Brigade, << brih GAYD, >> is a military unit larger than a battalion and smaller than a division. It usually has 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers. Either combat or support troops can make up a brigade. Sweden’s King Gustavus Adolphus used the first brigades in the 1600’s.
A United States Army brigade consists of a headquarters and two or more battalions. Two or three brigades form a division. Before World War II (1939-1945), the U.S. Army used a square division of four infantry regiments organized into two brigades.
See also Army (The organization of armies).
