Meerut Brigade Meerut Cavalry Brigade 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade 7th Indian Cavalry Brigade |
|
---|---|
Active | 1 November 1904 – November 1920 |
Country | British India |
Allegiance | British Crown |
Branch | British Indian Army |
Type | Cavalry |
Size | Brigade |
Part of |
7th (Meerut) Division 2nd Indian Cavalry Division Cavalry Division (Mesopotamia) |
Peacetime HQ | Meerut |
Engagements | |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders |
Br.-Gen. W.E. Peyton |
The Meerut Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1904 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War and departed for the Western Front where it served as part of the 2nd Indian Cavalry Division.
It was reorganized in June 1916 as 7th Indian Cavalry Brigade and took part in the Mesopotamian campaign. It formed part of the occupation forces for Mesopotamia after the end of the war and was broken up late in 1920.
The Kitchener Reforms, carried out during Lord Kitchener's tenure as Commander-in-Chief, India (1902–09), completed the unification of the three former Presidency armies, the , the Hyderabad Contingent and other local forces into one Indian Army. Kitchener identified the Indian Army's main task as the defence of the North-West Frontier against foreign aggression (particularly Russian expansion into Afghanistan) with internal security relegated to a secondary role. The Army was organized into divisions and brigades that would act as field formations but also included internal security troops.