[57], Each division also had a light anti-aircraft regiment. [44][a] Each regiment also had three Sabre squadrons;[30] generally comprising four troops each of four tanks, and a squadron headquarters of three tanks. at the best online prices at eBay! [11] The regular army was built around 30 cavalry or armoured regiments and 140 infantry battalions. (see Anzio order of battle for British forces involved). The 14th Indian Infantry Division had advanced to Donbaik, only a few miles from the end of the peninsula, when they were halted by a smaller Japanese force and the offensive was a total failure. [152], Operation Compass was a success and the Western Desert Force advanced across Libya capturing Cyrenaica, 115,000 Italian soldiers, hundreds of tanks and artillery pieces and more than 1,100 aircraft with very few casualties of their own. WW2 British Army Puttees . [49] This was changed late in 1940 to three batteries each of eight guns. [144][145][146] A further three Territorial divisions, all 2nd Line and poorly trained and without their supporting artillery, engineer and signals units, arrived later in the same month. [12] The Territorial Army numbered 438,100, with a reserve of around 20,750 men. These were the 48th (South Midland), 50th (Northumbrian) and the 51st (Highland) Infantry Divisions. British Army during World War II ... Battle of Muar map.jpg 900 × 528; 62 KB. [188] About 100,000 British and Commonwealth troops became prisoners of war during the Battle of Malaya. The Dodecanese Campaign was an attempt by the British to liberate the Italian held Dodecanese islands in the Aegean Sea following the surrender of Italy, and use them as bases against the German controlled Balkans. However, the number of British infantry battalions serving in the theatre was the equivalent of eight infantry divisions. [110] In the early years of the war Eighth Army suffered from poor leadership and repeated reversals of fortune until the Second Battle of El Alamein when it advanced across Libya into Tunisia and joined the First Army in the 18th Army Group. A report by Lieutenant-Colonel A. H. Pepys of 19 June, included comment that German Tiger and Panther tanks outclassed Cromwell and Sherman tanks as badly as Panzer III and IV tanks against Crusaders and Honeys in 1941. Reports after 6 June show changes in theory and show the flaws in Home Forces and 21st Army Group training. [202], The British 5th Infantry Division (minus the 15th Infantry Brigade), as well as the 29th Independent Infantry Brigade Group, and commandos were landed at Courrier Bay and Ambararata Bay, west of the major port of Diego Suarez, on the northern tip of Madagascar. In the winter of 1940–41, new armoured regiments were formed by converting the remaining mounted cavalry and yeomanry regiments. The British Bren light machine gun with a rate of fire of 500 rounds a minute and 30 round magazine,[90] came up against the German MG 42 which had a rate of fire of 1,500 rounds per minute and ammunition belts of 200 rounds. [84] After its introduction in May 1942 the more powerful Ordnance QF 6-pounder replaced the QF 2-pounder during the second part of the war. [29] The rifle platoon had a HQ, which included a 2-inch mortar and an anti tank weapon team, and three rifle sections, each containing seven riflemen and a three-man Bren gun team. [June 8, 1944], HQ Twelfth Army Group situation map. Crusader was the first victory over the Germans by British-led forces in the war. They were the 12th (Eastern), 23rd (Northumbrian) and 46th Infantry Divisions and had been sent to France on labour duties. [233], In an effort to use the port of Antwerp, the Canadian First Army including Lieutenant-General John Crocker's I Corps, began the Battle of the Scheldt and the Battle of Walcheren Causeway in October and November. The first Territorial Army (TA) formations arrived in January 1940. [159], After Operation Compass the Italians despatched the Ariete and Trento Divisions to North Africa,[160] and from February to early May, Operation Sonnenblume saw the German Afrika Korps arrive in Tripoli to reinforce the Italians. [219][220], The Allied invasion of Normandy took place on 6 June 1944: the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division landed at Gold Beach, and the British 3rd Infantry Division at Sword Beach; the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, with some British units, at Juno Beach. [56] Its replacement, the 6-pounder, nevertheless did not enter service until early 1942. [124] The British were involved in the Battle for Caen, but did not capture the city until 9 July, in the process suffering heavy losses on a scale alike to those sustained during the First World War. [68] Popski's Private Army, formed in August 1942, was also tasked with missions behind the lines to gather intelligence, blow up installations and ambush small patrols. [143] At the start of August, Chater had about 4,000 soldiers from the Somaliland Camel Corps, 2nd (Nyasaland) Battalion, King's African Rifles (KAR), 1st Battalion, Northern Rhodesia Regiment, 3rd Battalion, 15th Punjab Regiment, 1st Battalion, 2nd Punjab Regiment, 1st Battalion, 2nd Punjab Regiment and 2nd Battalion, Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment). [225], Just before that the Allied invasion of the South of France, had taken place on 15 August. For example, the 52nd (Lowland) Infantry Division was converted to a Mountain Division, with lighter equipment and transport. The East African campaign started in August 1940, when the Italians attacked British Somaliland. The Eighth Army was formed from the Western Desert Force in September 1941,[109] under the command of Lieutenant-General Sir Alan Cunningham. When the UK declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939, the National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939 was rushed through Parliament that required all fit men between the ages of 18 and 41 years to register for training (except for those in exempted industries and occupations). ATM 33 was published on 2 July 1940, only eleven days after the report contained the findings of the Bartholomew Committee on the lessons of the debacle in France was written. Currency. Available also through the Library of Congress web site as a raster image. [192] The Eighth Army retreated over the Egyptian border, where the German advance was stopped in the First Battle of El Alamein. The last major action was at Andramanalina on 18 October, and the Vichy French forces surrendered near Ihosy on 8 November. Eight regular army divisions existed at the start of the war or were formed immediately afterwards from garrisons in the Middle East. Commanded by Generalleutnant Erwin Rommel, the 5th Light and 15th Panzer Divisions went on the offensive. The effort failed, with the whole of the Dodecanese falling to the Germans within two months, and the Allies suffering heavy losses in men and ships. [118], The 11th Army Group was activated in November 1943 to act as the land forces HQ for the newly formed South East Asia Command. [139], The occupation of Norway led to a possible German presence in Iceland, this along with the island's strategic importance, alarmed the British. Later issues took longer and covered longer periods, NTW 6 covered Cyrenaica from November 1941 to January 1942 and was published in July 1942. Ten infantry battalions were reformed as reconnaissance battalions. Geography and Map Division, Library of Congress. Colour photolithograph, artist unknown, reproduction published by HMSO, London, 1952. [June 26, 1944], HQ Twelfth Army Group situation map. Excellent Condition. Seventh Army under command Lieutenant General George S. Patton. [38] By the Battle of Normandy in 1944, the divisions consisted of an armoured brigade of three armoured regiments and a motorised infantry battalion, and an infantry brigade containing three motorised infantry battalions. [176], The British in the Anglo-Iraqi War had to contend with the four infantry divisions of the Royal Iraqi Army (RIrA). Unlike most armies of the period, in which artillery observers could only request fire support, a British Army FOO (who was supposedly a captain but could even be a subaltern) could demand it, not merely from his own battery, but from the full regiment, or even the entire field artillery of a division if required. £155.00 Approx $211.75, €174.94 . [30], The Royal Artillery was a large corps, responsible for the provision of field, medium, heavy, mountain, anti-tank and anti-aircraft units. During this time, the army suffered from a lack of funding. [78] The issue of weapons to LDV and then Home Guard units was solved when emergency orders were placed for First World War vintage Ross Rifles from Canada and Pattern 1914 Enfield and M1917 Enfield rifles from the United States. [7] Second priority was the creation of a bomber force for the Royal Air Force (RAF) to retaliate against the expected attacks on British cities. £37.99. On 6 May, during Operation Vulcan, the British took Tunis, and American forces reached Bizerte. The Parachute battalions formed the core of the 1st and 6th airborne divisions and the 2nd Independent Parachute Brigade. Much of what was lost was obsolete and the re-equipment programme produced the mass of artillery that proved decisive from 1942 onwards. [250], In Burma the Battle of Meiktila and Mandalay started in January, despite logistical difficulties, the British were able to deploy large armoured forces in Central Burma. The British 8th Army are seen driving tanks with German POW's in tow through Hamburg, Germany in this silent footage from the last year of World War II. [98], The MTPs, ATM, ATI, NTW and CRO provide a picture of military theory as it evolved before D Day. [165] It was conceived as a rapid blow in the Sollum area, and intended to create advantageous conditions from which to launch Operation Battleaxe, the main offensive that was planned for June. [240] This was the first time that British and Indian troops had held and defeated a major Japanese attack. It had control of two armies: Eighth Army under command of Montgomery and U.S. [110] Over time the Eighth Army would be commanded by Neil Ritchie, Claude Auchinleck, Bernard Montgomery, Oliver Leese and Richard McCreery. With the British Army being the least popular service compared to the Royal Navy and RAF, a higher proportion of army recruits were said to be dull and backwards.[21]. [241], In Germany the 21st Army Group offensive towards the Rhine began in February. [85] [194] The Axis forces made a new attempt to break through to Cairo in August, in the Battle of Alam el Halfa but were stopped after the British fought a purely defensive battle. One year later, Allied armies invaded Germany, forcing the Germans to surrender. [63] The Parachute Regiment was created and by the end of the war it possessed 17 battalions. £85.00 Approx $116.12, €95.94 . [164], In May, the 22nd Guards Brigade and elements of the British 7th Armoured Division launched Operation Brevity. [20], The pre-war army had allowed recruits to be assigned to the Corps of their wishes. [186], On the Malay Peninsula the Japanese invasion of Malaya also started on 8 December 1941. Its commanders were General Sir Henry Maitland Wilson and Lieutenant-General Sir William George Holmes. Here are resources on World War II with emphasis on gaming, modeling, ... Maps. [178] The war lasted from 2–31 May, with the British forces grouped together in Iraqforce. The remaining personnel carried out Operation Collar against German-occupied France, before being merged into the Commandos. [52] One notable ATS member was No. [28], The infantry battalion consisted of the battalion Headquarters (HQ), HQ company (signals and administration platoons), four rifle companies (HQ and three rifle platoons), a support company with a carrier platoon, mortar platoon, anti tank platoon and pioneer platoon. It controlled British and Commonwealth land forces stationed in the eastern Mediterranean. British XXX Corps, under Lieutenant General Brian Horrocks, provided the ground forces and the British 1st Airborne Division was part of a major airborne assault to take place in the Netherlands. [71], The Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) was the women's branch of the British Army during the Second World War. [229][230] Unfortunately Montgomery (despite warnings) left the estuary of the River Scheldt in German hands, making the port of Antwerp unusable. [121] The commander was Field Marshal Harold Alexander and was responsible for mounting the Allied invasion of Sicily in July 1943. [175], The Battle of Crete followed. [3] Developments were constrained by the Treasury. Starting with the D-Day Invasion, the maps give daily details on the military campaigns in Western Europe, showing the progress of the Allied Forces as they push towards Germany. [189] The Japanese conquest of Burma started in January. Formed in September 1938, enlistment was open to woman aged 18 upwards who could enlist for general or local service (Local service they served in their own local area, General service they could be sent where they were needed and could be anywhere in the country). The structure of British armoured divisions changed several times before and during the war. Even before the 6-pounder was introduced, it was felt that even heavier weapons would be needed, so the 17-pounder was designed, first seeing service in the North African Campaign in late 1942. [13] The process of allocating men would remain ad hoc at the start of the war. I Corps, commanded by Lieutenant-General John Dill,[130] consisted of the 1st and 2nd Infantry Divisions and the II Corps, commanded by Lieutenant-General Alan Brooke,[131] of the 3rd and 4th Infantry Divisions. Buy Now. For example, the 2nd and 6th battalions of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers were merged in August 1944. [204], January 1943, in North Africa German and Italian troops retreating westwards reached Tunisia. At the beginning of that war, about every third battalion in an Indian Army division was British. However the Lines of Communications units were predominantly British. [12], In May 1939 the Military Training Act 1939 introduced limited conscription to meet the growing threat of Nazi Germany. In Burma, Brigadier Orde Wingate, and the 77th Indian Infantry Brigade, or the Chindits as they were better known, infiltrated the Japanese lines in February, marched deep into Burma in Operation Longcloth. Fire support was provided by the allocation of an MMG company, anti tank battery, Royal Engineer company and/or field artillery regiment as required. British cloth maps were not only used by Allied aircrews during WWII but also by special operatives such as Major William E. Colby, a US officer with the Office of Strategic Services (and later a director of the Central Intelligence Agency), who carried an FGS A/E map during Mission Rype in … There is little evidence in the documents of a frank acknowledgement of the failings of British tanks in North Africa and material criticising equipment is absent perhaps because the War Office and higher commands thought that admitting inadequacies would affect morale. The structure of the British Army had been organized to sacrifice firepower for mobility and removed from its commanders the fire support weapons that were needed to advance over the battlefield. Our collection of other WW2 British bits & pieces . In 1944 the British Army returned to France and with its Allies drove the German Army back into Germany. [11] This force comprised 29 yeomanry regiments (eight of which were still to be fully mechanized), 12 tank and 232 infantry battalions. [65], Units that operated as smaller bodies included the Long Range Desert Group, which was formed in North Africa to report on movements and activities behind the German and Italian lines. [210] The landings were fiercely opposed by the Germans who had brought up six divisions during the delay between the capture of Sicily and the invasion of in Italy, and at one point consideration was given to an evacuation. Another stalemate ensued, with the combined Anglo-American force facing stiff resistance, suffering severe losses and almost being driven back into the sea. Headquarters. It was often referred to as the "Forgotten Army" because its operations in the Burma Campaign were overlooked by the contemporary press, and remained more obscure than those of the corresponding formations in Europe for long after the war. [137], However, the British Army's first encounter with the Germans during the Second World War had been in the Norwegian Campaign, following the German invasion on 9 April 1940. Lieutenant General Montgomery reimposed and reinforced this principle when he assumed command of the Eighth Army in North Africa in 1942, halting a tendency to split divisions into uncoordinated brigades and "penny packets". "The British Army is wasting manpower in this war almost as badly as it did in the last war. 6 Commando and elements of the U.S. 1st Armored Division. The first ATI was published in January 1941 and on 19 May ATI 3 Handling of an Armoured Division appeared, based on work in January and March. 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