was formally constituted on 14 December. The division concentrated around [[Orléans]] on 20–24 December and moved up to the [[Western Front (World War I)|Front]] on 1–4 January 1915. While in France, the brigade was known by its geographical rather than numerical designation so as to avoid confusion with the British [[7th Cavalry Brigade (United Kingdom)|7th Cavalry Brigade]] also serving on the Western Front at the same time.<ref name=Perry20>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=20}}</ref>

The brigade did not take part in any significant actions while on the Western Front. Instead, it was held in reserve in case of a breakthrough, although it did send parties to the trenches on a number of occasions. They would hold the line, or act as [[Pioneer (military)|Pioneers]]; such parties were designated as the '''Meerut Battalion'''.<ref name=Perry20/>

In June 1916, the brigade was extensively reorganized and was sent to [[Mesopotamian Campaign|Mesopotamia]]:<ref name=Perry19>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=19}}</ref><ref name=Perry31>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=31}}</ref>
* [[3rd Skinner's Horse]] went to [[2nd (Rawalpindi) Division]]
* [[18th King George's Own Tiwana Lancers]] transferred to [[3rd (Ambala) Cavalry Brigade]] and was replaced by [[30th Lancers (Gordon's Horse)]] which in turn joined the [[1st (Peshawar) Division]] in August 1916.
* [[13th Duke of Connaught's Lancers (Watson's Horse)]] joined from the 1st (Peshawar) Division
* [[14th Murray's Jat Lancers]] joined from the 1st (Peshawar) Division

===7th Indian Cavalry Brigade===
[[Image:Kut1917.jpg|thumb|300px|Situation at Kut on 22 February 1917]]

The brigade arrived in [[Mesopotamia]] in August 1916 where it served as an independent brigade, as part of the [[Cavalry Division (British Indian Army)|Cavalry Division]] from 8 December 1916 to 8 April 1918, and as an independent brigade to the end of the war.<ref name=Perry29>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=29}}</ref>

With the division, it took part in the [[Second Battle of Kut]] including the [[Advance to the Hai and Capture of the Khudaira Bend]] (14 December 1916 – 19 January 1917), the [[Capture of the Hai Salient]] (25 January–5 February 1917), and the [[Capture of the Dahra Bend]] (9–16 February).<ref name=Perry32>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=32}}</ref>

It then took part in the [[Fall of Baghdad (1917)|Pursuit to Baghdad]] and a number of actions later in 1917. In 1918 it took part in the Affair of [[Kulawand]] (27 April), the action of [[Tuz Khormato|Tuz Khurmatli]] (29 April), the action at [[Fat-ha Gorge]] on the [[Little Zab]] (23–26 October 1918), and the [[Battle of Sharqat]] (28–30 October 1918) under the command of [[I Corps (British India)|I Corps]].<ref name=Perry33>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=33}}</ref>

After the [[Armistice of Mudros]], the brigade was selected to form part of the occupation forces for Mesopotamia. The brigade was finally broken up in late 1920.<ref name=Perry33/>

==Orders of battle==
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%; background:transparent;"
!In India in August 1914
|-
|At the outbreak of the [[First World War]], the brigade had the following composition:<ref name=Perry85/>
* [[13th Hussars]]
* [[3rd Skinner's Horse]]
* [[18th King George's Own Tiwana Lancers]]
* 3rd Battalion, [[King's Royal Rifle Corps]] ''(left Bombay on 15 October 1914 to join [[British 27th Division]])''
* [[107th Pioneers]] ''(joined 7th (Meerut) Division as [[Pioneer (military)|pioneers]])''
|}
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%; background:transparent;"
!Western Front
|-
|The brigade's composition on the Western Front included:<ref name=Perry18>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=18}}</ref>
* [[13th Hussars]]
* [[3rd Skinner's Horse]]{{efn|Perry<ref name=Perry18/> mistakenly refers to the ''9th Skinner's Horse''. The [[9th Hodson's Horse]] was in the [[3rd (Ambala) Cavalry Brigade]].<ref name=Perry14>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=14}}</ref><ref name=Perry18/>}}
* [[18th King George's Own Tiwana Lancers]]
* [[V Battery, Royal Horse Artillery]] ''(joined in September 1914 from [[XII Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery]] at Meerut)''{{efn|[[V Battery, Royal Horse Artillery]] was assigned to [[II Indian Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery]] but in practice was permanently attached to the brigade.<ref name=Perry18/>}}
* 15th [[Machine Gun]] [[Squadron (army)|Squadron]] ''(joined in February 1916)''
|}
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%; background:transparent;"
!Mesopotamia
|-
|The brigade included the following units in Mesoptoamia:<ref>{{London Gazette | issue = 31287 | date = 8 April 1919 |page=4741 | supp = y }}</ref><ref name=Perry30>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=30}}</ref>
* [[13th Hussars]]
* [[13th Duke of Connaught's Lancers (Watson's Horse)]]
* [[14th Murray's Jat Lancers]]
* [[V Battery, Royal Horse Artillery]]
* 7th [[Machine Gun]] [[Squadron (army)|Squadron]] ''(formed in May 1916)''
* 16th Machine Gun Squadron ''(renumbered from 6th in May 1917)''
* Field [[Troop]], [[Royal Engineers]]
* 7th Cavalry Brigade Signal Troop
* 119th Combined Cavalry [[Field Ambulance]]
* 4th Mobile Veterinary Section
* 7th Cavalry Brigade Supply and Transport [[Company (military unit)|Company]]
|}

==Commanders==
The Meerut Brigade / Meerut Cavalry Brigade / 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade / 7th Indian Cavalry Brigade had the following commanders:<ref name=Mackie365>{{harvnb|Mackie|2015|p=365}}</ref><ref name=Perry17>{{harvnb|Perry|1993|p=17}}</ref><ref name=Perry29/>
{| class="wikitable"
! From !! Rank !! Name !! Notes
|-
| 1 November 1904<ref name=Hart1906/> || [[Brigadier-General]] || [[Arthur Phayre (Indian Army officer)|A. Phayre]] ||
|-
| April 1908 || [[Major-general (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] || [[John A.H. Pollock|J.A.H. Pollock]] ||
|-
| 3 July 1908<ref name=Hart1910>{{cite web | url = https://archive.org/stream/hartsannualarmy1910lond#page/124/mode/2up | title = Hart's Annual Army List for 1910 | author = The late Lieutenant General H.G. Hart | author-link = Henry George Hart | publisher = John Murray | location = London | access-date=21 July 2015 }}</ref> || Brigadier-General || [[William Peyton|W.E. Peyton]] ||
|-
| 2 May 1911<ref name=Hart1913>{{cite web | url = https://archive.org/stream/hartsannualarmy1913lond#page/112/mode/2up | title = Hart's Annual Army List for 1913 | author = The late Lieutenant General H.G. Hart | author-link = Henry George Hart | publisher = John Murray | location = London | access-date=21 July 2015 }}</ref> || Brigadier-General || [[Edmund B. Burton|E.B. Burton]] ||
|-
| 19 September 1913 || Brigadier-General || [[FitzJames Maine Edwards|FitzJ.M. Edwards]] ||
|-
| 27 May 1916 || Brigadier-General || [[Leslie Cockburn Jones|L.C. Jones]] ||
|-
| 12 May 1917|| Brigadier-General || [[Charles Ernest Graham Norton|C.E.G. Norton]] ||
|-
| April 1919|| Brigadier-General || [[Henry G. Young|H.G. Young]] || Broken up in November 1920
|}

==See also==
{{portal|World War I}}
* [[4th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade]]
* [[Indian Cavalry Corps order of battle First World War]]
* [[Indian Expeditionary Force A]]


==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book
| last = Haythornthwaite | first = Philip J.
| author-link = Philip Haythornthwaite
| year = 1996
| title = The World War One Source Book
| publisher = Arms and Armour Press
| location = London
| isbn = 1-85409-351-7
}}
* {{cite web
|last=Mackie
|first=Colin
|year=June 2015
|title=Army Commands 1900-2011
|publisher=www.gulabin.com
|url=http://www.gulabin.com/armynavy/pdf/Army%20Commands%201900-2011.pdf
|access-date=1 July 2015
|url-status=dead
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150705211343/http://www.gulabin.com/armynavy/pdf/Army%20Commands%201900-2011.pdf
|archive-date=5 July 2015
|df=dmy
}}
* {{cite book
| last = Moberly | first = F.J.
| year = 1923
| title = Official History of the War: Mesopotamia Campaign
| publisher = Imperial War Museum
| location = London
| isbn = 1-870423-30-5
}}
* {{cite book
| last = Perry | first = F.W.
| year = 1993
| title = Order of Battle of Divisions Part 5B. Indian Army Divisions
| publisher = Ray Westlake Military Books
| location = Newport
| isbn = 1-871167-23-X
}}

==External links==
*{{cite web|url=http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_divs/7_ind_div.htm |title=7th (Meerut) Division on ''The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918'' by PB Chappell |access-date=2015-07-31 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517124514/http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_divs/7_ind_div.htm |archive-date=17 May 2008 |df=dmy }}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_cav/2_ind_cav_div.htm |title=2nd Indian Cavalry Division on ''The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918'' by PB Chappell |access-date=2016-03-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517085102/http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_cav/2_ind_cav_div.htm |archive-date=17 May 2008 |df=dmy }}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_cav/cav_bdes_.htm |title=Independent Indian Cavalry Brigades in Mesopotamia on ''The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918'' by PB Chappell |access-date=2015-07-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517085117/http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_cav/cav_bdes_.htm |archive-date=17 May 2008 |df=dmy }}
*{{cite web|url=http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_cav/ind_cav_div.htm |title=Cavalry Division on ''The Regimental Warpath 1914 - 1918'' by PB Chappell |access-date=2015-07-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517084710/http://www.warpath.orbat.com/indian_cav/ind_cav_div.htm |archive-date=17 May 2008 |df=dmy }}

[[Category:Brigades of India in World War I|C07]]
[[Category:Cavalry brigades of the British Indian Army]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1904]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1920]]

7th Indian Cavalry Brigade - Revision history

Bot at 23:27, 20 April 2021