Infanteriförband

Infanteriförband is the Swedish term for infantry formations within a nation's land forces. They are units composed primarily of soldiers trained for ground combat on foot, employing rifles, light machine guns, grenades, and other supporting weapons. The concept has long formed the core of land warfare, focusing on close-quarters fighting, ground security, and the occupation of terrain.

Infanteriförband are organized in hierarchical units such as battalions, regiments, brigades, and divisions. A typical infantry battalion includes rifle companies, a weapons or support company, and a command element. Variants include light infantry, mechanized infantry (using armored fighting vehicles for transport and fire support), motorized infantry (wheeled vehicles for mobility), and airborne or air-assault formations that are deployed by air. Doctrine emphasizes coordinated action with armor, artillery, engineers, and logistics to achieve combined-arms effect.

Historically, infanteriförband evolved from pike and shot to muskets and, later, modern rifles, machine guns, and grenades. The 20th century brought increased mobility through mechanization and motorization, followed by ongoing modernization to integrate communications, night vision, and precision fire. In contemporary armed forces, infanteriförband remain central to land operations, tasked with seizing and holding terrain, urban warfare, patrols, reconnaissance, and stabilization missions, often in close cooperation with support arms and combat-support services.

Training and doctrine for infanteriförband emphasize marksmanship, small-unit tactics, movement under fire, situational awareness, and coordination within combined-arms teams to sustain offensive and defensive operations.