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The size of the British Army peaked in June 1945, at 2.9 million men. By the end of the Second World War some three million people had served. [13] [7] In 1944, the United Kingdom was facing severe manpower shortages. By May 1944, it was estimated that the British Army's strength in December 1944 would be 100,000 less than it was at the end of ...
In September 1939, the British Army was in process of expanding their anti-aircraft and mobile (including armoured) assets. Among these new changes was the formation of Anti-Aircraft Command which was formed on 1 April 1939, and the 1st Armoured Division formed in 1937.
The first army-level command, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), was formed in September 1939 following the outbreak of the war and dispatched to France. [ 5 ] [ 6 ] It provides a complicated example of an army chain of command.
The Army was split into two branches: the full-time professional force of regulars, and the part-time Territorial Army. Both branches maintained divisions. By 1939, the Territorial Army's intended role was to be the sole method of expanding the size of the army (in contrast to the creation of Kitchener's Army during the First World War).
The British made a commitment on 21 April 1939 to provide an army of six regular and 26 Territorial divisions, introduced equipment scales for war and began conscription to provide the manpower. [11] In February 1939, the first four regular army divisions of the Field Force had been promised to the French, scheduled to reach the assembly area ...
Although the UK had increased military spending and funding prior to 1939 in response to the increasing strength of Germany under the Nazi Party, its forces were still weak by comparison, especially the British Army. Only the Royal Navy – at the time still the largest in the world [1] – was of a greater strength than its German counterpart.
At the start of the Second World War, in September 1939, the British Army possessed two armoured divisions; one in Britain and a second in Egypt. [a] On 15 December 1939, the 2nd Armoured Division was established in Britain.
XIII Corps was formed in 1941, and was the first British corps to be formed outside the UK. [b] Within the British military, corps were commanded by lieutenant-generals. [3] The size and composition of a corps could vary depending on the mission assigned to it, as well as the tactical and strategic situation.