Timeline of the British Army
Encyclopedia
1500-1599
- 1537 The Overseers of the Fraternity or Guild of St George received a Royal CharterRoyal CharterA royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
from Henry VIIIHenry VIII of EnglandHenry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
on 25 August, when Letters PatentLetters patentLetters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch or president, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title, or status to a person or corporation...
were received authorising them to establish a perpetual corporation for the defence of the realm to be known as the Fraternity or Guild of Artillery of Longbows, Crossbows and Handgonnes. This body was known by a variety of names since, but today is called the Honourable Artillery CompanyHonourable Artillery CompanyThe Honourable Artillery Company was incorporated by Royal Charter in 1537 by King Henry VIII. Today it is a Registered Charity whose purpose is to attend to the “better defence of the realm"...
, and is the oldest regiment in continuous service in the British Army.
1600-1699
- 1633 - The Royal Regiment of Foot (later the Royal Scots) is placed on the Scottish Establishment, later becoming the oldest infantry regiment in continuous service in the British Army.
- 1650 - George Monck's Regiment is formed (later the Coldstream GuardsColdstream GuardsHer Majesty's Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, also known officially as the Coldstream Guards , is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division....
). - 1656 - Lord Wentworth's Regiment is formed (later the Grenadier GuardsGrenadier GuardsThe Grenadier Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It is the most senior regiment of the Guards Division and, as such, is the most senior regiment of infantry. It is not, however, the most senior regiment of the Army, this position being attributed to the Life Guards...
). - 26 January 1661 - King Charles IICharles II of EnglandCharles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
issues warrant, becoming the acknowledged beginning of the British ArmyBritish ArmyThe 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...
. This concerned an assemblage of English regiments and Scottish regiments brought south with Charles II. The British Army would not exist, however, for another 46 years, as Scotland and England remained two independent states, each with its own Army. - 1661 - The Scots Regiment of Foot Guards is formed (later the Scots GuardsScots GuardsThe Scots Guards is a regiment of the Guards Division of the British Army, whose origins lie in the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland...
). - 1 October 1661 - The Tangier Regiment is formed (later The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey), and became the most senior English infantry regiment in the British Army.
- 1684 - The English withdraw from the Colony of Tangier.
- 1688 - The War of the Grand AllianceWar of the Grand AllianceThe Nine Years' War – often called the War of the Grand Alliance, the War of the Palatine Succession, or the War of the League of Augsburg – was a major war of the late 17th century fought between King Louis XIV of France, and a European-wide coalition, the Grand Alliance, led by the Anglo-Dutch...
begins.
1700-1799
- 1702 - War of the Spanish SuccessionWar of the Spanish SuccessionThe War of the Spanish Succession was fought among several European powers, including a divided Spain, over the possible unification of the Kingdoms of Spain and France under one Bourbon monarch. As France and Spain were among the most powerful states of Europe, such a unification would have...
begins. - 1707 - Kingdom of Great BritainKingdom of Great BritainThe former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
is formed. Scottish and English armies merged to create the British Army. - 1722 - Royal Regiment of Artillery is formed.
- 1742 - War of the Austrian SuccessionWar of the Austrian SuccessionThe War of the Austrian Succession – including King George's War in North America, the Anglo-Spanish War of Jenkins' Ear, and two of the three Silesian wars – involved most of the powers of Europe over the question of Maria Theresa's succession to the realms of the House of Habsburg.The...
begins. - 1743 - Battle of DettingenBattle of DettingenThe Battle of Dettingen took place on 27 June 1743 at Dettingen in Bavaria during the War of the Austrian Succession. It was the last time that a British monarch personally led his troops into battle...
, King George IIGeorge II of Great BritainGeorge II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...
becomes the last British monarch to lead his troops into battle. - 1746 - Battle of CullodenBattle of CullodenThe Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the 1745 Jacobite Rising. Taking place on 16 April 1746, the battle pitted the Jacobite forces of Charles Edward Stuart against an army commanded by William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, loyal to the British government...
, The British Army, made from Scottish and English soldiers and led by the Duke of CumberlandDuke of CumberlandDuke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British Royal Family, named after the county of Cumberland.-History:...
, fights the last major battle on British mainland soil against French supported Scottish rebel Jacobites. - 1751 - A numerical system is introduced into the Army, such as 1st Regiment of Foot, 2nd Regiment of Foot, etc.
- 1755 - Seven Years' WarSeven Years' WarThe Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
begins. - 1759 - British forces, led by General James WolfeJames WolfeMajor General James P. Wolfe was a British Army officer, known for his training reforms but remembered chiefly for his victory over the French in Canada...
, take French QuebecQuebecQuebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. - 1775 - American War of Independence begins.
- 17 June - Battle of Bunker HillBattle of Bunker HillThe Battle of Bunker Hill took place on June 17, 1775, mostly on and around Breed's Hill, during the Siege of Boston early in the American Revolutionary War...
- 17 June - Battle of Bunker Hill
- 1776 - British victory at the Battle of Long IslandBattle of Long IslandThe Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn or the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, fought on August 27, 1776, was the first major battle in the American Revolutionary War following the United States Declaration of Independence, the largest battle of the entire conflict, and the...
. - 1777 - British defeat at the Battle of SaratogaBattle of SaratogaThe Battles of Saratoga conclusively decided the fate of British General John Burgoyne's army in the American War of Independence and are generally regarded as a turning point in the war. The battles were fought eighteen days apart on the same ground, south of Saratoga, New York...
. - 1781 - British defeat at the Siege of YorktownSiege of YorktownThe Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...
. - 1793 - War onFrench Revolutionary WarsThe French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
revolutionary France declared - 1795 - Capture of Ceylon.
- 1796 - slave forces in Haiti led by Toussaint L'ouvertureToussaint L'OuvertureFrançois-Dominique Toussaint Louverture , also Toussaint Bréda, Toussaint-Louverture was the leader of the Haitian Revolution. His military genius and political acumen led to the establishment of the independent black state of Haiti, transforming an entire society of slaves into a free,...
British Forces defeated - 1798 - Large-scale rebellionIrish Rebellion of 1798The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
in IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
.
1800-1898
- 1801 - The United Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
is formed.- French Revolutionary Wars (A campaign to expel a French invasion force in EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
) takes place.
- French Revolutionary Wars (A campaign to expel a French invasion force in Egypt
- 1803 - The Napoleonic WarsNapoleonic WarsThe Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
begin. - 1803 - Second Anglo-Maratha WarSecond Anglo-Maratha WarThe Second Anglo-Maratha War was the second conflict between the British East India Company and the Maratha Empire in India.-Background:...
begins, ends 1805- 1 September - Battle of Aligarh
- 11 September - Battle of DelhiBattle of DelhiThe Battle of Delhi took place on 11 September 1803 during the Second Anglo-Maratha War, between British troops under General Lake, and Marathas of Scindia's army under French General Louis Bourquin...
- 23 September - Battle of AssayeBattle of AssayeThe Battle of Assaye was a major battle of the Second Anglo-Maratha War fought between the Maratha Confederacy and the British East India Company...
- 1 November - Battle of Laswari
- 28 November - Battle of ArgaonAdgaonAdgaon, known as Argaon during the period of the British Raj, is a village located in the Telhara tehsil near Akot in the Akola district of Maharashtra, India...
- 15 December - Battle of GawilghurGawilghurGawilghur was a well-fortified mountain stronghold of the Maratha Empire north of the Deccan Plateau, in the vicinity of Melghat Tiger Reserve, Amravati District, Maharashtra. It was successfully assaulted by an Anglo-Indian force commanded by Arthur Wellesley on the 15 December 1803 during the...
- 1806 - Seizure of the Cape of Good HopeCape of Good HopeThe Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
.- - An abortive (initially unauthorised) invasion of Spanish South America begins.
- 1808 - The Peninsular WarPeninsular WarThe Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
begins.- 16 January - Battle of CorunnaBattle of CorunnaThe Battle of Corunna refers to a battle of the Peninsular War. On January 16, 1809, a French army under Marshal Soult attacked the British under Sir John Moore...
- 16 January - Battle of Corunna
- 1810
- 24 July - Battle of the Côa
- 25 July - Siege of Almeida (1810)Siege of Almeida (1810)In the Siege of Almeida, the French corps of Marshal Michel Ney captured the border fortress from Brigadier General William Cox's Portuguese garrison. This action was fought in the summer of 1810 during the Peninsular War portion of the Napoleonic Wars...
- 27 September - Battle of Bussaco
- 1811
- 19 February - Battle of the GeboraBattle of the GeboraThe Battle of the Gebora was a minor battle of the Peninsular War between Spanish and French armies. It occurred on 19 February 1811, near Badajoz, Spain, where an outnumbered French force routed and nearly destroyed the Spanish Army of Extremadura....
- 3 April - Battle of SabugalBattle of SabugalThe Battle of Sabugal was an engagement of the Peninsular War which took place on 3 April 1811 between Anglo-Portuguese forces under Arthur Wellesley and French troops under the command of Marshal André Masséna...
- 14 April - Siege of Almeida (1811)Siege of Almeida (1811)The Siege of Almeida took place during the Peninsular War portion of the Napoleonic Wars. After a month-long blockade, the French garrison under Brigadier-General Antoine Brenier escaped, leaving the fortress in Anglo-Portuguese hands.Almeida is located in eastern Portugal, near the border with...
- 3 May - Battle of Fuentes de OnoroBattle of Fuentes de OnoroIn the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro , the British-Portuguese Army under Viscount Wellington checked an attempt by the French Army of Portugal under Marshal André Masséna to relieve the besieged city of Almeida.-Background:...
- 16 May - Battle of AlbueraBattle of AlbueraThe Battle of Albuera was an indecisive battle during the Peninsular War. A mixed British, Spanish and Portuguese corps engaged elements of the French Armée du Midi at the small Spanish village of Albuera, about 20 kilometres south of the frontier fortress-town of Badajoz, Spain.From...
- 25 May - Battle of UsagreBattle of UsagreIn the Battle of Usagre on 25 May 1811, Anglo-Allied cavalry commanded by Major-General William Lumley routed a French cavalry force led by Major-General Marie Victor Latour-Maubourg at the village of Usagre in the Peninsular War.-Background:...
- 28 October - Battle of Arroyo dos MolinosBattle of Arroyo dos MolinosThe Battle of Arroyo dos Molinos took place on 28 October 1811 during the Peninsula War. An allied force under General Rowland Hill trapped and defeated, a French force under General Jean-Baptiste Girard, forcing the latter's dismissal by the Emperor Napoleon...
- 19 February - Battle of the Gebora
- 1812 - The War of 1812War of 1812The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
against the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
begins.- 7 January - Siege of Ciudad Rodrigo
- 16 March - Battle of Badajoz (1812)Battle of Badajoz (1812)In the Battle of Badajoz , the Anglo-Portuguese Army, under the Earl of Wellington, besieged Badajoz, Spain and forced the surrender of the French garrison....
- 11 April - Battle of VillagarciaBattle of VillagarciaIn the Battle of Villagarcia on 11 April 1812, British cavalry commanded by Lieutenant-General Sir Stapleton Cotton routed a French cavalry force led by General de Brigade Charles Lallemand at the village of Villagarcia in the Peninsular War...
- 11 June - Battle of MaguillaBattle of MaguillaIn the Battle of Maguilla on June 11, 1812, a French cavalry brigade commanded by General of Brigade Charles Lallemand routed a similar-sized British cavalry brigade led by Brigadier General John Slade. This action took place during the Peninsular War....
- 22 July - Battle of SalamancaBattle of SalamancaThe Battle of Salamanca saw Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish armies under the Duke of Wellington defeat Marshal Auguste Marmont's French forces among the hills around Arapiles south of Salamanca, Spain on July 22, 1812 during the Peninsular War....
- 23 July - Battle of Garcia HernandezBattle of Garcia HernandezIn the Battle of Garcia Hernandez on July 23, 1812, two brigades of Anglo-German cavalry led by Major-General George Bock defeated 4,000 French infantry led by Major-General Maximilien Foy...
- 11 August - Battle of MajadahondaBattle of MajadahondaIn the Battle of Majadahonda on 11 August 1812, a British-Portuguese cavalry force under Major-General George Bock and Brigadier-General Benjamin d'Urban fought a French cavalry division led by General of Division Anne-François-Charles Trelliard. The French scored an initial success by routing a...
- 19 September - Siege of BurgosSiege of BurgosAt the Siege of Burgos, from 19 September to 21 October 1812, the Anglo-Portuguese Army led by General Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington tried to capture the castle of Burgos from its French garrison under the command of General of Brigade Jean-Louis Dubreton. The French repulsed every...
- 23 October - Battle of Venta del PozoBattle of Venta del PozoIn the Battle of Venta del Pozo on October 23, 1812, an Anglo-German force led by Major-General Stapleton Cotton fought a rear-guard action against French cavalry under Major-Generals Jean-Baptiste Curto and Pierre Boyer.-Background:...
- 1813
- 21 June - Battle of VitoriaBattle of VitoriaAt the Battle of Vitoria an allied British, Portuguese, and Spanish army under General the Marquess of Wellington broke the French army under Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan near Vitoria in Spain, leading to eventual victory in the Peninsular War.-Background:In July 1812, after...
- 7 July - Siege of San SebastiánSiege of San SebastianIn the Siege of San Sebastián Allied forces under the command of General Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington captured the city of San Sebastián in northern Spain from its French garrison under Brigadier-General Louis Rey...
- 25 July - Battle of the PyreneesBattle of the PyreneesThe Battle of the Pyrenees was a large-scale offensive launched on 25 July 1813 by Marshal Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult from the Pyrénées region on Emperor Napoleon’s order, in the hope of relieving French garrisons under siege at Pamplona and San Sebastián...
- 25 July - Battle of Roncesvalles (1813)Battle of Roncesvalles (1813)The Battle of Roncesvalles was a battle between French and Anglo-Portuguese forces during the Peninsular War .-Background:...
- 25 July - Battle of MayaBattle of MayaThe Battle of Maya was a battle between French and British forces during the Peninsular War .-Background:After Wellington's decisive defeat of King Joseph at Vitoria, he advanced to capture San Sebastián and Pamplona, the last French outposts on Spanish soil.While Wellington concentrated his...
- 28 July - Battle of SoraurenBattle of SoraurenThe Battle of Sorauren was part of a series of engagements in late July 1813 called the Battle of the Pyrenees in which a combined British and Portuguese force under Sir Arthur Wellesley held off Marshal Soult's French forces attempting to relieve San Sebastián.With sizable Anglo-Portuguese forces...
- 7 October - Battle of the Bidassoa (1813)Battle of the Bidassoa (1813)In the Battle of the Bidassoa on 7 October 1813 the Allied army of Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington wrested a foothold on French soil from Nicolas Soult's French army. The Allied troops overran the French lines behind the Bidassoa River on the coast and along the Pyrenees crest between the...
- 10 November - Battle of NivelleBattle of NivelleThe Battle of Nivelle took place in front of the River Nivelle near the end of the Peninsular War . After the Allied siege of San Sebastian, Wellington's 80,000 British, Portuguese and Spanish troops were in hot pursuit of Marshal Soult who only had 60,000 men to place in a 20-mile perimeter...
- 9 December - Battle of the NiveBattle of the NiveThe Battles of the Nive were fought towards the end of the Peninsular War. Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington's Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish army defeated Marshal Nicolas Soult's French army in a series of battles near the city of Bayonne.Unusually, for most of the battle, Wellington...
- 21 June - Battle of Vitoria
- 1814 - The Gurkha War begins.
- 15 February - Battle of GarrisBattle of GarrisIn the Battle of Garris on February 15, 1814, an Allied force under the direct command of Arthur Wellesley, Marquess Wellington defeated General of Division Jean Harispe's French division during the Peninsular War.-Background:...
- 27 February - Battle of OrthezBattle of OrthezThe Battle of Orthez saw the Anglo-Portuguese Army under Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, Marquess of Wellington defeat a French army led by Marshal Nicolas Soult in southern France near the end of the Peninsular War.-Preliminaries:...
- 10 April - Battle of Toulouse (1814)Battle of Toulouse (1814)The Battle of Toulouse was one of the final battles of the Napoleonic Wars, four days after Napoleon's surrender of the French Empire to the nations of the Sixth Coalition...
- 14 April - Battle of BayonneBattle of BayonneIn the Battle of Bayonne on April 14, 1814, General of Division Thouvenot's French garrison attacked the Allied besieging force under Lieutenant General John Hope...
- 15 February - Battle of Garris
- 1815
- 8 January - Battle of New OrleansBattle of New OrleansThe Battle of New Orleans took place on January 8, 1815 and was the final major battle of the War of 1812. American forces, commanded by Major General Andrew Jackson, defeated an invading British Army intent on seizing New Orleans and the vast territory the United States had acquired with the...
- 16 June - Battle of Quatre BrasBattle of Quatre BrasThe Battle of Quatre Bras, between Wellington's Anglo-Dutch army and the left wing of the Armée du Nord under Marshal Michel Ney, was fought near the strategic crossroads of Quatre Bras on 16 June 1815.- Prelude :...
- 18 June - The Battle of WaterlooBattle of WaterlooThe Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
takes place, ending in defeat for the French.
- 8 January - Battle of New Orleans
- 1819
- 16 August - The Peterloo MassacrePeterloo MassacreThe Peterloo Massacre occurred at St Peter's Field, Manchester, England, on 16 August 1819, when cavalry charged into a crowd of 60,000–80,000 that had gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation....
takes place.
- 16 August - The Peterloo Massacre
- 1839 - First Anglo-Afghan WarFirst Anglo-Afghan WarThe First Anglo-Afghan War was fought between British India and Afghanistan from 1839 to 1842. It was one of the first major conflicts during the Great Game, the 19th century competition for power and influence in Central Asia between the United Kingdom and Russia, and also marked one of the worst...
begins ends 1842- 23 July - Battle of GhazniBattle of GhazniThe Battle of Ghazni took place in city of Ghazni in central Afghanistan on July 23, 1839 during the First Anglo-Afghan War.-Prelude:...
- September - Siege of KahunSiege of KahunThe Siege of Kahun was a siege of the isolated hilltop fort of Kahun during the First Anglo-Afghan War.-Course:A 300-man detachment from the 2nd Battalion, 5th Bombay Native Infantry, led by Captain Brown, marched on Kahun, then the Marri tribe's main stronghold, in order to support the Bombay...
- 23 July - Battle of Ghazni
- 1842
- 6 January - Battle of Gandamak
- 15 January - Massacre of Elphinstone's ArmyMassacre of Elphinstone's ArmyThe Massacre of Elphinstone's Army was the destruction by Afghan forces, led by Akbar Khan, the son of Dost Mohammad Khan, of a combined British and Indian force of the British East India Company, led by Major General William Elphinstone, in January 1842....
- August - Battle of Kabul (1842)Battle of Kabul (1842)for other uses of the term see Battle of KabulThe Battle of Kabul was fought from August to October, 1842, between British and Afghan forces. It was the concluding engagement of the First Anglo-Afghan War. The British advanced on Kabul from Kandahar and Jalalabad to avenge the earlier Massacre of...
- 1854 - The Crimean WarCrimean WarThe Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
begins; ends in 1856.- 19 September - The Siege of Sevastopol begins.
- 20 September - The Battle of AlmaBattle of AlmaThe Battle of the Alma , which is usually considered the first battle of the Crimean War , took place just south of the River Alma in the Crimea. An Anglo-French force under General St...
takes place. - 25 October - The Battle of Balaklava takes place; Charge of the Light BrigadeCharge of the Light BrigadeThe Charge of the Light Brigade was a charge of British cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War. The charge was the result of a miscommunication in such a way that the brigade attempted a much more difficult objective...
. - 5 November - The Battle of InkermanBattle of InkermanThe Battle of Inkerman was fought during the Crimean War on November 5, 1854 between the allied armies of Britain and France against the Imperial Russian Army. The battle broke the will of the Russian Army to defeat the allies in the field, and was followed by the Siege of Sevastopol...
takes place.
- 1855
- 8 September - The siege of Sevastopol ends.
- 1857 - The Indian Mutiny begins.
- 30 May - Indian rebels begin the Siege of DelhiSiege of DelhiThe Siege of Delhi was one of the decisive conflicts of the Indian rebellion of 1857.The rebellion against the authority of the British East India Company was widespread through much of Northern India, but essentially it was sparked by the mass uprising by the sepoys of the units of the Army which...
, Siege of LucknowSiege of LucknowThe Siege of Lucknow was the prolonged defense of the Residency within the city of Lucknow during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. After two successive relief attempts had reached the city, the defenders and civilians were evacuated from the Residency, which was abandoned.Lucknow was the capital of... - 5 June - Siege of CawnporeSiege of CawnporeThe Siege of Cawnpore was a key episode in the Indian rebellion of 1857. The besieged British in Cawnpore were unprepared for an extended siege and surrendered to rebel Indian forces under Nana Sahib, in return for a safe passage to Allahabad. However, under ambiguous circumstances, their...
begins - 8 June - Battle of Badli-ki-SeraiBattle of Badli-ki-SeraiThe Battle of Badli-ki-Serai was fought early in the Indian Rebellion of 1857, or First War of Indian Independence as it has since been termed in Indian histories of the events. A British and Gurkha force defeated a force of sepoys who had rebelled against the British East India Company...
, Siege of DelhiSiege of DelhiThe Siege of Delhi was one of the decisive conflicts of the Indian rebellion of 1857.The rebellion against the authority of the British East India Company was widespread through much of Northern India, but essentially it was sparked by the mass uprising by the sepoys of the units of the Army which... - 30 June - Siege of LucknowSiege of LucknowThe Siege of Lucknow was the prolonged defense of the Residency within the city of Lucknow during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. After two successive relief attempts had reached the city, the defenders and civilians were evacuated from the Residency, which was abandoned.Lucknow was the capital of...
begins, Battle of ChinhatBattle of ChinhatThe Battle of Chinhat was fought on the morning of June 30, 1857, between British forces and Indian rebels, at Ismailganj, near Chinhat , Oude . The British were led by The Chief Commissioner of Oude, Sir Henry Lawrence... - 25 August - Battle of NajafgarhBattle of NajafgarhThe Battle of Najafgarh was an engagement during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, or First War of Indian Independence as it has since been termed in Indian histories of the events. It was a subsidiary event of the Siege of Delhi. A large Indian force sortied from Delhi, intending to attack the rear of...
- 11 October - Battle of AgraBattle of AgraThe Battle of Agra was a comparatively minor but nevertheless decisive action during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 . Indian rebels attacked a column of British troops which had relieved a garrison at Agra, but although they surprised the column, they were defeated and dispersed...
- 19 November - Second Battle of CawnporeSecond Battle of CawnporeThe Second Battle of Cawnpore was a battle of Indian rebellion of 1857. It was decisive as it thwarted the rebels' last chance to regain the initiative and recapture the cities of Kanpur and Lucknow.-Background:...
- 30 May - Indian rebels begin the Siege of Delhi
- 1858
- Central India Campaign (1858)Central India Campaign (1858)The Central India Campaign was one of the last series of actions in the Indian rebellion of 1857,...
- 1 March - Capture of LucknowCapture of LucknowThe Capture of Lucknow was a battle of Indian rebellion of 1857. The British recaptured the city of Lucknow which they had abandoned in the previous winter after the relief of a besieged garrison in the Residency, and destroyed the organised resistance by the rebels in the Kingdom of Awadh The...
- Central India Campaign (1858)
- 1859 - Due to fear of invasion by France, a volunteer movement begins, known as the Volunteer Rifle Corps.
- 1870 - The Army withdraws from AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. - 1871 - The Army adopts the Martini-HenryMartini-HenryThe Martini-Henry was a breech-loading single-shot lever-actuated rifle adopted by the British, combining an action worked on by Friedrich von Martini , with the rifled barrel designed by Scotsman Alexander Henry...
rifle, replacing the SniderSnider-EnfieldThe British .577 Snider-Enfield was a type of breech loading rifle. The firearm action was invented by the American Jacob Snider, and the Snider-Enfield was one of the most widely used of the Snider varieties. It was adopted by British Army as a conversion system for its ubiquitous Pattern 1853...
.- - Abolition of the purchase of commission.
- 1878 - Second Anglo-Afghan WarSecond Anglo-Afghan WarThe Second Anglo-Afghan War was fought between the United Kingdom and Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the nation was ruled by Sher Ali Khan of the Barakzai dynasty, the son of former Emir Dost Mohammad Khan. This was the second time British India invaded Afghanistan. The war ended in a manner...
begins, ends 1880- 21 November - Battle of Ali MasjidBattle of Ali MasjidThe Battle of Ali Masjid, which took place on 21 November 1878, was the opening battle in the Second Anglo-Afghan War between the British forces, under Lieutenant-General Sir Samuel James Browne, and the Afghan tribesmen, under Ghulam Haider Khan...
- 15 December - Siege of the Sherpur CantonmentSiege of the Sherpur CantonmentThe Siege of the Sherpur Cantonment was a battle fought in December 1879, during the Second Anglo-Afghan War.On 3 September 1879 Sir Pierre Cavagnari, the British Resident in Kabul, and his escort were massacred by mutinous Afghan troops, initiating the second phase of the Second Anglo-Afghan War.A...
- 21 November - Battle of Ali Masjid
- 1879 - The Anglo-Zulu WarAnglo-Zulu WarThe Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom.Following the imperialist scheme by which Lord Carnarvon had successfully brought about federation in Canada, it was thought that a similar plan might succeed with the various African kingdoms, tribal areas and...
takes place.- 22 January - British force defeated at Battle of IsandlwanaBattle of IsandlwanaThe Battle of Isandlwana on 22 January 1879 was the first major encounter in the Anglo-Zulu War between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom...
.- - The defence of Rorke's DriftRorke's DriftThe Battle of Rorke's Drift, also known as the Defence of Rorke's Drift, was a battle in the Anglo-Zulu War. The defence of the mission station of Rorke's Drift, under the command of Lieutenant John Chard of the Royal Engineers, immediately followed the British Army's defeat at the Battle of...
begins; eleven Victoria Crosses would be gained in the process.
- - The defence of Rorke's Drift
- 22 January - British force defeated at Battle of Isandlwana
- 1880
- 19 April - Battle of Ahmed KhelBattle of Ahmed KhelThe Battle of Ahmed Khel was fought in April 1880 and ended in a British victory. This battle occurred during General Donald Stewart's march from Kandahar to Ghazni, then on to Kabul.-Order of battle:*Royal Horse Artillery*Royal Artillery...
- 27 July - Battle of MaiwandBattle of MaiwandThe Battle of Maiwand in 1880 was one of the principal battles of the Second Anglo-Afghan War. Under the leadership of Malalai Anaa, the legendary woman of Afghanistan, the Afghan followers of Ayub Khan defeated the British Army in one of the rare nineteenth-century victories of an Asian force...
- 1 September - Battle of KandaharBattle of KandaharThe Battle of Kandahar, 1 September 1880, was the last major conflict of the Second Anglo-Afghan War. The battle in southern Afghanistan was fought between the British forces under command of General Roberts and the Afghan forces led by Ayub Khan, inflicting nearly 3,000 casualties in...
- 20 December - First Boer WarFirst Boer WarThe First Boer War also known as the First Anglo-Boer War or the Transvaal War, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881-1877 annexation:...
begins ends 23 March 1888 - 20 December - Action at BronkhorstspruitAction at BronkhorstspruitThe Action at Bronkhorstspruit was one of the first serious clashes of the First Boer War. It was a skirmish between a British army column and a group of Boers, fought a few miles east of the town of Bronkhorstspruit, Transvaal on 20 December 1880....
takes place
- 19 April - Battle of Ahmed Khel
- 1881 - Sudan Campaign begins, ends 1889
- 28 January - Battle of Laing's NekBattle of Laing's NekThe Battle of Laing's Nek was a major battle fought at Laing's Nek during the First Boer War on 28 January 1881.-Background:Following the Boer declaration of independence for the Transvaal in 1880 the British suffered a series of disastrous defeats in attempting to regain the territory.On 20...
- 1 July - General Order 70, the culmination of the Cardwell-Childers reforms of the Army's organisation, came into effect.
- 28 January - Battle of Laing's Nek
- 1884
- 13 March - Battle of TamaiBattle of TamaiThe Battle of Tamai took place on March 13, 1884 between a British force under Sir Gerald Graham and a Mahdist Sudanese army led by Osman Digna....
- 22 March - Battle of TofrekBattle of TofrekThe Battle of Tofrek was fought between the British forces under the leadership of General Gerald Graham and General John McNeil, against the Mahdist forces led by Osman Digna in the deserts of eastern Sudan.-Details:...
- 13 March - Battle of Tamai
- 1885
- January - Battle of Abu KleaBattle of Abu KleaThe Battle of Abu Klea took place between the dates of 16 and 18 January 1885, at Abu Klea, Sudan, between the British Desert Column and Mahdist forces encamped near Abu Klea...
- 28 January - General Charles George GordonCharles George GordonMajor-General Charles George Gordon, CB , known as "Chinese" Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British army officer and administrator....
is killed by Mahommed Ahmed (the self-proclaimed MahdiMahdiIn Islamic eschatology, the Mahdi is the prophesied redeemer of Islam who will stay on Earth for seven, nine or nineteen years- before the Day of Judgment and, alongside Jesus, will rid the world of wrongdoing, injustice and tyranny.In Shia Islam, the belief in the Mahdi is a "central religious...
) after his siege of Khartoum; British relief force arrives two-days later. - 8 February - Battle of SchuinshoogteBattle of SchuinshoogteBattle of Schuinshoogte Also known as Ingogo, was a battle fought at on 8 February 1881 during the First Boer War. General Sir George Pomeroy Colley's communications with Newcastle were under constant harassment by mounted Boer patrols under Commander J D Weilbach after the Battle of Laing's Nek ...
- 10 February - Battle of KirbekanBattle of KirbekanThe Battle of Kirbekan was a battle in the Mahdist War. It was fought February 10, 1885, when the British Nile Column, about 1,000 strong, under General Earle, stormed the heights of Kirbekan, which were held by a strong Mahdist force, and totally routed them, with heavy loss. The British lost 60,...
- 27 February - Battle of Majuba HillBattle of Majuba HillThe Battle of Majuba Hill on 27 February 1881 was the main battle of the First Boer War. It was a resounding victory for the Boers. Major-General Sir George Pomeroy Colley occupied the summit of the hill on the night of February 26–27, 1881. His motive for occupying the hill remains unclear...
- 30 December - Battle of GinnisBattle of GinnisThe Battle of Ginnis was a minor battle of the Mahdist War that was fought on December 30, 1885, between soldiers of the Anglo-Egyptian Army and Mahdist Sudanese warriors of the Dervish State. The battle was caused by the Mahdist blockade of the Ginnis-Kosha fort, which British commanders hoped...
- January - Battle of Abu Klea
- 1889 - The Maxim machine gun is introduced.
- 3 August - Battle of ToskiBattle of ToskiThe battle of Toski took place on August 3rd, 1889 in Egypt between the Anglo-Egyptian forces and the Mahdist Sudanese.Since 1882, the British had taken control of Egypt and found themselves involved in the Sudan war. For this reason, they decided to reform and rearm the Egyptian Army...
- 3 August - Battle of Toski
- 1896
- 7 June - Battle of FerkehBattle of FerkehThe Battle of Ferkeh occurred during the Mahdist War when an army of the Mahdist Sudanese was surprised and wiped out by the British and Egyptian forces under Sir Herbert Kitchener on June 7, 1896....
- 7 June - Battle of Ferkeh
- 1898
- 8 April - Battle of AtbaraBattle of AtbaraThe Battle of Atbara took place during the Second Sudan War. Anglo-Egyptian forces defeated 15,000 Sudanese rebels, called Mahdists or Dervishes. The battle proved to be the turning point in the conquest of Sudan by a British and Egyptian coalition....
- 2 September - Battle of OmdurmanBattle of OmdurmanAt the Battle of Omdurman , an army commanded by the British Gen. Sir Herbert Kitchener defeated the army of Abdullah al-Taashi, the successor to the self-proclaimed Mahdi Muhammad Ahmad...
- 24 November - Battle of Umm DiwaykaratBattle of Umm DiwaykaratThe Battle of Umm Diwaykarat on November 25, 1899 marked the final obliteration of Muhammad Ahmad's short-lived Sudanese empire, when Anglo-Egyptian forces under the command of Lord Kitchener wiped out what was left of the Mahdist armies under the command of the Abdallahi ibn Muhammad, known as the...
- 8 April - Battle of Atbara
Second Boer War
- 1899
- 11 October - War is declared.
- 20 October - The first major battle of the war takes place at Talana HillBattle of Talana HillThe Battle of Talana Hill, also known as the Battle of Glencoe, was the first major clash of the Second Boer War. A frontal attack by British infantry supported by artillery drove Boers from a hilltop position, but the British suffered heavy casualties in the process, including their commanding...
. - December - "Black WeekBlack WeekIn one disastrous week, dubbed Black Week, from 10-17 December 1899, the British Army suffered three devastating defeats by the Boer Republics at the battles of Stormberg , Magersfontein and Colenso , with 2,776 men killed, wounded and captured...
", in which the Army suffered a series of defeats, takes place.
- 1900
- 28 February - The Siege of LadysmithSiege of LadysmithThe Siege of Ladysmith was a protracted engagement in the Second Boer War, taking place between 30 October 1899 and 28 February 1900 at Ladysmith, Natal.-Background:...
is lifted. - 1 April - The Irish GuardsIrish GuardsThe Irish Guards , part of the Guards Division, is a Foot Guards regiment of the British Army.Along with the Royal Irish Regiment, it is one of the two Irish regiments remaining in the British Army. The Irish Guards recruit in Northern Ireland and the Irish neighbourhoods of major British cities...
is formed in honour of the Irish regiments in the Boer War. - 17 May - The Siege of MafekingSiege of MafekingThe Siege of Mafeking was the most famous British action in the Second Boer War. It took place at the town of Mafeking in South Africa over a period of 217 days, from October 1899 to May 1900, and turned Robert Baden-Powell, who went on to found the Scouting Movement, into a national hero...
comes to an end.
- 28 February - The Siege of Ladysmith
- 1902
- 31 May - War ends with the signing of the Treaty of VereenigingTreaty of VereenigingThe Treaty of Vereeniging was the peace treaty, signed on 31 May 1902, that ended the South African War between the South African Republic and the Republic of the Orange Free State, on the one side, and the British Empire on the other.This settlement provided for the end of hostilities and...
.
- 31 May - War ends with the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging
- 1905 - The 5th Battalion, The Royal Garrison Regiment is the last British battalion to leave Canada.
- 1908 - The Territorial ForceTerritorial ForceThe Territorial Force was the volunteer reserve component of the British Army from 1908 to 1920, when it became the Territorial Army.-Origins:...
(later Army) is formed. - 1911
- 1 April - Following an order issued on 28 February, the Air Battalion Royal EngineersAir Battalion Royal EngineersThe Air Battalion Royal Engineers was the first flying unit of the British Armed Forces to make use of heavier-than-air craft. It evolved into the Royal Flying Corps which in turn evolved into the Royal Air Force.-Establishment:...
is formed.
- 1 April - Following an order issued on 28 February, the Air Battalion Royal Engineers
- 1912 - The Vickers machine gunVickers machine gunNot to be confused with the Vickers light machine gunThe Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a name primarily used to refer to the water-cooled .303 inch machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army...
is introduced into the Army; it remains in service until 1968.- 13 May - The Air Battalion Royal Engineers becomes the Royal Flying CorpsRoyal Flying CorpsThe Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
. It remains part of the Army.
- 13 May - The Air Battalion Royal Engineers becomes the Royal Flying Corps
First World War
- 1914
- 4 August - Britain declares war on Germany.
- August - British Expeditionary Force begins to deploy to France.
- 19 October - The First Battle of YpresFirst Battle of YpresThe First Battle of Ypres, also called the First Battle of Flanders , was a First World War battle fought for the strategic town of Ypres in western Belgium...
begins; last major action of 1914.
- 1915
- 26 February - The Welsh GuardsWelsh GuardsThe Welsh Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division.-Creation :The Welsh Guards came into existence on 26 February 1915 by Royal Warrant of His Majesty King George V in order to include Wales in the national component to the Foot Guards, "..though the order...
becomes the last Foot GuardsFoot Guards-British Army:The Foot Guards are the Regular Infantry regiments of the Household Division of the British Army. There have been six regiments of foot guards, five of which still exist. The Royal Guards Reserve Regiment was a reserve formation of the Household Brigade in existence from 1900-1901...
regiment to be formed. - 25 April - Landings at Helles, GallipoliGallipoliThe Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
. - 10 August - Landings at Suvla Bay, Gallipoli.
- 22 October - The Machine Gun CorpsMachine Gun CorpsThe Machine Gun Corps was a corps of the British Army, formed in October 1915 in response to the need for more effective use of machine guns on the Western Front in World War I. The Heavy Branch of the MGC was the first to use tanks in combat, and the branch was subsequently turned into the Tank...
is formed.
- 26 February - The Welsh Guards
- 1916
- April - The Easter RisingEaster RisingThe Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
in Dublin takes place . - 1 July - The First Day of the Somme begins; about 60,000 casualties are incurred, 20,000 of whom had been killed.
- April - The Easter Rising
- 1917
- 28 July - The Heavy Branch of the Machine Gun Corps is split off to form the Tank Corps (later the Royal Tank RegimentRoyal Tank RegimentThe Royal Tank Regiment is an armoured regiment of the British Army. It was formerly known as the Tank Corps and the Royal Tank Corps. It is part of the Royal Armoured Corps and is made up of two operational regiments, the 1st Royal Tank Regiment and the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment...
). - 8 November - About 200 men of the Warwickshire YeomanryWarwickshire YeomanryThe Warwickshire Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1794, which served as a cavalry and dismounted infantry regiment in the First World War and as a cavalry and an armoured regiment in the Second World War, before being amalgamated into The Queen's Own...
and Worcestershire Yeomanry charge with sabreSabreThe sabre or saber is a kind of backsword that usually has a curved, single-edged blade and a rather large hand guard, covering the knuckles of the hand as well as the thumb and forefinger...
s drawn and defeat an Ottoman battery and a large group of Ottoman infantry at HujHujHuj was a Palestinian Arab village located northeast of Gaza City. Identified as the site of the ancient Philistine town of Oga, the modern village was founded by the Ottomans in the early 19th century....
. It was one of the last cavalry charges by the British Army. - 20 November - The Battle of Cambrai begins; sees the first large-scale use of tanks.
- December - The Capture of JerusalemBattle of Jerusalem (1917)The Battle of Jerusalem developed from 17 November with fighting continuing until 30 December 1917 during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I...
takes place.
- 28 July - The Heavy Branch of the Machine Gun Corps is split off to form the Tank Corps (later the Royal Tank Regiment
- 1918
- 11 November - The First World War ends with the signing of the ArmisticeArmisticeAn armistice is a situation in a war where the warring parties agree to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, but may be just a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace...
.
- 11 November - The First World War ends with the signing of the Armistice
1918-1939
- January 1919 - Anglo-Irish War begins; British forces combat guerilla operations by the Irish Republican ArmyIrish Republican ArmyThe Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
. - 1919 - British Army takes part in Allied intervention during Russian Civil WarRussian Civil WarThe Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
. - 31 July 1922 - Six Irish regiments (5 infantry and one cavalry) are disbanded due to the establishment of the Irish Free StateIrish Free StateThe Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
. - 5 August 1922 - The Royal Corps of SignalsRoyal Corps of SignalsThe Royal Corps of Signals is one of the combat support arms of the British Army...
is formed. - 1929 - The British Army of the RhineBritish Army of the RhineThere have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine . Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War, and the other after the Second World War.-1919–1929:...
in Germany is withdrawn. - 1935 - Abyssinian CrisisSecond Italo-Abyssinian WarThe Second Italo–Abyssinian War was a colonial war that started in October 1935 and ended in May 1936. The war was fought between the armed forces of the Kingdom of Italy and the armed forces of the Ethiopian Empire...
takes place; Army deploys substantial reinforcements to Africa and the Middle East. - 1936 - uprising in PalestineGreat UprisingThe 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine or Great Arab Revolt was a nationalist uprising by Palestinian Arabs in Mandate Palestine against British colonial rule and mass Jewish immigration.The revolt consisted of two distinct phases...
begins. - 4 April 1939 - The Royal Armoured CorpsRoyal Armoured CorpsThe Royal Armoured Corps is currently a collection of ten regular regiments, mostly converted from old horse cavalry regiments, and four Yeomanry regiments of the Territorial Army...
is formed.
1939-1945
- 3 September 1939 - Britain enters the Second World War when it declares war, along with its Allies, on Nazi GermanyNazi GermanyNazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
.- September 1939 - British Expeditionary ForceBritish Expeditionary Force (World War II)The British Expeditionary Force was the British force in Europe from 1939–1940 during the Second World War. Commanded by General Lord Gort, the BEF constituted one-tenth of the defending Allied force....
begins to land in France. - 17 May 1940 - The Local Defence Volunteers (later the Home Guard) is formed.
- 20 May 1940- In France, British armoured units counter-attack at ArrasBattle of Arras (1940)The Battle of Arras took place during the Battle of France, in the early stages of World War II. It was an Allied counterattack against the flank of the German army, that took place near the town of Arras, in north-eastern France. The German forces were pushing north toward the channel coast, in...
. - 26 May 1940 - The Dunkirk evacuationBattle of DunkirkThe Battle of Dunkirk was a battle in the Second World War between the Allies and Germany. A part of the Battle of France on the Western Front, the Battle of Dunkirk was the defence and evacuation of British and allied forces in Europe from 26 May–4 June 1940.After the Phoney War, the Battle of...
begins; over 330,000 British and French soldiers are evacuated by 4 June. - 22 June 1940 - The Parachute Corps (later The Parachute Regiment) is formed.
- April 1941 - Germany invades CreteCreteCrete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
; Army and Commonwealth forces eventually evacuated by Royal Navy. - 25 December 1941 - The garrison at Hong KongBattle of Hong KongThe Battle of Hong Kong took place during the Pacific campaign of World War II. It began on 8 December 1941 and ended on 25 December 1941 with Hong Kong, then a Crown colony, surrendering to the Empire of Japan.-Background:...
surrenders to the Japanese. - 15 February 1942 - SingaporeBattle of SingaporeThe Battle of Singapore was fought in the South-East Asian theatre of the Second World War when the Empire of Japan invaded the Allied stronghold of Singapore. Singapore was the major British military base in Southeast Asia and nicknamed the "Gibraltar of the East"...
garrison surrenders to Japanese forces. - 23 October 1942 - Second Battle of El AlameinSecond Battle of El AlameinThe Second Battle of El Alamein marked a major turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. The battle took place over 20 days from 23 October – 11 November 1942. The First Battle of El Alamein had stalled the Axis advance. Thereafter, Lieutenant-General Bernard Montgomery...
takes place; Montgomery's British Eighth Army defeats the Afrika KorpsAfrika KorpsThe German Africa Corps , or the Afrika Korps as it was popularly called, was the German expeditionary force in Libya and Tunisia during the North African Campaign of World War II...
in offensive. - 1943 - The Allied invasion of Sicily begins.
- 1943 - Invasion of Italian mainlandItalian Campaign (World War II)The Italian Campaign of World War II was the name of Allied operations in and around Italy, from 1943 to the end of the war in Europe. Joint Allied Forces Headquarters AFHQ was operationally responsible for all Allied land forces in the Mediterranean theatre, and it planned and commanded the...
begins. - March 1944 - The Japanese launch their offensive against India; battles of ImphalBattle of ImphalThe Battle of Imphal took place in the region around the city of Imphal, the capital of the state of Manipur in North-East India from March until July 1944. Japanese armies attempted to destroy the Allied forces at Imphal and invade India, but were driven back into Burma with heavy losses...
and KohimaBattle of KohimaThe Battle of Kohima was the turning point of the Japanese U Go offensive into India in 1944 in the Second World War. The battle was fought from 4 April to 22 June 1944 around the town of Kohima in northeast India. It is often referred to as the "Stalingrad of the East".The battle took place in...
takes place. - 1 April 1944 - The Special Air Service Regiment is formed to administer existing SAS units.
- 6 June 1944 - in airborne operations prior to D-Day landings, Pegasus and Horsa BridgesPegasus BridgePegasus Bridge is a bascule bridge , built in 1934, that crossed the Caen Canal, between Caen and Ouistreham, in Normandy, France....
are taken by D Company, 2nd Ox & Bucks, and the Merville gun batteryMerville Gun BatteryThe Merville Gun Battery was a coastal fortification in Normandy, France, in use as part of the Nazis' Atlantic Wall built to defend continental Europe from Allied invasion...
is destroyed by the 9th Parachute Battalion. - 6 June 1944 - The D-Day landings take place; British Army lands at GoldGold BeachGold Beach was the code name of one of the D-Day landing beaches that Allied forces used to invade German-occupied France on 6 June 1944, during World War II....
and SwordSword BeachSword, commonly known as Sword Beach, was the code name given to one of the five main landing areas along the Normandy coast during the initial assault phase, Operation Neptune, of Operation Overlord; the Allied invasion of German-occupied France that commenced on 6 June 1944...
; some British units allocated to Canadian beach at JunoJuno BeachJuno or Juno Beach was one of five sectors of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. The sector spanned from Saint-Aubin, a village just east of the British Gold sector, to Courseulles, just west of the British Sword sector...
. - 18 July 1944 - Allied armoured offensive, Operation GoodwoodOperation GoodwoodOperation Goodwood was an attack launched on 18 July 1944, during the Second World War, by the British army to the east of the city of Caen...
, begins. - September 1944 - Operation Market GardenOperation Market GardenOperation Market Garden was an unsuccessful Allied military operation, fought in the Netherlands and Germany in the Second World War. It was the largest airborne operation up to that time....
takes place. - 24 March 1945 - Airborne crossing of the Rhine, Operation VarsityOperation VarsityOperation Varsity was a successful joint American–British airborne operation that took place toward the end of World War II...
, takes place. - 8 May 1945 - VE Day.
- 2 September 1945 - Formal surrender of JapanJapanese Instrument of SurrenderThe Japanese Instrument of Surrender was the written agreement that enabled the Surrender of Japan, marking the end of World War II. It was signed by representatives from the Empire of Japan, the United States of America, the Republic of China, the United Kingdom, the Union of Soviet Socialist...
.
- September 1939 - British Expeditionary Force
1945-1990
- 1 January 1948 - Four Gurkha regiments are transferred from the Indian Army to the British Army, forming the Brigade of GurkhasBrigade of GurkhasThe Brigade of Gurkhas is the collective term for units of the current British Army that are composed of Nepalese soldiers. The brigade, which is 3,640 strong, draws its heritage from Gurkha units that originally served in the British Indian Army prior to Indian independence, and prior to that of...
. - 28 February 1948 - The 1st Battalion, The Somerset Light Infantry (Prince Albert's)The Somerset Light Infantry (Prince Albert's)The Somerset Light Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Army, which served under various titles from 1685 to 1959. Its lineage is continued today by The Rifles.-Formation:...
becomes the last British regiment to leave India. - 1948 - The Malayan EmergencyMalayan EmergencyThe Malayan Emergency was a guerrilla war fought between Commonwealth armed forces and the Malayan National Liberation Army , the military arm of the Malayan Communist Party, from 1948 to 1960....
begins. - 1948 - The Army withdraws from Palestine.
- 1 January 1949 - National ServiceNational serviceNational service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
, the new name for conscription, is introduced. - 1 February 1949 - The Women's Royal Army CorpsWomen's Royal Army CorpsThe Women's Royal Army Corps was the corps to which all women in the British Army except medical, dental and veterinary officers and chaplains and nurses belonged from 1949 to 1992.-History:The...
is formed. - 1950 - The Korean WarKorean WarThe Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
begins.- 22 April 1951 - The Battle of the Imjin RiverBattle of the Imjin RiverThe Battle of the Imjin River, also known as the Battle of Kumgul-san, P'ap'yong-san and Solma-ri or the Battle of Xuemali , took place 22–25 April 1951 during the Korean War. Forces from People’s Republic of China attacked UN positions on the lower Imjin River in an attempt to achieve a...
takes place.
- 22 April 1951 - The Battle of the Imjin River
- 1952 - The Mau Mau uprisingMau Mau UprisingThe Mau Mau Uprising was a military conflict that took place in Kenya between 1952 and 1960...
in KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
begins. - 1953 - The Army withdraws its garrison from BermudaBermudaBermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
. - 1954 - The last troops leave TriesteTriesteTrieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
, having been there since 1945 as part of British Forces Element Trieste. - 1955 - Occupying troops leave upon AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n independence. - June 1956 - Last British troops leave the Suez Canal Zone, Egypt.
- 31 October 1956 - Operation MusketeerOperation Musketeer (1956)Operation Musketeer was the Anglo-French-Israeli plan for the invasion of Egypt to capture the Suez Canal during the Suez Crisis. Israel had the additional objective to open the Straits of Tiran.-The operation:...
, the invasion of Suez begins.- 5 November - 3rd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment dropped at El GamilEl GamilEl Gamil is a fortress with an airfield in Port Said Governorate, Egypt. It was the landing site of British paratroopers in the 1956 war....
airfield. - 6 November - Amphibious landings take place; Army Centurion tankCenturion tankThe Centurion, introduced in 1945, was the primary British main battle tank of the post-World War II period. It was a successful tank design, with upgrades, for many decades...
s land in support.
- 5 November - 3rd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment dropped at El Gamil
- 1 September 1957 - The Army Air Corps is formed.
- 1957 - The Sandys Review of the armed forces takes place.
- 1961 - Army deploys troops to KuwaitKuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
after its request for British to deter invasion by Iraq. - 1962 - The Brunei uprisingBrunei RevoltThe Brunei Rebellion broke out on 8 December 1962. The rebels began co-ordinated attacks on the oil town of Seria and on police stations and government facilities around the protectorate...
takes place. - 1963 - Last National ServicemanConscription in the United KingdomConscription in the United Kingdom has existed for two periods in modern times. The first was from 1916 to 1919, the second was from 1939 to 1960, with the last conscripted soldiers leaving the service in 1963...
is discharged from the Army. - 1967 - Withdrawal from AdenAdenAden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
after a period of time known as the Aden EmergencyAden EmergencyThe Aden Emergency was an insurgency against the British crown forces in the British controlled territories of South Arabia which now form part of the Yemen. Partly inspired by Nasser's pan Arab nationalism, it began on 10 December 1963 with the throwing of a grenade at a gathering of British...
. - 1968 - The only year in the century when the British Army lost no soldiers in action.
- August 1969 - British troops deployed to Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
to assist in stopping sectarian violence. It is the beginning of "The TroublesThe TroublesThe Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
". - 5 May 1980 - Special Air Service ends the Iranian Embassy siegeIranian Embassy SiegeThe Iranian Embassy siege took place from 30 April to 5 May 1980, after a group of six armed men stormed the Iranian embassy in South Kensington, London. The gunmen took 26 people hostage—mostly embassy staff, but several visitors and a police officer, who had been guarding the embassy, were also...
. - 2 April 1982 - Falklands WarFalklands WarThe Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
begins.- 28 May - 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (2 Para) defeat Argentinians at Goose GreenBattle of Goose GreenThe Battle of Goose Green was an engagement of the Falklands War between British and Argentine forces. Goose Green and its neighbour Darwin are settlements on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. They lie on Choiseul Sound on the east side of the island's central isthmus...
. - 8 June - Bombing of RFA's Sir GalahadRFA Sir Galahad (1966)RFA Sir Galahad was a Round Table class landing ship logistics vessel belonging to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. She was first managed for the British Army by the British-India Steam Navigation Company, before being transferred in 1970 to the RFA, part of the British fleet, .-Design and...
, Sir Tristram kils 48, including 32 Welsh Guards. - 12 June - 3 Para defeats the Argentinians at Mount LongdonBattle of Mount LongdonThe Battle of Mount Longdon was an engagement of the Falklands War between British and Argentine forces, which took place on 11–12 June 1982, resulting in the British victory and their occupation of a key position around the besieged Argentine garrison....
. - 14 June - 2 Para takes Wireless RidgeBattle of Wireless RidgeThe Battle of Wireless Ridge was an engagement of the Falklands War which took place on the night of 13 June and 14 June 1982, between British and Argentine forces during the advance towards the Argentine-occupied capital of the Falklands Stanley. Wireless Ridge was one of seven strategic hills...
. - 14 June - 2nd Battalion, Scots Guards defeat Argentinians at Mount TumbledownBattle of Mount TumbledownThe Battle of Mount Tumbledown was an engagement in the Falklands War, one of a series of battles that took place during the British advance towards Stanley.-Overview:...
. - 14 June - Falkland IslandsFalkland IslandsThe Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...
are liberated upon the surrender of Argentinian forces.
- 28 May - 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (2 Para) defeat Argentinians at Goose Green
1990-present
- 1991 The Gulf WarGulf WarThe Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
begins; Army contributes 28,000 troops. - 1991 - The last British Army regiment leaves GibraltarGibraltarGibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
. The Gibraltar Regiment is subsequently placed on the Army's regular establishment. - 6 April 1992 - the WRAC was disbanded and its members integrated into various British Army units.
- 1 October 1992 - I (BR) Corps is disbanded and replaced by Headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction CorpsHeadquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction CorpsThe Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation High Readiness Force Headquarters ready for deployment worldwide within five to thirty days.-History:...
. - 1993 - British forces deployed to Bosnia as part of UNPROFOR.
- 31 March 1994 - The British Army of the Rhine is disbanded and replaced by British Forces GermanyBritish Forces GermanyBritish Forces Germany , is the name for British Armed Forces service personnel and civilians based in Germany. It was first established following the Second World War as the British Army of the Rhine ....
. - 1994 - The main force of the Army garrison in BelizeBelizeBelize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
is withdrawn; small detachment remains as part of British Army Training and Support Unit BelizeMilitary of BelizeThe Belize Defence Force is the military of Belize, and is responsible for protecting the sovereignty of Belize The BDF, along with the National Forensic Science Service, the National Coast Guard, and the Immigration Department, is a department of the Ministry of National Security, which is...
. - 1994 - 1st Battalion, The Queen's Lancashire Regiment becomes the last British battalion to leave Berlin.
- 30 June 1997 - 1st Battalion, The Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment)Black WatchThe Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The unit's traditional colours were retired in 2011 in a ceremony led by Queen Elizabeth II....
becomes the last British unit to leave Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. - 1998 - The Strategic Defence ReviewStrategic Defence ReviewThe Strategic Defence Review was a British policy document produced by the Labour Government that came to power in 1997. Then Secretary of State for Defence, George Robertson, set out the initial defence policy of the new government, with a series of key decisions designed to enhance the United...
white paper is published. - 1999 - Kosovo WarKosovo WarThe term Kosovo War or Kosovo conflict was two sequential, and at times parallel, armed conflicts in Kosovo province, then part of FR Yugoslav Republic of Serbia; from early 1998 to 1999, there was an armed conflict initiated by the ethnic Albanian "Kosovo Liberation Army" , who sought independence...
begins. - 2000 - 2 PARA arrived in FreetownFreetownFreetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
, Sierra LeoneSierra LeoneSierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
to evacuate British, CommonwealthCommonwealth of NationsThe Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
and EUEuropean UnionThe European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
citizens. - 2001 - The Army deploys to the Republic of MacedoniaRepublic of MacedoniaMacedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
. - 7 October 2001 - U.S. invasion of AfghanistanWar in Afghanistan (2001–present)The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
begins. The SAS was, initially, the main Army contribution.- December 2001 - Major-General John McCollJohn McCollGeneral Sir John Chalmers McColl KCB, CBE, DSO is the current Lieutenant Governor of Jersey. He was sworn in on 26 September 2011. He was formerly Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe.-Army career:...
takes command of ISAFInternational Security Assistance ForceThe International Security Assistance Force is a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan established by the United Nations Security Council on 20 December 2001 by Resolution 1386 as envisaged by the Bonn Agreement...
in Afghanistan.
- December 2001 - Major-General John McColl
- 20 March 2003 - The US-led invasion of Iraq begins.
- 27 March 2003 - The largest tank engagement by the British Army since WWII takes place; 14 Challenger 2 tanks of the Royal Scots Dragoon GuardsRoyal Scots Dragoon GuardsThe Royal Scots Dragoon Guards is a cavalry regiment of the British Army, and the senior Scottish regiment. It was formed on 2 July 1971 at Holyrood, Edinburgh, by the amalgamation of the 3rd Carabiniers The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys) (SCOTS DG) is a cavalry regiment of...
destroy 14 Iraqi T-55T-55The T-54 and T-55 tanks were a series of main battle tanks designed in the Soviet Union. The first T-54 prototype appeared in March 1945, just before the end of the Second World War. The T-54 entered full production in 1947 and became the main tank for armored units of the Soviet Army, armies of...
s. - 6 April 2003 - British forces, led by 7 Armoured BrigadeBritish 7th Armoured BrigadeThe 7th Armoured Brigade is a formation of the British Army. The brigade is also known as the 'Desert Rats', a nickname formerly held by the 7th Armoured Division.-History:The brigade was raised from garrison troops stationed in North Africa in 1938...
(known as 'The Desert Rats') enter Iraq's second city of BasraBasraBasra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
.
- 27 March 2003 - The largest tank engagement by the British Army since WWII takes place; 14 Challenger 2 tanks of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards
- 2004 - The defence white paper "Delivering Security in a Changing WorldDelivering Security in a Changing WorldThe 2003 Defence White Paper, titled Delivering Security in a Changing World, set out the future structure of the British military, and was preceded by the 1998 Strategic Defence Review and the 2002 SDR New Chapter, which responded to the immediate challenges to security in the aftermath of the...
" is published. - March 2005 - Private Johnson BeharryJohnson BeharryLance Corporal Johnson Gideon Beharry VC of the 1st Battalion, Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, is a British Army soldier who, on 18 March 2005, was awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration for valour in the British and Commonwealth armed forces, for twice saving members of...
of the 1st Battalion, Princess of Wales's Royal RegimentPrincess of Wales's Royal Regiment"PWRR" redirects here. For the railroad with these reporting marks, see Portland and Western Railroad.The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment is the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Queen's Division...
is awarded the Victoria CrossVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
for his actions in Iraq in 2004. - 6 April 2005 - The Special Reconnaissance RegimentSpecial Reconnaissance RegimentThe Special Reconnaissance Regiment or SRR is a Special Forces regiment of the British Armed Forces. It was established on 6 April 2005 and is part of the United Kingdom Special Forces under command Director Special Forces, alongside the Special Air Service , Special Boat Service and the Special...
became operational.