Somaliland Camel Corps
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (October 2016) |
Somaliland Camel Corps | |
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1945 Sheikh Bashir Rebellion | |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Hastings Ismay, 1st Baron Ismay Eric Charles Twelves Wilson |
The Somaliland Camel Corps (SCC) was a British Colonial Auxiliary Forces unit which was raised in British Somaliland. It existed from 1914 until 1944.
Beginnings and the Dervish rebellion
In 1888, after signing successive treaties with the then ruling Somali Sultans, the British established a protectorate in northern present-day Somaliland referred to as British Somaliland.[1] The British immediately recognized the affinity between the Somali people and their camel charges. The "Somali Camel Constabulary" was an early attempt to harness this natural affinity militarily.
In 1895, the haroun established the
Somaliland Campaign
On 9 August 1913, the "Somaliland Camel Constabulary" suffered a serious defeat at the Battle of
On 12 March 1914, the British set out to create what was to become the Somaliland Camel Corps, to maintain order in the protectorate. The corps served against the "Mad Mullah" but after four big expeditions to capture him, Hassan remained at large. During the same period, the corps set an impressive standard by covering 150 mi (240 km) in seventy-two hours. The SCC grew to include some 700 riders.
In November 1919, the British began the fifth expedition. In 1920, a combined land and air offensive defeated the Dervish army and occupied the capital, using the Somaliland Camel Corps, the 12 aircraft of Z Force Royal Air Force, Somaliland Police, elements from the 2nd (Nyasaland) Battalion and 6th (British Somaliland) Battalion of the King's African Rifles (KAR) and an Indian battalion.
During the
World War II
In September 1939, the Somaliland Camel Corps had a total strength of fourteen British officers, one British non-commissioned officer, and 554 non-European (mostly ethnic
At the beginning of the East African Campaign, the Somaliland Camel Corps, bolstered with a battalion of the Northern Rhodesian Regiment, had 1,475 men to defend British Somaliland. Reinforcements were eventually sent from Aden in a vain hope to stop the Italian invasion.
During the Italian conquest of British Somaliland, the Somaliland Camel Corps skirmished and screened the Italian attacking force along the border before pulling back to more defensible positions at the Tug Argan gap. During the Battle of Tug Argan, fought between 11–15 August when the Italian invaders attempted to force the positions, Camel Corps officer Captain Eric Charles Twelves Wilson of the East Surreys received the Victoria Cross (VC) for his use of a machine gun during the defence of Observation Hill. Despite wounds, malaria, and having several guns destroyed from under him, he stayed at his post. Wilson was the only VC recipient during the Italian invasion of British Somaliland; only six other VCs were awarded for operations in East Africa. Wilson was later found alive in an Italian prisoner of war camp.
The British were eventually forced to withdraw from Berbera on 17 August 1940.[3] With the final withdrawal, most of the troops of the Somaliland Camel Corps were disbanded.[4]
On 16 March 1941, less than one year from the date of withdrawal, the British returned to the colony. Soon afterwards the Somaliland Camel Corps was re-founded. By 18 April, the unit was at about 80% of its former strength. The Camel Corps spent the following months rounding up stray Italians and policing against local bandits. In 1942, the Somaliland Camel Corps became a mechanized regiment.
On 30 April 1944, six bombers of
Organization
In 1939, on the brink of war, the Somaliland Camel Corps was organized as follows:
- Headquarters and Headquarters Company, The Somaliland Camel Corps: Hargeysaalong Route 1 Highway)
- 'A' (Camel) Company: Hargeisa
- 'B' (Nyasa Infantry) Company: Tug Argan- southwest of Laferug near Hargeisa south of Assa Hills
- 'C' Company: Burao
- 'D' Company: Tug Argan (less 2 Platoons at Sheekh)
Uniform
The troopers of the Somaliland Camel Corps had a distinctive dress which was based on the standard British Army
Notable servicemen
- Arthur Reginald Chater
- Hastings Ismay, 1st Baron Ismay
- Adrian Carton de Wiart
- Henry Howard
- Ismail Mahamed Ali
- Eric Charles Twelves Wilson
- Charles Doughty-Wylie
- Duncan Glasfurd
- David Smiley
See also
- British Somaliland
- Somaliland Scouts
- Bikaner Camel Corps
- Sudan Defence Force
- King's African Rifles
- Camel cavalry
Notes
- ^ Cana, Frank Richardson (1911). Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 25 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 378–384, see page 381.
British Somaliland... & History...
. In - ^ Wavell, p.2719
- ^ Time Magazine, Little Dunkirk
- ^ Mollo, p. 138
- ^ Klemen, L (1999–2000). "The U-Boat War in the Indian Ocean". Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942. Archived from the original on 2011-03-21.
- ^ Mollo, p. 139
References
- L, Klemen (2000). "Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941–1942".
- Mollo, Andrew; McGregor, Malcolm; Turner, Pierre (1981). The armed forces of World War II : uniforms, insignia, and organization. New York: Crown Publishers. ISBN 0-517-54478-4.
- Wavell, Archibald, Operations in the Somaliland Protectorate, 1939-1940 (Appendix A - G. M. R. Reid and A.R. Godwin-Austen) published in "No. 37594". The London Gazette. 4 June 1946. pp. 2719–2727.
External links
- "Archibald Wavell's Despatch on Operations in the Somaliland Protectorate, 1939-1940 (Appendix A - G. M. R. Reid and A.R. Godwin-Austen)" (PDF). Supplement to the London Gazette, Number 37594. June 4, 1946. Archived from the original(PDF) on January 22, 2010. Retrieved December 5, 2009.
- Photos of The Imperial Camel Corps, a North African unit that also used camels.