2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade

2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade
Unit name	2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade
Dates	1914–1945
Country	Canada
Branch	Canadian Expeditionary Force; Canadian Army
Type	Infantry
Size	Brigade
Command structure	1st Canadian Division; 1st Canadian Corps
Notable commanders	Julian Byng; Arthur Currie; Harry Crerar

2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade The 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade was a principal formation of the Canadian Expeditionary Force in the First World War and a core element of the Canadian Army during the Second World War, serving within the 1st Canadian Division and the 1st Canadian Corps. It fought in major actions on the Western Front, later reconstituted between the wars, and again deployed to operations including the Italian Campaign and the North-West Europe campaign; its units and leaders intersected with figures such as Julian Byng, Arthur Currie, Henry Crerar, Andrew McNaughton, and formations like the British Expeditionary Force.

Formation and Early History

Raised in 1914 as part of the Canadian Expeditionary Force, the brigade drew personnel from militia regiments across Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritimes and was assigned to the 1st Canadian Division alongside the 1st Canadian Infantry Brigade and 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade. Early cadre and training took place at camps such as Valcartier, Shorncliffe Army Camp, and on Salisbury Plain before embarkation to ports including Liverpool and Folkestone. Leadership and staff interacted with senior officers attached to the British Army and the War Office, including officers later associated with the Canadian Corps.

First World War

On the Western Front, the brigade participated in engagements including the Second Battle of Ypres, the Battle of the Somme (1916), the Battle of Vimy Ridge, the Battle of Hill 70, the Battle of Passchendaele, and the Hundred Days Offensive culminating at the Battle of Amiens and the Pursuit to Mons. Units operated in trenches around sectors such as St. Eloi, Festubert, and Lens and coordinated with artillery formations like the Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery and engineers from the Canadian Engineers. Under corps commanders including Julian Byng and Arthur Currie, the brigade adapted infantry tactics in response to developments by the German Army, integrating lessons from the Battle of the Somme (1916), innovations in creeping barrage, and signals coordination with the Royal Flying Corps and later the Royal Air Force. Casualty lists from actions such as Festubert and Passchendaele linked the brigade to memorials at Vimy Ridge Memorial and battlefield cemeteries administered by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Interwar Period and Reorganization

Following demobilization after the Armistice of 11 November 1918, the brigade's component regiments reverted to militia status within organizations such as the Non-Permanent Active Militia and undertook peacetime duties in militia depots across Canada. The Ottawa Conference-era reorganization of Canadian forces, fiscal constraints during the Great Depression, and policy decisions by the Department of National Defence (Canada) shaped the brigade's interwar footprint, with links to training institutions like the Royal Military College of Canada and doctrine influenced by observers in the British Army and continental armies. Preparations in the late 1930s responded to tensions involving the League of Nations failures and the rise of militarism in Germany and Italy.

Second World War

Reformed within the Canadian Active Service Force in 1939-1940, the brigade deployed with the 1st Canadian Division to the United Kingdom and later to the Mediterranean Theatre for the Italian Campaign, participating in battles such as the Gustav Line, the Landings at Anzio, and actions during the drive north through the Liri Valley and the Gothic Line. Elements later transferred to North-West Europe operations linked to the Northwest Europe Campaign, cooperating with Allied formations from the United Kingdom, United States, New Zealand, and Poland. The brigade's operations involved coordination with armored units such as the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade, air support from the Royal Canadian Air Force and Royal Air Force, and logistical networks tied to the Canadian Army Service Corps and Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps. Command relationships included commanders who reported to army-level leaders like Harry Crerar and liaised with corps such as V Corps and formations under the Allied Expeditionary Force.

Composition and Order of Battle

Throughout its history, the brigade's core infantry battalions included numbered regiments that traced lineage to militia regiments such as the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, the Royal Canadian Regiment, and provincial units from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario, and Quebec; attached units included machine gun companies, trench mortar batteries, and pioneer companies linked to the Canadian Machine Gun Corps and Canadian Engineers. During the First World War the brigade's order of battle listed battalions from the 1st Division (CEF) pool, while in the Second World War its organization followed British-style brigade tables with rifle companies, support companies, signals sections, anti-tank detachments, and medical units tied to the Canadian Army Medical Corps. Support elements included supply platoons of the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps and repair units from the Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps.

Commanders and Leadership

Commanding officers and staff officers associated with the brigade served under divisional commanders such as Julian Byng, Arthur Currie, Andrew McNaughton, and Harry Crerar, and included brigade commanders who later rose to prominence within the Canadian Army and civil society. Leadership practices reflected doctrine influenced by the British General Staff and wartime experience from engagements like Vimy Ridge and Amiens, shaping training at establishments including the Canadian Officers' Training Corps and exchanges with staff colleges such as the Staff College, Camberley.

Legacy and Memorials

The brigade's contributions are commemorated at sites including the Vimy Ridge Memorial, the Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial area connections, regimental museums such as the Canadian War Museum and provincial military museums, and battlefield memorials across Belgium and France and in Italy where campaigns left fortified memorials and cemeteries maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Lineage and battle honours carried by successor regiments appear on regimental colours, through veteran associations, and in published unit histories recorded by institutions like Library and Archives Canada and the Canadian War Museum, ensuring the brigade's role in campaigns such as Passchendaele, Vimy Ridge, and the Italian Campaign remains part of Canadian military heritage.

Category:Infantry brigades of Canada Category:Military units and formations established in 1914 Category:Canadian Army brigades of World War II