167th (1st London) Brigade

West London Brigade 1st London Brigade 167th (1st London) Brigade 1st London Infantry Brigade 167th (London) Infantry Brigade
Formation sign of the 56th (1/1st London) Division, First World War
Active	1888–1919 1920–1946
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Territorial Army
Type	Infantry Motorised infantry
Size	Brigade
Part of	56th (London) Division
Nickname(s)	"The Black Cats" (Second World War)
Engagements	First World War Second World War
Insignia
Identification symbol	56th Division insignia during the Second World War, featuring Dick Whittington's black cat on a red background

The 167th (1st London) Brigade was an infantry formation of the British Territorial Army that saw active service in both the First and Second World Wars. It was the first Territorial formation to go overseas in 1914, garrisoning Malta, and then served with the 56th (London) Infantry Division on the Western Front (World War I) and in the North African and Italian campaigns in World War II.

The Volunteer Force of part-time soldiers was created following an invasion scare in 1859, and its constituent units were progressively aligned with the Regular British Army during the later 19th Century. The Stanhope Memorandum of December 1888 introduced a Mobilisation Scheme for Volunteer units, which would assemble in their own brigades at key points in case of war. In peacetime these brigades provided a structure for collective training.

The West London Brigade was one of the formations organised at this time. Brigade Headquarters was at 93 Cornwall Gardens in Kensington and the commander was retired Lt-Gen Lord Abinger (subsequent commanders were also retired Regular officers). The assembly point for the brigade was at Caterham Barracks, the Brigade of Guards' depot conveniently situated for the London Defence Positions along the North Downs. The brigade's original composition was:

West London Brigade

This organisation was carried over into the Territorial Force (TF) created under the Haldane Reforms in 1908, the West London Brigade becoming the 1st London Brigade in 1st London Division. All of the Volunteer Battalions in the Central London area became part of the all-Territorial London Regiment and were numbered sequentially through the London brigades and divisions: