172nd Field Regiment, Royal Artillery
3rd & 5th Defence Regiments, RA 172nd Field Regiment, RA | |
---|---|
Active | 4 October 1940 – 7 November 1945 |
Country | United Kingdom |
Branch | British Army |
Role | Field artillery |
Size | 3 Batteries |
Part of | 46th Infantry Division |
Engagements | Sidi Nisr Operation Avalanche Gothic Line Lamone crossing |
The 172nd Field Regiment was a unit of Britain's Royal Artillery (RA) during World War II. Originally formed to man beach defence batteries in Kent and Sussex, it was later converted to field artillery. It served in the Tunisian campaign, where one of its batteries was overrun and destroyed after an epic defence at Sidi Nisr. It took part in the Salerno landings and fought its way up the Italian peninsula, including the bitter fighting for the Gothic Line and the crossing of the Lamone. The regiment spent early 1945 on security duties in Greece, and ended the war in Austria. It was disbanded after the war.
3rd and 5th Defence Regiments
After the British Expeditionary Force was evacuated from Dunkirk and the United Kingdom was threatened with invasion, a crash programme of installing coastal artillery batteries was implemented in the summer of 1940.[1][2][3]
Later, as the Home Defence strategy developed, the Royal Artillery formed a number of 'Defence Batteries' to deploy around the coastline for general beach defence. These were not part of the RA's Coast Artillery branch, nor were they included in the field forces under Commander-in-Chief, Home Forces, but equipped with whatever old guns were available they freed up scarce field artillery from static beach defence for the mobile counter-attack forces. Most of these batteries were formed on 1 September 1940, and they were grouped into regiments from 4 October.[3][4][5][6]
- 3rd Defence Regiment was formed at Horsmonden in Kent, with 911, 912, 913 and 914 Defence Batteries. On 15 March 1941 911 Defence Bty was disbanded.
- 5th Defence Regiment was formed at Steyning in West Sussex, with 917, 918, and 919 Defence Batteries. On 15 March 1941 919 Defence Bty was disbanded.
172nd Field Regiment
By the beginning of 1942 the imminent threat of invasion had passed, the coast artillery batteries were fully established, and the RA required gunners for the field forces. The remaining Defence Regiments in the UK were disbanded or converted into field artillery. On 12 January 1942 3rd Defence Rgt at Hastings was converted into 172nd Field Regiment, and 912, 913 and 914 Defence Btys were designated A, B and C Btys. At the same time 5th Defence Rgt and its two remaining batteries were disbanded and their personnel posted to 172nd Field Rgt. A, B and C Btys were redesignated P, Q and R on 11 March.[5][6][7][8] At this period the establishment of a field regiment was three batteries, each of two troops of four 25-pounder guns.[9]
On 11 May 1942 the regiment was assigned to 46th Infantry Division. At the time the division was training with XII Corps in South-East England. However, in August 1942 it was transferred to First Army, which was preparing for the Allied landings in North Africa (Operation Torch).[8][10][11]
On 1 January 1943 the regiment's batteries were numbered as 153, 154 and 155 Field Btys.[7][12][a]
Tunisia
The Torch landings began on 8 November 1942, and First Army's units and formations were progressively fed into the fighting. 46th Division's
By 13.00, 30 German tanks,
The defence of Sidi Nsir gained 128th Bde time to prepare what the Official History called 'a hot reception' for Lang at Hunt's Gap. It had support from 72 25-pdrs (153 and 154 Field Btys of 172nd Field Rgt, the whole of 71st Field Rgt, and a battery of
After
Salerno
46th Division was assigned to Force 141 (later
46th Division fought its way through the high ground north of Salerno, and then the armour drove across the Plain of Naples to the city itself on 1 October.
Palestine
In early 1944 Allied Armies in Italy (AAI) instituted a procedure of shipping exhausted British formations (without their equipment) to Middle East Command for rest and retraining. The first of these was 46th Division, which embarked on 16 March, arriving in Egypt on 22 March and moving up into Palestine at the end of the month. Rested and reinforced, the division retraced its journey in June, landing back in Italy on 3 July and taking over 5th Division's guns and vehicles.[8][11][29][30]
Gothic Line
On its return 46th Division joined Eighth Army on the east side of Italy to take part in breaching the
Eighth Army continued its advance to the
Greece
46th Division was now exhausted from the winter fighting and was withdrawn from the front, but it had been earmarked for service in Greece. Greece had been liberated in October 1944, but in December the former partisans of the
Austria
46th Division began sailing back to Italy in early April, its last troops leaving Greece by the middle of the month.[8][11][35] Fighting in Italy ended on 2 May with the Surrender of Caserta. V Corps was sent into Austria for occupation duties, and 46th Division was concentrated to take part in this operation. It crossed into Austria on 12 May and remained there on occupation duties for the rest of its service.[8][11][36]
172nd Field Regiment and its batteries were disbanded on 7 November 1945.[5][7][8]
Footnotes
- ^ Previous batteries with these numbers had existed in the Royal Field Artillery between 1917 and 1920.[13]
- ^ After the action at Sidi Nsir, the CO of 172nd Field Rgt had an unofficial commemorative badge made locally. Worn either above the right breast pocket or on the right arm beneath the divisional badge it consisted of a red shield on which a silver sword pierces a German tank, with the word 'BEJA' above.[19]
Notes
- ^ Farndale, Annex B.
- ^ Maurice-Jones, pp. 227–32.
- ^ a b Collier, Chapter VIII.
- ^ Farndale, p. 103.
- ^ a b c Farndale, Annex M.
- ^ a b Frederick, pp. 931–3.
- ^ a b c Frederick, p. 538.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 172nd Field Rgt at RA 1939–45
- ^ Farndale, p. 99.
- ^ Collier, Map 27.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Joslen, pp. 75–6.
- ^ Frederick, p. 486.
- ^ Frederick, pp. 486, 499.
- ^ Playfair & Molony, Vol IV, p. 284.
- ^ a b Lewin, p. 177.
- ^ a b Perrett, pp. 134–136.
- ^ a b c Playfair & Molony, Vol IV, pp. 326–8, Map 33.
- ^ a b Rolf, pp. 152–4.
- ^ 172 Field Rgt badge at RA 1939–45.
- ^ Playfair & Molony, Vol IV, pp. 379–82.
- ^ Playfair & Molony, Vol IV, pp. 389, 434–6, 440–1, 448–57.
- ^ Molony, Vol V, pp. 7–8.
- ^ Molony, Vol V, pp. 278–80, 284–7, 292, 318, 324–5.
- ^ 142nd (RDY) Field Rgt at RA 1939–45.
- ^ Molony, Vol V, pp. 337–44.
- ^ Molony, Vol V, pp. 438, 443–6, 450.
- ^ Molony, Vol V, pp. 616–7.
- ^ Molony, Vol V, pp. 634–6.
- ^ Molony, Vol VI, Pt I, pp. 13, 448–9.
- ^ Jackson, Vol VI, Pt II, p. 231.
- ^ Jackson, Vol VI, Pt II, pp. 128–30, 225, 238, 243–4, 249–51, 266–9, 277–80, 288–96.
- ^ Jackson, Vol VI, Pt II, pp. 352–4, 400, 406–7, 409, 427, 432.
- ^ Jackson, Vol III, pp. 37–53, 115–20.
- ^ Jackson, Vol III, pp. 26, 77–9, 84–5, 107, 164–5, 171.
- ^ Jackson, Vol III, p. 171.
- ^ Jackson, Vol III, pp. 340, 348.
References
- OCLC 499176250.
- Gen Sir Martin Farndale, History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: The Years of Defeat: Europe and North Africa, 1939–1941, Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1988/London: Brasseys, 1996, ISBN 1-85753-080-2.
- J.B.M. Frederick, Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978, Vol I, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, ISBN 1-85117-007-3.
- J.B.M. Frederick, Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978, Vol II, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, ISBN 1-85117-009-X.
- Gen Sir William Jackson, History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Mediterranean and Middle East, Vol VI: Victory in the Mediterranean, Part I|: June to October 1944, London: HM Stationery Office, 1987/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004, ISBN 1-845740-71-8.
- Gen Sir William Jackson, History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Mediterranean and Middle East, Vol VI: Victory in the Mediterranean, Part I|I: November 1944 to May 1945, London: HM Stationery Office, 1988/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004, ISBN 1-845740-72-6.
- Lt-Col H.F. Joslen, Orders of Battle, United Kingdom and Colonial Formations and Units in the Second World War, 1939–1945, London: HM Stationery Office, 1960/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2003, ISBN 1-843424-74-6.
- Ronald Lewin, The War on Land: 1939–45, New York: Random House, 2012, ISBN 978-1-44810-412-3.
- Col K. W. Maurice-Jones, The History of Coast Artillery in the British Army, London: Royal Artillery Institution, 1959/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2005, ISBN 978-1-845740-31-3.
- Brig C.J.C. Molony, History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Mediterranean and Middle East, Vol V: The Campaign in Sicily 1943 and the Campaign in Italy 3rd September 1943 to 31st March 1944, London: HM Stationery Office, 1973/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004, ISBN 1-845740-69-6.
- Brig C.J.C. Molony, History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Mediterranean and Middle East, Vol VI: Victory in the Mediterranean, Part I: 1st April to 4th June 1944, London: HM Stationery Office, 1987/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004, ISBN 1-845740-70-X.
- Bryan Perrett, Last Stand: Famous Battles against The Odds, London: Hachette, 2012, ISBN 978-1-78022-526-5.
- Maj-Gen I.S.O. Playfair& Brig C.J.C. Molony, History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Mediterranean and Middle East, Vol IV: The Destruction of the Axis forces in Africa, London: HM Stationery Office, 1966/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004, ISBN 1-845740-68-8.
- David Rolf, The Bloody Road to Tunis: Destruction of the Axis Forces in North Africa, November 1942–May 1943, London: Greenhill Books, 2002, ISBN 978-1-85367-445-7.