The Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade is a Church of England youth organisation with branches in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Bermuda, Kenya, South Africa, Newfoundland and St Helena. Its origins lie in the formation in 1891 of the Church Lads' Brigade with its sister organisation, the Church Nursing and Ambulance Brigade for Young Women and Girls, later the Church Girls' Brigade, founded in 1901. The two respective fournders were Walter M Gee and Rev Thomas Milner. The two Brigades amalgamated in 1978 to form the Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade.
The Church Lads' Brigade was one of the founding members of The National Council for Voluntary Youth Services (NCVYS), and the Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade remains a member by virtue of its work towards the personal and social development of young people.
The Brigade's Patron Saint is St Martin of Tours. A banner depicting St Martin, which was presented by the Brigade in 1921 to honour those members who lost their lives in the First World War, is kept at Westminster Abbey.
Read more about Church Lads' And Church Girls' Brigade: Structure, Sections, What Happens in Brigade, National Band, National Choir, Historical Group, The Brigade Prayer, Cultural References
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