# Infantry of the British Army

The Infantry of the British Army comprises 49 infantry battalions, from 19 regiments. Of these, 33 battalions are part of the Regular army and the remaining 16 a part of the Army Reserve. The British Army's Infantry takes on a variety of roles, including armoured, mechanised, air assault and light.

## Recruitment and training
### Recruitment

Traditionally, regiments that form the combat arms of the British Army (cavalry and infantry) recruit from specific areas of the country. Infantry regiments had been assigned specific areas from which they would recruit from by the mid eighteenth century. These were formalised under the Cardwell Reforms that began in the 1860s. Under this scheme, single battalion infantry regiments were amalgamated into two battalion regiments, then assigned to a depot and associated recruiting area (which would usually correspond to all or part of a county). The recruiting area (usually) would then become part of the regiment's title. It was this that gave rise to the concept of the "county regiment", with the local infantry regiment becoming part of the fabric of its local area.
Over time, regiments have been amalgamated further, which has led to recruiting areas of individual regiments increasing in size. Often, these amalgamations have been between regiments whose recruiting areas border each other. However, there have been occasions where regiments of a similar type, but from widely different areas, have been amalgamated. Two modern examples have been the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (amalgamated from the county regiments of Northumberland, Warwickshire, City of London and Lancashire, all of which were regiments of fusiliers) and The Light Infantry (amalgamated from the county regiments of Cornwall, Somerset, Shropshire, South Yorkshire and Durham, all of which were regiments of light infantry).
Since September 2007, when the most recent reforms were completed, the infantry has consisted of 18 separate regiments. The five regiments of foot guards recruit from their respective home nations (with the exception of the Coldstream Guards, which recruits from the counties through which the regiment marched between Coldstream and London). Scotland, Ireland and Wales each have a single regiment of line infantry from which they recruit (though the battalions of the Royal Regiment of Scotland recruit from the areas they recruited from when they were separate regiments), while England has seven line infantry and rifles regiments. The Parachute Regiment recruits nationally, while the Royal Gurkha Rifles recruits most of its serving personnel from Nepal, and the Royal Gibraltar Regiment recruits from the UK and Commonwealth nations
Before the Second World War, infantry recruits were required to be at least 5 feet 2 inches (1.57 m) tall. They initially enlisted for seven years with the colours and a further five years with the reserve. They trained at their own regimental depot.

### Training

Unlike the other trades in the army, which have separate units for basic training and specialised training, new recruits into the infantry undergo a single course at the Infantry Training Centre Catterick. This course, called the "Combat Infantryman's Course" (CIC), lasts 26 weeks as standard and teaches recruits both the basics of soldiering (Phase 1 training) and the specifics of soldiering in the infantry (Phase 2 training). On completion of the CIC, the newly qualified infantry soldier will then be posted to his battalion.
For some infantry units, the CIC is longer, due to specific additional requirements for individual regiments:
* The Foot Guards CIC has an additional two-week enhanced drill course.
* The Parachute Regiment CIC has an additional two-week Pre-Parachute Selection (PPS) course.
* The Brigade of Gurkhas CIC combines the Common Military Syllabus with the CIC, together with courses on British culture and the English Language. The Gurkha CIC lasts 37 weeks.
Officers receive their initial training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, infantry officers then undertake the Platoon Commander's Battle Course, which is run at the Infantry Battle School at Brecon in Wales. It is here that leadership and tactics are taught to new platoon commanders. New NCOs and Warrant Officers are also sent on courses at Brecon when they come up for promotion. This encompasses Phase 3 training. Phase 3 training is also undertaken at the Support Weapons School at Warminster, where new officers, NCOs and soldiers are trained in the use of support weapons (mortars, anti-tank weapons) and in communications.
Reservist Infantrymen undertake preliminary training at Regional Training Centres prior to attending a two-week CIC (Reserve) at Catterick.

### Headquarters Infantry

Headquarters Infantry, which is located at Waterloo Lines on Imber Road in Warminster, is responsible for recruiting, manning and training policy of the Infantry. Headquarters Infantry was established in 1991 as a result of the Options for Change reform.

## Divisions of infantry

The infantry in the British Army is divided for administrative purposes into divisions. These are not the same as the ready and regenerative divisions (see below), but are based on either the geographical recruiting areas of the regiments, or the type of regiments:
* The Guards and Parachute Division has the regiments of Foot Guards plus the Parachute Regiment.
* The Union Division has the infantry regiments from Scotland, Wales and Ireland, plus one from England.
* The Queen's Division has the regiments from England, as well as Gibraltar.
* The Light Division has the two remaining regiments of rifles and Gurkha Rifles.
Each division, in addition to the regiments under its administrative control, also hosts a battalion of The Rangers, the newly formed special operations unit.
The four existing divisions were formed as a result of the Future Soldier reforms announced in 2021; prior to this, only the Queen's Division of the new formations existed. The Guards Division, Scottish, Welsh and Irish Division and King's Division were the other three formations, while a number of other regiments sat outside the divisional structure.
| Guards and Parachute Division | Union Division | Queen's Division | Light Division |
| Regular Army ||||
| Grenadier Guards - 1st Battalion - Nijmegen Company | The Royal Regiment of Scotland -2nd Battalion -3rd Battalion -4th Battalion -Balaklava Company | The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires) - 1st Battalion | The Royal Gurkha Rifles - 1st Battalion - 2nd Battalion - Coriano Company - Falklands Company |
| Coldstream Guards - 1st Battalion - No. 7 Company | The Royal Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) - 1st Battalion - 2nd Battalion | The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers - 1st Battalion | The Rifles - 1st Battalion - 2nd Battalion - 3rd Battalion - 5th Battalion |
| Scots Guards - 1st Battalion - F Company | The Royal Welsh - 1st Battalion | The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) - 1st Battalion | The Rangers - 4th Battalion |
| Irish Guards - 1st Battalion - No. 9 Company - No. 12 Company | The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling), 83rd, 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment) - 1st Battalion | The Mercian Regiment (Cheshires, Worcesters and Foresters, and Staffords) - 1st Battalion | |
| Welsh Guards - 1st Battalion | The Rangers - 2nd Battalion | The Royal Anglian Regiment - 1st Battalion - 2nd Battalion | |
| The Parachute Regiment - 1st Battalion - 2nd Battalion - 3rd Battalion | | The Rangers - 3rd Battalion | |
| The Rangers - 1st Battalion | | | |
| Army Reserve ||||
| London Guards - 1st Battalion | The Royal Regiment of Scotland - 6th Battalion - 7th Battalion | The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires) - 3rd Battalion - 4th Battalion | The Rifles - 6th Battalion - 7th Battalion - 8th Battalion |
| The Parachute Regiment - 4th Battalion | The Royal Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) - 4th Battalion | The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers - 5th Battalion | |
| | The Royal Welsh - 3rd Battalion | The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) - 4th Battalion | |
| | The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling), 83rd, 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment) - 2nd Battalion | The Mercian Regiment (Cheshires, Worcesters and Foresters, and Staffords) - 4th Battalion | |
| | | The Royal Anglian Regiment - 3rd Battalion | |
| Colonial and Crown Dominion units ||||
| | | The Royal Gibraltar Regiment | |

## Types of infantry
### Operations

Within the British Army, there are six main types of infantry:
* Armoured Infantry – armoured infantry are equipped with the Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicle, a tracked vehicle that can deploy over all terrain.
* Mechanised Infantry – mechanised infantry (or "protected mobility infantry) are equipped with wheeled armoured vehicles for transporting troops. This is divided into "heavy protected mobility infantry" (with large vehicles such as Mastiff), and "light protected mobility infantry" (with smaller vehicles such as Foxhound).
* Light Infantry – light infantry are not equipped with armoured vehicles; such units may specialise in jungle and/or arctic warfare
* Air Assault Infantry – air assault infantry are trained to be deployed using helicopters, parachute or aircraft.
* Specialised Infantry – infantry configured to undertake training, mentoring and assistance to indigenous forces in partner nations.
* Public duties – infantry on public duties are essentially light infantry units undertaking primarily ceremonial tasks.

### Traditions

The infantry is traditionally divided into three types:
* Foot Guards – foot guards are those infantry regiments that were formed specifically to provide close guard to the monarch. Soldiers in the guards were usually the best trained and equipped members of the infantry. However, they would fight in the same way as ordinary regiments.
* Line Infantry – line infantry refers to those regiments that historically fought in linear formations, unlike light troops, who fought in loose order. The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries saw expansion of the roles of the infantry. To this end, the companies stationed on each flank of an infantry battalion were specialist units, with a company of light infantry trained as skirmishers to operate independently on the battlefield, and a company of grenadiers, who were usually the biggest and strongest men in the battalion, operating as the lead assault troops. In later years, the British Army raised full line infantry regiments classed as light infantry, who operated with muskets alongside specialised regiments armed with rifles.
* Rifles – in the late eighteenth century, the development of the Baker rifle led to the commissioning by the British Army of regiments specially trained to use the new weapon. These regiments would operate as skirmishers and sharpshooters on the edges of the field of battle. These regiments wore green rather than red tunics to enable them to blend in more with the environment, thus giving them the nickname "green jackets".
The tactical distinctions between infantry regiments disappeared in the late nineteenth century, but remain in tradition. In the order of precedence, the five regiments of foot guards are ranked above the ten regiments of traditional line infantry, who are ranked above the two remaining regiments of rifles.

## Divisions and brigades

Under the Future Soldier reforms announced in 2021, the British Army will have a total of 31 regular infantry battalions, 16 reserve infantry battalions and nine independent companies performing a variety of tasks. Under the Future Soldier plan, postings are:

### 1st (United Kingdom) Division

1st (UK) Division is planned as the UK's primary land element for operations outside the European theatre, as well as operations supporting NATO's flanks. It consists of four infantry centred brigades – one is intended as a high-readiness mobile formation, one as a light infantry formation to provide surge capacity, and one as a parent formation for Army Reserve battalions. The other, 16 Air Assault Brigade, forms part of the overall "Reaction Force", and is a lead element of the UK's rapid reaction strategy. The other major independent element of the Reaction Force is UK Commando Force; although this does have British Army units attached in combat support roles, the infantry units are from the Royal Marines, which is part of the Naval Service.
* 4th Light Brigade Combat Team
** 1st Battalion, Grenadier Guards (Light Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, Coldstream Guards (Light Infantry)
** The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland (Light Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) (Light Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Royal Gurkha Rifles (Light Infantry)
** 2nd Battalion, The Rifles (Light Infantry)
* 7th Light Mechanised Brigade Combat Team
** 1st Battalion, Scots Guards (Light Mechanised Infantry)
** The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland (Light Mechanised Infantry)
** 2nd Battalion, The Royal Anglian Regiment (Light Mechanised Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Royal Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) (Light Mechanised Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Rifles (Light Mechanised Infantry)
* 19th Brigade
** 52nd Lowland, 6th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland (Army Reserve)
** 51st Highland, 7th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland (Army Reserve)
** 4th Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) (Army Reserve)
** 3rd Battalion, The Royal Anglian Regiment (Army Reserve)
** 4th Battalion, The Royal Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) (Army Reserve)
** 2nd Battalion, The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling), 83rd, 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment) (Army Reserve)
** 6th Battalion, The Rifles (Army Reserve)
** 8th Battalion, The Rifles (Army Reserve)
* 16th Air Assault Brigade Combat Team
** 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (Parachute Infantry)
** 3rd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (Parachute Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling), 83rd, 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment) (Air Assault Infantry)
** 2nd Battalion, The Royal Gurkha Rifles (Air Assault Infantry)
** 4th Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (Army Reserve)

### 3rd (United Kingdom) Division

3rd (UK) Division is planned as the UK's main reaction force, intended to act as a lead formation alongside NATO, and primarily consists of a pair of armoured brigades containing the army's mechanised infantry units.
* 12th Armoured Brigade Combat Team
** 1st Battalion, The Mercian Regiment (Cheshire, Worcesters & Foresters, and Staffords) (Mechanised Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Royal Welsh (Armoured Infantry)
** 4th Battalion, The Mercian Regiment (Cheshire, Worcesters & Foresters, and Staffords) (Army Reserve)
** 3rd Battalion, The Royal Welsh (Army Reserve)
* 20th Armoured Brigade Combat Team
** 1st Battalion, The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires) (Mechanised Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (Mechanised Infantry)
** 5th Battalion, The Rifles (Mechanised Infantry)
** 3rd Battalion, The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires) (Army Reserve)
** 5th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (Army Reserve)
** 7th Battalion, The Rifles (Army Reserve)

### Field Army Troops

Field Army Troops is the formation encompassing specialist elements of the Field Army, including signals and ISTAR units. The formation has responsibility for two separate infantry brigades, both of which are optimised to a training role - one is primarily intended as a mentoring formation for the UK's allies, while the other is the Army Special Operations Brigade, which contains those infantry units dedicated to military training and operational support for the UK's partner nations. The formation also has responsibility for the Land Warfare Centre, an organisation that administers a number of the Army's training centres, which includes one infantry battalion and an additional training company.
* 11th Brigade
** 1st Battalion, Irish Guards (Specialised Infantry)
** The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland (Specialised Infantry)
** 1st Battalion, The Royal Anglian Regiment (Specialised Infantry)
** 3rd Battalion, The Rifles (Specialised Infantry)
** 4th Battalion, The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires) (Army Reserve)
* Army Special Operations Brigade
** 1st Battalion, The Rangers (Special Operations Infantry)
** 2nd Battalion, The Rangers (Special Operations Infantry)
** 3rd Battalion, The Rangers (Special Operations Infantry)
** 4th Battalion, The Rangers (Special Operations Infantry)
** Coriano Company, The Royal Gurkha Rifles (Special Operations Infantry)
** Falklands Company, The Royal Gurkha Rifles (Special Operations Infantry)
* Land Warfare Centre
** 2nd Battalion, The Royal Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) (Light Infantry)
** Gurkha Company (Tavoleto), The Royal Gurkha Rifles (Light Infantry)

### Home Command

Infantry units are attached to a number of other formations that are independent of the British Army's three existing divisions. London District is responsible for the dedicated public duties units for London and Windsor. Two company sized units are used at the British Army's training establishments. A number of the United Kingdom's Overseas Territories maintain their own infantry units, which undertake a number of different roles in addition to internal security.
* UK Special Forces
** 1st Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (Special Forces Light Infantry)
* London District
** 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards (Public Duties)
** Nijmegen Company, Grenadier Guards (Public Duties)
** No. 7 Company, Coldstream Guards (Public Duties)
** F Company, Scots Guards (Public Duties)
** No. 9 Company, Irish Guards (Public Duties)
** No. 12 Company, Irish Guards (Public Duties)
** 1st Battalion, London Guards (Army Reserve)
* 51st Infantry Brigade and Headquarters Scotland
** Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland (Public Duties)
* Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
** Gurkha Company (Sittang), The Royal Gurkha Rifles (Light Infantry)
* School of Infantry
** Gurkha Wing (Mandalay), The Royal Gurkha Rifles (Light Infantry)
* British Forces Cyprus
** Light Mechanised Infantry / Light Infantry battalion
** Light Mechanised Infantry / Light Infantry battalion
* British Forces Brunei
** Light Infantry battalion (Gurkha)
* British Forces Gibraltar
** The Royal Gibraltar Regiment (Light Infantry)
* British Forces South Atlantic Islands
** Roulement infantry company (Light Infantry)
** The Falkland Islands Defence Force (Territorial Infantry)
* Other Overseas Territories
** The Royal Bermuda Regiment (Territorial Infantry)
** The Cayman Islands Regiment (Territorial Infantry)
** The Turks and Caicos Islands Regiment (Territorial Infantry)
** The Royal Montserrat Defence Force (Territorial Infantry)