1st Brigade ( Australia ) 1st Brigade is a formation of the Australian Army intended as its primary mechanised formation . Raised for service initially in 1914 for service during World War I , the brigade fought at Gallipoli and on the Western Front before being disbanded in mid - 1919 . In 1921 , the 1st Brigade was re - raised as a unit of Australia ' s part - time military forces , based in New South Wales . During World War II the brigade undertook defensive duties before being disbanded . In 1948 it was re - raised as an integral part of the Australian Regular Army . Currently the brigade is based at Robertson Barracks in Darwin and at RAAF Base Edinburgh near Adelaide , South Australia , where it forms part of 1st Division . The 1st Brigade contains a significant proportion of the Army ' s regular units and a high proportion of the Army ' s combat power and is organised as a mechanised infantry brigade with significant armoured and logistical support . History . World War I . The 1st Brigade was raised in Sydney , New South Wales , shortly after the start of World War I in August 1914 for service overseas as part of the Australian Imperial Force ( AIF ) . Upon formation it consisted of four infantry battalion s — the 1st , 2nd , 3rd and 4th — however , later it received organic fire support when the 1st Australian Machine Gun Company ( February 1916 to February 1918 ) and 1st Australian Trench Mortar Battery ( from April 1916 ) were added to its order of battle . Assigned to the 1st Division , the brigade ' s first commanding officer was Colonel Henry MacLaurin . During the war , the 1st Brigade took part in the fighting at Gallipoli and on the Western Front in France and Belgium , before being disbanded in April 1919 . Notable battles in which the brigade fought include : Lone Pine , Pozieres , Bullecourt , Passchendaele , Hazebrouck , Amiens and the Hindenburg Line . Five soldiers from 1st Brigade units received the Victoria Cross , Australia ' s highest military decoration , for their actions during the war . These were : John Hamilton , George Howell , Thomas Kenny , Leonard Keysor and Alfred Shout . Inter war years and World War II . In 1921 , the Australian military was re - organised as the units of the part - time forces were re - organised to perpetuate the numerical designations and structures of the AIF . As a result , the 1st Brigade was re - raised as a part - time formation of the Citizens Forces based in Newcastle , New South Wales , and consisting of four infantry battalions : the 13th , 33rd , 35th and 41st Battalions . Initially the brigade was staffed through the compulsory training scheme , which meant that the brigade was able to maintain its numbers , however , in 1922 , following the signing of the Washington Naval Treaty , Australia ' s security concerns were reduced . As a result , the Army ' s budget was halved and the scope of the compulsory training scheme was scaled back ; with this the authorised strength of each infantry battalion was reduced to just 409 men of all ranks . In 1929 , the compulsory training scheme was suspended by the newly elected Scullin Labor government and was replaced by a voluntary system , under the new name of the " Militia " . This , coupled with the financial hardships of the Great Depression , meant that there were few volunteers available for service and many units had to be amalgamated or disbanded . As a result , the 1st Brigade was reduced to just three infantry battalions . Upon the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 , the 1st Brigade consisted of the 13th , 33rd and 41st Battalions . Initially , upon the commencement of hostilities it was decided to call up the Militia to undertake periods of continuous training in order to boost the nation ' s readiness for war , however , following Japan ' s entry into the war in December 1941 , they were mobilised for defensive duties . Although some Militia units were committed to combat operations in New Guinea from 1942 onwards , the 1st Brigade remained in Australia for the duration of the war , headquartered around Parramatta , New South Wales , where it formed part of the 1st Division . By the end of hostilities , it consisted of only one battalion — the 41st / 2nd Battalion — as other units had been transferred , amalgamated or disbanded . Between May 1942 and August 1945 it was commanded by Brigadier Frederick Burrows . Post World War II . Following the end of hostilities in August 1945 , the existing structures were disbanded throughout 1945 and into 1946 and the Interim Army was raised . As a part of this , the 34th Brigade was raised for occupation duties in Japan . In 1948 , with the establishment of the reformation of the Regular Army and the raising of the Australian Regiment ( later known as the Royal Australian Regiment ) , the 34th Brigade was renamed the 1st Brigade following its return to Australia . During the Korean War , individual elements of the brigade were detached for combat in Korea , although they were subsequently placed under the command of other formations . In 1960 , the Australian Army adopted the Pentropic divisional establishment . This saw the adoption of the five battalion division and resulted in the disbandment of the old three battalion brigade formations . As a result , the 1st Brigade , including its headquarters , was disbanded . In late 1964 , however , the decision was made to end the experiment with the Pentropic establishment , partly because of the difficulties it created with allied interoperability . Early the following year the brigade formations were re - established , although they were designated " task forces " instead of brigades . In mid - 1965 1 RAR , was sent to Vietnam as part of Australia ' s commitment to the ongoing conflict in that country . In early 1966 , the decision to increase the Australian Army ' s presence in Vietnam from one infantry battalion to two was announced . In order to command this force , it was decided to form an Australian task force . Shortly after this , the 1st Task Force , consisting of the 5th Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment ( 5 RAR ) , undertook a readiness exercise around Gospers in New South Wales . Once this exercise was successfully completed , the 1st Task Force ' s headquarters was used to raise the 1st Australian Task Force and was dispatched to Vietnam , where it would remain until the end of the Australian involvement . In 1972 , the task force returned to Australia and had units located at Holsworthy in New South Wales , Woodside in South Australia and at Puckapunyal in Victoria . In 1982 , the " brigade " designations were readopted . Brigadier John Sheldrick was in command of the brigade at the time and early the year the 1st Armoured Regiment was placed under the 1st Brigade ' s command as part of the Army ' s mechanisation trials . The new role of the 1st Brigade as a mechanised force was confirmed in 1983 and following this the capability was developed . This saw the 5th / 7th Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment ( 5 / 7 RAR ) , re - equipped with armoured personnel carrier s , which they began to receive in July 1983 . During the 1980s , one of the brigade ' s other infantry battalions , the 3rd Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment , began developing the Australian Army ' s parachute capability , and by late 1983 it had become a specialised parachute infantry battalion . They were later transferred to the 3rd Brigade . Recent years . In 1992 , the brigade began the process of moving to Darwin as part of a force structure review focused upon relocating defence assets in the north . By 2000 , the brigade had completed its move and was headquartered in Robertson Barracks in Darwin . Before the move was complete , the brigade was warned out to support the 3rd Brigade ' s deployment to East Timor and in October 1999 , 5 / 7 RAR began deploying . They returned to Australia in April 2000 . As part of the Hardened and Networked Army initiative 5 / 7 RAR was de - linked in 2006 to form two mechanised battalions . 5 RAR remained in Darwin , while the 7th Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment ( 7 RAR ) , along with subunits from the 8th / 12th Medium Regiment , 1st Combat Engineer Regiment and 1st Combat Service Support Battalion was moved to Adelaide , where they are now based at RAAF Base Edinburgh . Although the brigade is split , the Adelaide – Darwin Railway can be used to transport heavy vehicles and equipment north . In its current configuration , the brigade is currently capable of operating three battlegroups , one formed around 1st Armoured Regiment as an armour - heavy formation and the other two around 5 RAR and 7 RAR operating as mechanised infantry formations . In the past decade units of the brigade have undertaken deployments to East Timor , Iraq and Afghanistan . Planned restructure . Under a restructuring program known as Plan Beersheba announced in late 2011 , the 1st , 3rd and 7th Brigades will be reformed as combined arms multi - role manoeuvre brigades . Present formation . The 1st Brigade is currently made up of the following units :