Structure of the Glasic Army

Current Order of Battle

See Also: Current Glasic Order of Battle

Formations

Ministry of Defence > HQ Land Forces > Land Command > Corps* > Division > Brigade > Regiment > Battalion

Commands

A command is a military formation that handles a specific task or region, and can direct forces as large as multiple corps or as little as a few battalions. Previously the Army had regional commands for each farthing and region. In addition, there were functional commands, such as Anti-Aircraft Command (now disbanded), and overseas commands, such as Middle East Command. Eventually, these were consolidated into; Headquarters Glasic Land Forces, Glasic Land Forces Europe and Glasic Land Forces Far East. Eventually, both of the operational commands were merged to form Land Command - Tír Glas.

From 2000, the various commands and later districts were replaced by regenerative administrative divisions acting as regional commands within the Tír Glas reporting to Commander Regional Forces. Each of the divisions were responsible for training its subordinate formations and units under their command for domestic operations as well as training units for overseas deployments.

Corps

A corps, in the sense of a field fighting formation, is a formation of two or more divisions, potentially containing fifty thousand personnel or more. Currently the Glasic Army has two standing corps headquarters, these are III and XIV corps respectively.

The word corps is also used for administrative formations by common function, such as the Corps of Dragoons or the Rifle Corps. Various Combat Support Arms and Services are referred to in the wider sense as a Corps, such as the Royal Glasic Corps of Signals as well.

Divisions

A division is a formation consisting usually of three or four brigades, around twenty thousand personnel and commanded by a Major General.

The Glasic Army has fourteen standing divisions, both active and reserve force capable of deploying either as a whole subordinate brigades or as a single entities depending on the urgency and scope of the deployment.

Brigades

A Brigade Group generally refers to a formation which includes three or four battle-groups, or an infantry brigade (three battalions), supported by armoured, artillery, field engineer, aviation and support units, and amounting to between 4,000 and 5,000 soldiers. A Brigade Group represents the smallest unit able to operate independently for extended periods on the battlefield. It is similar in concept to a regimental combat team (RCT), which was once used by the United States Army, but which now uses the term brigade combat team (BCT). The United States Marine Corps continues to use the term regimental combat team. The Brigade Group is normally commanded by a Brigadier. A Brigade Group contains combat support and combat service support units necessary to sustain its operations away from its parent division. BGs contain organic artillery support, formerly received from the parent division's artillery (DIVARTY).

Regiments

The term regiment is used confusingly in two different ways: it can mean either an administrative identity and grouping, or a tactical unit.

Expeditionary Warfare Battalions

For contingency operations abroad the Glasic armed forces have had to greatly change the way that they fight, existing formations being too unwieldy for rapid-reaction small scale operations. In 2012 the first expeditionary warfare battalions were created by the re-purposing of two Brigade Groups. Each battalion consists of an augmented rifle battalion supported by a 105mm towed-artillery battery, an armoured company as well as a combat support squadron and depending on circumstances an expeditionary air wing from Joint Helicopter Command as well.

Arms and Services

The Glasic Armed Forces are divided into three arms which comprise of: Combat, Support and Combat Service Support which can be seen as the first second and third lines. Each arm has its own commander who is answerable to commander-in-chief land forces.

Combat Arms

Royal Glasic Corps of Dragoons

The Royal Glasic Corps of Dragoons form the most senior part of the Glasic armoured forces. Whilst technically speaking a part of the the Royal Glasic Armoured Corps the Corps of Dragoons retains its own identity and traditions is still recognised as and perceived as a separate entity.

Royal Glasic Corps of Lancers

The Royal Glasic Corps of Lancers are the younger group of Glasic armoured units. With the reorganisation of the Glasic Army individual Lancer regiments attached to Divisions to bolster tank numbers or to make up for a lack of organic armour have become more common.

Royal Glasic Corps of Hussars

The Royal Glasic Corps of Hussars are the senior light cavalry units of the Glasic Army. They comprise of both Light Dragoon and Hussar units and are primarily equipped with tracked-reconnaissance vehicles. Like the Corps of Lancers they have not been formed into brigades but remain regiments (albeit reorganised for independent deployment). In recent years they have been employed in a variety of roles including infantry support and anti-tank warfare but still retaining their primary role as a close reconnaissance force.

Glasic Yeomanry

The Glasic Yeomanry are the modern day descendants of the mounted-rifle regiments, initially formed of farmers and other rural folk the Yeomanry were initially intended to guard Tír Glas whilst the majority of the professional force were away on campaign however they ended up themselves serving on the front lines with distinction suffering heavy losses. The modern day Yeomanry is a mobile reconnaissance and fire-support force intended to support light infantry units or other forces on expeditionary operations.

Royal Glasic Infantry Corps

The Royal Glasic Infantry Corps is divided for administrative purposes into four groups, with battalions being trained and equipped to operate in one of four main roles:

Operations

Within the Glasic Army, there are four main types of infantry:

• Armoured Infantry - Armoured infantry are equipped with the Warrior armoured personnel carrier, a tracked vehicle that can deploy over all terrain.
• Mechanised Infantry - Also known as protected-mobility infantry. Since the mid-2000s, they have used the Patria AMV
• Light Mechanised Infantry - Usually equipped with lightly protected wheeled APCs such as the Duro III these were originally a stopgap but are now becoming a core formation
• Light-Role Infantry - Light-role infantry form the bulk of Glasic infantry formations, those now with organic transport are technically motorised infantry but remain classified as light-role formations.

Traditions

The infantry is traditionally divided into several types:

• Foot Guards - The Foot Guards are those units that were formed specifically to provide close guard to the King or Queen. Soldiers in the foot guards were historically better trained and better equipped than regular line infantry.
• Carabiniers - The Carabiniers are those units that originally fought on horseback as skirmishers, they in time became the first motorised and then first mechanised infantry in the Glasic Army.
• Rifles - The development of the rifle led to the commissioning of units specially trained in the use the new weapon. Some of the units created as a result of the emergence of the rifle gained the title of 'sharpshooters' units whilst others took over as line infantry.
• Foresters - The Foresters are those units originally raised to patrol in the areas unable to be garrisoned by regular forces as well as to provide reconnaissance and early warning of raids by partisans.

The tactical distinctions between the various types of infantry disappeared in the late nineteenth century, but remain in tradition and in the order of precedence, the Foot Guards are ranked above the Carabiniers , who are ranked above the Rifles and so on.

Glasic Army Special Operations Command

The Glasic Army Special Operations Command (SOC) is the army component of Glasic Joint Special Operations Command (J-SOC). Formerly known as the Glasic Army Commandos there are currently eight formations in the command, they are split between assault units and a special signals unit.

Combat Support Arms

Royal Glasic Artillery

The Glasic Royal Artillery is the result of the amalgamation of the Royal Glasic Field and Royal Glasic Horse Artillery. Equipped with a variety of equipment and performing a wider range of roles than ever, the Royal Glasic Artillery is one of the most diverse formations in the Glasic Armed Forces. Currently the Royal Glasic Artillery fulfil the following roles:

• Surveillance and Target Acquisition
• Inter-Service Towed Artillery Support
• Self Propelled Artillery
• Multiple Launch Rocket Systems

Defence Intelligence Service

The Defence Intelligence Service is the parent formation for the Intelligence Corps, at the highest level it comprises of the Special Intelligence Service whilst liaising with the para-public Domestic Security Service. The Intelligence Service also includes the Special Communications Service who perform communications and signals intelligence and the Imagery Exploitation Service which is the immediate descendent of the Second World War photographic interpretation service.

Whilst the Intelligence Corps is the primary combat-intelligence formation all of the other branches of the Intelligence Service (other than the Domestic Security Service) are all actively employed on operations.

Royal Glasic Intelligence Corps

The Royal Glasic Intelligence Corps is one of the newer formations within the Glasic Army. Initially stood up in 1917, members would form raiding parties comprised of foresters and sharpshooters from other units. These ad-hoc parties were known as 'Tea Parties' and were expected to carry out close reconnaissance behind enemy lines an report back to field commanders positions, strength and movements of enemy formations whilst destroying targets of opportunity either themselves or by saturating the area with artillery. The Intelligence Corps have been stood up and disbanded several times over the years but since the Second World War they have remained a staple of the Glasic Army, taking on newer and more diverse roles.

Combat Service Support Arms

Royal Glasic Logistics Corps

The Royal Glasic Logistic Corps provides logistical support functions to the Glasic Army. It is by far the largest Corps in the Glasic Army. It was formed in 1995 by amalgamating the following corps:

• Royal Glasic Army Postal Corps
• Royal Glasic Corps of Transport
• Royal Glasic Army Ordnance Corps
• Royal Glasic Pioneer Corps
• Glasic Army Catering Corps

Since 2007 the Logistics Corps have been an inter-service establishment, comprising of personnel from all of the arms of service.

Corps of Glasic Electrical and Mechanical Engineers

The Corps of Glasic Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (GEME) came about through the amalgamation of all the various maintenance arms that had come into existence as a result of mechanisation in the aftermath of the Great War. The initial phase saw depot-level maintenance come under their remit whilst the second phase after the Second World War saw the maintenance of most other formations come under the remit of the GEME. The GEME provide maintenance detachments to all units of company-size and above as well as maintaining equipment of the Royal Glasic Engineers and Royal Glasic Armoured Corps.