With the 15th (Scottish) Division, the brigade saw active service on the Western Front in Belgium and France.

The brigade was raised as a 2nd Line Territorial Army (TA) formation and was part of the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division, which was the duplicate of the 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division.

The brigade itself was formed as a 2nd Line duplicate of the 157th Infantry Brigade, being composed of the 2nd Battalion, Glasgow Highlanders and the 10th and 11th Battalions of the Highland Light Infantry (HLI).

As the war progressed, however, the two HLI battalions were posted elsewhere and replaced by Scottish units from other formations.

It remained in the United Kingdom training for most of the war, crossing the channel to Normandy, France on 13 June 1944.