WORLD WAR II 1939-1945
As we follow 296 (3DVA) Battery R.A. (T.A.) During World War 2, we will get a glimps of the journy they took as part of The 74th (Northumbrian) Field Regiment, R.A. (T.A.) and 151st Infantry Brigade.
50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division and it change of Orbat during World War 2.
50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division and it change of Orbat during World War 2.
It is perhaps ironical that as a war progresses the history of a unit becomes less an account of those who originally formed its personnel and more a story of those who joined it subsequently. This is particularly true in the case of 74th (Northumbrian) Field Regiment, R.A. (T.A.) which was heavily engaged on many fronts and suffered casualties amounting to almost 80 per cent of its original members.
THE MOVEMENTS OF THE 74TH FIELD REGIMENT R.A. (T.A.)
DURING WORLD WAR II
1939
1st September The regiment mobilised at South Shields
23rd October Moved to Northleach
1st February Landed at Cherbourg
16th-30th May La Bassee Canal
2nd June Evacuated via Dunkirk
June Knutsford
July-December Winterbourne Abbas, Tiverton
1941
January-18th May Tiverton, Oakhampton
19th May Embarked for Middle East
17th July Landed at Port Tewfik after stopping at Freetown, Cape Town, Mombassa and Aden
16th August Embarked for Cyprus
19 August-2nd November Stationed at Nicosia preparing defences
5th November Embarked for Haifa
7th November Re-equipped north of Tyre
13th – 17th Marched through Palestine, Trans-Jordania
November Iraq to Kirkuk
December Remained in Iraq
1942
January Remained in Iraq
5th – 22nd Marched from Kirkuk via Baghdad, Habba
February niya, Rutbah Wells, Nazareth, Jaffa,Ismalia, Alexandria, Mersa Matruh, Tobruk to the Gazala Line
20th April No. 296 Battery attacked by 15th Panzer Division tanks.
25th June No. 293 Battery over-run south-east of Mersa Matruh.
28th June The regiment broke through the 90th Light Division south of Mersa Matruh.
August-October Alamein Line
16th December Moved to El Adem
1943
1st January Crossed the desert to Benghazi
1st March Moved to Mareth
17th March Battle of Mareth
6th April Wadi Akarit
15th April Enfidaville
25th April Moved to Alexandria to prepare for sicily
12th July Landed in Sicily
19th July Battle of Primosole
2nd September Barrage for the invasion of Italy across the Straits of Messina
18th October Embarked at Augusta
5th November Landed in England
November-December Cambridge
1944
During the first half Cambridge and Otterburn of the year
6th-7th June Landed in Normandy
25th June Tilly-sur-Seules, Lingevres
30th June Hottot
9th August Plessis Grimault
14th August Conde-sur-Noireau
17th August Argentan
27th August Amiens
29th August Lille
4th September Brussels
12th September Battle of Gheel bridge-head, Albert Canal
20th September Escaut Canal
29th September Nijmegen
1st December Joined the 49th (WR) Division
1945
20th January Zetten
13th April Arnhem
17th April Grebbe Line
7th May Unconditional surrender of the Germans
Remainder of Army of Occupation, Germany
1946
Army of Occupation, Germany
1947
Return to England
As the last unit of 50 Division was disbanded 3rd January. Lt.Col. R. Elliot the C.O. sending back to Bolingbroke street, all the Regimental funds and property, for the benefit of the old Regiment under its new number, 274.
1st September The regiment mobilised at South Shields
23rd October Moved to Northleach
1st February Landed at Cherbourg
16th-30th May La Bassee Canal
2nd June Evacuated via Dunkirk
June Knutsford
July-December Winterbourne Abbas, Tiverton
1941
January-18th May Tiverton, Oakhampton
19th May Embarked for Middle East
17th July Landed at Port Tewfik after stopping at Freetown, Cape Town, Mombassa and Aden
16th August Embarked for Cyprus
19 August-2nd November Stationed at Nicosia preparing defences
5th November Embarked for Haifa
7th November Re-equipped north of Tyre
13th – 17th Marched through Palestine, Trans-Jordania
November Iraq to Kirkuk
December Remained in Iraq
1942
January Remained in Iraq
5th – 22nd Marched from Kirkuk via Baghdad, Habba
February niya, Rutbah Wells, Nazareth, Jaffa,Ismalia, Alexandria, Mersa Matruh, Tobruk to the Gazala Line
20th April No. 296 Battery attacked by 15th Panzer Division tanks.
25th June No. 293 Battery over-run south-east of Mersa Matruh.
28th June The regiment broke through the 90th Light Division south of Mersa Matruh.
August-October Alamein Line
16th December Moved to El Adem
1943
1st January Crossed the desert to Benghazi
1st March Moved to Mareth
17th March Battle of Mareth
6th April Wadi Akarit
15th April Enfidaville
25th April Moved to Alexandria to prepare for sicily
12th July Landed in Sicily
19th July Battle of Primosole
2nd September Barrage for the invasion of Italy across the Straits of Messina
18th October Embarked at Augusta
5th November Landed in England
November-December Cambridge
1944
During the first half Cambridge and Otterburn of the year
6th-7th June Landed in Normandy
25th June Tilly-sur-Seules, Lingevres
30th June Hottot
9th August Plessis Grimault
14th August Conde-sur-Noireau
17th August Argentan
27th August Amiens
29th August Lille
4th September Brussels
12th September Battle of Gheel bridge-head, Albert Canal
20th September Escaut Canal
29th September Nijmegen
1st December Joined the 49th (WR) Division
1945
20th January Zetten
13th April Arnhem
17th April Grebbe Line
7th May Unconditional surrender of the Germans
Remainder of Army of Occupation, Germany
1946
Army of Occupation, Germany
1947
Return to England
As the last unit of 50 Division was disbanded 3rd January. Lt.Col. R. Elliot the C.O. sending back to Bolingbroke street, all the Regimental funds and property, for the benefit of the old Regiment under its new number, 274.
There was practically a complete turn-over. A Territorial Regiment suffers of course from the same disability in peacetime but then the turn-over rate is so slow as to be almost imperceptible and the intake of new blood is so slight that it can be absorbed into the parent body without strain. During war, friends can no longer volunteer from their home town, provincial pride cannot therefore help to sustain morale, and no more can that sense of fraternity instil into every rank the feeling of companionship and tacit co-operation. The “old school tie” is laughed at these days but it does supply the cement which binds the whole together. Without it, discipline and tradition can alone supply the corporate spirit. It takes a fine regiment to fight back against odds of ten to one, to find itself cut off, cut up and finally cut to pieces, but it takes an even finer regiment to start again along the road back with new blood and new leadership, to emerge once more with the same confidence, grim resolve and pride of purpose. It is not difficult to fight alongside the man from the next street or the same club but when he has gone and his friends disappeared and when new faces crowd out the old, the testing time is present. Then is a regiment tried to the bounds of its endurance. The must the resilience and loyalty of the survivors be strong enough to win the affection and respect of the newcomers. Then must a new integration take place, no longer based on peace-time associations but on war-time expediency. Differences of speech and custom, different values and differing viewpoints must be blended. The new tradition must respect the old and the old must not scorn the new. Unless this integration can be achieved the once proud Territorial unit cannot survive as a regiment. It becomes unhappy, unprogressive and insular—a collection of weapons yielded by men, not an indissoluble monad. Happily the 74th (Northumbrian) Field Regiment was able to summount these difficulties and survive as a regiment, thus forging the link between past and present.
When the Second World War broke out, this regiment was embodied as part of the 50th (Northumbrian) Division and was stationed temporarily at South Shields, which with Hebburn, provided 98 per cent of its members.
Regimental headquarters and 296 Battery equipped with 4.5 howitzers, were quartered in the Drill Hall, Bolingbroke Street,
293 Battery in the Drill Hall, Collingwood Street which they shared with a squadron of Northumberland Hussars.
293 Battery was equipped with the 18 pdr. Q.F. Mark IV
but shortly after the declaration of war these guns were withdrawn in order to be converted into 18/25 pdrs. In their place 18 pdrs. Mark II were issued. A firm promise was received that either 18/25 pdrs. or 25 pdrs. would be handed over before the regiment went into action, but alas, like the proverbial pie-crust that promise was broken. A section of A.T.S. was attached to the regiment for the first few weeks. Rumour whispered that the officers had never been so well fed.
The regiment’s centre of activity was at Bolingbroke Street, but the officers and troops were all billeted in various places in South Shields, including the old Majestic Ballroom at the Pier-head, the Golden Lion and Royal Hotels, the old Assembly Rooms, the chapel in Waterloo Vale and St John’s Church Hall, in Broughton Road.
As will be remembered, as soon as Mr Neville Chamberlain had finished his famous broadcast on Sunday morning, 3rd September 1939, the air raid sirens sounded. This caused a flutter of excitement in the Drill Hall, Bolingbroke Street. Imagination runs riot in the presence of the unknown. Air Raid Precautions, as Civil Defence was then known, had been warning the populace against heavy aerial bombardment and gas attacks, so most of the people who heard those sirens can be excused for thinking that the worst was about to happen. However, the absence of any attack soon calmed the nerves and the regiment settled down to a period of organisation. It was impossible to do much training as equipment was no plentiful and most of the time was taken up with sorting out personnel and such additional equipment as did arrive.
On 23rd October, 1939, the regiment moved to the Divisional concentration area in Gloucestershire, the regiment itself being stationed at that charming little Cotswold village—Northleach—13 miles from Cheltenham. There the officers and men found themselves very over-crowded, though improvements came about as the regiment settled down. Training with requisitioned civilian transport was carried out in the neighbourhood of Northleach, and actual firing took place at Larkhill before and after Christmas. In addition a considerable amount of training up to brigade level occurred. In January, 1940, the regiment was inspected by H.M. King George VI and before long was being prepared for overseas service. On 1st February, 1940, the regiment embarked at Southampton in the steam packet Duke of York. Captain W.E. Ritson had already sailed for France a month earlier with a billeting party. The guns, vehicles and equipment had preceded the personnel. This preparation for active service had taken far less time than the corresponding programme in 1914-1915.
Regimental headquarters and 296 Battery equipped with 4.5 howitzers, were quartered in the Drill Hall, Bolingbroke Street,
293 Battery in the Drill Hall, Collingwood Street which they shared with a squadron of Northumberland Hussars.
293 Battery was equipped with the 18 pdr. Q.F. Mark IV
but shortly after the declaration of war these guns were withdrawn in order to be converted into 18/25 pdrs. In their place 18 pdrs. Mark II were issued. A firm promise was received that either 18/25 pdrs. or 25 pdrs. would be handed over before the regiment went into action, but alas, like the proverbial pie-crust that promise was broken. A section of A.T.S. was attached to the regiment for the first few weeks. Rumour whispered that the officers had never been so well fed.
The regiment’s centre of activity was at Bolingbroke Street, but the officers and troops were all billeted in various places in South Shields, including the old Majestic Ballroom at the Pier-head, the Golden Lion and Royal Hotels, the old Assembly Rooms, the chapel in Waterloo Vale and St John’s Church Hall, in Broughton Road.
As will be remembered, as soon as Mr Neville Chamberlain had finished his famous broadcast on Sunday morning, 3rd September 1939, the air raid sirens sounded. This caused a flutter of excitement in the Drill Hall, Bolingbroke Street. Imagination runs riot in the presence of the unknown. Air Raid Precautions, as Civil Defence was then known, had been warning the populace against heavy aerial bombardment and gas attacks, so most of the people who heard those sirens can be excused for thinking that the worst was about to happen. However, the absence of any attack soon calmed the nerves and the regiment settled down to a period of organisation. It was impossible to do much training as equipment was no plentiful and most of the time was taken up with sorting out personnel and such additional equipment as did arrive.
On 23rd October, 1939, the regiment moved to the Divisional concentration area in Gloucestershire, the regiment itself being stationed at that charming little Cotswold village—Northleach—13 miles from Cheltenham. There the officers and men found themselves very over-crowded, though improvements came about as the regiment settled down. Training with requisitioned civilian transport was carried out in the neighbourhood of Northleach, and actual firing took place at Larkhill before and after Christmas. In addition a considerable amount of training up to brigade level occurred. In January, 1940, the regiment was inspected by H.M. King George VI and before long was being prepared for overseas service. On 1st February, 1940, the regiment embarked at Southampton in the steam packet Duke of York. Captain W.E. Ritson had already sailed for France a month earlier with a billeting party. The guns, vehicles and equipment had preceded the personnel. This preparation for active service had taken far less time than the corresponding programme in 1914-1915.
France
About 2.0. p.m. on the day it embarked, the regiment disembarked at Cherbourg and entrained in an extremely cold and uncomfortable train for an unknown destination. In due course, it detrained at La Hutte halfway between Alencon and Le Mans. A march of some five miles brought it to the billeting area, regimental headquarters and 296 Battery being at Fye and 293 Battery at St Victeur. The stay in this area was intended only to be of a few days duration, but the state of the roads due to severe frost precluded any heavy movement, and the regiment was virtually marooned for three weeks. Shades of the 1914-1918 war. The staff at regimental headquarters regarded this period as a military paradise notwithstanding the cold. Major J.W. Grant, having been selected for the Gunnery Staff course and appointed an instructor in Gunnery remained in England. Captain A.V. Brooke-Webb was promoted second-in-command.
Capt. J.B. Irvine became Adjutant and 2nd Lieut. P.A. Hamilton assistant adjutant. As the guns and equipment had not so far been able to contact the main body, little, if any training was possible. At this time 296 Battery earned the nickname of “The Chocolate Soldiers” owing to the fact that on the first check of emergency rations, an appreciable number were found to have been consumed. As punishment, the battery was made to march from Fye to St Victeur and back, a round trip of about 9 ½ miles—an unheard of distance in those days.
After three weeks the roads were considered fit for use and the regiment moved to Bovelles near Amiens. The guns and vehicles having by this time become united with the personnel, the march was made in the units transport by very easy stages. The first night of the journey was spent at Mortagne, the second at Evreux—where the writer spent a summer 57 years ago—and in the afternoon of the third day the regiment arrived at a rain-soaked and depressing looking Bovelles. However, after settling into billets and enjoying a few days sunshine, the place improved and was found to be pleasanter than had appeared at first sight. The French inhabitants proved most hospitable and the stay in the village was on the whole a happy one. Two members of the French Liaison, Marechals de Logis the Vicomte Pierre de Billaigue and Jean le Bar, were attached to the regiment. Both these men became extremely popular and did an enormous amount of work smoothing out billeting and other difficulties with the local civilians. The latter was born in Swansea and had lived there all his life; it is not surprising, therefore, that he spoke his native tongue with a strong Welsh accent. Training was now carried out on a much more lavish scale than formerly; up to, in fact, Divisional schemes . Whilst in Bovelles, Major T. Forster was promoted Second-in-command in place of Major A.V. Brooke-Webb who assumed command of 296 Battery. Shortly afterwards Major Forster fractured an ankle and major H.W. Abey became Second-in-command.
After some five weeks, the regiment was moved again, this time to Douvrin about 12 ½ miles from Lille. Regimental headquarters and 296 Battery proceeded direct from Bouvelles to Douvrin, but 293 Battery attended a shooting camp at Conchy-sur-Canche before rejoining the remainder of the regiment. A considerable amount of trouble was experienced with the 18 pdrs. Mark II during firing, and fervent prayers were offered that it would never be necessary to go into action with them. To these supplications the Deity turned a deaf ear.
Douvrin was a much larger place than any of the previous stations and the standard of billets much higher. It was within walking distance of La Bassee which the regiment was later to see in rather different circumstances. During the stay there most of the officers and men visited Vimy Ridge with its famous cenotaph and trench systems. At a conference in Loos, attended by all the officers of the Division, the G.O.C., Major General le Q. Martel, announced that the Division would shortly take over part of the Maginot Line. This announcement was greeted with great enthusiasm. Spymania was rife in the Douvrin area at this time and every little incident was regarded with the gravest suspicion. Fifth columnism was beginning to make itself felt. The command of 293 Battery was taken over by Major W.J. Forster who was posted from the 72nd Field Regiment. At the beginning of May 1940, the regiment saw german planes for the first time. Lille and a number of other places in the district were bombed, a number of bombers being shot down by Hurricanes, French fighters and a French A.A. Battery in the next village. The C.O., Lt-Col. R.T. Edwards, went on leave during the second week in May. In his absence Major H.W. Abey took over command and Major A.V. Brooke-Webb became second-in-command. The command of 296 Battery was assumed by Captain M.G. Bartlett. Great excitement was caused by the news that the Germans had invaded Holland and Belgium. Plans had already been prepared for the role of the regiment in such an eventuality, and consequently, much to everyone’s chagrin, it did not at once advance into Belgium, but was allotted and anti-parachutist role in the Lille area. Thus did the “phoney-war” come to an end. No parachute attack having materialised the regiment finally moved into Belgium on 20th may and at about 1.0 a.m. on 21st May reached Grammont about 20 miles west of Brussels via Tournai and Roubaix. A reconnaissance was undertaken, but before 151 Brigade could get into action the great withdrawal began, and on 2st May the regiment withdrew to the line of the river Escaut near Audenarde. Here frantic digging-in operations were commenced but again before action could be joined a further withdrawal to Gandecourt, less than 7 ½ miles from Douvrin, took place on 23rd May. By this time troop movements were becoming increasingly difficult owing to the vast horde of refugees fleeing before the German advance. Similar scenes to those in the 1914-1918 war were again being enacted.
Capt. J.B. Irvine became Adjutant and 2nd Lieut. P.A. Hamilton assistant adjutant. As the guns and equipment had not so far been able to contact the main body, little, if any training was possible. At this time 296 Battery earned the nickname of “The Chocolate Soldiers” owing to the fact that on the first check of emergency rations, an appreciable number were found to have been consumed. As punishment, the battery was made to march from Fye to St Victeur and back, a round trip of about 9 ½ miles—an unheard of distance in those days.
After three weeks the roads were considered fit for use and the regiment moved to Bovelles near Amiens. The guns and vehicles having by this time become united with the personnel, the march was made in the units transport by very easy stages. The first night of the journey was spent at Mortagne, the second at Evreux—where the writer spent a summer 57 years ago—and in the afternoon of the third day the regiment arrived at a rain-soaked and depressing looking Bovelles. However, after settling into billets and enjoying a few days sunshine, the place improved and was found to be pleasanter than had appeared at first sight. The French inhabitants proved most hospitable and the stay in the village was on the whole a happy one. Two members of the French Liaison, Marechals de Logis the Vicomte Pierre de Billaigue and Jean le Bar, were attached to the regiment. Both these men became extremely popular and did an enormous amount of work smoothing out billeting and other difficulties with the local civilians. The latter was born in Swansea and had lived there all his life; it is not surprising, therefore, that he spoke his native tongue with a strong Welsh accent. Training was now carried out on a much more lavish scale than formerly; up to, in fact, Divisional schemes . Whilst in Bovelles, Major T. Forster was promoted Second-in-command in place of Major A.V. Brooke-Webb who assumed command of 296 Battery. Shortly afterwards Major Forster fractured an ankle and major H.W. Abey became Second-in-command.
After some five weeks, the regiment was moved again, this time to Douvrin about 12 ½ miles from Lille. Regimental headquarters and 296 Battery proceeded direct from Bouvelles to Douvrin, but 293 Battery attended a shooting camp at Conchy-sur-Canche before rejoining the remainder of the regiment. A considerable amount of trouble was experienced with the 18 pdrs. Mark II during firing, and fervent prayers were offered that it would never be necessary to go into action with them. To these supplications the Deity turned a deaf ear.
Douvrin was a much larger place than any of the previous stations and the standard of billets much higher. It was within walking distance of La Bassee which the regiment was later to see in rather different circumstances. During the stay there most of the officers and men visited Vimy Ridge with its famous cenotaph and trench systems. At a conference in Loos, attended by all the officers of the Division, the G.O.C., Major General le Q. Martel, announced that the Division would shortly take over part of the Maginot Line. This announcement was greeted with great enthusiasm. Spymania was rife in the Douvrin area at this time and every little incident was regarded with the gravest suspicion. Fifth columnism was beginning to make itself felt. The command of 293 Battery was taken over by Major W.J. Forster who was posted from the 72nd Field Regiment. At the beginning of May 1940, the regiment saw german planes for the first time. Lille and a number of other places in the district were bombed, a number of bombers being shot down by Hurricanes, French fighters and a French A.A. Battery in the next village. The C.O., Lt-Col. R.T. Edwards, went on leave during the second week in May. In his absence Major H.W. Abey took over command and Major A.V. Brooke-Webb became second-in-command. The command of 296 Battery was assumed by Captain M.G. Bartlett. Great excitement was caused by the news that the Germans had invaded Holland and Belgium. Plans had already been prepared for the role of the regiment in such an eventuality, and consequently, much to everyone’s chagrin, it did not at once advance into Belgium, but was allotted and anti-parachutist role in the Lille area. Thus did the “phoney-war” come to an end. No parachute attack having materialised the regiment finally moved into Belgium on 20th may and at about 1.0 a.m. on 21st May reached Grammont about 20 miles west of Brussels via Tournai and Roubaix. A reconnaissance was undertaken, but before 151 Brigade could get into action the great withdrawal began, and on 2st May the regiment withdrew to the line of the river Escaut near Audenarde. Here frantic digging-in operations were commenced but again before action could be joined a further withdrawal to Gandecourt, less than 7 ½ miles from Douvrin, took place on 23rd May. By this time troop movements were becoming increasingly difficult owing to the vast horde of refugees fleeing before the German advance. Similar scenes to those in the 1914-1918 war were again being enacted.
It was during this period that the regiment suffered its first casualty.
The guns in the area of Pont-a-Vendin were heavily dive-bombed and
Sergeant Akenhead of 293 Battery lost a leg.
On arrival at Gondecourt it was learned that the regiment would leave the 50th (Northumbrian) Division temporarily and would become part of a formation known as the St Pol Force, which appeared to be a motley collection of units and detachment hurriedly collected together in an attempt to fill a gap along the La Bassee Canal. The regiment was given an anti-tank role and was deployed as follows:---
Regimental headquarters, Chateau du Bois near Don (Hindenburg’s H.Q. during World War I):
La Bassee, two 18 pdrs. from A Troop held two bridges:
L’Abbiye bridge was held by F Troop (4.5-inch Q.F. Howitzers) and one 18 pdr. from A Troop:
Billy Berclau were one 18 pdr. and one 4.5 inch Howitzer:
Pont-a-Vendin was guarded by two 4.5 inch howitzers. In addition, 259 Battery, commanded by Major H.E. Collet-White, of the 65th Anti-Tank regiment was put under the command of the regiment and these 2 pdrs, thickened up the anti-tank defences.
No. 505 Field Company, R.E. was also placed under its orders for the purpose of bridge demolition.
The rest of the guns were grouped so as to enable as much indirect fire as possible to be brought to bear. The regiment was now in the support of the 25th Infantry Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Ramsden who later commanded the 50th Division.
The Brigade consisted of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, the 7th Queens and an Essex battalion.
It was during this period that the regiment suffered its first casualty. The guns in the area of Pont-a-Vendin were heavily dive-bombed and Sergeant Akenhead of 293 Battery lost a leg.
Regimental headquarters formed a battle H.Q. in the village of Don using several massive concrete dugouts which had formed part of the Hindenburg Line. Brigade Headquarters also took over an elaborate system of underground shelters, also part of the line, under the Chateau Don. In due course the withdrawal continued and the regiment went into action, this time in a normal field artillery role. Regimental headquarters was established at Richebourg L’Avoue, in full view of the enemies O. P’s on the infamous slag heaps at La Bassee. By now allied planes were conspicuous by their absence and the Germans, to show their air superiority, had detailed a Henschel reconnaissance plane to watch the regiment unceasingly. The unwelcome guest hovered continuously like an ichneumon fly over the regimental area just out of small arms range and no movement by day could be made unobserved. Heavy firing took place at Neuve Chapelle. The guns opened up on predicted targets and fired about 25 to 30 rounds apiece. This bombardment stung the Henschel into action and its observer directed the fire of a German battery in retaliation about 4,000 yards away near one of the many slag heaps. This German fire was heavy and did considerable damage to our guns. There were no direct hits, however, and a few casualties resulted. After a day of this artillery duel a further withdrawal took place and the regiment again came under the command of the 50th Division. From Neuve Chapelle the regiment withdrew northwards to Doullens where it was intended to go into action. However, no shot was ever fired from there as before positions could be occupied a further retreat was ordered and this time no one appeared to know the destination.
Regimental headquarters, Chateau du Bois near Don (Hindenburg’s H.Q. during World War I):
La Bassee, two 18 pdrs. from A Troop held two bridges:
L’Abbiye bridge was held by F Troop (4.5-inch Q.F. Howitzers) and one 18 pdr. from A Troop:
Billy Berclau were one 18 pdr. and one 4.5 inch Howitzer:
Pont-a-Vendin was guarded by two 4.5 inch howitzers. In addition, 259 Battery, commanded by Major H.E. Collet-White, of the 65th Anti-Tank regiment was put under the command of the regiment and these 2 pdrs, thickened up the anti-tank defences.
No. 505 Field Company, R.E. was also placed under its orders for the purpose of bridge demolition.
The rest of the guns were grouped so as to enable as much indirect fire as possible to be brought to bear. The regiment was now in the support of the 25th Infantry Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Ramsden who later commanded the 50th Division.
The Brigade consisted of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, the 7th Queens and an Essex battalion.
It was during this period that the regiment suffered its first casualty. The guns in the area of Pont-a-Vendin were heavily dive-bombed and Sergeant Akenhead of 293 Battery lost a leg.
Regimental headquarters formed a battle H.Q. in the village of Don using several massive concrete dugouts which had formed part of the Hindenburg Line. Brigade Headquarters also took over an elaborate system of underground shelters, also part of the line, under the Chateau Don. In due course the withdrawal continued and the regiment went into action, this time in a normal field artillery role. Regimental headquarters was established at Richebourg L’Avoue, in full view of the enemies O. P’s on the infamous slag heaps at La Bassee. By now allied planes were conspicuous by their absence and the Germans, to show their air superiority, had detailed a Henschel reconnaissance plane to watch the regiment unceasingly. The unwelcome guest hovered continuously like an ichneumon fly over the regimental area just out of small arms range and no movement by day could be made unobserved. Heavy firing took place at Neuve Chapelle. The guns opened up on predicted targets and fired about 25 to 30 rounds apiece. This bombardment stung the Henschel into action and its observer directed the fire of a German battery in retaliation about 4,000 yards away near one of the many slag heaps. This German fire was heavy and did considerable damage to our guns. There were no direct hits, however, and a few casualties resulted. After a day of this artillery duel a further withdrawal took place and the regiment again came under the command of the 50th Division. From Neuve Chapelle the regiment withdrew northwards to Doullens where it was intended to go into action. However, no shot was ever fired from there as before positions could be occupied a further retreat was ordered and this time no one appeared to know the destination.
DUNKIRK
The great trek to the coast had begun. The route given was Bailleul-Poperinghe and north towards Bergues, 7 or 8 miles south of Dunkirk. The main road to the north was by this time congested by a continuous stream of northbound vehicles, three abreast and head to tail. British, French and Belgian troops were inextricably mixed. At Bailleul, where the regiment found itself, part of the column including a regiment of French cavalry was heavily dive-bombed. Complete confusion reigned and any coherence which once might have been associated with the various units on that road to the sea was irretrievabley lost. Soldiers, horses, dogs, carts, guns, transport vehicles and men, women and children struggled along in an amorous mass, dive-bombed and machine gunned from the air, making an orderly retirement quite out of the question. The pace of retreat slowed and slowed till it eventually came to a standstill, the traffic having become hopelessly jammed. Fortunately for the wayfarers a severe storm which raged most of the day and lasted till nightfall prevented much air activity during its slow passage across the heavens. Somewhere between Poperinghe and Bergues orders were received to proceed to Dunkirk for evacuation, and vehicles no longer required were to be ditched and destroyed, their occupants being ordered to proceed on foot. It was equivalent to the order at sea “Abandon ship” and a case of sauve qui peut. Chaos reigned on that stretch of road and the macabre scene was dominated by the spirit of destruction; vehicles being crashed into ditches, hammers and crowbars being used to smash up engines and equipment, and guns being rendered useless by any available method. Hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of stores must have been battered to pieces during this holocaust. Fires of immolation lit up the road which increased the panic and hysteria of the refugees and especially amongst the maddened riderless horses which plunged along in a state bordering on frenzy. Finally the personnel of the regiment reached the beaches of Dunkirk and joined the queue awaiting embarkation and evacuation during continuous bombing.
The epic of Dunkirk will live on in a history, a triumph of will and courage over measureless odds. The story is well-known and needs no recital in this short memoir. It will be remembered after this account is forgotten. Eventually, almost every remaining member of the unit had been evacuated and transported back to England by 1st June 1940, some 60 of them embarking on H.M.S. Jaguar. This ship, however, was bombed and had finally to be sunk, her occupants being transferred to another of His Majesty’s ships. The survivors were kindly received by the inhabitants of Dover. The regiment suffered extremely light casualties and by the end of June had collected itself in the 50 Divisional concentration area at Knutsford in Cheshire. The two agents de liaison Le Bar and Gallay, accompanied the regiment to the shores of England but were immediately returned to france to rejoin their parents units. England was left to face the crisis alone as France fell.
The epic of Dunkirk will live on in a history, a triumph of will and courage over measureless odds. The story is well-known and needs no recital in this short memoir. It will be remembered after this account is forgotten. Eventually, almost every remaining member of the unit had been evacuated and transported back to England by 1st June 1940, some 60 of them embarking on H.M.S. Jaguar. This ship, however, was bombed and had finally to be sunk, her occupants being transferred to another of His Majesty’s ships. The survivors were kindly received by the inhabitants of Dover. The regiment suffered extremely light casualties and by the end of June had collected itself in the 50 Divisional concentration area at Knutsford in Cheshire. The two agents de liaison Le Bar and Gallay, accompanied the regiment to the shores of England but were immediately returned to france to rejoin their parents units. England was left to face the crisis alone as France fell.
During this critical month of June officers and men waited impatiently at Knutsford for their new equipment to arrive. England at this juncture was expecting invasion and up and down the country it was the one topic of conversation. Operation Sea-Lion was awaited daily, that master plan of Hitler’s for occupying these islands. By the first week in July many soldiers of the Division and regiment moved south to the invasion coast. Invasion instructions were issued, but in the absence of the guns and ammunition infantry training only, was possible.
Regimental Headquarters were installed at Winterbourne Abbas, 293 Battery being at Bradford Peverell, 296 at Martinstown. By the middle of July 1940, 75 m/m guns began to arrive from across the Atlantic and at the beginning of August they were issued to the regiment. As a result of the lessons learned in France, a re-organisation of the Field Regiment was contemplated. Instead of two batteries, each of three troops, it was suggested that three batteries of two troops each would be a less unwieldy organization. Consequently “R” Battery was formed and Captain Fawkes, who had been recently posted to the regiment was given its command. The contemplated reorganisation was, however, abandoned and “R” Battery (only the headquarters of which had been formed) was disbanded. 296 Battery went to Bridport 293 Battery went to Long Bredy, the troops being spread out along the coast. Late in July the first guns were issued to the regiment. These consisted of two German 105 m/m gun-howitzers which had been captured from a German trawler off the coast of Norway. These two guns complete with all the G.P.O’s equipment and 200 rounds of ammunition were brought to England, despatched to the 50th Division and handed over to “D” Troop, much to the surprise and consternation of the officers and men. The guns were assigned a position on the hill overlooking Weymouth and were deployed to cover Chesil Beach. After the German equipment had been sorted out and its intricacies mastered, it was decided to carry out a practice shoot on 19th August at a buoy moored off Chesil Beach in the presence of a large crowd of senior officers. After one round had been fired resulting in a near miss, a number of small ships were seen approaching the coast. The Portland Bill defences opened fire drowning the puny efforts of “D” Troop. Nor was this all. Suddenly the code word Cromwell which meant imminent invasion was flashed through. Instantly, the senior visiting officers melted away like snow under sunshine and the Troop was left in isolation to repel the “invasion” of Chesil Beach. A few hours later it was realised that a mistake had been made and Cromwell was cancelled. Notwithstanding, an interesting afternoon was enjoyed by all. Little was heard at Winterbourne Abbas of gigantic air battles that swayed to and fro across London and the fields of Kent, however, a number of German planes crashed in the regimental area. While hope alternated with fear Goering’s effort to subdue the R.A.F. had failed. Meanwhile the men of South Shileds and Hebburn still watched the coast. After the climax in September when it had become obvious that the day raids had proved abortive, the feeling grew that operation Sea-Lion would be abandoned, at least till the spring of 1941, and, with this comforting thought the regiment, after a shoot on the ranges at Okehampton, settled down into winter quarters at the pleasant town of Tiverton. Regimental Headquarters and 293 Battery were stationed at Tiverton, 296 Battery having one troop at HHalberton and one at Sampford Peverell. (R” battery during it’s short existence lived at Sampford Peverell. The regiment remained at Tiverton from November 1940 to April 1941. Training consisted of those schemes and exercises which so held the country’s imagination in the days when fighting lasted three days and finished up with a hot bath; minefields were represented by ploughed land and the “enemy” wore forage caps and fired blank. But the charm of soldiering in England was short-lived. The German armies in the Spring of 1941 gave every indication of turning to the East.
Regimental Headquarters were installed at Winterbourne Abbas, 293 Battery being at Bradford Peverell, 296 at Martinstown. By the middle of July 1940, 75 m/m guns began to arrive from across the Atlantic and at the beginning of August they were issued to the regiment. As a result of the lessons learned in France, a re-organisation of the Field Regiment was contemplated. Instead of two batteries, each of three troops, it was suggested that three batteries of two troops each would be a less unwieldy organization. Consequently “R” Battery was formed and Captain Fawkes, who had been recently posted to the regiment was given its command. The contemplated reorganisation was, however, abandoned and “R” Battery (only the headquarters of which had been formed) was disbanded. 296 Battery went to Bridport 293 Battery went to Long Bredy, the troops being spread out along the coast. Late in July the first guns were issued to the regiment. These consisted of two German 105 m/m gun-howitzers which had been captured from a German trawler off the coast of Norway. These two guns complete with all the G.P.O’s equipment and 200 rounds of ammunition were brought to England, despatched to the 50th Division and handed over to “D” Troop, much to the surprise and consternation of the officers and men. The guns were assigned a position on the hill overlooking Weymouth and were deployed to cover Chesil Beach. After the German equipment had been sorted out and its intricacies mastered, it was decided to carry out a practice shoot on 19th August at a buoy moored off Chesil Beach in the presence of a large crowd of senior officers. After one round had been fired resulting in a near miss, a number of small ships were seen approaching the coast. The Portland Bill defences opened fire drowning the puny efforts of “D” Troop. Nor was this all. Suddenly the code word Cromwell which meant imminent invasion was flashed through. Instantly, the senior visiting officers melted away like snow under sunshine and the Troop was left in isolation to repel the “invasion” of Chesil Beach. A few hours later it was realised that a mistake had been made and Cromwell was cancelled. Notwithstanding, an interesting afternoon was enjoyed by all. Little was heard at Winterbourne Abbas of gigantic air battles that swayed to and fro across London and the fields of Kent, however, a number of German planes crashed in the regimental area. While hope alternated with fear Goering’s effort to subdue the R.A.F. had failed. Meanwhile the men of South Shileds and Hebburn still watched the coast. After the climax in September when it had become obvious that the day raids had proved abortive, the feeling grew that operation Sea-Lion would be abandoned, at least till the spring of 1941, and, with this comforting thought the regiment, after a shoot on the ranges at Okehampton, settled down into winter quarters at the pleasant town of Tiverton. Regimental Headquarters and 293 Battery were stationed at Tiverton, 296 Battery having one troop at HHalberton and one at Sampford Peverell. (R” battery during it’s short existence lived at Sampford Peverell. The regiment remained at Tiverton from November 1940 to April 1941. Training consisted of those schemes and exercises which so held the country’s imagination in the days when fighting lasted three days and finished up with a hot bath; minefields were represented by ploughed land and the “enemy” wore forage caps and fired blank. But the charm of soldiering in England was short-lived. The German armies in the Spring of 1941 gave every indication of turning to the East.
Middle East
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April 1941 the Divisional advance parties left for the Middle East.
The regimental advance party was represented by Major .J. Lyall---the second in command--- and two other ranks. They sailed in the Empress of Russia round the Cape and reached Port Tewfik, Egypt, on 13th June. The regiment left Tiverton, travelled to Glasgow and sailed on 22nd May in S.S. Duchess of Bedford. The journey was uneventful and similar to the many voyages made round the Cape by troop convoys in the early days of the war. The usual distractions, boxing, cinema shows, lectures and “housy housey” helped to while away the time. After calling at Freetown, Sierra Leone, the convoy stopped for three days at Capetown in the first week of July. Being one of the first convoy’s of British troops to put in at the Cape, the reception was stupendous. Petrol was unrationed and private cars lined up in the streets to carry load after load of troops to road-houses, private houses and other points of interest; and for three days in the words of the French chronicler “the fountains flowed with wine”. The regiment disembarked at Port Tewfik on 17th July. The advance party under Major Lyall had been preparing a camp at Quassessein, and for a month the regiment was initiated into the conditions of the desert, the flies, the smells and other handicaps which go to make up the Egyptian summer in July. Each Sunday a proportion of the men was allowed in Cairo, transport being allotted by the unit. There, at an enhanced rate of exchange the owners of good British currency could buy cotton goods and other shoddy treasures, drink luke-warm beer and ride camels around the pyramids; all, no doubt, to the financial advantage of the Egyptian vendor.
The regimental advance party was represented by Major .J. Lyall---the second in command--- and two other ranks. They sailed in the Empress of Russia round the Cape and reached Port Tewfik, Egypt, on 13th June. The regiment left Tiverton, travelled to Glasgow and sailed on 22nd May in S.S. Duchess of Bedford. The journey was uneventful and similar to the many voyages made round the Cape by troop convoys in the early days of the war. The usual distractions, boxing, cinema shows, lectures and “housy housey” helped to while away the time. After calling at Freetown, Sierra Leone, the convoy stopped for three days at Capetown in the first week of July. Being one of the first convoy’s of British troops to put in at the Cape, the reception was stupendous. Petrol was unrationed and private cars lined up in the streets to carry load after load of troops to road-houses, private houses and other points of interest; and for three days in the words of the French chronicler “the fountains flowed with wine”. The regiment disembarked at Port Tewfik on 17th July. The advance party under Major Lyall had been preparing a camp at Quassessein, and for a month the regiment was initiated into the conditions of the desert, the flies, the smells and other handicaps which go to make up the Egyptian summer in July. Each Sunday a proportion of the men was allowed in Cairo, transport being allotted by the unit. There, at an enhanced rate of exchange the owners of good British currency could buy cotton goods and other shoddy treasures, drink luke-warm beer and ride camels around the pyramids; all, no doubt, to the financial advantage of the Egyptian vendor.
Cyprus
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On 18th August 1941, the regiment embarked at Port Said for Cyprus. Late at night after arrival the regiment entrained and in the grey hour of dawn a locomotive, worthy of Emmet at his best, wound its way out of the suburbs of Famagusta. The sun rose and shone on the unspoiled countryside giving the drowsy men their first glimpse of Cyprian fields. The weather was warm and, compared to the desolate fringe of the desert to which the majority had become accustomed, the olive groves and white farms must have seemed a vision of fairyland. At Nicosia, the regiment detrained, enbussed and rode to the concentration area, a nondescript Greek Village south-west of the capital. Here the regiment took life easily whilst awaiting operational instructions, resting amongst the olive groves, eating the ubiquitous grape and enjoying the amenities of a swimming pool. How life in Cyprus has changed since when Greek and Turk lived together in amnity! Little of the future was foreseen in these smiling surroundings.
The role of the regiment was to protect the island’s aerodromes. A position was prepared for one troop of 293 Battery to fire south but it was never occupied, and the regiment stayed in its concentration area ready to move at short notice. On 20th August, the regiment, less “C” and “E” troops, moved to a large fir plantation which afforded better air cover thanj the previous position. Here they formed, with the 1st Battalion, Sherwood Foresters, and a squadron of the 3rd Hussars, part of a mobile reserve. A reconnaissance was then made of a circular route round Nicosia to enable this mobile reserve to move along the main roads emanating from the capital to Famagusta, Limassol, Troodos, Larnaca and Kyrenia. Captain R.T. Parke was placed in command of the two troops stationed in the static position. These were later relieved by “A” and “D” Troops under the command of Captain W.H. Cheesman. Having completed their gun-pits, they were soon moved to sites nearer their respective aerodromes. Once again gun-pits were prepared and camouflaged with tents, nets and brushwood. The distance between the two troops and the nature of the terrain made extensive and complicated surveys necessary on these aerodrome positions. Meanwhile, training, both individual and collective, continued. That portion of the regiment not directly engaged in aerodrome defence carried out a number of mobile schemes. These afforded an excellent opportunity of seeing the island and observing its way of life. Firing practice took place on an improvised range near Lefkoniko on the Famagusta road. On 31st October, as a culmination to training, the regiment took part in a combined exercise during which concentrations were fired over the heads of the infantry. In the south of the island the Olympus massif rose to a height of 6,000 feet, and less than 1,000 feet from the top nestled the hill town of Troodos shrouded in thick pine forests. In these health-giving surroundings, the Division had set up a rest camp which was largely used by sufferers from sandfly fever during their convalescence. At the end of October, the regiment began to make preparations for the winter, Nissen huts being issued and erected. Suddenly at mid-day on Friday 6th November, the regiment was instructed to hand everything over to the advance party of the 4th Field Regiment of the 5 Indian Division and be prepared to leave Cyprus on the following Monday.
The role of the regiment was to protect the island’s aerodromes. A position was prepared for one troop of 293 Battery to fire south but it was never occupied, and the regiment stayed in its concentration area ready to move at short notice. On 20th August, the regiment, less “C” and “E” troops, moved to a large fir plantation which afforded better air cover thanj the previous position. Here they formed, with the 1st Battalion, Sherwood Foresters, and a squadron of the 3rd Hussars, part of a mobile reserve. A reconnaissance was then made of a circular route round Nicosia to enable this mobile reserve to move along the main roads emanating from the capital to Famagusta, Limassol, Troodos, Larnaca and Kyrenia. Captain R.T. Parke was placed in command of the two troops stationed in the static position. These were later relieved by “A” and “D” Troops under the command of Captain W.H. Cheesman. Having completed their gun-pits, they were soon moved to sites nearer their respective aerodromes. Once again gun-pits were prepared and camouflaged with tents, nets and brushwood. The distance between the two troops and the nature of the terrain made extensive and complicated surveys necessary on these aerodrome positions. Meanwhile, training, both individual and collective, continued. That portion of the regiment not directly engaged in aerodrome defence carried out a number of mobile schemes. These afforded an excellent opportunity of seeing the island and observing its way of life. Firing practice took place on an improvised range near Lefkoniko on the Famagusta road. On 31st October, as a culmination to training, the regiment took part in a combined exercise during which concentrations were fired over the heads of the infantry. In the south of the island the Olympus massif rose to a height of 6,000 feet, and less than 1,000 feet from the top nestled the hill town of Troodos shrouded in thick pine forests. In these health-giving surroundings, the Division had set up a rest camp which was largely used by sufferers from sandfly fever during their convalescence. At the end of October, the regiment began to make preparations for the winter, Nissen huts being issued and erected. Suddenly at mid-day on Friday 6th November, the regiment was instructed to hand everything over to the advance party of the 4th Field Regiment of the 5 Indian Division and be prepared to leave Cyprus on the following Monday.
Movement to Gazala
Israeli,Transjordan desert,Iraq Baghdad Kirkuk, Palestine to Asluj, Cairo Gazala
The regiment had travelled from Kirkuk in Iraq to the front line in Libya, a distance of 1,800 miles. This was at the time the longest continuous march ever made by a Brigade group and proved that vehicle maintenance and personal endurance were of the highest order.
On the night of 9th/10th November embarkation took place and on the following morning the regiment arrived at Haifa in Palestine, thus terminating with abruptness this pleasant dalliance in Britain’s first colonial possession. This small island, set in the blue Mediterranean off the shores of Turkey, where vines and shady pine woods flourish, where age-old customs persist, where colours stand out in startling contrast and where modes of life have remained unchanged, will ever be treasured as a happy interlude in the memory of those who served in the Regiment.
In the early hours of the 14th November a long line of guns and vehicles rolled along the tarmac road from Ez Zib to Mafrak. It was a clear fine day though the morning air was cold. The white buildings, the pestilential alleys, the hutments, the depots and the ragged Arab labourers were soon left behind. The road curled swiftly across the picturesque Palestinian fields and rose over the hills which stood ahead like jagged rock gardens. This is the picture of the Regiment on the march to Mesopotania. The regiment had arrived at Haifa with its bare minimum of kit, uncluttered as yet by trophies of war except for the occasional and inevitable bottle of Cyprian brandy. On arrival at Haifa it took over the equipment of the 8th and 28th Field Regiments and now, as it set out eastwards it carried a large reserve of water, rations and petrol, indispensable stores for a journey into the interior of Iraq. The 50th (Northumbrian) Division (less the 150 Inf. Brigade which had been diverted to the Western Desert), including the 7th Field Regiment, found itself attached to Paiforce in November 1941. This force stood guard at the back entrance to two continents at a time when the fate of both was undecided. As they travelled through the fields of Esdraelon and over the Transjordan desert many must have wondered whether their first engagement in the Middle East would not come from the north rather than in the Western Desert. It was with anticipation and genuine interest that officers and men looked around their garrison land on the dusty road to Baghdad. The first stage of the day’s journey ended at Beisan, a squalid Arab settlement on the lip of the Jordan valley. Then came the long trek down the Jordan escarpment and the even longer trek up the other side to the flat cultivated plain of Transjordan. On 15 November, the regiment leaguered at Mafrak, a small settlement on the Hedjaz railway made famous by Lawrence in The Seven Pillars of Wisdom; then they crossed a flat volcanic plain, the lava surface of which is a mystery to geologists. By the evening, Pumping Station H/4 was reached, an unpretentious cluster of white buildings huddling under the shadow of a wireless mast and a water tower. Travelling in equally unedifying scenery on the 16th, the regiment arrived at Pumping Station H/3 which was so familiar to Pumping Station H/4 that the weary marcher began to wonder whether he were not moving around in a circle. Days and nights were now becoming colder and after leaving Station H/3 the tarmac road ended in a series of sandy tracks all running towards the telegraph poles and the mound which covered the pipe line—the Piccadilly of the caravan routes. On the 17th November, the leaguer area was near Landing Ground No. 5, a deserted airfield on a large dry salt marsh. The march continued through Rutbah Wells and the Habbaniya escarpment. Habbaniya werodrome lay at the foot of this escarpment like an English country garden. The enormous compound was more like a colony than an aerodrome with its sports ground, cinema and clean white buildings watered by the Euphates. Here the regiment halted for one day engaged in eternal maintenance tasks and the patching up of minor damages. On 18th November, a re-union dinner was given in the R.A.F cantonment at Habbaniya by Lieut.-Col R. Atkinson, commanding the 87th Heavy A.A. Regiment, R.A., which had been formed in 1939 and a former C.O. of the 74th Field Regiment R.A., to all the officers who were in his old regiment during the period of his command. Leaving Habbaniya the regiment passed through a blinding sand storm and negotiated the unsavoury odours of Baghdad, in which the smells of unwashed clothing, rotting flesh, stinking alleyways and a century’s accumulation of sewage vied with one another to offend human nostrils. The inhabitants could not be described as friendly as the regiment passed through the home town of the Caliphs, sullenness and indifference rather than active violence marking their mode of welcome. The destination of the regiment was Kirkuk, another oil town, unprepossessing but with a clean settlement of European houses. After a three week’s stay it moved north with the 151st Brigade to Eski Kellek to form a fortified “keep” on the high ground between the two rivers. The weather was now getting cold and frosty with low temperatures at night. Their gun positions prepared, the regiment returned to kirkuk for mobile training, leaving 151st Brigade to guard the two rivers. The regiments’s camp was situated 5 miles north of Kirkuk. Here they dug in and made themselves as comfortable as circumstances would allow. Conditions were most unpleasant; rain or snow fell practically every day and there were no facilities for drying. This life of waiting in a sodden rain-drenched landscape seemed a poor contrast to those who had recently enjoyed the warmth and brightness of a Cyprian summer. Training up to an advanced level took place during these six or seven weeks and it became obvious to all that before long the 50th Division would be used in a more active capacity.
On 7th February, 1942, the regiment set out as part of 151st Brigade group. Major J. Lyall left the regiment on the same day and Major H.E. Collett-White succeeded him as second in command. On the first part of the journey the old ground was re-traversed, Baghdad, Hibbaniya, Landing Ground No. 5, Pumping Stations H/3 and H/4 and Mafrak, where the advance party rejoined the regiment. At Affuleh, on the 9 day of the return march across the desert wastes, the news was broken. The regiment’s destination was the Western Desert. From Affuleh to the Egyptian frontier the regiment made its longest journey of 176 miles in one day down the entire length of Palestine to Asluj, refreshed, however, by the showers of golden oranges poured out by the cheering people. And wasn’t that fruit good? There is nothing to beat a Jaffa orange. At Ismalia on 15th February, 1942, Captain Fawkes received his majority, and was given command of 296 battery. After one day’s rest at Ismalia, the regiment passed through Cairo to Wadi Natrun and followed the coast to Daba. Inter-mingling with coastal motor convoys, for the fall of Benghazi and the retreat to the Gazala Line had strained this remaining artery to the utmost, the slow desert journey unfolded. The 19th February found the regiment at Kilo 96, east of Sidi Barrani; then on to Sollum Hill and across the desert along to Trigh-Capuzzo. At Fort Acroma the column rested for one day. On 24th February, the regiment moved 30 miles forward into the Gazala Line, taking over from the 1st Field Regiment of the 4th Indian Division. In seventeen days, included in which were two days rest, the 151st Brigade Group had travelled from Kirkuk in Iraq to the front line in Libya, a distance of 1,800 miles. This was at the time the longest continuous march ever made by a Brigade group and proved that vehicle maintenance and personal endurance were of the highest order. Indeed, as things turned out it was fortunate that they were.
During the first six months of 1942 the war in the Western Desert was concentrated between Gazala, Bir Hacheim and Tmimi. Driven back from El Ageila in the early months of 1942, the 8th Army retired to a defended line covering the Egyptian Frontier. This line, which had been extensively wired and mined, started on the coast at Gazala, ran due south for seven miles and then fell away to the south-east, ending abruptly at Bir Hacheim. The enemy line started opposite ours, ran parallel to it for some miles, then fell away to the south-west. These two lines formed a rough triangle with two sides converging on an apex at Gazala with an undefined base forty miles south in the centre of the Libyan desert. The British line was defended by a number of permanent brigade “boxes”, each wired in and heavily mined. In between the “boxes” were barbed wire obstacles, dummy and real minefields. The “boxes” were on an average three to five miles in diameter and owing to the length of the line could not be mutually supporting. At the northern end of the line little movement in front of the fortifications and no turning or flanking movement was possible, the southern end, however, resting purely on sand was a paradise for patrols, columns and every conceivable form of armed reconnaissance. Except for measureless miles of desert, the flank was unsupported. The Gazala Line was held by infantry divisions; South Africans in the north, the 50th Division in the centre and a Free French brigade at Bir Hacheim. In the rear, in addition to the armour, several brigades held “boxes”. The 50th (Northumbrian) Division was organized into three brigade “boxes” with 151 Brigade in the north, 69 Brigade in the centre and slightly to the rear and 150 Brigade in the south. The 74th Field Regiment was therefore to the north near the coast.
The 74th Field Regiment supplied sniping sections of two guns and a roaming O.P. in a Bren carrier which cruised about in the heat haze looking for trouble. In addition, troops were supplied in turn by batteries to form “jock” columns (named after the late Brigadier “Jock” Campbell, V.C.). These columns usually had a specific job to do and having completed it spent their remaining time in roaming about the desert seeking information and making themselves generally a thorough nuisance to the enemy. Columns, of course, varied in composition according to the tasks allotted to them. They were in reality squares of vehicles usually under a gunner officer as artillery formed the major portion of the fighting strength. They were very mobile, fast moving, hard hitting and effective against anything the enemy could produces except tanks.
The regiment took part in many of these columns but their exploits must remain unsung except in two which are worthy of note.
These were known by the code names Fullsize and Rosscol.
Fullsize was an operation against the enemy which began on 25th March, 1942. At the time it was imperative that a convoy should be sent to Malta with much-needed supplies. To divert the hostile dive-bombers it was decided to despatch two columns to bombard the enemy’s aerodromes at the same time as the convoy entered the crucial stage of its journey. The southern column was formed from 69 Brigade and the northern from 151 Brigade. The regiment formed part of 151 Brigade column commanded by Lieut.-Colonel Dewing. At 3.0 p.m. on 25th March, the column set out and travelled through the night. At 8.0 p.m. the tanks camouflaged as 3-ton lorries joined the column.
The regiment took part in many of these columns but their exploits must remain unsung except in two which are worthy of note.
These were known by the code names Fullsize and Rosscol.
Fullsize was an operation against the enemy which began on 25th March, 1942. At the time it was imperative that a convoy should be sent to Malta with much-needed supplies. To divert the hostile dive-bombers it was decided to despatch two columns to bombard the enemy’s aerodromes at the same time as the convoy entered the crucial stage of its journey. The southern column was formed from 69 Brigade and the northern from 151 Brigade. The regiment formed part of 151 Brigade column commanded by Lieut.-Colonel Dewing. At 3.0 p.m. on 25th March, the column set out and travelled through the night. At 8.0 p.m. the tanks camouflaged as 3-ton lorries joined the column.
The Durhams were ordered to withdraw from the hill.
The first objective was a small hill called “the Pimple” overlooking the enemy’s position and Tmimi aerodrome at Ras el Aleima. The guns opened fire and shelled Ras el Aleima. A combined infantry and tank attack was then made and about a hundred prisoners were taken. Captain Pickering was the F.O.O. with the infantry and Captain K.H. Parke was at the flank O.P. Immediately the enemy turned his artillery on to our position and by heavy shelling made it untenable. It was impossible to observe Tmimi and the Durhams were ordered to withdraw from the hill. During the afternoon the regiment’s gun positions came under heavy fire and lieutenant Andreae was wounded in the shoulder and evacuated. During the withdrawal “F” troop of 296 Battery was ordered to put in a feint attack against Ras el Aleima. They advanced towards the hill firing outbursts of rapid fire over open sights for three-quarters of an hour. N There was no retaliatory fire. “F” Troop caught up with the remainder of the column at 2.0 a.m. next morning. A “box” was then formed and enemy patrols and outposts were harassed during daylight for five days. It was a week of sand storms and bad visability, but the convoy got through to Malta.
300 Italians stood up and were brought in as prisoners of war.
At the end of April, the Regiment was re-organised into three batteries, each of two Troops. The new battery was designated 452 and Captain W.H Cheesman was promoted Major and assumed command of this battery.
By the beginning of May the Division, including the regiment, had become thoroughly desert-worthy, but the days of the column were numbered. The enemy had closed in to within six miles of the Gazala Line from the coast to Bir Hacheim and no longer could patrols roam at will about the desert between the opposing lines. There remains little more to say about life in the desert. The regiment had attained a self-sufficiency and self-confidence which only an existence exposed to the elements can give. The duller aspects such as vehicle maintenance were no longer regarded as a tiresome fatigue, but were realised to be one of the very essentials of survival. The men began to look upon their vehicles with an affection and pride which had been lavished on their horses in earlier years. The days now were becoming hotter and the lack of water was proving a sore trail. Hostile patrols and air reconnaissances were becoming more and more active. The battle for Egypt was very close. After many rumours of an impending attack, the South African “box” at the northern end of the line was shelled by heavy artillery in the early afternoon of 26th May. The attack turned out to be a bluff. By noon on the 27th there was still no sign of an engagement with 50th Division, but much firing could be heard in the direction of Bir Hacheim. Here the enemy’s main armour had thrust. On the 28th there was some activity outside 151 Brigade “box” where the Italians were making a number of holding attacks. At Stricklands post, the F.O.O. (Captain R.T. Parke) and the infantry commander (Captain Ian English, 8th D.L.I) saw considerable movement some 400 yards from the outpost. Captain Parke, 300 yards from the enemy fired 20 rounds per troop in support at 3,000 yards range, and more than 300 Italians stood up and were brought in as prisoners of war. On another occasion, four enemy tanks and some mechanized transport were destroyed, one colonel and 20 O.R.s being captured. O.P.s roved about and any target that presented itself was engaged. On the 29th, Lieut.-Colonel Dewing returned from H.Q.R.A. with the news that 150 Brigade had shot down General Crewell, Commander of the Afrika Korps.
By the beginning of May the Division, including the regiment, had become thoroughly desert-worthy, but the days of the column were numbered. The enemy had closed in to within six miles of the Gazala Line from the coast to Bir Hacheim and no longer could patrols roam at will about the desert between the opposing lines. There remains little more to say about life in the desert. The regiment had attained a self-sufficiency and self-confidence which only an existence exposed to the elements can give. The duller aspects such as vehicle maintenance were no longer regarded as a tiresome fatigue, but were realised to be one of the very essentials of survival. The men began to look upon their vehicles with an affection and pride which had been lavished on their horses in earlier years. The days now were becoming hotter and the lack of water was proving a sore trail. Hostile patrols and air reconnaissances were becoming more and more active. The battle for Egypt was very close. After many rumours of an impending attack, the South African “box” at the northern end of the line was shelled by heavy artillery in the early afternoon of 26th May. The attack turned out to be a bluff. By noon on the 27th there was still no sign of an engagement with 50th Division, but much firing could be heard in the direction of Bir Hacheim. Here the enemy’s main armour had thrust. On the 28th there was some activity outside 151 Brigade “box” where the Italians were making a number of holding attacks. At Stricklands post, the F.O.O. (Captain R.T. Parke) and the infantry commander (Captain Ian English, 8th D.L.I) saw considerable movement some 400 yards from the outpost. Captain Parke, 300 yards from the enemy fired 20 rounds per troop in support at 3,000 yards range, and more than 300 Italians stood up and were brought in as prisoners of war. On another occasion, four enemy tanks and some mechanized transport were destroyed, one colonel and 20 O.R.s being captured. O.P.s roved about and any target that presented itself was engaged. On the 29th, Lieut.-Colonel Dewing returned from H.Q.R.A. with the news that 150 Brigade had shot down General Crewell, Commander of the Afrika Korps.
By the 1st June, the enemy’s grip was closing on the 150 Brigade, so a column consisting of the 9th D.L.I. with 293 Battery in support was immediately formed to relieve them. It was a forlorn hope doomed from the very start. As the column was forming it was heavily dive-bombed. The regiment’s casualties were 5 killed and 40 wounded. Amongst the killed was Lieutenant P. Williams, the C.P.O of the battery.
The 2nd June was a quiet day for the regiment although attacks against 150 Brigade were increasing in intensity. Their ammunition ran out. Rather than be taken prisoner and rot in prison camps, the men of the brigade fixed bayonets and charged. They made the supreme sacrifice.
If any epitaph could be found worthy enough to fit those pathetic huddled shapes as they lay in the sand, it would, perhaps be those words of Macaulay:--
The 2nd June was a quiet day for the regiment although attacks against 150 Brigade were increasing in intensity. Their ammunition ran out. Rather than be taken prisoner and rot in prison camps, the men of the brigade fixed bayonets and charged. They made the supreme sacrifice.
If any epitaph could be found worthy enough to fit those pathetic huddled shapes as they lay in the sand, it would, perhaps be those words of Macaulay:--
“And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds
For the ashes of his fathers
And the temples of his gods”?
Than facing fearful odds
For the ashes of his fathers
And the temples of his gods”?
The 8th D.L.I. with 296 Battery and the 6th D.L.I. with “E” Troop of 452 Battery kept to the original plan and broke out westwards.
Between 5th and 12th June, the regiment was daily in action, firing in support of one counter-attack after another. During these fateful days many Italians, both officers and men, were taken and their guns and equipment destroyed. The next two days witnessed a tragedy which almost cost us the Nile Delta. The story is well known, how the 8th Army entered the battle with 300 tanks and broke off the engagement with seventy. The Germans by means of a cunning shuttle service between their 15th and 21st Panzer Divisions and a magnificent recovery service always faced the British troops with 150 fresh armoured vehicles. The disparity was now reversed and made greater by guns of heavy calibre and brilliantly co-ordinated tactics. Thus there was nothing to stop the peacemeal dismemberment of the entire allied line. So, on the morning of 13th June, the 8th Army was ordered to retire from the Gazala Line. There were two alternatives before the 50th Division: to await destruction in the Gazala Line or to attack through the Italian lines due west, then travel south and finally turning east, make for the gaps in the frontier wire. The latter was a daring plan, full of hazards and invitations to the imps of misfortune, but all realised that the alternative was hopeless. It would have lead to disaster, pure and simple. The original plan was for the two brigades and their supporting troops to break out westwards. When the time came the 9th D.L.I. with 293 Battery (who formed Percy “box” afterwards transformed into Percy “column”) and “F” Troop of 254 Battery went straight back along the coastal road behind Acroms and El Adem “boxes” which still held south of the coast route. The 8th D.L.I. with 296 Battery and the 6th D.L.I. with “E” Troop of 452 Battery kept to the original plan and broke out westwards. Space precludes any description of the scenes and actions which followed. These have been faithfully recorded by eye-witnesses in the regiment’s War Diary 1939-1945. Suffice to say that grevious afflictions and deeds of heroism occurred during this retreat.
Guns were in action without pause and men were wounded and died.
All acquitted themselves with the greatest gallantrynunder appalling conditions and against overall odds.
All acquitted themselves with the greatest gallantrynunder appalling conditions and against overall odds.
Guns were in action without pause and men were wounded and died. All acquitted themselves with the greatest gallantry under appalling conditions and against overall odds. Gradually parts of the regiment arrived from Bir Thalata inside the frontier wire, but as they staggered through to temporary safety in an exhausted and bewildered state, what of the rest of the Division, 293 Battery and the 9th D.L.I., who had formed up in rear of the remainder of 151 Brigade? Together with “F” Troop 452 Battery they approached the gap in the wire under cover of darkness where their horrified gaze rested on regimental headquarters burning on the skyline. Lieut.-Colonel Percy immediately decided to turn back and leave the line from the rear. “F” Troop and 293 Battery chose to follow him. They went through hell during that journey and the regiment’s losses were very heavy.
During this move, at MRASSAS, Capt. R. Grimstone engaged seven german tanks with his troop, destroying six of them. Manning one gun himself after the layer had been killed, he was himself wounded on the gun, and for this magnificent action he was awarded the D.S.O. Captain J. Irvine separated from “E” Troop, was ordered to join “F” Troop column, and taking a prominent part in this action was awarded the M.C.
During this move, at MRASSAS, Capt. R. Grimstone engaged seven german tanks with his troop, destroying six of them. Manning one gun himself after the layer had been killed, he was himself wounded on the gun, and for this magnificent action he was awarded the D.S.O. Captain J. Irvine separated from “E” Troop, was ordered to join “F” Troop column, and taking a prominent part in this action was awarded the M.C.
“Hell-fire” pass
When “Percy column” finally reached Bir Thalata, “F” Troop had 3 guns, “A” Troop 4 guns, “B” Troop one gun and “E” Troop, the other troop of 452 Battery, 4 guns. 296 Battery, “C” Troop had one gun and “D” Troop, two, making a total of 15 guns for the regiment, nine guns having been lost in the retreat.
At Bir Thalata the 50th Division concentrated and on the 2st June the regiment set out to support three, 69 Brigade columns under the command of Lieut.-Colonel Dewing. 296 Battery, which had been split up , went back to Matruh. Its place was taken by 287 Battery of the 124th Field Regiment, R.A. The three columns were the 6th Green Howards and 452 Battery, the 7th Green Howards and 293 Battery, and the 5th East Yorkshire Regiment and 287 Battery. The last was known as Dawcol after Major Dawson who commanded it. The intention of the operation was to fight a rearguard action to enable the 10th Indian Division to complete the demolition of the coastal pass and “Hell-fire” pass---the Halfaya of the geographer. Dawcol passed through Sofafi, 252 Battery held a buq buq and 293 Battery remained in reserve. Having completed their task, the 10th Indian Division withdrew on 22nd June. The 7th Armoured Division, which was supposed to be holding an area between Tobruk and Halfaya, had moved south. There was nothing between the 69th Brigade column and the enemy but no contact had yet been made. On 23rd June, a report was received that the German columns were moving along the escarpment to the south. Buq Buq was evacuated at noon, and another position was taken up at Sidi Barrani with 293 Battery west of Sidi Barrani, 453 Battery to the south west and Dawcol further south with the O.P.s on the escarpment. Another report came through that the enemy were on the move and had cut the road. After 45 minutes at Kilo 102 the three columns converged on the road at Kilo 44 where the railway joined the coast. The enemy, however, had followed the railway as it swung north and at Kilo 44 293 and 453 batteries and their infantry went into action and broke out towards Mersa Mtruh. Dawcol was heavily bombed and machine gunned by our own fighter Bombers and Spitfires and suffered several fatal casualties, including the destruction of a number of vehicles . Lieut.—Colonel Dewing became commander of 151st Brigade. At Mersa Matruh the three batteries joined the regiment which was once more in support of 151 Brigade. It has been mentioned that 296 Battery was sent back to Matruh. Here four guns were collected and together with some men from 293 Battery and regimental headquarters made up a composite troop officially known as “G” Troop, but unofficially as the Free British. This consisted of Major Fawkes as Battery Commander, Captain R.T. Parke as battery captain, Captain K.H. Parke as troop commander, Lieutenant Grant as C.P.O. Captain Crossley as assistant troop commander and Lieutenant Gregson as G.P.O. The Matruh perimeter was manned and gun pits dug. No firing was carried out from these positions. for very soon the troop moved to Garawla and there fought magnificently.
293rd (1st Durham) Bty: Hebburn-on-Tyne
Attacked, captured and almost annihilated
Attacked, captured and almost annihilated
On 26th June, the Divisinal Commander directed Lieut.-Colonel Jackson of the 8 D.L.I., who was at the time acting Brigade Commander, to site defensive positions for battalions and batteries. The 9th D.L.I. and 293 Battery were placed round the intersection of telegraph posts south of Garawla; the other two battalions and their supporting batteries being placed further north. The gun area had been occupied at night and about 2.0 a.m. small parties of enemy infantry infiltrated through and attacked the gun positions which were barely completed. These attacks, however, were driven off. Then came the main attack. Breaking through the thinly held line to the north, German infantry and tanks of the 90th Light Division swept through and began firing at 293 Battery from the rear. The battery was cut off by this manoeuvre but put up a magnificent fight. It is no exaggeration to say that on the night of 26th-27th June, 293 Battery was attacked, captured and almost annihilated. In “A” troop, Sergeant Thompson’s gun was knocked out, the layer receiving a direct hit and being killed. Sergeant Coombes of “B” sub-section had his gun put out of action. In “C” sub-section, Sergeant Davison’s layer was killed when his gun received a direct hit and the dial sight was blown into his chest. In
“D” sub-section, Sergeant Thomas’s gun was hit. Lieutenant Pitt ran from gun to gun directing the fire. As the tanks closed in and stormed the position, Sergeant Davison’s gun pit was destroyed and Gunner Jolley, a member of his sub-section, had the unique distinction of being run over by a tank and emerging unscathed. With all the guns put out of action , the little party of surviving gunners was soon rounded up, including the Battery Commander, Major J. Duthie. The only officer to escape was F.O.O. Capt. P. A. Hamilton who was with the 8th D.L.I. 293 Battery, or what remained of it was shepherded into a long line of prisoners, and on 27th June was marched with little rest, little food and little water towards Matruh which their German captors thought was in German hands. Too late they discovered their mistake and on arrival the remnants of 293 Battery were freed and sent to a camp twelve miles outside the town, which was in the process of being blown up to prevent stores falling into hostile hands. The scene of destruction was fantastic and might be described as a quartermaster’s nightmare. The few survivors eventually joined 74th Field Regiment near Alamein.
“D” sub-section, Sergeant Thomas’s gun was hit. Lieutenant Pitt ran from gun to gun directing the fire. As the tanks closed in and stormed the position, Sergeant Davison’s gun pit was destroyed and Gunner Jolley, a member of his sub-section, had the unique distinction of being run over by a tank and emerging unscathed. With all the guns put out of action , the little party of surviving gunners was soon rounded up, including the Battery Commander, Major J. Duthie. The only officer to escape was F.O.O. Capt. P. A. Hamilton who was with the 8th D.L.I. 293 Battery, or what remained of it was shepherded into a long line of prisoners, and on 27th June was marched with little rest, little food and little water towards Matruh which their German captors thought was in German hands. Too late they discovered their mistake and on arrival the remnants of 293 Battery were freed and sent to a camp twelve miles outside the town, which was in the process of being blown up to prevent stores falling into hostile hands. The scene of destruction was fantastic and might be described as a quartermaster’s nightmare. The few survivors eventually joined 74th Field Regiment near Alamein.
On arrival at Alamein the regiment had
200 men left out of 600
and four guns remaining out of 24
200 men left out of 600
and four guns remaining out of 24
On the night of 27th/28th June. Two brigade columns were ordered south, but something went wrong and they returned in the morning. Now came the final German break-through to the Alamein Line. To the British troops it was a gruelling experience. Shelled, Hammered and sniped they hung on doggedly and slowly retired under the most terrifying conditions. Eventually, they reached a position of comparative safety behind the Alamein Line. The regiment on its arrival behind the Alamein Line was in a sorry state. For five weeks in the torrid heat of the desert it had fought unceasingly. For three of those weeks it had been engaged in a rearguard action as tough as any in the Desert War. Three times surrounded, cut off from supplies, water and news from home, it managed to escape from trap after trap. Haunted by the their success flares of the fast-moving better equipped German columns, each night the men of the regiment had pushed on only to find that similar flares had outstripped them by the next night. Twice they concentrated, many times they attacked, sometimes supporting the gallant 69 Brigade, sometimes the “faithful Durhams”. At no moment could they see any coherence, any design, any hope or any relief. It might have been a bottle without end. At Mersa Mutrah an entire battery had been lost in addition to the heavy casualties occasioned by the scattered minefields in the confusion of the retreat. In 293 Battery alone, seven guns had been lost and six more went in the final German break-through. On arrival at Alamein the regiment had 200 men left out of 600 and four guns remaining out of 24 but the reserves were massing and, although hidden in the womb of the future, the tide had turned. The line had held the first shock, and the tired rearguard recuperated in the Delta, refitting and reforming. Soon it would return to the line.
Battle of Alamein
Battle of Alam Halfa
Battle of Alam Halfa
The day of retaliation was approaching and the Battle of Alamein was less than four months away.
Having been re-fitted and re-equipped at Mena, close by the Pyramids, the regiment moved into the line on 23rd August. No firing took place and every few days positions were changed. New pits were dug and a great deal of work was put into this task. The regiment was at the southern end of the Munassib depression and remained there till the end of August. On the night of 30th-31st August Rommel struck and the battle of Alam Halfa began. The regiment had previously moved out of the line to rest but in the middle of the night orders were received to go up to the line in view of Rommel’s threat. At this period the regiment had a battery of 124 Field Regiment to complete its complement. Lieut.-Colonel Collett-White was group commander and Major Dawson commanded the regiment. There was considerable congestion as the columns advanced behind 97 Field Regiment (Kent Yeomanry) over the treacherous sand. Three O.P.s, those of Captain Crossley, Captain R.T. Parke and Captain Vanstone, were out. German 88 m/m guns unlimbered and began firing at the 8th Armoured brigade in the north who were counter-attacking. Captain Crossley from his O.P. on Harry’s Hill picked out a particularly officious 88 m/m gun and ranged on it. The results were most gratifying for, in view of our fire, that gun desisted from further shelling. Later in the morning the regiment moved up in support of the 8th Armoured Brigade. As a result of the British counter-attacks Rommel withdrew; his reconnaissance in force having failed. Finally he withdrew still further and pulled out to the end of the Alamein Line again Alam Nayal “box”. On 3rd September, the regiment took over the gun positions near Morton’s Fork (where the telegraph lines diverge), later held by the 1st R.H.A.. On 8th September, the regiment moved into the 44th Divisional “box”. On 10th October, they were heavily engaged when the Queen’s Brigade of the 44th Division attacked without success. The regiment then moved into the 50th Divisional “box” and prior to the battle of Alamein engaged opportunity targets and carried out counter battery work. Captain Hamilton was severely wounded during these preliminaries before the great battle. The epic of Alamein has been told and retold in books, in films and on T.V., particularly by F.M. Viscount Montgomery himself. It was the turning point in the Desert, like Stalingrad, one of the decisive battles of the war. The Germans were badly beaten. They retraced their steps along the coast road never to return. The final phase of their withdrawal spelt the end of German and Italian hopes in North Africa. For Italy it was the awakening from a conquest-dream. The regiment took part in this famous battle but suffered few casualties, six men only being wounded. When the battle was over, however, the regiment as a relaxation went bathing in the sea. Here a fatality took place. Gunner Plumley was drowned notwithstanding the gallant attempt of Lieutenant Constant to save him. It was an ironic death.
On 10th November, the regiment returned to Alamein and bivouacked behind the old line at Deir el Hima. From the capture of 293 Battery till 15th November, the regiment had been reduced to two batteries, though, as stated previously, another battery had been attached to it. On that day, however, 440 Battery from 57th Field Regiment was permanently attached and remained with the regiment during subsequent operations. The regiment then slowly advanced westwards for the next six weeks, stopping at various depressing localities in the scrub and sand. Its time was spent in exercises and on training. On 27th December, the 50th Division was ordered to move to El Agheila to assist in the drive for Tripoli. On 31st, the move began. It was the usual desert march past familiar landmarks now cluttered up with the debris of preceeding battles. On 8th January 1943, when the regiment reached the Esc Sceleidia escarpment, the junction where the road branches north, the original plan was for it to take the southern route to Agedabia. However, at mid-day a conference took place between Lieut.-Colonel Collett-White and Brigadier Beak, commanding 151st Brigade. As a result of this talk, the regiment moved north for news was received that the 50th Division was to be withdrawn for a while and remain in the area of Benghazi. Here they remained—cursing no doubt—till the early spring preparing themselves with strenuous trainng for the great new event in the Desert campaign--
Having been re-fitted and re-equipped at Mena, close by the Pyramids, the regiment moved into the line on 23rd August. No firing took place and every few days positions were changed. New pits were dug and a great deal of work was put into this task. The regiment was at the southern end of the Munassib depression and remained there till the end of August. On the night of 30th-31st August Rommel struck and the battle of Alam Halfa began. The regiment had previously moved out of the line to rest but in the middle of the night orders were received to go up to the line in view of Rommel’s threat. At this period the regiment had a battery of 124 Field Regiment to complete its complement. Lieut.-Colonel Collett-White was group commander and Major Dawson commanded the regiment. There was considerable congestion as the columns advanced behind 97 Field Regiment (Kent Yeomanry) over the treacherous sand. Three O.P.s, those of Captain Crossley, Captain R.T. Parke and Captain Vanstone, were out. German 88 m/m guns unlimbered and began firing at the 8th Armoured brigade in the north who were counter-attacking. Captain Crossley from his O.P. on Harry’s Hill picked out a particularly officious 88 m/m gun and ranged on it. The results were most gratifying for, in view of our fire, that gun desisted from further shelling. Later in the morning the regiment moved up in support of the 8th Armoured Brigade. As a result of the British counter-attacks Rommel withdrew; his reconnaissance in force having failed. Finally he withdrew still further and pulled out to the end of the Alamein Line again Alam Nayal “box”. On 3rd September, the regiment took over the gun positions near Morton’s Fork (where the telegraph lines diverge), later held by the 1st R.H.A.. On 8th September, the regiment moved into the 44th Divisional “box”. On 10th October, they were heavily engaged when the Queen’s Brigade of the 44th Division attacked without success. The regiment then moved into the 50th Divisional “box” and prior to the battle of Alamein engaged opportunity targets and carried out counter battery work. Captain Hamilton was severely wounded during these preliminaries before the great battle. The epic of Alamein has been told and retold in books, in films and on T.V., particularly by F.M. Viscount Montgomery himself. It was the turning point in the Desert, like Stalingrad, one of the decisive battles of the war. The Germans were badly beaten. They retraced their steps along the coast road never to return. The final phase of their withdrawal spelt the end of German and Italian hopes in North Africa. For Italy it was the awakening from a conquest-dream. The regiment took part in this famous battle but suffered few casualties, six men only being wounded. When the battle was over, however, the regiment as a relaxation went bathing in the sea. Here a fatality took place. Gunner Plumley was drowned notwithstanding the gallant attempt of Lieutenant Constant to save him. It was an ironic death.
On 10th November, the regiment returned to Alamein and bivouacked behind the old line at Deir el Hima. From the capture of 293 Battery till 15th November, the regiment had been reduced to two batteries, though, as stated previously, another battery had been attached to it. On that day, however, 440 Battery from 57th Field Regiment was permanently attached and remained with the regiment during subsequent operations. The regiment then slowly advanced westwards for the next six weeks, stopping at various depressing localities in the scrub and sand. Its time was spent in exercises and on training. On 27th December, the 50th Division was ordered to move to El Agheila to assist in the drive for Tripoli. On 31st, the move began. It was the usual desert march past familiar landmarks now cluttered up with the debris of preceeding battles. On 8th January 1943, when the regiment reached the Esc Sceleidia escarpment, the junction where the road branches north, the original plan was for it to take the southern route to Agedabia. However, at mid-day a conference took place between Lieut.-Colonel Collett-White and Brigadier Beak, commanding 151st Brigade. As a result of this talk, the regiment moved north for news was received that the 50th Division was to be withdrawn for a while and remain in the area of Benghazi. Here they remained—cursing no doubt—till the early spring preparing themselves with strenuous trainng for the great new event in the Desert campaign--
The Battle of Mareth
36,000 rounds in a week
The regiment was continuously in action during this fierce fighting.
36,000 rounds in a week
The regiment was continuously in action during this fierce fighting.
On 12th March, the regiment lay in a wood near Zarsis about 20 miles behind the Mareth Line. On 13th March, the regiment moved to another hide-out near the small village of Dor on the coast. On 14th March, final preparations were made to occupy the position for the battle and on the next day the advance party set out to prepare for its occupation, the site having been taken over on the night of 15th/16th March. A heavy bombardment of the enemy’s line took place on the two following nights and on the next day the infantry carried out vigorous aggressive patrolling. The battle was joined on 20th March under a heavy barrage and lasted for about a week. Like Alamein, this battle has often been described. The regiment was continuously in action during this fierce fighting. Altogether it had fired a total of 36,000 rounds in a week and some of the guns had blown their packings. All the ammunition had been man-handled and dug into the ground. There had occasionally been a few minutes sleep before the dawn stand-to but no one had a good night’s rest for ten days and it was a tired regiment to which the O.P parties returned on 23rd March. Considering the stubbornness of the fighting.
The regimental casualties were not heavy and were confined to other ranks--
6 killed, 2 missing and 10 wounded.
The regimental casualties were not heavy and were confined to other ranks--
6 killed, 2 missing and 10 wounded.
On 24 March, the regiment pulled out of the line. It was sent to Arram to support the Guard’s Brigade who during the battle had put in a brave but costly attack along the Medinine-Mareth road. The regiment occupied their positions on the night of 24th/25th March, but no firing by it took place. On 28th March, the regiment was once more supporting the 151st Brigade as preparations for an attack were made. On 29th March, Rommel’s forces, harassed and badly shattered, abandoned the Mareth Line. After Mareth came Akarit and on 7th April came news that the Wadi Akarit had been crossed. The regiment moved near Gabes. On 12th April, even more welcome news came to hand. Rommel was slowly losing all his armour, his troops were everywhere in flight, the 1st and 8th Armies had joined and the 50th Division was proceeding to the Enfidaville Line. The Enfidaville sector consisted of a flat grassy plain which dropped away gently to the foothills of the Zagouan massif. The first gun position was 10,000 yards from Enfidaville, which was in “No Mans Land”. Twenty thousand yards away like a continuous panorama across the horizon, the spotted olive groves rose into the high peaks of Zagouan, and in front of this mountain wall commanding the Enfidaville Plain, as Gibraltar commands the entrance to the Mediterranean, rose Takrouna, a pillar of rock with a fortified village perched awkwardly on its summit. The 17th April was a quiet day for the regiment with little firing except for occasional registration.
Takrouna fell on 21st April
The threat to Egypt, so near at Alamein, was now over.
The main attack was to be made by the 1st Army re-inforced by the 7th Armoured and 4th Indian Divisions. This was to be launched on the Medjez el Bab sector with the object of containing the enemy’s best troops. The first objective of any attack on the Enfidaville sector had naturally to be Takrouna. The 50th Division was in tactical reserve for the opening phases of the battle, but later on the 151st Brigade took over the coastal sector as a flankguard. On the night of the 19th/20th April, the regiment occupied their position without incident, and on the following day as the enemy retired into the hills, the regiment moved forward through the thick long grass into the narrow wadi. Takrouna fell on 21st April, and at noon on that same day battery commanders, returning from a conference summoned by the commanding officers, brought news that the regiment was handing over to 57th Field Regiment and returning with the 50th Division to base. After many months of campaigning, pursuit, excitement and sacrifice the 50th Division was once more baulked of its prey. Turned away from the suburbs of Tripoli, they had found themselves cheated of the “kill”. Time and time again they had carried their burden the hard way and when the end was in sight circumstances rolled them back. So the dreary journey began. It was a dull coastal march enlivened by a break at Tripoli for sightseeing and a days rest at Benghazi. It lasted 20 day’s and covered 1,956 miles. At last the pilgrimage was over and on 11th May the 50th Division, including the regiment, wound its way into the rest camp at Sidi Bishr near Alexandria. Each man was given four days’ leave. The threat to Egypt, so near at Alamein, was now over.
Invasion of Sicily
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On 10th June, the regiment left Sidi Bishr and marched in the mid-day heat to the station with small arms and heavy packs. The journey across the delta was not noticeable for its comfort, six hours of jolting, jerking and stopping was the entertainment offered to the hot, tired and dusty men. The train eventually pulled into Tewfik station and a convoy of 3-ton lorries conveyed the regiment to Ataka camp. The move to Ataka camp was planned for two reasons, security and ”mountaineering” practice up the rocky sandstone hills west of Suez. Lieut.-Colonel G. Marnham now joined the regiment , taking over command in place of Lieut.-Colonel Collette-White who had been evacuated to hospital. On 1st July, the regiment entrained for Suez at 3.0 a.m. and embarked on a troop ship which later passed through the canal and put in at Port Said. She left Port Said on 3rd July and docked at Alexandria where everyone disembarked and proceeded to Ikingi camp. The precaution and the subsequent disinfection which followed it was rendered necessary owing to a case of typhus having developed on board. The patient, a doctor, had died. The regiment stayed at Ikingi camp for some days, but on 8th July embarked once more, the convoy setting sail in the early morning of the following day. At 10.0 a.m. a conference by Lieut.-Colonel G. Marnham was held on board when the object of the expedition--Sicily—was revealed and the plans for its capture outlined. For technical reasons the regiment had been detached from the 151st Brigade for the landing operation. Its place had been taken by S.P. artillery which could clamber ashore and give close support more easily in the initial stages than the more orthodox 25 pdrs. On the 50th Divisional front, the 151st Brigade with the 98th Army Field Regiment in support was to make the inaugural assault. The 69th Brigade with 274 Field Regiment in support was to follow through. The Division’s first objective was a range of hills a few miles inland, which were to be captured and held to guard the flank and rear of the 5th Division which was to land further north and capture Syracuse. “D” Day was to be the 10th July and zero hour 2.45 a.m. on that day.
The regiment was to disembark at Syracuse on 13th July. Syracuse was captured after a successful landing the first day. The transport carrying the regiment was in the first group of ships to enter Syracuse harbour. The scene was tense though peaceful as there had been little resistance at the port. The regiment disembarked and formed up in sections of thirty, 200 yards away from the vessel. When all was ready officers and men marched away through the suburbs of Syracuse into the country beyond which appeared to be devoid of peasantry. After about a mile, the military police turned the leading files into the artillery concentration area--a wood opposite Syracuse cemetery. In the circumstances it was far from being a salubrious spot. The chapel outhouses were being used as mortuaries for air-raid victims and the stench of decaying bodies in the summer heat awaiting final interment was most nauseating. The cemetery itself was similar to those found in southern Spain and along the shores of the Mediterranean. Many coffins, instead of being buried in the earth, were placed lengthwise into vaults in the neighbouring wall, the vaults being sealed by stone slabs recording particulars of the departed. Lack of care, lack of money and age had wrought havoc on these catacombs. Some had fallen into disrepair and others were partially ruined; the slabs had become cracked and the coffins burst open. Rent is paid for these vaults and it is a fact, at least in Spain, that when the rent is in default, the coffins and their contents are pitched out to rot on the ground, so that the vault may be re-let for the obsequies of others whose relatives have a better bank balance. All rather gruesome and unpleasant, especially in the height of summer.
That night came the news of a tragedy. The Timothy Pickering, one of the ships in a M.T. convoy had been dive-bombed and hit whilst waiting outside Syracuse harbour. In addition to ammunition and eight of the regiments guns she was carrying petrol which exploded and set fire to the ship. She shortly became ablaze from bow to stern and the hulk became a fierry furnace in which the unfortunate crew and passengers struggled almost in vain for their lives. Besides the loss of equipment there were many casualties.
Captain J. Bainbridge, Lieutenant D. Cochrane and fourteen O.R.s lost their lives in this disaster.
440 and 452 Batteries each lost a troop of guns and had only a troop left. The former being the senior unit was made up to strength, while the latter became a re-inforcement unit. Major K.H. Parke, Captain J.M.E. Highfield and Lieutenant C.H. bennion went to 124th Field Regiment to replace casualties.
296 Battery, defying the laws of chance, put all their guns together in another ship which arrived safely without incident.
Captain J. Bainbridge, Lieutenant D. Cochrane and fourteen O.R.s lost their lives in this disaster.
440 and 452 Batteries each lost a troop of guns and had only a troop left. The former being the senior unit was made up to strength, while the latter became a re-inforcement unit. Major K.H. Parke, Captain J.M.E. Highfield and Lieutenant C.H. bennion went to 124th Field Regiment to replace casualties.
296 Battery, defying the laws of chance, put all their guns together in another ship which arrived safely without incident.
On the night of 13th July, the regiment remained by the cemetery which to those physically inclined must have seemed haunted in the half grey light. On the 14, the M.T. ships were unloading and the regiment was still waiting in the presence of the dead by the necropolis, which Americans with their apt turn of phrase term “stiffs’ orchard”. By now the battle had moved to Lentini bridge. On the 15 the regiment moved with its vehicles to another hide –out on the Floridia-Lentini road. Here the final marrying up of equipment and personnel took place.
On the night of 16th/1th July, the regiment moved into action in a wood on the slope of a hill 4,000 yards south of Primosole and 12 miles south of Cantania.
The first savage battle of Primosole bridge had now been fought and the 50th Division had won a bridge-head across the river Simeto. On the 18th, the regiment advanced closer to Primosole bridge and here Captain J.T. Riach was wounded. He was evacuated from the island by air.
About this time Lieutenant C.H. Bennion, a member of 452 Battery which had been disbanded, was given command of two Italian 12-inch guns on fixed mountings. The Italians had abandoned these, removed all propellant from the site and double or treble loaded the pieces. By patient work, however, they were made to function again. Not being moveable their position was clearly marked an the enemy’s maps and thus they attracted a great deal of counter-battery fire. Nicknamed Bennionwerfers, they shelled under British guidance quite a number of places in the neighbourhood of Catania. A rear O.P. was established on the hills south of the Simeto river overlooking Primosole bridge. This was permanently manned by a subaltern when the 151st Brigade was in the line. From this O.P. many harassing shots were fired against the store dumps around Bicocca, a large factory near Catania aerodrome, and against all roads leading to the enemy’s lines. During the next few days the Italians were busy evacuating, and shelling only took place intermittently. On 4 August came the orders to move.
The regimental advance parties consisting of 3 C.P.Os went forward under Major Dawson across the Simeto. The battery areas were allotted and each C.P.O. went away to choose his troop areas. During these preparations Lieutenant A.G. Harrison was fatally injured by a mine. There were two positions on the Catania plain but no firing took place.
Each night the enemy’s communications were harassed by artillery fire.
By now the chase was on. From this moment until the capture of the island life for the regiment was just one hectic move after another, dropping into action in the most unlikely places. Everyone was at one minute’s notice to move. Slowly the infantry pressed on over the countryside, through the terraces and vineyards, almost without rest or pause. It was the irresistible thrust of the conqueror. On the 8th, the regiment passed through San Gregorio di Catania in the hills above the town. Each night the enemy’s communications were harassed by artillery fire. On the 10th, Acireale was passed. At night more harassing fire was ordered and once again the enemy’s supply lines were battered. On the 11th, the white dome of Giarre was in sight, and as the front narrowed so the enemy’s resistence stiffened. On the night of the 13th, the regiment fired harassing shoots against the Taormina-Randazzo cross-roads in Fiumefreddo. On 15th August, the 151st Brigade and its supporting troops were squeezed out of the ever narrowing front. The regiment moved into a large farm called Contrada Vignagrande outside Fiumefreddo to rest, recuperate and carry out a large scale post-mortem on its part in the campaign.
On 12th August, Major L.L.V. Fawkes had left the regiment to attend the Middle East Staff College. Captain Wakelin was later given command of 296 Battery.
Orders came through on the 24th August for the 30th Corps Artillery to support a landing in Europe across the Straits of Messina. The regimental advance parties set off on the 25th to prepare for one of the most delightful battles it had the good fortune to fight. Winding through the picturesque mediaeval town of Castiglio under the Rocco Novara and down the wooded slopes to Sparta, the advance parties passed through some of the loveliest scenery. Gun positions were prepared at Ganzirri. It was a bare 3,000 yards across the straits and Calabria hung in the mid-day haze, a mass of white buildings, shady ravines and rounded peaks. During the morning of the 26th the advance party came under shell fire from an 88 m/m gun on the other side of the straits. 74 Field Regiment was given the honour of being the nearest field regiment to the enemy. 296 and 452 Batteries were at Mortelle. 440 Battery was nearer the end of the Cape. Mortelle was a little fishing village, but along the road nearby were some spacious and beautiful residences. Homes of the wealthy in their leisured hours. The first floor balconies of these houses provided ideal places for director operations and the G.P.O, of “B” Troop was quick to take advantage of this fact. Gun pits were dug and sand-bagged and counter-battery programmes were worked out, an O.P. being establish in an old tower on the end of Cape Faro. The regiment’s role was largely the neutralisation of strong points and hostile batteries. Starting at 3.0 a.m. the 30th Corps Artillery burst into action. Echoing over the hills and through the valleys with white flashes leaping and flickering skywards, each neutralisation task rose to its height and died away. Each lasted for about three minutes. At 4.35 a.m., five minutes after zero hour, the assault craft nosed their way on to the beaches of Calabria and the 8th Army landed in Europe three years after the evacuation of Dunkirk. The Sicilian campaign was over.
On 12th August, Major L.L.V. Fawkes had left the regiment to attend the Middle East Staff College. Captain Wakelin was later given command of 296 Battery.
Orders came through on the 24th August for the 30th Corps Artillery to support a landing in Europe across the Straits of Messina. The regimental advance parties set off on the 25th to prepare for one of the most delightful battles it had the good fortune to fight. Winding through the picturesque mediaeval town of Castiglio under the Rocco Novara and down the wooded slopes to Sparta, the advance parties passed through some of the loveliest scenery. Gun positions were prepared at Ganzirri. It was a bare 3,000 yards across the straits and Calabria hung in the mid-day haze, a mass of white buildings, shady ravines and rounded peaks. During the morning of the 26th the advance party came under shell fire from an 88 m/m gun on the other side of the straits. 74 Field Regiment was given the honour of being the nearest field regiment to the enemy. 296 and 452 Batteries were at Mortelle. 440 Battery was nearer the end of the Cape. Mortelle was a little fishing village, but along the road nearby were some spacious and beautiful residences. Homes of the wealthy in their leisured hours. The first floor balconies of these houses provided ideal places for director operations and the G.P.O, of “B” Troop was quick to take advantage of this fact. Gun pits were dug and sand-bagged and counter-battery programmes were worked out, an O.P. being establish in an old tower on the end of Cape Faro. The regiment’s role was largely the neutralisation of strong points and hostile batteries. Starting at 3.0 a.m. the 30th Corps Artillery burst into action. Echoing over the hills and through the valleys with white flashes leaping and flickering skywards, each neutralisation task rose to its height and died away. Each lasted for about three minutes. At 4.35 a.m., five minutes after zero hour, the assault craft nosed their way on to the beaches of Calabria and the 8th Army landed in Europe three years after the evacuation of Dunkirk. The Sicilian campaign was over.
The regiment left Giarre by train and embarked at Augusta in the same vessel, the s.s Duchess of Bedford, which two years previously had brought it to the Middle East.
There is little more to tell. Very soon Captain Crossley, the O.P. officer in the tower on the end of Cape Faro began to engage targets on the Italian mainland and the battle moved on into Italy. The regiment was now cast for the role of Moses. To see but not to enter the Promised Land. Instead they journeyed back to Fiumefreddo along the coastal road through Messina and Taormina. After a few days at Fiumefreddo the regiment moved to Giarre, now very different from the deserted town they had passed through barely three weeks ago. A happy provincial gaiety coupled with an astronomic rise in prices greeted the soldiers everywhere on their return.
Towards the end of September rumours that the 50th Division was returning home caused a flutter of suppressed excitement. Finally the C.R.A. confirmed the rumours in the Riposto Cinema and informed the regiment accordingly. Joy was unbounded. The regiment left Giarre by train and embarked at Augusta in the same vessel, the s.s Duchess of Bedford, which two years previously had brought it to the Middle East. The convoy set sail on 23rd October, 1943, the anniversary of the battle of Alamein. Pantellaria was passed at down next day—Sunday—and a Thanksgiving service was held on the afterdeck that day which was known as Alamein Day at the request of General Montgomery. On the morning of 9th November as the transport slid through the cold morning mist towards the quay in Liverpool, there was a feeling aboard that on certain occasions, and this was one of them, that there was beauty even in foggy England.
The casualties during the Sicilian adventure were:--
Killed 1 officer and 2 O.R.s.
Missing 2 officers and 14 O.R.s (All presumed drowned.)
Wounded 11 O.R.s.
Towards the end of September rumours that the 50th Division was returning home caused a flutter of suppressed excitement. Finally the C.R.A. confirmed the rumours in the Riposto Cinema and informed the regiment accordingly. Joy was unbounded. The regiment left Giarre by train and embarked at Augusta in the same vessel, the s.s Duchess of Bedford, which two years previously had brought it to the Middle East. The convoy set sail on 23rd October, 1943, the anniversary of the battle of Alamein. Pantellaria was passed at down next day—Sunday—and a Thanksgiving service was held on the afterdeck that day which was known as Alamein Day at the request of General Montgomery. On the morning of 9th November as the transport slid through the cold morning mist towards the quay in Liverpool, there was a feeling aboard that on certain occasions, and this was one of them, that there was beauty even in foggy England.
The casualties during the Sicilian adventure were:--
Killed 1 officer and 2 O.R.s.
Missing 2 officers and 14 O.R.s (All presumed drowned.)
Wounded 11 O.R.s.
Return to England
After disembarkation, the 74th Field regiment proceeded to Cambridge where it underwent a thorough re-organization. Whether the officers and men found time to enjoy the beauties of the Backs does not transpire, but as the summer had given way to late autumn, the weather was hardly propitious for the delights of the river. Cambridge like other towns and cities in this country, wore a serious mien after four years of war though the University Arms Hotel still offered hospitality to guests. Re-organization having been completed , the regiment moved to Otterburn for training. This place famous for its battle on 10th August 1388, when the Earl of Douglas was killed and Hotspur taken prisoner, was familiar to the unit owing to their attendance at practice camp there over many years.
The specific training undertaken was for the final phase of the struggle—the landing in Normandy, colloquially known as the Second Front. This combined operation of allied forces in conjunction with a similar landing in Southern France eventually put an end to German fanatical resistance and spelt complete ruin for the Third Reich. The dreams of world conquest conjured up by a madman were, as the result of the next eleven months’ fighting, changed into a nightmare of unconditional surrender following the death of Hitler in his underground headquarters at Berlin. The story of Mulberry, the artificial prefabricated harbour at Arromanches, has become an epic. This achievement, bold in design, unparalleled in structure and wonderful in execution, the like of which had never before been attempted, was essential to provide an anchorage and docking space till some permanent port could be captured, held and used. This was the gang-plank from sea to shore over which the invading troops passed, thus obtaining a bridgehead for consolidation and a springboard for advance into Germany.
The specific training undertaken was for the final phase of the struggle—the landing in Normandy, colloquially known as the Second Front. This combined operation of allied forces in conjunction with a similar landing in Southern France eventually put an end to German fanatical resistance and spelt complete ruin for the Third Reich. The dreams of world conquest conjured up by a madman were, as the result of the next eleven months’ fighting, changed into a nightmare of unconditional surrender following the death of Hitler in his underground headquarters at Berlin. The story of Mulberry, the artificial prefabricated harbour at Arromanches, has become an epic. This achievement, bold in design, unparalleled in structure and wonderful in execution, the like of which had never before been attempted, was essential to provide an anchorage and docking space till some permanent port could be captured, held and used. This was the gang-plank from sea to shore over which the invading troops passed, thus obtaining a bridgehead for consolidation and a springboard for advance into Germany.
D-DAY
North West Europe, 1944 |
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The 5th June 1944, was the day chosen for the initial assault as being the date most suitable for tide and light conditions. However owing to stormy weather a postponement of 24 hours was ordered. On 6th June, the wind was still high and the sea rough, but General Eisenhower decided to accept these conditions rather than delay the operation for another few weeks until tide conditions would again become favourable. “D” Day was therefore 6th June, 1944. For the first phase of the operation the allied plan was to assault immediately north of the Carentan estuary and between that estuary and the river Orne. Having gained a foothold the first objective was to secure a base for further operations. At 11.0 p.m. on 5th June, a heavy air and naval bombardment of the coast defences opened and was continued during the hours of darkness. Four hours prior to the landing, two American airborne divisions were dropped at the base of the Cotentin peninsula, and a British airborne division was dropped on the left to secure the crossing of the Caen canal. At 6.30 a.m. on 6th June, the first waves of infantry and tanks were put ashore and the fight was on.
Duriing April 1944 when preparations for the invasion of France were almost complete, Lieut.-Colonel G.H. Marnham, M.C., R.A., the C.O. of the Regiment, was sent to hospital and his place taken by Lieut.-Colonel H.W. Harris, D.S.O., R.A. The latter officer took the regiment to Normandy.
The regiment, itself, did not land on “D” Day although it had two F.O.O.s, one with 231st Brigade and the other with 151 Brigade. With the latter Captain P.A. Hamiliton was later awarded the M.C. for his outstanding work during the first two days of the invasion.
Duriing April 1944 when preparations for the invasion of France were almost complete, Lieut.-Colonel G.H. Marnham, M.C., R.A., the C.O. of the Regiment, was sent to hospital and his place taken by Lieut.-Colonel H.W. Harris, D.S.O., R.A. The latter officer took the regiment to Normandy.
The regiment, itself, did not land on “D” Day although it had two F.O.O.s, one with 231st Brigade and the other with 151 Brigade. With the latter Captain P.A. Hamiliton was later awarded the M.C. for his outstanding work during the first two days of the invasion.
Most of the regimental personnel landed on 7th and 8th June, their guns and equipment following on 9th June. For the first week the regiment was in action in support of the 231st Brigade in the Hottot sector. Afterwards, the regiment turned to support their old comrades-in-arms—the 151st brigade, and conditions during the next few months did much to foster and increase the mutual respect which the D.L.I. and the 74th Field Regiment had for one another. This was a comradeship which had been built up over the years, starting in pre-war days and continuing throughout the Middle East campaign to the Normandy landing. The men came from the same district, they had interests in common and in many cases knew one another in civilian life. This was the cement which bound the brigade and regiment together, this was the continuum which forged the bond which became a vital factor in the successes of the 151st brigade group in which the regiment were proud to share.
The 74th Field Regiment claims that it has never indulged in spectacular exploits, it has been content to work unceasingly to achieve the gunners’ ambition in action, namely to gain the complete confidence of the infantry which it supports.
The regiment took great pride in the fact that the 151st Brigade had that confidence in its supporting batteries. In fact, the confidence and respect between artilleryman and foot soldier was mutual, for the regiment was never so confident as when it was supporting the 151st Brigade.
The 74th Field Regiment claims that it has never indulged in spectacular exploits, it has been content to work unceasingly to achieve the gunners’ ambition in action, namely to gain the complete confidence of the infantry which it supports.
The regiment took great pride in the fact that the 151st Brigade had that confidence in its supporting batteries. In fact, the confidence and respect between artilleryman and foot soldier was mutual, for the regiment was never so confident as when it was supporting the 151st Brigade.
The regiment reached Brussels on 4th September in time to take part in the joyous liberation of that magnificent city
The next phase of the operations may be described as a pursuit on a colossal scale. The defeated German armies were everywhere streaming across France and Belgium in an endeavour to reach the shelter of the Siegfried Line inside the frontiers of Germany. The 9th August found the regiment at Mount Pincon giving support to the D.L.I. attack through Plessis Grimault toward Conde. The shell-shocked condition of many of the prisoners bore witness to the weight and accuracy of the British fire which undoubtedly saved the infantry a good deal of trouble and many casualties. The regiments O.P. parties did not escape unscathed from the retaliation which was meted out when they reached their objectives.
The pursuit took the regiment through Argentan and Amiens up to the south-east of Lille where the 151st Brigade with their support did some “mopping-up” in an area well known from 1940. The Germans had good O.P.s for they quickly found some of our troop positions.
The regiment reached Brussels on 4th September in time to take part in the joyous liberation of that magnificent city, where no doubt memories of Napoleon and of the first World War lingered.
The pursuit took the regiment through Argentan and Amiens up to the south-east of Lille where the 151st Brigade with their support did some “mopping-up” in an area well known from 1940. The Germans had good O.P.s for they quickly found some of our troop positions.
The regiment reached Brussels on 4th September in time to take part in the joyous liberation of that magnificent city, where no doubt memories of Napoleon and of the first World War lingered.
“there was a sound of revelry by night,
And Belgium’s capital had gather’d then
Her beauty and her chivalry, and bright
The lamps shone o’er fair women and brave men.
A thousand hearts beat happily; and when
Music arose with its voluptuous swell,
Soft eyes look’d love to eyes which spake again,
And all went merry as a marriage bell.
But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell!”
And Belgium’s capital had gather’d then
Her beauty and her chivalry, and bright
The lamps shone o’er fair women and brave men.
A thousand hearts beat happily; and when
Music arose with its voluptuous swell,
Soft eyes look’d love to eyes which spake again,
And all went merry as a marriage bell.
But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell!”
The regiment hoped to have a rest in Brussels. Such a rest had often been promised but had never materialised; event crowded on event too swiftly for dalliance. On 7th September, General Patton’s 3rd Army had made contact at Dijon with the 7th Army coming up the Rhone valley. On 6th September, the 74th Field Regiment left the city of enchantment to continue their drive eastwards.
BATTLE OF GHEEL
(10,505 rounds were fired in support of the D.L.I)
More Information
205 (3rd Durham Volunteer Artillery) Royal Artillery (GHEEL TROOP)
The outstanding battle of the campaign for the regiment was probably the battle of Gheel at Albert Canal on 10th September. In this struggle, which continued without pause for four days and nights, the regiment had, in addition to its three B.C.s, no fewer than seven O.P.s deployed and 10,505 rounds were fired in support of the D.L.I. Much Confused fighting took place, companies being cut off completely and even battalion and brigade headquarters had tanks on their doorsteps. Lieut.-Colonel Harri’s experience an ability stood out even more than usual in this battle. The regiment prides itself that it played no small part in maintaining the bridgehead against determined counter-attacks launched by picked detachments of enemy troops. It was the first real occasion in the Normandy campaign when the O.P.s could really get good observation and it is a tribute to their training and ability that they seized every advantage offered to smash up hostile attacks often under very heavy shell fire.
Arnhem
In order to open up the line of advance to the north German plains and to turn the flank of the Siegfried Line, the British Army attempted to cross the Meuse and lower Rhine so as to get into a suitable position to threaten the northern side of the Ruhr. To this end, the largest airborne operation of the war was carried out on 17th and 18th September. Two American airborne Divisions and one British airborne division were dropped near Arnhem by 2,800 aircraft and 1,600 gliders. The British 2nd Army attacked and made contact with the airborne troops, but the operation was only partially successful. On 20th September at the Escaut Canal, the regiment took part in the opening stages of the Guard’s Armoured Division’s greatest drive northward to link up with the 1st Airborne Division at Arnhem, but on 25th September the Arnhem bridgehead was withdrawn through the river crossings at Grave and Nymegen were retained. The regiment followed close behind the Guards and crossed at Nymegen into the “island” (the area between Nymegen and Arnhem) on 29 September. It eventually left that place in April, 1945 so its sojourn there was much more protected than its personnel ever thought likely.
The Bemmel sector was next encountered when the D.L.I. were ordered to clear the ground right up to the Wettering canal. The regimental O.P.s had some very successful shooting in this area until the enemy, eventually realising the position, presented fewer targets day by day. Deadly experience had taught him to lie low during the hours of daylight unless he wished to receive a bumper present of British shells. The area from Elst to Bemmel was completely covered by observation.
The Bemmel sector was next encountered when the D.L.I. were ordered to clear the ground right up to the Wettering canal. The regimental O.P.s had some very successful shooting in this area until the enemy, eventually realising the position, presented fewer targets day by day. Deadly experience had taught him to lie low during the hours of daylight unless he wished to receive a bumper present of British shells. The area from Elst to Bemmel was completely covered by observation.
Towards the end of November news was received that the 50th Division would be returning to England to become a training division, but that the 74th Field Regiment was to remain on the continent to carry on the fight with the 49th Division. This was a great disappointment to the regiment, to say the least of it. It was hard when victory was so close to say good-bye to the three battalions of the D.L.I. which had shared its hopes, triumphs and fears since the beginning of the war in many countries and in all climates. Such partings , however, occur and must be accepted with good grace and cheerfulness. Nonetheless, it was a sad farewell.
The 49th Division took over the island positions from 50th Division. The regiment joined 49th Division on 1st December and 74th Field Regiment supported the 56th Brigade. With them, many parts of the island were visited and a happy team was quickly established. It was in a brigade attack on the village of Zellen that the 74th Field regiment was able to give its best support, an operation which accounted for 700 enemy casualties. The guns drove many paratroopers to shelter in the castle and these were eventually captured by a bold attack of the South Wales Borderers. The rest of the winter was spent in various places around the island till on 1st April the regiment moved to the east of Arnheim to support the 56th Brigade in their assault on that town. The division, in this attack, avenged to some extent the 1st Airborne Division which had fought there so gallantly six months earlier. It was on the second day of this attack that a peculiar but unpleasant incident happened to 452 Battery. The sentry outside the battery command post observed a 3-ton lorry approaching him with smoke and flames issuing from its camouflage net. The sentry naturally signalled the driver to stop. The latter did, took one look and fled, shouting that his lorry was loaded with mortar bombs and S.A.A. the resulting explosion “neutralised” the battery command post, rendered a gun position untenable by exploding 4.2 H.E. bombs and burnt down a troop command post 300 yards away through the activity of a phosphor bomb.
The Grebbe Line next engaged the regiments attention, but targets in this area were few and far between; for the pursuit had developed into a rout.
The Grebbe Line next engaged the regiments attention, but targets in this area were few and far between; for the pursuit had developed into a rout.
It now only remained for the allies to deliver the coup de grace and this was accomplished in six weeks. Althought he Germans had not yet been vanquished they were getting weaker and weaker and were becoming increasingly demoralised. The crossing of the Rhine began on 23rd March and by 28th March the advance to the Elbe had commenced. The whole line of the allied armies now moved swiftly towards the heart of Germany, the pace often averaging 20 or 30 miles a day. Enemy resistance was no longer organised though stiff fighting still took place at isolated points. Their transport system hammered by allied air forces, fell into chaos and vast numbers of prisoners fell into our hands. Contact was established with the Russian forces during the first week in May. The net had been drawn tight and the draught of human fishes was enormous. At this point the whole German system collapsed and on 7th May, 1945, the German government, or what remained of it, surrendered to the allies at Rheims the shattered remnants of its once powerful land, sea and air forces.
The 74th Field Regiment after celebrating VE Day, remained in the Army of Occupation and (as the last unit of 50 Division) was disbanded 3rd January 1947. Lt.Col. R. Elliot the C.O. sending back to Bolingbroke street, all the Regimental funds and property, for the benefit of the old Regiment under its new number, 274.
The 74th Field Regiment after celebrating VE Day, remained in the Army of Occupation and (as the last unit of 50 Division) was disbanded 3rd January 1947. Lt.Col. R. Elliot the C.O. sending back to Bolingbroke street, all the Regimental funds and property, for the benefit of the old Regiment under its new number, 274.
Foreword
I am very grateful to those who have written this history of 100 Years and for the honour they have paid me in asking me to write this foreword.My family has been associated with the Regiment throughout the century and I have held a commission for 60 years since 7th March 1900. It is a record of the past service of many who voluntarily have given their time to prepare themselves in peace time for war. It records the service of the Regiment through the two Wars of 1914-18 and 1939-45 when so many officers and men served with distinction and many laid down their lives. It is a tribute to all who have served in the Regiment and an encouragement to all who are now serving or may serve in the future. The Regiment was never stronger in numbers nor more efficient than it is today. The story it tells will inspire future generations of Shieldsmen to follow in the steps of their fathers and be Always Ready and prepared to defend this old country of ours.
God bless all who are now serving and who may serve in the future.
Robert Chapman
10th October 1960
God bless all who are now serving and who may serve in the future.
Robert Chapman
10th October 1960
Later Sir Robert Chapman, 1st Baronet CB, CMG, CBE, DSO, OStJ, TD, JP, DL