Soldiers recruited from Bradford district are among thousands spared the axe as details of devastating cuts to the Army were announced.

The 3rd Battalion, The Yorkshire Regiment, which recruits heavily in the district, was expected to be lost in the biggest overhaul of the army for decades.

However, it was not named among 17 units announced in Parliament by Defence Secretary Philip Hammond yesterday to create a “balanced, capable and adaptable force” for the future.

Instead, Yorkshire’s second Battalion, historically known as the Green Howards, will be merged into the remaining units by next autumn.

The Yorkshire Regiment’s historic battalion titles – The Prince of Wales Own (1 Yorks), Green Howards (2 Yorks) and the Duke of Wellington’s (3 Yorks) – will also be dropped, an Army spokesman confirmed.

Keighley MP Kris Hopkins, who served with the Duke of Wellington’s, described the cuts as “a double edged sword.”

He said: “I am very pleased that the third battalion has been saved, but Yorkshire has lost a great battalion in the Green Howards. They have a huge reputation and history.”

Mr Hopkins revealed he had written to the Prime Minister, David Cameron, following speculation 3 Yorks would be scrapped.

He said: “I was very concerned that a battalion which was actually deployed in Afghanistan at the moment, and who have also suffered so many casualties at the start of their deployment, would also have this added worry. I asked the Prime Minister and Defence Secretary to take this into account when the decision was made.”

The shake-up will see the army’s manpower cut from 102,000 to 82,000 by the end of the decade.

Among the units to go are the 2nd Battalion the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, the 3rd Battalion the Mercian Regiment and the 2nd Battalion the Royal Welsh.

The Armoured Corps will be reduced by two units with the merger of the Queen’s Royal Lancers and the 9th/12th Royal Lancers and the 1st and 2nd Tank Regiments amalgamating.

There will also be reductions in the number of units in the Royal Artillery, the Royal Engineers, the Army Air Corps, the Royal Logistic Corps, the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and the Royal Military Police.