Formation Under the terms of the
Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 (
7 Edw. 7, c.9), the
Northumberland Brigade was formed in 1908 as part of the
Territorial Force (TF). It was
Headquartered in
Newcastle upon Tyne and consisted of four
infantry battalions of the
Northumberland Fusiliers and a Transport and Supply Company: :4th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (T.F.) – HQ at
Hexham :5th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (T.F.) – HQ at
Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne :6th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (T.F.) – HQ at Northumberland Road, Newcastle upon Tyne :7th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (T.F.) – HQ at
Alnwick :Northumberland Brigade Company,
ASC (T.F.) – at Newcastle upon Tyne It was assigned to the
Northumbrian Division.
World War I '' brought in by a
tommy of the 1/5th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers. Toutencourt, October 1916. The brigade was mobilized on the outbreak of the war and posted to the Tyne Defences. The battalions were given fractional designations (e.g. 1/4th Battalion) with the formation of the 2nd Line battalions in 1914. In April 1915, the brigade was posted to France and on 14 May was redesignated as
149th (Northumberland) Brigade (the division became
50th (Northumbrian) Division). The brigade served with the 50th Division on the
Western Front for the rest of the war. In 1915, it took part in the
Second Battle of Ypres and the
Battle of the Somme in 1916. In 1917, it took part in the
Battle of Arras and the
Third Battle of Ypres. As a result of the losses suffered in the
Ludendorf Offensive (
First Battle of the Somme and
Battle of the Lys), the brigade had to be comprehensively reorganized. On 15 July 1918, the Northumberland Fusiliers battalions were reduced to cadre and transferred to Lines of Communication duties; they were replaced by two battalions from
Salonika (3rd Royal Fusiliers ex
85th Brigade,
28th Division and 13th Black Watch ex
81st Brigade,
27th Division) and another (2nd Royal Dublin Fusiliers) that had been in France since August 1914. Thereafter, it took part in the
Battles of the Hindenburg Line and the
Final Advance in Picardy. •
1/4th Battalion,
Northumberland Fusiliers (
reduced to cadre and left 15 July 1918) •
1/5th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (
reduced to cadre and left 15 July 1918) •
1/6th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (
reduced to cadre and left 15 July 1918) •
1/7th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (
left 10 February 1918 and joined 42nd (East Lancashire) Division as Pioneers) • 1/5th Battalion,
Border Regiment (
joined 5 May 1915, left for 151st Brigade on 20 December 1915) • 3rd Battalion,
Royal Fusiliers (
joined 15 July 1918) • 13th (
Scottish Horse) Battalion,
Black Watch (
joined 15 July 1918) • 2nd Battalion,
Royal Dublin Fusiliers (
joined 15 July 1918) • 149th Machine Gun Company (
formed 6 February 1916, moved to 50th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps on 1 March 1918) • 149th Trench Mortar Battery (
formed 18 June 1916)
Post-war , GOC 50th Division, and Brigadier General Percy M. Robinson, the brigade' s GOC. The 50th Division had crossed the
Sambre and reached
Solre-le-Château on 10 November 1918 when it was relieved. Demobilization started in December and by 19 March 1919 the division had ceased to exist in France. The four original battalions were reformed in the
Territorial Army on 7 February 1920. Before the outbreak of the
Second World War, the
50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division was reorganized as a Motor Division which saw a reduction from three to two brigades. •
4th Battalion,
Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was converted to a motorcycle battalion in 1938, in Northumbrian Area,
Northern Command and the brigade ceased to exist. ==General officers commanding==