2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion (Australia)
2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion | |
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Active | 1940–1946 |
Country | Australia |
Branch | Australian Army |
Type | Infantry |
Role | Direct fire support |
Size | ~800–900 personnel |
Part of | 7th Division 6th Division |
Engagements | World War II
|
Commanders | |
Notable commanders |
The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was formed in June 1940 as part of the
Following Japan's entry into the war, the decision was made to transfer a large number of Australian troops from the Middle East to the Pacific region. In early 1942, as the Japanese advanced through the Netherlands East Indies, the majority of the battalion was captured during the Battle of Java. A small number of the battalion's personnel returned to Australia and it was subsequently re-raised in mid-1942. It was later attached to the 6th Division as a corps unit and served in Papua New Guinea during the Aitape–Wewak campaign in 1944–1945. The battalion was disbanded in January 1946.
History
Formation and training
The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion
Developed by the British Army, the concept within the Australian Army had its genesis during the
The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was formed on 17 June 1940, in
Initially, the battalion was stretched across several locations, with companies being formed in
Fighting against the Vichy French: Palestine and Syria
In early April 1941, the battalion, less 'D' Company which travelled west for home leave, entrained at Oakbank, near to
Upon arrival in the Middle East, the 2/3rd was assigned to the
In the end, this did not eventuate, as the 7th Division was committed to the Syria–Lebanon campaign in early June, to secure the Allied eastern flank from attack. Due to the presence of Vichy French troops, the campaign was politically sensitive and as a result of heavy censorship not widely reported in Australia at the time; the nature of the fighting, where it was reported, was also downplayed with the Vichy Forces outnumbering the Allies and also being better equipped.[18][19] For the 2/3rd, the campaign saw them heavily involved throughout the short, but sharply contested campaign, with each of the four machine gun companies supporting separate efforts by elements of the 7th Division and also British troops, seeing action around Merdajayoun, Metula, Quneitra, Sidon and Damour before the Vichy French requested an armistice in mid-July.[7][20] The 2/3rd's casualties during the campaign amounted to one officer and 41 other ranks killed or wounded.[21] In the aftermath of the campaign, the 2/3rd stayed on as part of the Allied occupation force established in Syria and Lebanon to defend against a possible drive south by Axis forces through the Caucasus. The battalion defended a position north-east of Beirut, around Bikfaya, initially but was moved around to various locations including Aleppo, on the Turkish border, throughout the remainder of 1941. They endured a bitter cold, and snowy, winter at Fih near Tripoli, which was punctuated by leave drafts to Tel Aviv.[22]
Into action against the Japanese: Java and captivity
In late 1941, the Japanese entered the war,
The Orcades, a fast transport capable of 26 knots, set sail for Colombo before even the battalion's baggage could be brought on board. On 8 February 1942, the ship reached its intermediate destination from where it was escorted by the cruiser
Blackburn established his force into a brigade formation, utilising the pioneers and machine gunners as infantry battalions, and forming a third infantry battalion from troops that were assigned to garrison the base, as well as logistics and administrative personnel, and members of the AIF who had been able to get out of Singapore before it fell.
Following the
Re-organisation and garrison duties in Australia
While the troops who had boarded the Orcades went into captivity on Java, the five officers and 257 other ranks that had been transported on the eight smaller ships returned to Australia in the last week of March 1942. Arriving at Port Adelaide, the battalion's vehicles, weapons and heavy equipment was moved to Morphettville Racecourse and the remaining personnel concentrated at Sandy Creek. On 15 April 1942, the order was passed to re-form the battalion, under Lieutenant Colonel Sidney Reed, the battalion's original second-in-command. Reinforcements arrived from various locations, including the Machine Gun Training Battalion based at Camden, New South Wales, while others came from the 2/1st Machine Gun Battalion to provide a cadre of experienced personnel.[36][37]
In May, the battalion moved to Balcombe on the
While 'B' Company was deployed to Merauke, the remainder of the battalion moved to the
Aitape–Wewak: The final campaign
Although it had been intended to deploy the Australians as part of the Allied efforts to recapture the Philippines, this did not eventuate.
With priority of effort being given to the campaigns in the Philippines and Borneo, the arrival of the 6th Division took place over several months. Initially, they were camped around Tadji defending the airfield there, but after Christmas, the majority of the battalion – headquarters, headquarters company and two machine gun companies – was assigned to the 19th Brigade as they advanced west along the coast towards the Danmap, switching to providing support to the 16th Brigade in early January as it drove towards Abau; in the open country of the coastal area the machine guns proved quite effective.[50] While this took place, 'B' and 'D' Companies were assigned to the 17th Brigade, with whom they undertook a mainly defensive role around Aitape, while accompanying infantry patrols into the interior.[51]
In February 1945, as the Australians began advancing into the thick, hilly interior, the utility of the machine guns decreased. At the behest of Brigadier Roy King, commander of the 16th Brigade, the 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was hastily converted into a standard infantry battalion, which was achieved with a quick issue of rifles, sub-machine guns and mortars.[52] From then until the end of the war, the battalion took part in the ground advance through Wewak and beyond, fighting a series of small scale patrol actions, initially advancing through Arohemi and Muguluwela, and finally the town of But, while 'B' Company was assigned to Farida Force and carried out an amphibious landing around Dove Bay, in early May.[7] The battalion later moved into the Mandi and Brandi areas where they were tasked with re-invigorating the Australian operations in the area, as Japanese resistance around the plantations increased. By late July, the majority of the battalion moved to Wewak Point, while two companies remained in the vicinity of Mandi–Bandi; operations in the area had killed 59 Japanese, for the loss of four men from 2/3rd killed in action and eight wounded. The battalion's final action of the war came on 7 August when a patrol killed four Japanese. A week later, the Japanese surrender was announced, bringing combat operations officially to an end.[53] The battalion's final campaign of the war cost them 94 battle casualties.[54]
Disbandment
In late August, following the conclusion of hostilities the 2/3rd was concentrated at Wewak Point, in the 19th Brigade's area, where final parades were held and education classes commenced to prepare the soldiers for discharge and return to civilian life. Meanwhile, following the conclusion of hostilities, the battalion's personnel were slowly transferred to other units or repatriated back to Australia for
After the war, the Australian Army moved away from the machine gun battalion construct and consequently no similar units have been raised since, with the role being subsumed into the support companies of individual infantry battalions.[2] The concept was arguably misunderstood by Australian commanders throughout the war, and this may have influenced the decision to move away from the concept. When the units had been established, the intent had been that the machine gun battalions would provide highly mobile fire support;[57] however, this was largely only applicable in theatres where principles of open warfare could be applied.[58] Once the focus of Australian Army combat operations shifted to the Pacific, the machine gun battalions were largely misused, being employed in a static defensive capacity against short and medium range targets, or for menial tasks, rather than as offensive fire support weapons that could have been employed to provide long range fire support. The medium machine guns were also largely utilised in the same manner as light machine guns, such as the Bren. Other reasons identified for the concept's limited use include distrust of overhead fire by some commanders, a preference for organic fire support over attached sub-units, over-estimating the difficulty of transporting Vickers guns in the jungle, and a tendency to ignore targets that could not be seen.[57] The difficulties of target acquisition in dense jungle also contributed.[59] For the 2/3rd, the Syrian campaign was the only one of its three campaigns where it was employed wholly as a machine gun unit in support of the infantry; on Java and in Aitape–Wewak, it was utilised as infantry.[60]
Battle honours
The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion received the following battle honours:[7]
- Anumb River, But–Dagua, Damour, Jebel Mazar, Jezzine, Nambut Ridge, Sidon, and Syria 1941.
Commanding officers
The following officers commanded the 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion during the war:[7][61]
- Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Blackburn (1940–1942)
- Lieutenant Colonel Edward Lyneham (1942)
- Lieutenant Colonel Sidney Reed (1942–1944)
- Lieutenant Colonel Roy Gordon (1944–1945)
Of these, both Blackburn and Reed were World War I veterans who had later served in the Militia in the 18th Light Horse Regiment, in South Australia, during the inter-war years. Lyneham and Gordon had both served in the Militia before the war, with Lyneham serving in the 28th Battalion, The Swan Regiment in Western Australia and Gordon in the 6th Battalion, Royal Melbourne Regiment. Gordon later reached the rank of major general.[61]
Notes
- Footnotes
- ^ The numerical designation of 2nd AIF units was prefixed by "2/", which was used to set them apart from Militia units or units of the First Australian Imperial Force, which did not use a prefix.[1]
- Citations
- ^ Long 1952, p. 51.
- ^ a b Dennis et al 1995, p. 372.
- ^ Hocking 1997, pp. 2 & 26.
- ^ a b Dennis et al 1995, pp. 371–372.
- ^ a b Bellair 1987, p. 288.
- ^ Dennis et al 1995, p. 371.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Australian War Memorial.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 1–3.
- ^ Long 1952, pp. 321–323.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 3–18.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 3–19.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 287.
- ^ Faulkner 2008, p. 184.
- ^ Kuring 2004, pp. 206–207.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 26.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 28–36.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 35–39.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 36–39.
- ^ Brune 2004, p. 48.
- ^ James 2017, p. 195.
- ^ Long 1953, p. 526.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 67–81.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 82–87.
- ^ Wigmore 1957, pp. 454–455.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 89.
- ^ Wigmore 1957, p. 495.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 89–90.
- ^ Wigmore 1957, p. 496.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 93.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 163.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 91–95.
- ^ Wigmore 1957, p. 500.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 101.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 96–104.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 103–149.
- ^ Bellair 1987, Dustcover.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 161–163.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 179–185.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 186–192.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 185.
- ^ Johnston 2008, p. 219.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 263.
- ^ Keogh 1965, pp. 393–400.
- ^ Palazzo 2004, pp. 86–101.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 206.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 207.
- ^ Keogh 1965, p. 397.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 208.
- ^ Keogh 1965, pp. 398–408.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 223.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 209–220.
- ^ Long 1963, pp. 311–312.
- ^ Bellair 1987, pp. 213–249.
- ^ Long 1963, p. 385.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 257.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 284.
- ^ a b Hocking 1997, pp. 309–313.
- ^ Fraser 2013, p. 60.
- ^ Fraser 2013, pp. 61 & 74.
- ^ Bellair 1987, p. 41.
- ^ a b Bellair 1987, pp. 262–263.
References
- "2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion". Second World War units, 1939–1945. Australian War Memorial. Archived from the original on 21 March 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
- Bellair, John (1987). From Snow to Jungle: A History of the 2/3rd Australian Machine Gun Battalion. Sydney, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 0-04-158012-5.
- Brune, Peter (2004) [2003]. A Bastard of a Place: The Australians in Papua. Crows Nest, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74114-403-1.
- Dennis, Peter; ISBN 0-19-553227-9.
- Faulkner, Andrew (2008). Arthur Blackburn, VC: An Australian Hero, His Men, and Their Two World Wars. Kent Town, South Australia: Wakefield Press. ISBN 978-1-86254-784-1.
- Fraser, Bryce (2013). The Combat Effectiveness of Australian and American Infantry Battalions in Papua in 1942–1943 (PhD thesis). Wollongong, New South Wales: University of Wollongong.
- Hocking, Philip (1997). The Long Carry: A History of the 2/1st Australian Machine Gun Battalion, 1939–1946. Melbourne, Victoria: 2/1 Machine Gun Battalion Association. ISBN 0-646-30817-3.
- James, Richard (2017). Australia's War with France: The Campaign in Syria and Lebanon, 1941. Newport, New South Wales: Big Sky Publishing. ISBN 978-1-925520-92-7.
- ISBN 978-0-521-51411-8.
- Keogh, Eustace (1965). The South West Pacific 1941–45. Melbourne, Victoria: Grayflower. OCLC 7185705.
- Kuring, Ian (2004). Redcoats to Cams: A History of Australian Infantry 1788–2001. Loftus, New South Wales: Australian Military History Publications. ISBN 1-876439-99-8.
- OCLC 18400892.
- Long, Gavin (1953). Greece, Crete and Syria. Australia in the War of 1939–1945. Series 1 – Army. Vol. II (1st ed.). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian War Memorial. OCLC 3134080.
- Long, Gavin (1963). The Final Campaigns. Australia in the War of 1939–1945, Series 1 – Army. Vol. VII (1st ed.). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian War Memorial. OCLC 1297619.
- Palazzo, Albert (2004). "Organising for Jungle Warfare". In Dennis, Peter; Grey, Jeffrey (eds.). The Foundations of Victory: The Pacific War 1943–1944. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Army History Unit. pp. 86–101. ISBN 978-0-646-43590-9. Archived from the originalon 9 March 2016.
- Wigmore, Lionel (1957). The Japanese Thrust. Australia in the War of 1939–1945. Series 1 – Army. Vol. IV (1st ed.). Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Australian War Memorial. OCLC 3134219.