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1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group
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The Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group or GBMC, better known as 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade or 1 CMBG, is a Canadian Forces Brigade Group that is part of the Land Force Western Area under Land Force Command. Originally the 1 GBMC headquarters was located at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Calgary, but is now located at CFB Edmonton, Alberta. Seven units report to the Mechanized Brigade Group of Canada, two of which are located at CFB Shilo, while the remainder are located at CFB Edmonton.
Background
The origins of the 1st Mechanized Brigade Group of Canada (1 GBMC) date back to , when the 1st Canadian Infantry Brigade (1st Canadian Infantry Brigade) was attached to the 1st Division of the non-permanent active militia. However, prior to that date, the 1st Brigade already existed independently as a formation of the Canadian Militia.
At the beginning of World War I, the 1st (Provisional) Infantry Brigade of the Canadian Expeditionary Force was formed in Valcartier, Quebec. The brigade sailed to England on September 1, 1817. Once the training was completed, she won France in the middle.
After the terrible second Battle of Ypres, the brigade participated in many major World War I confrontations, including the Somme, Vimy Ridge, Passchendaele, Amiens, the Northern Canal and the pursuit of Mons. The brigade, whose full strength was 4,700 men, lost about 15,000 men, one third of whom were killed. The first brigade continued to exist within the Non-Permanent Active Militia, with headquarters based in London, Ontario.
The 1st Infantry Brigade of Canada was again mobilized on the 1st; it left overseas in December of the same year. In , the brigade landed in Brest, France. However, due to the sudden deterioration of the situation on the continent, she quickly returned to England before fighting. During his stay in England, which lasted almost three years, the brigade participated in the defence of the island in anticipation of a German invasion and carried out intense training.
In the spring of 1943, the brigade participated in the invasion of Sicily with the 1st Canadian Infantry Division. After Sicily came the fierce battles of the conquest of Italy. Among the most remarkable battles in which the brigade participated were the operations in Ortona, in the Liri Valley, and the open breaches in the Hitler Line and the Gothic Line.
In , the brigade, which was part of the 1st Canadian Corps, left Italy to take part in the fighting in northwestern Europe. In April, she participated in the liberation of Holland and entered Amsterdam on the day of Victory in Europe. In two years of hard fighting, the brigade lost, of which a quarter were killed. The brigade was disbanded