1st Armoured Division ( United Kingdom ) The 1st Armoured Division is an armoured division of the British Army , currently the only British division to be stationed in Germany . Originally formed in November 1937 as the Mobile Division , it saw extensive service during the Second World War , was disbanded afterward , was reconstituted in 1976 , and remains in service today . It should not be confused with 1st Infantry Division which saw service in the Second World War as a separate formation . Formation . The division was formed in November 1937 on the initiative of General Sir Archibald Montgomery - Massingberd , the Chief of the Imperial General Staff ( CIGS ) . At the time , it was named the The Mobile Division . The choice of the division ' s General Officer Commanding reflected the tensions within the army . The Secretary of State for War ( Leslie Hore - Belisha ) wanted a Royal Tank Corps officer to command , as tanks would be the main force of the division , but Montgomery - Massingberd wanted a cavalry officer . Supporters of Montgomery - Massingberd proposed that the tank element of the division should be formed from cavalry regiments equipped with light tanks only , and that the tank brigade and its heavier tanks be removed from the division . The compromise was the appointment of Major - General Alan Brooke , who was from the Royal Artillery . When Brooke was promoted , his replacement was a cavalry officer . As formed the Mobile Division was made up of the 1st and 2nd Light Armoured Brigades , the 1st Tank Brigade , artillery , engineers and signals . Its paper strength was 620 armoured fighting vehicles , but seven eighths of these were reconnaissance vehicles , and of those some were being simulated by trucks . The heavier tanks were in the tank brigade , and until cruiser tanks started deliveries in December 1938 they were obsolete Medium Tanks . At the same time , the organization of the division was changed to a Light Armoured Brigade ( three regiments with light and cruiser tanks ) , a Heavy Armoured Brigade ( three regiments of cruiser tanks ) and a Support Group ( motorized rifle battalion , motorized artillery regiment and a company of engineers ) . In practice , with insufficient cruiser tanks to equip the division , there was no difference in numbers and type of tanks between the light and heavy brigade . Second World War . It first saw service in incomplete form under the command of Major - General Roger Evans when the second British Expeditionary Force was sent to France in 1940 . It landed in France on 14 April 1940 and was evacuated on 16 June , having served south of the River Somme , isolated from the other British formations . For the rest of 1940 and up until 27 August 1941 , the division was stationed in the United Kingdom on anti - invasion duties under the command of Major General Willoughby Norrie . It then embarked for Egypt under the command of Major General Herbert Lumsden and arrived in Egypt on 13 November 1941 . After Lumsden was wounded , Major General Frank Messervy took command in January 1942 retaining command until Lumsden returned in March . It took part in many of the major battles of the later part of the campaign against Rommel , including Gazala , First El Alamein , Second El Alamein , Tebaga Gap , Akarit , El Kourzia and Tunis . In August 1942 Major - General Raymond Briggs took control and in July 1943 Major - General Alexander Galloway took over the baton . From the end of the Tunisian campaign the division remained in North Africa until May 1944 . It then transferred to Italy , fighting one last battle at Coriano in the fighting on the Gothic Line . Major - General Richard Hull took over command for this part of the campaign in August 1944 . The division was disbanded on 1 January 1945 . Second World War formation . The order of battle was as follows : Post Second World War . It was not until 1960 that the Division re - emerged in the British Army . It was reformed as 1st Division following the disbanding of the 1st Infantry Division and was initially based at Verden an der Aller in Germany . During the 1970s , the division consisted of two " square " brigades , the 7th Armoured Brigade and 11th Armoured Brigade . It was renamed 1st Armoured Division in 1976 . In 1978 the Headquarters moved to Shiel Barracks in Verden in Germany . After being briefly reorganised into two " task forces " ( " Alpha " and " Bravo " ) , in the early 1980s it consisted of the 7th , 12th , and 22nd Armoured Brigades . Divisional formations and units have deployed on many other operations such as internal security in Northern Ireland , The Falkland Islands , Belize and United Nations tours in Cyprus , Bosnia and Kosovo . The headquarters of the division was deployed to Saudi Arabia in 1990 to command British land forces . It had two brigades under its command , 4th and 7th Armoured Brigade . During the war it came under the US VII Corps and was part of the great armoured left - hook that destroyed many Iraqi Republican Guard formations . The two brigades in the division alternated heading the advance . Current formation . In 1993 HQ 1st Armoured Division was disbanded and the 1st ( UK ) Armoured Division formed from the 4th Armoured Division . The Divisional Headquarters was deployed in command of Multi - National Division ( South - West ) in Bosnia in 1996 – 1997 and 1998 – 1999 . The Division headquarters again deployed to the Gulf area in 2003 . It again commanded British forces in the area , this time with three full brigades under its control . Those were 7th Armoured Brigade again , along with 16 Air Assault Brigade , and 3 Commando Brigade . In a combined arms operation the division secured southern Iraq , including the city of Basra during the invasion . It came under I Marine Expeditionary Force during the 2003 conflict . The 1st ( UK ) Armoured Division is currently the only British division to be stationed in Germany . The headquarters as been stationed since 1993 at Wentworth Barracks in Herford . The Division currently reports to Army Headquarters at Andover . The divisional badge dates from 1983 , and combines the hollow red triangular " spearhead " badge of 1st Infantry Division with the charging rhinoceros badge of 1st Armoured Division as displayed in World War II . The following brigades make up the 1st ( United Kingdom ) Armoured Division : Future . Under Army 2020 , it will move to the York area and be renamed as 1st ( UK ) Division . General Officers Commanding . Commanders have been : < br > GOC The Mobile Division GOC 1st Armoured Division GOC 1st Division GOC 1st Armoured Division GOC 1st ( UK ) Armoured Division