Military Organisation and Structure
Army: Structure
The best analogy to explain the structure of the Army is a collection of building blocks called sub-units that are combined in different ways to form larger groups that are known as units. Different combinations of these units can in turn be put together to form larger groups, known as formations. The basic structure of the Army is outlined below:
Newcastle, NSW. September 1916. Group portrait of buglers of the 15th and
16th Infantry (Newcastle Battalion) Broadmeadow Camp.
AWM P02474.001
Basic Army structure
Army sub-units and units by corps
Infantry Division: 1916
Infantry Division: 1941
| Formations | Organisation | Strength | Made up of | Commanded by | |
| Army | Two or more corps | General | |||
| Corps | 30,000 or more | Two or more divisions | Lieutenant General | ||
| Division | 10,000 - 20,000 | 3 brigades | Major General | ||
| Brigade | 2,500 - 5,000 | WWI | WWII | Brigadier (General) | |
| 4 battalions | 3 battalions | ||||
| (sub-) units | Battalion | 550 - 1000 | 4 companies | 4 companies | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Company | 100 - 225 | 4 platoons | 3 platoons | Captain or Major | |
| Platoon | 30 - 60 | 4 (later 3) sections | 3 sections | Lieutenant | |
| Section | 9 - 16 | Corporal/Sergeant | |||
Formations consist of a variety of different corps units in addition to the infantry. The different structures of these other units are shown below. The sub-units are listed in ascending order.
Army sub-units and units by corps
Corps |
Sub-Unit & commander |
Unit & commander |
||
| Army Service Corps Engineers Infantry Intelligence Military Police Ordnance |
Section (Sect) | Corporal | Battalion (Bn) | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Platoon (Pl) | Lieutenant | |||
| Company (Coy) | Captain or Major | |||
| Aviation Cavalry/Armour Engineers (post-1945) Signals Transport |
Section (Sect) | Corporal | Regiment (Regt) | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Troop (Tp) | Lieutenant | |||
| Squadron (Sqn) | Captain or Major | |||
| Artillery (pre-1939) | Detachment (Det) | Sergeant | Brigade (Bde) | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Section (Sect) | Lieutenant | |||
| Battery (Bty) | Major | |||
| Artillery (post-1939) | Detachment (Det) | Sergeant | Regiment (Regt) | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Section (Sect) | Lieutenant | |||
| Troop (Tp) | Lieutenant/Captain | |||
| Battery (Bty) | Major | |||
Australia has only fought with forces larger than a brigade in the two world wars. The diagrams below roughly illustrate the organisation of an Australian infantry division in 1916 and in 1941.
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