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The Victorian 3rd Garrison Brigade was the headquarters for all Garrison Battalions within the 3rd Military District (VIC) and was responsible for all administrative work of the Garrison Battalions within the state. It was raised in 1942 and disbanded in 1944.

The Brigade over saw the command of the following Garrison Battalions:

• 3rd Garrison Battalion (/explore/units/676) - Raised 1939, disbanded 1942.
• 9th Garrison Battalion (/explore/units/677) (Coast Defence) - This unit was decreased in size in 1943 to a company thus was redesignated the 9th Garrison Company.
• 12th Garrison Battalion (/admin/units/675)  (Internal Security) - This unit was decreased in size in 1944 to a company thus was redesignated the 12th Garrison Company.
• 17th Garrison Battalion (/explore/units/691) (Internment Camp) - In 1944 this unit was redesignated as the Tatura Internment Camp Group, staffing Camps 1, 2, 3 and 4 at Tatura in Victoria.
• 23rd Garrison Battalion (/explore/units/693) (Prisoner-of-War Camp) - In 1944 this unit was redesignated as Murchison Prisoner-of-War Group, staffing Camp 13 at Murchison in Victoria.
• 24th Garrison Battalion (/explore/units/694) (Prisoner-of-War Camp) - In 1942 the unit was disbanded and the members of the battalion were reorganised to form the 50th and 51st Garrison Companies. These companies were soon taken into the rank of either the 17th or the 23rd Garrison Battalions. 

Garrison Battalions were part of the Australian 'Army Reserve' within the CMF Militia structure for Homeland Defence with the role of manning fixed defences and vulnerable points. The personnel were Class B men, those between 48 and 55 who had seen war service before September 1939, therefore mostly WW1 veterans.

The first seven Garrison battalions were raised in October 1939. A total of 33 were raised across the States numbered 1-33 and where more than three battalions were raised, they were grouped in State-based Brigades, numbered in accordance with the relevant Military District Headquarters in which they were embedded; 1 Garrison Brigade in Queensland, 2 in New South Wales, 3 in Victoria, 4 in South Australia and 5 in Western Australia.  A number of Battalions were merged and others reduced to a single company whcoh retained the original Battalion number.

Prisoner-of-War and Internment Camp units were part of the Garrison Battalion organisation but were on a special establishment where the need for prior war service was waived. AWAS (female) personnel were subsequently often posted in for clerical and administrative roles.

From early on some battalions had adopted a secondary title indicating their specific role, such as (Internal Security). In 1942 this was formalised and most battalions were given an appropriate secondary title.

Initially, all Garrison Battalions wore the same shoulder patch, a black square on a green square. Numerous requests were made by battalions to individualise their patches and in late 1942 the system was adopted of geometric shapes, green on black in a reversal of the original design, approval for which was dated 11 December 1942.