The armed forces of capitalist states were also built in accordance with military doctrines.
UK Armed Forces consisted of ground forces (army), naval forces (fleet and naval aviation) and air force. The regular armed forces were staffed by volunteers aged 18 to 25 years. In July 1939, a law on compulsory military service came into force in the metropolis, according to which all men who had reached the age of twenty were required to serve for six months in the regular army, after which they were enlisted in the territorial army for three and a half years ( E. Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army. London, 1950, p. 373-375.). The Dominions of Great Britain had their own national armed forces, which also consisted of three types and were staffed by volunteers. At the most important strategic points and bases of the empire there were British units performing police functions. All other parts of the English Empire maintained colonial troops from natives, which the government could use outside their territories. Data on the size of the British armed forces by type are given in Table 15.
The supreme commander of the armed forces of the British Empire was nominally considered the king; in fact, they were led by the British Prime Minister, who headed the Imperial Defense Committee.
In relation to the dominions, the committee limited itself to general instructions on issues of building armed forces. The procedure for building the armed forces of the colonies was completely determined by him. All decisions on this issue in the colonies were carried out by the respective ministers of war (army, navy and air force) through the governors general of the colonies, and in India - through the viceroy.
Based on the general military doctrine, the main attention in the construction of the armed forces was paid to the fleet and air force.
By the beginning of the Second World War, the British fleet consisted of 15 battleships and battlecruisers, 7 aircraft carriers, 64 cruisers, 184 destroyers, 45 minesweepers and coastal defense ships, 58 submarines ( Encyclopedia Britannica. Vol. 23. Chicago-London, 1973, p. 780 S.). Some ships, including 2 battleships, were reconstructed; 4 obsolete battleships could only be used for convoy service. The coastal command aviation had 232 combat aircraft, organized into 17 squadrons ( D. Butler. Big strategy. September 1939 - June 1941, page 46.); about 500 aircraft were on aircraft carriers and 490 in reserve ( PRO. Cab., 23/97, p. 126.).
Organizationally, the British fleet included the home fleet, the Mediterranean fleet, the eastern fleet and the reserve fleet. In addition, there were fleets and formations of ships in the dominions. As part of the fleets, the ships were combined into squadrons of battleships, cruisers, aircraft carriers, flotillas of destroyers and submarines.
Most of the Home Fleet was based at Scapa Flow, with some of its ships at the Humber and Portland naval bases. The West Indian station (4 cruisers) operated in the Western Atlantic, and the South Atlantic station (8 cruisers) operated in the South Atlantic. The Mediterranean fleet was based in Gibraltar and Alexandria, the eastern fleet was stationed mainly in Singapore. A detachment of light forces operated in the Red Sea. In addition, there was an East China station (4 cruisers) in Chinese waters.
The British military leadership believed that superiority over the fleets of Germany and Italy in large surface ships would ensure the safety of sea communications, and they hoped to overcome the possible threat from German submarines with the help of new means of detection that were being introduced on the ships of the British fleet. The plans of the British Admiralty took into account that if Japan entered the war, the British fleet located in the Far East would be much weaker than the enemy fleet.
After the revision of the “air doctrine” in connection with the emergence of new views on the use of aviation, the rearmament and reorganization of the air force began in the late 30s. In 1936, three commands were organized within them: fighter, bomber and coastal ( R. Higham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 179.). In November 1938, Plan “M” was approved in Great Britain, according to which it was planned to have 163 squadrons (2549 first-line combat aircraft) in the metropolis in the coming years, and 49 squadrons (636 aircraft) at overseas bases ( D. Butler. Big strategy. September 1939 - June 1941, p. 53.).
However, it was not possible to fully implement Plan M, and by the beginning of the Second World War there were 78 squadrons in the metropolis (1,456 combat aircraft, including 536 bombers). About 2 thousand vehicles were in reserve ( R. Higham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 188.). The Overseas Air Force had 34 squadrons (435 aircraft), of which 19 squadrons were based in the Middle East, 7 in India and 8 in Malaya ( Ibidem; D. Richards, H. Conders. British Air Force in the Second World War 1939-1945. Translation from English. M., 1963, p. 45.). Bomber Command had only 17 squadrons of Whitley, Wellington and Hampden aircraft, 10 squadrons of Blenheim aircraft and 12 squadrons of Battle aircraft, which were considered obsolete. By the beginning of the war, most of the fighter aviation was armed with quite modern Spitfire, Hurricane and Blenheim aircraft ( R. Higham. Armed Forces in Peacetime. Britain, 1918-1940, p. 188.). But in general, in terms of the number and training of flight personnel, British aviation was partly inferior to German aviation.
The country's air defense plan was approved in 1938. The general management of air defense was carried out by a committee headed by the prime minister. The head of the air defense of the metropolis was the commander of fighter aviation, to whom all air defense systems were operationally subordinate.
The territory of the British Isles was divided into four air defense regions: the first region covered the south-eastern part of the country, the second - the south-west, the third - the central, the fourth - the northern part of the country and Scotland. Organizationally, the air defense forces were consolidated into three divisions (with the exception of fighter aircraft). One air defense division defended London, another defended cities located in the center and north of the country, and a third defended cities in Scotland.
The ground forces were divided into regular, territorial and reserve armies. They were based on a regular army, which included all types of troops. The territorial army was a kind of first-line reserve and was staffed by people who had mainly served in the regular army. The reserve consisted of demobilized officers and persons who had served in the Territorial Army.
In 1936, the British government began a radical reorganization of the ground forces. The main focus in their construction was on motorization. The creation of the first motorized and armored units and formations began ( E. Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army, p. 373-375.).
The lack of a clearly developed theory and tactics for using armored forces in combat led to the fact that before the war the British army was armed with the most different types of tanks in terms of their tactical and technical characteristics. Even at the beginning of 1939, the General Staff could not finally decide what type of tanks the army needed: it was believed that light vehicles were needed for colonial wars, heavy ones for sending to France, slow-moving, well-armored ones for infantry support, and for mobile warfare - light cruiser tanks ( S. Barnett. Britain and Her Army 1509-1970, p. 419.). Nevertheless, by the beginning of the war the process of motorization of regular army formations was largely completed.
The territorial army also underwent a radical reorganization, which was also entrusted with the task of air defense of the metropolis. For this purpose, 7 divisions were allocated from its composition ( ). On March 29, 1939, the British government decided to increase the number of territorial divisions from 13 to 26, as a result of which the total number of ground force divisions increased to 32 (of which 6 were regular) ( S. Barnett. Britain and Her Army. 1509-1970, p. 420.). In fact, by the beginning of the war, Great Britain had 9 regular and 16 territorial divisions, 8 infantry, 2 cavalry and 9 tank brigades ( Calculated by: H. Joslen. Orders of Battle of the Seconal World War 1939-1945. Vol. I-II. London, 1960.). Territorial divisions were hastily transferred to regular positions. India had seven regular divisions and a significant number of independent brigades; Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand and the Union of South Africa - several separate brigades each.
The British infantry division in 1939 consisted of a headquarters, three infantry brigades, a mechanized regiment, three field regiments, an anti-tank artillery regiment, three anti-tank companies and support and service units. The total number of personnel was 14.5 thousand people, of which 500 were officers. The division was armed with 140 armored personnel carriers, 28 light tanks, 156 tractors, 147 guns, 810 trucks, 644 light and 56 heavy machine guns, 126 mortars, 10,222 rifles, 361 anti-tank rifles and other equipment ( H. Joslen. Orders of Battle of the Second World War 1939-1945, vol. I, p. 131.).
The organization of the highest formations and associations of the British ground forces had not yet completely taken shape at the beginning of the war. Due to a shortage of officers, weapons, military equipment and equipment, the British never began to deploy corps and armies. To assist France in repelling possible aggression from Germany, the command of the British Expeditionary Forces was created, which was subordinate to the divisions scheduled to be sent to the European continent, as well as the command of the British armed forces in the Near and Middle East, which was allocated two infantry and one armored divisions (not yet fully equipped) ( E. Sheppard. A Short History of the British Army, p. 375.). The main forces of the ground forces on the eve of the war were stationed in the metropolis.
All calculations of the British command were based on the assumption that if Germany went to war against France, military action would proceed slowly. In accordance with this, the first British infantry divisions were supposed to arrive in France only 33 days after the announcement of mobilization, two armored divisions - after 8 months, and subsequently 2-3 divisions at intervals of 6-8 months.
According to Field Marshal Montgomery, at the end of August 1939, the British ground forces were allegedly completely unprepared to conduct major combat operations: they lacked tanks and guns, had weak anti-tank artillery, imperfect communications, poor rear support and were insufficiently trained ( The War on Land. The British Army in World War II. New York, 1970, p. 6-7.).
However, in reality, despite many omissions and shortcomings in the organization and equipment of its armed forces, Great Britain had, at the beginning of the war, large naval and air forces and some ground forces in the metropolis, and sufficient reserves in the empire. This allowed her, together with France and Poland, to successfully conduct an armed struggle against Nazi Germany.
French Armed Forces consisted of three branches: the ground army, the air force and the navy. Their organization and construction were based on official military doctrine.
In accordance with the law “On the organization of the nation during the war” of July 11, 1938, all supreme political and military power was concentrated in the hands of the government. To resolve fundamental issues of preparing the country for war, the Supreme Council of National Defense was reorganized, which included all members of the cabinet, Marshal Petain and the Chief of the General Staff, General Gamelin, and, with an advisory vote, the commanders-in-chief of the armed forces and the chief of staff of the colonial troops.
In wartime, a military committee was to be created to lead the armed forces in all theaters of war. The chairman of the committee and supreme commander in chief was the president of the republic.
On the eve of the Second World War, France had ministries of national defence, army, air force and navy. The ministries of national defense and the army had a single governing body - the general staff, while other ministries had the main headquarters of the branches of the armed forces. The Chief of the General Staff was also the commander of the ground forces located in the metropolis and the colonies.
The commanders of aviation and the navy did not report to the chief of the general staff; he only coordinated the actions of aviation and navy with the actions of ground forces.
According to the law “On the organization of the nation during the war,” the territory of France was divided into three fronts: northeastern, southeastern and Pyrenean. The commanders of these fronts reported directly to the Chief of the General Staff ( Les evenements survenus en France de 1933 a 1945. Annexes, t. III, p. 811.).
There were 20 military districts in the country, each with 1-2 personnel divisions. In the event of war, the mobilization plan provided for the deployment of 80-100 divisions of type “A” and “B” on the basis of these formations ( Division “A” was staffed by 75 percent personnel, the rest were young reservists. Equipped mainly with modern weapons, it had high combat effectiveness. Division “B” consisted of 45 percent personnel and was replenished to normal levels by older reservists. The weapons were mostly outdated. The combat effectiveness of such a division was low.).
The armed forces were recruited on the basis of universal conscription. In 1936, the service life was increased from one year to two; for sailors and soldiers of the colonial troops it remained the same - three years. After the introduction of a two-year service period, the French armed forces had about 700 thousand people of variable composition. In case of war, up to 6 million reservists could be mobilized. However, the contingents from which, according to the plan, numerous units and formations were supposed to be formed, did not undergo thorough combat training. Until the mid-20s, retraining of reservists was not carried out at all. Later they began to be called up for training camps, which, however, were too short, and the number of called up reservists was clearly insufficient. As a result, the reserve units did not have high military-technical and tactical training, which negatively affected their combat effectiveness.
The French armed forces in peacetime numbered over 1 million people, including 865 thousand in the ground forces (550 thousand - the metropolitan army, 199 thousand - expeditionary forces and 116 thousand - colonial formations), in the air force - 50 thousand, navy - 90 thousand people.
By the end of August 1939, after a series of extraordinary conscriptions, the number of armed forces increased to 2,674 thousand people (2,438 thousand in the ground forces, 110 thousand in the air force and 126 thousand in the navy ) ( M. Gamelin. Servir. Le prologue du drame, p. 448.). The ground army consisted of 108 divisions, including 1 tank, 2 mechanized, 5 cavalry and 13 fortress divisions. The tank and 8 infantry divisions were not yet fully equipped by the time France entered the war.
France had 14,428 guns (excluding railway platforms and fortress artillery) ( Archives nationales de France. Cour de Riom. W 11. Serie XIX, cartone 48, doc. 9.); There were 3,100 tanks in the ground army ( "Revue d" histoire de la deuxieme guerre mondiale", 1964, No. 53, p. 5.), most of them were in 39 separate tank battalions ( J. Boucher. Armored weapons in war. Translation from French. M., 1956, pp. 83-86.).
Infantry divisions of both types (“A” and “B”) had the same organization: three infantry and two artillery (light and medium artillery) regiments, an anti-tank division, support and service units ( Ibid., pp. 86-87.). In total, the division had 17.8 thousand people, 62 75 mm and 155 mm guns, 8 47 mm anti-tank guns and 52 25 mm universal guns.
Light mechanized divisions were reorganized in 1932 from cavalry formations. Each of them had tank and motorized brigades, reconnaissance and artillery regiments, support and maintenance units, 11 thousand personnel, 174 tanks and 105 armored vehicles (mostly outdated designs).
The cavalry division consisted of two brigades (cavalry and light mechanized) and an artillery regiment. In total there were 11.7 thousand people, 22 tanks and 36 armored vehicles ( La campagne de France. Mai - juin 1940, p. 21.).
The serious deficiencies in technical equipment that existed in the French army significantly reduced its combat effectiveness. Although the weapons mostly met modern requirements, many weapons remained from the First World War. Artillery was represented mainly by a 75 mm cannon, which was significantly inferior to the German 105 mm howitzer. The French heavy and high-power artillery were numerous and superior in firepower to the corresponding German artillery.
The French Air Force, including naval aviation, consisted of 3,335 combat aircraft. At the beginning of the war, their armament and organization were still in their infancy. The highest air force formation was the mixed air army (there were three in total), consisting of a bomber division and several fighter brigades. In the French Air Force, fighters made up 36 percent, reconnaissance aircraft 25 percent, and bombers 39 percent of the total aircraft fleet. The leadership of the French air force, in contrast to the German one, was decentralized. Each army corps, army and front had its own aviation, which was based at airfields located in the rear areas of military formations and formations.
France had a significant navy, which ranked fourth among the fleets of capitalist countries. It consisted of 7 battleships, 1 aircraft carrier, 19 cruisers, 32 destroyers, 38 destroyers, 26 minesweepers and 77 submarines ( R. Auphan, J. Mordal. La Marine Francaise pendant la seconde guerre mondiale. Paris, 1958, p. 481 - 511.).
Thus, by the beginning of the Second World War, France had significant armed forces, sufficiently equipped with military equipment and weapons, including modern ones. However, as a result of policies aimed at directing aggression towards the Soviet Union, and the betrayal of French national interests by its ruling circles, as well as serious shortcomings in the country's preparations for war, the French armed forces were inevitably going to face great difficulties in the fight against a strong enemy.
The armed forces of the United States of America consisted of an army and a navy. The air force was part of the ground forces.
The Supreme Commander was the President of the United States, who directed the armed forces through the War and Navy Departments. The armed forces were recruited on a voluntary basis.
The strength of the American army in 1939 was only 544.7 thousand people, of which 190 thousand were in the regular army, 200 thousand in the national guard and 154.7 thousand in the navy ( The Information Please Almanac, 1950. New York, 1951, p. 206; R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 419.). The military-political leadership believed that, being at a sufficient distance from possible theaters of military operations, the United States would, if necessary, have time to quickly deploy its armed forces to the required number and enter the war at the decisive moment.
In accordance with US military doctrine, the main focus in the development of the armed forces was the navy, mainly powerful battleships and aircraft carriers. By the beginning of World War II, the US Navy consisted of more than 300 warships, including 15 battleships, 5 aircraft carriers, 36 cruisers, 181 destroyers, 99 submarines, 7 gunboats and 26 minesweepers ( W. Churchill. The Second World War. Vol. I. The Gathering Storm. New York, 1961, p. 617.). The fleet also had a large number of auxiliary ships for various purposes. However, many destroyers and submarines were obsolete.
Organizationally, before the Second World War, the ships were consolidated into two fleets - the Pacific and the Atlantic, in which there were formations of battleships, aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, submarines, auxiliary and amphibious forces. Naval aviation included about 300 aircraft.
The main forces of the navy were based in Norfolk (Atlantic coast), San Diego (Pacific coast) and Pearl Harbor (Hawaii Islands).
The US Navy was basically ready to carry out the tasks assigned to them to defend the American continent and ensure the transfer of ground forces for landings on other continents.
The few ground forces consisted of the regular army, the national guard and organized reserves. The units and formations of the regular army were more prepared. The National Guard was a militia army of individual states, intended primarily to maintain domestic order and not subject to the federal government. Organized reserves consisted of reserve officers and persons who had served a certain period of time in the regular army.
On the eve of the Second World War, the regular army had only three fully and six partially equipped infantry divisions, two cavalry divisions, a separate armored brigade and several separate infantry brigades ( M. Kreidberg, M. Henry. History of Military Mobilization in the United States Army, 1775-1945. Washington, 1955, p. 548-552.). There were 17 divisions in the National Guard. These military formations and units were united into four armies stationed in the continental part of the country. Small garrisons of ground forces were located in Alaska, Hawaii and other Pacific islands.
In December 1936, a directive from the Chief of Staff of the Army announced the beginning of the development of a “plan for the mobilization of covering forces,” which was completed by 1939. The plan provided for the deployment within 90 days of the announcement of the mobilization of 730,000 well-equipped ground forces. Then, in a short time, the army should expand to 1 million people. Until 1940, all calculations for the production of weapons for the army were based on this number of ground forces ( R. Smith. The Army and Economic Mobilization, p. 54, 127 - 128.).
In the 1930s, the American army was armed with mainly light tanks. Only in 1939, taking into account the lessons of the war in Spain, did the Americans begin to create medium tanks ( R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 411.).
The general management of aviation, which was part of the ground forces, was carried out by the Minister of War through his aviation assistant, and operational management through the General Staff. On the eve of the war, the Army Air Force had 1,576 combat aircraft. Since the beginning of World War II, the US Congress has allocated additional funds for the development of aircraft manufacturing. Aircraft production was planned to increase to 5,500 aircraft per year ( The War Reports of the General of the Army G. Marshall, Chief of the Staff; General of the Army H. Arnold, Commanding General, Army Air Forces; Fleet Admiral E. King, Commander-in-Chief, United States Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations. Philadelphia-New-York, 1947, p. 308; The Army Almanac. Washington, 1950, p. 214.). At the same time, it was planned to train 20 thousand pilots, navigators and gunners. Air force bases were built at an accelerated pace in Panama, Alaska, Puerto Rico and the Hawaiian Islands.
The army's air forces were divided into tactical and continental defense. In their construction, the main attention was paid to strategic aviation, while the importance of tactical aviation was underestimated. By the beginning of the war, the United States had a good heavy bomber B-17 (“flying fortress”), but did not have equal fighters and attack aircraft needed to support ground forces ( R. Weigley. History of the United States Army, p. 414.). In terms of quantity and quality of military equipment and weapons, American aviation was generally inferior to British and German ones.
For air defense purposes, the US territory was divided into four districts, in which the coordination of fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft artillery, air warning service and air barrage balloons was entrusted to the commanders of the air forces of these districts, subordinate to the commander of the Army Air Forces.
Thus, the state of the US armed forces in 1939 basically corresponded to the requirements placed on them by the military-political leadership. However, to implement the plans outlined by the American government for the deployment of armed forces, significant funds and time were needed.
Polish Armed Forces consisted of ground forces and navy. According to the 1935 constitution, the supreme commander was the president, but in fact the armed forces, like all power in the country, after the death of Pilsudski were in the hands of the military and political dictator, Inspector General of the Armed Forces, Marshal E. Rydz-Smigly.
The army and navy were recruited on the basis of the law on universal conscription, adopted on April 9, 1938. As of June 1, 1939, the armed forces of Poland numbered 439,718 people, of which in the ground forces - 418,474, aviation - 12,170 and military navy - 9074 people ( This number does not include units of the Border Guard Corps. Border troops consisted of regiments and brigades. In May 1939 they numbered 25,372 people. Calculated based on monthly reports of the actual state of the Polish armed forces: Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe. Department Dowodztwa Ogolnego MS Wojsk., t. 4393. L. dz. 8838/tj. z dn. August 14, 1939; Akta Departamentu Art. MS Wojsk., t. 11, Akta gisz, t. 287-667, 960.). The number of trained reserves reached 1.5 million people ( W. Iwanowski. Wysilek Zbrojny Narodu Polskiego w czasie II Wojny Swiatowej. T. I. Warszawa, 1961, str. 66.).
Socially, the Polish army overwhelmingly (about 70 percent) consisted of peasants with a small stratum of workers. Up to 30-40 percent were representatives of national minorities (Ukrainians, Belarusians, Lithuanians and others). The system of recruiting the armed forces had a pronounced class character and was designed to make them an obedient weapon in the fight against the revolutionary movement and in the war against the Soviet socialist state.
The ruling circles of Poland for a long time raised the army in a spirit of hostility towards the Soviet Union and the working people of Poland itself. Troops were often used to suppress revolutionary uprisings of the people of Poland and the national liberation movement of Belarusians, Ukrainians and Lithuanians. In individual garrisons there were special units specifically designed for these purposes ( S. Rowecki. Walkiuliczne. Warszawa, 1928, str. 286.).
The Polish bourgeoisie hoped to use a carefully thought-out system of ideological indoctrination of personnel to ensure the reliability of its armed forces, to protect them from the penetration of revolutionary ideas and sentiments.
The system of training and education of soldiers and officers was aimed at smoothing out the existing contradictions between the social composition of the army and its purpose, isolating soldiers from the masses, distracting them from politics, dulling class consciousness and turning them into blind executors of the will of the ruling classes. Having declared the army out of politics, the military leadership forbade soldiers and officers from being members of political parties, participating in rallies, meetings and other socio-political events and campaigns ( See art. 55 § I Dekretu o sluzbie wojskowej oficerow. Warsaw, 1937.). The reactionary government mercilessly persecuted military personnel for participating in the revolutionary movement and persistently instilled in them the need, allegedly established by God and religion, to defend the bourgeois-landowner system of Poland and blindly obey its laws.
The main organizing force of the Polish army was the officers and non-commissioned officers. The officer corps was almost entirely selected from persons belonging to the ruling and privileged strata and classes. The leading role in the army among the Polish officers belonged to the Pilsudians, mainly former legionnaires. In 1939, out of 100 generals, 64 were legionnaires, more than 80 percent of the positions of army inspectors and corps district commanders were filled by Pilsudski’s associates ( P. Staweski. Nastepcy komendanta. Warsaw, 1969, str. 76.). The most important command positions in the army were occupied by people whose military knowledge did not go beyond the experience of the anti-Soviet war of 1920. It was the Piłsudskis who were the most outspoken bearers of the bourgeois-landowner ideology and policies of the reactionary regime in the army.
Since Polish military doctrine viewed the future war as predominantly continental, the main role in it, and consequently in the construction of the armed forces, was assigned to the ground forces. The ground forces included infantry, cavalry, border guard corps, and aviation.
The basis of the ground forces were infantry divisions, distributed among corps districts ( Corps districts, which were military-administrative units in peacetime, were disbanded during the war.). The infantry division consisted of three infantry regiments, a light artillery regiment and a heavy artillery division, support and service units. There were up to 16 thousand people in it. Compared to the German infantry division, it did not have a sufficient amount of artillery (42-48 guns and 18-20 mortars, mostly outdated designs). The division had 27 37 mm anti-tank guns, significantly fewer than the German division. The air defense was also weak - only four 40-mm anti-aircraft guns.
Polish military theory considered cavalry as the main maneuverable means for achieving decisive goals. The cavalry was supposed to make up for the lack of technical vehicles in the army. It was she, the “queen of the army,” who was entrusted with the task of breaking the enemy’s will to resist, paralyzing him psychologically, and weakening his fighting spirit.
All cavalry formations were consolidated into 11 brigades; The staffing strength of each brigade was 3,427 people. Unlike infantry divisions, the strength of cavalry brigades during the war period remained almost the same as in peacetime. The striking force of the cavalry brigade was small: its firepower was equal to the force of a fire salvo of one Polish infantry regiment ( T. Rawski, Z. Stupor, J. Zamojski. Wojna Wyzwolencza Narodu Polskiego w latach 1939-1945, str. 104.).
The armored forces included: a motorized brigade (formed in 1937), three separate battalions of light tanks, several separate reconnaissance tank and armored car companies, as well as armored train units.
The motorized brigade consisted of two regiments, anti-tank and reconnaissance divisions, as well as service units. There were about 2800 people in it. The brigade was armed with 157 machine guns, 34 guns and mortars, 13 reconnaissance tanks ( E. Kozlowski. Wojsko Polskie 1936-1939, str. 172.). During the war, the brigade was reinforced by a tank battalion from the reserve of the main command and other units.
In total, in July 1939, the Polish armed forces had 887 light tanks and wedges, 100 armored vehicles, 10 armored trains ( Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe, Akta DDO MS Wojsk., t. 27.). The main part of the tank fleet, due to its tactical and technical characteristics, was unsuitable for effective use in combat conditions.
Military aviation consisted of six aviation regiments, two separate aeronautical battalions and two naval aviation divisions. In total, the air fleet at the beginning of the war had 824 combat aircraft of all types ( E. Kozlowski. Wojsko Polskie 1936-1939, str. 238; Mala Encyklopedia Wojskowa. T. 2. Warszawa, 1970, str. 693-694.), most of them were inferior in their flight performance to the aircraft of the main European countries. In 1939, Polish-made “elk” bombers with higher flight performance entered service, but by the beginning of the war there were only 44 of them in service.
Aviation was intended primarily to accompany infantry and tanks in battle and cavalry in its raids. However, in all cases, the role of army aviation was reduced mainly to shallow reconnaissance of the enemy, and in some cases to bombing attacks on his troops. The use of aviation to conduct independent operations was not actually envisaged. The capabilities of bomber aviation were underestimated and were not given due attention ( For the general directive of the Chief of Staff on the use of aviation, see A. Kurowski. Lotnictwo Polskie w 1939 r. Warszawa, 1962, str. 333-335.).
The naval forces were divided into the military fleet (ship personnel) and coastal defense. They included 4 destroyers, 5 submarines, a minelayer, 6 minesweepers and 8 coastal defense battalions, armed with 42 field and 26 anti-aircraft guns ( A. Rzepniewski. Obrona Wybrzeza w 1939 r. Warsaw, 1970, str. 134-143, 241-242; M. Porwit. To omentarze do historii polskich dziatan obronnych 1939 roku. Cz. I. Warszawa, 1969, str. 65.).
The fleet was not ready to carry out tasks in the war against Nazi Germany. It lacked ships for operations in coastal waters, and there were no escort ships. In shipbuilding, the main attention was paid to the construction of expensive heavy ships. The Polish command did not attach much importance to the problem of defending bases from land and air.
Conducted by the main headquarters in 1935-1936. An analysis of the army's combat effectiveness in comparison with the armies of the USSR, Germany and France showed that the Polish armed forces were at the level of 1914 and lagged significantly behind in all main indicators.
The plan for the modernization and development of the army developed in Poland, designed for six years (1936-1942), provided for a significant strengthening of the main branches of the armed forces, expansion of the country's industrial and raw material base, construction of defensive structures, etc. ( Z. Landau, J. Tomaszewski. Zarys historii gospodarczej Polski 1918-1939. Warszawa, 1960, str. 166-191; Zeszyty naukowe. WAP. Seriya economiczna. Warszawa, 1970, no. 13, str. 158-165.). However, the absence of a pre-established unified concept for the development and modernization of the army ultimately led to the implementation of only individual measures of this plan.
During the first three years of the implementation of this plan, there was only a slight quantitative change in the armament and equipment of the army, but the proportions of the military branches remained the same. All types of weapons and military equipment, with the exception of the materiel of the navy, were largely worn out and outdated. There were not enough planes, tanks, field artillery and small arms.
Thus, the size and organizational structure of the army, its weapons, the system of recruitment, training and education of personnel did not meet the requirements of preparing the country for defense in the conditions of the impending war.
On the eve of the Second World War, the most aggressive group of imperialist states (Germany, Italy, Japan) adopted the doctrine of total, “blitzkrieg” war. This doctrine provided for the mobilization of all the resources of the state and the delivery of sudden lightning strikes on the front and rear of the enemy in order to achieve victory in the shortest possible time. The advance militarization of the economy and all public life, the use of surprise in treacherous attacks, bestial cruelty, the establishment of a “new order” in the world, and colonial slavery for the vanquished were put at the service of this strategy.
Another group of capitalist states (England, France, USA, Poland), which had enormous economic potential, was guided by military doctrines that were more inclined to a strategy of attrition. As a result, the economic and financial capabilities of England, France and the USA were not used to train armed forces to the same extent as was done in the countries of the fascist bloc.
The fascist German military machine turned out to be much better prepared for the Second World War. Hitler's army, which had received highly professional training and had an experienced, carefully selected command staff, equipped with the latest military equipment and weapons of that time, posed a mortal threat to humanity.
The UK Armed Forces are capable of participating in interventions alongside allies; priority direction - amphibious assault
Although Great Britain is a nuclear power and a permanent member of the UN Security Council, its political weight not only on a global, but also on a European scale is completely incomparable to what it was at least in the first half of the twentieth century. Within two decades of the end of World War II, the country lost its gigantic colonial empire, with Washington taking the most active part in dismantling it. Now London is considered the most important ally of the United States, but it is impossible to call this union equal even if maximum political correctness is observed.
After the end of the Cold War, Britain's military power began to decline rapidly. The apotheosis of this process was the “optimization” of the armed forces (AF) in 2010, during which aircraft that had just come off the production line were scrapped, and others were sold to the United States for spare parts. At the beginning of the 90s, the British Armed Forces had 1.2 thousand tanks, 3.2 thousand infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, about 700 artillery systems and almost 850 combat aircraft. Today all these numbers have decreased greatly.
What does the ground force consist of?
The UK Land Forces are divided into three main components.
Maneuver forces (field army) include the 1st armored and 3rd mechanized divisions, theater forces (command support and support). The 1st Armored Division is stationed in Germany (the headquarters is located in the city of Herford), its withdrawal to Great Britain is expected to take place before 2016.
The Unified Helicopter Command includes the 16th Air Assault Brigade, Helicopter Force Support Command, and helicopter units overseas.
Ground forces in the UK - 2nd, 4th, 5th Motorized Infantry Divisions, Force Support Command in Germany, London Military District, Organized Reserve (Territorial Army).
The only tank of the British army remains the Challenger 2 (288 vehicles in service, up to 120 in storage). There are 355 Warrior infantry fighting vehicles and 126 different vehicles based on it, more than 1.1 thousand armored personnel carriers and armored vehicles (465 AFV432, 330 Spartan, 20 Stormer, 131 Viking, 70 Mastiff, 58 Warthog , 163 “Sultan”).
"Challenger 2". Photo: Joerg Sarbach / AP, archive
Artillery is represented by 124 AS90 self-propelled guns, 98 towed LG guns (105 mm), 26 self-propelled mortars (81 mm) on the AFV432 armored personnel carrier chassis and 39 MLRS MLRS.
Military air defense includes 24 Rapier and 43 Starstreak air defense systems on the Stormer armored personnel carrier chassis.
Army aviation - 67 Apache attack helicopters, 54 multi-purpose Lynx helicopters and 34 Gazelle helicopters.
Aviation is in decline
The Air Force organizationally consists of the 1st Aviation Group of Tactical Aviation, the 2nd Aviation Group of Auxiliary and Support Aviation, and the 22nd Aviation Training Group.
The main combat aircraft is the Typhoon, produced jointly with Germany, Italy and Spain. Initially, the British Air Force planned to purchase 250 of these vehicles, then these plans were reduced to 232, and then to 160. Currently, 114 Typhoons have already been received, including 22 combat training ones, and three more are in storage.
88 Tornado GR4 strike aircraft and one Tornado F2 interceptor remain in the Air Force (another 44 Tornado GR and 16 Tornado F3 are in storage, but 30 and 12 of them, respectively, are intended for disassembly for spare parts or are already in in the process), their number is gradually decreasing. In addition, up to 65 Jaguar attack aircraft are in storage.
The Air Force also has numerous auxiliary vehicles. These are AWACS aircraft - six E-3 (one more in storage). Reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft - five Sentinel-R1, five Shadow-R1, one BN-2, one RC-135W (there will be two more).
Transport aircraft and tankers - eight C-17, seven Tristar, two KS2, five KS3, six Bae125, six Bae146, 24 C-130 Hercules (another 24 in storage).
Training aircraft - 98 Hawk (13 more in storage), 41 Tucano (13 more in storage), 65 Vigilant, 69 Viking, 119 Tutor.
Helicopters - 45 Chinook, 24 Puma (12 more in storage), 27 Merlin NS3, 25 Sea King HAR3, 5 A-109E.
Combat UAVs - 10 MQ-9 "Riper".
There remain two active US air bases in the UK - Lakenheath and Middledenhall. The first is home to the 48th Fighter Wing (about 50 F-15C/D/E aircraft), the second is home to the 100th Air Refueling Wing and the 352nd Special Operations Group (KS-135 tankers, RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft, MS special forces aircraft -130R/N). The US nuclear power has been completely withdrawn from UK territory.
The power of the amphibious assault has increased
The British Navy has not ruled the seas (even those directly adjacent to the British Isles) for a very long time. However, it is in them that the entire nuclear power of the country is concentrated. These are four Vanguard-class SSBNs (nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines) with Trident-2 ballistic missiles (SLBMs) (formally 16 on each, but in fact there are only 58 missiles). The UK is the only country in the world to officially disclose the size of its nuclear arsenal: 160 deployed and 65 non-deployed warheads for a specified 58 SLBMs. There is an active discussion in the country about what to replace the Vanguards with and whether it is worth doing it at all.
The Astute-class multi-purpose nuclear submarines (SSNs) are currently entering service with the British Navy. Two such boats have already been commissioned, three more are under construction, and two have been ordered. Five Trafalgar-class submarines also remain in service. In addition, four Resolution-class SSBNs, two Trafalgar-class SSNs, six Swiftsure-class SSNs and six old-class SSNs have been withdrawn from service with the Navy. The Navy command announced a competition for the cheapest option for their disposal.
The only remaining aircraft carrier in the British fleet is Illustrious, but all Harrier vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft (both ship-based and land-based) were sold to the United States for spare parts in 2011. Accordingly, the “aircraft carrier” capability of the Ilastries is a formality; it can only carry helicopters.
Two Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers are being built, which will become the largest ships in the British Navy. It is planned to purchase 138 American F-35B VTOL aircraft for them, while only three such aircraft have been purchased so far. Currently, the fate of both the new aircraft carriers themselves and their aircraft is uncertain. Moreover, there will not be enough escort ships for them.
Six new Daring-class destroyers have just been commissioned into the British fleet. The Navy has 13 Norfolk-class frigates in service. In the indefinite future, it is planned to replace them with a similar number of frigates of the new Project 26, but for now this program is at the discussion level.
The mine sweeping force includes 15 minesweepers: eight Hunt type, seven Sandown type.
Submarine "Estute". Photo: J.J. Massey/AP
With an overall significant reduction in the British fleet over the past two decades, its amphibious capabilities have increased over this period. In service there is one universal landing ship (UDC) "Ocean" (today it is the largest ship of the British Navy), two landing helicopter carriers of the "Albion" type, three landing transport docks (TDK) of the "Bay" type, in addition, the TDK "Sir Tristram" "is used as an educational one. The Marine Corps includes three battalion groups, one group for protecting naval facilities, one air assault group and a number of support units.
In naval aviation, after the sale of the Harriers, there are no aircraft left, there are only helicopters - 38 Merlin (four more in storage), 55 Sea King (27 more in storage).
The Falklands will be able to defend
In general, British military capabilities have been reduced very significantly in recent years, and this process continues. However, as is the case with other NATO countries, there is no threat of external aggression for Great Britain. The interventionist capabilities of the British Armed Forces are still sufficient to participate in collective police and peacekeeping operations in alliance with the United States and/or European countries within the framework of the actions of NATO, the EU and the informal Anglo-Saxon Alliance.
The only theoretically possible independent war for Great Britain is with Argentina over the Falklands. The sharp reduction in the number of naval personnel of the Navy and, most importantly, the complete loss of carrier-based and strategic aviation (in 1982, the British, in addition to the Harriers, still had Vulcan bombers in service) significantly reduce the ability of Great Britain to recapture the islands if they were captured by the Argentines. But in fact, London has no need to worry: Argentina’s armed forces have degraded over three and a half decades to the point of almost completely losing their combat capability. Therefore, the British Armed Forces can be reduced further; this does not threaten the country.
Great Britain, one of the victorious countries in World War II, suffered a heavy defeat from a political point of view. 1945 was followed by a rapid collapse with the loss of almost all overseas territories, and the metropolis itself became a vassal of its former colony, the United States.
It was Washington that took the most active part in dismantling the British Empire. The country remains a nuclear power and a permanent member of the Security Council, but its political weight not only on a global, even on a European scale is completely incomparable with what it was at least in the first half of the twentieth century. And Brexit won't change anything.
Britain's military power began to decline rapidly after the collapse of the USSR. The apotheosis was the “optimization” of the armed forces in 2010, in which aircraft that had just come off the production line were put under the knife, while others were sold to the United States for spare parts.
When setting defense budgets, the UK government sacrifices equipment to preserve personnel. The greatest strength of the British army is its trained soldiers, but it has now reached the point where, for the first time in many years, Whitehall is proposing to reduce the number of combat units (“”).
At the beginning of the 90s, the British Armed Forces had 1,200 tanks, 3,200 infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, about 700 artillery systems, and almost 850 combat aircraft.
Today the country's army has become greatly reduced.
Ground troops
Includes two divisions, 8 brigades and special forces. The 1st Division (headquarters in York) consists of the 4th, 7th, 11th, 38th, 42nd, 51st, 160th Infantry, and 102nd Transport Brigades. 3rd Division (Bulford, Wiltshire) includes 1st, 12th, 20th Motorized Infantry, 101st Transport Brigades. The 20th Motorized Infantry Brigade is stationed in Germany.
Separate brigades: Gurkhas, 16th Air Assault, 1st Artillery, 1st Reconnaissance, 8th Engineering, 1st, 11th Communications, 104th Transport.
The following military equipment is in service.
Tanks: 246 Challenger 2 (another 139 in storage). BRM: 294 "Simitar". BMP: 375 "Warrior" (another 107 in storage), 124 auxiliary - KShM, engineering, medical - vehicles based on it (175 in storage).
Armored personnel carriers and armored vehicles: 472 AFV432 (52 in storage), 245 Spartan (120 in storage), 15 Stormer, 106 Viking, 439 Mastiff, 217 Warthog, 152 Sultan.
self-propelled guns: 110 AS90 (20 in storage). Towed guns: 108 LG-118 (26 in storage), 4 FH70.
Mortars: 15 self-propelled on the AFV432 armored personnel carrier chassis.
MLRS: 28 MLRS (23 in storage).
SAM: 24 Rapiers, 42 Starstreaks on a Stormer armored personnel carrier chassis (42 in storage).
MANPADS: 145 "Starstreak".
Aircraft: 16 BN-2. Helicopters: 52 Apache (15 in storage), 21 Lynx AN9 (53 AN7 in storage), 30 Gazelle (68 in storage), 5 Bell-212, 6 AS365N3, 10 AW159 Wildcat AN1 , 34 AS350 "Squirrell" (2 in storage).
Air Force
Organizationally they consist of the 1st (combat), 2nd (combat support), 22nd (training), 38th (technical support) and 83rd (expeditionary) groups.
The main combat aircraft is the Typhoon, produced in cooperation with Germany, Italy and Spain. Initially, the British Air Force planned to purchase 250 vehicles, then plans were reduced to 232, and eventually to 160. Currently, 123 Typhoons are in service (including 21 combat training ones), and another 16 are in storage.
57 Tornado GR4 fighter-bombers remain in the Air Force (58 Tornado GR and 12 F3 interceptors are in storage, but 53 and 9 of them, respectively, are assigned to spare parts or are already being dismantled), their number is gradually decreasing. In addition, up to 68 Jaguar attack aircraft are in storage.
Auxiliary vehicles: AWACS aircraft - 6 E-3 Sentry (1 in storage), RER - 2 RC-135W (there will be 1 more), reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft - 5 Sentinel-R1, 5 Shadow-R1, 3 BN-2, transport aircraft and tankers - 8 C-17, 11 A400M Atlas C1, 5 KS2 and 6 KS3 Voyager, 6 Bae146, 24 C-130 Hercules (7 in storage), 1 Beach B300 ", in addition 6 Tristar, 7 VC-10, 4 Bae125 in storage. Training aircraft: 89 Hawk (54 in storage), 42 Tucano (64 in storage), 62 Vigilant (4 in storage), 48 Viking (35 in storage), 114 Tutor, 7 " Beach B200".
Helicopters: 60 Chinook, 23 Puma NS2, 1 AW109, 5 A-109E (3 A-109A in storage), 14 Bell-412 Griffin. There are 19 Sea King helicopters in storage.
Combat UAVs: 10 MQ-9 Reaper.
Royal Navy
The British fleet has not ruled the seas for a long time (even those adjacent to the British Isles). But it is in the Navy that the entire nuclear power of the country is concentrated. These are 4 Vanguard-class SSBNs with Trident-2 SLBMs (formally 16 on each, but in fact there are only 58 missiles). Albion is the only country in the world to officially disclose the size of its nuclear arsenal: 160 deployed and 65 non-deployed warheads for a specified 58 SLBMs. There is an active discussion in the country about what to replace the Vanguards with and whether it is worth doing it at all.
The Astute-class multi-purpose submarines are entering service with the British Navy. The Navy has 3 such boats, 3 more are under construction, 1 has been ordered. 4 Trafalgar-class submarines remain in service. 4 Resolution SSBNs, 3 Trafalgar SSNs, 6 Swiftsure SSNs and 5 old-type SSNs (Dreadnought, 2 each Valiant and Churchill) were withdrawn from service. The Navy command announced a competition for the cheapest option for their disposal.
2 Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers are being built, which will become the largest ships in the history of the British Navy. It is planned to purchase 138 American F-35B VTOL aircraft for them, while only 3 such aircraft have been purchased so far.
Recently, 6 new Daring-class destroyers have been introduced into the British fleet. In addition, the Bristol ship of the same class is used as a training ship.
The Navy operates 13 Norfolk-class frigates. In the indefinite future it is planned to replace them with the same number of new Project 26, but for now the program is being discussed. There are 4 River-class patrol ships, it is known that 2 more will be built. There are 15 minesweepers: 8 Hunt, 7 Sandown (plus 1 training ship of both types).
With an overall significant reduction in the British fleet over the past two decades, its amphibious capabilities have increased. It is armed with 1 UDC "Ocean" (today it is the largest ship of the British Navy), 2 DVKD of the "Albion" type, 3 DTD of the "Bay" type. TDC "Sir Tristram" is used as a training ship. The Marine Corps includes groups: 5 battalion (united into the 3rd brigade), naval facility protection, 1st air assault, special forces plus support units.
The naval aviation includes training aircraft: 12 Hawk T.1, 4 Avenger, 5 Tutor. Helicopters: 55 Merlin (14 in storage), 9 Sea King (73 in storage), 2 AS365N2, 11 Lynx NMA8 (44 in storage), 36 AW159 Wildcat (12 in storage).
Overall, Britain's military capabilities have declined significantly in recent years, and the process continues. However, as is the case with other NATO countries, Albion is not threatened by external aggression. The interventionist capabilities of the British Armed Forces are still sufficient to participate in collective police and peacekeeping operations in alliance with the United States and/or European countries under UN, NATO and EU mandates. At the same time, the level of combat training of personnel is higher than in any other European army; now this is precisely the strongest side of the British Armed Forces.
As in all other Western countries, the share of funds for the maintenance of personnel in military expenditures is exaggeratedly large, otherwise only Gurkhas (citizens of Nepal) will serve the crown.
There remain two operating US airbases in the UK - Lakenheath and Middledenhall. The first is home to the 48th Fighter Wing (about 50 F-15C/D/E aircraft), the second is home to the 100th Air Refueling Wing and the 352nd Special Operations Group (KS-135 tankers, RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft, MS special forces aircraft -130R/N). There are no US nuclear weapons on British soil.
In recent years, due to the deterioration of the economic situation of Great Britain and rising inflation, as well as the strengthening of the national independence of a number of countries of the former British Empire, the British military-political leadership was forced to partially reduce its armed forces in various parts of the world and concentrate its main efforts on strengthening the aggressive North Atlantic bloc and development of closer military-political and economic cooperation with other participating countries. Already in peacetime, it allocated over 70% of the formations and units of the ground forces to the command of the joint armed forces of NATO in Europe.
Despite the country's economic difficulties, the militaristic circles of Great Britain, acting contrary to the easing of international tension, continue to build up their military potential.
The UK Armed Forces consist of the Army, Air Force, Navy and Reserve components. Recruitment is carried out by recruiting volunteers. According to foreign press reports, the total number of regular armed forces is about 340 thousand, reserves - over 230 thousand people.
The ground forces are the largest branch of the British armed forces. They consist of a regular army (over 170 thousand people, including 7.7 thousand Gurkha riflemen), a regular reserve (about 110 thousand people) and a territorial army volunteer reserve - TADR (more than 50 thousand people). Ground forces are divided into types of troops and services. The main branches include infantry, artillery, army aviation, engineers and signal troops; to services - transport, artillery-technical, repair and restoration, medical and others.
The supreme governing body of the UK's ground forces is the Department of the Army, headed by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of Defense for the Army. He exercises administrative leadership of the ground forces and is responsible for their construction, condition, recruitment, mobilization deployment, logistics and R&D in the field of weapons.
Responsibility for the operational use of land forces rests with the Chief of the Army Staff, who reports directly to the Chief of the Defense Staff of the UK Armed Forces.
According to Western press reports, the regular British ground forces have four divisions, eight separate infantry (motorized infantry) brigades, five separate armored reconnaissance regiments, a separate parachute sabotage and reconnaissance regiment, two NUR missile regiments, two heavy artillery regiments, two missile defense regiments, as well as parts of support and maintenance.
Formations and units of ground forces in the European theater of war are intended to conduct combat operations both independently and as part of the joint armed forces of NATO. Organizationally, they are consolidated into the command of the ground forces in the metropolis, the British Army of the Rhine (in) and a separate motorized infantry brigade stationed in West Berlin.
The combat composition of the ground forces command in the metropolis includes: the 3rd infantry division (three air transport brigades), five separate infantry brigades, the 22nd separate parachute sabotage and reconnaissance regiment, units and units of various branches of the military and services.
These units and formations include a contingent of British ground forces, allocated in accordance with the plans of the bloc's command to NATO mobile forces: a separate infantry (air transport) battalion, an artillery battery, an armored reconnaissance squadron, a communications company, a sapper platoon, support and service units with a total strength of about 1.5 thousand people. These personnel are considered to be trained for combat in Arctic conditions and are often involved in exercises held in Northern Norway.
Formations and units of ground forces stationed in the metropolis form the so-called mobile forces of Great Britain and are part of the strategic reserve of the Supreme Allied Commander of NATO Armed Forces in Europe. They are intended mainly to strengthen British troops in Germany in the event of an emergency in Europe, as well as for the defense of the British Isles. In addition, units and subunits of the ground forces, including those from the British Rhine Army (BRA), have been used for a number of years in Ulster to suppress the national democratic protests of Northern Irish civil rights fighters. According to the foreign press, currently in Northern Ireland there are three brigade headquarters, an armored reconnaissance regiment, up to 20 infantry units, three engineering squadrons, two squadrons of army aviation helicopters and the Northern Irish Territorial Infantry Regiment (about 14 thousand people in total). Before being sent to this area, unit personnel undergo special training in special centers, where soldiers and officers study the “experience” of Vietnam and gain skills in conducting punitive operations.
British Army of the Rhine(headquarters in Rheindalen) numbering over 55 thousand people is the largest and most combat-ready group of British ground forces. Its content constitutes Britain's main contribution to the NATO military organization. At the same time, the BRA is an important political instrument of London in Western Europe. Its commander is also the commander of NATO's Northern Army Group.
The basis of the BRA is the 1st Army Corps, which, together with the West German, Belgian and Dutch army corps, forms the Northern Army Group, which is part of NATO's combined armed forces. The 1st Army Corps (headquarters in Bielefeld) is considered the most combat-ready unit of the British ground forces, equipped with nuclear attack weapons and other modern weapons and military equipment. It consists of the 2nd Motorized Infantry Division (Lübbecke), the 1st Armored Division (Förden), the 4th Armored Division (Herford), the 1st Artillery and 7th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Brigades, two separate armored reconnaissance regiments, units and support and maintenance units.
As reported in the foreign press, the number of British troops stationed on the territory of Germany during the period of mobilization deployment in the event of an emergency in Europe can be more than doubled due to the transfer of formations and units from the territory of the metropolis.
A separate Berlin motorized infantry brigade of about 3 thousand people is stationed in the English zone of West Berlin. It is not part of the joint NATO armed forces in Europe and is intended to provide security in the British sector of the city.
Units and subunits of the British ground forces stationed in overseas territories are intended to protect the interests of the British monopoly, maintain British influence in dependent countries, and also to support reactionary regimes fighting the national liberation movement. Judging by reports in the foreign press, there are relatively small contingents of ground forces in the overseas territories, which can be significantly reinforced in the event of an emergency.
In Gibraltar The basis of the garrison is an infantry battalion. In the coming years, the number of garrison personnel is planned to be reduced by 10%.
At British military bases on the island. Cyprus two infantry battalions, an armored reconnaissance squadron, as well as support and service units are deployed. In addition, the UN emergency forces on this island include a reduced infantry battalion, an armored reconnaissance squadron, a flight of army aviation helicopters and the corresponding logistics units of the British ground forces.
One infantry battalion of Gurkha Rifles is stationed in Brunei (Southeast Asia). Discussions are currently underway between the UK and the Brunei government regarding the timing of the battalion's withdrawal from the area.
The largest contingent of British troops with a total number of about 9 thousand people is stationed in Hong Kong. It consists of five infantry battalions (of which three are Gurkha), an armored reconnaissance squadron, two engineering squadrons, an army aviation squadron and logistics support units. In 1976-1977, this garrison is planned to be reduced to four infantry battalions (three of them Gurkish) and an engineering squadron.
In Belize(formerly British Honduras) is an infantry battalion.
For several years, a large group of British military advisers and instructors has been supporting the Sultan of Oman in the armed struggle against the patriots of Dhofar.
The command of the ground forces believes that already in peacetime it is necessary to have well-trained and equipped reserves, ready for immediate use in case of emergencies. The UK ground forces reserves consist of reservists and personnel of units and units of the territorial army volunteer reserve.
The first category is intended for the general replenishment of the regular army with trained personnel (if necessary, bringing it to wartime levels). Completed and assembled units and subunits are allocated from the TADR to the regular troops. In addition, TADR is entrusted with the tasks of covering the mobilization deployment of ground forces and ensuring the internal security of the country.
The TADR combat structure includes the 44th brigade, two separate armored reconnaissance regiments, two separate parachute sabotage and reconnaissance regiments, 35 separate infantry battalions, five artillery and seven engineering regiments, as well as communications and logistics units.
In order to increase the combat readiness of reserve components, their training is closely linked with the combat training of units and subunits of the regular army. The command of the ground forces systematically involves units and subunits of the TADR in the exercises of formations and units of the 1st Army Corps of the British Army of the Rhine. The tactics of small units in various types of combat are constantly being improved (Fig. 1).
Rice. 1. Training of TADR reservists in overcoming obstacles in one of the training centers
The command of the ground forces pays great attention to equipping units and formations with modern weapons and military equipment. Thus, in the near future it is planned to replace the outdated Onest John missile launchers with American-made missiles with nuclear warheads. Units and formations are armed with about 900 medium tanks (Fig. 2) and 180 light tanks. After the appropriate modernization, the Chieftain tanks will remain in service with tank units until the mid-80s. Work continues on the creation of a new MVT 80 tank jointly with Germany.
Rice. 2. Medium tanks "Chieftain" at tactical exercises
The artillery units are armed with 105-, 155- and 203.2-mm howitzers, as well as 175-mm cannons. Currently, the 105 mm mountain howitzer is being replaced by a light 105 mm howitzer gun. Together with Germany and Italy, it is also developing the SP70 self-propelled howitzer. Serial production of these systems is planned to begin by the end of the 70s.
The main means of military air defense are the Thunderbird missile defense system (12 launchers), designed to combat air targets at high and medium altitudes, missile defense systems and 40-mm anti-aircraft guns - to destroy low-flying air targets. The latter are being replaced by ZURO systems. The development of a missile defense system to combat low-flying air targets continues.
The infantry units are armed with 81-mm mortars, 84-mm anti-tank grenade launchers, 120-mm Wombat recoilless rifles (Fig. 3), ATGM launchers, as well as various types of light and heavy machine guns, 7-caliber automatic rifles, 62 mm and pistols.
Rice. 3. Loading a 120-mm Wombat recoilless rifle onto a vehicle during tactical training of a motorized rifle unit
The main means of transporting infantry are tracked armored personnel carriers; there are also armored vehicles of the type, and others. Reconnaissance units are equipped with combat reconnaissance vehicles and Simitar.
Army Aviation operates approximately 120 Scout helicopters, 175 Sioux helicopters and more than 40 helicopters. Gazelle helicopters, intended to replace outdated Sioux helicopters, continue to enter service with army aviation units. They are used primarily for reconnaissance, airborne fire support, transport of personnel and evacuation of the wounded. The arrival of general-purpose Lynx helicopters is expected, which are expected to be used for transporting personnel, fighting tanks and other armored targets, conducting reconnaissance, etc.
The highest tactical unit of the British ground forces is the army corps, the main one is the division. The brigade belongs to the lowest tactical formation. As noted in the foreign press, the British army has three types of divisions (infantry, motorized infantry and armored).
The infantry division includes three air transport brigades (three infantry battalions and one light artillery regiment), a medium artillery regiment and a light anti-aircraft artillery regiment, an army aviation regiment, as well as support and service units. The number of personnel in the division is over 16 thousand people. The units are armed with 18 139.7 mm howitzer guns, 36 105 mm mountain howitzers, 18 40 mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns, 54 81 mm mortars, 54 120 mm Wombat recoilless anti-tank guns, ATGM launchers, army aviation helicopters and other weapons.
A motorized infantry division (about 13 thousand people) includes an armored brigade (two motorized infantry battalions, two tank regiments, a light self-propelled artillery and engineer regiments) and a motorized infantry brigade (three motorized infantry battalions, a tank and a light self-propelled artillery regiment), a medium self-propelled artillery regiment, a regiment army aviation, as well as units and subdivisions of divisional subordination. The division is armed with over 150 Chieftain medium tanks, four 203.2 mm and 12 155 mm self-propelled howitzers, 36 105 mm self-propelled guns, 30 81 mm mortars, about 50 Swingfire ATGM launchers, 30 120 -mm Wombat recoilless anti-tank guns, 240 84-mm anti-tank grenade launchers, as well as about 30 Scout and Gazelle helicopters (up to 50% of them are armed with ATGMs), as well as about 3 thousand armored personnel carriers, armored vehicles, cars and motorcycles.
An armored division includes two brigades of the same type (two tank regiments, two motorized infantry battalions, a light self-propelled artillery and an engineering regiment), a medium self-propelled artillery regiment and an army aviation regiment, as well as support and maintenance units of divisional subordination. The division's personnel number is about 13 thousand people. In service there are over 200 Chieftain medium tanks, four 203.2 mm and 12 155 mm self-propelled howitzers, 36 105 mm Abbot self-propelled guns, 24 81 mm mortars, 24 120 mm recoilless anti-tank guns, about 50 Swingfire ATGM launchers, up to 200 84-mm anti-tank grenade launchers, as well as about 30 Scout and Gazelle helicopters (half armed with ATGMs), about 3 thousand armored personnel carriers, armored vehicles, cars and motorcycles.
The artillery brigade includes a headquarters battery, two heavy artillery regiments of three batteries (a total of 12 175-mm M107 self-propelled guns), an artillery instrumental reconnaissance regiment and two missile regiments of the NUR "Onest John".
The anti-aircraft artillery brigade includes a headquarters battery, a Thunderbird missile defense regiment (12 launchers) and two light anti-aircraft artillery regiments of three batteries.
There are no regular reconnaissance units in British divisions. Reconnaissance in the interests of formations is carried out by the forces and means of the corps commander. Thus, the 1st Army Corps has two separate armored reconnaissance regiments. The regiment consists of a headquarters squadron and three reconnaissance squadrons, an army aviation squadron, and support and service units. The number of personnel in the regiment is up to 600 people. The armored reconnaissance regiment is armed with about 100 Scorpion light amphibious tanks, Simitar combat reconnaissance vehicles and armored vehicles, six Gazelle helicopters, Swingfire ATGM launchers, radar detection stations and other weapons.
The main tactical unit (unit) is an infantry (motorized infantry) battalion, which includes a headquarters company, a fire support company and three infantry companies, as well as support and service units. The battalion has over 700 personnel and is armed with six 81-mm mortars, six 120-mm recoilless anti-tank guns, up to six Swingfire ATGM launchers, grenade launchers, light and heavy machine guns, automatic rifles and pistols.
A tank regiment is a tactical unit and consists of a headquarters squadron, three tank squadrons and logistics support units. The number of personnel in the regiment is over 500 people, weapons - 50 medium Chieftain tanks, up to six Swingfire ATGM installations, armored personnel carriers, armored vehicles, cars and motorcycles.
The British Ministry of Defense decided to carry out a reorganization of the ground forces in 1976-1980, which British military experts consider the largest since the end of the Second World War. A variant of the new organizational structure is shown in Fig. 4.
Rice. 4. Proposed organization of the British ground forces (option)
By 1980, within the 1st Army Corps of the BRA (without increasing the number of personnel), it is planned to create four (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th) armored divisions without brigade command, an artillery division and the 5th corps field group.
The armored divisions of the new organization are planned to include two tank regiments, three motorized infantry battalions, an armored reconnaissance regiment, a direct artillery support regiment (five batteries) and a general artillery support regiment, as well as combat and logistics support units.
The 5th Corps Field Group is expected to include three motorized infantry battalions, an armored reconnaissance regiment, and support and service units.
On the basis of the formation and units of the ground forces command in Great Britain in 1977-1979, it is planned to create three field groups (6, 7 and 8), equivalent to reinforced brigade groups, which will be designed to strengthen the joint NATO armed forces in Europe.
The British Army is on the verge of self-destruction. Only fundamental changes, both technical and moral, can save it. This is exactly the conclusion that members of the British House of Commons Defense Committee came to. Parliamentarians analyzed in detail the combat characteristics of the army of Foggy Albion, and their forecasts are disappointing.
On Thursday, March 25, the authoritative British newspaper The Guardian published an article entitled “Britain's defense is heading towards chaos.” The day before, the House of Commons Defense Committee released three large-scale reports that analyzed the state of the kingdom's armed forces, in light of which the past week was entirely devoted to discussing the future of the army of Foggy Albion. The conclusions reached by members of the House of Commons turned out to be extremely disappointing for the British armed forces.
On the way to chaos
“The Russian Armed Forces can deploy a 150,000-strong contingent in 72 hours”
“The British military has an unrivaled reputation around the world. Our nation is rightfully proud of the courage, skill and dedication of its soldiers. But very often our soldiers are let down by erroneous decisions made by politicians and military leadership. An error in decision-making in the field of defense can lead to large losses of human life, as well as cost a lot of money to the country's budget. In this regard, the UK Ministry of Defense needs to receive more accurate information so that the military can make the right decisions,” says a report dated March 18, 2015 of the UK House of Commons Defense Committee.Thus, in the report of the heirs of the great empire on which “the sun never set,” it is said: “For example, in 2005 in Afghanistan, a risky decision was made to take responsibility for Helmand province. Then in 2006, about 3,000 British soldiers were stationed in the northern part of this province. Ultimately it turned out that 32,000 British-American and 32,000 Afghan troops were needed to control this province."
It turns out that British strategists, who always primly boast about their geopolitics in English, miscalculated by no less than 61,000 soldiers. For military affairs this is a catastrophic inaccuracy.
Parliamentarians give another example that clearly shows the level of interaction within NATO. Great Britain currently has two aircraft carriers that perform critical defensive missions not only for the kingdom, but for the entire North Atlantic Alliance. “In 1998, the decision was made to configure aircraft carriers so that they could carry fixed-wing aircraft (ordinary aircraft - approx. VIEW). This decision was then reversed in 2010,” the report notes. As a result, French fighters cannot land on British aircraft carriers, that is, on NATO aircraft carriers.
This is an example that applies to two major European NATO members. One can only imagine the level of military interaction between the smaller members of the alliance.
“A healthy culture of competition has been lost”
Based on these two examples alone, it becomes obvious at what level the work is being done in the UK Ministry of Defense. Britain's military is "poorly informed and does not understand the nature of the problems" within its armed forces, a House of Commons report says. Moreover, parliamentarians come to perhaps the key conclusion: the main problem lies in the minds of the British military and politicians. “The nation appears to have lost a healthy culture of competition,” the speakers write.
After the collapse of the USSR, the British military was faced with a dilemma: the main enemy, the Soviet Union, had been destroyed. What to do with huge military potentials? The British response lay in an ideological format: they began, as required by liberal ideology, to reduce military budgets. The military personnel were sent home, and the barracks were closed.
“One government official said he did not know what was going on in the chain of command. Civilians found themselves in the uncomfortable position of having to advise the military. There was simply no point in formulating a long-term strategy,” said members of the defense committee.
Russia is too tough
Another House of Commons report talks about contemporary threats to Britain's security. First on the list, ahead of international terrorism, is Russia. Thus, parliamentarians write that “the armed forces of the Russian Federation can deploy a 150,000-strong military contingent in 72 hours,” while NATO will need about six months for such a maneuver. The important point to take forward is that British MPs are quick to point out that the threat from Russia is a shared concern for NATO, not just the UK. In all likelihood, this is not said out of great confidence in one’s own abilities.Below is an example of a successful Russian military exercise that amazed the British. “Despite NATO’s desire to expand the scale of its military exercises, they are still far from the scale of Russian combat maneuvers. Moscow deployed a 70,000-strong contingent during the Zapad exercises in 2013. At the same time, the UK will be able to commit 1,000 troops to the next military exercise.”
Let us note that the state of the British armed forces was not always so deplorable. Thus, the same documents give an example from twenty years ago when the British army, although not equal to the Russian one, was still capable of defending itself. “For example, in 1984, during the first large-scale NATO military exercise, Heart of the Lion, the UK contributed 57,700 troops,” the speakers recall.
Nowhere without the USA
Historically, Great Britain has never had a strong ground force. The reason for this is the geographical location of the country. And although the kingdom has always had a well-armed fleet, the professional quality of the ground forces has always been inferior to Great Britain's competitors. Note that the country's armed forces number more than 420 thousand people. This is one of the highest rates in Europe.
Despite all the difficulties, the UK plans to reduce the size of its aircraft by 20% by 2018. Moreover, cuts will affect the elite Royal Navy and Air Force. The country's defense budget is approximately $58 billion. By the way, for comparison, Russia’s defense budget exceeds the $80 billion mark.
Despite the disappointing realities of the British army, on Tuesday, March 24, Great Britain. “The UK will not ignore emerging threats to the security of the islands, responding to them with adequate measures to strengthen the defense of the region,” Defense Fallon.
“There are not enough people or money”
“In these documents, British parliamentarians compare the modern British army with the army of the times of the British Army of the Rhine (British army during the Cold War - approx. VIEW). Compared to that period, their military capabilities were significantly reduced. Moreover, the capabilities of the British army in deploying armed groups on distant approaches have qualitatively decreased,” Viktor Murakhovsky, editor-in-chief of Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine, explained to the VZGLYAD newspaper.
“Members of the House of Commons also note that budget funds are being dissipated. That is, the British are trying to be strong on all fronts at the same time, which is basically impossible. Within the allocated funds, it is certainly possible to have more effective armed forces,” Murakhovsky is sure.
“The British simultaneously maintain strategic nuclear forces in the form of ballistic missile submarines and aircraft carrier forces. Moreover, they have a large naval group, expeditionary forces, and at the same time participate in all NATO exercises, where they use significant forces for themselves. It turns out that they don’t have enough people or money for everything. Thus, they were forced to reduce their fleet of armored vehicles and tanks, as well as significantly reduce their air force,” the military expert noted.
“With all this, they must actively fight international terrorism, since it directly threatens them. There are known cases of murder of British military personnel in Great Britain. Moreover, there are a large number of citizens of the kingdom in terrorist groups,” the interlocutor is sure.
Wrong priorities
“I can’t say that the British army is so ineffective. In general, of course, there are some problems, but to say that it is falling apart, in my opinion, is premature,” Igor Korotchenko, editor-in-chief of the National Defense magazine, told the VZGLYAD newspaper. - Great Britain is certainly not helpless. The British have nuclear weapons, new submarines with nuclear warheads, and are on duty in the world's oceans. The British Armed Forces participate in combat operations in various parts of the world; they have a strong group in the Falkland Islands,” the expert clarifies.
“On the other hand, security priorities and threats to them today are completely different. For example, issues of cyber threats, which are very important for the kingdom. And the main threat to Great Britain is domestic extremism and Islamic terrorism. It is clear that this is primarily a task for the British intelligence services, MI5 counterintelligence, but the armed forces must also be restructured to fight international terrorist organizations,” Korotchenko noted.
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